"Aunt Chu, what did you give me to drink when I woke up last night? How come I slept so soundly?"
Zhou Jiuzhen frowned as he looked at Chu Mei, already guessing what was going on. "You drugged me with sleeping pills just to torment my wife first thing in the morning, didn't you?"
He usually has a habit of waking up in the middle of the night to cover Ling Huanwu with a blanket.
Ling Huanwu is a restless sleeper. She often asks him to hold her before bed, and after falling asleep, she likes to toss and turn and kick off the blankets.
Therefore, after he discovered this, he would often wake up in the middle of the night to cover her with a blanket.
Last night, when he was covering Ling Huanwu with a blanket, Chu Mei caught him red-handed.
Chu Mei didn't say anything, but got out of bed to pour him a glass of water, told him to go to bed early, and then turned over to sleep.
To everyone's surprise, he, who usually wakes up at five o'clock, slept like a log today, sleeping until six o'clock.
This is something that would never happen even if I were extremely tired on a normal day.
Therefore, Zhou Jiuzhen naturally thought of that glass of water.
The thought of his wife, whom he usually wouldn't even let get up early to cook, being tormented by his mother who had suddenly appeared out of nowhere, made his eyes blaze with anger.
Seeing his appearance, Chu Mei panicked completely. "Mother was just worried that you hadn't slept well and wanted you to sleep a little longer. Cooking is a woman's job..."
"Shut up!"
Zhou Jiuzhen shouted loudly, instantly creating ripples on the surface of a calm lake, like a pebble thrown into it.
Those who had just woken up in the family compound peeked out to see what was going on.
Zhou Jiuzhen entered the house, picked up Chu Mei's bags and threw them on the ground. "You get out of here right now. She's my own wife. I usually feed her myself. Why do you expect her to get up before dawn to cook?"
"Also, whether we have children or not is none of those people who gossip all the time, and it's none of your business either!"
Zhou Jiuzhen's words were not only for Chu Mei's ears, but also for the aunties in the family compound present.
The implication was that whether or not the couple had children was none of his mother's business, let alone theirs.
The aunties around them who usually joked about the couple's bedroom affairs all looked disgusted and shrank back.
Chu Mei clutched her chest, staring at the luggage on the ground, swaying precariously.
She had only been living with her son and daughter-in-law for one day when her son kicked her out.
If her relatives and friends found out, where would she put her face?
Chu Mei looked as if she had suffered a great injustice, and sat down on her luggage, covering her face and sobbing.
They looked as pitiful as could be.
Ling Huanwu took a deep breath, tugged at Zhou Jiuzhen, and advised him, "Forget it, you should still go to the army. Your father will come looking for you again later..."
But Zhou Jiuzhen's eyes were red as he gripped her hand tightly, as if afraid she would run away. "No, Aunt Chu, even if you were my own mother, I don't remember you, so I can't be close to you. In my memory, the most important people to me are Huanwu and my mother. Now that my mother is dead, the most important person in my life is only Huanwu. If you drive her away, I will never acknowledge you even if I die!"
These harsh words shocked all the aunties around them beyond belief.
Which daughter-in-law hasn't been mistreated by her mother-in-law? A better husband might say a few nice words for his wife, but Zhou Jiuzhen is the first person to say he doesn't recognize his parents.
Moreover, his father is Zhao Tingguo, a powerful figure whom everyone respects and fears. How could he bear to deny it?
Just as Ling Huanwu was moved to tears, a sound of a cane tapping the ground came from behind her, accompanied by an old man's aged voice, "Jiuzhen, how can you treat your own mother like this? Apologize to your mother right now!"
Ling Huanwu turned around in surprise, only to see a familiar figure supporting an elderly woman with white hair as she slowly walked towards them.
Ling Huanwu looked closely and realized that the familiar figure was none other than Su Haiting.
She had previously heard Zhou Jiuzhen say that Su Haiting had been detained for a few days for spreading rumors about her back then, but was released afterward.
Because someone vouched for him, he was later transferred to work in the logistics department of the military unit in the city.
Later, for reasons unknown, he was transferred to work in the logistics department of an island military unit.
Ling Huanwu had never seen her before, so why did she bring an old man to the family compound today?
She turned to look at Zhou Jiuzhen, about to ask him a question, but seeing that Zhou Jiuzhen's face, which had just been furious, had changed, she quickly and respectfully went up to support her, her voice instantly turning into a docile puppy, "Grandma, why are you here? Why aren't you staying in the army?"
Grandma Su patted his hand, her expression softening considerably, but she still criticized him sternly, "You brat, how could you scold your own mother for your wife's sake?"
As the old man spoke, his cloudy eyes glanced at Ling Huanwu, his gaze filled with disapproval.
It's as if she's being scolded for being a troublemaker, causing her husband and mother to fall out.
Zhou Jiuzhen did not refute, but simply lowered his head and invited the old woman into the house, saying, "Yes, yes, Grandma, you're right. I was just in a hurry just now, and I won't do it again."
Ling Huanwu stared wide-eyed, wishing she could bore holes through Zhou Jiuzhen's entire body with her gaze.
It's hard to imagine that he, who just a moment ago kept saying he couldn't let anyone drive his wife away, is now so lazy that he doesn't even bother to look at her and invites the old lady into the house.
As she entered the room, Su Haiting deliberately bumped into her, giving her a provocative look as if to show off, "See? Men's words are completely unreliable!"
Seeing that someone was backing her up, and that Zhou Jiuzhen seemed to respect this person, Chu Mei quickly wiped away her tears, got up, and deliberately pulled the old lady aside to ask her about her well-being.
"Sister, is this your granddaughter? She's so pretty."
The old lady smiled, her face crinkling with wrinkles. Looking at Su Haiting, who was blushing shyly beside her, she sighed and said, "It's a pity that your Jiuzhen doesn't like our dignified granddaughter, but prefers those seductive girls..."
The old lady didn't finish her sentence, but Ling Huanwu, who was following behind Zhou Jiuzhen, understood it.
The old lady meant that she, as a legitimate wife, was not as proper and cultured as her granddaughter who coveted another woman's husband!
Ling Huanwu glared at Zhou Jiuzhen, only to find that the man who had just been defending her was now standing silently beside the old lady, his lips tightly pressed together.
"Jiuzhen, I'm going to the cooperative!"
She deliberately called out to him through gritted teeth.
He simply grunted an "Mmm" and, without turning his head, helped the old lady into the house.
Ling Huanwu watched the four of them chatting and laughing, while she felt like an outsider, as if she had been doused with a bucket of cold water, her hands and feet turning ice cold.
She bit her lip, turned and walked away, cursing Zhou Jiuzhen from head to toe in her heart.
Inside the house.
Grandma Su sat upright in the room, looked around, and sighed, "Jiuzhen, your daughter-in-law is too lazy. Look at the mess in this room."
With just a glance from her, Su Haiting immediately understood and busied herself tidying up the house.
Zhou Jiuzhen sat silently, his eyes glancing at the direction Ling Huanwu had left outside, his heart filled with unease.
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