Chapter 169: It’s really cold when it snows

The moonlight shines through the window lattice, weaving a silvery-white pattern on the ground.

Yun Tangyin held the warm egg custard in her hand. The warmth from the edge of the porcelain bowl spread up along her fingertips, mixed with the sweet aroma of brown sugar, and spread a circle of warmth on the tip of her tongue.

Fu Yucheng sat opposite, his army green cotton jacket draped over the back of the chair, revealing the washed-out fleece underneath. There was a bit of stove ash on his collar, which had gotten there from stewing spareribs in the evening.

His eyes fell on her hand holding the spoon. Her knuckles were a little swollen due to pregnancy, but she still nimbly picked up the egg drop soup in the bowl.

"Eat slowly," he suddenly said, his voice sounding particularly soft in the quiet night, like falling snow brushing against cotton wool. "The pot is still half warm, if it's not enough, fill more."

The charcoal fire in the stove was still burning, occasionally emitting sparks that made his profile appear bright and dark.

Yun Tangyin put the last spoonful of egg custard into her mouth, and there was still a thin layer of icing at the bottom of the bowl.

Just as she was about to get up to wash the dishes, Fu Yucheng had already taken the bowl and brushed her palm with his fingertips, which were warm from the charcoal fire.

"You sit down," he said as he walked towards the kitchen, his cotton shoes making a slight squeaking sound on the bluestone slabs, "I'll wash it."

The hot water in the pot was steaming. He poured some alkaline flour into the bowl and rubbed the rag around the bowl. The foam flowed down the edge of the bowl and dripped into the wooden basin, creating small splashes.

A sparrow had landed on the snow outside the window and was pecking at the salted fish crumbs that Xiaolan had dropped on the ground. Its little head moved back and forth like a moving black ball of fluff.

The rabbit in the bamboo cage was probably startled and suddenly made a small gnawing sound, probably struggling with the hemp rope again.

Yun Tangyin put on a cotton jacket and walked to the cage. In the moonlight, she saw some hay on the rabbit's fur. Its three-lobed mouth moved quickly, chewing the frozen cabbage until only the root was left.

She reached out and touched the quilting on the cage wall. The thick fabric blocked the draft, and the temperature inside the cage was much higher than outside.

When Fu Yucheng came out after washing the dishes, he had a cloth bag in his hand. A crooked orchid was embroidered on the blue cloth.

It was the leftover scraps from when Yun Tangyin was altering his cotton vest a few days ago.

"I just found it," he said, stuffing the cloth bag into her arms. The bag was bulging with something, and there was a faint medicinal fragrance. "Director Wang gave me some mugwort leaves. He said boiling them in water and soaking your feet in it is good for pregnant women."

He squatted down and poured hot water into the basin, and the fragrance of mugwort mixed with the steam spread.

The water vapor blurred Fu Yucheng's eyebrows and eyes. He lowered his head to adjust the water temperature, and there were tiny water droplets on his eyelashes.

Yun Tangyin put her feet in the basin. The warm water flowed over her ankles, carrying the warmth of the mugwort leaves as it flowed through her meridians, dispelling the coldness of the whole day.

Fu Yucheng's hand suddenly came over, and the roughness of his palm rubbed against the instep of her foot, but his movements were so light as if he was afraid of breaking anything. His fingertips pinched up along her ankle, rubbing away the slight swelling.

"Zhou Desheng said his wife's feet were so swollen when she was pregnant with their third child that she couldn't wear shoes," he said suddenly, his voice muffled by the steam. "I'll go to the mountains to find some pine wood tomorrow and make you a low stool. It'll be more comfortable when you wash your feet."

He added a spoonful of hot water to the basin, and tiny ripples appeared on the surface of the water, reflecting the light in his eyes, which was brighter than the charcoal fire.

In the second half of the night, the snow fell silently again, making a rustling sound as it hit the window paper.

Yun Tangyin nestled in Fu Yucheng's arms, her nose rubbing against the scent of soapberries on his velvet coat, listening to his steady breathing.

His arms were wrapped around her waist with just the right amount of strength, not squeezing her stomach but still holding her securely in his arms.

The sparrows outside the window were probably full, and they fluttered into flight. The sound of their wings sweeping across the snow was particularly clear in the silent night.

When it was almost dawn, Yun Tangyin was awakened by the cold. She reached out and touched the place next to her, but the place was empty, with only a little residual warmth.

She stood up and put on her clothes. She saw that the light in the kitchen was on. The orange light flowed out through the crack in the door, drawing a warm line on the ground.

Fu Yucheng was standing in front of the stove with his back to her. His army green cotton jacket was open, revealing the fleece underneath, which was a little damp from the heat.

He was holding a coarse porcelain bowl in his hand and was scooping something into it with careful movements, as if he was performing some solemn ceremony.

"Awake?" He turned around, his eyes still a bit sleepy. "I just made you a bowl of millet porridge with some longan. Director Wang said it replenishes Qi and blood."

A thick layer of rice oil floats on the surface of the porridge, and the sweet fragrance of longan mixed with the fragrance of rice is particularly tempting in the cold air.

He sprinkled a handful of white sugar into the bowl and stirred it gently with a spoon. The sound of the sugar grains melting was as subtle as snow falling on charcoal fire.

When Yun Tangyin took the bowl, her fingertips touched the back of his hand, which was icy cold, probably from being frozen when he chopped firewood early in the morning.

There was a pile of chopped firewood on the stove. They were all about the same length and had obviously been carefully sorted. The one on top still had a fresh break.

The rabbit in the bamboo cage had woken up and was clinging to the railings to look in the direction where Fu Yucheng was chopping wood, probably because it was familiar with his footsteps.

While having breakfast, the sound of snow sweeping could be heard outside the yard. The broom made a rustling sound as it swept across the snow, occasionally mixed with the laughter of the military wives.

Mrs. Li must have come out again, carrying her child. From a distance, I could hear her loud voice: "Everyone, please sweep the snow from your doorstep! Don't let the children slip!"

This was followed by the giggling of children, playing happily and coming from far and near.

Yun Tangyin looked out the window and saw that Mrs. Li's blue cloth headscarf was particularly conspicuous in the snow. She was bending over to make a snowman for the child. Her hands were red from the cold, but her face was full of wrinkles from smiling.

Fu Yucheng put a red bean paste bun into her bowl. It was brought by Mrs. Li in the morning. The dough was soft and the red bean paste filling was just the right sweetness.

"I'll go help Zhou Desheng fix the chicken coop later." He took a bite of his bun, and crumbs fell on his collar. "His chickens were freezing last night, and they kept crying. They said the snow was leaking from the roof."

He added a piece of firewood to the stove, and the flames leaped up, casting their shadows on the wall, snuggling closely together, like a painting soaked in time.

When Yun Tangyin picked up the embroidery frame, the sunlight had already climbed up the window frame, shining through the ice flowers onto the red cloth, making the outline of the tiger-head shoes flicker.

The pink thread wanders on the cloth, the stitches are as fine as footprints on the snow, and each stitch is wrapped in the warmth of the morning light.

Fu Yucheng sat opposite her, twisting a hemp rope. The rope spun in circles in his palm, making a slight friction sound. Occasionally he looked up at her, his eyes fixed on her slightly bulging belly, which was filled with an indelible softness.

The rabbit in the bamboo cage seemed to have been warmed by the sun, and suddenly it stretched out, its fluffy white body stretching out like a ball of snow melted by the sun.

The sound of a bugle call for assembly came from afar. It was probably other companies training. The sound was a little blurred by the snow, but it revealed a solid power.

Yun Tangyin threw a piece of dried sweet potato into the cage and watched the rabbit's three-lobed mouth moving rapidly. Suddenly, she felt that the smell of fireworks in the yard and the sound of falling snow were very much like what life should be like, neither fast nor slow, but warming to the heart.