Chapter 7

Li Sanmao returned home, dropped the wild boar, and saw Miaomiao following behind him.

"Miaomiao, where is your mother?"

"Mother just finished hanging the clothes and is in the room. Dad, Mother made snake soup for me to eat today, it was really delicious!"

Seeing the bamboo pole full of clothes in front of the door, Li Sanmao frowned...

Miaomiao was rarely as happy as she was today; she hugged his leg. Li Sanmao patted her head: "Is Miaomiao happy?"

"Of course! Miaomiao has never been this happy before. Mother even had a water fight with Miaomiao!"

"Oh?"

Li Sanmao was somewhat surprised. When had Zhi'er changed her temperament like this?

He stood up and entered his own room first.

The door creaked open, and Luo Zhi'er put down her scissors and turned to look at him.

She had just cut herself a blunt fringe. She had looked in the river today, and the hair in front of her forehead had grown long enough to cover her eyebrows and eyes.

Under the faint, dim light...

Li Sanmao was stunned by her large, dark eyes. She looked much more refreshed; it felt as if something had changed.

The room was tidy, and the floor had been swept spotless.

The bedding, clothes, and belongings were all folded and arranged neatly, no longer piled up like mountains as they used to be. It felt like a home and looked quite good.

His voice was slightly low...

"Wife... how was today? Why are you up? Doing so much work? Is your body feeling any better?"

Luo Zhi'er raised her eyes and looked at the tall, vigorous man standing at the doorway calling her "wife," trying to see his features clearly...

His face was covered in stubble, his hair was disheveled and covering his face, and he wore a vest made of animal skin.

His pants were dirty, with holes in them just like his shoes. Having run through the forest all day, he looked like a wild man!

However, through the slight mess of hair, one could see his features were well-defined with a straight nose; overall, he should be quite handsome.

Because of his years of hunting, his physique was very burly and upright.

Even standing in front of her plump figure, he appeared very tall and imposing.

Luo Zhi'er felt that she usually didn't care much about her husband and daughter, which resulted in both of them dressing quite sloppily...

Being poor was one thing, but being clean was another!

"Is something wrong?"

In the shadows, she still maintained a simple, dull expression and didn't speak. "Or is something still uncomfortable?"

"Oh, no, I'm better. *Cough*... Husband, you're back?"

The man was stunned. "Husband?" She seemed to have never called him that before.

"Wife, I heard you went down to the river to play in the water today. You forgot how you fainted yesterday, and since you just had a miscarriage, it's best not to touch water..."

"Leave those clothes there for now, I'll wash them when I have time. If you're feeling unwell, don't wash them yourself! Or, you can ask Zhenzhu to wash them!"

There were many of Mother's clothes on that bamboo pole, as well as Dad's, Zhenzhu's, and theirs...

It was just that... him suggesting Zhenzhu wash them was also a way to comfort her; he even felt like he was somewhat bluffing.

"Oh, thank you for your concern, Husband. There are many of the three of us in these clothes, how could I have the face to let Zhenzhu and the others wash them!"

Mainly because after Luo Zhi'er had eaten, she discovered a hole under the armpit of her own clothes.

She took a tour of the room and found not a single good piece of clothing; they were all incredibly dirty...

She couldn't help but gather some and bring them out to wash.

When they were dry, she would alter the size or patch them up...

Unfortunately, just as she stepped out, she was stopped by Madam Zhou, who gave her a huge mountain of laundry to wash.

Luo Zhi'er originally wanted to refuse, but seeing Old Man Li sitting on the large stone in the courtyard cooling off and smoking his old pipe, his eyes glancing this way, she thought about it and accepted!

However, regarding the subsequent loads from Zhenzhu, Madam Zhou, and Madam Chen, she refused, saying she couldn't finish them due to her physical discomfort!

"Besides, Dad worked all day, it's only right that I help wash his clothes..."

Goodness...

Li Sanmao was somewhat surprised. She had already called him "husband" several times today, whereas before she had always been indifferent to him.

It was always him offering warmth to a cold shoulder; it wasn't that he had some romantic obsession with her or anything.

He had promised Old Man Luo that he would treat Zhi'er well. In his heart, she was like family...

Being good to her and taking care of her was his responsibility...

Luo Zhi'er blinked her large eyes. This husband seemed a bit dim-witted, like a simpleton!

Actually, he was a good person and was quite genuinely concerned about her.

In her mind, the original Luo Zhi'er hadn't actually treated her man very well.

Because when Luo Zhi'er was in Luo Village, there was a man she was very fond of.

That man was a fair-skinned, delicate "pretty boy." A burly man like Li Sanmao was not her type at all.

She had even felt somewhat disgusted by the scent of wild animals lingering on him.

She thought he was just a brute.

All he knew was hunting, and he didn't understand sweet words or romantic atmosphere...

What was that man's name again? Oh, Luo Wenzhou. She used to follow him around like a shadow back then...

Thinking about it now, she felt she had been truly shameless; she had been mocked by many people in the village.

They thought she was mentally slow...

That Luo Wenzhou despised her for being fat, greasy, and unattractive.

He felt that being targeted by a "delicious" simpleton and fat girl like her—who often chased after him shouting, "Brother Wenzhou, wait for Zhi'er..."—was a burden.

She even once tripped and fell, landing headfirst into a haystack; it was truly embarrassing to the extreme...

His buddies often mocked him for it.

Of course, he would also use her as a tool to make the girl he liked, Ah Hua, jealous!

Later, Luo Wenzhou married Ah Hua, her father passed away, and her heart died along with him...

(End of Chapter)