Chapter Twenty (Part 1): The Bond Between Mother and Son
They lingered for a while at the bridgehead before turning back. On the way, Lu Qiang stepped into a patch of woods nearby to relieve himself, while Lu Yin waited for him by the river.
The snow beneath her feet was untouched, thick, like a layer of milk foam. A playful mood rose in Lu Yin. She pressed her foot into it, leaving behind uneven rows of footprints.
She lost track of time. Then suddenly, someone called from behind, “Lu Yin.” The voice was cool, slightly low.
She answered and turned her head. Before she could react, a loose clump of snow smacked straight into her face.
One second, two seconds, three seconds… the chill seeped into her skin bit by bit. Some of it mischievously slipped beneath her scarf, where it was warmer, the snow instantly melting into a cold wetness.
She bared her teeth, letting out a muffled, fake crying sound in her throat. She wiped her eyes before barely managing to open them. Lu Qiang stood facing the moon, the teasing smile on his face fully visible to her, the corners of his lips hooked up, his pupils dark and bright.
“Cold?” he asked.
Lu Yin shouted, “What do you think!” She quickly bent down, scooped up a handful, and threw it at him.
Lu Qiang raised his arm swiftly. The white snow smashed against his sleeve, scattering in all directions, glinting with silvery light under the moon.
He laughed unkindly, stepping back a couple of paces, brushing the snow off his sleeve.
Still annoyed, Lu Yin refused to let it go. She scooped up more from the ground and hurled it toward him again.
Lu Qiang had the advantage in height. Before the snow could hit him, he lifted his arm and broke it apart, while the snow in his other hand easily landed on top of her head. Lu Yin gained no ground and felt even more unwilling to accept it. Normally she wouldn’t dare be this unrestrained, but perhaps the snowy night was too beautiful, turning everything dreamlike. It felt as if she had returned to childhood, playing freely and wildly with her friends.
Lu Qiang deliberately let her win. Later on, he simply stopped dodging altogether. Snow kept slipping down his collar, and he shuddered. “Alright, alright, I was wrong.”
She pressed her lips together. Her hands hesitated for half a second, but she still threw it at his face.
Lu Qiang’s expression turned cold, his jaw tightening. “Going for my face now?”
He reached to grab her arm. In the scuffle, in the twist, the two of them stepped onto the icy surface and slipped backward. Lu Yin cried out as she fell on top of him.
A dull thud rang out, startling in the silent night. Pain shot through Lu Qiang’s back, his tailbone feeling as if it might split, yet in that instant of falling, he instinctively shielded Lu Yin, letting himself hit the ground first.
Laughter rang clear by his ear. Lu Yin still had the mind to laugh. He closed his eyes briefly, a destructive urge rising within him, and in one motion he flipped over, pinning her beneath him.
“Go on, keep laughing,” Lu Qiang said, his tone sinister. One hand clenched a snowball, hovering above her. Because of the backlight, his face looked somewhat fierce. Only a sliver of his cheek and his frost-reddened ear could be seen.
“I won’t dare anymore,” she said at once, obedient.
The snowball did not fall. Silence descended suddenly as Lu Qiang stared at her intently.
Uneasy, Lu Yin asked, “What’s wrong?”
He tossed the snowball aside. Bracing his arms on either side of her, he leaned in close. Their rapid breaths formed clouds of white mist, obscuring each other’s vision. The snow beneath her was at least half a foot thick, cradling her head. The moonlight was dim, thinly spread across the earth, yet it made her skin appear translucent and pale.
In a daze, Lu Qiang recalled that rainy day. That day, he had thought of the snow in his hometown, soft, pure, untouched by dust. In his filthy world, it was the rarest kind of white.
His gaze darkened. “July 8th last year. Do you remember?”
The date was too sensitive. Lu Yin pressed her lips together. “That was my wedding day.”
“I got out of prison.”
Lu Yin couldn’t help but look at him.
“What were you wearing? Do you still remember?”
She had worn a white fishtail wedding dress that hugged her hips. Lu Yin said, “I do.”
“Wear it again.”
Her heart skipped violently, her mind thrown into complete chaos. Then the happiness and joy that had long lain dormant began to spread slowly. After a moment, she forced a light, joking tone. “This isn’t you proposing to me, is it?”
Lu Qiang didn’t answer. He kissed her deeply.
By the time they returned, it was eight in the evening. In the bitter cold of deep winter, after rolling around in the snow for so long, no matter how thickly they were dressed, the chill had seeped into their bones.
Lu Qiang pulled her into the yard. The main house lights were already out. Qian Yuanqing always went to bed early, but she had left the door unlocked for her.
Lu Yin gently pushed the door open a crack and turned back. Lu Qiang was still standing in the darkness, watching her, both hands tucked into his coat pockets, as if gripping an invisible thread, the other end tied to her legs, making it hard for her to step away.
She felt a little uneasy. “You should go back and sleep early.”
Lu Qiang remained silent.
They hadn’t properly said goodnight. She felt a faint emptiness inside. After waiting a moment, she bit her lip. “Then I’m going in.”
The old door creaked softly. In the quiet night, it sounded like the instant before an avalanche, making her heart tremble so much she hardly dared to breathe.
Lu Qiang stepped forward, bracing the door, gently pushing it shut again, his chest pressing against her back.
Lu Yin’s breath caught. Her chest was forced upward as she asked, “What are you doing?”
Lu Qiang said nothing. He took her with him toward the west side of the yard, nearing the fence. Next to it was Genzi’s house. A black lock hung on the door of the west room. Qian Yuanqing had injured her foot and hadn’t come here to cook for several days.
Lu Qiang felt around on the windowsill and found a piece of wire. He straightened it with his hands, glancing at her in the gap of time, just as her gaze met his.
Lu Yin shivered, turning to leave. “You can stay here and go crazy by yourself. I’m going to sleep.”
Lu Qiang caught her. “That look in your eyes just now didn’t seem uninterested.”
“I don’t understand what you’re saying.” Lu Yin flushed with embarrassment at his words, trying to prove something as she twisted her body, attempting to slip away.
“Be honest, Yinyin” he said in a low voice. His lips brushed casually against her face, and in two or three quick motions, he pried open that black lock.
This room was much smaller than the one Qian Yuanqing lived in. Right past the entrance was the kitchen. In the corner stood a half-height stove, with a large pot set on top, and some fully dried firewood stacked beside it.
There was only one main room. Lu Qiang led her inside.
Lu Yin was still bothered by what he had just said. She twisted her wrist awkwardly, but when she lifted her eyes, she paused slightly.
The room was plain at a glance. There was very little furniture, only a writing desk, a wooden chair, and a wardrobe. Opposite was a heated brick bed. On the wall beside it were several posters of Young and Dangerous, old and long faded to a yellowed hue.
Although no one had lived here for a long time, it was unusually clean and tidy.
Her hand was still held in his. Lu Yin tilted her chin up. “Is this your room?”
Lu Qiang’s expression did not change. After a moment, he gave a quiet “Mm.”
As he spoke, a puff of white mist left his mouth. There was no fire in the room, and the cold seeped straight into the skin.
Lu Yin’s fingertips were icy.
Lu Qiang let go of her. “There’s bedding in the wardrobe. Lay it out first. I’ll go boil some water.” With that, he turned and went to the kitchen.
Lu Yin stood in the middle of the room for a moment, then walked forward a few steps. On the writing desk, old photographs were pinned down. They were all black-and-white. Among them were a few family photos of three people, taken simply for the sake of taking a picture, with no extra gestures. She looked through them one by one. Most were single portraits of Lu Qiang. Even as a child he had already been handsome, not yet fully grown, but the eyes he turned toward the camera were cold and sharp, his face set, exactly the same as now.
She pointed a finger at his face and poked it, sliding lightly until it landed on the lower right corner of the photo. There, the time and place were marked. She looked closely. Nearly every photo had it.
Only after she had admired enough did she remember to get the bedding from the kang and start laying it out. Halfway through, she felt it might be too obedient of her. Knowing full well what he had in mind, it made her seem as if she couldn’t wait.
Thinking like that, Lu Yin’s face grew a little warm, and the temperature beneath her hips rose as well. She reached down to feel it. It really was no longer as cold as before. He had already heated the kang. The outer door stood wide open, and gray smoke from the kitchen drifted gradually outside.
Lu Qiang boiled a pot of hot water. There was a bath barrel made of pure cypress wood in the room, sitting unused in the corner. It was very large, handmade by his father. When he was young, he could practically swim in it. Now, he could probably only just manage to sit inside. He scrubbed it carefully several times with the hot water, then set it in the center of the room and filled it up.
Lu Qiang shut the door. Before long, the temperature in the room finally began to rise.
Lu Yin was still sitting at the edge of the kang, staring blankly as he busied himself in and out.
Lu Qiang shot her a glance. “Don’t just sit there like an idiot. Take your clothes off and come here.” As he spoke, he yanked the wool sweater off his body in one motion, his two pectorals swelling and spreading, brazen and on display. He reached down to undo his belt. “Want me to carry you?” Even as he said it, he was already walking in her direction.
By the kang bed, he stripped himself completely naked.
Lu Yin’s face was frozen past the point of cold, flushed an unnatural red. She still tried to retreat, but Lu Qiang grabbed her by the ankle and dragged her over. The bright red cotton-padded jacket was stripped off her in a few quick motions. As for the padded trousers, once the waistband was undone, taking them off was no trouble at all.
Whether from the cold or the overwhelming overstimulation, a layer of goosebumps rose across her skin. Sneaking a glance downward, she saw that beneath his abdomen he was already raised, lifting his head toward her in a blatant salute.
Lu Qiang did not rush to move. Bracing his hands on the edge of the kang, he lowered his gaze and looked her over inch by inch.
She crossed one arm over, pressing down over her breasts, one hand covering the other side. The snow-white flesh was squeezed and distorted, faint bluish veins dimly visible beneath the skin, the cleft pronounced, impossible to hide no matter how she tried to cover it.
Lu Qiang swallowed. He bent his head and kissed the back of her hand. Slowly he shifted sideways, sucking along her wrist bone again and again. Before his eyes, her chest rose and fell without rhythm, her hands tightening more and more. A laugh spilled from his throat. Tilting his head, he closed his mouth around her thumb.
Lu Yin jolted as if electrocuted. The heat inside his mouth burned her. Instinctively she tried to fling her hand away, but in the next instant he had taken it fully into his mouth. A current shot straight to the back of her head. She bit her lip and let out a thin cry, and Lu Qiang got what he wanted.
Left and right, he took turns swallowing. She arched, standing taut and opening like a bloom.
Lu Qiang let her off for the moment. “Wash first.” With that, he scooped her up sideways and tossed her into the bath barrel.
The water’s warmth was just right. A hazy steam gathered around her, her skin flushed into a faint pink by the heat. Lu Qiang kissed her shoulder, his hand sliding down, lingering over her chest for a long while.
Lu Yin could not speak, her lower lip bitten into a row of teeth marks.
His large hand roamed without restraint, crouching behind her as he explored downward.
Lu Yin suddenly clamped her legs together, her voice trembling. “…What are you doing?”
“Helping you wash.”
Lu Qiang pried her legs apart. On the surface of the water, where his hand moved, tight ripples spread in quick succession.
Lu Yin’s teeth were chattering, the soles of her feet growing hot and numb along with it.
Her breathing turned rapid, the trembling impossible to suppress.
At a critical moment, he suddenly withdrew his strength. Lu Yin felt as if her heart had been snatched away. Unconsciously, she clenched the back of his hand, longing only for release, her sense of restraint forgotten.
“Close?”
Her gaze was unfocused.
Lu Qiang indulged her. His fingers returned, rubbing quickly. He could clearly feel her tautness. She lasted only a few seconds before she gave in. Lu Qiang pressed down, helping her hold it off.
She dropped her head, nails digging into his arm, unable to make a single sound.
Lu Qiang pressed his lips to the back of her neck, patiently waiting for her to steady. At the end, he stood, lifting a leg to step in.
Half the water in the tub sloshed out, like beads from a snapped string, crashing hard against her chest.
Lu Yin recovered a bit of awareness, bracing herself against the rim. “I’m done. You wash.”
Lu Qiang almost laughed. His arm tightened, pulling her down so her hips landed on his thigh. Another burst of water splashed up.
“Yinyin, that’s not very fair.” He kissed her back. “Got you feeling good, and now you’re in a hurry to run?” As he spoke, he thrust and ground a few times with deliberate malice. “What about this?”
Lu Yin leaned back against him, sitting on his thigh, her body lifted slightly higher, both breasts completely exposed above the water’s surface, an extremity of heat, an extremity of cold.
The two of them rubbed against each other in the water for a few moments.
Lu Qiang gripped her waist and lifted her lightly, aligning himself, then drove in hard. Lu Yin cried out, jolting as she tried to pull away, but his hips thrust upward, burying himself impossibly deep.
The water churned violently, splashes scrambling to spill out.
Lu Yin was almost crawling onto the rim of the tub, pleading softly for him, asking him not to do it here.
After thrusting enough, Lu Qiang bent down and hooked an arm under the bend of her knees, standing up straight with her in his arms. With one long stride, just a few steps, Lu Yin was already losing herself again and again.
Keeping that position, he made her half lie prone, while he stood by the bed, taking her briskly and thoroughly.
Lu Yin clenched the bedding in her hands, her teeth chattering. “Lu Qiang…”
After a while, “…Mm?” His voice was low, frighteningly so.
“My knees hurt.”
Lu Qiang paused, then withdrew.
With a turn, Lu Yin lay on her back on the kang. He grabbed her ankles and pulled them downward, her hips nearing the edge of the kang.
Giving her a moment to catch her breath, Lu Qiang ran his fingers across her forehead. “Is it good?”
Lu Yin shut her eyes, pretending to be mute.
He smiled, lowering himself to kiss her. Starting from her forehead, he traced all the way down, brushing over her flushed lips, leaving marks along her collarbone, grinding against her breasts, until in the end even her small navel did not escape.
Lu Qiang slowly crouched down, lifting her legs onto his shoulders. He stared greedily for a few moments, then turned his head and bit at the root of her thigh. Just a fraction away, Lu Yin suddenly jolted upright, their gazes colliding. Not giving her time to react, he closed his mouth over her in one gulp.
Lu Yin sucked in a breath, which did not come out for a long while. Only after a few seconds did she begin to twist her legs, kicking at him.
Lu Qiang’s hands locked around her waist and hips, fixing her in place against his mouth, not letting her off easily.
Lu Yin kept falling under, again and again. Her waist arched, her body trembling. She covered her eyes, letting out low sobs. This time, she was truly crying.
Only then did Lu Qiang release her, leaning in to kiss her lips in a gesture of comfort.
Lu Yin cried, “You old pervert! All you know is how to bully me!”
He laughed. “Ungrateful. I make you feel good, and now you call me a pervert?”
Lu Yin slapped him across the face. “You’re disgusting.”
Lu Qiang froze for a moment, his tongue pressing against his cheek, then he smiled it off, unconcerned. The first time he had ever been slapped, and because it was her, he accepted it willingly.
No longer tormenting her, Lu Qiang braced himself and pressed down, pushing back inside. At this point there was no room for gentleness, large thrusts in and out, attacking freely.
Lu Yin turned her head and buried it into the bedding, her fingers twisting tight, her breasts swaying with the motion.
After a long while, he paused. One hand gripped both of her ankles, lifting them up to his right shoulder. His lips followed, moving in close to suck and kiss the hollow of her knee, then all the way down, kissing the soles of her feet.
Lu Yin trembled, trying to hide from him. “Isn’t it smelly?”
“Not smelly. It’s fragrant.” As he said that, he suddenly wrapped around her toes.
Lu Yin shuddered. Her lower abdomen tightened along with it.
Lu Qiang was pushed to his limit by her grip. He threw her legs aside, and Lu Yin curled onto her side in his arms.
Rough growls mixed with low moans, the sound sharp like clapping, as if the world itself was collapsing.
The artery in his neck stood out sharply, his face flushed deep red. He bit down hard on her shoulder, thrusting forward violently. His essence surged forth in full, all of it delivered into her.
It took a long time for Lu Qiang to finally withdrew from her body. He found a clean tissue and cleaned her up.
Lu Qiang did not climb up. He lit a cigarette, leaning half against the edge of the kang as he smoked. His gaze was unfocused, resting lightly on the floor. In the middle of the room, the bathing tub had been moved aside. The water had gone completely cold, spilled out across the ground in a mess. The scene looked chaotic, yet still faintly restless, as if it could be stirred back into motion again.
His gaze wandered as he looked down at her. The blanket covered only a corner. Her skin was pale to translucence, her eyes half-lidded, each breath shallow.
He held a cigarette at the corner of his mouth, his thumb brushing against her cheek. “Tired?”
Lu Yin gave a soft “Mm.”
“Still have any strength?”
Lu Yin warily lifted her eyelids. “No.”
Lu Qiang smiled faintly, squinting through the smoke. In the end, he could not bear to push her. “Want some water? I—”
Before he could finish, his expression sharpened, his eyes cutting toward the doorway.
Lu Yin said, “Yes.”
“Shh.” He yanked the blanket over in one motion, covering her tightly, then swiftly pulled on his trousers.
Lu Yin startled. She heard the noise at the door as well.
A voice called from outside, “Who’s in there.”
Qian Yuanqing’s voice.
Lu Yin nearly sprang up, her heart racing wildly, wishing she could burrow straight into a crack in the ground.
The sound of the door being pulled continued.
Lu Qiang was about to go over, but she grabbed him tightly. Forcing herself, Lu Yin spoke up, “Auntie, Auntie, it’s me.”
The movement at the door stopped. Lu Yin held her breath.
After quite a while, a cane struck heavily against the door panel. Qian Yuanqing said, “Tell that beast to get out here.”
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