In the darkness.
Two pairs of eyes locked.
Zhou Yueshen's rough fingertips brushed against her shoulder, his gaze fixed on her features.
Si Nian's eyes were exceptionally bright in the dark, gleaming with a mischievous light.
Zhou Yueshen paused, his hand sliding from her shoulder to press against the nape of her neck as he lowered his head.
Resting his forehead against hers, their faces extremely close, his voice was low as he said, "Alright."
He bent down, scooping her up into his arms in a princess carry.
Si Nian let out a gasp of surprise, her arms tightening around Zhou Yueshen's neck.
Seconds later, she was deposited onto the soft bedding. He lowered his head, seeking her lips.
Si Nian, the instigator, instantly became passive.
The older man was always like this, becoming overwhelmingly dominant whenever things turned this way.
Si Nian turned her head slightly, dodging him.
Zhou Yueshen paused for a few seconds.
"What's wrong?"
Si Nian blinked her eyes. "Who said you could kiss me?"
Zhou Yueshen was taken aback for a moment, then let out a low chuckle. It seemed to rumble from his chest, deep and resonant. "Nian Nian."
"You're always provoking me."
His fingers moved to Si Nian's chin, forcing her to tilt her head back.
Their noses touched, and the man lowered his head to capture her lips.
Si Nian raised her hands to rest on his shoulders, tilting her head back, her fingertips digging into the man's muscles. Their lips and tongues intertwined, and her loose nightgown slipped down...
It was the new nightgown he had bought for her.
The fabric was very thin, with a slippery, silky feel.
The moment he touched it, Zhou Yueshen's muscles tensed, his abdomen tightening.
A collision of hardness and softness.
Zhou Yueshen pressed against her waist, as if wanting to meld her into his body.
His reaction pulsed noticeably against her, buried against Si Nian's front, pressed extremely close.
Si Nian's face flushed. A faint scent of alcohol lingered between their breaths, somewhat intoxicating.
She felt it and couldn't help but feel a twinge of fear.
At his age, was it normal for his reaction to be so swift?
"Aren't you hungry? Do you want to eat something before sleeping?"
Once the older man got moving, she wouldn't get any sleep all night.
Si Nian suddenly regretted teasing him.
Zhou Yueshen nipped at her soft earlobe, his voice hoarse and low. "Mmm, I am hungry. Need to be full before sleeping..." As he said this, those dominant, rough fingers were already gently kneading.
Her body went soft, and Zhou Yueshen's other hand was already tracing along her delicate curves...
Si Nian unconsciously arched her body slightly.
This movement instantly heightened the man's arousal, quickening his pace.
It had been a long time since they had been intimate. Recently, Zhou Yueshen returned too late, and Si Nian was already asleep.
He was worried about disturbing her rest, so he hadn't touched her much.
A man who had tasted desire, faced with such a beautiful wife, how could he hold back any longer?
Tonight, he was naturally set on conquering the fortress.
Compared to other times, he was much rougher.
An unknown amount of time passed.
Outside, the heavy rain began to lessen, gradually ceasing.
The temperature inside the room, however, remained high. Zhou Yueshen picked Si Nian up and carried her into the bathroom.
Not long after, shirtless, he went downstairs to fetch hot water.
The bathroom was large, faintly lit by candlelight, the sound of splashing water audible. She was lifted by the man, her pale legs hooked around his sturdy waist, dripping toes. Soon, steam billowed from the doorway.
...
"Factory Manager Zhou, are you home?"
Early in the morning, there was a clamor outside.
Apparently, the transformer had burnt out.
No one in the village knew how to fix it, so the Zhou Family's gate was knocked on.
In the past, whenever it burnt out, they would ask Zhou Yueshen to take a look.
In the countryside, electricity was inconvenient, and electricians were hard to hire. For their remote area, it was always a troublesome affair.
At best, it would take a week; at worst, a month to get it fixed.
Before Zhou Yueshen returned, due to poor equipment, it would often break down for a month at a time, until everyone couldn't bear it anymore and would go find someone to repair it.
After Zhou Yueshen returned, he significantly reduced that time.
Si Nian was awakened by the noise, feeling utterly exhausted. She opened her eyes groggily.
Zhou Yueshen was already getting up. His arm slid around her waist as he looked down at her.
His voice was low. "Did they wake you?"
Si Nian rubbed her eyes and slowly hummed in affirmation.
Her voice was soft. "What's going on?"
"Someone needs me. I'll go down for a bit. You go back to sleep."
Zhou Yueshen sat up, pulling on a sleeveless undershirt from nearby.
The floor was a mess. It had been too dark last night to see anything.
But now, her nightgown was scattered on the floor, the beautiful lace fabric crumpled into a ball.
Zhou Yueshen glanced at it, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly. He reached down, picked up the clothes from the floor, and carried them to the bathroom.
When he came out, Si Nian had already buried her face in the pillow and fallen back asleep.
They had slept late last night; she was exhausted.
It was rare for her to sleep in at this hour.
The weather was chilly, overcast outside.
Zhou Yueshen pulled the quilt up to cover her.
He got up and walked out of the room.
Downstairs.
Several people stood outside the door.
It was the village chief.
Zhou Yueshen's voice was low, clearly having guessed the reason for their visit. "Uncle Huo, the transformer broke again?"
Village Chief Huo nodded, his wrinkled old face creased with worry. "Yes, again. Don't know what's going on. It's broken down several times this year with all the patching up. Go see if you can fix it, ah!"
Zhou Yueshen gave a slight nod and followed them out.
...
Si Nian slept until ten o'clock.
She was awakened again by noisy chatter.
She yawned and got up.
A sharp ache shot through her waist.
She hissed in pain.
Holding her waist, she stood up and heard the front door being knocked on.
She hurriedly went downstairs.
It was fully light out now, but the January weather had started getting cold. Si Nian, wrapped in a coat, still shivered from the chill.
She was already starting to miss the central heating of the future.
The one knocking at the door was Aunt Zhang, holding the hand of Shitou, whose little face was red from the cold.
Both were dressed in heavy cotton-padded clothes.
The previous temperature drop had only made nights colder, but after last night, Si Nian clearly felt the fierce onset of winter.
Even Da Huang, who usually slept freely outside, had unusually retreated into his doghouse to sleep.
Shitou had a long trail of snot hanging down, looking both pitiful and comical.
"Aunt Zhang? Are you looking for me?"
Si Nian went forward to open the door and asked.
Aunt Zhang nodded. "Yes. Girl, you just got up? Did Auntie disturb your rest?"
Early this morning, she had seen Zhou Yueshen carrying Yaoyao out.
Now, seeing Si Nian looking like she had just woken up, she wondered if Si Nian was feeling unwell and resting, so Zhou Yueshen was taking care of the child himself today.
Si Nian's face flushed slightly. "Heh, yes, yes. The weather's cold, slept in a bit."
Aunt Zhang didn't think much of it; in her subconscious, Zhou Yueshen was incapable.
So she didn't think in that direction at all.
She just assumed Si Nian was still young and liked to sleep in.
Young people these days, how many could get up easily in winter?
Even she struggled to get up in the morning.
"Alright. I came to tell you something."
Aunt Zhang said, "The village head just notified us that every household representative should go over. It seems the transformer in our village burned out and can't be fixed—it needs a complete replacement. They're calling a meeting for everyone to discuss it. Factory Manager Zhou isn't home, so will you go and listen to what they have to say?"
Si Nian was taken aback for a moment, thinking of the power outage from the night before.
So it was the transformer that had burned out.
