CHAPTER 26: CHAPTER 26: SIS-IN-LAW ALWAYS TREATS HIM LIKE A KID

The chatter from the kitchen continued for a long time as the sky gradually darkened, with the flickering firelight casting a warm glow.

The creaking sound of the door closing one after another marked the end of the day.

The next morning, as usual, Song Tingfan fetched water, and Lin Qiao carried clothes to the river to wash. There were many people washing clothes in the morning, and both sides were already crowded.

Probably because they found Lin Qiao a bit intriguing, people frequently glanced over. Lin Qiao smiled and nodded, greeting them.

Widow Song was famously beautiful, and her smile made her even more captivating, like an enchanting fox spirit.

She really wasn’t popular among women.

Some women were a bit jealous. They were all married women, so why did Widow Song become more and more radiant?

And her figure, so well-rounded too.

A couple of women, while watching her, whispered, "Look, Widow Song is out to attract flies again, wearing such fancy clothes just to do laundry."

"Exactly, doesn’t even look like she came to wash clothes."

"Look at how high she raises her backside while washing clothes."

Lin Qiao heard everything without missing a word, "..."

She felt a bit wronged. She wore an old patched-up garment for washing clothes, which was dark pink but had faded over the years, far from fancy.

As for her raised backside, that was completely fabricated.

Who squats down without raising their backside a bit?

She rolled her eyes silently and ignored them, taking out clothes to start scrubbing.

Soon, some men frequently came by the river, and the women knew why.

Some of the men’s wives were still washing clothes here and, seeing this, grabbed their clothes and dragged their husbands home in anger, "Look, look! You pervert! Aren’t you afraid of disgrace?"

When Song Tingfan returned from fetching the water, there were already quite a few men. He pursed his lips displeased and then ran over, "Sister-in-law, let me wash. You go home."

"Almost finished."

Lin Qiao pointed to the basin and said, "Little uncle, you’re strong, help wring the clothes."

Song Tingfan obediently nodded. When he reached for the clothes, he hesitated for a moment, but then quickly picked up his sister-in-law’s clothes and began wringing them.

If someone looked closely, they would notice a hint of redness at the tips of his ears.

After Lin Qiao finished washing all the clothes and stood up, someone whistled, seemingly excited.

She glanced over, it was Niu Er, who had harassed them before. She quickly looked away.

Song Tingfan tightened his grip on the wooden basin, visibly angry but unable to say anything, lest they mock his sister-in-law.

He positioned himself by Lin Qiao to block Niu Er’s view.

Niu Er and his mischievous friends had already forgotten about Lin Qiao’s "insult" and crudely taunted, "Widow Song, your clothes are open."

Generally, a woman would be flushed with embarrassment hearing this, but Lin Qiao just glanced at him indifferently, "My clothes aren’t like your brain, not easy to ’open’."

"Little uncle, which aunt in the village is good at sewing?"

Her seemingly random question puzzled Song Tingfan, but he still answered, "Sun Anai."

Lin Qiao looked at Niu Er and pointed at his head, "You need your brain stitched up."

In the village, people always quarreled straightforwardly. Lin Qiao’s cursing, void of vulgar words, left Niu Er momentarily speechless, "What the hell?"

"Niu Er, Widow Song says you’re disgusting," a quick-witted man beside him laughed out loud.

Niu Er came to his senses and spat, cursing back, "Screw you, you’re the disgusting one."

Then he looked lasciviously at Widower Song and said, "Widow Song, you haven’t seen how disgusting I can get. Want a glimpse?"

Everyone knew what he meant.

Instantly everyone turned to watch Lin Qiao, eager for drama.

Lin Qiao, despising these people internally, thought to herself that if it weren’t for the villain being here, she’d definitely rebuke them fiercely.

She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, just about to speak, when Song Tingfan standing beside her yelled fiercely, "Shut up!"

Lin Qiao was startled—it had to be said that when angry, he really did have a villainous air to him.

No way!

She quickly patted his shoulder, "Little uncle, don’t bother with them, it’ll just lead to a foul mouth."

"Little uncle, don’t imitate them. A person’s reputation can be thick, but not worthless, or what would they have to show their ancestors in decades?"

Many people burst into laughter. Niu Er didn’t get angry, instead, he seemed even more interested, "Hey, Widow Song, your temper’s quite fiery. How come I didn’t notice before?"

The women at the river pouted; men are always like this, the less you care, the more they swarm in.

Lin Qiao ignored him, taking Song Tingfan home, noticing on the way that he seemed unhappy. She looked at him a few times, chuckled nonchalantly, "Little uncle, it’s okay, saying a few words won’t hurt."

Seeing him still sulking, she reached up to gently pat his head, "Little uncle, don’t be upset."

"Little uncle, you seem to have grown; I can barely reach you anymore."

Song Tingfan glanced at her awkwardly, seriously saying, "Sister-in-law, I’ve grown up."

He felt he could support this family and take care of his sister-in-law.

But soon he felt stifled again—right now, he couldn’t protect her.

Lin Qiao didn’t know what he was thinking and nodded with a smile, teasingly, "Yes, little uncle’s grown up, in two or three years, you could even get married."

Mentioning marriage again made Song Tingfan reflexively retort shyly, "Sister-in-law, I won’t get married."

"That’s not certain. Maybe little uncle will meet someone special someday."

"Sister-in-law, stop talking about it."

Seeing the villain’s bashful expression, Lin Qiao raised an amused eyebrow, having a bit of fun, she winked, "Alright, let’s talk about it when little uncle wants to marry in a few years."

"Sister-in-law!!" Song Tingfan called out anxiously.

...

The cicadas buzzed louder and louder in summer, and even before noon, they were already irritatingly noisy. From the Wang Family next door came a scolding voice, "Shut up! You blasted bugs."

The cicadas continued to chirp loudly, growing even louder.

In the main room, Lin Qiao, who had been doing embroidery, glanced at the top of the jujube tree, the cicada noises were really bothersome, especially in such hot weather.

Song Tingfan, making wooden arrows beside her, noticed. He looked outside and quickly went under the tree, glanced up, and finally spotted the cicada at the very top.

He poked it a few times with a bamboo pole, and the cicada flew away, making it somewhat quieter.

Returning inside, he met his sister-in-law’s gaze, and awkwardly scratched his head, resuming his wooden arrow work.

The side profile of the young man was sharply defined, his long eyelashes gently lowered, with a hint of handsome elegance.

He didn’t at all resemble a villain who would turn dark later on.

The sinister villain would make people feel chilled with a single look; the present villain, hm, increasingly tempted one to pinched his cheeks.

Thinking of this, Lin Qiao didn’t skimp on her praise, "Little uncle, you’re really handsome."

Praise young ones more, they appear cuter.

Embarrassed by her compliment, Song Tingfan bashfully lowered his head, stammering, "Sister-in-law, I’m a man."

Lin Qiao chuckled, "Yes, yes, little uncle is a man."

Song Tingfan, not receiving confirmation of his masculinity, felt a bit resentful—why did his sister-in-law always treat him like a child?

He could clearly fetch water and chop wood now.

What he didn’t know was that Lin Qiao thought of him as her "son."