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Chapter 33.3
By the time evening self-study ended at eight o’clock, the sky outside had completely darkened.
Wen Yue said goodbye to Li Nianqiu, humming a tune as she bounced out. Upon reaching the school gate, she saw a familiar tall figure standing there.
Zhou Yao had his hands in his pants pockets, looking down at the ground with a blank expression, seemingly lost in thought. At nearly 1.9 meters tall, he stood out among the crowd, and passing students couldn’t help but glance at him.
Wen Yue’s eyes brightened as she quickened her pace. “Zhou Yao!”
“Hmm.” Zhou Yao lifted his head, instantly locking eyes with Wen Yue emerging from the crowd. His cold eyebrows softened slightly as he said, “I’m here to pick you up.”
Wen Yue stopped beside him. “Have you been waiting long?”
Zhou Yao took her backpack from her. “Not too long. How was your first day of school? Did anyone bully you?”
“This is school. It’s not a place for fighting. Who would bully me?” Wen Yue replied with a cheerful smile.
Zhou Yao raised an eyebrow. “Isn’t that cousin of yours here?”
“With Nianqiu around, she can’t bully me,” Wen Yue assured.
Zhou Yao made an annoyed sound.
The two walked side by side back to the alley.
The tall man casually carried a beautiful backpack, tilting his head to speak with the petite girl beside him. The dim yellow street lights illuminated his face, giving it an unusually gentle and affectionate glow.
Wen Xiaoyu was sending her friend off at the school gate when she caught sight of this scene, her smile faltering as she stared intently.
“Xiaoyu? What are you looking at?” Her friend asked worriedly, noticing her strange expression. “You seem off today. Are you feeling unwell?”
Wen Xiaoyu snapped her gaze away and forced a smile. “I’m fine. You should head home early. See you tomorrow.”
Seeing that she didn’t want to talk, her friend didn’t press further and waved cheerfully. “Bye! See you tomorrow!”
Wen Xiaoyu turned back to look, but Zhou Yao and Wen Yue’s figures had already disappeared.
Even though she kept convincing herself that Zhou Yao didn’t meet her standards for a future partner, seeing how close he was to Wen Yue filled her with uncontrollable jealousy and resentment.
Clearly, due to their families’ arranged engagement, she had known Zhou Yao longer and had even played together as children. By all accounts, they should have been childhood sweethearts. Yet every time Zhou Yao saw her, he treated her like a stranger, always wearing a cold expression.
Wen Xiaoyu once thought that Zhou Yao treated everyone the same way, but now he was showing such a gentle expression toward Wen Yue!
Why was that?!
Where was she inferior to Wen Yue? No, she definitely couldn’t let Wen Yue have it easy!
……
“Sister-in-law, school’s over!”
As soon as they stepped into the courtyard, they heard Ren Yeliang’s voice. He and Fang Shitao were sorting through the accessories in their baskets, chattering away: “Today, we met some female workers from the factories in the county who asked if we still had any necklaces for sale. So, tomorrow we plan to have Brother Yao set up a stall on South Street since it’s market day.”
Wen Yue responded, “Sounds good! You all decide. Thank you for your hard work!”
Ren Yeliang grinned, “As long as Sister-in-law can make us a meal, it’ll all be worth it!”
Zhou Yao walked over and gave Ren Yeliang a couple of hard pats on the head. “You’re dreaming if you think you’ll get that. My little wife goes to school every day and is already tired enough. You think she’ll cook for you too? What a dream!”
“Hey, I was just joking!” Ren Yeliang realized and laughed, covering his mouth. “Sister-in-law, don’t take it to heart! Rest well and get into university! Then I can tell people, ‘My sister-in-law is a college student. How impressive!’”
Ren Yeliang really knew how to flatter.
Wen Yue chuckled, “Let’s plan for the weekend. You all can bring Grandma Fang and Lulu over, and I’ll cook hot pot for you.”
Although it was summer, hot pot was still a good option.
“Wow! Thank you, Sister-in-law! You’re so beautiful, kind-hearted, and smart~” Ren Yeliang showered her with compliments before asking, “Can we cook hot pot at home?” Usually, you’d have to go to a restaurant for that, and there weren’t any in the county. only the city had a couple of places for hot pot.
After hearing Ren Yeliang’s question, Wen Yue realized it might not be very convenient to eat hot pot at home. She thought carefully and said, “Do you know about gas stoves?”
In 1987, gas stoves should have been available.
“Yes, yes! A lot of people in the city use those!” Ren Yeliang and the others often went to the city and were quite familiar with them. He slapped his forehead, “I get it now! If we buy a gas stove, we can cook hot pot at home, right?”
Wen Yue smiled and nodded, “Exactly.”
“Brother?” Ren Yeliang looked at Zhou Yao eagerly.
Zhou Yao gave him a sidelong glance. “Aren’t you guys heading to the city tomorrow? Just buy it. Look at me, do you think I can conjure it up out of thin air?”
Ren Yeliang: “Hehehe.”
Zhou Yao: “.”
Zhou Yao couldn’t be bothered with Ren Yeliang anymore and turned to Wen Yue, asking, “Do you want something to eat?”
“No, I’m fine.” Wen Yue shook her head. “Is the bathwater ready? I want to take a bath. I got all sweaty in PE class.” She felt sticky and uncomfortable.
Zhou Yao turned to lift the lid of the pot in the back, steam billowing up. “It’s ready.” He then picked up the wooden bucket and added water to it.
Wen Yue looked eagerly, “I want to wash my hair too.”
Zhou Yao replied, “Wash it tomorrow afternoon when you come back. Washing your hair this late will take a while to dry, and it’ll give you a headache.”
Wen Yue touched her hair, “I feel like it smells.”
“What smell?” Zhou Yao bent down, sniffing. After a couple of sniffs, he straightened up decisively and said, “There’s no smell. It’s fragrant.”
Wen Yue: “………”
Wen Yue was dumbfounded, feeling embarrassed and angry. “Are you a dog? Why are you getting so close to sniff?”
Zhou Yao raised an eyebrow, “Didn’t you say your hair smells? I’m helping you check. It’s fragrant. Just take a bath, and wash your hair tomorrow.”
“I brought the bucket inside for you.”
Wen Yue stood there, gritting her teeth, cursing Zhou Yao several times in her mind before turning to go back to her room to grab some clothes.
Meanwhile, Ren Yeliang, completely ignored, leaned close to Fang Shitao and whispered, “Why does it feel like every time Brother and Sister-in-law are talking, we don’t exist?”
Do they forget there are other people around? Showing off their affection like this!
Fang Shitao replied seriously, “I think we should go back inside and tidy up.”
Ren Yeliang said, “I think you’re right. Let’s go back and leave the space for Brother and Sister-in-law. We can’t be the third wheel.”
The two of them quickly grabbed their baskets and went back inside, closing the door behind them, very considerate.
When Wen Yue came out holding her clothes, only Zhou Yao remained in the courtyard.
“Go wash up,” Zhou Yao waved at her and added, “The money from what we sold is all in that plastic bucket; when you have time, go count it yourself.”
Wen Yue paused, “Didn’t you count it?”
Zhou Yao replied, “I’m not interested in counting money.”
“Oh, okay.” Wen Yue thought she wasn’t particularly interested in counting money either, but it could be quite satisfying to count it and pass the time.
Once the weekend came, she would have Nianqiu come over to help her count it.
After taking a bath, Wen Yue went back to her room to lie down and sleep.
As the saying goes, practice makes perfect. After having spent one night with Zhou Yao, she felt much calmer compared to the previous day, avoiding the embarrassment of pretending to be asleep and almost suffocating herself.
Although she was still a bit nervous, Wen Yue maintained a calm demeanor and said to Zhou Yao, “If I disturb you again tonight, just push me into the other room. Once I fall asleep, I can’t control my movements.”
“Or you can wrap me up in a blanket. That works too.”
Wen Yue offered several solutions.
Zhou Yao listened quietly, raising an eyebrow in agreement. “Okay, you sleep.”
“Well then, goodnight.” Wen Yue obediently lay down and closed her eyes.
With a click, the light went out, and the room was instantly dark. Zhou Yao turned off the light, then went out to get some water to wash up. He returned quietly and heard the soft, steady breathing from the bed, indicating that Wen Yue had already fallen asleep.
Zhou Yao gazed at her serene face illuminated by the moonlight, his eyes softened. He lay down properly in bed, staring at the ceiling, wondering if he would be able to sleep tonight.
This thought had just flashed through his mind when the person beside him began to move restlessly, turning to face him and draping her arms and legs over him.
Her delicate, pale arms hung directly over Zhou Yao’s face, her small palm perfectly covering his nose, making it hard for him to breathe.
Zhou Yao: “…”
He gently pushed her hand away from his face.
“Mm~!”
Wen Yue let out a dissatisfied hum from her throat and snuggled back against him, tightly wrapping her arms around Zhou Yao’s head and pressing it against her chest. She rubbed her cheek against the top of his head a couple of times, smacking her lips and mumbling softly about something.
Feeling the soft touch against his face, Zhou Yao’s cheeks instantly flushed, and his nose began to itch. Something was leaking out.
He raised his hand to touch it and felt a wet sensation, accompanied by a rusty smell…
He abruptly sat up, a bit too forcefully.
Wen Yue was startled awake, sleepily looking over at him. “…What happened…?”
In the moonlight, she noticed Zhou Yao’s tanned skin had turned noticeably red, and blood was dripping from his nose.
Wen Yue immediately became alert.
“Why are you bleeding?” She sat up, preparing to get out of bed to turn on the light, but he stopped her.
“It’s fine, just go back to sleep.” Zhou Yao said, his expression calm as he made up an excuse. “I just accidentally bumped my nose. I’ll take care of it myself.”
Wen Yue looked confused. “You’re so careless…”
Zhou Yao hummed in response and got out of bed. “You should sleep quickly.”
“Okay.” Wen Yue obediently replied, lying back down and watching Zhou Yao leave without turning on the light.
How could he be so careless? How did he even bump his nose?
As soon as she lay back down, drowsiness washed over her. Wen Yue’s thoughts became hazy, and a question flickered through her mind: Was it really just a bump? How could he bump his nose lying in bed? And his face was so red…
Before she could think further, drowsiness engulfed her, and she fell into a deep sleep.
Outside the room, Zhou Yao wiped away the blood from his nose and strode over to the water basin. He casually removed his tank top, revealing his well-defined muscles. He scooped water into a basin and splashed it on his face and body until the heat within him subsided a bit, letting out a sigh of relief.
After wiping away the water droplets from his face, Zhou Yao leaned against the wall, his dark, deep eyes carrying a hint of helplessness.
Sooner or later, he was going to be made a fool by Wen Yue.
How could anyone be so restless while sleeping!?
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Ayalee[Translator]
。˚🐈⬛.𖥔 ݁ ˖