Bai Shu returned to his dilapidated house, sitting on a pile of straw, enjoying his meal while listening to the curses coming from Bai Lao San’s family outside.
Under the moonlight, he happily finished the bowl of bean rice. The bean rice wasn’t particularly tasty, quite dry and lacking the satisfaction of the buns and pastries he had during the day.
However, for a family like the Bai’s, having bean rice mixed with glutinous rice was considered decent enough. After finishing the bowl, Bai Shu burped contentedly, his stomach now swollen.
Bean rice was mainly meant to stave off hunger, but eating too much of it wasn’t easy on the digestion.
Bai Shu decided to do some push-ups, but after just a dozen, he got too tired and collapsed.
This won’t do… his current body’s physical condition was really poor.
Lying on the straw bed covered with a few pieces of tattered cloth, Bai Shu recalled the male he had seen during the day.
That male looked really handsome, and surprisingly gentle. He seemed to have a good temperament, and no doubt many would be pursuing him.
Bai Shu wondered if that person might develop feelings for him. Just the thought of that person liking someone else made Bai Shu feel a bit uneasy.
Suddenly, he thought of a serious problem. Since arriving in this body, Bai Shu hadn’t looked into a mirror yet. He had no idea what he looked like!
What if he turned out to be particularly unattractive? Bai Shu shivered at the thought, recalling that Bai He had seemingly insulted his appearance before…
The possibility seemed quite high. Would that mean he had no hope at all?
Fidgeting with restlessness, Bai Shu couldn’t stay lying down. In one swift motion, he sprang to his feet and ran outside.
The cool night breeze of Bai Tang Manor brushed against Bai Shu, causing him to shiver involuntarily.
Bai Shu jogged all the way to the riverbank.
The river flowed peacefully, without a ripple, and the moon hung high in the sky, casting a round reflection on the water.
Kneeling by the riverbank, Bai Shu observed his own reflection in the water.
High nose bridge, large eyes, wheat-colored skin, and a face with distinct angles due to leanness, with a red mole at the center of his eyebrows.
In Bai Shu’s aesthetic judgment, this was undoubtedly a handsome young man. The only flaw might be his slightly rounded eyes, giving a faint impression of softness.
Except for being a bit too thin, he found his own appearance much more pleasing than the delicate Bai He. Overjoyed, Bai Shu leaped up, laughed heartily three times, and exclaimed to the sky.
Looks like Bai He is envious of his appearance, Bai Shu thought.
As long as he diligently exercises and builds a prosperous family business, with his abilities, he’s confident he can win the heart of that male and provide him with the best life!
A few village women who were washing clothes by the river not far away observed Bai Shu acting eccentrically, laughing and jumping by the river.
They shook their heads, making sympathetic comments, “Look at that ger over there, seems to be from Bai’s family. Works hard every day, rough like a man. Now he seems a bit crazy.”
“Poor thing, heard he was originally betrothed to Li Sanlang. But now, Li Sanlang is a scholar. Even if he doesn’t marry a rich girl, he would still want a ger who is elegant and easy to raise. With his appearance, he’s definitely not up to the mark.”
“Yeah, he acted like that after looking in the mirror, probably got a shock. After all, being a ger, he won’t be able to marry in the future…”
The next morning, Bai Zoushi got up early, too rushed even to make breakfast, and went straight to Aunt Wang’s house on the west side of the village.
Aunt Wang was Wang Gangfu’s cousin, always gossiping around, arranging matches here and there. Considering the relationship between Wang Gangfu and Aunt Wang, the matchmaking matter was naturally most suitable for her to handle.
“No, no.” as soon as she heard Bai Zoushi’s intention, she refused, Aunt Wang said decisively. “Pairing Bai Shu with Wang Gangfu? Bai Shu looks like a man, definitely not easy to raise. Which man in the village would want a ger who can’t bear children?”
“Oh, older sister,” Bai Zoushi smiled, “Wang Gangfu already has three sons. Can he afford to have more?”
“In my opinion, someone like Bai Shu is just right. Can’t have children, but strong enough to do farm work. Wang Gangfu can treat him as hired help at home, and it won’t cost much. Bai Shu can’t bear children; he’ll have to work hard to please Wang Gangfu and his sons, won’t he?”
After thinking for a while, Aunt Wang found some merit in the suggestion and agreed to help Bai Zoushi with the match.
Seeing Bai Zoushi off at the door, Aunt Wang asked tentatively, “sister Bai, won’t Bai Laosan feel sorry to see Bai Shu, a member of the Bai family, married off like this?”
“Don’t bring that up!” Bai Zoushi quickly made a distressed face. “Bai Shu is too ignorant. When Li Sanlang wanted to break off the engagement, he blamed it on He’er, flipping the dinner table in the house. He doesn’t consider if he’s suitable or not. It’s better to marry him off quickly!”
Aunt Wang remained silent, just nodding with a smile. After Bai Zoushi left, Aunt Wang sneered behind her back.
This shameless old woman; everyone knows that it was her ger son, Bai He, who stole the marriage proposal intended for Bai Shu. Both of them are like ancient fox spirits; you could tell just by looking at them.
But thinking about it again, Bai Shu is quite obedient and easy to manage. Although he has become more masculine, he can still get along with Wang Gangfu. Aunt Wang happily changed into some new clothes and headed to Wang Gangfu’s house.
Bai Zoushi was handling the morning chores under Aunt Wang’s arrangements. In BaoTang Village, a place known for its abundant fish and rice, households typically consumed rice porridge for breakfast. Bai Lishi, with a prominent belly, scooped out a bowl of coarse rice from the jar, washed it, and then squatted on the ground to add firewood to the stove.
The aroma of rice woke Bai Shu from his slumber. At this hour, the rest of the Bai family was still sleeping. Seeing Bai Lishi preparing breakfast, he grabbed a stool and sat nearby.
Bai Lishi took a glance at him but continued making rice porridge without saying a word. Bai Shu had never been entitled to a share of the family’s breakfast, but what did that matter to him?
Yesterday, Bai Shu had even beaten Bai Dao. As a pregnant woman, could she afford to confront him? After preparing the rice porridge, Bai Lishi scooped a thick bowl for herself. Thinking of her husband, she prepared another bowl and carried both into the room.
Before leaving, she shouted into the room, “Dad, little brother, it’s time for breakfast.”
Since she had already informed them, whether they ate or not was up to their own capabilities.
Bai Shu looked at the watery rice porridge in the pot, drank a bowl, but his stomach was still far from satisfied. So, he used a spoon to scoop out the remaining rice grains, creating a thick bowl of rice soup, which he happily finished with hearty gulps.
When Bai Lao San woke up, Bai Shu had just finished his meal and they had a brief encounter.
“You! You…” Bai Lao San pointed at him, wanting to scold a few words, but he remembered the scene from last night. He decided to swallow the words at the tip of his tongue, grunted through his nostrils, and let it go.
Bai Shu, having eaten his fill and in a good mood, found Bai Lao San less irritating. Ignoring him, Bai Shu swaggered out of the house.
Yesterday, he didn’t even know the name of the other person. Today, he planned to visit the area near the home of that male, hoping to gather some information. With Bai Shu gone, only a pot of plain rice soup remained in the Bai family’s kitchen.
Bai Lao San, shaking with anger, could only manage to gulp down three bowls of rice soup before heading to the fields with an empty stomach.
While walking, Bai Shu suddenly realized that yesterday, the male had treated him to so much delicious food; he couldn’t go empty-handed today. He turned back and grabbed an old sickle from the house.
Bai Shu first went to the back of the mountain, where he picked up a thick bamboo and chopped it into sections. Then, he made holes in the bamboo tubes, used grass to twist into ropes, and threaded them through the holes.
In this way, he crafted several makeshift bamboo tubes. Bai Shu, carrying these bamboo tubes, headed towards the riverside.
Now, as the sun had risen high, many village women had gathered by the riverside to fetch water and wash vegetables.
Observing Bai Shu carrying so many bamboo tubes, someone curiously asked, “Bai Shu, what are you up to?”
“I’m going fishing,” Bai Shu happily replied.
“Fishing? How do you catch fish like that? We’ve only seen people use nets or fishing rods. You think you can catch fish just holding bamboo tubes?” Many village women burst into laughter.
A few who were on good terms with Bai Zhong’s family, like Tian Si from the east side of the village, frowned and said, “Bai Shu, why didn’t you go to the fields to help Bai Lao San today? Remember your roots; your third uncle’s family has been raising you.”
Tian Si had a history of publicly criticizing Bai Shu, leaving him embarrassed and unable to retort each time. However, Bai Shu wasn’t Bai Shu; he glanced sarcastically at Tian Si and boldly exclaimed, “Mind your own business! You shouldn’t meddle in my family affairs.”
Taken aback by his unexpected retort, Tian Si became both angry and resentful. She pointed at Bai Shu and scolded, “You, you’re like a man. No wonder Li Sanlang rejected you. Let’s see how you’ll find a husband in the future!”
Labeling a female zerg as unmarriageable is a severe curse on Zerg star, and any female zerg hearing such words is obligated to duel the speaker. Upon hearing this, Bai Shu swiftly drew his sickle from his waist and menacingly approached Tian Si, saying, “You want to fight? Come and try.”
Tian Si was only good at running her mouth and turned out to be a bit of a coward. She never expected that a few words would prompt Bai Shu to draw his knife. Terrified, she retreated shakily, stammering, “Are you crazy? Don’t… don’t come closer.”
The other village women were equally shocked, rendered speechless. A married ger named Chen, however, with a bit more courage, stepped forward and cautioned Bai Shu, “Let’s talk peacefully, don’t resort to violence.”
He then turned to Tian Si and advised, “Insulting others without reason is in the wrong. Quickly apologize to Bai Shu.”
Reluctantly, Tian Si offered a begrudging apology. Once Bai Shu sheathed his sickle, Tian Si hastily ran off.
The author notes that Bai Shu continues his day of asserting dominance through force.
