Chapter 60

During the day, Meng's father and mother had to work in the fields. Although Meng Yuxiu wanted to help his parents with more work, he really didn't know anything about fieldwork, and going there would only cause trouble for his parents.

However, after dinner, Meng Yuxiu went out with his father to fish for crayfish.

When Meng's father heard his son say that he wanted to go crayfish fishing in the future, he was a little surprised, but also pleased.

He felt that his son had indeed become more mature after getting married and was more considerate of the family.

"That's fine too," Meng's father nodded. "Just think of it as earning your own living expenses."

Before heading out, the father and son put on tall rubber boots and strapped headlamps to their heads. When the switch was turned on, the bright lights illuminated a small area.

In those days, the tools for catching crayfish were very simple: a bamboo pole with a hook on it, or even without a hook, a piece of leftover fish meat tied to a rope would do. Fishing for eels was even cruder, consisting of just a wire hook.

The father and son prepared their tools, each carrying two buckets.

This was the first time Meng Yuxiu had ever done any work, and not only was his mother nagging him about it, but even Han Shuo was a little worried.

He followed Meng Yuxiu to the courtyard gate and reminded him, "Hey, be careful not to get bitten by a snake."

Meng Yuxiu had only ever seen similar scenes in TV dramas before: the wife was pregnant and at home, while the husband had to go out to make a living for the family after dark, and the wife would reluctantly say goodbye at the door.

He was too young to understand the heartwarming feelings in TV dramas before, but today he can truly experience them.

So when he heard Han Shuo's caring tone, he felt an overwhelming sense of happiness, which gave him endless motivation.

He looked at Han Shuo and said, "Don't worry, I'll be careful."

"OK."

"Go upstairs and rest early."

"I know." Han Shuo patted his shoulder, then, mindful of Meng's parents being nearby, leaned closer and whispered, "I'm telling you, you really need to be careful. What if you get bitten by a snake... tsk! I can't raise that child alone!"

"..." Meng Yuxiu said dejectedly, "Can't you wish me well for once?"

Han Shuo chuckled and said, "I was just worried about you. Go ahead, go ahead, and catch more fish."

When Meng's father called out, Meng Yuxiu quietly reached out and quickly touched Han Shuo's stomach, then picked up the bucket and followed.

As night fell, the village gradually grew quieter, but the fields outside the village were unusually lively.

The fields and grass were filled with the constant chirping of crickets and frogs, creating a seemingly tranquil yet noisy environment.

In August, the rice plants grew strong and plump, their heavy ears crowding the ridges so much that the paths were obscured. The father and son could only walk along, tapping their fishing rods as they went.

Meng's father was experienced. After exploring several spots, he stopped in front of a small ditch next to the rice paddy. He placed the bucket on the side, then took out a small piece of fish meat from the bucket and hung it on the fishing rod hook.

The ditch was very murky, covered with green duckweed, making it almost impossible to see anything below.

But when Meng's father submerged the fish meat on the fishing hook into the water, he soon pulled up two or three dark red crayfish. The crayfish had strong claws and once they clung to the fish meat, they wouldn't let go, even though Meng's father had lifted them into the air.

The simple task of catching crayfish was left to Meng Yuxiu, while Meng's father took a bucket and a wire hook to the rice paddies to look for eels.

Meng Yuxiu fished from one end of the ditch to the other for three hours, filling both buckets to the brim. He then used a pre-prepared fishing net to seal the bucket openings to prevent the crayfish from crawling out.

He glanced at his watch; he and Meng's father had left at eight o'clock in the evening, and it was already eleven. He looked up and swept his headlamp across the room, seeing Meng's father squatting under the rice stalks, still fishing for eels.

"Dad," he called out, carrying two buckets over.

Fishing for eels takes time, so Meng Yuxiu squatted down and counted the eels in his father's bucket. He estimated there were about twenty or thirty long, thin eels.

The rice paddies were full of water at this time of year. Meng's father's wire hook was stuck in a mud hole in the water. The father and son held their breath, with only the bright white light shining directly on them.

Meng Yuxiu squatted for a few minutes until his legs felt numb, then he stood up and moved around.

It was hot, so he wore loose-fitting knee-length shorts. Because of his long legs, even though he wore knee-high rubber boots, they looked like children's shoes, only reaching his calves.

He had intended to move his legs to ease the numbness, but when the headlamp above his head shone casually on him, his eyes widened and his face changed drastically.

"!"

Startled, Meng's father dropped the wire hook he was holding and stood up, hurriedly asking, "What's wrong?"

The son was not talkative to begin with, so when Meng's father saw his son's face turn pale and he was kicking his leg wildly in silence, he didn't know what had happened.

"What's wrong?"

"Dad..." Meng Yuxiu called out as he pedaled.

When Meng's father shone his miner's lamp on his leg, he realized it was just a leech biting him.

When he first left the house, Meng's father was pleased that his son had become more mature and stable after getting married. But the next second, he watched helplessly as his son sprang up from the ground, bouncing around a lot, as if his long legs wanted to kick him off.

"What are you doing?!" Since nothing serious had happened, Meng's father frowned and scolded, "You've scared all the eels away!"

“Dad…” Meng Yuxiu frowned and continued to kick his leg in place.

"It's just a leech! How old are you? Look at you, so pathetic, can't you even pick it off yourself?" Father Meng shook his head, both annoyed and helpless, and prepared to go forward to help his son remove the leech from his leg.

As the boy's legs continued to twitch, something suddenly flew off his foot.

"..."

"..."

Meng Yuxiu was immediately stunned. He stared blankly as the veins on his father's forehead throbbed.

Meng's father was speechless. After he helped his son remove the leeches from his legs, smashed them on the ground, and stomped on them, he still had to wear rubber shoes and go into the rice paddy to find the rubber shoes that had been thrown off his son.

Watching his son squat down to put on his rubber shoes and then stand up again, Meng's father couldn't help but find it amusing.

Even though he's already taller than me, sometimes his behavior still shows traces of his childhood self.

It was probably when Meng Yuxiu was three or four years old that his father and mother were busy in the fields and were worried about leaving him alone at home.

So they would take him to the fields.

The little boy, the same age as Meng Yuxiu, was mischievous, rolling around in the mud all day long, and would even pick up chicken droppings he saw on the road out of curiosity.

But Meng Yuxiu was different. When he was a child, he was fair-skinned like a little girl and had a quiet personality. At the same time, like a little girl, he was afraid of dirt and insects.

Mencius' parents would put him on the edge of the field, and he would sit obediently by himself. But he couldn't stand it when he saw insects crawling by.

He didn't dare to move, so he just clenched his two little fists. His fair face immediately wrinkled up. He didn't cry loudly like other children, but instead hummed softly with his eyebrows furrowed. However, tears streamed down his face, making his nose and mouth red.

"Xiao Xiu, why are you crying?" Meng's father asked as he walked over.

Meng Yuxiu stomped his feet in discomfort, then opened his arms for his father to hug him.

After Meng's father picked him up, he was so afraid that the insects might bite his feet that he quickly tucked his two short legs up and wrapped them around his father's waist.

"Daddy, coughing..."

"Alright, what's a man afraid of bugs?" Meng's father gently patted his son's bottom.

Like any father and son, as the son grows up, the father and son can no longer be as close as they were when they were young. Gradually, the father becomes more and more rigid and serious, while the son grows up to be more independent and distant.

Looking at his son under the lamplight, the lines of his face slowly lost their youthful immaturity. But whenever Meng's father thought of Meng Yuxiu as a child, his heart would still soften.

"How are you going to earn a living for you and your wife looking like this?" It was rare for Meng's father to have such a chance to tease his son, although in Meng Yuxiu's eyes, his father's face was still that stern and unsmiling face.

Upon hearing the word "wife," Meng Yuxiu looked up at his father with a firm gaze and said, "I will adapt in the future."

Meng's father nodded slightly, and he just joked that there was nothing more to say.

The father and son continued fishing for eels for another hour before going home.

When he returned, Meng's mother and Han Shuo were already fast asleep. Meng Yuxiu put the two buckets in the yard, took off his rubber shoes, put on slippers, and went upstairs.

Seeing his son's hurried manner, Meng's father knew that the boy's mind was full of his wife, so he didn't say anything and went downstairs to wash up by himself.

Because the courtyard lights were on, Meng Yuxiu didn't turn them on when he returned to his room.

Han Shuo was fast asleep, and in the darkness, Meng Yuxiu could clearly hear his even breathing. Meng Yuxiu thoroughly enjoyed the feeling of returning home late at night to find his pregnant wife lying in bed.

While Meng's father was washing up downstairs, he quietly approached the bed and briefly watched Han Shuo sleep.

However, Han Shuo was startled again by a dark figure that suddenly appeared beside the bed.

"Holy crap!" He almost jumped out of bed. It wasn't until the room lights were turned on that he could see that it was Meng Yuxiu.

"Why the hell are you always sneaking around like this?!"

Meng Yuxiu said, "I saw you were sleeping and didn't mean to wake you."

Han Shuo wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and said in defeat, "You should wake me up next time. If you do it again, I'll be scared into having a miscarriage."

Meng Yuxiu was momentarily frightened upon hearing this and quickly reached out to touch Han Shuo's stomach.

Seeing his nervousness, Han Shuo reassured him, "It's alright, I was just giving an example. Next time you want to watch, just turn on the lights and watch openly, okay?"

Meng Yuxiu nodded repeatedly.

After Han Shuo regained his senses, he realized that Meng Yuxiu had gone out that evening. Seeing some mud on the cuffs of his shorts, Han Shuo asked, "You just got back?"

"Yes, my dad is washing up downstairs, and I'll have to go downstairs later too."

How many crayfish did you catch?

Meng Yuxiu laughed, "Two full buckets, all caught by myself. My dad caught dozens of eels."

Han Shuo laughed and pinched his face with both hands, "Wow! That's amazing! I'll go downstairs to see your dad after he finishes showering."

After washing up, Meng's father knocked on the young couple's bedroom door, "Xiao Xiu, hurry up and go wash up and go to bed."

"good."

Han Shuo was no longer sleepy, so he got up and went downstairs with Meng Yuxiu. He squatted in front of the bucket and lifted the fishing net to look at the crayfish and eels.

"Oh, I wish I could go fishing with you guys. I've never caught crayfish before in my life." Han Shuo was extremely eager to try new things.

Meng Yuxiu filled a basin with water in the kitchen. Due to limited resources in this era, there was no bathroom in the house, so he had to take a bath standing in the kitchen.

Although Meng's father often told him to take a bath in the yard and not to make the kitchen wet, Meng Yuxiu was not used to taking a bath naked in the yard, since the second floor was his parents' bedroom and the window faced the yard.

Of course, Meng Yuxiu's parents didn't have the urge to watch their son bathe, but since Meng Yuxiu wasn't used to it, the couple didn't bother to say anything more.

Han Shuo, on the other hand, after moving in, would simply tell Meng's mother when he wanted to take a bath, and then take the basin to the courtyard.

Mencius' mother boiled water for him and went to his room to draw the curtains while he was taking a bath.

Compared to her pretentious son, Meng's mother liked her daughter-in-law Han Shuo, who was so generous and easygoing, more and more.

After looking at the crayfish and eels in the bucket for a while, Han Shuo covered the bucket with the fishing net again and then went into the kitchen.

Meng Yuzheng was about to take off his clothes when he noticed Han Shuo staring at him. He said somewhat embarrassedly, "I'm taking a shower."

Han Shuo found it amusing. He thought Meng Yuxiu was truly a strange person; he could do anything in bed, but once out of bed, he became reserved. It was as if his body could only be seen under the covers, and once outside, it was as if it were labeled with shame.

"You go wash yours." Han Shuo walked over and pinched his butt, saying, "It's not like I haven't seen it before. Is there any part of your body that I haven't seen?"

"Hmm?" Han Shuo smiled knowingly. "Is there any part of you I haven't touched yet? Hmm?"

Meng Yuxiu was amused by his lewd and perverted appearance, and then took off his own clothes and pants.

Han Shuo crossed his arms and openly looked him up and down.

Han Shuo's blatant and naked gaze could probably only be met with the same nonchalance between long-married couples as close friends.

Meng Yuxiu was indeed overwhelmed. He didn't even have the nerve to take a towel to wash his little brother. He turned himself around with his feet in the basin.

Seeing his shy and hesitant manner, Han Shuo went over and took the towel from his hand, saying, "I'll wash your back."

"No."

"Why are you being shy with me? I'm your wife now! Besides, you've worked hard all night, shouldn't I treat you?"

Meng Yuxiu froze upon hearing the word "wife".

Han Shuo, holding a wet towel, gently washed him from his shoulders to his long legs, occasionally walking around to the front to tease him: "Tsk tsk tsk, I didn't expect your face to be so clean. So this is where all the hair grows."

"Stop talking..."

"Hehehe." Han Shuo soaked the towel in water again and wiped his head.

Meng Yuxiu listened as Han Shuo mumbled something incoherently while wiping, "Little bunny, open your legs, brother wants to come in..."

He couldn't help but reach out and cover Han Shuo's mouth, whispering, "Stop singing, Mom and Dad will hear you."