The Beautiful Brother of the Orion’s Family (Wearing Book) - 306

 

| TBBOTOF | 306

Hearing that there were snakes halfway up the mountain, Tang Xu felt extremely uneasy. Even though Wei Dong had sprinkled the area around the house thoroughly, he couldn't shake off his discomfort.

While cooking dinner in the evening, Tang Xu suddenly heard a rustling sound that made him jump. Before he could shout out, he saw something emerge from the gaps at the bottom of the firewood stack—his fat cat.

The moment the cat saw Tang Xu, it wiggled its whiskers and let out a loud meow.

Tang Xu snapped back to his senses, wiping away his cold sweat and finding his hand covered in fur.

“What were you doing crawling under there?” he scolded, giving the cat, which was busy licking its fur, a few pats. He brushed off the bits of wood stuck to its head. Who knew how long it had been under there—it was covered in dirt and wood chips.

The fat cat meowed a few more times after being patted, then adorably rubbed its head against Tang Xu’s hand.

Tang Xu sighed and picked it up. Its weight was truly something to reckon with.

“You really need to lose weight. How did you get so fat?” The cat was semi-free-range, often wandering around the village. It likely hunted mice somewhere, ate its fill, and then came home for an extra meal. Its life couldn’t be better.

Nestled in Tang Xu’s arms, the fat cat swung its thick, long tail in contentment and let out a soft meow, even twitching one of its ears.

Tang Xu, worried he might not be able to hold it up with one arm, quickly carried it to the courtyard by the well. He grabbed a cloth hanging on the rack, which he usually used to dust himself off, and wiped the dirt off the cat. He also scooped some water for it to drink.

“Brother!” Tang Li’s voice came from behind.

Tang Xu turned around and saw his younger sister sticking her head out from the kitchen window. He waved at her and said, “I’ll be right there.”

The kitchen had run out of kindling halfway through cooking. Tang Xu had planned to fetch some wood but ended up getting startled by the fat cat.

Tang Li responded with an “Oh,” then glanced at the plump cat being held down in a basin and cleaned. She stifled a laugh, smiling as she went back into the kitchen.

After finishing cleaning the cat, Tang Xu turned back to the woodshed to fetch a bundle of kindling. The fat cat trotted along behind him, occasionally rubbing against his calves or curling its thick tail around his legs.

Carrying the firewood while trying not to trip over the clingy fat cat made the trip a real struggle.

When the cat rubbed against his legs for the third time, Tang Xu nudged it to the side with his foot. “Shoo, shoo, stop messing around.”

In response, the fat cat flopped over onto its back, showing off its fluffy white belly.

Tang Xu couldn’t help but laugh. He gave it another light nudge with his foot before stepping over it and continuing on his way.

The fat cat swished its tail, rolled back onto its feet, and chased after Tang Xu to rub against him again.

What should have been a short walk turned into a difficult journey, with Tang Xu constantly watching his step to avoid trampling the clingy, attention-seeking cat.

When he finally returned to the kitchen, Tang Li couldn’t help but laugh at the sight of the fat cat trailing right behind him. She teased, “Brother, this cat is way too attached to you.”

“Probably hungry. Cut a couple of pieces of meat for it,” Tang Xu said as he set the firewood to the side. Standing by the door, he dusted off the wood chips from his clothes, washed his hands, and turned to Tang Li. “Ah Li, the noodles are ready to be cut. The soup is about done; you can cook the noodles now.”

They were having bone broth noodles for dinner. The broth had been simmering since the afternoon, turning a rich, creamy white with an incredibly fragrant aroma.

Tang Xu had skimmed off all the surface oil earlier. When it was time to serve, he planned to add some greens and tofu to the broth, shred the meat from the bones, and toss it in. 

The noodles would be cooked in a separate pot, then served in bowls with a ladleful of the flavorful broth, topped with a sprinkle of chopped scallions. The resulting dish was mouthwatering.

Bone broth noodles were a favorite for everyone in the family. However, Wei Dong often complained that it wasn’t filling enough. Knowing Wei Dong’s appetite, Tang Xu had also prepared a few fried flatbreads for him to eat alongside the soup.

The hustle and bustle of dinner preparations made him temporarily forget all about the snakes. It wasn’t until bedtime that the thought crossed Tang Xu’s mind again.

Tang Xu abruptly pushed away Wei Dong’s head, which had been buried in his chest, and asked with a pale face, “Are you sure there are no more snakes?”

Wei Dong, who had been enjoying the moment, was caught off guard by the push and almost bit his own tongue.

He looked at his husband, a bit helpless, and asked, “How about I take you up the mountain for a walk?”

Earlier that afternoon, while spreading the realgar powder, Wei Dong had made sure to inspect the fallen leaves on the mountain with Liu Yao. They had found another long snake, but that was something he definitely wouldn’t mention to Tang Xu. If he did, they wouldn't get any sleep that night.

Tang Xu wasn’t about to go up the mountain. Instead, he leaned in and gave Wei Dong two quick kisses on the face, a little embarrassed, and muttered, “But I’m scared.”

“It’s really fine now,” Wei Dong reassured, glancing down at him. He leaned forward, gave him a soft bite on the cheek, and added, “The realgar powder was spread, so all the snakes, bugs, and ants ran away. If you’re still worried, I can go up tomorrow morning with a few people to clear the leaves. Now, let’s sleep!”

Tang Xu huffed but agreed. “Alright, if you clear them, it’ll be best.”

After a night of restless tossing and turning, Tang Xu eventually fell into a deep sleep, and by the time he woke up the next morning, Wei Dong had already taken the workers from the house and cleared the leaves on the small mountain.

They did find two snake dens, but there were no snakes inside. Wei Dong had filled them with dirt and scattered more of the medicinal powder around the area.

Since then, Tang Xu didn’t go beyond the front yard, his activities mostly confined to that space.

The few snakes they had caught were given to Old Wu to soak in liquor. Although they weren’t venomous, it was still good to make wine out of them.

As time passed, the weather gradually grew cooler, and the Mid-Autumn Festival was getting closer.

Recently, Wei Dong had been busy hauling back the furniture he had ordered with Liu Yao. 

They had placed everything in the new house on the second courtyard, which had originally been meant for the two of them.

Now that Tang Li’s room was small and Liu Yao was living at Tang Xu’s place, it only made sense for the newlyweds to have their own independent space.

When the house had been built, they had considered this and left one larger room.

When the furniture was moved in, the empty room was instantly filled. Liu Yao stood inside, looking around with delight.

Tang Li stood beside him, equally happy.

However, Wei Dong felt that something was missing in the room. He frowned slightly as he scanned the space and casually remarked, “It’s missing a vanity and a copper mirror.”

When they had ordered the furniture, they had indeed forgotten about those items.

They had only thought about ordering cabinets and chests, but the vanity and mirror slipped their minds.

It wasn’t entirely their fault—men typically didn’t have these items in their rooms, and since Tang Xu didn’t care about such things, there wasn’t even a vanity in his room, and the copper mirror was hardly used. 

So Wei Dong hadn’t thought about it at all.

But girls always need a vanity to place some jewelry and makeup items, and a copper mirror is naturally essential.

As soon as Wei Dong mentioned it, Liu Yao’s face lit up in realization.

Tang Li raised her hand and gave Liu Yao a light slap on the shoulder, then shot him a glare.

Liu Yao scratched his head, quickly responding, “I’ll go over and have him make one right away.”

“A vanity is easy to make, it should be done soon. But for the copper mirror, we’ll probably have to buy one—he doesn’t sell mirrors over there,” Wei Dong added casually.

Liu Yao nodded. “Got it, I’ll go order it now!”

He hurriedly rushed out, nearly running into Tang Xu who was coming in.

“What’s the rush?” Tang Xu entered the room, looked around, and raised an eyebrow. “Looks good, but where’s the vanity and the mirror?”

He immediately noticed what was missing.

Wei Dong shrugged. “We forgot. He’s going to order it.”

Tang Xu gave him a sidelong glance, silently thinking, How could you forget something like that?

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