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

The show went on very late.

The two of them rushed home overnight, and luckily they had a flashlight and there were many people going the same way.

Lin Dachun led Li Ruoxue home.

Because this is the Loess Plateau, the road is very difficult to walk on, and if you are not careful, you may fall down the slope.

"You had a good day, didn't you? You had fun, watched a show, and ate snacks and candy," Lin Dachun joked.

"Well, the only downside is..." Li Ruoxue left it as a mystery.

"Is there anything else we need?"

"I need you to go on a date with my sisters," Li Ruoxue said with a smile.

"Nonsense, at my age, what's the point of dating? I'm content as long as I can grow sea buckthorn well, raise sheep well, and have a good harvest," Lin Dachun said.

The night was as deep as a pool of thick, indistinguishable ink. Outside the cave dwelling, the cold wind howled, whistling and rattling the old plastic sheeting on the window frame.

The earthen bed was warm, and the quilt was even warmer.

They were so tired that they went back, washed their feet, and went to sleep.

Li Ruoxue was awakened in the middle of the night by the urge to urinate.

She tried to get up groggily, but as soon as she lifted the corner of the blanket, the biting cold air seeping in from outside made her shiver and instantly wake up.

Listen closely, the wind howls fiercely, and countless restless shadows seem to lurk in the darkness.

The image of Old Cao's repulsive face and his lunging attack during the day flashed uncontrollably through her mind, sending chills down her spine.

The urge to urinate became even more urgent, but she simply couldn't muster the courage to get off the kang (a heated brick bed) alone, cross the cold, dark outer room, and go to the simple outhouse in the corner of the yard.

She tossed and turned in bed, feeling suffocated, cold, and scared. Finally, unable to bear it any longer, she reached out and gently nudged the sleeping Lin Dachun beside her, her voice filled with embarrassment and pleading: "Wake up..."

Lin Dachun snapped out of his daze, immediately opening his eyes, his voice hoarse with sleepiness: "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

"I...I need to relieve myself..." Li Ruoxue's voice was barely audible, her face burning in the darkness, "But it's so cold outside...the wind is so strong...I...I'm afraid to go out..."

Lin Dachun understood.

He was silent for a few seconds, seemingly weighing his options.

But it was the dead of night in the dead of cold, and it was pitch black outside. She had just been frightened, and her fear was genuine.

"Holding it in won't do; it'll harm your health."

"Then... what should we do?" Li Ruoxue was almost in tears.

Lin Dachun didn't say anything, got up from the kang (a heated brick bed), and walked to the outer room in his slippers.

The cave dwelling was small, so he quickly found an old earthenware basin that he usually used for kneading dough and washing vegetables, and washed it clean inside and out.

Then he went to the stove and grabbed a handful of the still slightly warm ashes left over from boiling water that night. He placed them at the bottom of the basin to absorb the smell and also to dispel some of the coldness.

Lin Dachun carried the makeshift, discarded nine-dish platter back to the inner room, placed it on the floor in front of the kang (heated brick bed), and said:

"Let's use this one."

Lin Dachun's voice was calm and even, as if he were talking about something perfectly ordinary, "I'll just throw it away tomorrow morning, and use it indoors from now on."

Looking at Lin Dachun's broad, silent back, and then at the dusty earthenware pot on the ground, Li Ruoxue felt so embarrassed she wanted to disappear into the ground.

But I just couldn't hold it in any longer.

Li Ruoxue then got off the kang (a heated brick bed).

Li Ruoxue hurriedly finished packing, her voice barely a whisper: "Okay, all done..."

Li Ruoxue hurriedly climbed back onto the kang (a heated brick bed).

Darkness descended once more.

Li Ruoxue shrank back into the blankets, her face still flushed, but she felt relaxed both physically and mentally.

In bed, she quietly stretched out her foot and touched the warm blankets on Lin Dachun's side.

"Go to sleep," Lin Dachun said in the darkness, his voice regaining its usual calm.