Chapter 62: Preparing for Winter
After seeing Li Hua and her husband off, the rest of the Li family dispersed. The sun hadn’t yet set when Li Xiu and his wife got home. They ate an early dinner and went to bed to rest. Zhou Lian couldn’t sleep, so the two of them started chatting idly.
"Bao’er, what made you decide to say all that when we were sending Li Hua off?" Li Xiu asked curiously. ’My wife isn’t one to meddle in other people’s business.’
"Oh, wasn’t I just repaying a favor on your behalf? She’s done her best for you, her big brother. If her path is a little smoother in the future, you’ll have less to worry about," Zhou Lian said lazily. ’Li Hua is a good person and treats Li Xiu like her own brother. I can’t just stand by and watch, can I? Besides, it was just a matter of a few words.’
Li Xiu was incredibly moved by his wife’s words. He gave her a hard kiss and said blissfully, "You’re the best, Bao’er. Those girls have all been truly good to me. It was rare for them to help me at such a young age. I was a big brother who might as well have not had a mother, and they worried a lot about me. Sometimes, Grandma Li couldn’t be too obviously biased, so she could only pretend not to see. First Aunt and Third Aunt each had their own children to look after, with whole families to support, so they couldn’t always pay attention to me. I really have those girls to thank for saving me from making a fool of myself."
"Li Xiu, I’ve actually always been curious. You’re your mother’s biological son, right? Why does she dislike you so much?" Zhou Lian asked. She hadn’t been able to figure it out in two lifetimes. Li Xiu was truly filial, and this mother-in-law of hers was just too bizarre. ’Who could be so cruel to their own biological son? Especially the most filial one!’
Li Xiu smiled nonchalantly. "I guess our personalities just clash. You know I can remember things since I was three. My grandma and First Aunt raised me for three years. In those three years, I didn’t eat a single grain of the family’s rice or wear a single thread of their cloth. If my grandma made something good to eat, or my First Aunt made me a piece of clothing, my mother would manage to trick me and take it away. She’s an extremely selfish person with a strong need for control. Since I wouldn’t listen to her, she naturally didn’t like me. What she hated most was me being close to Grandma Li and First Aunt, because they were like two great mountains pressing down on her—something she could never escape in her entire life. The more things happened, the more time passed, the more she disliked me. Over time, it turned into hatred."
Zhou Lian was so shocked she couldn’t snap out of it for a long moment. ’There are mothers like that in the world?’ "How did you find all this out?" ’Was Li Xiu a fool in our last life? To be deceived by his mother for most of it!’
"Me? It was probably right before our matchmaking meeting. She was so unconcerned about my marriage prospects. From the moment Second Sister-in-law Ge brought up our match, I felt something was strange. Slowly, bit by bit, I began to understand. Besides, she’s not a particularly smart person. I just wasn’t paying attention before; otherwise, I would have known long ago. Plus, people’s actions are revealed through careful thought. I’ve told you before, the things she does don’t stand up to scrutiny. Once I started thinking about it carefully, was there anything left for me not to understand? I haven’t made a final break with her out of respect for the fact that she gave birth to me."
Seeing his wife’s shocked and doubtful expression, Li Xiu smiled and continued, "She had nowhere to vent her hatred for Grandma Li and First Aunt, so I became her outlet. To her, I wasn’t her son; I was the best tool for getting revenge on them. The more Grandma Li and First Aunt doted on me, the more energetically she tormented me. But she’s also a complete coward. Once she realized I was no longer under her control, she didn’t dare provoke me anymore. So that’s how it is. I might just be the kind of person who is fated to have a shallow relationship with their parents. As long as I don’t seek affection from her, she can never hurt me. I have a wife and a child on the way. I have no expectations of her. Things are great just the way they are now!"
"Alright, as long as you’ve come to terms with it." Zhou Lian had nothing more to say. ’What can you do when you’re stuck with parents like that? You just have to endure it. It’s good that he can think it through and move on.’
"Bao’er, it’s getting colder by the day. Let’s move to the kang in the east wing to sleep," Li Xiu said softly. The temperature difference between morning and evening was getting large, and he didn’t want his wife to catch a chill. To him, having a wife was all he needed. ’What does all that stuff about parents and affection have to do with me? It’s not like I’m some clueless child still craving my parents’ love.’
"Okay, let’s move tomorrow then," Zhou Lian said, leaning lazily against Li Xiu’s chest.
"We’ll move tomorrow. I’ll prepare extra firewood this year. We’ll get the kang nice and hot to keep you and our daughter from getting cold."
Feeling his wife leaning against him, Li Xiu said enthusiastically, "In a little while, I’ll plant some more of your favorite vegetables in the wooden barrels on the kitchen rack. That way, you can eat them during your postpartum confinement. I’ll get lots of eggs, fish, and meat to nourish you properly. Next month, I’ll need to start making the crepes and preparing goods for the New Year. You’re not allowed to lift a finger then. As long as you and our daughter are both well, you’ll be helping me more than enough. Bao’er, you have to stay well, or else nothing I do will have any meaning!"
Listening to her husband, Zhou Lian’s heart felt warm. ’Whatever happened in my last life, this is how this life will be.’ Stroking her belly and feeling the baby’s movements, a sense of peace washed over her. She softly said a single word, "Okay," which was met with her husband’s joyful laughter.
"Bao’er, I’ve prepared everything. You don’t have to worry about a thing. As long as you and the baby are healthy, I couldn’t ask for anything more." Sensing the mood of the wife in his arms, Li Xiu was very happy. Nothing brought him more satisfaction than the feeling of his wife relying on him with peace of mind.
Time passed with Zhou Lian nurturing her pregnancy and Li Xiu making meticulous preparations. After coaxing his wife to sleep, Li Xiu quietly got up to check everything one more time, making sure he hadn’t missed anything. In about ten days, Zhou Lian was due to give birth. His precious daughter was coming, and he couldn’t let his daughter or his wife suffer the slightest hardship after the delivery.
Carrying a lantern into the kitchen, he slowly looked around. The firewood for the winter was all prepared. The vegetables he had planted had grown. All sorts of side dishes had been pickled or sun-dried as needed. Rice, flour, grains, oil, and various nutritious foods for a new mother were all ready.
He quietly closed the door and went down to the cellar. In it was their share of grain from the autumn harvest, plus some more he’d bought at a high price from the black market. There were also the prepared crepes, enough to last for half a year. He had also hunted three wild boars in the mountains. One was stored with blocks of ice in a large crock; the cellar was already cool, so it would keep for two months without a problem. This way, his wife could eat fresh meat during her confinement. Of another boar, half was made into cured meat and the other half into salt-cured pork. The last boar was for them to eat now and to give as New Year’s gifts.
He had prepared four or five hundred eggs, some for his wife to eat and the rest for the red-egg-gifting tradition on their daughter’s ninth day. That should be about enough. There was also millet, brown sugar, jujubes, and longans... all things that help a new mother replenish her blood and energy. Li Xiu had filled an entire large crock with them, ready to nourish his wife properly during her confinement.
Over twenty hens were quietly waiting in the chicken coop, specially caught by Li Xiu in the mountains. One every two days would be just enough for his wife’s 45-day confinement period. The doctor had said that hen soup was the most nourishing food for a woman who had just given birth. The thought of his wife emerging from her confinement with fair, tender skin thanks to his care brought a silly grin to Li Xiu’s face.
He looked at the firewood that filled more than half of the west room in the south building, calculating. His wife couldn’t be cold after giving birth, and his young daughter couldn’t stand the chill either. This much firewood would be enough to last until April without a problem. By then, the weather would be warm, and his wife and daughter wouldn’t have to suffer.
After circling the courtyard twice, Li Xiu went back to the bedroom. He opened the wardrobe and looked inside. His daughter’s diapers, little blankets, little clothes, little socks, little shoes, and little hats—Grandma Li had led Li Gui, Li Yun, and the others in making them. They had used the new cotton and high-quality cotton cloth that Li Xiu had prepared.
Carrying the lantern, he quietly returned to the kang in the east wing. He gazed lovingly at his wife’s fair and rosy face, gave her a gentle kiss, and carefully gathered her into his arms. He let out a contented sigh. Life was wonderful right now. In just ten more days or so, he would get to see his daughter, a thought that made him too excited to sleep.
If he couldn’t sleep, he wouldn’t sleep. He carefully went over everything in his mind again, making sure nothing was missed. He had already arranged things with the midwives—two of them. He’d asked them not to go anywhere for the next few days and just wait for Zhou Lian to go into labor. The ginseng was in the kang cabinet, ready to be used at a moment’s notice. The coal-briquette stove in the outer kitchen was lit, ready to provide hot water. Li Xiu had also gone to the county’s supply and marketing cooperative to buy sanitary supplies for Zhou Lian to use after childbirth. He even specially bought a baby bottle for their daughter to drink water from.
Food, clothing, and supplies were all fully prepared. Nothing was missing. Given the current conditions, some things couldn’t be bought even if you had the money. Now, everything was truly ready; all that was left was for Zhou Lian to give birth.