A black wooden hairpin, and a pair of cotton socks. Bahu held each of his children close, planting a kiss on their cheeks. What was once sour now turned into sheer joy. The happiness and warmth in his heart were indescribable. As he stepped inside, he grabbed a handful of coins and handed them to the children. “If you want to buy something, go ahead. If you run out of money, Dad will get more for you.”
Mi Niang didn’t bother hiding her eye roll. Men, always resort to the most straightforward means of entertainment.
Qiqige and Jiya didn’t ask for anything. They had earned countless coins themselves, so they never worried about running out of money.
Upon returning home, they rushed to the impromptu market with their heavy bags.
“Ah, it’s the first time I’ve been turned down after offering someone money,” Bahu sighed contentedly, emptying his pocket of coins and tossing them into his bag. He plopped down onto a chair and began to dream, “I’m just waiting for my sons and daughters to support me.”
Mi Niang lifted the pink handkerchief and examined it in the sunlight. It was bought by Jiya, and she initially thought it was Qiqige’s choice. It was intended for the little girls.
The couple sat in the courtyard laughing for a while, but by midday, it was time to start cooking. Bahu went to the butcher’s stall to buy fresh beef. When he returned, he soaked it in water to drain the blood, preparing to fry some beef patties that the children loved.
“I won’t be hungry all day if I don’t eat today,” he leaned against the stove, taking out the cotton socks again. “Last year, you bought me deer skin boots that I only wore once. They’re still new and go perfectly with these new socks.”
Mi Niang ignored him, but he persisted, “Go out and look for the children. The caravan should be closing up shop and heading west by now. Why haven’t Qiqige and Jiya come back?”
That suited him just fine.
Then, as he walked along the river washing vegetables and fetching water, people saw Bahu asking them if they had seen his children. His hand kept touching the ebony hairpin in his hair, a simple one without any special design.
“Bahu, is your hair tied too tightly, or is the hairpin scratching your scalp?” one of the water carriers couldn’t help asking.
“…It’s all good, it’s all good. I’m going to find my kids and bring them back for lunch,” Bahu’s good mood remained unaffected.
After he left, a woman exclaimed, “Ah, no wonder! I remember now, this morning I saw Qiqige buying two hairpins at a stall. I’m afraid the one on Bahu’s head is one of them.”
“That explains why he’s so proud,” they remarked, seeing Bahu with a smile for the first time.
“If it were me, I’d be proud too,” an old man carrying a load of water said as he walked back. “Last year, my granddaughter sewed a pair of knee pads for me using rabbit fur, and they’re so warm.”
When Bahu found Qiqige and Jiya, they were squatting on the ground with three or four other children, seemingly engrossed in something.
“Qiqige, Jiya, it’s midday. Time to go home for lunch,” he called from a distance. Most of the children in Lingshan were afraid of him, and he usually kept his distance.
“Okay, coming, big brother. Bring the book with you,” Qiqige stood up, brushing off the dirt from herself and then from Jiya. She walked towards Bahu and asked, “Dad, what’s for lunch?”
“Beef patties,” Bahu peered at the book Jiya was holding. “Did you buy that? Can you understand it?”
It was an illustrated book of monsters. Qiqige and Jiya spent all their money to buy it. Bahu took a glance at it and found it quite interesting.
At night, after the children had fallen asleep, he borrowed the book and read it by the oil lamp. He stayed up until midnight to finish it, then returned the book to its place and woke the children up to go to the bathroom.
The next day, his eyes were bloodshot. He yawned continuously while helping Mi Niang move the beehives. When she glared at him, he blamed his sleeplessness on being too excited during the day and unable to sleep at night.
“You should go early this year to bring back the horses and camels. Get to bed early tonight; we’ll leave tomorrow. You never know when we’ll have to go,” Mi Niang said, wrapping her face and putting on a bamboo hairpin. Bahu dressed similarly. After sealing the beehives, he carried them to the Lele cart.
“Okay,” he replied.
The autumn honey would be collected from the winter pasture in the Lele cart. Just moving the boxes wasn’t too difficult. However, one of the hive doors was broken, probably smashed by Big Spot and Little Spot while stealing honey in the summer.
“Hey, when Big Spot and Little Spot got stung by the bees, their paws were just fine,” Bahu suddenly remembered. The paws of the badgers were large and thick, even bigger than a child’s hand. They looked tempting to squeeze. If stung by bees, the swelling would look quite amusing.
“The bees fly high, they don’t fly close to the ground. When Da Huang got stung and his head swelled up, his paws were still fine.” With forty beehives, the Lele cart was packed full; next year, they would need two Lele carts. After three years of beekeeping in the Mobei, they had more beehives than Mi Niang had saved back home.
“If only we could build brick houses in Lingshan, we wouldn’t have to move around so much. It takes a month every time.”
“That’s impossible,” Bahu waved his hand. The soil in Lingshan couldn’t make bricks. In fact, suitable soil for brick-making wasn’t common in the Mobei either. If they wanted to build houses in Lingshan, they’d have to transport bricks from near the capital, and it might take ten years to build just two rooms.
“Besides, the capital is near Guchuan, where there are mountains and lakes. We can’t stay in Lingshan all year round. Even in the smallest ponds there, you can’t catch fish the size of a palm. If we build a house here and leave it empty in the winter, animals like tigers and wolves might take shelter in it. After a while, they might consider it their territory, and it could be dangerous for us to move in.”
Mi Niang casually mentioned the idea of going to the reed marshes near Wan’er’s house to pick duck eggs, eyeing Bahu as she spoke.
“If you want to go, just go. I won’t stop you,” Bahu retorted.
“I’m afraid you’ll stop me.” He had been reluctant to let her move around too much during their time at the Xia Ranch.
That was because her pregnancy wasn’t stable at the time. “When my mother was three or four years old, she had a pregnancy that lasted less than two months. She had just found out about it not long before, and she carried half a bucket of water one night. Her stomach hurt, and she lost the baby that night,” Bahu said. “By the time we get to Guchuan, the baby in your belly will be strong. Like fruit hanging on a tree, it won’t fall off with just a couple of taps.”
Dragging a Lele cart full of beehives, they hadn’t reached home yet when the first ones to arrive were those who smelled something delicious. The first to come running were the two badgers, Big Spot and Little Spot, who were more interested in eating than greeting. Big Spot leaped onto the space on the Lele cart shaft, his furry paw hooking onto Mi Niang’s robe, as his coarse voice squeezed out delicate cries.
Mi Niang toyed with the seventeen copper coins around its neck. “Want to eat? I’ll sell it to you. One coin for one spoonful of honey.”
Bahu glanced at her incredulously. She even earns money from badgers?
It was useless to talk to Big Spot and Little Spot. The main thing was to impress Qiqige and Jiya. Mi Niang scooped a spoonful of honey from the jar and fed it to Little Spot. She took a copper coin from the red string and handed it to Qiqige. “See, Little Spot doesn’t mind.”
Indeed, Big Spot and Little Spot didn’t mind. With sweet eyes, they rolled on the ground, their tongues smacking noisily, licking their mouths clean after each spoonful of honey.
After feeding the badgers, there was still Da Huang. Da Huang loved to eat, so he got a full spoonful. The other dogs reacted less enthusiastically. For the sake of fairness, each dog got half a spoonful, but some dogs didn’t finish, so half a spoonful could satisfy two dogs.
The jingling sound of bells drifted in on the wind, and Jiya reminded cheerfully, “Mom, the camels are back.”
Mi Niang exchanged a glance with the man unloading the beehives, and they both sighed in unison. Their whole family lived under the watchful eyes of so many.
…
Bahu went to find the horse and camel herds. He would be gone for five days. When he was home, the two children, Qiqige and Jiya, were only somewhat affectionate toward him, with Qiqige being a bit more so. But when he wasn’t home, his two children would ask countless times a day, at meals, at bedtime, and when going out to play, showing how much they cared.
“Mom, hasn’t my dad come back yet?” Jiya ran back with a dog, and seeing the courtyard was just as it was when he left, he went over and lay down on Mi Niang’s lap, speaking in a muffled voice, “When is my dad coming back? It’s been five days already.”Maybe today, or maybe tomorrow, at the latest the day after tomorrow.” If he’s delayed outside for too long, he’ll come back to give us a message,” Mi Niang rubbed Jia Ya’s hair, “When your dad is at home, you’re not as clingy to him.”
Jiya chuckled, then twisted his fingers and said softly after a while, “Dad likes my sister more.” He sniffed at the end.
“How could you think that? Your dad loves both you and your sister equally. Why do you think he likes your sister more?” Mi Niang swallowed the sourness that surged in her throat and asked gently.
Jiya pursed his lips and remained silent.
Mi Niang continued, speaking softly, “Your dad hugs your sister just as he hugs you. When he gives piggyback rides, he takes turns with both of you. When you both do something wrong, he scolds you both together. You prefer beef patties with a little more fat, while Qiqige prefers a little more lean meat. He remembers all of this. The beef patties you both eat are prepared with meat that he has carefully cut.”
Only then did Jiya pout and say, “He smiles at my sister every day, but sometimes not at me. It seems like he’s angry with me.”
“That’s his fault. I’ll scold him when he comes back.” But it’s also because Qiqige is outgoing and cheerful, and she’s a girl, so Bahu smiles more at her.
Jiya nodded heavily and smiled mischievously, “I’ll scold him severely.”
Mi Niang was taken aback by his words for a moment, then she saw the smile at the corner of his mouth and followed his lead, saying, “I’ll beat him with a chicken feather duster.” She wasn’t worried anymore; Jiya seemed calm and wasn’t one to be taken advantage of.
