“Are you scared? It’s okay, you’ll get used to it.”
Mi Niang pursed her lips, her eyes drooping at the corners. She really admired it. She wondered if breaking Bahu’s teeth would make him utter some sweet words.
Who consoles someone by saying it’s just a matter of getting used to it?
Bahu caught a glimpse of Mi Niang rolling her eyes, feeling amused. She still had the energy to roll her eyes; it seemed she wasn’t too scared.
“We sold the wolf hides at home. Let’s keep the hides from these four wolves. When they’re cured, I’ll make you a wolf fur cloak,” Bahu, invigorated by the sight of blood, hadn’t slept all night. He took a knife from the cart and, without a wink of sleep, earnestly sat outside the felt bag, carefully skinning the wolves.
Mi Niang stood and watched for a while, but the overwhelming scent of blood turned her stomach. Not to mention Bahu’s bloody hands. She felt dizzy and nauseous.
“I’ll lie down for a bit. Call me when you’re done,” Mi Niang went into the felt bag, closed the door behind her, and closed her eyes. In her mind, all she could see were splatters of blood that flew with each stroke of the knife, along with the red and white, the skin being peeled off, and the resilient flesh.
The more she thought about it, the more her stomach churned. Before she could sit up, Mi Niang retched with a “Wow.”
“What’s wrong?” Bahu heard the sound and, still holding the knife, kicked open the door.
“Don’t, stay away from me,” Mi Niang pinched her nose, the bloody taste flooding her throat, and immediately bent over to vomit on the ground. Tears welled up in her eyes.
“Get out, the smell of blood makes me uncomfortable,” she said.
Bahu realized what happened, quickly stepped out of the felt bag, and stood outside, poking his head in to ask, “How come you’re vomiting all of a sudden?”
“I don’t know, maybe I didn’t sleep well last night, and I haven’t eaten yet. Seeing the blood made me feel nauseous. You go ahead with your work; I’ll just rest for a while,” Mi Niang said, covering herself with a blanket. After vomiting, she felt much better.
Bahu instructed Mong En to take the wolves to the riverbank for skinning. After washing his hands and smelling carefully, he noticed wolf blood splattered on himself. He directly took off his clothes, revealing his bare arms, and entered the felt bag stealthily. Walking over gently, he found Mi Niang already asleep. He covered the vomit with soil from outside, squatted for a while, and then went out.
“Mi Niang isn’t feeling well? Wasn’t she fine last night?” Mong En asked nonchalantly when he saw Bahu coming out.
Bahu initially didn’t want to bother with him, but remembering the events of last night, he mumbled, “Probably scared. Her nerves were too tense. Suddenly seeing me skinning a wolf, the bloody smell overwhelmed her.”
“Girls from the Central Plains may not be used to such scenes; she’s a bit timid,” Mong En nodded knowingly, lowered his head, and carefully continued his work, afraid of accidentally tearing the wolf hides.
“What kind of girl do you want to marry?” Bahu sat by the river, legs stretched out, and asked, his eyes fixed on Mong En.
“Me? Anyone willing to be with me is good enough. I don’t have the luxury to choose someone else’s girl,” Mong En shook his head with a bitter smile.
Bahu looked at the flowing river without saying a word. He wasn’t sure about Mong En’s intentions. They had known each other for three or four years. Mong En was raised by his uncle, with no parents. He was hardworking and responsible, but sometimes his actions seemed to be overly concerned with Mi Niang’s opinion. Regardless of Mong En’s true intentions, Bahu couldn’t help but be wary whenever he saw him.
“When we return to Lingshan, you can leave. Renting ten sheep from you and having you work for me for over four years is enough,” Bahu washed his face, picked up the knife, and continued skinning the wolves. “I brought you in to help, but suddenly bringing up this matter, what will others think if you leave early?” Mong En didn’t understand Bahu’s sudden mention of this matter. Everything was fine, so why bring it up now?
“It doesn’t matter what others think of me. Servants shouldn’t meddle in the affairs of the master, let alone the matters of the master’s household,” Bahu mentioned casually, then continued, “You’re not young anymore. If you have thoughts of starting a family, work hard and save some capital to marry a wife.”
With a sudden boom in his head, Mong En’s mind went blank. In a moment of distraction, the tip of the knife grazed his fingertip.
“Ouch, my hand!” Mong En threw away the knife, hurried to the riverbank to wash his hands, and only came back after a while, saying sheepishly, “You can’t talk while holding a knife; I almost cut off my finger.”
Bahu nodded along with his words, choosing not to bring up the previous conversation. From Mong En’s reaction, he could confirm that Mong En had some thoughts about Mi Niang, and he was well aware of it.
“Then, I’ll leave when we return to Guchuan.”
“If we return to Lingshan, you don’t need to come back,” Bahu refused to delay any further.
Mong En, covering his still bleeding finger, stood there dazed for a moment. After coming to his senses, he said, “Okay, if you find it too busy and need help, call me.” It was better to leave early, out of sight, out of mind. Previously, he hadn’t thought much about starting a family, even considering being Bahu’s servant for the rest of his life, similar to Mr. Mujin. Having food, drink, and a place to stay, and then being buried by the master when he died, free from worries, sounded good.
But in the past two months, the area within ten miles had only three of them. Bahu and Mi Niang were newlyweds, inseparable all day long. Although Mong En didn’t sleep in the felt bag at night, he had to face the two of them during the day. The peculiarities in Mi Niang’s behavior would inevitably reveal traces, and he couldn’t help but form some speculations.
Having seen too much, he harbored some unspeakable thoughts. Mong En pondered that once he returned to Lingshan and saw more people, drank a little, and chatted with them, those impure thoughts about Mi Niang would naturally dissipate.
It turns out he noticed someone else’s man.
Mong En injured his hand, and Bahu was the one handling the sheepskin and wolfskin. When Mi Niang woke up and found herself still in the felt bag, she pushed the door open to see that the sun was already high.
“Hasn’t Bahu finished yet? Then haven’t you had breakfast?” Mi Niang asked.
“How do you feel? Still want to vomit?” Bahu, with dwindling patience, had endured the relentless attack of mosquitoes attracted by the pungent smell. Even he was bitten quite a bit.
“Forget it, forget it. Let’s not use this sheepskin.” With a swift motion, the wool soaked in blood was pulled down and thrown on the ground. Turning around, Bahu said, “I’ve already stewed the lamb meat in the pot. Check if it’s cooked, and taste the seasoning.”
“It’s just right. You can have a meal once you’re done with your work,” Mi Niang scooped up the lamb bones, kneaded a lump of dough, cut it into noodle-like strips, and threw them into the lamb soup. By the time Bahu and Mong En came in, the soup was ready to be served.
“Shall we spend another night here? After dinner, both of you can catch up on sleep. The bloodshot eyes in your eyes are frightening.” If they travel today, they’ll have to dismantle the felt bag again later. Last night, they unloaded the luggage from the backs of the oxen and camels, and it would take until the afternoon to re-tie everything.
“But what if wolves come to steal sheep again tonight? We’ll repeat today and tomorrow morning. Let’s leave after dinner; I’m fine, I can endure it,” Bahu said, despite stifling a yawn.
This was the first time Mi Niang experienced the hardships of nomadic life. Although the hardship wasn’t on her, she felt sorry for Bahu. When it came time to pack after dinner, she worked especially hard. She couldn’t dismantle the felt bag, and the stove was too heavy to move. She kept getting loudly yelled at by Bahu to move aside. Eventually, she took the three dogs and drove the cattle and sheep ahead, while Bahu and Mong En finished their preparations and rode horses to catch up with her.
“Don’t go the wrong way!” Bahu shouted at the top of his lungs. Why was she so stubborn? She wasn’t feeling well in the morning, and now, after a brief moment of quiet, she was stirring things up again.
“I’ll walk along the road with cow dung and sheep droppings. I definitely won’t go the wrong way,” she replied, not that foolish.
Mong En stood on the top of the felt bag, watching these two people awkwardly consider each other, finding it amusing but also feeling a tinge of envy.
“Let’s move faster; she can’t walk fast with such a large group of livestock,” Mong’e En initiated a conversation with Bahu.
“The slower we go, the more she wants to show off. If the cattle and sheep run off, let’s see if she cries or not,” Bahu said toughly, but his actions of dismantling the felt bag became even faster.
Hey, who’s showing off here? If you have the guts to say that, just sit and watch me work. Mong En couldn’t help but snort. He figured it out. Bahu was the one with the toughest exterior.
Bahu, on horseback, skillfully herded the cattle and sheep with a long pole. It seemed quite handy. When it was Mi Niang’s turn, she rode on the back of a cow and spun in various directions. Passing through lush green grass, when one cow took a bite, the sheep also wanted a bite. Those who didn’t get a bite tried to go to other places just in case they missed out. The back-and-forth delays elongated the procession. The ones at the front walked happily, stretching their necks and trotting with hooves. Those at the back seemed like wooden heads, taking two steps for each pole hit, struggling to catch up with the herd.
Exhausted and half-dead, even Da Huang had lost its voice from barking too much. When Bahu rode up, all he could hear was the dogs barking, but there was no sign of people.
“Mi Niang? Where are you?”
“Over here.” Mi Niang walked out of the sheep herd, waving a long pole. Her hair stuck to her forehead, her face blushing, and she handed the long pole back to Bahu with a shy expression.
“I couldn’t control the cow I was riding, so I had to get off and walk to herd the cattle and sheep” Mi Niang confessed honestly.
“Serves you right, I told you so.” Bahu bent down, hugged her, and sat on the horse. He continued nagging, “You haven’t learned to walk yet, and you want to run. Have you learned your lesson now?”
“Learned some experience.” She really couldn’t accept it. These animals could also see who was in charge. Bahu just rode a lap and shouted a few times, and the sheep, who were just slacking off, immediately straightened up and caught up with the herd.
They didn’t stop along the way, and even after it got dark, they still hadn’t reached Lingshan. Bahu took out beef jerky for Mi Niang to fill her stomach first; he didn’t plan to spend another night outside.
Bala and Alse wolves knew the way. Mong En led two dogs at the front, while Bahu and Mi Niang each rode a horse guarding from behind. Da Huang, tired from walking, was placed on top of the washbasin at the back of the Lelé car. It couldn’t jump down no matter how hard it tried, so it could only yell a few times.
It wasn’t until midnight that the three of them finally arrived in Lingshan. Bahu went to wake up Chaolu to take over the night watch; he couldn’t hold on any longer.
“Ah, thinking back to my younger days, I could go without sleep for three days and nights without any problems.” Bahu sighed during the meal.
Mi Niang didn’t bother with him. She was not even twenty yet, what’s with the “old”?
“Don’t bother washing the dishes. Wash your feet and go to sleep. When you wake up tomorrow to cook, you can wash them then.” Mi Niang couldn’t hold on any longer either; migration was tiring.
Coincidentally, Bahu had the same idea.
Early the next morning, Chaolu came to Bahu while he was cooking in the felt bag.
“Is there something wrong?” Otherwise, he wouldn’t come so early in the morning.
“Just came for breakfast.” Chaolu grinned. “You came back earlier this year than in previous years. Why did you come back so late yesterday?”
“There were many wolves at night, not very safe.” Bahu didn’t explain much but instead asked if anyone had come to his door during his absence.
“Your mother came, just a few days after you left with Mi Niang. I don’t know who told her about the theft of your livestock by Mandu Ratu, but she didn’t stay long and left. After that, your father also came, but he didn’t enter the house. Now that you’re back, they probably heard the news and will come again.”
“Whether they come or not doesn’t matter.” Bahu didn’t care.
“Your second uncle’s second son also came once, claiming to be looking for you, but in reality, he was looking for someone across the street. I suspect he has found a girl he likes. He stayed overnight but got caught by your second uncle.” Chaolu gossiped, “I inquired, and it seems he has set his eyes on a girl named Mu Xiang. You and Mi Niang can be considered as matchmakers for him.”
Bahu thought to himself that his second uncle must be regretting it deeply.
