They came to clean the house a few years ago, and when they left, they still covered the furniture with film, so there wasn't much dust.

Shen Yu followed into the kitchen and saw Meng Tao taking things out of the cupboard one by one and starting to work in an orderly manner. There was a fresh cabbage on the chopping board and a big live fish was jumping in the ceramic basin. He didn't ask anything, but took the ceramic basin out, killed the fish under the faucet in the yard, and then brought it back.

Meng Tao didn't care. She could keep her secret from others, so why should she hide it from Shen Yu? In that case, she would do whatever was convenient.

Shen Yu lived in Linshui Village for a few days. He knew that his little fairy could cook and her cooking was delicious, so he stopped getting in the way in the kitchen. He let Xiao Wangcai stay alone and went into the house to clean.

He peeled off the film covering the furniture, rinsed it, and hung it on the rack. He then took a rag and mop from the eaves and wiped the furniture, bed frames, etc., and mopped the floors inside and outside the house clean.

After doing all this, the smell of food wafted from the kitchen.

Shen Yu washed the rag and mop and hung them up to dry, then washed his hands and face again, and strode towards the kitchen. An unprecedented feeling of happiness filled his chest - what he wanted was so simple, to be with the girl he loved, even if they lived such an ordinary and plain life every day, he would be happy and satisfied!

Meng Tao came out of the kitchen carrying two kettles and almost bumped into Shen Yu at the door. Shen Yu reached out to hold her shoulders, took the kettle and put it in the main room.

Seeing that his face was covered with water droplets, Meng Tao asked him to get a new towel from the cupboard in the main room to wipe his face, and then they could start eating.

The dinner for two people and a puppy was rich and tempting: rice, braised tiger meat, stewed cured chicken with chestnut mushrooms, smashed cucumbers, cabbage hearts with garlic, and finally a casserole of milky white fish soup, bubbling on the burning red clay stove.

Little Wangcai was already very hungry. He buried his head in his rice bowl and ate mouthful after mouthful without noticing anything else.

The fish soup was delicious and Shen Yu drank two bowls in a row. Meng Tao lied to him that the braised tiger meat was actually beef. He tasted two pieces and said it was tiger meat, and immediately asked where it came from.

In the winter, he could ignore fresh cucumbers, tender cabbages, and live fish that appeared out of nowhere, but tigers are large and vicious animals. He was really afraid that his girl would be bold again and go hunting tigers. What would he do if something went wrong? Meng Tao laughed: "I have the courage, but not the ability. I bought this tiger from someone else."

Shen Yu finally breathed a sigh of relief: "Remember, tell me if anything happens. Don't take any risks at any time. I just want you to be safe."

After dinner, the water in the big pot on the stove was about to boil. Meng Tao asked Shen Yu to take a shower first while she rinsed the dishes and washed Xiao Wangcai. She would then take a shower after the second pot of hot water.

Shen Yu rushed to wash the dishes with her, and took Xiao Wangcai's wooden basin and added water to give it a bath, then teased Meng Tao: "It's our turn, come and wash together!"

After getting the expected roll of the eyes, Shen Yu laughed: "You are inside, I am in the yard, so we are together now."

"No, there's not enough hot water. Besides..."

Meng Tao suddenly thought of something the neighbors had mentioned, and lowered her voice to say, "There's a girl next door who often climbs up the ladder to steal flowers. What if she comes up while you're washing in the yard and sees you naked? What should you do? She will definitely be responsible for you. Will you... go with her?"

As she spoke, she couldn't help but cover her mouth and laugh.

Shen Yu's face darkened. He pulled Meng Tao into his arms and ravaged her, ruffling her hair. He gritted his teeth and said, "I am yours, my heart is yours, as long as you, Meng Taohua, are responsible! It's useless for others to see me!"

Meng Tao almost choked with laughter: "Then you have to... ahem, be obedient! You are a man who looks like a flower, and you dare to take a bath outdoors. Do you know how tempting it is?"

Shen Yu: “…”

Looking at the naughty girl shaking in his arms, he felt angry and amused at the same time. He wanted to tease her, but she teased him instead.

After taking a bath, they sat on the eaves platform and helped each other dry their hair by the small charcoal stove. Meng Tao wore size 36 shoes, but she bought size 37 slippers. Shen Yu could barely slip on them to take a bath, and when he came back he showed Meng Tao how to walk like a woman with bound feet. Meng Tao saw the charming side of the handsome man again and was overjoyed.

At this time, the gate of the courtyard was knocked.

Xiao Wangcai quickly climbed up from his cotton mat, ran to the back of the door, sniffed, and then roared towards the outside.

Meng Tao cried out, Shen Yu: "What's wrong?"

"The mother of that woman I just mentioned is here."

"Open the door then?"

"We are neighbors, so we must open the door. Even if we don't go in, we should at least say something. Do you want to join us?"

Shen Yu looked down at the open-necked sweater he was wearing, then stood up and walked into the house: "I'll get you a thick coat."

When he came out again, he was wearing a long coat that was even thicker than Meng Tao's. He buttoned it up carefully from the first button to the last, and his leather shoes and socks were neatly put on.

Meng Tao couldn't help but want to laugh again.

Shen Yu tidied her hair and said, "We are not a couple, we are an engaged couple preparing to get married, understand?"

Meng Tao: "What's wrong with being a partner? The goal is also to get married."

"It's different. An unmarried couple can live under the same roof, but a partner... probably not."

"Why don't you stay in a hotel?" Meng Tao teased him.

"You don't live at home, you live in a hotel. Do you think your man looks like a fool?"

Meng Tao: “…” Then he upgraded again after a while.

She was so angry that she reached out to push him, but he took the opportunity to grab her. The two of them walked over and opened the gate, laughing and joking.

There were three women standing outside, Aunt Zhong and two neighbors who lived farther away. They were standing at the door, eating melon seeds and talking, and the ground was covered with melon seed shells.

Meng Tao thinks that people in that era liked to visit each other and chat because there were no televisions. In the 1990s, televisions became common, with every household having one or two, and people sat at home watching TV dramas and basically stopped visiting each other.

When they saw a man coming out of the door, the three women were all stunned.

Meng Tao said: "Hello, Aunt Zhong, hello, both aunts."

Aunt Zhong pointed at Shen Yu: "Who, who is this?"

Meng Tao: "It's what I said last time, my fiancé."

"Do you really have a fiancé?"

"yes."

"Oh, what a pity..."

(End of this chapter)