Chapter 59: “Thank You, Captain Shen”

Shen Subai didn’t dwell on the issue much. His gaze fell on Xie Yunshu’s hand—the back of it was red from the cold, and the middle area looked slightly pale. He frowned slightly: “You should wear gloves from now on. If your hands get frostbitten, you won’t be able to work.”

Xie Yunshu noticed her own hand too and smiled dismissively: “My hands get cold every year. I’m used to it by now. Besides, wearing gloves while washing vegetables is such a hassle!”

Although Li Fenlan and Aunt Zhao helped, buying and cooking all still depended on her. The water in the utility room ran slowly and was especially cold; the damp and chilly environment made it impossible for her hands to be as fair and delicate as a young girl’s.

Suddenly, Shen Subai recalled the newspaper he saw downstairs earlier. He actually knew Lu Zhixing (Lu Zhixing). They had met a few times. Appearance-wise and family background-wise, Lu Zhixing was among the best in Haicheng.

Why was she so determined to divorce? Wasn’t it better to live well following a man? Surely it was better than selling boxed meals herself and suffering like this. At least the girls Lu Zhixing knew couldn’t endure this kind of hardship.

Coming out of the construction site, outside Xie Mingcheng had already started selling meals and collecting money. Unlike Xie Yunshu’s always smiling face, his attitude was proper, and the young man’s slender posture was pleasing to see.

Xie Yunshu felt a sudden surge of pride and walked briskly over: “How’s it going? How much is left?”

Li Shengli was squatting nearby eating, and when he saw Xie Yunshu, he laughed heartily: “Yunshu, your little brother is a university student, right? The vibe is just different from us laborers. It’s like he’s got an abacus in his head—ten or so people eating, and he calculated the bill in just a few seconds…”

Xie Yunshu smiled even brighter: “My brother will take the college entrance exam next summer. If he gets into university, I’ll treat you all to free meals for a whole day!”

“Alright then, we’re counting on that meal! Don’t back out later!” Li Shengli happily stood up, leading the other brothers: “Remember, next year we’re eating the top student’s victory meal!”

Who wouldn’t like to hear that? Xie Yunshu naturally agreed. Her biggest wish now was for Mingcheng to get into university.

Xie Mingcheng stood nearby with a smile, tugged on Xie Yunshu’s sleeve, and whispered: “Sister, the meals are all sold out. Should we go back now?”

“Huh?”

Xie Yunshu’s smile vanished instantly. She widened her eyes and lifted the lids off the two big pots—sure enough, both were empty: “How did they sell out so fast? How long has it been? Xie Mingcheng, did you give them extra servings? I told you, one serving is one ladle, no more! These two big pots are worth over thirty yuan. If you sell less, I’ll break your legs!”

That little brat—she had just praised him, but now it seemed like he wanted her to lose money!

Xie Mingcheng helplessly took out neat money from his pocket: “Sister, you’re wrong. I’ve recorded every penny I collected. It’s 39.08 yuan total, about the same as when you were here earlier.”

Xie Yunshu looked at the empty pots and then the money in Xie Mingcheng’s hand: “This… this is way too fast…”

Before she could finish speaking, more customers came to the site one after another, calling out from afar: “One meat dish for me, plus two steamed buns!”

“Sister, I want a vegetable dish with rice, and some meat broth!”

“One meat, one vegetable—since the New Year is coming, let’s eat well today!”

Xie Yunshu felt like she was watching countless yuan slip away right in front of her and painfully forced out a smile: “Big brother, the food’s sold out!”

Not everyone on the construction site ate from Xie Yunshu. Some locals brought their own food, some couples living on-site cooked for themselves, and some tried to save money and only occasionally bought groceries, mostly eating pickled vegetables and steamed buns.

Since the New Year was approaching, some contractors had already handed out money to workers early, and everyone was excited to go home soon. After a hard year’s work, they wanted to reward themselves a bit. That’s why more people bought food today, and sales were so quick.

While tidying up, Xie Mingcheng said: “Brother Qiang already ate. He gave me fifty cents. I didn’t want to take it, but he insisted. But he said he won’t come to eat tomorrow because he’s going back home. He also asked me to remind you that after today, most workers will gradually leave.”

Xie Yunshu only knew the project’s boxed meals were delivered until the 20th day of the twelfth lunar month but didn’t realize the construction workers would leave even earlier. If so, wouldn’t she have no business tomorrow?

“Sis, you should rest a bit. I’m on holiday, so you can let me do the vegetable washing. You can’t let your hands touch cold water anymore.” Xie Mingcheng had noticed the chilblains on his sister’s hands. How could he not care? He wanted her to finish school, graduate, and get a proper job as soon as possible!

Xie Yunshu was indifferent: “You ride the tricycle and go buy vegetables at the market first. I’ll wait here a bit, then go pick up the boxed meals. Otherwise, I’d have to make two trips, which is too much trouble.”

In a short while, the project workers probably hadn’t finished eating yet.

After Xie Mingcheng left, she sat on the steps reading. Having money in hand these days, she no longer felt comfortable always freeloading at Huahua bookstore. Also, she had no spare time, so she bit the bullet and spent five yuan on a book called Principles of Construction. The content was simple, and she was deeply interested.

Engrossed in writing and drawing on the ground with her finger, a tall figure suddenly blocked the sunlight: “Reading in the sun isn’t good for your eyes.”

Xie Yunshu quickly looked up, squinting against the light to see that it was Shen Subai. Behind him was a bicycle with a large insulated box tied to the rear seat—that was what she used to carry the project’s boxed meals.

“You brought it out for me? Sorry, sorry, I forgot the time…” Xie Yunshu jumped up, flustered and apologizing, afraid he’d think she was neglecting the delivery.

Shen Subai’s eyebrows twitched barely noticeably. He hadn’t even said anything yet—why was she so nervous? Although Tian Hao always said he was too fierce and might scare girls, he thought he hadn’t said anything unpleasant to this young lady.

“It’s only just after one. I just happened to be out running errands and brought it out for you,” Shen Subai patiently explained, then pulled out a tube of ointment and a pair of rubber gloves from his pocket: “Take this back. Soak your hands in hot water at night, apply the ointment, and the chilblains will heal in a few days. Wear the rubber gloves when washing vegetables.”

Xie Yunshu quickly shook her head, feeling overwhelmed by the kindness: “No, no, I’m not afraid of chilblains.”

When her father died, Li Fenlan was so grief-stricken she got seriously ill. Mingcheng was still very young, so more than half the family’s burden fell on sixteen-year-old Xie Yunshu. Washing clothes and cooking in winter became routine. She had chilblains almost every year and had gotten used to them.

Lu Zhixing was a doctor and very clean. After marriage, washing clothes also fell to her. The bed sheets and covers had to be changed every five days, and underwear was changed daily—even in winter, she barely had free time.

Her chilblains hadn’t appeared only after moving out of the family compound—Lu Zhixing simply never noticed or thought to bring medicine from the hospital. His care was all reserved for the fragile Zhou Xinyue, the crying child who got candy.

She was used to being strong and always said, “It’s okay, I’m not in pain.”

People in the family compound said she was living a good life, overreaching, but she didn’t feel happy at all. If she felt anything, it was just a small spark of love inside that made her feel a little happy. Now that love was gone, only bitterness remained. Fortunately, she was about to escape the bitterness.

Shen Subai wouldn’t let her refuse. His tone was like instructing a subordinate: “Don’t endure pain unnecessarily. If there’s medicine, why not use it? If there are gloves, why not wear them? What if your chilblains affect your cooking? What will the project staff do? Comrade Xie, or should I say, do you just like having chilblains on your hands? Honestly, it doesn’t look good.”

Xie Yunshu: “…”

Thank you, Captain Shen! Even though it’s touching, hearing it come from him just makes her feel uncomfortable inside…