Chapter 28 Listen to Mother

Those damned Zhao Lan and Qin Yulin actually took out all the rice and grain in the house and squandered it.

The flour had fermented and piled up in a huge heap.

The rice was steamed, but the best time to serve it was missed, so it all tasted burnt and was still undercooked.

Even if the top layer can be salvaged, the family won't be able to finish it all. It's unbearably hot during the dog days of summer, and these things simply can't be stored; they'll all spoil eventually. This food is money!

"You slut, you slut! You slut!"

Zhao Dezhu was so angry that his eyes went black. As for Li Qiufen collapsing, he was too angry to care whether she lived or died.

Zhao Wenzhi walked over to Li Qiufen, helped her up, and said, "Mother, why did you do this? Tell Father why, and he won't be angry anymore."

Li Qiufen wept silently; it wasn't that she didn't want to speak, but that she couldn't.

She'll only get beaten harder if she speaks now.

Zhao Wenzhi saw that Li Qiufen wouldn't say anything, so there was nothing he could do.

Zhao Dezhu's face was grim.

After calming down for a while, Li Qiufen got up and quietly tidied up the kitchen.

"How did the water tank break too?"

"Our axe is broken too."

Zhao Wenzhi wanted to help, but soon discovered the trouble.

Zhao Dezhu said with a gloomy face, "Xiao Zhi, let's go back to work."

"You created this mess yourself, so you have to clean it up. I won't be giving you a single penny for the next two months!"

He was working himself to the bone outside, and she was keeping it a secret. He wasn't stupid; he knew something was amiss. Since she wouldn't tell him, he accepted the lesson.

Zhao Dezhu and Zhao Wenzhi left in a hurry again.

When Zhao Caiju came out, her eyes were red and swollen, clearly she had cried terribly.

"Mother, I'm sorry, it's all my fault..."

Zhao Caiju hugged Li Qiufen and cried, because her mother had suffered all of this because of her.

Li Qiufen sighed and said, "What's done is done. We need to think about what to do next. Zhao Lan's heart is with the Qin family."

"You can't hide your belly for long. If this scheme doesn't work, we'll have to use another method."

Li Qiufen sighed. If Zhao Caiju's body hadn't been so physically unable to withstand an abortion, she wouldn't have gone through all this trouble.

If they scheme against other people, they fear the consequences will be difficult to resolve later.

The Qin family also had a good fortune, and no matter how bad her daughter was, she didn't want her to live a hard life.

“We have to take a piece of the Qin family, and you, child, must have some connection with them.”

Li Qiufen narrowed her eyes, quickly calculating in her mind.

"Mom, I'll listen to you this time. I'll do whatever you say."

Zhao Caiju wiped away her tears and said that she understood that her mother was the best person to her.

Li Qiufen sighed and nodded: "I have no choice. You have to give birth to this child. I can only ask you for some money so that you won't have to worry about your livelihood for the next few years. In two more months, we will go and sue the Qin family, saying that you went to see your cousin, were kicked out, encountered an accident on the way and got pregnant with an illegitimate child, and that your body is too weak to have an abortion. The Qin family should bear some responsibility."

“I’ll go to the Su family. The Su family must hate the Qin family too. Marquis Anping must hate Qin Yulin for beating him. If I go to the Su family, I can maximize my benefits.”

Li Qiufen quickly formed a plan in her mind.

The Su and Qin families have completely broken off relations. After all, Qin Tianhai led his clan to seek justice for his daughter, forcing Marquis Anping to change the letter of divorce to a divorce settlement. This has created a blood feud!

"Okay, I'll do whatever you say, Mother."

Zhao Caiju nodded in agreement.

Looking at the pile of grain, Li Qiufen felt intense hatred for Zhao Lan.

But no matter how much you hate them, all you can do is keep busy and try your best to salvage the situation.

——

Qin Yulin led Zhao Shi on the way home. Fearing that it was too dark for Zhao Shi to see the road, he squatted down and said, "Lan'er, come on, I'll carry you home."

After a busy day with little to no food, Zhao felt quite listless.

She climbed onto Qin Yulin's back and quietly hugged him.

She fell asleep soon after.

Qin Yulin knew that Zhao was asleep, so he walked lightly and steadily, wanting to make her more comfortable.

Zhao woke up halfway through the journey. Looking at the moon in the sky, she said, "Yulin, thank you."

She is so lucky to have married the best man in the world, someone she can rely on without worry.

“We are husband and wife. Dad said that husband and wife share honor and disgrace. If you are well, I am well. If we are well, the family is well. Since I married you, we will spend our lives together, just like my parents. So there is no need for me to thank you.”

Qin Yulin smiled and said a few more words.

Zhao kissed Qin Yulin on the cheek.

"Thank God for letting me meet you and become your wife."

Zhao's voice was gentle. She rarely spoke sweet words, and even in the quiet of the night, she felt shy after speaking them, her heart pounding as if someone were drumming.

"Cough... I also thank God."

Qin Yulin coughed lightly, embarrassed. He rarely spoke sweet words, and even saying just half a sentence made him blush, feeling like his face was on fire.

"The moon is so round tonight."

Looking at the moon, Zhao sighed, "The moonlight is so beautiful."

Qin Yulin was no longer in a hurry to continue his journey; the moon was just the moon, after all.

He had seen it often before, but never noticed anything different. This time, however, it looked really good, so he walked slowly, wanting to take a closer look.

I'm home. Everyone in the family is asleep.

Zhao went to the kitchen and found some leftover food.

The flint in the pot helps maintain the temperature, so the food stays warm and doesn't need to be cooked separately.

Qin Yulin muttered to himself, "How did Mom and Dad know we were coming back for dinner? This looks like they specially saved it for us."

Zhao smiled and said, "You've forgotten Su Bao."

Su Dai could sense and see many things; perhaps she knew what was going to happen, but her father forbade her to say so, so she kept quiet.

Qin Yulin immediately laughed: "Yes, Su Bao is really amazing, she knows everything."

Qin Yulin took out the food, and the two sat down to eat together. After they finished eating, Qin Yulin washed the food and put it away neatly.

Zhao brought a basin of water to fetch hot water.

Qin Yulin said gently, "No soaking tonight, go back to your room and sleep."

Zhao shook her head and said gently, "You've walked a lot today. A soak will help you sleep more comfortably."

Qin Yulin wanted to refuse, but Zhao's attitude was firm.

When he took off his shoes, Zhao noticed that his toes were bleeding. Zhao asked with concern, "What happened? Does it hurt?"

Zhao touched Qin Yulin's toes with heartache.

Qin Yulin didn't feel any pain, only an itchy toe. He quickly stepped into the water and said nonchalantly, "It doesn't hurt anymore. It was just that I used too much force when I kicked the water vat and a stone got stuck on my toe and cut it. It's nothing."

He did things in a way that made it impossible for others to see, so he hid the stone in his shoe and held it between his toes. When he kicked it hard, he was afraid he wouldn't be able to break the water vat, so he used a lot of force, and the skin on his toes was punctured by the stone.

"So much rice and grain will definitely spoil, which is a pity, but when I think about it, I feel it's not enough. I'll steam it all up!" Qin Yulin sighed and gritted his teeth as he thought about the rice and grain.