The kang (heated brick bed) for left-behind women

Chapter 144 Collecting Medicinal Herbs

"Ah!! It's so itchy."

Li Ruoxue was being held by Lin Dachun, both of their bodies were covered in soap, and the feeling was incredibly tingling.

"Let me give you a scrub."

The soap lathered up and washed away every bit of dirt from my body.

"It itches."

Li Ruoxue turned around, her back to Lin Dachun.

Lin Dachun then hugged Li Ruoxue from behind.

Li Ruoxue's whole body trembled.

"If people see me taking a bath like this, they'll start gossiping again," Li Ruoxue said, blushing and looking down.

"The door is closed. Besides, you were the one who said you wanted to wash with me like this," Lin Dachun replied.

"I didn't say that." Li Ruoxue, with her back to Lin Dachun, was hugged and felt very embarrassed.

It's not just the foam; more importantly, it's the stimulating sensation and physiological excitement from the smooth, soft skin contact that's so irresistible.

"I'll scrub it clean for you. Okay, now rinse off the foam," Lin Dachun said.

Lin Dachun scooped up water and poured it over their heads, washing away the foam from their bodies.

It took a lot of water to rinse off all the soap from my body.

Li Ruoxue's smooth and delicate body looked even more sexy.

Lin Dachun used a towel to dry Li Ruoxue's body, and then dried himself off as well.

"Come on, let's get dressed."

Lin Dachun said.

At this moment, Lin Dachun noticed some unique reactions in Li Ruoxue that made her shy.

"you??"

"Huh? Me."

Li Ruoxue lowered her head and covered herself with her hands.

That change also made Li Ruoxue realize the changes in herself, just like after drinking the cinnamon wine.

"We haven't had dinner yet. Shall we go to the kang (heated brick bed)?" Lin Dachun asked.

Li Ruoxue didn't know how to answer.

After a long pause, she finally said, "Our relationship... after drinking, this happened... isn't that a bit inappropriate?"

"Um."

Lin Dachun nodded.

Indeed, the relationship between himself and Li Ruoxue was viewed very negatively by outsiders, and even by himself.

Lin Dachun looked at Li Ruoxue's body; it was truly alluring.

This moment.

Lin Dachun held back.

"Get dressed. Come out and enjoy the cool evening air, or visit someone else's house," Lin Dachun said.

"Um."

Li Ruoxue nodded.

night.

Lin Dachun went to visit Lin Hao, while Li Ruoxue went to He Xiulan's place to discuss the tofu business.

The nights on the Loess Plateau are much cooler.

The intense heat of the night was gone.

Lin Hao's family lived in the most remote gully at the north end of the village. Their low, dilapidated cave dwelling had peeling paint, revealing the rammed yellow soil inside.

There were many chickens in the yard, and a bare old locust tree that was lush and green in the summer.

"Brother Dachun? What brings you here?" Lin Hao's wife, Lin Jie, asked in a soft voice, her voice tinged with surprise, when she saw Lin Dachun come to visit.

Lin Jie looked much more haggard, but that couldn't hide her voluptuous figure.

This mature feminine aura always brings joy to men.

"Just dropping by to say hello," Lin Dachun said, walking into the house.

Lin Dachun came over and brought some tofu with him.

"This is tofu made by Ruoxue. It sells very well in town. I brought some for you." Lin Dachun handed it over.

"You're welcome to come, but you always bring gifts. You're being too polite."

Lying on the kang (a heated brick bed), Lin Hao pretended to be very unhappy and said.

"You'll repay me someday," Lin Dachun said with a smile.

Lin Dachun also sat down on the kang (heated brick bed), as the cave dwelling was very hot.

Lin Hao must be feeling very uncomfortable lying on that.

At this time.

A graceful woman walked over from the side kiln.

"Uncle Dachun."

When the woman saw Lin Dachun, she called out to him shyly.

"Oh, Tingting's home too. It's been half a year since I last saw her! Girls really do change a lot in just six months!"

Lin Dachun sized up the woman in front of him.

Lin Tingting is Lin Hao's daughter. She used to study in town and only came back occasionally on weekends.

Studying is not easy nowadays; you have to bring your own lunchbox and vegetables, and you eat very poorly.

Lin Tingting brought food with her when she went to school, and Lin Dachun contributed a lot of food, sometimes grain, sometimes cured meat, and sometimes eggs.

"It's all because you always bring her food that she's getting enough nutrition. Tingting, hurry up and thank your Uncle Dachun," Lin Jie instructed.

"Thank you, Uncle Dachun."

Lin Tingting said sweetly.

"They should be family."

"I'm not studying anymore, I've come back to help out," Lin Jie added.

"Oh, that's fine, that's fine too." Lin Dachun nodded. In this day and age, girls who could finish junior high school were expected to get married.

Lin Dachun glanced at Lin Tingting, and Lin Tingting looked over as well. The two locked eyes.

Lin Tingting was at the age when she was just beginning to experience romantic feelings, and the seeds of love and attraction to the opposite sex were slowly sprouting in her heart.

Lin Tingting shyly avoided his gaze and sat obediently on the kang (a heated brick bed).

When Lin Jie saw the tofu, her eyes immediately welled up with tears. She quickly turned her face away and wiped her eyes with her sleeve.

Then Lin Jie made a cup of tea and handed it to Lin Dachun.

"Brother Dachun, you...you're not well-off either, yet you always think of us..." Lin Jie's voice choked with emotion.

Lin Dachun waved his hand, ignoring the remark.

He looked around the dilapidated house—besides the kang (a heated brick bed), a broken table, and two wooden boxes, there was nothing else of any decent quality.

The old newspapers pasted on the wall were yellowed and had holes in some places, revealing the dark mud wall inside.

It's still very hot and humid.

"Sister-in-law," Lin Dachun said, his voice particularly deep in the cold air, "there's something I want to tell you."

Lin Jie looked up at him.

"Recently..." Lin Dachun said slowly, not mentioning the brewing process, as if he was carefully choosing his words, "I need some special herbs, such as... Epimedium, Cistanche deserticola, Albizia julibrissin, Solanum nigrum, and Rhinoceros horn."

"Epimedium, Cistanche, Albizia, Solanum nigrum, Rhinoceros horn?" Lin Jie repeated, a hint of confusion in her eyes. "These herbs are all very rare. But... are they even useful?"

"It works." Lin Dachun nodded.

He paused, looking at Lin Jie's hands, roughened by years of hard work: "If you're willing, go up the mountain and collect these herbs. I'll buy them. Fresh or dried, it's all fine. The price... won't be less than what you'd expect."

"These herbs are rare, but they are not commonly used herbs, so no one will pick them, even if they are planted."

Lin Jie was stunned.

She looked at Lin Dachun, then at the man lying on the kang (a heated brick bed), and something flickered in her eyes, like a dying ember that was then blown by the wind and lit up with a faint light.

"Brother Dachun, are you... are you telling the truth?" Her voice trembled with excitement.

"Really." Lin Dachun took out two one-yuan bills from his pocket and placed them on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed). "This is the deposit. You go and pick them first. Once you've picked them, I'll weigh them by weight and pay you in cash."

The two bills gleamed with a warm light under the dim oil lamp.

Lin Jie stared at the money, her hand clenched tightly, her nails digging into her palm.

These two dollars are enough to buy a pound of salt, a foot of cloth, and... enough to buy some daily necessities and vegetable seeds.

"Okay, nothing else. Tingting can go up the mountain to pick herbs when she has time, which will help ease the burden on the family," Lin Dachun said, taking a sip of tea.

After chatting with Lin Hao about everyday matters, Da Chun stood up and said, "I still need to go to the old village chief's house."