Chapter 35: A Question of Understanding and Not Understanding

Lu Chuan stopped talking. He was too frustrated.

Fang Yuan was unhappy too, and even raised her voice. “What exactly do you mean? What did township people ever do to you?”

Lu Chuan grabbed Fang Yuan’s hand in return and hurried back. Only after they got home and shut the yard gate did he say to Fang Yuan, “Neither township people nor village people go around holding hands and pulling each other about. Why were you holding my hand?”

Fang Yuan stared at their hands. “Was I holding your hand? Aren’t you the one holding mine?” After saying that, she looked at Lu Chuan seriously.

Lu Chuan had never met anyone so capable of turning the tables, but at the moment he really was the one holding Fang Yuan’s hand. If snow fell in June, it would definitely be because of him.

Then he heard Fang Yuan say, “You didn’t learn this bad habit at school, did you? I heard students like you are always talking about romance and freedom. You need to fix this habit. Don’t learn every random thing.”

Then she emphasized to Lu Chuan, “You’re already a married man. You can’t behave like that outside.”

Lu Chuan flung away Fang Yuan’s hand and walked into the house with a dark expression. Even if he jumped into the Yellow River, he still would not be able to clear his name. What kind of woman was this?

Fang Yuan pursed her lips, somewhat unhappy. Why was this man so petty? She was the one whose hand had been grabbed, and she was not even angry.

That night, Lu Chuan found himself struggling once again with the question of whether he should go back into the room.

Fang Yuan frowned too. Hadn’t he said he was fine? Then why did he dawdle every night before going into the room?

Fang Yuan asked, “Do you actually have some illness or not?”

Lu Chuan remembered how she had suspected him of being constipated the previous night. If he hesitated again today, she might decide he had haemorrhoids.

With a dark face, he entered the room and saw Fang Yuan already resting on the edge of the kang.

The words at the tip of Lu Chuan’s tongue, that they had done the return visit, met the parents, obtained their marriage certificate, and perhaps tonight they ought to share the same quilt, never made it out of his mouth.

Hearing the rustling sounds from Lu Chuan’s side, Fang Yuan said, “Lie down already. I have something to say to you.”

Lu Chuan’s heartbeat sped up a little. If she makes some request, should I comply or not?

Refusing doesn’t seem very safe. Her brothers-in-law are too intimidating. Besides, when it comes to brains, I’m about on the same level as my mother-in-law. I don’t really have any advantage.

Just as Lu Chuan was thinking that he might as well go along with it, Fang Yuan spoke. “You used to study at school. As for me, I spent all my time running around behind my brothers. Neither of us really knows much about managing a household.”

Lu Chuan felt as though his heart instantly turned cold. Fang Yuan had not made any request at all, so why was he this disappointed?

A moment ago he had been thinking about whether to comply, but now he suddenly realized that he did not seem all that eager to refuse. He might even have had some expectations. That realization was rather upsetting.

And compared with Fang Yuan’s thoughts about building a life together, he seemed to have wandered completely off course. In terms of perspective, he was far behind her.

Fang Yuan grew anxious. Why was he so slow? “Did you hear me? I’m talking to you.”

Ever since meeting Fang Yuan, Lu Chuan felt as though his mind kept producing extra drama. That was a disease. He needed to fix it. “I’m listening.”

Fang Yuan said, “Do you have any ideas? Didn’t they say you’re smart?”

Lu Chuan replied, “I just think that since we’re married and have our certificate, our life should belong to the two of us. We shouldn’t depend on other people to support us.”

His main purpose was to remind Fang Yuan that they had already gotten their marriage certificate. Everything else had simply come out naturally.

Then Fang Yuan said, “You’re right. Depending on relatives won’t make you rich, and staring at mouths won’t fill your stomach. We have to rely on ourselves for our own life.”

Lu Chuan’s face darkened. So she had absolutely no thoughts about the first half of what he said. Unable to help himself, he hugged the quilt and punched it twice. The two of them never focused on the same point.

Fang Yuan asked, “What are you doing? Do you think we can’t make a life for ourselves, or do you think you can’t be relied on?” Why was he punching the quilt? What kind of strange habit was that?

Lu Chuan became even more anxious. Could this woman think about something else for once? “How could it be that I can’t be relied on?”

Fang Yuan replied, “Then why are you acting crazy? Did the quilt offend you?”

Lu Chuan could hardly say, “I dislike how unromantic you are. I dislike how you have no thoughts about me.”

Exasperated, Lu Chuan said, “We’re talking about life. Our future life.”

Fang Yuan did not dwell on it and immediately said, “Then where do you think we should start?”

Where should they start when building a life together? It sounded like a fresh question. Lu Chuan was momentarily at a loss, then said, “At the very least, we need money. My studies cost money, and you’ll need money to run the household too.”

Fang Yuan nodded. “That’s true. No wonder they say you’re smart. Tomorrow I’ll take you to find my brothers, and you can earn money together with them.”

Lu Chuan did not have that idea at all. “Do you really think that by working with your brothers, I’ll save enough for my tuition and living expenses before I go back to school?”

Fang Yuan completely missed the sarcasm and asked in surprise, “University is that cheap?”

Lu Chuan took a deep breath. When talking to Fang Yuan, nothing could be left implied. Everything had to be direct, verbally expressed, and logically clear. “I’m saying that won’t work. Even if we work ourselves to death, we still won’t earn that much money.”

Fang Yuan nodded. That was true. Then she became annoyed and sat up. “Stop trying to fool me. You’re not just afraid of hard work, are you? Let me tell you, money never comes without hard work. Don’t daydream. If you acted like this in my family, my dad would beat you to death.”

Fang Yuan continued, “In our family, nobody gets beaten for competing to earn money. The only thing you can’t be is lazy.”

Lu Chuan thought to himself that she really was down-to-earth. Everyone said the Fang family’s Wuhu brothers were unreasonable, overbearing, and tyrannical. He had not expected them to earn their money honestly through hard work.

Then he noticed a section of Fang Yuan’s fair, slender arm exposed in the light.

The sight was somewhat dazzling. He felt a little dizzy.

Not hearing a reply from Lu Chuan, Fang Yuan said, “Do you really want my dad to beat you to death or something?”

Lu Chuan hurriedly regained his senses and stared at the ceiling. “Do you want to borrow money to live on, or do you think your brain works better than mine?”

Fang Yuan certainly did not want to borrow money to get by, so she had to listen to the person with the better brain. “Go on. But if you can’t explain yourself properly, or if you go down the wrong path, don’t blame me for showing no mercy. Before my dad beats you to death, I’ll deal with you first.”

How is it that a girl exactly like this can leave me so distracted? There must be something wrong with me. Maybe I need to see a doctor.

With a snort, he said, “Don’t worry. Forget crooked schemes, I don’t even have confidence in proper methods yet. I just think that sharpening an axe doesn’t delay cutting firewood. First let’s follow your eldest brother and the others to take a look around, or maybe wander through the township. We might discover some way to make money.”

Fang Yuan summarized his meaning. He simply did not want to work and earn money alongside them. “So basically, you don’t want to suffer or work hard.”

Lu Chuan thought, why was she so single-minded? “It’s not that I don’t want to suffer or work hard. It’s that suffering and working hard genuinely won’t earn the amount of money we need.”

Fang Yuan said, “Even if what you say makes sense, that doesn’t stop you from working alongside Eldest Brother first. You can think while you work.”

She really was practical and grounded.

Lu Chuan thought that if he refused to go, would she permanently label him as someone afraid of hardship?

Fang Yuan said, “Since your brain isn’t actually that amazing either, let’s sleep. Stop overthinking and give your brain a proper rest. Maybe it’ll work better tomorrow than it does today.”

Fang Yuan did not really know how smart people nourished their brains, but this would do for now.