CHAPTER 162: CHAPTER 162: WHAT LIU ZE IS AFRAID OF

The rice stalks were cut from the base and stacked neatly in piles, making room for the threshing barrels.

Jiang Hu and Liu Yang used the threshing barrels, each gripping a bunch of rice stalks, swinging their arms to hit the stalks forcefully against the barrel.

The grains cascaded down swiftly. With the inertia, as they flew upwards again, they were instantly blocked by a barrier, having no chance to fall outside.

In this tiresome yet joyful busy farming season, no matter how exhausting it is, everyone has a radiant smile on their face.

The more fatigued they are, the happier and more excited they feel.

Because the more tired they are, the better the harvest is, who wouldn’t love that?

The Jiang family’s rice field receives excellent sunlight, making it among the earliest to be harvested.

When Liu Yang initially selected his rice fields, he was a step late. Besides having one field close to the Jiang family, the remaining fields were on the other side, where the sun couldn’t reach early in the afternoon, making them ripen later.

After the Jiang family had harvested all their rice, leaving a few children at home to look after things, including the grains drying in the yard, Jiang Hu and his second aunt went to help Liu Yang’s family harvest their rice.

In the yard, a tarp was spread out with a thick layer of rice drying on it. Xiao Mi walked barefoot, unfazed by the grain shells, stepping on the tarp and pushing the grains to create small paths, enlarging the sun-exposed area.

On another side, where there were fewer grains, Xiao Xue meticulously used a bamboo rake to separate fallen straws from the rice, after Xiao Mi had already cleared it once.

The separated grass and some rice ears were placed in a large winnowing basket; these needed careful sifting to ensure not even a grain of rice was wasted.

"Brother Ze, you’re awake, still feeling uncomfortable?" Tie Dan’s voice came from Liu Ze’s room.

Xiao Mi and Xiao Xue promptly put down what they were holding.

Xiao Mi rushed straight to Liu Ze’s door, while Xiao Xue headed to the kitchen.

"Brother Ze, are you feeling better now?"

Liu Ze had followed them to the field a few days ago and suddenly said he was feeling unwell last night, with a kind of all-over achiness and weakness.

It almost scared Jiang Hu and his second aunt to death; they hurriedly called Dr. Xie from the village to check on him, only to find that he had a mild heatstroke, fortunately, not too serious.

The village has some Huoxiang plants, and the Jiang family planted two. Occasionally they used the leaves to make pancakes, which tasted quite good.

So they boiled a bowl of Huoxiang water for Liu Ze.

Even so, Liu Ze slept until now; if it weren’t for his face looking fine, Jiang Hu would have taken him directly to the town.

Liu Ze shook his head, "I’m much better now, I’m fine."

Xiao Xue had already brought breakfast and a bowl of soup.

"Brother Ze, drink some more Huoxiang water, then have breakfast."

Liu Ze obediently complied; breakfast consisted of thin porridge and salted vegetables with buns.

Truly hungry, Liu Ze ate quickly without fuss, gobbling his food down. Thankfully, breakfast had cooled for a while, so it wasn’t too hot.

After finishing the porridge with the salted vegetables and buns, Liu Ze visibly seemed in better spirits.

After eating, he took a deep breath, then noticed the other three had been watching him the whole time.

Liu Ze’s face flushed red instantly, and he touched his cheeks, "Why are you looking at me? Did I get rice grains on my face?"

The three siblings shook their heads in unison; Xiao Xue explained, "It’s the first time we’ve seen Brother Ze eat so much; usually, you eat just a little bit."

Liu Ze’s appetite is small, similar to Xiao Xue, whereas Jiang Yu’s appetite was twice that of Liu Ze’s.

Liu Ze felt a bit embarrassed, "I was quite hungry."

Xiao Xue reached out to take the dishes and said offhandedly, "Brother Ze didn’t eat much last night, of course, he’s hungry."

From outside came the sound of a cow mooing, Xiao Xue’s eyes lit up, "It must be Uncle Qixi coming back; father sent him to the town to get some medicine, I’ll go brew it for you."

With that, she jogged out.

A few days ago, Liu Yang’s family helped out together to collect Jiang family’s grains; today, Jiang Hu and his wife went to help Liu’s family.

Although the grains are important, Liu Ze certainly couldn’t just ignore things, even though he appeared mostly fine now.

So Jiang Hu gave some money, specifically reminding Qixi to buy some medicine for heatstroke.

However, as soon as Xiao Xue stepped out, Liu Ze followed closely, catching up to her.

"Miss Xiao Xue, don’t brew the medicine, I’m no longer uncomfortable, I don’t want to drink medicine!"

He hadn’t taken medicine for over a month now, and thinking back to those days when he took supplements daily for survival was like a nightmare.

"Young master, this packet is for relieving heat, and this one is a preventative medicine Brother Jiang asked me to buy, specifically for treating colds."

Having had heatstroke before, who knows if, when the weather cools, he might catch a cold, so it’s best to prepare ahead, rather than scrambling when needed.

Qixi held a packet of herbs in one hand, and for a moment, Liu Ze didn’t know whether to express gratitude to Uncle Jiang for his concern or express his opposition to taking medicine.

Xiao Xue had already put the dishes back in the kitchen, and also brought out a small clay pot.

"I cleaned this in the morning; which is the medicine for heatstroke, I’ll brew it."

Realizing this, Liu Ze quickly stepped forward and snatched both packets from Qixi’s hand, "I’m feeling better already, I’m fine, I won’t take medicine, it’ll make me vomit."

Since coming to the Jiang family, he hadn’t experienced those terrifying moments he had before.

Now, talking about taking medicine, his face turned pale, obviously scared.

Xiao Xue didn’t notice and still wanted to take the medicine; she thought, how could a sick person not take medicine?

"But..."

"Second sister," Xiao Mi, who was a few steps behind, promptly spoke up, immediately catching Xiao Xue’s attention.

Xiao Mi quickly continued, "Second sister, doesn’t Brother Ze feel uncomfortable eating things from outside? This medicine, isn’t it something from outside too?"

Xiao Mi was just innocently asking, but it reminded Xiao Xue.

She cluelessly turned to Qixi, "Uncle Qixi?"

Qixi quickly nodded, "When the young master was at home, no matter if he took medicine or ate something, he would vomit, feeling terrible."

In the morning, Brother Jiang had instructed him to buy medicine, though he hesitated a bit and mentioned this situation.

Since the young master drank Huoxiang water last night and was already much better, rest assured, it’d be fine.

However, Brother Jiang insisted on buying it anyway, just in case it’s needed later.

After listening to Qixi’s explanation, Xiao Xue relented, "Alright then, let’s just hold onto it for now."

Liu Ze let out a long sigh of relief, finally free from taking medicine.

Nonetheless, when Xiao Xue took the packets over, Liu Ze tensed up a little.

"Then Brother Ze, take a good rest."

"Oh, oh, okay." Liu Ze nodded repeatedly, afraid that if he delayed, he’d have to take medicine again.

Due to the heatstroke, he was still a bit dizzy, not particularly comfortable, but compared to taking medicine, it was far better.

He definitely didn’t want to risk his condition worsening due to lack of rest.

Qixi released the cow from the cart as usual, led it to the mountain to find a lush grassy spot, and then went to help in the Liu family’s fields.

The second aunt returned for a while, ensuring Liu Ze was alright, not forgetting to remind him to avoid waiting around under the sun.