While Wang Yunzhi was cooking, Fifth Grandma hurried over on her bound feet, looking anxious.
She wanted to ask Shen Gang to cross the river and invite He Shi once more.
The truth was that when she had gone to the fields that afternoon and invited He Shi to dinner, he had not agreed.
But after receiving so many things from him, she simply could not accept leaving the matter there. She had insisted that he absolutely had to come eat and then walked off without giving him any chance to refuse.
The old woman simply would not listen.
Now everyone had been off work for twenty or thirty minutes.
She had already started cooking in the kitchen and had poked her head out to look toward the door more than a dozen times, yet still saw no sign of him.
The red-braised pork was already simmering in the pot.
Having no choice, she came to find Shen Gang and ask him to run the errand.
Unfortunately, Shen Gang was not home.
The boy had rushed out with a basket to gather pig fodder before dark so his sister would have less work to do.
Meanwhile, Shen Guozhong had gone to the production team headquarters to report his team’s rice-transplanting progress to the brigade leader during a brief meeting.
The old woman knew that everyone would still have to pull seedlings that night after dinner. She could hardly ask Wang Yunzhi to make the trip.
At a loss, she looked uncertainly at Shen Yao.
“Yaoyao, how about you go for Grandma?”
She still did not fully realize that Shen Yao was now no different from an ordinary person and was a little worried about sending her alone.
Shen Yao thought it was a simple task and readily agreed.
Telling Fifth Grandma to go back and keep an eye on the stove, she informed her mother and headed out.
When she arrived at the house where the educated youths lived, He Shi had just stepped outside.
He was wearing only knee-length shorts and a black sleeveless undershirt. His short hair was still damp, glistening with water.
After taking only a few steps, he looked up and saw Shen Yao.
Momentarily surprised, he curved his lips into a smile.
“Looking for me?”
Since arriving in this world, Shen Yao had struggled just to get a decent meal. She had never been in a position to be picky about clothing and had adapted fairly quickly to the local styles.
But for some reason, seeing He Shi dressed like this made her heart skip a beat.
Suddenly, she did not know where to rest her eyes.
Feeling awkward, she looked away and told herself it was probably because she still was not fully used to such things.
Seeing her abruptly turn her face aside, He Shi stepped closer.
His gaze brushed over her ear, and he suddenly let out a teasing laugh.
“Shen Yao, your ears are red.”
That single sentence made her ears not only red but noticeably warm.
To say something like that to a young woman was terribly forward.
She felt a flash of annoyance, but since she had only recently accepted such a large favor from him, she did not quite know how to react.
She glared at him, unwilling to lose in terms of momentum.
“It’s because you’re wearing too little.”
“Fifth Grandma sent me to invite you and Educated Youth Xu to dinner. Hurry up. She’s worried that she’ll finish cooking and you still won’t come.”
She had come only to deliver the invitation, but now her tone was anything but friendly. Having passed on the message, she turned and left immediately.
Still, when she thought about how he had sent grain and meat to Fifth Grandma, she could not truly be angry with him.
Her father and brothers had all served in the military. Her family had also taken care of the families of soldiers who died in battle, whether by helping them find a livelihood or providing financial support. Because of that, she had a very favorable impression of the way He Shi had handled things.
He Shi glanced down at his clothes.
Wearing too little?
He laughed.
He had originally intended to head toward Shen Laoliu’s house, but changed his mind and strode after Shen Yao instead.
“Dongzi’s exhausted from these past few days. He’s still sleeping. I’ll go with you. I already said I wasn’t coming for dinner today. Did the old lady really prepare dinner anyway?”
Shen Yao gave a quiet hum of acknowledgment. After a moment’s thought, she said:
“Thank you.”
It was hard to tell whether she meant for the shoe coupons or for what Fifth Grandma had told her.
Hearing her say those few words, He Shi walked up beside her and studied her face for a couple of moments. Then he clicked his tongue.
“Shen Yao, honestly, I really don’t think you’re stupid.”
A flicker passed through Shen Yao’s eyes.
Lately she had not interacted much with outsiders. Her family already knew she had recovered from her foolishness, and even Fifth Grandma had hinted that she was getting better. Out of habit, she had unconsciously started treating He Shi with ordinary courtesy, which had apparently made him suspicious.
Pretending to be foolish in order to avoid fieldwork was the sort of thing that could become either a minor issue or a major scandal if exposed. Either way, it would not end well.
She glanced at him. Allowing a trace of pride to show on her face, she lifted her chin slightly and said:
“I was never stupid in the first place!”
He Shi: …
There it was again.
Even her proud expression looked adorably foolish.
While they talked, they passed over the ridge and reached the main road leading out of the mountains. There was no one else around.
Suddenly, he asked:
“That time, why did you climb into my bed in the middle of the night?”
Ever since learning that Shen Yao had mental difficulties, he had been curious about it. At the same time, he had felt ridiculous for dwelling on the foolish actions of a foolish girl.
But after spending more time around her, that curiosity had resurfaced.
Hearing him bring up the old incident again, Shen Yao froze for a moment.
Knowing that He Shi had always been afraid she would cling to him, she decided to lay everything out clearly.
She looked at him and said:
“The aunties in the village said that if you sleep in the same bed as someone, that means you’re married to them.”
He Shi had never expected that answer.
“So you wanted to marry me?”
After asking, he watched her, waiting for her answer, though he himself was not entirely sure what answer he wanted to hear.
The moment the words left his mouth, she shook her head.
“No.”
The reply came cleanly and decisively, without the slightest hesitation.
For some reason, He Shi felt choked.
“If you didn’t want to, then why did you…”
…climb into my bed?
Shen Yao thought to herself, Because it wasn’t me who did it.
The original Shen Yao had been naïve and completely ignorant of the adult world.
She looked at He Shi.
He really was handsome. His features were striking yet masculine. No wonder the original Shen Yao had liked him so much.
After that one glance, she said seriously:
“I used to want to. I thought you were good-looking. But that day you were too fierce. And you said marrying an educated youth wasn’t good. Gangzi said educated youths aren’t good either. He said you’re not even as good as him at farm work.”
He Shi: …
Not as good as Shen Gang at farm work?
That little brat really knew how to brag.
Then his mind caught up with the conversation, and he realized he had been led astray by this silly girl.
Why was he competing with Shen Gang at all?
And competing over farm work, of all things.
Thinking it over, this really was the logic of a child.
Her likes and dislikes were incredibly simple.
Today she liked you because you were handsome.
Tomorrow she stopped liking you because you had been fierce with her once.
Still, not liking him was probably for the best.
He did not particularly want to be liked by a silly little girl.
At least now that a door had been installed, he no longer had to worry about her sneaking into his room at night.
That said…
He turned to look at Shen Yao.
He had always known she had delicate features, but only today did he notice how beautiful her profile was.
Pure.
Delicate.
Clean.
There was even a faint dimple at the corner of her cheek.
His throat suddenly felt dry.
His fingers twitched restlessly.
A face like hers did not merely awaken a man’s protective instincts. It also made one want to touch her, to tease her, to bully her a little…
He Shi quickly looked away.
He felt that perhaps one reason he treated Shen Yao slightly better than others was because of that.
Xu Xiangdong always said that men were visual creatures.
Though He Shi did not think he belonged in the same category as animals, he had to admit he seemed to care about appearances too.
The most dangerous thing was that Shen Yao had exactly the sort of face that made people want to pick on her.
Yet she lacked common sense and knew nothing about the differences between men and women.
If she ever wandered foolishly into the hands of some other man, who could stand it?
“Shen Yao, educated youths really aren’t reliable. Other men aren’t reliable either. You’re a girl. You can’t just decide you want to marry someone and sneak into his room. Those people were teasing you. Even if someone took advantage of you, it would only mean you’d been taken advantage of. That doesn’t mean he’d marry you. Understand?”
He Shi had never considered himself a good person.
But when it came to Shen Yao, he felt he had been remarkably kind-hearted.
The corner of Shen Yao’s mouth twitched.
Her act had worked a little too well.
Now he had fully embraced the role of educating a fool.
She lowered her head slightly and murmured:
“Mm.”
He Shi thought for a moment and added:
“You aren’t very clever, so you need to be obedient. As for marriage, don’t go making decisions on your own. Just wait for your parents to arrange it. Girls shouldn’t be so eager to get married.”
Who’s eager to get married?
The corners of Shen Yao’s lips curved upward.
Suppressing the inexplicable urge to smile, she replied with another quiet:
“Mm.”
The sound was soft and obedient.
It brushed against He Shi’s ears and settled right in the center of his heart, leaving him strangely content and comfortable.
He never once considered that his unusual concern for Shen Yao might be abnormal. Instead, he genuinely felt that today’s advice might have saved this silly girl from trouble.
After all, someone like Shen Yao was far too likely to attract wolves.
Until Shen Yao spotted Shen Gang carrying a basket on the narrow wooden bridge over the stream, He Shi felt their conversation had been quite pleasant.
But the moment she saw her brother, she cheerfully called out:
“Gangzi!”
Then she broke into a light run and hurried onto the bridge.
Completely forgetting that only seconds earlier she had been walking beside someone who had been earnestly offering her life advice.
The feeling that hit He Shi was indescribable.
It was like being lightly punched in the face.
Why am I worrying about her when we’re not even close?
Yesterday he had generously given her the shoe coupons, and she had not remained polite for even three extra minutes.
He Shi was speechless.
Sure enough, she really did have the mentality of a five- or six-year-old child.
Give her candy and she’ll think you’re wonderful.
The moment the candy is in her mouth, she’ll wonder who you are.
Use you once, then forget you in the blink of an eye.
He could not even get angry about it.
Could you really get angry at a five-year-old?
Watching the brother and sister walk one after the other across the bridge, without the slightest intention of waiting for him, He Shi could easily have caught up with them with his long legs.
But for some reason, he stubbornly held back.
He wanted to see just how far Shen Yao would walk before she finally remembered that he was still there.
He waited and waited.
The brother and sister crossed the bridge, their steps light and carefree, leaving him four or five meters behind. They turned a corner on the dirt road, and then their figures disappeared completely behind a mud-brick house.
Not once did Shen Yao seem to remember he was there.
He Shi felt inexplicably dejected.
Shen Yao, of course, had no idea he felt that way.
In her mind, she had only been helping Fifth Grandma deliver a message. Now that the errand was done, naturally she should hurry home.
Her mother had probably already finished cooking. Even a few slices of meat stir-fried with vegetables were still meat.
The important thing was to get home quickly and eat dinner.