All the heavens begin with the love in the courtyard.

"I just had my ancestors appear to me at the ancestral hall!"

Vanilla's trembling body trembled even more violently, and she quickly asked curiously.

"Really?"

In the darkness, Bai Jiaxuan's lips curled into a playful smile. Smelling the faint milky scent in his arms, he spoke solemnly.

"Of course it's true. My ancestors not only passed on all my skills, but also said that the reason my six wives died tragically was to temper my mind. Now I have achieved perfect merit and can marry and have children. Furthermore, my ancestors said that tonight is my big day. If we have sex tonight, you can get pregnant, and it will be a boy!"

Upon hearing this, Vanilla opened her mouth wide in the darkness, both nervous and excited, and asked for confirmation once more.

"Is it really possible to conceive a boy?"

Bai Jiaxuan nodded solemnly once again.

"Would our ancestors lie to me? Don't worry, if they break their word, I'll stop worshipping them!"

Cilantro quickly covered Bai Jiaxuan's mouth and said cautiously.

"Don't talk nonsense, our ancestors would never lie, so... so we..."

Bai Jiaxuan quickly pulled her into his arms and whispered in her ear.

"Okay, I'll untie that knot for you. Since our ancestors promised us, they certainly won't go back on their word. Let's go to sleep!"

In the darkness, Xiangcao's face flushed. She murmured an "Mmm" and then stopped moving, letting Bai Jiaxuan do as he pleased.

The night was filled with soft moans and groans, the joy of newlyweds a feeling hard to comprehend in later generations. Bai Jiaxuan felt as if he had been holding back for centuries, struggling in that dark quagmire, finally venting all his frustrations in this one night!

third chapter

The next day, just after the rooster crowed and a wisp of white dew appeared on the horizon, Bai Jiaxuan heard Xiangcao getting up and getting dressed beside him. He quickly murmured a few words, pulled her into his arms, and said with some dissatisfaction.

"Sleep a little longer. Don't get up so early next time. I feel sorry for my wife, you know!"

Xiangcao tilted her head back and looked at Bai Jiaxuan, her face full of a happy smile. She always felt that Bai Jiaxuan seemed a little different, but she couldn't quite put her finger on what was different.

At least he knows how to cherish his wife now, and he smells like a real man. Hmm, from now on, he's her man.

Vanilla was lost in thought, feeling quite pleased with herself. Feeling a slight discomfort in her legs, she shyly snuggled into Bai Jiaxuan's arms.

Bai Jiaxuan slept for another two hours with Xiangcao in his arms before he heard the constant coughing outside the door and groggily opened his eyes.

Hearing the coughing outside the door, Xiangcao quickly got up, hurriedly put on her clothes, and then helped Bai Jiaxuan get dressed before carefully opening the door.

Outside the door was Bai Jiaxuan's mother, Bai Zhao. Bai Jiaxuan glanced at the door and saw that the old lady's displeasure was written all over her face.

Xiangcao opened the door and quickly called out, "Mom, I'll go boil water and cook!"

With that, he dashed off.

Bai Jiaxuan stretched and walked out the door. His mother, Bai Zhaoshi, glanced at him and snorted.

"You don't even know the proper etiquette on your first day of marriage! How are you going to manage this household? Look at the time! Everyone else is already out working, but our stove is still cold!"

Bai Jiaxuan sighed helplessly. His mother, Bai Zhaoshi, was a typical Qing Dynasty woman with bound feet, and she was instilled with the traditional values ​​of obedience, submission, and virtue.

In her mother's eyes, Xiangcao had to be the first one up in the family every morning to boil water and cook breakfast. Only after the men had finished eating could she eat something in the kitchen, and only after the men went out to work could she do the laundry and take care of the children.

In this day and age, the mother-in-law is always the stronger party in the mother-in-law/daughter-in-law relationship, especially since Xiangcao doesn't have a husband's family to rely on.

To Bai Zhao, every bite of food a woman eats is a gift from the Bai family.

If it were the previous Bai Jiaxuan, he would naturally have obeyed his mother's views. In this era where filial piety is the most important virtue, a son should listen to his mother.

However, Bai Jiaxuan is not interested in that kind of thinking now. His woman should live a comfortable and happy life, which is the most important thing.

However, Bai Jiaxuan naturally couldn't offend his elderly mother. He yawned, stepped forward, and put his arm around his mother's shoulder with a smile.

"Mom, we're not short of food. It doesn't matter if we get up early or late. Besides, we're newly married, so you need to give him time to adjust, right?"

When Bai Zhao heard her son's words, she felt a little calmer, but then she got angry again and scolded her son.

“Look at yourself! The family has emptied its coffers to marry off these wives. Son, if you get up an hour earlier every day, our land will be cultivated for an extra hour compared to others. Only by persisting can we accumulate wealth…”

Bai Jiaxuan surrendered, realizing he shouldn't have tried to reason with an old woman with bound feet. He quickly left, smiling obsequiously.

"Mom, I'm going to wash my face and go see Dad. You go ahead and shop!"

After saying that, he turned and left without waiting for Bai Zhao to say anything more.

After a quick wash, Bai Jiaxuan went to his parents' room and saw his father, Bai Bingde, lying on the kang (a heated brick bed).

The old man was thin and weak, with no energy or spirit. He leaned against the bed, smoking a pipe. Early in the morning, the room was filled with smoke. Bai Jiaxuan waved the smoke and went into the room. He sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) and called out to the old man.

"Dad, are you feeling better?"

Bai Bingde coughed violently a few times, took another puff of his cigarette, and then groaned weakly.

"What else can we do? If we can live another day, we'll just waste more food!"

Bai Jiaxuan frowned, hesitated for a moment, and then spoke.

"Dad, let me take a look!"

Bai Bingde didn't understand what his son meant, but he saw Bai Jiaxuan take two steps forward, pick up his hand, carefully take his pulse, ask him to open his mouth to see, and finally touch his chest.

Bai Bingde was somewhat bewildered by this series of actions and angrily rebuked him.

What are you doing?

Bai Jiaxuan shook his head and said.

"Dad, it's alright. I'll go to Mr. Leng's place later to get you some traditional Chinese medicine!"

Upon hearing this, Bai Bingde coughed violently twice before weakly rebuking him.

"Wouldn't it be better to save that money and buy land? As for my illness, it depends on whether God will be on my side!"

Bai Jiaxuan didn't answer him, but said something and went out.

My father Bai Bingde's illness really depends on whether God will be kind to him. I just checked, and it seems to be lung cancer, and it's in the late stage. I guess he doesn't have much time left.

However, Bai Jiaxuan still planned to get some medicine. Even if it couldn't cure the illness, it would at least ease the old man's condition. Relying on smoking to relieve the pain was useless.

As soon as Bai Jiaxuan stepped out, he saw Xiangcao with her sleeves rolled up, holding a bowl of noodles, calling out to him.

"Jiaxuan, dinner's ready!"

Looking at this diligent woman, Bai Jiaxuan couldn't help but sigh, such people are rarely seen in later generations.

He quickly agreed and went inside to help his father get out of bed to eat.

Bai Bingde then asked Bai Jiaxuan to go next door and invite Lu San and his son over for dinner.

Bai Jiaxuan agreed and then shouted outside.

"Third Brother, breakfast is ready!"

Just as I finished shouting, I saw two people, one big and one small, walk in through the door.

The older one is Lu San, and the younger one is his son Heiwa.

Lu San was not a relative of Bai Jiaxuan, but a long-term laborer in the family. He had been a long-term laborer in the Bai family since his father's generation, and the same was true for Lu San's generation.

Lu San is five years older than Bai Jiaxuan. He has been calling him Third Brother since he was a child. The Bai family has never treated him as a long-term worker, but rather as a member of the family.

In Bailuyuan, every household eats their meals in the courtyard outside the kitchen, usually on special occasions. The whole family, young and old, squats down with their big butts sticking out, eating and chatting about village gossip.

Of course, this does not include women, because in this place, men eat first and women eat later. Women are not allowed to sit at the table when a family holds a banquet.

This oil-splashed noodle dish made with herbs is so spicy and fragrant, and the wide noodles are smooth and chewy. After eating a bowl of this oil-splashed noodle dish so early in the morning, Bai Jiaxuan felt sweating all over and his whole body felt warm.

Watching Bai Jiaxuan eat happily, Xiangcao, who was standing to the side and leaning against the kitchen wall, smiled knowingly.

Bai Jiaxuan couldn't stand seeing the woman standing there eating, so he immediately scolded her.

"Bring the noodles over, everyone eat! Don't stand there!"

Xiangcao dared not move, and glared at Bai Jiaxuan. Bai Bingde, standing to the side, snorted and shouted.

"What kind of logic is it for women to sit at the table while men eat? You love your wife so much, but you can't break the rules. A person in charge should act like one!"

Xiangcao kept her head down and didn't say anything, while Bai Zhaoshi echoed her words.

"That's right, since ancient times, it's always been men eating and women not sitting at the table. Wouldn't that make people laugh at us? You two should hurry up and eat. Jiaxuan, after you finish eating, go to the fields with Lu San to start plowing. It's been several days since spring started!"

Lu San and his son squatted in the corner, chuckling to themselves. Lu San quickly agreed and squatted down to eat his noodles.

Bai Jiaxuan glanced at his parents and finally had no choice but to give up. It was a habit he'd had for centuries, and he shouldn't upset the old man for now. If he angered the old man to death, the whole village would be cursing him.

Once the old man is gone and I'm in charge of the household, I'll slowly get rid of these bad habits!

Chapter Four

Bailuyuan is surrounded by mountains on all sides, with a flat area of ​​varying heights in the middle. It is named Bailuyuan because it is a plain.

The population of Bailuyuan is over 1,200. In addition to the Bai and Lu surnames, there are also some impoverished families who have migrated from other places.

Those who were relatively well off from poverty could eventually acquire a few acres of land on the plain after several generations of hard work. However, most of them eventually ended up working as farmhands for their employers to make a living.

The land on Bailu Plain wasn't much; about two thousand mu of land supported more than a thousand people, who still had to pay taxes and grain every year. On average, each person on the plain had less than two mu of land. The most crucial point is that in those days, equality wasn't the focus.

The two wealthiest families in Bailu Plain were Bai Jiaxuan's and Lu Zilin's. Bai Jiaxuan's family had only 18 mu of irrigated land and 25 mu of dry land, which was more than 40 mu, making them the wealthiest family in Bailu Plain.

The situation was roughly the same for Lu Zilin's family. These two families together occupied about 100 acres of land. The others who were a little better off had about 10 or 2 acres, while most other families had only a few acres. The whole family, young and old, made a living by doing odd jobs for other families.

After finishing his meal, Bai Jiaxuan led the donkey, took the tools for turning the soil, and followed Lu San out to work.

It was early spring, and every household was cultivating the land. Few people, like Bai Jiaxuan, kept their own donkeys and horses; most were tilling the fields with hoes.

Bai Jiaxuan didn't consider himself an outsider. Following the instructions from memory, he skillfully harnessed the donkey to the tools and began to plow the land.

It's still 1910 this year, and he hasn't thought about what he wants to do yet. As for the future, he doesn't really want to get involved.

Perhaps it wouldn't be bad to spend this life peacefully in Bailuyuan, raising children, protecting this land, and then, when this life is over, peacefully leaving this world and returning to reality.

As for what I might really want to do in the future, I'll see when the time comes!

Such a life is quite good. I have a wife, land, and can peacefully farm and raise my children. Life is simple and real.

But with the impending chaos, no one can say for sure how long this peaceful life will last.

As Bai Jiaxuan worked, his braid swayed with his movements. Suddenly feeling a surge of irritation, he stopped and shouted at Lu San in front of him.