"Still, home is the most comfortable!"
Having been out and about for several days, even though Chen Liejiu arranged everything perfectly to ensure he was comfortable, Xu Huaqian still preferred the feeling of being home.
Maybe this was the legendary "East or west, home is best"?
Pah! How could he describe his home as a "dog's nest"? This was clearly the love nest he shared with his A-Jiu!
Seeing him so comfortable that he wouldn't get out of bed as soon as he returned home, Chen Liejiu, who was tidying the bedding, smiled: "Do you like home that much?"
"Like it." Xu Huaqian couldn't see, but his sense of sound direction was very strong now. Hearing Chen Liejiu's laughter, he lunged over and wrapped his arms around his waist. "I like home because A-Jiu is here."
Wasn't that equivalent to saying he liked him?
Chen Liejiu's lips curled up. Since experiencing his initial heat, his A-Qian seemed to have become bolder with him?
Although he had expressed affection before, it was always very reserved , not this direct .
Indeed , being open and honest with each other was the best medicine for fostering marital feelings . In his view, no matter the entanglements or pain , a few more sessions of mutual honesty could readily solve any problem.
He turned around and hugged Xu Huaqian back, feeling perfectly content : "I also like home with A-Qian."
He liked this A-Qian, who was a few years younger than him, somewhat mature yet somewhat childish , sickly but never complaining, who would even sweet-talk others into finding medicine to suppress men's heat flushes for him, and who lived life positively and diligently .
"Does your waist hurt?" Being confessed to by his husband, Xu Huaqian couldn't suppress the smile on his lips, but he still remembered to massage Chen Liejiu's waist.
During these days out, riding the oxcart every day had made his back feel like it was falling apart. His A-Jiu couldn't sit for long before getting off to walk, saying the cart jolted his waist painfully.
"It doesn't hurt." Chen Liejiu shook his head. He had just said it offhandedly. Compared to riding, he still preferred walking.
The country paths were full of bumps and holes of varying depths. The oxcart jolted so much it made him nauseous; walking was far more comfortable for him.
"What about you? Let me massage you." Thinking this, Chen Liejiu placed his hands on Xu Huaqian's waist and massaged it. If just sitting for a while made him unbearable , how did Xu Huaqian, with his weak constitution, manage to endure it?
"It's alright, I'm used to it." Hehe, he had a husband, and his husband was massaging his waist. He was so happy.
Perhaps because he often rode oxcarts, Xu Huaqian could automatically find a comfortable position to avoid being jolted too much.
That was, unless they hit major bumps or stones—then there was no choice but to endure the discomfort.
"The country paths are too rough." Even though Xu Huaqian said it lightly, Chen Liejiu still felt heartache . His pampered and sickly little husband—he didn't want him to suffer any hardship at all.
But in the countryside, he had no other options. The prefectural city roads were good, but they couldn't move there.
Xu Huaqian nodded in agreement. Country paths were just patches of land cleared of grass, walked on until a path formed. It was fine when dry, but when it rained, they turned into muddy soup. Not just oxcarts—even walking on them with two legs was uncomfortable.
He missed modern asphalt roads, but there was no asphalt here, and he didn't know how to make cement either...
"If only we could repair the roads." He didn't expect them to be as smooth and flat as cement roads, just level and not bumpy, and not turning into soup when it rained.
"Repair!" Hearing this, Chen Liejiu's Ren and Du meridians seemed to open instantly. "I'll build you a road!"
"—Huh?" Xu Huaqian was so shocked he almost slid off Chen Liejiu. He quickly sat up, trying to dampen his husband's wild idea . "I was just saying it casually. Don't get excited."
"Not excited." Seeing Xu Huaqian's nervous expression, Chen Liejiu held him and sat on the edge of the bed, explaining carefully: "It's not a sudden idea to repair the roads. Didn't I also want to fire bricks?"
"The bricks can't be sold only to villagers; town folks need to buy them too. The village roads are so rough. I was already worrying—bricks aren't like charcoal; if they fall and break on the ground, you can't just pick them up and use them. If we repair the roads, it's not only easier for us but also better for business."
Xu Huaqian's heart was still tight: "But is it easy to repair roads?" Not just in ancient times; even in modern times, road repair was a major challenge.
Sometimes it wasn't that the government didn't want to repair roads, but that there were too many involved issues that couldn't be resolved, so they had to be put on hold .
"The Chen clan should be fine. We can persuade the villagers we can; for those we can't, we'll just detour around them ," Chen Liejiu pondered . "As for the authorities , Magistrate Wu would probably be thrilled if we repaired the roads. It would be his achievement !"
"Alright." Seeing his husband had thought everything through, Xu Huaqian didn't oppose him. Instead, he asked: "How will you repair the road? Make it like the prefectural city's?"
The prefectural city roads were made of rammed earth , solid when dry but still a muddy soup on rainy days.
"No, not like that," Chen Liejiu shook his head. "When I worked as a escort outside, I've seen wealthy families pave roads with gravel over rammed earth. On rainy days, the mud doesn't stick to your feet."
"That won't work in the village," Xu Huaqian quickly interrupted. "If you pave with gravel here, village kids will dig out the stones to play skip-stone right after."
It wasn't that Xu Huaqian thought poorly of people; village children were just like that sometimes. They were young, didn't understand even if taught, and even if you complained to their parents, it was useless—they'd just say you were stingy, not letting kids play with a few stones.
"I know," Chen Liejiu nodded. "So I don't plan to do it that way. I want to first compact the road surface with mature soil , building a road like the prefectural city's first. Then, on top, I'll lay a surface layer of lime and clay mixed with crushed stone debris . Then the road surface will be clean and tidy."
Xu Huaqian's mouth fell open, stunned by his husband's ambition. Even the prefectural city didn't have such grand plans, but he did!
And his mind worked incredibly fast. Knowing gravel could be used for roads, he immediately thought of crushed stone debris. People might dig out whole stones, but surely no one would dig out crushed debris.
"What's so surprising?" Seeing Xu Huaqian facing him with his mouth agape, Chen Liejiu smiled. "After it's built, how about calling it 'Huaqian Road'?"
Xu Huaqian's face instantly turned red. It was too embarrassing ! Wouldn't that let everyone in the surrounding villages know his husband had built a road for him?
"No, I haven't made any contribution. It should just be called 'Xinghua Village Road' as before." Xu Huaqian shook his head. He knew in ancient times, they liked to name things after contributions. For example, before crossing over, he read a time-travel novel, "I Was a Prince in Ancient Times," where the protagonist invented gunpowder to save the country and was almost named "Gunpowder King."
Chen Liejiu was building this road; he hadn't done any meritorious deed . What right did he have to have it named "Huaqian Road"?
"Who says you didn't contribute?" Chen Liejiu disagreed. "Look, whether it's making charcoal or firing bricks, it was your idea. This road is also being built for you. And you're providing the money."
The household money was managed by Xu Huaqian. Building the road required his funding. How could providing money not be a contribution?
"Still, no." It was too embarrassing . Xu Huaqian had thin skin. Showing small affection in private was fine, but showing grand affection was so mortifying .
"Alright." Seeing Xu Huaqian disagree , Chen Liejiu could only feel a bit deflated and respect his choice.
He thought using Xu Huaqian's name would be so meaningful! He didn't understand why Xu Huaqian disagreed ?
Many people would want such a chance to " have their name recorded in history " and don't even get it!
Seeing his husband was no longer obsessed with naming the road after him, Xu Huaqian took Chen Liejiu's hand and said carefully: "Road repair isn't something that can be done in a day or two. Don't rush. If you encounter any problems, don't keep them bottled up and not tell me. Even though I can't see, I can still help you solve problems ."