Chapter 89: Chapter 54: The Stone Mill Spins

When her brother asked, Juhua repeated what Big Mouth Zhao had said.

Their mother chimed in, “Old Cheng’s niece? I’ve seen that girl. She’s quite sincere. Tall and sturdy, a good match for Big Mouth. I bet the marriage will be settled tomorrow.”

Zhang Huai stole a glance at Juhua, noticing how openly she discussed the engagement in his presence. She wasn’t the least bit shy, and he didn’t know quite what to feel about it.

He thought about how their mother said Big Mouth Zhao and Old Cheng’s niece were a good match. ’What about me and Juhua, then? If we were to walk side by side, would we look like a good match?’

Just thinking about it brought a sweet warmth to his heart, and a blush crept up his face. He couldn’t help but steal another glance at Juhua’s profile. To his surprise, she turned her head right at that moment. Their eyes met, and Zhang Huai felt all the blood in his body rush to his face. For a moment, his hands froze on the handle, leaving Qingmu to push the millstone all by himself.

Qingmu cursed his bad luck under his breath, but he’d also figured out Huai Zi’s feelings. ’He really likes Juhua,’ he thought. Afraid Huai Zi would be too embarrassed, he quickly nudged him with his elbow and shot him an annoyed glare. Only then did a mortified Zhang Huai lower his head and focus on grinding.

Juhua was taken aback to see Zhang Huai’s face beet red. ’Is he feeling awkward because I’m talking about Big Mouth Zhao’s engagement?’ she wondered. ’Did it remind him of the old entanglement between us? Right, it would be a bit embarrassing if you really thought about it, but I’d forgotten all about that—I’m not the original Juhua, after all.’

So, she changed the subject, saying to Qingmu, “Brother, I can use this acorn flour to make tofu tomorrow night. I’m worried that after you taste it, you’ll be fighting the pigs for it—and you won’t want to use it for pig feed anymore!”

Their mother burst out laughing. She rolled her eyes at Juhua and said, “Listen to you, insulting people. Why would your brother fight with the pigs?”

Qingmu and Zhang Huai both laughed along, not taking offense.

To the groaning rhythm of the millstone handle, they quickly ground half a bucket of acorn kernels.

Their mother came over to take a look. “I’m going to start on the food now,” she announced. “By the time I’m done cooking, you’ll have finished grinding, and we can eat.”

Juhua nodded. “Okay! Go on, Mother. The grinding is going quickly.” After a moment’s thought, she added, “Mother, when you’re done cooking, could you clean the wok and boil a pot of water? Now that the wooden tub is back, I want to take a proper bath after dinner—my feet are frozen solid.”

As soon as the sun set, the warmth in her body seemed to vanish with it. She felt a chill seeping through her clothes, and her feet were as cold as iron.

Her mother quickly agreed. She ran to the main hall, brought back the small charcoal brazier, and placed it at Juhua’s feet. “You silly child,” she chided. “If your feet are cold, warm them by the fire! It’s not like we don’t have a brazier. You just let them turn to ice. A chill starts from the feet. If you’re always letting them get this cold, your knees will start to hurt when you’re older. You’re already so sensitive to the cold. Sigh! Why can’t we build up your health? Look at me, your father, and your brother—we’ve been eating well, and we all have rosy cheeks. But you, no matter how we try, you just don’t get any stronger!”

Both Qingmu and Zhang Huai looked at Juhua with expressions of worry and sympathy. Qingmu felt that his sister was simply too frail; it seemed the lingering effects from her fall into the water were serious.

He called out to her, “Juhua, you come push for a bit. Put some effort into it, and you’ll warm up in no time.” As he spoke, he let go of the millstone handle, came over to her, and took the scoop from her hand, motioning for her to take his place.

Juhua was taken aback. ’I already tried that millstone; there’s no way I can push it,’ she thought. ’If I wanted to move around, I’d be better off just hopping in place a few times.’

“Brother, I can’t move it. I just tried,” she answered honestly. Besides, it took two people coordinating their strength to push the millstone, otherwise it wouldn’t turn smoothly.

“I’m just trying to get you moving,” Qingmu said. “We’re not relying on you to do the actual grinding. Huai Zi is more than strong enough; you just have to follow along.”

Juhua considered it. ’Pushing the millstone is kind of like exercising. The push-and-pull motion makes your whole body move. It’s actually a pretty good way to work out.’

So she stood up and walked over to the millstone handle, taking her place beside Zhang Huai.

As she moved to grab the handle, she realized it was set way too high. For her to reach it, she’d be dangling like she was on the horizontal bar back at school in her past life, completely unable to exert any force. But if they lowered the rope to her height, Zhang Huai would have to hunch way over.

While she was still trying to figure it out, Zhang Huai had already lowered the frame, adjusting the handle until it was level with her chest. His eyes seemed to sparkle as he looked at her and said softly, “Just follow my lead. Start with a little force, and once you get into the rhythm, you can push harder.”

Juhua nodded and began to push along with him.

She hadn’t found her footing at first. She placed one foot in front of the other, but Zhang Huai’s strides were long while hers were short. The first push sent her stumbling forward. She couldn’t help but giggle. “Whoa! This isn’t working. Huai Zi can just stand there, but I have to take two steps forward to keep up with the handle, and then two steps back on the return!”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep