The next morning Yichen once again woke up before Mochou. He looked down at him sleeping comfortably in his arms and was tempted to stay in bed cuddling a little longer.
"I can't. I need to go to work." Yichen reminded himself as he expertly slipped out of bed. Mochou grumbled a little when he did. His hands tapping and pulling at the quilt dissatisfied.
"How cute." Yichen loving thought.
It didn't take long before Yichen got dressed, packed, and was ready to leave. He thought about making breakfast but didn't. He wasn't feeling hungry enough to eat alone.
Staying by the bed ready to leave Yichen bent down and kissed Mochou goodbye.
"Goodbye." He whispered.
"Don't go." Mochou mumbled back in his sleep.
Yichen knew Mochou was sleep talking but his heart nearly melted at the request. Tempted to slip back in bed and skip work he caressed Mochou's face.
Knock... knock
His reverie was shattered when he heard a loud knock at the front gate.
Afraid the noise might wake his sleeping cutie Yichen hurried to answer it. He swung the gate open and jumped outside before the unwanted guest had a chance to speak.
"Yichen, I'm glad I caught you." His youngest brother Yi Xuan said.
"Why are you here?" Yichen snapped back unhappily. He was far from happy to see his younger brother at his door early in the morning.
"Mom sent me. She wants me to escort Mochou over to the house." Yi Xuan said.
"He isn't going." Yichen said.
"Don't be like this. Mom's sorry about what happened yesterday."
"If she's sorry why isn't she here to say it herself?"
"Sister-in-law Meng Yao has been vomiting all morning. Mom can't leave her side so she sent me instead." He confessed.
"She expects me to forgive her for treating my spouse like crap when she can't even spare a few minutes to come apologize? Tell mom I'm not interested in her apology." Yichen exclaimed angrily.
"Big brother Yichen don't be like this. You know mom wouldn't have done that if she knew sister-in-law Mochou was pregnant. Give her a break." Yi Xuan reasoned.
"It shouldn't matter that he is pregnant. I asked her to make sure he got rest because of his health. Instead she put him to work."
Yichen decided not to waste time talking to his brother and headed into the village towards the clinic. His brother however persistently followed behind trying to reason with him.
"Did you really expect mom to let him sleep all day? You've seen how she treats Ke Xin. She doesn't go easy on anyone but the pregnant Meng Yao."
Yichen glared at him. He knew Yi Xuan was right about their mother. He had seen the way she treated Ke Xin but he thought it would be different with Mochou. Apparently he was being naive.
"You should have seen her shouting at Ke Xin after you left. She kept asking why she wasn't pregnant despite being married to big brother Yi Nao for over a year." Yi Xuan said hoping to lighten the mood.
"Is that supposed to make me happy?"
"Look at it this way. Mom didn't treat Mochou terrible because she hates him. She did it because he isn't pregnant. But turns out he is pregnant so she can start treating him better." Yi Xuan said.
"You call sending you over at the crack of dawn as treating him better?" Yichen questioned with scorn.
"Will you forgive her if she came herself? If you will I'm sure I can convince her to to do it." Yi Xuan said.
"You're missing the point." Yichen exclaimed in frustration.
"You're being difficult." Yi Xuan retorted.
"Tell mom unless she apologizes to Mochou directly I won't forgive her."
"Are you sure you want her to apologize directly?"
"Why wouldn't I?"
"She's only going to talk about the pregnancy." Yi Xuan said.
Yichen knew his brother was right. However he didn't know what else to say. All he knew was that his mom sending his younger brother wasn't enough.
"Tell mom and everyone not to bother Mochou until I say it's okay. He can't handle the stress right now." Yichen concluded after a long time.
"I can, but I don't know if she'll listen." Yi Xuan said.
"She won't come to apologize in person and she won't stay away if I ask?"
"It's your fault for telling her he's pregnant. There is no way she won't get involved now."
"I'm serious. Mochou is a GER, his health is poor, and he's pregnant. All this added stress will put him and the baby at risk. Tell her to stay away unless she wants him to lose the baby." Yichen said in a serious tone.
"Are you serious? Could he really lose it?" Yi Xuan asked. The usual smile disappearing from his face.
"Yi Xuan, Mochou got pregnant quickly but it doesn't mean it isn't without risk. I won't be able to relax until we get past the first trimester. Until then he needs absolute rest and relaxation." Yichen said.
"Does that mean you want me to tell mom not to bother you for the next couple months?"
"I don't know. I need time to consider things carefully." Yichen said.
"Think quick. I don't know how long mom will be willing to wait."
"I'll take however long I need. Even if it takes a year. She'll just have to wait." Yichen said. His mood getting worse the more they talked.
Realizing he was making things worse Yi Xuan excused himself and went home.
...
When Mochou woke up alone. The familiar sense of loneliness hit him. Fortunately, the feeling quickly passed when he buried his face in the pillow and took a long deep breath. His nose quickly filled with Yichen's unique scent and settled his heart.
Enamoured by the smell, Mochou lingered in bed longer than necessary. He only left when his bladder began to protest.
Once he handled his business Mochou filled a bowl with dried fruit to snack on for breakfast. While he ate the sweet peaches and dried jujube he decided to grab his tools and some wood to whittle.
"What should I make?" He wondered as he sat under the tree. He considered making another hairpin but he felt it would be a waste with the size of the piece of wood he was holding.
He held the piece of wood in his hand and thought about everything he could make from it. After staring at it for a long time he finally decided on what to make.
"I'll make Yichen a new comb." He decided. The wood was too big for a hairpin but it was perfect for a comb.
Mochou saw the little quail he called YiYi wandering the yard peking away at the ground. Feeling inspired, he chose to add a quail adorably peking at some cute little heart shaped grains. It was simple, sweet, and matched perfectly with the hairpin he had previously made.
Considering Yichen's beautiful long thick black hair Mochou made the prongs long and a little thicker.
"He has a lot of hair so it needs to be durable." Mochou thought as he smooth each prong so it could effortlessly glide through Yichen's hair.
When he was done he held it up to the sun and admired his work. The comb was a little on the larger size but Mochou had no intention of changing it. He liked that it had some weighed to it. It was after all a man's comb. Not some dainty little girl's. Satisfied he added the last touch. Their names engraved on the handle with another little heart between them.
Finished he went over and got another piece of wood. This time he decided to make two matching tea cups. Basswood wasn't the ideal wood for drinking cups but Mochou didn't care. He simply decided to make whatever popped into his mind and worry about the practicality later.
Each cup appeared plain but actually took a long time to make. In order to hallow out the wood and make them perfectly symmetrical Mochou had to work more slowly than with the hairpin and comb.
After shaping them he decided to keep the designs clean and simple. He engraved their names on the bottom and added one small thumb sized heart on the side of each cup.
"If this was the other world adding hearts like this would be incredibly cheesy. But no one recognizes them in this world and Yichen likes them." Mochou thought as he lovingly smoothed out the edges of the second heart.
...
At the same time at work Yichen was suffering through another boring day. The doctor turned out to be a chatterbox which made the conversation completely one sided.
"Dear, of brought you a snack." An older woman said.
Yichen looked at the old woman who had entered. She was thin but had ruddy cheeks and a bright smile. Her clothes were clean and well maintained.
"My lovely wife. Come here and meet Yichen, the young man I told you about the other day." Doctor Yen exclaimed.
Hearing his name Yichen stood up to introduce himself.
"Oh my, you are certainly a tall one." The old woman exclaimed as she looked up at Yichen.
"He takes after his father Zi Peng." Doctor Yen explained on his behalf.
"That's right. The village chief had always been one of the tallest men in the village. My name is Ah Lam. Doctor Yen's wife. Thank you for helping my dear old husband with work." She said.
"It's nice to meet you. I am Yichen. My father is the village leader Zi Peng and my spouse is Mochou." Yichen said.
"I heard about you marrying that poor child. How is he?"
"He's doing very well. Thank you for helping him in his younger years. If you hadn't I never would have met such a wonderful spouse." Yichen sincerely said.
"No need to thank us. We did not do nearly enough for the young GER." She said. A sorrowful light in her eyes as she recalled the past.
"Dear, what good things have you brought us to eat?" Doctor Yen asked in hopes of switching to a brighter topic.
"It is nothing special. I got some delicious pastries from our neighbour Caihong. She always makes the most wonderful pastries. I though it would be nice to bring a few over for the two of you.
"Thank you." Doctor Yen said. He cleared off an area of the table for his wife to place the plate with several pastries. Yichen looked at them and couldn't help but wonder if maybe he could take one home to give Mochou.
"Sit down and eat." Doctor Yen told Yichen who was standing there in deep thought.
"Yes, thank you." Yichen said.
Sitting down he lowered his head and took a pastry to eat. They were small little cakes that boasted the smell of strawberries.
With his head down low Ah Lam took notice of Yichen's hairpin.
"Beautiful! Yichen, where did you buy such a beautiful hairpin?" She asked while trying to get a better look.
Hearing her mention his hairpin Yichen's smile nearly stretch from ear to ear.
"Mochou made it for me." He boasted proudly.
"Mochou? How did he make such a thing?" She and Doctor Yen both seemed shocked to hear his claims.
"Mochou is incredible at woodcarving. He can make many things. He made me this hairpin just the other day." Yichen said. He then pulled it out of his hair to show them the beautiful intricate design.
"Unbelievable. Where did he learn such a skill?" She asked.
"My spouse has many hidden talents. This is just one of them. He plans to make more to sell if you are interested."
Yichen began to quickly boast about all the wonderful things he knew about Mochou. His favourite part was the little heart.
"I only needed to show Mochou once how to write our names and look at how perfect he was able to carve them in the wood! If Mochou was a man he could easily pass the officials exam." Yichen praised.
"It is impressive how detailed he can carve writing but what is that strange circle?" Doctor Yen asked.
Yichen had been waiting for that question. With his chest out and head raised high with pride he revealed the secret behind the symbol.
"That is a mark Mochou came up with to represent 'I love you'. Isn't it cute. It's small and easy to recognize. He added it here because he loves me."
Yichen was glowing as he spoke to the dictir and Ah Lam about Mochou. The two older couple didn't mind and sat down together eating their pastries while listening to him.
...
Yichen returned home in an excellent mood. They didn't have any other guests aside from the doctor's wife Ah Lam but Yichen didn't care. He had a lot of fun talking about Mochou. Best of all Ah Lam gave him some extra pastries to bring home with him.
"I wonder if Mochou likes strawberries?" He wondered as he unlocked the gate.
When he entered the door he was surprised to see Mochou sitting under the tree whittling a large piece of wood. Even more surprising were the many finished items around him.
"Mochou, did you make all of these?" Yichen asked.
Mochou stopped what he was doing and looked up at Yichen with his big bright red eyes.
"Welcome home." He said sweetly.
"I'm home. Did you make all these today?" Yichen asked again.
"I did. This basswood is very easy to carve. But I am a little worried they might crack when they finish drying. Yichen how is the hairpin I made you? Has it cracked?" Mochou asked.
Fresh or green wood was softer and easier to carve but there was always a risk of things cracking. He didn't say anything earlier to Yichen because he planned to use the first batch as practice. Once the wood was dry he would feel more confident and be able to make things to sell. So everything he had made so far were only for practice.
"It hasn't." Yichen said. Worried, he then pulled the pin out of his hair to check it. Mochou stood up to take a look as well.
"It seems to be drying just fine. If it does crack tell me and I'll make you another using a longer lasting dry wood." Mochou said happily.
Yichen frowned a little when he heard Mochou say it could crack. He looked at the little pin and in his heart he decided that even if it cracked he would still wear it.
"Here, take a look at what I made today. These will all be for our personal use but if you see anything that might sell I can make more." Mochou said.
Yichen took a look at all the items spread out on the grass. There was a comb, tea cups, rice bowls, chopsticks, three different hairpins, spoons, and it looked like Mochou had just started making a figurine.
"These are all amazing. It's hard to decide what would sell the best." Yichen said. He was naturally drawn to the matching pair of teacups with the hearts engraved on the sides.
"You aren't impartial. Maybe Jie Hong or the doctor can help." Mochou said. He was glad for the praise but it wasn't useful for picking out items to sell.
"I showed Doctor Yen and his wife my hairpin today. They thought it was great. I'm sure if you made the doctor's wife a hairpin she would love it." Yichen said.
"I can, but not with this green wood. Yichen do you think Jie Hong might have some nice dry wood I can use?" Mochou asked. If he was going to give it to someone he wanted to make sure it would last unlike the ones he made for their own personal use.
"I can ask him tonight. If he doesn't, I'm sure he knows someone who does. Maybe we can get a good deal." Yichen said after some thought.
"That sounds great."
With things decided Yichen helped move Mochou's latest creations inside. It had only been one morning yet Mochou had made several beautiful pieces.
"Mochou did you wake up early today? What about breakfast?" Yichen asked.
"I woke up at a decent time. As for breakfast... I didn't cook anything but I did eat some dried fruit." Mochou said.
Yichen wasn't pleased that he didn't have a proper meal. However he considered it good that he at least ate.
"Tomorrow I'll wake you up before I leave and we can eat breakfast together." Yichen said.
"Okay. I'll make some simple rice porridge and buns for us." Mochou responded in return.
...