Chapter 4 I'll Back You Up

She stared quietly at the chicken soup in the center of the table.

The chicken soup, which had been simmering all afternoon, would have tasted best if eaten half an hour ago, but it got cold while waiting for Zhou Zhining.

Thinking about it again, since they haven't divorced yet, she and Zhan Xingzhuo are still one. They should talk about anything behind closed doors.

She hesitated for a moment, then picked up the bowl, brushed aside the layer of oil film on top of the chicken soup, and saw wisps of steam rising from the soup underneath.

She ladled a bowl of chicken soup and placed it in front of Zhou Zhining, saying calmly, "I had the kitchen specially prepare this for you. You need to nourish yourself so you can recover quickly."

Zhan Xingzhuo hadn't expected that the chicken soup was prepared by Yao Qingling for Zhou Zhining, which made his earlier words seem particularly harsh. He felt a little guilty: "I'm sorry, I was being petty."

Yao Qingling didn't even glance at him, only lowered her head to eat her own food.

Zhan Xingzhuo picked up his chopsticks and took a bite of shrimp, clearly intending to make it up to her.

Zhou Zhining, holding the soup bowl, watched the two of them, pursed her lips, and whispered, "Thank you for taking care of me, Qingling... Brother Xingzhuo, you're right, Qingling is generous and virtuous, you should treat her well."

Something seemed to stir in Zhan Xingzhuo's heart, and he frowned slightly, but he didn't say anything.

Tao Ye didn't give her a pleasant look; she almost couldn't help but roll her eyes.

Isn't it only natural for a son-in-law to treat his daughter well? Does she need to say it so explicitly, as if the son-in-law has to listen to her?

Being described as generous and virtuous is an insult to the young lady.

Yao Qingling glanced at Zhou Zhining and said calmly, "Xiao'er has been sleeping for a long time, I don't know if he's awake. I had someone cook some chicken porridge and keep it warm on the stove. But Xiao'er isn't used to being served by the people in the manor, so the young mistress has to take care of him."

This is to urge her to eat quickly and stop talking nonsense.

Dinner passed just like that.

Yao Qingling has a poor appetite and doesn't eat much.

She was in her room, holding a pen and ink, thinking carefully about the dowry she brought when she married into the Duke's mansion.

She remembered there was a list that specified the dowry and betrothal gifts for both parties.

But that list wasn't taken with it when they moved; it was left at the Duke's mansion.

Fortunately, it wasn't long, and after thinking about it carefully, it was still possible to distinguish her things from Zhan Xingzhuo's.

Taoye brought over a string of candied hawthorns, and Qingling put the paper away.

Tao Ye only saw what she was hiding and asked in confusion, "Miss, what are you doing?"

Qingling acted as if nothing was wrong, lazily sitting down: "It's nothing."

Feeling sorry for her mistress who had been upset again, Taoye handed her a candied hawthorn: "Miss, will eating this make you feel better?"

Yao Qingling smelled the sweet and sour aroma but didn't really want to eat it. She picked up the long stick and played with it, asking, "Where did this come from?"

Taoye said that people from the village had come to deliver some things, and they brought a child with them.

"...That child was cute, with a chubby face, and insisted on eating with me, saying that his grandfather made it."

Qingling teased her, "How can you even take children's things?"

Tao Ye glanced at her and hesitated before saying, "Miss, you should tell your husband about your pregnancy as soon as possible, so that he will take you seriously."

Yao Qingling held the candied hawthorn stick under her nose and sniffed it.

The combination of candied hawthorns and a child was clearly a ploy to coax her into vying for affection and favor.

Qingling smiled helplessly; it seemed that her mention of divorce had frightened the little girl.

Zhan Xingzhuo has arrived.

The air suddenly fell silent. Yao Qingling stopped laughing, returned the candied hawthorn to Tao Ye, and Tao Ye left anxiously.

Zhan Xingzhuo clearly saw Yao Qingling's smile disappear; it seemed that she rarely smiled when she was with him.

At least when she was with him, her smile was faint.

He remembered that she used to laugh a lot when they were first married.

Zhan Xingzhuo glanced at her: "Are you still angry?"

Yao Qingling sat calmly, looked up at him, and said calmly, "Zhou Zhining and her son have both gone to bed?"

Seeing that she was still relatively calm, Zhan Xingzhuo thought he was probably overthinking things. In his memory, Yao Qingling was a gentle and kind person.

"Hmm." He nodded, turned around, and took off his outer robe.

Minglu knocked on the door and brought in hot water.

Yao Qingling sat there without moving, showing no intention of helping him wash up.

Minglu glanced at her.

The lady and the master have a very good relationship. The lady is virtuous and always takes care of the master personally. Why is she not moving today?

Seeing that Yao Qingling still didn't move, Minglu finally realized that something was wrong and obediently took over serving her.

After washing up, Zhan Xingzhuo soaked his feet in his shoes and socks. He glanced at Yao Qingling, unsure whether she was throwing a tantrum or not.

Yao Qingling sat at the table, picked up a book to read, but her eyes were not on the pages; she glanced at the paper under the teapot out of the corner of her eye.

It was a tonic prescription that she hadn't had time to have Taoye fetch.

Angelica sinensis, Astragalus membranaceus, Atractylodes macrocephala, Ligusticum chuanxiong...

From Zhan Xingzhuo's perspective, he could only see Yao Qingling reading a book, with a piece of paper on the table, presumably something she had written down earlier.

He didn't pay much attention, thinking he should say something to her, so he took the initiative to say, "What book are you reading? Let me see."

Yao Qingling didn't answer him, but instead told Minglu to go out.

She put down her book and immediately saw Zhan Xingzhuo's face.

But she didn't want to look at his face at that moment, so she lowered her gaze and placed it on his feet.

His skin was fair, his feet were narrow, his insteps were thin, and his veins were bulging. A layer of water rippled on his feet, and the veins looked like swimming snakes.

She remembered that on their first night of marriage, she noticed the blue veins on his feet and curiously poked and pressed them, laughing and saying, "How can a person's feet look like that?"

He asked her in return what the man's feet should look like.

Yao Qingling shook her head and said that everyone was wearing shoes, so how would she know?

These few words brought back some of the youthful energy from the mature and steady man, and Qingling also lost her fear of her unfamiliar husband, thus closing the distance between them.

After that, the couple got along comfortably and their relationship grew stronger.

When Qingling was in the Marquis's mansion, her two aunts favored their own children more. Her allowance was reduced, her cousins ​​took her things, and when they quarreled, no one spoke up for her.

On the day she returned to her parents' home, she wore a jade pendant given to her by her mother-in-law. Her cousin saw it, liked it, and took it off without asking any questions.

Upon learning this, Zhan Xingzhuo retrieved the jade pendant.

He said, "Qingling, I am your husband, we are family. With me protecting you, you don't need to be afraid of anything. Just be fierce with them, I will back you up."

He also gave her all his salary to manage.

She was good to him too. He worked hard in the government office, and she was willing to serve him and support their little family.

The good times back then made Yao Qingling believe that the best couples should be like them, harmonious and inseparable, loving each other like mandarin ducks.

Until she first saw Zhou Zhining, who was covered in blood...

Yao Qingling quietly looked at the man's feet, recalling the joy of their first year of marriage, and then the two years after Zhou Zhining and her son appeared.

She felt that her marriage was like someone soaking in a bathtub in winter.

I didn't want to get into that bathtub; I was afraid of getting cold.

Once inside, soaking in the warm water, I found the bath to be wonderful.

But the bathwater got cold, and she thought of getting out. Someone poured a spoonful of hot water into it, making her feel that the bathtub was warmer than outside.

But this constant back and forth, without you even realizing it, leaves you exhausted, drained, and unable to get up.

Yao Qingling didn't want things to continue like this.

She didn't want to end up freezing to death in this cold.

Yao Qingling remained silent for a long time.

Seeing that she was just lost in thought, Zhan Xingzhuo raised his voice and asked, "What are you thinking about?"

Yao Qingling slowly began, "Today, the steward of the estate brought some spring vegetables, and I heard that a little boy, about the same age as Xiao'er, also came along. He's very lively."

Zhan Xingzhuo paused slightly, his brow furrowing: "You want Zhi Ning to live in the manor?"

Yao Qingling looked at the wrinkles between his brows.

See? He acts like this whenever Zhou Zhining is involved.

"It's quiet there, suitable for recuperating. The Wang family can't find it. The couple doesn't get along, and Xiao'er has been in that kind of environment for many years, which has made him timid and reserved. When I saw that child today, he seemed frightened, shrinking back when he saw people. Perhaps if he plays with children of similar age, his personality can be corrected."

"Besides..." Qing Ling paused, glancing at Zhan Xingzhuo, "outsiders won't see Mrs. Wang coming and going in our house, which will reduce a lot of gossip."

Zhan Xingzhuo's face darkened: "What nonsense. Zhi Ning is my sworn sister. She was bullied, and I didn't see them do anything about it."

Qingling pursed her lips, inwardly scoffing.

She said so much, but he only cared about the words "gossip"?

The words "sworn sister" stirred up waves in her calm heart.