MFBOWSBTMT Chapter 96

They drove the donkey cart first to the Qiao family’s home.

 

“Da-ge, Qin Yu-ge.”

 

Qin Yu was in the courtyard sewing small clothes. He thought they would return tomorrow, so upon seeing them, he exclaimed in surprise, “Aiya ya, you’re back today.”

 

“Sit down quickly, I’ll fetch some water. You must be thirsty.” Qin Yu put down the needle and thread in his hand, then called toward the back courtyard: “Ruifeng, Xiao Man and Dongqing are here.”

 

Having said that, he was about to get up to fetch water.

 

“Ai, I heard you.”

 

Qiao Suiman quickly stopped Qin Yu’s movement and exchanged a look with Lu Dongqing. “We’ll get it ourselves.”

 

Lu Dongqing strode into the kitchen, and before long, he carried out two bowls of water himself. He placed them on the stone table, and he and Qiao Suiman each drank one.

 

“You’re back so early.” Qiao Ruifeng came out of the backyard and said with a smile.

 

Qiao Suiman explained, “There were even more people today than on opening day, it never stopped. We sold out early, so we came back.”

 

“The competition just ended. This is when your reputation is at its peak, so it’s only natural that more people came.”

 

After drinking the water, Lu Dongqing drove the donkey cart back to the west of the village. Since Qiao Suiman intended to make milk tea, they might as well eat together at the Qiao household. It was more spacious there, and it’s not convenient for Qin Yu to move around.

 

“Da-ge, has the midwife been arranged?” Qiao Suiman asked while boiling the milk.

 

“Yes, we hired Midwife Yuan from Shanghe Village, and also asked Hua Yun to tend during the postpartum confinement[mfn]月子 yuèzǐ – refers to the traditional postpartum confinement period (typically 30-40 days after childbirth) during which a new mother observes specific rituals, diets, and practices to recover and ensure long-term health[/mfn].” As soon as Qiao Ruifeng mentioned this, a trace of nervousness flashed across his face. Neither of them had experienced such matters before, nor did they understand much. Whenever something came up, they could only ask Zhou Shuifen and Miao Lianhua.

 

“Is it Hua-dajie[mfn]大姐 (dàjiě) can be translated to English as “big sister,” “elder sister,” or “oldest sister”. It can also be used as a polite term of address for a woman slightly older than the speaker.[/mfn] from the end of Hexi Village?” Qiao Suiman thought the name sounded familiar.

 

“Yes, Aunt Shuifen said she’s good, careful with her work, and has given birth herself, so she was reliable.”

 

There are no elders in their family, and Qin Yu needed care after giving birth. Qiao Ruifeng feared he wouldn’t be thorough enough, so he had long ago inquired about who in the neighboring villages was most skilled at postpartum confinement care. He had only recently received a word and gone to hire her.

 

Qin Yu was due to give birth in just over a month. Not only Qiao Ruifeng, but Qiao Suiman was also more nervous than before, often thinking about this matter while in town.

 

“Xiao Man,” Qiao Ruifeng paused before speaking, “Hua-dajie knows our father did not have a good end, so she doesn’t dare sleep in his room. When she comes, she will sleep in your room.”

 

“That’s fine.”

 

Qiao Suiman agreed without hesitation. “It’s empty anyway. She needs to take care of Qin Yu-ge. If she stays in Father’s room and is frightened, it might cause problems.”

 

“Alright.” Qiao Ruifeng smiled. He knew his younger brother would certainly have no objections, but that room was, after all, where he had lived for over ten years, so he felt it was right to ask.

 

As soon as the milk was done boiling, Qiao Suiman began heating tea leaves and sugar over the fire. Qin Yu leaned against the door frame and watched from the side of the kitchen. The flavor of milk tea had left an unforgettable impression on him. Goat milk seemed to transform into something else, smooth and sweet upon entering the mouth. That day, he drank it so fast for the first time that Qiao Ruifeng was shocked.

 

Qin Yu watched him with admiration and said, “Xiao Man, how do you come up with so many ideas?”

 

“It was only after hearing you and Aunt Shuifen talking that day that I thought of it.”

 

Qiao Suiman smiled and told him how he had come up with the recipe.

 

Qin Yu suddenly understood. He had long forgotten what he said that day. Indeed, it proved the old saying true: ‘Unintentionally planting a willow which later provides shade‘[mfn]無心插柳柳成蔭  wúxīn chā liǔ, liǔ chéng yīn – (lit. ” unwittingly plant a willow tree which later provides shade”) to do something which unintentionally returns positive results (Wikipedia)[/mfn]. He smiled and said, “Then we must send a share to Aunt Shuifen too.”

 

“I’ve already set aside portions for Aunt Shuifen’s family and Uncle Wang’s family. Once it’s ready, I’ll send it over.” Qiao Suiman said cheerfully.

 

While they were talking, Lu Dongqing drove the donkey cart and brought Miao Lianhua and Lu Xuesong over.

 

“Mother.”

 

“Auntie Lian.”

 

“Ai, ai, ai.” Miao Lianhua’s face was full of smiles. Even though they had just met yesterday, she was still delighted to see them back home.

 

“Xiao Man-ge, are you making that milk tea? It smells so good!” Lu Xuesong leaned against the kitchen window, sniffing hard.

 

Qiao Suiman replied with a laugh, “Yes, it’s almost done.”

 

After boiling a little longer, Qiao Suiman poured it into bowls and set them on the courtyard table to cool. “It tastes richer when drunk warm.”

 

He also filled several rough bamboo tubes with more portions and said to Miao Lianhua and the others, “I’ll bring some to Aunt Shuifen and Xuesheng as well.”

 

“I’ll go with you.” Lu Dongqing said, then stood up, took the bamboo tubes, and went out with Qiao Suiman.

 

Miao Lianhua shook her head with a smile. “So inseparable[mfn]黏糊 niánhú – lit. sticky[/mfn].”

 

“They’ve been like that since long ago.” Qiao Ruifeng also said with a laugh.

 

Lu Xuesong thought for a moment, and seeing there wasn’t much milk tea left in the pot, he also took a bamboo tube and poured half of the milk tea from his own bowl into it.

 

Qin Yu immediately laughed and teased, “Songzi, who are you saving that for?”

 

Miao Lianhua also laughed and glanced at the sky. “If you go to Hedong Village now, you can still make it back before dinner.”

 

Lu Xuesong’s face flushed red. He lowered his head, blew on the milk tea, and took a small sip.

 

As soon as it entered his mouth, his eyes widened. “It’s really good!”

 

After another sip, he was caught off guard by the heat. “Hss.”

 

“Haste makes waste,[mfn]心急吃不了热豆腐 xīn jí chī bù liǎo rè dòu fu – (lit. an impatient person cannot eat hot tofu) an idiom which means if you are too impatient, you will not be able to do things well and may end up losing more than you gain[/mfn] be careful!” Miao Lianhua said helplessly.

 

Lu Xuesong seemed a bit impatient. He simply poured the remaining milk tea from his bowl into the bamboo tube as well, picked up the two tubes of milk tea, and headed out the door, saying as he went, “Mother, Qiao Da-ge, Qin Yu-ge, I’ll be back soon.”

 

As soon as he finished speaking, he disappeared. Miao Lianhua laughed and scolded, “That impatient monkey.”

 

Qiao Suiman and Lu Dongqing just finished delivering to the Chen family when they saw Lu Xuesong rushing out in a hurry. After asking, they found out he was going to Hedong Village.

 

Qiao Suiman also laughed. “Guo’er will definitely be happy.”

 

The two of them went to the Wang family next. When they arrived at the Wang family, only Auntie Wang was in the courtyard. Qiao Suiman called out a greeting and asked, “Where’s Xuesheng?”

 

“He’s inside. He just finished selling today’s pork and is counting the money.” Aunt Wang smiled. Seeing Qiao Suiman carrying two tubes of drink, she asked curiously, “This is?”

 

“I just made some milk tea, so I brought two tubes over for you to try.”

 

Aunt Wang was at home yesterday and didn’t go to watch the competition, but she knew Qiao Suiman won first place and made some remarkable “milk tea” that even those important officials praised highly.

 

“Oh my, you child.”

 

Aunt Wang immediately set aside her work, ran to the side room, and shouted: “Xuesheng, A-Qi, Man-ge’r has brought ‘milk tea.’”

 

Not long after, Chen Xuesheng came out of the room, his mouth still a little red. Qiao Suiman immediately knew what had happened and threw him a teasing look.

 

Chen Xuesheng coughed lightly, while Wang Qi remained calm.

 

“Xuesheng, it’s freshly made. Be careful, it’s hot. I won’t stay long, I still need to deliver to the village chief and Feng-jie.” Qiao Suiman said with a slight smile.

 

“All right, you go on ahead then.”

 

Chen Xuesheng and Qiao Suiman were so familiar with each other that they didn’t stand on ceremony.

 

They delivered two tubes each to the Chen and Wang families, and one tube each to Yu Ping’s family and the Zheng family. None of them complained that it was too little. This drink has both milk and tea, which sounded expensive. It was also the drink that had just won the competition. Their mouths were practically stretched to their ears when they received it.

 

Qiao Suiman and Lu Dongqing strolled leisurely back home. Miao Lianhua had started cooking, and Qiao Ruifeng was helping her. So Qiao Suiman didn’t join in, but instead continued chatting with Qin Yu.

 

Lu Xuesong indeed made it back before dinner, panting heavily, and repeatedly saying, “Xiao Man-ge, the milk tea is really, really good and delicious.”

 

Qiao Suiman smiled and said, “Does Guo’er like it?”

 

Lu Xuesong grinned. “He liked it very much.”

 

Everyone couldn’t help laughing. Lu Xuesong and Tang Guo’er’s wedding was set for next year in the fourth month, when all things come back to life in spring. There was still nearly a year left, so Lu Xuesong still had a lot to wait.

 

Recently, the chickens and ducks have been laying a lot of eggs, and both families have earned a bit. They had also added quite a few more chickens and ducks. After the weather warmed up, Qiao Ruifeng moved the chickens and ducks to the backyard to raise. After dinner, Qiao Suiman wandered around the backyard. There were about fifty chickens and ducks in total, clucking and quacking. The ones bought more recently were still small and were kept in a separate enclosed area. They were an utterly delightful sight.

 

After the meal, the four of them returned to the west of the village. Their home had changed a lot. There were two brick and tile houses, one in front and one in the back. The thatched house on the left had been rebuilt into a wooden house, also reinforced with bricks and stones. The main hall in the center was widened. On the left was Miao Lianhua’s room, and on the right, which was originally Lu Xuesong’s room, was now turned into a spacious kitchen.

 

The well in the backyard was also dug. A wooden bucket was placed beside it for fetching water conveniently at any time.

 

Lu Dongqing went first to take a look at the bamboo grove. Qiao Suiman washed up, then slipped into bed. After quite a while, Lu Dongqing returned, with Heijin curled up asleep at the doorway.

 

This time, they brought Heijin home for a few days and would take him back after returning from the prefectural city.

 

It would take nearly a day to travel from Shuiqing Town to the prefectural city. The county office’s certificate would be delivered the day before, on the fourteenth, and they would set out on the fifteenth. Arriving a day early would allow them to get familiar with things. On the seventeenth and eighteenth, the drinks made by the top three winners from each town in the competition would be showcased. Including the return trip, they wouldn’t be back until around the twentieth.

 

 

 

 

 

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Translator [LUNE]: Thank you so much BlueMoon91 for buying me a milk tea! (*ˊᗜˋ*) Chapter 97 is also posted as a huge thanks!

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If you enjoy my translations, consider buying me a milk tea 🥛🍵