Chapter 49: Night Blindness

The next day, Wang Jiexiang and Yin Xian both took leave from work.

He accompanied her to the hospital’s ophthalmology department, where she underwent a detailed eye examination.

The final diagnosis came back as temporary night blindness.

There was no family history of the condition, no abnormalities in the retinal rod cells, and it was determined to be caused by an acquired deficiency of vitamin A. A balanced diet and dietary vitamin A supplementation were recommended.

After hearing the doctor’s explanation, a smile finally returned to Wang Jiexiang’s face.

As she walked out of the hospital arm-in-arm with Yin Xian, she lifted her head and gave him a radiant smile. “Haha, I’m fine!”

“Too early to celebrate,” Yin Xian said, ruffling her bangs. “You still need to take your vitamins.”

Since neither of them had work that day, they stopped by the market on the way home to buy groceries.

Yin Xian saw a vendor selling yellow croaker and asked Wang Jiexiang if she wanted any.

She shook her head and whispered in his ear, “I can bring seafood home from work—no need to buy it.”

Wang Jiexiang only ate seafood that was subpar and picked out from the factory—because it was free.

They walked a few more steps and saw a pork stall.

“I’ll get some meat and stew carrot and pork rib soup tonight.”

Just as Yin Xian was about to step forward, Wang Jiexiang grabbed him. “We just had meat not long ago. No more this month.”

Meat was expensive. She’d been silently keeping track of how many times they bought meat each month, controlling it.

“So if no meat, what do you want to eat?”

“Scrambled eggs, stir-fried cabbage with vinegar…”

He interrupted her. “No wonder the doctor said you weren’t eating a balanced diet.”

If they kept going like this, they’d end up buying the same few ingredients they always did. Wang Jiexiang was depriving Yin Xian of the right to choose what they ate.

He dragged her to the pork stall and bought pork ribs and liver; then returned to the seafood stall and bought a beautifully fresh, lively yellow croaker.

When Wang Jiexiang told him not to buy more, he went to the vegetable stall and picked up a bunch of greens and a big bag of carrots.

Yin Xian’s hands were full by the end of it, but he looked quite pleased with the shopping haul.

—They never ate so well; this was such a waste of money.

She took one of the lighter bags, puffing up her cheeks. “Happy now that you went against me, huh?”

He glanced at her and nodded. “Yep.”

Ever since Wang Jiexiang was diagnosed with night blindness, Yin Xian would always go up the hill in the city village to pick her up after work in the evening.

Because of her condition, something ridiculous happened one day.

She mistook a plastic bag someone had thrown into the bushes for a rabbit.

Yin Xian clearly remembered how she had laughed at him for ages when he once mistook a salamander for a rat. Now that it was her turn to misjudge, of course, he teased her mercilessly.

Wang Jiexiang, who had a particular fondness for rabbits, got really upset and ignored him all night.

The next day, Yin Xian brought it up: “Why don’t we raise a rabbit?”

Surprisingly, Wang Jiexiang disagreed.

She said they didn’t have the money or time to take care of one properly.

She made a fair point.

Yin Xian could shell out for an occasional upgrade in meals, but that didn’t change the fact that they were poor.

With their salaries, they could barely cover daily expenses in the big city.

The doctor had recommended dietary supplementation of vitamin A, but Wang Jiexiang hated carrots. Even if they were just in soup, she would eat with a miserable face. Yin Xian thought of buying a juicer—she liked fruit juice, so maybe she’d accept carrot juice that way.

He saw a suitable one at the supermarket, but after looking at the price, he left dejectedly.

—No money, no money.

Lately, Yin Xian had more and more frequently been considering whether he should change jobs.

He had gone into insurance to learn sales skills, planning to use them for future business ventures. He never intended to stay in it long-term.

Business had been bad in recent months; his salary was pitiful. Maintaining clients and finding new ones required money—gifts, socializing.

He hadn’t talked to Wang Jiexiang about the future, nor had he volunteered his thoughts to her.

She went to the seafood factory every day to do hard labor. She wasn’t afraid of poverty or hardship. As long as she could be with him, everything seemed fine.

But Yin Xian couldn’t stop feeling anxious—money came in too slowly.

He wondered if his social skills had matured enough. Should he try a new environment?

The thought of changing jobs lingered in his mind. He had trouble sleeping at night, suffering from bouts of insomnia.

Late one night, Wang Jiexiang turned over to find the other side of the bed cold.

Groggily opening her eyes, she sat up and turned on the bedside lamp.

The door to their place was ajar. She walked over barefoot and saw Yin Xian squatting outside, a cigarette between his fingers.

There was a kind of indescribable loneliness in his silhouette.

One hand held his head, the other his cigarette. Though it was lit, he wasn’t smoking.

Was he staring at something across the way? All Wang Jiexiang saw was a patch of meaningless darkness. She couldn’t see a thing.

She quietly watched him, feeling something hard to describe.

It was like his loneliness made her lonely too.

She didn’t know he smoked, just like she didn’t know why he hated hospitals so much.

She didn’t know what was troubling him, or if she could help.

Yin Xian never asked her for help.

They spent every day together and had plenty of time to talk.

Even when she could tell he was tired, he never confided in her. Was it his personality? Or was she simply not the right person to confide in? He’d never told her he loved her, missed her, was worried, was exhausted… Let alone asked for help.

A strange sadness rose in her heart. Wang Jiexiang turned and walked back to the bed.

Halfway there, she changed her mind.

She deliberately made noise with her footsteps on the floor, giving him time, and slowly reached the door.

Pretending she had just woken up, she let out a big yawn and opened the door.

Yin Xian had already stubbed out his cigarette.

“You’re up?” he asked.

“You weren’t there, so I woke up.”

“I just went to the bathroom.”

Yin Xian smiled at her.

“Come in, it’s cold out.”

They lay back down. He turned off the light.

Wang Jiexiang rolled over, back to him. After a while, when it was clear he wasn’t going to say anything, she gave up on asking.

“Hug me,” she said.

Yin Xian turned over and wrapped his arms around her waist.

Wang Jiexiang held his hand.

—How long had he been out there in the wind? His hands were freezing.

She closed her eyes and tried her best to warm him up.

…

On payday that month, Yin Xian came home carrying a juicer.

He said it had been in the office for months unused, and when his boss asked if he wanted it, he brought it home.

Wang Jiexiang was overjoyed.

“Such a good juicer and no one used it!”

Her face practically said “wasteful,” and she gladly welcomed it into their home.

Since it had been communal property, Wang Jiexiang used loads of dish soap to clean it inside and out, wiping it down until it gleamed.

As she cleaned, she marveled, “No one really used it—it’s so clean.”

Yin Xian took some carrots from their stock and showed her how to make juice.

When the first cup of carrot juice was ready, he handed her the glass.

Wang Jiexiang gave him face—tilted her head back and drank it all in one go.

“Wah—” she stuck out her tongue, her face scrunched up.

“What’s that look for?” Yin Xian frowned. “It doesn’t taste good?”

She answered honestly, “It’s not my favorite taste.”

Even so, she diligently cleaned the cup and didn’t lose interest in the juicer.

“How about we juice something else?”

“Nope, you have to drink carrot juice.”

Yin Xian snatched her cup and started the juicer again, tossing in more carrots.

“Why?”

Wang Jiexiang stared at the glass in dissatisfaction.

The carrots were being shredded with a loud crunch and soon filled half the cup again.

“This machine can only juice carrots,” Yin Xian lied with a straight face.

Wang Jiexiang’s expression turned to one of disdain as she looked at the juicer.

“…So lame. No wonder nobody at your office wanted it.”

And so—

Making carrot juice became Yin Xian’s daily task.

At first, he had to use tricks to make her drink it.

For example, verbal threats: If you don’t drink it, we won’t sleep together tonight; if you don’t drink it, I won’t talk to you today; if you don’t drink it, I won’t pick you up from work…

Or physical temptation: If you drink it, you can hug me all you want and I won’t push you away; if you drink it, you can sleep on my arm tonight; if you drink it, I’ll kiss you…

The verbal threats weren’t strong enough—they often provoked rebellion in Wang Jiexiang.

She would resist to the end, and the carrot juice would end up in his stomach.

But the physical temptation—now that worked. Hardly ever failed.

The only problem was that over time, Wang Jiexiang began to bargain, demanding more outrageous rewards.

But Yin Xian wasn’t one to negotiate with her. His mind was already working on how to outsmart her.

One day, Wang Jiexiang refused to drink carrot juice unless Yin Xian called her “My Precious Sweetheart” all day.

He refused her demand.

Wang Jiexiang covered her mouth with both hands and threatened to go on a carrot juice strike.

“If you’re that stubborn, fine. Don’t drink it.”

He smiled faintly, picked up the juicer, and walked out.

Right in front of her, he poured all the freshly juiced carrot juice into the ditch outside.

“You, you—”

Wang Jiexiang pointed at him, finger trembling. “Carrots cost money! The juicer used electricity! Our electricity bill is so high! You’re so wasteful!”

Yin Xian shrugged. “If you won’t drink it, what can I do?”

“…!”

She sternly warned him, “Don’t do it again! No juicing tomorrow!”

The next morning, Yin Xian got up as usual.

Woken by the crunching sound of carrots being shredded, Wang Jiexiang said irritably,

“You know I won’t drink it, right? Just drink it yourself.”

Yin Xian turned off the power and gave her a one-word reply.

“Okay.”

She watched with wide eyes as he picked up the juicer and once again headed for the door.

This madman Yin Xian!

“Don’t pour it out!”

Wang Jiexiang shrieked. “Where’s my cup? I’ll drink it!”

“Alright, alright.”

The devil Yin Xian quickly filled her cup to the brim.

“There’s more if you want it.”

Having found a method that successfully got Wang Jiexiang to take her vitamin A, Yin Xian saved himself a lot of trouble each day.

And funny enough, that carrot juice—at first she couldn’t stand it, but later she started to enjoy it more and more.