Transmigrated as an Unwanted Ugly Girl

Chapter 424: Chapter 223: Dinner Under the Moonlight (2)

Zhang Huai wiped his face with a cloth and said, "We can’t strip any more bark from the willows in the village—we took too much last time. Tomorrow, let’s find a spot farther away. We can strip some from the foot of the mountain near Tiaozi Pond."

Seeing they were both soaked in sweat, Juhua urged them, "You two should hurry and clean up. I’ll head back first and have Mom boil a pot of water so you can take a bath. Change out of those wet clothes, or you’ll catch a cold."

Zhang Huai bent down to gather the sharp stones Juhua had tossed aside, putting them in the bamboo basket and clearing the path. "I won’t stay for dinner," he said casually. "I’ll just head home to wash up. That way I won’t have to worry about a change of clothes."

Juhua paused for a moment, then looked at him and said softly, "I can just have my brother find you some clothes to change into. You shouldn’t go home without eating. It’s not good to go on an empty stomach."

Zhang Huai was stunned. For a moment, it felt like a dream, and he stared at Juhua for a long time, speechless. Juhua, however, turned toward the Little Qing River and called out loudly, "Here, ducky ducky... Here, ducky ducky..."

At her call, several ducks scrambled out of the river and waddled straight toward her, letting out a series of incredibly grating "QUACK! QUACK!" sounds.

Qingmu looked at the dazed Zhang Huai and jabbed him with his elbow. "Are you coming or not?"

Zhang Huai’s face suddenly flushed red. "Yeah!" he answered quickly. He helped Qingmu pack up the carrying pole and bamboo baskets, then pushed the stone roller toward the courtyard gate.

By the time Qingmu and Zhang Huai had finished bathing and changed into dry clothes, a full moon was climbing the azure sky. A blanket of stars promised another fine day to come. The frogs had begun their cacophonous symphony, and a gentle evening breeze, neither cool nor warm, drifted over the courtyard wall.

Mrs. Yang peeked out from the kitchen and asked Qingmu if they should just eat in the courtyard.

So Qingmu got up and brought out a small square table. Mrs. Yang and Juhua set out the food in the courtyard, and they began to eat their dinner under the silvery moonlight.

A silvery glow washed over the ground, casting hazy shadows from the few clusters of green bamboo and the small peach trees in the courtyard. In this moonlight, everyone’s voices naturally softened, until the only sound was the crisp clinking of chopsticks against bowls.

Black Dog lingered around the table, refusing to leave. Juhua scolded him, "Didn’t I already feed you? Why do you keep circling around here?"

Mrs. Yang chuckled. "That dog has the sharpest nose. He probably smells the meat on the table and is turning his nose up at his own food. Didn’t you pour some of the juices over it for him?"

Juhua retorted, "We can’t spoil him! If he becomes a picky eater, what will we do then? He already gets all the meat bones every time!"

Zhang Huai couldn’t help but chuckle seeing her seriously arguing with the dog. Thankfully, it wasn’t noticeable in the moonlight. To cover his laugh, he said to Qingmu, "This is a nice little table. I’ve been meaning to say so. It’s perfect for eating outside in the summer."

Qingmu said, "It’s a really simple table, doesn’t even use much wood. You should find a log and have Li the carpenter make one for you too."

Mrs. Yang chimed in, "That’s right, you should get one made. It’s wonderful for eating outside, and it’ll last you for years. Here, Huai Zi, have some of this pork and mushroom dish. You’ve had a long day, you need to rest well tonight."

Zhang Huai quickly held out his bowl to receive the food Mrs. Yang was giving him. "Thank you, Auntie," he said. "I can serve myself. I’m not that tired, really. For us farm kids, this bit of work is nothing."

Juhua watched his profile, smoothed and softened by the moonlight, which also sparked in his eyes. Suddenly, he turned to look at her and smiled. It wasn’t a cool smile like the moonlight, but one as warm as the sun.

She returned a gentle smile, one that felt like the evening breeze brushing against a cheek, leaving behind the softest touch.

Zhang Huai felt a gentle tremor in his heart. The brilliant moon overhead and the warm, intimate atmosphere made the young teenager feel that life was truly beautiful. Yet he savored this warmth with a quiet appreciation, not with wild joy, as if any strong emotion would shatter the tranquility and scare the beautiful moment away.

Seeing how his mother doted on the boy, Qingmu couldn’t help but feel a pang of jealousy.

He suddenly had an amusing thought. ’If my sister really marries Zhang Huai, she and our parents will have another person to care about. I’m engaged to Liu Yunlan, and I’m always thinking about her, too, wondering if she’s tired, or if her little brother is behaving himself. I wonder if my sister feels like her brother is now focused on someone else, and if she feels a pang of jealousy, just like I did a moment ago?’

’She probably does.’

’I’ve always just looked after my sister, and now there’s someone else. She must feel something about it. But she’d never stop me from getting married over something like that, which is why she doesn’t let it show. She even helped me meet with prospective brides herself.’

He smiled, scorning his own pettiness. Turning to Huai Zi, he said, "Rest up for the next few days. We’ve got to harvest the wheat as soon as you’ve got your strength back. Are you done eating? Here, let’s you and I finish this soup."

He picked up the clay pot and poured the egg soup into Zhang Huai’s bowl, then poured what was left into his own.

Zhang Huai tried to stop him, but it was too late. He raised his bowl and asked Juhua and Mrs. Yang, "Doesn’t Auntie or Juhua want any more soup?"

Mrs. Yang smiled. "I already had a big bowl earlier, and Juhua doesn’t eat much at night. You two go ahead and have it."

Zhang Huai took a sip and praised it, "This egg soup is delicious. How come it tastes a bit like cured meat? And there are mushrooms in it, too."

Juhua laughed with a "pfft" and said, "You should really go be a cook at Qinghui Restaurant. You might even become a head chef."

Zhang Huai smiled sheepishly. "We never had much good food to eat before, so I never learned to distinguish flavors. Now that I get to eat meat more often, I’ve started to remember its taste clearly."

Hearing this made Mrs. Yang’s heart ache. She sighed. "Oh, this child. What you say makes me so sad. It’s true, we never used to have anything to eat. You’d raise a pig for a whole year, and your own family might not even keep a few pounds of the meat. Sometimes you couldn’t bear to keep any at all. How would anyone know what meat tasted like? A mushroom soup was the most savory meal we could hope for, and stirring an egg into it was a rare treat."

Qingmu gulped down the rest of his soup and wiped his mouth. "Let’s not talk about such depressing things," he said with a smile. "If we can figure out how to cultivate these mushrooms, we can just grow them on the mountain. As long as we work hard, we’ll never go hungry."(To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian.com to vote with recommendation tickets and monthly passes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)