Chapter 91: Amorous Fun?
"Oh, just shut up. You have to chime in on everything, don’t you? It must be so hard for you, spouting all this nonsense with a straight face." Zhou Lian was so amused she couldn’t help but laugh. Using an ancient legend as a counter-argument... he was really something else.
’To be honest, I didn’t think there was anything wrong with these stories back when I was illiterate. But after studying with my mother-in-law for a decade or two, I was already older, and when I looked at them again, something always felt off. Take Niu Lang and Zhi Nü, for example. The legend says Niu Lang stole Zhi Nü’s clothes while she was bathing, which prevented her from returning to the Heavenly Court and led to her marrying him. That was Niu Lang’s fault from the very beginning. First, he was a peeping tom. Second, he was driven by lust to steal her clothes. Third, he knew she was a fairy and would be punished if the Heavenly Court found out, yet he still had her bear his children. The man was fundamentally an irresponsible lecher.’
’Then there’s Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai. There was nothing wrong with Zhu Yingtai dressing as a man, and you could say her falling for Liang Shanbo was just a young girl’s crush. But they were classmates for three years. A woman as smart as Zhu Yingtai should have understood his character long before then. She should have just confessed her feelings directly. Don’t give me that nonsense about a woman needing to be reserved. If Zhu Yingtai was bold enough to disguise herself as a man and live in the same room with him for three years, what’s the big deal about confessing a little crush?’
’And Father Zhu forcing her to marry into the Ma Family... People say it’s because the Ma Family was rich and the Liang family was poor. That was just a father’s love, not wanting to see his daughter suffer. And don’t say Father Zhu didn’t dote on his daughter. If he didn’t, he never would have let her go off to study disguised as a man for three whole years. In that era, a father who would risk universal condemnation to send his daughter to school like that would absolutely not have forced her to marry into the Ma Family. She could have totally convinced her father not to rush the engagement. A talented man like Liang Shanbo was bound to make a name for himself eventually.’
’But legends are just legends, I guess. If they weren’t tragic love stories, they wouldn’t be so moving. Or maybe it’s just that I’ve lived a few more decades, but these love stories always feel off to me now. Especially those super popular Taiwanese romance novels that came out later. Now those really challenged a person’s basic sense of decency.’
’I remember one time when my daughter was on break, she was watching TV with me and my mother-in-law. It was a show adapted from one of those super popular Taiwanese novels. I don’t remember much else, but I’ll never forget two lines from it: "All you lost was a leg. But what your sister lost was her love!" When my mother-in-law and I heard that, we two old ladies couldn’t believe our ears. We almost didn’t recognize the meaning of the word ’love’ anymore. With such twisted values, I have no idea how that show ever got broadcast on TV!’
’Love should only be pursued on the condition that it doesn’t harm anyone. Otherwise, is that even love?’
Watching his wife lost in thought, Li Xiu smiled. He could guess what she was thinking. It was probably just like him—that she disliked those two so-called love stories, and then her mind had probably wandered off.
"What are you thinking about, Bao’er?"
"I’m thinking about what love is, and how human nature itself deals with love," Zhou Lian replied, following her train of thought, completely unaware that her husband was trying to bait her.
"Then how do you see love, Bao’er?"
"On the condition that no one gets hurt, it’s two people who love each other, share in both the good times and the bad, and never abandon one another their whole lives!"
’Hearing his wife give the exact answer he was looking for, Li Xiu didn’t press any further. If she figured it out, he’d be in for it. Better to quit while he was ahead!’
The sound of their daughter’s crying brought Zhou Lian back to her senses. Seeing Li Xiu skillfully change the baby’s diaper, Zhou Lian suddenly started to laugh. ’I was really getting worked up over nothing,’ she thought. ’The world is a big place, full of all sorts of strange things. I’m just worrying about things that don’t concern me, crying over ancient history. I should just focus on living in the now!’
After feeding their daughter and watching Li Xiu burp her, the more Zhou Lian thought about it, the more something felt wrong. Wasn’t she mad at him for that ’love poem’ he gave her? How did they end up on the topic of love? Thinking back carefully, Zhou Lian’s face was a mask of confusion. She had been completely led astray by her own husband. ’That bastard!’
After settling their daughter down, he turned around to see Zhou Lian staring daggers at him with her big eyes. ’She’s figured it out,’ he thought. ’I can’t let her get truly angry. It’s bad for her health, and I’d be heartbroken!’
"Bao’er, are you hungry? I’ll go make dinner in a bit. Is there anything you’d like to eat?" Li Xiu asked, looking at Zhou Lian gently.
"Li Xiu, is it fun messing with me?"
Seeing his wife’s expressionless face, Li Xiu rushed forward, hugged her, and explained, "Bao’er, how could this be messing with you? I was just trying to tell you that we should cherish each other. We shouldn’t worry too much about anyone else. What’s most important is that we have each other. We’ll grow old together. We’ll share a bed in life and a grave in death."
Forget it. Zhou Lian leaned weakly into Li Xiu’s embrace. ’This damn man always has a way with words,’ she thought. ’In just a few sentences, he can completely derail the conversation.’
"Spit it out. Where did you get that book?"
"Bao’er, don’t you think that when we’re old, we can take it out and look back on it as a sweet memory? I’ll be with you for the rest of our lives!" Li Xiu continued, "Look, this is just a bit of fun between us. I remember reading a line somewhere that said, ’Life needs a sense of ceremony.’"
"So ’a sense of ceremony’ is writing so-called love poems for me? Well, I don’t like this kind of ceremony. Pick another one." Zhou Lian couldn’t be bothered to argue with him. ’He’s always done whatever he wants,’ she thought. ’Even if I win the argument, this damn man would just pretend to agree and keep writing them for me anyway. That shameless bastard.’
"Alright then, let’s switch. You can write love poems for me! I’d love that!"
Zhou Lian looked at him, speechless. ’Has this man lost his mind? Asking me to write those so-called love poems for him? What a rare sort of innocence!’ Seeing him act so shamelessly cute and spoiled in front of her, trying everything in the book, Zhou Lian couldn’t be bothered with him anymore and simply said two words: "Dream on."
"Alright then. If you won’t write them for me, I’ll just keep writing them for you. Bao’er, just think, when we’re old and gray, we can look back on them and know we didn’t just waste away our best years," Li Xiu said, leaning in and whispering softly in Zhou Lian’s ear.
"Alright, alright, I can’t win an argument with you. I’m a little tired, and it’s getting late. Stop being so clingy and go make dinner. I’m going to rest for a bit!" Zhou Lian wriggled out of his arms, wrapped herself in the blanket, and rolled to the side. She really was exhausted. They had been up half the night, and then at it again for most of the morning. Now she was both tired and sleepy.
Seeing the dark circles under his wife’s eyes, Li Xiu felt a pang of love and kissed her. "Okay, you get some sleep," he said. "I won’t bother you anymore. I’ll go make you something delicious."
She forced her eyes open to peek at him, and seeing that he really didn’t seem to be tricking her, she fell asleep in no time. It seemed she was truly exhausted.
Chuckling at her antics, Li Xiu watched her affectionately for a moment. He tucked the blanket around their daughter, then got off the kang bed and went into the kitchen. He rolled up his sleeves, washed his hands, and began to think about what to make for his wife. Her picky eating was one habit that hadn’t changed in two lifetimes.