After fleeing the famine, my older sister and I married the brother next door.

Mr. Chen lit his pipe, took a puff, and then spoke. His voice was slower than Mrs. Chen's, but every word was heavy.

"After Afu gets married, if he stays home to tend the medicinal herbs on the barren mountain, the income from the herbs will be split equally between Gongzhong and Afu—Gongzhong takes half, and Afu takes half. This is because he has put in the effort. Shitou and Aji, if you continue to work in the county town and don't come back to help, then the income from the herbs will have nothing to do with you. Gongzhong will be responsible for your food and lodging when you come back home, but you can't just eat and stay for free. You have to do the work that needs to be done and can't just stand by and do nothing. You are also not allowed to be envious of Afu's share of the income from the herbs. While he was sweating on the mountain, you were sitting in the county town."

Stone spoke, his tone calm but earnest.

"Grandpa, don't worry. We didn't work at home, so we have no right to take a share of our parents' and Afu's earnings. Afu worked hard on the mountain, so he deserves his share. We have jobs in the county town and our own income, so we won't be envious."

Aji nodded, his voice short and forceful, saying that he and Shitou thought the same way.

Chen's mother looked at her two sons—Chen Dashan and Chen Xiaohe. Chen Dashan put down his teacup, looked at his eldest son and two nephews, and explained the arrangements for the shop in the county town again, his tone steady.

"There are two houses in the county town. We won't divide them now; you three brothers will divide them equally after we pass away. Your grandparents' words are my words, and I won't change them. Also, when you get married, you can choose to separate from us or not. If you don't separate, half of the money you earn will go to the village coffers, and the remaining half will be yours. Daily expenses will be covered by the village coffers, so you don't need to worry about it. If you choose to separate, you'll need to give us a pension every year, starting from the year you separate, at the same standard as other families in the village, without exception. And one more thing—" Chen Dashan paused, looked at Chen Xiaohe, and Chen Xiaohe nodded, "Even after your grandparents pass away, Xiaohe, Xiaoqing, and I will not separate. We will always live together and will never be separated."

Afu asked softly, "Uncle, after we get married, can we still live with you? I don't want to separate from the family." Chen Dashan smiled, a rare occurrence, and said, "Of course you can. If you don't want to separate, then don't. There's plenty of room in the house. As long as your wives don't cause trouble and are willing to live with us, we welcome them." At the kitchen doorway, Su Xiaoqing put down the spatula and wiped her eyes. Chen Xiaohe patted Afu on the shoulder.

Shi Tou stood up and bowed deeply to Chen's parents, Chen Dashan, and Chen Xiaohe, saying, "Grandpa, Grandma, Uncle, Aunt, Father, and Mother, you've all worried so much about us brothers. We'll always remember it. No matter what, we'll always be one family." Aji and Afu also stood up and bowed along with Shi Tou.

Chen's mother's eyes reddened, but she didn't let the tears fall. She waved her hand and said, "Alright, alright, we're all family, no need for this. Just remember what we said today. From now on, no matter who enters our family, they can't break the rules."

The aroma of food wafted from the kitchen, and Su Xiaoyin called out, "Dinner's ready!" The family followed one by one towards the kitchen. Shi Tou was the last to arrive, pausing at the entrance to the main room and glancing back at his grandfather, who was sitting in a grand chair smoking. Chen's father waved him off, saying, "Hurry up, the food won't taste good if it gets cold." Shi Tou nodded and turned to walk into the sunlight.

----

Afu returned to the county town from home, clutching the pair of silk flowers in his arms. His heart was pounding faster than usual the whole way. The silk flowers were made by Su Xiaoqing; they were peach blossoms, a delicate pink, with layers upon layers of petals, and gold thread embellishing the stamens, shimmering in the light. Su Xiaoqing had specially chosen the two best flowers and asked Afu to take them to Zhao Qinghuan, saying it was for him to give to his future daughter-in-law to please him—although they weren't officially married yet, the two families were already engaged, and Su Xiaoqing had long considered Zhao Qinghuan as family.

Afu first went to the clinic, spoke a few words with Doctor Li, and finished processing the medicinal herbs to be prepared that day. Only then did he head to Zhao's herbal shop, carrying the silk flowers. He walked quickly, and the journey from the clinic to Zhao's shop took less than the time it takes to brew a cup of tea. He stood at the door for a while, straightening his clothes repeatedly, before finally stepping inside. Zhao Qinghuan was standing behind the counter, sorting the medicinal herbs, picking out the newly arrived codonopsis roots one by one, separating them by thickness, and arranging them in a drawer lined with oil paper. She wore a slightly worn blue cotton jacket, the sleeves rolled up to her elbows, revealing half of her fair forearms. Her hair was tied up with a wooden hairpin, with a few stray strands hanging down beside her ears. Afu stood at the door, watching for a while, then forgot to take a step.

"You're here? Why don't you come in?" Zhao Qinghuan looked up, saw him, and smiled.

Afu snapped out of his daze, blushed, and quickly walked over, taking the silk flowers out of his pocket and handing them to her. He was tongue-tied, only managing to say, "These are new silk flowers my mother made; I picked out two of the best ones for you." Zhao Qinghuan took them, looked down at them, and examined the pair of peach blossom silk flowers in her hands, turning them over and over in her gaze. She said they were truly beautiful, and that her mother was very skillful. She carefully placed the silk flowers into the drawer under the counter and turned to look at Afu.

Afu hesitated for a moment, then sat down at the counter and explained to his family that they were considering whether to separate the household after his marriage. He then carefully explained the differences between separating and not separating the household—if they didn't separate, half of the money earned would go to the family coffers, and the rest would be his, with daily expenses covered by the family coffers; if they separated, they would have to pay retirement money at the end of each year, starting from the year they separated. Afu spoke slowly, as if reciting a memorized text, but every word was pronounced clearly.

Zhao Qinghuan listened but didn't answer immediately. She leaned against the counter, her fingers unconsciously fiddling with a ginseng root, rolling it up and unfolding it again. After a moment, she looked up and asked her first question. Her voice was soft, but her tone was earnest.

"After you get married, will you continue to be an apprentice at the clinic, or will you go home to tend to medicinal herbs?"

Ah Fu had thought about this question before, and when he spoke, his pace was a few seconds faster than before, as if he had finally found an outlet for words he had been holding back for a long time.

"After the wedding, I will return to the village. There's not much left for me to learn at the clinic now. Dr. Li has said for a long time that I can graduate from my apprenticeship. It's just that he hasn't found a suitable replacement yet, which is why it's been delayed until now. A couple of days ago, Dr. Li talked to me and said that he will let me officially graduate from my apprenticeship a month before my wedding. He found a relative to take over my job. This person has studied medicine for a few years and will learn quickly. I've also discussed with Dr. Li that I will give priority to selling the medicinal herbs from the mountains to him after I process them, and he will also give priority to buying our herbs. He will also buy a certain amount of the medicinal wine and ointment I make. So after the wedding, I will mainly stay in the village and won't stay in the county town anymore."

Zhao Qinghuan nodded, put the ginseng root back into the drawer, and patted the crumbs off her hands.

"Then we won't separate."

Afu was stunned for a moment, not expecting her to make a decision so quickly.