"Yichen, you need to return the mule to your parents place. While you do that I'll start cooking dinner." Mochou said as he crawled out of bed. Yichen grabbed Mochou's waist and pulled him back into bed.
"Yichen?!"
"Lay with me a little longer?" Yichen said as he flipped Mochou on to his back and leaned over him.
"Not until tonight. We already skipped lunch. I can't keep missing meals. It's unhealthy." Mochou said.
Yichen couldn't refute Mochou's reasoning. He pressed his forehead against Mochou's to check his temperature. Content with the result Yichen climbed off him and and got up.
"I'll return the mule. While I'm gone don't talk to any strangers or let anyone in the yard." Yichen said. He couldn't help but worry. Especially after hearing about what the father and son did to Mochou in the past.
"I'll be careful. You need to be careful, too. You never know when something terrible might happen." Mochou warned with a soft voice filled with love and concern.
He knew this world was safer then the apocalypse he lived in. It was safer but it didn't change the fact unexpected things could happen. Especially now that Yichen was his husband. The husband of the village monster.
"I will." Yichen said with a light chuckle. He then bent down to give Mochou a light kiss on the lips before heading out the door.
...
While Yichen was gone Mochou quickly got to work on dinner. He decided today would be the day he made Yichen a feast. When they were in town he had Yichen buy him a whole chicken and some pork belly. As well as a bag of sugar and a few other treasures.
With everything they bought Mochou first prepped the chicken. He planned to make a beggar's chicken. It was a recipe he learnt as a soldier from one of his men. They couldn't make it often and to be honest when they did they only made it with small game bird but he remembered how delicious it was.
The recipe was simple. He needed to prepare the chicken as usual with herbs and some garlic the wrap it in leaves and coat it in mud to bake in the fire.
"This would be even tastier if I had butter but getting the milk to make it is difficult." Mochou thought as he used the mortar and pestle to grind the herbs, garlic, and oil into a paste.
When he finished he used the paste to season the chicken both inside, outside and even under the skin. When he was done he went outside to get some clay and the large bamboo leaves he had gathered from the forest a few days ago. He brought them back not knowing what he might use them for but now he was happy had them on hand.
After sealing the chicken in layers of leaves and wet clay he placed it in the fire pit under the wood stove. The concept was simple enough and requires little effort. As long as he timed it right and the fire was kept burning it would turn out great. While it cooked he moved to the next item; buns.
He had already premade the dough and it had plenty of time to rise. What he needed to do now was make the filling. Knowing Yichen liked sweets he decided to make a sweet BBQ pork. He didn't have all the ingredients but he was confident he could make something delicious with what he did have.
The recipe was simple enough. The buns were made normally with a little sugar added to make them a bit sweeter. For the filling he chopped up the pork belly into small cubes and fried them up. He added some sugar, flour, and water to the mix to make a sweet sauce.
"I can't believe we found soy sauce." Mochou thought as he generously added some to the mixture.
It was a little expensive or at least that's what Mochou figured considering the costs of the things they bought in town. It wasn't only soy sauce, Mochou was also amazed to find some impressive ingredients at the store including vinegar, chili paste, and some sweet jams.
After he added the soy sauce Mochou tasted the sweet BBQ pork. It wasn't bad considering the lack of ingredients.
"Should I make it a little sweeter?" Mochou mused as he licked his lips.
The pork was crispy and the sauce was sweet but he still couldn't help but wonder if maybe Yichen would prefer something a little sweeter. He looked at the bag of sugar and decided against it.
"The sugar was expensive. I should save it for later." Mochou decided. He then put the bag of sugar away on the shelf.
With the sauce done he quickly formed the buns and stuck them in the bamboo steamer to cook. He made more than enough for him and Yichen. He added even more for Yichen's family as well. Not knowing whether Yichen's family would like the sweet BBQ pork buns he also made some bamboo pork with garlic.
He had made so many he couldn't fit them all in the steamer at one time. It was okay though because Mochou had the time to cook several batches while the chicken continued to bake.
"We can't only eat chicken and meat buns. I also need some rice, a soup, and some vegetables." Mochou thought as he began preparing his next dish.
For the rice he made a fried rice with some garlic, small chunks of pork belly, an egg scrambled, and finally soy sauce. It was simple but delicious in Mochou's opinion.
The soup was also going to be another simple but delicious dish. He hadn't made it yet but he planned to use some of the roast beggar's chicken to make it later. The chicken was big enough and they had enough sides that sparing a little of the meat seemed reasonable.
Although he needed to wait for the chicken to be done he could still prep the ingredients. He cut several vegetables including burdock root, carrots, onion, radish, and cabbage then placed everything in a bowl for later.
Next was the vegetable dish. He looked at the options and the only thing he could think to make was roasted vegetables. As he prepped them he saw the mushrooms sitting in a bowl not far away.
"The rabbit is still alive. Yichen shouldn't have any problem if I cook them." Mochou thought as he licked his lips and reached out for the mushrooms.
He decided to wrap them in a bamboo leaf with garlic and onions and threw them in the steamer to cook. He also made a packet of long beans and did the same. He considered making some other vegetables but when he looked at all the things he had been cooking he decided he had made enough.
"I wonder what is taking Yichen so long? At this rate dinner will grow cold before he returns." Mochou said with worry.
As he kept an eye on the chicken and cooked several batches of food using the steamer he frequently snuck outside to look for Yichen. As more time passed he became more worried.
"His parents only live twenty minutes away." Mochou said as he paced in and out of the little hut. He soon started to debate on whether he should go looking for Yichen.
...
"Mom! Dad! Are you here? I brought the mule back." Yichen shouted as he walked through the gate. Seconds later his mother appeared from inside the house.
"Why do you have the mule? What about your brothers?" She asked.
"I brought Mochou to town and we bought a lot so I used the mule to come back. Yi Hao said he and eldest brother Yi Ming can take the ox cart back later." Yichen explained.
"You went shopping? Yichen how much did you spend? I know you managed to save a lot working for your uncle but you and Mochou will be starting a family soon. You can't do that while living in that rundown hut of his. You need to think about buying a new house. Actually the Quin family the next street over are moving in with their son in law in town next month. You could buy their old house. It needs some repairs but it has four bedrooms and a decent sized yard to raise some chickens." His mother said.
"Mom we've talked about this. Mochou wouldn't like living in the village. After we get settled I plan to talk to dad about buying the land around the hut to build something. But that's for later." Yichen said.
"How long do you plan on waiting until you start working on it? I know several strong men in need of work..."
"Mom, relax. Mochou and I still have a lot to discuss and plan before we start building things. I just came over real quick to drop off the mule. I have to hurry back."
"Why are you leaving so quick? Tell me how things have been? Are you both getting along well? What about food? His buns are tasty but can he cook anything else? Should I make you some..."
"Mom, things are great. In fact he is cooking me dinner right now. Bye!" Yichen quickly said before running out of the yard.
"Wait! You silly boy can't you stay still long enough for a decent conversation." Yichen's mother grumbled as she watched Yichen run away.
...
Walking home Yichen was in an amazing mood. He was excited to eat Mochou's cooking.
"I wonder what he will cook? We bought a chicken and some pork belly. Not to mention the vegetables and he made some dough for some meat buns last night. He did say today would be a feast. Yesterday's fish was delicious and the breakfast he makes is also good. But he said tonight would be special. Hehehe! I can't wait." Yichen thought as he merrily made his way home.
"It's the monster's owner!" A young boy suddenly shouted.
Yichen's mood soured at the sound of the boy's voice. Not wanting to let it slide Yichen turned to complain.
Bam!
Ugh!*
Before he could say anything he was sucker punched.
"What the f***!" Yichen swore as he stumbled.
"That's for this morning." A man said. Without even looking Yichen knew who it was. He didn't recognize the boy's prepubescent voice but he knew the man's voice.
"You're that a**hole who hurt my bae." Yichen cursed his teeth clenched tight in anger.
"Bae? Is that what you call that monster. Pfft... hahaha!" The man retorted while laughing aloud.
Yichen glared back in response. The man wasn't the scariest looking man he had ever seen. He was fit with large muscles and a tall stature however so was Yichen. Yichen spit out a little blood and wiped his face as he looked at the man with contempt.
"Who are you?" Yichen asked. He wanted to know the name of the man who dared to hurt Mochou.
"Me? I'm Qi Lan and I'm sick of seeing that monster roaming the village and giving my wife and children nightmares. The two of you should f**k off." The man said. Apparently he wasn't afraid to give Yichen his name.
"Sorry to disappoint Qi Lan but Mochou and I aren't going anywhere." Yichen said before he lunged forward with his fist clenched tight ready to strike.
Qi Lan dodged Yichen's right straight but Yichen expected it. Seconds later he jabbed twice with his left into the man's gut. He hit hard and fast causing the man to buckle under the pain.
"Stop?!" The boy shouted from worry but Yichen wasn't done yet.
He threw a right hook at the man's face and hit him square in the jaw.
Ugh*
The man groaned as he stumbled away. Yichen stood back his arms raised in preparation for another attack. Qi Lan glared at him with blood dripping down his chin. Yichen wasn't afraid he stared back equally furious.
"You little f**k!" The man shouted.
"Back at you. How dare you use my bae as hunting practice! How dare you call him a monster!" Yichen shouted before he stepped forward again. He wasn't satisfied with just a few hits he wanted to do more. He wanted to utterly destroy the man in front of him.
This time the man was better prepared and managed to strike back. The two men exchanged several hits between them. Yichen had the upper hand until Qi Lan struck low and swept his leg across the ground and tripped Yichen onto his back.
Laying down on his back was bad. Yichen looked up and saw the man raise his leg ready to stomp down with all his weight directly into his gut.
"No way." Yichen muttered as he quickly rolled away. He rolled several times until he felt he was out of danger. When he stopped he glared at the man and moved to stand back up.
Bang!*
"I got him dad!" The boy exclaimed after hitting Yichen in the back with a stick he found on the ground.
Yichen groaned from the unexpected attack but luckily the boy was weak and the stick was thin. He shook off the attack and jumped back up ready for the man.
The boy tried to hit Yichen's legs when he realized his first attempt didn't do much damage but Yichen kicked the boy away. He didn't want to hit him hard but the boy was still thrown a meter or two away from the impact.
"Ahh!!! Daddy it hurts!" The boy shouted as he lay on the ground clutching his stomach.
His screams finally caught the attention of the villagers who were all inside preparing to eat dinner. With an audience forming Yichen was quickly turning into the villain of this story.
Even so he didn't want to back down. Not while that man could still stand tall.
Yichen moved forward once more determined to knock the man down. Qi Lan also lunged forward more angry than before because of Yichen's attack on his son.
The two men exchanged several punches. At first they seemed to be equal in strength but soon Yichen's experience and lessons in martial arts proved to give him the upper hand.
He landed several blows to Qi Lan's face before aiming for his stomach again. Qi Lan groaned from the hits. He tried to retaliate but Yichen had gained the momentum and refused to let it go. He raised his knee hard and jammed it straight into Qi Lan's gut.
Bam! Bam!
Hit hard Qi Lan finally collapsed on the ground. His body bent over. Yichen stood over him panting for breath.
"Don't ever come near me or my spouse again. Don't ever call him a monster! He is my bae! A sweet kind strong stubborn GER who deserves to be loved! He is my spouse and I will fight anyone who dares try to hurt him." Yichen proclaimed loudly as he looked around at the villagers that had gathered to watch.
The crowd went quiet as they watched Yichen walk away with his head raised high.
...