Tender
Inside the small room, bathed in warm yellow light, the north wind howled outside the window. Xu Tangmian gently tucked the baby back into the cradle, carefully tucking in the blankets before sitting up and stretching her arms.
It was already completely dark when Yu Chunsheng still hadn't returned. Surely he hadn't gone straight to find Xu Zhilian?
The security situation is nothing like it was decades ago. There aren't even any security cameras on the streets. Even though Yu Chunsheng is a man, she would be scared if he didn't come home this late, let alone with Xu Zhilian still in the city.
This enigmatic old man was actually like this when he was young.
Xu Tangmian couldn't think of a specific way to prove it, nor did she intend to prove her relationship with him. Now she really just wanted to live out her life peacefully.
But when she was alone, she still felt a little panicked. Only after becoming a mother did she understand her mother's heart and the things her mother had told her, like "don't marry far away."
She had decided to settle down with Yu Chunsheng because she saw herself as an orphan and him as a life partner. But now, their partnership had deepened, and they even had a child together, while her real family had abandoned her.
She knew in her heart that even if she gave up Yu Chunsheng and chose her grandfather, this grandfather who came halfway through life probably wouldn't treat her as family. But the thought of completely severing ties with that side for Yu Chunsheng made her shudder with fear.
Perhaps people tend to romanticize the choices they didn't make; she's romanticizing Xu Zhilian now. She's afraid that Yu Chunsheng will one day betray her, leaving her isolated and abandoned by everyone.
Just as she was lost in thought, she heard the sound of a car approaching from the yard.
Xu Tangmian pressed her face against the window, eagerly waiting, only to see Yu Chunsheng get off the bus wearing a black sweater.
It's strange. She clearly remembers him wearing a military overcoat before he left the house. Even if she's mistaken, Tian Yu Chunsheng wouldn't go out dressed like that.
No matter what, he couldn't be left to freeze like that. Xu Tangmian grabbed a cotton-padded jacket from the closet, hung it on her arm, and went out.
Yu Chunsheng pushed open the door and entered the living room, where he immediately rubbed his hands together in the cold.
Xu Tangmian came up behind him and unfolded her cotton-padded coat. Yu Chunsheng took the opportunity to put it on, straightened his clothes, and then hugged her and nuzzled her face.
The room was much warmer than outside because of the small stove burning inside. Xu Tangmian was warm from head to toe. She trembled from the hug and slapped him lightly on the back with a hint of anger, scolding, "Where did you run off to again? You even lost your clothes while delivering someone?"
Yu Chunsheng knew that Xu Zhilian's arrival must have made her feel bad, and he didn't want her to know anything about Luo Hui's matter. He just vaguely said, "I met someone on the road who was freezing to death. Since I was driving, I gave him my clothes."
Xu Tangmian had no doubts. Having spent so much time together, she knew what kind of person Yu Chunsheng was and had no doubt that he was capable of doing such a thing.
She was worried about something else.
Having hugged him enough, and feeling the renewed warmth emanating from Yu Chunsheng, Xu Tangmian glanced sideways into the room and then pulled him toward the small bed beside her.
Worried that their conversation might wake the child, Xu Tangmian walked forward silently, saying to herself, "The child is asleep, let's talk over here."
Before she could finish speaking, she was lifted up and placed on the bed, and then Yu Chunsheng pressed his body against hers.
His hot breath sprayed on her neck. Yu Chunsheng took her hand and raised it above her head, then kissed her earlobe, whispering, "You wanted to too, didn't you?"
His breath tickled her ear, as if flipping a switch that made her heart flutter.
When Yu Chunsheng went to the hospital for a check-up, he asked the doctor if it was okay to be clean after 50 days of childbirth. However, Xu Tangmian's heart was mostly on the child, and Yu Chunsheng was also worried that she was not fully recovered. Therefore, even though the child was over 100 days old, they had not been intimate.
But... that's not what she wants to talk to him about right now!
Xu Tangmian broke free from his left hand, and just as his right hand was still causing trouble, she quickly pushed him away by pressing her hands against his chest, shaking her head and saying, "Wait, I have something to tell you."
Yu Chunsheng seemed to recall what had just happened at the school gate, so he promptly stood up and distanced himself from her, nodding and saying, "Hmm, what did you say?"
Xu Tangmian was a little unaccustomed to seeing him so honest for the first time, but business was important, so she suppressed her awkwardness and asked him, "What do you plan to do about my grandfather... Mr. Xu? Are you going to go find him?"
"That's it?" Yu Chunsheng was clearly disappointed. He got up and walked to the corner to put down the bath cover.
Xu Tangmian was puzzled because she couldn't hear his reaction to the matter, and seeing that he seemed to be about to take a shower, she couldn't help but recall how quickly he got up just now.
Had he run into something outside? She followed him and asked rather unfriendly, "Where exactly did you go?"
Could it be that there are now foot massage parlors in town? Or did they find...? Xu Tangmian didn't dare to think that way, but Yu Chunsheng's reaction was definitely not right.
Aside from a few occasional sexual encounters after the baby was born, and the period following the birth, they hadn't done it for almost six months. He just got up so decisively.
Yu Chunsheng acted as if he hadn't heard her, scooping hot water from the pot on the stove into a basin, and then went outside to fetch a bucket of cold water.
After he found a change of clothes, he noticed Xu Tangmian's ashen face beside him.
"What's wrong?" He smiled and walked over to pinch her cheek, but she turned her head away.
"What's wrong?" Yu Chunsheng realized something was amiss, and his tone changed. "Why are you suddenly unhappy?"
"Are you done with your work?" Xu Tangmian asked impatiently.
Yu Chunsheng was confused. "Um... I was about to take a shower. What's wrong?"
Why do you suddenly want to take a shower?
"It's evening." Yu Chunsheng smiled blankly. "Take a shower before bed."
"I'm talking to you and you're going to go wash up? Do you even remember what I asked you?" Xu Tangmian wasn't going to let him off the hook.
“You asked…” Yu Chunsheng recalled for a moment, “Your grandfather… oh no, Xu Zhilian’s matter? Let’s talk about it tomorrow, there’s no rush now.”
"No!" Xu Tangmian stomped her foot in anger. "Where did you go after you saw my older sister and the others off? Why are you back so late? And why did you suddenly decide to go take a shower?"
"What happened?" Yu Chunsheng still didn't want to talk to her about Luo Hui, thinking she was just throwing a tantrum. He smiled and put his arm around her waist to kiss her. "Didn't I tell you I ran into someone who was about to freeze to death? You know I love to meddle in other people's business, so I chatted with him for a while and wasted time."
"Male or female?" Xu Tangmian turned her face away, preventing him from kissing her.
Yu Chunsheng then realized what Xu Tangmian was being awkward about and couldn't help but find it amusing. He gently stroked her cheeks, forcing her to look at him, and whispered, "Are you jealous?"
"Who's jealous of you?" Xu Tangmian's eyes were a little red. "Who cares what you've been with outside? I'm afraid you'll pick up some dirty stuff outside and come home to ruin us, mother and daughter!"
"You don't trust me at all." Yu Chunsheng put his arm around her shoulder and pulled her into the bathtub. The hot water that had been poured earlier had already brought the small space to a comfortable temperature.
The two were still wearing thick clothes, and they felt a little breathless as soon as they came in. Xu Tangmian's face also turned red from the heat.
Yu Chunsheng couldn't wait to take off his coat and then help Xu Tangmian take it off.
Xu Tangmian hadn't even heard his explanation yet, so she refused to let him touch her and immediately hugged her arms tightly.
"I didn't contact anyone."
She refused to let go, so Yu Chunsheng simply hugged her from behind, enveloping her completely in his arms, showering her cheeks with kisses.
Xu Tangmian was unwilling to cooperate with him, and Yu Chunsheng, feeling stifled, simply told him everything he had seen and heard that day.
After hearing his words, Xu Tangmian finally let go of his arm, looking completely bewildered. "So Luo Hui is really...?"
"He's really gone." Yu Chunsheng turned to face her and spoke to her in a serious tone, while his hands were also busy, taking advantage of her inattention to unbutton all the buttons on his clothes.
Xu Tangmian was still a little dazed, standing there muttering to herself, "How could this be? He's still so young..."
It wasn't until she felt a chill that she realized Yu Chunsheng had almost completely stripped her clothes off!
Yu Chunsheng brought a change of clothes, but she didn't. Besides, what was she doing here if he wanted to take a shower? Xu Tangmian raised her arm to grab the clothes on the chair and was about to leave when Yu Chunsheng pulled her back.
Yu Chunsheng pressed her against the wall through the shower cover and then pressed down on her. Behind her were cool water droplets hanging on the shower cover, while in front of her was the man's burning hot body. Under the dual sensations of ice and fire, Xu Tangmian shivered involuntarily a few times.
"The clothes outside might have touched the child, and I was afraid you'd find them dirty." After explaining his actions, Yu Chunsheng pressed closer to her, his warm breath brushing against her ear.
"I'm clean now." He shook his head and rubbed against her, then leaned in to shut her up before Xu Tangmian could say anything.
By the time Xu Tangmian had a moment to say something to him, he had already lifted her up and started the next step.
Xu Tangmian was speechless. She felt a pang of guilt, thinking she shouldn't have been in the mood to do such a thing after hearing the news of her student's death, but her body, beyond her control, was already prepared to accept Yu Chunsheng.
Absence makes the heart grow fonder, especially since they had been apart for almost half a year, and Yu Chunsheng was in the prime of his life.
Once it started, he tormented her relentlessly, as if he couldn't hear her.
He only moved another chair from outside against the wall when she couldn't stand it anymore, and then moved her over there.
The water had already cooled down, and Yu Chunsheng, still naked, went outside to add some hot water to wash them both clean before carrying Xu Tangmian back inside.
He quickly put on his own undergarments, then found Xu Tangmian's clothes and put them on her, holding her tightly in his arms.
It was so cold. From the moment he stepped out of the shower tent until he crawled into bed, he felt like a walking, smoking little fireman.
I finally managed to get together with my wife, but before I could even exchange a few sweet words with her, the baby woke up.
The child was crying so loudly that even if someone was asleep, they would be woken up, let alone the fact that neither of them was asleep.
Xu Tangmian would rather lie down than move, so Yu Chunsheng had no choice but to get out of bed and bring the child over.
The diapers were dry, and no matter how he tried to coax the child to sleep, Yu Chunsheng had no choice but to find the child's mother again.
Xu Tangmian slowly got up, sighed, and resignedly lifted her clothes to take the child and feed him. The child's little mouth moved slightly, indicating that he had stopped crying, but the adults' eyes on the other side also seemed a little strange.
Xu Tangmian had no other choice, so she turned her back to Yu Chunsheng and said resentfully, "You've had your fun just now, so let's call it a day. I really want to sleep."
After listening, Yu Chunsheng lowered his head and smiled, saying softly, "Thank you for your hard work, my dear wife. I know you have something to say, let's talk about it slowly tomorrow."
The baby gradually fell asleep and was put back in the cradle. With a click, the bedroom returned to silence, with only the sound of the wind whistling through the crack in the window.
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