Chapter 52: Forgetting His Sister After Getting a Wife

Tang Xin finally broke into a smile, leaning in to whisper quickly in his ear, “You belong to me, every bit of you. From now on, you’re not allowed to make any decisions on your own.” Then she threw her head back in laughter, stepping away to watch as Li Sheng’s ears flushed steadily red.

On the other side, Li Xiyue was positively green with envy at the scene. She almost forgot the kindness her sister-in-law had shown her, unable to resist a snide remark, “Xiao Jiang and Xiao Hai are still young, don’t go setting a bad example for the children.”

After dinner, Tang Xin was the first to bathe and return to their room, while Li Sheng was still busy outside. He was always like that—unable to sit still, always finding work to do at home to lighten his parents’ burdens. In recent days, the younger siblings had all gone to the mountains to collect firewood—some just small branches, but often larger logs that would need splitting once brought back. That was hard work, beyond the strength of Li Kai, Li Jiang, or Li Hai, and their father was growing older. So each time Li Sheng came home, he would always split a large pile of firewood for the family to use. There were always conversations to be had with parents and siblings as well, so at this moment, Li Sheng was still outside, occupied with all manner of tasks.

Tang Xin lay comfortably on the big bed, intent on conserving her strength—after all, they were newlyweds who had been separated for several days. Hmph, but Tang Xin bore grudges. No matter how attentive Li Sheng was during the day, or how sweetly their affections ran, once night fell, the man’s true nature would emerge. Even when she was exhausted, he refused to let her off, always managing to make her cry before the night was through. Well, tonight she vowed to turn the tables and make him cry instead! Though… that might be a bit difficult, considering the difference in their physical strength.

Lost in these idle thoughts, Tang Xin didn’t notice the passage of time. Soon, it was past nine and Li Sheng still hadn’t returned. Unable to resist, she leaned on the windowsill to look out. After all, in the countryside, people usually retired by seven or eight, to sleep early, rise early, and save on lamp oil.

Just then, the courtyard gate creaked open, then closed again. Soon after, she heard Li Sheng’s steady, vigorous footsteps approaching. So he had gone out after all—no wonder he was so late. Overjoyed, Tang Xin called out, “Brother Sheng—”

Oh, heavens! That syrupy, honeyed tone was enough to give Li Xiyue goosebumps. Only her eldest brother could stand such flirtation; she was like some little enchantress—what ordinary man could tolerate it?

Hearing Li Sheng enter the house, Tang Xin hurriedly peeled off her nightgown and rolled herself up tightly in the quilt. When Li Sheng walked in, all he saw was a cocoon, wrapped up snug and secure on the bed.

Then, through her own reckless determination, Tang Xin proved once and for all that her strength was nowhere near Li Sheng’s—by a margin of thousands, tens of thousands. Her hope of making him cry went unrealized; instead, she was the one left in tears, whimpering all through the night.

And Tang Xin was all too aware that the house had thin walls. Her parents-in-law and young brother- and sister-in-law all slept in rooms adjacent to theirs. Even though she was thick-skinned and didn’t embarrass easily with jokes, at moments like that, she still felt self-conscious. At the very least, she didn’t dare raise her voice, lest everyone hear and she die of mortification. At first, she kept her sounds quiet, barely a whimper—but soon, things slipped beyond her control.

By the next morning, Li Xiyue sat across from the newlyweds, finding their presence a constant irritation. Their commotion had kept her up most of the night, and she’d had to soothe the two little ones as well. All she could say was that there must have been a mouse squeaking all night long in their room, leaving everyone unable to sleep.

Tsk, shameless pair—still making eyes at each other in front of their younger brothers! Wasn’t she afraid of leading the children astray? Her serious, upright brother had been thoroughly corrupted by that enchantress. Alas, the world was in decline!

Li Xiyue had been gradually suppressing her annoyance with Tang Xin, but seeing her brother come home with eyes only for that little seductress, forgetting all about his siblings, left her disgruntled once more. As they ate porridge, she banged her spoon against her bowl, “Sister-in-law, you’ve been newly married for several days now. Isn’t it time you joined us in the fields?”

Worried her brother might object, she glanced at Li Sheng before adding, “There’s no wheat to harvest now, and the work in the fields isn’t heavy. Don’t worry, Sister-in-law, we’ll help you.”

Tang Xin shot her a half-smiling glance—Li Xiyue’s words were hardly reassuring.

Li Sheng, however, asked, “Do you want to go to the commune?” He’d only just returned after their wedding, and now that he was back, he wanted to spend more time with his wife. Last night, their mother had told him how wonderful Tang Xin was, how much both parents liked her, and how filial she was.

Their mother had even urged him to be more considerate of his wife, and specifically reminded her clumsy son to take Tang Xin out for fun whenever possible. Not just to the production team, but to the commune or even the county town—Tang Xin was a city girl, after all, and would surely prefer it.

That was why Li Sheng asked. But Tang Xin shook her head, “In a couple of days, I’ll go with you.” For now, since her husband had just come home and was surely tired, she wanted him to rest.

Li Sheng nodded, “Then you keep busy at home, and I’ll go to the fields for you.” After breakfast, he was the first to grab the water jug and leave, while Li Xiyue could only stare in disbelief at the scene unfolding before her.

Busy at home—what was there to do? With their mother around, every corner of the house was already spotless and every task handled. That little enchantress, meanwhile, just sat around waiting to be served.

Li Xiyue was about to explode with frustration. Her brother was being utterly unfair—why had he never offered to take her place in the fields? True, he always helped with the work, but he’d never told her to stay home while he went in her stead. Her cheeks puffed up in outrage until she resembled a little green frog.

Hmph. A biased brother—now that he had a wife, he’d forgotten his sister!

Tang Xin ignored her, letting Li Xiyue stew in her own anger. This little sister-in-law was spoiled; her many faults would have to be corrected over time.

Li Sheng and his father were quick eaters, but the younger ones took their time—especially now that meals were better, they savored every bite. While Li Jiang and Li Hai were still slowly eating their eggs and millet porridge, Gu Nan came over to ask them out to play.

Tang Xin watched them with a smile, then suddenly remembered something. “You two seem to play every day. Don’t you have to go to school?”

Li Jiang looked at her, puzzled. “School? Why would we go to school? It’s useless anyway.”