Chapter 50

Xie Tingyu was well-liked, so with just one shout, many strong and able men from the production team were willing to come help.

A rough headcount showed there were at least thirty people. Additionally, he even paid to hire an experienced old craftsman to oversee the house construction.

In the countryside, getting labor to build a house usually didn’t require money—whenever someone needed to build, a single call would bring helping hands. All that was expected was a good meal before construction started and another one after the house was completed. Traditionally, a proper meal with meat was considered decent and respectful.

To properly host these two meals—the one at the start and the one at the end—the homeowner would typically borrow meat and grain ration coupons from relatives and friends.

Ye Qingshui also pretended to go around borrowing grain and meat coupons.

In the end, she managed to borrow meat coupons worth two jin (about 2 pounds). She went to the supply and marketing cooperative and bought eight jin (about 8 pounds) of meat in one go.

From the misty early morning, Ye Qingshui had been busy preparing the meal to mark the start of the house construction. She grabbed a handful of evenly marbled pork and split the eight jin into two portions. One half was marinated to make Dongpo Pork.

The other half—pork belly—was deep-fried until the skin turned crispy and golden. Taro was sliced thin and deep-fried as well. She layered the pork belly and taro slices alternately in a steamer, poured a thick sauce over them, and steamed it all on high heat for a fast, intense finish.

The overwhelming aroma wafted out from the kitchen window of the woodshed in Grandma Ye’s house, curling out in stream after stream.

When wisps of smoke began rising from the woodshed, it was the moment neighbors all around started to get itchy with anticipation.

Ye Shisan sniffed the mouthwatering scent and drooled.

“What on earth is that Ye girl cooking? How can it smell that good?”

Aunt Shisan slapped her husband’s head. “Look at you, acting like a starving ghost! Go grab a bowl. We’re going to eat at Ye Grandpa’s place.”

They had promised to help build Ye Qingshui’s house, so that meaty meal was definitely in the bag.

Others who came to help were also watching eagerly. Even if the Ye family wasn’t generous enough to serve meat, the meal would still be better than usual.

After all, people are like work mules—you’ve got to feed them well if you want them to work hard.

Families who were too stingy often ended up building houses that felt cramped and cheap.

At noon, after finishing their morning farming duties, the commune members gathered at the Ye family’s home site. Grandma Ye and Ye’s mother enthusiastically set up tables, bowls, and chopsticks, calling everyone over for the kickoff meal.

As Ye Qingshui began carrying out the meat dish after dish from the woodshed, a rich, savory aroma enveloped everyone there.

A fresh breeze carried the sweet and savory scent of the meat to their noses. Several of them let out a small “wow”, expressions lighting up with delight: There really is meat!

And what meat it was!

The smell was so heavenly it could pull your very soul from your body. Everyone’s mouths began watering uncontrollably.

Ye Qingshui brought the meat to the tables and personally served everyone—each person got one slice of kou rou (braised pork belly with taro), one slice of taro, and three pieces of Dongpo Pork. The vegetables on the table were free to eat as much as they liked.

The moment she dropped the meat into their bowls, the commune members immediately bowed their heads and began wolfing it down.

The glossy red pork skin had been fried to a tender crisp, wrinkled and glistening red. One bite and it oozed with flavorful fat. The braised pork was snow-white, coated in sauce, steamed to such softness it fell apart with a gentle suck. The taro, soaked with the pork’s essence, was tender, sweet, and flavorful to the core.

Pity that most of these workers hadn’t had meat since the New Year—and this was the best they’d ever tasted. Rich ingredients, savory flavor, succulent meat and thick sauce. For a moment, all you could hear at the tables was the smacking of lips and chewing.

“Too, too delicious!”

After finishing the meat in their bowls, they unabashedly scraped every last drop of sauce from the pot and poured it over their rice.

They hadn’t even finished this opening meal and were already dreaming of the closing one.

“Shuiya’s cooking is just like her grandpa’s—everything she makes is delicious,” an older commune member couldn’t help but remark.

Ye Qingshui’s grandfather had been a highly skilled army cook for decades, with top-notch culinary skills.

“I think she might even be better than her grandpa. Old Ye could never make kou rou smell this good.”

“No, Old Ye’s cooking was still the best,” a group of older workers began debating.

That fragrant pork dish stirred up memories from decades ago. Though the taste had changed and people too, the happiness and satisfaction of eating meat was exactly the same.

Ye Qingshui smiled, clearly pleased. Beads of sweat the size of beans dripped down her face. As she bowed her head to wipe them with her sleeve, Xie Tingyu grabbed her hand and pulled out a clean handkerchief from his pocket to wipe her sweat.

Liu Yiliang caught sight of this and stifled a chuckle.

Shen Weimin followed his gaze and saw Brother Yu attentively wiping her sweat. He thought back to how this man used to treat women with the coldness of falling leaves in autumn, and now… he could barely look.

Liu Yiliang grinned. “I knew long ago that Sister-in-law Yu was a good person. Brother Yu was bound to fall eventually.”

Then he stuffed more meat into his mouth.

“I guess this is what they call… every tough guy meets his match.”

…

After eating and drinking their fill, the workers let out satisfied burps, feeling an unfamiliar sense of joy. Like busy ants, they got to work—cutting wood, carrying bricks and cement.

Ye’s mother and grandmother were busy cleaning the tables and collecting benches, returning borrowed furniture to the neighbors. Ye’s little uncle ran around like a foreman, helping and directing the workers.

Ye Qingshui packed up the bowls and headed to the water vat to wash them. The whole Ye household buzzed with energy and liveliness.

Prosperous and full of vitality.

Du Xiaohe came to the construction site to bring Ye’s little uncle water and wipe his sweat. He felt sweet inside, like he’d swallowed honey, and couldn’t help but secretly hold her hand.

“You go sit down—this kind of heavy work isn’t for you.”

Xiaohe didn’t say much. She just gave him a sweet smile and followed everyone’s example, pitching in.

Xie Tingyu had his hands on his knees, listening intently as the craftsman explained the construction essentials.

Suddenly, a voice called out: “Brother Yu—Brother Yu!”

“Hurry, come with me—your birth mother is here!”

The guy nicknamed Monkey, who lived in town, wiped his sweat and slapped the backseat of his bicycle, calling out to Xie Tingyu.

Xie Tingyu’s dark eyes flickered with a moment of surprise, but he quickly regained his composure. “Why did she come?”

Monkey replied, “How would I know?”

Xie Tingyu handed the blueprint back to the craftsman and got on the back of Monkey’s bicycle.

It wasn’t until they had been riding for about ten minutes that Xie Tingyu finally pulled himself out of his complex emotions.

Ever since his parents divorced, he only saw his mother during holidays. Every Lunar New Year’s Eve, if she could make it back in time, she would secretly give him a hefty red envelope to make up for things.

He barely saw her a few times a year.

Zhang Yuanchao stopped beside a state-run restaurant and let Xie Tingyu off. He stood outside, casually smoking a Da Qianmen cigarette to pass the time.

However… he had barely smoked half of his cigarette when he saw Brother Yu come out expressionless.

A young woman followed closely behind. Though she was older now, her elegant beauty from youth was still visible.

Her eyes were slightly red. “Tingyu, Mom didn’t have a choice.”

Xie Tingyu replied coldly, “I know. If there’s nothing else, I’ll be going now.”

“Monkey, let me borrow your bike.”

Zhang Yuanchao took a deep drag of his cigarette and nearly choked on the smoke. He could only stare helplessly as Brother Yu, like a bandit, rode off on his bike.

Outside the state-run restaurant, only he and Brother Yu’s birth mother were left awkwardly facing each other. The hot dishes inside the restaurant hadn’t even been touched and were still steaming.

Wen Zhihua smiled at the young man in front of her and invited him inside for a meal.

Zhang Yuanchao was a bit flustered. He didn’t even feel this nervous when facing Brother Yu, but now with Brother Yu’s mother in front of him, he had no idea what to do with his hands or feet.

From Zhang Yuanchao, Wen Zhihua learned about her son—how he had been seriously injured during the summer, how he had gotten married. Her face, previously expressionless, twitched slightly with interest.

So Zhang Yuanchao continued, “Brother Yu married a girl here, from the village…”

He scratched his head. “Maybe you folks don’t think much of her, but Brother Yu really cares about her.”

Wen Zhihua’s tone softened. “As long as he likes her, that’s enough. I know his temper very well. If he likes a girl, then she must be a good one.”

She added, “All these years, I’ve been so focused on looking for his older brother that I neglected him.”

“You’re his friend. If you get the chance, please look after him for Auntie.”

Zhang Yuanchao was shocked to learn that Brother Yu had an older brother. He knew about the stepsister, but he had no idea about a biological older brother.

Wen Zhihua noticed his surprise and said,

“Tingyu has a twin brother named Tingjue. He was abducted when he was five years old. I’ve been searching for him for fifteen years. Just this year, we finally got a lead… I probably won’t be returning to the capital for a while. I just mentioned this to Tingyu. His temper, honestly, hasn’t changed a bit.”

Monkey, listening to her frustrated tone, was even more surprised that she didn’t even know Brother Yu had gotten married. He vaguely remembered that Brother Yu’s parents divorced that same year. While he listened, he mentally pieced things together and suddenly found Brother Yu a bit pitiful.

He didn’t know what to say—so he just quietly kept eating.

Ye Family Village.

The sun was setting, and the commune workers who had been working all afternoon finished up and returned home in small groups for dinner.

Ye Qingshui watched the sun slowly sink and the sky grow darker. She thought, Tingyu should be back by now. Walking the mountain paths at night is no easy task.

After eating dinner, she returned to the house and saw a dark figure in the corner, completely silent except for the steady sound of breathing.

Ye Qingshui nearly jumped in fright.

She struck a match—swish—and lit the lamp. The pitch-black room was suddenly illuminated.

The warm, soft glow lit up Xie Tingyu’s handsome face and shone into his quiet, melancholy eyes. His gaze was like ink so dark it could never dissolve, lifeless and dim.

He sat silently in the corner, blending into the shadows like a silent part of the background.

Ye Qingshui was startled by this unexpectedly dejected version of Xie Tingyu.

She said, “Aren’t you hungry? Go eat something. Little Uncle thought you weren’t coming back tonight and almost finished off all the meat! Luckily Mom stopped him—she saved you a bunch of lean meat, all your favorite.”

The man in the corner didn’t respond.

Ye Qingshui found this a bit strange.

She moved closer and squatted down to look at him. Only then did his eyelashes tremble slightly.

“Shui’er’s mom is really kind,” he murmured.

Ye Qingshui had rarely seen Xie Tingyu looking so dejected. Under the clear moonlight, two sudden tears rolled down his elegant face.

Warm tears landed on Ye Qingshui’s hand. She opened her palm—his tears were hot.

In a flash, Ye Qingshui seemed to remember something.

In her previous life, around Mid-Autumn Festival as well, she had accidentally stumbled upon him in a similar state of despair. Back then, he had said the exact same thing.

She had comforted him gently for a long time, using every bit of her strength to cheer him up—until he finally smiled. From then on, he gradually began treating her better, as if he had truly fallen in love with her.

Years later, when Ye Qingshui looked back, she thought it was probably just him putting on an act to gain her sympathy. Maybe it had only been a fleeting sadness, something minor to him, but she had treated it like salvation. The fact that she could comfort him had made her feel special.

So it was only natural that he fell for her.

But now, looking at the tear-stained palm of her hand, Ye Qingshui felt a little confused.

Soon, he suddenly pulled her into his arms. His hot tears trickled down her neck.

Xie Tingyu’s voice was hoarse and slurred.

Ye Qingshui didn’t know how to comfort him. She listened to him mumble a string of things, but she couldn’t quite make out what he was saying. Xie Tingyu was truly difficult—he couldn’t even be straightforward during moments of sadness.

She really couldn’t hear what he was saying.

Ye Qingshui grew a little annoyed and didn’t want to deal with him. But seeing how pitiful he looked, her heart softened.

Since she had experienced this moment in her past life, she had some understanding—it was probably about how he lost his mother at a young age, and neither of his parents loved him. Very pitiful indeed.

Ye Qingshui took a deep breath and walked out of the house. She returned with a bundle of long reed leaves.

Squatting beside him, she used the dim light of the oil lamp to patiently craft something with her hands. Under the yellowish glow, her deft fingers stripped the reeds into fibers and slowly folded them into a jade cricket.

Under the light, the cricket—with its long antennae and fierce posture—looked lifelike and vivid.

Ye Qingshui placed it into Xie Tingyu’s hand and softly said, “This is something I played with as a child. Have you seen it before? Uncle said only the best, cutest children could have one.”

“Look, now it’s jumped right into your hand.”

Xie Tingyu watched as she blew gently on the cricket, and it landed in his palm. He lowered his head—her dark hair shimmered in the light like golden honey. Her eyes, reflecting the warm glow of the lamp, were peaceful and gentle.

Xie Tingyu, unable to resist the pull, leaned in and kissed her.

His warm lips, slightly moist, landed at the corner of Ye Qingshui’s eye. She blinked, involuntarily.

Author’s Note:

Ping Shengjun: Brother Yu, you’re taking advantage of the situation again!

You scheming dog, can’t you behave?

Aren’t you always taking advantage of Shui’er?

Brother Yu (wiping his lips): What do you mean taking advantage?

This is clearly losing control because of love.

Sansukini: Clue: His twin brother has something to do with their past life.

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