Chapter 54
On the third day of the May Day holiday, Li Rui's Russian second uncle invited the children to go to the countryside for two days, saying that there was some kind of event in town, including a bonfire party and roasted whole lamb.
When you travel at this time of year, it's packed with people everywhere. Buses and subways are crammed like sardine cans. But Dayelushan is a less popular tourist spot. Even during short holidays, it's not crowded. The reason for this is probably its name.
People go to Cangshan, Changbai Mountain, and Mount Fuji to take photos and post them on social media, but the name "Wild Donkey" is like a donkey wandering into a china shop—it's just so out of place.
Lu Mingxiao originally planned to stay home and hone his cooking skills during this short holiday, but he couldn't resist his second uncle's enthusiastic phone call. Lu Mingxiao had saved Grandma Li's life, and his second uncle, as Grandma Li's relative, was extremely fond of Lu Mingxiao, his "little benefactor."
The old man's voice was strong and clear on the other end of the line. Lu Mingxiao sighed and turned to look at Jiang Huaiyu, mouthing the question: Are you going?
Jiang Huaiyu nodded.
It's good to let Lu Mingxiao relax. It's a hard-won holiday, and he can't just stay in the house doing practice problems all the time. He's been too stressed lately.
So the two of them packed just two changes of clothes and planned to go to the small town for a couple of days. The day before they were to leave, Li Rui’s irresponsible parents suddenly returned. Li Rui had no choice but to say that he was not going.
“I have to stay home and keep an eye on things. Every time they come back, they try to squeeze every last penny out of Grandpa and Grandma’s retirement savings.” Li Rui, who was usually all smiles, was unusually serious as he tried to protect his grandmother with his still-slender shoulders: “With me home, they won’t be able to get a single penny out of my grandma’s pocket!”
Lu Mingxiao patted him on the shoulder: "Okay, call me if you need anything, and I'll come back to support you right away."
Li Rui laughed again: "Okay, Xiao-ge, you have fun with the academic genius, right?"
...
The familiar minibus bumped and swayed all the way. In the fields on both sides of the country road, the corn was not yet very tall. Jiang Huaiyu sipped his lemonade through the straw and looked out the window at the small mountains in the distance that were lightly shrouded in clouds and mist. The weather was very nice today, and the wind was warm. Lu Mingxiao sat next to him, twisting his body and chatting with an old man.
A moment later, Lu Mingxiao turned around and, using his clothes as cover, grabbed Jiang Huaiyu's hand and squeezed it.
"I've found out that this bonfire party is being held for the first time this year. No wonder I've never heard of it before. The venue is not far from the foot of the mountain and is also very close to my second uncle's house. Don't worry about accommodation. After we've had our fun, we'll go back to my second uncle's house to stay."
Jiang Huaiyu took a sip of refreshing lemonade before looking at Lu Mingxiao: "Is it convenient at Second Uncle's house?"
“It’s convenient. My second aunt passed away almost ten years ago, and my second uncle hasn’t remarried. His children are all living in other places, and there are empty rooms in the house.” Lu Mingxiao thought of something, and his eyes lit up slightly: “Have you ever slept on a heated kang? My second uncle’s house doesn’t have a bed, only kangs. It’s a pity that they don’t use them this month, otherwise I would let you experience my second uncle’s hospitality.”
Jiang Huaiyu asked curiously, "What?"
"When Li Rui and I came to my second uncle's house, my second uncle was afraid we would be cold, so he wanted to burn half a ton of coal. The kang (heated brick bed) was so hot that it burned our bottoms. Li Rui and I could only squat in the corners to minimize the area exposed to heat. The soles of our feet were so hot that we couldn't stand it."
Jiang Huaiyu imagined the scene: Li Rui and Lu Mingxiao, two big guys, each hiding in a corner, it was really funny.
"It sounds like teppanyaki."
“You know what, it does look quite similar.” Lu Mingxiao laughed and intertwined his fingers with his. “I’ll bring you here to experience it in winter.”
The bus stopped at the entrance to the village. The second uncle, who had been waiting there, waved enthusiastically to the two young men. The old man rode an electric tricycle with two clean little stools placed side by side inside. Lu Mingxiao and Jiang Huaiyu got on the vehicle, their long legs almost getting tangled in the back of the tricycle.
Lu Mingxiao didn't come empty-handed; he bought some things for the old man. There was a lot of tugging and pushing when he entered the door. Jiang Huaiyu had never seen a scene where a gift had to be given and then pushed around like that. In the end, the old man accepted the gift, and every wrinkle on his face was filled with joy.
We had lunch at my second uncle's house. He had been stewing goose all morning, and he was so happy that he drank two small cups of baijiu (Chinese liquor). After lunch, he was so sleepy that he told the two children which room they would sleep in before going back to his own room for a nap.
Jiang Huaiyu pushed open the door to the small room. The room had obviously been cleaned; the windows were bright and the furniture was spotless. There were two new quilts on the small kang (heated brick bed).
He walked over, curiously poked the hard-looking kang (heated brick bed) with his finger, and turned to ask Lu Mingxiao, "This... can you really sleep on this?"
“You need to put one layer on top, but it might still be a little hard. If you’re not used to it, just put on two more layers.” Lu Mingxiao lifted his long legs and climbed onto the kang (a heated brick bed), pulled the new quilt over, and sniffed it. “I knew the old man was reluctant to use the new quilt. It’s already damp. I’ll take the quilt out to the yard to air it out.”
The two hung up the quilt, left a large note for their second uncle, and said they would go out for a walk together.
Last summer, Lu Mingxiao mentioned that he wanted to take Jiang Xiaoyu out to catch fish, but unfortunately, the plan was vetoed by Li Qing because he hadn't finished his homework. In less than a year, it has now turned into Li Qing encouraging Lu Mingxiao to go out and play more.
Coincidentally, the stream where you can catch fish is also near the village.
Lu Mingxiao skillfully pulled out a fishing net from a corner of his second uncle's house and led Jiang Huaiyu out the door.
Jiang Huaiyu was very safety-conscious and reminded him, "If the water is deeper than your calves, I won't go in, and I won't allow you to go in either."
"How could it be that deep?" Lu Mingxiao laughed. "We're going to touch small fish, not to fish for them. Why would we go to deep water? It's just a shallow area. Don't worry, Jiang Xiaoyu."
He put the straw hat he'd taken from his second uncle on Jiang Huaiyu's head. The young master was exquisitely handsome, and even with the old straw hat on, he had a sense of style and looked quite well-behaved. Lu Mingxiao looked at him again and again, and couldn't help but lean over and quickly plant a kiss on Jiang Huaiyu's cheek.
Jiang Huaiyu was startled. After looking around to make sure no one was watching, she elbowed Lu Mingxiao, saying, "Why are you suddenly courting death? What if someone sees us?"
“I know you’re shy, but I checked before we kissed, there was definitely no one there.” Lu Mingxiao, carrying the fishing net, held Jiang Huaiyu’s hand and sighed, “I’m clearly the rightful wife, but I can only act like a mistress. When will I be able to hold your hand openly…”
Jiang Huaiyu was amused by his resentful tone: "Where did you learn these words? Were you eavesdropping when Mom played short dramas at home?"
"How is that eavesdropping? I was listening openly and honestly..."
Sunflowers were planted on both sides of the country road, blooming in large patches of golden yellow. Two boys chatted idly, their shadows trailing long behind them. Their light green fishing nets fluttered in the wind like a verdant flag.
...
The shallow water was clear, just as Lu Mingxiao had said. It was indeed very shallow, and the smooth stones were polished by the trickling stream, giving off a soft glow. There were a few people playing in the water not far away. Lu Mingxiao rolled up his trousers and started catching small fish among the crevices of the stones.
Jiang Huaiyu was picking up pretty stones. He was carrying a small bucket, and he would put any pretty stones he saw into the bucket. The water was still a little cool, and it flowed slowly over his feet.
"Is there really a fish in this?" Jiang Huaiyu picked up another round stone and held it up to the sunlight to look at the translucent stone. But as soon as he raised his doubts, his toes felt like they were being gently brushed by something.
Young Master Jiang cautiously lowered his head and saw a small silver fish bobbing its head and stopping at his feet. It wasn't small either, about half the size of Jiang Huaiyu's palm.
“Lu Mingxiao…” He immediately froze, motionless, and subconsciously lowered his voice: “There…is a fish here…”
Lu Mingxiao turned around and saw the young master frozen in place, and couldn't help but laugh out loud. He slowly walked over and said, "Jiang Xiaoyu, is it possible that Xiaoyu doesn't have ears and can't hear us? You can call me loudly..."
The little silver fish did not have ears, but as soon as Lu Mingxiao approached, the ripples in the water immediately alerted it, and it wagged its tail, trying to escape. Jiang Huaiyu couldn't wait for Lu Mingxiao to come over, so he suddenly bent down and grabbed the little fish.
The slippery little fish almost slipped through her fingers, and Jiang Huaiyu, no longer caring about her bucket of precious stones, used both hands to pounce forward...
"Jiang Xiaoyu!" Lu Mingxiao strode over and lifted the soaking wet Jiang Huaiyu out of the water, like lifting a cat that had fallen into the water.
“No showers are allowed here.” Lu Mingxiao suppressed a laugh and shook Jiang Huaiyu. “Luckily, I brought spare clothes…”
But then Jiang Huaiyu raised her wet face, clasped her hands together, and a fish tail swayed between her fingers.
"Lu Mingxiao! I caught a small fish!"
Lu Mingxiao grabbed him by the back of his collar and laughed, "Yeah, I caught a little fish too."
...
They originally planned to spend the afternoon by the water and then go straight to the bonfire party in the evening. However, it rained in the evening and the temperature dropped sharply. The bonfire party was still held, but Lu Mingxiao was worried that Jiang Huaiyu would catch a cold, so he took her directly back to his second uncle's house.
Anyway, there will be more tomorrow night, so it's not too late to go tomorrow.
The little fish caught in the afternoon were cooked into a steaming hot fish soup by the second uncle. The little fish were very cute, and the fish soup was very delicious. Jiang Huaiyu drank two bowls.
After dinner, the old man and the two young men sat together playing cards. The house hadn't been this lively in a long time. The second uncle was very happy, but the old man couldn't keep up with the energy and started yawning early, so he went back to his room to sleep.
Jiang Huaiyu and Lu Mingxiao returned to their room. Lu Mingxiao laid out the bedding on the kang (a heated brick bed), and Jiang Huaiyu lay down to try it out. He still frowned, but not wanting to appear delicate, he said against his true feelings, "It's fine now..."
Before he could finish speaking, Lu Mingxiao wrapped him in a blanket and shoved him aside with a gurgling sound.
Fish-shaped crepes: ? ? ?
Lu Mingxiao spread his own blanket on Jiang Huaiyu's bed, then brought back the fish-shaped crepes, opened the "crepe wrapper," and crawled inside himself.
"Is it soft now?" Lu Mingxiao's scheme succeeded, and he buried his head in Jiang Huaiyu's neck and rubbed against her: "Don't say you won't let me hug you, I've already put my blanket under you, how can you bear to let your brother sleep without a blanket all night?"
Jiang Huaiyu: ...
That's a perfectly legitimate scheme.
He spun around in Lu Mingxiao's arms, reached out and hugged Lu Mingxiao's waist, adjusted himself into a comfortable position in the warm embrace, and yawned sleepily.
"It's soft now, but it might be different by tomorrow morning, Brother Xiao. Can you just behave yourself?"
In the darkness, Lu Mingxiao's ears turned bright red, and the heat spread to his face and neck, making him feel like he was seven-tenths cooked.
"How can it behave? I can't control it..." he muttered in dissatisfaction, rubbing his chin against Jiang Huaiyu's head: "It's too much to ask of you, Jiang Xiaoyu."
Author's Note:
[Cat's Paw] Randomly drops small red envelopes.
Work was killing me. After getting home and having dinner, I lay down on the bed, set up a table, typed a little over a hundred words, and fell asleep. When I woke up, I continued writing. It's so late! [crying emoji]
This is yesterday's update. I haven't forgotten the 3,000 words I owe; I'll make it up today during my day off. [Please!]
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