Chapter 93 - 90: So-called Love Poem
The next morning, Li Xiu got up early as usual to tidy the room, do the laundry, and make breakfast. By the time Zhou Lian woke up, the sun was already high in the sky.
After they ate, Zhou Lian was half-lying on the kang bed, resting. With a smile crinkling the corners of her eyes, she took the love letter Li Xiu held in his mouth and gave it a look. Her face quickly flushed red, then went pale, then darkened. Zhou Lian was furious. ’What kind of man writes a love poem to tease his own wife?’
’This wasn’t a love poem at all—it was a scoundrel’s verse! When had this wretched man become so improper?!’
Li Xiu didn’t know what his wife was thinking. If he did, he would have surely argued that since his wife had so much fun setting him up day after day, why couldn’t her husband tease her back a little?
"Bao’er, I have plenty more poems. Should I recite them for you?" Seeing how cute and pretty his wife looked, Li Xiu felt an itch in his heart he just had to scratch, and so he continued to court disaster.
"Plenty more, you say? Then by all means, recite them for me," Zhou Lian said, laughing through her rage. ’Does this wretched man think he’s God’s gift to the world?!’
...
Zhou Lian stared at him in a daze. ’Is this really my husband?’ Even in their past life, after more than a decade together, she had never seen this side of him. After their son and daughter had married, he often just tagged along behind her. She’d never seen this brazenly roguish side of him.
"Bao’er, stop staring. You can stare until flowers bloom, and I’ll still be your husband." Seeing his wife’s dazed expression, Li Xiu knew she was once again thinking about their past and present lives.
Looking at Li Xiu now, Zhou Lian inexplicably wanted to laugh. It was so rare to see him say such ridiculous things with such a straight face.
The cry of the baby on the kang bed instantly snapped the two parents from their disparate thoughts, and they tossed their messy ideas to the back of their minds. Zhou Lian unwrapped the small swaddling blanket and said, "Get some warm water. Nuonuo has made a mess."
After cleaning the baby’s bottom and wrapping her in a fresh diaper, Li Xiu fed her some warm water, checked the time, and said, "Bao’er, let’s wait a bit longer to feed her. It hasn’t even been two hours."
Zhou Lian glanced down at the watch on her wrist and nodded. "Alright. Let’s play with her for a bit. She’s over forty days old now. Get a little closer; I think she can see you clearly now."
Li Xiu placed their daughter in the middle of the kang bed, and he and Zhou Lian lay propped up on either side of her, talking to the baby and making her turn her head left and right to find their voices.
They played with her for a long time. When it was about time to eat, Zhou Lian nursed their daughter until she was full. Li Xiu burped her, and once the baby was asleep, he laid her down on the kang bed. He watched his daughter for a good while before turning to Zhou Lian beside him. He asked in all seriousness, "Bao’er, what do you think we’re living for? All this toiling and suffering... for what?"
"For what? To honor our parents and raise our children well?" Zhou Lian was a little baffled by his question. ’For what? Yes, what is the point of toiling so hard through life?’
"Look, if you’re lucky enough to have good parents, that’s one thing. But when you’re stuck with parents like mine, how can you be genuinely filial? And our children... while they’re young, we cherish and protect them. But once they grow up and start their own families, they won’t need us anymore. And then? Then, it’s just us. We’ll only have each other."
To get his wife to accept his current wild and wanton side, Li Xiu began to spin a web of eloquent nonsense with a perfectly straight face. "Bao’er, you have to understand. We aren’t living for our parents, nor are we living for our children. We must live for each other. You and I, we are the ones who will accompany each other into old age, together forever. We are each other’s most important person."
Listening to him, Zhou Lian felt that he had a point, yet something still felt off.
Seeing Zhou Lian’s perplexed expression, Li Xiu lowered his eyes, concealing the unbridled intensity within them. He continued to coax her, "Bao’er, you must understand: parents grow old, and besides, they have other children to think about. Children grow up, they leave, and they start their own families. At that point, the people in their new homes will become the most important people to them. But us? We will only have each other. You are my only woman, the person I love most, the most important person in my life. And I am your only man, and I will be the person you love most, the most important person in your life."
Thinking it over, Zhou Lian had to admit he had a point. However, his words hinged on a crucial prerequisite: that neither the man nor the woman would ever leave or betray the other, no matter the circumstance. But hearts are fickle. Who could guarantee that they—or their partner—could uphold that for an entire lifetime? It sounded nice and was easy to say, but whether it could be done was another question entirely. As for who would believe such a promise, that was a matter of perspective.
Hearing his wife’s sigh, Li Xiu tucked away the emotion in his eyes and asked with a light chuckle, "Bao’er, what are you thinking about to make you sigh like that?"
"Li Xiu, I understand what you mean, but it’s a shame that hearts are so fickle. Who can guarantee they’ll never change in their entire life? Words like that are easy to say and lovely to hear, but so very hard to live by." After a sigh, Zhou Lian looked up at the face hovering above hers—at its sharp contours, strong brows, and bright, starry eyes—and spoke softly. ’When did he change so much? He’s far more handsome than when we were first dating. It’s like he’s been completely transformed.’
"What’s so difficult about it? A husband and wife stick together through thick and thin. Lovers rely on each other through life and death. Family never abandons family. You and I are not only husband and wife, but we’re also people in love. We even have a child, a shared bloodline. We’re closer than kin. How hard could it be to spend a lifetime like that—never leaving, sticking together through hardship, and relying on each other until death? It’s as natural as eating and drinking. A person can’t survive without food and water. What do you think I’d be without you? It’d be like trying to live without eating or drinking!"
Having also lived through a future era, Li Xiu scoffed at its "fast-food" marriages and instant-gratification love. To him, those were nothing but irresponsible excuses. The difference between humans and animals is that humans have self-control. They restrain their own behavior, constantly striving to align themselves with a proper set of principles, while animals rely solely on instinct.
"Is that really possible? How many epic, world-shaking love stories are there, really? In the old days, men could legitimately take three wives and four concubines. Do you think a man like that could give up an entire garden for a single flower, for his entire life? Now we have a one-husband-one-wife system, but forget about the rest of the world—just look at our village. How many secret affairs are going on? Men fooling around with young ladies, other men’s wives, even widows. You think they can stay faithful to one woman for a lifetime? Who could possibly do that!" Zhou Lian pursed her lips, her expression saying it all: men were no good.
"Bao’er, you’re being too cynical. Of course there are epic love stories. How about I give you an example?" Li Xiu said dismissively. In his past life, he couldn’t let go even when their relationship was on the verge of shattering; how could he possibly let go now?
"Oh yeah? How come I’ve never heard any? Are you trying to fool me again?" Zhou Lian said, disgruntled.
"To move the heavens: Niu Lang and Zhi Nü, gazing at each other across the Milky Way, with magpies forming their bridge. To shake the earth: Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai, who could not share a bed in life, but shared a grave in death," Li Xiu rattled off. In reality, he despised both men. One was a brainless idiot who ended up stuck on the wrong side of a celestial river, and the other overthought everything, missed his perfect chance, and then died of indignation, dragging his love down with him to die for his sake.