Chapter 16.1

Chen Wuming left happily.

Ren Yeliang cautiously glanced at his brother.

Under the dim yellow light.

Zhou Yao’s features were shrouded in shadows where the light didn’t reach. His thin lips were pressed into a straight line, and a piercing coldness gathered between his brows and eyes, making people feel uneasy just looking at him.

“Brother, are you alright?” Ren Yeliang asked cautiously.

Zhou Yao replied, “I’m fine. Let’s go home.”

At that moment, Ren Yeliang and Fang Shitao didn’t dare to speak and obediently followed behind Zhou Yao.

The moon was large and round tonight, casting a serene and bright light above them, illuminating their path home. Zhou Yao, in a bad mood and holding back his feelings, quickened his pace compared to this morning.

After more than an hour, the three of them returned to Hongshan Village, parting ways along the narrow path through the fields, each heading home.

As Zhou Yao walked along the path, he caught sight of his own yard, which was lit up.

His previously agitated mood instantly improved, and his tightly furrowed brows relaxed a bit as he quickened his steps again.

“Creek—”

He pushed open the gate and instinctively looked toward the front door.

Sure enough, he spotted the familiar petite figure.

This time she was not in a daze. Instead, she was holding a book, reading by the light coming from the room and the moonlight above.

Upon hearing the noise, she looked up, her round, beautiful apricot-shaped eyes curving into crescent moons. Her voice was soft, “You’re back?”

Zhou Yao replied with a hum, a hint of a smile in his elongated, slanted eyes: “What did you save for me?”

“Dumplings,” Wen Yue said as she put down the book. “They’re filled with pork and celery.”

Zhou Yao raised an eyebrow and casually lifted the heavy backpack from behind him: “Everything you wanted is in here. You can check it out yourself. I’m going to cook the dumplings, I’m starving.”

Wen Yue’s eyes lit up: “Okay!”

She moved the stool back into the room, placed the book down, and bounced back, thinking about bringing the backpack inside.

Pulling with all her might…

It didn’t budge!

Wen Yue was stunned. Was it really that heavy?

What on earth was inside??

She peeked into the backpack.

What met her eyes was black, white, and dark-colored fabrics, looking like several feet worth—enough to make a few outfits. Beneath the fabric were balls of yarn. Wow, there were even more colors—besides black and white, there were red, blue, yellow, and green.

Wen Yue gasped.

So much, this should be enough for her to play with for half a year, right?

It was too heavy to move, so Wen Yue gave up and turned back to the kitchen.

Zhou Yao had taken off his outer jacket, revealing a white tank top underneath.

If it weren’t for seeing the clothes he had changed out of yesterday while doing laundry, Wen Yue would have thought he took a bath every day without changing clothes.

It was still just the tank top.

The only difference was the outer jacket.

Speaking of which, those jackets looked quite old-fashioned, like something from the previous generation. Wen Yue guessed he was probably wearing his grandfather’s clothes.

He turned to grab some firewood. The stretched-out tank top rolled up slightly with the movement, revealing his honey-colored, toned waist. The clearly defined contours of his abdominal muscles flashed for a moment, standing out exceptionally against the flickering firelight.

Wen Yue: !!!

He really had abs!

She cleared her throat softly and casually walked over to the stove: “Why did you buy so much fabric and yarn?”

Zhou Yao glanced at her: “It’s not expensive.”

Not expensive?

Wen Yue wasn’t very familiar with the prices in this era, so she simply said “oh” and noticed the water in the pot was boiling, so she helped drop all the dumplings into it.

“Do you want them dry or in soup?” she asked, holding a bowl.

Zhou Yao raised an eyebrow: “Which one tastes better?”

Wen Yue thought for a moment; making the dry ones would require dipping sauce, which was a hassle: “Never mind, let’s go with soup.”

Zhou Yao replied, “Either is fine.”

He picked up the fire tongs to extinguish the fire in the stove, then walked over to Wen Yue.

The latter was helping him add seasoning.

Her white fingers expertly picked up the seasonings from the stove and poured them into the bowl.

Perhaps because the kitchen was too hot, she unbuttoned one of the buttons on her shirt collar. Zhou Yao was just in the right position to catch a glimpse of the delicate collarbone that was faintly visible beneath her clothing, her skin so fair it was almost blinding.

Zhou Yao quickly averted his gaze and stepped back two paces, his back bumping into the cutting board, which fell to the ground with a clatter.