Ugly girl only wants to farm

Chapter 127 A Touch of Warmth Rises in My Heart

When it was time to rest at night, Xu Chaoyan busied herself cleaning the house again. The house had been uninhabited for days and had a musty smell. A section of the wall in the room where they lived had collapsed and it was now uninhabitable, so they stayed in the room that the Meng family elders had previously lived in.

When he saw the familiar objects, Meng Jiuhe's expression suddenly changed slightly. He quickly suppressed the bitterness in his heart, not wanting to show it.

Xu Chaoyan kept talking to him and trying to cheer him up, just in case he was reminded of his parents' house and felt sad.

"Husband, what do you think of what I told you before? Tomorrow, you and my sister-in-law will take me to find some craftsmen. I'll find some work to earn some money so I can send you to school."

Meng Jiuhe seemed somewhat uninterested, and only gave a few perfunctory replies: "I will take you to ask around tomorrow, but you should also be prepared that these people usually do some long-term and short-term jobs, and they may not earn more than you pay. If the wages are not right, some people may not be happy."

Seeing that he was finally not so gloomy and was willing to say a few words to her, Xu Chaoyan felt relieved and walked to the bedside with the candle in her hand.

"I'll make the bed first, then you can come and rest. I forgot to bring any candles or lamp oil with me this time. We have to use these few candles sparingly, otherwise we'll have to fumble around in the dark when we need to get up at night."

Xu Chaoyan pondered to herself, having watched so many short videos and such before, how could her 21st-century mind be stumped by a few candles? She had to find a way to make money, at least to make sure her family's finances weren't so tight anymore.

When Xu Chao was lying in bed, she felt a slight pain in her abdomen. She thought to herself, "My period is still a few days away, why is it starting to hurt so soon?"

She was furious. Every time she had her period, the pain made her tears flow freely. She was naturally sensitive to pain, and now she was lying in bed with a painful lower abdomen, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep.

Meng Jiuhe, who had been resting with his eyes closed, opened his eyes and asked with concern when he heard her movement, "Are you feeling unwell?"

After saying that, he got out of bed, put on his shoes, lit the candle with a tinderbox, touched the earthenware pot and felt that it was still a little warm, and brought the water to the bedside: "Drink some warm water first, and I will go and boil some hot water for you."

Xu Chaoyan took the warm water he handed her and drank it in small sips. Meng Jiuhe was startled to see that her face had lost its usual rosy glow and turned pale.

What's wrong with her? She was perfectly fine during the day, so why does she look so pale now? Could it be that she caught a chill while playing in the river today?

He was also in a bit of a predicament. It was the middle of the night and there were no herbs or anything like that at home. He was so anxious that sweat beaded on his forehead.

Seeing his anxious expression, Xu Chaoyan quickly comforted him, "It's okay, this is a common problem for women. I'll be fine after a night's sleep. Don't bother yourself, just go to sleep."

Meng Jiuhe then realized what was happening. He grabbed the blanket from the side and tucked him in, then took the candle and went outside, saying, "Rest for a while, I'll go make you a bowl of brown sugar water to warm your stomach."

Xu Chaoyan was in so much pain that she drifted off to sleep. Suddenly, a warm sensation came from her stomach, and she slowly woke up. She stared at the person in front of her for a long time before she realized what was happening.

Meng Jiuhe held the small bowl to her lips and said somewhat awkwardly, "I searched high and low in the kitchen and finally managed to find this little bit in the earthenware jar. Make do with this and we'll go back to town tomorrow."

He had initially been reluctant to continue living in the town. He had refused to study because he wanted to help them share some of the burden. Now, however, he was suddenly less resistant to living in the town. In the village, it wasn't easy to get sick even if you had a headache or fever, so the town was indeed much more convenient.

As Xu Chaoyan drank the not-so-tasty brown sugar water, a warm feeling washed over her. A hot water bottle was also pressing against her lower abdomen, making her feel a little better than before.

She looked up and saw that Meng Jiuhe's face was a little dirty. She naturally raised her hand and wiped the dirt off his face. "Don't bother yourself. Go to sleep. I'll be fine tomorrow. I came back mainly to check on the courtyard and find a good craftsman. If I leave first thing tomorrow morning, all my efforts will be wasted."

No matter how Meng Jiu tried to reason with her, she wouldn't listen. Knowing that Meng Jiu was somewhat stubborn, he didn't argue with her.

Before going to sleep, he checked her bedding one last time, pulled up the tattered mosquito net, and Meng Jiuhe's gentle voice came from Xu Chaoyan's half-asleep state: "How about I rub it for you?"

Xu Chaoyan initially thought she had misheard, but Meng Jiuhe's voice came through again: "Are you asleep? The hot water bottle's temperature only lasts for a short while, let me massage it for you for a bit."

Xu Chaoyan glanced at him in the darkness and asked in a muffled voice, "How come you can still rub your stomach? Have you rubbed it for anyone before?" She didn't even think before asking the question; it just popped out of her mouth.

The air suddenly seemed to freeze, creating an awkward atmosphere. Xu Chaoyan cursed herself for being so talkative. Why did she have to say such things? This person had such an aloof and unapproachable demeanor; it was no wonder he would rub someone else's stomach.

Before she could explain, Meng Jiuhe, while speaking, rubbed his hands together to warm them and gently massaged her lower abdomen through her clothes.

His voice flowed like a spring, and he muttered to himself, "I remember when Mother was unwell, Father would use a hot water bottle to massage her lower abdomen like this. I didn't understand it before, but after you came into the family, I began to understand."

Xu Chaoyan's face lit up with joy. She had always endured the menstrual cramps before, and the pain wasn't this severe. Today, she probably played in the river for too long, and her period was likely coming early. It was all her fault for being too fond of cold things; her body was too weak. She needed to take better care of herself in the future.

Meng Jiu gently massaged her lower abdomen through her clothes. The warm sensation spread across her abdomen, making her feel very comfortable, and she slowly drifted off to sleep.

Seeing the even breathing of the person beside him, Meng Jiuhe rubbed for a while longer before gently withdrawing his hand.

The next day, the brother and sister took Xu Chaoyan to the village to find those craftsmen and explained their purpose. The people looked disapproving and said that she was a woman with nothing better to do than do these kinds of work.

These manual labor jobs are all done by men. Besides, she's a woman, so she's not afraid of being bullied or having someone try to lower her price or act like a scoundrel.

After listening to their words, Xu Chaoyan pondered for a moment. It was normal for these people to have concerns, after all, she had no real intentions and could not make any promises to them now. They were probably only paying attention to her because of the Meng family's past relationship with her.

Xu Chaoyan finally said to them, "I just wanted to let you know. If I need anything and need your help, would you be willing to come with me? Lunch will be all you need."

For those who work as long-term or short-term laborers, the employer usually doesn't provide much for lunch. Sometimes it's just some thin soup or porridge, and everyone drinks two big bowls and then urinates several times.

Given the current situation, some people are tempted by the fact that she provides meals, saying that if there is any work available for them, they might be willing to work for a day or two to see how it goes.

Xu Chaoyan finally breathed a sigh of relief, her face beaming with joy. She had thought that these people had already rejected her and there was no hope left. She would have to find other people. She thought that she would look for people in the village because everyone was more familiar with them, while she wouldn't know people from outside.

She was in a good mood the whole way, and Meng Jiuhe breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that her complexion had improved a lot.

The three returned to the courtyard. Xu Chaoyan picked up her basket and planned to check on the vegetable seeds they had sown earlier. They hadn't been home for a while and hadn't taken care of them. After the recent rains, they didn't know how they were doing.

Meng Jiu stayed in the house to see what else needed to be put away or taken away. He had some books in his trunk, which he planned to air out in the sun when the weather was nice to prevent them from getting infested with insects.

Xu Chaoyan and the others walked towards the plot of land behind the house, chatting idly along the way. Suddenly, they saw a furtive figure squatting on the ground picking vegetables in the distance.

She immediately became alert, pulled her sister-in-law aside, picked up a piece of firewood, and whispered, "Keep your voice down."