Chapter Twenty-Eight: Spring Rain

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On the other side, Wang Jusheng and his wife had nearly come to blows, while here, Chen Ling and Wang Susu sat around the table enjoying a fragrant dinner in an atmosphere of unusual peace and warmth.

Chen Ling had cooked the meal himself: cucumber stir-fried with eggs, crispy pork strips, and sweet-and-sour grass carp.

Since the cooking oil had been freshly pressed from peanuts by Liu Xingeng, even the ordinary pork used for the crispy pork strips tasted exceptionally delicious.

Chen Ling polished off five enormous steamed buns, and more than half of the dishes Wang Susu had left also ended up in his stomach.

Only then was he properly full.

Clearly, while the Cave Heaven had strengthened his constitution, it had also greatly increased his appetite.

This gave Wang Susu quite a fright. She was afraid he would eat until his stomach burst.

Chen Ling then took her hand and placed it on his belly, letting her feel it.

“Huh? It isn’t swollen at all!”

Wang Susu was even more astonished. Chen Ling had eaten so much, yet his stomach had not bulged in the slightest.

Since when had he become such a big eater?

“What’s so strange about that? Your husband is a true iron-blooded man. People can stand on my fists, horses can walk along my arms, and I can go one night—cough, I mean, go one night without sleep. That’s nothing.”

“Isn’t it perfectly normal for me to eat a little more?”

Chen Ling praised himself with an entirely natural expression.

Wang Susu had gradually grown used to his antics, but the single word “husband” still caused her cheeks to flush crimson. She hurriedly stood up, shot him an irritated glance, and said, “I’m going to wash the dishes. Don’t forget to feed Fifth Uncle’s donkey.”

Chen Ling answered, then watched Wang Susu’s retreating figure with a chuckle.

In fact, it was not only his appetite that had increased. Wang Susu’s had as well. The spring water and produce from the Cave Heaven, along with the meals made from them, were steadily improving her constitution too.

It was simply that the changes in her were not as dramatic as those in Chen Ling, so they were less noticeable.

After feeding the donkey, Chen Ling went to feed the chickens as well.

As usual, he mixed bran and cornmeal with finely chopped peanut vines. The chickens gobbled it down with great enthusiasm.

When he returned to the house, Wang Susu had heated a basin of water and was washing her hair.

Only after Chen Ling entered and secured the door did she change her clothes, replace the water with fresh hot water, and begin wiping herself down with a warm towel.

“I don’t know what’s wrong with me these past few days. I keep sweating. I only bathed last night, but today my whole body is sticky and clammy again. It’s terribly uncomfortable.”

Chen Ling smiled. “Perhaps the weather has warmed up. You should change out of your padded clothes.”

Wang Susu turned toward him and scolded him coquettishly. “A-Ling, you’ve forgotten again. I haven’t been feeling well these past few days.”

“Oh, right.”

“Look at my memory. I completely forgot.”

Chen Ling tapped his forehead, only to be dazzled by the snowy whiteness before his eyes. His heart began to stir, and he walked over.

“Come here, Susu. Let me wipe your back.”

…

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The next morning, rain began to fall at dawn.

At first it was a fine drizzle, but it grew heavier and heavier. Chen Ling simply did not hurry to get out of bed.

Not only did he stay in bed himself, he also held Wang Susu close and refused to let her rise.

“Sleep a little longer. Weather like this is perfect for sleeping in.”

“Go on, sleep. I’ll cook once we get up.”

With that, he pulled Wang Susu even more tightly into his arms.

Wang Susu gave a soft, amused sigh, closed her eyes, and nestled against Chen Ling’s chest, indulging him and continuing to sleep.

Chen Ling was not wrong. The weather really was perfect for sleeping in.

Lying beneath the warm quilts and listening to the patter of rain outside, their bodies and minds gradually relaxed.

It was pure bliss.

The rain came and went for two days, and Chen Ling spent those two days contentedly tucked away at home.

The day after tomorrow would be the Spring Equinox. At last, the first spring rain of the year finally stopped.

The sky cleared, without a cloud in sight. The blue heavens were as limpid as if freshly washed, and the cool spring breeze swept past, opening the heart and broadening the spirit.

Chen Ling was splitting firewood and starting a fire in the courtyard to prepare lunch when he suddenly noticed shoots of grass emerging beneath the southern wall. The peach tree, pear tree, and the Chinese toon tree outside the yard had all put forth tender buds as well.

Even the few flowering crabapple trees Wang Susu had planted had swollen with clusters of buds, and would soon burst into bloom.

“Spring has arrived. All things are coming back to life!”

Chen Ling sighed with feeling, then set a pot over the fire, poured in oil, and began cooking.

Today’s midday meal was a mixed-fish stew.

They had actually made it once during the rainy days, since a mixed-fish stew was at its most satisfying when eaten while rain fell outside.

Wang Susu had fallen in love with it after trying it once.

Since she wanted it again today, Chen Ling continued to make it for her.

The fish came from the Cave Heaven. Each was a little longer than a finger, just right for the stew—fresh, tender, and so delicious that the fragrance lingered between the lips and teeth.

On the day Chen Ling returned from the county town, he had placed several fish in a bucket, some large and some small, and left it in the back courtyard beside the donkey cart.

With the bucket of fish serving as a cover, Wang Susu had not noticed anything unusual.

Cooking over a wood fire was very quick. Before long, a rich aroma filled the air.

“How fragrant!”

Wang Susu finished hanging the clothes out in the courtyard and walked over, drawing a deep breath. Then she could not help urging him, “Is it ready yet? Just smelling it has made me hungry.”

Chen Ling smiled at her. “Wait a little longer. I only put the lid on a moment ago. The flatbreads are still half raw.”

White-flour flatbreads were stuck around the edge of the pot. Once they had absorbed the broth, they became wonderfully flavorful, leaving an unforgettable aftertaste.

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Wang Susu had already eaten it once and knew how delicious it was.

Now that Chen Ling had mentioned it, she was practically unable to wait for the meal.

At that moment, outside the courtyard gate, Qin Dongmei was using long-handled scissors to cut the tender shoots from the Chinese toon tree. The delicious aroma drifting from Chen Ling’s courtyard reached her clearly.

“Mother, what are they cooking in there? It smells so good!”

A little girl tugged at Qin Dongmei’s clothing and swallowed involuntarily.

Qin Dongmei’s expression immediately turned cold, and an inexplicable anger began to burn inside her.

“What’s so fragrant about it? Shameless little embarrassment. Get back home this instant!”

She stopped cutting the toon shoots, seized the little girl by the collar, and dragged her home while cursing all the way.

“You miserable bastard, born without an asshole! You eat fish and meat every single day, better than anything people in the city get. Why don’t you eat yourself to death?”

“You’ve got no money, yet you put on airs like this. When the time comes, you won’t even have the northwest wind to drink…”

Hearing the curses, Qin Qiumei, her face pale, hurried out of the room.

“What happened, Dongmei? Who are you angry with now?”

“Auntie!”

The moment the little girl saw Qin Qiumei, her mouth crumpled and she burst into loud, aggrieved sobs.

“Cry, will you? Shameless little embarrassment! You still have the nerve to cry? You’ve disgraced your mother completely!”

The angrier Qin Dongmei became, the harder she gritted her teeth and slapped her daughter several times on the buttocks.

“Have you gone mad, Dongmei? What did Shuangshuang ever do to you? Why are you taking your anger out on her?”

Qin Qiumei was frightened. She pushed her younger sister away and gathered her niece into her arms.

“Don’t cry, Shuangshuang. Your mother’s gone mad. We don’t need to pay attention to her…”

Yet the more Qin Qiumei tried to comfort the girl, the harder she cried. And the harder the child cried, the more viciously Qin Dongmei cursed.

The child’s sobs mingled with the curses and carried across the courtyards clearly enough for Chen Ling and Wang Susu to hear.

Chen Ling listened in utter confusion. He thought the woman across the way was completely out of her mind.

I haven’t provoked her or done anything to her. What the hell is she raving about now?

She acts as though she’s been seriously ill every day.

Wang Susu stole a glance at him and lowered her voice.

“Chunyuan hasn’t come home for half a month. He didn’t come back during these rainy days either. This morning, some old women in the village were gossiping, saying that Chunyuan is keeping another woman outside.”

“They spoke as though they knew every detail. Dongmei must have heard them too.”

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