"Brother Zhijun!" Chuntao called out in a low voice, even the end of her tone trembling.
Zhou Zhijun let go of her and said in a deep voice, "I'll go take a look!"
"Zhijun, it's me!"
Just as Zhou Zhijun walked to the door, he heard his mother's voice.
He pulled open the latch, and Aunt Zhou walked in quickly, her brows furrowed tightly.
"Zhijun, I'm afraid that a long night brings many dreams. You must take Chuntao and leave tonight!"
Hearing Aunt Zhou's voice, Chuntao had already climbed out of bed and was sitting obediently on the edge of the bed.
Thinking that Aunt Zhou already knew about their affair, her small face felt burning hot. Her heart was in turmoil, and she didn't even dare to lift her head.
"Tao, the two of you will go to your Second Aunt's house in Dongshan tonight. Don't wait until tomorrow."
Aunt Zhou grabbed Chuntao's hand. "I'm worried that Liu Cuilan and her black-hearted gang won't let this go easily!"
"Mhm!" Chuntao kept her head down and responded softly.
Aunt Zhou let go of her hand and turned to walk toward the kitchen. "I'll go make some soft flatbreads. You hurry up and pack a couple of clothes!"
She turned back to instruct Zhou Zhijun, "You also go back and pack up. Try to leave as early as possible!"
In the kitchen, Aunt Zhou scooped a ladle of white flour into an earthen basin, cracked three or four eggs into it, added some cold water, and stirred in one direction until it became a thick batter.
From Wangjiazhai to Dongshan was a good thirty miles, all bumpy dirt roads.
With Zhou Zhijun carrying Chuntao on his bicycle, it would take at least seven or eight hours.
Aunt Zhou thought she should make more soft flatbreads and boil a few salted eggs so they could pad their stomachs on the road.
Just as she put the eggs into the large pot, Old Man Zhou walked in, a jacket draped over his shoulders, rubbing his eyes.
"Not sleeping in the middle of the night, what are you doing?" He looked at the batter in the earthen basin with a puzzled expression.
Aunt Zhou glanced up at him and pointed to the stove. "Since you're awake, help me tend the fire. Both the big pot and the small pot need heating!"
Although Old Man Zhou didn't understand, he still sat down in front of the stove opening, took out some matches, and lit the firewood.
He couldn't help but ask again, "What exactly are you making?"
Aunt Zhou scooped two ladles of rapeseed oil into the small pot. While waiting for the oil to heat up, she said casually, "That girl Chuntao just got divorced from Jieshi, right?
I'm afraid Liu Cuilan and her folks will come looking for trouble, so I'm having Zhijun take her to her Second Aunt's house in Dongshan to hide for a while."
Old Man Zhou sighed and added a handful of firewood to the stove. "Alright, that's how it should be! We can't just watch this girl get bullied again!"
On the other side, Zhou Zhijun returned to his room. He wrapped two thin mattresses, pillows, pillow towels, and bedsheets in a large wrapping cloth and tied them securely to the crossbar of his bicycle.
Then he rolled up the summer sleeping mat from his bed, tied it tightly with a rope, and fastened it to one side of the bicycle's rear seat.
Chuntao didn't have much—just two old, faded clothes and a few pieces of underwear that Zhou Zhijun had bought for her. She folded them neatly and packed them into an old cloth handbag.
By the time everything was packed, it was already the middle of the night.
Before they left, Aunt Zhou pulled Zhou Zhijun aside and gave him detailed instructions.
Then she grabbed Chuntao's hand, her eyes turning red. "Tao, go hide at your Second Aunt's house for now.
I know this is too unfair to you, but there really is no other way.
Rest assured, once the storm passes, I'll have Zhijun bring you back in grand style..."
She wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes. "Hurry and go! Don't dawdle!"
Zhou Zhijun pushed the bicycle outside the main gate, swung his long leg over to sit on the seat, propped his two legs on the ground, and turned to look at Chuntao: "Come on, get on!"
"Wait!" Old Man Zhou ran out of the main room in a panic and stuffed a flashlight into Chuntao's hand.
Then he pulled a wad of crumpled bills from his pocket and handed them over. "Tao, take this! When you're away from home, you need some spare cash on hand. Don't let yourself suffer!"
Chuntao wanted to decline, but Aunt Zhou took it from him and stuffed it into her cloth bag.
She then reminded Zhou Zhijun, "After you drop Tao off at your Second Aunt's house, go to the market and buy her some food and daily necessities, and get her a couple of changes of clothes.
Remember to leave some money for your Second Aunt so she can take good care of Tao..."
Aunt Zhou's heart was as clear as a mirror. Since Chuntao was now pregnant with the Zhou family's seed, she was her daughter-in-law. She absolutely could not mistreat this girl anymore.
She held Chuntao's hand again and said, "Tao, tell your Second Aunt whatever you want to eat. Zhijun will visit you often..."
"Godmother, I know." Chuntao's throat felt choked up. "It's the middle of the night, the two of you should go back to sleep!"
Zhou Zhijun looked back at the old couple and said in a deep voice, "I'm leaving!"
Then he whispered to Chuntao, "Hold my waist tight, let's go!"
With the old couple still standing right there, how could Chuntao have the nerve to do that? Blushing, she merely grabbed the back of his shirt tightly with her hands.
Just as the bicycle reached the dirt road behind the house, Aunt Zhou chased after them again, calling out in a hushed voice, "Zhijun, wait!"
"Mother, what's wrong?" Zhou Zhijun stopped the bike.
Aunt Zhou leaned in close, her eyes full of worry. "Tao is pregnant, and the dirt road is rough. Ride slowly and don't let her get jolted! You absolutely must not be careless..."
She was genuinely afraid. This girl's body was already weak. If she went through all this tossing about on the road and ended up miscarrying the baby from the bumps, what would they do?
"Mother, I'll remember!" Zhou Zhijun responded emphatically.
Aunt Zhou touched Chuntao's hand again and said softly, "Take good care of yourself. Once the autumn crops are harvested, Godmother will go visit you!"
Chuntao's eyes grew hot. She nodded vigorously but couldn't utter a single word.
Watching their figures gradually disappear into the night, Aunt Zhou wiped her tears and slowly turned back home.
In her heart, she prayed over and over again: God bless them, let them have a safe journey...
The night was deep, and the rural dirt road was full of potholes.
Afraid of jolting Chuntao, Zhou Zhijun rode exceptionally slowly, trying his best to choose the flat spots to ride on.
It was completely quiet all around, with only the chirping of insects. Occasionally, the eerie, laughing hoots of an owl drifted from afar, making Chuntao's hair stand on end.
"Tao, hold onto my waist tightly, it'll be more stable that way!" Zhou Zhijun said in a deep voice.
Blushing, Chuntao reached out her arms and tightly hugged his rock-hard waist and abdomen, pressing her small face against his sweaty back.
The man's sweaty scent mixed with the fresh fragrance of soap, gradually calming her panicked heart.
Over the past two days, her stomach had been uncomfortable, and worrying about being discovered had left Chuntao unable to eat or sleep.
Now, being rocked by the bumpy bicycle ride, waves of drowsiness washed over her. Her eyelids fought to stay open, but she didn't dare to actually fall asleep.
Sensing that she was dozing off, Zhou Zhijun kept one hand on the handlebars and reached the other hand back, firmly wrapping it around her waist.
"Tao, I've got you. Go ahead and sleep for a while!"
He didn't know how long they had traveled before the eastern sky gradually turned the color of a fish's belly.
By the time the bicycle rode out of the Qingshan Commune's territory, the sky was already bright.
The sun had just come out, but it was already fiercely hot, making them sweat all over.
Zhou Zhijun's clothes had long been soaked in sweat, sticking tightly to his back in an uncomfortable, sticky mess.
He looked at Chuntao on the back seat and stopped the bike under the shade of a tree by the road, letting Chuntao sit down to eat something.
He took the soft flatbreads and eggs from the cloth bag on the handlebars and handed them to Chuntao. "Are you hungry? Hurry and eat a bit!"
Having left Wangjiazhai, most of the anxiety in her heart had dissipated. Coupled with the fact that she hadn't eaten much for two days, Chuntao was truly hungry now.
She ate a soft steamed bun along with a salted egg.
Seeing her appetite improve, Zhou Zhijun could not help but smile.
"Here, drink some water to wash it down!" He unscrewed the canteen cap and handed it over.
Chun Tao drank a few sips of warm water, and her throat did not feel as dry anymore.
Zhou Zhijun handed her another soft bun. Chun Tao took it, but just as she brought it to her lips, a surge of sour fluid rose in her stomach.
She furrowed her brows tightly, covered her mouth and nose, and whispered, "I can't eat anymore, you have it."
Zhou Zhijun's heart clenched. It was so hard for a woman to carry a child.
Chun Tao's petite frame was already weak, and after traveling so far through the night, how could she bear such torment?
Looking at Chun Tao's discomfort, his heart ached terribly; he wished he could suffer in her place.
He secretly vowed to treat her doubly well in the future and never let her suffer the slightest grievance again.
Chun Tao's stomach churned violently. She pressed a hand firmly against her chest to barely suppress the nausea.
Cold sweat rolled down her forehead, making her already bloodless little face even paler.
Zhou Zhijun hurriedly took out a handkerchief, wiped the sweat from her forehead, and held the canteen to her lips again. "Drink a little more water to settle it!"
Just then, a cloud of dust suddenly kicked up on the dirt road behind them.
An army-green jeep came bumping and swaying toward them. The word "Police" painted in red on its side was particularly glaring under the harsh sun.
Chun Tao's heart tightened suddenly. She instinctively shrank behind Zhou Zhijun, her hands subconsciously clenching into fists.
"It's okay, they're just passing by..." Zhou Zhijun comforted her in a low voice.
Before he could finish speaking, the jeep screeched to a halt right in front of them.
The car door was pushed open with a clatter, and a young man in a police uniform stepped out.
He touched the brim of his hat, his gaze passing over Zhou Zhijun to land on Chun Tao.
When Chun Tao looked up and saw the man's face clearly, it was as if her entire body had been frozen solid, stiff and completely motionless.
