Chapter 53 Your baby's heart hurts, but my heart doesn't hurt anymore?

"Mom! What did you do to her?!"

Qin Lie's roar was like a thunderclap, exploding in the small courtyard.

Zhong Tinglan was taken aback by her son's fierce and menacing appearance.

Looking into Qin Lie's bloodshot eyes, filled with questioning and anger, a surge of rage rushed to her head.

This is outrageous!

This is absolutely outrageous!

He actually dared to yell at his own mother for this woman?!

However, before she could react, Qin Lie had already rushed to Jiang Wu's side in one stride.

He held Jiang Wu carefully, as if she were a priceless treasure, half-embracing her in his arms.

"Honey, what's wrong? Is your chest hurting again?"

His voice was completely different from his roar just now.

It was filled with anxiety, heartache, and an overwhelming sense of panic.

Jiang Wu leaned weakly against him, her face as white as a sheet of paper.

She stretched out her slender fingers and gripped Qin Lie's arm tightly, her delicate brows furrowed in pain.

"Qin Lie...I..."

She opened her mouth, but her voice was so weak it sounded like it might break at any moment.

"My chest feels so tight... I can't breathe..."

Her frail, boneless, and pitiful appearance broke Qin Lie's heart.

"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, I'm here!"

Qin Lie panicked and didn't know what to do. He quickly reached out his big hands, which were used to holding guns, and clumsily, yet very gently, stroked Jiang Wu's back.

"Take a deep breath, follow me, inhale...exhale..."

While coaxing him, he raised his head and stared intently at Zhong Tinglan with eyes that seemed to spit fire.

"Mom! My wife has a heart condition! You're a doctor, can't you see that?! What did you say to her that upset her like this?!"

Zhong Tinglan's face turned pale and then red.

Heart disease?

She had just looked at Jiang Wu and found her complexion to be rosy and her breathing steady; she didn't look like she had a heart condition at all.

This is clearly faking illness!

But can she say that?

In front of his son, he said that his wife, whom he cherished like the apple of his eye, was putting on an act.

Wouldn't that just confirm her reputation as a "wicked mother-in-law"?

Zhong Tinglan's chest heaved violently with anger.

She has been a prominent figure in the medical field for decades; what kind of people hasn't she seen?

She saw right through that little trick of faking illness to gain sympathy!

Even if you see through it, so what?

Her son, the one she raised single-handedly, the son she was most proud of, he believed!

Not only did he believe her, he even glared at his own mother for the sake of this actress!

“I…I didn’t say anything,” Zhong Tinglan squeezed out a few words through gritted teeth.

She can't exactly tell me to do the laundry and cook, can she?

"Didn't you say anything about why she would act this way?!" Qin Lie simply didn't believe it. "Did you say those nasty things again?!"

"Qin Lie, you..."

"Stop talking!" Qin Lie interrupted her abruptly, and without saying another word, he swept Jiang Wu up in his arms.

He picked her up and strode quickly into the house.

As he passed by Zhong Tinglan, he paused for a moment, his voice as cold as ice.

"Mom, I'll say it again. Jiang Wu is my wife, the woman I, Qin Lie, have chosen for this lifetime. If you truly care about your son, please respect her."

"If you can't do that, then this family may not be able to accommodate such a great person as you."

"I'll make arrangements for the guesthouse."

After saying that, he didn't look back, picked up Jiang Wu, and walked into the bedroom, slamming the door shut.

In the entire courtyard, only Zhong Tinglan remained, frozen in place like a statue.

The wind lifted the hem of her meticulously tailored skirt.

Her face, usually known for its calm and composure, was now filled with shock, anger, and an indescribable, deep sense of defeat.

She lost.

In the first round of the battle between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, before she could even unleash her full range of skills, she was knocked out by her opponent in a way that she despised most, yet was also the most intractable.

One move and you're out.

She didn't even know the other party's trump card.

The woman named Jiang Wu never argued with her or raised her voice once from beginning to end.

She simply clutched her chest and cried out, "Ouch!"

Then, her foolish son willingly became the sharpest knife in her hand, stabbing it viciously into his own mother's heart.

good!

What a wonderful Jiang Wu!

What a brilliant example of "retreating to advance"!

What a brilliant example of using minimal force to achieve maximum effect!

Zhong Tinglan trembled with anger, her nails digging deeply into her palms.

She originally thought that she was only dealing with a slightly clever country girl.

Now it seems she was wrong.

Absolutely wrong!

This is hardly a country girl.

This is clearly a fox spirit that has come to life!

It's a thousand years old!

"Fine...fine..." Zhong Tinglan laughed in anger, her laughter filled with icy chill.

"Are you faking illness?"

"Trying to play mind games with me, huh?"

"I'll see how long you can keep up this act!"

She turned around abruptly and kicked away the wooden basin next to her that was full of dirty clothes.

The clothes in the basin, mixed with mud and water, were spilled all over the ground.

"Your precious child has a chest pain, but as their mother, how can my heart not ache?!"

She roared at the closed door.

"Qin Lie, you come out here! Let me tell you, today, in this family, it's either her or me, it's either her or me!"

...

In the bedroom.

Qin Lie carefully placed Jiang Wu on the bed and then put a pillow behind her back.

"Honey, how are you feeling? Should we go to the clinic?" he asked anxiously, reaching out to touch her forehead.

Jiang Wu grabbed his hand.

Her eyes, which had been squinting in "pain" just moments before, were now looking at him with clear, bright eyes; there was no trace of illness in them now.

Her face regained its rosy hue.

"I'm fine," she said softly.

Qin Lie was taken aback.

"Are you... alright?"

He looked at Jiang Wu's energetic appearance and recalled the scene from earlier.

A thought slowly became clear in his mind.

It seems like he's being used as a pawn by his wife?

"You..." Qin Lie opened his mouth, his expression somewhat complicated.

"I was faking it just now," Jiang Wu confessed quickly.

She sat up, straightened her slightly disheveled clothes, and wore a sly smile.

"If I didn't pretend, were you just going to watch your wife become your mother's maid and wash that basin of stinky clothes?"

Qin Lie blushed when she asked him that question.

He did... flinch just now.

Under his mother's powerful aura, he really didn't know what to do for a moment.

"I...I didn't..." he stammered, trying to defend himself.

"Alright." Jiang Wu stretched out her finger and tapped his forehead.

I know you're in a difficult position.

"But Qin Lie, you have to remember this. It's useless to confront your mother head-on. The more you protect me, the more she'll think that I, this 'vixen,' have corrupted you, and she'll only hate me more."

Qin Lie was stunned. After thinking about it carefully, he realized that it made sense.

"Then... what should we do?" he asked humbly.

“Therefore, we must use 'strategy'.” Jiang Wu’s eyes gleamed like a little fox’s.

"Isn't she assertive? Doesn't she like to give orders? Then I'll be 'weaker' than her."

"If she throws a punch, I'll fall down immediately. If her punch hits empty air, it won't hurt me, and she'll fall hard because she used too much force."

"Just like before."

Qin Lie listened, completely stunned.

He felt that what his wife said seemed profound and made a lot of sense.

Although he still didn't fully understand.

"Anyway, from now on, you don't need to worry about anything." Jiang Wu patted his hand, giving the final instruction.

"You only need to do one thing."

"What's up?"

"Unconditionally, cherish me, pamper me, and stand by my side."

"Especially in front of your mother."

“If she makes me do chores, you should say that you feel sorry for me and don’t want me to do them.”

If someone says I'm not good enough, just say that in my eyes, I'm perfect in every way.

"In short, we need to shift all the conflict from between me and your mother to between you and your mother."

"To make her feel that her enemy is not me, but her 'unfilial son' who is bewitched by the 'vixen'."

Qin Lie gasped after hearing this.

high!

That's brilliant!

Looking at his wife's calm and collected face, he realized for the first time that a woman's mind is a truly terrifying thing.

How come he never noticed before that his wife was so... scheming?

but……

He likes it!

"Don't worry, wife!" Qin Lie patted his chest and assured her confidently.

"Acting? That's something I'm good at! I guarantee I'll complete the mission!"

He is now full of anticipation for the upcoming "battle between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law".

In fact, I'm a little impatient.

Just then, the sound of Zhong Tinglan angrily banging on the door came from outside.

"Qin Lie! You little bastard! Get out here right now!"

Jiang Wu and Qin Lie exchanged a glance, both of their eyes flashing with a hint of anticipation for a good show.

The real show is about to begin.

Jiang Wu took a deep breath and instantly switched back to her frail, boneless, and breathless appearance.

She reached out and weakly grasped the hem of Qin Lie's clothes.

"Qin Lie...I'm scared..."

Qin Lie understood immediately, putting on an expression of both heartache and anger, and shouted loudly towards the door:

"Mom! Please stop smashing things! Jiang Wu has just recovered a little. If you scare her any more, I... I'll take her and move out right now!"