“Brother Zhijun, after all these years, I’ve never forgotten you…” She buried her face in his back, sobbing softly.
Zhou Zhijun was so startled by her sudden action that his body froze, his mind buzzing, and his expression stiffened.
As a rough and simple man, he never dreamed that Zuo Jinhui would have such feelings for him.
He abruptly pried her hands away, his voice tight. “Sister Jinhui, what are you doing? … I’m leaving!”
With a gentle push from him, Zuo Jinhui plopped down on the ground.
But Zhou Zhijun couldn’t care less. He fled the room as if escaping, and trotted all the way out of the Foreign Trade Bureau’s family compound.
Zuo Jinhui had a good family background, an education, and decent looks. Why wasn’t she married yet?
Zhou Zhijun couldn’t figure it out, so he stopped thinking about it. That was her business and had nothing to do with him.
In this lifetime, his heart only had room for one woman, and that was Li Chun Tao.
Her delicate yet proud little figure, her face as beautiful as a peach blossom, her dodging eyes, her soft and sweet voice when she timidly called him Brother Zhijun, and her look of suppressed grievance when she scolded him as a “beast”… Scenes surged in his mind.
He thought of the East Gully, the wheat straw stack, the brick kiln, his room…
He had thought of her for four years, and finally did what he had been longing for, turning her from an innocent young girl into a real little wife.
In this lifetime, she was his woman. He would protect her, cherish her, and shelter her from the wind and rain for the rest of his life… Thinking of this, Zhou Zhijun felt an endless surge of energy.
After so many days in the hospital, he had long smelled of sweat. Today, making coal briquettes made him sweat even more, and he felt uncomfortably sticky.
Passing by a public bathhouse, Zhou Zhijun went in to take a shower and washed his clothes as well. He returned to the hospital wearing damp clothes, which were already half-dried by the wind.
The next day, it was almost noon by the time the discharge procedures were completed.
The next bus to the commune was an hour away, so Zhou Zhijun took Chuntao and Wang Xiaohong to a small restaurant near the station to eat.
Both Chuntao and Wang Xiaohong were entering the city for the first time, let alone eating in a restaurant.
When the waitress came over to ask what they wanted to eat, Zhou Zhijun asked, “What kind of food do you have here?”
“Steamed rice, strained noodles, braised noodles, shredded pork noodles… we have everything, as well as braised meat and stir-fried dishes!” The waitress spoke quickly, listing a long string of items.
He turned to look at Chuntao. “What do you want to eat?”
Hearing that these things were not cheap, and knowing they had already spent a lot of money in the hospital, Chuntao bit her lip, her eyes lowered to the waitress’s trouser legs.
Her voice was as low as a mosquito’s hum. “Do… do you have noodle soup without meat?”
“Yes, vegetable noodles!”
Zhou Zhijun’s face was cold, his thoughts unreadable. He suddenly spoke up, his voice still stiff.
“We’ll have three bowls of shredded pork noodles, half a catty of braised meat, a plate of sour melon with eggs, and stewed tofu.”
After speaking, Zhou Zhijun turned back to Chuntao, his voice softening a bit. “Your body is weak, and your injuries haven’t fully healed. You need to eat something nutritious.”
Chuntao looked up at him, her eyes dodging, and said in a low voice, “I’m fine now, no need to spend this money…”
“Don’t worry about the money, just eat!”
When the food arrived, Zhou Zhijun quietly pushed the plate of braised meat towards Chuntao. “Eat more meat.”
Chuntao held her chopsticks, looking down and picking at her noodles, occasionally picking up a piece of tofu or sour melon.
During the half-month in the hospital, Zhou Zhijun had contributed both money and effort, bustling about, eating and sleeping poorly, and he looked thinner.
Out of the corner of her eye, Chuntao quietly glanced at him, feeling very uncomfortable. She wanted him and Wang Xiaohong to eat more meat.
Seeing that she wasn’t picking up any meat, Zhou Zhijun picked up the plate and poured more than half of it into her bowl.
“I can’t eat that much!” Chuntao tried to put some into Wang Xiaohong’s bowl, but Wang Xiaohong quickly moved her bowl away.
Zhou Zhijun’s face tightened again, his voice carrying a bit of suppressed anger, but hidden within the anger was tender pity. “Finish the meat in your bowl!”
His voice wasn’t loud, but it made Chuntao’s heart panic, mixed with an indescribable warmth. She lowered her head and silently stuffed food into her mouth, her eyes growing hot.
Zhou Zhijun treated her well, truly well, but those things absolutely shouldn’t have happened. If only those things hadn’t happened, how wonderful it would be!
Chuntao thought that she should try to avoid him in the future, but he was already addicted to her. Where could she hide?
When Zhou Zhijun craved her, she couldn’t resist at all. The more Chuntao thought about it, the more afraid she became, and the little warmth in her heart was suppressed by panic.
By the time they took the bus back to the commune, the sun was already slanting to the west.
It was a seven or eight-mile dirt road from the commune to Wangjiazhai. Zhou Zhijun was afraid Chuntao couldn’t walk that far and wanted to borrow a bicycle to take her.
But at that time, not many people had bicycles. Apart from Wu Mingwei from the police station, he didn’t know anyone else on the street.
Chuntao had already troubled people a lot during her hospital stay, and she really didn’t want to ask for another favor.
Just as they were pondering, they saw Zhou Xiaowei riding a bicycle from the north.
He was riding fast and didn’t look around. Zhou Zhijun quickly called out, “Xiaowei!”
Zhou Xiaowei was startled. He turned his head and saw them, his eyes immediately lighting up. “Second Uncle, Sister-in-law Chuntao, you’re out of the hospital?” He said as he turned around and rode over.
“Let me ride the bike,” Zhou Zhijun said straightforwardly.
“Second Uncle, you…” Zhou Xiaowei was about to ask what he was doing, but immediately realized and quickly said, “I’ll take Sister-in-law Chuntao back!”
Zhou Zhijun snorted in his heart. This kid was up to no good! Full of tricks, he couldn’t be trusted.
“No need, I’ll take her.” Zhou Zhijun grabbed the back seat of the bike.
Zhou Xiaowei didn’t dare say more. He handed over the bike and thoughtfully took the string bag and paper bags from his hands.
“I’ll carry these things!”
Zhou Zhijun got on the bike, his long legs resting on the ground, and said to Chuntao, “Get on!”
Then he said to Wang Xiaohong, “You two walk back, it’s still early.”
Without a bicycle, Zhou Xiaowei had to walk back with Wang Xiaohong along the small path.
The dirt road from the commune to Wangjiazhai was full of potholes. Chuntao was thin and weak, so Zhou Zhijun tried to choose smoother paths, but he still almost bumped her off.
Chuntao didn’t dare get too close to him. She tightly gripped the edge of the back seat with one hand, leaning backwards.
“Grab my clothes!” Zhou Zhijun ordered.
Chuntao didn’t move. He freed one hand, grabbed hers, and pressed it against his waist. “Hold tight, it’s steadier.”
Zhou Zhijun was so focused on pulling her hand that he didn’t notice the front wheel rolling into a shallow pothole.
He quickly twisted the handlebars, his two long legs firmly planting on the ground, but Chuntao’s small body still bumped solidly against his back.
The beast inside Zhou Zhijun suddenly reared its head…
“Let’s go slower, it’s too bumpy!” he said, and the speed of the bike slowed down.
Seeing that it was getting dark, and they were still halfway to Wangjiazhai, Chuntao felt anxious but didn’t dare urge him.
Unexpectedly, when they reached a wilderness, Zhou Zhijun suddenly turned the handlebars and rode down a wild slope along a small path.
“Where are we going?” Chuntao’s heart tightened as if grasped by an invisible hand.
Zhou Zhijun didn’t say a word, just kept riding forward.
When they reached a small grove, he slammed on the brakes. “Let’s get off and rest for a bit.”
“What, what are you going to do?”
Chuntao knew this man's temper all too well. She bit her lower lip tightly, her heart a tangled mess of fear and panic.
Zhou Zhijun pulled off his coarse cotton shirt and spread it on the grass beside them. "Sit down and rest a bit," he said, his tone leaving no room for argument.
Chuntao didn't dare look at his face. She kept her gaze fixed downward, but her peripheral vision inevitably caught a glimpse of his bare torso. Instantly, her small face flushed a deep crimson.
She didn't know what to do with her hands and feet, and her heart suddenly sank. Just as she had feared, he was going to take liberties with her again...
