Su Jinle’s struggling slowed for a moment. Gu Jingxiu chuckled softly, “After Mu Qing leaves, I should have earned my professorship. Wouldn’t it be nice for you to become a professor’s wife then?”
“More like a mute wife,” Su Jinle said slowly, her tone self-mocking. “If you like her, why not just be with her? Why bother with me? Gu Jingxiu, I don’t owe you anything. We should part on good terms…”
Whether in her past life or this one, she owed him nothing.
“Part on good terms?” Gu Jingxiu’s voice turned cold as he gripped her wrist, forcing her closer. “My wife, in this life or the last, is you!”
Su Jinle retorted, “Do you… love me?”
Gu Jingxiu paused briefly before regaining his composure. “Does it matter? I’ll provide for you. All you need to do is stay home and behave. Lele, you won’t find a better man than me, nor will any man protect you the way I do.”
He would give her money to spend. Unlike some men who turned violent when drunk, he was a refined and cultured professor in public. Everyone said she was lucky to marry someone like Gu Jingxiu. What more could she want?
Yet he never allowed her into his study, never shared his thoughts with her. When conflicts arose, he would give her the silent treatment. The longest stretch was an entire month without a single word spoken to her.
In the end, she had to stutter through an apology before he deigned to glance her way.
He didn’t love her. He merely saw her as his possession.
Su Jinle spoke each word deliberately, “I… don’t want you… and I don’t love you anymore…”
His grip on her wrist tightened abruptly. Gu Jingxiu pinned her against the wall. “Su Jinle, think about your father’s job before you spout such hypocritical words!”
Su Jinle bit her lip hard, unable to free herself from his grasp. Frustration brought tears to her eyes.
Suddenly, the grip on her wrist loosened. The man restraining her was shoved aside, and Song Shixu’s cold, stern face appeared. “A university teacher, bullying a woman repeatedly—do you want to end up in jail?”
Gu Jingxiu clutched his stomach and looked up. “You again.”
Song Shixu, tall and imposing, stared down at him. “Get lost.”
Humiliated in front of a woman, Gu Jingxiu let out a low laugh. “Lele, is this the man you want to rely on? You probably don’t know who he is. He doesn’t even spare a glance for Mu Qing. Do you think he’d look at you?”
He had heard about this man from Yang Muqing once—a soldier with a powerful family background. Most likely, he was helping Su Jinle only because he knew Su Yi’an.
Wiping his mouth, Gu Jingxiu scrambled to his feet in front of Song Shixu. “It’s fine. I’ll still have you.”
After he left, Song Shixu frowned and looked Su Jinle over. “Is he your boyfriend?”
If that were the case, he wouldn’t interfere in the future. Even if she was Yi’an’s sister, he had no interest in meddling in such melodramatic romantic affairs.
Su Jinle shook her head. For some reason, she felt a little afraid of this mountain-like man and stammered even more severely, “N-no, he’s not… We’re not…”
“No need to explain to me,” Song Shixu cut her off, looking down at the girl who stood a full head shorter than him. She wore a white short-sleeved shirt, her skirt hugging her slender waist, and tears still glistened in the corners of her eyes.
You’re just too weak!
He frowned, “I heard from your brother that you’re not working, so that means you have plenty of time. Starting tomorrow, you’ll run five kilometers with weights every morning and another five kilometers in the afternoon.”
Su Jinle stared at him blankly, wondering if she had misheard. “W-what?”
Why should she run? She was a quiet person who hated exercise, especially running. More importantly, why was he demanding that she run? She wasn’t one of his soldiers!
Song Shixu’s tone brooked no argument. He felt he had already set the bar as low as possible, considering how frail she was. “Yi’an is currently unable to move around easily. If you’re this weak, you’ll only distract him. If I hadn’t happened to run into you today, could you have beaten that man?”
Su Jinle wanted to say that even if she ran every day, she still wouldn’t be able to beat Gu Jingxiu, would she? Even though Gu Jingxiu was a scholar, he was still a man!
Besides, she never fought with anyone—not even arguments.
“B-but…” she stammered, her rebuttal sounding feeble even to her own ears.
Song Shixu was resolute. “You need to toughen up. I’ve never seen anyone as delicate as you. Crying won’t solve anything—no one will go easy on you just because you cry.”
How humiliating!
Su Jinle’s eyes reddened with anger. “Y-you…”
She stammered for a long time but couldn’t get a word out. She was furious at herself for being so inarticulate, feeling both embarrassed and annoyed. But since he had helped her twice, Su Jinle finally forced out two words: “Thank you!”
“Don’t thank me. Even if you weren’t Yi’an’s sister, I wouldn’t stand by and do nothing in a situation like this.” His tone wasn’t exactly gentle, but it inexplicably gave her a sense of security. “I’ve already explained the situation to the union. Someone will investigate the matter at the cannery.”
The union?
Su Jinle immediately looked up. “You h-helped me?”
Song Shixu replied calmly, “I didn’t help you. Yi’an wrote a letter asking me to make a trip. I’m helping him.”
Regardless of who he was helping, it was ultimately her family that benefited. Su Jinle knew the union was the place specifically for resolving workers’ disputes. With Song Shixu making the trip himself, given his status and position, the union comrades were sure to take it seriously!
The heavy weight that had been pressing on her heart for two days finally lifted. Overjoyed, Su Jinle grabbed his arm with both hands. “Th-thank you! Brother Song, y-you’re a good person!”
His skin was a sun-kissed wheat color, strong and powerful, while her small hands were soft and pale. The contrast against his arm was striking.
Song Shixu’s eyes darkened, and he immediately brushed her hands away, lecturing her coldly. “A young girl like you shouldn’t be grabbing people like that. What would others think if they saw? And even though you’re a female comrade, you should speak and act with strength and conviction. You absolutely cannot be delicate!”
Su Jinle: “…”
She awkwardly put her hands behind her back. She was timid and lacked confidence because of her stutter, but she was perfectly capable when it came to household chores. How was she delicate?
“Th-then I’ll go home now,” Su Jinle stammered, still earnestly expressing her gratitude once more. “Thank you, Brother Song.”
Since he was her brother’s friend, it wasn’t inappropriate for her to call him Brother Song.
When she returned home, Lin Yun had already come back from helping at the small restaurant. Seeing Su Jinle, she quickly asked, “How did it go today?”
Su Jinle smiled and took out the remaining twenty-five yuan. “I earned this much!”
Lin Yun let out a long sigh, laughing until tears welled up in her eyes. This time, however, she didn’t ask her daughter for the money. “Tomorrow, I’ll go to the bank and open a passbook for you. You can save this money yourself—spend it slowly if you like, or keep it for when you get married someday.”
Su Jinle thought that since the money was meant to be saved for her brother’s medical treatment anyway, having it in a passbook was just as well. She nodded without objecting.
Lin Yun asked again, “Are there any more orders for clothes?”
This time, Su Jinle shook her head somewhat gloomily. “No, there aren’t.”