"The ancients said that bad people come from poor and remote places, but Miss Yan is still alive and well, isn't she?" Qiao Zhen retorted without holding back. Pan Zhao had made her angry, but at least he was a mission target. Who was Yan Rupu? How dare she try to sow discord between Pan Zhao and her?
Yan Rupu was not to be outdone. She and Yan Ruyu had been arguing since childhood, and she had never been afraid of anyone when it came to verbal sparring. "That's only because the brave man and his wife are kind-hearted. But in the army, it's all about fists. Where would you find someone as reasonable as the brave man and his wife?"
“Wouldn’t it be better to let the fists do the talking?” Qiao Zhen pointed to the crack on the table. “That way, my husband will definitely not be bullied in the army.”
Yan Rupu was speechless at Qiao Zhen's words.
Pan Zhao then agreed, saying, "Alright, I'll listen to my wife. I'll wait for General Ge to come here to recruit soldiers in a few days."
Yan Rupu was somewhat hostile towards Qiao Zhen in the following days, after all, Qiao Zhen was a stumbling block for her to win over Pan Zhao.
But how could Pan Zhao stand by and watch others bully his wife, especially since she had returned from a wrong path? He cherished her dearly. So, Pan Zhao had been rather rough with Yan Rupu these past few days, no longer caring about his food and eating heartily.
Qiao Zhen didn't care anyway. She and Pan Zhao were husband and wife, and they had done everything they were supposed to do. So, it wasn't something she was against to lick each other's saliva.
But Yan Rupu is different. She is a concubine's daughter from a noble family. Although her status is not as high as that of the legitimate daughter, she is still a mistress. She is always the one who is accommodated by others. When has she ever needed to accommodate others?
However, Yan Rupu was unfamiliar with the place and it was a poor and remote area. As Qiao Zhen said, "poor mountains and bad waters breed wicked people." In such a place, Yan Rupu could easily be kidnapped by poor families and made their wives. For safety reasons, it was better for Yan Rupu to stay here.
However, because of Pan Zhao's rude behavior, Yan Rupu has not eaten well for several days. Every time she picks up her chopsticks, Pan Zhao licks the chopsticks and then sticks them into the bowl to pick up food.
Every time Qiao Zhen saw Yan Rupu's expression of wanting to vomit but not daring to, she felt relieved and comfortable.
"What are you looking at!" Pan Zhao glared at Qiao Zhen, looking fierce and menacing. He accidentally spilled some soup when he slammed his hand on the table. "Eat so slowly!"
Qiao Zhen had figured out his personality over the past few days. Although he was rude and fierce towards her, and even cursed at her, he had never physically harmed or mistreated her. "Oh."
Hearing Qiao Zhen's perfunctory reply, Pan Zhao felt a small flame of anger flare up inside him again. "All talk and no action! What do you mean?! Are you stupid? Don't you know that you can eat meat or vegetables?!"
Qiao Zhen listened to his merciless reprimand, and her face turned somewhat ugly. After all, Yan Rupu was still there. It was a shameful thing for a girl to lose face in front of other girls, especially in front of girls with whom she had a conflict. But Qiao Zhen still chose to obediently listen. She held the bowl with both hands, looked pitiful, and said in a soft voice, "I will eat properly."
Yan Rupu felt nauseous when she saw Qiao Zhen's ugly face pretending to be weak.
Pan Zhao merely snorted softly, letting Qiao Zhen off the hook. His eyes kept glancing at Qiao Zhen, as if something inside him had been stirred, and his heart began to pound. He thought Qiao Zhen, who was eating obediently with her head down, looked so beautiful.
A few days later, General Ge's subordinates came to Xuecun to recruit soldiers, and Pan Zhao packed his things and went with them.
He was very reluctant to part with Qiao Zhen. In his previous life, he was heartbroken by the original owner, Wu Zhen. In this life, he had finally felt the warmth between husband and wife. However, he still stubbornly said in a gruff voice, "Don't miss me while I'm not home! I'll have someone send you money every month! Buy whatever you like! Don't worry about saving money for me!"
Qiao Zhen looked at the big, silly guy in front of her who was saying one thing but meaning another, and she looked at him as if she was reluctant to let him go.
Sure enough, Pan Zhao exploded again, "I told you not to think about me! What are you doing! If you don't listen to me, I'll beat you up!" After he finished speaking, he saw Qiao Zhen's teary eyes and realized that he seemed to have been too fierce. He softened his voice, "Then think about me sometimes, and don't cry."
Qiao Zhen wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes and watched Pan Zhao leave with reluctance. She watched Pan Zhao's tall figure recede into the distance, and he still exuded a very low mood. She could vaguely see his tail dragging on the ground behind him.
In the simple courtyard, only Qiao Zhen and Yan Rupu remained. Yan Rupu happened to see Qiao Zhen's double-sided embroidery, and a thought suddenly struck her. Pan Zhao had joined General Ge's camp because of his wife, but what if she could control Pan Zhao's wife? Would she still be afraid that he would defect to their Yan family?
“Madam, your embroidery is truly exquisite. Now that the brave men have gone to join the army, it is only right and proper for me to repay their kindness. Why don’t you come and work as an embroiderer in my household? I can earn an ounce of silver for embroidering a few handkerchiefs, and since yours are double-sided, each handkerchief will be worth several ounces.”
Qiao Zhen's eyes lit up at first, revealing her greed, but she hesitated and backed away, saying, "No, I have to wait here for my husband to come back."
Yan Rupu was clearly getting impatient. "Then I ask that you, Madam, pay close attention to the affairs of the village these days. We will discuss this further when my brother comes to me."
Yan Rupu and Qiao Zhen continued their feigned politeness for a few more days. Then Yan Rupu's elder brother, Yan Rujue, came looking for her. As if someone was backing her up, Yan Rupu revealed her disgust and said, "Brother, I want this embroiderer to come back with me."
Qiao Zhen was a little flustered. She quickly waved her hand and looked at Yan Rujue, "No, young master, I still need to wait here for my husband to come back."
Yan Rupu pulled Yan Rujue aside and whispered, "Brother, her husband went to join the army and joined the Ge family's camp. But her husband is incredibly strong. If he can be used by us, he will definitely be a fierce general."
Yan Rujue asked, "Really?"
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