Chapter 39 Courage: Why won't she go home with you?

"I didn't cry."

Liang Minghe emphasized that it was for the sake of the facts and for his own reputation.

The one who was comforting him looked up and carefully observed Liang Minghe's face, somewhat suspiciously asking, "Then why are the young master's eyes wet?"

Another chimed in, "And the tip of its nose is red too."

Liang Minghe looked a bit annoyed and didn't answer. The sullen tofu pudding vendor explained for him, "Make sure it's spicy."

The stall owner couldn't understand it. He had clearly adjusted the spiciness several times, so why was it still making people teary-eyed and like water lilies emerging from the water?

He felt really wronged and thought he might as well just adjust the spiciness back to the original standard, so that he could at least sell it to the Hunanese people who are everywhere in Shenzhen.

The two asked in unison, their faces full of surprise: "Did you make it spicy?"

Some subjects didn't actually need to be added. Liang Minghe's face grew even colder, ignoring the two men's inquisitive gazes, and he only asked, "How did you find me?"

The conversation naturally veered back to the topic at hand, with the person on the phone explaining, "We were originally going to the hospital to find you, but when we parked just now we saw you walking towards the night market, so we followed you..."

Liang Minghe glanced at him and said coldly, "Didn't you see that I came with my wife?"

As he spoke, he pushed aside the two people blocking his way, dismantling the human wall between himself and Zhou Jinqin.

Zhou Jinqin remembered these two men; they were the two who had delivered Liang Zongqiang's wedding gift in the underground parking garage earlier. The shorter one was surnamed Gao, and the darker-skinned one was surnamed Bai. They were both middle-aged men around forty years old.

Seeing Zhou Jinqin unharmed, Lao Gao was overjoyed. He stood on tiptoe and leaned close to Lao Bai's phone, shouting, "She's alive! She's alive! The young mistress is alive again!"

Zhou Jinqin wanted to say that she hadn't actually died, but she didn't have time to argue with them. After all, if she didn't get the coconut water to Liang Minghe's lips soon, someone on this street might really die.

She nodded to the two of them as a greeting, then walked up to Liang Minghe and put the straw to his mouth.

Liang Minghe took her hand and drank more than half a glass of water in one gulp. The sweet and icy taste filled his mouth, and the flush on his face finally subsided a little.

"Are you feeling better?" Zhou Jinqin wiped the thin layer of sweat from his forehead.

Liang Minghe nodded obediently, half-closing his eyes and rubbing his fingers against her soft fingertips: "Mmm, much better, thank you, wife."

The intimate gestures and affectionate terms of address were suddenly brought into public view, and Zhou Jinqin was a little unaccustomed to it.

Her face flushed slightly, but she tried to remain calm: "If I had known you couldn't handle spicy food, I wouldn't have let you try it..."

“It’s not that we can’t eat any at all…” Liang Minghe said in a low voice.

Zhou Jinqin asked him curiously, "Is that so? How far can you go?"

Liang Minghe pursed his lips and said dryly, "A bucket of braised beef noodles."

Zhou Jinqin was somewhat surprised: "Braised beef noodles? Is this spicy?"

She wasn't sure if it was because she hadn't eaten it often enough, but in her memory, braised beef noodles, apart from the bright red packaging that gave it a visually appealing spiciness, didn't seem to have a particularly spicy taste.

Old Bai nodded: "Yes, the eighth ingredient on the Kangshifu sauce packet is chili pepper."

Old Gao also said, "Uni-President also has spices and the like, but we usually only give the young master two-thirds of a packet."

"..." Liang Minghe's face darkened even more. "Liang Zongqiang called you here just to discuss these things?"

The two fell silent instantly, exchanged a glance, and sent Old Bai to speak, forcing himself to do so.

He held up the phone that was still connected in his hand: "Chairman Liang was actually just concerned about you two. Since everything's alright, would you like to go back..."

Liang Ming interrupted him with a cold snort: "Instead of this, he should worry about himself first, since he will most likely die before me."

After saying that, he stopped looking at the two of them and turned to Zhou Jinqin with tenderness in his eyes: "Is it almost time? Shall we go back?"

“But you haven’t eaten anything yet.” Zhou Jinqin pointed to his stomach. “Aren’t you hungry?”

Liang Minghe took the remaining coconut water from her hand: "I'm full, and actually I'm not that hungry. I just wanted an excuse to be alone with you."

"Oh." Zhou Jinqin blushed. "But even without an excuse, I'll still go with you."

She took the initiative to insert her fingers between his, dangled them in the air, and smiled at him with her eyes crinkling: "Let's go."

Seeing that Gao and Bai hadn't followed, she asked, "Did your father send someone to follow you?"

Otherwise, it would be hard to explain how Liang Zongqiang received the news of her car accident and hospitalization so quickly.

“It’s not that bad.” Liang Minghe shook his head. “He bought the car for me, so someone must have informed him when it was sent for repairs.”

It wasn't going as badly as she had imagined, and Zhou Jinqin breathed a sigh of relief. She touched his smooth chin and teased him, "I thought you would say you wouldn't accept charity."

Liang Minghe grabbed her wrist and kissed her palm: "I feel bad for him, not for the money."

He smiled and said, "So, Xiang Ziqing doesn't need to feel guilty. Liang Zongqiang will reimburse us."

“But…” Zhou Jinqin hesitated.

“No buts.” Liang Minghe read her thoughts. “In fact, the relationship between two people does not have to be bound in any form. But since I have chosen to be bound to you under the constraints of the law, it means that I accept the sharing of all meaning with you.”

His eyes, still bright from being moistened, held a smile like budding flowers, adding a touch of springtime ambiguity to his words, as if he were tenderly whispering sweet nothings, saying, "I belong to you."

Zhou Jinqin was incredibly soft-hearted, so she stepped forward and got closer to his strong, beating heart.

She never understood that men aren't always indifferent, taciturn, angry, or... as unbearable as she imagined.

Or rather, the men she had met before, such as her father and her maternal grandfather, could perhaps not be considered men at all.

Liang Ming kissed her damp eyelashes, the heat evaporating the moisture from them.

He suddenly asked, "Does it hurt?"

"Hmm?" Zhou Jinqin looked at him in confusion, not understanding what he was referring to for a moment.

Liang Minghe pointed to the short red bloodstain on her arm and said, "I saw it when I entered the ward, but I was afraid that if I told Xiang Ziqing, she would feel guilty, so I kept quiet and didn't ask."

When Zhou Jinqin came out of the ward, she was also depressed. She empathized with Xiang Ziqing and shared in the other's guilt, so Liang Minghe didn't ask.

Only now, thanks to the appearance of Gao and Bai, and Liang Zongqiang's financial contribution, and after Liang Minghe laid things out and confirmed that her mood had improved again, did he feel at ease enough to express the concern he hadn't had a chance to say.

Zhou Jinqin wrapped her arms around his waist, smiled, and shook her head: "It doesn't hurt."

"How brave you are," Liang Minghe whispered in her ear, praising her.

The tone was as if praising a courageous child, with a hint of undisguised teasing, which made Zhou Jinqin's ears turn red. She whispered, "Why does it feel like I'm coaxing a child?"

Liang Minghe laughed: "Warriors don't discriminate between big and small."

Zhou Jinqin laughed and said, "What if I say it hurts?"

"Then I'll try to cheer you up." Liang Minghe bent down and kissed her arm. "I'll buy you a cake tomorrow, will that make you feel better?"

"I'm in a good mood right now," Zhou Jinqin blinked playfully, "and I didn't shed a tear."

Liang Minghe, of course, understood that she was teasing him about how he had just been teary-eyed from the spiciness. Unlike before, he didn't feel ashamed or try to avoid the topic. Instead, he pressed on and asked, "Is that so? What happens to children who don't cry bravely?"

“It’s okay to shed tears. Wipe them away and stand up again. You’re still a warrior.” Zhou Jinqin said gently. “I will give a child like this a reward kiss.”

Liang Minghe pointed to himself and chuckled softly: "Okay, I admit that's the kind of kid I am."

"So? When will my kiss come?" His peach blossom eyes shone brightly.

Under the intense gaze, Zhou Jinqin blushed and tiptoed closer to the man in front of her. Just as their lips were about to touch, Zhou Jinqin suddenly turned her angle and kissed the corner of his lips.

Liang Minghe questioned her with a suspicious and dissatisfied look.

Zhou Jinqin said shyly, "I was wondering if my mouth would burn you?"

Because she didn't want to waste food, Zhou Jinqin ate the rest of the tofu pudding, and her mouth was still burning.

Liang Minghe held up the half-full cup of coconut water in his hand and smiled at her: "It's okay, I can still be saved."

The half-cup of anti-spiciness medicine was not urgently used. Wiping away tears again and again meant receiving a reward. Liang Minghe was happy to do this, and even once felt that spiciness was not something that was difficult to overcome.

The two returned to the hospital, where Xiang Ziqing had just finished her examination. As the doctor had said, there was nothing seriously wrong. He only advised her not to bump into anything or do any strenuous exercise for the next few days.

Xiang Ziqing nodded to indicate that it was no problem, since she was at a stage where she never had to lift a finger, so it wasn't difficult for her.

If we had to pinpoint a sport that involves vigorous activity in her current life, it would probably be the inability to engage in intense sexual activity with a man. However, this isn't a problem, since she has already broken up and is currently single.

Xiang Ziqing thanked the doctor and stood up to walk out of the room.

Liao Zhengqing followed behind: "Can you walk? Do you want me to carry you?"

“Nonsense,” Xiang Ziqing retorted, “I injured my hand, not my leg.”

Liao Zhengqing wasn't ashamed; he simply conceded and said, "Then I'll carry your bag for you."

Xiang Ziqing, basking in his attentions, took Zhou Jinqin's hand and headed towards the hospital parking lot.

Liao Zhengqing asked, "Minghe, can I ride in your car with you?"

Liang Minghe asked him, "Your school is nearby, right? Aren't you going back?"

Liao Zhengqing said earnestly, "I promised that I would serve Qingqing wholeheartedly until she gets better."

Liang Minghe didn't know if he was pretending to be stupid or just acting foolish. He glanced at him, said nothing, and let him follow him to the hotel.

Seeing that the man was about to get off the bus and go back to the hotel, Liang Minghe stopped him.

"Didn't you see the two girls together? Why did you go and join in?"

Liao Zhengqing suddenly asked, "Isn't Sister Jinqin your wife?"

Liang Minghe raised an eyebrow: "So?"

Liao Zhengqing asked earnestly, "Why didn't she go home with you?"

"..."

His tone was light and casual, and his expression was innocent, yet it seemed to hide a hint of sarcasm, as if he were mocking Liang Minghe for being a man who couldn't keep his wife's heart and soul.

Liang Minghe stared into his eyes and sneered, "What? You want to take advantage of this and climb into Xiang Ziqing's bed?"

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Author's note: It's okay to shed tears; wipe them away and stand up again—you're still a warrior. [Hugs]