Chapter 26: Grinding Wheat

The Qi Family consisted of three brothers supporting their elderly mother.

Old Mother Qi had worked tirelessly in her younger years, damaging her eyesight. Now she could only see blurry figures and rarely left the courtyard of their home.

Originally, the Qi Family had five brothers, but the second and third did not survive.

Their family owned little land, and Qi Da could manage it alone. Qi Si worked as an assistant at a coffin shop in town, and through Qi Si’s introduction, Qi Wu became an apprentice under Carpenter Liao, who specialized in making coffins.

The family was honest and quiet, known for their integrity. However, the nature of Qi Si and Qi Wu’s work made people a bit wary, and they gradually became somewhat invisible in the village.

Scholar Yan hired help for his fields every year, and Qi Da usually didn’t make the list. But this year, due to a severe drought, villagers focused on their own small plots, allowing him the opportunity.

When the Yan Family offered grain in exchange for labor, many were envious.

Village Chief Luo chose the Qi Family for a reason: they had little land, and with Qi Si and Qi Wu back home, they had extra labor.

Moreover, the Qi Brothers were strong and robust. Otherwise, the coffin shop owner wouldn’t have hired Qi Si; he was as strong as two men, making heavy lifting easy.

Qi Wu was the same. Carpenter Liao, unlike other carpenters, only made coffins, which required large, thick planks of solid wood that most people couldn’t handle.

Qi Da, honest and quiet, unloaded bundles of wheat from the cart and neatly stacked them in the courtyard without a word, except for a greeting at the gate.

Qi Si, who came along, was more sociable, having worked in town. Even though it was a coffin shop, he still knew how to make small talk.

“Brother Yan, I see your wheat is ready. When do you plan to grind it? Just let us know.”

“Actually, it’s urgent. We’re planning to go this afternoon. We just got a Ox…”

Yan Lao’er was about to suggest using the Ox to pull the mill for faster grinding, but his elder brother interrupted, “Since we have a Ox, let’s take all the wheat at once, saving multiple trips. We’ll rely on you two brothers for the grinding. No need for fine grinding, just enough to eat.”

Qi Si beamed, “Rest assured, Scholar, leave it to us.”

Qi Da grinned widely, clearly pleased.

As the two brothers left the courtyard, it seemed to make the place feel more spacious.

“Big Brother, our Ox can handle the grinding,” Yan Lao’er protested. Using Sanbao to grind flour was cost-free, but using the Qi Brothers meant giving them grain.

“If you save a bit of wheat and the Ox gets exhausted, will you carry me to Guanzhou?” Yan Huaiwen was particularly annoyed by Yan Lao’er’s stinginess.

“Sanbao is strong; it’s just grinding,” Yan Lao’er muttered in defense.

Truth be told, if Old Yan wasn’t glaring at him, he could speak more smoothly. But under that gaze, he felt inexplicably guilty.

“Everyone, tidy up. Once our wheat is ground, we’ll wait for the villagers and set off within a day or two,” Yan Huaiwen instructed before returning to his room.

Yan Xiangheng approached quietly, “Uncle, are we really leaving? Why to the north?”

“Didn’t your father tell you?” Yan Lao’er asked.

“He said we can’t survive the drought here and wants to take the villagers north to Guanzhou. But uncle, isn’t it a bit premature?”

“Go fetch water and see the old well in our village; it’s dry!” Yan Lao’er exaggerated to support Old Yan’s decision:

“You stay in the academy and don’t know the town’s situation. The wealthy families have already left. We’re the only ones still stubbornly holding on. If this continues and no rain falls, what do you think will happen?”

Following his uncle’s lead, Yan Xiangheng thought, “In a while, we’ll have to pay grain taxes. Half of our wheat will go. If it still doesn’t rain… Wait, uncle! If father takes all the wheat to grind, what will we use to pay taxes?”

Yan Lao’er glared at him, whispering, “Eldest Nephew, keep quiet! Haven’t you learned anything? Why ask such foolish questions? When did your father say we’re leaving?”

“In a day or two…”

“Then hurry and pack your things!”

“Huh? Oh… oh!”

Yan Xiangheng suddenly understood, smacking his forehead before heading off to pack.

Yan Yu, with her hands in her pockets, squatted nearby and called out, “Dad!”

Yan Lao’er turned to see his daughter with a serious expression.

“Dabao, can’t you stop squatting like that? And with your hands in your pockets? Why not learn something good from your uncle?”

She looked like a little farmer…

“It’s comfortable this way!” Yan Yu replied.

In some barbarian lands, people couldn’t even squat properly!

Hmph! She was proud of it!

“Dad, stop criticizing big brother. It’s okay to ask questions if he doesn’t understand. Both you and uncle have a problem with your attitude. Uncle doesn’t explain fully, and you tell big brother to shut up. You’re not teaching him well,” Yan Yu critiqued her father.

“He’s just a boy. He needs to face setbacks and figure things out on his own to grow,” Yan Lao’er had his own twisted logic.

He’d always treated his nephews and cousins this way. Whenever relatives criticized him for having a daughter, he just cherished her more. Daughter-loving father, so what!

“Big brother is nice to me. He just asked if you bought me any treats in town. I said no, and he gave me two copper coins to buy sweets from the peddler.”

Yan Yu showed her father the two shiny coins in her palm.

Yan Lao’er raised an eyebrow, surprised.

His nephews and cousins usually didn’t even give his daughter money.

Yan Yu continued her complaint, “I also heard Sister Daya say she wants to sew me a cloth pouch to play with. Dad, as their uncle, you should show some appreciation to big brother and Sister Daya!”

Yan Lao’er chuckled at his daughter’s words.

“Alright, I got it. Don’t worry, I won’t let you down!”

“But daughter, can you stop eavesdropping by the door? It’s not good if people see you.”

Yan Lao’er added, “You’re a child, so act like one.”

Yan Yu’s eyes sparkled, and she suddenly raised her voice, “Dad! I’m hungry! I want meat! I want meat soup! I want meat porridge!”

Yan Lao’er: …

Isn’t this little one growing up too fast!

Yan Lao’er steamed buns with the dough from last night and made egg drop soup.

Meat? What meat? What kind of family eats meat every day!

Sanbao helped with the timing again, and the freshly steamed black buns smelled delicious.

Yan Yu couldn’t wait and took a bite.

Crunch? What was this gritty texture?

She looked at her father in surprise.

Yan Lao’er sighed, “Does it scratch your throat? There’s bran in it, the outer layer of the wheat. It’s not finely ground, as your uncle said. We’ll eat this from now on, so get used to it.”

“What about our white flour?” Yan Yu asked, feeling wronged.

“I weighed it. We have ten pounds each of rice and white flour. Together, that’s twenty pounds for half a month, forty pounds a month. It’s not enough.”

Yan Lao’er gently patted his daughter’s soft hair, comforting her:

“Didn’t you say I should show appreciation? Look how generous I am. We’ll eat together, including Old Yan.

Finding sources for those foods was just to make it easier to share. Old Yan’s grain might seem plenty, but if we travel for a month or two with so many people…

When the time comes, it won’t matter whose it is. As neighbors, we can’t just watch people starve…”

Yan Yu took another big bite, chewing hard. “Dad, you’re right. We’re still struggling on the poverty line. We need to find ways to make money and buy more food!”

(End of Chapter)