Chapter 579: Farm Woman 7
"And the character for ’xi’ also signifies light, hope, and a new beginning."
Daya, who was now Chen Xi, nodded emphatically. "Okay. From now on, my name is Chen Xi."
The second daughter squeezed over. "Mom, if Big Sis is named after the sun, does that make me the moon? And is Sanya the stars?"
"That’s right. You’ll be Chen Yue, and your little sister will be Chen Xing."
Tan You’s expression softened. "As for pet names, you can choose your own. The moon has many elegant names, like Jade Plate, Jade Ball, Jade Rabbit, Guanghan Palace, Osmanthus, and so on."
The second daughter looked up at the moon in the sky. "Mom, the moon looks like a big, round dumpling, so golden yellow."
Tan You’s mischievous side surfaced. "Then how about ’Tuantuan’ for your pet name?"
The second daughter nodded eagerly. "Okay! I’ll be Tuantuan! Then what about Little Sister?"
Chen Xi said, "The moon is round. How about we call Chen Xing ’Yuanyuan’ for her pet name?"
Tan You paused for a moment, a wide smile spreading across her face. "Alright. You’ll be Tuantuan, and your sister will be Yuanyuan."
’This time, it really wasn’t me being mischievous. The little ones came up with these names all on their own.’
Chen Xi was a little envious. "Mom, I want a pet name too."
Tan You said, "The sun has many elegant names, like White Steed, Golden Tiger, Red Crow, Sun Crow, Golden Crow, Golden Wheel, Fire Wheel, Red Wheel, Sundial’s Shadow, Racing Sundial, Vermilion Dawn, Xihe, Sun Scenery, Daming, Ming Guang, Radiant Vermilion, Dawn Sparrow, Red Sun, and so on."
"Plus, the spring sun is called spring sunshine, and the summer sun is blazing sun. The morning sun can be morning sun, morning dawn, rising sun, morning light, morning halo, first ray of dawn, or first light. The sun at dusk is called evening glow, dusk glow, evening halo, setting sun, fading sun, or slanting sun. There are so many, why don’t you pick one?"
Chen Xi was getting overwhelmed by all the choices. She thought and thought about it. "Mom, I think I’ll go with something simpler. How about Ming Guang?"
It made no difference to Tan You. "As long as you like it, it’s fine. Whether you’re called Chen Xi or Ming Guang, you’re still you. A name is just a label."
Chen Xi thought for a long time. "Then my formal name will be Chen Xi, and my pet name will be Ming Guang. But since I’m the eldest sister now, none of you would dare call me by my pet name, right?"
Chen Yue fanned the flames. "Mom can."
Tan You said, "I prefer to use your formal names. It shows more respect."
An Wen watched this scene with some envy. Tan You glanced at him. "When you find your birth parents someday, they’ll give you a new name."
An Wen asked, "Auntie, can we not look for them? I’m scared..."
Tan You said, "We have to look, even if it’s scary. We have to live with our eyes open. If you’re worried your future relatives won’t be good people, we can look for them quietly. If they turn out to be bad people, you can live here with me for the rest of your life."
That was all the reassurance An Wen needed, and his anxiety immediately subsided. ’How wonderful would it be if I could stay at Auntie’s house forever?’
That night, An Wen slept on the small, makeshift bed as usual, but he wasn’t as anxious as he had been the night before. His auntie had promised him that as long as he wanted to, he could always stay with them.
’He hoped his parents would never be found. That way, this family could stay together forever.’
Because the Chen family lived far from the village, Tan You felt safe enough to start bringing all sorts of things home. In just a few days, the house was completely transformed.
First, the kitchen now had many more ingredients; rice, flour, grains, oil, and other daily necessities were all available. Next, the children all had new clothes and new shoes, and there were even a few little chicks being raised in the yard.
Chen Xi was chopping vegetables. "Mom, when are we going to fix the house? It rained yesterday, and the main room was leaking."
Tan You folded her arms. "This is the rainy season, so it’s not a good time to repair the house. We’ll have to bear with it for now. We can talk about it after this period passes."
Chen Yue rested her chin in her hands. "Thankfully, the leak where we sleep is smaller. I can put up with it for a few more days."
Tan You raised an eyebrow slightly. "You couldn’t put up with it before?"
Chen Yue sighed like a little adult. "I don’t know why, but every day with Mom is a good day. I don’t even dare to think about how things were before."
Tan You shook her head and looked at An Wen as he came out of the small room. "Is the wooden box finished?"
It wasn’t that she was being harsh on the kid; Tan You herself was just terrible at woodworking. An Wen, however, had learned a trick or two from following Old Chen around and could at least make a simple wooden box.
All Tan You wanted was a simple, collapsible wooden box. The boy had started on it yesterday but was being all secretive about it, telling her he wanted to show her the final product.
’What could she do but agree? If the kid wanted to give her a surprise, she was happy to play along.’
An Wen came out holding two rectangular wooden boxes. "Auntie, I’m finished."
Tan You took them and was surprised. "You even carved patterns on it? Amazing! And you said you weren’t good at this? You’re incredible!"
Chen Xi let out a giggle. ’Her mom was amazing at giving compliments, so much so that it was almost embarrassing. No matter how simple the task, her mom always had a mountain of praise for them.’
An Wen scratched his cheek. "The carving isn’t very good, just simple bamboo leaves and orchid grass. I hope you don’t mind, Auntie."
"How could I possibly mind?" Tan You was always happy to offer encouragement. "An Wen, you did an amazing job. This saves me so much trouble. I was thinking I’d have to use bamboo from the mountains to make the molds."
"With these two small wooden boxes, I’m not worried at all anymore."
Chen Xi finished chopping the vegetables. She sprinkled the chopped leaves into the chicks’ food bowl, then sat down next to Tan You. "Mom, are we making soap again today?"
"Last time we made utility soap, and you all saw how well it worked. Today, we’re making scented soap, and while we’re at it, we’ll make some mosquito coils. It’s the middle of summer, and there are way too many mosquitoes."
SMACK! Tan You swatted a mosquito. After enduring for a few days, she really couldn’t stand them any longer.
Chen Yue went over and felt the mugwort leaves drying in the yard. "Mom, the mugwort leaves are all dry now."
Tan You took stock of the materials she had prepared over the past few days. "Alright. The elm powder, charcoal powder, and realgar powder are ready. Now all we’re missing is the mugwort fluff. Come on, let’s get to work."
The four children immediately got excited. "Let’s get to work! Mom, should we make the scented soap first, or the mosquito coils?"
Tan You sighed. "Let’s make the mosquito coils first. The sooner we make them, the sooner we can enjoy some peace."
"We can do both at the same time. An Wen and I can render the lard, so you won’t be so tired, Mom." Chen Xi was always considerate. She felt that as the eldest sister, it was her duty to help share Tan You’s burden.
Tan You raised an eyebrow. "Really? You won’t burn yourselves?"
Tan You wasn’t particularly concerned about Chen Xi working at the stove. In her own memories, she had started helping with the cooking before she was even tall enough to see over the stovetop.
Besides, Tan You had one core principle when it came to raising children: she could work hard, but her kids couldn’t just sit back and reap the benefits. They had to contribute their own labor, too.