Chapter 2, Chapter 2 Panpan
Chapter 2
Shen Yanzhou picked up the homework that was set aside and continued reading.
Yu Pan sat on Shen Yanzhou's lap, her elbows resting on the edge of the table, her gaze fixed on the food in front of her.
Minced meat omelet and stir-fried bok choy are both his favorite dishes.
He glanced at Shen Yanzhou discreetly, and seeing that the other was focused on his homework, he quickly shoveled a mouthful of rice into his mouth.
"Panpan".
Yu Pan paused, then turned to look at Shen Yanzhou suspiciously, only to find that Shen Yanzhou wasn't even looking at him.
How could you know that?
Amazing.
Yu Pan reluctantly divided the rice into smaller portions, then demurely picked up a small amount and put it in her mouth.
Chew slowly and thoroughly.
But it seemed she was being too reserved; she picked up too little rice, and couldn't even taste the aroma of the rice. Yu Pan couldn't help but pout slightly.
Shen Yanzhou checked very quickly, and finished turning the last page in just a few minutes.
He casually picked up the thermos on the table, poured a cup of hot water, held it in his palm, and watched Yu Pan eat while drinking, a smile playing on his lips that he himself didn't even realize.
Yu Pan ate with great relish, her mouth almost never stopping. She would swallow the vegetables, then pick up some meat, and after swallowing the meat, she would have a mouthful of rice.
His cheeks were puffing out, and he looked very satisfied.
Shen Yanzhou glanced at the remaining food on the plate, estimated that it was about enough, and said, "Alright, I'm not eating anymore."
Yu Pan reluctantly put down her chopsticks and gestured to Chen Yanzhou, "But I don't feel full yet."
"Really?" Shen Yanzhou raised an eyebrow, then slipped his pre-warmed hand under Yu Pan's clothes, gently placing his palm on Yu Pan's slightly bulging stomach. "I feel like I'm full."
"No! I'm still..." Yu Pan hadn't finished gesturing when she suddenly let out a burp.
"What else do you want?" Shen Yanzhou asked knowingly.
Yu Pan blushed and gestured, "It's nothing, I was just full."
After gesturing, Yu Pan leaned back and rested steadily against Shen Yanzhou's chest, with the back of her head resting on his shoulder.
He rested one hand on his stomach, looking at the ceiling with a sense of despair.
My stomach is so uncooperative; how come I'm full after eating so little?
Actually, it's not "just this little bit." Shen Yanzhou is a regular customer at this shop, and the owner is a very honest person.
Every time Shen Yanzhou went to buy food, he would pack the food tightly into the container, making sure the portions were generous.
Yu Pan had already eaten most of the meal, which was quite a lot.
Shen Yanzhou couldn't help but laugh out loud, resting his chin on Yu Pan's shoulder and gently rubbing his stomach. "Don't just sit there after you've eaten. Get up and walk around."
Yu Pan nodded, snuggled and rubbed against Shen Yanzhou for a while, and then slowly got up and wandered around the small hall.
The layout of the houses in the village is pretty much the same, with each household having a small courtyard in front of their door, surrounded by yellow mud bricks.
Half of the square room was partitioned off to form a large hall, where a square table and several long benches were placed, and meals were usually eaten here.
The other half was partitioned off to make a bedroom; their house was divided into two rooms to create a two-bedroom, one-living room layout.
Two small huts were built on the left side of the gate in the courtyard to serve as a kitchen and woodshed.
Yu Pan paced back and forth in the hall, her eyes unconsciously glancing at Chen Yanzhou, who was finishing off the leftovers.
This happens almost every meal in their family.
Yu Pan has a problem with eating; she always wolfs down her food, stuffing large mouthfuls of everything into her mouth.
Moreover, he has a particularly dull sense of hunger and satiety, and doesn't feel it very clearly when he's hungry.
But once they start eating, if no one stops them, they won't stop until they've finished all the food on the table.
When he first arrived at the Shen family's house, they thought he was just starving and didn't take it seriously.
It wasn't until he vomited several times in a row that everyone realized something was wrong.
Aunt Shen said he was like a little mouse, never leaving food for the next day.
Uncle Shen said that he had been so hungry when he was a little beggar that he no longer knew the difference between being hungry and full.
That's why Shen Yanzhou always kept an eye on him during meals.
Thinking of Uncle Shen, Yu Pan's mood suddenly plummeted. He walked behind Shen Yanzhou and wrapped his arms around his neck.
Shen Yanzhou was eating when he said without even looking up, "Panpan, you can't eat anymore, even if you beg."
Yu Pan rested her chin on Shen Yanzhou's head, shook her head vigorously, and gestured with her hand in front of Shen Yanzhou's face: "I won't eat."
"You still have to go for a walk, don't be lazy."
Yu Pan was so angry that she let go of his hand, turned around and paced around the room, stomping her feet on the cement floor with a dull thud.
You can tell how solid the stomping was just by listening to the sound.
Chen Yanzhou is like a piece of wood!
...
-
Xishan Village is located in the south, and winters are almost always rainy, with the sun often not appearing for a month.
Such weather is always gloomy and chilly, with even the air feeling damp.
To save firewood, Yu Pan always starts boiling water right when Shen Yanzhou finishes work.
After the water boils, the charcoal fire at the bottom of the stove remains warm, keeping the water in the pot warm and preventing it from cooling down.
After finishing your meal and sitting down to rest, you can lift the pot lid and find it still full of steaming hot water, enough for two people to take a shower, wash dishes, rinse your mouth, and so on.
Their bathing area was in the corner opposite the stove, with a semi-circular strip of cement four or five centimeters high on the ground to prevent bathwater from splashing everywhere.
When you take a shower, you can simply pull the curtain next to you, and all the steam and water droplets will be trapped inside.
Yu Pan quickly took a hot shower, her body still warm and steamy.
While Shen Yanzhou was taking a shower, he quickly put on a coat, picked up an enamel mug, filled it with water, and brushed his teeth.
In the short time it took to wash up, the chill seeped in through his collar and cuffs, making his fingertips numb.
Yu Pan quickly wiped her face clean, put the enamel mug on the windowsill, ran to bed, and quickly crawled into the quilt, wrapping herself up tightly.
When Shen Yanzhou washed up and entered the room, he saw Yu Pan wrapped up on the bed like a caterpillar, with only her dark head sticking out.
He put down the mosquito net before going to bed.
Yu Pan is afraid of insects, yet he is also very attractive to insects.
Even in the dead of winter, he would attract unknown insects that would bite him, so his family kept mosquito nets up all year round.
"Turn over." Shen Yanzhou tugged at the corner of the blanket that Yu Pan was pressing down on.
Yu Pan's head popped out from under the covers, her eyes filled with a hint of reproach.
As soon as Shen Yanzhou crawled into bed, he immediately snuggled up to her and pressed himself against her.
There was no way around it; Shen Yanzhou was like a giant furnace in winter, keeping everyone incredibly warm.
Shen Yanzhou took the opportunity to pull Yu Pan's leg over and tuck it between his own legs to cover it.
Yu Pan had been trying to warm up the bed for a while, but it hadn't gotten warm. However, as soon as Chen Yanzhou arrived, the bed became warm and cozy.
He snuggled closer to Shen Yanzhou, his nose touching Shen Yanzhou's collarbone.
You can smell the faint scent of soap on Shen Yanzhou's body as he breathes, mixed with the warmth of his fresh shower.
Even though they both used the same bar of soap, Yu Pan always felt that her scent wasn't as pleasant as Chen Yanzhou's.
The scent of Shen Yanzhou, how should I put it, is a scent that makes Yu Pan feel at ease.
“I saw Spring Festival couplets hanging up on my way home from work today,” Shen Yanzhou said, putting his arm around Yu Pan and gently stroking his back. “When it gets warmer, let’s go shopping and pick out a couple we like.”
Yu Pan nestled in Shen Yanzhou's arms and nodded, looking somewhat dazed.
The Spring Festival couplets are all up; time flies so fast, another year has passed in the blink of an eye.
His fingers unconsciously gripped Shen Yanzhou's undershirt, the fabric rubbing against his fingertips.
Yu Pan always had something in her hand when she slept; sometimes it was Shen Yanzhou's fingers, and sometimes it was the hem of Shen Yanzhou's clothes.
Shen Yanzhou knew his habit, so she just squeezed his slightly cool fingertips without disturbing his little actions, and said softly, "Go to sleep, I'll cook you sweet potato porridge tomorrow."
Yu Pan rubbed against Shen Yanzhou's collarbone, and then kissed it like a kitten, as if to acknowledge his gesture.
With the steady heartbeat of Shen Yanzhou in her ears, Yu Pan felt a warm glow all over her body, and her eyelids gradually drooped.
Seeing that his breathing had evened out, Shen Yanzhou reached out and pulled the light cord.
With a soft click, the bedroom went dark.
In the darkness, Shen Yanzhou could clearly feel Yu Pan's warm breath on the crook of his neck.
He lowered his head and touched Yu Panlu's exposed earlobe with his lips; the soft flesh was already warm from being touched.
Shen Yanzhou pulled the person closer to his chest before closing his eyes.
It was still chilly outside the tent, with a damp chill typical of southern winters spreading throughout the room.
But this did not affect the people inside the tent at all; they huddled together, their blankets already warmed by each other's warmth.
...
-
Yu Pan didn't know if it was because he thought of Uncle Shen and the others during dinner, but he dreamed about things before he went to the Shen family.
At that time, he was a beggar begging on the streets.
In Yu Pan's limited memory, he only remembered that he kept wandering around aimlessly, and when he was hungry, he would crawl into the garbage dump and rummage for anything edible.
He was mute and couldn't say anything to get food like other beggars; he could only bury his head in the garbage and dig around.
If you're lucky, you might be able to rummage through the swill bucket at the back door of the shop and find some rice and minced meat.
But most of the time he wasn't so lucky. The boss would keep the leftovers to feed the pigs and chickens, and if he came over, he would grab a stick and beat him.
So Yu Pan mostly went to the vegetable market to pick up rotten vegetable leaves that the stalls had thrown away.
Even so, one must be careful, as some vendors will take the food back to feed their chickens, and will shoo him away while cursing when they see him trying to pick it up.
When she was really hungry, she would even pick wild grass from the roadside to eat, but Yu Pan only dared to eat those that she had eaten before and was sure would be safe to eat.
He remembered it vividly; he had once witnessed another beggar who, after eating unfamiliar grass, would writhe in pain in a corner at night, clutching his stomach, and died a few days later.
Later, some older beggars came to the place he frequented. He was thin and small, and they grabbed him and beat him several times.
Unable to defeat them, Yu Pan could only run away. She stumbled and bumped into Xishan Village, where she happened to run into Uncle Shen, who was eating by the edge of a field.
…
After being adopted by Uncle Shen, Yu Pan learned sign language from Teacher Ji next door and also learned to read. She always liked to ask Uncle Shen why he took her in.
Only Shen Yanzhou in the family had accompanied him to learn sign language with Teacher Ji. Uncle Shen and Aunt Shen were usually busy with work and only knew a few of the simplest gestures.
So every time Yu Pan wanted to ask these questions, she would drag Shen Yanzhou along with her.
Shen Yanzhou had a good temper; he didn't get impatient even when a little mute girl kept pestering him to be his translator.
After asking him many questions, Uncle Shen and Aunt Shen gradually figured out the meaning behind his gestures.
Sometimes, Yu Pan would only be halfway through gesturing when Uncle Shen and Aunt Shen would start talking.
Uncle Shen would always laugh and say, "That day I was sitting by the edge of the field eating, and as I was eating, I felt like someone was watching me. I turned my head!"
"Sure enough, I saw a little beggar who looked as thin as a bean sprout standing under the elm tree staring at me. I thought to myself, this child is really thin, so I left him a little half a bowl of rice."
"Who knew you, little beggar, were so strange? Instead of holding the bowl to eat, you poured the food into your palm and ate it, and after you finished, you obediently washed the bowl clean."
“I’ve been feeding you like this for a few days, and you actually followed me to the fields. You’re so short, yet you stood on tiptoe to try and help me carry the hoe.”
Uncle Shen said he really liked the little beggar, so after discussing it with his wife at home, they decided to take the little beggar home.
Little Yu Pan, sitting on the doorstep listening to her own story, cupped her face in her hands, her eyes sparkling, her lips curving into a wide smile, nodding happily.
...
-
Perhaps because he was having such a comfortable dream, Yu Pan, who is usually a very alert sleeper, thought he was still dreaming when Shen Yanzhou got up to put socks on him.
Yu Pan nestled in the warm blankets, her little face sticky as she rubbed against Shen Yanzhou's thigh, like a cat that hadn't fully woken up.
Shen Yanzhou easily picked him up and let him lean against her chest.
Yu Pan can eat a lot, but she just can't gain weight. It's like the food she eats isn't absorbed; she's all bones.
This is probably related to the fact that Yu Pan doesn't have much firepower, and she can never get warm in bed by herself.
It's fine when Shen Yanzhou is around; he's like a giant heater. But if Shen Yanzhou leaves the bed, he'll wake up freezing in less than half an hour.
So every morning when Shen Yanzhou got up, he would first put thick socks on Yu Pan's feet, and then stuff the sweater and coat that Yu Pan was going to wear into the quilt to keep him warm so that he wouldn't feel cold when he got up to put them on.
Yu Pan was still nestled in Shen Yanzhou's arms, not fully awake. She obediently lifted one foot to let him put on his socks, looking very compliant.
As he switched to his other foot, he groggily raised his hand and gestured to Shen Yanzhou, "I dreamt of Uncle Shen and Aunt Shen."
"Hmm." Shen Yanzhou carefully tucked his trouser leg into his sock, and asked in a low voice, "What did they say to you?"
"They said...that I'm really good." Yu Pan smiled, her eyes crinkling.
Shen Yanzhou lowered his head and kissed the tip of his nose. "Panpan is such a good boy."
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