SSS-level catastrophe? That's my wife!

At 5:30 p.m., it was getting dark.

Nestled in the mountains at the northernmost tip of Ming City lies a small village where smoke curls from chimneys.

The low, earthen houses with blue tiles stand close together. There is no deceit or treachery from the outside world here, and the relationship between neighbors is as harmonious as that of family.

Even if the courtyard gate is left open late at night, there is no worry whatsoever.

On the bluestone road at the village entrance, a burly man with dark skin, around 30 years old, was shirtless, carrying a chicken in his left hand and a black iron shovel on his right shoulder as he walked into the village, a simple and honest smile always on his lips.

"Hey, the shovel's back!"

Several elderly people at the village entrance looked at him kindly at the same time.

"Uncle Zhang, Uncle Li, Uncle Niu, Aunt Liu," Fang Tieqiao greeted with a simple smile, his steps never faltering.

Aunt Liu was the first to tease, "With such a beautiful girl at home, and you still come home in the dark every day, you silly boy, aren't you afraid she'll run away one day?"

"That's right, Tieqiao, I'm not trying to be mean, but it's lucky this is in our village. If you were outside, you definitely wouldn't have been able to keep such a pretty girl. You've been out there for eight or nine years, you should know how tempting it is, right?" Uncle Niu sighed with emotion.

Uncle Li chuckled and said, "Shovel, you two have been living together for months now, haven't you?"

"When are you going to do something big?"

"If the girl makes a request that you can't fulfill, just let her know. We can't be of much help, but the village will cover the expenses. A decent wedding is no problem!"

"Nowadays girls care about appearances. We older generations understand that. You can tell at a glance that she's from a well-to-do family."

"Hey, you guys are getting the wrong idea. He's just staying for a short time, he won't be staying long. Look at what you're saying, it's getting more and more outrageous," Tieqiao said with a simple smile.

Uncle Zhang waved his hand with a laugh: "Tsk tsk, come on, don't be shy with us."

"Can I stay for several months at a time?"

"We all saw it. When you weren't home, that girl would sit in the yard, lost in thought, not moving at all. Her eyes were full of longing for you!"

Iron Shovel's lips twitched involuntarily, and he quickened his pace, hastily leaving.

Behind me came the hearty laughter of the elderly.

"It's unbelievable that a shovel could keep such a beautiful girl waiting for him to come home every day. It's incredible."

"Speaking of which, Tieqiao said he was going out to make his way in the world when he was in his early twenties, and it's been almost ten years now, hasn't it? That kid hasn't said a word about what's going on outside."

"Yes, he mentioned it. I remember when he came back he said he had been working on screws in San Francisco for nearly ten years, but I didn't understand."

"Look at you, you're completely out of touch with the world! You think tightening screws means you're working in a factory."

"Then why did he end up with nothing?"

"I understand. Let me put it this way: Tieqiao was probably tricked by his superiors, or he was exploited too much, or Tieqiao's boss is a scoundrel, and Tieqiao can't take it anymore."

……

A moment later, the shovel had reached the front of his own mud house at the east end of the village.

The courtyard gate was open, and a woman in a long black dress was sitting on a stone bench. Her long, black hair fell over her shoulders, and she had delicate features, fair skin, a slender figure, and a gentle and graceful demeanor.

After the shovel entered the room, the woman slightly raised her eyes to look at him: "You're back."

"You're back," Tieqiao chuckled. "I'm planning to stew a free-range chicken tonight and have a few drinks by myself."

"It's strange, I don't know why, but I just want to eat something more substantial today."

He met the woman's beautiful eyes and asked, "Have you eaten today?"

The woman nodded slightly: "I've already eaten out."

He leaned the shovel on his shoulder against the courtyard wall.

Turning around, I took out the free-range chicken I had just bought from the kitchen, cleaned it quickly in the yard, and then went outside to fetch water.

The woman remained seated on the stone bench, her gaze unfocused, as if lost in thought.

He returned with a shovel carrying water and sat down on the stone bench opposite the woman. His honest voice broke the silence: "What are your plans for the future?"

The woman shook her head and remained silent.

The shovel asked again, "Do you want to stay in this mountain village forever?"

The woman looked up at him: "Are you trying to get rid of me?"

Iron Shovel quickly shook his head: "You misunderstood me, I was just asking casually."

"Otherwise, I'd be living in this mud house by myself anyway. You're at least a bit more of a presence here, even though you basically just sit there spacing out all day."

"Hmm." The woman's voice was calm and undisturbed, and her lively eyes seemed to hide the weariness of having seen all the ugliness in the world.

"I have no plans to leave for a long time."

"I really like this quiet and peaceful life."

Iron Shovel nodded and said, "Okay, stay as long as you want, and you don't need to tell me when you want to leave."

He paused, then added, "Oh, right, I forgot to ask you before, do you want me to prepare a cell phone for you?"

The woman calmly declined, saying, "No need, it's no longer necessary."

"Alright then." After Tie Qiao finished speaking, the two fell silent, and time seemed to stand still for a minute.

The woman's cool voice rang out again: "Didn't you want to stew chicken? Why aren't you going?"

"It's a bit early. I usually eat late. What's wrong?" Tieqiao asked.

The woman shook her head slightly, her tone serious: "I feel a bit noisy with you in front of me."

Iron Shovel's lips twitched, then he stood up with a sheepish grin: "You should have said so earlier. Okay, then you can keep spacing out, I won't bother you."

The woman turned and went back into the house. She looked up at the sky, where the sunset had painted half the sky red. She murmured, "This place is quite nice. I'll just stay here forever."

……

Jiangcheng College, outside the main gate.

"Brother Mu, wait for me!"

As soon as Lin Mu stepped out of the main gate, Wang Yueban's loud voice came from behind him.

He turned around and saw a round figure running towards him, its fleshy face jiggling slightly with each step.

"Brother Mu, are you going by yourself tomorrow or taking the academy's shuttle bus to Qingshou Mountain?" Wang Yueban ran up to Lin Mu and asked.

Lin Mu looked at him, her voice calm: "Not necessarily, what's wrong?"

"It's nothing, I was just asking."

Wang Yueban suddenly leaned closer and asked, "By the way, Brother Mu, are you free tonight?"

"Let's have a get-together. We're all from the same year, and each one of us is incredibly good-looking."

Lin Mu smiled and declined, "No, I have something to do. You guys eat."

"Huh?" Wang Yueban was slightly taken aback: "Brother Mu, we're having a get-together near the academy. If you're not in a hurry, why don't you join us?"

"Never mind, let's do it another day. I still need to go to the mall to buy clothes. See you tomorrow." After saying that, Lin Mu strode towards the mall a kilometer away.

"no?"

Wang Yue stood there, even more bewildered, muttering to herself, "Buy clothes?"

"Buying clothes and eating don't conflict at all, right? It has to be Brother Mu. He never makes up a reasonable excuse when he's being perfunctory."