Toon Chapter 1
byIt was already noon. The sun was scorching, causing the leaves on the awning to curl up.
Lian Sheng poked his head out and peered toward the end of the small path nearby. After a moment of thought, he grabbed a cattail fan from Zhou Lingchun’s room, placed it on his head, and walked out.
The path was gravel. The soles of the shoes he wore today were thin, and Lian Sheng’s feet were tender. He walked forward with a wobbly gait, frowning, as crystalline beads of sweat broke out on his forehead. He wondered why Zhou Lingchun still hadn’t returned. If he didn’t come back soon, would the food even be edible?
Just as he was thinking this, he saw a tall figure appear under the large banyan tree at the end of the path. Lian Sheng focused his eyes and saw the figure was carrying something. He was so happy he almost jumped, loudly calling Zhou Lingchun’s name as he ran to meet him.
Zhou Lingchun saw the small figure running toward him from a distance, like a swallow flying low in the spring sky. But the swallow seemed to have a limp, running and stopping intermittently. Zhou Lingchun couldn’t help but quicken his pace, walking over and scooping the person up into his arms.
Zhou Lingchun asked, “What’s wrong with your feet?”
“It’s all your fault! Why did you change my shoes this morning? The gravel is killing my feet!” Lian Sheng grumbled, though he wasn’t truly angry. He felt something cold pressed against his waist and his face lit up with joy. He immediately reached out to pull open the bag. “I’ve been waiting for you forever. If you didn’t bring me what I asked for, you’ll be sleeping on the floor tonight.”
Zhou Lingchun let him fiddle with the bag.
When the bag was pulled open, it was filled with a pile of white ice blocks. In this heat, a lot of the ice had melted, and the bag was already half full of water.
Lian Sheng took one look and immediately tugged at Zhou Lingchun’s hair. He wanted to hit his head, but Zhou Lingchun wouldn’t allow it, so he settled for tugging it like pulling weeds. Looking at Zhou Lingchun’s face, he complained pitifully, “I asked you to bring me an ice pop! Not ice blocks, boohoo… You can forget about kissing me tonight ever again.”
Zhou Lingchun had coaxed him into intimacy late last night. Before dawn this morning, Zhou Lingchun had to go to town to check on seeds. Lian Sheng clung to him, refusing to let him leave. Zhou Lingchun, unable to break free from the intense clinging, promised to bring Lian Sheng the ice pop he had been begging for.
In those days, refrigerators were not yet widespread; only large merchants in town could afford them. Every summer, these refrigerators were filled with homemade ice pops, waiting for customers to buy.
Before leaving, Zhou Lingchun had also taken Lian Sheng’s embroidered shoes. Lian Sheng had said the pattern on his embroidered shoes was beautiful and asked Zhou Lingchun to buy an identical pair. But Zhou Lingchun couldn’t tell one embroidery pattern from another, so he had to take the shoes with him.
He had also found another pair of shoes for Lian Sheng and placed them by the bed before he left.
A dull ache came from the top of his head. Zhou Lingchun frowned. His strong arms, accustomed to years of labor, supported Lian Sheng’s backside. He freed one hand and fumbled inside the bag a few times, pulling out an ice pop from the pile of ice blocks and holding it out to Lian Sheng.
“Ah! Zhou Lingchun, you’re the best.” Lian Sheng’s expression instantly changed. He happily took the ice pop, tore off the waterproof paper wrapper, and put it in his mouth for a lick. He felt the intense heat instantly retreat from his entire body, making his teeth chatter. He smiled sweetly at the man and said, “It’s milk flavored.”
Seeing the way the person’s face changed faster than flipping a book, Zhou Lingchun simply retorted, “Heartless.” After saying that, he set Lian Sheng down, then changed his posture, hoisting him onto his back and walking toward home.
Lian Sheng lay on Zhou Lingchun’s back, one hand sucking on the ice pop, the other using the cattail fan to shield his head.
He ate and simultaneously recounted the household matters: “It was too hot, so Grandma wasn’t feeling well at noon. I fed her the rice porridge you cooked this morning, and she finished it and is sleeping in the side room.”
“Mhm.”
“Wangcai ran off somewhere too. I saw him follow some other dogs out this morning, and he hasn’t come back.”
“Don’t worry about him.”
After eating for a while, Lian Sheng looked at the sweat dripping down the man’s forehead. He held the ice pop up to Zhou Lingchun’s lips and said, “Have some.”
Zhou Lingchun smelled the faint milky scent and slightly turned his head, saying, “You eat it.”
“No, I want you to eat it.” Lian Sheng leaned half his body toward Zhou Lingchun, forcefully pushing the pointed tip of the ice pop, which he had been sucking on, toward Zhou Lingchun’s mouth. Zhou Lingchun adjusted the person on his back, gripping Lian Sheng’s legs firmly. He saw Lian Sheng’s lips, red from the cold, still glistening with white droplets of melted ice pop.
His gaze darkened. He bit off a piece of ice, rolled it around in his mouth, then turned his head and captured Lian Sheng’s lips, transferring the piece of ice, no bigger than a pinky finger, into Lian Sheng’s mouth.
Lian Sheng’s face flushed for a moment. He quieted down and ate the rest himself.
Old Lady Sun was scattering old wheat grains to feed the chickens by her gate. From a distance, she saw Zhou Lingchun carrying his little wife, the two of them being affectionate. Zhou Lingchun was known in the village as a handsome man, tall and robust, full of strength from years of labor. Any family with a man like Zhou Lingchun wouldn’t have to worry about farm work.
The scorching sun had tanned Zhou Lingchun’s entire body a wheat color. His arms, bulging with muscle from gripping his wife’s fair, straight legs, looked formidable. In contrast, his little wife, whom he had acquired two years ago from who knows where, looked like he had never done a day of work. His exposed skin was so white it looked like kneaded dough, dazzling in the sunlight.
Old Lady Sun thought to herself that she had certainly never seen Lian Sheng work the fields.
Lian Sheng was beautiful and tall, but his hips weren’t wide. He didn’t look like he’d be good at bearing children, and he had quite a temper. Her daughter was better, she thought—good at working and cooking. This year, she had given birth to a big, fat son for Li Mang at the village head. Zhou Lingchun’s family was a bit lacking, with no parents to help, but he was a very good man nonetheless. Yet, he hadn’t been interested in her daughter.
As they drew closer, Old Lady Sun teased, “Lingchun, taking your wife to town again? Isn’t that tiring, going so far?”
Lian Sheng looked at Old Lady Sun, not wanting to be overshadowed. He secretly pinched Zhou Lingchun’s pectoral muscle beneath the man’s clothes. He heard the man below him say, “It’s not tiring. He was waiting for me at the intersection.”
Old Lady Sun said, “Why didn’t Sheng Sheng go today? Are you expecting? If so, our Yingying can teach him how to make shoes for the baby.”
Zhou Lingchun replied, “No need. He pricks his fingers.”
With that, he walked away with Lian Sheng on his back.
Back home, Zhou Lingchun went to check on Grandma in the side room. Grandma was old and often tired, and her hearing and sight were poor. She would only wake up if someone shouted loudly right next to her ear. After checking on Grandma, the man returned to find Lian Sheng sitting on the edge of the bed, having finished the ice pop and chewing on the small stick. Zhou Lingchun crouched down, lifted Lian Sheng’s fair foot, and slipped the embroidered shoe he had bought that morning onto the boy’s foot.
The shoe fit perfectly. Zhou Lingchun took it off and placed it aside, then used his rough hands to press the sole of Lian Sheng’s foot. The gravel had been too hard; the worst-affected spots were still slightly red.
Lian Sheng comfortably narrowed his eyes, chewing on the stick, and said, “Old Lady Sun just said I was pregnant. Why didn’t you explain?”
Zhou Lingchun said, “I didn’t want to say more.”
“Hmph!” Lian Sheng lifted his knee and pressed his foot against Zhou Lingchun’s chest, where the feeling was best—hard yet elastic. The man seemed accustomed to this treatment and didn’t get angry at all. Lian Sheng, like a spoiled little peacock, raised his eyebrows and pressed with his toes, saying, “If you dare to say more, you’re finished! If you actually marry a wife someday, you won’t even be allowed near the foot of my bed. Oh, and you won’t even get to kiss my feet anymore!”
The man chuckled softly, grabbed Lian Sheng’s foot, and kissed it. Then, he stood up and leaned over, using the position of the raised leg to press the person down onto the bed.