Chapter 205
After buying the small house in Zhenzhu Alley, since it wasn’t a full family relocation but merely setting up a residence in Jixing Town for Lu Gu and the others to have a place to eat and stay, they didn’t neglect any of the customary rituals - selecting an auspicious date and time, making offerings to the gods, and observing all the traditional practices.
The liveliness of the moving day went without saying. Several tables were set up in the front courtyard, with their whole family, along with Shen Shunde and Shen Shunwang’s families, several of Shen Xuanqing’s aunts and uncles, and, naturally, the Yang family all in attendance. Even a few childhood friends from the village, like Dachen, came to join the excitement and show their support. Luo Biao didn’t miss it either.
Shen Xuanqing felt uneasy about leaving Lu Gu and the child alone in the house, so he decided to bring even Guaizi along in the mule cart, having a dog at night would be safer.
When they set off from home, Guaizi wasn’t used to riding in the cart. As soon as he was lifted onto the cart, he jumped right back down. So they let him run alongside instead—after all, he was accustomed to running in the mountains, and the flat official road was even easier for him.
Jixing Town was quite far, and Lu Gu felt sorry for Guaizi. Before they were halfway there, he called the panting dog to climb onto the cart and poured water from a bamboo tube into his palm for Guaizi to drink.
Initially resistant to the cart, Guaizi seemed to find it comfortable after lying down and stopped jumping off, his long tongue lolling to the side.
After everyone else returned, only the three of them remained in town. Being new here, Lu Gu slowly began acquainting himself with the people and happenings nearby.
On the fifth day after moving in, early in the morning when the sky was still dim, Shen Xuanqing got up to open the shop for the morning market, needing to slaughter a few rabbits in advance.
He washed up in the front courtyard while Lu Gu, already dressed, came out as well. The child was still asleep.
"We’re out of bamboo shoots. If I come across any vegetable sellers on the way, I’ll buy some. You can come fetch them later, no need to go to the morning market," Shen Xuanqing said before splashing another handful of water on his face.
"Mm, got it," Lu Gu replied, heading toward the kitchen where the water vat was kept.
The backyard had a well, making it even more convenient than back home, no long trips to fetch water. When Shen Xuanqing wasn’t around and Lingjun was asleep, Lu Gu could manage to fill the vat himself with a few extra trips.
The clay stove in front of the kitchen was already lit, with a pottery jar heating water. Peering inside, Lu Gu saw two clean white eggs boiling. With the weather warming up, steamed buns could be eaten cold, so there was no need to fire up the big pot in the morning.
The kitchen was fully stocked with pots, bowls, and basins. The rice and flour jars had red paper pressed inside - a custom Wei Lanxiang had insisted on when they moved in, saying they shouldn’t remove it until the contents were finished. The jars of oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar were neatly arranged. The firewood, hauled from the village in two full cartloads, would last them a good while without needing to buy more.
After washing up, Lu Gu peeked into the room. Lingjun was still asleep with no signs of waking up, so he quietly closed the door and left, joining Shen Xuanqing at the stone table in the courtyard to peel eggs and eat steamed buns.
"We’ve got about a dozen rabbits left. Once they’re sold, I’ll head home and bring back two baskets of eggs, some for us to eat, the rest to sell at the shop."
Just as Shen Xuanqing was speaking, Guaizi, freshly awake, came out of the main hall and shook his fur vigorously in the courtyard, as if finally waking up properly. Seeing them eating, he whined and trotted over.
Their dogs no longer slept in kennels but stayed under the eaves like people. The burlap sacks used for bedding were periodically freshened up by Lu Gu, he washed the sacks and stuffed them with new straw or wheat stalks. Every so often, he even washed the burlap by the river and dried it before reuse—after all, the sacks sometimes stayed in the main hall during the day and couldn’t smell too bad.
Lu Gu had just broken off half a bun for Guaizi when he heard Lingjun crying inside. He quickly set down his food.
With Lu Gu tending to the child, Shen Xuanqing didn’t have to worry. After finishing breakfast, he loaded ten rabbits and a few chickens and ducks onto a cart in the backyard and left through the rear alley.
Since they didn't stay overnight at the butcher shop, and leaving it unattended would be unsafe, they kept all their livestock at home instead. The shop was conveniently close by, so this arrangement worked well. Each morning, Shen Xuanqing would transport the animals to the shop, and at day's end, he would bring back any that hadn't sold. This way, the shop wasn't left vulnerable at night, yet they didn't have to go far to manage their stock.
They had considered leaving Guaizi at the shop, but before Lu Gu moved in, when Shen Xuanqing lived alone in town, a dog from a family in Liuzhi Alley had been stolen. The dog was never found, but later rumors circulated that it had been butchered by idle troublemakers for a dog meat stew.
In these times, thieves were everywhere. It was better to be cautious. During the day was fine, Guaizi was smart and quickly learned to stay close to Lu Gu’s legs without wandering when visiting the shop. But after dark, Shen Xuanqing didn’t let the dog out, keeping him inside to guard the house and stay alert.
"I’m off. Remember to lock up," Shen Xuanqing called from the front after securing the cart.
"Got it, go ahead," Lu Gu replied, holding Lingjun as he relieved himself in the courtyard. Afterward, he went to the backyard to bolt the rear gate shut.
Once the child was awake, many tasks became impossible. Lu Gu played with Lingjun for a while, fed him milk fruit, then remembered he hadn’t swept yet. He moved the wooden cradle to the main hall, settling the child inside with a small rattle-drum and clay figurines of a pig and dog to play with, keeping him within sight in case he tried to chew on them, so Lu Gu could fish them out.
With the door wide open, Lu Gu quickly swept the room, then moved to the main hall, taking care to keep the dust down so as not to irritate the child.
As for the front and back courtyards, before he could finish the main hall, Lingjun tossed aside his rattle-drum and reached out to be held, threatening to cry if ignored. Lu Gu had no choice but to set aside his works.
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