Chapter 8: Teased

Chen Feng felt a pang of heartache and reached out to touch his little face. Chen Dabao was awakened by the touch; he opened his eyes and gave her a big smile, “Mother is awake.” Then, he reached out his thin little hand to wipe away the drool from the corner of Chen Feng’s mouth.

She had been so engrossed just now that she hadn’t even noticed the drool. Chen Feng belatedly wiped the corner of her mouth with her hand.

Chen Feng said, “Dabao, from now on, let mother take care of wiping away drool and these things herself.”

At first, Dabao grinned and said, “Okay,” but then his mouth drooped, and a layer of mist filled his eyes as he asked, “When mother’s sickness gets better, will you not want Dabao anymore?”

Truly, he was a thoughtful child.

This child was good in every way, just overly cautious. In the future, his confidence needed to be nurtured.

Chen Feng hurriedly said, “No, Dabao will always be mother’s son. But when mother’s sickness gets better, these things should be done by mother herself. Otherwise, people will say that mother is a fool. Does Dabao want a fool as a mother?” She felt more composed as she spoke, nervousness making her speech more fluent.

Dabao thought about it and then grinned again, saying, “No matter if mother is foolish or not, Dabao will always want mother.”

Chen Feng felt tender inside and leaned over to plant a kiss on his little handsome face.

Dabao was momentarily stunned. No one had ever kissed him before. He felt both shy and happy, blushing and smiling with curved eyes and brows.

Seeing this, Chen Feng kissed him again, saying, “Since my son likes it, mother will kiss you every day… until you’re seven years old.” In ancient times, after seven, boys and girls needed to maintain some distance.

Emboldened, Dabao leaned over and kissed Chen Feng, saying, “My son likes kissing mother.” Then, he lay back on the pillow, blushing even more. His rosy ears, in the gradually brightening morning light, looked like little pink ingots.

Chen Feng couldn’t get enough of the sight and leaned over to kiss him once more. However, this time, she misjudged the force and “bumped” into his face, hearing him grunt softly.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Chen Feng lifted her head, rubbing her sore nose.

The mother and son cuddled for a while, and then they heard movement in the kitchen; it was Mrs. Wang coming out to cook.

Since their family didn’t need to work in the fields, Mrs. Wang did her chores later in the morning, unlike other rural families who rose before dawn.

Chen Feng dressed herself without the help of her little son. After getting dressed, she saw the little boy standing in front of the table holding a comb.

Chen Feng exclaimed, “Can my son help mother comb her hair?” She was so surprised that she spoke without pause and without drooling.

Dabao sheepishly replied, “I can only help mother comb her hair; grandma has to help with styling.” He then pointed to a stool and said, “Mother, please sit down.”

Alright, she couldn’t lift her arms at the moment, didn’t want to continue enduring the discomfort, and didn’t want to inconvenience her mother further.

She obediently sat on the stool and let the four-year-old help comb her hair.

Despite being clever, the little boy was only four years old and didn’t have a light touch. He occasionally pulled her head backward, causing Chen Feng to gasp in pain.

Chen Feng then said, “Dabao, can you teach mother to recite the ‘Hundred Family Surnames’? Mother wants to exercise her mouth. When the mouth becomes more agile, I won’t sound like a broken gong and won’t stutter.”

Dabao agreed and began reciting loudly. He recited a line, and Chen Feng followed suit.

Just as her hair was neatly combed, Mrs. Wang came in. She smiled and said, “Reciting books early in the morning, is A’Feng also aspiring to be a female scholar?”

She styled Chen Feng’s hair into double buns and then tidied up the tuft of hair on Chen Dabao’s head.

After leaving the east room, she washed her face using a willow twig and tooth powder. Except for intentionally smudging Chen Feng’s face, the people in the house were all very clean, something that pleased Chen Feng greatly. Yesterday, while sitting in the ox cart, she saw several people whose faces were not dirty, yet they seemed even dirtier, with yellow teeth and a noticeable odor. In contrast, the people in this household had white teeth and a refreshing scent. If one disregarded Chen Ming’s illness, Chen Lu’s limp, and Mrs. Wang’s frequent squinting, everyone in this family was quite good-looking.

Breakfast was cornmeal porridge and pickled vegetable dumplings, eaten in the kitchen because Chen Ming was still resting.

Afterward, Mrs. Wang and Chen Lu went outside to water the vegetable plot, while Chen Dabao chopped chicken feed and then herded the chickens out into the yard to find their own food, picking up two eggs in the process.

Before leaving, Mrs. Wang instructed Chen Feng, “A’Feng, be a good girl and stay inside to play.”

Chen Feng didn’t like staying inside. The house was small, dark, and had a hint of urine smell.

She leaned against the door frame, stepping outside into the courtyard, where she circled around, stretched, and did mouth exercises. Of course, she had to be mindful not to make exaggerated mouth movements, fearing that the fence wouldn’t shield her privacy.

The air in the ancient countryside was truly refreshing. Taking a deep breath was invigorating, mixed with fragrances of grass, leaves, and flowers. The season was neither too cold nor too hot, bathed in the bright morning sun; it was quite delightful.

Surveying the surroundings, their house was the smallest and most dilapidated among the neighboring houses. One was a blue brick house, another a tiled house with mud-brick walls, and beside them was a thatched cottage, larger than theirs, with an annex.

Their house was located at the northeast corner of the village, with no houses to the east or north. Through the bamboo grove and some trees, one could see the vegetable plot and vast farmland in the distance. Their vegetable plot was to the east, and she could vaguely make out Mrs. Wang and Lu’s figures.

As Chen Feng looked outside, she occasionally noticed men passing by and glancing in. After Chen Dabao put away the eggs he had gathered and checked under the stove, Chen Feng instinctively bent down, letting his small dark hand pat her face a few times.

Chen Feng continued circling around with her big floral face. After the exercise, she felt her body was more agile than the day before, at least not as stiff.

When Mrs. Wang and Lu returned, Mrs. Wang went inside to help Chen Ming get up for breakfast. Chen Lu and Chen Dabao went out to gather firewood and forage for wild vegetables.

Before leaving, Chen Lu instructed Chen Feng, “Sister, stay in the yard and don’t go out. Even if someone asks you to, don’t go.”

Chen Dabao added, “If someone offers mother candy or fruit, please don’t accept it. Those people have bad intentions.”

Chen Feng blushed but couldn’t speak, just smiling foolishly.

Watching the two boys head west, where there was a large hillside with many trees and shrubs, Chen Feng noticed that most villagers went there to gather firewood.

As the two boys disappeared behind the fence, Chen Feng was about to turn around when she saw a disheveled man in his forties walking towards her.

His sticky gaze scanned Chen Feng from top to bottom, and he murmured, “Chen Feng, you’re getting more and more charming as you grow up, with a great figure, big chest, big buttocks. I like it.”