However, as He Hongjuan's tender little hand just reached for Chen Erniu's waist, it was caught by Chen Erniu's rough, large hand.
"Sister-in-law, you said that Erniu can't strip naked in front of women!" Chen Erniu said seriously, holding those delicate and boneless little hands.
Upon hearing this, He Hongjuan trembled, her face growing even redder, her ears turning crimson as well.
A feeling of shame spread from the bottom of her heart.
For a moment, He Hongjuan didn't dare to look up at Chen Erniu.
She indeed had said those words before.
It was only because several widows in the village always teased Chen Erniu, seducing him to strip naked for them to see.
Unable to stand it, He Hongjuan had cautioned Chen Erniu not to undress in front of women.
Who would have thought that today, Chen Erniu would say such a thing to her.
"He Hongjuan, oh He Hongjuan, you really shot yourself in the foot!" Cursing silently, He Hongjuan mustered up the courage to lift her head.
"Erniu, Sanwa has already gotten married, do you want to get married too?"
Chen Erniu scratched the back of his head, clearly a bit confused by He Hongjuan's words.
After a while, his eyes lit up:
"The villagers all say that getting married means you've grown up, so if Erniu gets married, does that mean I've grown up too? Sanwa said when he went to study that once Erniu grows up, I can go find him!"
He Hongjuan felt a pang in her heart, and her eyes began to brim with tear.
"Erniu is a good brother, Sanwa would definitely be happy if he knew."
She pursed her red lips, wiped away the tears at the corner of her eyes, and, with tremendous courage, removed her jacket.
In an instant, He Hongjuan's smooth, white skin that looked like it could pinch out water was exposed.
Chen Erniu, even though a bit simple-minded, was fixated by the sight.
Feeling Chen Erniu's gaze, He Hongjuan's pretty little face blushed.
Nevertheless, she bravely looked up at Chen Erniu with her bright and spirited eyes and said:
"Starting tonight, I'll be your woman, and once I've given birth to your child, then you can go find Sanwa!"
"All right," Chen Erniu answered blankly.
Immediately after, he looked confused again and said, "Didn't the villagers say that getting married means you've grown up? Why do we still need to have a child?"
He Hongjuan was taken aback by his question.
She didn't quite know how to answer Chen Erniu's query.
Biting her red lips tightly, He Hongjuan simply decided not to answer.
She stepped forward and threw herself onto Chen Erniu, clinging tightly to his embrace.
Her soft body trembled, causing Chen Erniu's body to shudder involuntarily.
Chen Erniu blurted out, "I, you..."
He was cut off mid-sentence by He Hongjuan.
Fearing that Chen Erniu would say something surprising again and let her hard-won courage ebb away, He Hongjuan quickly said:
"I'm already your wife now, give me a child tonight."
After speaking, He Hongjuan lowered her head, in a posture of yielding.
But waiting for quite a while, she realized Chen Erniu was just standing there, utterly motionless.
"Erniu, you..." A bit annoyed, she raised her head, and when she saw Chen Erniu's simple and naive eyes, He Hongjuan realized that Chen Erniu was a simpleton.
How would a simpleton understand matters between a man and a woman?
This...?
Does it mean I have to take the initiative...?
With this thought, the blush on He Hongjuan's delicate and pretty face deepened.
But after hesitating for a long while, she found she still couldn't take that step.
"Let's... wait a few days, once I'm ready, I will become your wife!" she said softly, pursing her lips.
Having said that, she left the room with her head down.
Standing in the yard, He Hongjuan looked at Chen Erniu's silhouette reflected on the window, her lovely arched brows furrowed as if she was regretting her decision to leave the room.
In the end, she sighed and turned to walk towards the backyard where the new bride, Han Meili, was staying.
Sanwa hadn't returned yet, and with Han Meili alone in the empty room, He Hongjuan, as the sister-in-law, felt obligated to go and offer some comfort.
Chen Erniu took a nice bath and returned to his room in the backyard.
Lying on the bed, he thought about what He Hongjuan had said.
Thinking that he would soon grow up and be able to find Sanwa, Chen Erniu unusually found it hard to fall asleep.
After some time passed and just as he was getting sleepy, Chen Erniu suddenly heard footsteps outside.
He got up and peered out of the window.
In the darkness, he saw a shadow scaling the wall and entering.
The figure looked around before tapping on Han Meili's door.
Chen Erniu's heart clenched, thinking someone had come to steal something.
Though naive, he knew he was a man and it was his duty to protect his family.
Now that there was another woman in the house, he had to guard her even more diligently.
Hurrying to the crack of the door, he tried to see who was climbing over the wall.
What he saw next startled him.
The door to Han Meili's bridal room flung open.
Han Meili revealed half of her naked body and pulled the shadow into the room.