The Beautiful Brother of the Orion’s Family (Wearing Book) - 203

 

| TBBOTOF | 203

Tang Xu is a man of action. 

After seeing the surroundings of the village school, he was quite satisfied with it and immediately paid the tuition fees for the two young boys to start attending.

"The pens, ink, and paper need to be provided by the students, but we have the books here, so don't worry about bringing those," Wei Guang personally escorted them out of the school courtyard, and casually mentioning Wei Dong, saying how he wasted his brilliant mind.

Tang Xu paused in his steps, turned to look at him, and Wei Guang said, "I don't know him, but I've heard about him many times."

Wei Guang gave him a gentle smile, "Back when I used to teach Wei Dong when he was a child, he was very mischievous and rebellious, but he was quite bright."

Tang Xu chuckled, "That's a pretty high evaluation."

"Is your father teaching here with you?"

"Yes, my father is an old 'Juren' (a person who passed the provincial-level imperial exam), and I'm a young 'Xiucai' (a person who passed the entry-level imperial exam). I teach while learning from my father at the same time, so it doesn't interfere with my studies." Wei Guang stood by the door, cupped his hands in farewell, and said, "I won’t see you off any further. Take care."

Tang Xu also cupped his hands and bid him farewell with a smile.

After they had walked a certain distance, Tang Xu pulled Wei Xi closer to him and asked in a low voice, "Was your brother that rebellious when he was studying?"

Wei Xi shrugged, "I don't know. I didn't see my brother studying, but before, when I was in my parents' room, I found a lot of old draft papers with my brother's handwriting."

Tang Xu widened his eyes, "Why didn't I see them?"

"That was a long time ago, way before you married into the family, so of course you haven't seen them," Wei Xi teased, eyes curving into a smile.

Tang Yang, curious, asked, "Brother Xi, does my Brother-in-law’s handwriting look any good?" 

He struggled with his own handwriting, often making it look messy. 

Old Wen would tell him he had strength but no control over the pressure of his brush, and many times, he'd even poke holes through the paper while practicing.

Wei Xi looked at Tang Xu, with an expression that was hard to explain.

Tang Xu clicked his tongue and gave an honest evaluation, "It's... wild and untamed."

Tang Yang froze for a moment before bursting into laughter, "I bet it’s missing arms and legs!"

"That's you," Wei Xi glared at him, fiercely defending his brother's dignity. "My brother's handwriting is actually quite nice, very imposing in its own way."

Tang Xu chuckled softly, thinking to himself, Of course, it's all just cursive.

If he secretly sent it to others, they wouldn't be able to recognize it. 

After Tang Xu mentioned a couple of times that he couldn't decipher his handwriting, Wei Dong started restraining his flamboyant brushstrokes when writing family letters. 

Otherwise, Tang Xu guessed he wouldn't be able to recognize half the words in them.

Tang Yang snorted, not willing to back down, "Well, I've been working hard on my writing lately! Old Wen even said it's much better than before."

"You waste too much paper practicing," Wei Xi complained, unusually critical of him. "You tear through it every time."

Tang Yang threw his arm around Wei Xi's shoulder with a cheeky grin, leaning in close. "Come on, Brother Xi, don’t be mad! Didn’t I help you clean up after I messed up your paper last time?"

Tang Xu overheard their conversation, raising an eyebrow, surprised by this revelation. He hadn't known about that incident. 

Not paying much attention to the two youngsters' murmuring beside him, Tang Xu quickened his pace—he was hungry.

As soon as he entered the courtyard, the aroma of meat hit him. The men who had been out working in the fields had also returned. 

When they saw Tang Xu walk in through the gate, several men washing their faces paused in surprise.

Tang Dahu was the first to react. He grinned widely and called out with a laugh, "I was wondering why my wife suddenly decided to stew chicken. Turns out it's because you came to visit!"

Luo Pingping, who was mixing cold dishes in the kitchen, heard him rambling and pushed open the window to shout, "If you can't talk properly, then keep quiet! When did I ever skimp on meat?"

Tang Xu, leading the two boys to wash up, nodded in greeting to Tang Wei and Tang Zu, the brothers, and exchanged a smile with their wives. 

He then turned to Tang Dahu and said, "It looks like you've gotten a lot stronger since last year, Uncle. With all this fieldwork, I'm sure Auntie has been feeding you well."

Tang Dahu burst into hearty laughter, slapping his hard belly a few times. "Of course! How would I have the strength to work if I didn't eat my fill?"

After speaking, he reached out and pinched Tang Xu’s arm. Whether it was intentional or he just didn’t know his own strength, the pinch was so hard that Tang Xu winced in pain.

It hurts!

Luo Pingping, noticing through the window, raised her voice and shouted, "Tang Dahu, let go! You’re hurting Xu Ge’er! Why are you always like this, so annoying!"

Tang Dahu jolted and quickly let go, laughing awkwardly. "I was just trying to see if Xu Ge’er had gained some weight!"

"Are you blind? Can't you just look? Don't you know how strong you are?" Luo Pingping set down the bowl she was holding, wiped her hands on her apron, and hurried outside. 

She went straight to Tang Xu, worried, asking, "Does it hurt? Your uncle has quite the strength. Let me see if it left a mark."

"It's fine," Tang Xu said with a smile, slipping his arm through hers and gently pulling her back toward the kitchen. "It only hurt for a moment. My dad squeezes me like that all the time, I'm used to it. Auntie, have you finished cooking? I'm starving—my stomach's been growling."

"It's all done, it's all done. You all get moving and bring out the dishes and the rice!" Luo Pingping turned her head and called out to her son and daughter-in-law.

The main hall had a large table set up. Usually, for lunch, each household's wife would cook for their own family. 

Even though Tang Wei and Tang Zu lived in their own separate homes, and the family hadn’t formally split, they lived independently in day-to-day matters.

Luo Pingping primarily took care of the elderly couple and her own husband, and sometimes helped with looking after the children.

Even though they were her own grandchildren, Luo Pingping didn’t seem particularly affectionate toward them. 

It wasn’t that she didn’t like them, but she didn’t seem inclined to be overly doting or clingy with them either.

Unlike Tang Xu's three children, whom Luo Pingping can't help but hold every time she sees them, even the most mischievous of the three, Er Bao, whom she dotes on a lot.

"Next time, bring all three of them with you," the elderly lady said as she pulled Tang Xu to sit beside her. 

The wives of the eldest and second sons were busy serving dishes and holding the children.

The two little ones, seeing strangers, were a bit scared and shrank back into their mother's arms. Tang Xu rarely saw these two kids, but from what he remembered, they should be around the same age as his own twins.

Tang Yang held a large bowl, took a sip of his porridge, and scooted closer to Wei Xi.

Wei Xi glanced at him, his eyes asking, "What's wrong?"

Tang Yang shook his head, picked up a steamed bun, and silently continued eating.

He had wanted to ask why those two kids were so thin, looking like they had no energy. But he figured saying that might upset everyone, so he swallowed the thought.

Wei Xi, noticing, put a piece of chicken in Tang Yang's bowl, followed by a potato.

"It'd be better with rice," Tang Yang muttered under his breath as he eyed the chicken and potato in his porridge bowl. He quickly picked them up with his chopsticks and stuffed them into his mouth, mumbling quietly.

Wei Xi shot him a glare. "You've got food, so stop complaining and don't be picky! It's rude!"

Tang Yang shut his mouth and obediently continued eating.

Tang Xu glanced at the two of them. Seeing that they had already started eating, he turned to to his grandmother and said, "I wasn't planning to stay for dinner today. If I had known, I would have brought the kids along. Those three are probably running wild at home right now, they can never get enough space to run around."

"You have such a big yard at home, and that's still not enough?" The elderly lady looked surprised, breaking off half of a steamed bun as she gave him a disapproving look. 

"The wind's been picking up lately, don’t let them run outside all the time. Their faces will get all chapped."

"How can I stop them?" Tang Xu smiled as he picked up a piece of chicken leg and placed it in the elderly lady's bowl. "Here, Grandma, have some meat."

"You eat it, you eat it," Wu Guizhi said, placing another piece of meat into Tang Xu's bowl. Tang Xu quickly used his steamed bun to catch the meat before it could land in his porridge—he couldn't stand eating it that way!

After eating two pieces of chicken and half a steamed bun, Tang Xu held his bowl, drinking the thin porridge to help with digestion. 

Then, he smiled at Luo Pingping and said, "Auntie, your firewood-braised chicken always has such a delicious flavor. I can never get it to taste like this at home."

"Next time you make it, don’t add soy sauce or bean paste. Fry the meat with brown sugar before stewing," Luo Pingping chuckled as she gave him advice. 

She glanced at her son and daughter-in-law, both silently focused on their food, which annoyed her to no end.

By all rights, Tang Xu had indirectly helped improve their family's living conditions, but her two sons couldn’t even bother to say a word to him. 

All they did was eat!

Tang Dahu and Tang Guangliang each had a small cup of sorghum liquor in front of them, but they didn’t dare drink too much since they still had to head back to the fields after a break. 

The liquor was a gift from Tang Xu. Ever since he started brewing his own, Luo Pingping stopped buying liquor for the family. 

Whenever they attended a banquet and drank someone else’s liquor, Tang Dahu would always come back complaining that the outside liquor didn’t taste as good as their homemade brew.

He said it wasn’t good, but he always drank too much—men's words really can't be trusted!

Luo Pingping noticed that Tang Xu had only eaten half a steamed bun and handed him another one.

Tang Xu waved his hand. "I was starving earlier and felt like I could eat anything. But now that I’ve started eating, I’m already getting full."

Luo Pingping reached out and said, "Here, have a little more porridge."

Tang Xu handed over his bowl and said, "Thank you, Auntie."

"Grandma, how about you come stay with us for a while once it gets warmer?" Tang Xu took the porridge bowl, sipping to soothe his throat. 

"You can spend time with your great-grandsons. The twins were just saying the other day that they wanted me to bring them over to see you. They’re still waiting for you to make them those cakes you promised—they haven't forgotten."

"These little rascals sure have a good memory," Wu Guizhi chuckled, her face full of wrinkles from smiling. She turned to Tang Guangliang and asked, "Old man, are you going?"

The old man took a sip of his liquor and shook his head. "I'm not going. I've still got to work in the fields. What are you going for? Xu Ge’er and his family are already busy enough."

"I’m not that busy," Tang Xu said with a smile, glancing at the elderly lady. Seeing she was tempted, he added, "Grandma, come stay with us for a few days. You can help me look after the kids. Auntie has been working hard, taking care of the kids and helping out at the same time."

Wu Guizhi thought for a moment, then nodded. "Alright, I’ll come for a few days."

"Mom, what’s the rush? Let’s talk about it later when the time’s right," Tang Dahu chimed in.

"What's there to wait for? If I go, that’s one less person you need to take care of," the elderly lady shot him a glare, then turned back to Tang Xu with a warm smile. "I’ll pack my things in a bit, and we’ll head out together."

Tang Xu’s lips twitched slightly. 

From "maybe" to "definitely going," it had only taken one sentence from his uncle to seal the deal.

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