Honey (Part 1)

The price of a small porcelain bottle of seasoning could buy several pounds of rice. 

However, as he now ate the seasoned food with white rice, Huo Tianzhou realized that the high cost was justified.

After finishing their meal and seeing that Liang Hongyu had also put down her chopsticks, Huo Tianzhou got up to wash the dishes.

Once Huo Tianzhou left, Liang Hongyu stood up and went to the storeroom.

There weren't many items in the room, but a thick layer of dust had accumulated.

Sleeping on the floor of the main room wasn't an issue for her, but it was better to use the available space in the storeroom.

After a quick clean-up, she noticed the mortar and pestle set that Huo Tianzhou had tidied up and placed in the corner.

Since Huo Tianzhou's mother's passed away, these items never been used again.

Liang Hongyu took them outside, washed them thoroughly, and set them aside to dry.

Earlier, she had heard Huo Tianzhou's footsteps as he left the house.

Now, in the backyard, she saw no sign of him.

Confirming that he was out and not in his room, Liang Hongyu didn't dwell on it.

She found a cloth, dampened it, and returned to the storeroom to continue cleaning.

The room had not been occupied for a long time, so the dust had been accumulated, and the lack of ventilation made it quite stuffy.

Liang Hongyu thought that if it became unbearable, she could always spend another night in the main room.

When she came out of the room, the sky was began to darken, and Huo Tianzhou had not yet returned.

Usually, at this time, the original Liang Hongyu would still be in town, so Liang Hongyu was unfamiliar with Huo Tianzhou's daily routine at home.

He was an adult, after all, and she doubted he would get lost.

Liang Hongyu washed the cloth and hung it on a bamboo pole in the yard.

Then she took a bath and sat on the stone slab in the backyard to dry her hair.

After her hair was dry and neatly tied up, she sat for a while longer before seeing Huo Tianzhou return, carrying a basket filled with freshly cut chicken grass.

Huo Tianzhou usually gathered chicken grass in the morning, enough for the whole day.

He must have gotten up quite early today.

Liang Hongyu remembered that Huo Tianzhou had been busy earning money for her travel expenses earlier and hadn't had time. 

Huo Tianzhou had learned bamboo weaving from his mother.

He had been doing it since he was a child and was quite skilled.

He had cut his hand today suggested that he must have done it in hurry.

...

Normally, at this time, Huo Tianzhou would be alone at home.

He put the basket away and checked on the chicken coop before noticing Liang Hongyu sitting on the stone slab, watching him for who knows how long.

Liang Hongyu sat opposite him, her expression hard to discern in the dim light.

Huo Tianzhou glanced at her briefly before turning back to go to the kitchen.

Diagonally across from the kitchen was the bathhouse.

Huo Tianzhou carried a bucket of water out, struggling a little bit with the distance from one end of the yard to the other.

Liang Hongyu glanced at the bucket; it was only half full.

She wondered how he managed to haul bamboo down from the mountain regularly.

Huo Tianzhou went to his room, grabbed his clothes, and entered the bathhouse.

Liang Hongyu got up and went inside.

When Huo Tianzhou finished his bath and came out, he heard the dull, crisp sound of something being pounded in the yard.

He looked up.

Liang Hongyu was sitting in front, her hand pressing down on a mortar, grinding something with a pestle.

The night was quiet.

Usually, at home, the only sounds were the distant chirping of insects from the fields.

Now, watching Liang Hongyu working and hearing the close-up sounds, Huo Tianzhou felt a sudden sense of unreality.

He also suddenly realized that the house had been too quiet these past few years.

Lost in thought, Huo Tianzhou was brought back to reality when Liang Hongyu looked up and said, "Come here."

Huo Tianzhou walked over, puzzled.

He was wearing a single layer of clothing, tied at the waist without a belt, making him look even thinner.

Liang Hongyu glanced at him and pointed to a bamboo stool beside her, "Sit here."

Liang Hongyu had collected some medicinal herbs from the mountain today and had left them in the kitchen.

Huo Tianzhou had noticed them while cooking.

Seeing the unused herbs at Liang Hongyu's feet, Huo Tianzhou understood her intention.

As Liang Hongyu crushed the herbs, Huo Tianzhou rolled up the sleeve of his injured hand, exposing his arm.

At least he's aware, Liang Hongyu thought.

However, it was clear this patient didn't take his injury seriously.

He hadn't avoided getting it wet during his bath, and now it was still half-wet, with the inflammation worse than the day before.

Seeing his nonchalant expression, Liang Hongyu thought it was fortunate the injury hadn't reached the bone; otherwise, he would have been in serious trouble.

Liang Hongyu applied the crushed herbs to his wound and wrapped it with a strip of cloth torn from an old shirt, "Keep it dry for the next few days, so my effort in gathering these herbs doesn't go to waste."

The herbal poultice felt cool against the skin.

Liang Hongyu avoided the injured area and wrapped it skillfully, neither too tight nor too loose, just right.

Huo Tianzhou watched her calmly bandage her own wound, a strange feeling bubbling up within him.

"Alright, go find me a piece of clean gauze," she directed after tying the last knot.

Then she picked up the mortar and went to wash it.

The door to the room Huo Tianzhou used to stay in was open.

As he walked past, he saw it had been tidied up, but only the bed had been cleared for sleeping.