The Tender Beauty is Sweetly Doted in the 20th Century Novel!-Chapter 152 - 151: You’re Boss He’s Wife, Aren’t You?
Ye Manman was indeed awakened by the cold at night. When she opened her eyes, the room’s bulb was particularly glaring, but there was no noise outside, which meant it was not yet four o’clock.
Usually, by four or five o’clock, people outside were already busy. It might not be noisy, but there was some sound, like the nearby villagers bringing their vegetables to sell in town, and those selling breakfast nearby; these people all got up very early.
The feeling of icy hands and feet was truly uncomfortable. No matter how much Ye Manman curled up, her feet remained icy cold. She wanted to get a hot water bottle but remembered He Chen’s advice and held back the urge to get one.
Looking at the large quilt at the end of the bed, Ye Manman was reluctant but still shook it open and put it over the blanket she was currently using.
"Ugh!"
Sure enough, it was heavy!
Before going to sleep, she hadn’t pulled this quilt over simply because it was so heavy. The stuffing was all cotton picked from the field, tightly packed, and one quilt weighed 20 pounds.
Usually, she found even one quilt heavy, and adding another made it so she could barely turn over in bed.
Ye Manman lay down properly, but even using both hands together, she couldn’t pull both quilts up to align them and had to burrow under them. As long as she was warm, it was fine.
Bearing this "pressure," she frowned and fell asleep again.
Maybe because the quilt’s presence was too strong, in her dream, she felt suffocated and it was a bit too warm.
In her dreamy haze, her perspective turned into a God’s view, and she saw He Chen return home.
He opened the door, lifted the quilt, said nothing, and directly climbed into bed and held her tightly.
He was so big, not even supporting his arms, pressing her to the point where she almost couldn’t breathe, yet still breathing warm air onto her face. Ye Manman kept hitting and pushing him, but couldn’t move him, and finally got angry, yet He Chen paid no attention.
Ye Manman suddenly got worked up and woke up in anger.
Upon opening her eyes, she saw the empty room and the thick quilt pressing on her, almost smothering her, making Ye Manman feel overheated. She quickly struggled out from under the quilt.
Though a bit dazed, she quickly realized she had been dreaming. She instinctively wiped her forehead, finding it covered with beads of sweat, along with her entire sweaty body.
After coming out from the warm bed and feeling the cold air, the heat dissipated, and she immediately felt chilled despite sweating just a moment ago.
Under usual circumstances, she would certainly ask He Chen to get some hot water for her to shower, but as that wasn’t possible, she could only pour water from the hot water bottle to wipe herself down.
After being left overnight, the water in the heater had turned to warm water— perfectly suitable for drinking a cup and using the rest to wash and freshen up.
After tidying herself, Ye Manman went downstairs. Jiang Yuan and her brother were already preparing. Seeing her come down, they both widened their eyes in surprise.
"Wow, Manman, how come you’re up so early today? That’s unusual."
Jiang Tianrui didn’t speak but shared the sentiment.
Since they started selling fried chicken here, Jiang Tianrui had never seen Ye Manman get up early; today was the first time.
Ye Manman yawned, with slight traces of water at the corners of her eyes.
"I didn’t want to either, but had a bad dream and couldn’t sleep. Might as well get up and read something."
"Have you guys had breakfast yet?"
She planned to buy breakfast before going upstairs to translate.
"Of course we’ve eaten! You’re going to buy breakfast, right? Don’t go too far; there’s a place selling it nearby. Buy it here."
"Mm-hmm."
Ye Manman still felt a bit sleepy, clearly not having slept well, yawning continuously.
Breakfasts in this era were simple but smelled pretty fragrant, especially those freshly served tofu puddings topped with sugar, plus a freshly fried dough stick. Not very healthy, but occasionally tempting.
She had never bought breakfast by herself before, but the breakfast sellers here all knew her, warmly greeting her when they saw her approaching.
"Aren’t you Boss He’s wife? Truly beautiful. No wonder people say Boss He is lucky all the time, with success in both career and love, hahaha."
"There’s sugar here for those who like sweets; you can add it yourself."
The lady selling tofu pudding was very welcoming. Seeing her ready to carry the bowl directly, she feared she might scald herself, and so placed the tofu pudding on a small table nearby.
"You can sit here to eat. The tofu is really hot, just served, and this bowl is easy to puncture; be careful, don’t burn yourself."
Ye Manman noticed the lady added an extra spoon of sugar to her tofu pudding while only adding one spoon for others, inviting her to add more if desired.
She felt slightly overwhelmed, feeling a bit embarrassed since she didn’t really know the lady.
"Thank you, Auntie～"
Originally not intending to eat breakfast there, she felt too embarrassed to leave after being given special treatment. So, Ye Manman bought some dough sticks and sat by the small table, nibbling on breakfast.
The lady kept stealing glances at her, and when Ye Manman looked up, the lady promptly joined in a conversation.
"Is Boss He out on business? How come you’re the one buying tofu pudding today?"
Ye Manman murmured a confirmation, slowly swallowing her food before responding.
"He might be away for a few days."
The lady nodded with a smile. "No wonder I didn’t see your store selling Sweet and Spicy Duck yesterday."
With a courteous smile, Ye Manman didn’t know what to say.
The lady was overly familiar and excessively enthusiastic, releasing kind intentions almost inexplicably, leaving her unsure of how to respond but to speed up eating her breakfast.
While she ate the tofu pudding and dough stick, the lady expressed her admiration numerous times, and Ye Manman occasionally responded, gradually learning from the lady that He Chen had once chased away ruffians for her.
The lady was grateful and since her stall was nearby the Sweet and Spicy Duck shop, she often saw them, naturally becoming familiar with her too.
Appreciating He Chen, she extended her kindness enthusiastically towards Ye Manman as well.
Understanding this, Ye Manman no longer felt awkward. After finishing her tofu pudding, she stayed to chat with the lady for a while.
Before, Ye Manman didn’t know what He Chen had done in town, but through chatting with the lady, she learned that He Chen not only helped this lady but also often lent helping hands to others in small ways.
Many elders coming to town early in the morning with carts or shoulder poles to sell vegetables sometimes found themselves exhausted on the way to the market.
If He Chen saw someone struggling with a cart or noticed fallen vegetables, he would lend a hand, insisting on paying for purchases made instead of accepting gifts.
In just a few months, anyone who knew He Chen would praise him.
Ye Manman always knew He Chen had a good heart and was dependable, but hearing these little stories from others was particularly interesting and made her feel good.
Unknowingly, she had sat at the lady’s small table for a long time, and when the sun was already up, not wanting to get tanned, she reluctantly bid goodbye to the lady, planning to head back.
But just as she turned and walked a few steps, she unexpectedly came face to face with Ye Xiaotong, who was on her way to the market.
