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Liu Zhoucheng, being a scholar, spoke in a rather reserved manner, especially with so many children in the room. He was careful to be subtle and only touched on the surface of matters.
Old Tan and Wan Chunmei, given their age and experience, understood immediately, especially when the topic of the black brothelwas mentioned. They couldn’t help but sigh. Once a woman entered such a place, it was nearly impossible for her to come out alive. It seemed like a form of retribution.
“The County magistrate Cao is truly unfortunate, marrying such a fickle woman,” Old Tan said deliberately.
Liu Zhoucheng smiled, took a sip of his wine, and replied, “Yes, but he can’t blame anyone else for that. He willingly married her.”
Old Tan nodded repeatedly.
The meal ended with more talk of the misfortunes of the Cao family.
After finishing his meal, Liu Zhoucheng finally spoke up about something that had been on his mind. “Brother Tan, I wonder if anyone in your family knows embroidery?”
Old Tan glanced around the room, his gaze landing on Tan Xiaomei, and he pointed to her. “Xiaomei, Xiaomei, our little sister’s embroidery skills are top-notch. She once learned from an experienced embroiderer at the county office.”
Tan Xiaomei quickly modestly replied, “That was in the past. Ever since I married, I haven’t had the time to quietly do any embroidery.”
Liu Zhoucheng smiled slowly. “It’s fine. I don’t need anything too elaborate. My mother has a piece of clothing that needs some repairs. Could you take a look and see if you can mend the embroidery?”
He then retrieved a small bundle from behind him and opened it to reveal a woman’s garment with two areas where the embroidery had unraveled.
Tan Xiaomei took the garment carefully, examined it closely, and nodded. “Yes, I can mend it, though it may take about ten days or half a month.”
Liu Zhoucheng’s eyes showed clear joy. “Then I’ll trouble you, Miss Tan, to fix the embroidery for me.”
Tan Xiaomei carefully folded the garment and said, “Liu Shiye, there’s no need to be so polite.”
After seeing her accept the clothing, Liu Zhoucheng left with ease, saying he would return to pick it up in ten days.
Old Tan watched his retreating figure and sighed, “This young man is really quite good. I wonder why, despite being at an age when he should have married, he hasn’t yet.”
Wan Chunmei smiled and said, “I asked Aunt Yu, and she said this young nephew has been focused on his studies all these years, which is why he hasn’t thought about getting married.”
Old Tan went inside to gather the bowls. “Look at how healthy and glowing he looks. He must not be far from a happy event.”
Wan Chunmei had the water for washing the dishes ready and said, “You can tell all that?”
Old Tan placed the bowls into the pot and, using a cloth to clean them, replied, “You don’t know this, do you? It’s all in the facial features. Just wait and see. It won’t be long before we’re attending his wedding banquet.”
Wan Chunmei poked him with her elbow, teasing, “The way you talk, so mysteriously. I actually believed you.”
Tan Xiaomei, who had been feeding little Qiyue some soft noodles at the table, quietly overheard their conversation. A faint look of disappointment appeared on her face.
Little Qiyue smacked her lips as she ate, and after finishing, she grabbed Tan Xiaomei’s hand with her tiny hands, shaking it a few times, her face full of joy.
Once everyone was done with their tasks, Tan Erqian shared the news about the large lingzhi mushroom with Old Tan.
Old Tan, not being knowledgeable about lingzhi or business, agreed to their plan.
Tan Erqian and Tan Yiliang were overjoyed. Without taking a break, the two of them headed back to the field.
Back at the lingzhi patch, they carefully harvested some of the large mushrooms and placed them in their baskets.
The lingzhi mushrooms were quite large, and just a few filled up the baskets.
Tan Yiliang turned around and said, “Second Brother, let’s just take these for now and come back for the rest later.”
Tan Erqian bent down and pushed aside the large mushrooms, laughing. “I’ll pick one more.”
As he did, he uncovered a small black puppy curled up underneath the mushrooms.
Tan Erqian was startled, standing up and pointing at the little black dog. “Big Brother, look! How is there a dog here?”
Tan Yiliang moved closer and, seeing the barely alive puppy, his heart softened. He quickly crouched down and gently picked it up.
The little black dog, which had been sleeping with its eyes closed, slowly opened them upon being held, staring intensely at the person who had lifted it.
Tan Yiliang looked down at the puppy, smiling. “Second Brother, this little dog is only about two or three months old. What do you think about us keeping it?”
“Keeping a dog?” Tan Erqian asked in surprise.
Tan Yiliang nodded. “Yes, exactly. Look at how much we have in the field, we could use a dog to watch over it.”
Tan Erqian thought this made a lot of sense and nodded. “Alright, let’s take it back and ask Mother. If she agrees, then we’ll keep it.”
Tan Yiliang gently patted the dog’s head, smiling. “Don’t worry, Mother will definitely agree.”
Tan Erqian lifted the basket and pulled his brother along. “Let’s go back and check with her.”
Tan Yiliang, holding the little black dog, was overjoyed as they made their way back home together.
When Wan Chunmei saw the little curly black dog, she didn’t have much of a fondness for it. After all, they could barely feed themselves, how could they afford to keep a dog?
But seeing how much Tan Yiliang liked it, she couldn’t bear to refuse. “Alright, if you want to keep it, then you need to take good care of it. A dog is like a person—it’s found you, so you must take responsibility for it for the rest of its life.”
Tan Yiliang nodded eagerly, holding the little black dog. “Don’t worry, Mother, I’ll take good care of it.”
He then bent down and stroked the dog’s chin, laughing. “You’re so black, I’ll call you Little Black. Little Black, Little Black!”
The little black dog half-closed its eyes and stared at the person in front of it. It didn’t seem very happy and didn’t seem to like its new name.