After dinner, both of them were quite full.
For a peasant family, being able to eat their fill was already deeply satisfying, almost like celebrating New Year.
With that satisfaction, and under the deep night sky, Cao Wen rubbed his hands together.
As the saying goes: “A full belly stirs improper thoughts.”
Now that night had fallen, his mind couldn’t help but become restless again.
He stretched his neck slightly and snuck a glance at the person washing dishes at the kitchen door, wearing an apron and sleeves rolled up.
He thought to himself—
What excuse should I use tonight?
He scratched his chin.
He couldn’t just pretend to fall asleep early again, right?
It had taken him so much effort to smooth things over a bit—if he pulled the same stunt again, wouldn’t she just demand a divorce on the spot?
Unsure of what to do, Cao Wen was brainstorming subtle yet sincere excuses to decline.
But before he could think of one, Xu Duoyan (Many Salt) finished washing the dishes, turned around to put the bowls in the cupboard, and swept a glance in his direction.
His heart skipped a beat, and he quickly ducked behind a chair.
Xu Duoyan wiped her hands on her waist and pretended not to see him peeking multiple times from the main room.
This guy can’t even stand still.
Still trying to hide like I wouldn’t notice.
I know exactly what he’s thinking.
Not that it matters.
Just thinking won’t get him anywhere.
After cleaning up the kitchen, she strode toward him.
Seeing her come over quickly, Cao Wen became flustered and avoided her gaze.
“Finished washing?”
During the day, things felt okay, but once night fell, the silence made Cao Wen feel uneasy.
Xu Duoyan didn’t talk much—only answering when spoken to—and even then, barely a few words.
Their communication was lacking.
The silence was awkward, so Cao Wen suddenly recalled that she hadn’t asked him for money today.
He quickly found something to say: “I know life’s hard now, and money’s tight. But I promise you, I’ll work hard and earn more. You’ll have three full meals a day and never go hungry again!”
Seeing how earnestly he spoke, Xu Duoyan’s initial intent to coldly reject him got stuck in her throat.
A flash of guilt passed through her, but she reminded herself that he had brought all this upon himself—and her heart quickly steeled again.
Before Cao Wen could continue, she signed something with her hands: “My period came.”
Cao Wen tilted his head slightly.
“Huh?”
This time, he really didn’t get it.
Xu Duoyan rubbed her stomach and rephrased it.
“Too full from eating?”
Seeing his clueless expression, she couldn’t tell if he was playing dumb or really was dumb.
But then she noticed him standing up instinctively, as if unaware, and she pursed her lips slightly.
“Why aren’t you talking? Want to go for a walk to help digest?”
You think I can talk?
Xu Duoyan paused, said nothing, and went back into the room.
Cao Wen hesitated whether to follow, but she soon came out again.
He watched, puzzled, as she handed him a strip of cloth.
What was this for?
He studied it for a moment and held it to the back of his head.
“Tie it here?”
Xu Duoyan almost threw the cloth in his face—but held back.
After a short and very unproductive round of chicken-talking-to-duck, Xu Duoyan gave up.
She suddenly thought of something and quickly went back inside.
Cao Wen awkwardly rubbed his nose.
He had never felt this dumb before.
She returned with a booklet.
Cao Wen quickly leaned over to take a look at the yellowed pages.
As soon as he realized what it was, the cloth in his hand felt like it was on fire.
He almost dropped it.
“Y-You mean that came?”
Xu Duoyan sighed in relief and nodded.
Cao Wen’s brows rose in surprise.
He cautiously handed the cloth back to her.
Though a little embarrassed, his eyes still lit up involuntarily.
He tightly pressed his lips together to stop himself from grinning.
“Then don’t catch a chill these next few days. Drink lots of hot water.”
Xu Duoyan noticed the strange expression on his face but was surprised he didn’t lash out or get annoyed by the matter.
She looked up at him, slightly surprised, and gave a small nod.
Then she gestured again: “So where are you sleeping tonight?”
She pointed to the inner room, then to the outer bed.
Wasn’t it obvious what she meant?
Since that had arrived, she wouldn’t need to worry about anything happening these next few days.
He couldn’t just keep ignoring her.
He inhaled deeply.
“Alright. Then let’s sleep.”
Then Xu Duoyan watched him stride straight into the inner room!
No ambiguity about where he intended to sleep.
Xu Duoyan’s eyes widened slightly.
She looked around, raising an eyebrow.
She wasn’t particularly afraid of lying in the same bed with him, but she was a little worried he might go crazy in the middle of the night.
She busied herself with tidying up the table and chairs, then straightened the bedding.
When she finally had nothing left to fuss over, she stared uneasily at the flickering oil lamp.
The room went dark.
She took a deep breath and walked into the only place in the house still lit.
He moved fast—when she entered, his outer robe was already neatly hung on the rack.
She looked toward the candlelight and saw Cao Wen lying curled up in the corner by the wall, back of his head—still a little bald from getting hit the other day—facing her.
Though he was a tall man, he was curled up with arms crossed, back tight, facing the wall.
Xu Duoyan couldn’t see his face, but from his rigid posture, standing at the doorway, he looked……like a wronged little wife.
Xu Duoyan: …?
Though he was always full of surprises, seeing him look like a sulking kid somehow eased her guard without her even realizing it.
She blew out the lamp, slowly took off her outer garment, and got into bed.
As they lay side by side, the bed felt like it had suddenly gotten much warmer.
In the darkness, both of them instinctively held their breath.
Cao Wen had entered full of confidence, but once in bed, he went limp.
He silently held his breath and subtly scooted closer to the wall.
The cool wall’s chill passed through the curtain, but it did nothing to lower his internal temperature.
How do newlyweds sleep together?
Holding hands?
Cuddling?
The Alliance never taught this! Why didn’t they teach this?!
Lying apart is fine, right?
It won’t seem too distant or weird, will it?
Just as he was spiraling into anxiety, he suddenly felt warmth on his arm.
Cao Wen almost let out a yelp.
She she she…what’s she doing?!
Cao Wen stiffened like a dead fish, wide-eyed and completely frozen.
In those few seconds, he mentally cycled through every bit of knowledge he had about lovers—and still found no solution.
But after a while, the person beside him didn’t do anything else.
Cao Wen: ?
What’s going on?
…Is this a signal for me to take the lead now?
No way, he was just putting on an act!
Cao Wen stayed completely still for a long while.
The person beside him didn’t respond at all.
He tentatively tried to pull his arm out from under her, and still, she showed no sign of displeasure.
He suddenly turned his head.
Moonlight spilled in through the window, casting a few soft beams across her face.
Xu Duoyan, long since sleepy, had succumbed to the bed and…fallen asleep.
Cao Wen awkwardly rubbed the tip of his nose and silently lay back down.
As the old saying goes,
“Admire flowers by lamplight, admire beauty by moonlight.”
Cao Wen found this to be very true.
Though he was turned away from her, his mind was filled with the image of her soft side profile under the faint moonlight and the shadows of her thick lashes.
The more he thought about it, the redder his face became.
The Next Morning
At the sound of the rooster crowing twice, the room stirred with soft rustling sounds.
Xu Duoyan was getting dressed while glancing at the man still lying motionless on the bed.
He had slept quite well last night.
Her opinion of him improved slightly.
Subconsciously, she moved gently and quietly, trying not to wake him.
But just as she stepped outside, the man on the bed opened his eyes.
Cao Wen had actually woken up a while ago, but he hadn’t dared climb over her to get out of bed, so he just pretended to be asleep.
He got up only moments after Xu Duoyan left.
But by the time he stepped out of the room, the house was already empty.
In the countryside, people are busiest in May.
They couldn’t afford breakfast.
After washing her face with cold water to freshen up, Xu Duoyan had taken advantage of the cool morning to head to the fields.
Seeing this, Cao Wen didn’t waste time either.
He took the wild cherries to the market.
The tavern owner was true to his word.
He accepted the cherries and gave Cao Wen thirty copper coins in exchange.
When Cao Wen stepped out of the tavern, the sun had just broken through the clouds, peeking over the mountain ridge.
The vendors on the street were already shouting, and steam rose in clouds from breakfast stalls.
Since summer had begun, businesses opened early.
Because of the heat, the market only stayed lively during the cool morning hours.
By late morning, the scorching sun would devalue sun-exposed fruits and vegetables, and people wouldn’t want to move around much.
That’s why all the trade happened early.
Cao Wen wasn’t interested in the fresh dew-covered produce just pulled from the fields—those were everywhere in the countryside.
No need to buy them at the market.
He turned straight toward a grain store.
Before leaving that morning, he had poked around the kitchen and found that the grain containers were as empty as if they’d been robbed.
Even the best cook can’t prepare a meal without rice.
And yet Xu Duoyan had been carefully managing their meals day after day without ever complaining.
Cao Wen felt a pang of guilt.
No matter what, today he had to buy some grain.
The shop was small but well-stocked—grains, flour, oil, all kinds of staples.
He headed straight for the rice section.
There were several types to choose from: Polished rice – fully husked, intact grains, smooth to the touch.
But also the most expensive: 30 copper coins per liter (15 per half-liter, almost the same as pork!).
Naturally, common folk wouldn’t waste money on this—it was for rich families.
Even the shop didn’t stock much.
Good-quality rice – not as refined, still had some husks and broken grains.
Still looked white and decent overall.
Price: 24 coins per liter.
Mixed rice – husk-heavy, many broken grains.
Price: 18 coins per liter.
Cao Wen realized this was likely the type they had at home.
Even the congee it made could scratch the throat.
Bran rice – almost no actual rice, mostly husks and rice powder.
Only 10 coins per liter, usually used by rich households to feed chickens and ducks.
But tenant farmers with no better option sometimes had to eat it.
Unhusked rice – raw paddy rice, not yet milled.
14 coins per liter.
Previously, the rice at home wasn’t bought from the market.
It had come from their autumn harvest, then taken to a neighbor with a millstone to process.
Now their homegrown paddy was all eaten up—no choice but to buy more.
Cao Wen did the math and found that unhusked rice was still the best deal.
With their current situation, it was the only choice.
But there was a problem: most tenant farmers didn’t own millstones.
In the past, he had to humbly go to the landlord to ask for help.
Now that he’d offended them, even flattery wouldn’t get him access.
There were a few other villagers outside of Caojia’ao with mills, but they’d expect a small fee or favor in return.
In hard times, one must bow their head.
After weighing the options, unhusked rice was still the most suitable—other than resorting to bran rice.
With 30 coins, he could buy about 2.5 liters of it—enough for two people to survive for around ten days, if careful.
Later, he could beg a nearby villager to let him use their millstone.
With luck, they could scrape by.
Cao Wen bought 30 coins’ worth of unhusked rice in a burlap sack.
He didn’t even look at the oil or flour—the price of rice alone was high enough; he didn’t dare consider the rest.
Carrying the sack in one hand, he walked out.
A few liters of rice wasn’t heavy for him, but to onlookers, it still looked like a hefty load.
With food in hand, his steps back home felt steadier and quicker.
“Freshly steamed buns and bread—just out of the pot!”
A vendor lifted the lid off a bamboo steamer, releasing a wave of delicious fragrance.
Cao Wen paused, raising his neck at the smell.
The vendor spotted him immediately and greeted him warmly: “Young man! How about two buns? Big juicy filling—only 3 coins each!”
Cao Wen replied,
“I don’t even like those.”
The vendor choked on his words, but just as he was about to respond, Cao Wen seemed to change his mind and approached: “How about 5 coins for two?”
“Deal! Two buns for the young man!”
Cao Wen pulled out five coins, asked the vendor to wrap them well, then accepted the package.
The vendor slipped the coins into his pocket and watched the man stride away energetically, thinking to himself: That guy’s pretty interesting.