The Fortunate Lady and Her Mountain Man

Chapter 86: Chapter 86: Beam-Raising Day

After Wang Shun left with Bao Puzi, the hot and spicy soup stall resumed business.

Hu Liang couldn’t understand it. That employee, Wang, used to be so arrogant he looked down his nose at everyone. Why did he seem so afraid of them this time?

Ji Huan guessed it was likely because Zhen Jili had bluffed Manager Wang last time. After returning, the shopkeeper must have given Wang Shun a harsh lesson.

’I hadn’t realized that Manager Wang was such a formidable figure.’

He was his own nephew, after all. To think he could be so ruthless as to nearly cripple him.

You had to respect him for it.

The recent commotion didn’t hurt business at all. In fact, it drew an even bigger crowd, with everyone curious about how Ji Huan’s group had resolved the trouble.

The ones most eager to know, of course, were the other vendors in the area.

That Wang Shun was the nephew of Manager Wang from Jishi Hall. Jishi Hall not only dominated the town, but its backers, the Bai Family of Yeyang County, were known to all. Relying on his connection as Wang Shun’s sworn brother, Bao Puzi acted as if he were part of the Bai Family himself, running amok all day. The other vendors were furious but dared not voice their anger.

This new stall had unintentionally taken over Bao Puzi’s spot, and their business was so good it made people green with envy. Many were secretly hoping for a fight, ideally one where both sides suffered heavy losses.

But who would have thought that Ji Huan’s group would come out unscathed? Instead, Bao Puzi ended up the loser, and even the backup he brought, Wang Shun, was useless.

As a result, everyone couldn’t help but let their imaginations run wild.

’Could it be? Do these hot and spicy soup sellers have a backer even more powerful than the Bai Family?’

With this thought in mind, when it was time to close up the stall, these same people completely changed their cold demeanor from the previous days. They all swarmed over to help, their smiles incredibly friendly, but every word they spoke was laced with probing questions.

Unfortunately for them, they were dealing with a tight-lipped group, and they couldn’t get any information out of them at all.

From then on, the Hu Family’s stall became an untouchable presence in the area. Rumor had it that they had powerful origins and a mysterious background—so powerful that even the Bai Family from the county seat had to defer to them!

The breakfast stall’s business was now officially on track. Hu Liang had more or less mastered making the hot and spicy soup and the fried dough sticks, so Ji Huan decided she didn’t need to go anymore.

The main reason was that it was time for the beam-raising ceremony at the new house.

Widow Xie had offered to close the stall for a day so she and Hu Liang could stay behind to help. After all, raising the beam was a major event, and she worried Ji Huan wouldn’t be able to manage it all on her own.

Ji Huan refused.

The business had just gotten started. Its foundations weren’t solid, and its customer base wasn’t stable yet. The last thing they needed was to be inconsistent with their hours.

Besides, she had already prepared everything she needed. Just raising the beam wouldn’t require too many hands.

In some places, the custom was to hold a banquet on the day of the beam-raising to entertain friends and family. Dafeng Village had a similar tradition, but the banquet was held when the house was finished and ready to be moved into. That made the actual beam-raising day relatively simple.

The next morning, after an early breakfast, Ji Huan took Dabao to the site of the old, dilapidated shack. But it could hardly be called that anymore. The wicker fence and the teetering thatched hut were gone, replaced by a spacious courtyard house with green bricks and black tiles.

Though not yet complete, its basic form was already visible.

Uncle Wang Min and Uncle Shi Yong helped move the supplies for the ceremony over from the Hu Family’s home. Aunt Wang, Aunt Gao, and a few of the other women she had hired before also came to lend a hand.

The beam-raising was the process of installing the highest central beam on the roof, but before that, the beam had to be "warmed."

First, two long benches were placed in the center of the unfinished main hall. A large red flower made of cloth was tied to the middle of the central beam, which was then propped up on wanzi cakes. Strips of red and green cloth were tied to either side of the beam.

An offering table was also supposed to be set up, but farming families weren’t so particular about such things, and Ji Huan found it too troublesome, so she skipped it.

The beam-warming ceremony began. Ji Huan lit a string of firecrackers, then ignited a bundle of sesame stalks beneath the central beam.

Just then, the master carpenter poured wine from a pot along the length of the beam, from one end to the other, chanting:

"...A cup of wine to toast the beam’s head, may scholars become chancellors, and warriors be named marquises! A second cup to toast the beam’s heart, may you trade blue robes for noble purple! A third cup to toast the beam’s end, may the master of this house serve as an official, pure as water! May you buy fields, build your estate, and bring fortune to your family. May your children and grandchildren be wealthy and honored! With three cups of wine, the toast is done, may long life and fortune bless the master and the builders. With wealth and longevity in abundance, we await the dragon to raise its head at dawn...!"

Once the chant was finished, Uncle Wang Min and the workers exchanged nods, then he bellowed, "Heave! For good fortune and great prosperity!"

The men positioned on the roof trusses used ropes to slowly hoist both ends of the central beam into place atop the support pillars.

At that moment, firecrackers erupted in a deafening chorus. Below, a crowd of onlookers had already gathered, all of them waiting to scramble for the beam-raising buns.

In a rural village like this, a beam-raising ceremony could draw out more than half the population. For one, catching the buns was said to bring good luck. For another, for families who were short on food, it was a chance to grab a rare treat for the adults and children back home.

Once the main beam was hammered securely into its mortise, it was time to throw the beam-raising buns down to the crowd.

They were called "beam-raising buns," but the treats included more than just steamed buns. There were also sweet cakes, peanuts, sesame balls, and wanzi cakes.

Seeing the men on the roof hoist up several bamboo baskets, the crowd below started whooping and hollering, urging them to hurry up and start tossing.

A few of the workers chuckled and called out, "Alright, alright!" They grabbed handfuls of treats from the baskets and tossed the first batch toward where Ji Huan was standing.

There were so many treats that it was like a downpour. The crowd instantly fell into chaos, people pushing and shoving as they scrambled to get their share.

Ji Huan had just managed to snatch a candy ball when a large steamed bun smacked her right in the face, leaving her reeling. She quickly pulled Dabao out of the fray.

Dabao looked completely bewildered, his eyes darting between the frenzied crowd and Ji Huan, who was still rubbing her forehead.

Ji Huan burst out laughing. She popped the candy ball she’d caught into Dabao’s mouth. "Here. You should get a share of our family’s good luck, too."

One of Dabao’s cheeks bulged out, making him look like a little chipmunk.

He struggled to move his jaw, then with a CRUNCH, bit the candy ball in two.

He spit the other half into his palm and offered it to Ji Huan.

Ji Huan stared at the half-eaten piece of candy, clearly glistening with saliva, and desperately wanted to refuse.

’But this is from Dabao... Oh, what the heck. What’s a little brotherly slobber to be squeamish about?’

Ji Huan took it, popped it into her mouth, and smiled with her eyes narrowed. "It’s so sweet! Isn’t it, Dabao?"

Dabao nodded obediently. "Mm."

Once all the treats had been thrown, the crowd gradually dispersed.

With that, the entire beam-raising ceremony was finally complete.

Ji Mingmao burst through the door and ran to the kang bed, shaking Mrs. Zhu violently. "Ma! Ma, wake up! That wretched girl is raising the beam for her house!"

He had just been out playing when he saw a crowd of people heading northeast. His heart sank, and he rushed back to get his mother.

Mrs. Zhu had figured the beam-raising would be around this time; she’d been counting the days on her fingers. She just hadn’t expected to miss it.

She scrambled out of bed, threw on some clothes, and tried to kick her husband awake to no avail. So she just grabbed her son, and the two of them ran toward the old shack site without even washing their faces.

They were only halfway there when they saw people walking back in small groups, every one of them holding bundles of goodies in the hems of their shirts.

Ji Mingmao saw a child clutching a candy ball. The kid took a loud slurp and then glanced over at him. Ji Mingmao tugged on Mrs. Zhu’s hand. "Ma, I want candy too!"

Mrs. Zhu immediately grabbed one of the adults. "Did that wretch... Did Wuan hand out candy balls?"

The villagers were all in high spirits after getting their treats. Hearing her question, they all started chiming in.

"More than just candy balls! There was so much good stuff! Sweet cakes, peanuts, wanzi cakes..."

"Oh, you should have seen it! Everyone went wild scrambling for them. Wuan is so generous."

"Didn’t they say a while back she was paying good money for just half a day’s work washing vegetables? If she sells vegetables again, I want to go help..."

"And let me tell you, that house is so grand... She must have made a fortune doing business with the army..."

The group chattered on as they walked away, completely ignoring Mrs. Zhu.

Mrs. Zhu was about to explode with rage!

’That Ji Huan! That ungrateful, heartless little wolf! That wretched girl who doesn’t know her place! Why couldn’t she have waited for me to get there before starting the ceremony!’

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