After Awakening, the Control Group’s Husband Decided to Lie Flat - Chapter 7 Harvest and Homecoming

Chapter 7 Harvest and Homecoming

On the second day of the tenth month, Lu Sui finally descended the mountain and returned home.

“Mom! It’s brother—he’s back!” Lu Yan rushed into the house like a gust of wind. “Mom, come quick! Brother even hunted a live deer!”

Hearing that, Lu Sui’s mother’s face bloomed with joy, her eyes shining bright.

“He’s finally back!”

As she spoke, she wiped her hands on her apron and quickly stepped outside.

In the courtyard, Lu Sui had parked the handcart in the middle and was unloading it piece by piece. When he saw his mother, he called out,

“Mom.”

“Why did you come back so late?” His mother looked at her son, travel-worn and weary, and her heart ached terribly. The light in her eyes turned into tears. “Didn’t I tell you to come back earlier? I was worried sick about you—almost begged your uncle to go up the mountain and look for you…”

Lu Sui led the deer down from the cart and said, “I should’ve come down earlier, but waiting for this deer delayed me a few days.”

He had planned to descend on the twenty-sixth of the ninth month. But when he went to check his snares, he spotted this deer—a fully grown stag with magnificent antlers. Just the antlers alone could fetch a good price. Lu Sui had been tempted and decided to hunt it.

By then, his provisions had almost run out, and he survived on wild pheasant meat and chestnuts. As a result, he’d visibly lost weight.

Still, having caught the deer made all the hardship worth it.

His mother, upon seeing the deer, was delighted and said quickly,

“Ah Yan, go help your brother. I’ll cook right away!”

“Okay!” Lu Yan answered brightly, helping his brother unload. “Brother, you’ve caught so much this time! It’s a huge harvest!”

“Mhm. Once I sell everything, I’ll buy you a roast chicken.”

The last time the brothers had gone to town to sell game, they’d passed by a roast chicken shop. The aroma had been mouthwatering, but each chicken cost a hundred coins. A live chicken itself only went for eighty at most, and they couldn’t afford it then. Ever since, Lu Yan had been craving it.

Lu Sui had thought then that once he earned enough from his hunts, he’d buy one for his mother and brother to try.

“Really?” Lu Yan’s eyes lit up, but he soon lowered his head. “Forget it… It’s too expensive. Better to buy some cured meat instead.”

Their mother had said that his brother would soon marry, so they needed to save money.

“No need to scrimp. This time I can make a lot,” Lu Sui said, reaching out to ruffle his brother’s hair. “Go and put the two pheasants in the coop.”

Lu Yan’s eyes sparkled. “Got it!”

Lu Sui locked the deer in the empty pigpen, placed the five live rabbits in their bamboo cages by the chicken coop, and brought the wild fruits he’d gathered from the mountains into the kitchen for his mother.

Two rabbits and several pheasants had died; since dead ones fetched little, he’d skinned and eaten them on the mountain. Their pelts, however, could still be sold.

After tidying up, his mother had already finished cooking. Though it was cold rice, she’d made special dishes for him—stir-fried eggs with dried radish and cabbage tossed in sesame oil—filling two large bowls. The aroma made Lu Yan, who had already eaten lunch, swallow his saliva and find an excuse to go outside.

It had been a long time since Lu Sui had eaten a proper meal. He devoured two full bowls of rice and finished both dishes. He knew oil was precious at home, but thinking that he’d have silver once the deer was sold, he allowed himself to eat freely.

“I’ll wash the dishes. You go heat some water and have a good bath. Rest for the next couple of days,” his mother instructed.

“Alright.” Lu Sui truly was exhausted—he hadn’t slept well the past few nights while tracking the deer and hadn’t properly bathed either. “I’ll rest tonight and go sell the game in the county early tomorrow.”

He boiled a pot of water, bathed thoroughly, changed into clean clothes, and stayed home. But even then, he couldn’t nap—neighbors and relatives who’d heard he’d caught a deer kept coming to see, keeping him up all afternoon.

At dawn the next morning, he set out with his handcart.

There were few wealthy buyers in the town, so though small game sold easily, the deer might not fetch a good price. Thus, Lu Sui had decided to go straight to the county.

He could’ve spent twenty coins to take a boat, but with so much to carry—and a deer in tow—it was inconvenient. Pulling the cart was cheaper, though the journey took over an hour on foot.

The late-autumn morning air was chilly, mist still hanging over the road. Few people were out that early, most of them, like him, bringing goods to sell. As he neared the county, the streets grew livelier, and passersby stared curiously at him and the deer on his cart.

This wasn’t his first trip to sell in the county, so he easily found his way to the trading market. There were fixed stalls and open spots—he paid twenty coins for a temporary space.

The pheasants and rabbits sold quickly. By mid-morning, everything but the deer was gone. Pheasants fetched less since their meat was lean and tough, though their feathers made them popular with the wealthy. Rabbits, on the other hand, were prized for both their meat and pelts.

Two pheasants sold for 142 coins; five rabbits brought 710, and two bundles of rabbit fur went for another 60. Altogether, he made 912 coins.

Only the deer remained. A few restaurant owners and servants from wealthy households came by to ask, but their offers were low. Lu Sui waited patiently.

By late morning, just as he was debating buying a fried dough snack to stave off hunger, a well-dressed steward hurried over, clearly looking for him.

“Still here—thank goodness!” the man puffed, panting heavily from his rush.

Lu Sui stayed calm and waited until the man caught his breath before asking, “Are you here for the deer?”

“Yes—yes, I heard someone was selling one and came as fast as I could. Good thing you’re still here!” The steward, a plump man in his forties with a trimmed beard, grinned broadly. “You know the Chen family from the east of town? Our old master turns sixty soon—this deer will be perfect for his birthday celebration.”

“This is a mature stag. Its antlers alone could sell for two taels of silver—”

Before he could finish, the steward waved his hand.

“I know, I know. If it were cheap, it wouldn’t be worthy of our master’s celebration. We can’t have our lord losing face!”

Lu Sui met his gaze silently, saying nothing.

“Sixty-six taels,” the steward said, holding up six fingers. “An auspicious number—let’s leave it at that, shall we?”

No one else had offered even fifty taels earlier, so sixty-six exceeded Lu Sui’s expectations. Lowering his lashes, he gave a small nod. “Alright. Shall I deliver it to your residence?”

“No need, I brought men with me.” The steward chuckled. “We’ll settle the payment right here. Young man, if you get rare game like this again, bring it straight to the Chen residence in the east.”

“Understood.” Having a regular buyer was always a good thing.

Once money and goods were exchanged, the Chen steward took the deer and left.

Lu Sui hid the silver in the secret inner pocket of his tunic and kept only a few loose coins. He then stopped by a noodle shop for a bowl of Three-Delicacy Noodles—though it cost twenty-five coins, the portion was huge, the toppings fresh, the noodles springy, and the broth rich and savory. Slurping it down on an empty stomach felt incredibly satisfying.

He then bought a roast chicken from the same shop he’d seen before, as well as sweet milk cakes and glutinous rice pastries from a confectionery stall. The rest of the goods were cheaper in town, so he decided to skip them for now and head straight home.

By the time he returned, it was already late afternoon. When his mother heard he’d sold the deer for sixty-six taels, she was overjoyed, immediately lighting incense to thank the kitchen god, their ancestors, and Lu Sui’s late father.

Lu Yan was already gnawing happily on the roast chicken leg his brother had torn off for him, beaming brighter than on New Year’s Day.

Naturally, with money in hand, their mother’s thoughts turned to marriage.

“Ah Sui, now that we’ve saved up a bit, it’s time to think about your marriage. Remember that girl—Cui Fen’s niece—”

Before she could finish, Lu Sui interrupted quietly,

“I already have someone in mind.”

His mother froze, then her face lit up in surprise and delight, as if her wooden son had finally come to life. “Whose daughter is she? Why didn’t you tell me sooner? I’ll go find a matchmaker right away!”

“I… don’t actually know whose family he’s from,” Lu Sui said, averting his gaze. His ears flushed red. “When I visited Uncle’s place last time, I met a ge’er by the creek in Xia Family Village. I don’t know if he’s married.”

“What?” His mother blinked. Beside her, Lu Yan, mouth greasy from the chicken, piped up,

“Brother, if you say it like that, how are we supposed to know who it is? You have to tell us what he looks like!”

Still blushing, Lu Sui didn’t look at either of them. “He was clean and well-dressed… If I saw him again, I’d recognize him.”

He wanted to add that the ge’er had skin so fair it almost dazzled the eyes—but that felt too improper, too bold. He couldn’t bring himself to say it.

His mother chuckled softly. “Alright then. Tomorrow I’ll go visit your uncle and ask your aunt.”

“Okay.”

Though his expression stayed composed, the flush of his ears and the faint tremor of his lashes betrayed him completely.