After saying that, he picked up the lamb, put it in a cardboard box, and went back into the house.
Tang Yutao stood there stunned for a long time before realizing that he had been tricked. He spat indignantly, thinking to himself that Chen Yunqi usually acted all high and mighty without saying a word, but he was quite good at being wicked!
Little Lamb doesn't eat much at once; one packet of soy milk can last him a whole day. These past few days, as soon as he gets home from school, he takes Little Lamb to San San's house to warm themselves by the fire, and they sit there all night.
The lamb slept soundly and warmly by the fire pit. Chen Yunqi sat cross-legged on the straw mat, one hand in his pocket and the other holding a cigarette, chatting with San San's father. San San sat to one side, using Chen Yunqi's body to block her father's view, and secretly slipped her hand into his pocket to grasp his little finger.
Chen Yunqi immediately became a little nervous.
San San's father, completely unaware of the situation, was talking loudly across from Chen Yunqi, occasionally clinking glasses with him. Chen Yunqi remained calm, holding a cigarette and a glass in one hand, his eyes watering from the smoke as he drank.
His fingers were slightly sweaty, and his ten fingers were intertwined haphazardly. When his fingers touched, it felt as if a small electric current rushed through him, making him both flustered and excited. After a while, San San released his little finger, stretched out a finger and slipped it into his curled palm. The edge of the nail traced back and forth across the skin, tickling Chen Yunqi's palm.
He put down his wine glass and secretly glanced at San San. San San had her other elbow resting on her knee, supporting her chin, tilting her head and pretending to be nonchalant, listening intently to her father's speech.
San San's mischievous and cunning demeanor was truly endearing, and Chen Yunqi almost laughed, but kept a straight face. He thought to himself, "I wonder what other mischief this kid can get up to."
San San's mother came in carrying a bowl of fried peanuts. San San quickly withdrew his hand, took the peanuts, turned around, and handed them to his father from behind Chen Yunqi to go with his drinks.
This action was really suspicious. He could have passed it to Chen Yunqi from in front of him, or asked Chen Yunqi to pass it to him for him, but he insisted on leaning over and passing it from behind him. He was too far away to reach it, and he almost fell to the ground at an angle.
As he sat back down, he lost his balance, grabbed Chen Yunqi's shoulder with one hand, rubbed his face against the back of Chen's head, and kissed his ear.
Chen Yunqi felt a small breath of warm air on his ear, soft lips touching his earlobe for a fleeting moment before pulling away. His reason crumbled in an instant, a surge of heat rising from his tailbone to the top of his head, leaving him feeling numb and weak all over.
San San sat back down leisurely, picked up a small piece of firewood, and poked at the charcoal fire. Her little actions made Chen Yunqi look like he was about to burst with rage, but he was secretly delighted.
It's so much fun to tease the serious Mr. Chen!
As I thought about it, I couldn't help but smile.
San San's father was so engrossed in his eloquent speech that he didn't notice anything amiss. When he saw that the charcoal was almost burned, he asked San San to fetch some more.
San San stood up and walked into the yard without a flashlight. He carried a bamboo basket to a small hut next to the pigsty where farm tools and firewood were stored. He pushed open the door, picked up a pair of gloves hanging on the wall, put them on, and bent down to pick up charcoal from the bamboo basket by the moonlight.
Just as the container was half full, someone suddenly squeezed in from behind and slammed the door shut. It was so sudden that the faint moonlight vanished, plunging the room into darkness. Startled, San San straightened up to turn around and look, but was immediately pulled into a familiar embrace.
Chen Yunqi's hot breath brushed against his ear.
"Little student, what exactly do you want to do?"
His tone was fierce, yet deep and magnetic. As he spoke, he gently bit San San's earlobe, each word squeezed out from between his teeth.
He seemed to be reaching his limit, nibbling from the earlobe all the way to the back of the neck, desperately trying to control and suppress his burning desire.
That brat San San is so hateful! He's clearly a gentle little lamb, yet he insists on doing things like a vixen! He wanted nothing more than to bite San San hard to vent his anger, but his hand and mouth movements were as light as could be, as if he might break him in half and melt him in his mouth if he wasn't careful.
San San leaned against Chen Yunqi's chest, not daring to move. The room was small to begin with, and now it was crammed with things, leaving no extra space for his feet. If he moved even a little more, he would have nowhere to stand. Right now, he could only lean back to steady himself. The places where Chen Yunqi had bitten him felt like countless ants were crawling over him, a tingling, unbearable sensation. In the darkness, he instinctively closed his eyes, breathing rapidly.
Chen Yunqi was too tall to stand straight in the small room. He bent over and suddenly flipped San San over, then squatted down and lifted her up with his strong arms, letting San San's legs wrap around his waist.
The three of them were small, and now they were finally at eye level. Unfortunately, neither of them could see the other, so they could only search for each other by their breaths and stumble through their kisses.
San San was still wearing gloves covered in carbon ash and didn't dare touch Chen Yunqi, so he could only raise his hands to try to maintain his balance. Chen Yunqi held him steadily without swaying at all.
"Who taught you? Hmm?" Chen Yunqi panted heavily, carrying the person and groping forward a little, placing San San on a high stack of firewood. His free hands reached under the hem of San San's shirt and kneaded San San's smooth waist.
“Tell me, who taught you that?” Chen Yunqi asked again and again. “You’re not going to be a good little lamb, you’re going to be a little fox. Which teacher taught you that? I didn’t teach you any of that when I was tutoring you.”
San San was completely unable to answer his question; her whole body felt like it was falling apart, and her waist was numb from being pinched. Surrounded by complete darkness, and having lost their sight, they focused all their senses on their bodies. The sensation of touch was amplified infinitely, each touch a deadly pleasure.
San San felt like he was about to explode. He couldn't help but beg Chen Yunqi to either save him or kill him.
"Brother...brother...I was wrong..." San San pleaded softly, "Don't...stop...if we don't go back, Dad will come looking for us..."
Chen Yunqi's hand had already slid down to his lower abdomen, kneading his firm abdominal muscles. San San was so hard he couldn't stand it, and his legs wrapped around Chen Yunqi's waist tightened even more.
San San's words brought Chen Yunqi back to his senses. He finally seemed to have ended the punishment, kissing San San as he let go, carefully lifting him off the woodpile and placing him on the ground. He leaned down and whispered in his ear, "If you misbehave again, I'll punish you, remember?"
After saying that, he took two steps back and pushed open the door.
The pure white moonlight shone into the small house once more, and Chen Yunqi saw San San's flushed cheeks. He stood there, disheveled and helpless, looking pitiful from being bullied. His heart softened, and he wondered if he had been too harsh and frightened San San. He felt a pang of guilt and pulled him into his arms again to comfort him, saying gently, "I'm not really angry with you, don't be afraid."
Chen Yunqi made an excuse to go to the toilet. It had been a long time, so he couldn't stay any longer. He straightened San San's clothes, took off his gloves and put them on himself, picked up the scattered charcoal back into the winnowing basket, and carried it out of the small house with one hand and the other hand.
Back inside, the charcoal in the hearth had burned out. San San's mother took the winnowing basket and quickly added more charcoal, asking curiously, "Why did you take so long? I was just about to look for you."
Chen Yunqi felt a cold sweat break out all over his body. Fortunately, he was unharmed. He sat back down on the straw mat, took a sip of wine, calmed himself down, and was about to explain when San San's father suddenly stared at Chen Yunqi with wide eyes and said, "Teacher Chen, what happened to your face? Why is there such a big black patch on it?"
When San San's mother took a look, she was right! It wasn't just a black patch; it even looked like a handprint, with five distinct fingers!
It must have been from San San's glove brushing against his face. San San lowered her head guiltily and remained silent. Chen Yunqi smiled awkwardly, touching his cheek, and said, "Um... I accidentally mistook the charcoal storage room for the outhouse and suddenly went in, startling San San. She got slapped..."
Chapter Twenty-Nine: Milking
He was the one who was bullied, but he inexplicably took the blame for Chen Yunqi. He spoke unclearly, and San San's parents didn't understand the situation. They only knew that San San had probably hit him, so they didn't suspect anything and gave San San a good scolding.
She's not a virgin anymore, why would she slap someone in this situation?
Teacher Chen didn't do it on purpose.
Chen Yunqi felt a little guilty about what he blurted out, and waved his hands repeatedly, saying, "It's okay, it's okay, San San didn't mean it, it's my fault, it's my fault..." As he spoke, he secretly glanced at San San and found that San San was also secretly looking at him, pouting and looking extremely cute.
Little San San barely survived thanks to soy milk powder, but it was pitifully thin and didn't grow any bigger. After it learned to walk, Chen Yunqi often took it out of the cardboard box to let it roam on the ground. It was timid and didn't dare to run around, sticking close to Chen Yunqi's trouser legs, following him wherever he went.
San San came to the school to call Chen Yunqi for dinner. As soon as she entered the gate, she saw Chen Yunqi walking out of the classroom alone with a sheep and a stack of books. It was evening and the sun was setting. He stood neatly under the eaves, the afterglow shining on his young face. He smiled brightly at San San from afar, looking like a college student who had just entered the campus.
A gentle and refined gentleman stands before a white wall, bathed in the setting sun alongside a lamb at his feet—a scene of picturesque beauty and tranquility.
During the daytime classes, Chen Yunqi would lock the lamb inside the house. The students all knew that Teacher Chen had found a lamb, and during breaks, they would all peer through the window of Chen Yunqi's room. When Huang Yelin came to paint, he asked Chen Yunqi what the lamb's name was. Chen Yunqi couldn't think of anything else for a moment, so he stammered and told him that it was called Xiao San San.
"Little San San?" Huang Yelin asked curiously, "Isn't that the same name as Brother San San?"
Whenever someone casually mentions San San in front of him, he can't help but feel a sweet surge of emotion. His face remains expressionless, but deep down he seems to be harboring a secret that belongs only to him. He longs to show it off to the whole world, yet also wants to keep it to himself and enjoy it privately—a feeling that is truly indescribable.
Chen Yunqi smiled, thinking of San San's appearance, and couldn't help but say, "Yes, he looks exactly like your brother San San."
Fortunately, Huang Yelin was still young and had no idea that Teacher Chen was in a state of utter infatuation, just like a lovestruck man. He said with a puzzled look, "How is that the same? This lamb is female."
Huang Yelin's family used to raise sheep, so he recognized it immediately. Chen Yunqi was embarrassed and didn't know what to say. He wondered why no one had told him before, so he put on a stern face and said seriously, "Concentrate. I've told you many times to pay attention to the position of the light and shadow boundary. What are you drawing? Start over. Stop looking at the sheep."
Huang Yelin pursed his lips and stuck out his tongue. He took out a new sheet of white paper, picked up his pen, and started drawing again. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a lamb under the table that had pooped a few green droppings. He couldn't help but say, "Teacher Chen, this lamb might not be doing well. It's pooping green droppings."
Chen Yunqi was about to clean up when he heard this and looked at him, a little flustered. He asked, "What does it mean if someone poops green poop?"
Huang Yelin scratched his head with a pencil and said, "I don't know either, but our sheep died a few days after they pooped green dung."
Chen Yunqi panicked even more and hurriedly asked Huang Yelin what to do. Huang Yelin said, "He still needs to drink goat's milk."
The weekend was approaching, and Chen Yunqi was going to the county to buy New Year's goods. The goat milk powder that Tang Yutao had asked someone to buy hadn't arrived yet, so he planned to go to the mall to buy some baby formula to make do.
He thought that the lamb might be having trouble digesting or being intolerant to soy milk powder, which was why it was having green droppings. But where could he find goat milk right now?
Huang Yelin suggested from the side, "Uncle Qi has a lot of sheep at home, why don't we go to his house and catch a ewe to squeeze in some?"
Chen Yunqi then realized that he hadn't visited San Niang in a while, so he patted Huang Yelin's head and said, "Great, we'll go milk the goats tomorrow at noon."
The next day at noon after school, Teacher Chen carried an empty plastic wine barrel, and with Xiao San San in his arms, led Huang Yelin and Sheng Qinzhi to Li Laoqi's house.
Just then, Li Laoqi, who had gone out to work, returned home. He would come home every now and then to check on all the sheep.
When Chen Yunqi entered the house, Li Laoqi was helping San Niang comb her hair.
This was the first time he had seen Third Sister take off her hat and undo her braids. She was sitting on a low stool, her thick, black hair hanging down to the ground, which looked rather frightening at first glance. Li Laoqi was bending over behind her, helping her braid her hair while whispering something in her ear.
Seeing Chen Yunqi arrive, Third Sister felt a little embarrassed and quickly sent Li Laoqi to greet him. She then hastily gathered her hair together and tied it up with a rubber band. Chen Yunqi sat down, holding the lamb, and exclaimed in amazement, "Third Sister, your hair is so beautiful and long! How long have you been growing it?"
Third Sister said shyly, "I don't even know how long it's been since I cut my hair! We Yi women all have to keep our hair long. In the past, many older women started keeping their hair long when they were young. Times have changed now. It's inconvenient to work in the fields, so everyone cuts their hair short. But your Seventh Brother just won't agree! It's so hot in the summer."
Her tone was reproachful, but not harsh. Li Laoqi sat next to Chen Yunqi. Hearing this, he grinned foolishly, "I just like women with long hair." Then his expression changed, and he frowned, complaining to Third Aunt, "Didn't I buy you a new hat and hair clip? Why are you still complaining!"
When Chen Yunqi entered the room, he saw a dark red plaid wide-brimmed hat and a royal blue plastic hair clip on the straw mat. He smiled and said, "Seventh Brother is a good man. He knows how to take care of people."
Upon hearing this, Li Laoqi feigned indifference, waving his hand and saying, "What's there to feel pain about? Women still need to be disciplined! If you don't, they'll turn on you! Teacher Chen, you should learn from this; when you have a wife in the future, you can't be too good to her!"
Chen Yunqi chuckled at his smug look and stopped teasing him. After drinking some tea, he explained his purpose, and Lao Qi readily led him to the back of the house to find the ewe.
He led over a lactating ewe, followed by two lambs, one black and one white. Seeing that the two lambs were healthy and lively, Chen Yunqi asked, "How old are these two lambs?"
Li Laoqi recalled for a moment and said, "I just came back yesterday. When I went to look for it in the mountains, it was already there. I guess it's been about a week."
Little San San is only a week old, and compared to them, she is not even half the size. It seems that this is the difference between breastfeeding and not breastfeeding. Little San San has hardly grown since birth.
Li Laoqi handed the sheep to Chen Yunqi and left because he had other things to do. The ewe squinted arrogantly, treating Chen Yunqi and the two children as if they were invisible, and kept chewing something in her mouth, while the two lambs ran and jumped around her feet, playing.
Sheng Qinzhi's family also raised sheep, but none of them had ever milked them. The three of them came full of confidence, but now they were all staring at the ewe's huge udders, at a loss for what to do.
Huang Yelin suggested, "Teacher Chen, let's put Xiao San San down and let it eat by itself?"
Chen Yunqi thought it was a good idea, so he squatted down and put Xiao San San on the ground. Xiao San San couldn't wait any longer. It was in his nature. Before he could let go completely, he rushed to the ewe, bleating and burrowing under her, frantically tilting his head back and searching for milk in a chaotic manner.
The other two lambs were also nursing when they were startled by the sudden appearance of Little San San and started bleating as well. Little San San was too small and couldn't squeeze past them, so she couldn't find a nipple. Chen Yunqi was so anxious that he wanted to rush over and help her.
Before the other two lambs could react, the mother sheep quickly smelled the unfamiliar scent and immediately began to fidget restlessly. Then, she noticed the presence of Little Three and flew into a rage, backing away from Little Three in her panicked steps and stomping on it several times.
But Little San San was starving. It kept trying to crawl under the mother sheep, getting trampled and kicked several times, but it stubbornly got up and kept going.
The ewe got angry when she couldn't shake it off. She lowered her head and used her horns to lift Little San San up and fling it away.
Little San San was thrown far away and landed on the ground. It was shocked and in pain, bleating loudly. Even so, it struggled to its feet again and rushed towards its mother sheep once more.
Chen Yunqi couldn't bear to watch any longer. He knew that the ewe would never willingly feed a child that wasn't her own. If this continued, not only would the child not get any milk, but Xiao San San would also be trampled to death. So he immediately ran over and picked up Xiao San San.
Little San San was only focused on finding milk, and when it was suddenly picked up, it struggled desperately to get down from Chen Yunqi's arms. While comforting it, Chen Yunqi said to Huang Yelin, "You two, hold the mother sheep! We can't let it kick Little San San again!"
Huang Yelin and Sheng Qinzhi immediately stepped forward, one grabbing the ewe's horns with both hands, and the other pulling on her hind legs. The ewe was unable to move for a moment and could only be trapped there with her head down. Seeing this, Chen Yunqi quickly picked up Xiao San San and placed her under the ewe. Xiao San San finally found the teat and bit down hard, sucking on it several times.
They thought everything would be fine now, but the goat was even more stubborn than a donkey. It used all its strength to kick Sheng Qinzhi away and then charged at Huang Yelin with all its might. Although the female goat's horns weren't very big, being gored would still cause injury. Huang Yelin quickly let go and dodged, and the female goat rushed past him, bleating in dissatisfaction.
This tactic didn't work, so Chen Yunqi had no choice but to pick up Xiao San San again and say reluctantly, "Milk her!"
Once the ewe had calmed down a bit, Huang Yelin and Sheng Qinyu used the same trick again and subdued it once more. Chen Yunqi dared not let it smell Xiao San San's scent again, lest it go berserk again. So he put Xiao San San in a cardboard box under a tree not far away, walked over to the ewe, squatted down, and after thinking for a long time, finally mustered up the courage to reach out and pinch its breasts a few times.
Sheng Qinzhi, pulling on the sheep's hind leg, found his arms aching and gradually straining. Seeing Chen Yunqi dawdling and struggling, unable to figure out how to squeeze it properly, he shouted anxiously.
"Teacher Chen! Pinch my nipples! Pinch my nipples!"
Upon hearing this, Chen Yunqi frowned in embarrassment, but after a moment he disregarded his image and appearance, and braced himself to pinch one nipple between his index finger and thumb and squeeze it hard.
Sheng Qinzhi immediately shouted again, "Teacher Chen! Bucket! To the bucket!"
Before the words were even finished, a stream of white milk gushed from the ewe's lower body. At the same time, the ewe was startled and forcefully shook off Huang Yelin and Sheng Qinzhi again, letting out a loud bleat as she jumped away.
Huang Yelin and Sheng Qinzhi fell to the ground. When they stood up and looked back, Teacher Chen was still squatting there motionless. When they went over to take a look, they were dumbfounded.