Chapter 646 - 648: Who is Reluctant to Let Go?
On the way back home, Bai Ruozhu and Fang Guizhi sat in the carriage, with Jiang Yichun riding horseback beside them. Fang Guizhi spoke enviously, "It’s so good to have a hubby to protect you wherever you go."
Bai Ruozhu glanced at her, "Are you so eager to get married? It’s true, I did promise to search for a good match for you after the New Year. I’ll have the matchmaker over to have you choose carefully. Don’t worry, me and mom will be of help in the selection too, so you can have your own hubby soon."
Fang Guizhi’s face turned as red as a sunset, even her ears were flushing. She knew better than to provoke Bai Ruozhu-she was not a match for her.
Bai Ruozhu carefully watched Guizhi’s reaction. It seemed that she had moved on from her feelings for Bro Er. That’s a relief.
During the entire journey, Jiang Yichun didn’t say a word to the people in the carriage. He didn’t know what to say without irritating Ruozhu. Once a master who made people tremble in fear, how did he become like this at the hands of his own wife?
In the end, he was indebted to her, not only Bai Ruozhu but also to her predecessor, debts he couldn’t repay.
When they got home, Bai Ruozhu couldn’t stand it anymore and said to Jiang Yichun, "You should go rest. Don’t push yourself."
Jiang Yichun looked at her deeply, "Since your hubby is back, why are you trying to cast him out? This is my home, I’m not going anywhere."
Bai Yihong has always seen Chang Sheng as his son and couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. He pulled Ruozhu’s sleeve, whispering, "Ruozhu, don’t be so noisy, what if you get him sick?"
Bai Ruozhu felt like she was going to explode with anger today. What’s this about her tormenting him? It was certainly Jiang Yichun who gave her a hard time first. Not only did her son betray her, her father even chose a stranger’s side.
Filled with resentment, she blurted, "I can’t accommodate him in my room. I’m not used to men. Anyone who wants to live with him can take him in!"
Bai Yihong sighed bitterly and went to Bai Zepei, asking if Chang Sheng could live with him. To his surprise, Bai Zepei was unhappy with Chang Sheng as well. He said coldly, "Xiaosi has already been living with me. Adding another person will make the room too crowded."
Bai Yihong was about to erupt upon hearing this. When the old lady came earlier, he and Lin Ping had to move into Bai Zepei’s room, yet he didn’t complain about it being crowded.
"Isn’t there an empty servant’s room? There are a lot of vacant spaces, let him stay there." Bai Zepei mentioned nonchalantly.
Bai Yihong couldn’t hold back and snapped, "What are you saying? Chang Sheng is your sister’s husband, and you want him to live in a servant’s room? Zepei, you are becoming unreasonable!"
Bai Zepei lifted up his eyelids and spoke calmly, "Once my sister accepts him, he’ll be my brother-in-law. Until then, he is a stranger to me. Already allowing him to stay at our home is considered polite."
Bai Ruozhu listened to their conversation from her room, and when she heard this, she couldn’t help but cheer for her brother. Her bro was smart indeed and knew which side to stand on this time.
Seeing Bai Yihong about to explode, Jiang Yichun hurriedly stepped forward to calm him down, "Dad, it’s okay. I’ll stay in the servant’s room. It’s only for a short while."
"This... this..." Bai Yihong didn’t know what to say. "I’m sorry for this inconvenience."
Bai Ruozhu scoffed inside her room. He felt inconvenienced? What about the letter he sent her, questioning who she really was? The stress it caused her for so many days, wasn’t she inconvenienced?
Jiang Yichun was genuinely exhausted. He went to sleep without having dinner. Even when Bai Yihong tried to wake him up for dinner, he couldn’t get up, and Lin Ping couldn’t help but sigh, "That boy looks completely worn out. It’s not an easy life for him."
A tinge of worry crept into Bai Ruozhu’s heart. After dinner, she sneaked into the servant’s room and checked Jiang Yichun’s pulse.
As she expected, he was lacking sleep and his nerves were on edge. His health was extremely poor. Looking at his more protruding finger bones, her heart clenched. He used to have long, slender fingers, not this thin. He must have suffered a lot in the past few days as well.
"Ruozhu... Ruozhu..." He mumbled something in his sleep. "Don’t leave me...please don’t..."
Bai Ruozhu felt as if she was being hit by a hammer in her chest, unable to keep her tears from welling up in her eyes. What was he dreaming about? Who did he miss so much, her or the previous Bai Ruozhu?
"Who is it that you can’t let go, me or another her?" Bai Ruozhu whispered, her voice so low it was as if she was talking to herself. After she finished, she let out a sigh, turned around, and left the room.
The next moment, Jiang Yichun’s eyes flickered open. He wasn’t sleepy at all. He had woken up when she was checking his pulse. How could he not feel her presence?
He admitted that he was acting asleep just to lure her closer with his dreamy mumblings, hoping it might touch her heart and her anger would fade. However, her unintentional words made him understand what she genuinely thought of him.
A bitter smile crossed his face. So that’s what she was concerned about. What a silly girl!
In the middle of the night, Jiang Yichun sneaked back into Bai Ruozhu’s room again. Bai Ruozhu hadn’t fallen asleep, and she quickly got up from her bed. She picked up a bamboo stick from the side of the bed and started hitting him.
"Ouch! Are you trying to murder your loving husband?" Jiang Yichun, hopping around, whined softly.
Bai Ruozhu glared at him. She knew he was up to no good, so she had prepared a stick.
"This is for the stinky hobo who barged into my room!" She carried on hitting him for a while. Although she was gnashing her teeth, she wasn’t really hitting him hard. Jiang Yichun knew that, but to let her vent, he pretended to look painful.
"Alright, stop. I came here to discuss something serious with you." Jiang Yichun grabbed the "stick," stepping closer to her.
Bai Ruozhu tensed up and stepped back. Jiang Yichun, however, moved closer until Bai Ruozhu’s back hit the cold wall.
She stomped her foot on his, and although he could have dodged it, he chose not to, then sucked in a breath indicating that he was in pain.
He put his arms on the wall, trapping her in a circle, and spoke seriously, "This is truly a serious matter. Zhou Jue came over the other day but didn’t stay long. If he comes again, he’ll definitely bring experts with him, which I might not be able to handle alone."
"Honestly, has he contacted you before? If you didn’t teach the suturing technique to him, I can bravely arrange the arrest of him by the Department of Political Affairs without fear. They won’t show any mercy. Unless pushed to the brink, hopefully, he wouldn’t expose you."
"No, I only taught the suturing technique to those four doctors." Bai Ruozhu’s anger gave her a rebellious spirit. As long as he asked her, she would not share anything with him. Besides, she honestly didn’t teach Zhou Jue the suturing technique.
As for the man Jiang Yichun mentioned, who would betray her when cornered, she wasn’t afraid at all.