The Beautiful Brother of the Orion’s Family (Wearing Book) - 238

 

| TBBOTOF | 238

After a very reluctant drinking session, all the alcohol at home was taken away, ending the evening. 

However,  Wei Dong didn’t get drunk. 

Instead, Tang Erhu drank especially heavily today. 

The house was silent.

Wei Dong went to take a shower, and when he returned, Tang Xu had just come back from the child’s room. 

Seeing Wei Dong’s hair wet, he couldn’t help but nag: “Every time you finish showering, you don’t dry your hair, and your clothes are wet. It’s cold outside with the wind blowing, aren’t you afraid of getting a headache?” 

“I don’t want to dry it,” Wei Dong leaned in, wrapped his arms around Tang Xu, lowered his head, and said in a hoarse voice, “Help me dry it.” 

They had been together for a long time, yet the warmth of his breath still made Tang Xu blush. He reached for a towel and placed it on Wei Dong’s head, carefully drying it for him. 

As a result, Wei Dong’s hands became restless, teasing and touching him, making him feel itchy all over. 

“You…” 

The words couldn’t come out as he was silenced. 

When he opened his eyes again, the sun was already rising high in the sky. 

After washing up and stepping outside, Tang Xu was blinded by the brilliant sunlight, squinting as he raised his hand to shield his eyes. He glanced at the three little ones playing in the yard, while the three older men sat nearby, enjoying the sun.

Wang Cuicui and Tang Li were busy in the kitchen, while Liu Yao was in the back yard with everyone, tidying up the livestock pens. 

Xu Ze didn’t follow them; instead, he was inside with Liu Ge’er, dismantling the bedding to wash and air the comforters and sheets later.

With the New Year approaching, the whole house was bustling with activity.

Tang Xu yawned, pushed aside the curtain, and entered the kitchen.

There were several small ventilation windows on the wall, but they couldn’t do much to dissipate the thick smoke filling the room.

He turned his head and sneezed, sniffing as he looked at Wang Cuicui, who was cooking chili sauce. “Auntie, this chili smells really strong.”

Wang Cuicui turned around, saw him, and smiled as she asked, “Is it too spicy for you? I bought this chili from someone in the town. They said it’s from their in-laws’ place, which is quite far from here. The chili I usually eat has a pretty good flavor, so I bought a lot of it. Would you like some?”

Tang Xu walked over to look into the pot, which was half full of bright red sauce, bubbling with small bubbles.

The pure chili flavor was a bit pungent. He picked up a pair of chopsticks, took a bit, and tasted it—just pure spiciness.

"Small chili?" This level of heat he had only experienced with bird's eye chili.

Wang Cuicui knew he would be curious, so she handed him two dried chilies while stirring the sauce continuously to prevent it from sticking to the bottom of the pot. 

She said, “It’s not really small; these chilies are thick, and they can render quite a bit of juice. If we add some of our own chilies and a few other ingredients, it won’t be so spicy. Didn’t you try it? My chili sauce, you like it, right?”

Tang Xu nodded. “I eat it with steamed buns. Last time, Ah Dong directly had a big bowl of that chili sauce.”

“That’s how I made it last time! I usually keep a small jar on the table at the shop. Many people add a couple of spoonfuls when they eat noodles, and some even buy it from me separately!” Wang Cuicui was very happy to see that her cooking was enjoyed by her family.

Her face was beaming with joy, and she looked radiant.

“Auntie, you seem to look a lot younger since you came back,” Tang Xu said, scrutinizing her face. He turned to Tang Li and asked, “Ah Li, what do you think? Aren’t I right?”

Tang Li, who was peeling green onions, smiled and nodded in agreement, “I told Auntie about this a long time ago, but she didn’t believe me.”

Wang Cuicui looked at the two siblings with a cheerful expression, feigning shyness and annoyance, “How can I look younger? You two just know how to talk sweetly to me.”

“Telling you that your looks come from your heart means that if you look younger, it shows you’ve been at ease these past two years. When your mood improves, you naturally look younger,” Tang Xu said as he helped Tang Li peel the green onions. 

After peeling several, he asked, “What are you making? Why are you peeling so many?”

“I’m making steamed stuffed pancakes. Old Fu just said to stir-fry some shredded meat to eat with the green onion,” Tang Li replied, turning her head to ask, “Are you hungry? If you are, you can have a bowl of porridge first; it’s already cooked.”

“Why did you cook it so early?” Tang Xu casually asked, lifting the pot lid to take a look. 

Inside was a large pot full of thick rice porridge, with a layer of glistening rice oil on top that smelled particularly fragrant. It was so full that it was almost overflowing, and adding just a bit more water would make it bubble over.

“This is this year's new rice; it smells really good.” Tang Xu turned around, grabbed a small bowl, filled it with half a bowl of porridge, and added two pieces of pickled cucumber. 

He sat down on a small stool, taking a crunchy bite of cucumber followed by a spoonful of rich porridge, enjoying it with his eyes closed. “Delicious~~”

Wang Cuicui turned her head and smiled, asking, “The two kids Dongzi brought back look young; how are they doing?”

Before Tang Xu could answer, Tang Li chuckled and pointed to the pot of porridge. “I don’t know about that one named Zhao Ming, but Liu Ge’er is really hardworking. When I came in, he had already cooked the porridge, saying he only needed to cook this.”

Tang Xu chuckled softly, his shoulders shaking slightly.

Tang Li sighed helplessly. She glanced outside through the half-open window and, seeing no one else around, lowered her voice. “It was the same yesterday; he insisted on helping to cook. I told him it wasn’t necessary, but he wouldn’t listen. In the end, he ended up cooking a huge pot of rice and steaming a large batch of buns. Just look, we still have a lot of leftover rice.”

“Can you talk to him about this? Even if we have enough food, we shouldn’t waste it like this,” Tang Li said. 

Even though she had just met Lui Ge’er, she could sense his unease. She continued, “We have so much work at home that he really shouldn’t be in the kitchen helping out.”

Tang Xu nodded with a smile, “Sure, I’ll talk to him. He’s probably just feeling a bit of a crisis now that you two are back and busy.”

Tang Li looked at him in confusion, and Wang Cuicui turned her head to listen as well.

After thinking for a moment, Tang Xu briefly explained the situation with Lui Ge’er and Zhao Ming. “The two of them feel like they’ve been bought back as servants, and they think they can’t just eat and not work. So, they want to help with everything. Don’t be too harsh on them if they don’t do it well; just teach them.”

Tang Li was taken aback for a moment before suddenly saying, “Brother, don’t say any more. What I said earlier was wrong. If he wants to learn how to cook in the future, I’ll take the time to teach him.”

Tang Xu pinched Tang Li's soft, pudgy cheeks and smiled, saying, “My sister Ah Li is beautiful and kind-hearted.”

Tang Li felt embarrassed by the compliment, placing the green onions from the cutting board into a basin. 

Blushing, she replied, “I’m not that great either. You didn’t mind teaching me when I was annoying you, so don’t worry; I definitely won’t judge them based on their background.”

“Just treat them like family, there’s  no need for pity; it’s enough to treat them equally,” Tang Xu said as he cleaned a bowl and placed it on the rack. 

Rolling up his sleeves, he added, “Alright, you step aside, and I’ll cut. You go get a big piece of pork tenderloin; where’s your brother-in-law?”

“I don’t know; he’s not in the back yard?” Tang Li went out and returned with the pork tenderloin. 

She set it down and started slicing the meat into strips. “If he’s not at home, he should be over at my place; Dad hasn’t come over yet.”

“Your dad said this morning that he was going to fix the roof tiles. Dongzi is helping him over there,” Wang Cuicui said as she bent down to pull out two pieces of firewood from the stove. 

She then began pouring the remaining chilies into the pot and couldn’t help but grumble, “Do you think your dad is just making a fuss? The house was built just a few years ago; it’s still new, and he’s already wanting to change the tiles.”

Tang Xu and Tang Li exchanged glances and chuckled softly.

While stirring the chilies in the pot, Wang Cuicui continued, “Your dad is always acting like he’s lost his mind, thinking of one thing after another. What’s he up to in this cold weather? This morning, he said he had a headache, but after walking around the yard, he felt better and started shouting about changing the tiles. When I asked him why he wanted to change them, guess what he said?”

Tang Xu and Tang Li both shook their heads in curiosity. 

“What did he say?” 

Wang Cuicui clicked her tongue, sounding impatient. “He said after walking around the yard, he noticed a few roof tiles had a bad color and needed to be replaced.”

Tang Li: “...Uh, really?”

Tang Xu: “How did he even notice that the colors were different?”

Wang Cuicui shook her head. “How would I know? The roof is so high; I didn’t climb up to look. I mean, isn’t he just bored? Even though he works at the shop, he’s busy running around all day. When he gets home and doesn’t have any work to do, he can’t sit still and starts picking on everything, just making a fuss.”

Tang Xu shook his head with a laugh, and seeing her annoyed expression, he guessed their father had said more and asked, “What else did he mess with?”

“He said he wanted to build another room before opening the shop again, so that when Ah Li and Ah Yao get married, they’ll have a place to live,” Wang Cuicui said, rolling her eyes. 

Then, disregarding her image, she put her hands on her hips and exclaimed, “We don’t have enough rooms at home? He’s saved up a little money and wants to show off!”

Hearing this, Tang Li quickly interjected, “Please don’t build a house for us! We have money on hand, and besides, there’s enough space at home. Even if we do get married in the future, we’ll have a place to live.”

Tang Xu nodded in agreement, saying, “If you two get married and don’t build a new house, you can still live on both sides. Anyway, the rooms we have now will be reserved for you. After spring, Dongzi and I plan to build a house in the empty space in the back. If you don’t want to live with us, you can move back there.”

Tang Li’s eyes widened in disbelief as she looked at her brother. “Are you really going to build a new house?” 

This place is so big; isn’t it enough?

She didn’t ask the question aloud, but her surprise was evident on her face.

Wang Cuicui chimed in, “What do you need to build such a big house for in the village? This big place is already enough to live in!”

“Yeah, but it’s a bit cramped with so many family members,” Tang Xu shrugged. “But we have plenty of money on hand. The interest at the government savings bank is minimal; we might as well invest in building a house.”

“But you don’t have to build in the village,” Wang Cuicui said, looking pained. “It would be better for you two to buy a house in the city. When the kids grow up and don’t want to stay in the village, they can move out. Besides, even if you stay here in the village, buying a house now will eventually lead to building it. Why do it now?”

Tang Xu smiled and didn’t explain further. After all, the plan to break ground and build a house after spring was already set with Wei Dong, and the workers had been arranged.

As soon as the snow melted, they would get to work.

Tang Li chimed in, “My brother doesn’t want to move out; he likes staying in the village. He and my Brother-in-law have bought quite a few houses, so Auntie, you don’t need to worry about the money.”

Wang Cuicui sighed, sprinkling some sesame seeds into the pot. After stirring, she poured the chili sauce into a jar. “You guys are always wasting money!”

Tang Xu and Tang Li exchanged glances and stifled their laughter.

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TL: Happy Halloween Everyone~ I know that some of us here are too old to be trick or treating, so make sure to still get some candy~ (o´∀`o)