Chapter 157: Bitter at Heart

Nobody knew that her cheerful expression was entirely forced, and deep down, Tang Xin's little heart was actually crying tears.

She simply didn't dare to eat anything casually before going to bed at night.

Especially that stuffed eggplant her mother-in-law had made—it was glistening with oil, and she had no idea how much stubborn fat would accumulate on her body if she swallowed that down right now.

Sigh, having a mother-in-law who is too good at cooking is also a burden—a sweet burden.

After the past few months, Tang Xin felt that her appetite was growing larger and larger, and she was eating more and more with every single meal.

There were no electronic scales available right now; the only thing they had was the old-fashioned pole-arm steelyard used by the production brigade for weighing grain. Tang Xin didn't know how to use it, and besides, guessing that contraption could accurately weigh a person's body weight was probably a stretch.

Therefore, having lived here for over half a year, Tang Xin had actually never measured her own weight.

However, based on the tightness of her clothes, she was definitely heavier, and not just by a pound or two.

Yet Tang Xin didn't dare casually tell anyone she wanted to lose weight. At the moment, the general public was still in a half-full, half-hungry state.

If she were to announce that she had gained weight and should eat a little less per meal from now on, refraining from pastries and snacks, someone would surely curse her for having capitalist tendencies.

Sigh, Tang Xin was suffering in her heart, but nobody knew.

Just then, Li Sheng, who was playing with the children over there, suddenly turned his head and said with a completely serious expression to his wife, "I think you still need to eat a little bit."

"Why?"

"You'll get hungry after exercising. If we exercise again tonight, aren't you afraid you'll be too hungry to sleep?"

Fortunately, this fellow's skin wasn't entirely thick, and knowing that there were many children around and some things shouldn't be said carelessly, Li Sheng spoke almost directly against Tang Xin's ear, so only Tang Xin heard him.

Precisely because she heard it and understood it all too well, with a loud "boom," Tang Xin's entire face turned red.

And it flushed so thoroughly that even the roots of her ears and her neck turned crimson.

Gu Nan, who was closest to them, didn't hear what his eldest brother had said, but he still noticed that his sister-in-law's face was completely flushed.

So he asked, "Sister-in-law, why is your face so red? Is it very hot?"

By this time, everyone else in the courtyard who hadn't been paying special attention to the young couple also noticed and discovered Tang Xin's anomaly.

In this regard, Fang Shi was much more sensitive, and she knew that her son and daughter-in-law had been separated for several days, meaning they must certainly be longing for each other.

So she quickly stepped in to smooth things over: "Alright, alright, you guys must have been playing way too wildly. Go take a bath and get to bed early."

They were indeed tired from playing, so everyone went their separate ways to wash up and sleep.

It wasn't quite the scorching heat of midsummer yet, so swimming down in the river was out of the question; the younger ones all washed up in bathtubs inside the house.

Knowing that Li Sheng was back today, the Li family was naturally overjoyed, especially since Gu Nan got along so well with the two little ones.

So Third Brother Gu simply left him here, allowing the three brothers to sleep together and be sent off to school together first thing in the morning.

The two elders only needed to wash their faces and feet, which they could do right in their own room, and the sisters Li Xihua and Li Xiyue weren't that troublesome either.

In their view, it was just their sister-in-law being overly fastidious—even though the weather was still quite cool, she insisted on taking a bath every single day.

After everyone washed up and returned to their respective rooms to sleep, when Tang Xin woke up from this sleep, the sun was already climbing high into the sky the next morning.

The house was dead quiet without a sound.

She even felt puzzled: how could even her mother-in-law have gone out?

When Tang Xin finished getting dressed and went to wash up, seeing the sun hanging so high outside, a tiny pang of guilt flickered in her heart; lunchtime would probably be here before long.

Curious, she went to the kitchen and found that breakfast was still being kept warm for her in the pot, likely steaming over hot water to maintain the food's temperature.

Prying open the lid, she saw millet porridge, a boiled egg, and a few pieces of stuffed eggplant sitting in the steamer basket.

Her eyes rolled as a plan formed in Tang Xin's mind.

She hurriedly finished her breakfast, washed the bowl, scrubbed the pot, and then locked the door behind her as she stepped outside. That way, when they returned, she could pretend she had gotten up early and gone out for a stroll before coming back.

Ahem, although she didn't usually wake up terribly early, at least she hadn't slept in this late before.

Just as Tang Xin was only halfway through her millet porridge and had just peeled the eggshell off, the courtyard gate rattled.

Tang Xin frantically rushed to put the bowl back, covered the steamer basket, and before she could even clear away the mess on the dining table, the person outside strode in with large, brisk steps.

Ahem, fortunately, the person entering was Li Sheng.

Tang Xin let out a massive sigh of relief while simultaneously complaining to him as she unceremoniously scooped up her breakfast again.

"Why did you suddenly come back?"

Li Sheng smiled and said, "Came back to see if you were awake yet, starving aren't you? Who told you not to eat any late-night snacks last night?"

Tang Xin glared at him with exasperation, curling her lip as she retorted, "Hmph, I am a young lady from a good family, I do not eat things right before going to sleep at night."

"Fine, fine, Comrade Young Lady, has this porridge cooled down yet? Do you need me to start a fire and heat it up?"

Of course, Tang Xin wouldn't want to put him through that trouble. The large brick stove here wasn't as convenient as the gas stoves or electric rice cookers in her former home; restarting the fire not only wasted firewood but also time and energy.

"It's fine, I can eat it like this." As she spoke, Tang Xin was already heartily gulping down the millet porridge that still retained a hint of warmth.

She even paired it with the porridge and finished off the egg.

Once she was full, wouldn't she have much more energy to argue?

Thus, Tang Xin righteous and boldly interrogated him: "You still have the nerve to bring up last night! I told you to stop messing around, but you refused to listen, causing me to sleep all the way until noon today. If anyone else finds out, I won't have the face to meet people."

Take the eldest sister, for instance; she would definitely have a few things to say.

Even though she knew Eldest Sister meant no harm, she spoke without thinking and had a habit of taking a jab at everyone she met.

Tang Xin didn't want to hear a bunch of nagging either; she was also a youthful, beautiful young maiden, and being accused of oversleeping would still make her feel embarrassed.

Li Sheng rubbed his nose, completely speechless.

This seemed to indeed be his fault, but expecting him to change—

That was impossible, absolutely impossible for the rest of his life!

When he was driving outside, he hadn't felt this way because he had to focus entirely and proceed with absolute caution.

Li Sheng knew he carried the hopes of his entire family on his shoulders, along with his wife's earnest parting entrustment.

How could he not protect himself properly?

Yet the moment he relaxed, that longing would cling to him like a shadow, constantly enveloping him until it seemed whatever he did, his young wife's smiles and speech appeared right before his eyes.

Unable to concentrate on anything, Li Sheng couldn't help wondering in his mind: What is Tang Xin doing right now?

Consequently, later on, whenever his energy permitted, Li Sheng took the wheel as much as possible, causing Wang Liang to mistakenly believe his good partner was just being considerate and sparing him from exhaustion and hardship.

Moreover, Wang Liang could take advantage of the opportunity to learn more from Li Sheng, hoping to secretly master his skills.

However, this trip had been to the provincial capital for business, and they weren't driving the whole time. When staying at the guesthouse at night, Li Sheng had been virtually wide awake the entire night.