Li Feng wasn’t buying it.
Lu Liu, seeing he was an old man, felt a flicker of sympathy after his padded coat had been stripped off, leaving him looking pitiful. But then Li Feng spotted the red, sore spot on Lu Liu’s forehead—right where Lu Sanfeng had poked him.
It was red and swollen. Li Feng gave it a gentle poke, and Lu Liu flinched from the pain.
Well, there went the sympathy.
Li Feng didn’t press for the truth—he was just being kind.
Lu Liu let out a couple of sheepish chuckles and mumbled something about bumping into a wall by accident.
“How about we go get the tofu?”
They’d come over with five pounds of rice cakes and were heading back home with a whole slab of tofu—and three padded coats.
On the way back, Lu Liu was already wearing Old Chen’s coat.
It weighed three jin (about three pounds), the heaviest coat Lu Liu had ever worn. It practically made his shoulders sag. But it was so warm—when the cold wind blew into his face, his cheeks stayed toasty. His hands were steaming from the heat. When Li Feng held them for a bit to warm them even more, Lu Liu actually started to sweat.
This winter, he wouldn’t have to fear the cold anymore!
Li Feng kept glancing sideways at him. Despite the mess with the Chen family, Lu Liu looked genuinely happy. That made Li Feng smile too.
“When we get back, I’ll let you hold the rabbits—raise a few for fun.”
“Mm-hmm!”
Lu Liu nodded eagerly.
It felt so good to have someone to rely on.
Chapter 17 – Have a Taste
Lu Family Hamlet.
Lu Yang drove a donkey cart, proudly bringing his newlywed scholar-husband home for a visit. With them, they had three jin of meat, one jin of sugar, and fifteen big meat-filled buns.
People say you shouldn’t flaunt your wealth, but Lu Yang was doing the exact opposite.
For a family as poor and disconnected as theirs, the only way to gain respect was to show off a little—let folks know they weren’t pushovers anymore.
The sugar was packed in a small jar, with a square of red paper on the outside and the word “sugar” boldly written on it. Whether there was actual sugar inside, no one could tell.
But that meat? It couldn’t be missed. It was too big to even sit flat in the basket—striped with fat and lean, clearly freshly butchered pork.
And those buns? Other people might fold pleats into plain steamed buns, but Lu Yang’s were the real deal, packed full of filling. Everyone who’d seen them swore they were real meat buns!
Lu Yang, the once-overlooked younger son, had made a splash—married himself a scholar and turned his life around.
Some folks got jealous and made snide comments, asking why they didn’t ride in on horses this time.
Lu Yang grinned and said, “We don’t have horses. That was just for fun on the wedding day.”
Xie Yan suddenly felt a little embarrassed. If he’d known it’d give people something to talk about, he wouldn’t have ridden a horse at all.
Lu Yang seemed to read his mind. “When you earn us two horses, I’ll ride one and lead the other—let them stew in envy.”
Xie Yan pointed to himself. “And me?”
Lu Yang didn’t even look at him. “If you wanna come too, better earn three horses. I’m taking two.”
Xie Yan: “…”
So bossy… I love it.
They’d left late that morning, but both of Lu Yang’s dads were already waiting eagerly at home.
It wasn’t traditional for elders to greet the younger generation, but there they were at the door, faces lighting up the closer the cart came, their eyes crinkled in joy.
Lu Yang could tell right away that news from Shangxi Village hadn’t reached Lu Family Hamlet yet. His two dads still didn’t know about the scene he’d made there.
He marveled at how even villages had delays in gossip. Once inside the courtyard, he called for Xie Yan to carry in the return gifts.
Lu Erbao cut off a jin of meat, and Wang Fengnian had already sliced and prepped the rest. The accompanying dishes were laid out and ready—just waiting for them to get home to start cooking.
Lu Yang told them to eat the buns first. He and Xie Yan had eaten before they came, so they’d save the dishes for lunch.
“I made these this morning—just heat ’em up on the stove.”
It was cold in winter, and folks usually huddled around the stove. While warming up, people liked to snack, so most families had a hot stone slab, wire rack, or even a pot nearby to simmer food.
The Lu family used a stone slab. Knowing they’d be coming back today, they’d preheated it nice and early. Now they just had to throw the buns on and wait.
Wang Fengnian had been quietly observing Xie Yan since the moment they arrived. Seeing how the guy’s eyes never left their Liu—he was pleased. It was like a heavy stone lifted from his heart. His tone grew noticeably lighter.
He asked about the family’s situation—but he couldn’t help worrying.
He’d assumed Xie Yan’s relatives had simply done the right thing and stepped aside from interfering in the marriage.
Lu Yang didn’t plan on hiding the truth. In fact, telling it would probably ease their worries.
He gave them the short version though—polished and edited for peace of mind. The important thing was: it was handled.
“We went into town yesterday. Xie Yan knew some officers and brought them over to keep order. The whole village calmed right down!”
Xie Yan, who only knew the officers through his husband: “…”
With both fathers looking at him expectantly, all Xie Yan could do was nod.
“Yeah, he even stayed over at our place last night.”
Lu Erbao nodded gently, though he kept nodding for quite a while—clearly satisfied with what he was hearing.
Lu Yang continued, sharing his plans:
“Not much can be done before year’s end. I’ll get the house in order first. Come next year, we might move into the county town. Our top scholar here needs to study. He’s got a storefront there too—I’ll see if selling buns can bring in some money. Just trying to find a way to support the family. For now, we’ll just get by—gather some firewood, earn a little grain and flour, and save what we can.”
Scholar or not, Xie Yan had thin skin—being called “Top Scholar” out loud like that made him squirm. But his two fathers-in-law didn’t even blink at the title. He was left speechless.
Was he really the odd one out?
What he didn’t know was, Lu Erbao and Wang Fengnian weren’t thinking about his title at all. All they cared about was how their family could live a better life.
Lu Yang reached out to check the buns’ warmth. They were hot enough, so he handed them to his dads.
“Try these—if you think they taste good, I’ll feel a lot more confident.”
The two dads had never eaten store-bought buns before, so they had nothing to compare with—but they tasted them seriously, thrilled to be able to help their kid in any way.
Lu Yang’s cooking had a solid reputation. As expected, both dads gave it a thumbs-up.
Wang Fengnian offered a word of caution:
“Don’t just make buns. You’re only one person—you can’t make much. The whole family’s got to eat, and that’s a lot of expenses.”
He was worried Lu Yang, having never been head of a household, didn’t understand how much it really took to support a family—and that he might think selling a few buns could keep them all afloat.
Technically, with the current headcount in the Xie household, it might be barely enough.
But Xie Yan had to study—and that cost real money.
Lu Yang nodded. “I’ll see how things go. If it seems promising, I’ll partner up with Brother Lin.”
Wang Fengnian was quiet at that. After a beat, Lu Erbao said,
“Why don’t you go visit your uncle’s family? They did come for the wedding after all.”
Lu Yang had planned to—just not in a rush.
Then he asked about the farmland:
“I’ve already spoken to a few folks—once spring comes, we can start raising piglets. Don’t hold on too tightly to the land. Let a few acres go. It’ll help me worry less. Otherwise, it just weighs on me.”
Lu Erbao and Wang Fengnian had already discussed it but were still unsure.
So they turned to Xie Yan—he was the scholar, after all. Maybe he could help them make the call.
But what could Xie Yan say? He didn’t even know the full situation with the Lu family’s land.
He just followed his husband’s lead. If Lu Yang said to let a few acres go, he’d back him up.
So he said they should share out some land.
Lu Erbao asked, “Why, though?”
And Xie Yan was caught off guard.
His blank expression didn’t seem dull or slow to the two dads. It looked calm—emotionless maybe, but not cold. Just neutral.
Wang Fengnian asked gently, “What’s wrong? Hard to explain?”
Lu Yang didn’t jump in to help. He just started roasting slices of sweet potato on the hot stone.
He’d had enough sweet potatoes over the years that just smelling them made his stomach turn. But for a farming family, they were a staple food.
So he roasted some anyway—everyone could have a bite.
Xie Yan, seeing no rescue was coming, gave up and spoke for himself.
He said that farming didn’t make money—barely kept people fed. But it was reliable. No matter the weather, the land was still there. It was a safety net, a foundation, a sense of security.
Raising pigs, on the other hand, could make money. But just like farming, if you only had a few, it wasn’t worth much. Plus, pigs could get sick and die—it wasn’t a sure thing.
People only had so much energy. You had to make choices.
He laid out both sides—the pros and cons—then said,
“Like the saying goes: don’t put all your eggs in one basket. How about we give up a few acres, and use the extra time to raise pigs? That way we’re covered on both ends.”
