Handsome: Is this Xie Mingtu?!
– “Because Manman likes it.”
Su Xiaoman’s mind snapped?
Especially when Xie Mingtu said this sentence, there was a hint of undisguised satisfaction and joy in his tone.
What is he so smug about?
Su Xiaoman: “…”
Did this guy misunderstand something?
Under the puzzled gazes of Zhou Xiaofeng and Yang Changgui, Su Xiaoman’s lips twitched. She leaned against the railing, extended a hand, and gently pulled at the fabric on Xie Mingtu’s shoulder. “Care to explain clearly, who likes it?”
Xie Mingtu suddenly felt a strange chill behind him. Being highly sensitive to everything around him as usual, Xie Mingtu involuntarily tensed up, as if there was an imminent danger approaching.
“Manman… don’t you like it?” Xie Mingtu was puzzled. He felt that he hadn’t said anything wrong. Manman did like it.
Previously, when he asked Manman if he should shave his beard, she said not to.
Su Xiaoman: “…”
“Manman said not to shave.”
Su Xiaoman: “Does not shaving mean that I like it?”
What exactly is this Xie Mingtu fantasizing about?
“Manman doesn’t like it?”
“When we get off the car later, find me a razor.”
After delivering the goods and returning to Zhou’s house, as soon as they got off the car, Su Xiaoman received a razor as a friendly gift from Zhou Xiaofeng. It was said to have been used by her brother and was a bit rusty. After sterilizing it with boiling water, Su Xiaoman firmly held Xie Mingtu and shaved off the stubble on his chin.
As the stubble fell off, it was like a blackboard full of doodles being wiped clean with a wet cloth, revealing its original appearance underneath.
Compared to when Su Xiaoman had just arrived, Xie Mingtu had gained a little weight. Without the previous skinny appearance, after shaving off all the stubble, Su Xiaoman found that Xie Mingtu’s jawline was very attractive.
– Indeed, he was a handsome man.
Su Xiaoman had already mentally prepared herself, knowing that Xie Mingtu’s appearance was outstanding, but she didn’t expect his facial features, face shape, and bone structure to be so superior.
Previously, with his unkempt appearance and overly thin body, he always exuded a mature sense of vicissitudes.
Now, with the stubble gone from his chin, he instantly looked ten years younger.
Finally, people realized his true age.
He was just a young man barely eighteen years old, with a face that exuded youthfulness amidst his handsome features.
This inadvertently brought to Su Xiaoman’s mind a verse: “Riding a horse, leaning against a slanted bridge, sleeves fluttering in the wind.”
Unforgettable.
After the amazement, Su Xiaoman’s mood became somewhat complicated. Suddenly, she remembered Xie Mingtu’s background.
He was supposed to be born into a cadre family, the most pampered youngest son, growing up carefree in the courtyard, reigning supreme. After reaching adulthood, he enrolled in a military academy and joined the army. Now, he was wearing a military uniform studying at school.
The male lead Educated Youth Jiang was sent to the countryside as a sent-down youth because he refused to obey his family’s orders to enrol in a military academy.
Xie Mingtu had an almost photographic memory, outstanding learning abilities, excellent physical fitness, and a handsome appearance. Su Xiaoman thought that if he had grown up in the Jiang family’s courtyard, he would probably have become a rebellious and arrogant brat, capable of infuriating people with his words, rather than the obedient big dog he was now.
Sun Mei obviously knew that Xie Mingtu was not her biological son. Over the years, she had maliciously insulted, suppressed, and abused him, causing him to develop a habit of bowing his head and being invisible, leaving his whole body unkempt, and enduring all the beatings and abuses like a stray dog.
Su Xiaoman pursed her lips, feeling sorry for his plight. Previously, Su Xiaoman felt that Heaven had not treated her kindly enough, but compared to Xie Mingtu, Heaven had already been kind enough to her. Now, it was even making up for her, giving her loving parents, something she had never dared to dream of before.
“Manman, what’s wrong?” Xie Mingtu furrowed his brows slightly. Because Su Xiaoman’s technique was not good, some of the fallen stubble landed on his neck, causing an itchy stinging sensation that made Xie Mingtu uncomfortable.
There were a few blood streaks on his right cheek from being shaved, and it still burned like fire.
“Doesn’t this look bad?” Compared to other things, Xie Mingtu was more concerned about this matter. He was very nervous, afraid that after shaving his beard, Manman wouldn’t like him anymore.
After all, this way he lacked masculinity.
Su Xiaoman handed him a mirror. “Take a look for yourself.”
Xie Mingtu looked at himself in the mirror but didn’t seem to understand what was so surprising.
Curiously, Su Xiaoman asked him, “Aren’t you feeling amazed?”
The ugly dog turned into a handsome one.
The change in appearance was so dramatic that if described in a novel, it would be like transforming from a disfigured ugly woman into the most beautiful woman in the world.
Of course, it wasn’t that exaggerated in reality…
Xie Mingtu tilted his head, fluttering his long and curly eyelashes, revealing a puzzled expression. “Amazed?”
Xie Mingtu was just unable to let go of his inner worries. “Manman, don’t you like me like this?”
Su Xiaoman swallowed nervously. “Xie Mingtu, do you think you’ve become more handsome or uglier?”
Xie Mingtu: “… Have I become more handsome?”
Su Xiaoman: “Yes.”
You rough dog.
“Do you like me like this, Manman?” This was the thing Xie Mingtu cared about the most. He looked at Su Xiaoman expectantly, hoping to hear her answer.
“I like it…” Su Xiaoman coughed several times, and when she heard herself answer, Xie Mingtu burst into a silly smile.
He was really so naive.
Su Xiaoman rubbed his eyebrows and eyes. Xie Mingtu didn’t have a gentle and soft appearance; instead, there was a refined sharpness between his brows, so Su Xiaoman felt that if he had grown up following the established path smoothly, he would definitely have been a proud and handsome young man.
But now, he had gone completely astray.
Silly and happy.
She wondered what he was so happy about.
Su Xiaoman couldn’t help but smile. Perhaps silly smiles were contagious; seeing him smile, she couldn’t help but smile too.
She quite liked this version of Xie Mingtu. Su Xiaoman had seen plenty of handsome men before, but they often carried a sense of “self-perceived attractiveness,” which made her uncomfortable.
But Xie Mingtu had none of that self-awareness of his good looks, nor any hint of an idol baggage.
Just a big dog-like confusion, which was rather pleasant to be around.
…
“Are you Xie-Xie-Xie-Xie… Fifth Brother Xie?!!!!”
“Xie Mingtu?!!!”
Tang Jianqiang couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw Xie Mingtu. Was this really Xie Gouzi?!!
His gaze lingered on Xie Mingtu’s hair.
Xie Mingtu frowned. He didn’t quite like being the centre of attention like this. When he walked out of the Zhou family’s house today, everyone passing by couldn’t help but gaze at him, as if they had seen a tiger jump out of the mountains, pointing and whispering.
He had just shaved his beard, that’s all.
At dinner last night, the Zhou family members were equally surprised to see him, exclaiming and marvelling at his appearance, especially Zhou Heqiang, who rubbed his eyes repeatedly, trembling as he pointed at Xie Mingtu: “You, oh my, you.”
“I didn’t expect you to be so handsome.”
“Oh my god, you and your wife are a perfect match.”
…
Now Tang Jianqiang was openly pointing and commenting on him.
“Xie Mingtu, I almost didn’t recognize you.”
“Oh hey, even your own mother might not recognize you.”
Tang Jianqiang sighed repeatedly, his gaze still lingering on Xie Mingtu’s hair. He believed that Xie Mingtu’s appearance had undergone a complete transformation, partly due to him shaving his beard, but mostly because of his hairstyle.
Xie Mingtu’s hair made him look much better. Now that he had shaved his beard, it was like adding the icing on the cake.
Girls passing by couldn’t help but look at him.
“Xie Lao Di, you… this is truly astounding.” Yang Changgui saw Xie Mingtu and was dumbfounded for several seconds. He couldn’t believe that the tall and slim, handsome, and “extraordinarily youthful” young man in front of him was the same “mature and worldly” Brother Xie from yesterday’s transport.
If he had seen Xie Mingtu like this yesterday, he wouldn’t have been able to address him as “Brother” no matter what.
He was definitely a little brother.
Tang Jianqiang and the suddenly appearing Yang Changgui immediately hit it off. The two of them hooked arms and shoulders, pointing and gesturing at Xie Mingtu.
When Su Xiaoman and Zhou Xiaofeng walked out, they saw this “standoff” among the three.
Xie Mingtu’s face was as black as could be, while Tang Jianqiang and Yang Changgui were like brothers, pointing and discussing Xie Mingtu.
Zhou Xiaofeng chuckled. “I’m not surprised at all. Since Xiaoman is so beautiful, why wouldn’t she choose Brother Xie? How could our Brother Xie be ugly?”
In fact, Zhou Xiaofeng’s chin nearly dropped when she saw Xie Mingtu last night.
For the Zhou family, Su Xiaoman and Xie Mingtu were like divine beings they had never seen before, completely unlike an ordinary rural couple.
Yang Changgui also coveted Xie Mingtu’s hair like Tang Jianqiang. He hugged Tang Jianqiang’s shoulder and sighed, “The barber at your village entrance must be skilled. If I ever have the chance to visit your village, I’ll go find your village barber for a haircut too.”
Xie Mingtu: “…”
Xie Mingtu naturally felt something was off. He turned his head to Su Xiaoman and took the initiative. “Xiaoman, I forgot something in the room. Can you accompany me to get it?”
Su Xiaoman was baffled. “What? I have to go with you?!!”
In Su Xiaoman’s confusion, Tang Jianqiang was even more puzzled. “???? Village barber?”
Yang Changgui sighed. “It’s the one who cuts Brother Xie’s hair.”
Su Xiaoman: “Huh?!!!!”
The village barber who cuts hair at the village entrance?
Xie Mingtu felt uneasy: “Hmm… Shall we go up, Manman?”
Su Xiaoman ground her teeth, nudging Xie Mingtu’s elbow as they walked towards the corridor together.
At the corner, they stopped. Xie Mingtu leaned against the wall, looking genuinely remorseful.
Su Xiaoman stared at him intently, her tone dangerously sharp: “Are you still thinking about finding the village barber to shave your head?”
Xie Mingtu: “Manman, I was wrong.”
There was no village barber.
—There was only Manman at home.
Su Xiaoman really wanted to hammer his dog head. Every time she thought Xie Mingtu, this guy, was being honest and obedient, he always managed to come up with something else.
Su Xiaoman: “!!!!!!”
This guy definitely wasn’t as simple as he seemed on the surface.
“What have you been orchestrating behind my back? Xie Gouzi.”
Xie Mingtu lowered his eyes, remaining silent.
“You…” Su Xiaoman tiptoed, but found she couldn’t reach Xie Mingtu’s head, then said irritably, “Lower your head.”
Xie Mingtu obediently bent over. Whatever she asked him to do, he did, appearing obedient.
Su Xiaoman now felt that this guy was indeed like a dog. When he was obedient, he would squat down obediently, stand when told to stand, reach out when told to reach out. But when the owner was away, he would still wreck the house as usual.
After wrecking it, you still pretend to be innocent.
After he bent down, Su Xiaoman, who was around 1.6 meters tall, finally managed to touch his fluffy hair.
Xie Mingtu’s genes was indeed something to talk about. Su Xiaoman had previously trimmed his hair ends, leaving the rest of his hair black and thick. It felt soft to the touch, with a very pleasant texture. His hairstyle could attract the attention of Tang Jianqiang and others, not only because of the hairstyle itself but also because of his naturally good hair quality.
Grabbing a handful of his hair, Su Xiaoman interrogated, “You’re saying the village barber helped you cut it?”
Xie Gouzi felt guilty: “…”
“I don’t want to tell anyone that Manman cut it for me.”
“Why?”
“I don’t want Manman to cut hair for others.”
“You seem to have a lot of things you don’t want to do. It’s just cutting hair, and you’re still lying?”
“I was wrong.” Xie Mingtu lowered his head, admitting his mistake honestly. He was afraid that Manman would be angry, afraid that she would ignore him. “Manman…”
Su Xiaoman released the handful of hair and gently ran her fingers through his hair. Xie Mingtu’s hair was very soft, with a nice natural curl on the top. For some reason, she felt a bit happy. “Forget it, it’s not a big deal. I’ll just cut it for you in the future.”
“I don’t have a hobby of cutting other people’s hair.”
If it were someone else, Su Xiaoman couldn’t guarantee she could cut their hair like this. After all, she was still a novice driver, far from being a real hair stylist.
It was also Xie Gouzi’s good genes itself. He had a handsome face and could handle various hairstyles. Even if he were given a bald head, it still wouldn’t look bad.
“I always listen to Manman.”
Xie Mingtu’s ears could only hear the loud thumping of his heartbeat. Ever since her gentle touch caressed his head, he couldn’t hear anything else. It was as if there was a barrier, isolating him from all the surrounding sounds.
As gentle fingers massaged between the strands of hair, Xie Mingtu’s body stiffened desperately, trying to restrain himself from reaching out and grabbing that hand.
He had always wanted to get closer to her, but he was afraid that Manman would reject him. He didn’t want Manman to dislike him… If Manman could massage his hair every day, he would already be very satisfied.
“Alright, let’s go back.” After Su Xiaoman finished combing Xie Mingtu’s hair, especially the part that she had messed up earlier, with two strands sticking up on the top of his head, Su Xiaoman smoothed them down after several attempts.
Xie Mingtu stood up, feeling a bit itchy. He raised his hand to scratch his head, and the carefully groomed hair was once again standing up.
Su Xiaoman was very particular. As they climbed the stairs, she kept one hand on the wall and used the other to fix his hair. “Don’t move, your hair is fixed now. If you mess it up again, it will stick up.”
Although Xie Gouzi himself didn’t care much about his appearance, Su Xiaoman was a bit particular about it. His hairstyle was her masterpiece, and she couldn’t let her masterpiece be ruined, especially when there were people watching outside.
She reached out to comb Xie Mingtu’s hair, this time face to face. Xie Mingtu could see her slightly smiling mouth and her large, round, watery eyes looking up at him. Her black braids hung in front of her chest, revealing a slender waistline.
Xie Mingtu struggled to restrain himself, barely managing to avoid reaching out to embrace her.
He was increasingly eager for close contact with her.
“Let’s go.” Su Xiaoman patted his head, relaxing her body. Her previously raised heels landed on the ground. Perhaps because she had been on her toes for too long just now, she suddenly felt her knees go weak, and a sharp dull pain shot up from her heels straight to her head.
Her body staggered to the side, tears welled up in her eyes. “Ouch!”
In the midst of dizziness, Su Xiaoman initially thought she would fall onto the cold stairs, but unexpectedly, she fell into a soft embrace.
Xie Mingtu hurriedly caught her, anxiously asking, “Manman, are you okay?”
“My foot twisted.” Su Xiaoman, in pain, never expected she could still “twist her foot on the spot”. She was at a loss whether to laugh or cry. Supporting herself with Xie Mingtu’s hand, she found her right foot extremely heavy, unable to lift it. The muscles beside her thighs also pulled with a piercing pain whenever she moved.
Xie Mingtu carried her on his back and ran out to ask Zhou Xiaofeng. Several people together took Su Xiaoman to Dr. Zhang’s house in the village.
Zhou Xiaofeng: “Sister Xiaoman, what happened to you guys? How did you twist your foot?”
“I wasn’t paying attention when going downstairs.”
Su Xiaoman hugged Xie Mingtu’s neck with both hands. It was already autumn, and the early morning and evening breeze carried a chilling cold. Su Xiaoman’s body temperature wasn’t very high, while Xie Mingtu’s skin was always warm. Su Xiaoman lay on his back, feeling the warmth seeping through her clothes.
She found that although Xie Mingtu looked thin, he was actually very sturdy, giving people a solid feeling.
His side profile was extremely handsome, with a thin scab on top. Unless one looked carefully, they wouldn’t notice it. It was caused by Su Xiaoman accidentally scratching him while shaving his beard yesterday.
This small scab didn’t detract from his appearance at all; if anything, it added a wild and unrestrained beauty when looked at closely.
Su Xiaoman stared at his profile for a while, lost in thought.
She thought if Xie Gouzi looked so handsome, his face alone would be enough to attract many girls. If they were to divorce in the future, he could easily find another beautiful girl.
By then, if he had returned to the Jiang family’s compound, there would still be many girls from the compound waiting for him to choose.
Of course, there might also be many girls unwilling to marry a divorced man… But then, Su Xiaoman remembered that their marriage was actually fake. Although in the eyes of the villagers, they were really married, in fact, they didn’t even have a marriage certificate.
Even if they were to divorce in the future, they wouldn’t need a divorce certificate.
As long as they left the village, away from the people who currently knew them, in legal terms, they would still be independent individuals and not considered married.
A sudden inexplicable sourness surged in her heart, leaving Su Xiaoman feeling empty. She didn’t know what this feeling meant.
Xie Mingtu in front of her maintained a distance, respecting her, obeying her words. He probably saw her as an elder sister taking care of him.
He had rarely been treated so well by anyone before.
He wouldn’t have romantic feelings for her either.
Dr. Zhang was the barefoot doctor in the village, usually helping people with minor illnesses and injuries like colds, fevers, and bruises.
Su Xiaoman’s ankle swelled up. Dr. Zhang examined her and gave her some medicine. “It’s nothing serious. It will be swollen for a day or two. Go back and rest well, and be more careful in the future.”
After applying the medicine, Xie Mingtu still wanted to carry her back, but Su Xiaoman refused. “I still need to go to the silkworm room to see Sister Shun today. I’m fine.”
She picked up a stick by the roadside as a makeshift cane. It was just a hurt foot; the other foot was fine. Su Xiaoman supported herself with the cane and walked slowly.
She pushed Xie Mingtu towards Yang Changgui. “You two go ahead. Don’t you still have to continue transporting things today?”
Xie Mingtu frowned nervously at her, but Su Xiaoman glared at him impatiently. “Let’s go!”
Scolded by her, Xie Gouzi reluctantly followed Yang Changgui, but he kept looking back, reluctant to leave, taking three steps and turning around, which made Su Xiaoman’s companion Zhou Xiaofeng laugh.
Zhou Xiaofeng couldn’t help but tease, “Sister Xiaoman, you two have such a good relationship.”
“Look how much Brother Xie cares about you.”
“If Yang Ge treats me like that in the future, I’ll be satisfied too.”
Su Xiaoman: “…”
She shook her head inwardly, feeling that this big sister had misunderstood something.
…
Qinghe Brigade.
Su Family.
“Su Xiaoman, I wonder how she’s doing outside.” Liu Shufeng was concerned about her daughter. She was cutting vegetables, murmuring to herself, “This child has never been far from home. Will she be able to take care of herself?”
“She shouldn’t get into trouble.”
Su’s father interjected, “What else could happen? As long as she stays with Xie Mingtu, I’ll be relieved.”
“You’re quite fond of your daughter’s good fortune.”
“Wait for a while. Xiaoman’s cousin is planning to bring her daughter to our house for a visit. They’re coming back to visit relatives and will stop by our place.”
“Tang Hong’s daughter is about the same age as Xiaoman. I heard she’s already found someone and is preparing for marriage. When they return, it’ll be time for the engagement ceremony.”
“Is that so?”
“Wait a day or two. Xiaoman might come back by then.”
…
Xie Family.
For the Xie family, after Su Xiaoman and Xie Mingtu went on their trip, their absence didn’t affect the household much. Of course, Xie’s second daughter-in-law was happy about it. She disliked Su Xiaoman and continued to dominate among the wives in the family. The eldest and youngest daughters-in-law didn’t dare to argue with her.
After Xie Mingtu left, Xie San had to work harder. He was now responsible for activities like chopping wood on the mountainside. Xie San’s pregnant wife, Zhou Xiaohui, felt sorry for her husband and wished that Xie Mingtu and his wife would return soon.
Zhou Xiaohui was the one in the Xie family who missed Su Xiaoman the most.
Next was the eldest sister-in-law, Qin Xiuying.
They had grown accustomed to being overlooked because of Sun Mei’s favouritism. They tolerated the dominance of the second daughter-in-law without complaint. But after encountering Su Xiaoman’s confrontation with the second daughter-in-law, they initially didn’t dare to agree, but later were happy to see the change.
Now that Su Xiaoman was gone, the behaviour of the second daughter-in-law reverted to how it was before. Zhou Xiaohui and Qin Xiuying used to tolerate her dominance, but now, although they remained silent on the surface, they secretly hoped that Su Xiaoman would return so they could continue their rivalry…
“Xie’s fifth daughter-in-law, please come back soon.”
Apart from the eldest and third sisters-in-law longing for Su Xiaoman, Xie’s old man also missed his youngest daughter-in-law. If Su Xiaoman returned, at least they could have better meals.
Su Xiaoman herself had no idea that so many people were eagerly awaiting her return.
Sun Mei had been acting unusually lately. Someone saw her heading towards the educated youth village.
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