Chapter 4: The "Irritable" Wife Knows How to Show Affection (4)

Yun Zimu, who had been lying obediently on the bed, grew worried as the sky outside began to darken and there was still no sign of Su Qiruo returning.

He wasn't worried that something had happened to Su Qiruo; he was afraid that she had been called away to drink again, and that she would beat him once she returned drunk.

But she had clearly said today that she wouldn't beat him anymore, and Yun Zimu didn't know whether he should believe her.

"If she really didn't drink today and doesn't beat me again, then I'll believe her just this once."

Yun Zimu comforted himself; only in this way did the long wait feel less terrifying.

"Zimu, I'm back."

Afraid that Yun Zimu would be frightened if he heard noises outside, Su Qiruo greeted him as soon as she stepped through the door.

A flash of joy crossed Yun Zimu's eyes. His wife had returned so early, and her voice sounded very clear—it seemed she really hadn't been drinking.

An unnamed joy spread to the bottom of his heart, and a hint of a smile appeared in his eyes.

Just as he was about to get up to welcome Su Qiruo, she strode into the room.

Seeing that Yun Zimu was indeed lying obediently on the bed, Su Qiruo praised him with satisfaction.

"Zimu is so well-behaved, you deserve a reward."

With that, Su Qiruo poured the fruits she had picked for Yun Zimu out of a sack. The tempting fruits rolled all over the table, and Yun Zimu was so startled he covered his mouth, forgetting to breathe.

"Wife..."

Yun Zimu called out softly with a flushed face, which, to Su Qiruo's ears, sounded somewhat like he was acting spoiled.

"These are all yours, eat them slowly."

After placing two fruits into Yun Zimu's arms, Su Qiruo went to the outer room to fetch a bamboo basket. She put the red fruits into the basket and placed it at the corner of the table, then grabbed a handful of plantain herbs and went back out.

Looking at the two large, red fruits in his arms, Yun Zimu suddenly felt a lump in his throat.

His wife hadn't drunk, hadn't beaten him, and had even brought him red fruits.

Before long, Su Qiruo returned carrying a bowl.

Sitting on the edge of the bed, Su Qiruo said to Yun Zimu, "Zimu, I'm going to apply medicine to your wounds. It will sting a bit; if you can't bear it, it's okay to cry out."

Having said that, Su Qiruo reached out to lift Yun Zimu's pant leg.

Yun Zimu's body stiffened at first, and he instinctively tried to pull away, but under Su Qiruo's soothing, he forced himself to relax, lowering his head with reddened earlobes.

His wife was only applying medicine, not trying to touch him; it was fine.

Yun Zimu kept comforting himself in his heart. A cool sensation washed over him as the dark green medicinal juice was applied to his already scabbing knees, but it didn't hurt as much as he had imagined.

Looking at the bruises covering those thin, pale legs, Su Qiruo cursed the original owner of the body again in her heart.

What a monster!

How could she beat someone like this?

Even if such a person became a ghost, they would deserve to be thrown into a vat of boiling oil.

Yun Zimu held the red fruits in his arms, staring blankly at Su Qiruo's movements, forgetting the pain entirely.

After his father passed away, no one had ever applied medicine for him like this.

The head of the household didn't like them, the concubines' sons, and would beat or scold them at every turn; being injured was a common occurrence.

"Does it hurt?"

Su Qiruo looked at Yun Zimu cautiously. Seeing him shake his head, she felt a pang of guilt.

Although she hadn't inflicted these wounds, they were ultimately the sins of the predecessor of this body.

"Zimu, I'm sorry!"

The apology startled Yun Zimu so much that the red fruit in his hand rolled into the bed, making the little one's heart soften once more.

Actually, his wife didn't seem that bad; at the very least, she was much better than the head of the household.

The head of the household never allowed anyone to bring him medicine after a beating, let alone apologize to him.

"It's not your fault, Wife. It's all my own fault," Yun Zimu said in a low voice, eyes cast down. It was because he refused to serve his wife in bed that he had been beaten; he couldn't blame her entirely.

But...

Thinking of his father's dying words, Yun Zimu bit his lip hard and said nothing more.

Even if he had to live it all over again, he would still make the same choice.

After applying the medicine, Su Qiruo didn't pull down the pant legs she had rolled up, thinking it better to let the wounds air out.

"I'm going to cook. Eat a fruit to tide yourself over for now."

Thinking that she still had to slaughter and pluck a chicken, dinner wouldn't be ready for a while, so she told Yun Zimu to eat a fruit to settle his stomach.

"Wife, let me do it!"

Yun Zimu was startled and struggled to get up.

How could he let his wife do the cooking?

"You have injuries on your legs. I will do the cooking for these next few days; you just focus on recovering."

Su Qiruo pressed Yun Zimu back down, pulled a blanket over his stomach, picked up the red fruit that had rolled into the bed, and placed it back into his hands before striding out.

"Gurgle..."

His stomach let out an uncooperative growl. Yun Zimu quietly reached out to rub it twice, looked at the red fruit in his hand, hesitated for a moment, and then took a small bite.

The sweetness spread all the way to his heart. Clutching his chest, Yun Zimu felt his heart beating very fast.

So fruits could be this sweet!

Su Qiruo wasn't very skilled at cooking, but she wasn't completely ignorant either.

She cleaned the chicken, chopped it into large pieces, blanched it, and then used a small piece of chicken fat to grease the dry pot before adding the meat.

There were no seasonings or side dishes, only a few grains of coarse salt in a jar in the corner, but for Su Qiruo, that was enough.

She washed the wild vegetables she had picked, blanched them briefly in boiling water, and served them on a plate. Without sauce for dipping, she had to sprinkle a few grains of salt on them to mask the bitterness.

The aroma of the chicken gradually wafted out. Su Qiruo ladled out some chicken soup and set it aside, planning to use it to boil some porridge for Yun Zimu in the morning to help him recover.

Thinking of the thin porridge she had eaten at noon, Su Qiruo couldn't help but check the rice jar.

She saw only a thin layer of brown rice at the bottom of the jar. No wonder Yun Zimu was so stingy with the rice when cooking.

"Food is the heaven of the people. Only when one is full can one have the strength to think of other things, right?"

Su Qiruo muttered to herself. No matter what, she had to go into the mountains tomorrow.

After serving the stewed chicken, Su Qiruo took two pairs of chopsticks and two bowls to the main room.

When he first smelled the meat, Yun Zimu thought something was wrong with his nose; the red fruit from earlier had been enough for him to savor for a long time.

"Dinner is ready. I'll help you over."

Su Qiruo hadn't rolled down her sleeves. When those strong hands touched Yun Zimu's arms, he felt his legs go weak, and all his strength drained away.

"Pardon me."

Su Qiruo said, then bent down and scooped up the stunned Yun Zimu.

By the time he reacted, he was already sitting on a wooden stool in the outer room.