Chapter 65: With me here, there is nothing to fear!

It was already past five o'clock in the afternoon when they returned to the village. Passing by the brigade headquarters, Li Yi saw a dozen women chatting idly. A single glance told him they had just come down from the fields and were waiting to report their work.

With the farming season currently in a lull and agricultural tasks relatively light, everyone knocked off work quite early these days. Those who finished early could not turn in their production tasks right away, so they lingered at the brigade office to gossip—a unique form of rural leisure.

As this group of young women and newlywed brides chatted animatedly, someone suddenly spotted the large red mule-drawn cart in the distance and couldn't help exclaiming, "Look! Isn't that Shankui's boy, Yi Wa? Did he just come back from town?"

Everyone turned their gaze toward the main road and indeed spotted the familiar big red mule.

"It really is Yi Wa. That kid is truly exceptional, taking those little ones to gather and sell mountain goods every day. My family's Huzi has already earned over twenty yuan!" said a middle-aged woman in her forties with a look of deep gratitude.

Immediately, someone beside her chimed in, "Only twenty yuan? My Shitou has already brought home nearly fifty yuan. That's enough to cover the tuition fees for our younger ones for the next semester!"

"Fifty yuan? Really? Shitou's mother, you aren't pulling our leg, are you?"

"Why would I make that up? Old Liu's two kids have earned at least seventy or eighty yuan during this time alone..."

Just as they were talking, someone suddenly pointed and said, "Hey, look over there! Is that a girl on the cart?"

The gossip radar of the rural women was instantly activated, and they all stretched their necks to peer at the approaching mule cart.

"My eyesight isn't great, but does it look like there are two girls?"

"Dongzi's mother, you aren't seeing things. There are two!"

"There's Na Ya, and the other one looks like Educated Youth Tang..."

"Does that mean Yi Wa took his wife-to-be into town? Should we go over and take a look?"

"Come on, let's go check it out..."

Li Yi and Tang Xue were in the middle of a conversation when they suddenly saw a dozen women walk onto the road and block their way.

Taken aback for a moment, Li Yi was about to ask what was happening when Shitou's mother took the initiative and asked, "Yi Wa, did you take your future wife into town?"

"Yeah, went to town to deliver mushrooms and picked up some wedding supplies for my wife along the way!" Li Yi answered promptly.

Hearing this, the women finally noticed the large and small bundles piled behind the mule cart!

Since the cart had no canopy, they could see the festive bedsheets and quilt covers at a glance, along with mounds of snowy-white cotton.

This filled the women with immense envy!

Thinking back to when they got married, which of them hadn't arrived at their husband's home carrying nothing more than a tiny parcel? Those whose maternal families were relatively well-off might manage a few new clothes, while those from poorer households probably didn't even get half a foot of cloth.

And look at this couple—they had hauled back half a cartload of wedding necessities!

For a moment, the collective gaze fixed on Tang Xue was dripping with envy.

"Educated Youth Tang is so lucky. She's going to live a life of comfort with Yi Wa!"

"Educated Youth Tang is so pretty. Standing next to Yi Wa, they look like a match made in heaven, just like the golden boys and jade maidens in the movies!"

"Ain't that the truth? Their kids in the future are bound to be drop-dead gorgeous..."

Tang Xue had never experienced such a spectacle before. Flattered and praised by the married women of the village, her face instantly turned beet red. Aside from lowering her head and smiling foolishly, she had no idea what to say!

Knowing that her close friend had a thin skin, Li Na quickly stepped in and said, "Aunts, we still need to go to the back mountain to pick up the children later, so we won't chat any longer!"

Li Yi smoothly followed up, "We'll catch up with you aunts another time. We've got to go!"

With that, Li Yi gently flicked the reins against the big red mule, and the cart quickly picked up speed, soon leaving the brigade headquarters far behind.

Even so, Tang Xue's face remained flushed like a ripe peach, making Li Yi's heart itch with affection.

......

Originally, Li Yi had planned to drop Tang Xue off at the educated youth point first before heading to the back mountain to round up the pack of youngsters. Because the children had been gathering a large quantity of mountain goods lately, he always had to drive the mule cart to collect them.

To his surprise, however, Tang Xue took the initiative today and asked to go along with him!

Naturally, Li Yi was more than happy to oblige.

When they arrived home, they found that neither of his parents was around. The three of them promptly unloaded all the items from the cart into the house. Afterward, Li Na stayed behind to look after the house and wash the bamboo tubes and chopsticks, while Li Yi drove the mule cart with Tang Xue toward the back mountain.

With Li Na—that ultimate third wheel—out of the picture, Li Yi noticed that Tang Xue seemed much less reserved than before.

"Wife, how did it feel going to town?"

Hearing Li Yi roll off the word "wife" with increasing smoothness, Tang Xue couldn't even be bothered to correct him anymore; she knew he wouldn't change it anyway.

"It was pretty good, except I felt like you spent way too much money," Tang Xue admitted honestly.

"Hahaha, isn't that so we can give ourselves a grand and proper wedding? Actually, I'm quite thrifty on ordinary days," Li Yi said with a smile.

"Thrifty? Don't assume I didn't notice—you didn't even ask for the price when buying things. How is that thrifty?"

"Wife, do you know what the most painful thing in the world is?" Li Yi suddenly asked.

"Um... loving someone you can't have?"

"No!"

"Then what is it?" Tang Xue asked curiously.

"The most painful thing in the world is when the person is gone, but the money is still there!" Li Yi said with a deadpan, earnest expression.

"Pfft!"

Tang Xue burst out laughing at his remark, then covered her mouth and chided, "You only ever talk nonsense!"

Yet Li Yi merely smiled and said, "Wife, money is something you can't bring with you when you're born and can't take with you when you die. Don't dwell on it too much—spend it when you want to spend it!"

"And what if we spend it all?" Tang Xue asked.

"With me here, you have nothing to fear!"

Hearing those words, something in the depths of Tang Xue's heart seemed to gently stir. It felt warm, but even more than that, it brought a profound sense of security—as if it suddenly filled her with an innate courage from the bottom of her heart.

"Mhm!"

That soft, affirmative hum from Tang Xue made Li Yi's heart soar with joy.

When Li Yi said those words just now, he was also secretly testing the waters. He knew that when a man tells a woman, "With me here, you have nothing to fear," he is subtly expressing his desire and readiness to protect and guard her. If the woman is interested, she will give a positive response, and vice versa.

Although Tang Xue's reply was only a quiet "Mhm," it signified her willingness to accept his protection, indicating that she was gradually opening her heart to him.

Moreover, Li Yi had noticed over the past few days that Tang Xue's attitude toward him had indeed undergone a distinct shift. Love or not, at the very least, she was now willing to converse with him and no longer repelled his kindness.

Love, as Li Yi had always understood, was essentially about trading heart for heart—provided the other person was actually willing to trade with you. If someone wouldn't even let you get close or accept your goodwill, what was there to trade? That wouldn't be trading hearts; that would be pressing a warm face against someone's cold backside, or more bluntly, acting like a simp.

And Li Yi detested acting like a simp above all else, even if the object of that affection was Tang Xue.

Now, it seemed his wife-to-be wasn't entirely indifferent to his efforts and had begun to respond positively. Li Yi firmly believed that even though theirs was a marriage first, love second kind of arrangement, the ultimate destination would undoubtedly be a beautiful romance of mutual devotion.