The Beautiful Brother of the Orion’s Family (Wearing Book) - 72

 

| TBBOTOF | 72

"Brother-in-law!" came the voice of Wei Xi from outside the window, accompanied by the banging of the window pane. "Brother-in-law, wake up! My brother brought back a dead cow!"

Tang Xu's consciousness returned, and he sat up abruptly from the kang.

Still feeling a bit groggy from sleep, his mind momentarily wandered. By the time Wei Xi shouted at him for the third time, he finally managed to croak out a response.

"Com...ing..."

He covered his mouth. Was that really his voice?

He feared someone might have throttled his throat while he slept.

Outside the window, Wei Xi was also startled.

As he grew older, the young lad had learned a thing or two. For instance, when his brother-in-law didn't wake up in the morning to cook, it was usually because he had been exhausted the night before.

And as for why he was exhausted, Wei Xi was certainly not clueless.

However, when he heard Tang Xu's hoarse, almost squeezed-out voice, Wei Xi was startled. His immediate reaction was to wonder if Brother Xu was sick, without considering any other possibilities.

He ran to the backyard, directly finding his brother who was dividing the beef. "Brother! Brother-in-law seems to be sick!"

Wei Dong was taken aback. He exerted force and yanked the entire cowhide off, tossing it to the ground covered in blood.

As he threw the peeled-off cowhide aside, Wei Xi grimaced, quickly backing away and covering his mouth. The smell of blood was too strong for him to bear.

Tang Xu got off the kang, shaking his legs as he put on his shoes. Meanwhile, Wei Dong strode over the doorstep, the strong smell of blood spreading with him into the house. Combined with the already present stench, it made Tang Xu roll his eyes in discomfort.

Wei Dong grabbed Tang Xu, who was swaying unsteadily, and furrowed his brows, urgently asking, "Where does it hurt? Wei Xi said you're sick?"

Tang Xu's throat was dry and itchy, feeling uncomfortable. He just wanted to drink some cold water to soothe it and waved his hand, saying, "Don't talk to me for an hour. Every time I look at you, I get irritated!"

Wei Dong realized that Tang Xu was probably fine, but his voice sounded off. He frowned and asked, "Is your throat sore?" 

Tang Xu couldn't be bothered to deal with him, so he pushed past him to get out of the house, poured himself some water, and waved his hand, gesturing for Wei Dong to leave and not to hover around him. 

Wei Dong understood that he was currently being rejected by Tang Xu, so he obediently kept quiet and followed behind him, step by step, wherever Tang Xu went. It wasn't until he almost followed him into the outhouse that Tang Xu fiercely slapped his arm.

"Ouch!"

That really hurt.

Wei Dong rubbed his arm, looking at Tang Xu somewhat aggrievedly. Tang Xu had a cold expression on his face and pointed his finger, saying, "Get out!"

Wei Dong nodded and the wooden door of the outhouse slammed shut. He called out from outside, "If you feel weak, call me." 

The only response he received from Tang Xu, filled with anger, was a single word, "Scram!" 

Wei Dong wrinkled his nose, turned around, and went back to continue cutting the beef.

He remembered that Tang Xu liked to gnaw on bones, so he neatly arranged the beef ribs aside. He would later chop them into small pieces as per his husband's request.

The rest of the meat was shaved off and placed in a basin, while the bones and offal were set aside separately. When Tang Xu came out of the outhouse and saw Wei Dong busy by the well, sweating profusely, he walked over and asked, "Where did you get this cow? Or is it a bison?"

He remembered the last time Wei Dong said he went to the mountains to catch wild cows, and it took two trips before he came back with nothing but silver. He said he had sold the cows directly, so Tang Xu was surprised to see another one now.

"Third brother and fourth brother Pan went to the mountains again. They said that recently this group of wild buffalo has been staying near the Hetao River. They went there, dug a hole, and tried their luck to catch them," Without lifting his head, Wei Dong tossed a bulging stomach into the basin. "How should we cook it?"

"Hotpot," Tang Xu looked at the bulging stomach, his eyes shining.

Spicy beef tallow hotpot would be great! These buffalo are big, and there's plenty of fat. In the cold weather, stewing a pot would last for a long time. When it's done, we can freeze it into small pieces with ice cubes, and it will last a while.

Just the thought of the aroma of beef tallow made Tang Xu couldn't help but salivate.

"Separate the beef tallow, I'll stew the hotpot base. Oh, could you have someone make a copper pot for us to use for hotpot?" Tang Xu picked up a grass stick from the side and drew on the ground, "It's empty in the middle for charcoal, hollowed out underneath for ash to come out, and then there's a circle around it for adding soup to cook things. It's best to be a copper pot."

After finishing his drawing, he looked up at Wei Dong, "Can it be done?"

Wei Dong squinted his eyes and looked over, then turned to look at him, nodding, "It should be doable. The one who makes iron cages is a master craftsman, skilled. Go to Wei Xi's room and get a piece of paper. I'll bring the paper over later, and have him make it according to the drawing."

"Can I ask him to make a few more things, like iron pots and barbecue racks?" 

Wei Dong nodded, "Sure, if you can draw it, go ahead. It's best if you can also write the words on it, as he can read."

"Alright, I'll go draw it now." Tang Xu rushed out to the front yard, took a few steps out, then turned back and said to him, "Put aside the four pieces of tendon meat from the leg separately, I want to marinate them separately. 

For the beef stomach, mix the fatty and lean parts together, and put aside the relatively lean ones separately. If you don't know how to separate them, just put them there, I'll handle it later. And don't cut them into small pieces, keep them whole."

Wei Dong nodded, "Got it, you go draw the pots." He really didn't know what to do with all these instructions.

Tang Xu went to the kitchen to prepare honey water, then went to Wei Xi's room in the east wing. The young boy was sitting at the desk, practicing calligraphy meticulously, with a graceful posture and a completely expressionless face.

On the other hand, Tang Yang was not as good as him, a bit restless. He was still writing, but he couldn't sit still, sometimes moving his legs, sometimes twisting his waist, or picking his nose and touching his ears, never staying still for a moment.

Old scholar Wei sat beside them, holding a small wooden stick in his hand.

This little stick was found by Tang Xu, who instructed Old Scholar Wei to watch the two of them and to knock on whoever wasn't studying properly, without being polite about it.

So far, Tang Yang had been hit on the palm several times because he couldn't sit still. Although the pain wasn't much for him, being the only one getting punished made the young boy feel ashamed.

At this moment, it was the same situation. He knew he had to calm down in order not to get hit on the hand, but he just couldn't sit still.

Tang Xu knocked on the door and brought three cups of honey water. "Teacher, take a break, have some water to soothe your throat before teaching again. I also need to borrow two pieces of paper to draw something."

Old Scholar Wei nodded, stroking his beard, and said, "Rest for half an hour."

Tang Yang cheered and quickly stood up to help Tang Xu with the honey water, giving a cup to Wei Xi and himself, "Brother, you're up, what should we have for lunch?"

Tang Xu said, "Let's have some hand-pulled noodle soup later, it's warm and comforting." 

Tang Yang pulled him and asked, "No meat? Such a big cow, and we're not having meat?"

"Are you craving beef? Well, that'll have to wait until tonight. It probably won't stew properly right now. How about I use beef to stir-fry a soup base for the hand-pulled noodles later?" 

"Sounds good, brother. Whatever you cook is delicious," Tang Yang expressed his contentment. 

Old Scholar Wei, sipping his honey water nearby, listened to their conversation and thought to himself, ‘How wonderful. They're living a better life than many families in the village. And they can even enjoy such a big cow. At my age, I've only eaten beef once or twice, and that was during my journey to the county seat for the imperial examination, eating with other classmates. The taste was exceptionally good.’

Just thinking about it made him salivate, but Old scholar Wei dared not look at Tang Xu, afraid that his longing would be noticed.

Tang Xu didn't pay attention to him either. He walked to Wei Xi's table, glanced at the several large characters he had written, nodded in approval. This child could concentrate on studying and practiced calligraphy diligently. Despite his young age, his handwriting was already neat and tidy, with well-controlled strokes. It looked much better than what he wrote with a brush.

"Xiao Xi, lend me some paper and a pen. I want to draw something."

Wei Xi handed over his ink-dipped brush and placed a new sheet of rice paper for him. Tang Xu made a stroke, and the ink spread out, forming a very thick and bold black line.

"What... is this?"

"Forget it, I'll just use a stick to draw." Tang Xu went to the kitchen, pulled out two thin blackened sticks from the stove, and lightly traced them on the paper, afraid of tearing it with too much force.

When he finished drawing and looked up, he saw not only the two children but also Old scholar Wei leaning in to stare at the thing on the paper. 

Tang Xu asked, "What's wrong? Are you not going to start class? I'm done drawing, so I'll leave now."

With that, he took the paper and the two sticks and left.

Old scholar Wei, seeing the door closed, turned back and asked Wei Xi, "Did your brother-in-law learn calligraphy before?" 

Wei Xi looked puzzled and glanced at Tang Yang.

Tang Yang shook his head, then nodded, "Big brother didn't learn, but when my eldest brother came back on vacation, brother would borrow the paper he wrote on and trace the characters on the ground. Brother is quite clever. I think what he drew looks quite alike. He even asked my eldest brother how to pronounce those characters. If my eldest brother wasn't busy, he would tell him, but my eldest brother is often busy."

Old scholar Wei stroked his beard and nodded, muttering to himself, "It's a pity. He has great talent. If he could study well, he would definitely have a bright future."

Although the current dynasty does not explicitly forbid gers from entering the imperial court as an official, and the imperial examination system does not prohibit gers from participating. Previously, there were a couple of gers from prestigious families in the capital who applied for the examinations, but their results were not satisfactory.

However, people nowadays generally believe that gers should stay at home and focus on family matters, such as supporting the family and educating children. 

Therefore, they tend to educate gers accordingly from a young age. As a result, gers may be literate but lack deep understanding, making it even more rare for them to achieve academic success.

Fortunately, Tang Xu didn't hear Old scholar Wei's words, or he would have been embarrassed.

Even if he had talent, it wasn't his own. He was just an ordinary person standing on the shoulders of giants, which made him appear intelligent.

With lunchtime approaching, Old scholar Wei ended the lesson after having the two of them write another piece of calligraphy, and they would continue learning in the afternoon.

After Old scholar Wei left, Wei Xi still wanted to review what he had learned earlier, so he remained seated and focused on his book. 

However, Tang Yang couldn't sit still. His mind had already flown away long ago. He said to Wei Xi, "Brother Xi, I'll go help my brother with cooking!" With that, he dashed out.

Wei Xi sighed softly as he watched Tang Yang disappear in a flash. Then, he solemnly picked up his book, shook his head, and began to read.

"Brother, brother!" Tang Yang ran to the kitchen and called out to Tang Xu, who was busy scrubbing a pot. "What can I help you with?"

"Have you finished studying?" Tang Xu turned his head and saw Tang Yang's excited face. He smiled and said, "Then come in and help me wash these pieces of meat, and then soak them in water." 

He pointed to four pieces of beef tendon and several pieces of leg meat in a basin. "It's best to wash them several times to ensure there's no blood left."

"Okay, I'll go wash them." Tang Yang bent down to lift the basin, but Tang Xu quickly stopped him. "It's too heavy, you can't lift it."

Tang Yang forced a strained expression, "Ouch!"

Tang Xu sighed and said, "I told you it's too heavy. Wei Dong, come help. Take this basin to the well, and let Ah Yang wash it." He called out to Wei Dong outside. 

Tang Yang stood beside him, his face flushed with embarrassment.

Wei Dong effortlessly carried away the large basin, with Tang Yang quickly following behind him.

The young boy washed the meat in silence, and Wei Dong, afraid that his hands might get cold, even handed him a wooden stick to flip the meat.

Tang Yang frowned when he saw him scrubbing the intestines with wood ash, which had a strong smell.

Wei Dong noticed his expression and chuckled, "Smells bad but tastes good, right?"

Tang Yang nodded with a smile, "Yes, my brother's offal soup smells especially good. I like his stir-fried intestines, so does my dad, but my sister doesn't."

Wei Dong agreed with him, "Then you can help me wash the intestines later."

"No, no, no," Tang Yang shook his head vigorously, "I have to attend class later. I can't smell bad all over, or my brother will scold me. Brother-in-law, you've worked hard. Please wash them yourself."

Wei Dong felt annoyed but couldn't express his anger. He was upset! He didn't want to wash the offal or the intestines! He had sacrificed too much for just one meal.

Tang Xu put the chopped beef bones into the cold water and brought it to a boil. 

He skimmed off the foam once the water boiled, and only when there was no more blood foam in the pot, he added two slices of ginger and two pieces of scallion to start boiling the soup.

Tang Yang finished washing the meat and saw the bone soup Tang Xu was cooking. His face immediately lost its smile, and he nervously asked, "Brother, are we just going to eat this soup for lunch?"

Tang Xu nodded, "Beef bone soup has a delicious and fresh flavor. It's best for making hand-pulled noodle soup. What's wrong? Don't you like it?" 

That didn't make sense. He remembered that Tang Yang loved to eat meat and drink soup, so why wasn't he happy now?

With a distressed expression, Tang Yang muttered, "My sister makes bone soup every day, and I've had enough of it." 

Tang Xu was surprised. How could Tang Li's bone soup make Tang Yang unable to eat even a single bite?

Tang Xu asked, but Tang Yang couldn't provide a satisfactory answer. After all, he didn't cook.

But he could read Tang Xu's expression and quickly said, "Brother, whatever you make must be the most delicious. I'll like it no matter what." 

Tang Xu chuckled and raised his chin at him, "Thank you for helping. Go find Xiao Xi. I can handle the rest myself." Tang Yang nodded and trotted away.

Tang Xu made a pot of hand-pulled noodle soup and two large beef pies. He ate a piece himself and felt full.

Wei Xi's appetite had noticeably increased recently. Tang Xu served the hand-pulled noodle soup for the two children, setting it aside to cool, and let them eat the beef pies first.

He served the entire other pie to Wei Dong. Even though that wasn't enough to half fill him, he still needed to add half a pot of noodle soup. This family, except for him, all had big appetites.

The thing is, his portion was actually normal! His family were all big eaters, including his father! Even Tang Li seemed to eat more than him, which didn't make sense.

"What's Ah Li doing at home?" Since the weather turned cold, sales of cold noodles had stopped, and the skewers had switched from cold broth to hot broth. 

Although sales had decreased slightly every day, the business was still running, just with an earlier closing time.

"Sister Li helps Dad sell skewers and also helps him weave baskets and make curtains," Tang Yang said as he drank his noodle soup. "Dad said it's easy to sell things on market days. Besides, we have plenty of straw, corn husks, and maize leaves at home.

 Instead of burning them for fuel, it's better to weave baskets and sell them for money. No matter how much we make, every copper coin counts as profit."

Tang Xu replied, "Its nothing, eat your meal quickly. Afterward, you'll have a break before your class."

After finishing their meal, Tang Xu returned to the kitchen to continue working. 

He planned to stew beef brisket with potatoes and tomatoes for dinner. However, he needed to start early because this wild buffalo meat seemed tougher than the beef he had eaten before and required longer stewing.

Wei Dong helped tend to the fire, holding the two pieces of paper he had drawn. After looking at them for a while, he asked, "What are these for?"

Tang Xu became enthusiastic when he heard the question. He walked over and sat beside him, explaining, "This one is for a copper hot pot for cooking sour cabbage and meat. This one is for an iron griddle for frying meat and fish. And this one is for a double-sided hot pot, but I doubt he can make one with a partition in the middle.

 It needs to be completely sealed; otherwise, the two sides' soup bases will mix. If he can't make it, just give me a regular iron pot. Something like a basin with a flat bottom. 

Also, this one is for a large frying pan with wooden handles. And then make me a stove. You see, I've written all the specifications, long, short, big, small, everything is listed."

Tang Xu's explanation was detailed, but Wei Dong still couldn't understand it after studying for a long time. Not to mention the handwriting, which was difficult to decipher with missing strokes and legs, making it quite challenging to read.

"Tell me again, and I'll help you write it down," Wei Dong said as he pulled out a thin stick burning with fire from the stove, extinguished the flames, and let it cool down. He looked at Tang Xu, indicating that he was ready to listen.

Tang Xu first checked the soup in the pot, then carefully explained how the pots he wanted should be made. Wei Dong made some modifications to the vague areas as he wrote, and after spending a busy half-day in the warm kitchen, they finally finished.

Tang Xu didn't leave Tang Yang at home for dinner but went out with Wei Dong instead. They sat together on the mule cart, and brought two ribs and a piece of beef leg.

Meanwhile, Tang Erhu sat in the courtyard weaving fishing nets. Although he had never woven large fishing nets before, he roughly knew how to do it. However, he was always worried about making the holes too big when he started.

As Tang Erhu was unsure, he heard some noise outside the courtyard. When he looked up, he saw his brother-in-law's head peeking over the courtyard wall.

Tang Erhu chuckled and quickly set aside the hemp thread he was holding to greet him. To his surprise, his brother-in-law jumped down from the cart and waved at him with a smile.

"Dad! How did you know we were back?" 

Tang Erhu chuckled and pointed to the nearby courtyard wall. "You're tall, I saw you. What are you two running back for? Is it dinner time?"

"We have meat stewing in the pot," Tang Xu lifted the cloth covering the basket. "Wei Dong brought back some wild cow meat."

"What's so good about bringing such good stuff here? You should keep it for yourselves," Tang Erhu said, but his smiling face betrayed his true feelings of happiness.

Tang Xu strode into the courtyard, saying, "Oh, just take it and eat. I still have more."

After saying this, he hurried to the kitchen to find Tang Li. As expected, she was busy stringing skewers for the next day and had also made meat porridge for dinner.

"Brother!" Tang Li was pleasantly surprised to see him. "Have you eaten? The meat porridge will be ready soon."

"I can't stay and eat. I have meat stewing on the stove," Tang Xu put down the basket. "Don't keep it out. Stew it tomorrow. You can set aside the beef soup separately to cook noodles. Stew it a little longer so the meat isn't too tough."

Tang Li nodded in agreement.

"Also, there's something else," Tang Xu washed his hands and helped her string skewers. "Have you ever thought about changing the layout of the stall? Right now, the stall and the tables are separate. What if you make it circular? You sit in the middle and serve the skewers, and the people around can sit down as they finish eating. 

They can chat while eating warm food. I think it would be more comfortable than taking it home to eat cold. Also, you can use the sesame sauce you use for mixing cold noodles as a dipping sauce for the skewers. That way, you can vary the flavor."

After he finished speaking, he asked Tang Li, "Do you understand?"

Tang Li nodded, "Yes, I get it. Isn't this like what Brother said before, 'change the soup without changing the medicine'?" 

Tang Xu replied, "...That's right."

Tang Li smiled, "I understand, Brother. Dad hasn't been busy lately, so I'll ask him to help with changing the tables."

"Alright, I noticed the vegetables in the courtyard have grown. Be careful not to let them freeze; otherwise, they'll be inedible," Tang Xu reminded her.

"No problem, let them grow a bit more. We'll pick them when the snow gets heavier in a few days. Next year, we'll plant them earlier," Tang Li wiped her hands and put the skewers in a bucket. It was fine to string the skewers ahead of time since they wouldn't spoil in the cold weather.

"In a few days, don't make vegetarian dishes anymore. It won't be enough to eat," Tang Xu observed that there were fewer dishes, but the variety hadn't decreased.

"It's okay, we have potatoes, radishes, and cabbage. We have everything we need at home," Tang Li said.

"Estimate how much you need. If it's not enough, you can come to me for more. I'm leaving now; you can continue your work," Tang Xu wiped his hands and headed out. "It's too cold in winter, so don't make too many dishes. Not many people will come out, but make sure you wear cotton shoes. 

Don't hesitate to buy cotton; make them thick and warm. You shouldn't freeze, you understand?"

Tang Li smiled, "I understand, Brother. Dad even lined the inside with rabbit fur for me. The cotton shoes are really warm. Don't worry about me."

Tang Li escorted him outside, "You should take care of yourself too. I noticed that your complexion doesn't look too good. Did you not sleep well last night?"

Tang Xu cleared his throat and waved his hand, "I'll be fine. I'm leaving."

He got onto the cart and waved to Tang Erhu, "Dad, we're leaving."

Once the others were out of sight, Tang Erhu walked with his sister towards the courtyard. After closing the gate, he asked, "What did your brother say to you?"

"He asked me to change the table layout for the snack stall," Tang Li explained while gesturing with her hands. "Dad, can you do it?"

Tang Erhu furrowed his brows in thought, rubbed his stubbly chin, then shook his head. "No, I can make a wooden stool, but making a round table with a hole in the middle? That's beyond my capabilities. We'll have to find a carpenter; they're the real craftsmen."

Tang Li acknowledged and said she would go find one tomorrow after closing the stall.

After finishing their conversation, the three of them had their meal.

Meanwhile Tang Xu and Wei Dong hadn't arrived home yet. It wasn't that the mule was running slowly, but they encountered Liu Qiaoniang halfway.

Tang Xu found this idea somewhat naive, and naturally assumed that his younger aunt always assumes he should return to his roots. Had left a bad impression on him. 

However, every time they met, she would look at him with an expression that seemed to say, ‘How can you be so heartless and unreasonable?’ 

To be honest, Tang Xu criticized her each time, and each time, he didn't really give her much face.

But for some reason, she insisted on visiting every now and then, as if she couldn't sleep well without being provoked by him from time to time.

"Auntie, I heard you're pregnant. Why aren't you resting at home instead of coming out in the dead of night to find me?" Tang Xu was very irritable as the cart was stopped.

He was so annoyed. They had only just settled into a peaceful routine, and here she was again!

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