Educated Youth in the Countryside: She is the Village's Embroidery Queen!-Chapter 443: It’s Not That I Didn’t Want to Stay

Chapter 443: Chapter 443: It’s Not That I Didn’t Want to Stay

The two soldiers joyfully went off to clean the mud.

Yi Chichi looked at Wen Shi, who was filthy all over, with a stubbly beard and bloodshot eyes, and her eyes turned red with sympathy.

"Are you hurt?"

When Wen Shi heard this, his mind went blank, and he wanted to pull his hand back, but he forgot he was holding a shovel and couldn’t, so he pretended to be calm and said, "I’m fine, it’s impossible for me to get hurt."

Yi Chichi’s mouth twitched, did he take her for blind?

If she couldn’t notice such an obvious gesture, she might as well not have her eyes.

"Let me see your hand."

"...Just a little skin torn."

Unable to hide it, Wen Shi saw her face darken and obediently extended his hand for her to see.

Yi Chichi checked and found that it wasn’t serious. It was just an injury from a blister breaking, not even a real injury compared to his previous wounds.

But still, it hurts!

The pain from a blister on the palm bursting, she understood it too well.

"Can you rest for a bit now?"

If possible, she wanted to treat his hand; although the wound was small, an infection wouldn’t be fun.

However, Wen Shi had no time to rest, and his reason was very valid.

"We need to hurry and clear this area, then help the locals rebuild their homes."

Many houses had collapsed, and living in tents every day wasn’t a solution.

The locals needed to live their lives.

"Let me help you."

She reached out to take the shovel, but Wen Shi was unwilling, "You go back; we’ll be done soon, and with you squatting here, it’s easy for me to get distracted."

At the same time, Old Li and the others were also sending people away.

Their reason was even more justified than Wen Shi’s—there were children at home needing their mothers’ care; they could handle things here.

So, in the end, Yi Chichi and the others who couldn’t stay had to go back home.

Five days later, Wen Shi and the others returned home with all the follow-up work completed, looking worse for wear. The previously quiet living quarters became lively again due to the return of the men.

Yi Chichi and others gathered together with brushes to wash clothes, and in their chit-chat, expressed their concern for their men.

"My Old Huang had a big scrape on his leg; just looking at it makes me feel the pain," said Yang Qing.

Ji Jian sighed, "My Old Li wasn’t much better, his hands covered in blisters."

Yi Chichi didn’t join the conversation but asked, "Have they been treated?"

"Yes, they were treated as soon as they came back."

Madam Lei replied on behalf of everyone, and then asked her, "Was your Wen Shi hurt?"

"The blisters on his hands healed and broke, then new ones formed."

Sighing, she continued, "He already had many calluses, and now there are even more."

"You should soften them up for him,"

Ji Jian, knowledgeable in this area, suggested, having seen the impressive results when Yi Chichi took care of her own hands.

"Use the hand cream you have on him; let me see how it works. If it’s good, I’ll ask for some for my Old Li."

Their hands were too rough, it hurt to hold them.

And when they spanked the kids, it made them cry out even louder in pain.

Madam Lei and the others’ eyes lit up, "Do you have something like that?"

Yi Chichi’s mouth twitched, "I’m in the embroidery business, and there’s a high demand for hands. Without hand protection, they can’t stay soft."

That made sense.

"When will you do it for your Old Wen?"

"What, you all want to come watch if I do it?"

"If possible."

"Not possible."

Yi Chichi outright refused, "Don’t think about the hand care, I’m not going to soften Old Wen’s calluses."

"Why not?"

"Don’t you realize their job? Having calluses is actually a good thing for them."

She showed her hands, "If they get as soft as mine, their hands will never be okay; they’ll constantly be covered in blisters and cuts, and won’t you feel bad seeing that?"

Her words left them collectively silent.

Yi Chichi teased them, "Still want them softened?"

"No way."

Keep them rough, they’re not a woman’s hands that need to be soft and tender.

Roughness and calluses protect their hands well.

"Young lady, how long have you been here?"

While speaking, a familiar yet unfamiliar voice came from behind.

Turning around, she saw He Yunsong she hadn’t seen in over a year, standing with one hand on his hip, grinning widely.

Like a doofus, completely ruining his cool and handsome aura.

Yi Chichi exclaimed, surprised, "Old He, when did you get back?"

"Got back in the morning."

He strolled over, seeing that each woman had a large basin in front of them, their water filthy like mud, and clicked his tongue, "This is really quite dirty."

"With everyone off doing disaster relief, there’s no way to keep clean."

Ji Jian replied, curious, "Did you encounter any storms at sea?"

"Not too bad." 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

He Yunsong’s response was vague, and Yi Chichi immediately sensed something, while Ji Jian and the others weren’t fools. Even if they were, living in the residential area for long enough, they would understand what they needed to.

He Yunsong’s answer clearly meant he couldn’t elaborate.

So, they sensibly changed the subject.

"You’ve been away from home for so long, why aren’t you spending time with your wife instead of coming here?"

This statement instantly caused He Yunsong’s face to fall.

He sat down beside Yi Chichi with a sigh, "My wife is busy. I thought she was in the infirmary, went there but didn’t see her, Doctor Lin told me she was on rotation at the hospital. Then I rushed to the hospital, only to be told by the chief that she was in the delivery room helping with a birth."

Yi Chichi, "So you came back?"

"Yes, I came back."

There was no point staying if he wouldn’t see her.

Seeing Yi Chichi’s disdainful face, he explained pitifully, "It’s not that I didn’t want to stay, but Grandpa chased me away because I was in the way."

Not wanting to continue on this topic, he asked, "Where’s Old Wen?"

"Sleeping at home; go find him yourself."

Exhausted, he had fallen into a deep sleep right after showering and changing.

Even the temptation of food couldn’t wake him.

"I’ll go take a look."

He Yunsong quickly darted off, as eager as if he were seeing his sweetheart.

Ji Jian and the others watched his eager demeanor and laughed heartily.

They teased Yi Chichi, "Their bond is real strong."

"Mm."

Life-and-death brothers, of course, their bond would be strong.

"Before Mr. He married Xiao Zhang, every time he came back from duty, the first person he’d seek out was your Old Wen. Even after getting married, your Old Wen is still his number two, and won’t miss a night."

Yi Chichi just smiled, "Whatever they do, having a brother who truly cares for you in this world is a blessing."

She didn’t even have the chance for such a bond.

She scrubbed the clothes vigorously, changing basin after basin of dirty water until they were clean.

Then, she noticed that Wen Shi’s clothes and pants were all torn.

"Did your husband’s clothes get torn?"

"Yeah."

Each one torn even more ridiculously, from sleeves ripping at the seams to pants splitting at the seat, or pants legs having pieces torn out.

"Will they issue new clothes this year?"

"Yes, but what needs mending still has to be mended."

As long as it isn’t beyond repair, there’s no problem with patching it up.