After becoming a widow, I became the apple of a rough man's eye.

Lin Qingqing carried the locked diary into the east room.

The room was dark, with no lights on.

She fumbled to tuck the notebook under her pillow, her heart still pounding, when she suddenly heard the soft sound of the door latch being turned.

The click was particularly clear in the quiet night.

Lin Qingqing's back suddenly tensed up. Just as she was about to turn around, the door was gently pushed open.

Qin Lie walked in, didn't turn on the light, closed the door behind him, and locked it.

The lock on the door was old and usually just for show, but the sound of it locking was incredibly deep, as if it completely separated this small space from the Qin family compound.

The cicadas outside faded away instantly. The room was stuffy and poorly ventilated, filled with the faint smell of mugwort used to repel mosquitoes. Qin Lie walked to the table and lit a match.

A dim yellow flame suddenly shot up, barely illuminating his sharply defined jawline.

He lit the kerosene lamp, covered it with a glass dome, and the warm yellow light spread out, but the oppressive feeling did not diminish at all; on the contrary, it became even more intense.

"come over."

Qin Lie sat on the edge of the bed and patted the spot beside him with his large hand. The old four-poster bed made a soft creaking sound.

Lin Qingqing stood motionless by the table, her fingers gripping the edge tightly, her fingernails turning white.

"Don't you want to sleep?" Qin Lie's gaze fell on her.

Lin Qingqing bit her lower lip and moved over in small steps.

***

Like a cat, Lin Qingqing instinctively found a comfortable spot in his arms and rested her head on his arm.

"Go to sleep." Qin Lie pulled a thin blanket over her stomach.

Lin Qingqing was drifting off to sleep when she suddenly heard Qin Lie's deep voice from above her.

"The fifth one is just a child. If you like playing with him, I won't stop you."

Lin Qingqing instantly regained half of her senses, opened her eyes, and stared in disbelief at the silhouette in the darkness.

Qin Lie patted her back intermittently, as if he were coaxing a child.

"As long as you don't cross the line, you can do whatever you want."

His voice was flat, revealing neither joy nor anger. "In this family, you are the most precious. As long as you're happy, anything is fine with you."

A feeling that was hard to describe welled up in Lin Qingqing's heart.

"But there's one condition," Qin Lie's hand suddenly stopped, he grabbed her chin, forcing her to raise her head in the darkness, "No matter how much you play outside, at night, you can only sleep in this room."

"Did you hear me?"

Lin Qingqing's heart skipped a beat, and she nodded obediently, "I heard you."

Qin Lie pecked her lips, the scent carrying a hint of tobacco.

"Go to sleep."

Lin Qingqing slept soundly that night.

When I woke up the next day, the seat next to me was empty.

The sheets and blankets had been changed and were clean and fresh; only the aches and pains in her body reminded her of what had happened last night.

She propped herself up and sat up; the diary was still lying quietly under her pillow.

The sound of chopping wood came from outside the door.

"Snap, snap," one after another, with great force.

Lin Qingqing got dressed and opened the door.

The morning sunlight was a bit too bright.

In the courtyard, Qin Lie was chopping firewood shirtless, sweat dripping down his back and into his waistband.

Xiao Yong squatted beside the whetstone, sharpening his sickle with a "whoosh" sound. When he saw Lin Qingqing come out, his dark red face instantly turned liver-colored, and he avoided looking at her.

The noise last night was so loud; this mud-brick house is completely soundproof.

Lin Qingqing blushed and lowered her head, intending to go to the well to wash up.

"My sister's awake!"

Jiang He appeared out of nowhere, carrying two freshly gutted fish, with a bright smile on his face.

He was wearing a white tank top, looking very youthful, and you couldn't tell at all what had happened to him the night before.

"Did you sleep well last night, sister?" Jiang He leaned closer, his eyes fixed on a red mark on Lin Qingqing's neck, a playful smile playing on his lips. "The mosquito was pretty vicious, biting such a big bite."

Lin Qingqing instinctively covered her neck and took a step back.

"Fifth brother."

Qin Lie slammed the axe into the wooden stump, the blade embedding itself deeply into the wood.

He didn't turn around, and his voice wasn't loud, but it carried a chill: "She smells fishy, ​​stay away from her."

Jiang He's smile faded slightly, but he still obediently took a step back: "Understood, elder brother."

He turned his head, winked at Lin Qingqing, and mouthed a sentence silently:

My older sister is biased.