Chapter 18.2

After rubbing his belly for a good while, Chuchu finally felt better.

At some point, he had wandered over to Qin Qingman’s side and unexpectedly asked, “Sister, is Comrade Wei my brother-in-law?”

Qin Qingman’s face, which had just begun to cool down, immediately flushed again at Chuchu’s innocent question.

What had started as a way to handle Liu Hechang and his people had now put her in a bind under the child’s clear, questioning eyes.

She couldn’t bring herself to speak the truth, which might hurt the child’s feelings. But lying would be disrespectful to Wei Ling; she couldn’t keep using him as an excuse again and again.

Just as Qin Qingman found herself at a loss, Wei Ling stepped out in his new outfit.

Some people naturally exuded a noble aura that was hard to conceal. Even though his clothes were patched in layers, it didn’t detract from his appearance.

Instead, he looked more like a prince in disguise, his aura only enhanced.

Qin Qingman and Chuchu were stunned by Wei Ling’s presence.

Chuchu forgot his question, and Qin Qingman even forgot her embarrassment.

The two siblings stared at Wei Ling without blinking.

Seeing this, Wei Ling couldn’t help but think something was wrong with his appearance.

Confused, he lowered his head to double-check himself.

The clothes were indeed a bit small and short, but other than that, there were no misplaced buttons or holes.

Wei Ling’s puzzled expression snapped Qin Qingman back to reality.

She suddenly remembered Chuchu’s question and worried that Wei Ling might have overheard it. Hurriedly, she grabbed a pot of hot water and retreated to her room, leaving behind only a quick remark as she closed the door.

“I’m going to freshen up.”

Her undergarments were damp with sweat from being in the mountains, and without the means to change earlier, she hadn’t been able to wash up.

Now that she was home, in a warm room with clean clothes, she finally felt an urge to take care of herself.

Besides, with the fire in the main room’s stove running all night, drying a few extra clothes wouldn’t consume any more firewood.

As he watched Qin Qingman retreat in embarrassment, Wei Ling’s eyes held a trace of amusement.

He knew Qin Qingman was feeling shy.

“Chuchu, come help me hold the lantern outside.” Wei Ling said, not wasting any time.

He planned to start cleaning the wild boar; the longer it was left, the harder it would be to process.

“Alright!”

Chuchu obediently bundled himself up in a thick cotton jacket, holding the lantern as he accompanied Wei Ling to the yard.

In the dim yellow light, the wild boar’s body was free of snow, but it had already stiffened completely.

Any longer in the cold, and it would probably freeze solid.

Chuchu’s face flushed with excitement as he looked at the wild boar lying on the ground, his small hands gripping the lantern tightly, the light swaying slightly with his anticipation. “Big Brother Wei, do we need to heat water?” He remembered the village process for slaughtering pigs and how hot water was used for removing the hair.

Before Wei Ling could respond, the child’s face turned worried as he realized something. “Oh no, we don’t have a pot big enough to heat that much water. What are we going to do?”

Wei Ling saw that Chuchu was genuinely concerned and couldn’t hold back a smile. Reaching out, he ruffled his soft hair and explained, “We don’t need hot water.”

For butchering a pig, there were ways to do it with hot water, and ways to do it without.

Wei Ling drew his dagger and crouched down to start the task.

Wild boars, known for scratching against tree trunks to relieve itches, had not only tough, coarse skin but also bristly hair.

To avoid the unpleasant taste of boar skin, he planned to discard it, which meant there was no need for hot water to remove the hair.

Wei Ling’s task was to skin and butcher the boar.

In his hands, the small dagger was as precise as an extension of his arm. Within half an hour, the hefty boar, weighing over three hundred jin, was completely dismembered into pieces and laid out neatly on the snowy ground.

Since the boar had been dead for hours, its blood had already congealed, leaving little trace on the ground, which astonished Qin Qingman when she came out and saw the scene.

Realizing Wei Ling was about to start cleaning the organs, she quickly fetched a bucket from the toilet.

“Comrade Wei, put them in here.” she instructed.

The intestines were filled with waste and couldn’t be disposed of carelessly. Although it looked unsightly, manure was a valuable resource for rural households, serving as an effective fertilizer for the fields come spring.

Since Qin Qingman’s family had farmland, this would certainly come in handy.

Wei Ling’s speed and efficiency were impressive; even cleaning the boar’s internal organs took him little time.

Holding the skinned boar’s head in one hand and the cleaned organs in the other, Wei Ling looked over at Qin Qingman.

“I’ll bring these to the kitchen and start working on them tonight.”

The moment she received the wild boar, Qin Qingman had known it would be a sleepless night. Some parts of the meat could be frozen, but others, like the organs, could not.

If they weren’t processed fresh, they’d develop an off taste upon thawing. Tonight would be a demanding one.

The larger cuts that needed freezing would be left in the snow overnight, ensuring they’d harden like rocks and stay preserved until the snow thawed next year. Seeing the boar fully butchered, Qin Qingman had a few ideas in mind.

With a boar as large as this, even its head was sizable. It wouldn’t fit in the pot over the main room stove, so she’d need to use the large stove in the kitchen.

“Comrade Wei, the meat hasn’t fully frozen yet. Can you help me cut a basin’s worth, with three parts fat and seven parts lean? Once it’s salted, I’ll make it into dried sausage, which will keep well and be convenient to eat.”

She handed Wei Ling a large basin, directing him without hesitation.

Since he had managed to butcher the whole boar with such ease, she trusted he could quickly prepare a bowl of meat for her.

“Alright.” Wei Ling said, taking the basin and getting back to work.

Chuchu, carrying an oil lamp, eagerly followed Wei Ling, providing light.

The more the child watched Wei Ling work, the more he idolized him.

He had never seen anyone handle tasks so swiftly and skillfully.

He secretly hoped Wei Ling would never leave their home.

Watching Wei Ling’s tall, sturdy figure, Chuchu felt a stronger sense of security.

Squatting beside him, Chuchu asked softly, “Big Brother Wei, can you stay?”

Wei Ling’s hand paused for a moment as he carefully cut the meat according to Qin Qingman’s request. He looked down at Chuchu’s clear, wide eyes, unsure of how to answer the child’s question.

Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced toward the kitchen.

He knew Qin Qingman could hear their conversation in the yard. She was surely listening in.

A hint of tension crept into Wei Ling’s heart.

“Big Brother Wei.” Chuchu continued, his voice low and earnest. “Let me tell you, the families of my uncles are all awful. My aunts bully my sister, and my cousins bully me. Today, when my sister wasn’t home, Sister Caiyun and her goons barged in and tried to steal our food.”

It was probably because Wei Ling gave off such a strong sense of security that Chuchu didn’t notice Wei Ling’s silence and instead began to talk about his grievances that he hadn’t had time to share with Qin Qingman.

In the kitchen, Qin Qingman actually heard Chuchu’s words, but she couldn’t come out.

She simply tightened her grip on the kitchen knife she was holding.

Wei Ling’s gaze, from the corner of his eye, stayed fixed on the kitchen door. He sensed Qin Qingman’s agitation and asked the child, “So, how did you handle it? Did they manage to steal the food?” While he spoke, a flash of two sizable geese in the Qin family’s hall crossed his mind.

“No, Da Bai and Xiao Bai are amazing! The two of them managed to drive away a whole group of bad people even though they were outnumbered. They even yanked off Sister Caiyun’s hair and part of her scalp, and she got her engagement broken off because of it!”

Recalling the pitiful state of Qin Caiyun and her siblings, Chuchu’s voice grew louder.

It was clear just how much protecting the family’s food meant to the child; he was overjoyed.

Wei Ling looked into the child’s clear eyes and could imagine how scared and helpless he must have felt facing those threatening people who came to steal the food.

No wonder he’d asked if Wei Ling was going to leave—to him, Wei Ling, who could kill wild boars and protect Qin Qingman, was the ultimate source of security.

What Wei Ling realized, Qin Qingman also understood.

In silence, Qin Qingman began to think about the real issue of survival.

Originally, she had thought she could take care of Chuchu on her own, but after these recent experiences, she came to understand what Chuchu truly lacked.

It was a sense of security.

Even though her own core had changed and she could already protect Chuchu, in Chuchu’s mind, a family needed a man to stand tall and guard the household, ensuring no one would dare to take advantage of them.

Qin Qingman, being someone from a more modern era, had more progressive thinking, but she had to admit that, in this era, having a man at home could indeed avoid many troubles.

This body, which belonged to the original owner, had already reached adulthood, meaning it was time for her to be courted by countless families.

As long as her marriage wasn’t settled, her aunts would continue to plot and scheme.

Today, they might have driven away Liu Hechang, but tomorrow, another Zhang Hechang or Zhou Hechang could show up.

It was exhausting to constantly fend off these “thieves.” not to mention sickening.

And if she ever let her guard down, she could easily be blindsided, which Qin Qingman definitely didn’t want to happen.

So, maybe she really should consider getting married?

After all, it was only the early seventies, with many years to go before economic reform or the resumption of college entrance exams.

Kaoshan Village was remote, but who could guarantee that they’d be completely untouched by the times? In these difficult historical years, even prominent figures struggled.

Only the military base seemed secure, free from outside interference.

With all these worries in mind, Qin Qingman continued to swiftly clean the pig’s intestines.

After cleaning the pig liver and large intestines, Qin Qingman planned to braise them. They’d make a great snack with wine or a tasty side dish.

The pig stomach, once thoroughly cleaned, was hung up to dry; it was a delicacy loved by many in later generations—good for beauty, health, and treating deficiency symptoms. Little Chuchu, being so small and thin, could eat more of it to strengthen himself.

The small intestines, cleaned and drying, would be the perfect casing when it came time to make sausages.

Once the large stove in the kitchen was lit, the temperature in the entire house began to rise. When the water in the pot started to boil, Qin Qingman put the large intestines in to simmer, though she felt a hint of regret.

If only she had pig blood and glutinous rice—then she could make a delicious blood sausage that would be utterly irresistible.

Back in modern rural areas, one could still get authentic blood sausages since fresh pig blood was only available right after a pig was slaughtered.

Just as Qin Qingman was putting the pig’s head into the pot, Wei Ling and Chuchu came back, carrying a large basin of meat.

Wei Ling, unsure how much meat Qin Qingman needed, filled the basin to the brim—at least thirty pounds of it.

Looking at this overflowing basin of meat, Qin Qingman felt at a loss; even if she wanted to help, there was no way.

It was simply too heavy for her to lift.

“Where should I put it?” Wei Ling saw her struggle and offered to help.

“Place it in the hall, away from the stove. I’ll come right over to handle it.” Qin Qingman directed as she added a large log into the stove.

Everything that needed to be braised was now on the stove. A pair of lungs, filled with water, was soaking separately. The impurities in the lungs were hard to clean and required multiple rinses.

After she’d seasoned the meat for sausage stuffing, she’d return to change the water for the lungs.

While Qin Qingman busied herself in the kitchen, Chuchu and Wei Ling went to the hall.

With an extra person in the house, Chuchu was excited; even though it was past his usual bedtime, he wasn’t sleepy at all. Instead, he kept following Wei Ling around, occasionally offering a hand with small tasks.

For instance, as they entered the hall, it was Chuchu who lifted the curtain.

Once Chuchu lifted the curtain, Wei Ling entered, carrying the basin.

The moment he walked in, he froze.

His clothes had already been washed and were hanging in the warmest spot near the stove. Wisps of steam rose from them, warmed by the fire.

The thought that Qin Qingman had washed his clothes left Wei Ling almost too flustered to know how to move.

—o—o—o—

Meanwhile, Qin Qingman, back in the kitchen, had completely forgotten about it.

Earlier, after scrubbing the kitchen, she had seen Wei Ling and Chuchu working in the yard to process the wild boar.

Since there was no boiling water, she guessed they must be skinning the animal. Wei Ling had saved her life, given her half a boar, and was now busy dividing the meat, so she’d swallowed her embarrassment and washed his clothes for him.

After all, it wouldn’t be right to let Wei Ling finish up only to have to wash his own clothes.

Fortunately, Qin Qingman had only washed Wei Ling’s outer jacket and pants, so her embarrassment wasn’t as overwhelming as it could have been.

In the kitchen, as she added more wood to the stove, Qin Qingman suddenly remembered the clothes drying in the hall. Her face instantly flushed bright red.

This was the first time in both her past and present lives that she had ever washed a man’s clothes—and to be caught doing it! The embarrassment was almost unbearable.

Hesitating, she didn’t dare to go back to the hall to face Wei Ling.

Meanwhile, in the hall, Wei Ling set down the basin and glanced at Chuchu, who looked so sleepy he could barely keep his eyes open. Softly, he said, “Chuchu, go wash up and go to bed.”

“Oh.”

Chuchu blinked up at Wei Ling for several seconds in a daze, then obediently went to fetch water to wash up.

For those he trusted, Chuchu was exceptionally well-behaved.

At this point, he was so sleepy that he followed each instruction automatically, as if on autopilot.

Wei Ling watched as Chuchu finished washing up, climbed into bed, and pulled the covers over himself.

Still, Qin Qingman hadn’t come back to the hall. His gaze drifted to his clothes drying near the stove, and he quickly understood the reason for her absence.

With Chuchu now asleep, only he and Qin Qingman were awake in the house. It was the perfect time to talk.

So Wei Ling headed to the kitchen.

The kitchen was neatly arranged, as Qin Qingman had already cleaned it up. Various meats were simmering in the pot, releasing a faint aroma; though the scent wasn’t fully developed yet, Wei Ling could tell the food would be delicious once it was braised.

The kitchen was calm and quiet—but it was missing one thing.

Qin Qingman.

Since Wei Ling hadn’t heard any noises in the courtyard, he wondered where Qin Qingman could be.

Focusing, he caught the faint sound of breathing from behind the door beside him.

Seeing that Qin Qingman was avoiding him, Wei Ling hesitated. An unexpected wave of doubt washed over him, and he suddenly felt uncertain.

“My name is Wei Ling, from the capital.” he began, “I’m a soldier stationed in the nearby military unit, at the regiment level, with a monthly allowance of seventy-eight yuan and fifty pounds of grain subsidy tickets each month…” Wei Ling, unsure how to properly express his intentions to Qin Qingman, decided to introduce himself in full detail.

Family background, work, income—he held nothing back in front of Qin Qingman.

In truth, Qin Qingman hadn’t meant to avoid Wei Ling; she had simply stepped back instinctively and ended up behind the door as she collected her thoughts.

Hearing his detailed self-introduction, even though she couldn’t see his face, Qin Qingman understood that Wei Ling was being earnest.

He was formally introducing himself as if they were in a matchmaking interview.

“Why did you choose me?” she asked. After hearing his introduction, she knew that not only was Wei Ling from a solid background, but he was also exceptionally capable. In both her past life and this one, Wei Ling was undoubtedly the most outstanding man she’d ever met.

“It feels natural being around you. Your cooking is delicious, and it gives me a feeling of home.”

Wei Ling’s answer wasn’t evasive; he spoke with sincerity after careful thought.

Hearing this, Qin Qingman believed that Wei Ling was serious. His reason for choosing her felt more convincing than the usual notion of love at first sight.

“Comrade Qin, marry me.” Wei Ling said, gesturing to the meat in the courtyard.

This was his way of presenting the other half of the boar as a gift to her.

With that gesture, an image of Wei Ling’s powerful stance when he punched the wild boar in the forest automatically filled Qin Qingman’s mind.

She hadn’t fully witnessed it at the time, but the sight of the boar’s bloody end had been etched deeply into her memory.

As her gaze shifted to the neatly arranged meat chunks in the courtyard, Qin Qingman swallowed slightly.

She truly did want to eat meat.

Life was tough; if marrying someone meant she could eat meat regularly, well, she was open to it.

Besides, Wei Ling was handsome, came from a good family, hadn’t looked down on her, and didn’t mind her current situation.

Qin Qingman was just a village girl.

“Comrade Qin, marry me. I’ll take care of you and Chuchu. I’ll give you my entire allowance every month; you can spend it however you like.”

Wei Ling’s perspective was influenced by more modern ideas, so he spoke these words with complete ease.

A great physique, good looks, respectfulness, and above all, formidable strength—this was a man who could guarantee plenty of meat in an era where hunting was allowed.

Resolving this, Qin Qingman took a deep breath and nodded resolutely.

For the promise of meat, she’d marry him!

Though Wei Ling had his back to her, he sensed her nodding. Turning around, he looked at Qin Qingman.

“My name is Qin Qingman. Both my parents are deceased, and I have a younger brother. I also have a bunch of troublesome relatives, but don’t worry—I know how to handle them.” Qin Qingman looked at Wei Ling sincerely.

Apart from the matter of her changed soul, she had nothing left to hide from him.

After all, she hadn’t been in this era for very long.

“I’m glad you’re willing to accept me.” Wei Ling said, his gaze calm as it settled on Qin Qingman. But his heart was anything but calm.

At the same time, he had something he needed to explain. “Comrade Qin, my family had arranged for me to meet a girl. She’s an educated youth from the city and is currently on her way here. I’ve never met her, I don’t like her, and I certainly don’t want to marry her.”

Qin Qingman suddenly understood.

So, she was to be Wei Ling’s shield against his family’s matchmaking efforts.

But it didn’t matter. The relationship between them had always been one of mutual benefit. They both needed each other to deal with their respective troubles. Wei Ling could help her, and of course, she could help him. So, Qin Qingman generously took the responsibility, saying, “Don’t worry, I’ll handle it.”

With the decision made and the necessary words said, Qin Qingman felt much lighter. She picked up the salt and seasoning and headed to the hall.

She still had to marinate the sausage meat.

Leaving Wei Ling standing there in a daze, he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off, though he couldn’t pinpoint what exactly.

After all, he was from ancient times, not the modern era, so he didn’t quite understand how men and women were supposed to interact emotionally.

And no one had taught him.

Even the smartest person has their weaknesses.

While Qin Qingman’s home was warm and cozy, next door at Qin Lei’s house, things were on the verge of exploding.

The news Qin Lei brought home made Zhu Hongxia and the others forget about recovering from their illnesses. Especially after hearing that Qin Qingman had a suitor, they were in an uproar.

“Where did she get a suitor? When did she start fooling around with some wild man?”

Zhu Hongxia had been trying to control Qin Qingman’s marriage, and now, hearing that Qin Qingman had a man, her words were sharp and cruel.

“Don’t talk nonsense. I’ve been keeping an eye on it. That man was wearing a military uniform. He must be a soldier. People like that, we can’t afford to mess with.” Hearing Zhu Hongxia’s ramblings, Qin Lei turned pale and quickly covered his wife’s mouth.

They couldn’t even handle a union leader from the local farm, so how could they dare to mess with a soldier?

Qin Xiang and the others, who had originally planned to join Zhu Hongxia in scolding Qin Qingman, immediately went silent once they understood Wei Ling’s background.

Zhu Hongxia, meanwhile, was left fuming, her eyes rolling in frustration.

“Damn it, if you’re going to cover my mouth, then do it, but why are you covering my nose too? Are you trying to get me killed and marry someone else?”