As she thought about it, Yang Xuelan heard footsteps not far behind and purposefully raised her voice, "Going to harvest the wheat, this year's wheat seems cursed. One patch is ripe, another is still showing green. Can't even get the machines, have to cut it patch by patch."
"Oh, I was planning to take a look myself," Li Qing also realized what was happening and quickly agreed.
"If we can't get the machines this year, Qingzi, you'll have to help your sister-in-law out a bit. I'll have something extra for you, okay?" Yang Xuelan said with a suggestive wiggle of her eyebrows, clearly hinting at something more.
Li Qing's heart stirred, "We should help each other out as neighbors. If it becomes too much to handle, just let me know, sister-in-law."
"As for the extra, let's talk about it some other day."
Yang Xuelan glanced quickly behind her, then slowly undid two buttons on her blouse and flashed a look at Li Qing, "We'll talk about it some other day, as long as you don't refuse my reward."
Li Qing watched the two white mounds pressed together and quietly swallowed.
Yang Xuelan sure was bold.
Gao Li was following right behind, yet she dared to do this.
"That definitely won't happen this time," Li Qing hinted, his voice deep.
He now regretted his timidity last night.
After all, since Yang Xuelan was being so forward, what was there to fear?
Hearing the footsteps behind her getting closer, Yang Xuelan quickly buttoned up, "I'll be leaving first, sister-in-law."
"Oh, okay," Li Qing hastily responded, watching Yang Xuelan walk away with reluctance.
Next time, he was determined to grab onto those twin peaks and thoroughly taste the flavor of Yang Xuelan's accommodating nature.
Thinking this, Li Qing changed direction and rushed to Han Mei's doorstep, only to find the door tightly shut.
He called out twice, but there was no response; it seemed as if she had already left.
Li Qing couldn't help feeling disheartened, "Why didn't she tell me? She couldn't possibly be holding a grudge, pretending everything is fine but purposefully distancing and alienating herself from me, could she?"
The more Li Qing thought about it, the more he believed it was possible.
Last night, he had poured out his heart to her.
But Han Mei still wouldn't let him touch her, maintaining a restrained distance, which clearly seemed a bit offended.
As Li Qing thought about it, he felt a pang of disappointment and annoyance.
He really shouldn't have been so rash.
After a moment's thought, he still decided to give Han Mei a call, just to probe.
"Sister-in-law, why did you leave so early without calling me?" As soon as the call connected, Li Qing asked anxiously.
There was some noise on Han Mei's side as she nearly shouted back, "I'm already at the market. You were right about the Huang Xing business being good this year. Our Huang Xings are top quality, and I've just settled on a good buying price. I'll be back soon."
Han Mei sounded as usual, her voice revealing no sign of any discomfort.
In fact, perhaps because she'd agreed on a good price, she even sounded a bit cheerful.
As Li Qing listened, he felt happy as well, "Sister-in-law, you truly are capable."
"I actually wanted to go with you and got up early just for that, but I never thought you'd have taken care of everything already."
On the other end of the line, Han Mei laughed joyfully, "They say you have the nature of a lazy donkey, and you wouldn't admit it. Now you see? Farmers have to be up at the crack of dawn, not everyone can be like you."
"You go ahead and check the field. Sister-in-law will come back and help you harvest," she said.
Seeing that Han Mei really was behaving just as usual, Li Qing finally let go of his worries completely.
He hung up the phone and walked happily towards his own wheat field.
At the edge of the field, he picked out the yellowest spots he could find and pinched a few grains of wheat in his hands to examine them.
Although their color had changed, the grains were not yet plump enough; he estimated it would take another four or five days for them to fully mature.
Li Qing felt a bit disappointed, as without the wheat being ripe, he'd miss the chance to work alongside his sister-in-law.
When he had nothing else to do, he often looked for opportunities to visit Han Mei.
But within a short while, he would be chased out, as Han Mei was always worried about people in the village gossiping, which made Li Qing enjoy working with Han Mei even more.
He thought that the longer the time they spent together, the more he could sneak peeks at his sister-in-law.
"I'll go take a look at Yang Xuelan's wheat field first."
Remembering Yang Xuelan's clearly suggestive promise of compensation, Li Qing couldn't help feeling a bit heated as he headed towards Yang Xuelan's wheat field.
Yang Xuelan's field was not far away.
After crossing two terraced fields, Li Qing saw Yang Xuelan bending her round buttocks and harvesting wheat.
With her forceful movements, her ample behind swayed aggressively, which made Li Qing's eyes burn with eagerness.
However, to Li Qing's surprise, only Yang Xuelan was in the field; Gao Li was nowhere to be seen.
"Why isn't Gao Li here?" Li Qing called out to Yang Xuelan as he crossed the field.
Seeing it was Li Qing, a flash of joy crossed Yang Xuelan's eyes, followed by an irritated response, "That useless wimp could barely stand up by himself. He just made a couple of cuts before complaining about our sickle not being good enough, and clamored to go to the town to get a new one. I bet he just wants to be lazy again and leave me to do all the work."
When Li Qing heard that Gao Li wouldn't be back for a while, he felt an inexplicable excitement.
A glance at Yang Xuelan's voluptuous behind sparked another thought in his mind.
"It just so happens that my wheat will take another four or five days, so I'll help you out for now," Li Qing said as he walked into the wheat field.
At his words, Yang Xuelan's face lit up with joy, "That would be great."
The scorching sun reddened her face as if she'd just come out of a passionate battle, making her look even more coquettish and enticing.
"Here, this is the sickle that good-for-nothing left behind," Yang Xuelan handed over a sickle.
Li Qing nodded, took the sickle, and started cutting the wheat with the vigor of a bull.
In no time at all, Li Qing had harvested a large area.
"Take a break," Yang Xuelan bundled up the cut wheat and called out to Li Qing.
Li Qing responded and sat down beside the wheat sheaf.
Yang Xuelan stood nearby, fanning inside her collar with her hat.
Flashes of white darted before Li Qing's eyes like a fast-forwarded film.
Li Qing was momentarily stunned, his mind once again filled with the solid, full, and uncontrollable softness he'd felt in his hands the night before.
"When will you get another chance to come to my place?" he asked directly, gazing at her intently.
Yang Xuelan stopped what she was doing and laughed, "Aren't you scared, don't you dare do it anymore?"
"That was last night," Li Qing declared, his neck stiff.
Yang Xuelan laughed, her eyes glistening as she gave Li Qing a sidelong glance, "Do you really want to do that to me that badly?"