Chapter 32: Wang Heyao’s Evil Thoughts
During dinner, Qingyan said, “Just now Qiuniang came over and said the farm laborers have been found almost. On her side, there are two people for forty mu of land, and for our thirty mu of land, we also need two people. These four are familiar farm workers from nearby villages, known for their good character. They will come when it’s time to clear and burn the land.”
Qiu Henian nodded and asked, “How did Qiuniang negotiate the price?”
Qingyan replied, “Sixty wen per person per day, with one meal provided at noon, but no lodging.”
Qiu Henian pondered for a moment and said, “Let’s discuss with Qiuniang to alternate the lunch provision between our two households. It would make things easier.”
Qingyan smiled, “I was thinking the same. I’ll talk to her about it tomorrow.”
Qiu Henian looked at him and said, “I’ll come back every other day at noon to help you cook.”
Qingyan smiled, pursing his lips, “Hmm.”
Before lying down to sleep, they read a book together for a while. Qingyan’s reading ability had improved significantly; initially, he just wasn’t accustomed to it, but once he grasped the syntax and punctuation rules of the era, his progress was rapid.
Now, he often read books on his own when he had free time. However, it had become a fixed habit for Qiu Henian to read to him every night, and neither of them wanted to change that.
After reading for a while, Qingyan yawned. His eyes were misty with sleepiness as he took off the robe he was wearing and prepared to lie down. His fingers accidentally caught on the belt of his underclothes, and he struggled to tie it a few times without success.
A pair of rough hands suddenly appeared in front of him and efficiently secured the belt for him. Qingyan thanked softly and lay down on the bedding, closing his eyes to sleep.
After a while, when the oil lamp still hadn’t gone out, Qingyan opened his eyes and saw Qiu Henian sitting at the bedside, looking at him thoughtfully.
“What’s wrong?” Qingyan asked softly.
Qiu Henian snapped out of his thoughts, shook his head, and said, “Nothing.”
With that, he got up and blew out the oil lamp.
As the bed curtains were drawn, Qiu Henian also lay down.
Qingyan found a comfortable position on his side and felt the warm body behind him. Soon, a strong arm wrapped around his waist and abdomen.
Qingyan smiled faintly in the darkness, placing his soft hand on the arm of the person behind him, before closing his eyes and falling asleep.
After a day of busy work, Qingyan slept deeply and didn’t notice when the arm around him had been removed or when the person beside him had put on a robe, tucked him in, and carried an oil lamp to the neighboring room.
In the middle of the night, the man in the other room flipped through a book, sometimes opening it, sometimes impatiently closing it.
It wasn’t until Liu Fa’s voice echoed in his mind:
“The wife from the old Li family, she was so fair and lovely. Not only was she admired in their village, but also by the young masters from nearby villages. Her husband was useless, couldn’t keep his wife, and she ran away with a second-rate fellow from the same village. When the husband found out and tried to settle the score, she packed her things and fled with the man overnight. Even though the authorities were informed, they couldn’t find her. The poor man was left alone, it’s really tragic.”
The pages of the book were flipped again impatiently, page by page.
Until he came across a certain page and suddenly stopped, the man stared at it for a long time before closing it, his tightly furrowed brows relaxing slightly.
…
After eating apples for two days, the corners of Qingyan’s mouth were all healed.
Aunt Li, who had been indoors for several days, finally went out. She showed Qingyan the perfume she had made.
Qingyan sniffed the small bottle and his eyes lit up.
He praised, “Aunt, your perfume smells so good. A dab of this on the body, and a faint fragrance follows wherever you go. Those young ladies and lads will definitely love it!”
Aunt Li was pleased and said, “This is made from last autumn’s flower buds, the fragrance is a bit simple. When the spring blossoms bloom, I’ll gather more and try to make more varieties.”
Qingyan smiled and said, “Okay, I’ll help you gather them then.”
Due to insufficient materials, a lot was wasted during the trial process. The first batch of perfume was only made into a small bottle, and Aunt Li didn’t keep any for herself, despite Qingyan’s protests, she gave it all to him.
Qingyan tried a bit on his earlobe, and he could smell the fragrance of the flower buds throughout the day, fading only by nightfall.
But when Qiu Henian came back in the evening, he still sniffed at Qingyan’s hair and said it smelled very nice.
Qingyan tilted his head back, revealing his white neck, and pointed to his earlobe, saying, “It’s here, the perfume Aunt Li gave me.”
After saying that, he was about to ladle some seaweed tofu soup from the pot, when his waist was embraced by a strong arm. The warm lips kissed his earlobe, and only after letting go of his blushing cheek, did the person pour the soup.
The next morning, Qingyan went to the village central well to fetch water.
The trees along the road were budding, and after several days of strong winds, the ground had dried up, making the path easier to walk on. The ice around the well had melted long ago, revealing its original colors without that chilling feeling.
Qingyan skillfully fetched two buckets of water and was preparing to carry them back when he saw a frail figure approaching, hunched over and carrying a load.
It was Shen Min.
Shen Min kept his head down, looking at the ground. When he reached the well, he set down his load, lifted a bucket, and prepared to draw water.
Qingyan noticed the thin veins on Shen Min’s hands as he moved, quickly set down his own things, and said, “Let me help you.”
Together, they drew two buckets of water. Qingyan wanted to say something to Shen Min, but Shen Min, lost in his own thoughts, turned and walked away without a word.
Qingyan was taken aback, muttered an “Oh,” and Shen Min paused, shouldering his load but not turning back. He asked, “What day is it today?”
Qingyan instinctively replied, “It’s the twenty-seventh today.”
Shen Min nodded without looking back, murmuring softly, “Nine days left.”
Nine days until what?
Qingyan wanted to ask further, but Shen Min didn’t linger and slowly walked away.
Watching his retreating figure, Qingyan counted on his fingers and suddenly realized, “Is he talking about nine days until Liu’s wedding feast?”
…
Mrs. Lao Wang and Wang Heyao sat at the stone table in the courtyard, cracking melon seeds and chatting. Spitting out the seeds mixed with saliva on the ground. When Shen Min carried the water bucket into the house, Mrs. Lao Wang spat at him and said angrily, “What are you dawdling for? Why don’t you hurry up and cook? Are you waiting for me to cook for you?”
Shen Min put down the load, and the weight was not light. His body swayed with it. He looked up, his face swollen and bruised, almost unrecognizable.
Seeing his face, Mrs. Lao Wang got even angrier and scolded, “You jinx! I’m always annoyed to see you! You worthless bones, why haven’t I killed you?”
Shen Min lowered his head, his eyes vacant, picked up the water buckets and went into the outer room, poured the water into the tank, then poked the stove and cooked.
Wang Heyao said to his mother, “You said you would tell me a concubine, how long has it been, and I haven’t even seen a hair!”
Mrs. Lao Wang reached out and tapped her son’s forehead.
“I do want to find one for you, so you don’t have to sleep in the cave every day, but where’s the silver to pay for a concubine? The rice jar has been empty these days. I bought some moldy old rice from town to barely make ends meet. Where do you still have the luxury to think about a concubine!”
Speaking of which, she asked her son, “Didn’t I tell you to rent out our forty acres of land a few days ago? How did it go?”
Wang Heyao, impatiently, “I asked around, but no one rented it.”
Mrs. Lao Wang wondered, “How come no one rented it? We’re not asking for a high rent.”
Wang Heyao said nothing. His drinking buddies had secretly told him that no one in the village dared to rent his land, fearing trouble during the autumn harvest and wasting a year for nothing.
Mrs. Lao Wang was in a dilemma and said, “Should we go ask that ugly bastard for some money again? Even if we farm the land ourselves, we still need money to buy seeds and fertilizer.”
Wang Heyao’s face darkened, cursing, “That son of a bitch, last time I went to him, he said he wouldn’t give me a penny again,” he gritted his teeth, “Just wait, one day I’ll make him pay!”
At dinner, there was only moldy sorghum rice, a plate of wild vegetables, and a dish of pickles, no meat, let alone wine. The more Wang Heyao ate, the worse his mood became.
After dinner, he didn’t have money to go to the gambling den again, so he wandered around the village, listening for anyone playing cards, and went in.
Once inside, he just watched, itching to play, but his pockets were empty.
During the game, someone drank alcohol, and he couldn’t resist. He boldly asked to share a half-pot of wine.
Drinking every day had lowered his alcohol tolerance, and half a pot made him sway.
The hostess glared at him several times, and when her husband saw the look in her eyes, he pushed the cards away and said, “It’s late, let’s not play anymore.”
Wang Heyao left that house. With nowhere to go, he stood blankly on the street. After a while, he suddenly realized that no one had come out of that house, and the noise of playing cards resumed, effectively kicking him out.
Wang Heyao cursed and rushed home. The family didn’t want to light the oil lamp and had all gone to bed.
He went into the outer room, groped for the kitchen knife, and went out again.
Back at that family’s door, listening to the voices playing cards inside, his teeth were tightly clenched. He wanted to rush in and give them a piece of his mind, but once he reached the courtyard, he hesitated.
Inside, there were at least four or five men. He was sure he couldn’t beat them.
Wang Heyao left the courtyard in frustration, anxiously wandering the streets. As he walked, a fierce expression appeared on his face.
Holding the kitchen knife to his throat, he muttered, “You won’t let me live in peace, I won’t let you live in peace either. If you don’t give me money, I’ll go to your house now and kill you!”
Mumbling these harsh words, he hurried westward in the village, his muddy brain already imagining the ugly bastard dead and his house, shop, and land all belonging to him.
And that younger brother-in-law who had married into the family looked even younger than the newly sprouted green onions in the field.
When the time came, he would take over everything, ensuring that he kept the little beauty in bed all day long!
The village wasn’t very big.
In less than a stick of incense’s time, Wang Heyao arrived at his destination. It was pitch black around, with only a few scattered households still lit with oil lamps.
Wang Heyao deliberately tiptoed to peek into the courtyard, seeing that all the windows inside were dark, emboldening him even more. He attempted to quietly scale the courtyard wall, but it was taller than him, and being drunk made his steps unsteady. He tried several times but failed to climb up.
Frustrated, Wang Heyao banged his head against the wall a couple of times. The pain briefly sobered him up, and he immediately tried again. This time, after much effort, he finally managed to climb onto the wall.
But as soon as he swung a leg over, he saw a pair of glowing eyes staring at him from below the wall.
Wang Heyao let out a muffled cry of surprise, and the barking of a dog thundered like a roar. The glowing eyes jumped, and he felt a sharp pain on his foot.
Involuntarily, he fell backwards off the wall with a clang, the pain making his vision blur. Fortunately, the dog that had bitten his foot was also forced to let go.
From the courtyard, there came the sound of a door opening.
A deep, icy voice asked, “Who?”
Wang Heyao covered his mouth, his face pale with fear. He picked up the kitchen knife that had fallen on the ground, endured the pain, and dragged his foot all the way back home.
Inside the courtyard gate, Qiu Henian scanned around each corner of the courtyard. Seeing no one responding, he walked towards the gate.
The chicks in the chicken coop woke up and chirped anxiously.
“Erxi!”
Qiu Henian stopped the yellow dog that was barking madly outside. Erxi obediently stopped barking and rubbed his head against Qiu Henian’s hand. The chickens quieted down as well.
Qiu Henian soothingly patted Erxi’s head, opened the courtyard gate to look outside. The road outside was quiet, with no one in sight.
Tonight there was no moon, the sky was too dark to see any traces on the ground.
He stood at the gate for a while, seeing nothing unusual, then locked the gate and went to the outer room to find a leftover bone for Erxi.
Back in the house, he locked the door and washed his hands clean before returning to the inner room.
Inside the room, there was no light, but Qiu Henian’s eyes had adapted to the darkness well enough to see clearly.
The bed curtain was drawn, separating the person in bed.
The young man’s voice was soft and gentle, asking softly, “Why is Erxi barking? What’s going on outside?”
Qiu Henian took off his outer robe, placed it on a nearby chair, and responded, “Nothing’s wrong, probably just a wild cat.”
“How long will Hunter Liu be away this time? I want Erxi to stay with us a few more days,” the young man said.
Qiu Henian bent down to take off his shoes, saying, “He won’t be going up the mountain this time. If you want Erxi to stay longer, I’ll talk to him when he comes back.”
“If you want a dog, the Zhao family’s big dog is about to have puppies. I’ll ask for one for you then,” Qiu Henian straightened up and pulled open the bed curtain.
In the darkness, the faint silhouette on the bed made his hand holding the curtain involuntarily tighten, his throat slightly moved, and his eyes narrowed.
Qingyan coquettishly greeted him, “You’re so slow.”
“Mm,” Qiu Henian’s voice deepened to a hoarse tone.
He got onto the bed, letting the bed curtain fall from his hand.
A kiss also fell at the same time. Qingyan lifted her delicate chin, meeting him halfway in the kiss. Amidst their kissing, he murmured softly, “Your hands are so cold.”
Qiu Henian’s voice dropped even lower, turning into a whisper, “Bear with it…”
After a while, the ointment, rubbed repeatedly, turned into water, and the warm fragrance was steamed out by body temperature.
Half a stick of incense later, Qingyan’s toes tightened, and his whole body trembled.
Qiu Henian withdrew his hand, rose from the bed again, took a towel and came over, standing at the bedside, looking at the person inside, wiping each finger meticulously.
Spoiler for the Next Chapter:
So, Qingyan leaned close to the man’s ear and whispered, “Are you… not uncomfortable?”
