DLRC – Chapter 9 Full of Swagger

After returning to the Yu household, not a single part of Yu Wei’s body was dry. Bathing Yu Hui in the crowded public bathhouse had been a real ordeal. The air was thick with steamy mist that made her sweat buckets.

There was no one in the room. Yuan Guifang was still outside chatting with the other women, Jiang Min was sitting and knitting sweaters with a few others, and the two other men in the family seemed to have gone to the bathhouse.

Even though it was boiling hot, just thinking about stripping down in front of so many people made Yu Wei shiver.

She really couldn’t stand it anymore. Starting tomorrow, she needed to figure out a way to escape this place.

As she thought about it, her love of cleanliness kept nagging at her. But she reminded herself over and over again that in this kind of environment, she couldn’t afford to be picky. Just endure one night—she’d get through it.

The room was stifling, like a steaming basket. Yu Wei sat on the messy little bed and casually grabbed a woven fan from the cabinet to fan the little one. The sweat on her body finally dried. Yu Hui sat quietly beside her, not saying a word.

He was used to loneliness. This kind of isolated life had been his reality for four years.

In the past, he didn’t have Yu Wei’s company—because even when she wasn’t working, she would ignore him and let him stay off to the side all alone.

But this Yu Wei was different. Not only did she keep him company, but earlier she had even bought him some delicious things he’d never had before.

It all felt like a dream to him. He kept thinking it would end any moment when he woke up.

After resting on the bed for a while, Yu Wei noticed there was still no one in the room. She pulled out her phone—it was 7:10 p.m.

Still early, but people were already moving around outside. Yuan Guifang was muttering something when she suddenly came toward Yu Wei’s room.

“You dead girl, what are you locking the door for?!”

Yu Wei frowned. She didn’t want to answer that impatient voice, but the more she ignored Yuan Guifang, the more determined the woman became to get a response.

Sighing, Yu Wei got up and opened the door.

“How many times do I have to tell you—don’t lock the doors in this house, don’t lock them! What, you doing something shady in there or what?!”

Yuan Guifang stormed in, cursing as she went.

Yu Wei was speechless. “What could I possibly be doing?”

The rundown room was barely big enough to turn around in. What did she think was going on?

Yuan Guifang really just came in to snoop on what the mother and son were up to. Seeing nothing suspicious, she cursed some more and left.

Once she was gone, Yu Wei shut the door again—this time without locking it. She was afraid Yuan Guifang might start banging on the door in the middle of the night. That was exactly the kind of thing she believed Yuan Guifang would do.

Lying down beside Yu Hui, mother and son stared at each other wide-eyed until they finally drifted into sleep.

It was a restless night.

Yu Wei was woken by the heat the next morning. The little guy who had been lying beside her so obediently last night had somehow snuggled into her arms. His soft, downy hair brushed against her neck, tickling a little.

Kids sweat a lot, and the room was hot and stuffy. Yu Hui’s body felt like a furnace—hugging him was like holding a little heater. Fine in winter, but in summer? It was unbearable.

Suddenly, a noisy ruckus erupted outside. Yu Wei rubbed her eyes hard before she could see clearly.

The little guy was already awake. Though still curled up in her arms, his big, grape-like eyes were wide open and staring at her. It was like he was studying her. When he saw her wake up, a look of panic flashed across his face.

He was scared. A little afraid. Afraid that Yu Wei would be angry when she realized he had snuck into her arms while she was asleep.

But Yu Wei had already seen him—curled up quietly, right there in her embrace.

Will she be mad?

Yu Hui’s conflicted little expression made Yu Wei want to laugh.

Her voice came out hoarse, but gentle. “Xiao Huihui, you’re already up so early?”

Her smile was just as soft. She opened her arms and wrapped them around Yu Hui’s small body, holding him in her embrace.

The little guy was all soft and cuddly. Even though he hadn’t had any milk, he still gave off a faint milky scent. She thought to herself, if only he had a bit more flesh on him—right now, she could feel the jutting bones in some places when she held him, and they poked at her hands a little.

Yu Wei lowered her gaze to look at him.

There was no denying it—this child was exceptionally good-looking. His eyes, like a young deer’s, were as clear as a lake. His skin was pale and smooth like mutton fat jade, his delicate nose like fine carved jade, and his little mouth red and full.

But he was far too silent, quiet like a mute child. And yet he wasn’t actually mute.

Before the mother and son could enjoy their tender moment, the noise outside grew louder.

“You lazy pig, get the hell up! What, you really need me to beat you to get you moving?!”

Yuan Guifang’s roar drew closer and closer. “Director Luo already said he doesn’t want you working at his factory anymore, and you’re still not up?! They want you gone, told you to pack up your things and get out!”

“I think Second Sister is too ashamed to show her face at the factory, that’s why she’s sleeping in,” Jiang Min added with a sarcastic tone. “She’s usually up by six.”

“Pack up and get out?” Yu Wei had just woken up and was still in a daze. The little one had already slipped out of her arms and was sitting on the bed, eyes fixed on the door.

“Get up already! Are you really this clueless or just pretending?! Director Luo doesn’t want you anymore!”

The door was yanked open from the outside. Yuan Guifang stormed in, holding a feather duster used for dusting, which she started slapping against the wall with loud pah-pah-pah sounds.

“Get up! Get your ass up!”

Yuan Guifang’s nasty habit of waving that feather duster around like a weapon was really too much—always trying to scare people into submission. So overbearing!

“Oh my god, will you shut up already! Keep it down!” A hoarse male voice came from the neighboring bed, instantly chasing away the last bit of sleep clinging to Yu Wei.

She shot upright in bed and saw—to her shock—that the bed next to hers, which had been empty before, now had a man in it. He wasn’t even wearing a shirt, and he was glaring at Yuan Guifang in annoyance, snapping at her to shut the door because he wasn’t done sleeping.

Yuan Guifang’s expression changed in a flash. She beamed at the man, saying sweetly, “Alright, alright. I know you got in late. You go on and sleep, Mom won’t bother you anymore.”

The next second, her face flipped again. She lowered her voice and hissed like a villainess from a cartoon, “Yu Wei, you damned girl, get up right now! Director Luo doesn’t want you anymore and you’re still sleeping like a dead pig!”

Yu Wei frowned, her patience nearly burned to cinders.

She hadn’t slept well last night, and she was someone who loved to sleep in. Now her head was pounding from all the noise—how could she possibly be in a good mood?

Expression dark, she silently got up and began putting on clothes. Yu Hui rubbed his eyes and got up too. He was very good at reading the room, and seeing Yu Wei in a bad mood, he tightly pursed his lips and didn’t dare make a sound.

He quickly flipped over and got out of bed to put on his shoes.

In this era, people didn’t have the concept of sleepwear, especially not in summer. Whatever you wore to bed was what you’d wear the next day. Luckily, Yu Wei had slept in casual clothes last night—otherwise, with her younger brother Yu Bing still in the room, she wouldn’t have known how to get changed.

Yu Hui saw Yu Wei get off the bed and rushed to follow, scrambling clumsily to climb down. He was short, with stubby little legs, and had to carefully reach for the floor before finally sliding off.

He trailed behind Yu Wei as she walked out of the room. Her face was still dark with annoyance. She went to the hand pump, drew up some well water, and splashed her face—finally feeling a bit refreshed.

On the table in the main room was a bowl of lukewarm porridge and some pickled vegetables. That was it. Not even a steamed bun. The meal was plain and joyless. Just looking at it made Yu Wei lose her appetite, so she walked out still hungry.

Just as she was leaving, Yuan Guifang hollered after her, “Hey! You damn girl! Running off without even eating—what, going to see Director Luo with Da Bao in tow? Leave the child here!”

She lunged forward to snatch Yu Hui from Yu Wei’s arms, but Yu Wei jerked her hand away.

“Don’t touch him!”

Yu Hui was startled by the shouting from his mother and grandmother. His little heart pounded in his chest. Then suddenly, he was lifted off the ground as Yu Wei picked him up and walked straight out the front gate.

“Hey! Yu Wei, where you off to so early in the morning, huh? We still have unfinished business from yesterday!” came a mocking voice from next door. It was Fang Yanyan, blocking the entrance with her child.

God knows when she had wandered over. Standing behind her was a kid around six or seven years old, staring blankly at his mother.

Fang Yanyan stood there with her arms crossed and a smug, arrogant posture. Yu Wei ignored her and tried to walk past.

But the woman widened her eyes and blocked her path with an even more aggressive stance. “Where you headed? Don’t tell me you’re off to beg Director Luo to take you back?”