Bitter melon soup

When Zhou Lexing left, clutching the edge of the iron basin, the little tail behind him followed him without thinking.

Zhou Lexing was used to it and didn't chase him away. Seeing that he was about to jump up, he reminded him, "Don't bump into your brother. If you bump into me, your brother will lose his hand."

Don't be fooled by the small amount of bitter melon and pork ribs; they've made a huge pot of soup. In addition to a good amount of bitter melon, this bowl of bitter melon soup also contains four or five pieces of pork ribs, which is quite a substantial portion.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Shusheng immediately became obedient, staring nervously at the iron basin in Zhou Lexing's hand. The soup inside was still steaming, and it looked very stable, without even a ripple as Zhou Lexing walked forward quickly.

"Go, knock on the door."

Zhou Shusheng received the order and stepped forward to knock three times.

The two stood there dumbfounded at the door for a while, but no one answered.

Zhou Lexing's brow twitched. Thinking of Zhou Shusheng's excessively handsome face, he inexplicably recalled the incident of one of the protagonists of that melodramatic male-male romance novel entering the city, and his heart began to panic.

"Knock again."

Three more thuds.

The neighbors all peeked out to watch the commotion. When they saw that it was Zhou Yuanxiang's third son, they instinctively wanted to shrink back, but when they saw him standing at the door with a soup bowl in his hand, the soup inside still steaming, and he didn't seem to be there to cause trouble, they hesitated.

Zhou Lexing spotted her with sharp eyes and immediately flashed a smile that always worked: "Auntie, aren't Aunt Lan and the others home?"

"...Yes, I am." His smile was so warm and harmless that Aunt Zhou's guard lowered even further. "You've come to deliver food?"

"Yes, Aunt Lan treated my family to boiled peanuts before, and my mom asked me to bring them some soup."

Aunt Zhou completely lowered her guard and stepped forward warmly: "You can't knock on the door like that. Everyone says that there's a lot of gossip around a widow's door. Things have gotten much better in recent years. You wouldn't believe it, but in the past, those shameless people would come here every day to knock on the door and gnaw on the cracks. Some people even climbed over the wall at night!"

After Aunt Zhou finished speaking, she immediately raised her voice and shouted, "Lan-meizi—! Someone's looking for you—! Jian-sheng, come open the door!"

It's possible that the sound could travel to the other side of the village; soon, there was a noise behind the door.

When Zhou Lexing saw an eye peeking out from behind the opened door, his heart inexplicably softened.

Look how scared he is.

Gu Jiansheng coldly glanced at the people outside the door. He had naturally heard their conversation, but he still cautiously confirmed that Zhou Dongqiang, who had been waiting for a long time, was not inside before he lowered the kitchen knife hidden behind his back to his side and opened the door.

"What's up?"

His guarded expression was completely undisguised. Unfortunately, Aunt Zhou made her retreat after successfully completing her mission, taking a few words of thanks and going home for dinner. The other two, however, were oblivious to the cold aura emanating from him and greeted him with smiles.

"elder brother!"

"Jian Sheng, come and have some soup." Seeing that he was holding a kitchen knife, Zhou Lexing walked in with a bowl as if they were old friends. "Are you cooking? Perfect timing, I'll add some vegetables for you."

Zhou Shusheng happily followed.

Zhou Lexing glanced at the empty courtyard, confused: "Where should I put it?"

Gu Jiansheng gripped the kitchen knife tightly. Seeing that he didn't seem to be there to cause trouble, his tightly pursed lips relaxed a little, but he still stood by the door, showing no intention of approaching: "On the stove."

Zhou Lexing glanced around and saw that one of the doors had no curtains and was not closed, so he assumed it was the kitchen and obediently carried the basin there.

"etc!"

"Hah!" Zhou Lexing had just stepped across the threshold and hadn't even seen what was going on in the empty room when he felt his foot trip. Caught off guard, he immediately stumbled forward uncontrollably.

The soup in the iron basin in my hand, though no longer scalding hot after this journey, was still steaming!

Zhou Lexing instinctively raised his arms, staggered forward, trying to find his balance. His arm muscles bulged, and he stubbornly held his hands steady, taking several quick steps forward, almost collapsing into the wall.

Holy crap!

Just like that, Zhou Lexing felt his back break out in a sweat.

Some of the soup inevitably spilled out, most of it landing on the back of his hand, instantly turning it red.

Gu Jiansheng rushed over.

He was so focused on guarding against Zhou Lexing that he forgot he had closed all the doors that could be broken into in order to ambush Zhou Dongqiang, leaving only his own room open.

Gu Jiansheng wasn't holding a kitchen knife because he was cooking, but rather because he was guarding the yard.

But he waited and waited, and Zhou Dongqiang never showed up again. Fearing that Zhou Dongqiang was lying in ambush outside, Gu Jiansheng stood guard in the yard for the whole afternoon. His highly vigilant brain was baked by the sun for so long that he was completely bewildered.

Gu Jiansheng rushed to his door and looked at Zhou Lexing, who looked a little disheveled inside. He wanted to ask him how he was doing, but his long-standing wariness and hostility towards outsiders made him feel a lump in his throat and unable to say anything to show his concern.

Seeing his dejected expression, Zhou Lexing couldn't help but tease him, "It's okay, the ribs didn't fall out, they're still inside."

Zhou Shusheng, who was a step behind him, was still outside the door. What had just happened was too fast. Zhou Shusheng tilted his head, not understanding: "Brother, what were you doing just now?"

“Brother is dancing.” Zhou Lexing replied casually, carrying the basin outside. He naturally saw the hemp rope tied not far behind the threshold. After thinking for a moment, he didn’t ask any more questions. “Don’t get involved. Go open the kitchen door and I’ll put it on the stove for you. I’ll also get a mop to wipe the floor.”

Gu Jiansheng glanced at the soup bowl. He was averse to physical contact with others, so it was better not to reach out to take it. Hearing this, he obediently opened the kitchen door and let Zhou Lexing in.

Zhou Lexing could tell at a glance that the stove hadn't been lit yet, and the cutting board was completely empty. It was obvious what Gu Jiansheng was doing with the kitchen knife.

Oh, poor thing, he needs a knife to defend himself just to open a door.

When Zhou Lexing thought of the pervert who climbed the wall in the middle of the day and what Aunt Zhou next door had said, his already soft heart was suddenly filled with a large spoonful of lemon vinegar, which was both sour and astringent.

He put down the soup bowl, glanced around the kitchen, and saw only two malnourished sweet potatoes in the vegetable basket, half a bag of grain, and nothing else. Even mice probably wouldn't want to stay in this house.

To be fair, his family has a lot of tools.

Zhou Lexing, inappropriately recalling the saying that poor students have a lot of stationery, couldn't help but laugh again.

He stepped out of the kitchen and saw Zhou Shusheng huddled at the door of the room he had just left. He walked over and, sure enough, saw Gu Jiansheng lying on the cement floor, wiping the floor with a rag.

To be fair, Gu Jiansheng had delicate skin and fair hands. As he wiped the floor with that dusty rag, he looked more like Cinderella than a Cinderella in distress.

"I'll do it." Zhou Lexing walked over quickly. "Whoever caused the trouble should clean it up."

He reached directly for the rag in Gu Jiansheng's hand. Gu Jiansheng instinctively backed away to avoid being approached, which easily allowed the rag to fall into Zhou Lexing's hands.

Zhou Lexing was also efficient at his work; he was strong and fast, and he even wiped down the area around the only bed in the room.

"This rag is torn, I'll get you a mop later, then you won't have to work so hard lying on the ground." Back then, there were no mops, but the wisdom of the masses is boundless. Now in the countryside, old rags are tied to wooden sticks to serve as mops. Although you still have to wring them by hand, it's much easier.

Gu Jiansheng stood there with his lips pursed, neither running away nor saying a word.

Zhou Lexing vaguely felt that he was like a cat. If you went close, the cat would either spit in your face or turn around and run away. But if you were doing your own thing and ignored him, he would watch you longingly from a short distance away. He was both pitiful and cute.

"Alright, I'm leaving now. You should eat your food too."

He did want to give Gu Jiansheng special treatment, and even wanted to take him home for dinner, but this couldn't be rushed. Cats have pride, so you have to stroke their fur gently and let them know that the cat food was something they earned, picked up, or fell from the sky. But you can't let them know that you gave it to them, otherwise they'll probably just sniff it and run away.

Upon hearing the word "eat," Zhou Shusheng cheered happily, no longer paying attention to the small flowers sprouting from the oxalis in the corner of the yard, and cheerfully followed Zhou Le.

"I've closed the door for you. Remember to lock it yourself."

As the gate was pushed shut, Gu Jiansheng heard the sounds of laughter and chatter outside gradually fade away, and the courtyard fell silent again. Zhou Lanhua's house remained deathly quiet, with the air still filled with the moisture from wiping the floor.

Gu Jiansheng stood there for an unknown amount of time before finally moving his stiff body.

He walked silently to the stove, stared at the bitter melon soup with oil floating on top for a while, and then picked it up and took a sip.

The bitter melon soup had cooled to a lukewarm temperature. It was slightly astringent at first, but had a sweet aftertaste and a meaty aroma.

He savored the taste of the soup, and for a moment, he felt that this summer was indeed not so unbearable.

.

"Have you heard? That old widower Dong Qiang fell into a cesspool!"

"I know, I know. If Old Zhuang hadn't left his sickle in the field, fearing someone might take it, he would probably still be soaking in the water right now, having rushed back right after lunch!"

"Huh—!"

The crowd collectively let out a sound of disgust.

"How could he have fallen into the cesspool out of nowhere?"

"Who knows? If you ask me, the toilets need to be renovated. You've seen the toilets in town, right? They're so easy to flush with water, the smell isn't so pungent, and you don't have to worry about falling in!"

Yes, yes.

The crowd echoed in agreement once again.

"Speaking of which, that scene was really disgusting. When the old man came to my husband for help, we really shouldn't have agreed. We almost threw up our dinner from the night before! The smell was nauseating."

The speaker was Zhou Meixia, who lived at the end of the village. Zhou Lexing had once borrowed a water ladle and a bucket from her family. Now, when the topic came up, he felt both sighing and disgusted.

As she spoke, she recalled the scene and couldn't help but gag.

Everyone looked at them with a mixture of disgust and curiosity. It was just that it happened in the middle of the day, when it was very hot, and most people didn't go out. Only those with sharp ears rushed out to see what was going on.

The villagers at the village entrance were unaware of the situation and couldn't help but ask further questions.

"Didn't he say how he fell?"

How did you manage to pull him up here?

"You guys aren't covered in shit, are you?"

While everyone was chattering away, Zhou Lexing, the instigator, quietly squatted in a corner, watching the busy ant hole with Zhou Shusheng.

"It makes me so angry just thinking about it! That old bastard Zhou Dongqiang, we went to great lengths to help him out of our shared hometown, borrowing ropes and asking people for help, and what did he do? We practically dragged him up, and the first thing he did was vomit all over my husband!"

"Huh—!"

The thought of that scene made everyone feel disgusted, and they took a step back.

"That makes sense. He's been soaking in there for who knows how long; he must be stuffed by now."

"vomit."

Upon hearing this, sounds of nausea and retching rose and fell among the crowd.

"Are you trying to get yourself killed? Saying such disgusting things is awful!"

"I'm just telling the truth! Ugh."

As Zhou Lexing listened to the lively discussion behind him, his gaze fixed intently on the ant hole, as if he were trying to solve a world mystery. The ants seemed to sense some inexplicable pressure, and their crawling speed became much faster.