While hunting in the mountains, Van Dai suddenly shivered.
He shook his head, wondering to himself: Why do I feel cold in this hot weather? Could I have low blood sugar?
This morning, after only a few hasty bites of rice, Van Dai was dragged into the mountains by his friend. They had been wandering for more than half the day.
Perhaps it was bad luck, but they hadn't come across any large prey today, only managing to hunt three wild rabbits and four pheasants.
Normally, for a trip up the mountain, this much prey for two people was hardly worth the effort. But Van Dai's mind was currently filled with the image of his little wife, scratching at his heart and making it itch with longing. He wished he could rush back and hold her immediately.
Van Dai suggested they head back for the day and go again tomorrow.
Tran Hung didn't want to leave the mountain yet, saying he wanted to go on for another hour or two.
But Van Dai knew he couldn't stay any longer. He wondered if his wife back home had eaten yet.
Seeing that he was genuinely unwilling to continue, Tran Hung relented. "Dai, how about we have dinner together tonight? We can roast a rabbit, stew a chicken, and bring it over to Tru's place? You didn't come yesterday, so we saved that jar of wine, saying we'd wait to drink it with you for it to be satisfying!"
The two began to descend the mountain. Van Dai replied listlessly, "Let's skip it. I've been feeling low on energy these past few days. Maybe it's the heat, I've been sweating a lot and feel a bit drained."
Tran Hung was taken aback. "Dai, what are you talking about? You feel drained? Impossible! You're the strongest man in our village, how could you feel this way? Maybe you should go down the mountain tomorrow and see a physician. What if you're sick?"
Van Dai smirked. What illness could he have!
If it was an illness, it was the illness of lovesickness for his wife!
"No need, no need. I think I'll be fine once the weather cools down in a few days."
Tran Hung disagreed.
"Dai, you can't take your health lightly. We're all single bachelors. It would be a huge problem if we really got sick. Do you see Uncle Hoang in the village? He used to be so strong, but he became disabled just from breaking a leg in a fall. Even his wife left him. Now he lives from hand to mouth, barely getting by."
Van Dai knew his friend meant well. Weren't there more than a dozen bachelors in the village?
When they were young, being single wasn't a big deal, aside from going mad from longing for a wife. But once they got old, which bachelor ever lived a peaceful life?
As soon as this thought flashed through his mind, Van Dai's pace quickened. He had to keep his wife, to have her by his side. He didn't want to live alone anymore!
Seeing Van Dai walking so fast, Tran Hung hurried to catch up. "Dai, what's the rush?"
Realizing he was indeed being a bit hasty, he worried his friend would become suspicious. If people found out he had picked up a wife, and that this wife hadn't even agreed to stay yet, it would be big trouble.
Van Dai knew he was plain-looking; there were several bachelors in the village more handsome than him. And he also knew that girls fall for looks. If he let that girl get lured away by some more handsome fellow, he'd be done for.
So he slowed down. "Why are you such a woman? So slow on your feet. Isn't it better to get home a bit earlier and water the vegetable garden?"
Tran Hung knew his friend was diligent, just too honest. Hearing this, he said, "Why are you even bothering with that vegetable garden? Almost everything in that garden ends up in the stomachs of your brother and his wife. Why work so hard? He's already married and has his own family. Does he still need you to help with everything?"
In the past, Van Dai would have definitely said: I'll help where I can. What if I can't get a wife later and have to rely on my nephew and niece in my old age? Even though there was no sign of a nephew or niece yet, Van Dai would still have thought that way.
But he didn't think like that anymore. He needed to grow good vegetables so his wife would have something to eat. Eating food from the mountains every day would get tiresome.
"Well, I have to eat too. If the vegetables wither and die, won't I have nothing to eat? As for Tu, I've already told him. From now on, he has to take care of his own family. I have to support a wife and have children too!"
Tran Hung immediately agreed. "That's the right way to think! If it weren't for my old parents being sick all the time, I would have thought the same way long ago. My younger brother is seventeen now; he'll need to get married in a few years. If I had your ability and means, I would have started planning for myself long ago, unlike you, always working so hard for either your brother or your sister."
It wasn't that Van Dai didn't know how much effort he had put in for his younger siblings. But thinking of his father's past worries, and the image of his mother unable to close her eyes on her deathbed, what else could he have done?
His biological mother didn't like him; she disliked him even at the moment of her death. Van Dai understood.
After all, it was because she was pregnant with him that she had resigned herself to staying in this dilapidated village, so it was right for her to hate him. But even if she didn't like him, he was still her son and the older brother to his siblings. How could he not care for them?
"It's fine. They're both married and settled now anyway. My life will be easier from now on. You don't have to worry either. I think your mother's health is much better. Maybe she'll recover by next year, and then you can earn some money and go outside the mountains to marry a wife."
Tran Hung thought of his family's situation. Without ten taels of silver, where could he find a wife? These days, it was already difficult for his family to have enough to eat year-round, let alone save ten taels of silver.
He sighed silently and said, "Dai, if it's really as Dau said, and heaven dropped a wife from the sky for me, I would indulge her in everything. As long as she's willing to be my wife and bear my children, that's all that matters!"
As soon as Tran Hung said these words, Van Dai was instantly on alert. He had, in fact, picked up a wife who fell from the sky. This was something that no one could ever know!