When Ye Man returned, the blush on her face had faded, and He Zhangcheng was carrying a pile of firewood.
An'an, with her sharp eyes, spotted them first. "Uncle He! Come quick! Dad's cleaning the fish!"
He Zhangcheng threw down the firewood. "Need any help?"
Lu Yang looked up amidst his busy schedule, "Didn't you say that picking up a few would be enough? We don't need this many."
Song Qing kicked him from the side, saying, "Why didn't you say so earlier? You're just being wise after the event."
Lu Yang was inexplicably kicked and almost lost his grip on the fish. "..."
Zhao Qin coughed countless times today; even Zhuangzhuang, a usually oblivious child, noticed and asked, "Mom, do you have a cold?"
"Go, go, watch the heat, it's almost burnt."
This little incident passed quickly. Lu Yang couldn't bear to throw away the fish's innards after cleaning them, saying they could still be used to catch fish. An An happily ran over, saying, "I'll do it, I'll do it."
The barbecue wasn't easy to make, and the fish they caught were of varying sizes, so they didn't catch many. Eventually, Liu Jiandong and Chen Junliang, who couldn't stand by and watch, came to help. The two of them took off their shoes and went straight into the stream to fish, and that's how they managed to catch quite a few.
Lu Yang brought a bunch of seasonings, eager to show off his skills. He squatted by the stream, constantly scaling and gutting fish. An An threw the innards into the stream and squatted beside them, hoping to attract fish. As for Ye Qing and the others, they sat under a tree, chatting about something.
After being humiliated by An'an, Liu He wasn't as enthusiastic towards her anymore. She glanced at the people around her and finally went to her son's side to chat with him, but her son seemed lost in thought and didn't respond even after she called him several times.
"...Is my soul lost on the mountain? I'm dying of heat. When are we going down? I wish I hadn't come."
Liu He kept fanning herself, feeling that coming up the mountain was just asking for trouble. How much money would it cost to buy the few fish they caught down there? Why come all this way?
He Zhangcheng paid no attention to her, busy with his work, his eyes constantly glancing at Ye Man. Ye Man was pulled away by Song Qing and the other woman, and the group of women kept glancing in his direction, making him very uneasy.
Zhao Qin's husband went to help Jian Dong, leaving Lu Yang alone to clean the fish. He picked a flat stone by the stream and stood in the scorching sun. The fishy smell assaulted his nose, but he didn't notice anything. Ma Mingyue, who came over to hand him water, frowned and then silently encouraged herself before going over.
"Brother Lu, it's so hot, we should have enough to eat. There's no need to kill any more... Have some water."
Lu Yang was indeed unbearably hot. He was hoping Song Qing would notice and bring him a glass of water, but for some reason, she barely glanced at him today. Lu Yang was holding his breath and working hard when he suddenly heard Ma Mingyue's voice. He looked up in surprise and looked around.
With no one around, he realized that they were indeed talking to him.
"No need, your brother is over there."
His hands were covered in fishy smell, and sweat dripped from his forehead. He simply raised his hand and wiped it with his sleeve.
How come He Zhangcheng's sister only knows how to bring water to others, while his wife, sister, and daughter can't even scrape together a cup of water?
Undeterred, Ma Mingyue pulled out another handkerchief since Lu Yang refused to take the water. "Brother Lu, shall I wipe your sweat for you?"
After saying that, he raised his hand to go forward, but An'an, who was playing in the distance and covered in sweat, didn't even look at his dad and called out, "Dad is thirsty."
After shouting, she continued playing in the water without a care in the world. Anyway, her father would definitely bring her water when he heard her. Lu Yang resignedly put down what he was doing and went to the stream to wash his hands. Ma Mingyue was interrupted and looked a little lost with her handkerchief in her hand. Lu Yang washed his hands and suddenly looked at the water cup in her hand.
"Um... thank you."
As she spoke, she took the water glass from Ma Mingyue's hand and handed it to her daughter, without even remembering Ma Mingyue's name.
An'an was as hot as a little furnace, her face flushed from the sun. Lu Yang stood beside her like a hardworking old mother. As An'an drank water, he took out a towel from his pocket, rinsed it in the stream, and then wiped her face and arms.
"Why don't you sit with Mom for a while? Are you hot?"
"It's not hot, Dad, hurry up and kill it, I'll catch some more for you later."
Full of ambition, An'an kept her head fixed on the water, practically patting her chest and saying she was sure she could catch a fish.
Lu Yang nodded in agreement and told her not to grab too much, as she wouldn't be able to finish it.
"Then take it down to feed the kittens. If there's any left, we'll dry it into fish jerky for the kittens to eat in the winter."
He showed no impatience at such childish words, but instead earnestly discussed them with An'an. His expression was completely different from when he was with strangers; he was especially gentle.
Ma Mingyue was initially a little angry, but when she saw him squatting on the ground looking at An'an at eye level, and the tenderness in his eyes that he couldn't hide, her heart warmed up again.
I wish he could treat me like that.
When she was very young, her family told her that she must win over her cousin's heart. After she married him, her aunt would be her mother-in-law, so there would be no mother-in-law/daughter-in-law relationship. Moreover, the He family was so rich.
Ma Mingyue had always aimed for this goal, but her cousin only treated her as a younger sister. After joining the army, she had no chance to contact him. She could only try to please her aunt and keep her company. She thought that when her cousin got older, her aunt would make arrangements for her. But who would have thought that the He family would arrange for her cousin to meet someone else and quickly get engaged and married.
Although Ma Mingyue still fantasizes about marrying her cousin, she no longer has much hope. Not only her cousin, but also the He family are like two mountains blocking her way, which she cannot cross.
Compared to him, Brother Lu seems to have it easier, and he's even more capable than my cousin.
If all else fails, my cousin and Brother He will work together; I refuse to believe we can't break through one side.
"An'an, your dad still needs to kill fish. Do you want me to wipe your sweat?"
Book categories, authors, and full-length book rankings
Homepage Click Ranking Recommended Ranking Favorites Ranking Temporary Bookshelf
PC version of all novels, latest updates, site map, member bookshelf
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com