He bought some red dates and brown sugar too, saying these were good for the body.
“I’ve been married nearly two years, and I still haven’t gotten pregnant. Both sides of the family are pressing us hard,” Yao Fulang said.
Lu Liu, hands tucked in his gloves, remembered how before his wedding, his father had reminded him to buy red dates and brown sugar to bring home.
They still had sugar at home, so he decided just to get a few dates for now—when they ran out, he could buy more.
Lu Liu debated whether to buy a chicken. But thinking of how Li Feng had already bought plenty of meat, and that they still had fish left over, he decided against it.
The rest of their shopping was mostly seasonings. Yao Fulang explained that their mountain village was far from the county town, not like other villages. Sometimes they didn’t come to town for a month or two, especially in winter when the cold was harsh. And come spring, they’d be busy plowing and planting, with farmwork piling up. So while they were in town, it made sense to stock up on these supplies.
So Lu Liu followed Yao Fulang’s lead and bought a good bit of seasonings. Li Feng liked his food strongly flavored, so Lu Liu got extra sauce too.
Once the food was sorted, it was time for drinks.
That meant tea and wine.
The tea folks drank in the countryside was low-grade—cheap, full of bits that sank to the bottom of the cup. But ten coins would buy a big bag, enough to keep guests’ cups full.
As for wine, they’d get a small jar. They chose a local brew: twenty coins for a jar holding about two jin. It was cloudy and harsh on the throat, not very smooth, but strong—and just what the village men liked.
Lu Liu bought it for Li Feng.
Then came clothing. Buying new clothes for the New Year was something richer families did.
Lu Liu himself only got a new coat every few years, but this year he already had a few new padded jackets. Li Feng did too, so there was no need to buy more.
Yao Fulang was picking out fabric, holding up pieces and asking Lu Liu’s opinion on which looked nice.
Lu Liu had grown up wearing dull, gray clothes, so he liked bright colors.
Yao Fulang liked them too, but didn’t often buy them.
Brighter colors cost more. And living out in the mountain village, always busy with chores, who was he going to dress up for?
Without missing a beat, Lu Liu said, “For Da Qiang, of course. You’re his husband. If you look good, he’ll be happy.”
Yao Fulang bit his lip, trying not to laugh. “Oh, Lu Fulang, we’re out shopping—why do you keep bringing him up?”
Lu Liu looked blank.
He’d only mentioned him once!
Yao Fulang hesitated, then added, “Besides, I’ve got to go out and see people too. If I buy all these bright red and green fabrics, what’ll folks in the village think of me?”
From Lu Liu’s own village experience, the villagers would probably stare at Yao Fulang and say how nice he looked—how well he dressed.
And that’s exactly what he said.
Yao Fulang chuckled. “Alright then. Today I will spend the money. I’ll get green, how about that? There are lots of weddings around New Year, and I’m not a newlywed—red wouldn’t be right.”
Lu Liu agreed.
Anyway, with everyone else dressed so drab, no matter what color Yao Fulang picked, he’d stand out.
Then Lu Liu spotted a pile of scrap fabric in the shop and grabbed some too.
When he’d been tidying up at home, he noticed a lot of Li Feng’s clothes were torn.
Li Feng was always out in the mountains—getting snagged, scraped, or ripped on something. His clothes were always in rough shape.
Lu Liu planned to use the scraps to patch them up. The leftover bits he could make into insoles.
Li Feng ran hot and sweated a lot, even his feet. With plenty of insoles on hand, his shoes wouldn’t stay damp and smelly, and they’d stay warmer too.
Once they’d finished with clothes, it was on to daily goods.
Yao Fulang bought ointment for frostbite and hand cream, and Lu Liu picked up the same.
The hand cream could be used on the face too—a bit in the morning after washing up kept the cold wind from chapping the skin.
The frostbite ointment would come in handy eventually, so best to have it ready.
When Yao Fulang wandered over to look at rouge, Lu Liu shook his head.
He’d dolled himself up on his wedding day, and just thinking of it still made him feel awkward and silly.
Yao Fulang teased him. “Come on, you should take advantage of that fresh face of yours and dress up a bit. Men like that.”
Lu Liu thought it over seriously. But as far as he could remember, Li Feng had never said he liked that kind of thing. So he shook his head and said, “Dafeng doesn’t like it.”
Yao Fulang: “…”
He said to Lu Liu, “Da Feng, Da Feng, Da Feng—you come to the market, and it’s Da Feng this, Da Feng that, buzz buzz buzz. Look at me! I didn’t buy anything for Da Qiang!”
Lu Liu’s basket was heavy—there was even a small jar of wine in there. Yao Fulang had bought one too.
“You bought him wine to drink,” Lu Liu pointed out.
Yao Fulang choked on his words and insisted, “That’s for me to drink!”
Lu Liu just smiled.
His smile was soft and sweet, and looking at it, Yao Fulang couldn’t stay annoyed. He finished buying his rouge, then dragged Lu Liu along to pick up some sunflower seeds and peanuts.
Lu Liu got a pound of each. Yao Fulang teased him for being stingy.
So Lu Liu asked, “Do Da Feng’s family get a lot of visitors?”
Yao Fulang said, “He was a bachelor before—who would’ve stopped by his place? But now he’s got you! The New Year will be lively for sure. You can’t go wrong buying more.”
Lu Liu felt like things wouldn’t be that lively—he hadn’t really gone out and made friends. Heck, today he’d somehow even gotten into an argument with Chen Fulang.
After thinking it over, he added another half-pound of each.
Yao Fulang eyed him and asked, “Da Feng didn’t give you money, did he?”
At that, Lu Liu lit up and grinned. “He did! And Mother-in-law gave me some too. Altogether, I had three hundred coins!”
Yao Fulang felt a little envious.
Lu Liu had only bought a few odds and ends, yet he had three hundred coins to spend. No wonder he could splurge on a ten-coin meat pie without a second thought.
And to be fair, that pie was delicious.
On the way back, they went to the city gate to find Da Qiang.
When they passed that meat pie stall again, Lu Liu pulled out some more coins and bought another.
Li Feng had spoken about those pies with such genuine enthusiasm—he must really love them. Since he’d come to town, Lu Liu figured he’d bring one back for Da Feng to enjoy.
And he should get on his mother-in-law’s good side too—better get another one.
He checked how much money he had left, gritted his teeth, and bought two pies. He didn’t bother with the dipping sauce, just wrapped them up warm in his coat so that when they got back to the village, they’d still be nice and hot.
Once they were done shopping, it was time to cram onto the cart for the trip home.
Besides Da Qiang, there were a few other men who’d come with carts, and now each cart had to squeeze on a bunch of people along with all their goods.
After all the shopping, there wasn’t much room left.
The front of the cart had two big baskets, and their two packs were stacked on top of those. The other two baskets were stacked in the middle of the cart and tied down tight. People sat around the baskets with their feet dangling over the side, and before long, everyone’s legs went numb.
When that happened, they’d hop down to walk a bit and give the mule a break. Hauling people and all that cargo—easily several hundred pounds—wasn’t easy work.
They pushed on as best they could, and by the time they got back to the village, it was already late afternoon.
The cart went through the new village first. Lu Liu craned his neck, and sure enough, spotted Li Feng outside the house chatting with someone. He called out, loud and clear: “Da Feng!”
Yao Fulang and Yao Second Sister exchanged a look, laughing behind their hands. “Look at that—see? That’s what a newlywed husband looks like. So eager!”
Lu Liu blushed, pulled his head back inside, and hunkered down. The only one not teasing was Miao Fulang, sitting quietly in the corner, just watching them.
Li Feng heard the voice, turned, and spotted Lu Liu coming back. He started down the path toward the main road.
Da Qiang didn’t slow the cart. Grinning, he shouted, “You want your husband? Go chase him down to the ends of the earth!”
The mule was tired, plodding along at a slow pace through the village. Li Feng took a few big strides and caught up, reaching up to lift Lu Liu right off the cart.
Yao Fulang and Yao Second Sister laughed and teased, “Look at you two! Couldn’t even be apart for a whole day!”
Lu Liu didn’t dare look back—face redder than ever as Li Feng held him close.
Li Feng let him go and touched his cheek. “Hot enough to fry an egg on.”
Lu Liu felt his face too, then grinned sheepishly.
The houses in the new village were built closer together than in the old one. Past the main road was where the houses started, one after the next. If it weren’t for each home having a front and back yard, they’d be practically wall-to-wall.
The Li family’s house was built just a few years ago, still looking fresh and new. It was in the second row off the main road. From between the houses, you could see all the way out to the path.
That’s how Lu Liu had spotted Li Feng just now.
Evening smoke curled up from every chimney as families got dinner going.
Seeing them, neighbors called out playfully from their yards: “Da Feng! Your precious husband’s back!”
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