CHAPTER 27: CHAPTER 26: HONEY, I WAS WRONG

Dinner’s ready, Liu Jinbao ran over to call Qin Yao and the others to the old house for dinner.

"Grandpa, Dad, my mom made a big bowl of twice-cooked pork today, we get to eat meat!" Liu Jinbao said excitedly, happier than on New Year’s Day.

Because today’s meat was a bigger bowl than during last year’s New Year.

It was Grandma who said that today, thanks to Third Aunt, we could really eat to our heart’s content.

So Mom cooked half a piece of pork, a big full bowl, just thinking about it made Liu Jinbao drool.

He was afraid if they were late, Da Lang and Second Lang would eat all the meat first, so he urged Dad and Grandpa to hurry.

"Third daughter-in-law, let’s go have dinner, let the eldest stay here to watch over the third, and when you’re done eating, come back and switch with him." Old Liu called to Qin Yao.

Qin Yao shook her head, "No, I’ll stay here and watch. Dad, you all go back, and have Da Lang and the others come back early after eating, just bring me a portion."

Saying that, she went inside, found a bowl, and handed it to Liu Jinbao, telling him to take it to Da Lang to bring some food back later.

Old Liu thought she was being kind-hearted, not knowing Qin Yao’s appetite. If she went, there wouldn’t be enough for her or the others to eat, so she might as well stay and cook a pot of rice at home and eat to her bliss.

Mrs. Zhang had managed the household for over a decade, her best skill was measuring rice. Knowing how much each person ate daily, how much rice and dishes each person had per meal, all were quantified, making sure everyone was about seventy percent full.

If it was the busy farming season, those working in the fields could eat more.

This skill was now passed to He, who was even better than Mrs. Zhang, not a piece of rice crust was wasted.

On Yao Niang’s first night there, she had a meal with Liu Ji at the old house and was quite impressed.

Seeing Qin Yao was insistent, Old Liu didn’t say more, called his two sons, put away the medicine from the doctor, reminded Qin Yao to change Liu Ji’s dressing twice a day, and went home.

The noisy house became quiet at last, Qin Yao let out a light breath, rolled up her sleeves and got busy.

She first took out the oil lamp bought today, lit it and placed it on the stove, and then started a fire to cook rice.

She cooked a pot of thick white rice porridge. The aroma was initially faint, but as the heat intensified, the scent became stronger, the fragrance of the rice wafting through, enticing appetites.

Qin Yao pulled out a piece of firewood, adjusted the flame to let the porridge simmer on low heat, and while it was still cooking, she moved six bags of grain from the side room to the main room, and then rearranged the beds for the four children at home.

She threw the straw outside for firewood, and the hard, smelly quilts were placed outside on the straw pile for now.

She took out a new palm fiber mattress, laid it on the bed board, covered it with an old but clean sheet, and topped it with a new thick quilt, giving the bed a fresh new look.

There was still some space in the side room, and Qin Yao was torn between sleeping in the main room or setting up a bed in the side room, ultimately choosing to stay in the side room.

The main room, serving as the dining and storage area, wasn’t very private.

Plus, with someone else lying in there, Qin Yao made a bed on the floor in the side room.

The straw she just cleaned out was laid back down in the corner by the wall, with a palm fiber mat over it, followed by a sheet, and then the quilt on top; it was comfortable.

Once the beds were made, she tidied up the remaining quilts for future use when furniture and the house were properly built.

After some thought, she took a thin quilt to the main room and threw it directly over Liu Ji.

The nearly freezing Liu Ji was overjoyed, quickly pulling it all over himself.

His original clothes had been swiped by Lin Erbao and others. Coming in with a tattered hemp garment, after being cleaned up by Liu Bai, he put it back on.

The old bedding from the Liu Family that Qin Yao slept on before was anything but warm, heavy, and suffocating, and with his injuries, he could barely breathe.

In the past, he would have shouted like a lord, but now he was too much of a coward. Smelling the enticing porridge from outside, he dared not make a sound despite his rumbling stomach.

He was afraid Qin Yao might remember him and harm him while family and brothers were away.

Seeing his face covered in swelling-relieving herbs, Qin Yao coldly barked, "Careful not to dirty my new quilt!"

The quilt initially to his neck was silently pulled down, his face caked in herbal poultice, revealing only a pair of clear eyes, both pitiful and a bit wary of Qin Yao.

Just as she was stepping out, he suddenly mustered the courage to speak up:

"Wife... I was wrong."

Qin Yao paused, turned around, and narrowed her eyes dangerously, scrutinizing the trembling man on the bed.

Under her piercing gaze, Liu Ji pinched his own thigh wound painfully to keep from lowering his head.

With the only intact pair of charming eyes, he sincerely said:

"Wife, I really know my mistake this time, I promise, from now on I will stop being idle. Once healed, I’ll find an honest job, earn money to support the family, you and the kids, and give you a good life..."

Qin Yao raised an eyebrow with a cold smile, "Are you sure?"

Liu Ji’s head nodded like a rattle, "I, Liu Ji, swear to the heavens, if the wife tells me to go west, I won’t go east; tells me to go east, I won’t go west. If I break my vow, may I be struck by lightning and die a miserable death!"

Seeing Qin Yao’s gaze wasn’t as intimidating, he quickly added, "Wife, I know you risked your life hunting to earn money to redeem me..."

Qin Yao: "You’re overthinking it."

The man was taken aback and continued: "I was indeed a jerk before, ungrateful, I’m sorry, from now on, I will treat you well, do all the dirty and hard work at home. You just rest..."

His smooth talk pulled at his facial wound, causing Liu Ji to inhale sharply, tears nearly falling.

Qin Yao clicked her tongue, "You better remember what you said."

"However, I remember Lin Erbao mentioned earlier, you called me a vicious woman?"

Liu Ji’s tears of pain suddenly streamed down, mixed with fear.

"Wife, I’ve been wronged, my heart is truly devoted to you, heaven can testify, how could I slander you? It must be Lin Erbao framing me!"

Speaking loudly, his wound pulled again, tears streamed down mixing with the herbs on his face, it was... too unsightly!

Qin Yao raised a disdainful hand, signaling him to stop wailing, her eyes already seeing through him, "Say it, what do you want?"

Liu Ji gulped, his head involuntarily turned towards the kitchen.

As Qin Yao walked out, she said, "From now on, every bite of food you eat, every item you use, along with today’s thirty-eight taels debt repaid to Lin Erbao, I’ll note it all down..."

"After you recover, find a job, and repay me this debt honestly."

Qin Yao emphasized the latter part of the sentence, repeating what Liu Ji said back to him.

She took a bowl of white porridge, sprinkled a pinch of sugar, brought it into the room, and held it out to him.

Seeing the fragrant white rice porridge, who could stay rational? Regardless of his injuries, Liu Ji got up and devoured it.

While eating, he said, "I’ll listen to the wife, whatever the wife says goes."

Gulping down the porridge, its scalding heat was thrilling, but with added sugar, it was too precious to spit out, so he inhaled and swallowed it all.

Thinking, once full and he closed his eyes, he’d claim to forget everything upon waking, feigning ignorance of any promise.

Little did he know, Qin Yao had already seen through his rogue mind.

If he feigned ignorance, she had ways to help him remember!