A Heartwarming Love Story: “Washing Feet”
It was already the 28th of the twelfth lunar month, but Jinfeng still hadn’t returned home. A-Qiang had already gone up the hillside by the village entrance several times to look for her. In the evening, A-Qiang lit the stove, and soon the flames danced cheerfully, while the wind howled angrily outside the window.
Finally, there was a knock on the door. A-Qiang hurried to open it, and sure enough, it was Jinfeng, carrying large bags. A-Qiang quickly took the luggage from her and ushered her into the house.
Jinfeng went straight to the inner room, where she saw that the child was already sound asleep. She bent down to kiss the child’s forehead and then asked A-Qiang, “When did the child fall asleep?”
“Just recently. He knew you were coming and was waiting for you, but he fell asleep while waiting,” A-Qiang replied.
“Mm,” Jinfeng murmured. “You haven’t eaten yet, have you?”
“Oh, I have,” Jinfeng said. “The Spring Festival travel season is tough. After getting off the train, I had to wait for a minibus. I even twisted my ankle on the way.”
As soon as A-Qiang heard that Jinfeng had twisted her ankle, he became worried. He gently pushed her to sit on the stool by the bed. “Then sit down, sit down. I’ll get a basin of hot water for you to soak your feet.” With that, A-Qiang quickly brought over a basin of steaming hot water and placed it by the bed.
“You go ahead and wash,” Jinfeng said politely, but she felt a sting in her eyes and quickly turned her gaze toward the child.
“No need to be polite. Here, let me wash them for you. You’ve been on the road for days and must be exhausted, and now you’ve twisted your ankle too. Let me massage it for you,” A-Qiang said as he began to take off Jinfeng’s shoes.
“No, don’t. I haven’t washed my feet for days. They must be smelly. Let me do it. It doesn’t hurt anymore,” Jinfeng resisted, trying to wash her own feet.
“No, I’ll do it. You’ve been away working for exactly 333 days, and I haven’t had a chance to wash your feet all year. My hands are itching to do it,” A-Qiang said as he quickly removed Jinfeng’s shoes and socks, placing her delicate feet into the water.
A-Qiang carefully washed, rubbed, and massaged Jinfeng’s feet. The water in the basin soon became murky. Through the hazy steam, Jinfeng noticed a few strands of white hair amidst the messy tufts on A-Qiang’s head. She gently reached out to pluck them, saying, “A-Qiang, you’re not even forty yet. How come…” Jinfeng suddenly felt a lump in her throat, paused for a moment, and then said, “You should be taking care of your health, like I told you. After all, sharpening the axe won’t delay the chopping of wood. I can take care of the money.” As she spoke, Jinfeng pulled out a wad of cash from inside her clothes and waved it in front of A-Qiang. “Seventeen thousand yuan. This is what I’ve earned in the last three months.”
“Jinfeng, don’t wear yourself out…” A-Qiang started to say but then winced in pain, pulling his hand back. Jinfeng quickly grabbed his hand and rolled up his sleeve to reveal a scar that hadn’t fully healed. Jinfeng stared at him intently and asked, “Is it true, like our son secretly told me in his letter, that you’ve been working on people’s houses again to earn money?” When A-Qiang didn’t respond, Jinfeng’s voice grew louder. “Didn’t we agree that you would stay home and rest? What about your illness…”
“Jinfeng, everyone else is building new houses, but we… It’s all my fault for dragging you down with this illness.”
“A-Qiang, don’t say that. We’re still young, aren’t we?” Seeing A-Qiang’s teary eyes, Jinfeng softened her tone, quickly dried her feet, slipped on her shoes, and brought another basin of water, signaling A-Qiang to take off his shoes.
As Jinfeng washed A-Qiang’s feet, she said, “I’m earning decent money now. Once you get better, we’ll have good days ahead. By the way, our boss has been really kind to us. He heard about our situation and lets me work in the factory during the day and in his wife’s shop at night. So I have two jobs now, which is why I’ve been able to earn so much… Does it feel good? Should I massage you a bit more? You don’t know this, but I’m really good at it now…”
“Jinfeng, stop lying to me. Xiao Mao, who came back earlier, already told me everything. Why did you…” A-Qiang suddenly bent down and grabbed Jinfeng’s hand. “Look at your hands! Are these even hands anymore, with how swollen and red they are? Jinfeng, I know you’ve been working in a garment factory during the day and doing foot massages at a spa at night. Let’s not even talk about whether that job is demeaning or not—just look at your hands, they can’t take it!”
“A-Qiang…” Jinfeng pulled her hand back and suddenly threw herself into A-Qiang’s arms.
The wind outside continued to howl, but the fire in the stove burned brightly, just like the two hearts inside the house, burning with warmth and love.
Thank you for reading! ” Sitestorys “
