Zhou Zhuo pursed his lips, looking at Wen Mingyao with a calm expression as he said, “I had already boiled water before I went out earlier. The temperature is just right now.”
Wen Mingyao stood frozen in place for a long moment before she finally realized he was referring to his earlier promise to wash her hair.
“No, there’s no need. I can do it myself,” she replied, blinking her eyes nervously, her voice barely above a whisper.
As soon as the words left her mouth, Zhou Zhuo’s expression darkened for some reason.
Wen Mingyao thought to herself: He holds a high position, so he must be upset because his pride was wounded.
Seeing Zhou Zhuo’s displeased expression, she took a deep breath.
Fine, fine!
While they were still married, she would allow herself to be selfish one more time.
Even as Zhou Zhuo pressed her shoulders down and laid her sideways on the bed, Wen Mingyao still felt as if she were floating, unable to tell whether this was reality or a dream.
Zhou Zhuo’s rough fingertips gently massaged her scalp, and the faint, unique scent of shampoo powder drifted to her nose.
Wen Mingyao closed her eyes in comfort, but the next moment, as if remembering something, she suddenly opened them.
Back in Rongcheng, Zhou Zhuo had always washed his hair quickly, finishing in no time.
But today, his movements throughout the entire process were too practiced.
So practiced, it was as if he had rehearsed it a thousand times.
At this thought, Wen Mingyao instinctively reached out and grabbed his hand.
Her soft, delicate palm landed on Zhou Zhuo’s soapy hand, and his fingers suddenly stilled, the tips of his ears growing slightly warm.
Only then did Wen Mingyao realize what she had done.
As if accidentally touching an electric current, she quickly withdrew her hand and cleared her throat, trying to mask the awkward atmosphere between them.
“I-I’m sorry!” she whispered, nervously clutching the towel around her neck. “I’ll do it myself.”
Just as she made a move to get up, her shoulders were firmly pressed down again. The damp sensation sent a shiver through Wen Mingyao.
“Don’t move!”
Zhou Zhuo’s deep voice came from above her. Wen Mingyao swallowed hard and quickly closed her eyes, not daring to look at him.
She only felt her ears burning with heat.
Zhou Zhuo’s Adam’s apple bobbed slightly, but his expression remained unchanged as he forcefully suppressed that unfamiliar feeling.
Fortunately, he quickly rinsed the soap from Wen Mingyao’s hair, and she finally let out a sigh of relief, as if waking from a dream.
Holding the towel, she gently dried her hair, her voice much calmer now. “Thank you.”
Zhou Zhuo picked up the basin of water and paused at the doorway. “You’re injured, so it’s inconvenient for you to wash your hair. As your husband in name, this is my responsibility.”
He paused briefly before adding softly, “Just like how you’re responsible for buying groceries and cooking.”
Wen Mingyao’s hand, which had been drying her hair, suddenly froze.
Looking in the direction where Zhou Zhuo had disappeared, her restless heart instantly cooled.
Yes, she and Zhou Zhuo were only husband and wife in name—nothing more.
She bought groceries and cooked, while he helped apply her medicine and washed her hair…
In Zhou Zhuo’s eyes, it was simply each of them fulfilling their respective responsibilities and duties.
Wen Mingyao lowered her gaze to her hands, a self-mocking smile curling at the corner of her lips.
They both knew the truth of their situation, yet she had almost mistaken his “responsibility” for something real.
She turned her back and, after a long while, finally let out a deep sigh.
Unconsciously, the coldness and distance in her expression grew even more pronounced than before.
After dinner that evening, Zhou Zhuo lay in bed, staring blankly in the direction of the door.
Recalling the scene from dinner that evening, and the look in Wen Mingyao’s eyes when she glanced at him…
For some reason, he couldn’t shake the feeling that Wen Mingyao seemed colder toward him than before.
It wasn’t until Zhou Zhuo abruptly sat up, irritably ruffling his hair, that he snapped out of it.
The coarse, short hairs at the nape of his neck prickled against his palm, making it itch slightly.
The more he dwelled on it, the more tangled his thoughts became. Unable to bear it any longer, he got up and walked out, pushing open the bedroom door.
A long while later, he finally returned to the study, absentmindedly touching his lips.
…
The next morning, the sunlight was just right.
Wen Mingyao was sitting in the courtyard washing clothes when the broadcast suddenly crackled to life with a test signal.
Soon after, a deep, steady male voice began announcing that a family members’ meeting would be held at the canteen entrance at exactly 11 a.m., urging all family members to attend punctually.
Wen Mingyao quickly hung the clothes to dry, wiped her hands, and hurriedly tidied herself up.
Following the crowd to the destination, she noticed that the area in front of the canteen was filled with various low stools and small folding chairs, all occupied.
Only a narrow gap, just wide enough for one person to pass through, remained in the middle.
Seeing this, Wen Mingyao frowned slightly—she hadn’t brought anything to sit on.
Her eyes quickly scanned the area and spotted Zhou Zhuo standing on the steps, whispering with Commander Qin beside him.
Wen Mingyao simply pretended not to see him and was about to slip away from the crowd when a familiar voice called out.
“Wen Mingyao, come over here!”
The surroundings immediately fell silent, and curious gazes converged on her slender, gentle figure.
Faint whispers could still be heard among the crowd.
Unfazed, Wen Mingyao walked forward, politely nodding and smiling at the people around her.
As the meeting was about to begin, Zhou Zhuo went into the canteen and brought out a small folding chair, letting Wen Mingyao sit in a corner of the crowd.
The distance was neither too close nor too far, just enough to clearly see the scene on the steps.
Wen Mingyao watched as Zhou Zhuo stood to one side of the crowd, sensing intuitively that this might be the outcome he had mentioned to her yesterday.
At exactly 11 a.m., a staff member from the Family Members’ Committee picked up the microphone. When the name Xu Gui was called, Wen Mingyao was momentarily puzzled: Who was this person, and why were they being called to the stage for a self-criticism?
But when she saw the figure in the crowd who stood up but dared not lift their head, Wen Mingyao thought to herself: Of course!
Granny Qian stood trembling in the crowd, her feet seemingly nailed to the spot, while the whispers around her threatened to drown her out.
Her eyelids drooped, and her usually domineering, harsh face flushed red, then paled, over and over.
Qian Dabao sat beside her, his small face pressed tightly against his knees, not daring to lift his head.
Only after repeated urging from the Family Members’ Committee staff did Granny Qian reluctantly drag her heavy legs, step by step, onto the stage.
Looking at the sea of faces below, she felt shame for the first time in her life, trembling as she took the microphone.
She half-covered her face with her hand, tears streaming down as she delivered her self-criticism.
“I… I shouldn’t have taken advantage of my age to act recklessly in the family compound, shouldn’t have falsely accused Comrade Wen Mingyao of hitting my grandson, shouldn’t have said I’d drive her out of the family compound, shouldn’t have pushed her…”
With each admission from Granny Qian, Zhou Zhuo’s expression darkened further: So there was even more he hadn’t known about.
The family members’ meeting ultimately concluded with Granny Qian delivering a self-criticism at the assembly and, effective immediately, wearing a red armband labeled “Discipline Violator” for a full month.
Before the meeting adjourned, the staff added one more thing: if she violates the rules again next time, her eligibility to stay in the family quarters will be revoked.
Wen Mingyao walked side by side with Zhou Zhuo on the road. After thinking for a moment, she still asked worriedly, “Won’t doing this affect your relationship with that Qian Ying?”