When Ning Huaizhi heard Xu Qianqian say this, he could understand her difficulties. After all, he had always been the unloved eldest child at home since he was a child. He had to do all the dirty and tiring work at home, but his mother still didn't care about him and always favored his second brother and third sister. Only he knew the bitterness in this.
Seeing the look of pity on Ning Huaizhi's face, Xu Qianqian pressed her advantage and said:
"If only I could earn money like my sister-in-law, I could earn some to help support the family. I suppose my brothers and sisters-in-law wouldn't make things too difficult for me if they saw that I could earn money. Nowadays, everyone knows I'm a widow, my reputation is already bad, and my family looks down on me..."
As Xu Qianqian spoke, she began to wipe away her tears with her sleeve.
Seeing this, Ning Huaizhi quickly handed over his handkerchief, intending to wipe away her tears, but then remembered the difference between men and women, so he simply stuffed the handkerchief into Xu Qianqian's hand.
Xu Qianqian took Ning Huaizhi's handkerchief, wiped her tears haphazardly, and said with a smile:
“Brother Huaizhi, look at me, I’m still the same as when I was a child, always crying. I’ve dirtied your handkerchief again. I’ll return it to you after I wash it clean.”
As he spoke, he immediately put the handkerchief into his bosom.
Ning Huaizhi wanted to refuse, but seeing Xu Qianqian's red and swollen eyes, he didn't dare to say anything else, afraid of upsetting her to cry again.
Seeing that Ning Huaizhi remained silent, Xu Qianqian continued to look at him with red eyes:
“Brother Huaizhi, I heard from my mother that my sister-in-law always takes Ningqiu to the market to sell food and pays her wages. I didn’t believe it at first, but after tasting my sister-in-law’s cooking today, I really admire her for being able to go out and earn money as a woman.”
Ning Huaizhi frowned, looked at Xu Qianqian, and said coldly:
“Now that my leg is injured like this, if your sister-in-law doesn’t go out to earn money, this family will probably not be able to make ends meet. If it weren’t for your sister-in-law, we wouldn’t be able to build this brick house. It’s my fault for being incompetent and making your sister-in-law suffer with me. If she could, which woman wouldn’t want to stay at home to be a good wife and mother? You should understand this. Your sister-in-law has done many things that other women can’t do, so it’s only right that you admire her.”
Xu Qianqian stared at Ning Huaizhi in shock, stunned for a long while. Normally, Brother Huaizhi wouldn't say so much to her in one breath, but now, after she had only said one thing about Jiang Yuwei, he had ten sentences defending her. Sure enough, she had returned to the village too late, allowing that bitch Jiang Yuwei to gain the upper hand.
Xu Qianqian stopped crying at this point, and just smiled as she washed the dishes:
“I know, Brother Huaizhi, you’re suffering. I was thinking that if my sister-in-law can go out and earn money, then so can I. I originally wanted to talk to her about this myself, but I saw that she doesn’t like me very much, so I thought I’d ask you to talk to her for me and take me to the market to sell goods. I can work, unlike Ningqiu, who is an unmarried girl and has never done any work at home. She would be too embarrassed to go out and sell goods. I’m different.”
Xu Qianqian gave a bitter smile as she said this:
“I’m a widow, and I don’t care about saving face. I’ve been hardworking since I was a child, as you know, Brother Huaizhi. Please talk to my sister-in-law for me. I think if you ask, she will definitely agree.”
Looking at Xu Qianqian, Ning Huaizhi felt a pang of sympathy for her. He thought that Jiang Yuwei would need help selling goods at the market, and he figured he could talk to her about it and she would agree.
Thinking this, Ning Huaizhi nodded to Xu Qianqian:
"Alright, I'll talk to your sister-in-law about this. If it's alright, you can go to the market with her next time."
Seeing that Ning Huaizhi had agreed to the matter, Xu Qianqian felt reassured and kept thanking him. After cleaning up the dishes in the yard, she went home to do chores.
Seeing that Xu Qianqian had left, Ning Huaizhi went inside. Seeing that Jiang Yuwei still treated him with the same indifference, he couldn't help but speak up:
"Yuwei, what's wrong with you these past few days? Did I do something wrong?"
Jiang Yuwei glanced at Ning Huaizhi and said coldly:
"Nothing much, your childhood sweetheart just left?"
Ning Huaizhi didn't quite understand Jiang Yuwei's words, so he frowned and said:
"What childhood sweetheart? You seem to be in a bad mood these past few days."
Jiang Yuwei was unwilling to talk to Ning Huaizhi at this moment. As soon as she saw Ning Huaizhi's face, she thought of how he smiled at Xu Qianqian in the courtyard, so she turned her head to the side and continued to do what she was doing.
Seeing this, Ning Huaizhi immediately grabbed Jiang Yuwei's hand and looked at her affectionately:
“Yuwei, no matter what the reason is, I really don’t want you to be sad. If it’s because of me, you must tell me, otherwise I really don’t know where I went wrong. I have seen and remembered all the sacrifices you have made for me, for the children, and for this family. Although I don’t say it, I have already accepted you in my heart. I am really glad that I was able to marry such a good wife as you.”
When Jiang Yuwei heard Ning Huaizhi confide in her like this, she felt extremely wronged, and tears streamed down her face uncontrollably.
Seeing this, Ning Huaizhi quickly put his arm around Jiang Yuwei's shoulder, letting her rest her head on his shoulder, and asked anxiously:
"Yuwei, what's wrong? You have to say it. Don't keep it to yourself. I'm afraid you'll get sick from holding it in."
Jiang Yuwei could no longer hold back her tears. She thought Ning Huaizhi had never cared about her, that everything she had done was just self-pity, that she could never warm Ning Huaizhi's heart, that...
Jiang Yuwei leaned on Ning Huaizhi's shoulder and cried for a long time, letting out all the grievances she had felt over the past few days. She felt much better and suddenly started laughing.
Ning Huaizhi was at a loss for words when he saw Jiang Yuwei crying and laughing at the same time. He was about to take out his handkerchief to wipe Jiang Yuwei's tears, but then he remembered that he had given his handkerchief to Xu Qianqian. So he simply used his sleeve to wipe Jiang Yuwei's tears instead.
Seeing this, Jiang Yuwei quickly covered herself with her hand and laughed:
"You're so silly, your tears are dirty, don't wipe them with your sleeve."
When Ning Huaizhi saw Jiang Yuwei finally smile, he also smiled.
"I don't mind that my wife is dirty."
Jiang Yuwei glared at Ning Huaizhi and said reproachfully:
"Why do you never call me 'wife' in front of outsiders? You always call me Yuwei, Yuwei."
Ning Huaizhi laughed and said:
“You didn’t call me husband either. In front of outsiders, I… I’m embarrassed to call you wife.”
Jiang Yuwei was amused again by Ning Huaizhi's blushing face.
Seeing that Jiang Yuwei seemed to be in a good mood, Ning Huaizhi lowered his head, blushed, and whispered:
"Wife, I... I have something to tell you today."
Jiang Yuwei looked at Ning Huaizhi in front of her and said with a smile:
"What is it? Just tell me."
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