Chapter 25: Chapter 25: Lewd Remarks, Currying Favor
People, men and women alike, loved to gossip. To stop them from getting the wrong idea, Zhao Nuanyue knew she had to explain things clearly.
"You heard it just now. Hua Yusen is already twenty-three. That’s not young. And judging by his words and actions, he doesn’t come from an ordinary family. A man as outstanding as him, with such a good family background, is probably already engaged." Zhao Nuanyue didn’t want the people around her to keep bringing up Hua Yusen. Call it avoidance, call it jealousy, but she lacked the means to get close to him, so she chose to stay far away.
Hearing Zhao Nuanyue’s words, Wang Yuan and Li Qiong were stunned.
"Oh, that’s right!" Li Qiong frowned. "He might already have a girlfriend. We really shouldn’t keep talking about it."
Yang Guanghui, who was more gregarious, smiled and nodded along. "Then we won’t talk about it. Next time I see Hua Yusen, I’ll ask. If he doesn’t have anyone, we can play matchmaker then."
Wang Yuan was envious, but she was no longer "clean." She didn’t dare to pursue him openly and bravely.
Zhao Nuanyue ignored them and went inside to gather her clothes, getting ready to do the laundry.
The women of Nianqiao Village all did their laundry here. This spot was downstream, so it didn’t contaminate the drinking water upstream.
Ever since Zhao Nuanyue had given her the watch, Li Guihua had been exceptionally warm toward her. With that watch, her daughter’s dowry would be much more respectable. Such a precious item couldn’t be bought even with money; you needed industrial coupons.
"Nuanyue, over here!" Li Guihua, who was in the middle of washing clothes, waved for Zhao Nuanyue to come over.
Zhao Nuanyang was on a rock by the bank, dipping a branch in the water to draw.
"Nuanyang, be good and play here. I’m going to wash the clothes," Zhao Nuanyue said softly. "When we go home tonight, I’ll make you something delicious."
"Mhm!" Zhao Nuanyang nodded obediently.
Zhao Nuanyue carried her basket over to Li Guihua, the head of the Women’s Federation.
Just as she was about to start washing, she noticed a stout woman not far away looking at her with a hostile glint in her eyes.
A closer look revealed it was Wang Dadan’s wife.
The way the woman was staring at her, it was as if she had seduced her husband.
’No, there’s a reason for her hostility. She must know that Wang Dadan has his eyes on the volunteers at the Dragon King Temple. As his wife, she naturally understands his temperament. However, she can’t control Wang Dadan or change him, and she’s never considered divorce. So, she can only vent all her anger and jealousy on the people her husband covets.’
Once Zhao Nuanyue figured this out, she deliberately avoided looking at Wang Dadan’s wife, Liu Cuihong.
But just because she didn’t provoke others didn’t mean others were willing to leave her alone.
"Well, well, would you look at that! Look at Miss Zhao Nuanyue’s feet. So fair and tender, even a steamed white bun from home isn’t this white." Liu Cuihong said with a smirk that didn’t reach her eyes. "If I were a man, I’d skip the bun and eat those feet instead."
What a lewd thing to say!
The women nearby snickered. Some were just enjoying the show, while others had malicious intent, instinctively resentful of these women from the city. They were all so fair-skinned and knew how to dress up, and now their own husbands were starting to find fault with them, the village women.
Zhao Nuanyue’s face flushed with embarrassment, and she looked pleadingly at Li Guihua.
Li Guihua was in her fifties and had a relaxed attitude about relations between men and women. She felt it was inappropriate for a group of boorish older women to bully an unmarried young girl with such crude jokes. Besides, this Zhao Nuanyue was a resourceful person; there might be more benefits to gain from her in the future. So, naturally, she was willing to defend her.
"You shameless, thick-skinned women! Have you no decency? The girl is still young. Dadan’s wife, your own daughter is fifteen. Do you think it’s appropriate to say such things in front of your daughter?" Li Guihua chided. "We are women of the new society, with ideals and aspirations! We must raise our ideological awareness and not be so shortsighted as to only stare at the bed and the stove."
’I really have to admire Li Guihua,’ Zhao Nuanyue thought. ’She can even turn a scolding into something so high-sounding, righteous, and politically charged.’
Seeing Li Guihua defend Zhao Nuanyue, Liu Cuihong was unhappy, but she was also wary of Li Guihua’s influence. She gave an awkward laugh and said, "It was just a joke, I didn’t mean it!"
’Who does this Zhao Nuanyue think she is? How could she possibly compare to my precious daughter? She’s just a seductive little fox. That tender-looking body of hers... one look and you know she’s no good.’
A woman on good terms with Li Guihua, Da Zhu’s wife, added her praise, "A few young people came to my home village too. Goodness, forget about working, it was a blessing if they didn’t get sick or slack off. But the young people in our village, aside from being a bit clumsy at first, have become very serious about their work. Whether it’s picking mushrooms, fishing, or the autumn harvest, they don’t fall behind. They’re real hard workers. Otherwise, village chief Miao wouldn’t have rewarded them."
"That’s right. The ones who came to our village are still kids themselves. We won’t talk about the three older ones, but Zhao Nuanyue and her brother are only fifteen. Yet no matter what they do, they never hold the village back." Liu Lanhua also chimed in with praise, a very sincere expression on her face.
’This is so unsettling,’ Zhao Nuanyue thought. If she didn’t know what Liu Lanhua had done before, she really would have been like Li Qiong and Wang Yuan, deceived by her appearance and moved to tears with gratitude.
’The day for worker recruitment is approaching. That Wang Dadan only got a taste; he’s left hanging and certainly won’t be giving the benefit to Liu Lanhua.’ Thinking of this, and seeing Liu Lanhua’s eager display, Zhao Nuanyue immediately became more vigilant. ’Is this woman up to her old tricks again?’
"Yes, yes." The village women were also persuaded and changed their attitude toward the young people. They were afraid that if the conversation continued, the matter of the two city girls who were violated would be brought up again, tarnishing the village’s reputation.
Zhao Nuanyue didn’t say much. After finishing her laundry, she took her brother and went home.
Zhao Nuanyue wasn’t afraid of Liu Lanhua or Wang Dadan. If she encountered danger, she could just run into the water. In the water, with the help of the Dragon Scale and the Little Red Carp, she had more than enough to deal with Wang Dadan and Liu Lanhua.
But her brother was a different story.
"Nuanyang, don’t eat anything other people give you, only what I give you," Zhao Nuanyue instructed. "When you’re drawing by yourself, don’t leave the place where we live. When we go out to work, you must listen to my arrangements..."
Zhao Nuanyue nagged Zhao Nuanyang over and over like a mother hen, terrified that if she let her guard down for even a moment, something would happen to her brother.
Just as Zhao Nuanyue was fraught with anxiety, she received a letter.
After arriving in Nianqiao Village, she had written a letter to Xia Yingyu in Jincheng City.
Zhao Nuanyue’s feelings for Xia Yingyu were complicated. It would be dishonest to say her mother didn’t love her children, but that love would never surpass the love she had for herself.
She was the type of woman who couldn’t live without a man’s care, a woman whose abilities weren’t enough to protect her own children.
