Chapter 44: Made the Little Wife Cry

After standing all day, Ye Muqi’s injured ankle was still hurting a bit, so she brought a small stool into the bathroom to take a shower.

It was her second time showering while sitting, and she was much more adept than yesterday.

Her ankle was still red and swollen—worse than it had been after massaging it the night before. She wasn’t sure if it was due to all the walking she did today.

“A hundred days to heal bone and tendon injuries… Don’t tell me it’ll really take that long?” Ye Muqi looked at her swollen ankle, feeling a little helpless.

No wonder her foot had been hurting ever since she got back—it must’ve been because she walked such a long distance.

She didn’t dare to touch her ankle much. Even a little pressure caused pain. She didn’t know whether it was actually that bad or if she was just too delicate.

Rong Jingchen came out after washing the dishes. Seeing the bathroom door closed, he figured the little wife was still showering, so he sat outside with the special ointment for bruises and sprains he’d bought from the military doctor.

“I’m done.” Ye Muqi saw Rong Jingchen waiting and assumed he was waiting to use the bathroom. “You can go in now.”

“I’ll shower later,” Rong Jingchen replied, his gaze landing on her red, swollen ankle. “Let me apply the medicine first.”

Ye Muqi had changed into her pajamas, which left her legs exposed—making the swelling even more obvious.

Rong Jingchen’s expression darkened. Who knows what he was thinking?

He’d told her to rest at home, but now her ankle looked even worse than yesterday?

“Well then…” Ye Muqi finally noticed the ointment in his hand and slowly walked over. “I’ll go apply it myself in the room.”

She stepped forward to take the ointment, not wanting to trouble him.

“This needs to be massaged in to be effective,” Rong Jingchen said, not handing her the ointment. Instead, he gently pulled her to sit down and bent over to lift her foot.

She didn’t feel much yesterday sitting on the bed, but now with her foot placed on Rong Jingchen’s leg, Ye Muqi suddenly felt embarrassed.

“I-I can do it myself…” she stammered, clearly uncomfortable.

Rong Jingchen, crouched down to eye level with her, placed her foot securely on his thigh. He first examined her ankle, then squeezed out the ointment and began applying it.

“You don’t know how. We get injuries like this all the time during training in the army—I’ve got more experience than you,” he explained while massaging her ankle.

Unlike yesterday, his movements today were firm and strong. Ye Muqi felt a sharp pain as he worked on her ankle.

Even though he claimed he was a pro, Ye Muqi immediately regretted letting him touch her once the pain kicked in. She tried to stop him.

“Ahh—it hurts, it hurts! C-can’t you do it like yesterday?” she cried, trying to pull her foot back and grabbing his hand to stop him.

Yesterday’s massage was so much gentler!

“That wasn’t enough. That’s why your ankle got worse today,” Rong Jingchen said seriously, not easing up. “It didn’t heal properly because I went too easy on you.”

His hands didn’t let up in the slightest. Yesterday he held back because she complained, but seeing the worsened condition now made him realize—he couldn’t afford to be soft-hearted.

If he’d done it right yesterday, her ankle wouldn’t be this swollen today.

“It really hurts!” she gasped after just two presses, her whole body tensing.

Damn!

It really hurt!

She felt like her foot was about to snap off!

But Rong Jingchen didn’t budge. His large hands were like iron clamps, holding her foot firmly in place, making it impossible to move.

His massage was intense—wherever it hurt, that’s exactly where he pressed.

“Just bear with it. Once the massage is done, it won’t hurt anymore,” Rong Jingchen tried to comfort her.

“Wahhh…”

Despite his words, he didn’t let up at all. Her ankle throbbed with a piercing pain, making Ye Muqi cry out.

“Stop, stop! I don’t want it anymore!” She tried to kick his hand away with her other foot.

But it was hopeless—her strength was like tickling him.

Not only was she unsuccessful, but Rong Jingchen even grabbed her other foot and pinned it too.

“Keep it down—the neighbors might hear.” The walls in the residential complex weren’t soundproof. If someone overheard, they might think he was beating his wife!

“Then stop already! It hurts—it hurts so bad! Rong Jingchen, let me go!” she wailed, gasping for breath.

The pain made her voice tremble and her eyes turn red. It wasn’t a hysterical kind of crying—it was the involuntary reaction of someone truly in pain.

Tears streamed down her cheeks. She couldn’t help it.

“…,” Rong Jingchen saw her crying, and his expression dimmed slightly. Still, his hands didn’t stop. He kept massaging with the same force.

Letting go? Not happening.

“Ahh—you’re doing this on purpose!”

She was his wife, after all. Even if there weren’t feelings yet, shouldn’t he at least show some tenderness?

She’d actually thought he was nice before. But now? Not at all!

“You big meathead!”

“…”

“You rotten man!”

“…”

“You deadpan jerk!”

“…”

Where had she learned all this?

“Waaah, it hurts so much… Brother, I beg you, I was wrong…”

“…?”

She gave up that quickly?

…

He kept massaging for nearly an hour. By the end, Ye Muqi was so numb from the pain she couldn’t even curse anymore.

When Rong Jingchen finally stopped and released her foot, she instantly pulled it back, tearfully put on her slippers, and hobbled toward the bedroom.

He hadn’t shown her the slightest mercy—she wasn’t about to forget that.

No meat for him tomorrow!

“Wait,” Rong Jingchen called after her.

Ye Muqi instinctively hugged her injured foot and hopped away on one leg, keeping her distance from him with a wary look.

Even though it didn’t hurt quite as much now, it had still been torture—she didn’t want to go through that ever again.

“I have the day off the day after tomorrow—it’s the weekend,” Rong Jingchen said, a little helplessly at her pitiful state. “I’ll take you out to look around, and we can pick out some furniture.”

Apparently, he’d already been thinking about this.

When he lived alone, this place was just for sleeping—it didn’t feel like a home at all.

But now that Ye Muqi was here, things had changed. He suddenly wanted to furnish it properly.

“We can install a TV and a phone. That way, if you’re home early, you can watch something. And if you miss home, it’s easy to call,” Rong Jingchen added.

“Then can we get a sofa too?” Ye Muqi suggested.

She’d wanted to complain about the living room—it only had a dining table. It didn’t feel like a home at all.

“Sure,” Rong Jingchen nodded. “You’re the lady of the house. Whatever you want, we’ll get.”

“Okay.”

Ye Muqi sniffled and finally relented. Fine. Since he asked for her input on the furniture, she’d temporarily forgive him for “domestic abuse.”