That Year, That Mountain: Chapter Four

The following days were incredibly agonizing for Qin Zhen. The experience of that night left him unsure how
to face Li Mei.
He had initially approached Li Mei with the mindset of an elder, attempting to compensate for the lack of
affection in her life with tenderness. However, an ordinary, everyday incident completely changed everything
.
The scene from that night still echoed in his mind. He remembered the feeling vividly
; he had shamelessly developed feelings for Li Mei that he shouldn't have—sexual attraction! From any perspective,
this was immoral.
Reason made him feel guilty, but the allure of Li Mei's beautiful buttocks confused this normal man
. This contradictory psychology tormented him. And the primal desire deep within him, like
the roar of a wild beast, constantly taunted him from the deepest recesses of his consciousness! He couldn't understand
how a man obsessed with mature women could have developed an interest in this young girl, Li Mei.
It seemed that a woman's attraction to a man didn't necessarily require maturity. Like Li Mei, though
still a green fruit, her innate feminine charm could still make Qin Zhen's heart flutter!
Li Mei was still sulking, pouting every time she saw Qin Zhen, refusing to speak to him
. This saved Qin Zhen a lot of worry. He was afraid, afraid that he would sink deeper and deeper down this wrong path until he couldn't extricate himself! This was not what he wanted; 　　he couldn't accept such an outcome,
neither from a conscience nor from a moral standpoint . 　　 Qin Zhen had considered trying to communicate with Li Mei to restore his composure. But every time he tried, he 　　found his thoughts were not pure enough. As soon as he was about to speak, he would think of the scene from that night. 　　Thinking of that night, his eyes would involuntarily drift to the bulge below Li Mei's waist! 　　 Forgive me, forgive me. Qin Zhen constantly repented in his heart, and finally gave up the idea of initiating communication, only 　　able to do his best in daily life and care for Li Mei more. 　　 After several days of silence, Li Mei's anger finally subsided, and she began to communicate with Qin Zhen. 　　However, Qin Zhen, preoccupied with his own feelings, avoided looking into Li Mei's innocent eyes, silently taking on more 　　housework. 　　 The young Li Mei had no idea that she had unwittingly stirred Qin Zhen's heartstrings; she only 　　felt that Qin Zhen was treating her better and better, making her feel cared for again. She even misunderstood Qin Zhen's avoidance of 　　her, interpreting it as him being afraid of upsetting her. All of this made Li Mei very content, and she tried her best 　　to help Qin Zhen with whatever she could. That dilapidated schoolyard, their temporary home, seemed to have gained 　　a little more life because of it. 　　 Qin Zhen squatted on the threshold, watching Li Mei hanging clothes to dry in front of the bamboo pole, his gaze inadvertently wandering to 　　places he shouldn't have. After that night, Li Mei never wore those jeans again. However, she also stopped 　　wearing those old, worn-out pants, and instead wore the new skirt Qin Zhen had bought for her. Girls, after all, still love to look pretty. 　　What would 　　Li Mei feel if one day she learned that what she'd always been insecure about was precisely what she was most proud of? 　　 Just as Qin Zhen was lost in his thoughts, a commotion suddenly erupted at the courtyard gate, 　　followed by a crowd of people rushing in. Leading the group was a rural woman in her forties. She glanced around before 　　heading straight for Li Mei. Qin Zhen noticed her eyes light up when she saw Li Mei. 　　 What happened? Qin Zhen looked at the group with some confusion. The woman seemed to be looking for Li Mei 　　—a relative of hers? 　　 He stood up, intending to ask what was going on, when he noticed the village chief had also arrived. He was at the back of the group, puffing on his old pipe. The village chief also saw Qin Zhen at this moment and 　　waved 　　him over expressionlessly . 　　 "What's going on, Village Chief? Why all the commotion?" Qin Zhen walked over to the village chief and asked quietly. “Li Mei’s aunt,” the village chief said with a hint 　　of disdain 　　 , pointing to the woman who had pulled Li Mei aside and was 　　 whispering to her. The old man was probably angry at the heartlessness of Li Mei’s relatives. Seeing Li Mei’s somewhat flattered 　　expression, Qin Zhen didn’t feel much resentment. Although she had heard about the behavior of Li Mei’s relatives, she 　　could understand their willingness to visit her today. 　　 “Should I invite them in for a while?” Qin Zhen asked the village chief. Although the village chief had entrusted Li Mei to 　　her care, she was not related to her, and it would be inappropriate to invite her relatives so abruptly. 　　 The village chief gave Qin Zhen a strange look, remained silent for a while, and then said, “Wait a bit, 　　let them talk for a while.” 　　 Li Mei’s aunt was pulling Li Mei aside and talking incessantly, appearing very affectionate. Li Mei, however, seemed a little 　　uncomfortable, keeping her head down and speaking to her aunt in a somewhat reserved voice. The woman touched Li Mei's 　　dress, seemingly asking who bought it. Li Mei blushed, looked up, glanced at her, 　　and pointed to Qin Zhen, who was standing with the village chief. 　　 Li Mei's aunt turned and looked in the direction Li Mei was pointing. Qin Zhen offered a friendly smile, but suddenly 　　noticed the intense hostility in the woman's eyes. 　　 "Damn it, what did I do to you? This is incomprehensible!" Qin Zhen was bewildered by the glare. " 　　I don't even know you. Is it wrong to be nice to your niece?" 　　 Li Mei's aunt glanced at her briefly before turning back to speak quietly to Li Mei. But after saying 　　something, Li Mei's expression suddenly turned ugly. 　　 Qin Zhen was annoyed. He guessed she was upset that Li Mei accepted things so readily—which 　　wouldn't be wrong for an ordinary person, but she didn't seem to realize that Li Mei had been living like a wild monkey for the past two years 　　. Where had she been all this time? 　　 Qin Zhen stared at the two of them, his impatience growing stronger. The two said something, and Li Mei's face grew increasingly 　　pale. At first, she argued a few words, but in the end, she lowered her head in grievance and just silently shook her head. Her aunt...

Seeing this, she seemed to get angry, and her voice rose. Li Mei suddenly raised her head, glaring at her aunt, her
tearful eyes filled with helplessness.
Qin Zhen felt a pang of pain in his heart. He knew he shouldn't go and disturb her at this time, but he couldn't help himself.
Although he had only known Li Mei for a few days, this pitiful, innocent, adorable, obedient, and capable
child had already left a deep impression on him. Unconsciously, he had
taken it for granted that he should protect her.
Qin Zhen stepped between the two, pretending not to see the glare from Li Mei's aunt, and gently pushed Li Mei aside,
using his body to separate her from her aunt. He gently rubbed Li Mei's head, tenderly wiped away
the tears on her face, and asked, "What's wrong? Girl?"
When Li Mei saw Qin Zhen, hope shone in her big eyes. She opened her mouth to speak, but didn't know how to
begin. In the end, she lowered her head again, silently shaking her head and weeping.
Qin Zhen felt a pang of heartache and was about to inquire further when his aunt spoke up behind him.
"Oh, oh, who is this! We're family here, what are you doing interfering?" Her words
were sharp and sarcastic.
Qin Zhen frowned, feeling quite displeased, but he couldn't very well retaliate. He turned to face
Li Mei's aunt, carefully shielding Li Mei behind his back, and said, "Can't you talk things out? Making
the child cry like this."
"Who are you? It's our family matter, what business is it of yours?" His aunt rolled her eyes,
looking down on him.
"Ahem!" Just as Qin Zhen was caught in a dilemma, the village chief arrived. He tapped his pipe on the sole of his shoe
and said, "This is the new teacher in our village. After discussion by our village committee, we've entrusted Xiaomei to his care
. He's Xiaomei's... what? Oh, right, her guardian!"
Qin Zhen looked helplessly at the old man, who was deliberately putting on a righteous act, thinking to himself: This old man is just causing trouble
. Unexpectedly, upon hearing the village chief's words, Li Mei suddenly grabbed his clothes with such force that it almost
hurt Qin Zhen. He could even feel Li Mei's hand trembling slightly, like a drowning person grasping at
a straw.
A straw? Qin Zhen was startled by the sudden thought, a very bad feeling rising within him
. He looked at the village chief with a questioning gaze, only to find that the village chief was also looking at him with a meaningful gaze.
"Guardian? I don't care who he is. I'm here to take Li Mei away. From now on, you can stay wherever you want
." Li Mei's aunt was unconvinced and said impatiently, reaching out impatiently to pull
Li Mei out from behind Qin Zhen.
Li Mei kept dodging, clinging tightly to Qin Zhen's clothes. What was going on? Qin Zhen was
a little puzzled. Her aunt coming to take Li Mei home was a good thing. Even if Li Mei didn't like her aunt, having
a home was better than being alone in a dilapidated temple, right?
Li Mei's small frame couldn't withstand her aunt's strong pull, and she was quickly pulled out. She
still clung tightly to Qin Zhen's clothes, suddenly crying out, "Teacher, I... I won't go!"
Qin Zhen instinctively shielded Li Mei again, first smiling apologetically at her aunt, then turning back to
pat Li Mei's head gently, coaxing, "Girl, it's a good thing your aunt is coming to take you home. This way you
'll have a home."
"No!" Li Mei shook her head resolutely, her eyelashes trembling slightly with emotion. After a long pause, she finally
said, "She... she's going to sell me!"
"What?" Qin Zhen's anger surged. Damn it, I was wondering why she'd
suddenly appeared after all these years. I thought she'd had a change of heart, but instead she's plotting to sell me?
"Do you know what you're doing is illegal! Do you really think that just because this place is remote, nobody can do anything about it?"
Qin Zhen suppressed her anger, speaking slowly and deliberately to her aunt.
"Tch, don't listen to that girl's nonsense. I just helped her find a husband." Her aunt, seeing Qin Zhen's outburst
, stopped what she was doing and said nonchalantly.
"She's only 14! Aren't you being a bit too hasty?"
"What's wrong with that? Around here, some girls get married at 13. 14 is still young!"
Qin Zhen was caught off guard by her aunt's retort and didn't know how to respond. Every place has its own customs.
Before going to the countryside, the professor had repeatedly instructed her to respect local customs and not interfere arbitrarily.
"That family seems alright, right?" After thinking for a long time, Qin Zhen finally decided to ask. If they were good,
marrying into that family might be a good choice for Li Mei.
"Very good, their family
is quite well-off!" "Yes, very good!" The village chief chimed in.
Well, it really wasn't appropriate for her to interfere. Qin Zhen turned around, looking at Li Mei apologetically. Just as she was about to speak,
the village chief's voice came again.
"Over 50 years old, a little lame, but thankfully, only one leg!"
Damn! Marrying a man in his fifties? And a cripple at that?
"Are you out of your mind, aunt?" Qin Zhen, staring at her aunt's still-unfurled expression,
could no longer contain her anger. "No matter how well-off a family is, would they marry their 14-year-old niece off to a decrepit old man?"
"Come on," her aunt scoffed, "with that cursed fate that killed her parents, who in ordinary
families would dare take her? I think it's a good match."
"Fine!" Qin Zhen was amused and exasperated. "Go back to where you came from. You haven't taken care of this child anyway.
I can manage to feed another mouth. Don't worry about it."
With that, Qin Zhen pulled Li Mei towards the house, giving the village chief a fierce glare before leaving. *You old bastard,
using me as a pawn!*
"You!" Her aunt exclaimed, grabbing Qin Zhen's hand. "I've already accepted the betrothal gifts; this matter
has to go through!"
"Ha, you've given yourself away. This is your true intention, isn't it?" Qin Zhen turned around, her face contorted with rage.
"This is tantamount to human trafficking!"
"This is my family's business, what's it to you?"
"Your family's business? You gave birth to this child? Did you raise her even for a single day? I've seen shameless people, but I've never seen anyone as
shameless as you! When she was all alone in that dilapidated temple, did you even come to care for her for a single day?" By the end,
Qin Zhen was practically shouting.
"I didn't give birth to her, I didn't raise her, but her mother borrowed a lot of money from me for medical treatment, didn't she?"
Qin Zhen was speechless; she really couldn't find fault with him. Paying back debts was a matter of course.
"How about this, when the child is a little older, I'll find her a job so she can slowly pay you back, how about
that?" Qin Zhen sighed, steadied herself, and said.
"That won't do. She's grown up, her wings have hardened, she'll fly away and never come back. Who am I supposed to ask for her money back?"
"You're just being unreasonable! You're unwilling to do this and unwilling to do that, what exactly do you want?"
"Something is better than anything else! That's my thinking. Either you make her give me back the money now, or you
agree to this marriage!"
"Fine, so in the end you're just trying to sell her, aren't you? How much dowry did you receive?"
"What's it to you?" "
Anyway, you're going to sell her, so what difference does it make who you sell her to? Can't I just buy her?"
"That's a good offer! One, no, two thousand yuan! As long as you give me back two thousand yuan, I'll
have nothing to do with her anymore."
Qin Zhen gave her aunt a disdainful look and turned to go inside. Li Mei thought Qin Zhen was giving up
, and looked at her expectantly, clinging to her hand.
"Don't be afraid, girl. I'll go get the money for her." Qin Zhen patted Li Mei's shoulder, comforting her.
A moment later, Qin Zhen came out with the money. The woman's eyes practically disappeared when she saw the thick wad of banknotes in Qin Zhen's hand
. She rushed over, reaching out to take the money. Qin Zhen, however, withdrew his hand, avoiding
it.
"What's wrong? Are you going to change your mind?" the woman asked anxiously. This was a full thousand yuan more than the dowry she had received, and
seeing Qin Zhen withdraw his hand, she became even more anxious.
"Hmph. Let me make one thing clear from the start, the village chief is my witness!" Qin Zhen found her amusingly shrewd expression.
"If you're selling her, this money means I've bought her. From now on, the girl is mine,
and she has nothing to do with you anymore!"
"Okay, okay."

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That Year, That Mountain: Chapter Four

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