He raised his hand to wipe the sweat from his forehead, a barely perceptible complex emotion flashing deep in his eyes.
It was no coincidence that it appeared so promptly.
He had already noticed Su Wanting from a distance as she walked toward the work site with that seemingly friendly but actually calculating smile on her face.
Almost simultaneously, he clearly heard Zi Xi's inner wariness and complaints about Su Wanting's persistent haunting and her desire to see him make a fool of himself.
At that moment, an inexplicable intuition led him over.
Pei Jiwang couldn't stand by and watch his wife be publicly humiliated by someone as insignificant as Su Wanting.
But it was only out of a sense of responsibility.
He told himself that.
But when he saw her with her head down, staring at the dirty toes of her shoes, looking like a little cat caught in the rain with nowhere to go, suppressing her grievances and embarrassment.
When he heard that helpless, questioning cry from her heart, his steps quickened.
And at this moment, I hear the confused thoughts that filled my heart as she left.
Pei Jiwang realized that a small pebble had been thrown into the cold, hard lake of his heart.
It seems that protecting her is not just out of a sense of duty.
Feeling sorry for her is a feeling that feels very unfamiliar to me.
He frowned, forcibly suppressing this unfamiliar feeling, and refocused his attention on the work at hand.
But even in the brief moments between swinging the shovel, his gaze would still unconsciously drift towards the direction she had left in.
On Saturday morning, the sky was a clear blue, and the sea breeze was gentler than usual.
Pei Jiwang pushed an old bicycle issued by the division headquarters, which made noise everywhere except for the bell, and parked it in front of his house.
"Go to the supply and marketing cooperative and buy some daily necessities."
He spoke to Zixi, who was standing at the doorway, trying to tidy her hair which had been ruffled by the sea breeze in front of a small mirror.
Zi Xi put down the mirror, her eyes flashing almost imperceptibly.
[A supply and marketing cooperative? Finally, I can see what the island's commercial center looks like!]
[I hope there's face cream and soap, and preferably toilet paper too! That rough toilet paper is torture for the skin!]
Zi Xi was still wearing a skirt today, but she changed into a beige knee-length dress, which made her look a bit more refreshing.
However, the pair of slightly worn leather shoes on his feet still looked out of place against the surrounding sandy ground.
"Um."
She responded softly and walked to the back seat of the bicycle, then hesitated for a moment looking at the bare metal seat.
Seeing how afraid she was of getting her dress dirty or uncomfortable, Pei Jiwang silently took an old military jacket from the military green satchel hanging on the handlebars, folded it a few times, and placed it on the back seat.
"Thanks."
Zi Xi thanked him softly before carefully sitting down.
He gripped the edge of the cushion tightly with both hands, trying to avoid any physical contact with Pei Jiwang.
Pei Jiwang pushed off with his foot, and the bicycle creaked and groaned as it wobbled onto the road.
The roads on the island are uneven, making the bicycle ride very bumpy.
Zi Xi was tossed about and turned, inwardly groaning in pain.
[This road and this bike! My bones are going to fall apart again! Can't Lao Pei ride a little more steadily?!]
[And this wind has messed up my hair! I should have worn a hat!]
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com