Zhou Zhijun didn't look at her. He shifted his steps toward the pigpen, his gaze falling on the lively piglets inside.
"Not bad. The sow has plenty of milk, and the piglets are growing sturdy. When it's time to sell them, they'll definitely fetch a good price."
"Mhm." Chuntao held an empty bucket, her eyes glued to the muddy footprints on the ground. Her heart pounded wildly, like a panicked rabbit thumping in her chest.
She didn't dare return to the kitchen. If he followed her in and closed the door, any noise they made would be heard in the courtyard.
But standing in the yard didn't feel safe either. She was constantly afraid he would suddenly reach out and embrace her. The house had no courtyard wall, so anyone passing by could see them at a glance.
Zhou Zhijun helped her and protected her, and the gossip about them had never stopped.
If someone saw them standing together after dark, they would immediately start wagging their tongues.
If anyone noticed the illicit affair between her and Zhou Zhijun, the consequences would be even more severe.
The village gossip was a minor issue; Liu Cuilan and Zhou Zhaodi's gang would definitely not let her off.
Suddenly, a man carrying a hoe walked past the front of the yard, humming a tune from Chaoyang Ditch, his heavy footsteps thudding on the ground.
Chuntao quickly raised her voice, intentionally letting the man hear, "Brother Zhijun, it's so late and godmother is still worrying about me. Tell her I don't have much work left in the fields!"
Saying this, she carried the bucket toward the kitchen, her steps a little unsteady.
Zhou Zhijun also caught sight of the passerby and replied loudly, "My mother has been busy with the vegetable garden these past few days, so she hasn't had time to come over..."
As he spoke, he followed Chuntao toward the kitchen, lowering his voice. "What are you afraid of? I'm your brother!"
Chuntao's heart beat even faster, almost leaping into her throat. The bucket in her hand swayed, and a few drops of water splashed onto her trouser legs, feeling icy cold.
She sat in the kitchen tending the fire. The flickering flames cast alternating light and shadows on her small face.
She felt anxious and unsettled, terrified that Zhou Zhijun would suddenly close the kitchen door.
Wang Xiaohong's aunt had undergone a minor surgery, and today Wang Xiaohong had gone to visit her. The journey was long, so she hadn't returned. It was as if Zhou Zhijun knew, which was why he had come over again.
Chuntao's whole body tensed up, and two pieces of firewood slipped from her hands, clattering to the floor.
"You should go back! It's getting late, and godmother will be worried!"
Zhou Zhijun acted as if he hadn't heard her. Not only did he not leave, but he actually reached out and closed the kitchen door.
Terrified, Chuntao abruptly stood up from the low stool and scrambled to grab the fire poker, but she missed. "What are you doing?"
"Tao, I miss you!" Zhou Zhijun took a long stride and stood right in front of her.
Chuntao smelled the earthy scent on him, mixed with a hint of dry tobacco and sweat. It wasn't overpowering, but it made her even more panicked.
Zhou Zhijun's gaze swept over her from bottom to top, finally landing on her small face, flush red from tension. Suddenly, he reached out and grabbed the hand she was using to tightly clutch the hem of her clothes.
He lowered his voice. "Why are your hands so cold? The weather isn't cold!"
It was because he scared her—how could they not be cold? She wanted to end this kind of relationship with him, but he refused to let it go.
He was growing bolder by the day, completely lacking any boundaries. Regardless of the occasion, he would hug her, kiss her, and do whatever he pleased. Frightened, Chuntao instinctively shrank back, her fingertips trembling.
The last time she returned to her maiden home, her grandmother had held her hand and urged her, "Tao, you have to toughen up your temper. Otherwise, those black-hearted men will bully you right into the mud."
Her grandmother had been a widow her whole life, losing her husband at the age of twenty-four, and the bachelors in the village had never stopped having designs on her.
Her grandmother told her that once, Old Li Shuan from the neighboring village sneaked into the yard at night, trying to take advantage of her. Her grandmother didn't scream or shout; she just picked up the wooden door bar from behind the door and smashed it against him.
Old Li Shuan clutched his head and fled, but her grandmother didn't let it go. She chased him through two villages, cursing him and exposing all of Old Li Shuan's shameful deeds.
Since then, no one ever dared to openly bully her grandmother again. It was relying on this fierce strength that she kept those ill-intentioned men from ruining her reputation.
But she was different; she couldn't learn her grandmother's toughness.
Her grandmother's words echoed in her ears, but whenever she thought about how gossip could drown a person, she just couldn't muster the courage.
In front of Zhou Zhijun, she had tried to be tough and resist, but this man was impervious to both hard and soft tactics.
The more she struggled, the more he refused to let go. In the end, it was because she lacked the courage to completely fall out with him.
She needed his help with the chores at home and in the fields. The only ones who genuinely treated her well were Zhou Zhijun's family.
With him around, the people who wanted to bully her always had some reservations.
Chuntao's heart felt like a sky weighed down by dark clouds—gloomy, heavy, and suffocating.
She both hoped this rain would pour down thoroughly and wash away all the grievances in her heart, and feared that the muddy swamp left after the rain would trap her completely.
Chuntao could only softly plead, "Brother Zhijun... please go back quickly, otherwise godmother and the others will worry!" She tried to pull her hand away, but he gripped it even tighter.
"Tao, I miss you. I miss you every single day! I miss you so much I'm going crazy..." Zhou Zhijun's tone carried an indescribable roguishness as his thumb rubbed against the back of her hand.
"I... I haven't finished cooking the soup yet! Let go of me first, the fire is going to fall out!"
The firewood in the stove had burned to the edge, and sparks were almost jumping onto the floor. Only then did Zhou Zhijun let go.
"I've been out working these past few days. Has everything been alright here?"
There were too many gossips in the village, and Zhou Zhijun could never put his mind at ease. He always worried that someone would take advantage of his absence to bully Chuntao.
"No!"
The village gossip and the teasing from those men were things she had long grown accustomed to, and she didn't want to make a fuss over them.
As long as no one actually bullied her physically, it wasn't a big deal.
"That's good. If anything happens, don't hide it from me."
Zhou Zhijun squatted down and helped her pick up the fallen firewood, tossing it back into the stove. He then asked, "By the way, have you pressed the melon vines at your place yet?"
The spring watermelons Chuntao planted had already grown vines, and these few days were exactly the time to press them into the soil.
Every day, she had to tend to the sow and piglets, and also work from dawn to dusk in the fields pressing the melon vines.
In a few days, the vines would need pruning, keeping her so busy her feet barely touched the ground, but it made her feel grounded. "I'm pressing them!"
"Tomorrow, I'll have my dad go help you press them too!"
"No need. Your family has a ton of work as well, and godfather can never stay idle. It's quite tiring for him day after day!"
"Some chores can wait; we focus on what's urgent." As they spoke, the noodle soup was ready.
It was mostly broth, with so few noodles you could count them, along with some plantain herb thrown in.
There was only a little white flour left in the house, and with over a month to go before the wheat harvest, she had to ration it carefully.
Zhou Zhijun looked at the watery noodle soup in the pot, clear enough to reflect a person's shadow, and then looked at the frail little woman in front of him who looked like a gust of wind could blow her away. He couldn't help but pull her into his arms again.
Chuntao's voice trembled, "Let go of me! What if someone sees..."
He brought his lips to her ear, his warm breath fanning against her earlobe. "Tao, I adore you so much..."
