After speaking.
Nan Qingqing clearly noticed Lu Baiyang’s slight hesitation.
She was just about to explain.
When she heard Lu Baiyang’s deliberately lowered voice saying deeply, “Let me see your little wings.”
The impression he gave people was:
Old-fashioned scholar.
Serious.
Solemn.
Reserved.
If she hadn’t heard it with her own ears, Nan Qingqing wouldn’t believe such joking words could come from his mouth.
Although when he spoke, he remained straight-faced, as if a person really had wing roots and little wings growing on their body.
Nan Qingqing’s heart felt like it was gently soaked in warm water.
An indescribable comfort.
She said with a smile, “Okay.”
Lu Baiyang walked over to Nan Qingqing’s side.
Nan Qingqing struggled to take off her outer jacket, revealing a small floral-patterned undershirt with white background underneath.
She was very fair.
So fair that even the fabric appeared less white in comparison, looking somewhat yellowish instead.
Nan Qingqing asked, “Can you see it?”
Lu Baiyang saw a large bruise under Nan Qingqing’s arm, extending into the unseen area beneath her undershirt.
Lu Baiyang coughed lightly and said, “The area is quite large.”
Nan Qingqing’s upper body.
Only had this small undershirt left.
In rural areas during this era, few girls wore bras.
A small undershirt served as the bra.
So if she took off this undershirt, there would be nothing underneath.
She would appear completely bare before Lu Baiyang’s eyes.
Although they were nominally already husband and wife.
And would do more intimate things in the future.
But…
Nan Qingqing still couldn’t bring herself to expose herself before Lu Baiyang.
Nan Qingqing’s eyes fluttered slightly as she said, “Maybe I should do it myself.”
Lu Baiyang looked at the location of the bruise and said rationally, “You can’t see it yourself, and you can’t reach it either.”
Nan Qingqing pressed her lips together: “…”
Lu Baiyang originally wanted to say they were already married, so Nan Qingqing didn’t need to overthink it.
But soon, Nan Qingqing’s promise to Nan Zhaodi surfaced in his mind.
The words that had reached Lu Baiyang’s throat were forcefully swallowed back.
He instead said, “I’ll go out first. After you take it off, lie face down under the blanket. I’ll come in to apply the medicine.”
After speaking.
Without waiting for any response from Nan Qingqing, Lu Baiyang had already gone out to wait.
Nan Qingqing quickly got up.
Took off her small undershirt.
Letting herself breathe freely.
She looked down at herself, thinking she should find time to go to the Department Store to buy two bras to wear.
Otherwise.
No matter how young she was, she couldn’t resist gravity.
In the past.
Wang Meihua always told her that if a girl’s chest grew too large, it would look ugly, and people would point fingers saying the girl was improper. So Nan Qingqing always tightly bound her chest with a binding strap.
Every night when she untied the binding strap, the pain was almost unbearable.
Thinking about it now.
It was truly heaven’s mercy that she didn’t develop breast diseases.
While Nan Qingqing’s mind was occupied with serious thoughts.
She quickly lay face down.
Oh my.
Her sides were actually propped up.
She quickly stuffed the blanket against both sides of her body, hiding herself completely.
Only then did she say, “Third Brother, I’m ready.”
Lu Baiyang then came in.
Although he knew Nan Qingqing was only exposing her back, just this back alone made his blood race.
He didn’t know why Nan Qingqing was so fair.
From her back to her fingers, everything glowed with whiteness.
As if the wind and sun exposure in the village had no effect on her at all.
Lu Baiyang swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing uncontrollably where Nan Qingqing couldn’t see.
He knelt by the window,
applying ointment to his fingertips.
His fingers landed on Nan Qingqing’s bruises, gently probing and massaging.
The bruised areas were genuinely painful—
after all, they were injuries from a hard impact.
So when Lu Baiyang applied slight pressure, Nan Qingqing couldn’t help but let out a soft moan.
The sound was delicate and melodious,
like the song of the most beautiful oriole perched on a branch deep in the forest.
Lu Baiyang felt his throat grow increasingly dry.
His rigid self-control was the only thing sustaining him as he finished applying the ointment to Nan Qingqing.
The moment the ointment was evenly spread over all the bruises on her back, he immediately stood up,
placed the ointment on the bedside table,
and walked out without looking back.
Nan Qingqing found it baffling.
Lying face down on the bed, she had restrained herself from crying out too loudly earlier.
Now that Lu Baiyang was gone,
tears welled in her eyes as she whimpered softly.
It hurt so much.
It really, really hurt.
Outside the door,
Lu Baiyang stood at the entrance.
He had originally intended to fetch a change of clothes, but now…
Lu Baiyang lowered his gaze.
He couldn’t go in.
A flicker of frustration crossed his mind.
Lately, his “little brother” had repeatedly lost control, always betraying him at the worst moments.
It was time to rein it in.
The girl had no intention of building a life with him—he mustn’t scare her off.
Lu Baiyang took a deep breath
and headed into the courtyard.
In the southern part of the yard stood a hand-pump well.
Beneath it sat an iron bucket.
At that moment,
only a dipper of water remained in the bucket. Using that last dipper as priming water, Lu Baiyang finally managed to pump well water.
Dawn broke.
The thin veil of sky glowed with faint morning light.
Nan Qingqing woke up,
but not completely.
Her eyes refused to open.
She couldn’t resist wriggling around on the bed, squirming back and forth like a maggot.
Suddenly,
she bumped into something soft.
Nan Qingqing froze.
She cracked open one eye.
Staring back at her were a pair of distinct black-and-white eyes, enormous like pigeon-egg-sized black gemstones, set in a tiny face.
Startled,
she quickly sat up.
The two faced each other, wide-eyed and staring.
Suddenly,
the little girl, about three years old, beamed at Nan Qingqing, her smile crinkling the corners of her eyes until they disappeared, revealing a toothy grin.
Nan Qingqing remembered.
Lu Baiyang had mentioned adopting two orphans of his fallen comrades. This little girl must be one of them.
Nan Qingqing smiled and asked, “What’s your name?”
The little girl just grinned,
saying nothing.
Nan Qingqing tried again, “Have you eaten?”
The child remained silent.
Nan Qingqing tentatively reached out and poked the little one’s belly. “Is your tummy full?”
Suddenly shy, the child covered her face with her hands
and flopped backward onto the bed.
Nan Qingqing hugged the quilt and lay down too.
Once again, they stared at each other, wide-eyed.
Suddenly,
a voice called from the yard—a boy’s hoarse shout, “Yuanbao! Yuanbao! Where did you run off to? I can’t find you!”
Nan Qingqing asked, “Is he calling you?”
Yuanbao pressed her lips together and nodded.
She hurried to climb off the bed.
Nan Qingqing frantically scrambled into her clothes.
Just as she finished dressing,
there was a soft thud.
Little Yuanbao had tumbled headfirst onto the floor.
Nan Qingqing gasped in alarm
and rushed to help the child up.
But as coincidence would have it—in the most dramatic way—
just as the young boy entered the room, he saw Yuanbao upside down on the floor and Nan Qingqing with her hand outstretched.
From the boy’s perspective,
It was clear that Nan Qingqing had pushed his sister to the ground.
Fuming like a little uncivilized beast, he huffed and puffed as he ran over, helping Yuanbao up from the ground.
Then he pointed at Nan Qingqing’s nose and said, “You just wait! If you dare lay a hand on my sister, you’ll face the consequences!”
Yuanbao anxiously tugged at her brother’s sleeve.
The boy patted Yuanbao’s head with one hand, soothing her slightly.
Turning around, he picked up a broom from the ground and went to strike Nan Qingqing, “I’ll beat you to death—”