Chapter 117
Hibiscus endured the bitter taste and drank the medicine in the bowl in one gulp, her brows immediately furrowing into small mountain peaks.
Zhou Lin gently popped a candied fruit into his mouth, and the bitterness in his mouth dissipated a little, allowing his brows to relax.
"How's it going at the vegetable garden?"
Zhou Lin said softly, "We found the man who did the bad thing and paid him five taels and five mace of silver."
Mu Jin's eyebrows curved slightly. "It's fortunate that I planted more vegetables in the yard, otherwise it really wouldn't be enough to send to town."
Zhou Lin's face darkened slightly. "You said it was just a vegetable patch being damaged, what a big deal, why did you get so angry that you fainted? It scared me to death."
Mu Jin smiled apologetically, "It's hard not to be angry to see our hard work ruined. It's just that my body is too fragile."
Zhou Lin gently stroked his slightly protruding belly. "You're not alone now, and you have to take care of our baby in your belly. I'll take care of things at home, so just focus on getting better."
Mu Jin leaned against Zhou Lin's chest and nodded gently. "How did you find that villain?"
Mu Zhaoye told Zhou Lin not to go to town today, but to stay home and keep Mu Jin company.
Therefore, Zhou Lin was not in a hurry and told Mu Jin in detail what had happened that morning.
Upon hearing that Zhou Wushi had also gotten involved, Mu Jin sighed softly.
There are usually various reasons why parents dislike their own children.
Like Mu Laoqi, whose mother ran away with someone else, making him unable to hold his head up in the village, and consequently disliking Mu Jin as well.
But Zhou Lin was the first son of Zhou Laosan and Zhou Wushi. Although he was a bit simple-minded, he was still their own flesh and blood, and they shouldn't treat him like this.
Thinking back to the storybooks I read with Mu Nianjun before I got married.
Mu Jin suddenly looked up. "A Lin, could you not be your parents' biological child? You might have originally been the child of a wealthy family in town. By chance, she and your mother had a child together. Your mother wanted her child to have a good life, so she secretly switched her child with her biological child. The fake young master lives a life of luxury in your real parents' house, while you are not treated well in your fake parents' house and can't even get enough to eat."
As Mu Jin spoke, her eyes lit up.
Zhou Lin sighed deeply and chuckled, "What nonsense! I am their biological son, their real biological son. My eyebrows and eyes are exactly the same as my father's. There's no faking it."
Mu Jin sighed, "Otherwise, I really can't understand why Mother treats you like this. Just thinking about it makes my heart ache."
Zhou Lin hugged him tightly, "The eldest brother of the Wang family who ruined our land, just like me, is not favored by his parents. Perhaps not all parents like their own children."
"So, how do you plan to treat your parents?"
Zhou Lin thought about it carefully, "It's hard to forget the kindness of those who gave me life. According to the family division agreement, when the time comes, I will give them the money they are entitled to support. But I can't give them anything else."
Anyone treated like this would be hard-pressed not to feel resentful, let alone Zhou Wu, whom Zhou Lin treated as his closest relative.
Mu Jin felt that this was still too much, but everything should be done step by step, and one cannot rush things.
Given Zhou Wu's ability to cause trouble, the faint blood ties that remain in Zhou Lin's heart will eventually be severed.
He reached out and patted his head, comforting him, "Don't be sad. You still have me and Xiaotaozi, as well as Zhaoran, Qiqiu, Si'er, Bai'er, Brother Nianjun, Brother Zhaoye, Brother Lingyun, Brother Musheng, Master, ... so many good friends by your side."
Zhou Lin smiled, his heart, which had been chilled by Zhou Wu's actions, began to warm slightly.
"Is Little Peach a good girl?"
Zhou Lin stroked Mu Jin's belly and asked softly.
Because Mu Jinxia loved peaches the most, the couple gave their unborn child the nickname "Little Peach".
"He was a little naughty just now, but he's much quieter now."
Zhou Lin gently scolded, "It's all because of you, your stepfather. You never listen to advice. I told you to stay at home, but you insisted on coming with me. We got all worked up, so Little Peach is bound to throw a tantrum."
After reflecting on her actions, Mu Jin said in a coquettish tone, "I know I was wrong. I won't run around anymore. Little Peach and Big Lin, please don't be angry with Little Mu Jin anymore."
Zhou Lin smiled slightly, "From now on, I'll take care of everything at home, so you don't need to worry anymore. Then Xiao Taozi and I won't be angry anymore."
Mu Jin smiled and said, "Alright, from now on, I'll be a hands-off manager and leave everything at home to you."
Zhou Lin smiled and nodded gently.
The couple's tender moment didn't last long before Mu Nianjun and Zhou Si, having received the news, rushed over. Seeing that Mu Jin was alright, they immediately gave him a lecture, just like Zhou Lin had.
“Now that you’re pregnant, you can’t afford to overwork yourself like this. Zhou Lin is here at home, so you should just focus on taking care of yourself. If you can’t even take care of the family, what’s the point of having a grown man like him?”
Good heavens, Mu Nianjun has taken his anger out on Zhou Lin as well.
Mu Jin said softly, "Brother Nianjun, I know I was wrong, and I will never dare to be stubborn again."
Mu Nianjun calmed down. "Is there anything else that's bothering you?"
Mu Jin shook her head. "Everything is fine."
The boys surrounding Mu Jin all breathed a sigh of relief.
Zhou Lin made room for them, then went out of the house and quickly went home to clean up the destroyed vegetable garden.
Mu Youyu and Lin Huzi felt extremely guilty. "Boss, it's our fault for not guarding the vegetable garden properly. We don't want this month's wages."
Zhou Lin put the bamboo poles aside and said, "Now that the matter is over, let's not say anything more. Just be more careful in the future. Have all the vegetables been sent to town?"
Mu Youyu and Lin Huzi nodded in unison, "It's been delivered; the shopkeeper received it personally."
Zhou Lin said, "That's good. The vegetables in your yard and the Qian family's yard can last for a while. Let's quickly clean up the vegetable garden and replant them."
Mu Youyu and Lin Huzi nodded emphatically, working with great enthusiasm, as if they wanted to channel all their guilt into their work.
When Mu Sheng and Mu Lingyun returned from town, they, along with Mu Zhaoye and Mu Heng, helped Zhou Lin tidy up the vegetable garden and replant the seeds.
Zhou Lin looked at Mu Sheng beside him and sighed. Her husband was right. He also had many close friends by his side.
My cold heart warmed up again as the bamboo fence was rebuilt.
This time, there will be no more sorrow because of the Zhou family.
In life, we should live for those who are worthy of our lives.
With the gloom in his heart dissipating, Zhou Lin called on Mu Sheng and the others to make a special trip to town to buy cold dishes and meat. They then spent the night at home, drinking and chatting.
After finishing his work in the vegetable garden, Zhou Lin soon returned from the hunter's house with a completely black puppy.
By all accounts, he is Night Owl's half-brother, named by Mu Lingqiao, Xuan Ying.
Mu Jin called out to Xiao Xuanying, laughing so hard her eyes disappeared. No one knew how many martial arts tales Mu Lingqiao had heard before giving the puppy such a name full of martial arts flavor.
The owl was sent home that day. Only a big dog could guard the house, so its younger brother, being too young, stayed behind.
The chubby little Xuan Ying looks a lot like Night Owl when he was a child, both being chubby and four-eyed puppies.
It barked loudly at the villagers passing by the door, not afraid of people at all, it was so cute.
After removing the work from the dye shop, Mu Jin was left with only making shoes and clothes, which made her much more idle.
Mu Youyu and Lin Huzi collected the ramie. After it was soaked and sorted, they sent it to Mu Nianjun to weave fine linen cloth.
At the dye shop, Bai Qiqiu didn't let him do heavy work; he mostly just sat and tinkered with clothes.
With nothing to do, Mu Jin thought about reading storybooks, but she couldn't bear to spend the money.
After much thought, he actually came up with a job that would allow him to earn money and read storybooks for free.
Once she had fully recovered, she begged Zhou Lin to take her to town.
After a long absence, Qingshui Town remained as bustling and prosperous as ever.
The rows of shops and the bustling crowds were both strange and familiar to Mu Jin.
The bookstore didn't open that early, so after delivering the vegetables, Zhou Lin took Mu Jin to the carpenter's shop first.
"Oh my, this must be my brother-in-law. He and Brother Lin are a perfect match."
"Brother Lin is so lucky to have married such a handsome man."
Zhou Lin is now very familiar with the carpenter in the shop, and after being teased a bit, he smiled.
“When Sister-in-law Cheng came, you said the same thing. You didn’t use any new words. It’s so unoriginal.”
Everyone burst into laughter.
Looking at Zhou Lin, whose eyes were smiling, Mu Jin felt that her husband was more vibrant than he was in the village.
Mu Heng sighed and said with a smile, "Jin-ge'er is one of the best young men in our village. He is excellent in both appearance and character. It is no exaggeration to say that Lin-xiaozi is lucky."
Mu Jin blushed slightly. "Master, please stop joking with me. I'm so embarrassed, it's really too embarrassing."
Zhou Lin smiled and replied, "Master is right."
Mu Jin glared at him, and seeing that Mu Jin was embarrassed and annoyed, everyone stopped teasing her and hurried to get on with their work for the day.
As the sun gradually rose, Mu Jin looked at the furniture catalog in the shop for a while, her eyes dazzled by the wide variety of items.
Some of the designs are so appealing that Mulan wants to buy a set.
Mu Zhaoye's trip to the capital was truly worthwhile; not long after the shop opened, a considerable number of people began to arrive.
Mu Jin helped entertain the group, and when the crowd thinned out, she told Zhou Lin and went to the bookstore.
Those browsing in the bookstore were mostly scholars dressed in long gowns, as well as young men and women wearing veils, all looking for their favorite stories.
"Sir, do you have any book titles you'd like to buy? I'll help you find them."
As soon as Mu Jin entered the shop, the shop assistant greeted her with a big smile.
Mu Jin asked gently, "Is your manager here?"
The waiter nodded and said, "Yes, yes, but what business do you have with our manager?"
Mu Jin smiled and asked, "Does your shop hire people to copy books?"
The waiter nodded. "Yes, we are recruiting. Is it your husband or someone else? The scholars here who copy books must first write a piece of calligraphy for the shopkeeper to see. Only if the calligraphy meets the shopkeeper's approval can it be accepted. Therefore, the person in question must come to answer the call."
Mu Jin smiled gently, "The person has already arrived, and that is me."
"You?" The shopkeeper was surprised. There weren't many literate young men in the town; most were sons and daughters of wealthy families, and naturally they looked down on the penniless copyists.
Because the shop assistant had been working at the bookstore for five or six years, Mu Jin was the first young man to come and copy books.
Mu Jin raised an eyebrow slightly. "I'm not good enough?"
The waiter quickly shook his head, "No, sir, please come with me, I'll take you to find our manager."
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