Luzhou Moon - Chapter 151
"Is that all?" he said helplessly.
"How about I make my own wedding dress before we have the wedding ceremony?" Yue Ruzheng said with a smile. "I can make one for you too."
So Lian Junchu had no choice but to accompany her down the mountain to buy fabric and needles. In the silk shop, Yue Ruzheng did not choose the finest fabrics, but squatted on the ground, looking at the cheap cloth piled up to the side.
"It's a rare occasion, can't we buy something better?" Lian Junchu squatted down beside her and whispered to her.
"You seem to have become more generous..." she said, fiddling with the fabric as she looked at him. "Is it because you brought back money from Seven Star Island?"
"No, I just don't want to feel wronged like this." He said, and tried to look at the silk on it, but she grabbed his sleeve.
"I've already chosen." Yue Ruzheng held up the red cloth in her hand and gestured towards herself. "Actually, this one looks good too!"
The two of them were whispering to each other, specifically picking out cheap fabrics. In addition, Lian Junchu had no hands, so everyone in the shop and the shopkeeper saw what was going on.
Before Yue Ruzheng could even ask about the price, the shopkeeper lowered his brows and said, "Sigh, seeing how you all are, I imagine life isn't easy for you. I can't charge you too much. Other shops certainly wouldn't do this."
Everyone around praised the shopkeeper for his kindness, which made the two of them a little embarrassed, but they didn't know what to say. After Yue Ruzheng paid the money, she returned to the mountain with Lian Junchu.
Halfway there, she noticed that Lian Junchu was still somewhat sullen, so she gently patted him with the cloth in her hand and called out, "Little Tang, Little Tang."
"Hmm." He only responded with a deep sigh, without saying anything more.
"Are you unhappy?" She turned to look at him, but Lian Junchu remained solemn with his head bowed and his face calm.
"A little," he said, looking up at her.
"Why?" Yue Ruzheng pursed her lips. "Because everyone in the shop was looking at you? Then I won't take you to crowded places next time..."
He lowered his eyes and said, "It's not that... Ruzheng, I really don't want you to wrong yourself like this."
Yue Ruzheng lowered her head, slowly walked to him, hugged him, gently rocked him, then stood on tiptoe and pressed her cheek against his: "But all I want is to marry you, nothing else matters..."
Lian Junchu turned her head slightly, her eyes sparkling.
Seeing that no one was around, Yue Ruzheng quietly kissed him on the lips, but blushed with embarrassment.
Making clothes sounds simple, but it actually takes a lot of time. Yue Ruzheng promised Lian Junchu that even though the fabric was ordinary, she would do her best to make the most beautiful clothes.
The job took several days from start to finish, during which her fingers were pricked several times. Lian Junchu felt sorry for her, but she could only watch.
Seeing him standing there in a daze, Yue Ruzheng said half-jokingly, "Little Tang, didn't you promise me you'd sew clothes for me?"
He paused for a moment, then ran out to wash his feet, sat back on the bed, and said, "I'll help you as long as you let me do it."
"Can you thread a needle?" Yue Ruzheng sat cross-legged in front of him and took out a ball of thread from the basket.
He nodded, and Yue Ruzheng watched him carefully thread the needle. Although he was slow, he could actually get the thin thread through the eye of the needle. At this time, he was always bent over, focused, as if completely immersed in his own world. His long sleeves hung down at his sides, and as Yue Ruzheng watched him tie the cotton thread with his toes, a pang of sadness suddenly welled up in her heart.
Although the two of them haven't mentioned that matter again these past few days, she keeps herself busy every day to keep herself from thinking about it or feeling sad. But whenever she sees Lian Junchu bending over like that while working, or even when she sees him lifting his leg to eat or dress, she feels an indescribable heartache deep inside.
"Don't do any more work." Unable to contain her heartache, she suddenly reached out and took the needle and thread he had already threaded, turned her back, and absentmindedly sewed the clothes.
Lian Junchu hadn't thought anything of it at first, and even wanted to show off in front of her, but she snatched the needle and thread from his hand. He didn't react for a moment, and only when he saw her turn around did he vaguely realize why. He sat there blankly for a while, Yue Ruzheng's hands rising and falling as she continued her needlework, but the room was silent, so silent that it made him feel a little desolate.
"Ruzheng." He called her name softly, and Yue Ruzheng stopped what she was doing, but still kept her back to him.
Lian Junchu moved forward a little, behind her, and gently leaned against her back. Yue Ruzheng's body trembled slightly. He raised his amputated arm, pressed it against her shoulder, and used all his strength to pull her close to his chest.
Yue Ruzheng lowered her head, then suddenly turned around and lay motionless on his chest.
"It hurts a lot." After a long silence, Yue Ruzheng suddenly blurted out this sentence.
Lian Junchu frowned and asked, "What?"
She still didn't look up, but reached out and carefully grasped the end of his arm, choking back tears as she asked, "Does it hurt?"
He hugged her with his amputated arm and said, "It doesn't hurt anymore, and I've long forgotten what happened when I was little."
"But I still feel pain." Her hand slid down, only to find an empty sleeve.
Lian Junchu was quiet for a moment, then turned to the side and used his shoulder to support her chin, allowing her to barely lift her head.
"Ruzheng, please look at me, okay?" He felt a pang of sadness when he saw her still looking down. Yue Ruzheng slowly raised her eyes, glanced at him briefly, and tears welled up in her eyes.
Lian Junchu raised her right arm and used her sleeve to wipe away her tears, saying, "It makes me very sad to see you like this."
She was still sobbing, and although she knew she shouldn't show it in front of him, she couldn't shake off this deep guilt.
"You're unhappy when you see me, aren't you?" Lian Junchu's mood also seemed a little down. He thought for a moment and said, "Then should I disappear?"
"No!" Yue Ruzheng was startled, and hugged him tightly, crying even harder, "I can't bear to leave you again!"
Lian Junchu could only sway her body slightly and say, "Don't cry, I was just joking."
Yue Ruzheng sobbed, "My heart aches whenever I think about that, but it hurts even more after I left you!"
"I know..." He sat back slightly, looked down at her, slowly stretched out his legs, moved them to her side, and whispered, "Ruzheng, you see, I may not have hands, but I have you."
Yue Ruzheng's tears fell onto the back of his foot, and she immediately reached out to wipe them away, covering his slightly cold instep with her palm for a long time.
In the afternoon, Lian Junchu went into the mountains to collect herbs with a bamboo basket on his back. Yue Ruzheng looked at the gloomy sky and wanted to tell him not to go, but he said that he hadn't gone for several days and was afraid of missing the deadline.
"If it rains, just wait in the woods, and I'll come get you." As she was leaving, Yue Ruzheng tidied the straps on his bamboo basket, reminding him of this. For some reason, whenever the weather was bad, he wouldn't wait even a moment, but would brave the wind and rain to rush back, getting soaked several times in the process.
Lian Junchu responded and went out as usual.
After he left, Yue Ruzheng stood at the door for a while before returning to the house. Life in the mountains wasn't as leisurely and carefree as people imagined. When busy, one could be so exhausted one couldn't straighten their back; when there was nothing to do, time seemed to drag on endlessly. For example, whenever Lian Junchu came to the mountains, Yue Ruzheng felt extremely lonely. Fortunately, she still had a little work to finish on the clothes she was making; otherwise, she would have been sitting there in a daze.