The kang (heated brick bed) for left-behind women

Night had fallen, and only a few lights flickered in the village. Most families had already gone to bed to save on fuel.

Lin Dachun used a clean old cloth to wrap the fat and lean hind leg and a few meaty ribs of the roe deer.

"I'll take some meat to He Xiulan," Lin Dachun said to Li Ruoxue.

"I can bring you meat, but please don't let me stay there overnight. I'm afraid of the cold," Li Ruoxue said coquettishly, her face flushed.

"What nonsense are you talking about? Why would I sleep at her house?" Lin Dachun said awkwardly.

"Now you're a bachelor and she's a widow. Besides, He Xiulan has a good figure, she's curvy and voluptuous, she's the type of woman you men like," Li Ruoxue said, seemingly a little jealous.

"Don't worry, I'll be right back. Okay, sweetie," Lin Dachun coaxed.

Lin Dachun still dotes on Li Ruoxue.

In this Linjiatun village, there are only a few dozen households, and they are not even next to each other. Each household is busy with its own affairs.

It was all deserted and quiet.

It's quite lonely.

Carrying the bag of meat, Lin Dachun walked towards the east end of the village under the cool moonlight.

The window of the widow He Xiulan's house was still glowing with a dim light; she probably hadn't gone to sleep yet.

Lin Dachun paused outside the courtyard gate for a moment before gently knocking on the door.

"Who is it?" came He Xiulan's wary voice from inside.

"I am Lin Dachun."

The door opened immediately.

He Xiulan stood inside the door, holding a headscarf in her hand, her face slightly flushed from the warmth of the room's heating.

Seeing that it was Da Chun, her eyes flashed with surprise. Then, noticing what he was carrying, she quickly stepped aside: "Brother Da Chun? Come in quickly, it's cold outside."

Lin Dachun entered the house and placed the cloth bag on the table in the outer room: "We were lucky today, we caught a sheep. There's a lot of meat, take some for you and the children, stew it and eat it to nourish your bodies."

He spoke of it casually, as if he had just casually brought over something insignificant.

He Xiulan looked at the bulging cloth bag and knew without even opening it that it contained good meat.

These days, it's rare for a family to eat meat even a few times a year, let alone such a large piece of wild game.

Her heart was churning, her nose stung, and tears almost welled up in her eyes again.

Since her husband left, apart from her family occasionally providing some food, who else cares about her and her daughter so sincerely?

Repairing the kang (heated brick bed), fetching water, chopping firewood, chasing away the old black dog, and now this precious meat is being delivered...

"Brother Dachun, this...this is too much...this is too precious..." She was at a loss, wanting to refuse, but knowing Lin Dachun's temper.

"Take it if it's given to you, and have a good meal with the kids."

Lin Dachun waved his hand, not giving her a chance to refuse.

He looked around; the room was much tidier than the last time he was there, and the kang (heated brick bed) was warm. "Is the kang alright? No more smoke coming back up?"

"It's not falling over anymore, it's warm, all thanks to you," He Xiulan said softly, secretly glancing at him.

Under the kerosene lamp, Lin Dachun's face, sculpted by the mountain winds, still bore a trace of lingering fatigue, but his eyes were steady and his shoulders broad, like a mountain one could lean on.

This man is not talkative, and even a bit taciturn, but everything he does is practical and heartwarming.

He wasn't like the old black dog, drooling all over the place, nor was he like some of the men in the village, whose eyes always darted around when they were helping. He was truly...good.

An emotion so intense it startled even herself, a mixture of immense gratitude, long-standing loneliness, and a deep longing for warmth and support, surged forth like a burst dam, washing away all her restraint and concerns.

She suddenly stepped forward, standing only inches away from Lin Dachun, and looked up.

His eyes shone with an astonishing light, brimming with tears, yet also burning with a resolute determination to go all out.

"Brother Dachun...you...you're so good to me...I...I don't know how to repay you..."

Her voice trembled violently, her face flushed red and heaving, "I...I have nothing left but this person...If you don't mind...I...I'm willing..."

She didn't finish her sentence, but the meaning was already laid bare in the dim light between the two of them.

This was the most thorough and primal way she could think of to repay someone, and it was also the only seemingly real flame she could grasp in her desolate and cold life.

The cave became eerily quiet, with only the occasional crackling sound of the burning kerosene lamp wick.

The aroma of the stewed meat seemed to have solidified.

Lin Dachun was completely stunned.

He looked into He Xiulan's eyes, which were filled with tears, expectation, and desperation, and watched her body tremble slightly with excitement. His heart felt as if something had squeezed it tightly.

He wasn't a naive kid; he understood what that meant.

For a widow to make such a statement, how much courage did it take, and what kind of hope amidst despair did she hold?

The village doctor, Sun Xiangu, spoke inappropriately in his ear: "...The key is to look at the woman's age and physical condition..."

He Xiulan was young and had a strong physique... The woman in front of me was vibrant, gentle, and full of the most direct feminine charm.

A long-lost, masculine heat suddenly surged from his lower abdomen, assaulting his reason.

He Xiulan has the perfect figure for having a baby.

If he simply nodded, or even just silently accepted, this warm cave dwelling, this cozy kang (heated brick bed), this vibrant woman who was willing to be with him... all seemed to belong to him.

That bone-chilling loneliness seemed to be filled immediately;

The fear of the extinguishing of the family line seemed to also foreshadow the possibility of its continuation.

The temptation is so real and so immense.

His Adam's apple bobbed up and down, and his breathing became heavy.

In the darkness, the shadows of the two people were stretched out on the earthen wall, almost overlapping.

Seeing Lin Dachun hesitate, He Xiulan seemed to see a glimmer of hope.

"Brother Dachun, you know, when a woman reaches my age... she just... well... you understand."

How could He Xiulan describe herself like that?

Lin Dachun abruptly closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, the turbulent waves within them were forcibly suppressed, and he regained that deep pool-like calmness, even with a hint of painful clarity.

He took a step back, creating that suffocating distance, his voice hoarse yet firm, even carrying a hint of barely perceptible sternness:

"Xiulan, we can talk about this later. Not now, Ruoxue is still waiting for me at home."

"Have you started seeing another woman? Sleeping on the same bed, haven't you?"

"Nonsense! You're not allowed to think or say things like that anymore. If you spread rumors too often, they'll start to seem true."

Lin Dachun immediately stopped He Xiulan from speaking.

Such unrealistic thoughts are absolutely unacceptable.

Lin Dachun wouldn't do such a thing.

"I'm leaving now. Stay home and make sure the doors and windows are locked."

Without even glancing at He Xiulan's face, which turned deathly pale, or the shattered light in her eyes, Lin Dachun turned around almost hastily, as if fleeing, and flung open the door, plunging into the cold night outside without looking back.

The cold wind instantly filled his clothes, cooling his boiling blood and dispelling the brief but intense confusion in his heart.

Inside the cave dwelling, only He Xiulan remained, standing frozen in place, staring at the still-shaking door and the heavy package of meat on the table, which now seemed incredibly ironic. Tears finally broke free and flowed silently down her cheeks.

Being a widow is not easy, but being a widow at this age, with long, lonely nights, is even more difficult.