That night, Lu Mosheng and Song Jiayan lay together in bed.
Lu Mosheng couldn’t fall asleep. Moonlight filtered through the cracks in the small hut, and she turned onto her side to study Song Jiayan’s face.
He was incredibly handsome.
More handsome than any man she had ever met.
He had a high, straight nose, deep-set eyes and brows, healthy-looking skin, and lips that were just the right thickness.
Back when Lu Mosheng had married Song Jiayan, she had been quite satisfied with him. The only thing she hadn’t liked was his taciturn nature. But now that she thought about it, even that could be changed.
She reached out and gently traced the contours of his face with her fingers.
When she noticed a slight movement between his brows, she was about to withdraw her hand. However, Song Jiayan suddenly opened his eyes and caught her hand before she could pull it away.
Lu Mosheng felt like a thief caught red-handed.
“Did I wake you?” she asked.
Song Jiayan replied in a low voice, “Mm.”
“Then… why don’t I go outside for a walk? I ate too much tonight, and my stomach feels a little uncomfortable.”
Lu Mosheng was just about to use the excuse to get out of bed when Song Jiayan suddenly pulled her forcefully into his arms.
He kissed her fiercely, leaving her with just one sentence.
“I’ve been holding myself back for a long time…”
His kisses came like a violent storm, as though he wanted to tear her apart and draw her into the very depths of his being, until she became inseparable from him.
After the kiss ended, Lu Mosheng needed quite some time to catch her breath.
The corners of Song Jiayan’s eyes were red, making him look just like a wolf that had been starving for a long time.
Still breathing unevenly, Lu Mosheng said, “Why don’t you go and cool off for a while…?”
She was still carrying their baby. They couldn’t afford to get too carried away.
Song Jiayan’s gaze remained fixed on the corners of her lips. After a long moment, he let out a soft hum.
Then he got out of bed.
Once outside, Song Jiayan immediately filled a basin with well water and poured it over his head. Through the cracks in the hut, Lu Mosheng could see everything clearly.
It looked like she would have to sleep separately from him. Otherwise, one of these days, he might really drive himself crazy trying to hold back.
…
The following day, they finished setting up the trellises, bringing the work of planting fruits and vegetables to a temporary close.
All that remained was to water the plants daily with spiritual spring water, fertilize the soil, pull out the weeds, and wait for the plants to mature, flower, and bear fruit.
As for the little hut, Lu Mosheng began thinking about how to make it more comfortable. After all, the place was far too small. Song Jiayan stood nearly 1.8 meters tall, and sometimes he could barely stretch his body without bumping into something.
Building a new house would take time, though. It wasn’t something they could accomplish overnight.
For now, what the hut really needed was a little warmth and the feeling of a proper home.
Just as Lu Mosheng was about to step outside, she came face-to-face with someone she would rather not see.
Zhao Xiuli.
Dusty from the journey and wearing a dark, sour expression, Zhao Xiuli immediately began mocking her when she saw her.
“Well, well! Back home, you complained that this place was dirty and that place was filthy. But now that you’ve come here, you don’t mind the dirt anymore?”
Lu Mosheng looked at Zhao Xiuli and immediately understood why she had come.
Song Jiayan had stopped sending money home, so Zhao Xiuli had come all this way to pick a fight.
Lu Mosheng replied, “You’re mistaken. It’s not the place I dislike. It’s the people.”
Zhao Xiuli was rendered speechless by the retort. For a moment, she felt as though Lu Mosheng had become an entirely different person.
Suppressing the anger rising inside her, Zhao Xiuli said, “I don’t have time to trade insults with you. Where’s Song Jiayan?”
“If you have something to say, tell me.”
Zhao Xiuli looked Lu Mosheng up and down, a calculating gleam appearing in her murky eyes.
“Fine. Then let’s have a proper discussion today. Song Jiayan is the eldest son of the family, isn’t he? From the time he enlisted in the army until now, when he’s contracted this land, how many times has he come home in a year?”
“Is there any son in this world who behaves like that? His father injured his leg while working in the fields the day before yesterday. It’s bad enough that he hasn’t sent any money home. He could at least have asked someone to pass along a few words of concern, couldn’t he? But we haven’t seen a single sign of him!”
“I came here today to ask Song Jiayan one thing. Does he intend to cut ties with the Song family and disown his own father? If Song Jiayan tells me today that he no longer wants to be a son of the Song family and intends to sever his relationship with his father, I’ll leave immediately!”
After finishing her speech, Zhao Xiuli lifted her chin high and stared at Lu Mosheng with contempt.
Meeting her contemptuous gaze, Lu Mosheng replied calmly, “There’s no money. As for words of concern, tell me how many you want to hear, and I’ll give you as many as you like. I can keep talking until tomorrow if that’s what you want.”
Zhao Xiuli froze for half a second.
She hadn’t expected Lu Mosheng to be so direct.
Then she reverted to her usual shrewish behavior.
“You ungrateful Lu Mosheng! Song Jiayan must have been blind to marry a wife like you, someone who only dares to throw her weight around at home! Where’s Song Jiayan? Call him out here! I want to ask him myself whether he truly intends to be so heartless and unfilial after his father worked himself to the bone raising him!”
Lu Mosheng rolled her eyes.
“You’ve already said everything yourself. If Song Jiayan refuses to fulfill his filial duties, he’s heartless and ungrateful. Then what about you? If you bully your own daughter-in-law, shouldn’t you be struck by lightning for it?”
“You!”
Zhao Xiuli was so furious that she looked ready to breathe fire through her nostrils.
Lu Mosheng continued, “Did you forget to brush your teeth before leaving home this morning? Your breath stinks so badly whenever you open your mouth. It’s absolutely disgusting…”
That was the last straw for Zhao Xiuli.
Unable to contain herself any longer, she rolled up her sleeves and lunged at Lu Mosheng.
The moment Zhao Xiuli’s hand touched Lu Mosheng’s clothes, Lu Mosheng deliberately fell to the ground. Clutching her belly, she cried out,
“Help! She’s hitting me!”