Gazing at Zhu Fang's beautiful visage, mere inches away.
This woman, nearing forty, set Zhang Xiaowei's heart racing.
Especially recalling the rustling he had just heard in the cornfield, it made him even more restless.
"Ahem!"
Just as Zhang Xiaowei was about to speak, a severe coughing suddenly came from the back yard.
Zhu Fang sharply turned her head to look in that direction, her brow furrowing slightly.
Zhang Xiaowei also started, snapping back to reality.
What am I thinking?
As a child, I used to call her "Auntie" without a second thought, how could I entertain such beastly thoughts now?
Besides, her husband is still at home.
Immediately, Zhang Xiaowei hurriedly changed his tone with a smile, "Haven't been back for quite a few years, I've missed the village, so I came back to have a look."
Zhu Fang, hearing this, turned her head back and chuckled.
"You should come back and check on things, what are you planning to buy?"
"I need to buy some incense and paper money to offer at my parents' grave."
As soon as Zhang Xiaowei laid eyes on Zhu Fang, the enticing sounds she made in the cornfield echoed in his ears.
Fearful of revealing his true thoughts if he looked any longer, he hastily replied and began to look around the store.
"This is a set, besides what you asked for, there are also two suits of clothes inside. Burn them for your parents too, so they have some changes of clothes down there."
Although these weren't in high demand, they were nonetheless indispensable items.
So she had them in stock in her shop, and she handed them to Zhang Xiaowei together.
Click!
She casually grabbed a lighter, tested it to make sure it worked, and placed it on top of the incense and paper money.
"The lighter is on the house, fifty will do."
Even though they were for the deceased, they were not at all cheap.
Zhang Xiaowei couldn't haggle with her, so he paid the money and took his purchases to leave.
Zhu Fang watched his handsome frame and with a flirtatious twist in her eyes, couldn't help but contemplate.
That young man's gaze was so fiery just now, could he possibly have thoughts about me?
With that thought, she hastily called out with a smile, "Xiaowei, be careful, don't start a fire. Feel free to come and sit at your Auntie's whenever you have time!"
Hearing this, Zhang Xiaowei couldn't help but let his imagination wander again.
Could Auntie Fang have taken a fancy to me?
But given her thirsty state in the cornfield, she would likely be easy to seduce.
After a mental sneer, Zhang Xiaowei headed straight into the mountains.
Though it had been five years since his last visit, he knew the path into the mountains well, quickly finding his parents' graves.
Upon lighting the incense, tears overwhelmed Zhang Xiaowei.
He poured out all the trials and tribulations of the past five years to his parents, who lay beneath the soil.
After the flames had gone out, Zhang Xiaowei finally wiped away his tears.
He buried the ashes and bid farewell to his parents, then headed into the depths of the woodland.
After a while, the sky began to darken.
Zhang Xiaowei looked up, knowing it was about to rain.
If he didn't hurry home, he might just follow in his parents' footsteps.
Without hesitation, he turned and made his way down the mountain.
He hadn't gotten far when it became so dark he could barely see the path ahead.
Wham!
Pea-sized raindrops began to fall from the sky.
In the dense forest, a chaotic symphony soon erupted.
Instantly soaked, Zhang Xiaowei was truly in a panic, no longer caring about the slippery ground beneath his feet as he quickened his pace and ran downhill.
Bang!
In the torrential rain, Zhang Xiaowei suddenly collided with something.
Ah!
Just as he was wiping the rain from his face to see more clearly, he heard the startled cry of a woman in front of him.
Flash!
A bolt of lightning tore through the dense cloud-cover in the sky.
Zhang Xiaowei was shocked to find a woman had appeared on the muddy ground underfoot.
The woman's rain-soaked hair messily covered her face.
In the flash of lightning, Zhang Xiaowei thought he saw a female ghost, and his eyes widened in fear.
Boom!
After the lightning, the thunder rolled.
"Are you okay?"
Zhang Xiaowei came back to his senses, quickly bent down to help the woman up, and asked.
"Can't you watch where you're going?"
The woman brushed the hair from her face with her hand, scolding him.
Zhang Xiaowei nearly rolled his eyes.
The rain was so heavy that one could barely keep their eyes open; how could anyone see anyone else?
Besides, who would have thought that in this seldom-traveled forest, he would bump into someone else?
"You're the one not watching where you're going. With such heavy rain, instead of running downhill, why are you running into the mountains?"
Zhang Xiaowei couldn't help but complain, without waiting for the woman to retort, he quickly said another sentence.
"Let's not talk about this now, let's hurry down the mountain."
"It hurts, my ankle is twisted."
The moment the woman tried to walk, she suddenly cried out in pain, grabbing Zhang Xiaowei, who was about to descend the mountain.
"I'll carry you down the mountain then, climb on quickly."
The rain was so heavy that a flash flood could happen at any moment.
If they delayed any longer, both of them could die here.
Zhang Xiaowei immediately took off his basket and squatted down, waiting for the woman to get on.
Soon, he felt a soft weight against his back, and Zhang Xiaowei steadied the woman's legs and began walking downhill.
"Idiot, go towards the mountain!"
Seeing what he was doing, the woman fiercely slapped his head and scolded.
The wound on his head hadn't healed yet, and her slap made Zhang Xiaowei gasp in pain.
"The rain is so heavy, the mountain flood will come soon. To think you are a university student, don't you understand that water flows downhill? If you go down there, isn't that seeking death?"
Hearing her words, Zhang Xiaowei was stunned.
What she said was utterly correct.
But what surprised Zhang Xiaowei was that the woman knew he was a university student; did she know him?
But now was not the time to ponder this, and he quickly changed direction to head up the mountain.
"Walk towards the right, under the mountain wall, there is a cave where we can take shelter from the rain."
No wonder she was running up the mountain; she knew there was a cave here.
Following the woman's directions, it didn't take long for Zhang Xiaowei to find the cave.
Upon entering the cave, Zhang Xiaowei let out a long sigh of relief.
The large raindrops were painfully beating down; the rainwater streamed down from his hair, and along the way, Zhang Xiaowei didn't know how much rain he had swallowed.
Feeling the chill on his body, Zhang Xiaowei quickly dropped his basket and wrung out the rainwater from his clothes.
"Do you have a fire? There's wood here, we can start a fire."
The woman familiarly entered the deeper part of the cave and immediately asked Zhang Xiaowei, who was still near the entrance.
Hearing this, Zhang Xiaowei quickly took out his lighter and went inside.
"It's good that I prepared these things last time, or we would have frozen to death."
In the dimly lit cave, even the woman's voice echoed.
Zhang Xiaowei was really curious; she could recognize him, so he should recognize her, right?
But he couldn't recall whose voice it was.
Yet that wasn't much of a surprise.
Previously, in the cornfield, he hadn't recognized Zhu Fang's voice either.
Soon, the flame rose and lit up the dark cave.
It was only then that Zhang Xiaowei saw the woman's face and was shocked.
Liang Jing, Zhao Hu's mom!
While Zhang Xiaowei was still in shock, Liang Jing suddenly stretched out both hands and took off her T-shirt, wringing it out nonchalantly.
The blue, half-cup bra against her fair skin was especially eye-catching.
It had a style that also provided a lifting effect, giving off an impression of busting out.
"After all, you're a university student; with so many beautiful girls in the big cities, aren't they enough for you to look at, that you have to stare at an old woman like me?"
Liang Jing clearly noticed Zhang Xiaowei's intense gaze, and instead of feeling shy, she teased him.
Zhang Xiaowei immediately felt his self-esteem take a hit.
Thinking about what Zhao Hu had done last night, a surge of anger rose within him.
Zhao Hu's deeds from last night had not yet been settled, and now here she was mocking him.
Don't forget, it's raining so heavily outside.
In this cave, you can cry for heaven and earth but no one will hear you.
I'll take you by force, and repay Zhao Hu by becoming his dad!