TTLJDFL chapter 30

The young man never expected Li Jin to summarize so directly and elevate the meaning of his words. But this person didn’t have all those twisted thoughts; he either said it or not.

So, in front of Li Jin, Qin Muwen nodded and said, “Yes.”

I care about you.

Li Jin put down the pumpkin, feeling that strange feeling he had suppressed earlier rising up again.

But Li Jin had been single for twenty-nine years and really didn’t know what it meant to have a crush.

Before, when faced with someone else’s confession, he could calmly refuse, feeling absolutely nothing inside.

But when it came to the young man, he couldn’t help wanting to see him smile, wanting to talk to him more.

He even wanted to hear the young man say, “I care about you.”

=

In the end, the pumpkin buns were made together. Li Jin washed the pumpkin, peeled it, diced it, and mixed the filling with soy sauce, salt, and sesame oil.

The young man was responsible for kneading the dough and rolling it, and in the end, he made small buns with eight folds.

Li Jin had previously made buns and dumplings; after all, when he was studying abroad, a group of fellow countrymen would gather during the New Year to make dumplings and steam buns.

But he had to admit that his own skill was merely enough to keep the buns from falling apart. Unlike the young man, who held the dough with one hand and pinched the edges with the other, twisting it a few times, and a small bun was done.

Each bun had not more and not less, exactly eight folds.

Li Jin also got some flour on his hands and tried to wrap it the way he did. Unfortunately, making buns is a skill.
It’s not something you can learn just by looking.

Li Jin finished his first bun, and the young man placed it on the cutting board, right next to his string of buns that looked like works of art.

Li Jin thought for a moment: “That last bun looks lopsided and ugly, it definitely isn’t a good bun.”

For the first time, the young man saw that Li Jin also had things he couldn’t do. The dimples at the corners of his lips were shallow, but there was a deep smile in his eyes.

Li Jin wanted to practice one more thing when he heard someone outside the door raise their voice and shout, “Li Jin, we’ve found people to build the house for you!”

Li Jin went out to wash his hands, opened the door, and indeed saw two familiar faces standing outside.

They were people he often saw when he used to farm.

Li Jin greeted them in: “Brother Erniu, Brother Dazhuang, please come in.”

Li Erniu was somewhat related to Li Daniu’s family, and the two were close in age, so their parents even ended up giving them the same name.

It was also because last time Li Erniu’s kid came to Li Jin’s house with friends wanting some meat.

He felt a bit embarrassed, so he wanted to do something for Li Jin.

Besides, now that the busy farming season was over, he didn’t have any work, so helping out a bit could also help strengthen neighborly relations.

Li Erniu said, “We originally agreed to meet on the second day of the last ten days of the month, but my farming work was finished yesterday, so today I brought Dazhuang to come and ask you in advance. Besides building the house, is there anything else that needs to be repaired?”

Li Jin also did not hold back. After all, if the roof was not repaired now, it would be his own family who would suffer from leaks later.

He said, “The roofs of my bedroom and kitchen are both leaking. Fortunately, it hasn’t rained recently; otherwise, my family would have in trouble.”

Li Dazhuang also had an honest and straightforward nature. He laughed and said, “Last year, when Li Zhuzi saw that your house was leaking and even your bed got damp, he asked me to repair your roof. At that time, you absolutely refused to let me help, insisting on keeping face. I thought to myself, what use is face compared to actual benefits? If Erniu hadn’t asked me this time, I probably wouldn’t have come either.”

Li Jin knew the speaking habits of the villagers, which were that when they complimented you, they would definitely put you down first, serving the purpose of raising praise after initial criticism.

What Li Dazhuang meant by this was that praising Li Jin now would only be suffering for the sake of face.

Li Jin said, “I was young and ignorant back then, and now I finally realize my mistake.”

Li Dazhuang saw that Li Jin really was just like the rumors said, acting like the pillar of the family.

He didn’t say much more, set up the ladder in his hand, and climbed up in a few moves.

Li Ernniu asked, “How’s the rooftop?”

When Li Dazhuang came down, he frowned and said, “Some small holes can be patched, but for the big holes, even if they are filled with straw, they will still leak when it rains heavily.”

Li Jin was aware of this situation and asked, “Is there any other method so that after repairing the roof, we can live here safely for a while?”

Li Erniu said, “Do you mean, Li Jin, that you want to replace the whole roof with tiles?”

Li Jin asked about the price of tiles again, then smiled bitterly and said, “We don’t have enough money to replace all the tiles, so I’m thinking of just replacing the spots that can’t be fixed with straw with tiles. That way, even when the rainy season comes this year, the house won’t leak.”

Finally, Li Dazhuang went to check the kitchen roof and estimated how much material was needed.

“The soil we use to patch the house, we pick it ourselves from the mountain. Later, the three of us can each carry two baskets, and I don’t need my wheat straw, so we can mix it together and that should be enough to fix the roof.”

Li Jin immediately agreed.

Li Erniu said, “As for the tiles, just go to the town and buy a basket. It’s best to also order two carts of baked mud bricks. When the goods arrive tomorrow, we can start building your house.”

Li Jin knew nothing about construction, so he just went along with the villagers’ plan and went up the mountain to fetch soil.

Even though he’d been exercising recently, carrying two baskets of soil still wore him out, making his eyes widen and veins pop out on his forehead.

Li Erniu and Li Dazhuang quickly told him not to pack each basket so full and shared some with him. Their own baskets were already full of soil, and now after sharing with Li Jin, the soil piled up into small mounds. Li Jin knew this was not the time to show off, and hurriedly thanked the two of them.

“Li Jin, this is already enough. When we were your age, we couldn’t manage to carry two full baskets of soil either.”

Li Jin picked up the carrying pole again, so tired he could hardly speak.

He was completely focused on moving forward, and naturally didn’t notice the shock and admiration in Li Erniu and Li Dazhuang’s eyes.

“Although we were picky about people like Li Jin when we were eighteen, we’re not like Li Jin; we’ve been doing farm work since we were kids.

Li Jin really was spoiled by Aunt Li, and now that Aunt Li is gone, Li Jin has suddenly grown up overnight.”

Li Dazhuang not only agreed with what Li Erniu said but also added, “Li Jin is still studying, and if he passes the imperial exams in the future, our whole village will benefit. He’s a guy who has to handle studying, farming, and supporting his family, all three at once. Honestly, I, Li Dazhuang, really admire him!”

Li Jin had been carrying so much soil that at first his legs kept wobbling, but after walking for a while he got used to it.

He really didn’t have the energy to listen to the other two’s conversation.

He wore just a rough linen outfit when he went out to carry soil, but he didn’t expect the soil to be so dense and heavy; he really felt like his shoulders were about to get raw again.

By the time the three of them entered Li Jin’s house and placed the bamboo baskets against the wall, Li Jin finally straightened up and let out a breath.

The young man packed the freshly baked hot buns and set up a wooden board in the yard, placing the buns on it.

He also poured warm water for the three people and set out some stools: “Everyone, take a rest.”

Li Dazhuang and the other guy, because of their admiration for Li Jin, also treated the young man much more kindly.

“Sister-in-law… sister-in-law, you are really virtuous.”

“Yes, yes.”

The two of them spoke in a dry tone. After all, although their village was not wealthy, the village chief had planned well, so every household had land to cultivate and a house to live in, and most of the men were very family-oriented.

People from neighboring villages were also willing to marry their daughters into this village, which resulted in there being few unmarried young men in the village.

After all, in this era, the food chain was arranged with men, women, and ger in that order.

In the village, apart from Li Jin, no one would marry a ger as the main husband.

They weren’t actually looking down on Qin Muwen, it’s just that they had never praised a young master like this before, so it felt a bit unfamiliar. These two originally thought this matter would end here, but unexpectedly, Li Jin, who hadn’t even rested himself, walked over to Qin Muwen’s side.

“You didn’t go rest again during the day?”

Li Erniu and Li Dazhuang: “???”

Wake up, brother, which husband could be this precious?

Li Jin sent the young man back and then apologized to the two of them: “My husband is really kind and considerate, so I pay extra attention to his health. Sorry for making you laugh.”

The two of them: “…”

It’s not that we’re laughing, we’re stunned!

After the three ate and rested, Li Dazhuang went to mix straw, soil, and water together with a shovel.

The soil in the mountains was naturally sticky, and adding straw made it even stronger.

Taking advantage of the afternoon, they patched up the small leaks on Li Jin’s roof. By tomorrow, when Li Jin brings back the tiles, the roof can be completely repaired.

In the end, Li Jin gave each of them ten wen as wages.

Working in town for a day, without meals included, the wages range from twenty-five to thirty wen.

Since they had only work for an afternoon and one meal was provided, Li Jin gave ten wen as wages.

Originally, the two did not want to accept it, but Li Jin said he would feel uncomfortable if they didn’t.

In the end, the two of them still accepted the copper coins.

After finishing all of this, Li Jin took a jin of ribs to Li Zhuzi’s house; he wanted to borrow Li Zhuzi’s ox cart tomorrow. Li Jin didn’t think he could carry a basket of tiles and walk back from town by himself.

Tiles are denser than soil, after all, since they are fired, and the materials inside are compacted.

When Li Daniu heard this, he said it was completely fine.

“It just so happens that I also need to deliver firewood tomorrow. I’ll wait for you on the main street, and we can go to the brick kiln together.”

Li Jin still didn’t know the way to the brick kiln. Although it was just next to the town, having Li Zhuzi with him was indeed much more convenient.

Then he went to water the vegetable field, and afterwards practiced calligraphy, took a bath, did push-ups, and by the time he went to sleep, it was very late again.

In the past, the young man would watch Li Jin practice calligraphy while gradually drifting off to sleep.

But today, he took out a needle and thread and, using the light, sewed two wide and thick strips of cloth.

By the time Li Jin finished writing, the young man had already sewn it up, quietly put the items back into the basket, and pretended as if he hadn’t done anything at all.

Li Jin didn’t suspect anything either, and after taking a bath, he went back to sleep.

The next day, when he slung the basket on his back, he realized that the two hemp ropes that used to cut into his shoulders now had an extra layer of shoulder straps sewn onto them. With the wide and thick straps, the basket was not so painful to carry anymore.

Li Jin guessed that the young man must have added the shoulder straps while he was taking a bath.

Li Jin held the shoulder strap and saw the young man’s innocent face, pretending as if he knew nothing.

Suddenly, he took a few steps forward and placed a kiss on his forehead.

It was a goodbye kiss, like between brothers. Li Jin said —

“I’m leaving. Today I’ll go buy tiles and baked mud bricks, and I’ll be back later.”

The young man was stunned, and only regained his senses after Li Jin had walked far away. He wanted to chase after him to see Li Jin’s departing figure.

But just then, the little Baozi began crying inside the house at the right time, and Qin Muwen had no choice but to return and hold Baozi to feed him.

Finally, Baozi ate his fill and fell asleep, while Qin Muwen stayed there dazedly in the same position.

The dimples at the corners of his lips were still sweet.

Mm, just like yesterday when he sneaked and ate the ugliest-looking pumpkin bun first while Li Jin and the others were out picking soil—it was just as sweet.​