Ger, So Proud

Chapter 30

“Brother!”

“Stop, why are you running so fast?” He Ze held out a hand to stop He An.

“It’s nothing. Why are you back so late again?” He An quickly halted and pouted, “Father and Dad were worried about you.”

“What’s there to worry about? Are they inside?” He Ze raised an eyebrow and seemed to remember something. He casually tossed a bag of something fragrant to He An, who instinctively caught it.

“Brother, is this…” He An sniffed it and broke into a wide smile, “Chestnut cake!”

“Always thinking about food!” He Ze walked a few steps closer and gently knocked the back of He An’s head, “You go inside first. I have something to discuss with Father and Dad.”

He An wanted to say more but seeing He Ze’s serious expression, he obediently nodded and walked toward his room, looking back with every step.

When He Ze entered, Dad Li was massaging He Youcai’s arm. Seeing He Ze, he immediately stood up and came over. “You’re back? I kept your dinner warm! Should I bring it to you now?”

“No need, Dad. I ate on my way back, I’m not hungry now.” He Ze shook his head and handed him the things he was carrying.

“Why did you buy so many things again? How much did it cost?”

Dad Li accepted the items with a doubtful look. Once he put them away, He Ze took off the pouch from his waist and emptied a large silver ingot and several smaller pieces of silver onto the table, making a clattering sound.

The silver gleamed in the dim light of the oil lamp, nearly blinding He Youcai and Dad Li.

“This… this…”

They had never seen so much silver in their lives!

“Father, Dad, this was originally twenty taels of silver. I spent a bit on the way back, so there’s a little over nineteen taels left. Keep it and use it to pay off our debts.”

“Nin… nineteen taels? Twenty taels? Where did you get so much silver!” He Youcai took a deep drag from his pipe, trying to calm his racing heart. Seeing him ask, He Ze sat down at the table and recounted the afternoon’s events in detail.

After He Ze finished, He Youcai and Dad Li still wore expressions of disbelief as if the sun had risen from the west. “Just… just for that flower?”

“Father, don’t underestimate that flower. Some florists spend their whole lives unable to grow such a fine flower.”

“Then, how did you…”

“Your son is just lucky, isn’t he?” He Ze poured himself a cup of tea and drank it down in one gulp. “Father, didn’t Doctor Xu say today that surviving a great calamity brings fortune? Maybe our He family ancestors are smiling down on us.”

As he said this, his gaze dropped.

“You rascal! What kind of talk is that!” He Youcai glared at He Ze, some of his doubt fading. He took another deep drag on his pipe. “So, what you’re saying is, the flowers in our room…”

As he asked, Dad Li also fixed his eyes on He Ze.

“Father, what are you thinking! How could we be that lucky?” He Ze frowned, decisively dismissing He Youcai’s thoughts. “Just this one flower is like money falling from the sky. The others are just ordinary wildflowers.”

He was telling the truth. The flower he sold today was the most valuable among the seeds he had bought that day.

Hearing this, both He Youcai and Dad Li unexpectedly breathed a sigh of relief.

“Father, Dad, it’s getting late. I’m going to bed. You should rest early too.”

After explaining, He Ze glanced at his still-concerned parents, then got up and left the room.

He Youcai wanted to call him back, but Dad Li held his arm. Once the door was closed and the room was silent, He Youcai looked at the silver still on the table and couldn’t help but speak. “Wife, am I dreaming?”

Dad Li responded by pinching his arm hard, making He Youcai yelp in pain.

“Now do you know if you’re dreaming or not?”

“Couldn’t you be gentler?” He Youcai put his pipe down on the table, rubbing his arm. He carefully picked up the large silver ingot from the middle of the table. “This ingot is ten taels, ten taels! It’s enough for five plots of land, two big oxen, or even our new house!”

“Alright, alright! You really dare to dream, old man?” Dad Li retorted at He Youcai, snatching the silver from him. “We haven’t even paid off our debts! My Dad’s family, the neighbors we borrowed from, they all need money!”

He Youcai gave him a look but remained silent, his eyes fixed on the silver on the table, deep in thought. Dad Li reached out to put away the silver, but He Youcai stopped him. “Wait a moment.”

“What’s gotten into you?” Dad Li sat down.

“My heart feels like it’s floating on clouds, uneasy and afraid it might fall at any moment! Twenty taels just fell into our laps out of nowhere, this is twenty taels…” He Youcai stroked his beard, full of worry.

“I feel the same,” Dad Li said, adjusting his clothing after a long pause. “Ever since Xiao Ze woke up, his health suddenly improved, he became more sensible, and he started making money. Your injury is healing, and our days are getting better. Last time Xiao Ze said he’d take care of the money, I thought he was just saying it, but now…”

“Father of my child, do you think…”

Dad Li glanced at the silver on the table, hesitant to continue. He Youcai looked at him, then stroked his beard again. “I remember clearly, when I left the room this morning, none of the flowers were blooming. But this afternoon, Xiao Ze came out with a blooming flower pot.”

“What are you implying?” Dad Li’s face showed a hint of anger.

“Where’s your mind going? I just think… maybe, as Xiao Ze said, our He family ancestors are looking out for us, and our luck is changing for the better?”

He Youcai waved his hand, a hint of joy on his face.

“You’re just flattering yourself!” Dad Li gave him a sidelong glance. “But Dr. Xu might be right. Maybe Xiao Ze’s luck has truly arrived! Remember, when he was little, I took him to the temple, and the master said he’d have great fortune!”

“I believe so too. If it’s not disaster, it’s fortune; disaster and fortune are interlinked. Our troubles are over, and good luck has arrived!” He Youcai set down his pipe, sounding excited. “So, tomorrow, let’s find some time to visit the ancestral hall in the village to pay our respects, and then go to the temple to fulfill our vows. What do you think?”

“Alright, after we harvest the millet from those two plots of land, we’ll go,” Li agreed, a smile appearing on his face. As the sound of silver being put away faded, the room fell silent again.

Outside, He Ze glanced inside before finally stepping down the stone steps.

He hadn’t been too secretive in front of He Youcai and Dad Li today on purpose.

Firstly, the initial money needed a source. Lying about it could lead to a web of lies later, and if caught, their suspicion might only deepen.

Secondly, He Youcai and Dad Li loved He Ze deeply. Even if they had doubts, they would never think badly of him.

He only needed to guide them slightly, and they would find ample reason to believe him. With today’s foundation, they would be more accepting of future developments.

This way, his actions wouldn’t be too constrained in the future.

Fortunately, things were developing as he had anticipated.

Opening the bedroom door, He Ze looked back once more before entering. A moment later, the main room’s door opened, and He Youcai and Dad Li emerged with an oil lamp.

The moon and stars were sparse; tomorrow would likely be another good day.

…

The next morning after breakfast, He Ze told Dad Li he was leaving, picked up two packs of food and a pound of pork ribs, and headed to the Lin family.

He An wanted to follow, but Dad Li held him back.

As the sun rose, the sunlight was perfect. The dew on the leaves of the wild grass on either side of the road had not yet evaporated, and He Ze’s pants were soaked as he walked.

Just as he entered the Lin family’s courtyard, he noticed someone had arrived even earlier. Looking up, he saw a ladder leaning against the eaves of the house, with Xu Qingsheng carefully moving roof tiles back and forth while bent over on the roof.

Was he… repairing the roof?

“Uncle Xu, are there enough tiles up there? There are still some good ones here,” Lin Yu’s voice suddenly rang out. He Ze looked in the direction of the sound and saw Lin Yu squatting in the corner, supporting himself with one hand on the ground while sorting through a pile of tiles, most of which were broken beyond use.

Perhaps Xu Qingsheng didn’t hear him, as Lin Yu stood up while leaning against the wall and started dragging the basket of tiles towards the ladder.

He Ze didn’t have time to put down his things and hurriedly walked over to Lin Yu, scolding him sternly, “What are you doing?”

“He Ze, why are you here?” Lin Yu looked up, his face showing obvious surprise and a bit of joy, his eyes glancing at He Ze’s hands, “And you brought so many things?”

He Ze didn’t respond, just frowned, shifted everything in his right hand to his left, and reached out to support Lin Yu’s arm, “Come on, let me help you inside.”

“The things…”

“I’ll bring them over later.”

Lin Yu couldn’t refuse, so he allowed He Ze to help him to the table and sit down. “This is fine.”

Once Lin Yu was seated, He Ze set down his things, glanced at Xu Qingsheng on the roof, and asked, “Is the roof leaking?”

“Yes,” Lin Yu nodded. “Uncle Xu saw the water-catching basins in the room this morning and insisted on fixing it. I couldn’t stop him.”

“Where’s your Dad?”

“In the kitchen. He got mad when he saw Uncle Xu up there and then…” Lin Yu pursed his lips and looked up again.

“You just sit tight.”

He Ze pondered for a moment, then stood up, picked up the basket beside him, and walked to the ladder. Holding the basket with one hand and steadying the ladder with the other, he climbed up.

“He Ze, be careful!”

Lin Yu realized what was happening and quickly called out. Upon hearing the voice, Xu Qingsheng turned his head and saw He Ze, “He family boy? What are you doing up here?”

“Lin Yu was worried there weren’t enough tiles, so he asked me to bring this basket up.”

“Alright, come over, but be careful.” Xu Qingsheng straightened up and waved He Ze over.

Some of the tiles on the roof were cracked and needed replacing. Seeing that Xu Qingsheng had a lot of work, He Ze decided to stay and help.

“I say, He family boy, why do you come over here so often? I’ve seen you a bunch of times every time I come by.” As they worked, Xu Qingsheng casually brought it up.

“…So often?” He Ze didn’t look up, just paused for a moment before chuckling, “From what I can see, Doctor Xu, you come over much more frequently than I do.”

“That’s different,” Xu Qingsheng straightened his back, stammering a bit, “I’m here because, because…”

“Uncle Xu, He Ze, be careful!” Lin Yu, watching nervously from the courtyard, couldn’t help but call out again.

Xu Qingsheng was interrupted, glanced at Lin Yu in the courtyard, then at He Ze, and suddenly had a look of interest in his eyes. “I say, He family boy, you wouldn’t happen to be…?”

“What?” He Ze asked as he placed another tile.

The author’s note: Xu Qingsheng (squinting): Are you up to the same thing I am?

He Ze (shaking his head): No way, old man.