“I’ve finished writing the love letter for you. Should I give it to you now?”
Wen Yan’s tone was casual, as if she were asking, “Do you want a piece of paper?” There was none of the shyness one would expect when mentioning a love letter.
Jiang Baizhou choked on a mouthful of coarse steamed bun at Wen Yan’s words, forcing it down with difficulty. The corners of his eyes flushed red, and his narrow, bright phoenix eyes glistened as he looked at Wen Yan.
Wen Yan was taken aback: So moved? Is he about to cry?
She had only spent two minutes writing the love letter. Was that too perfunctory?
Wen Yan began to reflect on herself, feeling as though she had deceived an innocent young man.
One was feeling guilty, while the other was nearly choked to an early demise.
However, Jiang Baizhou had excellent mental fortitude and was quick-witted. In an instant, he composed himself.
His eyes, which seemed to hold affection even when looking at a dog, now appeared to be infused with soul. His voice was filled with a gleeful delight.
“Really? I really want to see it. Let’s eat first, and I’ll read it carefully afterward, okay?”
Wen Yan was feeling guilty at the moment, so how could she refuse? She forced a smile and said, “Okay.”
She lowered her head, secretly letting out a sigh of relief. Fortunately, Jiang Baizhou was innocent and believed everything.
Eat, let’s eat first.
A full stomach eases anxiety.
Jiang Baizhou took in Wen Yan’s expression, finding her utterly adorable.
Her face practically had the words “guilty” engraved, highlighted, and bolded on it.
When she was straightforward, she was truly straightforward. When she was “coaxing” someone, she made sure they knew she was coaxing them.
Yet, she possessed a magical quality that made it impossible to stay angry with her. Jiang Baizhou even felt that being coaxed by Wen Yan was a blissful experience.
Oh no, I’m in trouble.
Jiang Baizhou curled the corners of his lips in delight. Even if my wife is in trouble, it’s fine.
“These are salted beans. Would you like to try them?”
Jiang Baizhou pushed the dark salted beans in his lunchbox toward Wen Yan and said, “They’re okay with porridge. You can try them, and if you don’t like them, you don’t have to eat them.”
Wen Yan looked up, squinted her eyes, and smiled. “Okay.”
She tasted them, savoring the flavor. “They’re quite tasty—salty and a bit chewy.”
Jiang Baizhou chuckled in response before taking a sip of plain rice porridge.
Delicious.
How long had it been since he’d had plain rice porridge?
He held the mouthful of porridge in his mouth, reluctant to swallow it.
Jiang Baizhou glanced at the neatly arranged bags in the corner, sorted by size, and asked, “Did you bring food supplies?”
Wen Yan replied, “My parents were worried I wouldn’t be used to the food here, so they packed a lot for me.”
When she had tidied up this morning, aside from the eggs and some cotton, she had taken out everything else the System had given her.
But the original host’s parents had indeed packed many things for her and had also given her a considerable amount of money and ration coupons.
Wen Yan hadn’t refused. She was thinking that a year later would be the famine year, and the original host’s hometown was a severely affected area. She planned to bring the original host’s family here.
“I’ll give you all the money and ration coupons from home later. Whenever you want to go to the city to buy things, just let me know. We’ll see what’s missing and buy everything together.”
Upon hearing this, Wen Yan looked up and frowned. “No need, I have money.”
She wasn’t keen on accepting Jiang Baizhou’s money and coupons.
I’ve already deceived his feelings. Isn’t it wrong to deceive him out of money too?
Maybe I’ll wait until I’m less guilty before deceiving… no, before discussing it.
Jiang Baizhou felt an itch in his heart and hands, wanting to pat her head. But first, he needed to address the issue of his wife refusing to take his money.
In the blink of an eye, Wen Yan saw Jiang Baizhou looking at her with a pitiful expression. Even the hair on his head seemed to droop, and his voice was filled with self-loathing.
“I know I don’t earn much, but please don’t look down on me, okay? I’ll work harder in the future.”
Wen Yan opened and closed her mouth, shaking her head repeatedly as if to say, “Don’t slander me like that! I’m not looking down on you!”
Jiang Baizhou asked cautiously yet hopefully, “Really?”
Wen Yan nodded vigorously, “Really! I don’t earn a single cent myself, why would I look down on you?”
She just wanted to be a good person!
Why was it so difficult?
Jiang Baizhou seemed to let out a sigh of relief, his eyes brightening again as he said, “Wen Yan, you’re so wonderful!”
Wen Yan: “…”
What a sin!
Those two words were Wen Yan’s most genuine feeling.
She let out an awkward chuckle, while Jiang Baizhou suppressed a smile and continued to press further.
“Everyone else gives their money to their wives to manage. Commander Zhang’s wife next door gives him two yuan in pocket money every month. I can’t lose to him, Wen Yan. Just give me fifty cents.”
Wen Yan was stunned, her mind spinning in circles. With her lack of romantic intelligence, she couldn’t quite grasp it.
What?
But Jiang Baizhou nodded firmly, “It’s settled then. Any more wouldn’t be good.”
Wen Yan: “…”
It wasn’t until after the meal, when Wen Yan was holding a hard-paper savings passbook Jiang Baizhou had given her—with four hundred and fifty yuan written on it—that she finally snapped back to reality.
Had he just handed over all his assets?
But she clearly hadn’t wanted this!
“Here are some coupons and spare change. The passbook contains the bonuses from my missions. Right now, I earn seventy-three yuan a month. I send thirteen yuan to my parents, leaving sixty. I’ll send you fifty each month, keep ten for myself, and the rest is already saved in here.”
Only then did Wen Yan remember.
That’s right, the original owner had been receiving Jiang Baizhou’s monthly allowance, and when they got married, Jiang Baizhou had also given three hundred yuan as a betrothal gift, plus another two hundred to cover the cost of a bicycle and a watch.
Since the original owner already had a bicycle and a watch, she hadn’t bought new ones.
Fortunately, the original owner’s parents knew she had no restraint when it came to spending, so they only gave her ten yuan a month and kept the rest.
Unfortunately, the original owner was a hopeless romantic, completely fooled by a scoundrel.
Jiang Baizhou held a stack of money and coupons tied together with hemp rope. Seeing that Wen Yan hadn’t taken them, he rubbed his fingertips and, with a hint of calculation, took her hand.
The roughness of his skin met the softness of hers, the warmth and slight friction bringing Wen Yan back to her senses, her eyes wide.
Suppressing an unusual flutter in his heart, Jiang Baizhou pretended to be serious. He cradled the back of Wen Yan’s hand in his left palm and placed the stack of money and coupons into her right hand with his right.
A gentle smile spread across his face as he said, “You’re in charge of the household.”
Wen Yan, who only knew how to be straightforward, found herself at a loss for words for the first time. She felt guilty!
“Okay, okay, okay.”
Wen Yan felt as though the palm Jiang Baizhou was holding was drenched in sweat from her guilt.
Jiang Baizhou was too good. Shouldn’t she show some appreciation in return?
At the very least, Wen Yan understood the principle of reciprocity. Recalling her conversation earlier with Commander Zhu and the other soldiers, she remembered they had mentioned how severe frostbite was among the troops.
Wen Yan’s gaze drifted downward, landing on Jiang Baizhou’s ankles.
Wow, even a man’s ankles could look this good?
Like something out of a manga, his ankles were slender yet strong, dotted with blue veins, with just the right amount of bone prominence.
Wen Yan slowly let out a breath, trying to catch a glimpse of Jiang Baizhou’s feet.
But Jiang Baizhou had wrapped his feet tightly after washing them, and she couldn’t see a thing.
Jiang Baizhou noticed Wen Yan lowering her head, her gaze falling on his ankles as if it had physical weight. The toes inside his shoes curled uncomfortably—his feet had chilblains and didn’t look good.
When he had washed his feet earlier, he had done so with his back turned to Wen Yan.
Jiang Baizhou asked, “What’s wrong?”
Wen Yan looked up.
“Jiang Baizhou, get on the kang and take off your pants.”