The young couple, with the little girl protesting, dug up a sieve full of yellow clay. Zhao Ce lifted the filled sieve with his hoe and walked back with the little girl.
The villagers they encountered on the way mostly just glanced at them and quickly made their way, whispering to each other as they passed. "What's going on with Zhao Ce?" one villager muttered. "He's a scholar. He just finished arguing with Uncle Liu and now he's going to the fields himself?" "In broad daylight, instead of going to school, he's playing with mud." "Well, I have to admit, his posture while carrying the yellow clay is quite elegant." "He's definitely different from us farmers, with his straight back..." "Indeed, he's a scholar." "But is it just me or does his wife seem to have some serious leg problems?" "Her slow walking doesn't seem natural." "I wonder if that dowry Zhao Ce was talking about is real." "If it's not, he probably wouldn't have taken his sickly wife."
The news of Zhao Ce's fight with Uncle Liu had already spread throughout Shuiqiao village. Now, no one dared to call him "Zhao lord" or "Zhao star lord" aloud. As a scholar, Zhao Ce had never really cared about their opinions before, but if they treated him like Uncle Liu did, they wouldn't stand a chance. Plus, there was no guarantee that Zhao Ce wouldn't hold a grudge against them in the future if he became a high-ranking official.
Though they didn't dare to speak loudly, the villagers still whispered and pointed at the young couple from afar.
Zhao Ce didn't seem to care about their comments. The voices were too low for Su Caier to hear clearly, but she knew that they were talking about her and her husband. She was used to being the subject of gossip and didn't mind too much. She stood a little taller and tried to shield her husband from being pointed at, but she realized that she was too short to do so.
Her plan was to divert the attention to herself instead of her husband, but it seemed like she had failed. She still tried to block the sun from her husband, though and felt proud of her idea. She turned her head to her husband, only to realize that she was too short to accomplish her goal.
She could only block her husband's arm with her head. Zhao Ce noticed the little girl's expression and looked down at her, only to find her suddenly dejected. "What's wrong?" he asked.
Seeing the little girl's sunburned red face, Zhao Ce realized she was probably feeling uncomfortable from being in the sun too long. He slowed his pace and took a long step, allowing the handle of his hoe to pass over the little girl's head. Then he walked from her left side to her right side, all in one smooth motion. The whole process took only a few seconds.
Su Caier looked up in confusion and saw her husband had moved from her left side to her right, blocking the sun completely with his tall figure.
"The sun's a bit strong. Walk on this side," Zhao Ce said with a smile. "I'll block the sun for you." Su Caier's eyes widened in surprise. Her husband actually had the same idea as her? She smiled sweetly and said, "I'm not afraid of getting sunburned."
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Zhao Ce used his free hand to gently brush his finger against the little girl's face. "Ouch, it's hot," he said. "Your face is getting sunburned." Su Caier also touched her face with the back of her hand and felt the heat. She looked up at her husband and said sweetly, "Thank you, husband." Zhao Ce smiled and lightly poked her dimple. "Let's go."
...
After they returned home, Zhao Ce began preparing the tools for the yellow clay sugar-water method. He didn't plan to use all the raw sugar in case of failure, so he only took out a portion for Su Caier to boil.
When they were using charcoal to make white sugar, Su Caier already thought her husband was like a god from the heavens. She never imagined that yellow clay could also be used to make sugar. Could they still eat the sugar that had come into contact with the yellow clay? She tilted her head in confusion.
But Su Caier trusted her husband completely. If he said it was okay, then it must be okay! So she obediently followed his instructions and began boiling a new batch of sugar water.
Zhao Ce picked out some of the better dry grass he had collected from the riverbank, washed them with water, and set them aside to dry. There were no earthenware jars in the house, but that didn't faze Zhao Ce.
He simply took an old ceramic pot and made a small hole in the bottom to create a makeshift jar. However, this exacerbated the shortage of pots in the house. Apart from the two large pots on the stove, the remaining small pots for boiling charcoal, sugar water, and crushing were all in use.
Zhao Ce realized that when he went to the city to order more jars and earthenware jars in a few days, he would also have to order some small pots. After handling the pot, Su Caier also came out of the house. "Husband, the sugar water is ready," she said.
Zhao Ce nodded and said, "Let the sugar water cool in the original pot and become sugar crystals. Let's process the yellow clay together." They picked out a portion of the yellow clay they had collected and put it in a wooden basin. The rest of the yellow clay was piled up in a corner of the courtyard. The young couple squatted at the kitchen door, using their hands to crush the yellow clay in the basin and pick out the large stones and roots inside.
Su Caier carefully picked out the stones and sand from the yellow clay. Suddenly, a pair of well-defined hands reached in. "Let me help," Zhao Ce said.
In broad daylight, the two were so close that if they got any closer, they would bump into each other. Su Caier looked up shyly and glanced at her husband's face, so close to her. She felt a bit dizzy and thought to herself, her husband is really handsome...
Looking down, she saw those equally handsome hands kneading the yellow clay in the basin. Su Caier regained her senses and continued with her task. She picked up a handful of clay and looked at her own rough, calloused little hand. Then she looked at her husband's slender, fair hand in the basin.
Su Caier felt a bit embarrassed and curled her small hand with the clay in it. Her husband's hands are so beautiful... She thought to herself, slowing down her movements.
"What's wrong?" Zhao Ce noticed Su Caier's slower movements and asked with concern, "Did you get sunburned on the way here?" "Are you feeling unwell?" He reached out and touched her forehead with the back of his hand. "It's not as hot as before. Would you like to rest for a while?" Su Caier shook her head and quickly chased away her scattered thoughts. She was working now! Su Caier perked up and smiled a small smile. "I'm not uncomfortable... This clay is just too dirty. You can go do something else, and I'll take care of the yellow clay here."