Volume One, Chapter 14: Sewing the Shoe Soles

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“Mother, do you have any hemp rope?” Jiang Yuan asked as she stepped out of the house, clutching the newly purchased shoe soles, looking for Lu’s mother.

Li Lianhua furrowed her brows, thinking for a moment. She recalled there was some left from the last time she used it.

So Li Lianhua called back to Jiang Yuan, “Yes, I’ll go get it for you.”

“Great, thank you, Mother.”

Jiang Yuan sat in the courtyard, lowering her eyes to measure the length of the shoe sole with her fingers, estimating it should fit Lu Xiuyi’s foot length.

“Mother, take a look—is this sole big enough for Xiuyi?”

When Lu’s mother came out of the house, Jiang Yuan still felt uneasy and asked again. She had measured Lu Xiuyi’s shoe size with her hand before buying the soles but was still worried it might not fit.

Except in front of Lu Xiuyi, where Jiang Yuan could call him “husband” casually, she only dared to call him by his name in front of Lu’s parents.

“Let me see,” Li Lianhua took the sole, measured it a couple of times, nodded, and said, “Yes, this size will do.”

Then she handed over the hemp rope she had, saying, “Here, this leftover hemp rope should be just enough for sewing the soles.”

Without hesitation, Jiang Yuan put on a thimble, clenched the needle, and forcefully threaded the hemp rope back and forth through the sole, securing it firmly on the outside. This method made the sole more durable.

“This work takes a lot of strength. Xiao Yuan, are you sure you can manage?”

Li Lianhua looked worriedly at Jiang Yuan’s chubby little hands. This task was laborious and harsh on the skin; even experienced hands would get raw and red fingertips.

Jiang Yuan replied, “I can.”

She had a fair amount of strength, perhaps because of her plumpness. Despite the abrasion on her hands, she found the work fairly easy.

Li Lianhua initially intended to take over the task, but seeing Jiang Yuan was doing well, she didn’t insist.

When Lu Xiuyi returned, Jiang Yuan was still sitting in the courtyard sewing the soles. Her palms were sweaty, and the needle felt slippery.

“Ouch!” She accidentally pricked her hand again, and a small bead of blood welled up the next second.

But she paid no mind, wiping away the blood with her fingertip and continued sewing.

Lu Xiuyi’s gaze landed on the sole in her hands, clearly not fitting the size. A flicker of suspicion crossed his mind, and he slowed his steps.

His shadow fell before her, and Jiang Yuan looked up to find Lu Xiuyi staring at her intently.

Surprised, she asked, “Husband?”

Jiang Yuan didn’t know if he had seen her clumsy moment and, embarrassed, explained, “This is my first time making these; next time it’ll be better. But don’t worry, once I finish, I’ll wash them clean first.”

She had pricked her hand several times, and the sole was stained with her blood. She wasn’t sure if Lu Xiuyi had noticed.

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Lu Xiuyi lowered his eyelids slightly, his gaze resting on her reddened fingertips.

Jiang Yuan saw it clearly and smiled inwardly, pouting with a pitiful expression. “Husband, do you feel sorry for me? It hurts, you know.”

Then she pushed her luck, “If you could blow on it, maybe it wouldn’t hurt so much.”

It was rare to see a man show concern for her; she wasn’t about to miss this chance.

“You’re imagining things,” Lu Xiuyi’s eyes flickered, then he suddenly curved his lips into a smile.

“Husband, you… smiled?” Jiang Yuan’s lips curled upward as well. Her man’s smile was truly handsome.

“No, I didn’t.”

In an instant, Lu Xiuyi forcibly straightened his slightly upturned lips, but the faint sparkle of amusement still lingered in his eyes.

Jiang Yuan raised an eyebrow, seeing through him but not exposing it. She had already sensed a trace of embarrassed anger in his eyes.

Feeling cheerful, Jiang Yuan hummed a little tune, working enthusiastically.

Though she remained silent, Lu Xiuyi clearly read the message on her face: “I know everything, but I won’t say a word.”

When Li Lianhua appeared in the courtyard again and saw Jiang Yuan alone, she asked, “Xiao Yuan, I saw Xiuyi just came back, where is he?”

Over time, she had grown fond of the young couple’s closeness and looked forward to their growing affection.

Jiang Yuan kept her head down, replying briefly, “Inside.”

Li Lianhua frowned, rubbing her temples.

“That boy… his wife is sewing soles for him, and he runs off inside? No heart at all.”

At first, Li Lianhua only considered this daughter-in-law as a member of the Lu family, but as time passed, she came to like her.

The ungrateful someone appeared at that moment: “…”

Jiang Yuan caught a glimpse of Lu Xiuyi’s figure and couldn’t help but chuckle.

Lu Xiuyi approached expressionless, extending his hand. “Here, the water you wanted.”

It turned out he had gone inside to get water for Jiang Yuan.

Li Lianhua realized her mistake and couldn’t help but remind him, “Xiao Yuan is your wife, the one you’ll be with for life. You have to treat her well and not keep a cold face all the time. Otherwise, you might scare her away.”

She didn’t say the last part aloud: that he would be alone for life if he did.

Lu Xiuyi: “…”

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“I’m not running, not even if the house runs away,” Jiang Yuan said with a bright smile.

Li Lianhua gave a sidelong glance and nodded approvingly. “Did you hear that? Where else would you find such a good wife?”

Their back-and-forth could have been a stage play, leaving Lu Xiuyi no room to retort.

“Mother, I understand,” Lu Xiuyi said.

Satisfied, Li Lianhua finally left.

“Husband, what do you understand now?”

After they left, Jiang Yuan set down her work and leaned close to tease him, her eyes full of mischief.

“Do you still want water?” Lu Xiuyi avoided answering.

“No more, just answer me,” Jiang Yuan tugged at the corner of his shirt.

“If you don’t want it, I’ll put it back.”

With that, Lu Xiuyi picked up the enamel cup Jiang Yuan had just drunk from, straightened his back stiffly, and returned inside.

Jiang Yuan watched him with a knowing smile, noticing his awkwardness.

Later that night, while they slept, Jiang Yuan was awakened by a sudden chill.

She thought she had kicked off the covers herself, but when she opened her eyes, the quilt was still wrapped around her.

She heard a sound: “Drip, drip…”

Listening closely, it sounded like water dripping continuously from the eaves, soaking through the quilt. Jiang Yuan felt cold and wet.

She couldn’t bear it any longer. Climbing out of bed, she lit a kerosene lamp and looked up; indeed, water was dripping from the eaves. Was the roof leaking?

Quietly, she walked to the door, pushed it open, and saw that a fine drizzle was falling.

Behind her, the lamp’s flickering light disturbed Lu Xiuyi, who woke groggily and watched her fussing back and forth on the kang bed.

Fearing the rain might worsen, Jiang Yuan fetched a red enamel basin and placed it under the leak, lining the bottom with a towel to muffle the sound of dripping water.

Seeing her actions clearly, Lu Xiuyi’s drowsy eyes snapped wide open. Sitting up and frowning, he recalled that the last repair was in early spring; tonight, the roof had started leaking again.