Chapter 24: Zhou Sinian, Did You Wet the Bed?!

While they were sleeping soundly, the educated youths in the front courtyard were wide awake, their stomachs rumbling through the night.

During these difficult times, even a whole family working in the fields couldn’t eat their fill, let alone the educated youths, who held little status in the village.

Unless it was the busy farming season, they were only given two meals a day.

In winter, when the sun set early, they had their last meal around three or four in the afternoon to save on lamp oil.

But when the aroma of Ming Dai’s salted rice wafted through the air, their hunger intensified, making them want to cry from sheer frustration.

Liu Yan curled up at the edge of the cold kang bed. The thin quilt covering her was useless against the chill, so she had no choice but to throw a burlap sack over it. Even then, she was still freezing.

On top of that, after being beaten upon her arrival, she could barely get out of bed. The older educated youths had to bring her meals, let alone help her gather firewood.

Pain coursed through her body in waves, and the thin porridge she had for dinner did nothing to ease her hunger. Unable to hold back, she began sobbing again.

“Are you wailing like a ghost in the middle of the night?!”

Song Lanlan, who slept at the other end of the kang, was already irritated from hunger. Hearing Liu Yan cry only made her angrier, and she lashed out.

“You’ve got some nerve crying! You shameless thing, you ate up an entire bag of someone else’s rice, and now you’re lying here sobbing like a widow at a funeral? Cry again, and I’ll throw you out!”

Liu Yan was terrified.

In this freezing weather, without firewood, she would die if she were thrown outside!

She immediately shut up.

Song Lanlan rolled her eyes and muttered insults under her breath. But she, too, couldn’t help thinking about that lunatic’s bag of rice. If only it had been hers…

The Next Morning…

At dawn, Ming Dai was pulled out of her dreams by the biological clock of this body.

A slender, pale hand stretched out from under the covers, groping under the pillow for something. After fumbling around for a while and finding nothing, Ming Dai, still half-asleep, finally realized—

There was no phone. She had been too drowsy to remember.

Glancing at the plum blossom-brand watch she had taken from her space, she saw it was only 5:30 AM.

So early.

In her previous life, aside from high school, she had never woken up this early again.

She decided not to stay in bed any longer. The first thing to do was to settle the firewood issue—once the heavy snow sealed the mountains, she would have plenty of time to sleep.

With great effort, she pulled herself out of the warm bed.

She packed away the down comforter and electric heating pad, changed out of her thermal cotton pajamas, and put on her floral cotton jacket. Finally, she tied her hair into two neat braids. Done!

Jumping off the kang bed, she found her black cotton shoes, slipped them on, and grabbed the saltwater bottle before heading out.

The moment she stepped outside, she saw Zhou Sinian sitting on the doorstep.

He was holding her red headscarf, putting it on and taking it off repeatedly, clearly enjoying himself.

Ming Dai walked over. “Have you brushed your teeth and washed your face?”

Zhou Sinian didn’t answer. Instead, he took the saltwater bottle from her hand and started picking at it with his fingers.

“Stop that. If you peel it off, it’ll be ruined.”

His hand froze for a moment before he reluctantly handed the bottle back to her.

Ming Dai narrowed her eyes. This guy had definitely done something bad.

She placed the bottle on the windowsill and turned to walk toward Zhou Sinian’s room.

Zhou Sinian followed, trying to stop her, but she threatened to withhold his breakfast. The foodie immediately surrendered.

Pushing the door open, Ming Dai was stunned by how empty the room was.

It was really empty—aside from the kang bed, there was nothing else.

But that wasn’t the main issue. Her gaze landed on the military blanket on the bed, and she frowned—it was far too thin.

Stepping closer, she noticed that the color of the blanket wasn’t uniform.

She reached out and touched it—it was damp.

Unfolding it further, she suddenly froze.

A large, suspicious-looking wet patch sat right in the middle.

Ming Dai’s eyes widened in shock.

“Zhou Sinian… did you wet the bed?!”

Zhou Sinian stared at her in confusion, completely clueless about what she meant.

Ming Dai glanced at the empty saline bottle beside her and immediately understood—this guy must have pried off the cap in the middle of the night.

She sighed and looked him over. Fortunately, his pants were still dry.

Picking up the uncapped bottle, she instructed, “Take the blanket outside.”

Zhou Sinian obediently picked up the blanket and followed her step by step.

Once outside, she had him stand still while she rummaged through her storage space for a piece of rope. Taking a steel nail and an axe, she hammered the nail into both ends of the courtyard wall and stretched out a clothesline.

She found the sunniest spot and told Zhou Sinian to toss the blanket over it.

Touching the fabric, Ming Dai sighed again.

From the moment she first laid eyes on Zhou Sinian, she could tell that he wasn’t just mentally unwell—his entire body was riddled with issues.

Cold had seeped into his bones, he had arthritis, and he had spent long periods wearing damp clothes, sleeping under a wet blanket on a cold brick bed, without even a mattress.

Under normal circumstances, someone living like this would have died long ago. The fact that he was still alive was nothing short of a miracle.

“Zhou Sinian, where are the clothes and shoes you changed out of?”

Zhou Sinian watched as Ming Dai unfolded the blanket, revealing the damp patches. Feeling embarrassed for reasons he couldn’t quite explain, he instinctively wanted to flip it over.

Before he could move, her voice stopped him. He withdrew his restless hands and turned back to the house.

A short while later, he returned carrying his tattered cotton-padded jacket, ragged cotton pants, and military boots.

Ming Dai inspected them. They weren’t dirty, just completely soaked.

The jacket and pants were beyond saving—the cotton stuffing had all but disappeared. Only the military boots were still usable; they were well-made and just needed a good scrubbing.

Setting the boots aside, she led him to wash up.

When they arrived, Zhou Sinian instinctively went through the motions—pouring water, washing his face, and wiping it clean—then waited expectantly for Ming Dai to apply frostbite ointment for him.

Seeing her moving a bit slower as she washed her own face, he looked at her with blatant disapproval.

Heh.

“Here, that’s yours. Apply it yourself. Just take a small amount at a time.”

Zhou Sinian glanced at the small box on the shelf, picked it up, and examined it for a moment before twisting it open.

As the familiar scent of roses filled the air, he nodded in satisfaction. He scooped out a small dab, rubbing it between his palms.

Bringing his hands together, he carefully spread the ointment over his entire face, down to his neck, even rubbing a bit onto his ears.

His expression was focused and serious, as if he weren’t simply applying skincare but conducting a top-secret experiment.

Ming Dai ignored him and applied some face cream on herself.

When she looked up again, Zhou Sinian had already finished applying his ointment and was picking up the foot-washing basin, preparing to fetch hot water.

“No washing feet in the morning!”

Ming Dai quickly stopped him. Zhou Sinian frowned, stubbornly holding onto the basin while staring at her.

He only gave up when she told him that she wasn’t washing her feet either.

With enamel mugs in hand, the two stood face to face as they brushed their teeth. When Ming Dai brushed her upper teeth, he did the same. When she moved to the lower teeth, he followed suit.

Seeing how serious he was, she decided to tease him. Pulling out her toothbrush, she mimed swallowing.

Sure enough, Zhou Sinian copied her, gulping down a mouthful of toothpaste foam.

As he stood there, wide-eyed in shock, Ming Dai spat her toothpaste out into the sink.

“Hahaha!”

His stunned expression amused her greatly. In a much better mood, she rinsed her mouth, put away her toothbrush and mug, and returned them to the kitchen.

A moment later, Zhou Sinian walked back in with an indifferent expression, placing his toothbrush and mug neatly in the exact same direction as hers. Then, he straightened Ming Dai’s slightly askew green towel.

Ming Dai looked at him. “Take your foot-washing basin.”

She picked up a water bucket and headed outside.

“Fetch a bucket of water and scrub your shoes. Just like brushing your teeth—top, bottom, inside, outside, every part needs to be cleaned. Got it? This is laundry detergent, use it for your shoes. It will foam up, so make sure to rinse them thoroughly with clean water afterward. Understand?”

Zhou Sinian looked at the shoes and detergent on the ground, nodded, took the bucket from her hands, and went to fetch water.

Seeing him scrubbing so earnestly, Ming Dai turned and went back into the kitchen.

She still had to go up the mountain today, so she planned to make some flat breads to bring along.