Hu Xiu was a woman of particular standards.
Given the harsh conditions of the times—scarce clothing and bitter cold—most villagers only bathed once all winter, right before the Spring Festival.
If they couldn’t endure the grime, they might at most wipe themselves down with a hot towel.
Of course, there were a few hygiene-conscious individuals who, if not bathing daily, would still wash themselves at least every three to five days.
Hu Xiu was one of these exceptions.
For this reason, the Huo family had partitioned off a small two-to-three-square-meter bathing area in the kitchen.
They even commissioned a craftsman to build a wooden bathtub.
After Lin Ting arrived, being extremely sensitive to the cold, she moved her toiletries into the bathing area for easier access when brushing her teeth and washing her face.
So, after finishing her noodles,
Lin Ting carried the kerosene lamp to the bathing area and brushed her teeth once more.
Normally, she would have just rinsed her mouth and called it a day.
But today, knowing she would soon be sharing a bed with… a stranger of a husband, she unconsciously became more fastidious.
However, after brushing her teeth, it belatedly dawned on her what she was doing, and she frustratedly thumped her head.
Composure! Have some composure!
After a long while, having calmed down, Lin Ting patted her cheeks to make sure they were no longer flushed before stepping out of the bathing area with a composed expression.
But as she passed the tin-can stove boiling water next to the kitchen hearth, she hesitated for a few seconds, then bent down to move both the stove and the kettle into the bathing area.
It was truly freezing at this time; without pre-warming the bathing area with a stove, even an iron-willed person would struggle to endure.
Thus, when Huo Xiao finished organizing his bundle, picked up the clothes his wife had made for him, and pushed open the door to the bathing area, a wave of warmth greeted him.
Huo Xiao quickly closed the door and hung up the clean clothes before noticing the tin-can stove placed in the corner.
The stove was burning steadily, with a large kettle steaming atop it.
Without a second thought, Huo Xiao knew his wife had prepared this.
Recalling the new clothes she had just given him, his good mood instantly spread to his eyes.
After soaking in a hot bath,
Huo Xiao, having washed away the dust of his journey, felt completely relaxed.
When he returned to the main room, he first glanced toward the west room where his mother was.
Finding the lights off, he assumed she had already gone to bed and headed straight for the east room.
But upon reaching the door, worried that his wife might be startled by his sudden appearance, Huo Xiao hesitated for a few breaths before knocking to alert her.
He waited a few more seconds before pushing the door open.
The kerosene lamp was still lit inside.
Contrary to Huo Xiao’s expectations—where he thought he might find his wife nervous, awkward, or shy—
she was already asleep.
Her cheeks flushed pink in slumber.
Huo Xiao sat gently on the edge of the Kang, looking at his wife with a mix of amusement and exasperation.
At least she remembered to leave space for him.
“She’s quite carefree,” he murmured after a moment, then extended a slender finger to lightly tap his wife’s forehead before blowing out the lamp and lying down on the outer side of the Kang.
The next day,
at 5:30 in the morning,
Lin Ting, who had only slept about three hours, was awakened by knocking.
Half-asleep, she irritably turned over.
Then a low, hoarse male voice came from beside her: “Go back to sleep. I’ll go see what it is.”
The voice was soft, even gentle, but Lin Ting was instantly wide awake.
She sat up abruptly, and only after clearly seeing the man sitting on the edge of the Kang putting on his shoes did she mumble, “Oh, right. I’m married.”
Huo Xiao…
Huo Xiao cleared his throat lightly, swallowing the laughter that had risen to his throat. He pressed her back down onto the bed, tucked her in properly, and said, “Don’t catch a cold. It’s only past five—go back to sleep.”
Lin Ting pulled the quilt up to her eyes, feeling somewhat embarrassed. “You should go answer the door.”
Instead of hurrying off, Huo Xiao tugged the quilt back down until his wife’s nose and mouth were fully exposed before getting up to leave.
After hearing the door close, Lin Ting, who had been lying rigidly, rubbed her temples in frustration.
Last night, as she lay in bed, she had been terribly nervous, tossing and turning without knowing what to do.
They were legally married, yes, but as someone who had never been in a relationship, Lin Ting simply couldn’t bring herself to jump straight to the final step—the mere thought made her scalp tingle.
It wasn’t that she was overly conservative; rather, her parents had been extremely strict since childhood.
She vividly remembered a time in middle school when she went to a female classmate’s house to play.
It happened to rain, so her classmate’s mother insisted she stay overnight.
But her father wouldn’t allow it. Once the rain stopped, he rode his motorcycle to pick her up.
That was already past ten at night.
If he was that strict about her staying at a female classmate’s house, getting close to male classmates was entirely out of the question.
As a child, Lin Ting didn’t understand and often resented her father for being too harsh and making her lose face in front of her friends.
It wasn’t until she grew older and wiser that she realized it was her father’s way of protecting his daughter.
However, being overly controlled had its drawbacks—she became awkward when it came to romance.
She envied those girls who could freely express their emotions and enjoy themselves.
But when it came to her own turn, she just couldn’t loosen up. Flirting with words was already her limit.
So what happened next?
Ah, right—she had planned to pretend to be asleep.
But unexpectedly, she genuinely fell asleep.
She didn’t even know when Huo Xiao had entered the room.
At this thought, Lin Ting flushed with embarrassment and instinctively buried her head under the covers.
“…Why do you love burrowing into the quilt so much?”
Lin Ting froze, then peeked out to look at him. Seeing him fully dressed, she asked curiously, “Who was at the door? Are you going out?”
Huo Xiao replied, “It was Second Uncle Huo. He came to get me to burn paper offerings for the elders.”
Lin Ting said, “Mom already went a few days ago.” Although the “Four Olds” campaign was ongoing, some customs still persisted in remote rural areas, and people generally didn’t bother reporting them.
Huo Xiao explained, “I rarely come back, so it’s only right that I go. You should sleep some more.” Then, worried she might feel uncomfortable, he added, “Mom is still asleep too.”
That wasn’t her main concern. Lin Ting hesitated, “Should I go with you?”
Huo Xiao shook his head, “Next time. It’s snowing outside, and I need to go now—Second Uncle is waiting.”
After watching him leave, Lin Ting suddenly felt a wave of relief.
She was grateful that she had slept through the most difficult and awkward first time.
At least, after sharing a bed last night, she shouldn’t feel as nervous going forward.
It was New Year’s Eve.
Because of Huo Xiao’s return.
The families had overturned their previous decision to celebrate separately.
Second Uncle Huo and Third Uncle Huo brought their wives and children to gather at their eldest sister-in-law’s house to make dumplings, filling the relatively spacious main room to the brim.
As a result, Lin Ting only managed two more hours of sleep…
With so many people making dumplings.
Lin Ting, who couldn’t find a spot to join in, curled up on the kang, keeping the Dragon and Phoenix Twins and a few younger cousins company as they looked at candy wrappers.
Yes, they were just looking at candy wrappers.
In these times, children had few toys and particularly enjoyed collecting candy wrappers and cigarette packs to tuck into their notebooks.
Meanwhile, Huo Xiao was pulled by his second and third uncles to sit at the end of the kang, sharing stories from the troop that could be told.
Around the three of them, seven or eight young boys sat in a circle.
Even though Huo Xiao was not eloquent and his stories were dry, the boys still looked on with eager anticipation.
Hu Xiu and her sisters-in-law, meanwhile, led the older children to sit around the square table, chatting and laughing as they wrapped dumplings.
It was truly lively, and truly noisy.
But this was what the New Year was all about.
After finishing the dumplings, there was another activity.
Every year on New Year’s Eve, the village would host events, mostly movie screenings.
This time, Old Secretary had arranged for someone to invite performers for Errenzhuan opera.
Not just the children, but even the adults were looking forward to it.
For the sake of the Errenzhuan, the men barely drank any alcohol. After finishing the dumplings, they put down their bowls and chopsticks and hurried off to the brigade headquarters.
Lin Ting looked at her equally anxious mother-in-law and tried to reassure her, “Zhu Zi and the others will save good seats for us. There’s still over an hour left—why are you in such a hurry?”
Hu Xiu was pulling on a thick coat and shot her daughter-in-law a playful glare. “There’s something else to do. Hurry up and put on your clothes too.”
Lin Ting asked, “What is it?”
Hu Xiu replied, “We’re going to the brigade headquarters to borrow a scale and weigh the children.”
But why an hour early? Though still puzzled, Lin Ting didn’t voice her question this time and instead obediently put on her coat.
Just then, Huo Xiao walked in carrying two baskets and a shoulder pole.
Hu Xiu laughed heartily, “Hey, carrying them this way is much easier. That’s a smart idea!”
She then went back to the room to fetch the children’s small quilts.
Being particular about cleanliness, she first laid two layers of homespun cloth in the baskets before placing the quilts and the children inside.
Watching the two little ones clinging to the edges of the baskets, utterly thrilled, Lin Ting couldn’t help but laugh and gave her husband a thumbs-up. “Brilliant!”
Huo Xiao curved his lips into a slight smile.
The Dragon and Phoenix Twins had lost their parents before they turned one. To protect them, he and the Brigade Commander had arranged for them to be sent to his mother.
Because he had never been part of their lives, even though the little ones knew he was their father, they wouldn’t let him hold them, forcing him to find another way.
At this thought, Huo Xiao glanced at his wife beside him.
She still didn’t know that Guo Guo and Miao Miao weren’t his biological children.
Perhaps it was time to find an opportunity to tell her…
The last time they came to the brigade headquarters was for the pork feast, and it had been packed.
To Lin Ting’s surprise, the crowd for the weighing was just as large, which explained why her mother-in-law had set out an hour early.
But what astonished Lin Ting even more was the weighing tool—a massive steelyard capable of holding up to 400 jin.
Younger children could be weighed simply by hooking the scale to their waistbands, while older ones would grab the scale hook with both hands and lift their feet off the ground.
If a child had gained weight compared to the previous year, the adults would beam with joy, declaring that the food hadn’t been wasted.
If the weight remained unchanged or had even decreased, the child would get a pat on the back or a tug on the ear, accompanied by grumbles about being a fool who ate without putting on any meat.
To an outsider, it might have sounded like they were appraising piglets.
When it was their Dragon and Phoenix Twins’ turn and Huo Xiao stepped up to handle it himself, Lin Ting couldn’t resist craning her neck to peer at the markings on the steelyard.
But before she could finish calculating the weight, Huo Xiaohai, the 11-year-old fourth child from Second Uncle’s family, shouted first: “Big cousin, Big Cousin-in-law wants you to weigh her too!”
Hearing this, Huo Xiao, who had been about to put the child down, indeed turned to look at his wife: “Want to be weighed?”
Lin Ting flushed with embarrassment: “No, I don’t.” She just wanted to take a closer look at the scale.
Besides, being weighed by her husband in front of so many people, and in such a manner—did she have no dignity?
Chen Guilan, who had been chatting with her sister-in-law, saw her niece-in-law’s embarrassment and pinched her son’s ear, scolding with a laugh: “What nonsense are you spouting, you brat? I think you’re doing it on purpose! Your Big Cousin-in-law is an educated person, she’s shy! Don’t tease her!”
Huo Xiaohai squealed as his mother twisted his ear: “Ouch… gently, Mom, gently! I’m educated too, you know! I can even speak foreign words! We’re both educated people, why the double standard?”
Chen Guilan didn’t believe him and scoffed: “Cut it out! You, educated? And speaking foreign words?”
Huo Xiaohai didn’t like that. He immediately straightened up and loudly proved his point: “KISS ME! That’s the foreign phrase I just learned!”
Chen Guilan was skeptical: “What nonsense is that?”
Seizing the chance, Huo Xiaohai broke free from his mother’s grip, darted behind his Big Cousin-in-law, and stuck his head out to mock his mom: “It’s ‘KISS ME’! It means ‘hello’! What do you know?”
Chen Guilan then looked at her college-educated niece-in-law: “Is what Old Fourth said true? Does he really know some foreign words?”
Lin Ting…
As an English teacher, Lin Ting, struggling to hold back her laughter, felt it necessary to clarify things for the child.
But before she could speak, Little Huo Xiaohai, doubted by his mother one too many times, exploded: “Of course it’s true! I heard it from Old Secretary’s Educated Youth wife when she was talking to her husband! She’s a teacher from the city! She told me herself it means ‘hello’!”
With that, the little fellow planted his hands on his hips and looked triumphantly at Lin Ting, greeting her: “KISS ME, Big Cousin-in-law… Ouch! It hurts, it hurts! Big Cousin, why are you pinching my ear too… It hurts… it really hurts!”
Huo Xiao tossed his little cousin to Chen Guilan and said coldly: “Aunt, things are tight outside now. You can’t just speak English casually.”
Hearing this, Chen Guilan, who had been amused moments before, suddenly realized something and shuddered in fear. She grabbed a carrying pole nearby and swung it at her son.
Naturally, Huo Xiaohai didn’t just stand there. With a yelp, he ran off.
Seeing this, Chen Guilan hoisted the pole and chased after him.
Meanwhile, Lin Ting eyed the man beside her suspiciously: “Is it that serious outside now?”
From what she knew, many junior high schools still had English classes. How could an 11-year-old kid get in trouble over a single English phrase?
Huo Xiao said with a straight face: “Better to be cautious.”
Lin Ting…