Song Xian tore off the best roasted chicken leg and handed it to Song Luyuan.
By the firelight, the chicken leg’s surface gleamed with a dazzling golden hue; the skin was firm and glossy, exuding a rich aroma blending the freshness of chicken meat, the savoriness of fat, and the distinctive, intense scent of cumin-grilled meat.
The fragrance surged wildly, assaulting everyone’s taste buds, making their mouths water and impossible to resist.
Song Luyuan took the cumin-roasted chicken leg and immediately bit into a large piece.
“Mm.”
The skin was crispy and charred, the meat tender and juicy, and the unique cumin fragrance lingered between his teeth—there wasn’t even a hint of gamey smell.
The flavor was intoxicating!
Song Luyuan had originally wanted to praise the food as he ate, but once the chicken leg touched his mouth, he couldn’t bother to speak, only wanting to eat bite after bite without pause.
Song Xian tore off two chicken wings and gave them to his youngest son, Song Jimin, and handed the other chicken leg to Song Hancheng.
“The eldest and the third have worked hard today too. Procuring supplies isn’t easy; you have to be careful, know how to pick things, keep accounts, and still carry everything back with all your strength. It’s not easy for such young kids to worry about the family like this!”
The enticing aroma of the chicken in the bowls blended with Song Xian’s pleasant praise, intertwining like a soft beam of light that penetrated the high walls built within the hearts of the two brave young boys.
“Thank you, Father.”
“Dad, you worked hard too.”
Song Hancheng and Song Jimin each looked at the meat in their bowls and tasted different emotions in their hearts.
Bai Girl looked at Song Xian eagerly, full of expectation, as if silently saying,
“What about me? What about me?”
Remembering Bai Girl liked chicken heads and necks, Song Xian smiled and tore some off for her, then added a rabbit leg as well.
“Our beautiful Bai Girl too; these days, she’s been doing a lot of sewing to prepare bedding and clothes for the family. Her hands have been pricked with several bleeding holes—eat more meat to replenish your blood and strength.”
“Thank you, Song Uncle!”
Bai Girl smiled so brightly her face could hardly contain her happiness, filled with the satisfaction of being recognized.
Among the five of them, only the bowl in front of Song Xian was empty.
At that moment, a chicken leg was placed in his bowl, followed by a chicken wing.
Song Xian was momentarily stunned, looking toward Song Hancheng and Song Jimin sitting on either side of him, his face breaking into a tender smile.
Smart kids are the most perceptive and sensitive; even at such a young age, they already know how to care for their old father’s feelings.
How thoughtful.
Song Xian smiled and returned the meat to them, thanking them,
“You two eat first. There’s still more; eat your fill.”
Song Xian went to retrieve the steamed eggs from the pot.
These eggs were steamed with the yolks and whites mixed together inside the shell.
After peeling the shells off, the eggs were skewered on bamboo sticks, brushed with oil, roasted until golden brown, and sprinkled with salt, garlic paste, chive flowers, and cumin for a uniquely flavored roasted egg.
Next, there were roasted wild chives—a perfect complement to the grilled dishes.
Wild chives are especially pungent when eaten raw, so spicy they can bring tears to the eyes.
But brushed with oil and cumin then roasted, they taste sweet with a unique fresh aroma that’s utterly addictive.
When thirsty, they drank cold mountain spring water with soaked dried berries—sweet, tart, refreshing, and perfect for cooling off.
“Delicious, delicious, absolutely delicious!”
Song Luyuan ate the most at this meal, happy and dancing with his hands and feet.
If Song Hancheng and Song Jimin envied any trait of Song Luyuan’s, it was his carefree nature—he was more easily pleased than most.
After the meal, everyone sat side by side on bamboo chairs, enjoying the evening breeze and gazing at the clear starry sky.
Song Luyuan rubbed his full belly, hiccupping nonstop.
“Why do I feel so happy after eating now? I’ve never felt like this before.”
“You used to just eat to fill your stomach when you were hungry, not to happily fill it. Silly boy.”
After explaining, Song Jimin sighed,
“Second brother’s really a… brat!”
The two brothers immediately started wrestling and laughing, chasing each other around.
Full and content, Song Xian grew drowsy and leaned back on the bamboo chair, yawning with ease.
Song Hancheng quietly stared at the Milky Way stretching across the night sky.
His gaze slowly lowered to rest on the back of Song Xian’s head.
“All phenomena are like a dream, an illusion, a bubble, a shadow. Like dew or lightning, so should they be regarded.”
Song Xian sensed something and turned to look.
He found his eldest son’s eyes closed, seemingly asleep.
Though it was summer, the mountain evening breeze was still cool.
Worried, Song Xian quickly fetched a thin blanket and draped it over Song Hancheng.
In the cover of night, Song Xian did not notice Song Hancheng’s long eyelashes flutter at that very moment.
The wooden house had four rooms: two on the east side—one temporarily for Bai Girl to live in, and next to it was the storeroom for rice and other supplies.
On the west side, Song Xian and Song Jimin shared a room, and Song Hancheng and Song Luyuan shared the other.
Before going to bed, Song Luyuan washed everyone with hot spring water.
The Donggou Hot Springs were surrounded by dense trees, making the night very dark and full of snakes, insects, mice, and ants, so it was not safe to bathe alone.
Song Xian had been busy all day and was very tired.
As he lay on his bed, he still pondered how to renovate Donggou Hot Springs.
The next morning, Song Hancheng got up and saw Song Xian sitting on a nearby hillside, peeling bamboo shoots and joking with Song Jimin.
“How much does a donkey cost?”
“Around five thousand wen.”
“And a horse?”
“About a hundred thousand.”
“That expensive!”
“If you have money, you still can’t buy one. The court forbids civilians from buying horses.”
Song Jimin thought of his own Song Family Sawmill and tentatively asked Song Xian,
“Dad, do you want a horse?”
Song Xian quickly shook his head.
Too expensive—he wouldn’t dare to even think about it.
Buying a donkey was barely within reach.
A basket of mushrooms he gathered could sell for ten wen.
A dan of millet, about 120 jin, cost thirty wen, so selling one basket of mushrooms could buy about forty jin of millet.
The purchasing power seemed decent but was insufficient for buying cloth and other goods.
One bolt of cloth, even the most ordinary hemp cloth about nine and a half meters long, cost around six hundred wen.
The same went for farming tools like axes and hoes; they cost several hundred wen because iron was scarce and also considered a military commodity, making it especially expensive.
Silk and other fine fabrics were out of the question—costing tens of thousands of wen, only wealthy people could afford such luxuries.
Song Xian glanced awkwardly at the silk clothing he was wearing.
The previous owner had been too extravagant with money; he was going to take it off and sell it now!
Song Hancheng held his hand,
“What are you doing?”
“This clothing is too expensive. It’s made with money you all worked hard to save. I—”
“You wore it when you came in,”
Song Hancheng explained as Song Xian still seemed intent on removing it.
“Old clothes aren’t worth much. It’s already got several runs in it; it might sell for a few dozen wen at most.”
“All right, then I won’t sell it.”
Song Xian scratched his head and followed Song Hancheng a few steps, hesitantly asking,
“By the way, you know I hit my head and lost some memories, right? Where is my mother’s family—or rather, my parents’ home?”
Song Hancheng was silent for a moment, then turned around.
His calm and placid eyes met Song Xian’s clear, pure deer-like gaze.
“You have no father or mother. You once had some property but lost it all in gambling. Because you wanted the bride price, you came to our Song family and became our stepfather. Mother treated us very well. The Taoist said if we found someone with a matching Eight Characters (Ba Zi) to chase away the bad luck, she might live. That’s why we spent everything to find you. But then…”
“Sorry!”
Song Xian bowed deeply in apology.
His eldest son kept things to himself, was responsible and dependable, never prone to complaints.
Song Xian could feel that although his eldest son now spoke calmly and quietly, his past actions must have deeply hurt and disappointed him.
“It’s okay. Life must move forward.”
Song Hancheng’s tone was gentle and forgiving, but his gaze was indifferent.
“It’s enough if Father lives well with us.”
“Of course! I sincerely want to live well and will definitely take good care of you all.”
In the end, Song Xian changed into a set of hemp cloth clothes, as he was about to go to the market and didn’t want to stand out too much.
He brought over the ten baskets of mushrooms he had picked early that morning and gave them a quick sort.
Song Hancheng raised an eyebrow,
“So many? You went up the mountain before dawn?”
“Yes. I want to earn money to buy a donkey, and also want to customize a big saw to make cutting trees easier.”
“That’s ambitious. These mushrooms won’t bring in that much money.”
“I know. I’m just saving bit by bit. By the way, do you think we can make some quick cash selling white bark tree pollen? We can say it’s a medicinal powder we made ourselves. It looks similar, and no one will notice.”
Song Xian had collected pollen from two white bark trees in the ancient forest, wrapped it in leaves into many small packages, and filled one basket.
“Better than Monghan Powder. Just sprinkle it and it works. It’s a great self-defense item when traveling or roaming the jianghu, but we worry bad people might buy it to do harm.”
Song Hancheng took the basket, putting it into a cloth bag instead.
“I’ll handle that and make sure no one who buys it does anything bad.”
For breakfast, Song Xian made bamboo shoot and chicken meat dumpling soup.
Everyone ate to their satisfaction.
Bai Girl took the initiative to clean up the dishes.
Due to her special status, she couldn’t go out and stayed home to do sewing work.
Song Xian originally planned to take his third son to the market, but Song Luyuan suddenly raised his hand to say he couldn’t go.
“I heard the Hiring Porters at the docks are recruiting. I want to go see. I want to earn more money to help support the family, and maybe Dad can buy a little donkey sooner!”
“Second son, you’re so sensible, truly Dad’s dear little cotton-padded jacket!”
Song Xian was deeply moved.
“But you’re still young; Dad doesn’t want you to do such heavy work.”
“I want to do it. Poor kids have to grow up early. Besides, I’m strong. Carrying that little load is like scratching an itch for me.”
Song Luyuan said firmly and ran off before Song Xian could refuse.
During non-farming seasons, Chen Changgui drove his ox cart to the market every day to earn cart fare.
It cost one wen per person to ride, and goods were charged based on size.
Song Xian’s party of three plus their goods paid five wen in total.
The ox cart jolted along for over half an hour before arriving at the Eight-Village Junction, where the daily market was held.
This place was a transportation hub connecting eight villages, the only route leading to three county towns and one prefecture city.
Many travelers passed through daily, especially in the mornings when officials and nobles on horse or carriage often went by.
The market was bustling and sold everything imaginable.
There were even roadside shops—blacksmiths, cloth shops, rice stores—fully stocked with all kinds of goods.
Song Xian found a spot at the very end of the market and displayed his ten baskets of mushrooms, instantly attracting a crowd.
“Oh, aren’t these Yueluo Mushrooms? You can only gather so many in the ancient forest, right? How much per jin?”
Song Xian:
“Sold by the basket, ten wen each basket, about three jin.”
“A bit expensive, but really rare stuff. Good for gifts. I’ll take one basket.”
“I want one too.”
“Me as well!”
As everyone scrambled to buy, suddenly a harsh voice rang out from the center of the street.
“Clear the way!”
The noisy market immediately quieted.
Everyone saw a group of uniformed Constables and fell silent.
The leader was tall, with a massive large sword twice the size of others hanging at his waist.
He signaled his subordinates, and three showed the crowd wanted posters.
“Have any of you seen these three people?”
Song Xian was unfortunately closest to the posters.
He recognized all three: Bai Girl, Liu Da, and Li Xin.
Song Xian avoided the Constables’ eyes and lowered his head to pretend to look at the mushrooms.
The townsfolk all shook their heads, indicating they hadn’t seen them.
The leader looked dissatisfied, his gaze fixed on Song Xian, who was feigning ignorance.
“Hey, have you seen them?”
“Hey, I’m talking to you!”
The leader Constable kicked over one of Song Xian’s mushroom baskets.
Song Xian finally realized they were talking to him and shook his head.
The Constable scrutinized Song Xian’s face, then his clothes, before fixing his gaze on the thin callus on the left side of Song Xian’s hand.
He immediately drew his sword and pointed it at Song Xian.
“Who are you?”
Song Xian looked innocent.
“I’m just an ordinary commoner with three sons. I usually make a living by gathering mushrooms near the ancient forest.”
“You’re lying. You’re left-handed, and that callus on your hand is clearly from using a blade all year round!”
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