8 – Mmm, her Big Brother Qin, so good.
Mrs. Zhou shared the same worry, but she still stepped in front of Taohua. “Let me go out and take a look, dear.”
“Let me go instead, Mother,” Taohua stepped forward. “This is the Qin family, not the Chen family. He isn’t welcome here. If he dares to come, I’ll chase him away with a broom!”
As she spoke, Taohua took a deep breath and strode across the threshold.
But the moment she stepped outside, especially when she saw the person standing there, all her bravado vanished.
“Brother Qin!” Seeing the man, Taohua couldn’t help but curve her lips into a smile. “Brother Qin, why are you back so soon?”
Qin Feng was unloading bamboo from his shoulder.
Hearing Taohua’s question, he was about to reply.
But when he looked up, he saw Mrs. Zhou standing behind Taohua.
He paused where he stood, thought for a moment, and still called out to Mrs. Zhou, “Mother.”
“Yes,” Mrs. Zhou hurried out from inside the house. “My son-in-law is back. I came to see Taohua, and we were just talking about you. Taohua said you went up the mountain to check the traps. I didn’t expect you to return so soon.”
As she spoke, Mrs. Zhou glanced at the three bamboo poles Qin Feng had brought back and asked, “What are you busy with?”
Qin Feng had originally rolled up his sleeves for convenience while working, revealing his strong arms.
Now that Mrs. Zhou was here, he let his sleeves down and explained calmly, “Making a rack to hang clothes.”
Hearing this, a warm feeling surged in Taohua’s heart.
Yesterday, while sunning the quilts, she had casually mentioned it to him, but she never expected him to take care of it the very next day.
Her words had been taken so seriously by him that Taohua felt a lump form in her throat, moved to the point of tears.
Her smile grew even brighter, and she couldn’t help but whisper proudly to Mrs. Zhou, “Mother, I only mentioned it to him casually yesterday, and he took care of it today. He must be thirsty. I’ll go pour him a bowl of water.”
“Yes, go ahead,” Mrs. Zhou replied, pleased to see her son-in-law and daughter getting along so harmoniously. “Well, I’ll leave you to it. Your sister is still waiting for me by the river.”
Taohua tried to persuade her to stay a little longer, but Mrs. Zhou truly couldn’t linger and hurried off.
…………
Qin Feng noticed that the young girl was looking at him differently.
Her eyes sparkled, as if holding two pools of water—clear, bright, and quite lovely.
Moreover, she kept calling him “Brother Qin,” each time sounding more cheerful than the last.
But just last night, after he had pushed her hand away, she had been sulking. Had she come to terms with it now?
However, Qin Feng didn’t feel it was appropriate to ask about such matters and decided to wait a few more days before bringing it up.
While he chopped bamboo, the young girl followed him around, picking up bamboo branches and staying close to him.
Until he suddenly turned around, and she couldn’t stop in time, bumping her head right into his chest.
Looking at the young girl clutching her nose in pain, Qin Feng couldn’t help but feel amused.
“Don’t bother with that anymore. I caught a pheasant today. Go clean it up—we’ll have chicken for dinner.”
Hearing Qin Feng’s words, Taohua finally remembered.
“Oh, right, Brother Qin, didn’t you say you’d be back before dark? Why are you back so early?”
Qin Feng replied calmly, “There wasn’t much to catch, so I came back early.”
But what he didn’t say was that he had run into a few villagers chopping firewood on the mountain. They told him that Chen Dashan had taken the money from selling his daughter and immediately spent it on alcohol. Worried that Chen Dashan might come looking for trouble with Taohua after getting drunk, Qin Feng had hurried down the mountain.
However, he hadn’t forgotten the young girl’s mention of making a clothes drying rack, so he conveniently cut three bamboo poles on his way back.
But Taohua knew nothing of this; she only happily went to prepare the pheasant.
During the meal, Taohua brought up the matter of the courtyard again with Qin Feng.
Qin Feng had lived alone before, and even if a wolf jumped to his window, he wouldn’t have been afraid.
But now that there was a delicate young girl in the house, he couldn’t avoid building a courtyard wall.
So he agreed without hesitation.
The back hill was full of bamboo, an inexhaustible resource, and Qin Feng planned to build a bamboo fence.
Taohua naturally supported this as well.
The young couple wasted no time and spent four full days building the bamboo fence, enclosing a courtyard.
The fence was about as tall as a person. Standing beneath it, Taohua couldn’t see outside, but Qin Feng was tall, towering over the fence by a head, and could still see everything clearly.
Feeling curious, Taohua jumped up to look outside.
But no matter how much she jumped, she couldn’t see clearly.
Qin Feng stood behind her. Seeing her struggle, he simply wrapped his hands around Taohua’s waist and lifted her up.
Taohua felt her view suddenly open up. The pair of large hands around her waist were like iron clamps—hot and full of strength, just like when he had lifted her out of the river that day.
Taohua didn’t know what was wrong with her, but she suddenly remembered the sight of him wiping himself down.
His shoulders and back were extremely broad, his body was all sinewy muscle, and his arms were especially powerful.
One morning, she woke up to find herself nestled in his arms. His scent was particularly pleasant, likely because he had been working with bamboo these past few days—a faint, refreshing fragrance of bamboo.
Thinking of all this, Taohua’s heart pounded like a drum, thumping as if trying to burst out of her chest.
Not only that, but her monthly flow seemed to surge again.
But she had already confirmed in the morning that her period was clearly over, so why was there still…
The feeling was strange, something Taohua had never experienced before.
A bit flustered, she quickly said, “Brother Qin, please put me down.”
Once her feet touched the ground, Qin Feng’s large hands left Taohua’s waist.
Taohua suddenly felt empty. She didn’t want those hands to let go of her; she wanted to be closer to him.
Taohua abruptly turned around, wrapping her slender arms around Qin Feng’s sturdy waist.
“Brother… Brother Qin,” Taohua’s voice trembled slightly, “Brother Qin~~”
Apart from calling out to the man before her, Taohua didn’t know what else to say.
The young girl’s body and voice were so soft and delicate that the small flame hidden within Qin Feng’s body instantly flared up.
He reached out, his large palm like a cattail leaf fan, and gently stroked Taohua’s slender back.
Taohua shivered, whispering softly, “Brother Qin, it’s dark.”
“Hmm,” Qin Feng’s voice was hoarse, “Has your period ended?”
Taohua’s voice grew even softer: “Yes, it was over this morning.”
“Good.” Qin Feng responded deeply, then swept Taohua up into his strong arms.
With Qin Feng’s swift strides, Taohua felt as if she could barely catch her breath.
She vaguely seemed to know what was about to happen with Qin Feng.
She was so nervous she couldn’t speak, even afraid to look at Qin Feng.
Qin Feng’s body was also tense; he was doing his best to control himself.
But he didn’t want to frighten the young girl in his arms.
After gently laying her on the bedding, he lowered his head and brushed a kiss against her lips.
“Taohua, look at me.”
“Brother Qin,” Taohua’s face flushed crimson, but she obediently lifted her gaze, “Are we going to consummate the marriage?”
“Yes, you are my wife, don’t be afraid.”
“Mmm,” Taohua wrapped her arms around Qin Feng’s neck, her voice soft as water, “You are my husband, I’m not afraid.”
Qin Feng leaned over her, his bronze skin covering her snow-white complexion.
…………
The next morning, Taohua was awakened by the fragrant aroma of chicken soup.
When she opened her eyes, she realized the sky was already bright.
Her newlywed husband was no longer by her side, but her clothes had been neatly laid out at the foot of the bed—from head to toe, from inside out, not a single piece missing.
Thinking of what had happened the night before, Taohua blushed again, but she couldn’t help letting out a soft laugh.
Mmm, her Brother Qin was truly wonderful!