Chapter 98
When they went home, they walked one after the other, with Chen Qing in front and Zhou Yuan following behind.
The blush on Chen Qing's face never faded. When he got home, everyone had finally left. He went straight to his room, lay down on the bed, and covered his face with his pillow.
Although Zhou Yuan had hugged him at night, it was all inside the house. Today, he actually kissed and hugged him outside in broad daylight.
Grandmother noticed that something was off between the two of them and looked at Zhou Yuan: "Yuan, what's wrong?"
Zhou Yuan just smiled and said, "It's alright, Grandmother, he's just shy."
Grandmother breathed a sigh of relief: "You two must take good care of yourselves."
Zhou Yuan sat down next to her and held her hand: "Our family must be well."
Grandma placed her hand on Zhou Yuan's head and sighed, "You know, Grandma is old. I thought I wouldn't be able to wait for you to come back, but I was lucky enough to meet Xiao Qing and be able to wait for you to come back."
“Grandmother.” Zhou Yuan didn’t like him saying these things.
But the grandmother had been holding back for a long time. Zhou Yuan had been busy with other things the past two days, and today the two of them finally had a chance to talk quietly.
“The people here aren’t very good.” Grandmother sat on the recliner, while Zhou Yuan sat on the floor. “Do you know what those people who just came said? They said that Xiao Qing was bought and that he can be a concubine. They said that they have other young men and women in their family who are ready to be married. They don’t mind having someone like Xiao Qing in their family. They said that as long as he takes good care of you in the future, they won’t mind.”
Zhou Yuan scoffed, "What a shameless person you are."
"Yes, do you think I'm senile?" Grandmother had been listening to this all afternoon. "You know what? I don't like it here at all."
Zhou Yuan turned to look at his grandmother, who was gazing ahead with a look of longing in her eyes: "My old home, with its mountains and rivers, I've always wanted to go back and see it."
Zhou Yuan sat up straight and asked, "Where is your hometown?"
At this moment, Chen Qing also came out and sat down on the other side of his grandmother.
"I forgot, it's been so long."
My grandmother was not from Yizhou Prefecture. She only remembered that her hometown was flooded, and she fled to Yizhou Prefecture with her elders. Later, her elders all passed away, and she married Zhou Yuan's grandfather.
The sandstorms of Yizhou had made her forget what it felt like to live in a place with mountains and rivers. She turned her head to look at Chen Qing and felt that Chen Qing seemed to need to live in such a water town even more.
She took Zhou Yuan and Chen Qing's hands and put them together: "Yuan, do you know why Grandma doesn't want you to rebuild the house?"
Zhou Yuan turned his head to look at her: "I roughly know."
“I don’t want you to live here your whole life,” Grandmother said. “Take Xiaoqing and go south, to a place with mountains and water. Maybe you can have a few plots of land, build a small house, and raise a few chickens. That would be the best.”
Zhou Yuan nodded: "Then you'll help us raise chickens and take care of our children."
His grandmother did not answer him, but held their hands tightly. Chen Qing could feel the two hands on the back of his hands, one broad and thick, the other thin and dry, as if they were about to lose their life.
Chen Qing looked at his grandmother with some worry. Hearing what his grandmother said today, he felt very worried. Across from his grandmother, he looked at Zhou Yuan.
Zhou Yuan noticed his gaze and nodded at him.
Dinner was hand-pulled noodles cooked in the leftover bone broth. Chen Qing couldn't help but worry while kneading the dough. His grandmother was resting in her room, and Zhou Yuan was outside starting a fire for Chen Qing.
"Zhou Yuan, what did the doctor say when we went to the clinic last time?"
Zhou Yuan said, "The doctor only said that my grandmother is old and told me to be prepared."
Chen Qing's hands, which had been kneading the dough, suddenly lost their strength. He leaned against the small table, his eyes instantly reddening: "Is there no other way?"
Zhou Yuan stood up, walked to Chen Qing's side, and gently touched his hair.
The courtyard was quiet during dinner. Chen Qing didn't even finish his small bowl of noodles. His grandmother was a little worried: "What's wrong with Xiao Qing? Does he not like noodles?"
Chen Qing quickly shook his head: "No, I just ate too much at noon."
"It's alright. If he gets hungry again in the middle of the night, there are snacks in the room. He won't go hungry."
Zhou Yuan knew why he couldn't eat, so he comforted his grandmother.
"Alright." Grandmother put down the bowl. "Then don't be lazy and not give Xiaoqing anything to eat tonight."
After finishing her meal and taking her medicine, Grandma went to bed early. Zhou Yuan boiled water for Chen Qing to take a bath. He only took a bath after Chen Qing finished. When he returned to the room, Chen Qing was sitting on the edge of the bed drying his hair, and his eyes were still red.
"Still feeling unwell?" Zhou Yuan sat down next to him, took the handkerchief from his hand, and wanted to help him dry his hair. However, he had never dried anyone's hair before, and he used a lot of force, so Chen Qing was scrambling and twisting his body. Finally, he couldn't stand it anymore and snatched the handkerchief back from his hand.
"I'll wipe it myself."
After Zhou Yuan wiped his hair, it was almost dry. He lay down with a heavy heart, but couldn't fall asleep.
Zhou Yuan had no idea that Chen Qing would be so upset.
Chen Qing clutched the blanket, the darkness amplifying his sorrow: "Grandmother, Grandmother was so good to me, I don't want her to die."
Zhou Yuan listened in silence, because he knew that anything he said at this moment would be futile.
“My grandmother was very mean to me.” Chen Qing rarely spoke so much. He talked a lot about his past, and then asked Zhou Yuan, “Why do good people always die young, while bad people can live for a very long time?”
Zhou Yuan reached out and pulled him into his arms: "Don't worry too much. The doctor only said that Grandma is old, he didn't say it would happen in the next few days."
Chen Qing knew he was trying to comfort himself, but at least he had found a chance to catch his breath.
The next morning, Chen Qing woke up later than Zhou Yuan. When he got up, Zhou Yuan was no longer home. Chen Qing didn't really want to go out; he just wanted to stay home with his grandmother and was almost always by her side.
His grandmother laughed at him, "Why is Xiaoqing so clingy to me?"
“When I was little, my grandmother treated me badly, so I like you.” Chen Qing couldn’t say these words before, but he felt that separation might come at any time, so he had to say everything he needed to say.
Grandmother sat in her recliner: "Xiaoqing likes me, but does she like Ayuan?"
Chen Qing nodded: "I like it."
Zhou Yuan gave him a sense of security, and he didn't know if this was what his grandmother meant by liking someone.
"Then promise Grandma that you will live a good life with A-Yuan from now on. If he makes you angry, please forgive him for Grandma's sake."
Chen Qing nodded: "I know, we'll be fine."
Zhou Yuan went to town to buy things. When he came back, he showed them what he had bought: two bright red wedding clothes, bright red paper-cut "double happiness" characters, and a pair of dragon and phoenix candles.
“We’re not having a banquet anymore, but we still need to have the necessary things.” Zhou Yuan looked at him. “I bought these based on your size, so they shouldn’t be too far off. If there’s anything that doesn’t fit, you can have them altered.”
Chen Qing looked at the two bright red wedding dresses on the bed. He thought that since there was no banquet, there was no need to prepare these. After all, no one would be watching, so why spend the money? But Zhou Yuan had prepared them anyway.
"Remember to try it out." Zhou Yuan carried another bundle toward his grandmother. "I bought new clothes for you, but if you make them, it might be too late for the wedding. It's not that I don't trust your skills."
The joy of seeing his new wedding dress overshadowed his sadness. Chen Qing silently tried on the dress. It fit him perfectly, without needing any alterations. He wanted to take it off as soon as he finished trying it on, but Zhou Yuan came in at that moment. Looking at Chen Qing in his bright red wedding dress, Zhou Yuan nodded and said, "So you look good in red too."
Chen Qing smiled and said, "It's perfect, no need to change it."
"Okay." He thought to himself, these past two nights of hugging him weren't for nothing.
May 17th arrived quickly. Grandmother was in exceptionally good spirits that day and got up early to prepare the banquet. Although there were only the three of them, the basic formalities still had to be observed. In her entire life, she had only ever organized this one wedding banquet for her grandson.
Chen Qing changed into his wedding clothes in the afternoon. His grandmother helped him tie up his hair. In Yizhou Prefecture, a red veil is required for weddings. At this moment, everything in front of Chen Qing was red, and he could not see anything clearly.
Soon it was dusk. When the auspicious hour arrived, Zhou Yuan lit firecrackers at the door, then stepped over the firecracker debris and entered the room. Since their family did not have a main hall, the wedding ceremony was held in the courtyard. His grandmother, already dressed in new clothes, was sitting in the middle of the courtyard. Beside her were several memorial tablets, one for Zhou Yuan's parents and another for Chen Qing's father.
Zhou Yuan took Chen Qing's hand and led him step by step into the courtyard.
Since no one called out the etiquette, Grandmother called it out herself.
"I bow to Heaven and Earth." Grandmother's voice was hoarse and desolate.
"Second bow to our parents." The grandmother watched as the two people knelt at her feet and bowed solemnly.
"Husband and wife bow to each other." Chen Qing and Zhou Yuan both bowed.
They were supposed to go to the bridal chamber, but Chen Qing hadn't eaten yet and there was no one else at home, so when they returned to the room, Zhou Yuan helped Chen Qing lift the veil. Then the two of them, dressed in their wedding attire, went to the courtyard, where a banquet had already been set up.
Grandmother was already waiting for them.
Just after they had all sat down, the closed courtyard gate was knocked on. When Zhou Yuan opened the door, he was surprised to see his second brother, whom he hadn't seen in a long time.
Zhou Erge was clearly surprised to see Zhou Yuan. He was stunned for a moment before saying, "You're back. That's great."
Zhou Yuan didn't have a good impression of their family, but his grandmother came out leaning on her cane. When she saw that it was Zhou Erge, she smiled and said, "Oh, it's Ahui."
“Grandmother.” Zhou Hui bowed to his grandmother. He had come today to get money for her, but judging from the current situation, she probably didn’t need his meager gifts anymore.
"Have you eaten? If not, come and have something to eat. Today is A-Yuan's wedding." Grandmother pulled Zhou Hui into the house. "This is A-Yuan's husband, Xiao Qing."
Chen Qingchao bowed to him, and he returned the bow.
Zhou Yuan remained expressionless, but still closed the courtyard gate. Chen Qing went to find a stool, and Zhou Hui sat down.
He and Zhou Mu had separated from their family a long time ago. It was after Zhou Yuan joined the army that he discovered Zhou Mu had taken the money Zhou Yuan had given to his grandmother in the first year. He couldn't persuade him to stop, and later, after getting married, he and his wife separated from their family.
He lived with his grandmother for a period of time when he was young, so after Zhou Yuan left, he also brought his grandmother food and money. It wasn't much, but it was enough to support his grandmother for a long time.
That's why his grandmother could still greet him with a smile.
Zhou Hui knew that his family had wronged Zhou Yuan, so he didn't eat much. He just toasted Zhou Yuan with a glass of wine before leaving.
The two families could never be as close as one. Zhou Yuan drank the toast he offered, but that was it. They would never cross paths again, because Zhou Yuan had made up his mind to move them to the south.
After Zhou Hui left, the night grew deeper.
Grandmother wouldn't let them tidy up, saying tonight was their special night. Chen Qing couldn't argue with her, so he could only go back to his room with Zhou Yuan.
The bed had also been rearranged. Although there was no dragon and phoenix quilt, the mattress and quilt were bright red, and some red dates and peanuts were laid on top.
Chen Qing's cheeks flushed.
Zhou Yuan took the red dates and peanuts from the bed, put them in Chen Qing's red veil, and threw them aside. He then reached for the wine and wine cups on the bedside table.
"The nuptial wine".
Chen Qing nodded, only lightly touching his lips to the water as he drank, but he already felt a little dizzy.
A pile of dragon and phoenix candles were lit in the room. After hearing his grandmother's footsteps as she returned to her room, he slowly began to unbutton Chen Qing's clothes.
When he reached under Chen Qing's neck, he could clearly feel Chen Qing trembling.
He whispered, "Don't be afraid."
But Zhou Yuan was also a little apprehensive. He was afraid he wouldn't know how. In the military camp, he was surrounded by burly, dirty men. The daily anxiety and training had already taken a toll on their energy. Zhou Yuan's experience in this area consisted only of listening to crude jokes told by some roughnecks in the barracks.
As he was thinking, he had already taken off Chen Qing's outer robe, leaving him only in his inner garment.
I've always slept like this before, but for some reason, I feel especially embarrassed tonight.
Chen Qing curled up into a ball and watched as Zhou Yuan quickly took off his clothes, even his undergarments.
By the light of the red candle, Chen Qing saw the crisscrossing scars on Zhou Yuan's body, which were quite shocking.
Chen Qing crawled out a little and gently touched Zhou Yuan's scars. He always liked to cry, and now his eyes reddened when he saw the scars on Zhou Yuan's body.
When Chen Qing's hand touched him, Zhou Yuan's breathing became a little heavier. Ignoring everything else, he leaned down and pressed himself firmly against Chen Qing's body. His hands seemed to be out of his control, tearing Chen Qing's inner garment.
A deluge of kisses rained down on him; Zhou Yuan kissed haphazardly, and Chen Qing responded incoherently.
The broken window had long been repaired by Zhou Yuan, preventing the early summer breeze from blowing in, and the enchanting and lingering atmosphere of the room remained for a long time.
The moonlight from the full moon shone on the window. Chen Qing's hands were gripping the window when a pair of large hands pulled them down.
"Hmm," Chen Qing hummed softly.
"Almost there, almost there." Zhou Yuan kissed his already sweat-dampened temples. "Soon."
Chen Qing had no strength left, and his hands lay limply on the pillow.
The sounds inside the room gradually subsided only after the moonlight on the window disappeared and the first ray of light appeared on the horizon. Zhou Yuan kissed Chen Qing's swollen eyes.
He held Chen Qing in his arms, gazing at the somewhat dilapidated roof, thinking that this was where the wedding ceremony was supposed to be.
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