Vender ropa y traer vino para beber contigo

Capítulo 37

“Hmm…we used to…watch fireworks like this too.” Li Huangyin’s arms gradually tightened, holding her even closer.

"Then why did we move?" Ye Changsheng continued to ask.

"That's because... one year, our hometown was flooded, and all the houses were submerged..."

"Oh..." Ye Changsheng nodded, then said apologetically, "Sorry, I don't remember..."

Li Huangyin shook her head and rested her chin on her shoulder: "It's okay, it's alright if you can't remember..."

"Then why... do we not have children?" Ye Changsheng tugged at Li Huangyin's sleeve and whispered.

"That's because... your health isn't good..." Li Huangyin smiled slightly and said gently.

Ye Changsheng's expression was solemn. After pondering for a long time, he was about to speak when he heard Li Huangyin's slightly amused voice in his ear, "But it's alright... it's not too late to wait until you're better..."

Ye Changsheng let out a soft "am" sound, feeling a slight fever on his face, and nodded haphazardly.

Suddenly, with a loud "bang," a colorful firework burst open in the sky, illuminating the night sky in an instant—

Ye Changsheng leaned against Li Huangyin's chest, smiling as he watched the fireworks in the sky. Although they were somewhat blurry, he could still clearly see that they were fiery red and dazzlingly beautiful...

Her head felt heavier and heavier, and once she closed her eyes, she didn't want to open them again.

After coming down from the roof, Ye Changsheng was already asleep in Li Huangyin's arms. She was sleeping peacefully and soundly. Li Huangyin carried her to the bedroom, gently placed her on the bed, took off her outer clothes, covered her with a quilt, sat by the bed and watched her for a while, and then quietly left.

Firecrackers were going off in the distance, and laughter and joy filled the air.

Li Huangyin stood with her hands behind her back in the courtyard. A gust of wind blew by, and a figure silently floated down from the top of the wall. Li Huangyin whispered, "Did you find it?"

The man shook his head, cupped his hands, and said, "I have searched all over the country, but I have found neither trace of Ye Junshan and his men nor Hua Qiya..."

"Useless! It's been two months already, how much longer are you going to drag this out!" Li Huangyin's face grew increasingly grim.

"I have failed in my duty..." the man continued, "but while searching for Bo Xian, I encountered someone—Zhong Ziqi, who is also Hua Qiya's senior brother, the one who saved Ye Changsheng's life eight years ago..."

"Where is he?" Li Huangyin asked in a deep voice.

"Jia Ling found Zhong Ziqi and invited him to come out of the mountains... He sent a message by carrier pigeon to his subordinates to tell the master that he would arrive in less than five days."

Li Huang remained silent for a moment, then waved his hand, and the man bowed and withdrew. He stood in the courtyard for a long time before quietly entering the room.

When he took off his outer robe and walked to the bedside, he found that the person on the bed was already awake, staring at him with a pair of dark eyes. Li Huangyin was stunned for a moment, then sat down on the edge of the bed and gently stroked her forehead: "Did I wake you up?"

Ye Changsheng shook his head, thought for a moment, and suddenly said, "Tonight is New Year's Eve, shouldn't we stay up all night?"

“Reach out,” Li Huangyin said with a smile, taking out a small box from behind her back. “I’m here to give out New Year’s money.”

Ye Changsheng smiled and reached out, slowly opening the beautiful sandalwood box. A delicate fragrance wafted out. "This is... Cangzhou candied fruit..." Facing Li Huangyin's expectant gaze, she looked dejected. "This must be very expensive... Don't waste money next time. I need to grind several doses of medicine to buy just one box..."

Ye Changsheng was still muttering to herself when Li Huangyin suddenly leaned down and gently hugged her, saying softly, "I told you I'd be the one pounding the medicine from now on..."

Ye Changsheng thought for a moment and then shook his head, saying, "I can't cook, and I can't embroider. If I push all the work at the pharmacy onto you, I'll be too idle."

Li Huangyin's brows relaxed as she ran her fingers through Ye Changsheng's hair. "It's alright, I'll take care of you..." He paused, gazing absently at the strands of hair between his fingers, and murmured, "If only I could take care of you for the rest of my life... how wonderful that would be..."

Early the next morning

As soon as Changsheng opened her shop, Aunt Wang from next door came over with her son Erhei to wish her a Happy New Year. Aunt Huang held two bundles of flour and stuffed them into Ye Changsheng's hands, holding her hand with a smile and saying, "If it weren't for the medicine you gave me last time, my son Erhei wouldn't have recovered so quickly. I haven't had a chance to come and thank you. These two bundles of flour are a small token of my appreciation. Please accept them, Doctor."

Ye Changsheng put down the medicine box in her hand, patted herself, and was about to take it when a slender, fair hand took it from behind her. Li Huangyin put her arm around her shoulder and smiled gently: "I thank you on behalf of my wife."

Aunt Wang lowered her head, a blush creeping onto her sallow face. She chuckled awkwardly for a while, then chatted with Ye Changsheng for some time before finally leading Hei Zi home.

Li Huangyin held up the two bundles of noodles in her hands and said with a smile, "We eat noodles on the first day of the Lunar New Year. Now is the perfect time. Wait here, I'll make some noodles."

Ye Changsheng nodded, got up, and followed him into the kitchen.

Watching her husband cook was one of her favorite things to do. Two months ago, when she woke up, she stared blankly at the people beside her and found that her mind was a mess and she couldn't remember anything. Sitting next to her was a very beautiful female doctor in red and a man in gray clothes. Both of them were very good-looking. When she asked them who they were, they were obviously startled. What surprised her even more was that the man told her tenderly that he was her husband.

She later learned from her husband that she was originally a doctor. Her family had just moved to the town and relied on a small pharmacy to make a living. She had been seriously ill before and was weak and had poor eyesight. It was normal that she couldn't remember things for a while. Don't worry, she will remember them slowly.

She originally thought so too...

Now, a month has passed in the blink of an eye. She hasn't told her husband that she often experiences inexplicable chest pains and sometimes coughs up blood at night. Nor has she told him that her eyesight is deteriorating...

Ye Changsheng turned his head and looked at the alley outside the door. The neighborhood children were all dressed in new clothes and chasing each other playing with firecrackers.

The Yongxi era has passed; this is the first day of the new year, and also the first day of the first year.

She turned and walked towards the kitchen, watching the man busy at the stove. She slowly walked up to him, reached out and hugged his waist, and whispered, "It's so good to have a husband who can cook."

Li Huangyin smiled, slowly turned around, and embraced her gently, saying, "Who told my wife not to cook?" He picked her up and placed her on a chair, then brought out two bowls of noodles, "Time to eat noodles."

Ye Changsheng picked up her chopsticks and stared at the poached egg in the bowl for a long time. After a while, she raised her head and murmured, "If I leave, my husband can live a good life on his own, right?"

Li Huangyin was taken aback by his words, her brow furrowing slightly as she asked, "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell anywhere?"

Ye Changsheng shook his head and laughed, "I just feel like I can't do anything, except be a burden to you..."

Li Huangyin didn't speak. He stood up, walked to Ye Changsheng's side, pulled her onto his lap, and whispered in her ear, "How am I a burden? You have no idea how long I've waited for this kind of day..."

Ye Changsheng put her arms around his neck, leaned on his shoulder, and smiled slightly.

Li Huangyin gently patted her back and said with a smile, "If you don't eat soon, the noodles will get soggy."

Ye Changsheng was sitting on his lap. She moved slightly to signal Li Huangyin to put her down, but he turned his face away, his cheeks flushed. He coughed lightly, put her down, and walked to the other side without a word to eat his noodles.

That night, as Ye Changsheng was going to bed, she looked at Li Huangyin sitting by the bed, covering her with a blanket. After hesitating for a long time, she stammered, "Aren't we husband and wife? Why don't we sleep together?"

Li Huangyin paused as she pulled the blanket over herself, then smiled and said, "That's because you're not feeling well."

Ye Changsheng frowned and said, "But this bed is a big problem..."

Li Huangyin brushed a stray hair from her temple and nodded: "Okay, then I'll sleep here."

Ye Changsheng very considerately moved over, and Li Huangyin took off her outer clothes, lifted the quilt, and lay down beside her. Ye Changsheng leaned closer to her and smiled, "Actually, when I sleep alone, I can never get the bed warm."

Li Huangyin turned to the side and hugged her, saying apologetically, "I forgot, you're afraid of the cold."

Ye Changsheng nodded. Li Huangyin's embrace was warm and carried a familiar fragrance. Before long, she fell into a deep sleep.

Li Huangyin held the person in his arms, feeling her body temperature. He rested his chin on the top of her head and couldn't fall asleep for a long time.

A few days passed in the blink of an eye.

Because it was the first month of the lunar calendar, business in the shop was not good. Ye Changsheng was keeping accounts at the counter when she suddenly heard a light footstep. She looked up and was startled. She saw a young man in black clothes leaning on the counter, staring at her with his big, dark eyes. He looked at her with such eagerness that he seemed about to pounce on her at any moment.

Ye Changsheng patted his chest, took a step back, and asked, "Young man, are you here to sell medicine?"

The boy didn't speak, but looked at me with a complicated expression, his eyes moist as if he was about to cry.

Ye Changsheng raised an eyebrow, turned to look at the door, then back at the boy. He opened his mouth, unsure what to say. After a long while, he saw that the boy was still staring at him, showing no intention of leaving or speaking.

She swallowed hard, glanced at the door again, and finally asked, "Young man, are you here to see someone? My husband isn't here. If you're not in a hurry, you can sit here and wait. He should be back soon."

The young man finally let out a sigh of relief, found a small stool that Ye Changsheng usually used to pound medicine, sat down, sighed softly, and asked, "You really don't recognize me?"

Ye Changsheng looked apologetic. Should she recognize him?

The young man in black muttered to himself in frustration, "So it really is in my brain... No wonder the Lord is in such a hurry to find me... Sigh... What should I do..."

Ye Changsheng couldn't understand what he was saying at all, so she lowered her head again to keep track of the accounts. But the boy really couldn't stay quiet; he kept chattering away beside her like a familiar face.

He leaped onto the counter with a beaming smile and said, "I came to Yingchang on a mission, but Sister Jiangqi told me you were here, so I thought I'd drop by and see you. I didn't expect you wouldn't recognize me... Ah, do you remember, back in the day, we..."

Ye Changsheng neither refuted nor responded, but simply listened to him with a smile; she had always had a good temper.

They chatted for a while, or rather, the boy talked to himself—until Li Huangyin returned.

Ye Changsheng saw a glimpse of a blue-clad figure outside the door and looked up with great delight, saying to the young man who was earnestly talking to her, "My husband is back. Did you go to find him?"

The young man trembled and turned around to see Li Huangyin standing behind him. Li Huangyin was dressed in plain blue cloth, his long eyebrows raised, looking at him coldly. The young man swallowed hard and chuckled, "Lou..."

"Young man, are you here to buy medicine?" Li Huangyin interrupted him, walking straight up to Changsheng and asking with a smile. Ye Changsheng thought for a moment, then shook her head; she didn't know what he was here for.

Li Huangyin took out a small brocade box from her sleeve, took Changsheng's hand, gently placed it in her hand, and said with a smile, "Open it and take a look."

Ye Changsheng opened the box, revealing a lustrous white jade bracelet. He smiled and said, "This is for you."

Ye Changsheng said "Oh," nodded, and put the bracelet on; it fit perfectly. Li Huangyin patted Changsheng's head, glanced back at the boy behind her with indifferent eyes, and then went to the courtyard. The boy followed her in without a word.

Ye Changsheng touched the bracelet in her hand, and when she saw the young man turn around and smile, some fragments flashed through her mind. When she tried to recall them, her head began to ache. She shook her head, leaned on the counter and sat down, slumped over the table, and stared blankly at the few pedestrians on the street.

Time flows like water, never ceasing its passage.

When the young man in black left, he introduced himself in a particularly grand manner, saying that Ye Changsheng should definitely remember him well—

He said his name was Black Moon.

In the days following Hei Yue's departure, Li Huangyin gradually became busier—she went out more and more often and returned later and later. Although she repeatedly told Ye Changsheng to just sit quietly and not do anything, Ye Changsheng still conscientiously sat on the small stool by the door and ground medicine whenever he left. The shop was hers, and she always felt she should do something about it.

From dawn till dusk, Ye Changsheng stayed quietly in the shop, waiting for Li Huangyin to return—even though she could see his tired figure reflected in the moonlight, and she knew that when he stepped across the threshold and saw her, he would still smile in a way that would put her at ease.

She didn't ask anything, and every day she let him hold her hand and urge her to rest. At that time, she felt that even though she had no memories of the past, her life, her existence—it was all real.

The street outside the door gradually became lively again; in the blink of an eye, thirteen days of the New Year had passed.

As darkness fell, it became almost impossible to see inside. Ye Changsheng groped his way up, lit a candle, and then slumped against the counter to sleep again...

A misty haze hangs in the air, birds flit about the lotus pond, and large, vibrant red lotus blossoms veil the spring water...

She had a very long and vivid dream—so long that she thought she would never wake up again, so vivid that she couldn't distinguish between dream and reality for a moment…

When Li Huangyin returned, she saw Ye Changsheng hunched over on the counter in front of the door, curled up in a ball, probably asleep.

He sighed, closed the door, and slowly approached. Looking at her in the candlelight, he saw that her brow was slightly furrowed and she was covered in cold sweat, as if she were trapped in a nightmare.

He hesitated for a moment, then carefully picked her up. Ye Changsheng's body was very cold, and she seemed to tremble slightly the moment he touched her...

Li Huangyin gently carried her into the inner room. He felt her breathing gradually become even, looked at her delicate face, and held her as they sat on the bed for a long time...

He carefully wiped the cold sweat from Ye Changsheng's forehead while holding her close to warm her up as quickly as possible.

Looking at her gaunt face, Li Huangyin's eyes held a hint of sadness and complexity, but mostly pity... He stretched out his slender fingers and gently stroked her face from her thin chin to her eyes. Suddenly, the person in his arms stirred uneasily and abruptly opened her eyes.

After an initial moment of confusion, Ye Changsheng turned his head slowly and looked at Li Huangyin quietly, his eyes devoid of sorrow or joy, as if he had grown from a naive boy into an old man who had experienced a lifetime in the blink of an eye.

Li Huangyin paused, stunned for a moment, then smiled, put one arm around her waist and gently patted her back, asking, "What's wrong? Did you have a nightmare?"

After a long while, Ye Changsheng finally let out a soft breath, lowered his eyes, leaned closer to Li Huangyin's embrace, and whispered, "I had a dream... I was murdered..."

Li Huangyin's hand trembled slightly. She slowly raised her hand and placed it on the woman's back, whispering, "Don't be afraid, it was just a dream. With me here, no one can kill you..."

Ye Changsheng exclaimed "Ah!" and then suddenly raised his head, saying in a low voice, "Have we always been doctors?"