The air seemed to float with some restless factor. It was clearly just an ordinary evening, yet it inexplicably grew hot and stuffy.
Feng Man heard Cheng Lang’s rustling sounds of busyness by her ear.
The silent man showed none of the urgency from that night. He said not a word, simply busied himself tidying the room, sweeping the floor clean, scooping out the boiled hot water to fill the thermos flasks, then carrying the two heavy thermos flasks to the wall in the main room and setting them down.
Feng Man watched Cheng Lang work, doing as he pleased yet methodically, until the click of the two main room doors latching sounded in her ears. Darkness fell over the room as the main room doors closed tight, cutting off access to the side rooms.
Sitting at the desk in the inner room, Feng Man shifted her body a little, but she had nowhere to go.
She knew full well what was about to happen, and now various emotions swirled in her heart, all utterly unfamiliar.
The man wore a black tank top. Though it was autumn weather with a hint of coolness in the evening, waves of heat rolled off Cheng Lang’s body. His muscles swelled into firm, handsome lines as he strode toward her.
Feng Man’s heart beat a little faster. She looked up at the man, her gaze traveling from his sharp brows and eyes downward, over the prominent bulge of his Adam’s apple. She watched it roll once under her gaze, exuding thick, hormone-fueled sexiness. The black tank top brushed against his chest and abs with each step, vaguely revealing the sturdy, powerful build beneath the loose clothing.
To be honest, Cheng Lang was exactly her type from face to figure. Feng Man had seen plenty of good ones in the past but never tasted any.
Yet at this critical moment, she couldn’t help feeling a bit nervous.
Cheng Lang was tall and imposing, like a mountain at that moment. Just standing there gave a pure sense of oppression. As he bent down and drew close, Feng Man’s heart leaped to her throat. Her eyes flickered, her mind filled with all sorts of unhealthy words and images. But a few seconds later, she realized Cheng Lang wasn’t drawing close to her.
The man bent down and opened the chest of drawers beside her. Feng Man’s scalp tightened: QAQ
Right in front of her, Cheng Lang openly pulled out the square little packets whose position he had confirmed the night before. He even seemed to study them seriously, reading the text on the front of the packaging, then flipping it over to carefully read the back.
Feng Man’s heart jumped up and down. She glanced sideways and saw the man more focused than when he read books that night, his phoenix eyes gleaming with earnest study.
The four little packets had sat quietly in the drawer for months, now finally seeing the light of day. Once Cheng Lang finished examining them, he picked one out and loosely gripped it in his palm.
The stark contrast between the man’s broad palm and the small paper packet made Feng Man’s heart skip.
Feng Man, who had been sneaking glances around, slowly shifted her gaze from the family planning supplies upward until it met the man’s deep eyes.
His phoenix eyes narrowed slightly, the light in them sharp. With his rising and falling chest and bulging muscles, he was like a sleek leopard, staring intently at his prey.
A strange sensation spread from her heart. Feng Man’s throat tightened, her voice turning low and hoarse. “Do you know how to use it? Want to study it more? Don’t hurt me…”
Feng Man had heard about Cheng Lang’s past. He was a complete newbie, probably not as knowledgeable in theory as she was—she had read plenty of novels, after all. Now looking at the man’s fit physique, so appetizing, she just worried he might be a brute.
“Mm.” When Cheng Lang spoke, his voice was thoroughly hoarse, as if ground by sand, hot and muffled.
“Still, let’s eat candy first.” Feng Man took a deep breath. She was from a more open future era, after all. She would guide him; that way, she wouldn’t disgrace the people of the 21st century.
Getting down to business had to be done step by step.
……
Feng Man sat on Cheng Lang’s lap, encircled by the man’s strong arms. One hand rested on his arm, feeling the pulsing muscles; the other clutched his black tank top. Their bodies pressed extremely close, breaths entwining.
Eating candy was already familiar to them. Feng Man enjoyed it. Cheng Lang had gotten good at kissing, skilled at pleasing her with his lips and tongue, and at taking hers to please himself.
It was just that the prominent bulge under her shirt was making trouble, or she would have been even more comfortable.
The sensation of her breath being seized wasn’t pleasant—tingling and itchy, with a bit of stimulating pain and trembling.
Feng Man felt acutely sensitive to it. Her throat tightened, unable to ignore the thrill from that force. She curled her toes involuntarily, tensing her arches.
The shirt’s buttons were undone but not removed, swaying loosely. With a downward glance, Feng Man could see the wheat-colored palm hidden within the white shirt, now appearing and disappearing.
Cheng Lang’s fingers were long, joints distinct. When gripping, faint veins stood out. The thin calluses on his palm rubbed against Feng Man’s skin, sending shivers through her. Her breathing grew more rapid, undulating in his palm.
Skin whiter than the shirt gradually softened like a puddle of snow, or like cotton candy spilling between fingers—fragrant, soft, making one’s throat tighten.
Cheng Lang was indeed bewitched.
The tall man lowered his head, taking the softness into his mouth. His strong lips and tongue sucked, producing intimate sounds unfit for the ears that pounded in Feng Man’s ears one after another, shaming her until her hands gripped his rock-hard arms tightly, cheeks flushing red.
Cheng Lang’s lips and tongue were so forceful that Feng Man gripped his arms with equal strength. But on the chair, they couldn’t fully maneuver. Amid the creaking of the wooden chair, a crisp sound of a paper packet hitting the floor rang out abruptly. Both looked down at the same time.
Their breaths were equally rapid, their gazes equally scorching.
Cheng Lang stood directly with the woman in his arms. His arms were strong and powerful, fingers firmly supporting her waist. He bent to pick up the family planning supplies that had fallen in the chaos, then moved to the bed.
The wide bed with its bright red wedding quilt allowed the man and woman to entwine freely.
The square yellow-paper packet that had sat for months was finally torn open and tossed aside, fluttering down onto the big red quilt. With the bed’s shaking and the bedding going from flat to wrinkled and bunched, it slowly fell to the floor.
Snow-white skin and wheat-colored skin formed an ultimate contrast in color, inseparable at this moment.
Cheng Lang’s broad shoulders and narrow waist bent heavily, muscles bulging vigorously, veins faintly visible. His whole body was like a sharp curved bow, lines fierce, shooting straight like an arrow.
Feng Man’s hands dug into the peony-carved patterns on the bed headboard, fingertips white from pressure, trembling uncontrollably.
The two family planning supplies in the packet were both put to use. After more than three months off duty, they finally returned to work gloriously.
They served dutifully until the end.
……
The moon hung high in the sky; it was deep into the night, all sounds silent, thick ink-black dominating the night sky, with only the bright moon shining cleanly.
The man, bare from the waist up, washed clothes and family planning supplies in the courtyard.
The wind dried the sweat on Cheng Lang’s body. Faint red marks dotted his chest, abs, and back; several red imprints on his arms were especially conspicuous, yet he felt no pain at all.
He washed the clothes and family planning supplies clean and hung them on the wire to dry. But just watching the rubber sway gently in the air made Cheng Lang’s heart jump, various sensations flooding back into his mind. He swallowed hard, then simply took them down and brought them back inside, placing them in the corner by the inner room window to dry.
On the bedroom bed, only the wrinkled big red wedding quilt was visible, embroidered with bright double happiness characters, vivid and striking. A snow-white arm lay across it; the woman was too exhausted to open her eyes, sleeping deeply and soundly.
Hearing a faint noise, the thoroughly sore Feng Man lifted her eyelids and glanced beside her, immediately seeing Cheng Lang fiddling with the drying family planning supplies.
Feng Man: “…”
She silently and laboriously rolled over, turning her head away, pretending not to see.
A muffled laugh came from behind. The force and storm-like memories from the long session were still etched in her body. Feng Man closed her eyes and sank into slumber.
Her last hazy memory before sleep was a broad, hot body pressing against her from behind, completely enveloping her.
Chattering voices in the courtyard, mixed with chirping insects, bird calls, and the clinking of pots and pans, drifted intermittently into the inner room.
Feng Man slowly opened her eyes. Dazzling sunlight streamed through the window. She blocked it with slender fingers, rousing herself, gradually waking up.
In the courtyard, Dong Xiaojuan and Yuan Qiumei had already been busy for a while. On Sunday, with no school, Fan You Shan played marbles nearby with a few good friends from the alley.
Seeing his cousin-aunt finally up, Fan You Shan looked up and asked, “Cousin-aunt, the sun’s already shining on your butt, and you’re just getting up?”
Feng Man: QAQ
She desperately wanted to throw out the culprit to apologize, but how could she say it? She could only reply, “Kids shouldn’t worry about adult matters.”
Fan You Shan pursed his lips, about to argue that his mom said the same to him for sleeping in, when his cousin-aunt beckoned. “Want something good to eat? Mung bean cakes from Nanhxin Studio.”
“Eat!” Fan You Shan forgot everything else at the mention of treats.
After washing up and eating breakfast, Feng Man went to help her cousin-in-law. Dong Xiaojuan was scooping braised pork into a basin and casually said, “Manman, you two went to rest pretty early last night? Xiaoshan and I went for a stroll outside, and when we came back, your room door was already shut. We brought roasted sweet potatoes for you but didn’t call since you were resting.”
Feng Man’s eyelid twitched. She forced a smile. “Mm, the train ride was too tiring. Need a few days to recover.”
Dong Xiaojuan’s attention shifted as expected, recalling her own multi-day train trips. “Yeah, sitting that long makes your back and waist ache. Is your body still sore?”
This time, Feng Man nodded emphatically, without a hint of lying—it really was sore!
That noon, Feng Man didn’t go to the stall. After lunch, she went back for a nap. Only in the afternoon did she feel a bit better.
Around five, while helping sell at the stall, Feng Man stood for a bit and felt her legs go soft. Just as she prepared to find a stool, she saw Elder Huang coming to buy food.
“You girl, how come you’re slacking off at work? You weren’t here at noon today.” Elder Huang pointed out as soon as he saw her, but Feng Man was used to it.
Feng Man shot back righteously, “Elder Huang, you’re at the age to strive hard. At my age, isn’t slacking off exactly what I should do?”
Elder Huang’s thick brows shot up. “What kind of talk is that!”
Feng Man smiled sweetly, going all out to fool the old man. “Think about it—we young folks finish all the work, what do you have left to do?”
Elder Huang: “…”
He felt this girl talked in circles. Backing his hands, lips pursed, he didn’t engage and changed the topic to state his purpose. “Your stall…”
They carried Elder Huang’s purchases to the roadside. From him, Feng Man heard the news Cheng Lang had brought back yesterday firsthand.
“See if you have the fortune to get a shop.”
Elder Huang saw so many stalls here, but only this girl had any awareness, willing to listen humbly to his guidance, so he was willing to say more. “Alright, I have to go. Old age means I get hungry fast.”
Watching Elder Huang’s departing back, Feng Man teased with a smile, “Elder Huang, perfect age to strive—eat more to grow strong.”
Elder Huang blew his mustache and glared, not wanting to say more to this girl! What kind of talk was that!
On the way back after selling out that evening, Feng Man thought of some customers from the past three months and hurriedly said to Dong Xiaojuan and Yuan Qiumei, “Remember when Liu Cuihua’s fake sesame flatbreads made those customers get diarrhea and go to the hospital?”
Dong Xiaojuan, as a direct party, naturally remembered; it had been a big fuss. Yuan Qiumei had vaguely heard about it.
Feng Man cautioned them, “Keep an eye out these days for that couple coming to buy sesame flatbreads again. Sister Qiumei probably hasn’t seen them, but cousin-in-law has. They’re in their thirties, quite thin, look pretty refined. They’ve come to the stall a few more times to buy our sesame flatbreads, but their workplace is a bit far, so not too often. They usually wear deep blue government work uniforms. Last month they bought sesame flatbreads; sounds like they work in the Development Zone.”
Dong Xiaojuan hadn’t expected Feng Man to remember so much and nodded quickly. “Then I’ll watch for them every day.”