CH extra 1.1

Old Yang grew up in a farmer’s family. The soil raised him from a child to old age. Even at his age now, he still couldn’t find it in him to let go of the chickens, ducks, geese and dogs he raised as well as his little vegetable garden.

At that time, Yang Mo’s grandfather was still alive so Yang Mo would often return to his home in the countryside to help out his elders at farm work.

There was a forest planted by his family. In a summer shrouded in heat, Yang Mo wore a singlet and went back and forth carrying a water hose. He didn’t have any complaints, just like his grandfather who worked with their heads hung low. One old man and a young boy were as silent as the earth beneath their feet.

Later on, when his grandfather passed away, Old Yang sold that land. Due to the lack of time to take care of the land, he had no choice but to sell it away. It was only after Yang Mo became successful, leading to the happiest thing Old Yang could do – buying back that small piece of land.

Almost every summer from then now, Old Yang would return to his countryside home. He had extended an invitation to the two men and his granddaughter before, but because Yang Mo was busy, “next time” became a regular answer he got. Without realizing it, many years had passed just like that.

This summer, Yang Mo and Han Shi Yu were unexpectedly free, so Yang Mo took his daughter and husband to the countryside. Han Lang, who happened to be free also followed along.

Yang Han invited Liu Zuo Ye, who also grew up in the countryside. She was happy to receive such an invitation, so she agreed after finding some free time out to do so.

Usually when Old Yang wasn’t around, the farmhouse was placed in the care of an old man. That old man had the surname of Qian and was an obsessed craftsman when he was young. He grew old without a wife or children by his side, so Old Yang hired him to live on the farmhouse and to take care of the garden and the animals.

Gu Gu, Er Dan, Big Pup and Pup the Second were brought along as well. They would wag their tails and sniffed everywhere they went. Along with the watchdog that was already at the farmhouse, there were a total of five dogs. The five of them were more diligent than an alarm clock, waking people up on time every morning.

At around seven o’clock, Han Shi Yu would be awakened by a series of barking. His hair would be in a mess as he put on the huge short-sleeved white shirt thrown to him by Yang Mo, with XX fertilizer factory brand printed on it. The name had already become discoloured to the point of unrecognizable but it had just been washed and so it gave off the light scent of washing powder and sunshine.

Han Shi Yu yawned before going over to knock on Yang Han’s bedroom. “Get up.”

Yang Han didn’t reply him, which he assumed she had covered herself with the blanket and went back to sleep.

Han Shi Yu put on his slippers and went outside, meeting Liu Zuo Ye with her long hair loose, dressed in a simple and neat short-sleeved shirt and shorts. She had a toothbrush in hand as she greeted him.

The two of them stood by the weedy stone fence and brushed their teeth.

Han Shi Yu brushed his teeth while being swarmed by a group of dogs as he sprinkled dog food in their pots.

The watchdog had never eaten dog food like this before, so his tail had almost become invisible from the intense wagging. Han Shi Yu came back to spit out the foam and intended to look for a basin to wash his face.

Liu Zuo Ye saw him coming back carrying a large red basin. Han Shi Yu looked at the red word ‘Xi’1 and sighed, “Truly such a festivity.”

Liu Zuo Ye said, “Over at our place, every family with a bride who got married would have one of these.”

Han Shi Yu: “Oh.”

He smiled, “You woke up quite early.”

Liu Zuo Ye politely replied, “Not really.”

“As long as it’s a holiday, Yang Han wouldn’t get up before 8 o’clock.” Han Shi Yu said.

Liu Zuo Ye smiled, “I’ll wake her up later.”

Han Shi Yu slipped away to the vegetable garden after finish brushing his teeth. Old Yang had gone to the market early in the morning and brought back two fresh carps. They were currently swimming in the shallow blue tank.

Han Shi Yu dipped his fingers in the cool water when he walked past, teasing the fishes while he was at it.

“Don’t they look plump,” Old Qian carried bags of big fritters and said, “The net was cast at night and collected early in the morning. When we went to the market this morning, it was really early so we got to pick.”

Han Shi Yu said with interest, “How are you going to cook them?”

“Old Yang said he will be cooking a big pot of hot and sour fish soup tonight.” Old Qian narrowed his eyes and laughed, “He’s really impatient. The day has only just begun but he already bought back the seasoning for tonight.”

“I’m getting hungry just listening to that.” Han Shi Yu hadn’t eaten breakfast yet.

“That’s why I bought back fritters.” Old Qian’s eyes always showed a hint of smile. He seemed to really like Han Shi Yu and would always carefully trace his handsome appearance. He pointed at the kitchen, “There’s porridge in the pot there. And freshly grounded soybean milk.”

“Alrighty,” Han Shi Yu got up and said, “Then I’ll go get dad and Mo to eat together.”

“Yang Mo’s watering the plants in the vegetable garden. Just walk straight from here.” Old Qian showed him the way and smiled, “Go on.”

The people here lived in a simple and humble manner. They treated one another like the person they are, solely dependant of their feelings rather than any other reason.

Old Qian and the farmers here knew that Yang Mo was in a same-sex marriage. They would gossip about it after meals sometimes. But they knew Old Yang’s family and his personality. Their hearts were kind and sincere. So they would never relate those malicious gossips together with them. They were only a little surprised when they found out, the same way they were surprised when they heard about the young man in the village who married a rich woman from the city.

Last night, a group of wives carried fruits and melons back to their houses and were gossiping. They thought that Han Shi Yu were very attractive and easy to get along with. Their curiosity stretched out like careful tentacles as they asked about his living style, does he earn a lot of money with his big corporation by just enjoying the air conditioning in the office.

Han Shi Yu laughed and said, “Eat, sleep and work. From 9 in the morning to 5 in the evening. We live the same way as you guys do.”

Han Shi Yu got up and left.

There was a small blade of grass floating on the water. It appeared like a small empty boat without any support or direction. When the fish went up to the surface to breathe, lightly touching brushing past it, the boat would slowly float away on the still water.

Han Shi Yu could spot Yang Mo from afar. Standing in the midst of a crisp view with a refreshing look, it was truly a pleasing sight to not just his eyes but also his heart. Han Lang was also helping out. Old Yang kept trying to get her to rest, unable to watch her do so much work.

In the end, Han Lang had no choice but to go pick a tomato, rubbing it hastily before pushing it into Old Yang’s mouth and blocking his words.

Han Shi Yu saw the situation and laughed before finding a stone to sit on. He swiped a cucumber with his hand and started chewing away.

Yang Mo heard the sound, got up and noticed him. Han Shi Yu couldn’t sit still where he was and ran to the chicken pen to have a glaring contest with the rooster.

The two-legged creature was unhappy about the other two-legged creature’s poor imitation of its cries and took it as provocation, clucking and provoking him back.

Yang Mo didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. The corners of his mouth curved upwards as he walked over to lightly grab the back of that person’s neck and asked, “What are you doing.”

Han Shi Yu chewed the remaining cucumber in his mouth while handing the other half to Yang Mo’s mouth and said, “I came to call you to eat together.”

Yang Mo shook his head to say no, but this guy insisted on feeding him so he had no choice but to take a bite.

Yang Mo: “Did you wash it?”

Han Shi Yu: “It’s fine, we won’t fall sick from eating it.”

Yang Mo: “……”

He said, “We use animal faeces as fertilizer here.”

Han Shi Yu’s chewing cheeks came to a stop as he turned his head to look at Yang Mo.

Yang Mo couldn’t help but reach out and smooth out his messy hair before saying, “I lied. The fertilizer hasn’t been sprinkled.”

“Scared the hell out of me.” Han Shi Yu let out a deep breath before he continued to giggle merrily.

He found two large white geese among the chickens and wondered, “How do they coexist peacefully with these chickens?”

“There used to be weasels that would sneak in and steal the chickens. My dad had a headache over that,” Yang Mo leaned on the fence and said, “He took someone’s advice and bought two male geese, keeping them together. From then onwards, no chickens were lost again.”

“So they’re like guards.” Han Shi Yu looked at that goose and said, “Amazing.”

“You can’t win against it,” Yang Mo said, “Don’t mess with it.”

Han Shi Yu, whose mind had been read: “……”

He said, “Fine then.”

Footnotes

囍/Xi – It’s a character made up by combining two 喜 word, which meant happiness. It’s a symbol of good luck, often used as decoration in weddings.