Chapter 121: Full Moon Celebration
Qingyan cleared his throat lightly, and Qiu Henian snapped out of his reverie, quickly helping him pull up his pants and letting down his clothes.
There was silence between the two for a while.
Qiu Henian coughed and said, “Then I’ll go back to the shop.”
After saying that, he was about to walk towards the door, but Qingyan softly called out to him from the bed, “Henian!”
Qiu Henian stopped in his tracks, turned back, and came to the bedside, looking at him.
Qingyan had his head wrapped in a scarf, hanging low, and his voice was so soft that one had to listen carefully to hear.
He said, “Wait a bit longer, wait until after the month is over…”
Before he could finish his sentence, Qiu Henian already understood.
The two looked in opposite directions.
The room was quiet for quite some time. Suddenly, Qiu Henian made a sound of acknowledgment and quickly turned to leave.
Qingyan was first stunned, then he pursed his lips and smiled.
…
Ever since Qingyan mentioned “wait until after the month is over,” whenever the couple’s eyes met, it seemed sparks were about to fly or hooks were about to be thrown. They always silently gazed at each other for a while.
Since Little Bean was born five or six days ago, Qingyan no longer needed assistance at night. To let him rest well, Qiu Henian would take the child to the neighboring room to sleep every night.
During the day, Qiu Henian had to go to the shop, and most of the time Li Shen was also around when he came back.
At night, there were only three of them in the house. Little Bean always seemed most awake before bedtime, happily waving his hands and feet.
The couple hadn’t had a good conversation or intimacy for some time, even just a kiss was a rarity for a man of his age, which was quite torturous.
So, approaching Little Bean’s full moon celebration, both husband and wife were secretly counting down the days.
…
Little Bean’s full moon celebration was not grand, just three tables set up at home.
In addition to the family at home, there was also the large family of Old Liu, the village chief’s family, Xiao Zhuang and his parents, and Feng Lao San and Feng Yin who helped Qingyan with the carriage.
Li Shen and Qiu Niang helped with the cooking. Qiu Henian went to town to buy some cooked food and pastries, and he also picked a few jars of good wine.
During the banquet, Qingyan sat with the child for a while, toasting with tea instead of alcohol.
The village chief asked what the child’s name was. Qingyan replied, “He was born at dawn, and that day dawned with a very blue sky. Henian gave him the name Qiu Xiaoqing, and his nickname was originally Little Bean. Li Shen added a character, making it Golden Bean.”
The village chief applauded and said with a smile, “The distant peaks stretch endlessly, the cloud-shrouded heights weave a tangled veil, while the dawn-kissed mountains wear a cloak of emerald green*. It’s a great name, and the nickname Golden Bean is also lovely!”
*T/N: Xiao (晓) means dawn, Qing (青) means green (like the verdant mountains)
During the banquet, everyone laughed and joked, playing with the baby, and everyone was very happy.
After eating for a while, when Little Bean got hungry again, Qingyan took him back inside.
Li Shen followed and helped him feed the child.
Afterwards, she took out a delicate and beautiful long life lock from her bosom and put it on the child.
Qingyan looked up at her and hurriedly said, “Auntie, you’ve taken care of everything these days. How can I let you spend money again!”
Li Shen said, “You’re such a good child, but sometimes you’re just like an outsider. Normally, this silver lock should have been prepared by your mother, but she passed away early, and your stepmother is not someone you can rely on. So, I prepared it for Little Dumpling. Our Little Dumpling needs someone to care for him!”
Qingyan blinked, his eyes slightly red.
Whether in his world or here, he had no elders, but Li Shen made up for his regrets.
Seeing him about to cry, Li Shen quickly said, “You mustn’t shed tears. Just coming out of the month, crying will make you sick. If Henian sees it, he’ll blame me.”
Qingyan smiled again, “He wouldn’t.”
Just as he said this, Qiu Henian opened the door and peeked in. Seeing that Jindou (Golden Bean) hadn’t fallen asleep, he came in with reassurance and said, “I’ll watch the child. You didn’t eat much just now, go and have some more.”
Li Shen smiled and glanced at Qingyan, saying, “Henian is someone who knows how to care for people.”
Qingyan smiled and glanced at Qiu Henian. The two’s eyes met again and lingered until Li Shen coughed with a smile next to them, and they finally averted their gaze.
Qingyan blushed slightly, tidied up his clothes, and went with Li Shen to the neighboring room to eat.
At night, when there were only three people left in the house, it quieted down.
Little Jindou continued to practice his hands and feet on the bed, while Qiu Henian finished cleaning up the outer room, washed his hands, and sat down at the bedside.
After watching his happy child for a while, he looked up at Qingyan sitting on the bed.
Qingyan pulled his clothes and asked, “Is the water boiling?”
Qiu Henian’s eyes shimmered like a lake, and he murmured, “Hmm.”
Qingyan lowered his head and also murmured, “Hmm.”
But just as the water was boiled, the tub cleaned, and the temperature adjusted, Little Jindou started whimpering. Qingyan tentatively placed his fingertip near the baby’s mouth, and the corners of his mouth immediately turned towards it, indicating hunger.
Seeing this, Qiu Henian got up to fetch the warmed milk from the pot.
While feeding, Qingyan sighed, “This child is getting better at eating.”
Qiu Henian patiently fed nearly half a bowl of milk before Little Jindou seemed satisfied, his spoon finally leaving without another sound.
After finishing the milk, the baby needed to be burped. Qiu Henian lifted him up, allowing his little head to rest on his shoulder, and paced back and forth, gently patting his back.
Qingyan knew that once Little Jindou burped, he would be ready to sleep. So he lay still on the bed, afraid of waking him up again.
After pacing for a while, Little Jindou’s eyes struggled to stay open, blinked a few times, and finally closed from exhaustion.
Qiu Henian carried him around a few more circles before returning to the bed. Qingyan quickly lifted the small blanket, smoothed the thin pillow made of soft cloth, and gently laid Little Jindou down.
Finally, the child fell asleep. However, the water in the tub had cooled down.
Qingyan asked softly, “Should I heat up some more water?”
Qiu Henian glanced at the tightly drawn bed curtain and then at the tub in front of him. Afraid that Little Jindou might wake up again, he hesitated for a rare moment and said, “There’s still some hot water in the kettle. Should I use it to wash?”
Qingyan bit his lip and murmured, “Hmm,” agreeing to the suggestion.
Qiu Henian went to arrange it. In a short while, he brought the hot water to the neighboring room.
Qingyan was worried that the child might suddenly wake up, so he hurriedly followed.
In that room, Qingyan untied the cords on his clothes and the bandages around his waist and abdomen, which Aunt Li taught him to use for recovery.
Qiu Henian watched for a while, then walked behind him, lifting his hand to help him unravel the tightly wound bandages, gradually exposing his belly and abdomen.
The bulging abdomen that had troubled Qingyan before had already flattened considerably. Being young with good skin elasticity, he recovered quickly.
Qiu Henian reached out behind him, gently stroking Qingyan’s belly. Qingyan turned his head sideways, and Qiu Henian lowered his head to kiss him.
The two intertwined their lips and tongues for quite some time, quickly washing themselves before the water cooled down again.
Qiu Henian had stayed in this room for a while, and the bed was already made.
They moved to the bed. Qingyan lay down, and Qiu Henian knelt on the mattress, reaching out to pull the exposed silk cord gently. Qingyan couldn’t help but tilt his head back.
With a soft “ding,” the jade rod was placed on the nearby table.
In the next instant, Qiu Henian couldn’t resist anymore and entered himself inside.
Spoiler for the Next Chapter:
He brought a fresh rod and helped Qingyan insert it. After finishing, they kissed again in this position for a while. Qiu Henian was restless in his mind, his fingertip tracing the exposed silk, almost pulling out the jade rod he had just inserted.
