Chapter 87: Chapter 87: Call Me Husband
The night was enigmatic.
Chen Family’s Master Bedroom.
On the kang bed, a small table was set. On the table lay a bowl of steamed buns, a dish of minced pork sauce, a bowl of solidified deer blood, a small plate of pickled vegetables, and a roasted leg of deer.
These dishes were carefully prepared and brought up from the cellar by Han Anniang.
On the dark old table, the freshly cooked or covered dishes emitted steaming white smoke, blending together, and the enticing aroma of meat permeated the small room.
With the doors and windows tightly shut, the fragrance had nowhere to escape.
Chen Mo was not a great man who would sacrifice for others. His dietary regimen impacted his cultivation pace, and what he ate earlier was far from enough to meet his needs.
The show was just for appearances; he wouldn’t neglect himself.
Besides, he felt he hadn’t wronged the villagers. He sheltered them, organized them to build a mountain village, and hadn’t gained any benefits from them, but instead spent quite a bit of silver.
Thinking this way, he felt like a great philanthropist.
Chen Mo picked up the roasted deer leg without any guilt, took a bite, chewed a few times, and swallowed it.
[ Meat consumption: +0.05, Purple Sun Transformation Skill experience: +0.05. ]
"Uncle, eat slowly, don’t choke," Han Anniang, sitting across from Chen Mo and sewing clothes, looked up and saw him swallowing without much chewing, and expressed her concern.
"Did you and Min’Er eat?"
Chen Mo put down the roasted deer leg, picked up a steamed bun, tore it in half, scooped some minced meat sauce into it, and took a bite, the fresh aroma of the bun and the spicy meat sauce exploded in his mouth, bringing a sense of fullness.
"I and Min’Er have already eaten. Min’Er feels a bit unwell, so I let her rest." Concerned about Chen Mo choking, Han Anniang put down her sewing, got out of bed, and poured him a cup of water to drink.
"Unwell, is everything okay?" Chen Mo paused, hoping she didn’t catch a cold.
"She should be alright, just said she had a headache. I saw she didn’t have a fever; she was bouncing around in the afternoon."
"That’s good."
Sitting again, Han Anniang talked about her work progress, saying, "Wang Family Village and Fu Ze Village have already been plowed and seeded with rice. Tomorrow will be Xiaogao Village and Liu Village’s turn."
Though villagers were starving and hungry, they still kept some rice seeds for sowing.
After all, rice seeds are the hope for the next year.
"Hmm."
Chen Mo sucked on his fingers from holding the roasted deer leg earlier, drank some water, and said, "Sister-in-law, can you ask around tomorrow if there are any traveling merchants in the village."
Now that Ping Court County and Qingtian County have been sealed, the village has pelts to sell but nowhere to sell them.
Therefore, Chen Mo wants to find traveling merchants to deliver goods to other counties.
If possible, he will try out the money-making ideas in his mind to see if they are feasible.
Han Anniang nodded; when it came to matters not concerning Chen Mo’s safety, she wouldn’t ask why anymore, just silently supported him.
"Ah, satisfying."
After eating and finishing the water, Chen Mo burped contentedly.
"Uncle, are you full?" Han Anniang asked.
"I’m full," Chen Mo replied.
Upon hearing that, Han Anniang put down her needle and thread, cleaned up, and took the tableware to wash. She stored leftover meat sauce in the cellar’s cabinet.
Back in the master bedroom, she found Chen Mo had already left, unsurprisingly. She knew he had a habit of going out for activities after meals. She removed the small table from the kang bed and made the bed again.
Next, she took up her sewing, blew out the lamp in the master bedroom, and went to the kitchen to boil hot water, sitting by it, sewing as she watched the water boil.
Chen Mo went to the barn he had set up in the back, poured hay into the feed trough, then picked up a pig’s hair brush to meticulously groom the horse.
Brushing hair cleans off dirt and bugs and strengthens the bond between man and horse.
Unfortunately, the horse was too thin, Qinghe Gang certainly hadn’t spent money nourishing it.
For a horse to gain weight, it’s best to feed it grains at night with some soybeans to increase protein.
But Chen Mo couldn’t meet these conditions yet, so he could only feed it extra hay.
After tending to the horse, night had deepened, and he returned to the master bedroom.
Han Anniang saw uncle return and quickly brought hot water for Chen Mo to wash his face and feet.
After face washing, Han Anniang wrung out the washcloth, and let Chen Mo sit down to wash his feet.
But Chen Mo let her sit down, squatted before her, and smiled, "Let me wash sister-in-law’s feet tonight."
"That’s not proper. How can a man wash a woman’s feet? It’s against the rules," Han Anniang hurriedly refused.
However, Chen Mo caught Han Anniang’s leg without argument, removed her embroidered shoe and silk socks.
Han Anniang wasn’t a pampered young lady; as a village farmer’s wife, her feet weren’t as delicate as in novels, but they weren’t unsightly—normal women’s feet, with well-defined toes, smooth and lustrous.
"Uncle, don’t look..." Feeling Chen Mo’s intent gaze on her feet, Han Anniang’s face turned red with heat, her body tensed slightly.
"Don’t be afraid." Chen Mo placed Han Anniang’s feet in the hot water, washing them carefully.
Feeling the peculiar sensation from her soles, Han Anniang shyly turned her head away, but her heart felt like it was soaked in honey.
After washing, Han Anniang didn’t wipe her feet, just shyly retracted into the blanket.
Chen Mo smirked, washed briefly, and then threw out the foot washing water through the opened window.
Closing the window, Chen Mo uncovered the blanket and playfully caught Han Anniang’s foot in his hand again, teasing, "It’s not ugly, why hide?"
"Am I... just shy." Han Anniang stammered.
Chen Mo chuckled, tapping the mill stone.
Han Anniang instinctively leaned over the window sill.
But Chen Mo brought her back, saying, "Sister-in-law, I want to see your face."
"..."
The two were like an old married couple; after a brief shyness, Han Anniang blushingly started to undress.
But Chen Mo gently pushed her hands aside, laughing softly, "Sister-in-law, I’m the most understanding."
Hearing this, Han Anniang’s flushed face seemed to ooze water, her gaze avoiding, not daring to meet Chen Mo’s eyes, but her body surrendered, letting Chen Mo proceed with affection...