Ch 9: Reborn to Raise My Husband

Xiao Hu cooked some porridge, then carried a bundle of firewood in from under the eaves. When he heard crying coming from inside the room, he immediately dropped the wood and rushed over to check.

Pushing the door open, he saw Xiao Yuanbao sitting in Qi Beinan’s lap, sniffling and hiccupping as he obediently held out his arms to put on his clothes.

“You’ve got chilblains on your feet too? Before bed, you have to soak your feet in hot water—especially during the twelfth month.”

Qi Beinan had already warmed the socks several times over the brazier. He picked them up and gently put them on Xiao Yuanbao’s little feet.

While doing so, he lightly pinched the swollen, rounded toes. “Does it hurt?”

“Mm.”

Xiao Yuanbao lowered his head to look at his toes. He counted them. There had only been three toes with chilblains before, but now two more had appeared.

“It itches and it hurts.”

“No big deal. Bro… I’ll take you to town to buy chilblain balm. Rub it on for three to five days and you’ll be all better.”

Seeing this, Xiao Hu quietly stepped out again.

“I can go to town?!”

Xiao Yuanbao’s eyes lit up as he raised his head to look at Qi Beinan. “I really get to go to town too?”

“Of course. It’s almost New Year—town is lively this time of year, and you can even buy firecrackers.”

Now that he had confirmation, Xiao Yuanbao looked at Qi Beinan with bright, joyful eyes.

Qi Beinan smiled. “The pastries I bought you yesterday—were they tasty? Should I buy more?”

But Xiao Yuanbao shook his head.

“Qin Niazi said not to eat them after the spicy pickled rabbit, said to save them for later. So I don’t know if they’re tasty.”

Then, in a quieter voice, he added, “But Chao Ge’er said they were.”

Qi Beinan’s gaze darkened slightly—what a woman.

He didn’t speak badly of adults in front of children. He simply said, “Alright, when we go to town, I’ll buy you more. I’ll buy lots.”

Xiao Yuanbao shyly nodded.

Just the idea of going to town had him bouncing around all morning, unable to hide his happiness.

Every time Qin Niazi went to town, she used the excuse that he was too young and could get lost, leaving him at home to watch the house while taking only Chao Ge’er to play. Every time they came back, Chao Ge’er would boast about how fun and lively the town was, how good the food smelled. As a child who naturally loved excitement, hearing these stories only made him yearn more.

But Qin Niazi wouldn’t take him, and Xiao Hu was always too busy to spare the time. Xiao Yuanbao didn’t dare throw tantrums like other kids. He could only bury that hope deep in his heart.

Now that Qi Beinan said he’d take him, the seed had finally sprouted—and he became even more attached to him.

That morning, he followed Qi Beinan around from a short distance, watching him wash his face and hands, then pull out a small brush with stiff bristles.

Xiao Yuanbao crouched at the doorway, eyes wide with curiosity.

He saw Qi Beinan dip the brush in water, then into a long, rectangular wooden box, and it came out dusted with fine powder.

But instead of brushing his hands or feet, Qi Beinan put the brush into his mouth and started brushing side to side.

The light-yellow powder coated his teeth, and after gargling a couple of times without swallowing, he spat it into a clay jar.

“Come over here.”

Qi Beinan wiped his mouth with a cloth and beckoned to Xiao Yuanbao.

The little one slowly walked over, eyes still glued to the dental tools.

“This is a toothbrush, and this is tooth powder.”

Qi Beinan pulled out the brush and opened the container to show Xiao Yuanbao up close.

“It smells nice.”

Xiao Yuanbao leaned in and sniffed. It smelled like a mix of herbs and fragrance.

Even when Qi Beinan spoke, his breath carried that clean, fresh scent.

Xiao Yuanbao’s eyes lit up. These were all things he had never seen at home.

Qi Beinan nodded and explained patiently, “This tooth powder is made of fine salt and herbs. There are many kinds, with all different flavors.”

“If you brush your teeth and rinse your mouth, it’ll get rid of bad smells and protect your white teeth.”

“Open your mouth. Let me see if all your teeth have come in.”

Xiao Yuanbao obediently opened his mouth wide.

At five years old, his baby teeth had all come in—about twenty in total. They were small but neat and white.

“Mm, no cavities.”

Qi Beinan gave an approving nod, but added, “You have to take care of them. If your teeth go bad, you won’t be able to eat properly. I once knew someone who didn’t take care of their teeth, and when they got older, they were in pain all the time and couldn’t even sleep.”

Xiao Yuanbao clamped his mouth shut in fear. “Then what happened to them?”

“They had to see a doctor and take lots of bitter medicine.”

Qi Beinan thought back to how, in his past life, Xiao Yuanbao had toothaches so bad he couldn’t eat. Once his whole face had swollen up.

“When we go to town, I’ll buy you some tooth powder too. Let’s learn to brush morning and night, alright?”

Xiao Yuanbao nodded quickly. “Okay! I don’t want toothaches!”

His new teeth had been sore once, and even that had scared him.

Qi Beinan felt that this child was truly obedient. He closed the tooth powder box, wrung out a cloth, and gently wiped Xiao Yuanbao’s wind-chapped cheeks and frostbitten hands.

For breakfast, they had porridge made by Xiao Hu. He had originally planned to make noodles and mix them with last night’s leftover spicy pickled rabbit meat.

There wasn’t much rabbit meat left, but there was still some broth and meat bits. In farming households, it’s common to use leftover stewed or braised dishes from the previous meal to make noodles—oily, savory, and flavorful.

Unfortunately, Xiao Hu didn’t know how to knead dough, so he just made a simple pot of porridge.

After the three of them finished breakfast, Xiao Hu had to go process the game he brought back from the mountains and couldn’t spare time to take the two children to town.

The manor steward had given word before Xiao Hu went up the mountain, asking that if he had any good catches, he should send them over.

It was the end of the year, and the manor needed to offer good items to the master household. Caged chickens and sheep didn’t please the lords as much as wild game did.

Since the manor workers couldn’t hunt, they relied on village hunters to help send some in.

Xiao Hu didn’t mind—this way, he could save himself a trip to town.

“Take Xiao Bao into town for a proper outing. It’s the New Year—if you see something he likes, buy it for him.”

Xiao Hu handed over a piece of silver to Qi Beinan—nearly two taels.

He was at ease letting Qi Beinan take Xiao Bao into town. Though Qi Beinan was only ten years old, he looked tall, knew how to conduct himself, and carried himself with the steadiness of a thirteen- or fourteen-year-old.

Moreover, he’d lived in Qiu County for five years and was probably more familiar with town life than many villagers.

Qi Beinan immediately tried to return the silver.

With no one else around, he said frankly, “Uncle Xiao, before coming here I already sold off the family property in Qiu County and have some silver on hand. You don’t need to trouble yourself.”

The Qi family wasn’t wealthy, but his father had been a licentiate and earned a government stipend of 280 copper coins per month, plus ten catties of polished rice and ten catties of pork. He also taught at a private school, bringing in another two strings of coins monthly.

Students would occasionally bring gifts of rice, flour, oil, or cloth. Their days weren’t bad.

Over the years, they’d saved up more than ten taels. On top of that, Qi Beinan had sold off their small courtyard in Qiu County, earning fifty taels of silver.

Had he not sold it in a rush and lowered the price, he could have gotten four or five taels more.

He already felt awkward about coming to rely on the Xiao family, and he certainly didn’t want to take Xiao Hu’s money.

That was exactly what Qin Niazi resented most.

But Xiao Hu said, “Even if you have some silver, that’s yours. It doesn’t stop me from giving you some.”

“Take it—going forward, we’re one household. Don’t stand on ceremony.”

Qi Beinan tried twice to refuse but couldn’t. Thinking it would be better for the money to go to Xiao Yuanbao than to end up in Qin Niazi’s hands, he finally accepted it.

After the meal, Xiao Yuanbao put on a small deerskin cap and the rough cotton winter coat from the day before. Qi Beinan took his hand and led him out the door.

That fine little hat had been made by Yuan Shi herself while she was still alive, using fur and hide Xiao Hu had stored. The outside was deerskin, and the lining was soft rabbit fur—cozy and warm.

Xiao Yuanbao treasured it, rarely wearing it even when cold.

Luckily, the hat was small. Wang Chao’s head was too big to fit, or it would’ve long since ended up locked away in his chest.

“Can you walk? I’ll carry you if you get tired. Once we reach the village entrance, we can take the ox cart.”

Qi Beinan held Xiao Yuanbao’s soft little hand. Although it hadn’t rained, morning frost had melted into the mud, making the road slippery.

“I can walk!”

Xiao Yuanbao let go of his hand and took big strides to prove he wasn’t afraid of walking.

Unfortunately, his thick cotton pants sagged and weren’t as agile as his summer ones. He took a big step, but the drag of the pants made him stumble.

Qi Beinan caught him quickly. Seeing him waddle like a chubby little short-legged duck that had eaten too much, he couldn’t help but laugh, then simply carried him on his back.

Xiao Yuanbao’s face turned slightly red on Qi Beinan’s back. He said nothing more.

But deep down, he thought this Brother Qi was even nicer than Chao Ge’er had been when he first arrived.

“Why are there so many people up ahead?”

Hearing Qi Beinan’s question, Xiao Yuanbao raised his head.

“That’s Grandpa Fang and Grandma Sun’s house.”

The Xiao family home was near the foot of the mountain, a standalone house without nearby neighbors.

Walking down a narrow path, then around a patch of bamboo, they would reach another home.

Just as Qi Beinan entered the bamboo grove, he saw three or four people gathered near its end, talking with worried expressions.

As they approached, he heard an old woman crying.

“Thank heavens your father’s lucky. The wall came down but didn’t crush him. He’s already not well—if it hit him, how would I go on living~”

“It’s okay, mother. Father has good fortune. What matters now is getting the wall fixed. It’s freezing—how can we live in a house that lets in the wind?”

“Right! We need to find someone to help patch it.”

“But even if the neighbors help and don’t take our money, we still have to offer them a good meal. We’ve got some leftover rice from autumn harvest, but there’s no meat or oil. How can we host anyone without a proper dish?”

The old woman wiped her tears and looked at her twenty-something son. Two ten-year-old children stood beside her, both with drooping faces.

The young man said, “Mother, I think I saw Brother Xiao come down from the mountain. Maybe we could borrow…”

“No, no!”

The old woman cut him off immediately. “Son, don’t. Everyone’s having a hard time. He’s out there risking his life in the mountains—how could we burden them?”

“Then… then let’s go ask Hunter Xiao to lend a hand.”

“We’re not troubling the Xiao family. We’re not troubling anyone.”

The old woman repeated herself twice, tugging at the young man’s arm. “Better… better to go find the village head instead.”

The young man sighed heavily with his hands on his hips, then turned and went back into the house.

Qi Beinan’s brows furrowed slightly. Though no one had gossiped outright, something in the words didn’t sit right.

It seemed there was some estrangement between the Xiao and Fang families.

He asked Xiao Yuanbao, who was on his back, “Do Grandpa Fang and Grandma Sun still come to your house often?”

Xiao Yuanbao replied, “Grandpa Fang is sick and can’t get out of bed. But Grandma Sun used to come a lot. She even brought roasted taro for me to eat!”

“Used to? She doesn’t come anymore?”

“Mm… It’s been a long time since she came.”

Xiao Yuanbao looked a little sad as he said, “Qin Niazi said Grandma Sun’s roasted taro wasn’t tasty, and that I didn’t like it. So Grandma Sun stopped coming. But I actually liked it.”

“Before Qin Niazi and Chao Ge’er came to live with us, when father went up the mountain, I used to stay at Grandma Sun’s place.”

“Grandma Sun would sew clothes for me. Big Brother Fang used to catch little crabs for me. Second Sister Fang and Third Fang Ge’er would always play with me.”

Qi Beinan asked, “Then now Second Sister Fang and Third Fang Ge’er don’t come to play with you anymore?”

Xiao Yuanbao nodded. “Qin Niazi doesn’t let me go find them. She said Second Sister Fang and Third Fang Ge’er stole her copper coins and even ate Chao Ge’er’s pastries. She says they’re sneaky little kids, and if I play with them, I’ll learn bad things.”

Qi Beinan was silent for a moment, beginning to understand why the Qin family had so few connections with the neighbors.

Back when he and Xiao Yuanbao got married, they’d hosted a banquet in the village. Normally, villagers would attend any wedding or funeral. But that time, barely anyone came.

Later, it was the village head who discreetly urged folks to show up—mostly for the sake of Qi Beinan’s official title—just enough to keep up appearances.

Back then, Qi Beinan hadn’t understood. He figured maybe his father-in-law, always roaming the mountains and forests, simply didn’t have deep ties with the villagers.

Now it seemed the Xiao family lacked close neighbors and friends likely thanks in large part to Qin Niazi.

Qi Beinan thought to himself, living in a place long-term, it wasn’t wise to be too isolated. As the saying goes, “One tree doesn’t make a forest.” It’s always better to have some friendly ties with others.

If life went smoothly with never a problem, then going it alone might be fine. But once something happened—or if something needed doing—you’d need people around.

In the past, after he and Xiao Yuanbao married and moved to the provincial post, Qi Beinan hadn’t thought much about the relationships left behind.

Now that he planned to stay here long-term, he couldn’t afford to be careless about it anymore. He needed to find ways to build back ties with the villagers.

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