The morning passed quickly and it was now noon. Mochou looked at the leftovers and they still had some chicken and vegetables left. Enough to make a quick stir fry for lunch. The only problem was if the food was still good.
"Yichen do you think it's still okay to eat?" Mochou asked after unwrapping the last of the chicken. It looked fine but Mochou couldn't help but worry because it had almost been a full day since he cooked it.
"Does it smell bad?" Yichen asked.
"No, but it's meat. Won't it go bad after a day?" Mochou pointed out. He had gotten less squeamish about eating food that wasn't properly refrigerated during the apocalypse but the lessons he learned about food safety as a modern man still made him worry.
Yichen didn't see the problem. He walked over and had a look at the meat. Because they had properly covered it no insects got in and it was kept in a cool place. As far as he was concerned it was still good.
"It's fine. There shouldn't be any problems if we finish the meat today." Yichen said.
"Okay." Mochou said before taking it.
"How strange. He's clearly had problems eating enough but he still worries if the food has started to rot? Usually people who don't know when their next meal will be are willing to eat anything." Yichen thought as he watched Mochou carefully examine the leftover chicken.
"Mochou is your stomach okay?" Yichen couldn't help but wonder. If Mochou had a stomach ache. If he did it would explain is aversion to eating.
"No, I feel fine. I've been eating so well recently my stomach has improved a lot." Mochou said which only confused Yichen more.
"If you do get a stomachache or feel unwell tell me right away. I'll prepare you some medicine." Yichen said.
"Medicine, hmm. Yichen when will you start taking THAT medicine?" Mochou asked his cheeks changing from a light pink to crimson.
"That... Cough* I have most of the ingredients but I'm missing one. It's not the easiest to find so I will need to go to the pharmacy in town to byu some." Yichen answered his cheeks similarly red.
"I see. Is it too late to go after talking with your dad?" Mochou asked.
"Probably." Yichen reluctantly admitted.
When Mochou was asleep Yichen had some time to look through his kit for the ingredients. It was a recipe he knew well. His uncle often prescribed labourers or people from those types of establishments the medication. There were also a few mistresses who needed to take it because the first wife hadn't gotten pregnant yet. The reasons were plentiful so birth control drugs were actually quite popular.
"Then I guess we'll need to visit town again tomorrow." Mochou said with a sigh.
"You know there are other ways that don't require medication." Yichen hinted as he shifted his body closer to Mochou.
"There are but they aren't as reliable as taking medication." Mochou slowly said.
"Maybe if you were a woman but for a GER who naturally has low fertility, the risk is very very low." Yichen added as he moved closer and closer to Mochou.
Mochou seemed tempted by the offer, but even if he agreed now wasn't the time.
"Maybe we can explore our options tonight?" Mochou said after some thought.
"Why wait until tonight? We could try them now?" Yichen whispered in Mochou's ear.
Mochou turned to look at Yichen with big tempting eyes. Yichen gulped as he watch his eyelashes flutter. Drawn to Mochou like a moth to a flame he moved closer. His lips nearly touching Mochou's.
"Not until tonight." Mochou said before pulling away from Yichen and walking out of the hut to go get water from the well.
Yichen slumped down into a chair and banged his head against the table.
...
After lunch Yichen rushed Mochou out the door. He wanted to finish talking with his father so that maybe they could eat dinner early and have an early night.
"Yichen, why the rush?" He asked with a grin.
"No rush. I'm just excited to get started on the new house."
"I see. I'm also excited for the new house. I'm so excited I don't know if I'll be able to get any sleep tonight?" Mochou said with a light laugh.
"I can think of a few ways to help you sleep"
"I'm sure you can. But don't overdo it. We need to go to town tomorrow."
"That depends on you. At night, the way you look always draws me in and makes me want more."
"Don't blame me for your lack of control." Mochou teased.
"You're the only one who can make me loss control."
Holding hands, they continued flirting and talking in innuendos as they walked over to the house.
...
"Dad, you free?" Yichen shouted as he entered through the front gate.
"Yichen, Mochou you're here?" His mother said as she popped out from inside.
"Why do you look surprised? Didn't you here me tell dad we needed to talk to him last night?" Yichen retorted.
"I heard but I didn't expect you both to come so early."
"Are we too early? Is dad still busy?" Yichen asked a little worried.
"He went out real quick with your brother to speak with the Gin family son." His mother said.
"In that case we'll come back later."
"What do you mean you'll come back later? Stay here and tell me how things have been between the two of you." His mother insisted.
Yichen flashed an apologetic look towards Mochou before agreeing to go inside to chat. Mochou quietly followed along.
"Second brother-in-law Yichen, Sister-in-law Mochou, welcome." Meng Yao said.
"Eldest sister-in-law, it's nice to see you again. How is your pregnancy going?" Yichen politely replied. Meng Yao placed her hand gingerly on her stomach and smiled.
"Things are progressing well. Thank you for asking. Would you like some tea?" She asked.
"Meng Yao, you sit down. I will prepare the tea." Yichen's mother insisted before disappearing into the kitchen. Mochou wanted to offer his help but before he could Yichen had pulled out a chair and told him to sit down.
"I should help." He whispered before trying to get up again.
"Your arm is hurt. It will be faster to let mom do it by herself." Yichen said to stop Mochou from going.
Meng Yao watched and decided to help her younger brother-in-law.
"The water has already been boiled. All mother-in-law needs to do is add some tea. It will only take a minute. Don't worry and sit down." She said. Mochou nodded but he still wasn't able to relax.
"Why am I so nervous? Yichen's family has always treated me well. I shouldn't be afraid of them. I shouldn't but I can't help but feel uneasy." Mochou thought.
Yichen could tell he was nervous so he grabbed Mochou's hand and rubbed the top of it with his thumb softly. His touch was sadly counterproductive. Showing off there intimacy in front of Yichen's family made Mochou feel self-conscious. He pulled his hand away shyly leaving Yichen confused and empty-handed.
Before Yichen could ask him about it his mother returned with some tea.
"Your father has been so busy recently. Apparently there have several robberies throughout the village. Not to mention your fight yesterday. Tch... what has become of our sweet little village?" His mother said.
"Robberies? Actually Mochou and I were also robbed." Yichen revealed when he remembered the traps Mochou set.
"You have! What was stolen? I knew living in theat dilapidated hut was no good. It has no security or neighbours to watch the place for you while you're out. You need to move home." His mother said.
"Mom, we aren't leaving our home. You also got it wrong about the theft. It was the traps Mochou set up to catch rabbits and birds in the forest. They were tampered with and anything that might have been caught was stolen." Yichen explained.
"Traps? Why are you still setting traps? Yichen how could you allow Mochou to continue wandering that dangerous forest? As his husband you should give him everything he needs. There should be no reason for him to endanger himself for a simple meal now that he has you." His mother lectured.
"Mom, don't say it like I'm mistreating Mochou. He... no we are doing it because we want to. I'm am not forcing Mochou to do anything he doesn't want. Besides that's not the problem. The problem is that there are people stealing the animals we catch. It's a crime." Yichen said.
His mother glared at Yichen with narrowed eyes. It was obvious she didn't agree with their choices.
"Aside from the usual hunters no one has been selling any birds or rabbits here in the village." Meng Yao interjected. Her timely words helped to ease the tension in the room between Yichen and his mother.
"They must have gone into town to sell them. Maybe dad will know more." Yichen welcomed the interruption and quickly began speaking with Meng Yao about the problem.
While they talked Mochou couldn't help but remember the man that was watching their home the other day. There was also Yichen's childhood friend that seemed suspicious.
"I thought this world would be safer but..." Mochou lowered his head in thought. The thought that their home wouldn't be safe. Made him feel uneasy and tense.
"We're back!" Yi Xuan shouted aloud interrupting their conversation.
?!
Mochou was so lost in thought that he nearly jumped out of his chair from the shout.
"Why are you shouting!" Their mother shouted back.
"How could you tell me not to dhout when you're also shouting?" Yi Xuan retorted with a laugh.
"Mochou are you okay? Did he scare you? Should I smack him a good one?" Yichen asked as he checked on Mochou.
"What, hey, don't hit me. I didn't do anything wrong?" Yi Xuan pleaded when he heard Yichen's words.
"Don't do anything. I'm fine. He just surprised me." Mochou said a little embarrassed by his own reaction. Yichen relaxed back in his chair but not without given Yi Xuan the stink eye.
His younger brother didn't seem to care and moved to sit next to Mochou.
"Hey, I ate some of those meat buns you made this morning. The sweet ones were really interesting. Personally I don't usually like sweet things, not like my third brother Yichen, but I still think they were really good." Yi Xuan happily began saying.
"I'm glad you liked them." Was all Mochou could think to say in return.
"Yichen, did you wait long?" His father said from the doorway. Unlike his son he entered the house quietly and without making a fuss.
"Not at all. We just got here, but I must admit I am in a bit of a hurry to talk." Yichen said to his father.
"In that case let's go to my office."
"Mochou, let's go." Yichen said grabbing his hand.
"Why must he go with you? Let him stay here so we can chat some more." Yichen's mother complained.
"No way. We're going to talk about our house. He needs to come along to tell dad what he wants." Yichen said before pulling him away down the hall to his father's office.
...
Once inside the office Mochou and Yichen sat down across the table from his father. The atmosphere was strangely serious despite everyone being family.
"Tell me. What did you want to talk about?" His father said.
"Mochou and I have decided we want to build a house next to our current home by the edge of the forest."
"It would be a lot cheaper to purchase one in the village. Didn't your mother already tell you about the vacant house not far from ours?"
"We don't want to live in the middle of town. We like the privacy our current location offers." Yichen said. The way he tried to speak more formally surprised Mochou a little but he didn't hate it.
"He sounds so dependable." Mochou thought as he looked at Yichen with pride.
Have you given any thought on how large of a piece of land you want or what the house will look like?" His father asked.
"Of course!" Yichen proudly said before pulling out the paper with Mochou's drawing.
His father brow furrowed and his lips were pressed tight when Yichen pulled out the paper. It was clear he didn't want to look at it.
"Yichen, you're drawings are worthless. Don't even bother." He said with a wave of his hand.
"This isn't mine. It was made by Mochou. He's an amazing artist!" Yichen said as he unfolded the paper to reveal the drawing.
Yichen's father didn't expect much when he leaned forward to look at the picture.
"This... this is quite good. Mochou you have a talent for calligraphy it seems." He generously praised after looking at the paper.
"Anything can be great if compared to my hubby's work." Mochou wanted to say but he decided to keep to himself instead.
"Thank you for the compliment." Mochou stiffly replied either a light blush.
"There is no doubt my Mochou is amazing. Look here. This area is our current home. We hope to buy the area next to it so we can expand our yard and build the new house next door."
"You don't plan to tear down your current hut?" His father asked.
"No, it's not in the best shape but we can use it as a shed after the house is built. This here is the house we want to build."
"Are these two structures also sheds?"
"No. This one will be for my medicinal plants and seeing patients. This other one will be for Mochou to do anything he wants?" Yichen briefly explained.
"It's great you thought about making a separate hut for your work. You'll seem more professional and help build confidence in anyone who approaches you for help." Yichen's father said.
"Mochou said the same thing. He's very thoughtful in that regard." Yichen praised.
"What's this space in the center of the house?"
"That's a little courtyard. Mochou thought it would be nice having an open space at the center of the house to let in some fresh air or sunshine. We can also relax and grow herbs in it. It's a very private space we can use however we want." Yichen explained.
"I'm familiar with this type of design. It's very common amongst the wealthy but their homes are a lot larger. If you made one for your home it will be rather small. Maybe only large enough for a small seating area to enjoy tea. Is it worth it to use the space for an open area?" Yichen's father asked.
In large towns or cities especially in the Capital it was common for houses to have central courtyards and multiple wings with individual courtyards. Each courtyard would be assigned to a mistress or child and instead of a single home it looked more like a compound. Even Yichen's family home, despite its large size, was one building without a central courtyard.
"I know it's unusual given the size of our house but I think it's a great idea. This way we will have a private place that's just for the two of us." Yichen said.
Yichen's father stared into his son's eyes for a few seconds. When he couldn't see any wavering or doubt he gave in and continued asking about the house.
"This plan is feasible however they might need to be adjusted for the wells."
"What do you mean?" Yichen asked.
"The area around Mochou's hut was once a residential area. There are several wells that were dug during that time."
"I haven't seen any wells when looking around."
"They've been covered for safety. Let's go take a walk to see what we find." His father explained.
"If there are, that would be great. Hopefully they'll be in places closer to the house so we won't have to travel to our current well each time." Yichen said.
"Hopefully the distance between them will also allow for the size of your home. Yichen, you might have to change the location. Are you willing to purchase an area further away?"
"I'd rather not. We want to connect our current yard to the new one." Yichen stubbornly stated.
"Yichen, it's fine if we need to move a little further away. There is a lot of open space in the area." Mochou said.
"There is, but it would be best if we can get the land connected to our current yard." Yichen said.
"Nothing is known until we take a look. Let's go." His father said.
The three of them stood up to leave. Knowing their plans for a new house were progressing made Both Mochou and Yichen smile happily. As they walked out of the room
...