Chapter 124: Wild Wolves
At the New Year’s Eve dinner table, in addition to pork, lamb, beef, and chicken, there were also crabs and shrimp. Qingyan also had Qiu Henian order a large pot of their famous braised perch from the southern restaurant in the county.
This dish was reputedly delicious, and although it was quite costly, they rarely indulged except on New Year’s. As midnight approached, the sound of firecrackers outside startled Jindou awake, who had already fallen asleep, causing him to cry loudly.
Qingyan held him in his arms and comforted him for a while until he stopped crying. However, once he was laid down, if his back touched the bed, he would pout and refuse to stay there. Even placing him in his favorite cradle didn’t work.
With many family members present, he curiously looked at each one. When Qiu Henian took him, Jindou stared at his father’s face.
Qiu Henian held the child and encouraged Qingyan to eat well. He himself hadn’t drunk much that night and refused San Yao from pouring more wine after he’d had his share.
San Yao, who was in high spirits, tried once to persuade him to drink more, but seeing that he truly didn’t want to, she didn’t insist further and sat down to drink slowly.
Now that the three families of Lao Wang’s household were together and without the older generation, decisions were made by his second brother, much like an elder. San Yao dared not tease him as he did with his buddies.
After finishing the New Year’s Eve dinner and tidying up, they exchanged auspicious words and dispersed.
However, Qingyan and Qiu Henian didn’t rest. They dressed Jindou in thick cotton coats and pants, tiger-head hats, and shoes, and wrapped him in two layers of blankets, leaving only his small face exposed.
The couple carried the child to the riverside outside.
Even in the late night, there were still people on the road, all families with children, either carrying or holding their children.
In Liuxi Village, the tradition after staying up on New Year’s Eve was to take the children to the river to skate on the ice and roll around, praying for health and safety in the coming year.
In the harsh winter of the north, although the river wasn’t deep, it froze solidly. At this time, it was safe to skate without worry.
On the 30th day of every year, the village head would send people to clear the snow from the shallowest part of the river, exposing the ice surface. The villagers didn’t need to be notified; they naturally knew to gather there every year.
When the couple arrived, they saw clusters of oil lamps flickering on the river surface. Many children were already rolling around on the ice, laughing joyously. Some people were setting off fireworks, occasionally lighting up the sky with a faint smell of gunpowder.
Despite the late-night cold, the lively scene made people forget about the chill.
Finding a vacant spot, the couple placed a lantern down, and Qiu Henian placed Jindou on the ice from his embrace.
The curious child kicked his legs in the swaddle while his father’s large hands supported his shoulders and back, protecting his small face as he rolled around on the ice. Qingyan, like other parents, murmured beside him, “Roll away the bad (luck), roll in the good (luck).”
After skating on the ice, more and more fireworks were set off. Qiu Henian also lit the two fireworks he had brought.
The fireworks shot up into the sky and burst open, casting a dazzling array of colors onto the ice surface, incredibly beautiful.
After watching the fireworks with the child, Qiu Henian carried him, and Qingyan placed his gloved hand under his arm to support him. The family of three cautiously left the ice and headed home.
…
After the New Year, during the Lantern Festival on the eighth and fifteenth days of the lunar month, Qingyan went to the shop while Jindou was taken care of by his father.
The beginning of this year was a good time; people gradually had more money in their hands, and various shops on the street were doing well. All the shopkeepers were smiling broadly.
Fragrant Melody Pavillion’s business was particularly good. When there were too many people, Qingyan had to let San Yao organize queues to control the crowd.
After the fifteenth, Qingyan stayed at home for another month. When Jindou was three months old, he then took him to the shop every day.
Jindou could now turn over, his big head leading the way while his small body followed. Whenever his head tilted, he rolled over. Aunt Li laughed heartily watching him.
At this stage, someone had to watch him whenever he was awake. If Qingyan was busy, others in the shop helped keep an eye on him. The nanny goats were kept behind the shop and had all become skilled at milking.
…
At the end of January, some unsettling news arrived.
It started in the county teahouse. Storytellers from the far north spoke of the wolf tribes causing trouble at the border before the New Year, raiding livestock from herders and even abducting women and children.
In the Fengyu Pass, there were no New Year celebrations, let alone firecrackers. Throughout the Spring Festival, both inside and outside the city walls were on high alert.
Upon hearing this news, the people in the teahouse turned pale. Although the two years of war hadn’t been a disaster for the people of Muling County and the surrounding villages, they had truly suffered from hunger.
Who would want to go through those days of barely eating again?
Their suffering was one thing, but their children would also be emaciated, with stunted growth from not getting enough food. Their parents couldn’t help but worry.
However, this was just the words of a storyteller and might not be reliable.
The wealthy in the county began frequenting the county office to inquire, but the newly appointed county magistrate refused to divulge any information and sent them away.
Sensitive to the situation, the wealthy began quietly preparing.
Soon, even the common people sensed that something was amiss.
The prices of grain and oil in the market skyrocketed, to the point where even if one had money, they might not be able to buy them. Even before the grain and oil shops opened, people were already lining up at the door before dawn.
Despite several notices posted by the county government and efforts by the bailiffs to reassure everyone that there was no war on the border, only the usual state of alertness, it was all in vain.
When this news first spread, the Fragrant Melody Pavillion received many worried and diverse visitors, and Qingyan quickly learned about it.
Aunt Li and the others were all anxiously worried, fearing that the hard-won improvement in their lives would come to an end like this.
Qingyan had anticipated something like this happening early on. Yang Huai falsely accused Qiu Henian, and this chaos was used to advance the argument.
There were incidents on the border before the Spring Festival, and the storyteller did not lie or exaggerate.
When such things happened, the officials in the court were in an uproar. In the end, the Emperor made a decision, sending people to mediate at the border, demanding that the Wild Wolf Tribe return the abducted people and compensate for the stolen livestock.
The Wild Wolves were known for their fierceness, so it was uncertain whether the issue could be resolved through negotiation.
The Emperor also prepared for the worst, hastily deploying the Imperial Guards to serve as a deterrent. If the situation escalated into a full-scale attack, formal warfare would be declared.
However, according to the original owner’s memories, the battle never actually occurred. The Wild Wolf Tribe eventually returned the abducted people, but they did not compensate for the stolen livestock, claiming they had no money to pay for it.
The official in charge at Fengyu Pass, who was appointed by the court, hesitated for two days before ultimately deciding that the court would cover the cost of compensating the herders for their losses. The families of the women and children who had been abducted also received compensation.
With this resolution, the matter was considered settled.
The Emperor did not comment further. A full-scale conflict would have been both costly and disastrous, so it was better that the Wild Wolf Tribe had shown weakness by returning the captives. The situation was considered resolved.
However, in reality, the Wild Wolves have not yet returned the people, and the situation on the border remains tense.
Although Qingyan was aware of the subsequent developments, he still couldn’t ease Aunt Li’s worries. He could only try his best to comfort them.
After Qiu Henian learned of the news, he frowned and remained silent for a long time.
Qingyan thought he was worried about the future like Aunt Li and the others.
But a few days later, a letter Qiu Henian received made Qingyan understand what his silence had meant at the time.
The letter was sent by Lao Huang from Fengyu Pass, who warned in the letter that the situation at Fengyu Pass was tense. If war broke out, the hastily mobilized Forbidden Army might not be sufficient, and they might have to conscript civilians who had served in the army before back into military service.
Spoiler for the Next Chapter:
Qingyan knew that a conflict wasn’t something they could afford. However, he had no certainty about whether Qiu Henian would return to Fengyu Pass or when he would come back if he did.
