Chapter 22.2 - Desire (2/4)

Song Mo’s heartbeat seemed to stop for a moment, and his mind went completely blank. Before he could think of a response, his vision had already been obscured by the wall of the neighboring house.

He came to a halt as he thought of the strange feeling he had just felt. His niece, who was sending him off and waiting for him to return home, was like his wife…

How could he possibly have such a ridiculous delusion?

Song Mo clenched his fist in frustration.

After he left, Tang Huan closed the gate, climbed onto the bed stove, and fell asleep under Song Mo’s blanket. She hadn’t slept well for the past few days in order to act like a filial daughter. Since she had made pretty good progress with Song Mo this morning, she wanted to catch up on sleep so that she would have the energy to continue teasing Song Mo at night.

She had intended to sleep until evening, but she fell into a deep sleep and was awoken by the smell of porridge.

Tang Huan opened her eyes in shock and looked out the window, only to find out that it was already dark outside.

“Uncle?” she called out incredulously.

Someone walked to the door and talked to her through the curtain, “Jinzhi, have you woken up? Then you can come out. Dinner is almost ready.”

No matter how thick-skinned Tang Huan was, she was still a little embarrassed. She had said at noon that she would cook dinner, but who knew…

She slowly put on an outer robe, went outside to wash her face, and stood in front of Song Mo, explaining with a reddened face, “Uncle, I, I felt a little sleepy at noon, but I couldn’t fall asleep with my blanket. Whenever I close my eyes, I would think of… I was terrified and hid under my blanket, not even daring to open my eyes. Then I remembered how I stopped being afraid when you hugged me last night, so I hugged your blanket and closed my eyes. And then, and then I fell asleep… Uncle, w-when did you come home? You must have been exhausted after a long day at work. Why didn’t you wake me up? I should be the one preparing dinner for you…”

Song Mo was slicing cucumbers when he saw her flushed face. He smiled and said, “It’s okay. Sleep as much as you want. Uncle is not tired at all. Okay, help Uncle set the table. We’ll be having dinner soon.”

Tang Huan set the table obediently.

For dinner, they had plain porridge, cucumber slices mixed with salt and vinegar, a dish of pickles, and a boiled egg, which was added to the pot when Song Mo was cooking the porridge. Of course, the egg wasn’t for him, but rather for his beloved niece. Song Mo soaked the egg in cold water and made sure that it was no longer hot before handing it to her. “Eat it. You have lost a lot of weight in the past two days.”

Tang Huan took the egg and secretly looked at her breasts. She had the urge to ask Song Mo how he knew she had lost weight. Was it by touching her boobs? She was very proud of their sizes, okay?

She peeled the egg skillfully, split it in half, and handed one to him. “Uncle, you eat. Since the eggs are laid by our own chickens, don’t just cook for me. Let’s each have one egg. You are my Uncle. My heart aches when I see you working so hard but being so hesitant to eat.”

She said her heart ached for him…

Song Mo’s heartbeat quickened. Why did his niece say such bold words out loud?

But then, they were uncles and nieces. His niece had always treated him as her blood-related uncle, so of course she merely said whatever came to mind.

While he was still stunned, Tang Huan placed the egg in his bowl with a bright smile.

Song Mo unconsciously smiled back at her.

After dinner, Tang Huan took over the task of washing the dishes. When she was done, she asked Song Mo, “Uncle, I’m going to boil water for a bath. Would you like me to boil some water for you as well?”

Song Mo had just returned from chasing the chickens into their coop. “You can just boil water for yourself. Uncle will simply wipe my body with cold water.” After washing his hands, Song Mo helped Tang Huan to move the wooden bathtub into the west room. When he came out, he tentatively asked, “Jinzhi, how about you move back to the west room tonight?” She had grown up already. They shouldn’t be sleeping in the same room.

Tang Huan squatted in front of the stove, staring at the flame inside. Her lips were tightly pursed as she continuously added wood to the flame without replying to him.

That was a ‘no’ then…

Song Mo had no choice. “Forget it. We’ll talk about it in two days.”

The corners of Tang Huan’s lips curled upwards immediately. When Song Mo saw it, besides finding it amusing, he thought in his heart that his niece was still behaving like a child…

When the water was ready, the two of them cleaned themselves separately.

After her bath, Tang Huan went to the east room with wet hair.

Song Mo didn’t wash his hair. After an entire day of work, he just wanted to get a good night’s sleep.

Tang Huan stood on the ground dressed in a zhongyi , and her hair was wrapped in a towel. When she saw that Song Mo was already lying down, she approached the bed stove and asked quietly, “Uncle, are you asleep yet?”

Song Mo sat up right away. “Not yet. What’s the matter?”

Tang Huan took the towel off her head and handed it to him. “Uncle, my hair is too long, and my arms get sore when I’m drying it with a towel. Can you help me? My-my father used to…” she couldn’t finish her words.

Song Mo felt pain in his heart, and he took the towel without hesitation. “Turn around. Uncle will help you.”