Editor: Atlas Studios
Xiaoguo tied up the donkey and let Zhuang Zhuang close the door. She then returned to the house.
"Brother, how is it? Are you feeling better?"
Xiaoguo looked at Qin Anming, who was leaning against the bed. He looked better than he did in the morning.
"Yes! I feel almost better now. My body seemed to have regained its strength!"
After saying that, Qin Anming wanted to prove that he was fine. He was about to get up when he started coughing.
Feeling amused, Xiaoguo got up and walked to his side to pat his back and soothe his breathing.
"Brother, have a good rest. I just went to the county to get some medicine. I’ll brew it for you later."
Qin Anming nodded and leaned against the bed obediently.
Xiaoguo chatted with him for a while. When Zhuang Zhuang entered the house, Xiaoguo went out. She still had to tidy up the furniture in the courtyard.
When she reached the courtyard, she took the pork bones and cloth shoes, and brought them into the house.
"Brother, do you think this fabric looks good?"
Xiaoguo unfolded the fabric for Qin Anming to see.
"Nice!"
Qin Anming was full of praise for the material. Xiaoguo had really good taste.
"I bought this for you. I’ll make clothes for you when I’m free."
Qin Anming was very relieved. So his sister knew how to make clothes!
"Yes! Okay!"
Xiaoguo turned and placed the fabric in a sewing basket. She brought the pork bones to the kitchen and placed them there.
She had bought a lot of food. After setting aside a portion for dinner, she kept the rest in the other space.
Then, she came to the donkey cart and started moving the wood.
Among the items that she bought, only the bed planks were separate and had to be assembled. The rest were finished products.
Xiaoguo went into the house to see if the floor was dry. After stepping in, she saw that the floor was completely dry.
She then returned to the courtyard and moved the bed boards piece by piece into the room before assembling them.
Zhuang Zhuang heard the commotion and came to Xiaoguo’s side, wanting to help her.
"Zhuang Zhuang, you won’t be able to move it."
Xiaoguo looked at Zhuang Zhuang in amusement. He was using his skinny arms to help Xiaoguo lift the other end of the board. His face was flushed from exertion, but the board did not move an inch.
Xiaoguo laughed so hard that she almost cried.
"Zhuang Zhuang, Zhuang Zhuang, stop moving. I can move it myself. Don’t hurt your arm again!"
Xiaoguo quickly put down the board and chased Zhuang Zhuang outside. "Stop moving the boards. Go and accompany Uncle."
She was really afraid that he would hurt his arm. She knew that Zhuang Zhuang was trying to help her, but she still coaxed him to go outside.
Zhuang Zhuang pouted and reluctantly let Xiaoguo bring him out. When he passed the door frame, he grabbed it with his small hands.
"Mother... don’t hurt your hands..."
Xiaoguo’s heart warmed and she kissed his little face. "Go ahead..."
After Zhuang Zhuang left, Xiaoguo continued with her work.
The board was heavy for Zhuang Zhuang, but for Xiaoguo, it was just slightly heavy. She could lift it just by exerting some strength.
With a heave, Xiaoguo lifted the board and placed it in the slot of the frame that she had fixed earlier.
Xiaoguo adjusted the board before letting go. With a snap, the board fell neatly into the groove. She stood up and wiped the sweat off her forehead. Xiaoguo felt that she had become much stronger after coming here.
Qin Anming listened to the noise from the room and asked Zhuang Zhuang to walk him to Xiaoguo’s side.
"Brother, why are you here? Why aren’t you lying in bed?"
Hearing some sounds behind her, Xiaoguo turned around and saw Qin Anming leaning against the door frame.
"I’m fine. I’m just trying to see how I can help you."
When Xiaoguo heard this, she let out a sigh. If Qin Anming were to lift a board for her, he would have coughed and vomited.
"What help? I’ll be done in a while. Go back and lie down."
Qin Anming stood at the door and saw that Xiaoguo was indeed fine. Since he couldn’t help much, he returned to his room. He didn’t want to cause trouble for Xiaoguo here. He had better get well soon. When he was fully recovered, he would take care of everything.
Xiaoguo got the hang of things quickly and within a short time, she had finished fixing up a bed with bed posts and a bed rail.
After installing the bed curtains that were given for free, the bed would be completely installed.
Xiaoguo shifted the foot stool from under the bed and moved the wardrobe into the room. Although the wardrobe was large, Xiaoguo was able to balance and carry it on her back. She pushed it to the corner against a wall.
Seeing that the room was ready now, Xiaoguo laid out the mattress, blanket, and pillow on the bed.
When Xiaoguo was packing up Qin Anming’s clothes in the morning, she had brought along all the covers for the bed.
While thinking about that, Xiaoguo found the bundle and opened the largest one. Inside were some blankets and bedsheets.
Xiaoguo took them out and gave them a good shake. She was about to lay them on the bed when she realized that there was plenty of sunlight today. She decided to sun the bedlinen so that they would be warm at night time.
Xiaoguo went back into the house to get a washing bat and went to the clothesline. She aimed it at the blanket and hammered on it.
As she batted on it, the air entered the cotton filling and the blanket was puffy again.
Xiaoguo batted each of the bed covers and left them hanging outside.
While Xiaoguo was busy doing the chores, Zhuang Zhuang had already come out several times. Every time he came out, his big eyes would blink as he looked around to see if there was anything he could help with.
Xiaoguo felt helpless about Zhuang Zhuang’s actions. In the end, she got Zhuang Zhuang to move the book stool into their room while she followed behind with the desk.
"Mother, where should we put it?"
Zhuang Zhuang stood in the house and turned around to ask Xiaoguo.
"Where should I put it!"
Xiaoguo pointed to the empty space beside the closet. She put the desk in first and adjusted its position. Zhuang Zhuang followed suit and put down the stool.
Qin Anming saw the desk and bookstool and asked Xiaoguo curiously.
"You bought the desk for Zhuang Zhuang?"
"That’s right. Right now, Zhuang Zhuang can only study at the table in the dining room. It seems more appropriate to use a study desk,"
Xiaoguo said to Qin Anming.
Qin Anming nodded. Then he wondered, if Xiaoguo doesn’t know how to read, how did Zhuang Zhuang learn to read?
The question rolled off his tongue at the same time he was thinking about it. Xiaoguo paused to think. That’s true, the previous owner of this body could not read.
Xiaoguo panicked, but she did not show it on her face. She calmly diverted the issue to Mrs. Jiang.
"Oh, My mother-in-law taught me to read."
Qin Anming didn’t suspect anything when he heard her words. After all, the Jiang family was the richest family before they fell. Since they lived in the city, they must be literate.
When Xiaoguo saw that Qin Anming looked convinced, she was relieved.
Seeing that it was almost time, Xiaoguo began to prepare dinner.
In every meal that Xiaoguo prepared for Qin Anming—apart from breakfast—she would always make a pot of bone soup.
Before cooking, Xiaoguo brought in the bed linen that she had been sunning in the courtyard. With the current weather, she only had to sun the bed covers for a while. They would still be warm when it was time for bed.
Xiaoguo returned to the kitchen. This time round, she had bought pork bones. She was still going to make a pot of clear soup stew.
However, this time, lilies and wolfberries were added to the soup. They would help to clear the lungs and improve the spleen functions.
Xiaoguo looked at the vegetable basket and wondered what to prepare for dinner.
Seeing that there were still a lot of carrots inside, Xiaoguo prepared to make some carrot pancakes. In addition, she will stir-fry some celery pork.
Dinner was simple. As the saying goes, have a good breakfast, a full lunch, and a small dinner.
Xiaoguo still respected those words. After all, if she were to eat too much at night, she wouldn’t be able to fall asleep.
This was not like the modern world. After dinner, the streets were still lit. People could go out for walks. In this era, when everyone had finished their dinner, the streets would be engulfed in darkness. People just went straight to bed.
When Xiaoguo first arrived, she and Zhuang Zhuang had heavy and greasy meals every night. After some time, it became really unbearable for them.