Book 2: Chapter 8: A Needle (1/2)

There were some things about life as a farmer that Meiling didn’t particularly enjoy. One might think, as the headsman’s daughter, she would be exempted from the difficult, or disgusting, tasks. That she merely tended to herb gardens and made medicine. But that was not how Hong Yaowu did things. Hong Xian was just as ready to lend his aid in toiling in the fields as he was in preparing medicine, or healing the sick and wounded.

It was an ancient pact. The pact of feudal lords, and her father, continued the duties of the village patriarch, unbroken for generations. To be the patriarch meant something, in Meiling’s opinion. Maybe it was her birth, but she considered few of the men with the title of “patriarch” worth the name. They might have power and wealth, but if one neglected their ancient duties, to care for and protect their charges, then they were not lords at all.

But she digressed. She had to do her share of fertilizer shoveling and cleaning up after...well, one lost fluids rapidly when affected by the flux. Normally out their ass.

And speaking of asses, she put her hand into the water and focused, heating it again to boiling. It stung a bit, but it was bearable.

“You were right, everything looks normal.” Meiling told her husband. Jin smiled sheepishly.

“Sorry for making you do that again, but I’d rather have a second opinion, and you’ve done this more than me.” Jin went to scratch the back of his head, paused, and switched to his other hand with a grimace.

She smiled. She would have preferred not to stick her hand up there, but… he trusted her. He trusted her skills, knowledge, and didn’t mind asking her questions

Indeed, examining the heavily pregnant cows was a filthy task, considering where one’s hands had to go. It was easiest to check the calf from that position. Make sure there were no complications, like a breech birth, and one might even be able to feel if the umbilical cord had wrapped around the neck.

A smirk formed on her lips, as Jin patted the mildly distressed cow, trying to calm her down from the intrusion.

“Hey, Jin. We’re hole siblings.” She said cheekily, using the crude idiom referring to men who had shared a prostitute.

Jin’s face went from incredulity, to disgust, before he burst out laughing.

He raised his hand in bewilderment when he finally regained his breath. “What the hell, Meimei? That's disgusting!” He managed to get out through wheezing laughs.

They looked at each other, and burst into laughter again.

“How soon do you think?” Jin asked her, still smirking.

“Soon. Maybe even this week.” She replied. They were extremely close now, and they would be calving soon. One of the disadvantages of a spring calving was all the work one already was doing, and the spring rains sometimes made the calves sick.

That most likely would not be an issue here, however. She looked up at the tall ceiling. Two of the walls still were not yet complete, but the barn was coming along nicely. For the fact that it had only taken Jin two days of work, interspersed with making sure the hives were ready. It was still something wondrous, to see the barn raise so swiftly and surely.

“Right, lets go take a bath.” Jin declared. He wrapped his clean arm around her shoulder and started walking. She allowed herself to be dragged along. Jin was obsessed with cleanliness. She was clean by nature and practice, but Jin demanded a bath every night. Instead of just a wipe with a wet cloth.

The heated water was extremely nice, she had to admit. And Jin didn’t care if the bath was with him, either. Xiulan was good company, if overly polite.

“Indeed. We must clean ourselves of our effluvium, after our strenuous time penetrating the fine ladies of this establishment.” Meiling japed, getting another bout of laughter from her husband.

They strolled along the property. Things were finally slowing down after the mad dash to complete the fields. Essentially, all that was left was to the rice, finish the barn, and have the calves birthed. And then, they would finally have some time to rest.

Jin had promised her, at the first available opportunity, he would take her home—to her village, to see her father and brother again.

She couldn’t wait.

She was in a great mood... until she smelled cut grass. Normally, the smell of freshly scythed grass was one she enjoyed immensely. This, however, was just on the wrong side of pleasant. She had noticed this one in the morning, and it had gotten worse throughout the day.

She looked around and found Tigu and Xiulan. Both seemed to be in a foul mood. Xiulan looked downright exhausted and was rubbing her forehead. Tigu was... sticky? Her fur was matted, and she looked just about to kill something.

Jin’s arm tightened on her shoulder. He caught her eye and nodded his head in the direction of the two irritated-looking women.

“Are you sure?” she asked. She was rather looking forward to leaning back against his chest and letting her own worries slip away into the heated water.

He nodded. “I’ll wash the clothes instead.”

Women’s work, her mind supplied. Jin didn’t seem to care.

She got up on her toes, and they shared a kiss. “Acupuncture kit, please,” she whispered. Jin nodded obligingly.

Well, time to see what the matter was.

“Xiulan, Tigu! Come join me!” Meiling called. Both of the other women looked up, a bit startled, but with a glance at each other, they nodded.

They really looked like they needed a bath.

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