Fei Ni didn’t respond to Fang Muyang’s remark and asked him to light the alcohol stove while she went to cook noodles. They took turns making breakfast, and today was her turn.
Once the noodles were ready, she dug out two pieces of flaky pastry from the biscuit tin, placed them on a saucer, and set it beside Fang Muyang. She then closed the tin and lowered her head to eat her noodles.
Fang Muyang broke the pastry in half and offered one piece to Fei Ni. She didn’t take it. "You eat it. I don’t like this. Look how thin you are."
In truth, he looked much better than when he had first returned.
Fang Muyang smiled and asked, "Did I hurt you yesterday?"
Fei Ni pretended not to hear and continued eating her noodles. She cursed him inwardly for having the nerve to say such things, but he hadn’t actually hurt her. Even though he was thin, he still had some muscle.
At work, Sister Liu asked with concern why Fei Ni’s lips were slightly swollen. Fei Ni said she had burned them while eating, but Sister Liu seemed only half-convinced.
Because of this small incident, when Fang Muyang tried to kiss her again that evening, Fei Ni refused even more firmly than before.
Fang Muyang didn’t outright reject her refusal. Instead, he said, "If I can’t kiss your lips, can I at least kiss your face?" Fei Ni remained silent, which he took as consent. With her permission, he kissed her eyes, nose, and chin, then lingered around her lips, lightly brushing the corners of her mouth before pressing his lips to hers as he spoke. Occasionally, he would exhale softly and tell a little joke. Fei Ni wanted to laugh but held back, biting her own lips instead. Only then did Fang Muyang gently touch her lips. Since the kiss was light, she didn’t object, and slowly, he grew bolder. Fei Ni, however, forgot that she should have resisted.
Fei Ni not only indulged Fang Muyang’s lips but also became more tolerant of his hands, letting him roam freely. But when Fang Muyang started to undo her buttons with his teeth, Fei Ni stiffened again. Her voice was harder than her teeth—unfortunately, aside from her voice and teeth, the rest of her body was not cooperating. Fang Muyang sensed her inner weakness but didn’t force her. Instead, he buttoned her back up. Since he was buttoning her clothes, Fei Ni felt he still respected her and didn’t question why he was taking so long or why his actions were otherwise inappropriate. His hands wandered over her body, but when she got up from the bed, her clothes were still neatly in place, aside from a few wrinkles. The bedsheet was similarly crumpled.
Fei Ni smoothed her tousled hair, her face flushed, and climbed back to the upper bunk. She refused to share a bed with him—she didn’t trust him, and she didn’t trust herself.
She didn’t know whether she was afraid of the act itself or the sounds it might produce. As she grew closer to Fang Muyang, Fei Ni became increasingly concerned about the soundproofing of their room. She realized that not only were the walls thin, but the floor and door weren’t much better—sounds from inside could be heard in the hallway.
When she heard the regular noises from the neighboring room, she felt both embarrassed and curious. Did every couple make such sounds? Or were there exceptions? As she wondered whether she was an exception, her face burned fiercely. Even though no one knew what she was thinking, she still felt ashamed of her own imagination.Fei Ni didn't share her concerns with Fang Muyang. She didn't think he would understand her perspective. For men, as long as they weren't engaging in corruption, no matter how much noise they made, no one would mock them—they might even be considered capable. But for women, the comments wouldn't be so kind. If word got out, it would create a handle for others to use against her, something that could be brought up during arguments to attack her.
Fortunately, Fang Muyang respected her greatly and never unbuttoned her clothes again after that. Because of this, Fei Ni gained a sense of security. No matter how wild his hands or mouth became, she no longer resisted him, only suppressing herself to avoid making any noise.
As for the rest of his boundless energy, Fang Muyang channeled it into painting.
While Fei Ni slept, Fang Muyang continued copying famous paintings from art books. The overhead light was too bright and might disturb her sleep, so he bought a secondhand desk lamp.
At night, he copied works by Poussin, while during the day, he devoted his time to drawing sequential pictures.
As the weather grew colder, the hallway filled with winter-stored cabbages, yet Fei Ni still insisted on sleeping separately from Fang Muyang, even though sharing a bed would have been warmer.
Fang Muyang gave Fei Ni an original English novel and asked her to summarize it for him when she had time. When Fang Muyang was in middle school, academic subjects were the least important part of education. His middle school was no exception, so his English was quite limited.
Fei Ni was delighted to have a new book to read, but she only read it in bed using a flashlight. The rest of her time was spent making clothes for Fang Muyang.
After receiving her salary, Fei Ni exchanged some money for cloth tickets and bought fabric. All of Fang Muyang's clothes needed to be made from scratch.
Su Yu also noticed that Fang Muyang lacked proper clothing.
The sequential pictures Fang Muyang was currently drawing mainly depicted steel mill workers fighting on the front lines. The story was adapted from an article Su Yu had published in the newspaper. Su Yu was two years older than Fang Muyang. After graduating from university, she began working at a publishing house and frequently published articles in newspapers, all of which were well-received. Her family background and talent were the foundations of her pride, and the arrogance she displayed was well-matched to her credentials.
While working on this sequential picture project, Fang Muyang had already completed one book, but it had not been officially published, making him a relatively new artist. Su Yu was naturally dissatisfied that her prized article was assigned to such a novice. When communicating with Fang Muyang, she was often dismissive, her words laced with condescension. She hoped he would back down from the challenge and leave her work to more established artists. Having been respected all her life, she had never learned to engage in scheming or hypocrisy, so her expressions of dissatisfaction were always straightforward.
Fang Muyang was skilled at extracting key information. He completely ignored Su Yu's tone and emotions, focusing only on her requirements.
However, since seventy percent of her demands were unreasonable, he only retained the remaining thirty percent.
After listening to her, he responded with a smile, showing no trace of embarrassment. Having been tempered by his parents since childhood, he rarely felt ashamed.
Seeing his expression, Su Yu suspected she hadn't conveyed her dissatisfaction clearly enough. But since he was so thick-skinned, he likely wouldn't back down, so she had no choice but to accept it.
It wasn't until she saw the first four drafts that Su Yu let go of her prejudice against Fang Muyang and decided to treat him more kindly.
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