"My wife guessed right. I went to the shop, and Caiyan settled all the expenses. Here's the money we made." Su Peng took out a string of copper coins and placed them on the table.

That's all?

"My wife doesn't know this unless she's in business. In just a few days, she's already made a net profit of eighty coins, which is quite a lot."

Jiang Jiaojiao almost laughed out of anger at Su Peng's words.

At this rate, it would take her forever to save enough money to run away.

In the past, eighty coins wouldn't have been enough for her to buy a box of fine cosmetics.

"If my wife thinks it's too little, I can keep it for you and send it to you when I have enough for one tael of silver."

Su Peng pretended to take the copper coins away.

"Wait, it's just a little bit, no need for my husband to manage it." Jiang Jiaojiao jumped off the bed nimbly, and rushed over to grab the copper coins without even putting on her shoes.

Su Peng awkwardly withdrew his hand, "My wife doesn't believe her husband anymore."

Jiang Jiaojiao snorted coldly, "How can I trust you? You promised not to go to her room every day, did you keep your promise? The meager earnings you make now aren't even enough for your husband to please her."

"My wife has truly wronged me. Sunflower is unwell, and my mother specifically instructed me to go and keep her company." Su Peng spoke sincerely, as if she had genuinely misunderstood him.

Jiang Jiaojiao is not so easily fooled; there are plenty of examples of concubines pretending to be weak and helpless.

Jiang Jiaojiao originally didn't want to compete for favor; she just wanted to keep the money in her hands.

She looked up at Su Peng and said, "I have no objection to you spending more time with Concubine Sunflower. Yesterday was the day you received your monthly allowance. Shouldn't you hand over the money for me to keep?"

Su Peng looked troubled. "I promised to give you some of my monthly allowance, but yesterday Father went to play Pai Gow again. He was afraid Mother would scold him, so I..."

"You gave him everything?"

Jiang Jiaojiao was burning with anger but had to suppress the urge to overturn the table.

“If my father and mother quarrel over money again and cause unrest in the family, how can I be an unfilial person? I gave half of the money to my father to pay off his gambling debts and the other half to my mother for the family’s daily expenses.”

Jiang Jiaojiao had no way of verifying whether Su Peng's words were true or false. Her mother-in-law, Qin Shi, never gave her a kind look, let alone told her the truth.

"Alright, I can't control your monthly allowance. Just go to the shop occasionally and keep an eye on things, and make sure you earn back the money I invested."

Jiang Jiaojiao no longer aspires to make a lot of money; Su Peng's explanations of various expenses give her a headache.

Now she just wants to get her money back, and when spring comes next year, she will leave the capital to pursue her future.

When she was annoyed, she inadvertently looked up and her gaze fell on Su Peng.

He was still dressed in blue silk, tall and elegant. The ordinary silk looked surprisingly good on him.

A ray of sunlight from the window shone on him, highlighting his handsome face as gentle and refined as jade, his eyes still radiant.

Jiang Jiaojiao cursed herself inwardly, thinking how blind she was.

When I first saw him, I was captivated by his handsome and dashing appearance.

Looking back on the days since their marriage, he doesn't seem to be a truly wicked person.

He was just like any other man, indulging in the comforts of his new lover and neglecting his wife.

Su Peng glanced down at Jiang Jiaojiao's bare feet. "The floor is cold, my wife, go back to bed."

His voice was gentle, and anyone unaware of the situation would surely think they were very important to him.

"Um!"

Jiang Jiaojiao bit her lip and hummed in agreement, then withdrew her reluctant gaze.

He's just a pretty face; what he really wants is a powerful figure, a reliable support.

She wanted to live a life of luxury; she didn't want to live a single day longer in this precarious existence.

"My wife, please rest. I'll go to my mother's courtyard to offer you some words of comfort."

Jiang Jiaojiao turned around and sat on the bed, clutching the cold copper coins in her hand, calculating the shop's daily profits. Her heart sank little by little.

As night falls, pedestrians hurry along the streets.

After the shop assistants left, Zhao Wu stood under the eaves, looking around.

"Brother Zhao Wu, stop looking. No guests will be coming at this hour. Hurry up and go back to your room to rest."

Zhao Wu turned around, went inside, and closed the door.

"Yan'er, you rest, I'll cook dinner."

"No need, the rice has already been rinsed in the pot, and the charcoal fire is burning brightly, so just put the pot on top."

Zhao Wu looked at the grill and saw that the grill mesh had been moved away and a clay pot was placed on it.

"Yan'er is so smart, we've saved money on firewood."

While the rice was cooking, Caiyan brought out half a basin of meat from the house, and the two of them skillfully took out bamboo skewers and skewered it.

By the time the rice was cooked, the two of them had finished their work.

After the two finished eating and tidied up, they still put the charcoal embers into the charcoal brazier and carried it back into the room to keep warm.

Zhao Wu considerately carried hot water to the washroom, and this time the two of them went into the washroom together.

Caiyan and he acted like a newlywed couple, playing around in the bathroom for a while before quickly going to bed.

"Sister Yan'er, guess if our child is already here?"

As Caiyan got into bed and reached for the blanket, Zhao Wu pounced on her and pressed his ear against her lower abdomen.

"No, we've only been together for a short time, it can't be that fast."

Caiyan doesn't want to get pregnant now. If she does get pregnant at this crucial time, she might not be able to tell whether the child is Su Peng's or Zhao Wu's.

Zhao Wu stroked her flat stomach with his big hand, looked up and smiled honestly at Caiyan.

"It's okay if I don't have it, I'll try my best."

Rough, large hands reached inside the nightgown and wandered aimlessly.

This made Caiyan giggle.

"Brother Zhao Wu, you've touched a ticklish spot."

Caiyan swayed her supple waist, and Zhao Wu felt his throat tighten. He swallowed hard and impatiently reached out to unbutton Caiyan's nightgown.

He said, panting, "Sister Yan'er, don't wear this after bathing anymore, it's...too difficult to remove."

Caiyan gave him a playful glare, "Who told you to be so impatient?"

Just as Caiyan was about to cooperate, she felt a warmth beneath her body and quickly withdrew her hand from Zhao Wu's neck.

"Wait, Brother Zhao Wu, it's not possible today."

Zhao Wu lifted his face from her chest, and in the dim light, a layer of sweat could be seen on his forehead.

"Does Yan'er not want me, or..." Zhao Wu hadn't finished speaking when he felt his fingers sticky.

He withdrew his hand from under Caiyan, revealing that his fingers were dripping with bright red blood.

"You, you're bleeding!" Zhao Wu exclaimed in astonishment.

Caiyan poked his forehead with her finger. "Silly brother, it's your period."

Seeing Zhao Wu standing there dumbfounded, Caiyan blushed and said, "Silly brother, this is a good thing. It means that I didn't get pregnant when I was serving my son-in-law. If I have a child in the future, it will definitely be from your Zhao family."

"real!"

Zhao Wu was overjoyed. Ignoring the bloodstains on his hands, he hugged Caiyan and kissed her.

"Um... Stop it, you can't."

Caiyan thought Zhao Wu didn't know that intercourse was not allowed during menstruation, so she pushed hard against the arm that was tightly restraining her.