| TBBOTOF | 331
Tang Xu delivered some dried ginseng to Old Wu and then, after thinking for a moment, went to Old Wen’s room. The old man was currently explaining a book to Xu Ze.
Tang Xu was greeted with a bright smile.
Raising an eyebrow, Tang Xu asked, "What’s this about?"
Old Wen, who was talking about childbirth of gers, Xu Ze blinked curiously at Tang Xu and asked, "Was the baby’s position correct when you gave birth?"
At the time, Tang Xu didn’t quite understand what that meant, but he only remembered that it seemed to take a long time for the child to be born.
Tang Xu looked bewildered for a moment before he hesitantly replied, "I think... it was, right?"
It had been several years since then, so he couldn’t really remember. However, the birth of his third child hadn’t been too difficult—it had been relatively smooth.
He shook his head, unwilling to dwell on the pain of that time. Placing the small bag he was holding onto the table, he said to Old Wen, who was looking at him in confusion, "Old Wu wanted some ginseng, so I took a few dried ones that we had frozen in the cold storage. He said they were quite good and useful, so I figured I’d ask if you needed any too."
Old Wen was aware that there was ginseng at home—after all, they often spotted ginseng threads in the chicken soup during meals—but he hadn’t known that they had ones of such high quality.
"Where did you two dig these up? The quality is really impressive," Old Wen said as he unwrapped the oil paper, taking out the dried ginseng to examine and sniff. He nodded slightly in approval. "It’s been preserved quite well."
"A few years ago, when money was tight, Ah Dong went deep into the mountains to dig them up. He found quite a lot and left us with a good supply. Back when Old Xu was still around, he suggested drying and freezing them. I was worried about cross-contamination of flavors, so I wrapped them in several layers of oil paper," Tang Xu explained.
Seeing Old Wen fiddling with the ginseng, he added, "There’s more in the cellar. If you want, I can go grab some for you."
Old Wen waved his hand dismissively, "I don’t need that much. Old Wu likes grinding it into pills, but I just use it occasionally when helping with childbirth. And now, no one even comes to me for that anymore. Keeping it with me would just go to waste."
"Then I’ll leave two roots for you to brew tea with, and I’ll put the rest back. If you need more, just let me know," Tang Xu said as he reached into the bag to take out two roots. Old Wen quickly stopped him.
"Don’t waste such a good thing. These are life-saving old ginseng roots—you don’t need them just to brew tea! You’re not some nobleman," Old Wen said, glaring at him with a stern expression.
"The thin ginseng roots you use for stewing chicken are fine for tea. Besides, ginseng tea isn’t suitable for everyone. If you overdo it, it’ll do more harm than good."
Tang Xu nodded, accepting the advice.
On the side, Xu Ze was covering his mouth, stifling laughter. But when Tang Xu glanced his way, he quickly put his hand down and straightened his expression, feigning obedience. "Brother Xu, there are things even you don’t know!"
Tang Xu chuckled. "Exactly, that’s why you’ve got to keep learning your whole life. You should listen carefully to Old Wen."
Xu Ze nodded earnestly, puffing out his small chest and promising, "I will definitely listen well!"
Smiling, Tang Xu gave his cheek a playful pinch before carefully putting the ginseng away. "I’ll stew some chicken with it tonight since we’ve already taken it out.”
Old Wen looked at him helplessly but didn’t say anything further.
Xu Ze nodded enthusiastically, his eyes lighting up as he asked, "Brother Xu, can you add some sweet potato noodles? I love those!"
"Of course! Do you want to add some mushrooms too?" Tang Xu asked. During the rainy season, they had collected quite a lot of mushrooms from the mountains and dried them for storage.
"Yes!" Xu Ze responded eagerly.
Tang Xu then turned to Old Wen. "And you, Old Wen? Do you prefer chestnuts or potatoes?"
"Both," Old Wen replied as he stroked his beard, smiling. "And let’s fry some wood ear mushrooms with eggs too."
"Alright," Tang Xu agreed. "Steamed buns or cornbread?"
"Cornbread. We haven’t had it for a few days," Old Wen said.
Tang Xu’s cornbread, made with coarsely ground cornmeal, always steamed up fluffy and aromatic, with tiny bits of corn in it. The elders in the household were particularly fond of it.
"Okay, cornbread it is. Ze’er, you keep at it—I’m off to make dinner," Tang Xu said, patting Xu Ze on the head before heading to the kitchen.
Tang Xu left the room and headed to the cold cellar, where he placed the small cloth pouch down. He rummaged through a large burlap sack, pulling out a few thinner ginseng roots.
After a moment of thought, he grabbed a handful of ginseng root tendrils from another sack.
He went to the kitchen, soaking the ginseng in water, then returned to check on the house, only to find that his husband wasn’t there. Turning on his heel, he walked to the children’s room instead.
All the kids were inside, and Wei Dong was there too. The tall man sat awkwardly on a tiny stool, his long legs bent uncomfortably, making the setup look particularly cramped.
Yet Wei Dong didn’t seem to mind at all. At the moment, both his knees were occupied, with Er Bao and Xiao Bao each sitting on one side, happily chatting and gesturing about something.
Er Bao nodded along seriously, with a "my little brother is always right" look on his face.
Further inside, the chubby boy and Yue Ge’er was seated at a small table, holding something that looked like mud, kneading and shaping it. Next to him, Sun Yang pointed and gestured, seemingly offering directions.
The moment Tang Xu stepped in, he was greeted by the sight of the kids’ mud-covered hands and their equally muddy clothes.
Some of the mud had dried and cracked, while other parts were still wet and slimy, clinging to their clothes and threatening to drip.
With just one glance, Tang Xu felt a loud buzzing in his head.
The chubby boy noticed his dad enter and immediately lit up. He proudly held up a lump of mud that vaguely resembled a bowl—or maybe a pot?—and presented it like a treasure. “Dad, look~~”
The chubby boy’s voice was sticky-sweet, his big eyes sparkling with joy.
Tang Xu took a deep breath, reminding himself not to dampen the child’s enthusiasm. He forced a slightly stiff smile and leaned down, saying, "You made this so well!"
“Dad, can you guess what I made?” The chubby boy blinked his big eyes, full of hope and admiration.
Tang Xu blinked back at him, staring intently at the lump of mud in his son’s hands. He racked his brain, thinking hard, even sneaking a glance at his husband for help.
Unfortunately, his husband, Wei Dong, simply gave him a faint smile, offering no clues whatsoever.
Faced with his son’s expectant gaze, Tang Xu braced himself and said, “Is it... a rice bowl?”
The chubby boy froze for a moment, looking at the mud in his hands and then back at Tang Xu.
The bright smile on his face dimmed slightly as he asked, “Dad, do you really think it looks like a rice bowl?”
Tang Xu thought to himself, This thing looks like nothing at all. Can I even say it looks like a bowl?
Quickly, he turned to Wei Dong for help, but his husband just squinted slightly and shook his head.
Tang Xu cleared his throat and hastily corrected himself, “No, no, no. Dad misspoke. It doesn’t look like a rice bowl. It looks more like... like... a bamboo tube!”
The chubby boy pouted, “Dad, stop guessing! I made a pig!”
“Huh?” Tang Xu’s face went blank as he stared at the muddy lump in his son’s hands. No matter how he looked at it, he couldn’t see a pig in there.
Wei Dong sighed and chimed in, “He’s been messing with that for awhile, saying he’s making a pig. Earlier, he showed it to me, and I said it looked like a stone block. He got upset and said you’d definitely figure out what it was.”
Tang Xu twitched the corner of his mouth, thinking, If that’s the case, why didn’t you give me a hint earlier? You’re just standing there enjoying the show!
“Ah Song, I’m sorry. Daddy really couldn’t figure it out,” Tang Xu said as he crouched down, bending over to take a closer look at the lump of mud in his eldest son’s hands.
He then asked earnestly, “Tell me how you made it. What’s this part here?”
“This is the ear!”
Tang Xu nodded, “Oh, I see. And what about this part?”
“These are the legs!”
Tang Xu nodded again, silently marveling at how all four legs had been lumped together in one spot—a skill in its own right.
“Dad has a suggestion for you. If you want to make legs, you could try sculpting them separately and then assembling them once the clay dries. That way, they won’t all end up in a pile, and it’ll look more like a pig.”
The chubby boy’s eyes lit up, and he nodded enthusiastically. “Dad, I get it now! I know what to do!”
Tang Xu exhaled a breath of relief.
He really appreciated this quality in his eldest son. He never got stuck on a single idea or frustrated when things didn’t work out. If one method didn’t pan out, he’d happily try another, and he was always open to advice.
Tang Xu nodded to himself in approval, then glanced at Yue Ge’er. He noticed that the little guy was surprisingly skillful—his creations were much better than his eldest son.
Turning his head sharply, Tang Xu fixed Wei Dong with a serious expression. “You, come out!”
It was time to assert his authority as the head of the household!
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