Xiao Shan carried firewood into the kitchen, his face so grim it looked like ink was about to drip.
How audacious! After doing such a thing, not only was she not ashamed, but she had the nerve to order him around. Did she think he was easily bullied?
Seeing him enter the kitchen, Xue Niang's lips curved into a fleeting, faint smile.
He was still the same man with a cold exterior but a kind heart. Her heart finally relaxed. She rubbed her shoulders, feeling a chill all over.
Her lower abdomen also felt uncomfortable. Perhaps it was from walking too much; her body was starting to feel weak again.
Xiao Shan finished boiling water, poured it into the wooden tub, mixed it with cool water to regulate the temperature, and then took out a jar of anti-itch powder to add to the water. Only then did he go out to call for her.
He didn't enter the house. Standing outside the small window, he knocked and said coldly, "The water is ready!"
Xue Niang, lying on the bed, struggled to get up. She had rested for a while, but she felt even more fatigued.
She took her clean clothes. As she passed through the courtyard, she saw Xiao Shan packing the things he would take up the mountain today.
His right hand was wrapped with a strip of cloth, and a trace of blood was seeping through.
Injured? When did that happen?
Xue Niang pursed her lips, paused for a moment, and seeing that the man had no intention of turning back, she opened her mouth to speak but ultimately held back her question.
The water temperature was just right. Xue Niang tied up her hair, took off her clothes, and stepped in. The itching of her wound was immediately relieved. She let out a sigh of relief. Beside her was the stove, with a soap pod on it within easy reach.
This man was incredibly thoughtful, except for his overly aggressive nature. Otherwise, there was nothing to fault.
If she were just an ordinary village girl, she would marry him without hesitation. Unfortunately, she was not. Her skin, her slender fingers, the unfamiliarity with the village, and the persistent grief and suppression in her heart made her instinctively feel that she carried a burden and could not enjoy a man's kindness with a clear conscience.
She had to find herself.
To confirm that she had no past.
This way, it would be fair to everyone.
The water temperature had dropped a bit, and she felt a little cold again. She finished washing quickly and stepped out of the tub.
Xiao Shan was sitting in the courtyard, wiping arrowheads as if they were rare treasures, meticulously cleaning each of the more than ten arrows. The arrowheads gleamed, emitting a faint, cold light.
He seemed not to have heard her behind him. He picked up his bow, nocked an arrow, and slowly pulled the bowstring back with his right hand, which was wrapped in cloth.
"Swoosh—"
The arrow moved as fast as lightning, cutting through the sky, carrying a gust of wind and emitting a sharp whistling sound. With unstoppable force, it shot into the thick trunk of a large willow tree outside the courtyard.
Only half of the arrow remained protruding from the tree trunk, trembling. If the tree weren't so thick, it would likely have pierced through.
What immense strength!
Xue Niang didn't feel scared. Instead, a strange impulse arose in her heart. She frowned, trying to grasp that feeling, but the intangible wisp of thought, like smoke, gradually dissipated.
As dusk fell, Xiao Shan turned his head and gave her a look of unknown meaning.
Then he got up and went to the large willow tree. With a forceful tug, he pulled out the arrow, leaving only a dark, hollowed-out hole.
Xue Niang let out a "hmph" and moved away.
What did he mean by that? Was he warning her?
Xiao Shan put away the arrow, glanced at the sky, and went into the kitchen to empty the bath. After tidying up, he started to cook.
There were still soaked rice grains in the bowl. He poured them into the pot, tore the bought roast goose into small pieces, and stir-fried some tofu and eggs.
His cooking skills weren't great; he just stir-fried with a bit of oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar. He had been doing it since he was young. He could eat delicacies or simple fare; as long as it filled his stomach, it was fine.
Children from the mountains weren't that particular, but Xue Niang was. That pampered young lady, except for the first two days when she was starving, tried to pick up dishes cautiously each time she ate, as if she had never eaten before. When she put it in her mouth, she would first frown.
"Hmph! So picky! This is how I cook. Eat it if you like, don't if you don't!"
He was still angry. What was that expression just now? He just shot an arrow, why the hmph? Did she look down on him for being a rough man?
More vulgar than that effeminate scholar?
No matter how vulgar, she had to endure it. He was her man. Since ancient times, hadn't women married chickens, they followed the chickens, and married dogs, they followed the dogs?
If she married Xiao Shan, she shouldn't complain about his roughness!
The smoke curled upwards, and the small courtyard was enveloped in the night. The aroma of rice permeated every corner of the kitchen. Xiao Shan took a deep breath.
When he was alone before, this plain white rice didn't taste like much. Now, his state of mind had changed, and everything felt different.
Life was no longer like stagnant water, calm and uneventful. The events of today were truly many.
However, things were not over yet.
The trouble started because Xue Niang found a worm in her rice, and immediately, her spoiled young lady's temper flared up.
She ran out and vomited a few times, rinsed her mouth several times, and it wasn't enough. She actually refused to eat.
"It's normal for rice to have worms. These worms grow by eating rice; they aren't dirty. Eat this bowl."
Xiao Shan swapped his bowl with hers. Really, this bad habit had to be corrected. How could she maintain her health if she didn't eat properly!
Xue Niang felt her head grow heavy and her feet light. She already had little appetite, and finding a worm made her feel even more nauseated.
"Your bowl came from the same pot, I won't eat it!"
"You must eat!" Xiao Shan was as stern as an elder scolding a child.
"I won't eat, I won't eat! I just won't eat! It's your fault for not washing the rice properly!"
Xiao Shan picked up the bowl and stood up abruptly. "Do you want me to feed it to you?"
"You brute!"
He was forcing her again!
Xue Niang glared at him and pushed the bowl in front of her. The push went too far, and the bowl tipped over onto the ground.
Looking at the rice scattered all over the floor, Xue Niang froze.
Xiao Shan looked at her sharply. His expression held anger, disappointment, and something else, as deep as the sea, that she couldn't understand.
Xue Niang felt a bit at a loss, and a little wronged. She wanted to say it was not intentional, but...
Xiao Shan had already bent down and was scooping the rice, which had soil on it, into the bowl with his hand.
Then, he returned to the stove and refilled a new bowl of rice.
She thought it was for her.
"Do you know how many people outside can't get enough to eat?"
"Do you know what the villagers eat?"
"No, how would you know..."
Xiao Shan, with his back to her, spoke calmly, his emotions indistinguishable, but Xue Niang felt an unprecedented panic.
"I, I didn't mean to."
Xiao Shan ignored her and went out the door with the rice.
Yes, it wasn't intentional, just a habit. She had been a pampered young lady for too long, how could she care about a mere bowl of rice?
Xue Niang's eyes turned red. Where had he gone? She really didn't mean it.
The dim light in the kitchen cast her thin shadow. She felt very, very cold.
The rice mixed with soil was still on the stove. She remembered when she was still in the hands of the human trafficker.
At that time, they didn't give her food. They dumped the leftover food together and served it to her like feeding a dog. If she didn't eat, that person would grab her hair and force her head into the bowl.
That time, she vomited until she was dizzy and almost collapsed. In the end, those people threw hard steamed buns at her.
In comparison, finding a worm was really nothing. Even this rice mixed with soil, she could eat.
She just felt unwell.
She really didn't mean it.
Xiao Shan returned with a bowl of something dark and murky.
She looked up, her eyes red, and looked at him pitifully. Xiao Shan suppressed the sudden surge of heartache and forcefully placed the bowl in his hand in front of her.
"Eat!"