muddy waters

As their eyes met, the image of the mistress in Tan Linshuang's mind, which had been vague at first, gradually became clearer, slowly overlapping with Zhao Mingyan in front of her...

"My wife."

After a long silence, he embraced Zhao Mingyan again, gently stroked her back, and solemnly reminded her in a gentle tone: "Just take care of yourself, don't forget..."

"That bastard has a pregnancy fetish!"

When he said the last three words, he was gritting his teeth.

The hatred was mixed with disgust and contempt that was hard to conceal!

Zhao Mingyan was slightly stunned, and recalled the brief times she had spent together with Tan Mozhu, feeling mixed emotions.

She could never have imagined that Tan Mozhu, who was cynical but cautious and resourceful, would be such a dirty and cruel person.

And the other party had helped her... Thinking of this, her mood became even more complicated.

Tan Linshuang didn't notice her change of mood and continued, "There's one more thing that has made me determined to destroy him and his followers, even if it means ruining our Tan family's reputation."

"What's the matter?" Zhao Mingyan asked with a frown.

Tan Linshuang took a deep breath and spoke solemnly, "The Blackheart Bamboo gang used the Tan family's charity work as an excuse to secretly sell the orphans from the orphanage into slavery, or as playthings, or even worse... becoming prey for those twisted and powerful people!"

Zhao Mingyan shuddered. "What did you say?"

She couldn't believe what she heard, especially the last sentence.

"They...were eaten?"

Tan Linshuang nodded. "We all thought that cannibalism only occurred during times of war or famine, but in this prosperous era, there are people who, like the black-hearted bamboo, are cloaked in human skin and committing evil deeds."

"They're not eating people out of hunger, they're eating people out of sheer brutality!"

"But they are all children!" Zhao Mingyan's voice was trembling.

Tan Linshuang gritted her teeth and said, "If it weren't for the children, they wouldn't have gotten involved."

"vomit!"

Zhao Mingyan suddenly felt uncomfortable in her stomach and rushed to the basin, covering her mouth.

Tan Linshuang quickly followed, patted her back, frowned, and said apologetically, "I'm sorry, my lady, I shouldn't have told you this."

Zhao Mingyan shook her head. After the stomach discomfort subsided, she took the warm water he handed her and rinsed her mouth. Then she slowly said, "It's better to face the darkness head-on than to be followed by it."

"My lady, you are right!" Tan Linshuang nodded.

Then he poured her a glass of warm water and helped her lie down on the bed.

After drinking a few sips of water, Zhao Mingyan recovered completely and asked tentatively, "Grandmother, do you know about the operations of the orphanage?"

Tan Linshuang, who was helping her take off her shoes, paused and lowered her eyes. "I've said before, there are some things she doesn't know, some things she knows, and some things she pretends not to know."

Zhao Mingyan understood and stopped asking questions.

Tan Linshuang put her shoes away and massaged her feet. "The Tan Mansion is in turmoil. Sooner or later, something big will happen."

"Then we will remove the dirt and make the water in the pool clear." Zhao Mingyan said in a firm voice.

"My wife..." Tan Linshuang looked up at her, not knowing how to express his feelings at the moment.

Facing his eyes that were like deep pools, Zhao Mingyan stared at him intently. In those eyes, she saw herself, a different self from before.

"Husband..."

Suddenly her heart was moved, she lowered her head and kissed Tan Linshuang.

Tan Linshuang was stunned at first, then he knelt on the ground, put his arms around her shoulders, and kissed her passionately.

The moonlight is like water, spreading soft light and filling the room with beauty.

Dongdong——

It was not until Xiaozhu knocked on the door that the two hurriedly let go of each other, smiled at each other, and Tan Linshuang got up to open the door.

Behind Xiaozhu were Fan Wenlan and Li Yuzhu, who had just finished their meal.

They were worried about Zhao Mingyan, so they came to check on her and supervise her while she had dinner.

Zhao Mingyan, who was originally starving, immediately lost her appetite after seeing Fan Wenlan.

Especially when she was concerned about him, Zhao Mingyan couldn't help but think of Tan Mozhu's evil deeds and Xu Qiaolian's despair, and he lost his appetite even more.

Seeing her listless expression, Fan and Li, who were unaware of the situation, immediately panicked and were about to find a doctor to check her out, but were stopped by Tan Linshuang.

"Maybe she's a little tired. Let me feed her. It's getting late. Grandma, Mom, you two should go back and rest."

Fan and Li looked at each other, covered their mouths, and left quickly.

Xiaozhu also left tactfully.

When there were only two of them in the room, Tan Linshuang picked up the dishes and carefully fed Zhao Mingyan.

Zhao Mingyan chewed slowly, unlike his usual gulp, and even talked for a while during the breaks, unlike when he ate in the main hall, where he had to eat without talking.

"How do we solve the problem of sex next?"

Tan Linshuang's hand trembled and the chopsticks almost fell.

"Madam, is the food not delicious tonight?" He couldn't help but joked with a smile.

Zhao Mingyan pouted and said, "I'm afraid you won't be able to hold it in for the next ten months."

Tan Linshuang laughed, "I've been holding it in for twenty years, let alone just ten months."

"What if I can't hold it in?" Zhao Mingyan said angrily with a red face.

Tan Linshuang raised her eyebrows.

Zhao Mingyan pursed her lips and lowered her head, shyly replying.

The moonlight is brighter.

Tan Linshuang took the tray away, sat down on the edge of the bed, and gently hugged Zhao Mingyan. "It's not even been two months, and you're already itching?"

"I...I was just saying it casually." Zhao Mingyan turned her face away.

She didn't want to tell Tan Linshuang that the kiss just now had awakened the emotions in her heart, and she realized that she had already fallen in love with Jun.

Tan Linshuang smiled, reached out to unbuckle her belt, and carefully reached in.

"My lady, before you conceive, you must not be too emotional. I can only let you have a brief taste of it."

The moment his fingertips reached into her clothes, his kiss fell on Zhao Mingyan's ear, but whether it was a caress or a kiss, it was like a spring breeze that only swayed the petals.

Zhao Mingyan closed her eyes comfortably, enjoying Tan Linshuang's loving touch.

Love...is this what my mother calls love between husband and wife?

After going to bed, Zhao Mingyan still couldn't sleep, and his thoughts were flooding.

Turning over, she saw that Tan Linshuang also had her eyes open, looking at the ceiling, and was also not sleepy.

"Husband?" She tried to call softly.

"Did I disturb you?" Tan Linshuang quickly turned around and looked at her.

Zhao Mingyan shook her head, reached out and brushed his furrowed brows, her voice slightly hoarse, "Do you resent Grandmother?"

"When I saw her earlier, I had mixed feelings."

Tan Linshuang sighed, "Me too."

"After my parents died, she raised me hand in hand, provided me with the best food, shelter, and transportation, and stayed by my side the whole time. That's why Tan Mozhu didn't have the chance to attack me."

"But because of this, I can't help but wonder if she did this out of guilt or atonement."

"Who does she love more, me or Tan Mozhu?"

"If one day I tear off that fig leaf and stand up against Tan Mozhu, which side will she stand on?"

“These questions have always troubled me.”

"My grandmother is my only relative. If I choose to avenge my parents, she will lose another son..."

"Husband!" Zhao Mingyan interrupted his hesitation and her eyes became burning.

She released Tan Linshuang's still furrowed brows, stroked his cheek, and said sternly, "When murderers are beheaded, their mothers will also lose their children. But what about the victims? Those who died at their hands also had their own mothers."

"And your mother's mother, she also lost her daughter and her unborn grandson."

"If someone does something wrong, he should be punished, regardless of whether he has parents or children."

These words made Tan Linshuang suddenly enlightened.

"Husband, what are you going to do next? Is there anything you need our Zhao family's secret help for?" Zhao Mingyan asked seriously.

Tan Linshuang said, "Hide Xu first. She is very important."

"Okay!" Zhao Mingyan nodded.

Tan Linshuang added, "Since our Tan Mansion is already in troubled waters, I will take advantage of the situation."

"I heard that my aunt came back a few days ago. We haven't seen each other for a long time. I will go to visit her tomorrow."

…

"Lin'er, I haven't had time to congratulate you yet. You're going to be a father. If your elder brother and sister-in-law knew about this, they would definitely be very happy."

The next day, the spring breeze blew through the forest, the bamboo leaves rustled, and the fragrance of bamboo wafted in the air.

Sipping the tea in his hand and facing his aunt's gentle smile, his mood at this moment should have been as cheerful as the spring mountains. However, when he caught a glimpse of the bamboo forest full of filth, Tan Linshuang felt as if sitting on pins and needles.

"What's wrong? Is Yan'er feeling unwell?"

Noticing the tense expression on his face, Tan Moxiang suddenly frowned.

That shouldn’t be the case…she’s so arrogant.

Considering Zhao Mingyan's physique that is not like that of an ordinary woman, the fetus shouldn't be unstable, right?

If there really was something wrong with the fetus, it would have been Lin'er's fault...

"Aunt, do you know what happened in this bamboo forest?"

Just as Tan Moxiang's thoughts were running wild like a wild horse, Tan Linshuang suddenly spoke, which made her startled. She subconsciously asked, "What happened?"

Tan Linshuang did not answer immediately, but looked around carefully.

Nanny Qiu was still serving by their side, keeping a certain distance from the two of them, but she could definitely hear their conversation.

As for Nanny Yin...

Although he didn't see anyone, Tan Linshuang could clearly feel a gaze in the dark.

"Aunt, are you still practicing calligraphy?" Tan Linshuang suddenly changed the subject.

Tan Moxiang was startled again, but quickly nodded, "Yes, you came by chance today. I brought back some calligraphy books from my husband's family. You can pick a few for Yan'er. Practicing calligraphy can calm the mind and help with pregnancy."

Tan Linshuang nodded in agreement, stood up and followed her into the study.

Nanny Qiu picked up the tea and snacks and followed closely.

After a while, seeing that the aunt and nephew were indeed only discussing the calligraphy, he stopped staring at them, sometimes looking at the birds outside the window, and sometimes staring blankly.

Naturally, the sight in the bamboo forest did not follow, as it was out of reach due to the four walls.

Tan Moxiang was very observant and had already noticed Tan Linshuang's abnormality. So when Aunt Qiu's attention was diverted, she picked up the pen and quickly wrote: What's bothering you?

Tan Linshuang also picked up another pen and wrote: Do you want to become a free bird outside the window?

Tan Moxiang tightened her grip on the pen. She didn't look up at Tan Linshuang, and the latter did the same.

After a moment of silence, she picked up the pen again: What is the price?