Time passed very quickly, while Zhao Zhengāan and Zhong Ziqiās business was on track, it was already the time for āGrain in Beard1āĀ season again.
Now, Zhong Ziqiās pregnancy was almost six months old, so it was impossible for him to go into the field and help to transplant the rice seedlings. Even if he wanted to help, Zhao Zhengāan and his family would not agree.
The good thing was that their family didnāt have that much land, just three mu of land. Zhao Zhengāan was able to find two people to work it all in one day.
Now, Father Shen and Shen Amu were officially living in this small village and dressed like ordinary people. Hong Ying had gone back while the head housekeeper stayed behind to help take over various kinds of chores.
From the initial surprise at the sudden appearance of three strangers, until later they knew that they were Zhong Ziqiās grandparents, the villagers had become used to their frequent visit to the village. At some point, they noticed that Li Zheng would often talk to the man who was said to be Zhong Ziqiās grandfather. Some people were curious and asked Li Zheng what they were talking about. They had never seen Li Zheng being such pleasant countenance to anyone before, especially when it was a stranger from outside the village.
Li Zheng said something that made people become muddleheaded, āMr. Shen Zhuowen is a man who has profound knowledgeā¦ā
From the random conversation with Father Shen, Li Zheng realized that he was a man of learning. Then from time to time, the more Li Zheng came into contact with him, the more he felt that Shen Zhuowen was very knowledgeable. His style of conversation and his mannerism were extraordinary. Li Zheng had a hunch that he was not simple. Shen Zhuowen did not look like an ordinary countryman at all. His good-looking, elegant and noble Fu lang, all showed that both of them were not simple but Li Zheng could not guess what kind of identity this person had.
āHave you found nice people to help you with the rice planting? The work will start tomorrow.ā
That night, Zhong Ziqi said that as he lay on the Kang bed, chatting with Zhao Zhengāan.
Zhao Zhengāan touched his belly, felt the movement inside and said : āIāve found it, when the time comes, we can just pay several wens for the work.ā
Zhong Ziqi nodded his head, after that he slapped away Zhao Zhengāanās increasingly unruly hand : āWhy are you still touching ah? Go to sleep!ā
Since he had been pregnant for almost six months, he didnāt know when it started that the little one in his belly had become lively. He could roll over, kick and punch to declare his existence. Zhong Ziqi felt very new and odd. From the initial dislike to a new and complicated feeling. Now, he is looking forward to the baby and loves him. It could even be said that Zhong Ziqi had gone through several changes in his heart.
All of these didnāt escape from Zhao Zhengāan observation. Zhao Zhengāan was happy to see this. He always felt that at the beginning, Zhong Ziqi did not like the child but slowly, after he got used to him, gradually he could not see the boredom in his eyes anymore. Instead, he was filled with love, the anticipation of the babyās arrival.
āSleep ā¦ sleep ā¦You still have to get up early tomorrow to work!ā
Zhong Ziqi glared at him as he warned him not to mess around but what Zhao Zhengāan thought at certain times was not something he could control.
Zhao Zhengāan wrapped himself around Zhong Ziqi like an octopus, undressed skillfully. After that, he began to do regular exercise.
Since Zhong Ziqi was pregnant, he had been forbidden to have intercourse for the first three months. This made Zhao Zhengāan suffered from the unspeakable misery. As soon as it was finally time to eat meat again after a period of great difficulty fasting, yet Zhong Ziqiās body was too weak to be tossed around. Each time, he was left wanting more and dissatisfied.
The next day, when Zhong Ziqi got up, Zhao Zhengāan had already left. In the house, he and Shen Amu were the only ones left.
āGrandma, where is grandfather?ā Zhong Ziqi yawned and rubbed his back as he walked out the door.
Shen Amu brought him the warmed-up food to the table. Now that he had completely followed the customs here and he even learnt how to cook! Although it was far away from being as good as Zhong Ziqiās cooking, it was still good enough to eat. It was the first time he had been in the kitchen to cook in almost 50 years. He came from a prestigious family background. Jiangnanās famous Jiang family that almost monopolized the silk business was his family. He had been spoiled and pampered since he was a child so he never cooked before. He even almost had to be fed to eat. Now he is here, slowly he is also learning something. Watching people eat his food, somehow he felt a sense of accomplishment.
āHim ah, heās gone to the braised meat workshop. Donāt worry about him, he canāt stay idle.ā
āHnā¦.grandma, have you eaten yet?ā Zhong Ziqi asked as he ate.
Shen Amu smiled, āIāve eaten. Zhengāan got up early, cooked the rice, ate some and left.ā
āEnā¦ Let me cook lunch! After that Iāll send it to him then. If their movements are quick, three people will probably be able to finish it in one day.ā
The reason their family kept the three acres of land and didnāt sell it was because it had enough food for him and Zhao Zhengāan. Now that they had three more people and three mouths to feed, naturally the supply couldnāt keep up. However, it didnāt take much time to keep the three mu of land, so they just kept it.
After eating, Zhong Ziqi and Shen Amu went out of the house. They went to the stewed meat workshop to take a look. There was nothing wrong there since the head housekeeper and Father Shen were keeping an eye on it. Both of them were experienced old men, they knew how to grasp peopleās hearts.
They could tell when someone was not looking right or when there was something strange in their little gestures. This was a level (realm) that Zhao Zhengāan and Zhong Ziqi were unable to reach.
Zhong Ziqi and Shen Amu came out from the workshop and went to their familyās field to have a look around, but as far as their eyes could see, there were basically all people, except for the elderly and children. As long as their families had fields, they were all busy in the fields at the moment.
On the way, they rarely met other people but occasionally, they would encounter villagers passing by, they would say hello to each other as long as their relationship was not too difficult.
Their land was close by, it didnāt take them long to get to the land. Zhao Zhengāan and the three of them had already gone far away. Zhong Ziqi didnāt call them either. Instead, Wang Cuihuaās family, who lived not far from their land, saw them. Wang Cuihua and Zhao Cheng both pulled long faces as they continued to plant rice seedlings like they hadnāt seen them.
Wang Cuihuaās mouth opened a few times, probably cursing and saying something unpleasant.
A while ago, when they heard that Zhong Ziqiās grandparents had come to visit, the annoying in the extreme Wang Cuihua and the Zhong family had come over andĀ tried to get closer2Ā butĀ they were scolded by Father Shen and Shen Amu who had already understood what had happened. There had been no contact between the two sides since then.
After a walk around the field, Zhong Ziqi and Shen Amu went back to clean up the house and handled some trivial matters. At noon, Zhong Ziqi cooked a stir-fried meat dish and a vegetarian dish. Zhong Ziqi knew that Zhao Zhengāan was a pure meat eater. Eat meat, then he would have the strength to work so he cooked a meat dish as a treat for him.
The people who had come to do the work were so pleased because they had a delicious lunch and even told Zhao Zhengāan after they had finished eating that he could call them immediately forĀ future work.
Zhao Zhengāan laughed and didnāt reply.
When he returned home in the afternoon, he talked to Zhong Ziqi about the incident: āDidnāt you see the way their eyes glowed? They told me that they will be coming next time, if there is a next job so they ask us to inform them. I think, next time if you show your skill, we wonāt even have to pay for the work.ā
āNext time, you do it.ā Zhong Ziqi said, not in a good mood. It was because they didnāt want to owe anyone a favour so they just directly hired someone and paid them the money.
āHe he, hey, actually this rice planting is quite tiring. Itās a good thing you didnāt go. My back is about to break.ā Zhao Zhengāan said as he twisted his waist.
āGet on the Kang bed, Iāll give you a message.ā Zhong Ziqi patted the bed and told him to come up.
Zhao Zhengāan immediately took off his shoes and lay down on the kang bed. Zhong Ziqi sat on him and gave him a massage.
āHowās that? Is it strong enough?ā Zhong Ziqi messaged and pressed his waist hard.
Zhao Zhengāan squinted his eyes and moaned continually, āMmm ā¦ comfortable ā¦ Thatās the placeā¦mmm.ā
Outside the door, Father Shen and Shen Amu looked at each other before then both of them shook their heads.
The young people nowadays ah, why do they know so little about restraint? In the daytime, to show obscene scenes (publicly) is not decent.
In the room, Zhong Ziqi slapped him hard : āCan you not scream soā¦ much like youāre in heat?ā
Zhao Zhengan lazily said, āIndeed, itās a little ā¦ā
Zhong Ziqi thought through for a while before then speechlessly, pinching him several times.
Zhao Zhengāan immediately āOuch, ouch!ā begged for forgiveness.
The fifth month passed. In June, Zhao Amu and Huang Amuās family officially set the date that in July, Zhao Ning and Huang Jinlei were going to get married.
At the same time, there was even better news ; An Ning is pregnant. It could be said that there were two simultaneous happy events in the family. Everyone who knew them well was happy for the family.
At the end of June, Shen Yubei arrived from the south, again without a word, so when he suddenly appeared at the Zhao familyās doorstep, this surprised everyone.
āUncleā¦ you didnāt even tell us that you are going to come!ā Zhong Ziqi said.
āIf I said it, you and Zhengāan would still come and pick me up. Why should I bother you guys with that? Itās not like I canāt find where your house is.ā Shen Yu Bei said with a smile.
āThen uncle, you come hereā¦Is everything okay over there?ā Zhong Ziqi knew that the Shen Familyās business couldnāt be left for too long.
āThatās right! Uncle ā¦ this time, how long can you stay here?ā Zhao Zhengāan also asked him.
āThis timeā¦I can probably stay for four or five days. I came to see how you guys are doing.ā
Father Shen frowned, he suddenly opened his mouth and said, āIs there something wrong? Everyone here is our own people, if you have something to say, you can just say it! Is there any problem with the business?ā
Everyone was startled by his words, they didnāt expect Father Shen to say something like that. Could it be that something really had happened?
āSon ahā¦whatās wrong? You donāt have to hide it from me and your father. Just say it!ā Shen Amu also asked anxiously.
Shen Yubei waved his hand, not knowing whether to laugh or cry: āYou guys donāt have to worry. The business is good!ā
They were relieved after they heard this.
āThen whatās wrong? There must be something that you hide from us.ā Shen Amu still knew his son very well because he knew he must have something that he wanted to say.
Shen Yu Bei muttered to himself irresolutely for a moment before he slowly said : āThere is one thing I want to discuss with you guys.ā
āWhat is it?ā
Shen Yu Bei smiled, āMy matterā¦ā
āAh?ā Several people took the same action by chance, dumbfounded for a moment.
āWhat is the situation? Brat, you better give me a clear explanation!ā Father Shen slapped the table and asked him, this matter was too sudden, so many years they had introduced him to many gers, yet he immediately rejected all of them.
Why does he suddenly want to open up today? Strange! Who has such a great charm?
āSon, which familyās ger have you fallen in love with? Tell Amu about itā¦ā Shen Amu asked happily, everyone he knew of the same age as Shen Yubei was now already having a child that could run all over the place. But their familyā son didnāt even have someone he liked. How could they not be anxious? They want to hold their grandchildren too!
āThis personā¦ Father, Amu, you also know him, he is Gao Hanjin from the Gao family.ā
āWhat? Isnāt Han Jin a man? You, youā¦ Heā¦ heā¦ā Shen Amu was a little unsure of what to say.
Father Shen knit his brow while looking toward Shen Yu Bei: āWhatās going on? Speak clearly!ā
Shen Yu Bei knew the two would react this way, somewhat helplessly, he said,āFather, Amu, Han Jin is a ger, not a man.ā
āWhat? Heā¦he is a ger? What is this all about?ā
āItās like this, when he was a child, Gao Amu injured his health. The doctor said he might not be able to conceive or have children again. Uncle Gao and his big household family and business need an heir. They canāt have no one to inherit the family business after their one hundred years old history of business . They raised Han Jin as a son and they never told anyone about it so no one knew about it. However several years ago, they didnāt expect that Gao Amu was miraculously pregnant again and the child was a boy. Han Jinās heavy burden was slowly lifted up, so he could resume his status as a ger and get married.ā
Father Shen and Shen Amu instantly shook their heads in disbelief, no wonder, they always thought that despite being a man, why Gao Hanjinās appearance was so soft and reserved? So actually he was a ger ah!
1
[čē§ /MĆ”ng zhĆ²ng :Ā Mangzhong or Grain in Beard, 9th of the 24 solar terms äŗååēÆę°£|äŗååčę° 6th-20th June]