Chapter 5

Wen Yue woke up in the evening, with the setting sun casting a warm orange glow through the window and enveloping all the furniture in the room in a soft light.

She got up, sat on the edge of the bed, and yawned, her eyes welling up with tears. Hearing some rustling sounds, she turned to see Zhou Yao walking in with the bedding he had taken out to air, placing it on the bed.

The cleaned tables and chairs were also moved back in, making the room much tidier than before.

“Awake?” Zhou Yao asked.

Zhou Yao was only wearing a tank top, his muscular arms bulging with movement. His eyes, long and slanted, cast a casual glance at her. He was naturally good-looking, and in the shifting light, his features looked even more chiseled and sharp, with a striking and rugged handsomeness.

Wen Yue stared at him.

In her previous life, she had only seen such handsome men in filtered photos on her phone, and this was her first time seeing him up close. Her heart raced uncontrollably.

He was really handsome.

If he were in the entertainment industry, he would surely earn a fortune, but unfortunately, he was born too early.

She sighed again.

Zhou Yao frowned, feeling that Wen Yue’s gaze was a bit strange.

He couldn’t guess Wen Yue’s thoughts. He frowned momentarily and then relaxed, continuing, “I’m going to the city tomorrow. You stay home. Before I leave, I’ll give you the keys to the kitchen and my room. The food is in the cupboard. Help yourself to whatever you want.”

Wen Yue snapped out of her daze, “What are you going to the city for?”

“It’s none of your business,” Zhou Yao replied curtly, raising an eyebrow and chuckling. “What, do you want to control me?”

Wen Yue couldn’t stand his nonchalant attitude and huffed, “We got married. We’re a couple now. I’m your wife, so shouldn’t I be taking care of you?”

Zhou Yao remained unperturbed, “Married? Fine, then I’ll move back in tonight. Married couples should sleep together, right?”

Wen Yue: “…”

She was left speechless.

Her face turned bright red, her eyes also tinged with red. She bit her lip, muttering the words “shameless” in a barely audible voice.

Zhou Yao’s hearing was sharp, and he heard those words clearly, which made him chuckle.

He wasn’t being shameless. He simply found it amusing to tease her. Before marriage, sharing a bed was taken for granted. He wasn’t actually interested in that right now. He just found her expression amusing and wanted to tease her a bit.

Zhou Yao also preferred to sleep separately, at least he wouldn’t have to worry about facing a tear-streaked face when he opened his eyes in the morning.

“Alright, are you cooking tonight or should I?”

Wen Yue quietly got up, “I’ll do it.”

Zhou Yao was satisfied, “Okay.”

In the wooden basin, there was a fish that had been cleaned, so Wen Yue prepared braised fish, stir-fried vegetables, and mushroom egg soup.

The rich aroma wafted from the kitchen into the homes of Second Uncle Zhou and Third Uncle Zhou. They were eating their bland meals, feeling discontent as they smelled the delicious food.

Washing the dishes was still Zhou Yao’s job. Under Wen Yue’s watchful eye, he dutifully washed them twice with hot water. His face was gloomy, and he scrubbed the dishes so hard they were almost shining.

Noticing his mood, Wen Yue sat on a small stool in front of the stove, propped her chin on her hands, and said with a smile, “Zhou Yao, the dishes you washed are really clean. I don’t think anyone in the village could wash them as well as you.”

Zhou Yao’s lips twitched, and he said coldly, “Yeah, there’s no one else in the village who washes dishes with hot water twice.”

“This proves we’re the cleanest and most hygienic in the village.” Wen Yue blinked, pretending not to notice his sarcasm, her voice soft and gentle, “You should think about me too. My health isn’t good, and if I eat unclean food, it’s easy for me to get sick. If that happens, it will be you who has to take me to the hospital.”

Her words were clear and slow, with a sweet tone that sounded like she was whining. The dim yellow light cast a soft glow on her delicate face, making her look even more tender and lovely.

Her almond-shaped eyes were crescent-mooned, and her long, thick eyelashes fluttered like little fans.

If it were someone else, they might have been softened by her demeanor.

However, Zhou Yao was not easily moved. Not only was his body tough, his temper was also tough, and his heart was cold. He remained unaffected and remarked, “I really ended up marrying an ancestor.”

“Don’t just sit there, go take a shower. If the water in the pot cools down later, it’ll need to be reheated.”

Zhou Yao waved his hand impatiently.

Wen Yue: “… Okay.”

Wow, what a bad temper guy.

She huffed softly, got up, and carried the wooden bucket to the stove to scoop out hot water.

In this era, bathing was a hassle. There was no water heater, so the water had to be heated and prepared manually.

The small partitioned area in the kitchen was used for bathing. Wen Yue prepared the water, gritted her teeth, and carefully carried the bucket to the partition. With each step, some water sloshed out.

Zhou Yao couldn’t bear to watch, put down what he was doing, walked over, and took the bucket from her hand. He mocked, “If you keep moving like this, the bucket will be empty by the time you get there.”

Wen Yue sighed in relief, looking down at her hand.

Her pale, delicate palms had visible red marks from the bucket’s handle, and they sting painfully, causing tears to well up: “It’s too heavy. I can’t lift it.”

Zhou Yao: “… Why are you crying again?”

“My hands hurt.” Wen Yue showed him her reddened palms.

Zhou Yao glanced at them. The small girl’s hands were so delicate, without a single callus. They looked like they weren’t made for hard work.

He clicked his tongue, puzzled, “I remember you worked at your uncle’s place too. How come you don’t have any calluses?”

Wen Yue stopped crying, sniffled, and muttered, “I don’t know.”

She was puzzled too.

In the afternoon, while cleaning, she had looked in the mirror and noticed that the original owner resembled her quite a bit, about 80% similar. The only difference was a dimple, which she didn’t have, but the original owner did.

Additionally, the original owner’s gloomy, resentful emotions had left a melancholic tinge to her eyes. Though she had been pretty and bright, her eyes had a bit of an unlucky look. However, after Wen Yue took over, her eyes had regained their original charm.

As the old saying goes: “The face reflects the heart.”

“Alright, go wash up.” Zhou Yao had no intention of delving deeper, carried the bucket to the small partition, and nodded slightly to Wen Yue, signaling her to go wash.

Wen Yue’s eyes sparkled with water, forming crescent-shaped smiles as she said, “Thank you~”

She happily walked into the small partition, but her smile froze on her face.

The small partition was so cramped that it could only fit one person. Due to the lack of sunlight, it emitted a faint damp, musty smell. There was a fist-sized drainage hole in the corner, and cobwebs hung from the ceiling. There was a small indentation at shoulder height with a small bar of soap inside.

To be honest, seeing this environment, Wen Yue almost didn’t want to bathe.

But after working up a sweat today, she felt sticky and uncomfortable. Wen Yue ultimately undressed and, trembling, took a shower, her eyes wide open, scanning around to avoid any spiders that might appear from above or elsewhere.

Soap wasn’t very good for the skin, and she hesitated for a moment but used the soap to make a half-hearted attempt at cleaning. Simply rinsing with water felt like she hadn’t bathed at all.

When she put on her clothes, Wen Yue sighed in relief.

The bath had been exhausting.

“I’m done washing.”

Zhou Yao was sitting at the kitchen door with his back to the partition. His broad back provided a sense of security. Hearing the noise, he turned around and immediately locked his dark eyes on Wen Yue, who was standing at the stove.

The heat made Wen Yue’s pale face flush slightly, her damp eyes still smiling. Her lips were pressed together, revealing her dimples, making her look soft and innocent.

The rose-red floral top she wore made her skin appear even whiter, glowing softly under the dim light. The top was a bit big for her, and the V-neck revealed her delicate, beautiful collarbones.

Zhou Yao’s dark and oppressive gaze made Wen Yue a bit uneasy. She looked down and tugged at her clothes, asking, “Do I look strange in these clothes?”

She hadn’t brought many clothes with her from the Wen family. The clothes she had were discarded by her cousin, and since her grandparents had passed away, Wen Yue had not worn any new clothes. The rose-red floral top she was wearing looked quite outdated, but the others were not much better. Wen Yue could only wear them reluctantly.

Zhou Yao didn’t say anything. His gaze scanned her from head to toe, his eyes as penetrating as X-rays.

Wen Yue: “?”

Zhou Yao then raised his hand and rubbed his chin.

Hmm, why does this guy seem more pleasing to the eye than she did a couple of days ago? He didn’t care much about looks, only whether someone was pleasing or displeasing. Previously, because Wen Yue had been crying day and night, he found her rather annoying and disliked looking at her.

But now, Zhou Yao suddenly found that she wasn’t so unpleasant to look at anymore.

“It is a bit strange.” After a while, Zhou Yao finally spoke, “Your clothes are too big.”

Hearing that he didn’t say they were ugly, Wen Yue sighed in relief and pouted, “Of course they’re big. They were my cousin’s clothes, and she has a much larger frame and build than I do.” Big or not, she had no other clothes to wear and no money to buy new ones.

Thinking of this, Wen Yue felt a bit gloomy.

In her previous life, although she didn’t save a lot of money, she still had hundreds of thousands in her bank account. One should enjoy life in a timely manner; otherwise, one might not have the chance.

Zhou Yao raised an eyebrow and shifted his gaze to her slender wrist. “Also, eat more in the future. You’re so thin that people would think I’m mistreating you if they saw you.”

Wen Yue looked at her hands.

This body was indeed very thin, unhealthily so. It felt as if she only had a thin layer of skin with no flesh underneath. Standing at 1.6 meters tall, she probably weighed around 70 pounds, which was too thin.

Due to malnutrition, her hair was like dried straw at the ends, messy and yellowed, looking very unappealing.

Wen Yue pinched her wrist and recalled the nutritional meals she had seen in her previous life. She responded softly, “…I’ll eat more.”

“Alright, I’ll leave the keys behind the window when I go out tomorrow. Remember to take them when you wake up.”

Wen Yue nodded. “Okay… By the way, could you buy some shower gel when you’re out? Bathing with soap is not good for the skin.” She doesn’t know if there is any shower gel at this moment.

She wasn’t sure if Zhou Yao would agree. She looked at him with hopeful eyes, blinking frequently and unconsciously acting cute. Her long and thick eyelashes fluttered like small fans, seemingly capable of touching people’s hearts.

Zhou Yao frowned, not understanding her charm. “Is there something wrong with your eyes?”

Wen Yue was annoyed. “…Your eyes are the ones with problems.”

“Then stop blinking so much. Fine, I’ll buy it. Go to bed,” Zhou Yao replied readily and then went to the other room to fetch the wooden tub he had put in there, planning to take a bath.

He was particularly generous when it came to spending money.

Wen Yue was happy again, showing a smile. “Thank you!” Then she quickly left the kitchen.

After Wen Yue’s figure disappeared behind the door, Zhou Yao drained the hot water from the pot, added a lot of cold water, and carried it to the other room to take a bath. Then he went back to his room to sleep.

Before Wen Yue arrived, the original owner and Zhou Yao had already slept in separate rooms, which Wen Yue was very thankful for.

Although Zhou Yao was handsome, she wasn’t so bold as to sleep in the same bed with a man she had just met the day before. Sleeping in separate rooms was perfect!

Separated by a wall, Zhou Yao fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow, while Wen Yue tossed and turned, unable to sleep.

One reason was that she had slept too much in the afternoon, another was that she was thinking about her future, and the third was that she was not used to the new bed.

She was contemplating what to do next.

Wen Yue could not endure staying in the countryside for a lifetime. Although some people said that the 1980s were full of opportunities and money was easy to come by, Wen Yue knew herself well enough to realize that starting a business and making money was not realistic for her.

In her previous life, she chose a job as an elementary school art teacher to avoid trouble and exhaustion. She only had to teach a couple of classes each week, didn’t need to interact with parents, and had a very easy life. Occasionally, she took on a few online orders, which didn’t bring in much money but was sufficient.

Moreover, she had two properties her parents left behind, a three-bedroom apartment in the city center. She lived in one and rented out the other. Without mortgage pressure, life was very comfortable and carefree.

Having grown accustomed to this laid-back lifestyle, Wen Yue could no longer endure the hardships of starting a business.

In the pitch-black room, a soft sigh was followed by the sound of someone tossing and turning restlessly. After an unknown amount of time, her consciousness blurred, and she finally fell asleep, only to vaguely hear rustling noises outside and Zhou Yao’s deep voice.

He seemed to be talking to someone.

Wen Yue struggled to open her eyes. The night outside the window was still thick and dark as ink. Her eyelids felt heavy as lead, so she turned over and continued to sleep soundly.

The sounds of turning in the room were particularly loud in the quiet night. Zhou Yao immediately stopped talking and covered the mouth of Fang Shitao, who had been whispering like a mosquito.

“Be quieter!” Zhou Yao glanced at them coldly, “Don’t wake her up.”

“…”

Fang Shitao looked aggrieved. He had been extremely, extremely quiet!

Zhou Yao waved his hand, indicating for them to go outside to talk.

Ren Yiliang looked at Zhou Yao’s tall silhouette in the night and grinned, “Brother Yao must be fond of his wife. Their relationship is really good. When are they going to have a child for us to play with?”

“Get lost.” Zhou Yao kicked Ren Yiliang’s butt and raised his eyebrows, saying, “You don’t know anything.”

He was just worried that if Wen Yue was woken up, she would start crying again. The thought of her eyes being like a constantly flowing well was already annoying.

Also, what was with the idea of having a niece or nephew to play with?

He should look in the mirror and see if he is worthy! Can his daughter and son be easily played with? What a ridiculous dream!