Chapter 102 I Can't Sleep, You Have to Take Responsibility for Me (Major Revision)
Zhao Wenchang nodded upon hearing this.
After a day and a night of tension, my nerves finally relaxed completely after eating and drinking my fill. The weariness that I had left behind surged up like a tide.
After finishing her meal and putting down her bowl, Jiang Wanqiu immediately yawned, tears welling up in her eyes.
Zhao Wenchang stood up and, very sensibly, quickly cleared the bowls and chopsticks from the table into a basin in the kitchen. When he turned around, he saw his young wife had already climbed onto the kang (a heated brick bed) in a daze, without even taking off her outer clothes, and was about to fall asleep with her head tilted to the side.
"Take off your clothes before you sleep." Zhao Wenchang walked over and sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), his voice unconsciously softening.
Jiang Wanqiu was so sleepy that she could barely keep her eyes open. She mumbled an "Mmm" and her hands were weak.
Zhao Wenchang didn't say anything more. He reached out his large, well-defined hands and skillfully unbuttoned her coat, then helped her take off her shoes and socks, before tucking her into the warm bed.
That night, Jiang Wanqiu slept very restlessly.
In my dream, it was that dark, dilapidated shack again, Old Zhou's face covered with sinister wrinkles, the desperate cries of the other women, and the cold feel of the gun barrel pressed against my forehead...
"don't want!"
She gasped and woke up from her dream, her whole body covered in a cold sweat.
In the darkness, she gasped for breath, her heart pounding as if it would leap out of her throat.
Just then, a heavy arm suddenly wrapped around her waist, pulling her back, and a hot, firm chest pressed tightly against her.
It's Zhao Wenchang.
Jiang Wanqiu, who was still in shock, instinctively shrank into the warm and firm heat source when she was hugged like that, wishing she could embed herself into it.
Zhao Wenchang had clearly just woken up as well, his voice still carrying a husky, magnetic quality, and his warm breath brushed against her earlobe: "Had a nightmare?"
"Hmm..." Jiang Wanqiu sniffed and responded.
Once she regained her senses, she realized that her chest felt incredibly tight, as if a wad of cotton was blocking it, making it hard to breathe.
Zhao Wenchang noticed the stiffness and slight trembling in her body, and tightened his grip on her arm.
"Don't be afraid, I'm here."
"I feel a tightness in my chest, could it be related to being scared yesterday..." Jiang Wanqiu asked softly.
Zhao Wenchang paused for a moment.
In the darkness, his breathing seemed a little heavier.
After a while, the deep, hoarse voice sounded again, but with an indescribable quality:
"Shall I rub it for you?"
Jiang Wanqiu's face flushed again.
Before she could react, Zhao Wenchang had already made his move.
He gently turned her soft body around so that she was facing him.
The earthen kang (heated brick bed) in Northeast China is warm and cozy, and the bed itself is like a private paradise.
The light was dim, with only a sliver of moonlight filtering in from the window, barely enough to outline the man's rugged features.
They were too close.
Jiang Wanqiu nervously gripped the corner of the blanket, her large, watery almond-shaped eyes shining brightly in the darkness.
Zhao Wenchang looked at her like this, and his Adam's apple bobbed up and down.
He raised his large, calloused hand and, without hesitation, covered the fabric above her chest.
His hands were large and rough, and the temperature of his palms was incredibly hot; even through a thin layer of autumn clothing, it felt as if they could be directly imprinted on her skin.
Jiang Wanqiu's body tensed instantly, and her breath caught in her throat for a moment.
Zhao Wenchang seemed oblivious to her nervousness, and simply used his rough fingertips to make light circles around her chest.
The movements were not gentle, even somewhat clumsy, yet they carried a domineering sense of soothing.
His gaze was frighteningly intense, as if he wanted to devour her whole.
He slowly leaned down, his eyes fixed on the woman: "Still feeling bored?"
Her cheeks flushed from his gaze, and her almond-shaped eyes seemed to hold a pool of spring water, shimmering and sparkling.
She subconsciously held her breath, but was surprised to find that with the warmth from his palm and the gentle rubbing, the stuffiness in her chest seemed to dissipate with the force of his touch.
She let out a soft breath and muttered, "You know what... it really doesn't feel stuffy anymore."
Zhao Wenchang didn't stop what he was doing, and chuckled softly: "The old folks say that when a person is frightened, they will subconsciously hold their breath. If a living person can't swallow that breath, they will easily feel tightness in their chest and have trouble sleeping."
Jiang Wanqiu blinked her clear eyes and blurted out, "What about the dead person?"
Zhao Wenchang paused, his dark eyes fixed on her, seemingly surprised by the woman's boldness. After a while, he slowly spoke: "If a dead person can't swallow their last breath, they're prone to becoming a zombie, crawling out of their coffin in the middle of the night and searching for living people everywhere."
A picture instantly appeared in Jiang Wanqiu's mind.
In the pitch-black night, the lid of a thin-skinned coffin creaked open, and a stiff, lifeless body dressed in tattered funeral clothes sat up abruptly...
"Ah!" She shuddered in fright, shrinking deeper into the blankets, her small fists pounding against Zhao Wenchang's firm chest. "Zhao Wenchang! Can you please stop saying such scary things so late at night!"
Zhao Wenchang let her hit him, then with a swift movement, he easily grabbed her two unruly wrists in his palm.
He seemed somewhat innocent, his voice even carrying a hint of amusement: "Didn't you ask me first?"
"I..." Jiang Wanqiu was so choked by him that she couldn't say a word.
Just then, a gust of north wind howled past the window, making the window paper rattle and rustle, sounding like someone scratching at the window with their fingernails, which was eerie.
Jiang Wanqiu was startled and instinctively burrowed into Zhao Wenchang's arms, her eyes fixed on the window as if some unclean thing was lurking there.
Now she felt she was definitely not going to be able to sleep tonight.
A deep, chuckling voice came from above: "You're more timid than a cat. I really don't know how you dared to take on the entire Zhou family by yourself."
Upon hearing his words, Jiang Wanqiu's face flushed red instantly, whether from anger or embarrassment, it was hard to tell.
She lifted her charming face from his embrace and retorted, "How can that be the same? A person is a person, and a ghost is a ghost! Of course I'm not afraid of bad people, but... but..."
But ghosts and monsters, which are invisible and intangible, are what really give people the creeps.
Zhao Wenchang remained silent, only offering mocking remarks.
Jiang Wanqiu felt incredibly embarrassed as she laughed.
To save face, she rolled her eyes and asked defiantly, "And what about you? Don't you have anything you're afraid of?"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Wenchang seemed to seriously consider it.
In the darkness, Jiang Wanqiu could only see his strong jawline and his bobbing Adam's apple.
After a long pause, he said to the woman, half-jokingly, "Maybe I was like that before. But after killing so many people and seeing so many dead bodies, I naturally stopped being afraid. Because they won't suddenly jump up and shoot you. Sometimes being around dead people actually makes me feel safer."
Jiang Wanqiu's heart skipped a beat.
She didn't know how to respond for a moment, so she simply buried her face in his chest, closed her eyes, and said in a muffled voice, "I'm going to sleep!"
But she couldn't sleep at all.
Her mind was filled with images of Old Zhou's sinister face one moment and the zombie Zhao Wenchang had mentioned the next, which was making her very agitated.
I tossed and turned in bed, like a pancake, changing positions every now and then, no matter how I lay down, I was uncomfortable.
Finally, just as she was turning over again, a large, hot hand suddenly reached out and gently pinched her small chin, fixing her face in place.
"Where are the pancakes?" The man's deep voice carried a hint of drowsy impatience. "What exactly do you want?"
Jiang Wanqiu was startled by him. When she met his eyes in the darkness, she felt inexplicably wronged.
She thought for a moment, then said matter-of-factly, "You scared me so much I couldn't sleep, you have to take responsibility!"
After saying that, she didn't know where she got the courage, but she opened her mouth and gave him a light bite on the large hand that was pinching her cheek.
Her teeth were small and even, and biting them caused a slight pain, but when her lips and tongue touched her fingertips, they brought a wet and warm sensation.
Zhao Wenchang felt a vein throb on his forehead.
A strange electric current surged from the back of my hand, instantly spreading throughout my limbs and bones.
His Adam's apple bobbed, and his breathing became out of rhythm.
Zhao Wenchang suddenly felt a little scared.
He recalled a story told by the village elders when he was a child, about foxes in the deep mountains cultivating themselves into beautiful women who would descend the mountain to seduce young, strong men and absorb their yang energy to cultivate themselves into immortals.
He felt that the fragrant and soft woman in his arms was like a fox in disguise.
Otherwise, how could an ordinary woman so easily captivate his heart and make him become unlike himself?
The next day, just as dawn was breaking.
Zhao Wenchang hadn't slept all night; he was in a state of heightened excitement, and when he got up, he was still somewhat disoriented.
He looked down and saw the woman in his arms sleeping soundly.
She curled up in his arms like a satisfied cat, a blush of contentment on her small face, her long eyelashes casting a small shadow under her eyes, and her rosy lips slightly pouting, tempting him to pluck them.
Seeing her like this, Zhao Wenchang's chaotic thoughts from last night surged up again.
He stared at her for a long time, and for the first time began to doubt himself. Could he, Zhao Wenchang, also be the kind of lecherous man who was obsessed with women?
After a moment of self-doubt, he quietly got out of bed, put on his military uniform, and went out.
The sun was high in the sky, and snow dripped from the eaves, making the light dazzling.
Zhao Wenchang has not returned yet.
Jiang Wanqiu lingered in bed for a long time before slowly getting up.
As she slowly tidied the somewhat messy bed, she pondered what to eat for lunch.
Is there any leftover food from yesterday? Should we reheat it?
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
