The Lady Butcher and the Delicate Bride - Chapter 42

Chapter 42

Liu Heng and his wife had come early in the morning to help, followed closely by Auntie Ji bringing cured meat. Mu Dingxiang felt that this family was exceptionally good to her and Chu Yu, beyond words. She didn’t know how she could ever repay them in the future. Recalling how the old lady had secretly looked after her quite a bit when she was a child, she felt an even deeper sense of closeness.

With nothing to do at the moment, and with Ji Yunniang and Chu Yu managing the kitchen, she sat to the side to keep the old lady company.

Auntie Ji hadn’t seen Mu Dingxiang for a few days and felt that every time she saw the child, she had changed again becoming more spirited, with the flesh on her face gradually filling out. She looked more and more like Yunniang in her youth. The old lady’s eyes couldn’t help but redden, but having been reminded by her daughter and son-in-law that they couldn’t recognize her back just yet, she had to suppress her emotions and simply chatted with the girl about daily life.

Since following Chu Yu, Mu Dingxiang had become much more lively, with more and more smiles on her face that warmed the heart. Now that life was getting better and Chu Yu cherished her more and more, the bitterness of the past had long vanished. Speaking with Auntie Ji, her tone was light and her mood pleasant; as they talked, she would even burst into loud laughter.

Ji Yunniang stood by the stove with a ladle, stir-frying. Turning around casually, she saw the old and the young talking and laughing together so happily that her own lips couldn’t help but curl up slightly. It wasn’t until Chu Yu beside her reminded her that the vegetables in the pot were about to burn that she hurriedly turned back to attend to her work.

Since it was the first day and the Liu couple was present, lunch became very sumptuous. The originally planned “three dishes and one soup” with two meats and two vegetables became “five dishes and one soup” with four meats and two vegetables. There was stir-fried cured meat, a chicken dish, and steamed pork with rice flour, plus two green vegetables. The soup was pork ribs stewed with winter melon.

The meal was split into two tables. Chu Yu, Mu Dingxiang, and the Ji mother and daughter shared a table at the stone table next to the cave, while Liu Heng went down to eat with the workers.

The masters were able to eat such a rich meal on their very first day; every one of them was beaming with joy, eating with great gusto, thinking only of putting in more effort in the afternoon to repay the hosts.

The four women above were much more reserved. Since they didn’t need to work in the afternoon, they chatted while they ate. Ji Yunniang and Auntie Ji acted as the hosts, constantly placing food in Mu Dingxiang’s bowl. Looking at the small mountain of meat piled up in her bowl, no matter how much Mu Dingxiang could eat, she couldn’t handle it all. In the end, it was Chu Yu who came to her rescue, taking half of it for herself to finish the meal.

In the afternoon, the Liu couple had business at home and took their leave. Before leaving, Liu Heng again requested Boss He to pay extra attention. Auntie Ji wanted to ride with the carriage and departed with them as well.

Chu Yu rose early to slaughter pigs, so at noon, she still took her nap religiously. Fortunately, the cave entrance was quite a distance from the foundation below, so the noise from the masters’ work didn’t bother her. Furthermore, she had settled it with the workers beforehand: they were not to come up toward the stone cave, so each side could do their own thing without interference.

Mu Dingxiang helped tidy the table and then shouldered her hoe to head back to the fields.

Under the concerted efforts of the masters, the overall progress of the house was quite satisfying. It took about six to seven days to lay the foundation, after which they began laying the bricks for the walls. Once the walls were finished, the next step was sealing the roof and laying tiles; every step was carried out in an orderly fashion.

Chu Yu woke up every day as usual to go slaughter pigs. After returning, she cooked and supervised the work. In the afternoon, if she was free, she would also go to the fields with Mu Dingxiang to plant crops.

By the time the house was nearly finished, the second season of grain in the fields had also been planted.

After the roof was sealed, the next tasks were smoothing the floors and crafting the doors, windows, and furniture. The bulk of this was carpenter’s work. The previous group of masters was mainly for bricklaying and tiling; after the house structure was finished, Boss He brought in a different group, mostly carpenters, to help finish the remaining tasks. This included building the kitchen stoves, designing the bathhouse, tidying up the corners, and constructing the pigsties and sheepfolds outside the courtyard.

It could be said that Boss He’s construction team was experienced and rigorous. Both Chu Yu and Mu Dingxiang were very satisfied with the results.

Seeing the house nearing completion, both felt very happy and full of anticipation.

During these final days of completion, as the sky grew late and the masters had all finished work and headed home, a horse arrived from the direction of the stone bridge. The person was a servant from the Liu family, carrying a heavy basket of goods. Both Chu Yu and Mu Dingxiang were surprised, not knowing why Liu Heng and Ji Yunniang had sent things over again, as it wasn’t a holiday.

The servant hurriedly explained: “Tomorrow is Miss Niannian’s seventeenth birthday. The Madam said Miss Dingxiang’s birthday also happens to be in these few days, so she had me bring gifts over for Miss Dingxiang.”

Hearing this, Mu Dingxiang was first puzzled, then her eyes filled with gratitude. She remembered Ji Yunniang mentioning her and Liu Niannian’s birthdays many days ago. She hadn’t expected her to prepare a birthday gift for her as well. It was heartwarming and unexpected.

Chu Yu, knowing the story behind it, looked at Mu Dingxiang with eyes full of tenderness.

The two of them looked through the basket of gifts Ji Yunniang had sent. There was everything inside things to eat and wear, including two sets of clothes, the most expensive desserts from the county, fresh fruit, and various meats. It was very complete.

As Mu Dingxiang looked through them, she slowly fell into deep thought.

Combining the recent behavior of the Liu couple, it was clearly detectable that they were focused on her. If it were truly just for next year’s grain, why didn’t they try to curry favor with Chu Yu? Not to mention that Ji Yunniang was particularly concerned about her and Chu Yu’s private “bedroom matters,” which wasn’t something an ordinary person would do.

The more she thought about it, the more suspicious it seemed. It felt as if she were faintly grasping at something, but it vanished instantly. After this repeated several times, Mu Dingxiang finally let herself go and stopped thinking deeply about it.

That night, halfway through her sleep, she suddenly heard thunder outside, followed by the heavy sound of rain falling. Judging by the intensity of the rain, it wouldn’t stop tomorrow. The house was also near its end, with only some carpentry left; if the rain was heavy, the masters might not come to work the next day.

Near dawn, the rain lightened a bit. Chu Yu still got up to prepare for slaughtering pigs. When she rose, Mu Dingxiang woke up as well. Hearing the rain still pattering outside, she wanted to persuade her not to open the stall today, but Chu Yu said she had an appointment with the host beforehand and couldn’t break her word. While her heart ached for her, she still climbed up to help her prepare her raincoat.

Chu Yu saw that the sky outside was still gloomy and told her to go back and sleep a bit longer. From the look of it, the masters wouldn’t be coming today.

Mu Dingxiang worried for her, gave her a few instructions, and watched her ride her horse into the rain toward the stone bridge before returning to the cave.

In the small space of the cave, there wasn’t much to tidy up or do. The seedlings in the fields had all sprouted, so this rain was actually timely for watering the land. It was just that Chu Yu had to go out and slaughter pigs in such weather, which made her both worried and pained. She thought that no matter what, she must earn more money so that Chu Yu wouldn’t have to rise so early to slaughter pigs and could sleep in like a normal person, staying home to rest in this kind of stormy weather.

At this time, Zhu-er was still asleep and hadn’t woken up. Mu Dingxiang sat on the bed in a daze, having no desire to sleep at all. She got up, changed her clothes, and wanted to go wander around the new house. The tiles had just been laid a few days ago; with such heavy rain last night, it was a good time to check if there were any leaks.

The cave where they currently lived was located behind and above the new house, almost halfway up the hill. Standing at the cave entrance and looking down, she could see the entire valley including her new home. Now, after a night of being washed by the heavy rain, the mountain was a lush, deep green, and the dozen or so mu of land below where the seedlings had just sprouted was also a carpet of green.

The Xijiang River flowed past the front of the valley like a green belt, splitting the vast land in two. The small valley to the north was Chu Yu and her family’s home; to the south were the large fields where the other villagers gathered.

With the river as the boundary, the north side was verdant, while on the south side, some rice hadn’t been harvested yet, and the stalks in the harvested areas hadn’t been cut, leaving a large expanse of yellow. The north and south sides formed a stark contrast.

Mu Dingxiang didn’t care what other people’s land looked like. Holding her umbrella, she went down toward the new home. The small courtyard faced south; the main gate opened toward the river, and there was a small back door leading to the central hall.

The courtyard gate was located at the right corner of the building, with two large characters reading “Chu Residence” above it. Entering through the main gate, to the left was a row of rooms—split into three small rooms. Two could be used for storing grain and such, and one was used as a kitchen.

Directly across from the gate was the main hall, with a small ear-room on each side that could be used for storage or converted into a study.

The west wing was on the left side of the courtyard, and the corresponding east wing was on the right. She and Chu Yu would live in the west wing, leaving the east wing for Zhu-er.

In the middle of the courtyard was a large paved open space with a big stone table and four small stools. When guests came, they could be invited to sit in the main hall or sit by the stone table to chat.

Beside the stone table was a small patch of land, split into left and right sides, where flowers and plants could be planted later.

In this way, the small courtyard was arranged neatly, waiting only for the final batch of tables and chairs to be finished before they could move in.

Mu Dingxiang stood in the courtyard with her umbrella, looking at these rooms covered in black tiles and blue bricks. She thought of how, nearly a year ago, she was still sleeping in the fields with the sky as her blanket and the earth as her mat, having a home but not daring to return. Now, she not only had her own home but was about to live in a big house. She couldn’t help but be moved by a whirlwind of emotions.

The sky gradually grew brighter. she went through the rooms one by one, checking them carefully. Everywhere was dry, with no signs of leaks or seepage; the craftsmanship of the masters was truly beyond reproach.

By the time she returned to the cave, it was fully light. The items Ji Yunniang had sent were piled on the stone table. Mu Dingxiang took out the two sets of clothes—one pink and one pale yellow, both the delicate colors that young girls liked most.

Gently touching the fine stitching on them, Mu Dingxiang felt a sting in her nose. She knew, of course, that these two outfits were hand-sewn stitch by stitch by Ji Yunniang herself; she had seen the fresh needle pricks on her fingers a few days ago.

Behind the collar were two tiny embroidered lilac (Dingxiang) flowers. She had noticed them last night. Ready-made clothes wouldn’t have such small details. She touched them again now, feeling the raised lines of the thread, and tears began to drip down one by one.

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