Husband, Let Me Touch Your Abs - Chapter 38

The mule cart swayed slowly for an hour before reaching the town. The two of them first went to deliver the tofu. The restaurant was located at the center of the town, surrounded by shops. Only the wealthy or distinguished people could afford to eat there.

 

As Zhao Beichuan moved the tofu, Lu Yao sat in the cart, observing the passing customers. A man in a satin cotton robe walked out, followed by servants, and immediately got into a small sedan chair.

 

Lu Yao couldn’t help but marvel—no matter the era, the lives of the rich were always so comfortable.

 

After delivering the tofu, the two of them continued to the post station. As they arrived, a clerk greeted them, “Guest, the merchant you asked about last time has arrived and is staying in the back courtyard. They’ll be here for three days, so if you have anything to buy or sell, you should act quickly.”

 

“Ah! Thank you.”

 

They had come out in a hurry, and Lu Yao had forgotten to bring his skins with him. But since they had to deliver tofu every day, it didn’t matter; he could bring them tomorrow.

 

After delivering the tofu, the two hurried back, noticing the weather looked bad, and rain was likely in the afternoon.

 

“Are we still going to Lujia Village?”

 

“Let’s go. We should tell them early so my second brother and the others can prepare. They can start selling after learning it for a day or two.”

 

“Alright.” Zhao Beichuan cracked the whip, and the mule cart sped up.

 

They arrived at Lujia Village just in time for noon. Lu Yao’s mother and Hu Chunrong were preparing the meal.

 

When Hu Chunrong heard the commotion outside, she glanced out and said, “Mother, third brother and brother-in-law are here.”

 

Lu Yao’s mother quickly stood up and went outside to greet them. “What brings you here? Is it cold? Come inside.”

 

Lu Yao ran into the kitchen, shivering, and saw Hu Chunrong warmly greet him, “Sister-in-law.”

 

“Ah, you’re cold, aren’t you? It’s warmer here. Come sit by the fire.” Hu Chunrong handed him a small stool and gestured for him to sit by the stove.

 

Lu Yao’s mother picked a few eggs from the chicken coop, washed them, and threw them into the pot. “Has anything been happening at home lately? Everyone has been asking why you haven’t come to sell tofu.”

 

“I came for that reason. I’m planning to teach my second brother how to make tofu. Afterward, we won’t be coming to Lujia Village to sell tofu anymore.”

 

Hu Chunrong was shocked, her heart racing. She looked at Lu Yao in disbelief. “Why… why would you want to let Lu Lin do it?”

 

She had noticed how much money selling tofu could bring in, but over the past six months, the Zhao family had built a new house, bought a mule cart, and was now wearing fine clothes. She never expected that Lu Yao would be willing to give up such a profitable business.

 

Lu Yao explained, “It’s inconvenient to travel between both places during winter, and we’ve taken on work in the town, so we might be too busy to manage both.”

 

In reality, they could still handle it, but it would require more hard work. If necessary, they could hire someone to grind the tofu. However, Lu Yao didn’t want to do that. Now that his own life was improving, he wanted to help his family. He couldn’t just enjoy a good life while his parents didn’t even get to drink meat broth.

 

Lu Yao’s mother held his hand with satisfaction. “Yao’er, I didn’t raise you in vain.”

 

Hu Chunrong didn’t know what to say. She felt she had been too petty in the past, fussing over a few eggs and causing friction with Lu Yao all these years.

 

Outside, Zhao Beichuan had tied the mule to the post. Lu Yao’s father and Lu Lin had just returned from outside, having helped with some construction work in the village for the past few days.

 

“Father, second brother.”

 

“Beichuan is here!” Lu Guangsheng smiled and walked up to greet his son-in-law, patting his arm.

 

Lu Lin was about to go out to buy alcohol when Zhao Beichuan stopped him. “No drinking today, we need to grind the tofu when we get back. Don’t waste time.”

 

“Alright.”

 

The three of them washed their hands and entered the house. In the main room, a small table had been set up, and Lu Yun and Lu Miao were serving the dishes.

 

They had originally only prepared vegetable porridge, but with guests arriving, Lu Yao’s mother quickly added two more dishes. One was salted pork that Lu Yao had brought earlier, stewed with radish, and the other was a few boiled eggs, which could barely count as a dish.

 

Since they were all family, they sat together at the same table, regardless of gender.

 

During the meal, Lu Yao explained the tofu-making method to Lu Lin. “Second brother, try it out according to what I’ve told you. If it doesn’t work, I’ll come back to teach you again.”

 

Lu Lin’s face turned red with excitement as he nodded heavily. “Ah!” He was an honest, simple man who didn’t have many words. He just felt that his brother was truly good, thinking of them even after getting married.

 

After dinner, the sky had turned overcast, and it looked like rain was imminent. Lu Yao’s mother insisted they stay the night.

 

Lu Yao declined. “The kids are at home by themselves. We still need to deliver tofu to the restaurant tomorrow. We can’t delay. You go inside, I’ll come back in a few days.”

 

Seeing that the rain was about to start, Zhao Beichuan urged the mule cart faster. The bumpy ride made Lu Yao’s body itch all over.

 

Just as they reached home, large raindrops began to pour down. Lu Yao couldn’t help but laugh. “We really timed it well.”

 

“Quick, get inside and don’t get wet. I’ll take care of the things on the cart.” Zhao Beichuan unhitched the mule and led it into the barn, also putting the chickens into their coop and bringing in some dry firewood.

 

In the blink of an eye, the rain came down in torrents. The autumn rain was chilly, and even inside the house, it felt cold.

 

Xiao Nian and Xiao Dou had already put on their new cotton coats and were playing with the piglets in the west room. The piglets had grown a bit and could now eat bean dregs. The two children had managed to keep the wild piglets alive.

 

When they returned, Lin Daman had already started grinding the soybeans. He had ground two buckets of the four.

 

“Daman, go rest. We’ll finish the rest of the grinding.”

 

“I’ve got nothing to do anyway, I’ll help you out.”

 

Lu Yao mentioned meeting Song Changshun and Widow Songg on the road this morning. “It’s strange that my brother-in-law and sister-in-law are living together. Aren’t they afraid of people talking?”

 

Lin Daman sneered. “Speaking of that, I heard something today while selling tofu in the village. Widow Songg, in order to cheat money from his mother-in-law, made the kids take cold water baths. I don’t know what he was thinking.”

 

Lu Yao clicked his tongue. “He could actually do something like that? That’s really cruel!”

 

“That’s why I say, these two won’t have a good ending!”

 

–

 

It rained last night, and this morning the weather suddenly turned cold.

 

Widow Song dragged his heavy body out of bed and went to the kitchen to start the fire for cooking. His thin clothes made him shiver with the cold, but once the fire was lit, he managed to warm up enough and quickly tossed the corn and vegetables into the pot.

 

He stared at the flames on the stove, his gaze unfocused as he thought about Zhao Beichuan from yesterday, driving his mule cart past him without even glancing his way.

 

If he had gone to propose earlier, would he have been the one sitting in that cart instead?

 

Widow Song grabbed his collar, feeling a tight pain in his chest, unable to suppress a few coughs. Suddenly, he felt a warmth in his throat and coughed up a lump of blood. Scared, he quickly wiped it off with dry grass.

 

A vague, bad feeling grew in his mind. When he stayed at the temple, there were more than ten people sleeping in a big dormitory. One of the people nearby coughed frequently and was so thin he seemed to be nothing but bones. Once, he heard someone say that man had tuberculosis, and his family had sent him there to avoid the infection.

 

No, no, I never spoke to him, I tried to avoid him… I couldn’t have been infected. But his constantly weakening body reminded him that it was highly likely he had contracted tuberculosis as well.

 

This disease was incurable in this era; he wouldn’t live much longer.

 

Widow Song covered his face, wanting to cry but unable to shed tears. He didn’t know why his life was so miserable.

 

He remembered how, when he was unmarried, his parents treated him badly, making him do the most work while often scolding and hitting him.

 

After marriage, he lived a few peaceful days with Song Changfu. Although Song Changfu also had a bad temper, at least he didn’t hit him, and would give him money privately.

 

But after his husband died, he didn’t dare return to his parents’ house. Both his parents had passed, and his younger brother and sister-in-law would definitely not accept him. They would probably sell him to one of the old widowers in the village.

 

Staying with the Song family wasn’t any better, with a mean mother-in-law and a brother-in-law who was like a wolf.

 

He hadn’t lied that day in the forest. The first time he was with Song Changshun, he was indeed forced, and later, when he couldn’t resist, he just half-heartedly complied.

 

During their affair, Song Changshun was still decent to him, but now that they were truly living together, he realized the true nature of Song Changshun.

 

This man had been suppressed too much by Lin Daman before. When he started acting out, he didn’t care about anything. Sometimes, he wouldn’t let him sleep all night, using crude methods that made Widow Song beg in pain.

 

But the other party didn’t stop; instead, it got worse. There were times when he thought he might die, only to wake up the next day.

 

Actually, it would be better to die… If he died, he wouldn’t have to suffer anymore.

 

“Is the food ready?” Old Lady Song called from the house.

 

“Yes, yes.” Widow Song hurriedly lifted the pot lid and served the porridge into a bowl, bringing it inside.

 

Song Ping had just woken up and was dozing in his grandmother’s lap. Ever since Widow Song returned, Song Ping had become distant from him, no longer coming to sleep with him at night and sometimes speaking to him coldly.

 

“Mom, let’s eat.”

 

Old Lady Song knocked the bowl with her chopsticks and said, “Is this watery porridge really enough to fill you up? You’ve been in the hall too long and now you can’t even cook properly?”

 

Widow Song bit his lip and remained silent. He had long gotten used to this watery porridge and had forgotten that now, at home, he no longer needed to drink it.

 

“What are you standing there for? Get a bowl and serve the porridge! You’re getting worse and worse. I shouldn’t have brought you back!” Old Lady Song grumbled angrily.

 

Widow Song lowered his head and slowly walked to the kitchen. As he picked up the bowl to leave, Song Changshun suddenly hugged him from behind.

 

“Sis, why are you up so early?”

 

Widow Song trembled all over, his stomach turning with nausea. “Let… Let go of me, it’s time to eat.”

 

Song Changshun bit his neck, his hand reaching into his pants to grope. “Let me have you first.”

 

“Ugh—” Widow Song couldn’t hold back and vomited. Since he hadn’t eaten anything in the morning, it was all sour stomach fluid.

 

The person behind him immediately recoiled in disgust. “Clean yourself up. You’re really disgusting.”

 

Tears and snot streamed down Widow Song’s face. You’re the disgusting one. Your whole family is disgusting! You all deserve to die!

 

–

 

At the Zhao house, Lu Yao had just woken up, and after sitting in bed wrapped in his blanket for a while, he lazily put on his cotton coat.

 

Xiao Nian and Xiao Dou were still asleep. Lu Yao reached out to feel the bed, which was still warm, so it should not be cold.

 

He got up to the kitchen to start the fire and decided to make a pot of hot noodle soup to warm up. First, he kneaded some dough, then picked a sour radish, washed it clean, diced it, and stir-fried it with lard to make a braised dish.

 

By the time the water in the pot started to boil, both children had woken up, rubbing their messy hair and came into the kitchen.

 

Lu Yao scooped two ladles of hot water for them to wash their faces.

 

“Sis, my tooth hurts.” Xiao Dou hugged Lu Yao’s leg with a pout after washing his face.

 

“Open your mouth and let me see, which tooth hurts?”

 

Xiao Dou pointed to a small tooth at the bottom and said, “This one.”

 

Lu Yao touched it with his hand. “It’s fine, you’re just losing baby teeth.”

 

Zhao Xiaonian, having finished washing his face, said, “I told you there’s nothing to worry about, you didn’t believe me.”

 

Xiao Dou wiped his tears, feeling wronged as he leaned against Lu Yao. He knew it wasn’t serious, he just wanted to act spoiled with his sister-in-law.

 

Lu Yao rubbed his little head. “Alright, go wash your face. Xiaonian, go call your big brother to come eat.”

 

In the yard, Zhao Beichuan had just fed the mule some hay and grabbed some corn to feed the chickens. After washing his hands, he went inside to prepare for breakfast.

 

The noodles in the pot were cooked, and each person scooped a big bowl, ladling the soup and braised dish over it, and started eating.

 

After breakfast, Zhao Beichuan saddled the mule and prepared to go to the town to deliver tofu and sell the marten skins.

 

“Why don’t you stay home? It’s so cold, you might catch a cold.”

 

Lu Yao climbed onto the mule cart, wrapping herself in a quilt and curling up like a ball. “It’s fine, I’m warm with the quilt.”

 

Though the temperature was low, the weather was good. The rain from yesterday had washed away the dust in the air, and the sun shone brightly, making it hard to open one’s eyes.

 

Once they arrived in the town, they first delivered the tofu to the restaurant, and by chance, the shopkeeper Xu was there, so they exchanged a few words.

 

Lu Yao asked, “How’s the tofu selling? Is it to the customers’ liking?”

 

Xu Bin replied, “It’s good. We just introduced a new dish yesterday, and it sold out right away. Many people are coming today to try it.”

 

“That’s great. When you make money, we can keep doing business.”

 

Xu Bin had a good impression of the couple and invited them for lunch.

 

Zhao Beichuan declined, saying, “We’ll skip lunch today. We still have other things to do. Next time, we’ll definitely have a drink with you.”

 

After leaving the restaurant, the two headed straight to the inn. At this time in the morning, there weren’t many people at the inn. There were only two merchants sitting in a corner of the hall chatting, and a young attendant was sweeping the floor.

 

Zhao Beichuan first moved the tofu into the kitchen and then asked the attendant about the merchants.

 

The attendant pointed to the two people in the corner. “They are traveling merchants staying here. If you want to sell something, you can ask them.”

 

“Thanks,” Zhao Beichuan said, walking directly toward them.

 

One of the men looked up, and they immediately recognized each other. It was the same merchant who had bought fox skins from him last year.

 

“Hey, kid, back to sell skins again?”

 

Zhao Beichuan smiled and nodded. “This year I didn’t hunt any good fox skins, but I have a few marten skins, all about the same size and color. They could be made into a fur coat.”

 

“Oh? Let me see.”

 

Zhao Beichuan quickly went to the cart to fetch the skins, and Lu Yao followed him into the inn.

 

The merchant was surprised when he received the skins. He hadn’t expected them to be soft-tanned leather! The prices of hard and soft skins were different.

 

Last year, Zhao Beichuan had brought fox skins, and the merchant only bought them because they were of good quality. After all, raw skins that hadn’t been tanned were prone to being damaged during the tanning process, and the fur would lose its luster, making it hard to sell at a good price.

 

These grayish-white marten skins were not only soft and smooth to the touch but also had a harmonious overall color. If they were made into a coat, they would definitely sell for a good price.

 

The merchant wasn’t unscrupulous, though. After inspecting the skins, he said, “These marten skins are good. Since you have tanning skills, why didn’t you tan the fox skin last year?”

 

“I don’t know how to do it. My husband did it.”

 

The merchant looked at Lu Yao, who he hadn’t noticed before. Now, upon closer inspection, he was struck by how handsome Lu Yao was. “Your husband really has some skills.”

 

“Five large and one small, I’ll give you ten taels for all of them. If you agree, I’ll take them.”

 

Zhao Beichuan turned to ask Lu Yao, who nodded in agreement. “Can you pay us in silver?”

 

The merchant handed them two silver ingots, each worth four and a half ounces, which was equivalent to a one-tael handling fee, making it a fair deal.

 

“Next year, if you get more of these skins, keep them for me. I’ll take as many as you have.”

 

“Alright,” Zhao Beichuan agreed.

 

After leaving the inn, Lu Yao happily held the two silver ingots. “I thought we’d only get five taels!”

 

“I also thought we wouldn’t sell them for a high price. Looks like these marten skins are quite valuable. I’ll go up the mountain again to see if I can hunt more and sell them all to him in a few days.”

 

“Then be careful.”

 

“Don’t worry, you don’t trust your husband’s abilities?”

 

Seeing him act so smug, Lu Yao couldn’t help but pinch his cheek. The two laughed and joked as they hurried back to the cart.

 

Just as they were about to leave the town, Lu Yao suddenly saw the two men from yesterday walking toward the bookstore nearby.