Several of the wives and husbands had gone into the kitchen to help, getting a few tables’ worth of food ready for the feast.
Lu Yang arrived leading a little pony. He had even fixed a crinkled red paper flower to it. From the moment he entered the new village, people were already staring wide-eyed. When someone finally asked what the little horse was for, and heard that it was a gift for the two children, everyone was completely stunned.
The babies were only a month old, and they already had a pony to ride!
That day, countless children cried and threw tantrums, demanding ponies of their own, and were promptly subjected to a combined beating from the adults at home.
Many people followed all the way down the mountain to watch the excitement, seeing the pony led into the courtyard, seeing Li Feng and Lu Liu come out holding the one-month-old babies to let them reach out and touch the pony.
The little darlings were dressed in hundred-family clothes, bundled in wool sleeping sacks, and wearing little tiger hats. They were unbearably cute.
They were awake for this stretch, smiling at everyone they saw, clearly cheerful little ones. Their features had opened up a bit now; they were no longer wrinkled like when they were first born, and the redness of their skin had faded.
There was snow outside, so they were only brought out for a quick round before being carried back inside.
Inside the room, several wives and husbands were seated together, chatting casually.
When the banquet officially started, everyone would head out together to eat and drink.
Lu Liu did not go outside to join the bustle. Lu Yang told Xie Yan to go attend the feast, while he stayed in the room with their mother, keeping Lu Liu company as he looked after the children.
Both fathers had been ushered to the main table by Li Feng, where they were properly entertained along with Xie Yan.
Shun’ge’er brought them several bowls of dishes and a basin of soup.
The soup was radish and pork rib soup. The white radish had been stewed until soft, melting as soon as it touched the tongue.
There were more meat dishes than vegetable ones. Lu Liu did not really feel like eating anymore; he had developed a preference for vegetables.
When Lu Yang picked some meat for him and he said as much, it made Lu Yang laugh. “You’re living the good life now, huh? Not even craving meat anymore.”
Lu Liu grinned and served Zhao Peilan a bowl of soup.
“Auntie, have some of this soup. It’s really good.”
Zhao Peilan had eaten breakfast before coming out and was not very hungry. She only took a few bites of lunch, but after finishing a whole bowl of soup, she went to look at the babies.
She even asked Lu Liu what kind of head shape he wanted the children to sleep into—round or flat.
Lu Liu said round. “Round looks better.”
Then he looked at his older brother and said, “I touched a lot of people’s heads the other day. I didn’t see many flat heads—most everyone’s is round.”
Lu Yang felt like laughing when he heard this. “You went around touching people’s heads to see if they were round or flat?”
Lu Liu was completely serious. “You have to feel them. Brother An said there are a few people in the stockade with flat heads. From the front they look perfectly decent, but from the side it doesn’t work—kind of ugly. Zhuangzhuang being a bit ugly is fine, but Xiao Mai absolutely can’t be ugly.”
Lu Yang flicked his forehead. “Well, look at you, Liu’ge’er. The kids are only a month old and you’re already playing favorites.”
Lu Liu just kept grinning, then asked about the pony. “Was it expensive? Where did you buy it?”
Lu Yang said he bought it from a horse trader.
“I bargained with him back and forth for several days. Horses sell easily, and he was about to leave in the end. I chased him all the way to the city gate. He said there are two ways to buy horses. One is at the horse market, which is under government control—everything has to be registered before and after the sale, very strict. Traders like him either own horses themselves with official documents, or they buy horses from the market and resell them.”
Either way, it was troublesome or expensive. There was no easy option.
Lu Liu said, “Li Feng has a horse too. He said a friend gave it to him.”
Lu Liu had not gone out much and had not heard people talking about how that horse was seized.
When he said this, Zhao Peilan turned to look at him.
When Li Feng had talked about his experiences on the road in the county, Zhao Peilan had overheard a bit. She looked at the children, then at Lu Liu’s smiling face, said nothing, and continued playing with the babies.
Lu Yang’s expression did not change. He did not mention that the horse had been taken by force, only said that Li Feng’s friend was truly generous.
“I bought a big horse for your brother-in-law. It was really expensive.”
This time, Lu Yang had also brought several sets of baby clothes, gifts from Wu Pingzhi. After they finished eating, they took them up onto the kang to look at them. One by one, they laid them out, and Lu Liu liked every single piece.
Children’s clothes were simply shrunken versions of adults’ clothing, two pieces top and bottom. Since the babies would not be going out much in winter, none were overly thick—there were small padded garments suitable for sleeping in, as well as two little belly wraps.
Lu Liu had rested a lot over the past month and had hardly done any sewing. Seeing these clothes made his fingers itch again, and he wanted to stitch and mend something.
He quietly asked Lu Yang, “Brother, do you want a belly wrap? I could make one for you to try wearing.”
If conditions allowed, husbands would also wear belly wraps, usually in summer. With thin clothing, it kept the chest from sticking out. Most were just an extra piece of cloth sewn onto the undershirt, like a patch.
Lu Yang had never worn a belly wrap. He asked Lu Liu, “Have you worn one? Isn’t it kind of chilly?”
Lu Liu had never worn one either. He had only held the baby’s belly wrap up to measure it, covering the front but not the back.
“How about I make one for you, and you try it on?”
Lu Yang refused. He told Lu Liu to try it instead.
“Make one and wear it yourself first. If it feels good, then make one for me.”
Lu Liu thought about it and agreed.
“Alright, then wait for it.”
He also asked about a craftsman who made writing brushes. Lu Yang did not know one, but he could ask Brother Luo. He promised to help inquire.
As the brothers talked, they folded up the little clothes, and the topic naturally shifted to plans for after the New Year.
Lu Yang had already confirmed that he would be moving and wanted to tell Lu Liu.
He had commissioned two shop banners, which he had already received. One was hung up at the shop, and the other he brought for Lu Liu.
The banner was embroidered with the three characters “Chi De Bao” (“Eat Until You’re Full”) and many kinds of mountain goods.
No matter what food they sold in the future, the shop would certainly also sell mountain products. This banner would always fit and would not go wrong.
Lu Yang handed it to Lu Liu and said, “I’ll be waiting for you in the prefectural capital.”
Lu Liu felt full of anticipation for the future. Because he knew they would be going, and that it would not be too far off, when he heard this, he did not cry. He smiled brightly.
“Mm. We won’t be too late. We’ll leave around mid-year. Li Feng said he’ll get everything settled. When the time comes, we’ll have a place to stay as soon as we arrive.”
Lu Yang wanted to live together with them. When he was in the prefectural capital before, he had even asked around about rent prices in different areas.
Once you moved to a place, you would certainly stay for several years. Even if you did not put down roots, at least you had to get the business running smoothly and everything stabilized. Moving in a hurry, like itinerant traders, would defeat the purpose of moving at all.
Lu Liu was not yet sure where Li Feng would find a place. He had told Li Feng that he wanted to be close to an academy, so it would be easier to send the children to school later.
“What we talked about in the county before—I don’t know if the academies in the prefectural capital are far from the docks. If they are, then maybe live closer to the docks so Li Feng can sell goods more easily. The kids are still small; we could always move again later. Or find a compromise location.”
Lu Yang thought back for a moment. The academies and private schools in the prefectural capital all valued quiet, refined surroundings, and were some distance from the docks.
Setting up a home too close to the docks would not be appropriate. The dock area was good for business, with many traveling merchants coming and going, and it was full of inns, taverns, and countless brothels. It was better to be closer to the city proper—just as lively, but more peaceful, suitable for ordinary families to live.
Lu Yang said, “Li Feng will think of all this. He’ll probably choose a place closer to the academy. There are fewer merchants living there, and the environment is nicer. His commute will be longer, but his family will live comfortably.”
Lu Liu sighed. “Finding a perfect solution is so hard.”
Housing was difficult. Settling down was difficult.
Since the conversation had gone this far, they also talked about arrangements for the two fathers.
Lu Liu had discussed this with Li Feng. In the future, they would open a small shop. Before the shop opened, the family would continue printing and selling books.
At that time, they would have the two fathers help with printing and binding. The work was not tiring and did not require rushing to produce large quantities. Printing one or two hundred copies a month would be enough for Li Feng to sell. First, they would bring the people over, and then figure things out.
Lu Yang was stunned when he heard this. “Ah Yan wants to open a bookshop too. A bookshop needs an engraving and printing workshop. He said he’d have Father and Dad help at the workshop—usually just printing books, doing light work, not needing to deal with many people. It’s nearby and not exhausting. You’ve ended up thinking along the same lines.”
Lu Liu was stunned even longer than Lu Yang after hearing that.
Li Feng had been right. You had to go and do things to know what difficulties you would encounter. Staying stuck in one place and thinking things through would never produce an answer.
