Translator: LittleYen
At night, when it was time to go to bed, Zhong Ziqi wanted to pack his bedding and go to the other room. At the medical clinic there was a couch next to the bed, so he could make do with it. When he returned home, he was even more embarrassed to sleep in the same bed with him.
Only his move was met with a strong protest from Zhao Zheng’an.
“Where are you going?” Zhao Zheng’an asked, his eyes narrowed in displeasure.
“Next door,” Zhong Ziqi said, a little horrified.
“We’re both officially married. What are you so embarrassed about, what’s for sleeping next door?” Zhao Zheng’an moved to the inside: “Sleep here!”
Zhong Ziqi was hesitant while looking at the empty space, although the other party’s approval made him happy, but he really did not want to share the bed with him, he was not mentally prepared for it.
… But apparently Zhao Zheng’an wouldn’t give him time to get ready. He took the quilt from his hand and put it on the bed: “All right, go to sleep!”
Zhong Ziqi couldn’t do anything about it but to undress and lie on the side of the bed. He tried not to get next to him,his back was straight.
Zhao Zheng’an looked at him,thinking that he was so funny, was it so painful to sleep with him? It’s not like he can do anything to him. His body was in the state where he could only look but unfit for anything else.
Zhao Zheng’an on the other side, used to put his hands on Zhong Ziqi’s waist. As soon as he found that the person’s body stiffened, Zhao Zheng’an secretly smiled.It would always take time to get him getting used to it.
“Can you …… take your hand away? It’s uncomfortable.” Zhong Ziqi said in a weak voice. He got goosebumps, obviously it was fine before.
“Definitely not! Just go to sleep! It’s been a tiring day.” Zhao Zheng’an pulling the stiff body into his embrace and hold it tight. He noticed that the man wanted to speak again: “Shh, don’t make any noise, I’m going to sleep.”
Zhong Ziqi’s words were trapped in his mouth. He could not cry at all. How could he be able to sleep like this?
Zhong Ziqi thought he couldn’t sleep, but he eventually did fall asleep. He was awakened in the middle of the night by a heavy panting sound.
Zhong Ziqi immediately turned his head, but he couldn’t see Zhao Zheng’an clearly in the darkness: “What’s wrong with you? Did you get a headache? Huh? Say something!!!”
After a while the gasping gradually subsided: “Nothing. Did I wake you up? You can go back to sleep.”
“How can I sleep when you’re like that!” Zhong Ziqi said angrily.
Zhao Zheng’an was silent. Then suddenly he reached out and hugged him, holding him tightly in his arms. Zhong Ziqi was completely stiffened, his whole body was ‘sparta’ (internet slang which means ‘crazy’ or ‘hysterical’). The other man’s body heat and a faint smell of sweat met his face, causing Zhong Ziqi to feel dizzy.
“Go to sleep! If you don’t, I’ll have to do something else.” Zhao Zheng’an whispered in his ear.
The hot breath sprayed into Zhong Ziqi’s ears and tickled him. He couldn’t help but shrink, unable to move at all. He could only lie honestly in his arms and say nothing more.
Perhaps because the embrace was so warm, Zhong Ziqi slowly fell asleep. There was a silent laugh in the darkness, and his head didn’t hurt so much anymore.
The next morning, Zhong Ziqi woke up in the same position as when he slept in Zhao Zheng’an’s arms. His old face blushed as he carefully crawled out of his arms and dressed to go into the kitchen. It wasn’t that he was ‘pure and innocent’ but his love life was as blank as paper in the past twenty years of his previous life. His family was so old-fashioned that early love was not allowed. Besides that, he hadn’t met anyone who made his heart flutter. When he got to university, he finally found someone he liked, yet it was a guy. He ‘prefers to go without accepting any shoddy options’ as his main principle and his way of thinking so he hadn’t ever gone out to indulge in sensual pleasures. So he was still a virgin until he died.
[花天酒地 /huā tiān jiǔ dì : to spend one’s time in drinking and pleasure (idiom); to indulge in sensual pleasures / life of debauchery]
Even though he usually tried to avoid physical contact with that man, he was afraid he wouldn’t be able to hold himself back from jumping on him. So how could he not be awkward when someone suddenly came into contact with him at zero distance?
After washing his face in cold water, Zhong Ziqi was refreshed and started cooking. There was still leftover fish soup from yesterday, so he put it in a pot to warm it up.
Yesterday he bought a large piece of meat in town. Zhong Ziqi cut it into half, the rest of it ,he put it away. The summer heat can not hold anything, the meat will be bad in two days, so he must eat it as soon as possible. For example, the meat he bought for the elders of the Zhong family last time. Because of the accident that happened,he just put it aside and didn’t pay attention to it so it went bad. He was distressed when he threw it away.
Wash the meat and put it on the board, chop it up, the more minced it is, the better.
Then he put them in a bowl with the grated ginger, rice wine, rice flour and egg whites. There were only two eggs left in the house, which he bought from Zhao Amu’s house.
Mix the meat well and squeeze it into small balls then set aside.
Remembering the cold noodles, he had a lot of rice vermicelli leftover, so he went through the cupboard and pulled it out. Took a handful of rice vermicelli to soak it in hot water.
Add half a pot of water and boil it, put the meatballs in and cook it. Add the rice vermicelli. There is still a lot of cabbage in the house so Zhong Ziqi put some in before he covered the pot with a lid. Once cooked, add a pinch of salt plus a sprinkle of chopped spring onion then serve.
The name of the dish was ‘Meatball with rice vermicelli soup’ which was a bit more complicated to make, but it was the right dish for a patient to eat without feeling too bland/light.
After putting the food aside, Zhong Ziqi turned around and found Zhao Zheng’an walking in at some point, standing not far behind him: “Why did you come out?”
“I’ll wash my face and get ready for breakfast.” Zhao Zheng’an said with a smile. He was initially woken up by the sound of Zhong Ziqi chopping meat then attracted to the kitchen by the smell of the food.
“I’m hungry.” Zhao Zheng’an said, blinking his eyes.
Zhong Ziqi: “Go inside and wait, I’ll be ready in a minute.”
Zhao Zheng’an reached out to help him carry it over but Zhong Ziqi slapped it away. Both of them were stunned for a moment.
Zhong Ziqi: “….that, I’ll just carry it over. This is too heavy.”
Zhao Zheng’an was helpless.
Look here we go again! He is not a porcelain doll.
At the dining table, “Delicious! None of the restaurants in town are as good as your cooking.” Zhao Zheng’an praised him sincerely.
“You are exaggerating! ” Zhong Ziqi spurted out a laugh, “Have you ever eaten at a restaurant?”
“”Yes, I have.I used to work in a restaurant as a waiter. I also work in the tavern as a shop attendant”
Zhong Ziqi’s curiosity piqued, “Then why didn’t you continue working there?”
“It went out of business.”
“……”
Zhong Ziqi laughed,”What have you been doing in town?”
Zhao Zheng’an thought for a moment, “I’ve been a shop attendant, built houses for people, a porter, selling goods …Done a lot, but the money in the town is not that good to earn. There are many people like me so every job need to be done quickly, otherwise it will be taken away by others.”
Zhong Ziqi nodded understandingly, “I heard them say you make a lot of money!”
Zhao Zheng’an said while he ate the meatball, “That’s all rumours, it’s not that much. Some of it I got back in exchange for hunting.”
“You know how to hunt?” Zhong Ziqi was even more amazed.
Zhao Zheng’an shook his head, “Not really! When I was young,my grandfather and my grandmother (grandAmu) lived in this house. My father and Amu came every now and then to deliver some food. I grew up close to my grandfather and my grandmother, so I often visited them. But my father never gave them any money except for food. They almost never made any clothes throughout the year except one every year. The life of my grandfather and my grandmother was even harder.”
“My Amu was the one who kept all the money so even I couldn’t get it out. Then I went into the mountains to cut wood and carry it to town to sell. The money from the sale, I bought some meat for my grandfather and grandmother to eat.” Zhao Zheng’an remembered how hard those days were, but he was happy because of their love and companionship.
“And what happened after that?” Zhong Ziqi couldn’t help but ask, no wonder this house of the Zhao family was so well preserved . So, it was always occupied by his grandparents.
“After that — Later on, my Amu heard from somewhere that I was making money from selling firewood. He got angry and asked me where the money had gone. I didn’t dare to tell him the truth, so I lied to him and told him that I had lost it. At that time, he beat me up so badly! Later on, I had to give all the money from cutting firewood to my amu, which was not much, around one or two wen. One day when I went into the mountains I saw rabbits and pheasants so I thought if only I could catch them I could sell them for more money. I thought about it for a long time before I dug a number of traps in some places where the animals often ran in. I looked at them overnight, I could see one or two silly rabbits or pheasants had fallen in. I hid them in the firewood before I went to the town for fear that my Amu would find them. The animals were worth a lot of money. A live pheasant could fetch nearly twenty-some wen. It was like opening the door to a new world for me. I started to earn money by hunting and using firewood to cover up, but there weren’t many small animals near here. Basically there were more inside,at that time I was too young to go too far inside, but it was enough for me to make clothes for my grandparents and improve their food.”
Zhong Ziqi listened without blinking his eyes. Suddenly he felt that the memories he had brought with him from his past life were nothing.
This was what you should call amazing! At the age of ten, he dared to go hunting in the mountains. What was I doing in my teens? It seemed like I was still memorizing texts at home! That’s a blatant difference!
“Later, when I was twelve years old, my grandparents passed away one after another so I seldom came back here, fearing that I would be hurt by the memory I have here. When I earned more money, I gave it to my Amu. But when I think about it now, I was really foolish at that time.” Zhao Zheng’an shook his head and stopped talking, concentrating on eating.
But Zhong Ziqi knew what he meant. He couldn’t help but feel a little heartbroken. He could imagine that little Zhao Zheng’an foolishly thought that if he worked hard to earn money, his Amu and his father would be kinder to him, see him more and share a little more love to him.
But how long can a family bond built based on money last?
Translator: LittleYen
At night, when it was time to go to bed, Zhong Ziqi wanted to pack his bedding and go to the other room. At the medical clinic there was a couch next to the bed, so he could make do with it. When he returned home, he was even more embarrassed to sleep in the same bed with him.
Only his move was met with a strong protest from Zhao Zheng’an.
“Where are you going?” Zhao Zheng’an asked, his eyes narrowed in displeasure.
“Next door,” Zhong Ziqi said, a little horrified.
“We’re both officially married. What are you so embarrassed about, what’s for sleeping next door?” Zhao Zheng’an moved to the inside: “Sleep here!”
Zhong Ziqi was hesitant while looking at the empty space, although the other party’s approval made him happy, but he really did not want to share the bed with him, he was not mentally prepared for it.
… But apparently Zhao Zheng’an wouldn’t give him time to get ready. He took the quilt from his hand and put it on the bed: “All right, go to sleep!”
Zhong Ziqi couldn’t do anything about it but to undress and lie on the side of the bed. He tried not to get next to him,his back was straight.
Zhao Zheng’an looked at him,thinking that he was so funny, was it so painful to sleep with him? It’s not like he can do anything to him. His body was in the state where he could only look but unfit for anything else.
Zhao Zheng’an on the other side, used to put his hands on Zhong Ziqi’s waist. As soon as he found that the person’s body stiffened, Zhao Zheng’an secretly smiled.It would always take time to get him getting used to it.
“Can you …… take your hand away? It’s uncomfortable.” Zhong Ziqi said in a weak voice. He got goosebumps, obviously it was fine before.
“Definitely not! Just go to sleep! It’s been a tiring day.” Zhao Zheng’an pulling the stiff body into his embrace and hold it tight. He noticed that the man wanted to speak again: “Shh, don’t make any noise, I’m going to sleep.”
Zhong Ziqi’s words were trapped in his mouth. He could not cry at all. How could he be able to sleep like this?
Zhong Ziqi thought he couldn’t sleep, but he eventually did fall asleep. He was awakened in the middle of the night by a heavy panting sound.
Zhong Ziqi immediately turned his head, but he couldn’t see Zhao Zheng’an clearly in the darkness: “What’s wrong with you? Did you get a headache? Huh? Say something!!!”
After a while the gasping gradually subsided: “Nothing. Did I wake you up? You can go back to sleep.”
“How can I sleep when you’re like that!” Zhong Ziqi said angrily.
Zhao Zheng’an was silent. Then suddenly he reached out and hugged him, holding him tightly in his arms. Zhong Ziqi was completely stiffened, his whole body was ‘sparta’ (internet slang which means ‘crazy’ or ‘hysterical’). The other man’s body heat and a faint smell of sweat met his face, causing Zhong Ziqi to feel dizzy.
“Go to sleep! If you don’t, I’ll have to do something else.” Zhao Zheng’an whispered in his ear.
The hot breath sprayed into Zhong Ziqi’s ears and tickled him. He couldn’t help but shrink, unable to move at all. He could only lie honestly in his arms and say nothing more.
Perhaps because the embrace was so warm, Zhong Ziqi slowly fell asleep. There was a silent laugh in the darkness, and his head didn’t hurt so much anymore.
The next morning, Zhong Ziqi woke up in the same position as when he slept in Zhao Zheng’an’s arms. His old face blushed as he carefully crawled out of his arms and dressed to go into the kitchen. It wasn’t that he was ‘pure and innocent’ but his love life was as blank as paper in the past twenty years of his previous life. His family was so old-fashioned that early love was not allowed. Besides that, he hadn’t met anyone who made his heart flutter. When he got to university, he finally found someone he liked, yet it was a guy. He ‘prefers to go without accepting any shoddy options’ as his main principle and his way of thinking so he hadn’t ever gone out to indulge in sensual pleasures. So he was still a virgin until he died.
[花天酒地 /huā tiān jiǔ dì : to spend one’s time in drinking and pleasure (idiom); to indulge in sensual pleasures / life of debauchery]
Even though he usually tried to avoid physical contact with that man, he was afraid he wouldn’t be able to hold himself back from jumping on him. So how could he not be awkward when someone suddenly came into contact with him at zero distance?
After washing his face in cold water, Zhong Ziqi was refreshed and started cooking. There was still leftover fish soup from yesterday, so he put it in a pot to warm it up.
Yesterday he bought a large piece of meat in town. Zhong Ziqi cut it into half, the rest of it ,he put it away. The summer heat can not hold anything, the meat will be bad in two days, so he must eat it as soon as possible. For example, the meat he bought for the elders of the Zhong family last time. Because of the accident that happened,he just put it aside and didn’t pay attention to it so it went bad. He was distressed when he threw it away.
Wash the meat and put it on the board, chop it up, the more minced it is, the better.
Then he put them in a bowl with the grated ginger, rice wine, rice flour and egg whites. There were only two eggs left in the house, which he bought from Zhao Amu’s house.
Mix the meat well and squeeze it into small balls then set aside.
Remembering the cold noodles, he had a lot of rice vermicelli leftover, so he went through the cupboard and pulled it out. Took a handful of rice vermicelli to soak it in hot water.
Add half a pot of water and boil it, put the meatballs in and cook it. Add the rice vermicelli. There is still a lot of cabbage in the house so Zhong Ziqi put some in before he covered the pot with a lid. Once cooked, add a pinch of salt plus a sprinkle of chopped spring onion then serve.
The name of the dish was ‘Meatball with rice vermicelli soup’ which was a bit more complicated to make, but it was the right dish for a patient to eat without feeling too bland/light.
After putting the food aside, Zhong Ziqi turned around and found Zhao Zheng’an walking in at some point, standing not far behind him: “Why did you come out?”
“I’ll wash my face and get ready for breakfast.” Zhao Zheng’an said with a smile. He was initially woken up by the sound of Zhong Ziqi chopping meat then attracted to the kitchen by the smell of the food.
“I’m hungry.” Zhao Zheng’an said, blinking his eyes.
Zhong Ziqi: “Go inside and wait, I’ll be ready in a minute.”
Zhao Zheng’an reached out to help him carry it over but Zhong Ziqi slapped it away. Both of them were stunned for a moment.
Zhong Ziqi: “….that, I’ll just carry it over. This is too heavy.”
Zhao Zheng’an was helpless.
Look here we go again! He is not a porcelain doll.
At the dining table, “Delicious! None of the restaurants in town are as good as your cooking.” Zhao Zheng’an praised him sincerely.
“You are exaggerating! ” Zhong Ziqi spurted out a laugh, “Have you ever eaten at a restaurant?”
“”Yes, I have.I used to work in a restaurant as a waiter. I also work in the tavern as a shop attendant”
Zhong Ziqi’s curiosity piqued, “Then why didn’t you continue working there?”
“It went out of business.”
“……”
Zhong Ziqi laughed,”What have you been doing in town?”
Zhao Zheng’an thought for a moment, “I’ve been a shop attendant, built houses for people, a porter, selling goods …Done a lot, but the money in the town is not that good to earn. There are many people like me so every job need to be done quickly, otherwise it will be taken away by others.”
Zhong Ziqi nodded understandingly, “I heard them say you make a lot of money!”
Zhao Zheng’an said while he ate the meatball, “That’s all rumours, it’s not that much. Some of it I got back in exchange for hunting.”
“You know how to hunt?” Zhong Ziqi was even more amazed.
Zhao Zheng’an shook his head, “Not really! When I was young,my grandfather and my grandmother (grandAmu) lived in this house. My father and Amu came every now and then to deliver some food. I grew up close to my grandfather and my grandmother, so I often visited them. But my father never gave them any money except for food. They almost never made any clothes throughout the year except one every year. The life of my grandfather and my grandmother was even harder.”
“My Amu was the one who kept all the money so even I couldn’t get it out. Then I went into the mountains to cut wood and carry it to town to sell. The money from the sale, I bought some meat for my grandfather and grandmother to eat.” Zhao Zheng’an remembered how hard those days were, but he was happy because of their love and companionship.
“And what happened after that?” Zhong Ziqi couldn’t help but ask, no wonder this house of the Zhao family was so well preserved . So, it was always occupied by his grandparents.
“After that — Later on, my Amu heard from somewhere that I was making money from selling firewood. He got angry and asked me where the money had gone. I didn’t dare to tell him the truth, so I lied to him and told him that I had lost it. At that time, he beat me up so badly! Later on, I had to give all the money from cutting firewood to my amu, which was not much, around one or two wen. One day when I went into the mountains I saw rabbits and pheasants so I thought if only I could catch them I could sell them for more money. I thought about it for a long time before I dug a number of traps in some places where the animals often ran in. I looked at them overnight, I could see one or two silly rabbits or pheasants had fallen in. I hid them in the firewood before I went to the town for fear that my Amu would find them. The animals were worth a lot of money. A live pheasant could fetch nearly twenty-some wen. It was like opening the door to a new world for me. I started to earn money by hunting and using firewood to cover up, but there weren’t many small animals near here. Basically there were more inside,at that time I was too young to go too far inside, but it was enough for me to make clothes for my grandparents and improve their food.”
Zhong Ziqi listened without blinking his eyes. Suddenly he felt that the memories he had brought with him from his past life were nothing.
This was what you should call amazing! At the age of ten, he dared to go hunting in the mountains. What was I doing in my teens? It seemed like I was still memorizing texts at home! That’s a blatant difference!
“Later, when I was twelve years old, my grandparents passed away one after another so I seldom came back here, fearing that I would be hurt by the memory I have here. When I earned more money, I gave it to my Amu. But when I think about it now, I was really foolish at that time.” Zhao Zheng’an shook his head and stopped talking, concentrating on eating.
But Zhong Ziqi knew what he meant. He couldn’t help but feel a little heartbroken. He could imagine that little Zhao Zheng’an foolishly thought that if he worked hard to earn money, his Amu and his father would be kinder to him, see him more and share a little more love to him.
But how long can a family bond built based on money last?
