“Really not gonna tell me? If you don’t tell me, I’ll ask Qiqige later.” Mi Niang threatened.
Bahu glanced at her, the firelight in the stove reflected on her plump face, casting a halo on the fine hairs, making it itch to touch, if not for the oil on his hands, he would have wanted to grab a handful.
“Are you going to steam beef buns for me tomorrow?”
“Yes, I’ll steam them. You buy some beef and also a few pounds of lamb, I want to eat grilled meat slices.”
“No, no, no. Before, when I cooked bone stew for the dog, you silently went to buy it. Now, when it’s my turn to want buns, you…”
“Okay, okay, I’ll go buy it tomorrow. I’ll come over after breakfast.” Mi Niang surrendered, laughing at his grumbling words, feeling trembling in her voice. She really didn’t care, compared to the dog, compared to the badgers, and even compared to the two children, he had such a thick face.
“Why didn’t you say so earlier?” Bahu was satisfied, putting down the ladle and walking towards the door. “I’ll tell your eldest daughter that her mother also likes her gem pendant and ask her to lend it to you for a few years. When she’s eight, you can give it back to her.” Seeing the smile disappear from Mi Niang’s face, he added fuel to the fire: “Congratulations, your little girl is very generous to you. Without a word, she took it off and gave it to me.”
“Bahu, come here.” Mi Niang squeezed out a sentence through her teeth, pulling her hand with a fake smile.
The man laughed heartily, taunting: “Do you think I’m stupid?” Seeing her getting up, he quickly ran out, meeting a pair of children outside, still complaining: “Help, Mom wants to hit me.”
Mi Niang heard the broom being thrown away and came out in a friendly manner. “What nonsense are you talking about? I treasure you too much to even think of hitting you.” She waved to Qiqige, squatted down, and kissed her on the cheek twice. “Your pendant has been borrowed by Mom. When it’s returned to you, you’ll have two, both made of shiny jade.”
Qiqige’s last trace of disappointment disappeared completely, and she generously offered, “Mom, do you like my bracelet? I can lend it to you too.”
“…Thank you, my daughter. I can’t wear your little bracelet.”
She pulled Qiqige and Jiya into the house, glaring back at the man outside, daring him not to come back for meals and sleep.
Bahu shamelessly followed them in, calling out to Ajima who was feeding the camels, “Come in and have dinner. Don’t worry about them.” The badgers were really fighting with the dogs. They ran out shortly after returning in the afternoon and hadn’t come back even after dinner and washing the dishes.
Carrying two basins of water, Bahu caught a glimpse of Mi Niang glancing at him sideways. He laughed so much he could barely hold the basins. She had been giving him side-eye all evening, and he had been laughing along with her all evening.
“Here, let me wash your feet.” Bahu squatted down and held her slippery feet in the water. “Are you still mad?”
Mi Niang held back a smile and rolled her eyes at him. “Massage the soles of my feet. Mi Niang here is tired from walking today.”
Mi Niang? He was still the boss. Not daring to offend her again, he bent his head and started massaging her feet. “Is this pressure okay?”
It was a bit painful, but she could bear it. Mi Niang nodded in satisfaction. “Not bad. I’ll treat you to meat buns tomorrow.”
Qiqige and Jiya stood up from their chairs and leaned over the basin to watch, and when Bahu started wiping Mi Niang’s feet, the two little ones sat back down, kicking their feet. “Dad, come.”
Bahu glanced at Mi Niang and couldn’t help but smile when he saw her smiling. “I owe your mother three.” He turned around and grabbed the chubby feet.
The elder sibling led the two younger ones to the adjacent felt tent. It was only after they finished washing their feet that it was his turn. He poured out the foot-washing water and saw that the water in the bowl the dog was drinking from had run dry, so he fetched half a bucket of water from the river and poured it in.
In the quiet of the night, after a fierce battle had ended, the two of them fell asleep exhausted. It was the perfect time for sweet dreams, but the harsh, distant cries woke the people in the nearby mountains. The dogs barked, and Bahu and Mi Niang quickly got dressed and went outside. There were already many people in the courtyard, mostly men on night duty who had rushed over upon hearing the cries.
“Isn’t this the badger raised by Bahu’s family? Why is it jumping around? Has it been bitten by a wolf or gone mad?” In the dark sky, others couldn’t see clearly, and they didn’t dare to approach.
Bahu lit an oil lamp and illuminated the area. The badgers kept licking their noses and scratching their faces. “Come here, let me see.” After a quick look around, he didn’t see any external injuries, but the nose seemed swollen. “Stung by bees,” Mi Niang asserted, glancing at Da Huang, who was curiously observing from the side.
“I told you so. Did they really go out and play thieves in the middle of the night?” The badgers continued to howl, their already hoarse voices becoming even more piercing. “It looks like it hurts. Is there any way to treat it? Can’t we use golden sore medicine?”
“Stings from bees can’t be treated with medicine. I’ve been stung before. Don’t look at me like that. I was stung when I was a child, not when I was sneaking around stealing honey.” The man waved his hand. “No need to worry about it. It’ll heal on its own in a few days.” After saying that, they dispersed, as if nothing significant had happened.
In the courtyard, there were only six people left watching the two thieves jumping around on the ground. What a spectacle! They were openly playing thieves, and yet they dared to come back home after being stung.
“Ajima, go back to sleep. You have to go to the private school tomorrow.” Mi Niang pulled Qiqige and Jiya into the felt tent. They ran out barefoot, but fortunately, there was still some unused water on the stove, so there was no need to make a fire again.
The badgers continued to howl, and the handsome furry heads visibly swelled, with the nose swelling larger than a wolf’s dog’s nose, and the lips around the mouth became swollen like sheep intestines, with no fur. The howls grew softer and softer, and the mouths couldn’t open anymore. The voices were stuck in their throats, and they were starting to sound like buzzing bees.
“Exactly, I told you to go hunting, but you insisted on playing thieves.” Afraid they might run away during the night, Bahu opened the felt tent where the wool was stored and put Big Spot and Little Spot inside before locking the door.
They grumbled all night, and except for Qiqige and Jiya who had slept well, everyone else woke up in the morning with one yawn after another.
When the dogs guarding the night shift returned and saw the unrecognizable things lying in the yard, they barked suspiciously a few times before going back to their kennels, avoiding them.
After breakfast, Mi Niang went to buy beef and mutton. When she returned, Bahu called Mi Niang to come and see, Big Spot’s tongue was swollen, and so was Little Spot’s.” Now they couldn’t even lick water.
“I won’t look. Two honey thieves,” she said, knowing that Qiqige and Jiya liked to look. She squatted beside Big Spot and Little Spot, more curious than sad. “Dad, are Big Spot and Little Spot going to die?”
“Do you want them to live or die?” Bahu poked the meat down their throats with chopsticks and poured water into their mouths. It was only when Qiqige and Jiya were eating that he put in this much effort.
“Live,” the siblings said in unison.
Bahu nodded solemnly, pretending, “Dad will try his best to save Big Spot and Little Spot for you.” As soon as he said that, he received two pairs of starry eyes.
In the kitchen, Mi Niang listened to him coaxing the children and couldn’t help but chuckle.
Five days later, the swollen faces of Big Spot and Little Spot began to reduce. Their cat-like eyes squeezed into narrow slits, could now see the way, and their mouths could open a bit more so they could drink water from the river by themselves. Bahu joked that they went to the river to see their silly faces reflected. This also attracted a lot of curious onlookers. When they saw the two cats with their swollen heads sticking out, they pointed and laughed.
Bahu was preparing to lay down cowhide in the pit and wash the wool when the two thieving cats came over, humming and grumbling. Mi Niang immediately looked away. Each glance made her eyes hurt, but she couldn’t help but find it funny. “Go back home and rest. What are you two doing out here? Aren’t you ashamed of how you look?”
“Big Spot and Little Spot also want to help with the work,” Jiya said from below the pit. He and Qiqige liked to join in the fun. When the adults were working, they were always there like tails that couldn’t be shaken off.
Bahu handed out half a basket of soil, then lifted Qiqige and placed her on the ground, followed by Jiya, and finally himself. When he saw Qiqige and Jiya trying to pull him over, he quickly came up and pretended to pull them over, almost dragging them into the pit again, earning a glare from their mother.
“Huh!” Even though she had already gotten used to it, Mi Niang couldn’t help but shiver when she suddenly looked at the swollen heads of Big Spot and Little Spot again. They were truly ugly.
After finishing cleaning the last pit, Bahu was about to go back to get the cowhide when he saw ChaoBao running towards them with a happy expression.
“Has it given birth?” he asked.
“Yes, the midwife just left. I came to share the good news—it’s a boy,” ChaoBao smiled, showing a tooth. “Bai Mei did well. The birth was quite fast, and the midwife said she didn’t suffer much.”
“Then I’ll go see her,” Mi Niang stood up, taking the two big fluffy heads back. She caught two hens and picked half a basket of eggs, just like last year when she went to see Mu Xiang.
ChaoBao went to inform Pandi and Lan Niang, who were shearing wool. He remembered Bai Mei’s explicit instructions when he left. He knew that because Zhong Qi didn’t share the news after Mu Xiang gave birth, it caused a rift among the sisters.
