Chapter 22: A Man’s Pride is Hurt

Lin Xiuqing saw his movements and immediately understood his intentions, so she turned her back to him.

Ye Yaodong placed his hand on her waist, whispering softly in her ear, “Aqing? It’s just past 7 o’clock; it’s still early.”

“Early for what? I have to get up early to work tomorrow. Go to sleep.”

It was his own wife—how could she refuse him?

Without another word, Ye Yaodong moved in.

With her mouth full from the soup, Lin Xiuqing bit her lip, wanting to resist but feeling unable to. She should have known better than to eat just now!

Ye Yaodong teased her, biting her ear lightly, until he turned her around and leaned over her.

“Hurry up…” she whispered.

“I got it!”

After fumbling around for a moment, just as they were getting into it, Ye Yaodong’s face twisted between pain and pleasure, and he couldn’t help cursing internally.

Damn!

“You’re… done?”

Seeing her incredulous expression and hearing her astonished tone, his face turned red with embarrassment. “You were the one who told me to hurry!”

Lin Xiuqing rolled her eyes. “If you’re done, move over and get back to your side.”

He felt he needed to explain. “I’ve been a bit tired lately. Let me rest a bit, and we’ll go again!”

Every day, he’d been eating and drinking with no work, yet he had the nerve to call himself tired? She didn’t even bother to respond and gave him a little shove.

Ye Yaodong felt his pride had taken a hit!

After over a decade, to suddenly feel young again—getting overly excited too quickly seemed understandable…

While he was still sulking over his poor performance, his wife had already tidied herself up, put on her tank top and shorts, and lay down next to their two sons.

“Why are you over there? Come over here; let’s sleep together,” he called.

“Huh? You want me to come over? It’s been a long time since we slept side by side.”

“You heard me! Come here, alright?”

“Is it because I didn’t do well? Wasn’t it you who told me to hurry?”

Lin Xiuqing’s head was starting to ache from his nonsensical talk.

“Quiet down and go to sleep!”

“I can’t sleep. Come over here; let’s chat!”

“We can talk in the morning!”

“In the morning, you’re busy either with the kids or working on the fishing nets. Tomorrow, you’re heading to the shore again. Come on…”

He made it sound like it was her fault. Who was it that was never home?

“Come on, come here~”

“If you won’t come, then I’ll just come over there.”

Seeing her staying silent and not responding, Ye Yaodong had no choice but to crawl over to her.

“What are you doing? Isn’t it annoying? Isn’t it cramped? Just lie on your side and sleep—what’s with all the moving around?” She glared at him in irritation.

He must have taken something wrong at dinner, insisting on talking to her at this hour. Couldn’t he just let her rest?

With a mischievous smile, Ye Yaodong lay on his side, pulling her into his arms. The soft scent of soap from her brought him a sense of calm.

“Aren’t you hot? Isn’t it cramped? It’s summer, and you’re insisting on crowding together. Here, you take this spot, and I’ll go to the other end.”

“No way! With the window open, it’s nice and cool—it’s not that hot.”

They didn’t have air conditioning, and not even a fan. But in the countryside, the nights were cool enough, and at most, they’d use a fan to stir the air.

Lin Xiuqing slapped his hand on her waist, but he didn’t let go. He even hooked his leg over her, locking her in place so she couldn’t escape.

“What’s gotten into you tonight? Can’t you let people sleep?”

“Just a little later.”

“You don’t have to work, but I need to get up early! Stop bugging me!”

“I’ll work! Tomorrow, I’ll go to the shore with you and help watch the kids, alright?”

As if she’d believe that! He’d barely lasted a moment with the kids this afternoon before slipping away, and now he had the nerve to mention helping?

“Where are you touching? Stop it!” Lin Xiuqing caught his wandering hand, fully aware he wasn’t just looking for a chat.

“Hey, be good. Don’t wake the kids; if they wake up, you’ll be the one soothing them back to sleep for half an hour!”

With that reminder, she didn’t dare to struggle too much. She’d just gotten them to sleep; waking them again would be exhausting, so she had to let him have his way, though begrudgingly.

Satisfied with her hesitation, Ye Yaodong pressed on, “Let’s shift down to the other end to avoid waking them.”

She didn’t want to move!

But he was pulling her up regardless.

Lin Xiuqing swatted his hand away, glancing at their son, who was beginning to stir, and had no choice but to glare at him as she reluctantly moved down to the foot of the bed.

And once again, he got what he wanted!

But the bed creaked, the old wooden frame groaning with each movement, which was starting to frustrate him…

Turning over was fine, but the rhythm of the noise during their activity was too obvious.

Lin Xiuqing bit her lip. “Keep it down a bit!”

“I’m already trying to be quiet…”

This old frame squeaked at the slightest movement. A regular turn was just a soft creak, manageable, but this…it was driving him nuts.

In the end, he had to finish quickly once more.

Damn it!

He needed to make some money to buy a new bed!

He couldn’t keep this up without it impacting his performance.

“You took so long, messing around and nearly waking up the kids!” Lin Xiuqing grumbled as soon as he was done.

“You complain when I’m quick, you complain about the noise, then you complain if I take too long. You’re hard to please,” Ye Yaodong teased, giving her a playful pinch.

“Get lost and sleep on that side. I’m sleeping with the kids.”

“Come on, let’s just sleep together!”

Trapped in his arms, Lin Xiuqing was so annoyed she wanted to yell, but he kept reminding her to stay quiet for the kids’ sake. Begrudgingly, she settled in beside him, with clear reluctance.

Ye Yaodong, however, felt a deep satisfaction.

In his previous life, he only realized the importance of his wife after she passed away. By the time he was fifty, he barely had two hundred yuan in his pocket, without the means or desire to remarry. He spent over a decade as a bachelor.

Spending his days at sea, only coming back to the village during the three-month off-season, he felt it didn’t matter much not to have a wife. He was already older, after all.

Now, though, he felt a renewed sense of gratitude and satisfaction.

“Aqing, once we split from the family, we’ll make a good life for ourselves.”

Lin Xiuqing rolled her eyes. “So you weren’t planning to live well until then? Don’t blame your laziness on that.”

“No, I mean it,” he said earnestly.

She closed her eyes, unwilling to keep talking about it.

After so many years, her hopes were already worn out. Good or bad, this was her life, and she would just make do with it.

Seeing that she wasn’t interested in talking, he didn’t push it. Over time, he believed he could prove himself. No matter what, he wasn’t going to let things fall apart again.

Gently brushing her face, he murmured, “Let’s sleep.”

He hadn’t been asleep long when he was jolted awake by the sound of a child crying for his mother. His wife got up immediately, and before long, she was tossing the boys’ wet bedding onto the table by the window and taking the blanket off him to cover the kids.

“Did they wet the bed?”

“Yep.”

“That little rascal is getting a spanking tomorrow!”

And so, his hopes of spending the whole night holding his wife faded away on the very first night.