Free Web NovelChapter 36: Chapter 36: Paramour
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, the entirety of Xinghua Village was immersed in festive cheer, filled with laughter and joyful voices.
Su Li knew nothing about what had happened with Tang Yuanxiao. She had no interest in knowing, and even less energy to find out.
On New Year’s Eve, it was customary to stay up as late as possible to see the new year in—staying awake the whole night was ideal. Su Li was used to this tradition.
Little Tang Mo knew about this too. After dinner, he tugged at Su Li, wanting to stay up with her. Unfortunately, he was still just a child and got sleepy when his bedtime came.
Su Li watched him nodding off, his head bobbing with sleep, yet he stubbornly fought to stay awake. After a moment’s thought, she decided to tell him a story.
Su Li had read countless books, and having experienced a future life, she knew every kind of TV show and story imaginable. Telling a story was as easy as opening her mouth.
Little Tang Mo was immediately captivated. His sleepiness vanished, and he stared at Su Li with his bright, sparkling eyes, listening with rapt attention. He was utterly absorbed.
So Su Li continued. Her voice was pleasant, and she told the tale in a soft, unhurried manner that was completely engrossing. Beside them, Mrs. Tang was also listening, spellbound.
At this time, televisions were not yet common. In any case, Xinghua Village didn’t have any—not even black-and-white sets, let alone color ones.
The people of Xinghua Village were completely unfamiliar with television; few had even heard of it. Radios were also rare. Their only exposure to storytelling was from the radio or the old tales passed down in the village.
These "old tales" were stories passed down through generations. Parents told them to their children and grandchildren, and so they were handed down, but they were always the same few stories.
Su Li’s story was fresh and rich. How could Mrs. Tang and Little Tang Mo not be fascinated?
As the story unfolded, following the protagonist’s journey, Mrs. Tang would gasp in alarm from time to time. When the hero faced difficulties, they grew anxious; when something good happened, they smiled along with him.
At one point, Little Tang Mo even started crying for one of the characters in the story.
Seeing how invested Little Tang Mo was, Su Li told the story with even more earnestness. However, a small problem arose midway.
Amidst his constant questions of "And then? And then...?" a hint of confusion crept into Little Tang Mo’s voice. "Mama, you made a mistake there. Before, you said..."
Alright, so Little Tang Mo was listening very carefully. His brilliant, genius mind was at work. With his exceptional memory, he remembered everything after hearing it just once. Whenever Su Li made a small slip-up in her storytelling, he would point it out.
’A true scholar’s brain showing its power at such an unexpected moment.’ Su Li was a bit flustered.
The New Year’s Eve vigil passed just like that. The next day, the first of the new year, Su Li, who felt like she had only just fallen asleep, was woken by the continuous sound of firecrackers crackling throughout the village.
A moment later, Little Tang Mo, finally wearing his new sweater, excitedly knocked on the door to wake Su Li up.
After getting up, Su Li took Little Tang Mo to light firecrackers at the door. This was called the "opening the door firecracker." After the popping sound, the ground was covered in red debris, as beautiful as a brocade of clouds, a sight known as "a hall full of red."
After setting off the firecrackers, Little Tang Mo first wished Mrs. Tang and Su Li a happy new year. The little boy clearly wished them good health, long life, and that all their wishes would come true, then knelt and kowtowed to them both.
This was the first time Su Li had received New Year’s greetings from Little Tang Mo, and her heart was filled with emotion. After Mrs. Tang pulled him up and gave him his lucky money, Su Li also gave Little Tang Mo the "lucky money" she had prepared in advance.
After Little Tang Mo finished his greetings and they had eaten, the family was supposed to go out and visit neighbors door-to-door to offer New Year’s wishes.
Mrs. Tang and Little Tang Mo couldn’t wait, but Su Li didn’t want to go out. She had no desire to exchange pleasantries with the people of Xinghua Village, so she made an excuse to stay home.
Except for Su Li, most of Xinghua Village was out and about. The only time children could wear new clothes was during the New Year. No matter how poor a family was, they would always buy their children a new outfit for the occasion.
Just like Little Tang Mo, they gathered in their new clothes, running all over the village to play, admiring their friends’ new outfits, showing off their own, and sharing the candies and snacks they brought from home.
Among all the children, Little Tang Mo was undoubtedly the star this year.
He was the cutest and smartest, his pockets were fullest with treats, and most importantly, his sweater was the most beautiful.
None of the other kids’ clothes could compare to his. Everyone adored it, and not just the children—the adults were impressed too. fгeewebnovёl.com
The villagers all left their homes to visit relatives and friends. When they met, they would greet each other with big smiles, exchanging auspicious phrases like "May you be prosperous," "Peace throughout the seasons," and "Happy New Year."
Visitors began to arrive at the Tang Family home one after another to offer New Year’s greetings. After receiving a few groups, Su Li realized she had miscalculated—’Staying home is even more exhausting!’
With people constantly coming and going, it was impossible for her to study. So, Su Li decided to go out after all.
She didn’t go to visit anyone, nor did she wander around aimlessly. Instead, she took a different path, following a small trail down to the riverbank.
The riverbank was lined with large rocks where the villagers usually gathered to wash clothes and vegetables, making it a very lively spot. Today, however, it was completely quiet.
Su Li found an apricot tree, closed her eyes under the warm sun, and tried to catch up on her sleep.
She didn’t know how long she had slept before a soft chuckle woke her. She frowned and opened her eyes to see a figure standing before her, silhouetted against the light.
The sun was too blinding, and Su Li couldn’t make out who it was. She quickly sat up straight.
"I didn’t expect to find someone else hiding out here for some peace and quiet. Su Li, it’s been a long time." A pleasant, cultured voice reached her ears.
Su Li’s body instantly went rigid. She whipped her head around to look at the speaker, finally able to see his silhouette clearly.
"Are you that surprised?" the person asked, deliberately lowering his voice as he started walking toward Su Li.
He didn’t notice the bone-deep hatred in Su Li’s eyes or her trembling body. freewebnoveℓ.com
Su Li tilted her head up to look at the person before her. She didn’t know if it was because the sun was too bright or if it was psychological, but she felt a piercing pain in her left eye. For a moment, she even felt as if she had gone blind in that eye.
Of course, she hadn’t gone blind. Her vision had simply gone dark—a conditioned reflex.
A person’s mind might forget hatred, but the body remembers.
Su Li’s body, Su Li’s eyes, remembered this person standing before her. They remembered the pain and harm he had inflicted upon her.
In the year she turned twenty-seven, Su Li was left with only one good eye. Only her right eye could see. Her left eye looked perfectly normal, but it was actually blind because its cornea had been taken.
The person who took Su Li’s cornea was this very man standing before her.
Zhao Wenming. The same age as Su Li, nineteen this year. He was born and raised in Xinghua Village. He wore glasses, looked refined and clean-cut, and had the air of a scholar. He was the village’s resident intellectual.
In this era, getting into a technical secondary school was much harder than getting into high school. He was the only person in the village to be admitted to a teacher training college. He was the golden phoenix who had flown out of the mountains, the only one for miles around to land a prestigious "golden rice bowl" job assigned by the government right after graduation.
Zhao Wenming was the most promising and outstanding young man in Xinghua Village, the pride of the entire community.
He graduated last year, and after an internship at a primary school in the county town, he was assigned to be the teacher at the village’s primary school this year, becoming its only teacher.
He was also the man rumored to be Su Li’s illicit lover in her previous life—her secret, unknown lover.
