Chapter 92 A Night of Inhumanity
Xia Qianqian felt the probing gazes around her, glared at Lu Zheng reproachfully, and muttered softly, "Let's hurry home."
As she spoke, she shoved the medicine bag in her arms into Lu Zheng's arms and turned to run away.
But before she could take even half a step, Lu Zheng was faster. He spun around, his long arms like iron hoops gently encircling her shoulders, pulling her into his embrace, which carried a faint scent of soap.
Xia Qianqian could almost hear the low gasps and whispers from the surrounding crowd. She felt a sudden urge to break free from his embrace.
With a soft "thud," the back of her head slammed solidly into Lu Zheng's chin.
"Ouch—it hurts so much..." Xia Qianqian's eyes instantly reddened with pain, tears welling up in them, looking pitiful.
Lu Zheng groaned softly from the impact, but he didn't care about himself and asked anxiously, "Does it hurt?"
His large hand covered the back of her head, his fingertips calloused as he gently massaged it.
Xia Qianqian pushed his hand away as if she had been burned, her cheeks flushed, and she scolded in a low voice, "Stay away from me! Can't you see all those people are watching?"
"What did you say?" Upon hearing this, Lu Zheng raised an eyebrow, first glancing back at the passersby who were still secretly peeking, then turning back to look at Xia Qianqian with a deep gaze.
A hint of danger flickered in his eyes. "You're my wife. It's only natural for me to cherish you and touch you. Or... are you unwilling?"
Huh!
What's wrong with this man? Did all that shyness and timidity he had before go to waste? Now that he's tasted a little success, he dares to barge in and act all high and mighty?
If you say something wrong, she starts to get angry and gives you the cold shoulder. Is that what she calls being jealous?
If it weren't for the many onlookers around, Xia Qianqian would have loved to roll her eyes at him. She thought to herself: Just wait, when we get home I'll settle the score with you. If I don't tame you in bed, you won't know who's the head of the household.
Although she thought this in her heart, she still maintained that gentle and obedient appearance on her face, gently clutching Lu Zheng's clothes and saying in a coquettish voice, "How could I not want to? It's just... I just don't want people to gossip about me behind my back."
She secretly glanced at him, and seeing that Lu Zheng's expression hadn't softened, she quickly added, drawing out the last syllable: "Why are you being so mean to me today? Don't you love me anymore even though you haven't married me yet?"
As she spoke, she secretly glanced at him, looking aggrieved and on the verge of tears.
"Where did you learn all this nonsense?" Lu Zheng was speechless after being shut down by her retort. He reached out and ruffled her hair, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. If he let her continue, who knows what kind of earth-shattering drama she might come up with.
"Hmph, that's more like it." Xia Qianqian snorted and walked home with Lu Zheng.
When she got home, she found out that Lu Zheng had been waiting for her outside for two whole hours. Lu's mother kept saying, "Qianqian, you can't go on a long trip by yourself again next time. We were so worried when we couldn't wait for you at home. Luckily, Lu Zheng went to several villages to pick you up, otherwise what would we have done?"
Xia Qianqian then realized that Lu Zheng had been waiting for her outside for two whole hours and had even traveled to several villages.
These villages may look close together, but if you were to walk through them one by one, it would take several miles.
She looked at Lu Zheng with concern. Lu's mother then asked worriedly, "What happened to you on the way?"
Xia Qianqian quickly explained, "Mom, don't worry. I stopped being the village's barefoot doctor, and since our village is short of medical care and medicine, I went to the county pharmacy to buy extra commonly used medicines to keep on hand. But there were so many people queuing at the pharmacy today, which took a while, so I came back late."
She didn't want to tell Lu's mother about going to the black market to subdue Zhang San, lest the old woman worry.
Hearing Xia Qianqian say this, Lu's mother finally felt relieved and patted the back of her hand: "Next time, when it comes to running errands to buy medicine, you should take Daya with you. Having someone to lend a hand will be faster than doing it all by yourself."
"I understand, Mom," Xia Qianqian replied readily. "I promise I won't let you worry anymore."
At this moment, Daya and Erya had already set the food on the table. Only then did Xia Qianqian realize that she had forgotten to take out the eggs and grains to offer to her mother-in-law.
She quickly said to Lu's mother, "Mom, I forgot something. Aiqin came to see me before and brought some things, which I have been keeping under the bed and forgot to take out."
After saying that, she turned and went into the room. With a thought, she entered Peach Blossom Spring and came out with a full basket of eggs and several pounds of rice that Zhang San had just husked.
"Oh my, how come there's so much?" Mother Lu looked at the eggs and rice on the table, her mouth agape in surprise. Da Ya and Er Ya, standing beside her, also stared wide-eyed.
She didn't want to tell Lu's mother about going to the black market to subdue Zhang San, lest the old lady worry.
Hearing Xia Qianqian say this, Lu's mother was relieved and scolded, "Next time, take Daya with you when you run errands. It's much faster to have someone help you than to do it alone."
"I understand, Mom. I promise I won't let you worry anymore," Xia Qianqian replied readily, secretly relieved.
At this moment, Daya and Erya had already set the food on the table, and Xia Qianqian then remembered that she had forgotten to take out the eggs and grains for her mother-in-law.
She quickly said to Lu's mother, "Mom, I forgot something! Aiqin and the others came to see me before and brought some things, which are still under my bed." After saying that, she turned around and ran to the back room. Once inside, she had a sudden thought and went to Peach Blossom Spring, where she filled a basket with eggs and several pounds of rice that Zhang San had just husked.
"Oh my, how come there's so much?" Lu's mother was so surprised that she couldn't close her mouth when she saw the eggs and white rice that suddenly appeared on the table. Da Ya and Er Ya also stared wide-eyed.
Xia Qianqian could only continue making things up: "Aiqin has a distant relative who came to visit her last time and brought a lot of things. She couldn't finish them all, so she sent some over to me."
Lu's mother nodded, but still couldn't help but grumble, "You child, they must have given this to you because you're getting married soon. These days, everyone is short of food and clothing, so there's no such thing as not having enough to eat."
Seeing that her mother-in-law believed her, Xia Qianqian secretly smiled. It seemed that she could use this excuse to add some food to the family next time.
She quickly changed the subject: "Mom, please keep these and give them to the children to help them recover."
Lu's mother smiled and agreed, then urged everyone to eat quickly.
After dinner, Xia Qianqian took out the elementary school textbooks she had bought and began teaching Daya and Erya to recognize characters. It wasn't until late at night, when Xia Qianqian checked the time, that she let the two children go home to rest.
After washing herself up, she sat under the lamp and waited for Lu Zheng.
Lu Zheng had no idea about Xia Qianqian's little thoughts about him. As usual, he finished washing up and went into the room. He sat on the edge of the bed and said softly, "Go to sleep early. We're getting married the day after tomorrow, and we have a lot to do tomorrow."
Xia Qianqian suddenly moved.
She stood up and sat steadily on his lap. Before Lu Zheng could react, she braced her hands on his chest and pushed him off the bed with a forceful push of her waist.
Before Lu Zheng could react, Xia Qianqian's slender hands gripped his wrists tightly, lifted them above her head, and pressed them onto the bed.
Lu Zheng's pupils contracted sharply. This posture... was far too intimate, far too inverted. He, a grown man, was acting like a young wife being "molested"!
All the blood in her body rushed to her head, and her face flushed crimson from her cheeks to her ears and neck, making her breathing a little rapid.
"You... let go."
"I won't let go," Xia Qianqian smiled slyly and triumphantly. Instead of letting go, she pressed her knee down on his thigh even harder.
Beneath the soft fabric was the warm touch of skin against skin, which made Lu Zheng's mind wander again.
The air in the room seemed to instantly become thick and ambiguous. Lu Zheng's Adam's apple bobbed, and he finally decided to give up on being human!
With a slight movement, he broke free from Xia Qianqian's control, turning defense into offense. Under the dim light of the oil lamp, their figures intertwined once more.
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