Chapter 36: Something Was Dug Up from the Ground

Zhou Ruiyuan held Du Wanchun tightly in his arms, resting his chin on her warm shoulder. He whispered softly in her ear, “Thank you, my wife.”

Du Wanchun gripped the brush firmly, her face pressed against his chest. “Husband, we are husband and wife—there is no need for thanks. This brush is so important to you; we should keep it well. Who knows? It might be useful in the future.”

Zhou Ruiyuan slowly released her and took the brush from her hand. After gazing at it deeply, he nodded. “Yes, we’ll keep it well…”

“Come on, husband, let’s go inside,” Du Wanchun said, reaching out to him with a warm smile.

Her hand was small and slender, yet fair, making one instinctively want to cherish it.

Zhou Ruiyuan lowered his gaze, stretched out his hand, and tightly held hers in his palm as they walked into the house together.

His large hand wrapped around hers—it was warm and reassuring. Du Wanchun looked up at his gentle and handsome face, and her heart felt as sweet as honey.

When Zhou Daniu saw them enter, she spread out the copper coins in her hand, looking puzzled. “Wanchun, there’s a full hundred wen here. Where did you get this money?”

Du Wanchun’s eyes curved into a smile as she quickly replied, “It was Aunt He. Didn’t we sell some radishes to Magistrate Li’s household last time? He really liked our radishes and wants to buy more, so he gave me a deposit and asked us to deliver another batch.”

Zhou Daniu was overjoyed and immediately turned around. “That’s great news! I’ll take Zhou Zhao with me to pick radishes from the field.”

Du Wanchun stopped her. “Mother, I’ll go with you.”

Zhou Daniu beamed. “Alright, I’ll go get the baskets.”

Zhou Ruiyuan held Du Wanchun’s hands in his own, looking at her with concern. “The farm work is too strenuous. Let the third and second brothers handle it.”

Du Wanchun looked up at him and shook her head. “It’s alright. I can handle it. We’re family, there’s no need to divide our work. Third Brother just recovered his hearing, and Second Brother’s eyesight is still improving. It wouldn’t be good for them to overexert themselves. If I can help, I should.”

Zhou Ruiyuan finally made up his mind. “Then I’ll go with you.”

Du Wanchun glanced down at his legs. “But husband, your legs…”

Zhou Ruiyuan immediately released her hands and took a step forward. “Look, I can walk now.”

Indeed, he could walk, though with some difficulty.

Zhou Ruiyuan was a man of great perseverance. Even though walking was still strenuous for him, his face remained composed and unbothered.

To an outsider, it might seem as though he had fully recovered.

But Du Wanchun knew—he simply didn’t want her to work too hard. He wanted to help her.

After thinking for a moment, she glanced toward the freshly picked roses in the house and said, “Husband, how about you stay home and help clean the flower petals? When we get back from the fields, we’ll go to the county to deliver the radishes. After that, we can buy the cauldron and bottles, so when we return, we can start making rosewater immediately.”

Zhou Ruiyuan furrowed his brows slightly. He knew his wife was trying to keep him from exhausting himself, but he didn’t agree right away.

In the end, it was Zhou Daniu who stepped in and firmly kept him at home.

Not wanting to delay them further, Zhou Ruiyuan could only compromise for now.

Du Wanchun followed Zhou Daniu, Zhou Zhao, and Zhou Feng to the fields.

In recent days, Zhou Feng’s eyesight had been improving day by day. Though he hadn’t fully recovered yet, he could now vaguely see some things.

Zhou Zhao supported him as they walked behind Du Wanchun, chatting and laughing along the way.

However, when the family arrived at the vegetable field, they were completely stunned by the sight before them.

The lettuce, which had only been planted not long ago, had already grown as tall as their knees.

The cabbages, too, were glistening with freshness—each one was twice the size of a typical mature cabbage, as big as a watermelon.

The rice in the nearby field had turned a rich golden hue, indicating that it would be ready for harvest in just a few days.

As for the radishes in the rocky field, they had grown even more, forming a lush green patch.

“Oh my heavens, this is an incredible harvest!” Zhou Daniu exclaimed in excitement, her eyes widening in disbelief.

“Mother, let me take a look!” Zhou Zhao eagerly ran forward and pulled out a stalk of lettuce.

The lettuce wasn’t just full of lush leaves—its stem was thick and sturdy, about the size of a child’s arm.

Zhou Zhao shook it in his hand and grinned. “Mother, Sister-in-law, this lettuce alone could last us two days.”

Zhou Daniu strode forward and took it from him, inspecting it carefully. “It really is remarkable.”

Overjoyed, the mother and son momentarily forgot about digging up radishes and instead pulled out several large cabbages, piling them to the side before heading toward the rocky field.

Du Wanchun quickly stepped forward to help, placing the freshly harvested vegetables into the baskets they had brought.

Meanwhile, Zhou Feng, who had been standing to the side, carefully made his way into the field, feeling the vegetable leaves as he spoke to them. “Mother, Sister-in-law, I remember these vegetables weren’t this big just a few days ago.”

Du Wanchun nodded. “That’s right. When we passed by yesterday, the rice hadn’t turned golden yet.”

Zhou Daniu looked up and said, “Maybe it’s because the weather has been warmer lately, so the rice and vegetables ripened earlier. Wanchun, here—catch these radishes!”

She tossed a bundle of radishes toward Du Wanchun.

Du Wanchun quickly caught them and placed them in the basket. Then, with the basket on her back, she walked over to the rocky field.

The radishes in this field weren’t particularly large, but there were plenty of them. They had already harvested several dozen pounds last time, and now there were just as many again—it seemed like no matter how many they pulled, there were always more left.

Du Wanchun took out a small hoe and began loosening the excess soil.

As she dug, something unexpected appeared—a piece of wood protruding from the earth.

This area had always been a rocky field, so there shouldn’t have been any wood buried here.

Puzzled, Du Wanchun continued digging with her hoe.

Before long, she had uncovered an entire section of wood, which emitted a faint yet pleasant fragrance.

Startled, she called out, “Mother, come quickly! Look at this—what do you think it is?!”