Toon Chapter 6

Liansheng fell awkwardly to the ground. In a few seconds, Zhou Lingchun had scooped him up, supporting his back and holding him on his lap. Wang Daniu rushed over immediately after.

Zhou Lingchun asked with a hint of urgency, “Where did you fall? I told you to stay home.”

Liansheng was shielded by the shadow of the man’s shoulder. He was still tightly clutching the jar with his arms, and the pain from the hard clods of dirt digging into his back lingered. With a whimper, he let go of the jar and instinctively twisted the man’s pectoral muscle, making Zhou Lingchun hiss. Liansheng complained tearfully, “It’s all your fault… all your fault! You kept not coming back, so I came to find you.”

Wang Daniu clicked his tongue internally: This woman is utterly unreasonable, walking without watching where she’s going. Then he recalled hearing that Zhou Lingchun doted on his woman, providing her with the best food and drink, treating her like a treasure. It wasn’t surprising; Liansheng was as endearing as a kitten and probably hadn’t been hit even once. But no matter how spoiled, she shouldn’t be hitting the man! Wang Daniu was somewhat expectant of Zhou Lingchun’s reaction.

Unexpectedly, Zhou Lingchun grabbed his other hand and said, “It’s all my fault.”

Liansheng complained, “It hurts so much!”

Zhou Lingchun frowned, “Where does it hurt?”

Fortunately, the mud was soft after the rain and had been turned over by Zhou Lingchun, so the fall wasn’t serious. However, his skin was delicate, and rolling down the field ridge meant he was bound to scrape against hard dirt clods. Liansheng held up his arm and said vaguely, “Here.”

Zhou Lingchun rolled up the sleeve on Liansheng’s arm to his shoulder, shook off some dirt, and carefully examined the soft flesh of his arm. Wang Daniu’s eyes widened, not just at Zhou Lingchun’s reaction, but at Liansheng’s delicate skin. It was so white, truly like a pearl knocked out of an oyster shell, making one want to hold and play with it.

Wang Daniu, with his sharp eyes, clearly saw red marks on the white skin of Liansheng’s inner arm. They didn’t look like bruises from a hit, but rather… hickeys.

He took a step closer, leaning in for a better look. Zhou Lingchun suddenly turned and glanced at Wang Daniu, who immediately understood and chuckled, “Heh, it looks like nothing serious. I’ll get back to hoeing now.”

Zhou Lingchun meticulously checked both of Liansheng’s arms. There was no broken skin, only some areas that were rubbed red. Fearing that the bone might be jarred, he gently squeezed Liansheng’s arm and pulled it, asking, “Does your bone hurt?”

Liansheng said, “No, my flesh hurts!”

Zhou Lingchun felt relieved. It was probably just scraping against pebbles in the dirt when he fell. He pressed and rubbed the red areas. After rubbing, Liansheng’s skin was covered in dust. The man blew on it a few times, then said in a deep voice, “Why are you so careless? How many times have I told you to watch where you walk?”

Having lost face in front of someone else and Zhou Lingchun, and now being lectured, Liansheng felt quite upset.

He pouted, ready to throw a tantrum, “It still hurts! Blow on it again.”

Zhou Lingchun had no choice but to continue blowing, his expression blank. A rough country man, bare-chested, carefully controlled his breath, afraid of hurting him. The sun was getting stronger, and sweat beaded on the man’s forehead, tracing down his dark skin and dripping onto Liansheng’s arm, feeling hot for only an instant before the sensation vanished.

Liansheng then realized that sweat was starting to bead on his own nose. It wasn’t even noon yet, but the sun was already fierce. Continuing to blow would only delay the work; if the farmland hardened, Zhou Lingchun would only plow slower and get more tired. He looked at the drop of sweat on his forearm with wide eyes, then pulled his arm back, lifted his chin, and said, “No more blowing, no more blowing. Save it for tonight. I’ll let you off the hook for now.”

Zhou Lingchun stared at him, “Why doesn’t it hurt anymore?”

A scrape in that spot usually hurt the most.

“If it doesn’t hurt, it doesn’t hurt. Go plow quickly.” Liansheng still wanted Zhou Lingchun to finish the work early so they could go out and play, so he sat up, turned his head, and hugged the jar containing the rice porridge. “I brought you something to drink. See how much I care about you! How dare you scold me.” Zhou Lingchun silently took the jar. Liansheng looked around and finally pulled out a bag from beneath him. He opened it to find the grapes inside had been crushed, with purple-red juice oozing out.

Liansheng sighed, “How can we eat this now?”

“Don’t eat it. I’ll pick fresh ones for you when we get home.” Zhou Lingchun stood up and helped Liansheng to his feet, patting the loose dust off him.

He originally intended to take him straight home, but there was only a small patch of land left to plow. So, he led Liansheng to a shady tree, settled him down, drank the jar of rice porridge in one go, and then quickly finished plowing the field.

After returning home and settling his grandmother, the two rode a heavy-duty bicycle to the town. Zhou Lingchun steered, and Liansheng, dressed in nice clothes, sat on the front bar, where Zhou Lingchun had tied a small stool for him. Liansheng had sat on the back once before—his first time on a bicycle, he was so excited he forgot himself and accidentally got his foot caught. He cried so hard that tears splattered onto the ground.

Liansheng sat happily on the front of the bicycle. His small body was nestled between the man’s strong arms. His slender waist twisted slightly forward, guiding his shoulders in the correct direction. The strings of his hat were tied under his chin. He held the edges of the handlebars with both hands, his eyes curved in smiles, and he called out for Zhou Lingchun to pedal faster.

The bicycle sped up on the bumpy dirt road, and gusts of wind swept past.

They rode like this, passing through stretches of green fields and woods, past clear ponds, and finally into the town.

The market in town was still bustling in the afternoon. Because the town had a wide main road that led straight to the city, transportation was convenient, and vendors often went to the city to stock up on goods. People from several surrounding villages with poor transportation would come here for a good market day. The town market had everything; the variety of food and entertainment was no less than in a big city.

Zhou Lingchun parked the bicycle in a narrow alleyway where an old man watched the bikes for a few cents. After parking, he took Liansheng to buy things according to the list. First, they went to Liansheng’s favorite clothing store and bought two outfits: a set of pajamas for cooler weather and a floral dress he could wear now. After buying clothes, he bought Liansheng a vanilla ice cream to keep him occupied. Zhou Lingchun then found a snack vendor and bagged a few packets of crispy noodles, and prepared to weigh out malt candy, sticky taffy…

Liansheng was busy slurping the melted ice cream water. When he turned his head, the man had already weighed the malt candy. It looked pitifully small, just a handful, which Liansheng figured he could finish in two days.

While the vendor was weighing the sticky taffy, Liansheng shoved the ice cream into the man’s mouth, pulled a five-yuan bill from his shoe, and said, “Scoop more, I have money, I have money.”

The vendor, hearing this, glanced at the money in his hand and scooped another large bowlful. Zhou Lingchun took the five yuan from Liansheng’s hand.

He told the vendor, “Just two yuan’s worth.”

Liansheng protested, “Can’t I even pay for it myself? Why are you so stingy, not letting me eat any candy!”

Zhou Lingchun pinched Liansheng’s chin, inserted his thumb into Liansheng’s mouth, and pressed against his clean white teeth, his expression serious, “Your teeth don’t hurt anymore, do they?”

Previously, Zhou Lingchun had weighed out too much candy for Liansheng, who ate without restraint. That night, he complained of a toothache and a cold stomach. Zhou Lingchun had to use a hot water bottle to warm him every night until he recovered.

Liansheng, having no argument, bit Zhou Lingchun’s finger with his sharp teeth to vent his frustration, then angrily grabbed a few more packets of crispy noodles.

He muttered, “Stingy, stingy. I’ll come to the market by myself next time.”

He was angry and only showed Zhou Lingchun the back of his head. To appease him, Zhou Lingchun bought him a few novels at the bookstore and bought a crispy roasted flatbread, fragrant fried meatballs, and ham from a roadside stall. Liansheng loved these things. He let Zhou Lingchun feed him while playing near the stalls, his belly growing round from eating. His earlier anger had long since vanished into thin air.

The two walked to the East District, which was entirely dedicated to selling poultry: chickens, ducks, geese, pigs, cattle, sheep… Liansheng usually avoided the East District because of the complex mix of smells, which he disliked. He would pinch his nose whenever he got close.

“Hey, cheap ducklings and chicks! Five yuan for two, six yuan for three!” A woman around fifty was sitting by a basket, shouting.

The basket was a mass of fluffy yellow. The crisp chirping of the chicks and ducklings caught Liansheng’s attention.

Liansheng pulled Zhou Lingchun over to the basket and squatted down, picking up a duckling in his palm. The duckling was smaller than his hand, covered in soft yellow down. Its two orange-yellow feet stepped on Liansheng’s palm, and it twisted its head, quacking nervously.

Liansheng adored it, feeling his heart melt. He turned to Zhou Lingchun and said, “Let’s buy some to raise. They’re so cute.”

The woman nearby said, “Buy some! My ducklings grow big and meaty!”

Zhou Lingchun said, “No, we won’t. We don’t have the time to raise them.”

Liansheng’s eyes sparkled, “I have the time! Let’s buy two. I’ll take them swimming in the pond behind the house later.”

Zhou Lingchun thought Liansheng wouldn’t have the patience; it was enough if he could take care of himself. If he raised them for two days and they died, he would probably throw another fit. But Liansheng pleaded sweetly, “Please, buy two. I’ll play with the ducklings when you’re not around.”

The man couldn’t resist. He paid the woman, who took a mini basket, put two bright-eyed ducklings inside, and handed it to Liansheng.

Liansheng was beaming on the way back. Sitting on the front bar, he hummed a tune, turned his head, cupped the man’s face, and kissed his mouth many times, mumbling, “Husband, you are so good to me… I’ll listen to whatever you want tonight.”

Zhou Lingchun didn’t say anything, but his heart was soaring.