The Delicate Darling with Her Rough Man-Chapter 37: Delivering Bone Soup

There wasn’t much fat in people’s diets these days; meat and fish were a rare sight.

When Gu Jiaojiao brought over the bone soup, Aunt Zhao quickly refused it.

"Jiaojiao, take this bone soup back for yourself. We don’t need it."

Gu Jiaojiao stood her ground. "Auntie, this is for Sister-in-law Xiu Hua. She had that scare with the baby, so she should get some nourishment. It’s nothing special, really. I just saw some meatless bones in the County Town and figured I’d buy them since the Qiushou is so exhausting for everyone."

"It’s nothing fancy, so please just take it! Besides, Tie Zhu brought me snacks yesterday, and I accepted those."

Since Gu Jiaojiao insisted, Aunt Zhao had no choice but to take the bowl. "In that case, I’ll be thick-skinned and accept."

Gu Jiaojiao had given a generous amount, enough for two or three bowls. The bone soup had been simmered until it was rich and milky-white, and it smelled absolutely delicious.

This would certainly help her daughter-in-law get some nourishment.

Gu Jiaojiao was right. Although the baby in Wang Xiuhua’s womb was fine, sitting on the cold ground for so long had given her a chill and destabilized her pregnancy. It was nothing that some rest and proper care couldn’t fix, though.

But in times like these, nourishing food was scarce. At most, they could ensure the family’s eggs went to their daughter-in-law, but even that was a limited supply.

This bone soup was a godsend, and it put Aunt Zhao’s mind at ease.

Aunt Zhao washed the bowl clean for Gu Jiaojiao and brought it back out to her.

Gu Jiaojiao couldn’t help but chide playfully, "I could have washed it at home, Auntie. You’re being too formal."

The two exchanged a few more pleasantries before Gu Jiaojiao headed home.

After returning home and enjoying a delicious meal, Gu Jiaojiao went to take a bath.

After her bath, she was in the courtyard drying her hair when Leng Yuan emerged, having just finished washing up himself.

Leng Yuan’s house had two main rooms. One was for sleeping, while the other was empty. Gu Jiaojiao had used the empty room to bathe. Leng Yuan, on the other hand, was less particular and not so concerned with such formalities; he simply took his things to the woodshed to wash up.

Gu Jiaojiao sat in the courtyard, her gaze shifting between the moon and the man.

She watched as her diligent man took the laundry to the well to wash. By now, she had grown almost numb to his industriousness.

Leng Yuan was truly the cleanest man she had ever met.

Not only was his home tidy, but he kept himself neat as well. She had a thing for clean men.

’That’s one of the things I like about him.’

As Gu Jiaojiao continued to watch, she realized something was amiss.

’What’s that in Leng Yuan’s hands?’

’Unless my eyes are deceiving me... is that my underwear?’

Gu Jiaojiao was so flustered she nearly choked. She hadn’t even noticed when Leng Yuan had grabbed her dirty clothes to wash.

The sight of such a private garment being held in a grown man’s hands made Gu Jiaojiao blush crimson in an instant.

And as for Leng Yuan...

He appeared perfectly calm, but if you got closer, you would see his face was flushed red too. He barely dared to look at the small garment in his hands, quickly scrubbing it before tossing it into the basin.

Mortified, Gu Jiaojiao decided to just play dead.

’This man is mine,’ she told herself. ’He’s just washing some clothes. Calm down. Calm down.’

After some time had passed, Leng Yuan finished hanging the clothes to dry and was already weaving something.

Remembering her bet for the next day, Gu Jiaojiao couldn’t resist approaching him. "Leng Yuan," she began in a sweet, delicate voice, "could you help me make something?"

Gu Jiaojiao leaned in close, and her faint, sweet scent enveloped Leng Yuan, causing his weaving hands to slow down unconsciously.

"What do you want to make?"

Gu Jiaojiao quickly explained her bet with Wu Cuizhi on the threshing ground and described the device she wanted to build. A flicker of surprise crossed Leng Yuan’s eyes. He had a good idea of what she was describing, but he never would have expected Gu Jiaojiao to come up with such an idea.

He, at least, had never heard of anything like it.