Chapter 14: For You

Chapter 14: For You

The Xie family.

Jiang Liping had been sitting in the chair for quite a while, her chest heaving, clearly furious.

Xie Guangan sat beside her, head down, silent, occasionally sipping tea as if he were here to enjoy it.

"Big brother, you..." Xie Aihe sat on the side, glancing between them, but she was immediately silenced by Jiang Liping's glare.

"Spit it out, what are you after? Don’t tell me you’re trying to steal your brother’s girl."

Jiang Liping, her face swollen, took a deep breath, giving off the vibe that if Xie Guangan didn’t explain himself today, this matter wouldn’t be over.

Xie Guangan was gently pushing the floating leaves on the surface of the tea with the lid, but his movements paused when he heard her words. After a moment, he continued, as if it had nothing to do with him, "I won’t go after a married woman."

"You’d better not. Don’t think I don’t see through you. You’ve been under that witch’s spell since you were a kid. Xie Guangan, I’m telling you, don’t even think about it, whether she’s your second brother’s woman or not!"

Xie Guangan slammed the teacup on the table, the lid and the cup making a crisp clinking sound, "She doesn’t belong to Xie Guanglian." Who does Xie Guanglian think he is?

He had no idea how she ended up with Xie Guanglian while he was tied up with work.

"She’s married. A few years back, this would’ve been a crime, labeled as hooliganism, not only would you be paraded through the streets, but you could also be shot! And it could even drag your family into it." Xie Guangan’s cold tone carried a threatening undertone, as if the family he mentioned didn’t include him.

His harsh words made Jiang Liping’s heart skip a beat.

Who didn’t fear those times? Even those who profited from it were terrified, let alone the fact that in recent years they had witnessed many who were once glorious but were now being liquidated, and they were just glad it wasn’t them.

"Don’t scare people!" Jiang Liping tried to be brave, "You said it yourself, that’s all in the past. Nowadays, the authorities have said that love and marriage are free!"

After saying that, Jiang Liping slapped the table, "Stop deflecting. This isn’t about them; it’s about you."

Xie Guangan was impatient with his mother’s behavior. He glanced at both women and said, "I told you, there’s nothing going on, and I’m not about to wreck a family." His words seemed to carry a hidden meaning, spoken slowly.

Before Jiang Liping could think more about it, she heard him say, "If you keep making a fuss and push them to divorce, I don’t mind bringing Yuan Lingling back as your eldest daughter-in-law."

"How dare you!" Jiang Liping hissed through clenched teeth.

But Xie Guangan never spoke in a harsh tone. If they hadn’t seen him once calmly sending an entire family to the countryside without a change in expression, they would have been fooled by his gentle demeanor.

"Just watch me." After saying that, he got up to leave.

"Stop!"

Xie Guangan halted his steps.

"How much money do you have? I’ve decided the family funds should stay with me." Jiang Liping’s expression softened, but her tone was still sarcastic, "Otherwise, who knows when some outsider will scam it all away."

She’d never have spoken to Xie Guangan this way before, but every time she faced Yuan Lingling, she couldn’t control her temper, or more accurately, whenever it involved matters related to the Yuan family.

At this thought, Xie Guangan’s face grew even colder, "No money. Didn’t he tell you? He’s in debt, and I covered it for him."

Hearing this, Jiang Liping nearly collapsed, "Are you saying you gave money to Yuan Lingling?"

"That money was hers to begin with." Xie Guangan chuckled lightly, but the smile didn’t reach his eyes, "I don’t know what gives you the right to use her money like it’s yours, but I advise you not to go too far."

He knew Xie Guanglian’s request for five hundred bucks was a sham, and that’s precisely why he didn’t act like a fool and give the money away.

"What are you implying, Xie Guangan? That we’ve crossed a line?" Jiang Liping was absolutely furious. She couldn’t fathom how her son had turned out this way. Today, her own mother’s dignity was at stake, and he didn’t care?

True, he was usually aloof, but as his mother, she believed he would still do what she said. Yet now he was siding with the girl she detested the most, "Do you even remember your own last name?"

"Do you recall what you told Mrs. Yuan back in the day?"

Jiang Liping instinctively wanted to scold him for being ungrateful, but suddenly fell silent, "Stop dodging the issue, I'm talking about the money, you better get it back for me!"

"I won't retrieve it. If you keep making a fuss, you'll just have to accept another Yuan daughter-in-law." After saying that, he stepped out without stopping.

"Xie Guangan! Stop right there!" Despite her shouting, she could only watch helplessly as he left.

In the center of the Xie family's courtyard stood a large pomegranate tree, which bore fruit in the summer. Now, however, it was bare, standing stark and solitary in the courtyard.

Unfortunately, this tree had been planted when Xie Guangan was very young, and now he was used to it. But he immediately noticed Ma Lili appearing behind the tree.

"Brother Guangan." Ma Lili reached up to smooth her two braids, her face slightly red as she moved closer to Xie Guangan. Seeing his face, she nearly shrieked, "Brother... Brother Guangan, what happened to your face?"

"It's fine." Xie Guangan responded, his steps not stopping as he walked out of the courtyard, not giving Ma Lili any time to speak.

Ma Lili gazed longingly at his retreating back, opening her mouth but ultimately saying nothing. It sounded like there had been an argument inside, and she didn't want to upset him now.

After a moment's thought, she still didn't retreat, turning around and walking inside.

"Sister Xie."

-

"Is this... for me?"

Yuan Lingling was holding an ugly blue hot water bottle, feeling puzzled.

Why would they give her a hot water bottle all of a sudden? The coldest part of winter was almost over.

And weren't infusion bottles the trendy hot water bottles these days?

Shen Caisheng didn't answer her question but suddenly reached out and touched the back of her hand with his. Both of them jerked their hands back as if they had touched something forbidden.

"Ahem..." Shen Caisheng hadn't thought much of it, it was just an instinctive action, but seeing her hurriedly pull her hand back, he felt awkward, "Your hands seem cold, you should warm up by holding some hot water."

Yuan Lingling nodded absently, "Thank... thank you."

She subconsciously rubbed her hands, which were indeed very cold. She had also felt Shen Caisheng's warmth, which was even hotter than Hou Yuan's. The difference between men and women was quite striking.

The two stood there for a moment, neither making a move, the atmosphere was oddly awkward.

Shen Caisheng didn't know what was wrong. He had bought it for her, and it wasn't like he hadn't brought things back before. On the contrary, he often brought home various food and essentials from outside, and she had always taken them for granted. Now she was acting polite.

"Don't thank me, just use it." Shen Caisheng forcibly suppressed the strange feeling, took the hot water bottle from Yuan Lingling, and said, "I'll wash it and fill it with hot water for you. You go and cut the egg cake, I'll take it to the neighbor later."

"Oh." At last, she had given Yuan Lingling something to do, and Yuan Lingling quickly agreed.

Having something to do finally made it less awkward, and the scent of the egg cake momentarily diverted Yuan Lingling's attention.

As if smelling the aroma in a dream, Yuan Yuan woke up just as the egg cake was brought into the room. After taking fever medicine and sleeping for a while, Yuan Lingling felt his forehead and it didn't seem as hot as before, but she still carefully wrapped the child tightly before bringing him out to eat the egg cake.

"You can't eat too much today. When you're better, sister-in-law will make you more delicious food."

Yuan Yuan buried his head, nibbling on the egg cake in small bites, not forgetting to coax Yuan Lingling, "I'm already better!"

Yuan Lingling was amused by him and giggled.

Shen Caisheng returned after delivering the items and heard Yuan Lingling's laughter as he walked into the courtyard. He had a feeling that if he went in now, her laughter would quickly subside.

He didn’t know why; after all, he hadn’t done anything.

Confused, Shen Caisheng decided not to spoil the moment by going inside and instead headed to the kitchen to clean up.

The child, who had been sick and was now full, didn’t need Yuan Lingling to coax him to sleep. He sat there and soon began to nod off.

Yuan Lingling helped him undress and watched him fall asleep before taking the dishes to the kitchen, only to find it already spotless.

“You’ve already cleaned up. I was busy with the child and didn’t get a chance to tidy,” Yuan Lingling said, her feet moving too quickly as she entered the kitchen before noticing him inside. It would look too obvious to leave now, so she had no choice but to make small talk.

“It’s fine, you’ve had a long day,” Shen Caisheng said, taking the small bowl that had held the egg cake from her hands. He scooped cold water directly to wash it, making Yuan Lingling shiver.

She wanted to find an excuse to leave, but her mind was foggy, and she couldn’t think of anything. Her hands in her pockets, fiddling with the loose change, she suddenly remembered something.

“Oh, by the way, those IOUs...”

Of course, Shen Caisheng knew she was referring to Xie Guanglian’s IOUs, and he instinctively tried to figure out what Yuan Lingling was thinking.

“What about them?” Did she not want them anymore?

Shen Caisheng had planned to get the money back for her as compensation after their divorce. After all, he didn’t care for the money that had been in the Xie family’s hands.

“You don’t have to go to them anymore.”

Yuan Lingling felt she had finally done something significant in front of Shen Caisheng, and she relaxed, a smile spreading across her face. It would be great if she could gain more favor.

But she didn’t notice Shen Caisheng’s face drop as soon as she turned away.

“If you don’t want it, that’s fine. It’s for you after all, but in the future...”

“No! Look, Xie Guangan came to see me just now to return the money,” Yuan Lingling said proudly, pulling the thick envelope from her pocket and handing it to Shen Caisheng. “Look, there’s a lot here, it’s all for you.”