Chapter 199 - 139: The Loveliest People of Those Years
Zhou Yan glanced over as well.
On the cover was written:
Qiqi Jade Exhibition
Wang Yu
The calligraphy was powerful and vigorous, making Zhou Yan feel inadequate in comparison.
’What did the letter say?’
’Perhaps it holds the key to Mrs. Qiu’s lingering regrets.’
After confirming that the letter and the braised beef were both inside, Zhang Shufen closed the food box, got off the cart, and asked a neighbor on the street for directions before knocking on the main gate of the Qiu Mansion.
Zhou Yan stood behind her, gazing at the exquisite and magnificent Qiu Family’s Old Mansion. In this era, it was a courtyard-style home imbued with the charm of a Jiangnan water village, featuring white walls, blue-gray tiles, upturned eaves with wooden carvings, a heavy redwood gate, and a pair of lifelike stone lions standing guard at the entrance.
It didn’t cover a vast area, but every detail exuded refinement.
It was completely different from the dilapidated state it would be in half a century later.
"Young Master Wang Yu of the Suji Wang Family asked me to bring this braised beef for your young miss. There’s also a letter for her inside," Zhang Shufen said, handing over the food box.
"Young Master Wang usually delivers it himself. Why did he send you today?" The gatekeeper took the food box, looking somewhat surprised, but still spoke to her politely. "Would you like a bowl of water?"
"Young Master Wang had something to attend to and couldn’t come, so he asked me to deliver it. No need for water, I have two little ones to look after. Now that the delivery is made, I’ll be on my way." Zhang Shufen shook her head, turned, and drove the cart away.
Zhou Yan floated behind the cart, looking back toward the Qiu Mansion. The gatekeeper closed the main gate. A short while later, just before the cart turned the corner, he saw the mansion’s gate open again.
A lovely figure in a beige qipao rushed out. She stood on the street, looking left and right, her exquisite, beautiful face streaked with tears and filled with panic and confusion.
’It’s her.’
’Miss Qiu of the Qiu Mansion, Qiu Qi.’
Duan Yu Yan was already considered a beauty for resembling her by seventy percent, but Miss Qiu’s features and figure were both truly exceptional. At this moment, however, her beauty was a tragic one.
’She must have read the letter. Or perhaps just the beginning...’
The cart turned onto an adjacent street, and the view disappeared.
...
BLECH— BLECH—
Zhang Shufen leaned against the courtyard wall and dry-heaved a few times.
"Shufen, why have you been dry-heaving so much lately? Are you feeling unwell?" A slightly plump woman brought her a bowl of water, patting her back with concern.
Zhou Yan moved to the side and glanced up at the sky: October 16, 1937, Morning, 6:11 AM.
Zhang Shufen took the bowl, sipped some warm water, and gently cradled her lower abdomen. "Lin, I think I might be pregnant."
"Really?!" Lin exclaimed in pleasant surprise. "That’s wonderful! If your husband finds out, he’ll be overjoyed!"
Zhang Shufen smiled as well, but a trace of worry tinged her expression. She murmured, "I just don’t know where Zhou Yi is, or if he’s doing okay."
"Don’t you worry, Shufen," Lin said, smiling reassuringly. "Good things happen to good people. Your husband will be fine and will come back after they’ve finished fighting off the devils! You need to take good care of yourself during these first few months. Don’t you dare do any heavy lifting from now on. You just be in charge of the brine and the braised meat, and leave the rough work to me!"
"Then I’ll have to trouble you, Lin," Zhang Shufen said, a little embarrassed.
"We’re like family, what trouble is it? Besides, you pay me a wage. It’s what I’m supposed to do," Lin said, waving her hand dismissively.
Zhou Yan’s gaze fell on Zhang Shufen’s abdomen. ’Is this... Uncle Zhou Han?’
’Thinking back on his age, it adds up. Conceived this year, born next May.’
Shufen was a woman on her own, already exhausted from raising two children and managing the braised meat business. Being pregnant with another would not make life any easier.
Fortunately, the Zhou Family had a tradition of helping one another. Besides Lin, who was there to help with work, two other aunties soon came over to lend a hand.
Upon hearing that Zhang Shufen was pregnant, they immediately offered to come help with the work first thing every morning, starting tomorrow.
Zhang Shufen offered to pay them, but they firmly refused.
Zhang Shufen sat to the side, silently wiping the tears from the corners of her eyes, then stood up with a smile and went into the kitchen.
Zhou Yan was about to follow her inside when the scene abruptly changed, and a door appeared before him.
"Push! Push! The head is out!"
"A son! It’s a son!"
The cries of a newborn and Lin’s cheerful voice came from the room.
Zhou Yan stood at the doorway, looking at the time displayed on the door: May 16, 1938, Afternoon, 12:32 PM.
Uncle Zhou Han was born, crying his first cries. The scene had shifted so quickly it caught him off guard.
The baby was wrapped in a small blanket. A few of the village aunties bustled in and out, helping to clean up, and soon the room grew quiet again.
Only then did Zhou Yan float inside.
Zhang Shufen’s face was pale. Propped up by a pillow, she looked at the newborn beside her, a weak smile on her face.
The two little kids, Zhou Qing and Zhou Ze, were perched at the edge of the bed, curiously observing their new little brother.
"Mom, how come it’s another little brother? Didn’t you promise you’d give me a little sister?" Zhou Qing asked, looking up at Zhang Shufen with a hint of disappointment in his voice.
"Yeah, want sister," Zhou Ze chimed in, nodding.
"Alright, alright, I’ll give you a little sister next time," Zhang Shufen said with a slightly helpless laugh. Looking at the swaddled baby, she murmured, "A son is good. In these chaotic times, it’s hard to be a girl."
"Shufen, come on, have some millet porridge first. I’ll watch the baby for you. You need to focus on your postpartum recovery. The braised meat can wait until after your confinement period." A woman in her fifties walked in carrying a bowl of millet porridge, sat down by the bed, and looked at Zhang Shufen with eyes full of sympathy. "Giving birth is such an ordeal."
"Mom, I’m fine. This is my third one, I’m used to it by now," Zhang Shufen said, forcing a smile.
’Mom? Is this my great-grandmother?’ Zhou Yan wondered, looking at the woman. Her eyes and brows did bear some resemblance to Zhang Shufen’s. He seemed to recall that his great-grandmother’s name was Li Zhen; he had swept her grave before.
"It doesn’t matter how many you have, it hurts just the same. I gave birth to you four siblings, and every single time it was so painful I thought I would die. It’s like walking through the gates of hell and back just to bring a child into this world." Li Zhen spooned up some porridge, blew on it to cool it, and carefully fed it to Zhang Shufen. "I told your father that I’ll go back to Rongcheng after your confinement period is over. With you all alone and Zhou Yi away, I just can’t rest easy."