Seeing Zhao Yaoyao carry the plate of meat away, Auntie Fatty looked at her in astonishment and blurted out, “Oh my, there’s no need to be so petty, is it really necessary to throw a fit over a couple of pieces of meat?”
Zhao Yaoyao didn’t indulge her at all, offering a fake smile as she retorted, “Today you borrow a bit of oil, tomorrow you borrow a bit of salt, and the moment my family cooks meat, you show up with your rice bowl in hand. With a single sweep of your chopsticks, you snagged more than half the dish—you really have no shame.”
“In times like these, no family is rolling in wealth. You’re never satisfied with taking advantage of others, yet nobody is even allowed to speak up about it? By your logic, a few pieces of meat aren’t a big deal, so why don’t I see you sharing the cured meat hanging in your own courtyard with us?”
Auntie Fatty was a notoriously sharp-tongued gossip in the village, but she was choked completely speechless on the spot. Her face shifted through colors like a painter’s palette, and before leaving, she didn’t forget to try and sow discord. “Let me tell you, Xingshu, you’re a man after all—how can you let your wife be so domineering? Aren’t you afraid people will laugh at you if word gets out?”
Without even lifting his head, Shen Xingshu replied, “In our household, she is the one who calls the shots. What she says goes.”
Auntie Fatty was dumbfounded by his words. For generations upon generations, the men had always been the heads of the household; how could things be different in the Shen family?
With matters brought to this point, thick-skinned as she was, Auntie Fatty could no longer stay. She clutched her rice bowl and slinked away in disgrace.
The moment she left, Shen Xingyu couldn’t help laughing out loud. “Should’ve put her in her place ages ago! Not only does she sponge off our meat, but she gossips behind our backs.”
She had wanted to say those things many times before, but could never get the words out. Her family members all shared a similar temperament; aside from her older brother, they were all first-class soft persimmons. Even her second brother’s scheming family were cowardly mice who didn’t dare fight back when bullied.
After dinner, Shen Xingyu went off to wash the dishes while Zhao Yaoyao pondered how to make money.
To earn big money, one had to head to economically developed cities where people had greater purchasing power and cash circulated freely, allowing for higher earnings.
She thought about putting her own medical skills to good use. In her previous world of decadence and luxury, her patients were either wealthiest tycoons or high-ranking dignitaries. Money had poured into her bank accounts like a continuous stream of water—back then, money was nothing more than a cold string of digits to her.
At that time, she had no interest in money; nowadays, money was so out of reach that she found herself sighing over meager pennies and dimes.
She thought about all the money the original owner had given to that scumbag—a full fifty yuan every single month for a whole year, totaling over six hundred yuan. For rural folk, that was an astronomical sum.
Tomorrow, she would go demand that money back. However, she couldn’t tell Shen Xingshu about this yet, lest the guy misunderstood and thought she still harbored lingering feelings for her old flame.
The intense encounters over the past couple of days had left her somewhat terrified of facing Shen Xingshu alone. He seemed endless, like an inexhaustible wild beast.
Night fell right on schedule. Just as she was about to find an excuse to avoid sharing a bed and get a good night’s rest, a pretty figure appeared at the doorway and called Shen Xingshu away.
Standing at the entrance to watch the excitement, Shen Xingyu noticed Zhao Yaoyao’s gaze sweep over and helpfully introduced, “That person is my brother’s former blind-date prospect. For various reasons it didn’t work out back then, but now she’s come looking for my brother, probably wanting to pick up where they left off.”
“Oh.”
Zhao Yaoyao acknowledged it simply and went back inside to sweep the floor, showing very little reaction.
Expecting her to fly into a jealous rage, Shen Xingyu followed her inside and warned, “Aren’t you worried my brother will get snatched away by her? My brother is a hot commodity in the village right now; even as a second-time husband, plenty of people are scrambling to marry into the family.”
If it were any other woman, she’d probably be clinging to her brother, demanding to be taken along to the military base housing compound to guard him every second of the day.
Sweeping the garbage into a dustpan, Zhao Yaoyao smiled faintly. “Anyone who can be snatched away is nothing more than garbage.”
Hearing that line, Shen Xingyu forgot all about eating the cucumber in her hand, looking at Zhao Yaoyao with eyes full of sheer adoration.
Yet, thinking of her own romance with Niu Dashan, a shadow of worry inevitably crossed her face. She was always terrified of being abandoned, afraid that he would look down on her family—disliking her bedridden father who couldn’t move, disliking her trouble-making sister-in-law who only knew how to cater to her maiden family, and disliking the birthmark on her face, even though she always covered it with heavy, slanted bangs. She still felt deeply insecure.
Nobody else in the village knew about that birthmark; she had gotten it from a high fever as a child, and besides her family, only Niu Dashan knew. She would never forget the look of disgust in his eyes, but as long as he didn’t mention breaking up, she wouldn’t either.
Because of this, whenever another girl appeared near Niu Dashan, she felt as though facing a formidable enemy. That agonizing sense of insecurity was simply too painful to bear.
Just as she was zoning out, Zhao Yaoyao walked up to her and asked, “I’m making a trip to the county town tomorrow. Is there anything you want? Tell me, and I’ll bring it back for you.”
“Ah? No, no, I don’t need anything.”
Shen Xingyu repeatedly waved her hands in refusal. It wasn’t that she didn’t want anything; she just knew Zhao Yaoyao didn’t have any money either, so asking was pointless.
A few minutes later, Shen Xingshu walked back inside looking rather grim. Vaguely, the sound of crying could be heard from the doorway before fading away entirely.
Li Mei, who had stepped out to wash a pair of trousers, had witnessed the whole thing. It was Xiaoling, the girl who used to look down on her son. The two of them had been talking around the corner when she suddenly lunged forward to hug her son, only to be shoved firmly away before running off in tears.
And it was already the dead of night, too. If the neighbors had seen this, heaven knows what gossip they would spread about their family.
The chilly night wind blew in through the window. Just as Zhao Yaoyao finished showering and intended to pour out the water in the basin, Shen Xingshu walked over, bent down, and carried the wooden tub outside. When he returned, he was holding a silver-white object. Drawing closer, she saw it was an exquisite hair hairpin, along with twenty yuan.
“What a pretty hairpin,” Zhao Yaoyao said in pleasant surprise.
Judging by its luster and texture, it appeared to be made of pure silver. Moreover, it had a decent weight to it and was exquisitely crafted. Where on earth had he gotten this money? Could the man actually be hiding a private stash?
“I’ll put it in for you.”
Ignoring her scrutinizing gaze, Shen Xingshu personally helped pin up her hair.
Her hair was soft and smooth, gathered neatly at the back with the silver-white plum blossom hairpin, lending a gentle, tender grace to her stunning face.
Unable to hold back any longer, Zhao Yaoyao asked, “Where did you get this money? Didn’t you hand over all your previous paychecks?”
While she worried he was hoarding secret funds, he assumed she was worried the money had come from illicit sources.
So, he patiently explained, “Don’t worry, the money is completely legitimate. I bought this hairpin, gave a portion to Mom and Dad to buy medicine, and the rest is for you.”
Wrapping his arms around her from behind, a lingering reluctance and deep attachment filled his voice. “I have to head back tomorrow to execute a mission. At most a month, at least ten days. Once I return safely, I’ll bring you both to the family quarters. It’s been hard on you during this time.”
Zhao Yaoyao fingered the cash in her hand. This man was truly steadfast. Once they had bared their hearts to each other, he threw himself wholly into living a proper life with her, pouring his entire heart into her.
“The hour is late. How about we rest early?”
He kissed the back of her hand like a devout believer.
Recalling the ordeal of the past two nights, Zhao Yaoyao pulled her hand back in a panic and stalled, “Hold on, you rest first. I need to use the restroom.”