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“Though filling the pit might be a bit of work, being close to home and right across the street once it’s built makes everything convenient. It’s reassuring to have it right at our doorstep,” Jiang Mixia added in agreement.
“Alright,” Jiang Youcheng pushed around the rice in his bowl. “Let’s go with that plan. I’ll talk to Li Zheng about this later, and we can start organizing everything.”
It was already deep into autumn, and they needed to swiftly get the workshop set up before winter arrived. Otherwise, it would be inconvenient with the freezing weather, and the constructed buildings might not be sturdy.
“Um…”
Before Jiang Mixia could finish speaking, there was a loud “clang,” and Song Jingyun’s bowl was knocked over.
The sticky rice porridge spilled all over the table, splashing onto his clothes, making them quite dirty.
“I’m sorry…” Song Jingyun hurried to find a cloth to clean up, explaining, “I just dozed off for a moment…”
As he spoke, he yawned.
“It’s all right, I’ll take care of it. You go inside and change your clothes quickly. It’s getting late, and it’s cold. If your clothes get wet, you might catch a cold. Leave them in that basin, and I’ll wash them for you tomorrow,” Jiang Mixia hastily took the cloth.
Song Jingyun was always the glutton, getting quite excited when it came to meals. This time, during dinner, he seems to have dozed off, clearly showing how tired he was.
Recently, due to the orders from the tea garden and the waterproof satchels and baskets, the family had been extremely busy. Jiang Youcheng had to manage the workers, while Song Jingyun had to rush to complete the work and teach the apprentices, which was truly exhausting.
Jiang Mixia felt sorry seeing the visible weight loss on Song Jingyun, who had worked hard to gain a few pounds. The family didn’t blame him for the mishap; instead, they were concerned about him catching a cold. This made Song Jingyun feel warm inside. After a quick “sorry,” he hurried to change his clothes and then resumed eating after receiving a freshly poured bowl of porridge from Liu Shi.
“Mom, let’s slaughter a hen tomorrow and make soup, adding some red dates,” Jiang Mixia suggested. “We can also buy some big bones, and along with radishes or lotus roots, make some bone broth.”
Since Song Jingyun was so tired, he needed to drink more soup to replenish.
Understanding Jiang Mixia’s intention, Liu Shi nodded busily. “With everyone working hard at home, we do need to drink more meat soup or something. You don’t worry about it; I’ll go and get everything tomorrow.”
“Actually, we’re running low on sewing supplies at home. Tomorrow, I’ll go to the town to buy some, and while I’m there, I’ll see what nourishing items are available and purchase some,” Liu Shi said. “I’ve heard that when making soup, people often use Chinese herbal medicine. I’ll visit the herbal shop and see what we can add.”
As the family lived comfortably, Liu Shi became more willing to spend on food. After all, money is meant to be spent, and compared to wealth, the family’s health is the most important.
Jiang Mixia also agreed, “Since Madam Zheng and the others took the patterns today, and we’ve finished drawing this month’s patterns, I’ll help to split the bamboo strips and weave some baskets tomorrow.”
While her skills were not as good as Song Jingyun’s, she could manage to weave the simple “人” character patterned mats that the tea garden required. Sharing the workload would help alleviate Song Jingyun’s exhaustion.
Seeing the whole family taking care of him, Song Jingyun couldn’t help but smile as he lay down after washing up.
“Hey, wife.”
As Jiang Mixia lay down, Song Jingyun leaned in, “I really feel that this time travel is quite good.”
“Why do you say that?” Jiang Mixia blinked.
“You see, there’s delicious food, and my parents dote on me. I feel really good,” Song Jingyun’s face was filled with happiness and contentment.
The joy of delicious food was understandable; after all, Song Jingyun used to survive by absorbing energy in the interstellar world. Experiencing the delight of food for the first time naturally made it hard to stop.
But this affection…
“When you were in the interstellar world, didn’t your parents care for you?” Jiang Mixia asked, feeling puzzled.
“On our planet, people grow from frozen embryos in incubators. There are many embryos in the incubation chamber, and a certain number are hatched each year. So, from the time we gain awareness, we face the staff in the incubation chamber. There are no parents, nor is there the concept of marriage as you mentioned,” Song Jingyun explained.
I see.
Growing from embryos without a sense of family or lineage, everyone was equal. Each day only required absorbing energy for survival, free from wars and conflicts. It’s no wonder Song Jingyun appeared particularly naive and ignorant in social interactions; it was all due to his upbringing.
Jiang Mixia couldn’t help but feel a wave of emotion.
Song Jingyun continued, “By the way, yesterday while I was busy, a woman came to borrow a hoe and chatted with my mother, asking why we haven’t made any progress. My mother said we’re still young, and there’s no rush.”
“Wife, what kind of progress do we need? Do we need to make some noise? What does being young have to do with a lack of progress? Should progress only come with age?” Song Jingyun continued. “I feel like I’m not quite understanding. Can you explain it to me, wife?”
Jiang Mixia: “…”
Sudden interjection!
The unexpected mishap!
“Ahem!” Jiang Mixia coughed lightly, concealing her embarrassment. “Didn’t Mom say we’re still young? If we’re young, then it’s not something we should be considering. We have to wait until we’re old enough to think about this issue.”
“Yes, just like how children shouldn’t interrupt when adults are talking. That’s the idea…” she continued.
“But you’ve mentioned before that we are part of the family, and as such, we have the right to voice our opinions when discussing family matters,” Song Jingyun persisted, still puzzled.
Jiang Mixia: “…”
When did this little husband learn to be so persistent?
“Alright, anyways, for now, we don’t need to think about this,” Jiang Mixia turned over, wrapping herself tightly. “Okay, okay, it’s time to sleep. Weren’t you just extremely tired a moment ago?”
Seeing his wife seeming a bit impatient, Song Jingyun felt even more bewildered. However, following the principle of listening to his wife, he obediently lay down to sleep.
Over the next few days, the meals at home were particularly sumptuous.
Red date and astragalus chicken soup, tangerine peel and hawthorn lamb soup, winter melon and wolfberry pork rib soup…
Almost every day, there was a different soup, each prepared by Liu Shi following recipes she obtained from the herbal shop. Slowly simmered over low heat, these soups were rich and fragrant, making them truly mouthwatering.
Song Jingyun was absolutely delighted, finishing each meal with a round, contented belly.
Tuesday came, and once again, they eagerly looked forward to the weekend…