The Beautiful Brother of the Orion’s Family (Wearing Book) - 350

 

| TBBOTOF | 350

The Wei family’s courtyard was bustling with activity.

When Tang Xu and Wei Dong went out, they only said they were going for a walk around town. Who would've thought they'd come back with three people—two teens and one child.

All three of them were thin, especially the two boys who looked about thirteen or fourteen years old. They were tall, but so skinny they barely had any flesh on them, they stood there like two bamboo poles.

The youngest one was not only thin but also timid, hiding behind Tang Xu’s legs. At the sound of the other kids yelling, she trembled, her eyes brimming with tears, looking like she was on the verge of crying.

She was small and frail to begin with, and her big eyes looked round and watery. Her red-rimmed eyes and shrinking posture tugged at the hearts of anyone who had kids of their own.

Tang Xu gently patted the little girl’s dry, yellowish hair and said softly, “Don’t be afraid. He’s your big brother.”

The little girl looked up at Tang Xu and, after a while, opened her mouth, imitating his tone and softly uttered two words: “Big... brother.”

“That’s right, they’re all your big brothers,” Tang Xu smiled, thinking to himself that he now had both a son and a daughter—like the perfect family.

Liu Daniu and Chen Chushan stood off to the side, looking a little uneasy. They didn’t dare let their eyes wander and just stared blankly ahead.

Tang Xu introduced everyone to each other, then turned to Liu Daniu and Chen Chushan and said, “You two will share a room. Go wash up and change your clothes first.”

After speaking, he looked at Wei Xi. “Xiao Xi, take them to the room and find a couple of your old outfits for them to wear.”

Wei Xi nodded and motioned for the two to follow him.

“Dad,” Xiao Bao moved closer to Tang Xu, his big, bright eyes curiously studying the little girl who was hiding behind Tang Xu’s leg, only half her body visible. In his soft, sweet voice, he asked, “Dad, is she my little sister?”

Tang Xu nodded and replied, “This little sister’s name is Xiao Nuan. She’s younger than you.”

Xiao Bao’s eyes instantly lit up.

He had always been the youngest in the family, and now suddenly there was someone even younger, he could finally be a big brother!

“Xiao Nuan, my name is Xiaobao. You can call me Brother Xiao Bao,” he said as he took a small step forward, cautiously reaching out his hand.

At home, they had a rabbit. When the little bunny saw strangers, it would also hide. Usually, when the kids wanted to see it, they had to slowly approach and gently pet it.

Here, Xiao Bao treated Xiao Nuan with the same care he gave the baby rabbit at home, slowly taking another half-step toward her.

Tang Xu gently gave Xiao Nuan a push on the back with his palm, and the little girl shuffled a couple of steps forward.

Maybe she sensed Xiao Bao’s kindness, because the timid girl cautiously stepped over to his side.

Xiao Bao reached out to take her hand, and a faint, confused little smile appeared on her face.

Tang Xu reminded him, “Your little sister just got here. When you play with her, don’t shout or scare her, okay?”

Xiao Bao obediently agreed, holding Xiao Nuan’s hand and leading her into the house.

Tang Xu then turned and handed a small bundle to Liu Ge’er, saying, “There are two sets of clothes in here for Xiao Nuan. Our family has fabric, and your sewing is neater than mine, make her a couple more outfits when you get a chance.”

Liu Ge’er accepted it and agreed, adding, “She’s lucky to come to this home. She’s going to have a good life from now on.”

Tang Xu didn’t say anything to that, just nodded, then went with Wei Dong to tidy up one of the west rooms so the other two could stay there. 

After Chen Chushan and Liu Daniu finished washing and changing into clean clothes, they looked down at themselves, lightly touching the clothes—even though the outfits were old, they had no patches. Both of them felt a bit overwhelmed with emotion.

They had originally thought they’d sold themselves into a household to be laborers, but who would’ve expected that upon arrival, they’d be dressed in such good clothes?

“Brother Daniu, Brother Chushan, are you two done getting ready? My big brother says it’s time to eat,” Tang Yang called from outside the window.

The two quickly placed their old clothes into the basket on the side, planning to wash them later and wear them for farm work in the future.

Though Tang Yang was a few years younger than both of them, the men of the Tang family were all tall and well-built, and with the good food they ate, Tang Yang had grown broader and sturdier than both of them—standing in front of Liu Daniu, it looked like he could swallow him whole.

Liu Daniu tilted his head slightly to look at Tang Yang, thinking to himself, This young guy’s got a good physique.

Tang Yang wore a bright, cheerful expression and pointed toward the main hall. “My brother said we’re eating early today. He told me to come call you two.” 

As he spoke, he gestured around the courtyard. “These rooms here are where everyone lives. The back courtyard has several storerooms. That small door on the side leads to the cellar and the icehouse. After we eat, before it gets dark, I’ll show you two around.”

The two men quickly nodded and agreed, then followed Tang Yang into the main hall.

Inside the house, it was warm and lively. The younger kids were chirping and chatting away. Da Bao and Er Bao were helping set the table, and Old Wen had already warmed up a pot of wine, ready to serve.

The old man sat squinting happily at the bunch of children in the room, his face full of affection and love.

“The weather’s getting warmer now. When there’s nothing to do, take them up the mountain for a walk and dig up some wild vegetables,” he said, turning to Wei Dong.

Wei Dong nodded. “Tomorrow I’ll take them to catch fish, and the day after we’ll go pick wild vegetables.”

“Catch a good amount. We can smoke some,” the old man added, smacking his lips a little at the mention of fish—just hearing about it was making him crave it.

Seeing that the two newcomers were still a little reserved, Liu Ge’er waved them over. “You two sit over here.”

Although the Wei family didn’t have many formal rules, they still needed to understand their place. It wouldn’t be right to sit at the same table as the young masters of the household.

Even though they were seated at a different table, the two still felt uneasy. During the meal, they didn’t even dare to reach out with their chopsticks to take food.

In the end, Liu Ge’er helped them out by ladling dishes directly into their bowls.

After dinner, once everything was tidied up, Liu Ge’er went to find Tang Xu for a private conversation.

Tang Xu was in the middle of making little socks for Xiao Nuan. His sewing skills were average, but doing small hand-stitching like this was no problem for him.

When he saw Liu Ge’er come in, he turned around and took out some fabric he had set aside, placing it on the kang table. He gently patted it and said, “Take a look at these two pieces of cloth, how do the colors look? Do you think they’re suitable for making clothes for Nuan’er?”

Liu Ge’er ran his hand over the fabric, it was soft and smooth, clearly not cheap material.

He didn’t say anything about that, only nodded and said, “Very nice. The colors are perfect for a little girl.”

Tang Xu smiled. “Exactly. Ah Dong brought this back and said this is the kind of fabric they use in the provincial city to make clothes for young masters and misses. Take these two pieces and make two sets of clothes for Nuan’er. If there’s any leftover, keep it to sew yourself a couple of handkerchiefs.”

He folded the fabric and handed it over.

Liu Ge’er nodded and took the cloth. Only then did he say, “I actually came to talk to you. Starting tomorrow, those of us doing chores and labor shouldn’t eat at the same table as the main family.”

Tang Xu was taken aback, a little confused. “Why?”

“I know you don’t care much for the whole master-servant distinction,” Liu Ge’er said, lowering his head slightly, “but there should still be some boundaries. Liu Daniu and Chen Chushan feel uncomfortable. And when the three young masters grow up, it's not good for them to eat with the servants all the time.”

Tang Xu: “……”

“Alright then, I didn’t think of that,” he said as he picked up a small broom to sweep the thread scraps off the kang and into a dustpan. “Tomorrow, clean out the little utility room next to the kitchen. Set up a table in there, you all can eat there from now on.”

Liu Ge’er nodded. “I’ll go talk to them about it tonight. Your uncle and Auntie are coming tomorrow, I’ll let them know too.”

“Sounds good, you take care of it,” Tang Xu nodded. “Oh right, remind me tomorrow morning to grab two slabs of ribs from the cold storage. We’ll make dried potato stew with ribs for lunch, let the ones working in the back have a good meal too.”

“They’ve been eating meat nearly every day. They don’t get this kind of food working for other families,” Liu Ge’er added, though he still nodded in agreement.

“Alright, go get some rest. If there’s nothing else, sleep early,” Tang Xu said, waving a hand to send him off, not saying anything more.

Previous TOC Next

TL: We once again receive another update thanks to Chubbiest Cheeks! Thank you so much! (´,,•ω•,,)♡

Lol it took me awhile to tl because I forgot some of the new names, good thing I wrote all the character names in a note (๑˃ᴗ˂)ﻭ. It might take another month or so until we receive another update, so sit tight everyone~