Sweet Wife in My Arms

Now that she could feel the warmth, her fingers were no longer numb. She touched the blanket and could sense that it was also dry. The inside of the blanket was quilted with fluffy cotton, unlike the rugged blanket she had in her old bed which constantly felt damp as if water could be wrung out of it.

The blanket also carried a scent of laundry detergent, which was not extraordinarily fragrant and had nothing special to it. Basically, it just felt clean and cozy.

The thing was as she looked down and saw the clothes that she was wearing, she feared that its filthiness would dirty the bed. Hence, she decided to fold the beddings and laid down on the heated earthen bed with no blankets over her.

She thought it was finally time for her to have a good sleep.

When Changsheng's mother entered the room, she found out that this was how Yan Huan usually slept.

"Oh dear…" she sighed, "This poor child."

She placed the things in her hands on the table and walked toward her, then she pulled the blanket over Yan Huan's body. Actually, she did realize that this lady had a pretty appearance. However, it was pretty unfortunate that she had a scar both on her face and one of her legs. If this was not the case, perhaps the villagers would not have treated her like this. It seemed like she hoped to find a wife for her son who was still a bachelor, but even so, that old bachelor, Jin Gen must also have planted this idea in his mind.

Certainly, Changsheng's mother had never thought of this. However, even if she did, it would still fall back on the lady's consent along with her son's willingness to accept before engaging in a relationship. Although she had been living in the village her entire life and had limited contact with the outside world, she still understood that a relationship required the consent of both parties to work.

Yan Huan was sleeping soundly so she absolutely had no idea that Changsheng's mother came in. By the time she woke up, it was already quite late at night but there was no way she could tell how late it was since there was no clock and she lacked the concept of time. She would only know if it was day or night.

"Dear child, are you awake?"

Changsheng's mother predicted that it was almost time for Yan Huan to be awake from her sleep. Hence, she cried out from the outside, "It's time for a meal. If you are not eating, I don't know what to do. You have been starving for the past three days so you should have a proper meal now."

Yan Huan sat up and the first thing she noticed was the garment placed on the table. It was a flowery winter jacket. However, with just a glance, she could tell that the jacket was worn out. Perhaps it was previously worn by Changsheng's mother. However, Yan Huan would definitely not give Changsheng's mother a cold shoulder, instead, she found this gesture heartwarming.

She got down from the heated earthen bed. For the first time, she did not feel cold; she did not feel sad; she did not feel like crying.

She opened the door, smiling with her eyes reddened.

"Aunty, you can call me Little Yan."

"Is it the 'Yan' from 'Yan Zi' (swallow)?" Changsheng's mother returned a smile as she asked.

"No." Yan Huan shook her head. "It's the 'Yan' from 'Yan Yu' (language)."

"Oh, that 'Yan'," Changsheng's mother understood. "Then, Little Yan, quickly wash up and eat. Oh, by the way..." She picked up the cotton-padded clothes on the table and added on, "this jacket was previously worn by me, however, it is still new since I only got it last year. You can wear the jacket first for now. The living conditions in this village are not as great, so I can only provide this for you. Let's wait until the weather gets better and then I will make you some new clothes."

"Thank you, aunty." Yan Huan took the garment and brought it close to her chest. She could feel the softness of the fabric from her fingers and the warmth from the bottom of her heart. Even though it was worn out, to her, it was still brand new. Even the cotton within it was still fluffy, perhaps Changsheng's mother was reluctant to wear it all the time and only willing to wear it during the new year.

Her hands trembled slightly as she held onto the cloth. Truthfully, she could not bring herself to accept it, however, she clenched her teeth and swallowed her words back in because she absolutely did not have any other clothing to put on.

She would remember the kindness that Changsheng's mother had shown her. When she return home, she would definitely repay Changsheng's mother with a hundred, no, a thousand pairs of clothes.

"I've boiled some hot water, you should go wash up." Changsheng's mother caressed Yan Huan's hair which was all knotted together and sighed, "Look at you poor thing, you didn't even dare cover yourself with a blanket."

Yan Huan grinned shyly as she turned her head around to take a glance at the clean bedding. I am too dirty to use that.

Changsheng's home did not have a proper bathroom but only equipped with a huge metal tub so they would usually use a metal tub for bathing. Even during festive seasons, they would also stick to this method. Most of the villagers would simply boil some water and then use a tub for bathing.

Yan Huan dipped her hand into the big tub. The warm water came in contact with both her hands such a soothing sensation that tickled her. It had been a while since she last took a shower. There were big patches of dirt on her skin. The tub of water turned dark after she bathed in it, and even so, she was still unable to untangle her knotted hair.

Therefore, she heartlessly took a pair of scissors and cut her knotted hair off, snipping it off completely. She touched her short hair but no tears came as she was unable to bring herself to cry.

Perhaps she had been through too much, or maybe she had a strong character, or maybe it could be that she was already used to all that had happened; she was not sure of it herself.

Dinner was noodles from the local farmyard, steamed buns and a plate of salted vegetables which was self-marinated. A touch of oil was added to it, making it look rather appetizing. Changsheng's mother sympathized with Yan Huan so she intentionally fried an egg for her. However, Yan Huan did not eat it. Instead, she gave it to Changsheng's mother. She knew that in the village, eggs were labeled as rare goods. Some people would even collect the eggs and sell them outside of the village. When she did the shooting for The Uncle and the Flower, they had to stay in a village. The living conditions in that village were much better than Chengjia Village. Eggs were also not easily obtained for meals, but at the very least, that village was powered by electricity, unlike Chengjia Village.

Yan Huan took a bite of the steamed bun and ate a mouthful of the salted vegetables. As if they were some delicious delicacies, she took her time instead of gobbling up the food. She did not seize all the buns for herself but only took one even though she was sure she could eat at least three of them. She ended up eating only one. She thought to herself, that the first thing she would do when she got home was to repair the roads of Chengjia Village and then provide them with access to electricity.

Then, she would add three more floors to Changsheng's big house and equip it with all types of electrical appliances. That night was the night that she had slept most soundly and peacefully for the longest time. It was the most heartwarming night, even the blanket had the smell of sunshine. The heated earthen bed was neither too warm nor too cold, it felt very comfortable when she laid down on it. She did not wake up in the middle of the night with her bones aching. She was fully aware that the reason behind the aching bones was the freezing coldness.

The next day, when Changsheng's mother woke up and was getting ready to clean the house, she was surprised to find that the house was already cleaned, the water was already filled, even the fire in the kitchen was lit up, and Yan Huan was busy working in the kitchen.