Chapter 15: Coming Down the Mountain, Visiting Relatives
The next morning, the sky was heavily overcast, clearly signaling an impending snowfall.
The previous day, Qingyan had already packed most of their belongings, leaving only the essentials to be loaded onto the cart.
While Qiu Henian was packing up the bedding and kitchenware, Qingyan gave the small cabin one last thorough cleaning.
The steep slopes were the most treacherous part of the descent. Qiu Henian tied a rope to the sides of the cart’s handles and slung it diagonally across his shoulder and back, leaning slightly backward for most of the journey.
Qingyan followed closely behind, and on particularly difficult sections, he would hold Qiu Henian’s waist, helping to slowly lower the cart together. Even their dog, Erxi, sensibly bit Qingyan’s pant leg, pulling backward with all its might.
The descent took twice as long as the climb, and fortunately, the snow didn’t start falling until they reached the foot of the mountain. Otherwise, the slippery paths would have made the journey even more treacherous.
After resting for less than fifteen minutes, they headed toward the village.
They didn’t go home first but instead visited a household at the eastern end of the village. Qiu Henian knocked on the door for a while.
Amid the heavy snowfall, a woman who looked to be in her fifties impatiently called out, asking who it was before opening the door.
Recognizing the visitors, the woman forced a smile and glanced behind Qiu Henian.
“Oh, you just came down from the mountain?”
She looked Qingyan up and down but didn’t speak to him.
Qiu Henian addressed her as “Auntie” and lifted a roe deer and two fish from the ground.
“These are from the mountain. Just something for you and Big Brother for the New Year.”
The woman’s eyes gleamed with delight as she looked at the roe deer and fish, but then she quickly turned her attention to the cart, eyeing the bulging tarpaulin with dissatisfaction.
“You must have caught quite a bit this time. Your big brother’s old ailments are acting up again. This isn’t nearly enough to help him recover!”
Saying this, she stepped forward as if to rummage through the cart herself. Qingyan, who was standing on the cart, was momentarily stunned. Before he could react, Erxi had already rushed over from the back of the cart, barking loudly.
Trained by Hunter Liu to be quite intelligent, the dog instinctively knew not to let strangers touch the cart. The woman was so frightened that she quickly retreated back into the courtyard, sticking her head out to curse loudly.
She seemed to be cursing the dog, but her words were clearly aimed at the people. Qiu Henian, however, remained unfazed, placing the items down and, during a pause in her cursing, simply said, “We have other things to do, so we’ll be going now.”
He then pushed the cart with Qingyan and their belongings toward the west end of the village.
On the way, Qingyan hesitated to speak. Last night, Qiu Henian had mentioned that they would give away some of their catch after returning.
Qingyan had been busy sorting things and thought Qiu Henian was just informing him, not realizing he was seeking his opinion until he noticed Qiu Henian waiting for his response.
Qingyan then understood that Qiu Henian was indeed asking for his approval.
In Qingyan’s knowledge, most households in the village were managed by the wives. The men went out to work and earn money, while the women took care of all domestic affairs, naturally making most of the decisions.
Therefore, many of the women and young men in the village had straightforward and sometimes assertive personalities.
Recently, Qiu Henian had handed over the household management to Qingyan, indicating his trust in him to handle family affairs. Now, he needed Qingyan’s consent to distribute the catch.
Qingyan had no objections and said, “It’s almost New Year. Of course, we should visit and give gifts. Let’s follow the usual practice.”
The woman in her fifties was the elder sister-in-law of Blacksmith Wang, which made her Wang Heyao’s mother.
Qiu Henian had advised Qingyan to stay in the cart and not to speak when they arrived at their destination, which Qingyan had assumed was out of concern for his shyness.
Meeting the woman, Qingyan understood the reason behind Qiu Henian’s caution.
Reflecting on this, Qingyan finally asked, “You treat her family so well, yet she curses like that. Aren’t you angry?”
A whole roe deer, properly used, could cover the expenses of an ordinary family for half a month if sold in town. Even the two large fish were a rare treat.
Pushing the cart, Qiu Henian shook his head silently. After a while, he said, “I do what I need to do. What others think doesn’t concern me.”
Hearing this, Qingyan was momentarily stunned, realizing this might be the first time he had glimpsed into Qiu Henian’s inner thoughts.
Blacksmith Wang’s nephew lived in the west end of the village, not far from their home.
This time, Qiu Henian pushed the cart directly into Wang Sanyao’s courtyard and tied Erxi to the fence.
Someone came out of the house, slipping on shoes and running excitedly.
A young man in his twenties saw them and greeted them with joy, “Second Brother, you just came down from the mountain?”
Qiu Henian responded with a nod and greeted him. The man then turned to Qingyan, politely smiling and nodding, “Sister-in-law.”
Qingyan felt uncomfortable but followed local customs, smiling and responding. As they chatted, a young woman came out, her voice loud and more enthusiastic than Wang Sanyao’s, inviting them inside.
Qingyan saw her name, Wu Qiuniang, Wang Sanyao’s wife, engraved on the side of her face.
Qiuniang enthusiastically grabbed Qingyan’s hand, leading him inside while loudly saying, “Sister-in-law, I wanted to visit when you got married, but my husband said you were newlyweds and shouldn’t be disturbed, so I held back. If you hadn’t come today, we planned to visit in a couple of days.”
Qingyan, unaccustomed to such enthusiasm and lacking the self-awareness of being a young man, felt stiff and awkward, thinking about the impropriety of men and women touching.
Qiu Henian, seeing Qingyan’s distressed look, quickly stepped forward to “rescue” him from Qiuniang’s grip, explaining, “Qingyan is not used to going out much and is a bit shy.”
Qiuniang, undeterred, grabbed Qingyan’s wrist again, saying, “We’re all family. How can there be any shyness!”
Once inside, Wang Sanyao arranged seats for them, and Qiuniang quickly served tea and soup, filling a basket with sunflower seeds and even bringing out candies meant for the children.
Fortunately, Wang Niensheng was outside playing with other children, missing the scene; otherwise, he would have been heartbroken.
The two men drank tea and chatted about New Year’s preparations and town affairs.
When Qiuniang finished her tasks, she sat with Qingyan and whispered, “Did you just come from the elder sister-in-law’s house?”
Qingyan nodded, curious, “How did you know?”
Qiuniang, suppressing an eye roll, lowered her voice further, “Second Brother is too kind-hearted. Every year he gives things to that old hag first…”
She quickly added, “Don’t get me wrong, Second Brother gives us the same amount as he gives her, not a bit more or less.”
“I’m just upset on his behalf. That old hag and her son are ungrateful, and no matter what he gives them, they hate him for it. They’re nothing but ingrates!”
“Why?” Qingyan was puzzled.
This time, Qiuniang couldn’t hold back and finished rolling her eyes.
“That mother and son are greedy. When Second Uncle was sick, they didn’t visit him once. Second Brother had to manage the shop’s business and take care of the old man, waking up early and going to bed late every day.”
“When Second Uncle passed away, they came to claim the inheritance, even wanting to take the shop for free. It’s like they’ve been blinded by pig fat!”
“Fortunately, Second Uncle knew their true nature while he was alive. When he adopted Second Brother, it was done officially through the government, so the old man’s estate wasn’t theirs to claim.
“Yet, they wouldn’t let it go, making a fuss everywhere about Second Brother being adopted. They only quieted down after a year when their antics yielded no results.”
“Despite everything, Second Brother still gave them half of Second Uncle’s best land and continues to send gifts during festivals and lend them money, which they’ve never paid back.”
Qiuniang grew angrier as she spoke, panting a few times before waving her hand dismissively.
“That land was supposed to be split with us too, but I told San Yao we shouldn’t take it. It rightfully belongs to Second Brother. We don’t covet it.”
Qiuniang was quite the chatterbox, and once she started talking, she couldn’t stop. It seemed she harbored deep resentment towards the elder brother’s family.
As Qingyan listened, he drifted into his own thoughts, starting to understand Qiu Henian’s mindset.
After leaving Wang San Yao’s house, they headed home. They dropped off another roe deer and two fish at Wang San Yao’s place, and Qingyan didn’t forget to leave the hedgehog behind as well.
Qiuniang was even more excited than Niansheng, who had just returned home, and now their cart was much lighter.
On the way, Qingyan cautiously brought up the matter of Chen Yu coming to borrow a hoe and mentioned that he might have offended him.
As expected, Qiu Henian didn’t get angry. His expression remained as calm as ever, his eyes serene like still water.
“Chen Yu mentioned borrowing a hoe from me before. I refused him then, but I didn’t expect him to come to you.”
Qingyan looked at him in surprise.
“In the past, I considered him a neighbor, and Mr. Zhang was a decent person, so I made him a couple of iron tools. He didn’t pay me, and I didn’t ask for payment. But there won’t be a next time. I won’t make anything for him for free again,” Qiu Henian said.
Qingyan understood. In modern terms, Qiu Henian’s principles meant that people had a certain “value” based on his own judgment. Within this “value” range, he could give or take, but beyond it, he would firmly refuse.
Like how the elder brother’s family could get some land, borrow some money, or receive festival gifts—that was within the “value” range Qiu Henian deemed appropriate compensation. But the house and the blacksmith shop were beyond that range, no matter how much they fussed.
And this “value” wasn’t fixed. Despite the elder brother’s mother’s continuous cursing, Qiu Henian remained emotionally unaffected because, in his mind, her “value” was gradually decreasing.
When it dropped to zero, she would be irrelevant to him. As he said, he had done what he should, and he no longer cared about others’ thoughts, thus there would be no further “giving.”
Thinking about this, Qingyan felt a bit relieved. Qiu Henian wasn’t the overly generous person he initially thought.
Being a good person is great, but being good without principles can eventually hurt oneself. Qingyan didn’t want Qiu Henian to get hurt.
At the same time, he wondered about his own “value” in Qiu Henian’s eyes. Regardless of its current size, he would make it infinitely large in the future!
When they got home, it was only noon. After a simple lunch and feeding Erxi, they lay down to rest. Although they might have trouble sleeping at night if they napped now, they just lay down.
With the curtains and bed canopy drawn, the interior was as dark as night. Qingyan lay on the bed, staring at the intricately carved patterns on the canopy of the intricately designed bed. This bed must have taken a lot of effort from skilled craftsmen to create.
But Qingyan’s thoughts were elsewhere, not on the carvings. Lying in the dim light, listening to the shallow breaths of the person beside him, he remembered the scene from last night when he had bravely kissed this person.
Spoiler for the Next Chapter:
So, he finally spoke up, softly asking, “Henian, were you happy that night?”
