Chapter 59: My Husband is Handsome

Chu Yue pulled the wild chicken and ran, stopping only when the snake disappeared from sight. She stopped to catch her breath.

“Yueyue, I don’t want to go into the mountains with you again. Your courage is too big,” said Lu Yufang with a fearful expression. Fortunately, Chu Yue had reacted quickly earlier, or if she had been bitten by the snake, it would have been disastrous.

Chu Yue gave a slightly embarrassed smile. “I didn’t expect there to be a snake there. But without the snake, I probably wouldn’t have noticed this wild chicken in my hands. It’s a pity about the wild chicken eggs, though. There were at least ten of them.”

Lu Yufang rolled her eyes. “At a time like this, you’re still thinking about wild chicken eggs? Is it more important, the eggs or your life?”

“Of course, life is more important,” Chu Yue said with a smile, linking her arm with Lu Yufang’s. “Let’s go home quickly.”

The two walked down the mountain together.

Around noon, after traveling for over two hours, Yun Dabao and Yun Chengcai finally arrived at Banpo Village.

As soon as they reached the village entrance, they noticed a house being built on a slightly higher ground not far away. The brothers looked curiously at the construction site from a distance.

Yun Chengcai, with an envious look, said, “Big Brother, I didn’t expect this Banpo Village to have a rich household. They’re actually building a house with blue bricks and tiles. With so many bricks and tiles, they must be building quite a large courtyard.”

Yun Dabao nodded. “Let’s hurry to little sister’s house. It’s still not time for lunch. Maybe we can help a bit.”

“Alright,” Yun Chengcai replied, picking up the pace.

At the old house, Yun Cuihe was outside washing rice when she saw two familiar figures pass by not far away. She quickly stood up and called out, “Big Brother, Second Brother?”

The Yun brothers turned their heads when they heard the voice.

“Ah! Little sister is here? Why aren’t you in your house? Is the old house no longer livable?”

Yun Cuihe wiped her hands on her apron and stepped forward to open the courtyard gate. “The old house can still be lived in, but this house is closer to mine. I cook here during the day, but at night, I still have to go back to sleep there.”

The two brothers nodded. “Where is the new house? We’ll go help.”

Yun Cuihe pulled the two brothers into the courtyard. “You two have traveled all morning. Don’t rush. Sit and rest for a while. After lunch, you can help with the new house in the afternoon.”

She said this while heading inside to fetch water.

“Big Brother, Second Brother, have you bought the grain?”

Yun Dabao quickly nodded. “We bought it. Yesterday, when you mentioned it, we drove the ox cart to Canghe Town. Old Second and I took the ferry here while Dad and Aguang took the cart to buy the grain.”

“That’s good.” Just as she finished speaking, Yun Cuihe came out of the kitchen with two bowls of water.

Chu Yue was coming down from the mountain when she passed the new house, just as the workers were finishing for lunch.

Lu Xinghe looked at the wild chicken in Chu Yue’s hands with a look of disbelief.

“Yo! Xinghe’s wife actually caught a wild chicken?” Lu Shoucheng was also surprised.

Lu Yufang saw her father and couldn’t hold back, immediately saying, “Dad, you don’t know, it was so dangerous earlier. Yueyue almost got bitten by a snake when she was catching the wild chicken.”

“Ah!” Lu Shoucheng raised an eyebrow. “How could she be so bold? Is she alright?”

Chu Yue glanced at Lu Xinghe’s face, which had darkened, and gave a shy smile. “I’m fine, Fourth Uncle.”

Lu Xinghe silently took the wild chicken from Chu Yue’s hands and pulled her toward home.

Lu Xingping and Lu Xing’an didn’t dare speak; they knew that when their older brother had that expression, it meant he was angry.

Others who didn’t understand Lu Xinghe began to joke, “Wow, who would have thought, Xinghe really loves his wife.”

Lu Yufang looked at their tightly held hands, feeling envious. If her future husband were only half as good as Xinghe, she would be happy.

Back at the old house, after calling out to her uncles, Lu Xinghe took a piece of string and tied the wild chicken’s wings and feet, placing it under the basket in the kitchen.

Yun Cuihe noticed his silent demeanor and quietly asked, “Yueyue, what’s wrong with Xinghe?”

Chu Yue shook her head.

“Maybe he’s angry?”

Yun Cuihe wondered aloud, “Why would he be angry?”

Lu Xing’an set down his water cup and wiped his mouth. “I heard from Yufang, sister-in-law almost got bitten by a snake when she was catching the wild chicken.”

“Ah!” Yun Cuihe was startled, immediately looking Chu Yue up and down. “Are you okay?”

Chu Yue shook her head. “Mother, I’m fine. I didn’t know there was a poisonous creature by the wild chicken. If I had known, I would have turned around and left.”

Yun Cuihe breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank goodness. In the future, don’t go into the mountains anymore. You’re lucky, but it still scares me. Don’t let anything happen.”

Chu Yue obediently replied, “I understand, Mother.”

Yun Cuihe looked over at Lu Xinghe, who was sitting quietly in the corner of the courtyard. “Xinghe, though quiet, is very loyal. He must have been scared too. Maybe if you say a few nice words, he’ll calm down.”

“Okay, Mother.”

Chu Yue glanced at Lu Xinghe sitting in the corner of the courtyard, then turned back to the kitchen where she was scooping the thick rice porridge. After adding some salted vegetables to one bowl, she went over to Lu Xinghe with it.

“Husband, it’s time to eat.”

Lu Xinghe didn’t speak but reached out to take the porridge she handed him and began to eat.

Chu Yue bit her lip and hurried back to the kitchen.

After bringing her own porridge, Chu Yue sat beside him and ate, occasionally glancing in his direction.

Seemingly feeling uncomfortable under her gaze, Lu Xinghe finally asked in a low voice, “Why do you keep looking at me?”

With eyes full of affection, Chu Yue smiled brightly, “My husband is handsome.”

Lu Xinghe, hearing this, quickly turned his face away, his ears blushing pink in the sunlight.

“You, a young lady, aren’t you ashamed?” he teased.

Chu Yue, slightly pouty, raised her lips. “What’s there to be ashamed of? I’m just admiring my own husband.”

Seeing her fearless expression, Lu Xinghe couldn’t stay angry. He smiled faintly and reached out to wipe the corner of her mouth.

“You always say you’re not a child, yet you manage to get porridge all over your face.”

Chu Yue hurriedly raised her sleeve to wipe the corner of her mouth.

“There’s no such thing,” she replied.

Lu Xinghe chuckled, finishing the last bite of porridge. After putting the bowl away in the kitchen, he grabbed the wild chicken hidden under the basket. As he left the kitchen, he looked at Chu Yue.

“I’m going back to read. I’ll be back later. After you finish your porridge, come home directly and don’t go back to the mountain,” he said seriously.

“Alright,” Chu Yue answered, continuing to eat her porridge.

After giving Chu Yue his instructions, Lu Xinghe turned to the others, “Grandfather, Grandmother, Mother, Uncle, Second Uncle, Fourth Uncle, Eldest Uncle, Second Uncle, I’ll be going back now.”

The others quickly responded, “Go ahead, we’ll make sure the new house is in good shape for you.”