The bus to Misezawa Village had just departed when Little Lian fell asleep.
She slept all the way through the train transfer, and she was still asleep when they arrived home.
In the end, carried by Dubian Che, the three of them took her straight home and handed her over to her mother.
"Che, you’ve been a great help today," Little Lian’s mother said, with Little Lian breathing evenly in the crook of her arm.
"Little Lian is my sister; it’s no trouble at all," Dubian Che said.
After returning home and finishing dinner, the two young ladies went upstairs to take a bath.
"Little Che," Dubian Zhi said, "go help with the mochi making at the village tomorrow morning."
"Sure," Dubian Che replied, sitting down in the kotatsu, "Mom, do you have something going on?"
"It’s that supermarket where I’ve been working part-time; someone suddenly quit, and now I have to cover two shifts."
Dubian Zhi usually worked in the fields, and during less busy seasons, she and a few other women from the village would travel to a far-off town to find part-time work.
"It’s too hard on you, why not quit?" Dubian Che said, "My tuition and living expenses in Tokyo, I can cover them with my part-time jobs. Just rest when you have nothing to do; you don’t need to work so hard."
"If I quit, will you be the one to support the family?" Dubian Zhi gave her son a look.
"No problem," Dubian Che said with a laugh.
"At such a young age, don’t rely on others for money," Dubian Zhi warned.
"Rely on others? Mom, you underestimate your son; I’ve got a billion yen in savings at the Tokyo Bank."
"Hmm?" Dubian Che took a sugared tangerine from the basket on the table.
"It’s about time I told you," Dubian Zhi sighed, "Actually, your father and I eloped; my family back home is very wealthy. They saw you on TV and suddenly contacted me to ask you to come back."
"Really?!" He stopped peeling the tangerine.
"Dad?" Dubian Che turned to look at his father, who was busy calculating his annual income.
"Your grandparents have been buried for many years," Mr. Dubian said without looking up, "If such good fortune existed, would it still be your turn? When you were born, I took you to apologize to your mother’s family, kneeling in their courtyard."
"Actually, I have another secret identity..."
Mrs. Dubian was cut off by Mr. Dubian:
"You should watch fewer dramas and stop dreaming. Che, when your mom was young, she insisted I propose like in the dramas, riding a motorcycle..."
Dubian Zhi pinched her husband’s arm firmly and asked:
"Dubian Hengxiong, how much did you earn this year?"
Mr. Dubian, a man who dealt with transport and farming every day, shrank a little and muttered,
"I’m still calculating."
"Mom," Dubian Che popped a piece of tangerine into his mouth, "don’t worry, after I marry Meijie and take over the Jiutiao family’s assets, you’ll be the ’Miss Jiutiao’ who eloped."
"Che." Miss Jiutiao stood at the living room doorway, "Come out for a second."
"Oh." Dubian Che put down the tangerine and stood up from the kotatsu.
Mrs. Dubian watched her son leave the living room with concern, while Mr. Dubian also looked up, continuing to mutter about his accounts.
Dubian Che followed Jiutiao Meijie upstairs and into his own room.
"You’re quite ambitious."
"It’s just a joke, to make my parents happy; don’t take it seriously."
Jiutiao Meijie turned back: "So, marrying me is also a joke?"
"Everything’s up for discussion, but don’t joke about marriage. I’m going to marry Jiutiao Meijie one day. I’ll never leave her my entire life, and I won’t allow her to leave me either. We’ll be like tangled vines..."
Dubian Che noticed a hint of scornful smile on Jiutiao Meijie’s lips.
He stopped the nonsense.
He pulled Jiutiao Meijie into his arms, hugged her slender waist tightly, pressed against her, and kissed her lips.
Jiutiao Meijie’s eyes gently closed as she wrapped her arms around Dubian Che’s neck and passionately returned his kiss.
After they parted, they spoke breathlessly into each other’s ears.
"It all tastes like tangerines," Jiutiao Meijie sighed.
"I think it’s quite tasty."
"It’s the tangerines that are tasty," Jiutiao Meijie’s voice was suddenly hoarse, filled with an irresistible magic power.
Finally, Jiutiao Meijie sighed deeply.
"What’s wrong?" Dubian Che’s voice was also filled with a charm that could stir any girl’s heart.
Almost every time, she would be immersed in the mysterious atmosphere, but not this time.
"Why not?" Dubian Che asked, puzzled.
"This is your sister’s punishment for being a bad boy," Jiutiao Meijie said with a smile.
Her smile was still proud, with a hint of mischief, revealing an intimacy she’d never shown before.
Feeling her heart drawing closer, Dubian Che didn’t care about anything else.
"Meijie, my Meijie, I really like you," he couldn’t help but kiss her.
However, Jiutiao Meijie used her other hand to block his mouth.
"Not allowed?" Dubian Che asked, then seeing her refusal, he understood.
He teased, "Even disgusted with yourself?"
Jiutiao Meijie glared at him and pushed him away.
While straightening her undergarments beneath her skirt, she said,
"Kiyono’s almost done showering, get lost."
"Should I come look for you tonight?"
"Look at you, always thinking about that; have some self-respect," Jiutiao Meijie chided.
"Once you’ve had a taste of comfort, you’re confident," Dubian Che said as he put his pants on.
"Do you want to die?"
"Then get out of my room, and oh, remember to rinse and brush your teeth."
"...Don’t usually call me that."
"Just find you disgusting."
Jiutiao Meijie, straightening her clothes with her back to him, only the books on the shelf knew whether she was truly shy or not.
When Dubian Che returned to the living room, Mrs. Dubian, who had been worried, immediately asked him: