Of Soil And Sovereign

Mei's mornings were the worst when she was on her period. The pain was usually very unbearable before sunrise and today was no different as she was in a lot of pain and couldn't sleep well at night as she kept tossing and turning but when the sun started rising, she went outside to get some sunlight as the warmth usually made her better so she took a stool and sat under the morning sun

She used some clothes to substitute pads for now. Thankfully, her period flow was not heavy, so while sunbathing, she took her sewing kit and decided to make something to wear, she made a temporary napkin-like material from sewing clothes together, she was relieved as this would help her for now, but she needed to come up with a better solution before her next cycle.

She knew how uncomfortable it was to not have some good material with good absorbing qualities, and she vowed to create some as her first task immediately just to ease the situation for the women of this era.

Mingde joined her outside seeing she was much better than she was last night he cooked breakfast and warm water for as he knew since they came to live in this place his sister had been experiencing pain like this every few months and took note of the fact that she always had warm things during that time so he cooked her some sweet lotus seed soup and went to the market to get her some ingredients like Jujube dates, ginger, brown sugar and black sesame seed to add into her porridge as that was what the servants used to prepare for his sister before their family fall thought he was young she remembered crying for her porridge and she uses to share it with him.

At first, he was jealous, not knowing why only she was given special porridge alone, but in time, he realized that she was given those because of her time of the month.

Mingde was about to go to the capital to hire some people to assist with the harvest while buying the required ingredients just as he was about to leave the men sent by the sent by steward arrived surprising them both they wondered could read minds or could sense their needs but regardless of what it was, they were both very grateful.

One of the servants from the estate brought the people to the farm and mentioned the steward thought they might need help with the farm since it was harvesting season, and that is why he sent them some workers to help.

The siblings were both grateful for the quick wit of the steward, and her brother took them to the farm.

Once they reached, he gave them instructions and left them to do their work, and then rushed back to the house to inform his sister that he would go to the market to get some essentials. She agreed and asked him to take money from the pouch.

They left Mei alone at home as she lay in the hammock under the tree, unmotivated and craving ice cream and chocolate, but there were none, so she just lay there.

After thinking for a while and crying for no reason she fell asleep she could sense the men moving up and down bringing the harvest but no one bothered her so she kept sleeping she dreamed about being back in the modern time but instead of seeing herself she could see some in who looked like the modern version in her house living her life she kept staring at the person who looked like and they stared back Mei felt her heart dropping and startled jumping but woke up in the hammock she sighed of relief though she was sweating and her heart beating very fast the dream was very odd it was like she was a ghost floating around her former self who want her anymore and was she was glad that it was all just a dream.

She looked around and could not see anyone. It was noon, and the sun was too hot; she heard a clicking sound. She looked at the sound, realizing it was the kitchen and was relieved by movement in the kitchen, which meant her brother was back home and was now cooking lunch.

She moved, trying to get out of the hammock, and that caught his attention. He came out to check on her and, seeing she was okay, ran back to the kitchen to get her the jujube dates he boiled with ginger and brown sugar.

He also cooked porridge with black sesame seeds and brought it to her. That was when she realized her brother knew of her menstrual pain and was trying to ease it as well as her discomfort.

Happy and a bit hungry, she had the porridge and the Jujube dates, finishing everything as they were delicious.

Even though Mei was still spooked by her dream, she felt much better after she ate something sweet;

Then it dawned on her that the workers had nothing to eat. Sensing her thoughts, her brother assured her he took some provisions for them, and they could use the shed on the farm to cook. Mei was relieved and also proud of her brother's thoughtfulness.

After lunch, they sat playing games and passed the rest of the day like that. When the workers arrived in the evening they finished harvesting all the tubers and the soybeans.

Mei was amazed by how fast they completed the task she asked her brother to get her purse to pay them, but they told her that the steward had already settled the bill.

The servant sent by the steward informed them that he was hired to take care of the house and the farm.

With the harvest complete, Mei decided to move to the capital and instructed the workers to return tomorrow to move her belongings—some would transport the flowers, others the household items.

She decided it was time to rejoin society early. The same society that had shunned her family.