Certainly! Here’s the requested translation:
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At first, Zhao Shumin felt suspicious.
Did Li Zhiyan just touch her face with his hand?
But when that warm sensation ca through, there was no way Zhao Shumin couldn’t feel it.
Li Zhiyan had truly kissed her!
With the sounds from the next room accompanying them, Zhao Shumin’s face started to flush.
After making her wish, Zhao Shumin blew out the candles.
"Xiao Yan..."
"Did you just kiss Auntie?"
Zhao Shumin’s voice carried a faint tremor.
"Yeah, Auntie. Just now, I thought you looked so beautiful, and I couldn’t stop myself."
"You little rascal, you like Auntie that much, huh?"
Zhao Shumin found it hard to et Li Zhiyan’s gaze.
So as she spoke, she deliberately steered the conversation toward treating Li Zhiyan like a child, firmly seeing him as her junior.
A younger person giving an elder a small kiss—actually, it wasn’t all that unusual.
"Yeah, Aunt Zhao, you’re my favorite."
"Have so cake, then."
Li Zhiyan picked up the plastic knife and started cutting the cake for Zhao Shumin, and Zhao Shumin thought back to everything that had transpired today.
She still felt a sense of loss—on her birthday, her own son hadn’t co by, but Li Zhiyan had, unintentionally rembering her birthday.
He had brought her a birthday cake. This was the first ti in Zhao Shumin’s life that anyone other than her mother had celebrated her birthday.
Though the sounds from next door were deeply awkward, leaving Li Zhiyan’s room at that mont wasn’t an option for Zhao Shumin.
"Auntie, here’s your cake."
Eating the cake Li Zhiyan handed her, Zhao Shumin couldn’t help but feel a twinge of bitterness in her heart. Yet inside, her feelings toward Li Zhiyan had shifted entirely from what they once were.
Before, Li Zhiyan had been just a junior to her.
But now, his importance grew closer to belonging to the category of "family."
"It’s delicious."
"Xiao Yan, this is the first ti Auntie’s had birthday cake in so many years."
Li Zhiyan was a bit surprised.
"That can’t be, Aunt Zhao."
"It’s true. When Auntie was little, my mom raised alone."
At this mont, Zhao Shumin and Li Zhiyan began chatting idly, the sounds from next door providing the background to their conversation.
"When Auntie was small, our family couldn’t afford much. For every birthday, my mom would make a bowl of longevity noodles and buy a doll."
"Although childhood wasn’t easy for Auntie, I still felt happy during those tis."
"When I was ten, Auntie’s mom passed away."
Li Zhiyan fell silent, pausing even in his act of eating cake.
Zhao Shumin’s life experience was truly pitiable.
"You young people might not understand, but back in Auntie’s ti, families discriminated heavily against girls."
"My dad was just like that."
"I was the eldest, and I had two younger brothers. My dad used to hit often, even though my mom tried to protect ."
"But after my mom passed away, I basically spent my days getting beaten."
"Whenever he got drunk, he hit . Later, he remarried, and both he and my stepmother hit together."
"In the family, I had absolutely no status whatsoever."
As she spoke about her painful past, Zhao Shumin’s eyes grew wet once again.
"Later on, my dad arranged for to marry a man of average looks who ca from a family in business, just to get enough money for my brother to marry."
"That man had violent tendencies too."
"Auntie was beaten for many years. Whenever I wanted to divorce him, he and my dad would work together to track down."
"It wasn’t until he found a mistress that Auntie finally escaped from all of that."
"Xiao Yan, you might think Auntie is a shrew."
Li Zhiyan said nothing. Deep down, he truly did think that.
Zhao Shumin was undeniably a shrew, the sort who could rip apart the neighbor lady until she bled red and nearly black.
"But Auntie wasn’t always like this. I just beca this way out of fear of being bullied."
"If I act fierce, people won’t think I’m easy to pick on."
Li Zhiyan humd in acknowledgnt—he could understand Zhao Shumin’s reasoning.
A woman who had never been valued since childhood, trapped in the mire of dostic violence where both her father and husband abused her.
She’d been driven to beco the shrew she was now.
And Zhao Shumin was, undeniably, a stunningly beautiful woman. Her proud figure was especially alluring, making it far too easy for n to covet her.
Working outside inevitably brought with it endless trouble. If she didn’t act like a shrew, she had no idea how much worse things might’ve been.
After all, anyone facing a woman ready to throw a fit at any mont, soone who wouldn’t ekly submit, would naturally feel so trepidation.
"Aunt Zhao, was that mistress pretty?"
"I don’t understand why anyone would want to get divorced from you."
Li Zhiyan truly couldn’t wrap his head around it.
If he could marry soone like Zhao Shumin, he’d do anything to keep her—even die if needed!
"Not especially pretty, but she dressed provocatively."
Zhao Shumin glanced at Li Zhiyan, her gaze sowhat complicated.
It seed all n were fond of things like stockings, high heels, and short skirts.
Li Zhiyan, for instance, showed no interest in her outfits.
Probably because her clothes were too plain, utterly lacking in femininity.
"Auntie, I really didn’t think your life had been so tragic."
"I can understand you."
"From now on, I’ll treat you well."
"Xiao Yan..."
Zhao Shumin softly took hold of Li Zhiyan’s hand.
Feeling the tender warmth of her delicate, smooth hand, Li Zhiyan’s reaction was entirely natural.
And Zhao Shumin noticed everything.
Amidst the background sounds, Zhao Shumin’s face grew flushed again.
"Xiao Yan..."
"Can you promise Auntie not to steal anymore?"
"If you get caught, the consequences could be very serious."
"Why don’t you use Auntie’s things instead?"
In Zhao Shumin’s mind, her impression of Li Zhiyan was solidly stuck—she desperately wanted to correct Li Zhiyan’s behavior.
If Li Zhiyan only used her belongings...
Well, perhaps that wouldn’t be such a bad thing. After all, he was just her junior—a re child in her eyes.
"Auntie..."
"I..."
Li Zhiyan hesitated, beginning to stamr.
Listening to the sounds from next door, Zhao Shumin spoke softly: "Xiao Yan, can you stop making Auntie worry?"
"Auntie really likes you, child."
"Can you promise Auntie you won’t do that kind of thing anymore?"
As she spoke, she gently opened Li Zhiyan’s drawer.
Seeing Li Zhiyan’s "collection," she couldn’t help but feel a headache coming on.
"Xiao Yan, Auntie’s clothes can be borrowed if you want, okay?"
Li Zhiyan asked quietly, "Aunt Zhao, can I kiss your hand?"
At that mont, Zhao Shumin finally realized that Li Zhiyan truly had feelings for her—that he saw her as a woman.
"Kiss my hand? That doesn’t seem appropriate..."
"Aunt Zhao, just once."
Li Zhiyan continued his plea.
Zhao Shumin wrestled with her internal conflict, but after glancing at Li Zhiyan’s cake, she softly nodded and murmured an acknowledgnt.
Li Zhiyan’s heart raced with excitent.
It seed this birthday cake truly made an impact.
He gently took hold of Zhao Shumin’s slender, delicate hand.
"Aunt Zhao, your hand is so beautiful."
"So fair and soft."
Li Zhiyan complinted her.
"Auntie spent most of her childhood doing needlework at ho."
"Never had to do farm work."
Talking about this, Zhao Shumin couldn’t help but feel relieved.
If she’d done farm work, her hands wouldn’t have maintained their fair and soft condition.
Won who did farming or heavy labor often had rough hands, covered in calluses.
But her own hands were soft and smooth.
Li Zhiyan kissed the back of her hand.
"Xiao Yan..."
Softly murmuring, Zhao Shumin felt the moist warmth against her skin, and a rush of hormones surged within her.
"Is that enough?"
Li Zhiyan nodded quickly.
"Aunt Zhao, your hands are truly beautiful."
With these words, he gently bit the tip of her ring finger.
He lightly tasted the pale, slender finger.
"Xiao Yan..."
Zhao Shumin felt her loneliness being completely drawn out.
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