The Beautiful Brother of the Orion’s Family (Wearing Book) - 172

 

| TBBOTOF | 172

After separating once, Wei Dong was satisfied and held on to Tang Xu, not letting go.

Er Bao sat up, whining softly.

Tang Xu pushed him away, saying, "Hurry up."

Wei Dong gritted his molars but eventually let him to help Er Bao relieve himself.

After Er Bao was done, the chubby kid also sat up, and then there was the still-drowsy Xiao Bao who was carried up.

After the three little ones were done, they went back to sleep. 

Wei Dong thought he could have another round with his husband, but when he turned around, he saw that Tang Xu was already asleep.

He gave him a hard kiss on the cheek, pulled him into his arms, and went to sleep.

The next day, Tang Xu turned over and reached out beside him, only to find the space empty.

Startled, he opened his eyes and the first thing he did was look under the bed.

There was nothing there except his shoes. He turned to look at the bed, and it was empty.

The curtains were drawn, so he went over and pulled them open to look outside—it was cloudy.

No wonder the room was dark and there wasn't much light.

After getting dressed and stepping off the kang, he opened the door, and a gust of cold wind hit him in the face. Understandingly, he shivered, turned back, and grabbed a cloak to wrap around himself, afraid of the cold.

There was no one in the courtyard, so Tang Xu went through the back door to the shop, which was packed with people.

"Why are there so many people?" Tang Xu asked, a bit confused, as he looked at Wang Cuicui, who was washing dishes. "Auntie, where are Ah Dong and the kids?"

"The weather suddenly changed, and it looks like it might snow. People outside were freezing, so they all crowded inside to eat. How come you slept so long? Dongzi was afraid the kids would disturb you, so he took them out to play," Wang Cuicui replied, sweating from her busy work. 

She stacked the clean, hot bowls on the side, and when Tang Li saw this, she quickly took them to the stove. 

Liu Yao cooked the noodles, drained them, and put them in bowls. 

Then Tang Li added a ladle of seasoned broth and a ladle of clear chicken soup, sprinkled with chopped green onions, and the dish was ready.

"Brother Xu, what do you want to eat? I'll make it for you," Liu Yao said after finishing the noodles, noticing Tang Xu standing at the door.

Tang Xu waved his hand, explaining that he had come out to find his husband and the kids. Without washing his face or brushing his teeth, he couldn't eat anything. "You go ahead and keep working. I'll take care of lunch later."

"Brother, everyone has already finished lunch," Tang Li said with a suppressed smile after serving noodles to a customer. "It's already the afternoon."

Tang Xu's eyes widened in surprise. "What?"

One o'clock in the afternoon?

Did he sleep until one in the afternoon?

Tang Li, a bit concerned, asked, "Brother, are you feeling unwell? Brother-in-law tried to wake you up for lunch, but you didn't respond. He said you were tired and let you sleep longer."

Tang Xu's face suddenly turned bright red.

He had been worried about his husband who had been away for a few days, and he had also been taking care of their three children alone at night, so he hadn't really been able to rest properly.

As a result, his husband came back and tossed him around. He slept so hard that he didn't know what day it was.

Tang Xu raised his hand to touch his forehead; the temperature was normal.

Wang Cuicui dried her hands and also placed the back of her hand against his forehead. "Do you have a headache?"

Tang Xu shook his head. "I just feel a bit out of it. I guess I slept too long," he said, covering his mouth as he yawned. "I'm going back inside."

After he left, Tang Li expressed her concern to Wang Cuicui. "Maybe I should go out and find brother-in-law. He and Dad took the kids out, and they've been gone for a while."

Wang Cuicui thought for a moment, then nodded. "Alright, you go look for them, but don't go too far. He wouldn't have gone far with the kids."

Tang Li agreed, took off her apron, and placed it to the side. She grabbed the long cloak hanging on the wall.

She hurried out the door, looking around. Since it was a cloudy, windy, and cold day, there weren't many people on the streets.

There were only a few stalls on this street, but there were more on the long street behind. She tied the cloak's strings securely, pulled the hood over her head, and walked in the other direction.

At the intersection, there was a figure crouching in the corner. Tang Li instinctively moved her gaze toward it and slowed her pace.

Ever since Tang Xu mentioned that their mother had been begging for food, Tang Li would always take a closer look whenever she encountered a beggar while out.

She looked every day, but she had never actually encountered her.

As her gaze swept over the figure, she noticed something familiar but quickly looked away.

As she passed by, she tossed a copper coin into the broken bowl on the ground. But just as she turned to leave, she felt a strong pull on the hem of her cloak from behind.

Tang Li was startled and turned to look behind her.

The person holding her looked up at her with bloodshot eyes. The skin on their face was sallow and rough, and their hair was a tangled mess, like a bird's nest woven from coarse straw.

Yet, that face still bore some faint traces of familiarity.

She opened her mouth, but the word "mother" wouldn't come out.

Liu Xiangxiang's hands trembled with excitement. "Ah Li, Ah Li, it's me, your mother! It's your mother!"

Tang Li stood there, dumbfounded, staring at her, while the raspy voice of the woman screaming echoed in her ears.

Her mind was like mush, completely unable to think, until her mother, not getting any response from her, suddenly lunged forward and hugged her. 

A foul, rancid smell hit her nose, jolting her back to reality.

Tang Li couldn't stand the overwhelming stench and pushed her away.

"Mother."

"Ah Li! Please help your mother, or I'll starve to death!" Liu Xiangxiang clung to Tang Li's wrists like she was grasping her last lifeline, her eyes staring intensely at her. "Your elder brother, your elder brother is going to starve me to death!"

Tang Li frowned, unable to bear hearing her speak ill of Tang Xu. "Brother gave you money, so why are you saying this about him?"

For the first time, Liu Xiangxiang was stunned by Tang Li’s loud outburst, then quickly shook her head. "No, no, not Tang Xu, it's Tang Rui! Tang Rui!"

Tang Li was completely taken aback. "What?"

"Tang Rui took all my money and then threw me out without caring if I lived or died! I ended up like this because of him!" Liu Xiangxiang, having suffered so much over the past year, was overwhelmed with pain and grievances, and finally erupted.

Crying and shouting, she told Tang Li how she had struggled to find Tang Rui in the county, hoping he would take her in, only to have him take her money and then abandon her completely.

Tang Li felt her head spinning, full of disbelief.

She had never heard her second eldest brother mention that their mother had gone to the county to find him, let alone that he had abandoned her.

But...

Tang Li pressed her lips together and lowered her eyes. "Eldest brother passed the imperial exam and became a scholar, then decided on his own to marry the daughter of a wealthy merchant in the county. Father was very angry and cut ties with him, he was even removed from the family registry."

Liu Xiangxiang's eyes widened. "What? Really?"

"Yes," Tang Li said softly, "Eldest brother was dissatisfied with our family's lack of money and connections, so he found himself someone wealthy and influential. His wife is pregnant and probably just gave birth. We haven't been in touch since the Chinese New Year."

Liu Xiangxiang's mind was filled with thoughts of Tang Rui's newfound success. She figured that if she went to him, he would have to take her in for the sake of his reputation.

"Who did he marry?" she asked anxiously.

Tang Li told her everything she knew. After finishing, she took out two silver coins from her money pouch and handed them over. "Mother, this is all I have. You take it."

Liu Xiangxiang quickly tucked the silver into her chest, her eyes darting around. Just as she was about to speak, they heard a child's voice shouting from not far away.

"Auntie!!!"

The chubby child rushed over like a little cannonball and hugged Tang Li's leg tightly.

He curiously looked up at Liu Xiangxiang, not with disdain for the dirtiness of a beggar, but with a hint of sympathy.

Liu Xiangxiang was also looking at the chubby child.

Then, Er Bao and Xiao Bao came running over, both equally curious about Liu Xiangxiang.

As the three children stood there, Liu Xiangxiang was surprised by how good-looking they were, and when she saw Xiao Bao's face, she was even more astonished. Her voice trembled as she asked, "He, he, he is..."

"They're all my brother's children. Xiao Bao and Er Bao are twins, and this one is the eldest," Tang Li explained, pointing at the three children.

The chubby child tilted his head and asked Liu Xiangxiang in a crisp voice, "You're wearing so little, aren't you cold?"

Liu Xiangxiang was momentarily stunned, and then her eyes reddened.

The chubby child was startled by her sudden tears and, feeling a bit at a loss, turned to look at Tang Li.

Er Bao, holding Xiao Bao's hand, gave it a little shake and whispered, "Let's go."

Xiao Bao nodded, waved at Tang Li, and the two little brothers ran off hand in hand.

Tang Li noticed Wei Dong and her father standing not far away. She patted the chubby child's head. "This grandma is just very happy to see you. Go tell your father that your dad has woken up."

"Dad is awake? He sure can sleep, even longer than me." The chubby child glanced at the raggedly dressed Liu Xiangxiang again, frowning slightly with concern. 

After a moment, he pulled out a small red coin pouch from his pocket, took out the five copper coins inside, and handed them to her. "Grandma, take this."

He placed the coins directly into Liu Xiangxiang's hand.

Liu Xiangxiang's cold palm held the five warm copper coins, and for a moment, she didn’t know what to say.

The chubby child turned to Tang Li and said, "Auntie, let's go home."

Tang Li nodded, took his small hand, glanced back at Liu Xiangxiang, and without saying anything, she left with the child.

Liu Xiangxiang stood there, dazed, watching their departing figures, then noticed Tang Erhu walking towards her.

Instinctively, she took a step back into the corner.

Tang Erhu didn’t get too close, not wanting to risk her rushing at him and causing a scene that would embarrass him if anyone saw.

"Xu Ge’er said you should leave here, so why haven’t you gone yet?"

Wei Dong had originally planned to have someone send Liu Xiangxiang away, but the weather turned bad today, and since Tang Xu was still resting, Wei Dong ended up taking the three kids out to look for someone, allowing Liu Xiangxiang to remain crouched in the corner here.

“...”

"I don’t want to hear your explanations. Take the money and leave quickly. Don’t hang around here; no one wants to see you," Tang Erhu said coldly, then turned and walked away.

He had no intention of catching up with her or reminiscing.

Liu Xiangxiang bit her lip, looked at the copper coins in her hand, and took a deep breath.

It was time to go; she couldn’t wait around to be chased away.

…

Tang Xu said he was going back to rest, but he didn’t really lie down.

Instead, he removed the bedding from the kang to wash it. As he moved around, he started to sweat and felt less weak than he had earlier.

When Wei Dong returned with the three children, Tang Xu joined them for a meal of egg custard. 

Then, Wei Dong shared the news from the county with him.

"You want to form a trading caravan?" Tang Xu rubbed his ears, doubting if he had heard correctly.

Why did he suddenly want to form a trading caravan? 

Tang Xu had heard that many large caravans were funded by several families pooling their money together, and the little bit they had wouldn't even cover the cost of one trip's worth of goods.

Wei Dong waved his hand. "It’s a joint venture, not just by myself."

Tang Xu frowned. "But won’t you have to go along with it?" 

When starting a trading caravan, it’s hard to feel at ease without being there in person.

Wei Dong nodded. "It's something for after the New Year. We still need to discuss the details with the others, and it’s not certain if it will even happen."

"Forgive me for asking, but why did you suddenly decide to venture out?" Based on his understanding of his man, venturing out didn’t really match his usual temperament.

"There are too many sons, and the pressure is a bit much." Not just sons, he also had a ger, and he had to think about their future.

Tang Xu: "..." I’m really sorry for being so fertile!!!

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