Chapter 47: Reaching Out to Hold That Long-Dreamed-Of…

Jiang Shi’s gaze immediately became wary. “What are you looking at?”

“Nothing.” Cheng Ye withdrew his gaze. “Are you hungry? I’ll go make dinner.”

Jiang Shi pulled over a chair and sat down, letting out a lazy yawn. After being overheated, he didn’t feel hungry at all. “Not hungry. I want to sleep.”

Cheng Ye finished pouring the last sack of corn onto the ground to dry. After washing his hands clean, he walked over to Jiang Shi’s side. He reached out, lifted the collar at the back of his neck to take a look, and sure enough, there were several red scratches there.

He pressed on the marks. Jiang Shi hissed, his half-closed eyes snapping open. “What are you doing?”

“You got scratched.”

Jiang Shi reached back to feel his neck, then looked up, glaring at the person standing beside him. “Whose fault is that?”

He had been fully covered and walking carefully. These scratches were clearly from when Cheng Ye had kissed him.

“My fault. I’ll be gentler next time.”

“You still think there’ll be a next time?”

Cheng Ye let out a soft laugh. His expression was unreadable, his voice calm.

“It was exciting. Didn’t the Young Master enjoy it too?”

Jiang Shi kicked off his slipper and threw it at him. “Enjoy my ass! Cheng Ye, I get annoyed just seeing you. Get lost.”

Jiang Xue, who had just returned home with a basket of vegetables: “…”

Cheng Ye picked up the slipper and placed it by Jiang Shi’s feet. “I’ll go get you some ointment.”

Jiang Xue called after him, “Remember to come back for dinner!”

Once Cheng Ye’s figure had disappeared, Jiang Xue placed the vegetables by the sink and went to wash the rice for dinner. Cradling the rice cooker pot, she stood in the house and glanced at Jiang Shi, who was sprawled out by the door. “You child, don’t be like that with Cheng Ye. I just came back and saw you throw your shoe right at his face. It’s a good thing he has a good temper. If he didn’t, he could have gotten into a fight with you.”

Jiang Shi said, “That’s because you don’t know what he did or what he said.”

Jiang Xue: “No matter how out of line he was, you can’t just hit people…”

Jiang Shi: “…”

He said, “If you like him so much, why don’t you just adopt him as your son and let him live with you.”

“…You brat.”

Jiang Xue skillfully started the rice cooker and then sat on a low stool by the door to wash the vegetables. She began to lecture him earnestly. “You’re just foolish. Look at that Cheng Ye, he has no family to rely on, and he seems honest. With that build and physique, you can tell he’s a hard worker.”

“He’s had a pitiful life since he was a child, not many people have been good to him. If you’re just a little bit nice to him, he’ll definitely remember it. Look at our family, whenever there’s something to do, doesn’t he always come to help? Without him, we don’t know how long we’d be working.”

“He’s honest, but he’s not a block of wood. If you bully him like this every day, after a while, he’ll definitely start to feel something. It’s always better to have one more friend than one more enemy.”

“You’re all alone at school, and Xin He isn’t the sharpest tool in the shed. If you’re nice to Cheng Ye, at least you’ll have someone to look out for you if something happens.”

Jiang Shi watched her wash the vegetables with a swishing sound while her mouth ran on and on. He thought to himself, she has no idea what Cheng Ye did to her own son. If I were any nicer to him, Cheng Ye would be taking off his pants and climbing into my bed tonight.

…

Cheng Ye came back after taking a shower.

Jiang Xue was stir-frying vegetables. Jiang Shi had fallen asleep in the chair by the doorway.

He had changed into a clean set of clothes, carrying the lavender scent of cheap laundry detergent. The moment he got close, Jiang Shi smelled it.

Jiang Shi opened his eyes. Cheng Ye was bent over, examining his neck. Seeing him awake, Cheng Ye affectionately pinched the young man’s sharp chin. “Turn a little, I’ll apply the ointment for you.”

The half-asleep Jiang Shi obediently turned, exposing his neck to Cheng Ye.

The ointment was cool against his skin. Jiang Shi flinched from the cold. “Where did you get this medicine?”

“Young Master’s skin is delicate. You get allergies and marks at the slightest touch. Naturally, I bought extra to keep at home just in case.”

Jiang Shi, hugging the chair, let out a soft huff. “And isn’t that because of you?”

“My fault.” After finishing with his neck, Cheng Ye looked at Jiang Shi’s back and noticed a few red marks there as well. “There are some on your back too. Lift your shirt a little.”

Jiang Shi paused, then turned his back to Cheng Ye and lifted his shirt.

The expanse of white skin met his eyes. Cheng Ye’s gaze darkened for an instant, but with Jiang Xue cooking in the house, he didn’t do anything. He properly applied the medicine.

After he finished, he pulled the shirt back down and asked Jiang Shi, “What about the front? Are there any?”

This time, Jiang Shi refused no matter what. “No.”

Fine…

Cheng Ye sighed with regret, his eyes scanning downwards. “What about your legs?”

Jiang Shi pulled his legs in, looking at Cheng Ye warily. “What?”

Cheng Ye said, “I’m concerned about you.”

Heh!

Jiang Shi did indeed have a few scratches on his legs, on his calves. He didn’t know how they got there.

He held out his hand to Cheng Ye. “Give me the ointment. I’ll apply it myself.”

Cheng Ye wouldn’t give it to him. “I bought the medicine, why should I give it to you?”

“…”

It really wasn’t that Jiang Shi had a bad temper; it was that Cheng Ye was just asking for a beating.

Jiang Shi said, “Cheng Ye, don’t force me to slap you in front of my mom.”

Cheng Ye thought for a moment, then squatted down in front of Jiang Shi.

He had been working in the cornfield for half the day. Even if his skin was tough, it was still chafed red. The area on his shoulder was seeping a little blood. As he squatted, Jiang Shi could just glimpse the large patch of red through his open collar.

It was a bit shocking.

“Jiang Shi, I worked for so long. It was very hard.”

“The Young Master won’t let me kiss him, won’t let me hug him, and now you won’t even let me apply some ointment?”

He said it as if he wasn’t the one who had just been holding someone and kissing them in the cornfield.

But Jiang Shi had a soft heart.

Cheng Ye had grasped this fact. He didn’t say how hard or tired he was, but simply bent over, revealing his neck and shoulders, which were red from the leaves and raw from the sacks, right in front of him.

Jiang Shi didn’t speak.

Cheng Ye waited quietly for a moment, and finally saw the legs that had been dangling before his eyes all morning slowly extend towards him.

He smiled.

He reached out and held that long-dreamed-of leg.

---

Carrying a plate of stir-fried potato shreds, Jiang Xue glanced outside as she passed the doorway.

Jiang Shi and Cheng Ye were close together. Her son was sitting on the chair, stretching out a pair of legs that were straighter and more well-proportioned than many girls’. Cheng Ye was half-kneeling, his head lowered as he applied medicine for him.

Seeing this scene, Jiang Xue’s heart skipped a beat, and a strange feeling crept into her mind.

She didn’t know what exactly was strange, but she subconsciously didn’t want Jiang Shi and Cheng Ye to continue interacting like this.

“Jiang Shi,” she called out, her voice louder now. “Why are you making Cheng Ye apply medicine for you? Don’t you have hands? Do it yourself.”

Jiang Shi didn’t notice the tension in her tone and only felt wronged. “What does it have to do with me? It was clearly Cheng Ye who insisted on doing it.”

He wasn’t happy about it either.

Cheng Ye released his hand and explained, “The cut is on the back of his calf, it’s hard to see, so I helped him apply it.”

Jiang Xue forced a smile. “Don’t mind him. You’ve worked hard all day, why bother with this? If he can’t apply it, I’ll do it for him later. Jiang Shi is used to ordering people around. In the future, just ignore him when he tells you to do things.”

Cheng Ye looked at Jiang Xue for two seconds, his eyes darkening. In the end, he didn’t say anything, stood up, and handed the ointment to Jiang Shi.

During dinner, Jiang Xue eagerly piled meat into Cheng Ye’s bowl. “Thank you so much for today. If it weren’t for you, Jiang Shi and I don’t know how long we would have been busy.”

Cheng Ye pushed the food around in his bowl with his chopsticks. “Auntie Jiang, you’re too kind. It’s what I should do. You’ve all helped me so much, I don’t even know how to repay you.”

Jiang Xue: “Ah! We’re all neighbors, don’t talk about repayment. We help you, but not because we expect anything in return.”

Jiang Shi glanced at her, thinking that wasn’t what she had said earlier.

Cheng Ye was quiet for two seconds, his expression unreadable. “I wasn’t doing much anyway, just idling at home. Since I’m already here, are there any other fields that need picking? After we eat, I can go with you to finish them.”

Jiang Xue, who had been desperate for help before, now hesitated.

Cheng Ye said, “If Jiang Shi hadn’t lent me those twenty thousand yuan back then, I wouldn’t even be able to be at home now, let alone study. To me, he’s a lifesaver. That’s why I want to be a little nicer to him.”

With that said, his intimate actions with Jiang Shi at the door now had an explanation.

Jiang Shi sensed the atmosphere was a bit off and looked from side to side. “What are you guys talking about?” He said to Jiang Xue, “Anyway, Cheng Ye is strong. If he wants to work, just let him.”

Jiang Xue stuffed a piece of potato into his mouth. “Eat your food.”

She turned to Cheng Ye with a smile. “You’ve already helped so much this morning, how could we trouble you again? You’re still a student, and your grades are good. You’re in your last year of high school now, you should be studying hard to get into a good university. I was confused before, I held up your study time.”

Cheng Ye didn’t speak. His chopsticks made a faint creaking sound as he gripped them tightly. After a long moment, he gave a low “Okay.”

Jiang Shi put down his chopsticks and looked at Jiang Xue.

Jiang Xue put more meat into his bowl. “And you, stop thinking about doing other things. Just stay home and study for me. You don’t have to do any work. If you can get into a university for your mother, I’ll be thankful.”

Jiang Shi subconsciously said, “Then I’ll go with Cheng Ye to his…”

Jiang Xue tapped his head with her chopsticks. “Go where? Stay home obediently. Doesn’t Cheng Ye have his own things to do? He needs to study too. Why are you always sticking with him?”

Jiang Shi fell silent.

After the meal, Cheng Ye had no reason to stay. He left Jiang Shi’s house carrying a large pile of vegetables and fruits that Jiang Xue had insisted he take.

Jiang Shi was rummaging through a plastic bag in the main hall and took out a peach.

Jiang Xue stood at the door, looking in.

Jiang Shi was undeniably good-looking; his good looks could even be described as beautiful.

He had inherited his father’s metabolism of never gaining weight no matter how much he ate. His upbringing made him stand with a straight back. His body was slender and long, his skin very pale. Standing in the dimly lit hall, he looked like a lustrous pearl.

He was different from everyone else in Xiliu Village.

The women of Xiliu Village had rough personalities. Their skin was tanned to a healthy wheat color from a young age by the sun. Their arms and legs were muscular, protecting them and supporting their families.

The men were the same, either silent or dull, all honest farmers. Their tempers had been ground down by the daily toil to be as steady as the earth itself.

Jiang Shi was too special here.

In the six months since he had been back, many people had already asked her if Jiang Shi had a girl he liked. Often, when looking at Jiang Shi, Jiang Xue couldn’t imagine him as a husband or a father, taking care of another person.

Compared to taking care of others, he seemed more like the one who needed to be taken care of.

Just like at the door earlier, with Cheng Ye half-kneeling before Jiang Shi, his head lowered, willingly applying medicine for him.

In that instant, Jiang Xue’s expression had turned terrifyingly ugly.