5 – How about consummating the marriage?
After stewing the rabbit meat, Qin Feng stir-fried a plate of wild vegetables. During the meal, he deliberately placed the rabbit meat near Taohua’s hand while he only picked at the vegetables.
The aroma of the meat made Taohua’s mouth water.
But since Qin Feng hadn’t touched it, she felt too embarrassed to reach for it first and also only picked at the vegetables.
Seeing this, Qin Feng couldn’t help but frown.
Taohua, who was constantly observing his expression, grew a little flustered when she saw this and immediately withdrew her hand from the vegetables.
Noticing the young girl’s unease, Qin Feng suddenly curved his lips into a smile. “You’ve already married me, yet you’re still so reserved? Go ahead and eat. All the good stuff was taken to your family, so we’ll have to make do for today.”
Hearing this, Taohua felt even more embarrassed. She lowered her head and whispered, “I’m sorry. You clearly saved me out of kindness, but in the end…”
“Let’s eat,” the man interrupted her before she could finish. “I’m not young anymore, and the house just happened to need a woman. Let’s just live like this.”
Taohua nodded, thought for a moment, and then asked, “Then… how old are you?”
“Twenty-five.”
“Oh,” Taohua’s voice grew even softer. “I’m sixteen this year. I’m nine years younger than you, but don’t worry, I’m very good at taking care of people. I won’t just eat and live here for free.”
Qin Feng didn’t say anything, only letting out a light chuckle.
Hearing his laugh, Taohua thought he didn’t believe her and abruptly raised her head.
But as soon as she looked up, she saw a rabbit leg land in her bowl.
She had intended to speak, but the rabbit meat smelled too delicious. Compared to talking, she wanted to taste the rabbit leg even more.
Seeing the young girl’s eyes light up at the sight of meat, Qin Feng said, “Eat first. We can talk about other things later.”
Taohua hummed in agreement and picked up the rabbit leg to bring it to her mouth.
But Qin Feng had cut the rabbit leg too large—it couldn’t be held with chopsticks at all and immediately fell onto the table.
Taohua felt this was too embarrassing but was too shy to use her hands.
Seeing this, Qin Feng helped her pick up the rabbit leg and said to her, “Just use your hands. I’m used to eating meat in big chunks, so I cut it too large this time. I’ll cut it smaller next time.”
“Okay, I’ll do it next time,” Taohua nodded, thinking to herself that the meat was indeed too big—there was no place to even take a bite.
After nibbling on the meat a few times, she started eating her rice.
Earlier, Qin Feng had served the rice and brought it to the table, so she hadn’t looked closely.
Now, as she did, she froze completely.
“What’s wrong?” Qin Feng noticed her expression and asked.
Taohua looked at the rice in her bowl, then at Qin Feng across from her, and asked softly, “There are so many rice weevils in here. Didn’t you notice when you washed the rice earlier?”
Qin Feng frowned. “There were too many, and I was in a hurry to cook, so I didn’t bother. Maybe the rice has been stored for too long.”
“Yes, it must have been stored for a long time. Did you have too much rice to finish? How could it have gotten infested with bugs?”
“Not exactly. I bought it a long time ago. Cooking rice is too troublesome—I usually just boil sweet potatoes and eat them with meat. I left the rice here and didn’t pay attention to it. Do you eat sweet potatoes? Should I boil a couple for you?”
“No need!” Taohua quickly waved her hands in refusal. “No need to trouble yourself. I’ll eat whatever you eat.”
After saying this, she smiled at Qin Feng and added, “I know cooked rice weevils are edible too. They won’t upset your stomach.”
Qin Feng saw the little girl forcing a smile despite her obvious discomfort, so he directly reached out and took her bowl.
Taohua wanted to reach for it, but Qin Feng moved too quickly, so she awkwardly withdrew her hand again.
But she couldn’t figure out what Qin Feng meant, and she began to worry—she was afraid he might think she was too much trouble and refuse to let her eat…
What she never expected was that Qin Feng was actually helping her pick out the rice bugs from her food.
He lowered his head, picking them out one by one with great care.
Seeing Qin Feng like this, Taohua suddenly felt the urge to cry.
This man could let such good rice go bad, the quilts at home seemed like they hadn’t been aired out in a long time, and the clothes in the wardrobe were a mess, yet now he was so meticulously helping her pick out rice bugs.
Even her mother hadn’t shown her such care in a long time. It seemed like he really was treating her well.
Taohua lowered her head to nibble on the rabbit leg, thinking to herself that she must be good to this man!
…………
After the meal, Taohua washed the dishes and tidied the kitchen, while Qin Feng went outside to chop firewood.
Before, he only ate alone and was often away from home, so he rarely cooked.
Now it was different—he had brought a little wife home, and they needed to cook three meals a day, so he had to stock up on more firewood.
As he chopped firewood, Taohua followed behind him, picking up the pieces. Before they knew it, the entire afternoon had passed.
Nighttime arrived quickly.
Since they had sweated during the day’s work, both of them needed to wash up before bed, especially Taohua, who was on her period and needed to stay clean.
The kettle at home was small, so one pot of water wasn’t much.
Taohua planned to let Qin Feng use the hot water first, then boil another pot for herself later.
But Qin Feng disagreed. Taohua couldn’t argue with him, so she washed up first.
She washed herself extra carefully because she hadn’t forgotten—tonight was her wedding night.
When she opened the door to pour out the water, Qin Feng was standing outside, keeping watch for her.
Her heart warmed, and she stole a glance at Qin Feng, saying, “I’m done washing. I’ll go back to the room and sleep first.”
Qin Feng gave an “Mm.”
Taohua thought for a moment, then mustered the courage to add, “I’ll wait for you.”
After saying that, she scurried into the room.
Qin Feng glanced at the petite figure of the little girl, first lost in thought, then unable to help but curl the corners of his mouth.
After so many years, there was finally someone waiting for him at home.
Inside the room.
Taohua took the initiative to lie on the inner side of the bed, wrapping herself tightly in the quilt, with only her head exposed.
She stared at the ceiling, her mind in turmoil.
She didn’t know what to do later. If she followed what Sun Xiao Lan had taught her, she felt she could never manage it—it was just too embarrassing.
But Xiao Lan wasn’t wrong either—on their wedding night, couples were supposed to consummate their marriage. If they didn’t, what kind of husband and wife would they be?
Just as she was thinking this, Qin Feng suddenly pushed the door open and entered.
Taohua’s face flushed instantly. She didn’t dare look at Qin Feng but couldn’t help feeling surprised. “How are you so fast? Did you wash with cold water?”
Qin Feng gave an “Mm.” “I’m used to it. Let’s sleep. I have to get up early tomorrow to go up the mountain and check the traps.”
“Oh, then come up quickly.” Taohua closed her eyes. Even though she couldn’t see, she soon felt someone lying down beside her.
She had a cold constitution, and even after lying under the covers for a while, she couldn’t warm them up. But as soon as Qin Feng came, she felt as if a large heater had instantly appeared beside her.
She thought again of what Sun Xiao Lan had said—that men’s bodies were scorching hot, especially in that particular area. She also said that men would take the initiative, and if you felt too shy on the first night, all you had to do was wait.
But Taohua waited and waited. Even after her flushed cheeks had cooled down, the man beside her still hadn’t made a move.
Taohua bit her lip, feeling a bit panicked.
They were already lying in the same bed—did he not want to be husband and wife with her after all?
If word got out about this, wouldn’t she become a laughingstock again?
Taohua didn’t want to be pointed at and gossiped about anymore. Steeling her heart, she reached out to touch little Qin Feng.
But she wasn’t familiar with Qin Feng’s body, and even after mustering her courage, she didn’t find the right spot.
Her heart pounded like a drum, but she forced herself to stay calm. “Um… maybe we should consummate the marriage?”
Qin Feng hadn’t expected the girl who blushed so easily and spoke in such a soft, gentle voice to be so bold.
He had been restraining himself, but the moment she touched him, he reacted.
But today wasn’t the right time.
He frowned slightly, moved Taohua’s hand away, and said in a hoarse voice, “We’ll talk about it another time. Let’s sleep.”
Taohua’s heart turned cold. She had taken the initiative, and he still didn’t want her…
Was she not good enough in some way, or did he actually look down on her because of her tarnished reputation?