Chapter 21.1

Wen Yue eventually didn’t sleep. After calming down for a while in her room, she reopened the door. She directed Zhou Yao to move the sewing machine into the room, placing it on the long table next to the bedside.

This spot was by the window, providing good light, making it a perfect place to sew clothes while basking in the sun. Even if she wasn’t using the sewing machine, it was a nice spot to sit and read a book.

The stools at home didn’t have backrests. Wen Yue wanted a chair with a backrest, so she looked at Zhou Yao, who was adjusting the direction and angle of the sewing machine, and asked, “Zhou Yao, could you get me a chair next time? One with a backrest?”

“Sure, no need to buy one. I’ll make one for you,” Zhou Yao glanced at her.

Wen Yue’s eyes widened in surprise, “You also know carpentry?”

Zhou Yao nodded, “My grandfather taught me. Most of the stools and tables at home were made by him.”

Wen Yue thought to herself, no wonder several stools often had problems but Zhou Yao never threw them away. Instead, he would just take a hammer and knock on them a few times.

“Alright, then you can make one. Let me see your craftsmanship,” Wen Yue said with a smile, making a request along the way, “I hope you can make it a bit taller, about this height, and it’d be best if you could make a place for me to rest my feet comfortably…”

Zhou Yao stopped what he was doing and looked at Wen Yue, listening attentively.

After listening, he raised an eyebrow and agreed, “Alright, I’ll make it within four or five days. Is this position okay?” He asked, pointing to where the sewing machine was placed.

Wen Yue walked over to try it out and nodded, “It’s fine.”

“Okay, you stay at home. I’m going out for a while.” Zhou Yao looked into Wen Yue’s eyes, his thin lips slightly curved, and he said softly, “There is a bamboo forest behind the mountain. I’ll make you a bamboo chair. It will be cool and comfortable to sit on in the summer. Is it alright?”

Wen Yue looked at him doubtfully, “You decide. No need to tell me all this.”

Zhou Yao laughed, “No, I must tell you everything I do from now on, even when I go to the toilet.”

Wen Yue: “?”

A hint of annoyance appeared on Wen Yue’s face as she gritted her teeth and asked, “Zhou Yao, are you sick?” Twisting her previous words, was he?

Zhou Yao laughed even more, striding out the door under Wen Yue’s glare, and headed towards the back mountain with an axe in hand.

It was still early for lunch, so he went to prepare the materials first.

After a simple lunch, Wen Yue continued to work on altering her clothes inside the house, while Zhou Yao was in the yard dealing with the bamboo he had cut in the morning.

The two were busy in peaceful harmony until someone came to the door.

Zhou Yao heard someone calling for him, turned his head to look outside the yard, and saw a middle-aged man standing at the gate, smiling and waving at him.

He raised an eyebrow slightly and put down the bamboo and tools in his hands, “What’s up?”

“I heard your wife wants to sell the land she owns?” The man rubbed his hands together with a smile, “What’s the price?”

When Zhou Yao heard the man was here to buy the land, his expression softened a bit, but his tone remained cold, “Two hundred per acre, three acres of land add up to six hundred, plus the crops on the land, six hundred fifty.”

“No bargaining. The price is fair, not a penny more.”

The man who was originally thinking about bargaining suddenly froze: “I’ll have to discuss it with my family. Six hundred fifty is no small amount…”

Zhou Yao nodded, “Alright.”

After speaking, he turned back to continue cutting the bamboo, not seeming in the least bit anxious.

Zhou Yao wasn’t in a hurry.

He has money, although it’s not a lot, but it’s more than enough for his wife to go to school. Not to mention high school, even going to college is no problem!

The middle-aged man just now was the second uncle of Wen Yue’s friend Li Nianqiu. The reputation of their family in the village wasn’t good. The old lady of the Li family was famously biased. Not long after the death of the eldest son and his wife, she clamored to divide the family and wanted to drive out the two daughters left by the eldest son.

In the end, they didn’t succeed. Li Nianqiu made a fuss, and the village head settled the matter fairly.

Otherwise, who knows what would have happened to the two sisters.

“Did someone come just now?” Wen Yue vaguely heard some noise and poked her head out of the room to ask.

Zhou Yao replied, “Someone came to ask about the price of your three acres of land.”

Wen Yue’s eyes lit up, “Someone’s interested? Who?” There had been no movement these past few days, and she almost thought the land wouldn’t sell.

“Your friend’s second uncle,” Zhou Yao answered casually.

There were bamboo pieces of various lengths on the ground. Zhou Yao was scraping the bamboo joints to make the surface smoother. His arm muscles bulged with the motion, and sweat soaked his white tank top.

Wen Yue felt hot just watching, and asked softly, “Are you hot? Maybe you should wait until the evening when it’s cooler. The sun is very strong right now.”

“Not hot.” Zhou Yao looked up and smiled at her, “This bit of sun is nothing. I’ve worked in hotter weather before.”

When his grandparents were still alive, he couldn’t bear to let them work in the fields, so he went himself. Spring and autumn were fine, but in summer, working under the blazing sun could turn a person into a piece of charcoal.

During summer, he was always tanned. Now that he no longer worked in the fields, his skin tone had remained the same.

“Alright then.” Wen Yue blinked, “You said the person who came was Nianqiu’s second uncle?”

Zhou Yao: “Yeah.”

Wen Yue frowned slightly, “Their family is quite…”

Zhou Yao looked at her, “Don’t want to sell to them?”

Wen Yue hesitated for a moment, “Not really. I’m just worried they might cause trouble after buying the land. I don’t want any hassles.”

Zhou Yao raised an eyebrow and smiled roguishly, “What are you afraid of? I’m here. I’m best at handling trouble.”

Wen Yue immediately thought of Wen Hua, who had been beaten up in a sack, and her red lips curved up in a bright smile. Her tone was cheerful, “Alright, I’ll leave it to you then.”

Six hundred fifty yuan for three plots of land plus the crops was indeed a reasonable price. So, about an hour later, Li Nianqiu’s second uncle came back with the money, saying he wanted to buy the land.

Then Wen Yue, Zhou Yao, and Li Nianqiu’s second uncle went to find the village head, and with the village head as a witness, they finalized the deal.

With the money in hand, Wen Yue was quite happy and shared her plans with Zhou Yao on the way back, “I’ve pretty much covered the knowledge points for the first and second semesters of high school. When Nianqiu’s on summer break, I’ll borrow her books for the second semester of high school. That way, I can start the third year with her. I could take the college entrance exam next year. What do you think?”

Zhou Yao tilted his head and glanced at her sideways, “If you think it’s good, then it’s good.”

Wen Yue’s eyes curved into a smile, “Do you believe I can get into university?”

Zhou Yao raised an eyebrow, drawing out his words, “Of course, I believe it. How could I not? You’re my wife.”

Wen Yue looked puzzled, “What’s that got to do with it?”

“I am so smart and capable,” Zhou Yao chuckled, shamelessly boasting, “My wife must be even smarter and more capable.”

Wen Yue glanced at him coyly, softly muttering, “Shameless.”

There was shyness and anger in her eyes, and her beautiful eyes were moist and captivating. Zhou Yao truly enjoyed this side of her and couldn’t help but tease her, “Having a wife is enough. Who needs face?”

Wen Yue: “…” Such a corny statement!

She felt somewhat disdainful, but the corners of her lips lifted slightly.

They walked one after the other on the narrow path between the fields. Zhou Yao’s tall figure made Wen Yue, who walked ahead, look even more petite and delicate. She turned her head slightly to talk to the man behind her, who looked at her with a smile in his eyes.

A gentle breeze swept through, stirring the lush green wheat fields on both sides of the path, creating waves of beautiful wheat.