RYEY – Chapter 196 The Light of Hatred

Cuihua thought carefully and realized that, indeed, there really wasn’t anyone like that. Even her own two daughters—her eldest, Daniu, was rough and boisterous, and her youngest, Xiaoniu, was spoiled—didn’t compare to even half of Li Le’s qualities.

“So, what about that Educated Youth girl?”

“I offered her a bride price similar to what the village head gave to Educated Youth Cheng, but she refused. She said her family was poor and had no dowry, so…”

Damao recalled how quickly Zhang Yuefang had turned and left, shaking his head with a sigh.

“She seems like a decent girl.”

Hearing this, Cuihua felt happy inside. She would have been worried if the girl had been thrilled by such a large bride price, but this Educated Youth’s first thought was whether she could bring enough dowry herself.

“Mom, you agreed?”

“Yes. I remember last time I asked Cheng Qiao to buy some khaki cloth, originally to make a set of clothes for Xiaoniu. Take it and give it to Educated Youth Zhang, and tell her what I mean.”

Damao’s eyes sparkled, which made Cuihua want to bite him. The child, now that he had a crush on the girl, had forgotten his mother! And he hadn’t even won her heart yet, but already acting like this.

Damao went back inside, changed into a patched-up shirt, then reconsidered and switched back to his old worn clothes. Educated Youth Zhang didn’t have much money—he couldn’t risk offending her.

He then took the cloth and walked out of the yard, unaware that at the door of the wood shed, a small figure was staring at the piece of cloth in his hands, eyes filled with a light of hatred.

Xiaoniu turned back into the house. There were four rooms in the house; she had shared one with Daniu, but now that Daniu was married, she had a whole room to herself—a rare luxury in Xiangyang  Village.

She had begged her mother for a long time to go to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy fabric for new clothes, but they didn’t have fabric coupons, and her eldest sister said the cooperative had no flawed cloth available.

So she turned to Cheng Qiao, who had plenty of flawed cloth. These had been traded through Qiu Min: when Cui Jiemin, head of the cooperative department at the textile factory, needed soap, the flawed cloth was exchanged as “soap tickets.”

Cheng Qiao pretended to be reluctant but took two pieces of khaki cloth from the cabinet—one maroon and one black. Cuihua liked them immediately; maroon for a coat, black for pants—a perfect match.

Xiaoniu was thrilled. She had been waiting for the weather to warm, so that once she could take off her cotton jacket, her mother could make her a spring outfit. But, to her surprise, her elder brother took the cloth away.

Zhang Yuefang looked a bit haggard lately, torn inside. One voice said, Marry him—the eldest brother will be a university student, and his future will be bright.

The other said, Don’t marry him—he’s already a university student. What right do you have to marry him? What if he looks down on you later? Don’t end up like Xu Laidi, who seemed perfect at first, but changed after marriage.

“Educated Youth Zhang, the New Year’s coming. This is from my mom for you.”

“My… your mom?”

Zhang Yuefang looked at Damao, whose face had turned red from hurrying, and felt a little moved. If it was sent by his mother, maybe it meant they didn’t dislike her.

Seeing the dark maroon fabric, she felt delighted. The color was festive but not as loud as bright red.

Her hand unconsciously reached out. When Damao placed the fabric in her hand, he quickly grabbed it. Zhang Yuefang was startled, trying to pull back—but couldn’t.

“You… you’re being a pervert!”

“Yes, I’m a pervert—but only to you.”

Damao had once heard Li Huan say this to Cheng Qiao, so he naturally repeated it—but being nervous, it lacked the romance of Li Huan’s delivery.

Still, Zhang Yuefang felt sweet inside. Her family had probably given up on her, but now she would show them the consequences of abandoning her.

Han Chunmei and the others clapped as they came out. They had seen Zhang Yuefang entangling herself these past days; persuasion was useless—they could only wait for her to figure it out herself. Now she had finally woken up.

Zhang Yuefang blushed, freeing her hand, not knowing where to go. Damao wisely bowed to Han Chunmei and the others in thanks—effectively sealing his relationship with Zhang Yuefang.

At the Li family home, Li Huan collected all the burned items into baskets. Luckily, some building materials had been saved from before, so repairs wouldn’t be too difficult.

The three Wang brothers helped fix the heated brick bed, windows, doors, and replaced the floor tiles. Wang Xianghua and Li Le kept heating water and cooking meals at the stove.

“Cheng Qiao, should we get a dog?”

Cheng Qiao nodded—but where would they find one? People barely had enough to eat; dogs were considered meat.

“If not, I’ll catch a young wolf in the mountains come spring.”

“That won’t do; wolves hold grudges. If you take their young, they’ll find you by scent.”

Ye Jun shook his head. Usually, stationed troops had military dogs. Better to have Li Bing bring a puppy—it would be safer.

Li Huan agreed. Once the house was clean, he’d write to his elder brother to send two puppies, so the dogs would bark if strangers came.

The heated bed had been rebuilt and needed two days before sleeping on it. At night, Li Huan slept with Ye Jun, Cheng Qiao slept with little Cheng Li and Mother Li, Li Le. Li Huan tossed and turned all night, until Ye Jun kicked him hard.

“Uncle Ye, I don’t know why, but I feel uneasy without Cheng Qiao by my side.”

“Shut up. If you disturb my sleep again, take your quilt and sleep in the guest hall.”

Li Huan fell silent. Compared to the guest hall, the heated bed was much more comfortable. Under Ye Jun’s pressure, he finally fell asleep.

By Laba Festival, the villagers repairing the river returned, cheerful after over half a month of work—they earned points and had enough food.

Except Chen Chunjian. He had been sent to repair the river as punishment. Besides meals, he earned no money and worked harder than anyone else.

Having never repaired a river before, the sudden increase in labor intensity left him constantly sleep-deprived and exhausted. Even when collapsed, he had to get up and continue.

Back home, Chen Chunjian didn’t even change his clothes and fell asleep on the heated bed. Zhaodi felt heartbroken and scolded him, though most scolding was reserved for Cheng Qiao.

Chen Chunlì frowned in frustration. He already knew impulsiveness was dangerous. Without full preparation, he absolutely could not act rashly again.