“Waaah! Ee-yaa!”
The little one babbled in response to Jiang Lizhu’s enthusiastic affection, his tiny hands and feet happily flailing about on the bed. Then, as if he’d had enough of his mother’s fervor, he flipped over.
“Ah! The baby rolled over!” Jiang Lizhu exclaimed, startled, then called out to Gu Mingyan, who was scrubbing diapers in the bathroom. “Mingyan, quick, come see! Our baby rolled over for the first time!”
Gu Mingyan shook the water from his hands and walked quickly to the bedside. Sure enough, he saw the little one who had flipped over, struggling to prop up his round little head, and Jiang Lizhu, whose eyes had reddened with joy.
“Baby, you’re amazing,” Jiang Lizhu said, bending down to press another deeply moved kiss on the baby’s cheek, then gently pushed him back over. “Roll over one more time for your daddy to see!”
The little one certainly didn’t disappoint, executing another clumsy tumble and flipping back over, babbling “waah” at Jiang Lizhu and Gu Mingyan.
“Mm, very good. The baby is very good,” Gu Mingyan said, crouching down and gently patting the baby’s back. He turned his head and smiled at Jiang Lizhu. “Hard work, baby’s mother.”
Jiang Lizhu’s eyes curved in a proud smile. In her inexhaustible joy, she kissed the baby several more times, then leaned over and planted a kiss on Gu Mingyan’s cheek. “Hard work, baby’s father, too.”
Gu Mingyan, the new dad who conscientiously scrubbed the baby’s diapers, also deserved a reward.
Gu Mingyan was visibly stunned. By the time he came back to his senses, Jiang Lizhu’s enthusiasm had already returned to the little one, whom she had rolled back over, encouraging him to do a few more flips for her to see.
The baby, clearly tired after several rolls, lay limp, limbs sprawled, giggling happily as he received Jiang Lizhu’s passionate kisses. Mother and son were a picture of joy together.
Gu Mingyan’s lips curled up in a smile as well. He watched them quietly for a long time before getting up and returning to the bathroom to continue scrubbing the diapers.
Much later, he raised his hand and gently touched the cheek where Jiang Lizhu had kissed him, as if he could still feel the soft, burning sensation.
For as long as he could remember, it was the first time anyone had kissed Gu Mingyan on the cheek. As for childhood… raising children in the countryside was clearly different from how Jiang Lizhu raised their baby.
Anyway, Gu Mingyan had never seen his parents kiss his younger siblings when they were infants. As the third son, not particularly favored or noticed, he surely hadn’t been kissed like this by his parents when he was little.
Gu Mingyan couldn’t quite articulate what he was feeling at that moment, but he was certain that his son was lucky and blessed to have a mother like Jiang Lizhu.
The baby, tired from playing, was soon lulled to sleep. Jiang Lizhu checked the mosquito net again to ensure no mosquitoes had gotten in, then got out of bed and returned to her sewing machine to continue stitching and serging edges.
After Gu Mingyan finished hanging the clothes and diapers to dry, he came back to the room and continued folding the sheets and clothes he had brought in earlier, putting them away in the cabinet.
Then he sat down at the desk and picked up a book on basic medical knowledge that Jiang Lizhu had specially found for him to read.
Before joining the army, Gu Mingyan had studied for two years with Second Elder Chen in the village. After enlisting, he relied entirely on self-study to obtain a junior high school equivalency, so reading was not a problem for him.
“Finally done,” Jiang Lizhu said, standing up and twisting her waist. She picked up the results of her hard work from the past half evening to show Gu Mingyan.
“I made you some pajamas. After a rinse in water, you can wear them tomorrow.”
In this era, ordinary people’s families rarely had the concept of pajamas or loungewear. When Jiang Lizhu had looked through the luggage Gu Mingyan brought back, she hadn’t seen any clothes specifically for sleeping at night.
At the supply and marketing co-op, Gu Mingyan had spent a considerable amount of money on her and the child. Wanting to reciprocate his kindness, Jiang Lizhu made him a set of pajamas – a top and pants.
“For me? Hmm, thank you,” Gu Mingyan confirmed again, genuinely not expecting Jiang Lizhu to make him clothes so quickly.
He took the clothes, looked them over repeatedly, then went into the bathroom. Following Jiang Lizhu’s instructions, he simply rinsed them in water, scrubbed them twice, and hung them to dry outside the east window.
Having finally finished her tasks, Jiang Lizhu brewed herself a cup of hot milk, drank it slowly, then went to the bathroom to brush her teeth and wash her face. After applying the era’s characteristic face cream, she came back and climbed into bed.
“What are you standing there dumbly for? Come on, let’s sleep. If we wait any longer, the baby will wake up again. We need to grab a quick nap while we can,” Jiang Lizhu said. She didn’t think they’d be in the mood for anything else with a little one beside them who could wake up anytime for milk.
Jiang Lizhu didn’t mind the idea of something happening with the handsome and fit Gu Mingyan. But the moment she associated sex with having another child, all interest instantly vanished.
For the next three to five years, she didn’t want to experience that agonizing, life-draining pain of childbirth again.
“Okay,” Gu Mingyan replied. After spending half the morning and the entire afternoon with Jiang Lizhu, he had actually adjusted his mindset quite well. But then… Jiang Lizhu had kissed him, making it hard for his heart to remain undisturbed.
And now, Jiang Lizhu, the very person who had stirred up his heart, was urging him so innocently and obliviously.
Gu Mingyan quickly took off his outer shirt, revealing a sleeveless undershirt underneath. In Jiang Lizhu’s words, he used to just use his undershirt as sleepwear.
After a moment’s hesitation, he turned his back to take off his pants and changed into another new pair he had brought back.
In the past, he hadn’t needed to change pants before sleeping. After training each day, the clothes he wore would be taken off and washed immediately, so there was no issue of being unhygienic and dirtying the bed.
But Jiang Lizhu clearly had higher hygiene standards for herself and those around her. He had already gone back and forth to the backyard and the shared kitchen several times after his bath.
Washing an extra pair of pants was no trouble for Gu Mingyan; it was just a convenient thing to do. As her husband, he was willing to cooperate with Jiang Lizhu’s requests and gradually adjust his habits.
On the bed, Jiang Lizhu blinked, then quietly pulled the blanket up to her cheeks. Gu Mingyan’s physique was even better than she had imagined – broad shoulders, a narrow waist, and a very perky behind!
“Just walking in the yard doesn’t necessarily mean you have to change clothes before getting into bed,” Jiang Lizhu said softly to Gu Mingyan, trying hard to suppress her impure thoughts. “But if you’ve been out and come back into contact with people, it’s best to wash your hands and face and change clothes before holding our baby. The baby is still small; his resistance isn’t as strong as an adult’s. If we’re not careful, he could get sick.”
“I’ll remember. I’ll be more careful from now on,” Gu Mingyan said, holding open the mosquito net and climbing onto the bed under Jiang Lizhu’s suddenly alert gaze.
“Quick, don’t let any mosquitoes in,” Jiang Lizhu said. Her alertness wasn’t directed at Gu Mingyan, but at the fear he might let mosquitoes inside. The mosquitoes this time of year were still vicious.
One bite, and both she and the baby would be scratching and miserable for a long time.
But keeping the windows closed day and night wasn’t an option either. Stuffying the room for too long wouldn’t be good for her or the baby. A little cool breeze also made it easier to fall asleep.
“Don’t worry, I won’t,” Gu Mingyan assured her quietly. He swept his gaze across the mosquito net, ensuring no “fugitive” mosquitoes remained inside, before reaching for the cord hanging on the wall by the headboard.
The bed was one point five meters wide. Jiang Lizhu and the baby occupied half of it, leaving the other half for Gu Mingyan. It wasn’t spacious, but it wasn’t cramped either.
When Gu Mingyan lay down in the darkness, Jiang Lizhu smiled slightly, propped herself up on her side, then quickly leaned in and kissed him on the cheek again. “Goodnight.”
She couldn’t be the only one whose heart was set ablaze; in a marriage, hardships should be shared.
Before Gu Mingyan could react or respond, Jiang Lizhu quickly lay back down and turned over, one arm loosely draped over their soundly sleeping son. She closed her eyes to sleep.
In the darkness, Gu Mingyan held his breath for a long moment before exhaling. He had clearly heard the slightly mischievous tone in Jiang Lizhu’s voice.
Because the child was there, both she and he had tacitly agreed nothing would happen tonight. That was why she felt she could be so… playful and tease him without restraint.
Having teased him, her mood now calm, Jiang Lizhu closed her eyes. She thought she wouldn’t fall asleep too quickly, but the next thing she knew, she was already asleep.
At some point, Jiang Lizhu woke to the sound of her son’s fussing. As she expertly nursed him, she still felt waves of drowsiness, her eyes half-closed.
Gu Mingyan had woken at the baby’s first cry. He turned on the light. After Jiang Lizhu finished feeding the baby, he took him, changed his diaper, and soothed him back to sleep.
Jiang Lizhu yawned, watching Gu Mingyan with the baby with a lazy expression. Although she had woken up again in the middle of the night, she didn’t have to worry about waking the neighbors or pacing the floor alone with the baby in the dead of night. This feeling in her heart was so much better than before.
In this era where hiring a nanny wasn’t openly permitted, she had to conscript her husband to help out. Otherwise, by the time their son grew up, she’d be old, worn out from the toll.
The little one was awake for nearly an hour this time before falling asleep again. Gu Mingyan put the baby down and looked over at Jiang Lizhu, who, propped against the pillow, had already drifted off to sleep again, too tired to stay awake.
He reached around, slipping one arm under her shoulders and the other under her knees, lifted her, laid her flat, and pulled the blanket up to her chest.
“Baby…” Jiang Lizhu frowned, instinctively reaching out to feel for her child.
Gu Mingyan took her hand. He half-lay down beside her and explained softly, “The baby is right next to you. Don’t worry. Go to sleep.”
After a long pause, he added, “Goodnight.”
He turned off the light again and lay down, settling back to sleep beside his wife and son. Soon, he was asleep once more.
Early morning, just past five o’clock, the little one woke again with a cry. Having coordinated once already, Gu Mingyan first picked up the baby, changed his diaper, and then handed him back to Jiang Lizhu for feeding.
Having had enough sleep, Gu Mingyan waited for a while, but ended up waiting for his wife to fall back asleep and his son, now fed and turned over, to start playing by himself.
“Ah ya,” the little one flailed his hands and feet. Just as he was about to hit Jiang Lizhu, Daddy Gu Mingyan gently caught him and lifted him out from the innermost side of the bed.
After last night, Gu Mingyan understood how hard it was to take care such a small baby. He had only experienced one night; Jiang Lizhu had been taking care of their son alone for over three months.
“Be good, we won’t disturb Mama’s sleep,” Gu Mingyan whispered to his son, negotiating. He carried the baby off the bed and carefully closed the mosquito net again.
Gu Mingyan used the cloth carrier they had used yesterday to strap the baby securely to himself, put on a little windproof hat for the baby, and together they went out to buy breakfast.
Jiang Lizhu usually had brown sugar and eggs for breakfast. There was no shortage of eggs at home, but Gu Mingyan couldn’t follow her example in eating that. He planned to go to the state-run restaurant that served breakfast to buy some steamed buns.
Seeing how alert and energetic the little one was, and knowing it would be a while before he could be soothed back to sleep, Gu Mingyan decided to take him along.
As Jiang Lizhu had said, Gu Mingyan could feel the baby’s natural fondness and trust towards him. Whenever their eyes met, the baby would happily flap his limbs and chuckle, showing no fear at all.