Ming-ge'er had told Ye Yun these things bit by bit over the past few days when he came over to do needlework with him.
After hearing it all, Ye Yun had no desire to comment. He and his younger brother now had a new home with Rong Zheng, and he only wanted to live well in the present.
Night fell. The bright moon hung high in the sky, its silver light cutting through the darkness and illuminating the courtyard.
Ye Yun sat quietly in the courtyard, bathed in moonlight. He looked up at the courtyard gate. Rong Zheng probably won't be back until tomorrow. He sighed inwardly, then lowered his head and concentrated on embroidering his handkerchief.
Suddenly, footsteps sounded outside, quickly followed by a knock at the gate and a call.
Rong Zheng was back. Delight lit Ye Yun's face, and he quickly put down his needlework to open the gate for him.
At the sight of his eager little husband, Rong Zheng's heart felt full. The past few days of eating and sleeping in the open had been worth it.
"I'll make you dinner."
"Just something simple will do. Is Xiao Chen asleep?"
"He started practicing the basics you taught him these past few days. He gets tired from practicing during the day, so he goes to sleep early."
As Ye Yun spoke, he reached for the hunting equipment in Rong Zheng's hands to put it on the ground. Some of the equipment was stained with blood from his prey and was too dirty, so Rong Zheng did not let him take it. Instead, he asked him to fetch a basin of water so he could wash his face. After traveling over mountains and ridges, he was covered in dust and felt thoroughly grubby. Will my husband find me filthy...?
With his previous experience to draw on, Rong Zheng had done very well this time, catching two red foxes, a young deer, and a wild rabbit.
Rong Zheng planned to keep the wild rabbit and catch another one next time to breed them. Rabbit meat was delicious too, especially rabbit heads. Just thinking about spicy, numbing rabbit heads made his mouth water.
He hastily washed his face, put away his prey, and scrubbed his equipment. Once Ye Yun had heated the water, he took a quick bath in the courtyard. As he entered the house, drying his hair, he saw Ye Yun coming out with a steaming bowl of noodles.
"The noodles are ready. Come and eat."
Life really was different after marrying a husband. Coming home after a busy day to have his caring husband bring him steaming noodles-at such a warm moment, all his physical exhaustion vanished in an instant, replaced by a brimming sense of happiness.
After he finished eating, Ye Yun shooed Rong Zheng into the bedroom to rest. He tidied up briefly and prepared for bed himself. When he reached the bedside, he found Rong Zheng's eyes already closed in deep sleep.
Gazing at his tired face, Ye Yun quietly lay down on the other side of the bed and went to sleep too.
Beneath the quiet night sky, moonlight flowed like water. The air was filled with the peace of night, leaving the heart at ease.
Early the next morning, Rong Zheng got up and saw Ye Chen already holding a horse stance in the courtyard. He offered him a few words of praise.
Drenched in sweat, Ye Chen happily called out, "Brother Rong."
"Good. Keep practicing."
With that, he shouldered the large basket full of game and hurried off to town. After several days of walking mountain paths, he was still very tired today, so he chose to take an ox cart.
He went straight to the Delighted Phoenix Pavilion to sell the young deer, for which Shopkeeper Li gave him fifteen taels. Then he went to the Autumn Charm Pavilion clothing shop to sell the two red foxes. Shopkeeper Zhou praised him repeatedly. "Brother Rong, your hunting skills are remarkable! You've caught another two red foxes in such a short time. Fifty taels altogether. Keep it safe."
Seeing that this haul had earned him seventy taels, Rong Zheng was thoroughly satisfied. Those nights spent lying in the grass, painstakingly hunting, had not been wasted.
Passing an accessories shop, he spotted a delicate, flowing aqua-blue hair ribbon hanging by the entrance. He imagined how lovely it would look tied around Ye Yun's waterfall of black hair. Ye Yun had clear, refined features that suited pale-colored ribbons like this; it would complement him perfectly. Without hesitation, he bought it as a gift for Ye Yun.
As he browsed along the street, the food at the little stalls smelled delicious. He bought a pile of pastries and cakes, along with some sweets, all for his husband and Xiao Chen.
Once he had finished shopping, Rong Zheng left the main street and turned left into an alley. He followed it until he found Master Zheng, the house builder in town whom the village chief had recommended.
Master Zheng was very tall and had a hearty disposition. He took the plans Rong Zheng had drawn, his eyes brightening the longer he looked.
"Wonderful! These fireplace and heated kang designs are marvelous. Look, this fireplace is both attractive and practical. Sitting in the main room to eat or rest in winter would be so comfortable. And this heated kang-lying on it to sleep when it's snowing would be wonderfully warm. Winter would be much easier in a house like this."
Unable to put the plans down, he asked, "Brother Rong, would you sell me this design? I'd like to use it when building houses for others in the future. The owners are sure to like it."
"How much are you offering?" Naturally, he could sell it if the price was reasonable. Why turn down another source of income? He also hoped people here could make use of it. There was no heating in this era; getting through the winter cold really did depend entirely on shivering.
"How about twenty taels?"
"That's fine, but I've already mentioned the design to the village chief. He'll probably spread the word in the village."
"That's all right. Your village isn't the only place I do business." There would be plenty of profit in using these plans to build houses for wealthy families.
"All right, then. The plans are yours."
"Brother, you're refreshingly straightforward! I'll build your house according to these plans first. By the way, would you like us to handle everything, including materials and labor? Materials mean bricks, tiles, timber, and so on. As for labor, there are the main builders and the general laborers. The main builders, of course, lay the walls and roof tiles, while the general laborers carry bricks, clear rubbish, and the like."
"Handle everything." Rong Zheng felt it was best to leave professional work entirely in their hands. Most importantly, it would spare him the worry. He had no time to spend on it; he wanted to make a few more hunting trips into the mountains and save money. Besides, he could not bear to have Ye Yun wear himself out over the miscellaneous tasks of building a house. Having only to check on the progress occasionally would be worth it, even if it cost more.
"If we handle everything, we'll give you a detailed list of all the material costs to look over, and we'll agree on the labor costs beforehand too. Rest assured, our building crew has worked in town for over ten years. Our reputation is beyond reproach, and all our customers come through word-of-mouth referrals. We absolutely honor our word."
Rong Zheng smiled. "Of course I came to you because I trust you. Then, Master Zheng, based on your experience, roughly how much would this house cost in total?"
"Around forty taels for materials and sixty for labor. No more than a hundred taels."
He had enough money on hand. Rong Zheng continued, "How long would it take to finish?"
Master Zheng thought for a moment. "A little over a month. Do you want to start now? We happen to have time and can begin right away. The owner postponed a project we'd previously agreed on because something came up, so we have an opening."
Rong Zheng could not have asked for better. "Then come and start the day after tomorrow, Master Zheng." Recalling that building a house seemed to require providing meals, he asked, "Do I need to provide meals for your crew?"
"No, no. We'll bring our own food. You only need to take the trouble to provide us with drinking water."
After discussing the details, the two signed a contract. Rong Zheng paid thirty taels as a deposit, then took his leave.