Climbing on the Sparrow Branch – CH 635

Chapter 635: Chicken Leg

The luggage in the carriage was even less than when they arrived.

An Zhi had originally thought she would stay in Ding’an for a while longer, but she hadn’t expected to had to move so soon.

“Sigh.”

A sigh escaped her lips, and everyone looked over.

An Zhi asked Pei Que, “Where were we going now?”

Pei Que grasped An Zhi’s hand, “To Yongning.”

Since they had already alerted the enemy, it was better to go directly to Yongning.

“The Governor of Yongning probably thinks we’ll leave or go back to Huludao to lay low,” An Zhi said, “but he probably doesn’t expect us to be right under his nose.”

Pei Que agreed, “As the saying goes, nothing ventured, nothing gained. We can only talk about what to do after we take down the Governor of Yongning.”

Pei Que’s plan was to take down the Governor of Yongning, use the Yongning area as a base to develop, and then consider returning to the capital when the time was right.

The most important magistrate of De’an County had now been replaced by one of his own, and a new magistrate would soon arrive in Ding’an.

From Xu Zhian, Pei Que failed to obtain any leverage over Minister Xu, but he did obtain leverage over the Governor of Yongning.

This layered approach would eventually allow him to defeat the enemy one by one.

~

Half a month later

In the bustling downtown area of ​​Yongning City, a new steamed bun shop opened. Business was neither good nor bad; it closed up shop every afternoon.

An Zhi stood at the shop’s entrance and glanced around. Seeing that there were far fewer pedestrians on the street, she called Binglu over. “Close up; let’s finish early today.”

Binglu responded with a “Yes” and called Chunlan to join her.

The two of them neatly closed the shop and went to the stove to cook noodles.

“I made chicken broth today. Using chicken broth as a base, plus smooth noodles, it’ll be delicious,” Chunlan said, ladling chicken broth into the bowls she had prepared, one of which even contained a chicken leg.

Binglu glanced at the chicken leg in the bowl and clicked her tongue. “If you keep feeding him like this, Fusheng will get as fat as a pig sooner or later.”

“So what if he gets a little fatter? He’s already skinny as a monkey, not to mention he lost a lot of weight after his injury. He should eat more now.” Chunlan glanced at Binglu. “Even Madam is willing to spend money on chicken; why were you so stingy?”

“It’s not that I’m stingy; it’s just that Doctor Tao said proper nutrition was enough, and he shouldn’t eat too much meat, as it would affect his recovery.” Binglu sighed, “If he could eat it, I’d give Fusheng a whole chicken.”

Since coming from Ding’an, Fusheng had been recuperating in his room. He had felt a little better these past two days and could go out for a walk, but because he broke a rib, he had to stop and rest after walking only a few steps.

Chunlan tilted her head and said, “Doctor Tao said not to eat for the first two days, but it’s so late now; we need to nourish ourselves.”

She first ladled noodles for Fusheng, then sprinkled some chopped scallions on top. Chunlan took off her apron. “I’ll go feed Fusheng; you don’t need to wait for me.”

Having said that, not noticing Binglu’s helpless expression, Chunlan quickly went to find Fusheng.

Fusheng’s fingernail had already scabbed over, but because the injury was in such a sensitive location, Chunlan insisted on feeding him every day.

When she arrived at Fusheng’s room and saw him sitting at his desk again, Chunlan’s anger flared up, and she slammed the bowl down.

“Haven’t I told you so many times, don’t get up, don’t get up! What’s going on in your little head? Can’t you read in bed? Why did you have to get up? Were you worried your injury was healing too slowly?” Chunlan finished speaking in one breath, snatching the book from Fusheng’s hand. “Alright, let’s eat first.”

Fusheng glanced up and down at Chunlan, hesitatingly whispering, “Sister Chunlan, I can do it myself; my hand’s all better.”

“Better? Can’t you see your little finger’s cracked?” Chunlan gave Fusheng a look, gesturing for him to lie down on the bed. After Fusheng obediently laid down, Chunlan began feeding him noodles. “Don’t take your good fortune for granted. I only take such good care of you because you’re as well-behaved as my brother.”

Sighing, Chunlan thought back to before she entered the An family.

Actually, her childhood memories were vague and not pleasant, but Chunlan remembered that back home, a little brother would secretly stuff food into her mouth. Back then, the family was so poor they had to sell their daughters. No one had enough to eat. Chunlan had forgotten what her younger brother had fed her, only that it smelled delicious.

After feeding Fusheng spoonful by spoonful, she fed him chicken soup with a spoon. “You need to eat more to recover faster. We’ve been in Yongning for half a month. The son-in-law and madam have already opened the shop, but you’re still not better. The sooner you recover, the sooner you can help with the work. Don’t think about slacking off.”

After finishing all the soup, Fusheng was incredibly full, but faced with Chunlan’s nagging, he dared not say he was too full.

Chunlan wiped Fusheng’s mouth, caring for him like a child, and gently instructed, “When Doctor Tao comes to change your dressing later, tell him if you’re in pain. He’s always drunk and doesn’t know his own strength.”

Fusheng shook his head, saying he wasn’t in pain.

“How could it not hurt? Don’t lie to me!” Chunlan snorted. “Every time you change the dressing, your forehead’s covered in sweat. do you think I’m blind?”

Fusheng lowered his head after Chunlan’s words.

Alright, he’d listen to her.

Seeing Fusheng nod obediently, Chunlan left satisfied.

When Chunlan returned to the shop, she saw everyone waiting for her and said apologetically, “Didn’t I tell you to eat first? The noodles won’t taste good if they get soggy. Why did you wait for me?”

An Zhi saw Chunlan return and picked up her chopsticks to start eating noodles. “Binglu said there’s your favorite roast duck today, so she thought she’d wait for you to come and eat together. Hurry up and sit down, or the noodles would really get soggy.”

Chunlan said, “Alright,” and everyone started eating together.

The shop had a backyard. The front storefront facing the street was used for business, and the back house was used for living. There was an open space in the courtyard. When Chunlan saw the open space, she immediately perked up, saying that she had brought all the seeds that Madam of Yu had given her, and there was still time to plant them.

So after the meal, An Zhi took Chunlan and Binglu to the backyard to plant vegetables.

Pei Que wanted to go with them, but An Zhi refused.

“We agreed, I’m a widow now; you’re not allowed to follow me during the day.” To avoid revealing her identity, only An Zhi appeared at the shop this time, and she told everyone she was a widow.

As for Pei Que, he didn’t show up. He was currently recuperating from arm pain and needed acupuncture every day. This was also why An Zhi only opened the shop in the morning and closed it in the afternoon, to prevent others from accidentally entering the backyard.

Pei Que said, feeling wronged, “I’m just going to pull weeds with you, not doing anything else. Is that not allowed?”

An Zhi shook her head and said no, “Go take care of Yue’er. She can smile now. Play with her more. Don’t pull weeds with your hand. It’s so hard to move even one finger; don’t let it get damaged again.”

After saying that, An Zhi pushed Pei Que upstairs. “Go quickly.”

T/N: Why am I shipping Chunlan and Fusheng? Let my ship sail~~~