Along the way, he took a detour from the north, while Zhang Guoqing carried a sack of dicinal herbs to the team’s clinic. Upon entering, he found not a single soul inside.
He directly opened the sack and spread out the bundles of herbs in the yard to dry. As for what to do next, when soone returns, they should take care of it.
"Ping’an is already asleep. You should wash up and rest too," Zhou Jiao said imdiately when she saw him enter the house, pointing to several buckets of water sunning in the yard, urging him to sleep.
Even an iron body can’t endure this kind of exhaustion. Zhou Jiao had made up her mind to stay at ho that afternoon, and no one would be allowed to disturb his rest.
Zhang Guoqing nodded, walked to the well, and took off his clothes and pants, "Have you given everything to Mom?"
Zhou Jiao rolled her eyes at him. The courtyard door was wide open, what if a young woman ca by? "Yes. She asked why you didn’t call her and Dad to go up the mountain together."
"It’s too harsh outside. You go in and lie down for a while, I’ll be right done."
Zhou Jiao nodded and went to the main door to close the yard gate. That afternoon, her mother-in-law busied herself drying things with three little girls, and her father-in-law took so boys to the county town to sell wild fruits, so no one should co over.
"Wifey..."
Surprised, Zhou Jiao turned her head, looking at him with puzzled eyes.
Zhang Guoqing pointed at his own back, "It’s itchy."
Zhou Jiao quickly ran to his back, keeping a distance, and splashed a ladle of water onto herself. Looking at her shirt now soaking wet, Zhou Jiao didn’t know whether to cry or laugh, "I just changed my clothes."
"Wash it again. Here, let help you carry the water in."
Zhou Jiao imdiately slipped out of his arms and ran towards the bedroom but was caught by him and blinked, "Big brother, rember to take things slowly and steadily."
Zhang Guoqing laughed heartily and teased, "Are you overthinking? I’m so tired I could fall asleep the mont I close my eyes."
Faced with his teasing gaze, Zhou Jiao gave him a sideways glance.
"Look, look, there’s that look again. Forget it, I’ll just be the one to serve you until you sleep."
"Nonsense! Stop finding excuses."
"If you speak any louder, our son will wake up."
Zhou Jiao tenderly touched his dark circles, "Get so sleep first. I’m tired too."
"Then you have to promise ..." Zhang Guoqing rolled his eyes and whispered the rest in her ear.
No one knew what he said, but judging by Zhou Jiao’s blushing face, it probably wasn’t anything proper. After hesitating for a long ti, she shyly nodded.
The couple, stuck together like glue, whispered sweet nothings to each other. They changed out of their wet clothes, and soon, two adults and a child were sleeping soundly on the large bed.
anwhile, among the people getting off the train in the provincial city, a haggard-looking Li Qinglin ca out carrying his luggage. After leaving the station, he looked in the direction of Zhang Yuntao’s school, hesitated for a mont, and imdiately turned around to catch a bus heading to the county town. This ti, he decided to make it a priority to see Zhang Guoqing before reuniting with his brothers.
That sleep left the exhausted Zhang Guoqing waking up naturally. When he awoke, the room was dark, with the moonlight obscured by thick curtain cloth. Lying there, he listened intently, vaguely hearing Zhou Jiao happily humming outside, accompanied by the sound of a knife cutting on a chopping board.
A smile gradually spread across Zhang Guoqing’s face. He quickly sprang out of bed, grabbed his clothes, and left the room. Seeing a light in the kitchen, his heart felt warm.
He was pulling on his clothes as he walked and leaned against the kitchen door, putting on his pants, as he smiled, "Why didn’t you call ? Need help? Where’s our son?"
"Did you sleep comfortably? Sit down for a while. The food will be ready soon. Ping’an and Xi Zi ran out and haven’t co back yet. Dad went to the village entrance to cool off, and Mom went to watch the fun."
Zhang Guoqing scooped a basin of water, quickly washed his face, and curiously asked, "What fun?"
"Around dusk, that big-necked man was hitting his wife, saying she ate sothing. Aunt told Mom about it, but I didn’t listen carefully."
Zhang Guoqing didn’t pay much attention. In his mory, it seed his dad’s three brothers didn’t hit their wives. Even soone as good as the Old Captain had raised a hand once or twice—nothing strange about it.
"By the way, after dinner, Qinglin ca by hurriedly looking for you. He seed to be in a rush. Just as I was about to call you, he said it wasn’t urgent. He and Ping’an went out and haven’t returned."
Zhang Guoqing raised an eyebrow, "Taozi didn’t co with him?"
Zhou Jiao nodded, pulling the noodles from the cold water into a large coarse bowl, pouring beef and potato sauce over it, stirring vigorously, then sprinkled sliced at and sesa seeds on top.
"All done. Try it and see if it suits your taste. When I was abroad, I found this sauce quite nice."
Zhang Guoqing laughed, "With so many seasonings, it’s bound to be delicious. If that big-necked woman saw this, she’d definitely jump in the river. What did you and our son have tonight?"
"Sorghum rice. Ping’an caught a wild rabbit, and Mom cooked one. He ate a whole bowl, it really scared . Tonight, the kids’ appetites were so big they even ate your dinner."
"No problem. Running around consus a lot. Since Ping’an didn’t eat a midnight snack last night, let him co ho to sleep tonight."
Seeing Zhang Guoqing feeding himself several bites in a row, Zhou Jiao smiled and shook her head, "He said he’ll sleep at ho tonight. I’ve already eaten, you go ahead."
"Alright, I’ll go find Lin Zi later, do you want to take a walk outside?"
"Yes, earlier they invited to sit with them. I said I’d go later."
Zhang Guoqing chuckled and shook his head, "If you don’t want to socialize with them, just don’t go. No need to force yourself. Is Sister-in-law still not in the village this afternoon?"
"Mai Miao said her mom took on so handicraft work from the street, busy earning money for the last two days. Yaya did tell it’s Mom’s birthday this weekend, and her two sisters will co over. Mai Miao is really clever; she said that her mom is working hard so as not to miss Mom’s birthday, ensuring Xi Zi notifies her mom tonight."
"A nine-year-old girl understands everything she should. Look at Yaya and Mai Sui, two years younger than her, working so skillfully on the mountain today. Country kids mature early."
Zhou Jiao nodded in agreent. These three girls were better than the boys. As soon as they were done working on the mountain today, they knew to pull her along to learn herbal recognition, leaving a sample of each one, which was quite thoughtful.
"Have you noticed that these three girls resemble eldest sister? They are articulate and good at handiwork. They cooked tonight’s whole dinner. Mom said it’s a waste to give them to outsiders. I told her not to arrange any child marriages. The three girls are beautiful, let them study for a few more years; finding a suitable match won’t be a problem."
Zhang Guoqing knew that if soone else said this, his mother wouldn’t necessarily take it seriously. After all, they were her granddaughters. With her personality, she wouldn’t interfere much, letting their parents decide. But since Zhou Jiao said this, those three girls definitely wouldn’t be engaged early.
That was good—he wasn’t worried about the other two girls with his second brother and eldest brother-in-law around. He was just concerned about Mai Miao being "sold" off by her confused mother.
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