Ger, So Proud

Chapter 32

“Yes, medicinal herbs. Father, I’ve had this idea for a while, but I hadn’t mentioned it to you because I hadn’t considered all aspects. But now…”

“You’ve thought it through?”

“I’ve read medical books, asked Dr. Xu, and inquired about the prices and quantities of various medicinal herbs at the pharmacy. These past few days, I’ve been going up the mountain to look for wild herbs. Father, I made this decision after thorough consideration.”

He Youcai glanced at He Ze and then lowered his head. He put his pipe into his mouth but didn’t take a puff before taking it out again. “It’s not that I don’t believe you, but our family has never dealt with this kind of thing before… Although you made some money, once we’ve paid off our debts, your Dad and I planned to save the rest for your and An’s marriage arrangements…”

“Father, I’m still young. Why are you so anxious?” He An, who had been sitting quietly, picked up a piece of cake and put it in his mouth. After swallowing, he continued, “Brother’s idea is good. You always pushed him to study, but he didn’t like it. Now he has something he wants to do. Isn’t that a good thing?”

After he finished speaking, He An winked at He Ze and waved another piece of chestnut cake in front of him. He Ze understood, smiled, and nodded slightly.

Seeing the small gestures between his two sons, He Youcai’s frown eased, though he spoke in a disgruntled tone, “An-ge has grown up. Instead of helping Father, you’re siding with your brother. Father’s heart… is bitter!”

He patted his chest with a pained expression.

He Ze and He An exchanged glances, each picking up a piece of cake and placing it in front of He Youcai, saying in unison, “Father, eat.”

“…”

He Youcai had no words, merely let out a snort, though he couldn’t hide the smile on his face.

He Ze pressed on, “Father, the cost of planting this piece of medicinal herbs isn’t high, but it requires effort. Besides, I’m already eighteen. It’s about time I found something to do, instead of relying on you and Dad to support me.”

“You know that, do you?” He Youcai gave him a sidelong glance, took a puff of his pipe, and said, “Now you see it. When you returned from the academy, I wanted you to learn carpentry from me, but you were dead set against it. I was worried about your future… Fine, the men of the He family should have this ambition. Since you are confident, I’ll discuss it with your Dad when he returns.”

“Father, I’ll be waiting for your good news!”

He Ze poured a cup of tea for He Youcai, who took it with a smile and took a sip.

While He Youcai was drinking tea, He An gave He Ze a thumbs up. He Ze picked up a piece of chestnut cake and stuffed it into He An’s mouth.

He An kept chewing and, after a while, mumbled, “Brother, how could you do this…”

He Ze chuckled and didn’t reply further. His eyes wandered around, eventually settling on the stack of firewood by the courtyard wall. The simple pleasures of everyday life—firewood, rice, oil, salt, sauce, vinegar, and tea—made him almost forget the ten years of the apocalypse.

But now, life was really good.

Time passed quickly. That night, He Youcai must have discussed things with Dad Li, because the next morning, he pulled He Ze aside and handed him ten taels of silver.

Including the nineteen taels He Ze had brought home last time and the two taels from Wei Quan earlier, the family had about twenty taels. However, Dad Li had mentioned that the family still owed three or four taels, so after paying off the debt, they would have around five taels left.

Five taels of silver wasn’t a lot, but it was enough to ensure a year’s worth of food and expenses for a family of four. But if anything else happened at home, they might run into trouble. Additionally, with He Ze using one plot of land for medicinal herbs, the family only had three plots left. The vegetable plot at the village entrance was only suitable for vegetables, and two plots of grain land were not enough for four people.

One plot of land cost about two taels of silver. Next year, He Ze estimated he’d need to add a few more plots for medicinal herbs, so if he wanted to buy now, he’d need to buy several plots.

Or… should he find another way to earn some silver?

As He Ze pondered, Dad Li called him to breakfast. The weather was clear again today, and by the time the family finished eating, the sun was shining into the house.

Due to the heavy rain a few days ago, even though it was brief and only knocked down a few stalks of grain, Dad Li was anxious. So, He Youcai went with them to the fields.

He Youcai and He Ze walked ahead with sickles, while He An and Dad Li followed with baskets. They encountered many villagers along the way, all likely sharing the same worry—that another heavy rain could ruin their harvest.

Due to irrigation issues, the villagers’ grain fields were all connected. Occasionally, a breeze would stir, creating golden waves in the rice fields, bringing joy to the hearts of those watching.

Their two plots covered about two acres, and it took the family of four two days to harvest.

Without machinery, they first cut the ripe grain stalks to dry, then threshed them manually—holding a bunch of grain stalks and striking them against the frame of a large wooden ladder until the grains fell off.

The sun was intense, and He Ze carried the harvested grain home. After two days of hard work, his skin tanned and he looked stronger, losing the paleness he had before.

Dad Li felt a bit distressed, but He Ze finally felt at ease.

After two days, the once endless waves of rice had dwindled, leaving only scattered patches. With most of the work done, He Youcai, Dad Li, and He An returned home. As He Ze came to the field to gather the last two baskets of grain, he saw Lin Yu’s limping figure clearly entering his view.

He Ze gathered the millet stalks from the field into the basket and, holding his sickle, headed towards Lin Yu.

“He Ze? Have you finished harvesting your family’s field?”

When He Ze arrived, Lin Yu, still nursing an injured ankle, was kneeling in the field cutting millet. His clothes were muddy, and his knees were slightly sunken into the ground. Noticing the sudden shadow cast over him, Lin Yu looked up, his face smeared with mud.

“Your injury hasn’t healed yet. Why are you rushing out here?” He Ze looked down at him, his expression complicated.

“I was worried about another heavy rain. Everyone in the village is harvesting, and my dad is anxious if we don’t, so…”

“So you decided to kneel here?”

He Ze suddenly bent down and helped Lin Yu up by the arm. Lin Yu hesitated but then stood up as well.

“Kneeling is more comfortable. I can’t stand for long when I bend over,” Lin Yu explained, pouting slightly. “My injury is almost healed, really.”

He Ze didn’t reply, his face stern. He guided Lin Yu to sit on a grassy patch by the field. As he brushed his hand lightly over the green grass, a faint glow of green light seemed to flicker and flow into Lin Yu’s body, though Lin Yu remained unaware.

“Sit here and rest properly. You won’t die from taking a break, will you?”

Seeing Lin Yu kneeling to cut the millet, He Ze almost thought he’d committed some grave sin. Lin Yu looked up at him briefly before lowering his head again. This was the first time He Ze saw him look so guilty, and he couldn’t help but laugh, “Alright, it’s still early. I’ll help you cut for a while. By the way, where’s Uncle Zhang?”

He Ze looked around but didn’t see Uncle Zhang.

“I don’t need your help cutting…” Lin Yu shook his head before continuing, “My dad took a basket of millet home. He’ll be back in a while.”

Because his foot injury hadn’t fully healed, his dad insisted on coming to the field with him. But his health had improved recently, so he didn’t stop him. He had intentionally filled the basket only halfway, ensuring it wasn’t too heavy for him to carry.

“Alright, just sit here and rest. Your foot will feel better soon.”

“Hey! He Ze…”

Seeing He Ze pick up the sickle and head into the field, Lin Yu called out to him, but He Ze didn’t respond.

He Ze worked quickly, harvesting a large section of the field in no time. Lin Yu, sitting there restlessly, tried to stand up several times, but each time, He Ze seemed to sense it and would glance back at him, causing Lin Yu to lose his nerve and sit back down.

Lin Yu glanced around several times, feeling a strong urge to bury his and He Ze’s faces into the millet stalks whenever someone looked their way.

Why did he feel increasingly uneasy with a man helping to harvest their millet?

“Yu-ge, why are you sitting here? Tired?” A voice came, and Lin Yu snapped out of his thoughts to see Dad Zhang standing beside him, carrying a basket on his back. His expression changed as his gaze fell on him, “What happened? You were fine when I left…”

Dad Zhang set down the basket and grabbed Lin Yu’s shoulders with both hands, his brows furrowed in concern.

“It’s nothing,” Lin Yu quickly waved his hand, “I hurried over here earlier and got splashed with mud.”

“Really? You…” Dad Zhang examined Lin Yu up and down, his expression worried. Seeing nothing unusual, he finally relaxed. But as his gaze shifted, his expression froze, his eyes widening, “Who is that?”

“…It’s He Ze.”

“He Ze?” Dad Zhang turned back, “What is he doing in our field?”

“He said… he said his family’s field was done, so he came to help me…” Lin Yu bit his lip, his voice trailing off.

“This is unacceptable!”

Dad Zhang glanced at He Ze’s back and then stepped onto the ground after taking off his shoes. Lin Yu, feeling anxious, quickly stood up and followed him.

With this movement, he keenly felt that the pain in his injury seemed to have disappeared completely. Despite not having time to be happy, he quickened his pace.

“Uncle Zhang, you’re back?”

He Ze, seeing the two of them coming over, paused his millet cutting and straightened up.

“He Ze… Why are you in our field? Have you finished your family’s work?”

“Yeah, it’s done. Since Lin Yu is still injured, I came to help him.”

“Thank you, but please, hurry back!” Zhang Shi pushed He Ze, his expression tense. “If others see this, it will be a disaster!”

“Uncle Zhang…”

“He Ze, I understand what you mean, but listen to Uncle and go back. Everyone in the village is here. If you come to our house to help us with the harvest, others might get the wrong idea! It’s not good for you or for Yu-ge!”

Dad Zhang pushed He Ze even harder, causing him to step back. He shrugged off his hand and said, “Uncle Zhang, if that’s the case, you could just tell them you hired me as labor. That should suffice, right?”

In slightly wealthier households, if there was a shortage of labor during the autumn harvest, they might hire one or two strong men to help out, paying them a small wage.

“This…”

“He Ze, please go back!” Seeing Dad Zhang hesitate, Lin Yu stepped forward and grabbed his arm, continuing, “My foot doesn’t hurt anymore. This little work isn’t a problem at all. Don’t worry.”

“…Your foot doesn’t hurt anymore?”

With just one injured foot, Lin Yu should have been treated earlier. Otherwise, it wouldn’t have delayed the Lin family’s grain harvest.

“It really doesn’t hurt anymore. You should go back,” Lin Yu nodded firmly.

“Okay then, take care of your injury. I might need your help with something in a couple of days. I’ll take my leave now.”

Something? What could it be?

Lin Yu hesitated for a moment, then looked up, but He Ze was already far away. Dad Zhang watched He Ze’s departing figure, his suspicions deepening.

Author’s Note:

Lin Yu: Everyone’s asking you to pursue me.

He Ze: No way.

Lin Yu: Well, say it again.

He Ze: Darling, I have to build a house and buy a car before I can pursue you. *Sniffle*

Author: Just a regular day, haha~ Good afternoon, my darlings, muah~