Chapter 9: Confession - The Super Straightforward Move of a 250-Year-Old Bachelor...

Bing Wengu roughly understood the quarrel between Liang Shi and Qian Shi. It was likely that the money he gave Qian Shi for her treatment yesterday wasn't all spent, and the remaining amount was secretly kept by Qian Shi, which Liang Shi discovered.

Liang Shi continued to scold, "You know the situation at home, there's not a single grain of rice left. These fifteen coins could buy over a liter of grain. Mixed with wild veggies, it could make a thin porridge that would last the family three or four days."

Bing Wengu stepped into the courtyard. Seeing Bing Wengu, Qian Shi probably felt ashamed and covered her face, running back into the house.

Liang Shi, clutching a grimy pouch, walked over to see how much grain Bing Wengu had bought, still trembling with anger.

"Is this about twenty liters?" Liang Shi estimated the weight as she held it.

Bing Wengu nodded, "I kept a few dozen coins for emergencies."

Liang Shi didn't argue and took it back. Originally, in the Bing family, which hadn't split the household, all the money should be managed by Liang Shi. This was the village's custom. If it weren't Bing Wengu who sold the fish today, but another son, Liang Shi would have taken back the remaining coins.

But with this eldest son, Liang Shi felt somewhat unsure. Or rather, it was the current eldest son.

Liang Shi often felt that the eldest son had changed a lot since his illness, sometimes making her, as a mother, feel a sense of distance.

Bing Wengu handed the grain to Liang Shi and left it at that. His body wasn't fully recovered, and the trip to the town had tired him out. Now, he just wanted to lie down and rest.

Even while lying down, Bing Wengu wasn't idle. He held a book and read.

Next February would be the county examination, and Bing Wengu had to seize every moment to study.

With grain at home, the evening meal was a thin wild vegetable porridge. Though still thin, at least there were some grains of rice visible.

Feeling a bit better, Bing Wengu couldn't resist wanting to see his husband. He couldn't go empty-handed, and since the Bing family was broke, Bing Wengu had to figure something out.

The village was surrounded by mountains, and the mountains were full of good things.

Bing Wengu ventured into the mountains, careful not to go too deep. His body wasn't fully recovered, and he stood no chance against wolves and wild boars.

He only went a bit further than the villagers usually did, where large beasts wouldn't come, but there were some small animals.

Bing Wengu caught two pheasants and found a few wild bird eggs.

He didn't take all the pheasants back to the Bing family. There were so many mouths to feed in the Bing family, if he brought them all back, he might only get a small portion. His body was run down and needed some good food.

So he started a fire right there and roasted one pheasant. He ate half himself and eagerly took the other half to Nan Jinping.

If his body didn't need immediate nourishment, Bing Wengu would have saved it all for Nan Jinping.

"Nan Jinping, Nan Jinping..." Bing Wengu called out softly as he came down the mountain, just as he saw Nan Jinping digging wild vegetables on the mountain.

Seeing it was him, Nan Jinping first glanced around to make sure no one was watching, then walked over.

The two found a hidden spot to talk, and Bing Wengu quickly pulled out the still-warm roasted pheasant from his chest and handed it to Nan Jinping.

Life in the Nan family wasn't good either. Apart from the New Year, the last time they had meat was when Bing Wengu gave him fish some days ago.

Now, seeing the golden-brown roasted pheasant and smelling the aroma of meat, Nan Jinping instinctively swallowed.

"Eat quickly," Bing Wengu said, looking at Nan Jinping, thinking this was his husband, feeling sweet inside. "I kept it warm in my chest, it's still hot."

Although Nan Jinping was salivating with desire, she still resisted and declined, "You eat it. You've just recovered from a serious illness and need the nutrition."

Her husband was concerned about her health, which made Bing Wengu feel delighted. "Look, this is half of it. I ate the other half. This is just for you."

Nan Jinping glanced at Bing Wengu quickly, then dared not look at his face again. She lowered her head, staring at the ground, and nudged a stone with her toe.

"I can't accept it," Nan Jinping whispered. "If you're thanking me for saving you, you've already given me fish."

"Is my life only worth two fish? Are you trying to insult me?" Bing Wengu brought up this argument again. Every time he said this, Nan Jinping didn't know how to respond.

Bing Wengu took the opportunity to rub the roasted chicken against Nan Jinping's lips. "Look, the chicken has touched your lips. If you don't eat it, who else can?"

This excuse was clumsy, but Nan Jinping knew that even if it had touched her lips, the villagers would still fight over it.

Bing Wengu forcefully handed the roasted chicken to Nan Jinping. "Someone's coming. I gotta go. I'll see you tomorrow."

After saying this, Bing Wengu ran off.

"Jin Ge'er," Miao Shi's voice came. Nan Jinping instinctively hid the hand holding the roasted chicken behind her back, not letting her mother see. "What are you doing here? I haven't seen you in a while."

Nan Jinping said to Miao Shi, "There were too many people picking wild greens over there. I saw no one here, so I thought I'd come and look."

Miao Shi looked at her son suspiciously, seemingly not noticing anything unusual. "Alright, don't wander off. The mountains can be dangerous."

"Okay, I know, Mom." After Miao Shi left, Nan Jinping took out the roasted chicken and found a spot to eat.

Nan Jinping didn't know why she didn't tell her mother about Bing Wengu. She was usually a good kid who listened to her elders, but she instinctively didn't want to talk about Bing Wengu.

Whether it was because she hadn't had meat in a while or because Bing Wengu was a good cook, Nan Jinping found the roasted wild chicken particularly delicious. At first, she nibbled at it, but soon she couldn't resist and wolfed it down.

Bing Wengu didn't really leave. He hid behind a big tree, watching Nan Jinping.

At first, he was happy to see Nan Jinping enjoying the meal. But when he saw her eating so hungrily, he felt sad.

It was just a wild chicken, but Nan Jinping ate it so hungrily, showing how tough her life was.

Bing Wengu took the leftover wild chicken back to the Bing family. When Liang Shi saw it, she scolded, "Da Lang, you went up the mountain. You've just started to recover. The mountains are dangerous. Don't go back."

Bing Wengu said, "I got lucky. I didn't go too far into the mountains. I found it near the edge."

Qian Shi's eyes lit up at the sight of the wild chicken, completely forgetting the scolding from earlier. She immediately squeezed over. "Mom, give it to me. Big brother did it for the family's sake."

Liang Shi scolded, "What are you talking about? All you ever think about is food. Tomorrow, your big brother will take the wild chicken to town to trade for grain."

Qian Shi pouted, and the children's eyes dimmed.

Bing Wengu said, "Mom, cook it for the family. Everyone needs to build up their strength. The harvest is coming soon. If we don't, I'm afraid the family won't be able to handle the workload."

Liang Shi hesitated, "But we don't have much grain at home, just the twenty liters you traded for last time."

Bing Silang, who was really craving, said, "Mom, Bing Dalang is right. Our family needs to build up our strength now, or we won't be able to handle the busy farming season. At worst, in a few days, I'll go to town and look for odd jobs. Maybe I'll find something this time."

The Bing family wasn't lazy. It was just that the town was small, and during the off-season, too many people were willing to do odd jobs. The Bing family had no connections to secure work.

Liang Shi scolded lightly, "How many times do I have to tell you? Don't call your eldest brother Da Lang. Call him big brother."

Bing Silang pouted, unimpressed.

Qian Shi followed up, "Mom, just cook it. If there's work, let San Lang go too."

As long as they could find work, everyone in the family except Bing Dalang had to go to town to do odd jobs. Since they had to go anyway, they might as well enjoy the wild chicken while they could.

Seeing that everyone in the family wanted to eat it, especially the children who were eagerly watching her, Liang Shi reluctantly agreed.

The Bing family ate chicken for dinner that evening, and everyone enjoyed it so much that it felt like a festive occasion.

Bing Wengu still had four wild bird eggs in his pocket, which he hadn't taken out. He planned to keep one for himself to eat over the next two days, give one to Nan Jinping, and the remaining two would last him the next two days.

Bing Wengu had everything planned, and the next day he went to deliver the egg to Nan Jinping.

Eggs were easier to hand over than other things. As he passed by Nan Jinping, he slipped an egg into Nan Jinping's hand. By the time Nan Jinping realized what was in his hand, Bing Wengu had already walked away. Nan Jinping couldn't return it in public, so he had no choice but to keep it.

Bing Wengu realized the benefit of giving eggs. As long as he found the right moment in a crowded place to slip it to Nan Jinping, Nan Jinping couldn't refuse. So Bing Wengu started looking for eggs all over the mountain.

That day, he stumbled upon a bird's nest and found four eggs. He roasted both the bird and the eggs, stashed them in his clothes, and went to find Nan Jinping.

"Nan Jinping, Nan Jinping..."

By now, Nan Jinping was very familiar with Bing Wengu's voice, as Bing Wengu had been bringing him treats every day for the past few days.

Nan Jinping stood up, found an opportunity to slip away from his family, and followed Bing Wengu into a quiet grove.

"Here, I just found a bird's nest," Bing Wengu said. "We'll each have one bird, and you can have three eggs. I'll take two."

Nan Jinping had already had his fill of the food Bing Wengu had given him over the past few days. Refusing now would just seem ungrateful.

He took the roasted bird and began to eat. After being fed by Bing Wengu every day, Nan Jinping wasn't as desperate for food and could eat the meat slowly and calmly.

As he ate the roasted bird, Nan Jinping lowered his eyes, deep in thought. Suddenly, he said, "Bing Dalang, if you're doing this to repay me for saving your life, you've already given me enough. You don't need to keep bringing me things."

This time, Bing Wengu didn't use the argument that his life was worth more than these gifts. Instead, he stared directly at Nan Jinping and said, "Nan Jinping, you don't really think I've been giving you things I can't even bear to eat myself just because I owe you my life, do you?"

Nan Jinping suddenly looked up at Bing Wengu, meeting his intense, dark eyes. His heart skipped a beat.

Nan Jinping suddenly noticed that Bing Dalang was strikingly handsome. He had a high nose, deep-set eyes, and sharp features, as if chiseled by a sculptor.

Now that he had recovered from his illness, his complexion had improved, and his entire demeanor had changed.

Even though he wore tattered clothes, he didn't appear disheveled. Instead, he had the air of a fallen nobleman.

It was a kind of noble grace that no ordinary farmer could possess.

Nan Jinping's heart raced so fast that he could almost feel it. He stammered, "Bing Dalang, what... what are you saying?"

Deep down, he already had an inkling of what it might be.

When someone is overly attentive to another person, bringing them delicious food every day, what else could it mean except that they were pursuing them?

If anyone had told Nan Jinping about such a situation, he would have given that answer.

But when it came to himself, Nan Jinping suddenly wasn't so sure.

Ever since he was a child, because of his identity as a Shuang Er, no man in the village had ever liked him.

Not only did they not like him, but they also avoided him, as if getting close to him would mean they had to marry him.

Nan Jinping had even overheard many village men talking behind his back, saying they would rather stay single for life than have him.

They spoke of him as if he were unworthy, and Nan Jinping had grown up hearing such things. So when it came to matters like this, he truly lacked confidence and couldn't bring himself to believe it.

Bing Wengu had never pursued anyone before, but after 250 years of being single, he had finally found someone he liked, and his passionate feelings were enough to melt anyone.

Bing Wengu said directly, "Of course, I'm pursuing you. Nan Jinping, I like you. I want to marry you and make you my husband."

Nan Jinping hadn't expected Bing Wengu to be so straightforward. His face burned with embarrassment. "If this is because of the life debt, you don't have to go this far. You really don't need to sacrifice yourself just to repay me..."

"Of course not, I simply like you," Bing Wengu interrupted Nan Jinping. "When I say I'm giving you things to thank you for saving my life, it's just an excuse to get closer to you."