Back home, Zhou Kuangye filled a basin with water, added a bit of hot water to it, and soaked a towel. “Close your eyes.”
Su Ying obediently closed her eyes, and the next second, the warm towel was placed on her face.
She let out a comfortable sigh, feeling the pores on her face open up. Zhou Kuangye wiped away the tear stains on her face, and after finishing, he gently cleaned her small hands.
Perhaps influenced by Wen Zi’s words, Su Ying suddenly realized that Zhou Kuangye always lowered his head when he was around her.
He lowered his head to talk to her, lowered his head to wipe her face and hands, and even lowered his head to scold her.
It was completely different from the arrogant and cold way he treated others.
It was as if she could truly see a hint of a smile in his dark pupils—something she had never noticed before.
His hands were rough, but his movements were gentle.
In all her life, he was the only one who had ever wiped her hands for her.
She was the fifth child in her family, with four older sisters. From the moment she was born, she seemed to have been labeled as useless and a burden.
The most common words her parents said to her were to be obedient, not cause trouble, and make things easier for them.
As a child, she didn’t understand why her mother always looked at her coldly, as if she regretted giving birth to her, or why her father never held her.
As she grew older, she understood—it was because she wasn’t a boy. To them, she was nothing but a useless burden.
To survive, she could only be obedient, endure beatings and scoldings, and shrink into a corner by the firewood pile, becoming invisible.
The first time she saw her parents smile at her and buy her a big meat bun, she thought they had finally changed, that they were willing to accept her. She secretly vowed to earn a lot of money in the future to support them.
But she was too naive back then. As soon as she turned around, they told her she was being sent to the countryside.
Between her fourth sister and her, they didn’t hesitate for a moment before choosing her. Her fourth sister was a good student, while she was clumsy and couldn’t learn anything. Even though she was only nineteen at the time, she was still abandoned.
When she first arrived at the educated youth point, she was just as they described—a skinny, bony figure with dry, frizzy hair, looking like a child from the slums. Aside from being pale, she wasn’t pretty.
Back then, all she wanted was to work hard to earn work points and fill her stomach.
But she was small and weak, earning at most four work points a day, and mostly only two. She was often so hungry she felt dizzy.
She barely managed to survive like this for three months.
During a winter fishing trip, she accidentally fell into an icy hole. The freezing water made her feel the terror of death for the first time.
She was a coward, afraid of dying. Even if life was hard, she still wanted to live.
Fortunately, someone saved her, but her health was left with lasting issues.
From that moment on, she knew she couldn’t survive on her own.
Perhaps one day, in some place, she would be crushed by a tree, starve to death, or die from the rain, disappearing silently from this world.
No one would cry for her or burn paper money for her.
Even in the underworld, she would remain a hungry ghost.
From then on, she began to change, becoming cunning and seducing men to help her with work.
She also secretly vowed to live a good life, no matter the cost.
Why should she suffer like this? She refused to accept it!
She seduced Zhou Kuangye, the tallest and strongest man, to work for her.
After learning that he had a lot of money, she greedily spent it. She thought he would beat or scold her, but he never did.
Even when he scolded her, it wasn’t with the vicious words her mother used. She could tell it was more like teasing.
He was different from everyone else, patient with her.
His large hands were rough and calloused, but exceptionally warm.
Su Ying stared blankly at his profile, feeling as if something had gently bumped against her heart—sour, astringent, yet warm. An unfamiliar warmth welled up in her chest, and tiny pearls began to gather in the corners of her eyes again.
Unconsciously, her arms wrapped around his waist as she slowly nestled into his embrace, resting her head against his chest and listening to the strong, steady beat of his heart. Tears fell drop by drop.
Zhou Kuangye’s hands hovered in the air, a flicker of surprise in his eyes.
Su Ying would ask him for money, cry pitifully, pretend to be hurt to make him worry, or put on a show of tears—but she had never been like this before.
Biting her lip, she wept silently without making a sound.
This version of her, instead, made his heart feel as if it were stuffed with cotton, heavy and uncomfortable.
She had been harshly criticized today and must have been deeply hurt.
He wrapped his arms around her small frame, holding her firmly against him, his voice domineering with a rising tone:
“Su Ying, you don’t have to be afraid. You weren’t scared when you tried to seduce me, so why cry now just because someone said a few harsh words? Is your man that useless?”
“If anyone dares to insult you again, just say, ‘I’ll have my man beat you up.'”
That line was far more effective than any of the nastiest insults she could muster.
“If they don’t listen, come find me. I’ll stand up for you. What’s there to cry about?”
He used to hate it when people cried—tears were the most useless thing in the world.
He still hated it now, but he didn’t want to see her tears because they made him feel uneasy.
Su Ying clutched his clothes with her small hands, rubbing her face back and forth against him, wiping away all her tears. Her voice was choked and soft. “Who said I’m scared? I’m not scared at all.”
She lifted her watery eyes to look at him, a hint of expectation in her gaze. “Zhou Kuangye, where did you live before?”
“In the dormitory. Why?”
Although he was a regiment commander, he was alone. Applying for family housing was troublesome, so he had always lived in the dormitory.
As a rough man, he could live anywhere. If he got married in the future, he could apply for family housing then.
Su Ying pouted in disappointment. It was fine if he didn’t have a big house—given how willing he was to spend money on her, even a small place of his own would have been acceptable.
But he lived in a dormitory.
How could she be with him? She couldn’t bear that kind of hardship. She wanted a good life.
They’d have to break up.
She wiped away her tears, tossing aside her vulnerable self along with them, and immediately bounced back.
With a spoiled huff, she said, “I need to feed Grandma Ding. Hurry up and boil water—I want to take a bath later.”
“Alright.” Zhou Kuangye watched as she picked up the lunchbox and dashed off to Grandma Ding’s room, showing no trace of her earlier disappointment. He shook his head with a wry smile.
Her moods shifted like the weather—sunny one moment, rainy the next. She cried easily, but she also knew how to cheer herself up just as quickly.
“Grandma Ding, your food is here. Are you hungry?”
Ding Guizhi turned her face toward the sound of her voice and waved a hand. “Not hungry, I’m still full.”
That afternoon, Su Ying had fed her a large bowl of malted milk and a piece of sponge cake, and she hadn’t fully digested it yet.
Su Ying eagerly opened the lunchbox and held it under Grandma Ding’s nose. “Grandma Ding, smell this—it’s braised pork. Doesn’t it smell delicious?”
The savory aroma of meat wafted through the air, and Ding Guizhi swallowed her saliva in anticipation. She had never eaten braised pork in her entire life, only having tasted it a few times since the little girl arrived. Now, she was truly craving it.
Su Ying fetched a pair of chopsticks from the kitchen, pulled up a small stool, and sat beside her. She picked up a piece of meat and said, “Grandma Ding, open your mouth, ah”
Watching her take a bite filled Su Ying with an immense sense of accomplishment.
Ding Guizhi chewed the tender, melt-in-your-mouth meat, her eyes crinkling with happiness.
Since Grandma Ding couldn’t eat much, Su Ying fed her the remaining meat, then prepared warm water to wash her body and helped her settle down to sleep. Only then did she begin to tidy up for herself.