The backyard is small, and there’s no room for more people. It’s troublesome for Lu Lin to go to the county to work.
He hasn’t conceived yet, so after considering both sides, he may have to quit this job.
However, it’s hard to find a job in the county, and it’s not easy to have an income while staying in the village.
His wages have increased, and he can earn nine hundred cash a month, which is almost equivalent to one tael of silver. He really doesn’t want to give it up.
Lu Yang told him not to worry: “I can’t do without you either. It’s not spring yet, is it? You two can work hard and make a trip every day. When it’s time to plow and sow, if you can’t come, I’ll make other arrangements. You can raise a piglet at home and weave bamboo mats.”
Extra income is still not as reliable as steady wages.
Lu Lin kept urging Lu Yang, “Once you’re settled there, you should still ask me to help out.”
Lu Yang agreed.
It’s only natural to give your own brother a hand.
After spending time with him, he had a pretty good impression of Lu Lin.
He did everything he was asked to do. He didn’t pick and choose, didn’t act like a relative, and didn’t compare his treatment to that of Lu Liu, saying that other relatives were treated this way, but he was treated that way.
He’s a good person. When things settle down, I’ll ask him to come work at the shop.
On New Year’s Eve, Shangxi Village was quiet.
In the middle of the night, no one set off firecrackers. Some people went out the back door to investigate. They hadn’t gone far when they heard the sounds of drinking and merrymaking coming from the homes of Xie Yan’s three uncles. Knowing that the troublemakers hadn’t left, they all stayed home and didn’t go out.
No one came out in the morning either. Lu Yang walked around, but there was no one on the village roads.
Women had many styles of hair buns, and Lu Yang knew a few. He had also combed Lu Sanfeng’s hair before.
Zhao Peilan hadn’t dressed up in years. Her dressing table was gone, and she sat on a small stool, her back straight, nervous and restrained: “What’s there to dress up for? I’m old now. It doesn’t matter.”
Her last piece of jewelry was a pair of gold and jade earrings, which she had given to Lu Yang to sell for silver to pay for medical treatment.
Lu Yang didn’t sell them. Today, he put them on her.
Zhao Peilan’s ear holes hadn’t closed, so the earrings went in easily.
Lu Yang guessed that on many nights, she would take out the earrings and wear them, keeping them as a memento.
Her hair was not adorned with jewelry; it was simply styled into a plain woman’s bun, with a headscarf wrapped around it as decoration.
Lu Yang didn’t have any good fabric, so he used Zhao Peilan’s original headscarf, folded it, tied it to the bun, and tied the ends below, making it look like a crescent moon on top of her head.
A fully wrapped headscarf makes one look old, but showing some hair makes one look more lively.
Lu Yang said, “In the future, have Ayan buy a few hairpins. Even a simple bun can be accessorized.”
Lu Yang nodded, “Yes, don’t worry. It’s enough for Ayan’s tuition.”
Their family only had one donkey cart, loaded with some earthen bricks, yellow mud, and tools for plastering walls.
Fearing that Lu Yang wouldn’t be able to handle it, they borrowed another donkey cart.
Originally, the two fathers of the Lu family were also going to come, but considering that they had to move today and had to tidy up the house before the market opened, they decided not to come and cause trouble.
Since they had come, they took the opportunity to visit the Lu Lin family while helping with the move.
Lu Lin saw that they were moving and came over to help.
There wasn’t much to help with; everything was already packed and ready to be loaded onto the cart.
Zhao Peilan locked the door and handed the key to Lu Yang.
“How much do you think this house is worth? If the price is right, let’s sell it.”
They won’t be coming back here.
No matter how close it is, they won’t be coming back.
Lu Yang didn’t try to persuade him. He turned to Lu Lin and said, “Brother Lin, you heard that. Ask around for me when the time comes.”
Lu Lin agreed.
Xie Yan drove the cart, leading the way, while Lu Song and Lu Bo followed behind. Lu Yang lagged behind, having bought firecrackers that he hadn’t set off on New Year’s Eve or this morning. Now that they were moving away, he lit them all.
Zhao Peilan was in the cart, her eyes fixed on the house behind them, watching the house that had carried so many painful memories grow smaller and smaller.
Shazhu hurried out of the house, his mother with him, asking knowingly, “Are you moving to the county?”
Lu Yang had made a promise, and he would not go back on his word.
He said, “ Shazhu no longer needs to help me. Our two families are even now.”
Shazhu’s mother was overjoyed. She brought many vegetables.
The village had mostly radishes and cabbages, and Lu Yang knew this. Shazhu’s mother had no other vegetables to give, so she cut half of the sparse garlic sprouts from her own vegetable garden, about three pounds, and gave them all to Lu Yang.
Lu Yang didn’t want any other vegetables; it was simply too awkward to take them.
This was a false account that Lu Yang had reported, and he was so frightened that he admitted it.
Lu Yang looked at Sun Erxi’s face and didn’t take the silver, only accepting the firewood he had brought.
As the saying goes, one should leave a margin for others. The three uncles from the Xie family deserved their punishment, but most of the other villagers were just following the crowd and didn’t deserve such harsh treatment.
Their family’s good days were about to come, so they couldn’t afford to offend people too much. The village chief was an exception.
When they left the village, they didn’t see San Gui or Zhang Dashi.
This father and son had suddenly lost their sharpness and didn’t show off in front of Lu Yang.
Lu Yang didn’t care about them. On the way, the family chatted and laughed. When they arrived at the county seat, they didn’t hesitate. They put other matters aside and first partitioned the house.
Lu Yang and Xie Yan were a newlywed couple, still in the honeymoon phase. Using wooden planks to partition the room wouldn’t work, as his mother lived next door, and the sound would carry over. Lu Yang wasn’t bothered by it, but Xie Yan might be too embarrassed to bear it.
They brought in earthen bricks, but leaving a door opening wouldn’t work either. They had to create another door and seal off the partitioned wall.
The bed won’t be dismantled for now; dismantling it would require rebuilding it. We’ll make do this year, and next year when we have money, it won’t be needed anyway. It doesn’t matter.
The partition is made of earthen walls, and both sides of the bed tables are placed on this side, along with the floor-standing cabinets.
There are still goods stored in the house, and Zhao Peilan said to put them in her room first. The goods will also be stored on this side.
There’s no other option; the space is too small. Lu Yang will store the rice and flour in her room. Meat and vegetables, which are more pungent, will be taken to the kitchen.
In his and Xie Yan’s room, along the partition wall, there will also be a desk. The books will be temporarily stored in boxes under the desk, as there’s no room for anything else.
The construction work took four and a half days.
The space was small, so after plastering the walls, they made a door frame for the newly opened small door, fitted a door panel, and the work was completed.
Lu Yang and Xie Yan were not idle. They hurriedly paid New Year’s respects to the Luo brothers, then followed them to Mr. Jin’s house and mentioned the matter of reporting to the authorities again.
They didn’t visit the Wu family for the New Year. Lu Yang understood Wu Pingzhi’s meaning: the family had to be established before they could visit Mr. Wu. Otherwise, it would only disappoint people and hurt their feelings.
During the New Year’s visit, they also delivered invitations.
Lu Yang spoke sincerely, explaining that they had only just started this year, and had earned a little money by selling vegetables and building up a customer base. Xie Yan’s dowry had to be saved, and they simply didn’t have enough silver to host a banquet. Everyone was family and friends, and they had helped him so much that he felt guilty if he didn’t do something in return. So he set up two tables in the shop for a meal with his own family. Everyone ate happily.
It was also a way to warm their hearts and celebrate their move.
They didn’t go to the Wu family to pay New Year’s respects, but they had to send a card.
