Chapter 4 Apology

“Liu Meizi, when you make a mistake, you should repent for it, right?” Qian Xiuying’s tone dragged out, clearly indicating that she was angry now. Liu Zhaodi instantly fell silent.

After a brief pause, under the watchful gaze of the crowd, she finally muttered, “Sorry!”
To Lin Qiyue, it was so quiet she could barely hear it.

“Louder—my wife can’t hear you,” Lan Yuchu said coldly, his expression like ice.

Liu Zhaodi swallowed hard and said, “Qiyue, I’m sorry, I was wrong. Please forgive me?”

Lin Qiyue sniffed deliberately. Though her tears had long dried, she stayed silent. She didn’t accept the apology and had no intention of responding.

“Alright then, let this matter end here. Everyone take this as a warning—any future slander will not be tolerated,” Qian Xiuying said. The crowd began to disperse.

Lan Yuchu led his wife away.

As Lin Qiyue followed behind him, she brushed past Shen Qingmiao and let out a cold sneer. This time, she was sure she’d get the money back.

Once home, Lan Yuchu brought Lin Qiyue into their room. Looking at her messy appearance, he sighed helplessly.

“Clean up a bit. I’ll go cook,” he said.

Lin Qiyue watched him leave and sat down with a sigh. Her clothes had been torn in the scuffle. She had no choice but to change.

Opening the wardrobe, she found only a few old, worn-out outfits.

“Lin Qiyue, you really are something,” she muttered to herself. “You make a pretty good salary each month and still live like this? No one loves you, no one protects you—this really is a pitiful life, like a stray living under someone else’s roof.”

Thinking about it, the original owner really did live a miserable life.

After changing, she lay on the bed. “Tch!” She winced—her neck really hurt. She got up to look in the mirror and realized her neck had swollen badly from the hit.

“There’s a huge lump! That old woman hit so hard—it hurts like hell!”

She raised her hand to touch it, and even her fingers ached.
“Ahhh~” She groaned. Everything hurt.

The original Lin Qiyue was already so frail, and now even fighting back left her body in pain. Using brute force like that had definitely hurt her muscles and bones.

“You know it hurts, but didn’t think to ask for help?”
Lan Yuchu walked in with a bottle of medicated liniment just in time to hear her complaints. As he closed the door, he scolded,
“Don’t you know your own limits? When you’re wronged and don’t speak up, how are we supposed to know?”

Lin Qiyue couldn’t help but argue back,
“She hit me first—what was I supposed to do, just let it happen? I was angry!”

Then she suddenly looked worried.
“Did I cause trouble for you?”
He was a soldier, and every family in this compound had status—this kind of drama could be serious.

Lan Yuchu gave her a glance as he dipped a cotton ball into the strong-smelling medicine.
“Trouble? Even if there is, it’s not a problem for me.”

“Come sit down.”

“What are you doing?” Lin Qiyue asked, pretending not to know.

Lan Yuchu pulled her over and had her sit.
“Ow—can you be more gentle?” Lin Qiyue winced as the cotton pressed against her bruise.

“If you can’t win in a fight, don’t pick one. You’ll only end up suffering,” Lan Yuchu said, thinking she really needed to train and strengthen that tiny frame.

Lin Qiyue rolled her eyes and muttered,
“She made me so angry—and she hit me first.”

Lan Yuchu said nothing. He applied the medicine to reduce the swelling, then took her hand.

“Let me massage it a bit.”

His hands moved skillfully. The massage actually felt quite soothing.

Lin Qiyue found herself staring at him. Focused like that, he didn’t look so fierce. In fact, he looked… rather handsome.

What was she thinking? Was she getting soft just because he helped her once?

She had that terrifying thought—probably because in her past life, she’d never had any contact with men.

“Didn’t you say you were going to cook?” she quickly changed the subject, sensing something was off in herself.

“Mom told me to check on you. She’s already cooking.”

“Oh,” Lin Qiyue replied softly, then asked,
“Is Mom mad?”

She felt like Qian Xiuying never liked her much to begin with. After today’s scene, would she be even more hostile?
Not that she really cared. Once she got her money back, she’d be just fine. The reforms were coming soon—once she got divorced, she wouldn’t have to worry about survival.

“No,” Lan Yuchu replied simply, not elaborating.

He continued massaging her hand. Lin Qiyue felt so relaxed she almost drifted off to sleep.

“Tomorrow I’ll take you to buy some proper clothes,” he said. “I’ll call your factory later and get you the day off.”

“Ah?” Lin Qiyue hadn’t even processed what he said.

Lan Yuchu frowned, adding,
“The doctor said you need proper rest. Don’t go to work tomorrow—I’ll handle the leave.”

Before Lin Qiyue could respond again, he’d already left the room.

Now fully awake, Lin Qiyue remembered—she had a job. She worked as a clerk in a book-copying factory, a position that Lan Yuchu’s father had pulled some strings to get her.

Though the original Lin Qiyue was timid and quiet, she was careful and diligent. Her supervisors appreciated her attitude.

“Second Brother, where are you going?”
Lan Yusui saw her older brother heading out and immediately followed.

Lan Yuchu looked at her, then glanced toward the kitchen where their mother was busy.

“Mom, I’m heading out for a bit. I’ll be back soon.”

“Go ahead,” Qian Xiuying replied. “And while you’re out, call your dad and tell him to come home early for dinner. You rarely come back—he happens to be in Pingcheng today. If he goes out on assignment again, who knows when we’ll see him next?”

She was clearly pleased that her son had returned. He was rarely home, and her husband was usually working out of town.

If they didn’t make time to meet, there’d be no chance of seeing each other at all. Qian Xiuying had heard from others that her son had been seen carrying his unconscious wife from the lakeside to the hospital. She figured something must have happened. At first, she considered taking leave from work to visit, but since her son had already come home and accompanied his wife to the hospital, she thought she wouldn’t be of much help. Plus, she was extremely busy at work—it was rare enough that she wasn’t working overtime.

When she came home, she walked right into a mess. That made her feel guilty.

“I got it,” Lan Yuchu replied, then left the house.

“Second Brother, can I come too?” Lan Yusui was curious about where he was going and wanted to tag along.

“Stay here. Your brother is going out to handle something important. Why are you following?” Qian Xiuying scolded her daughter for being thoughtless, her face stern. “Go do your homework.”

She ordered her straight to her studies.

“Do what homework? I’m about to graduate, and I’m not even getting into college anyway!” Lan Yusui muttered in frustration. She knew well enough she didn’t stand a chance—only those considered useful to the country were recommended for college. That opportunity clearly wasn’t hers.

“Enough talking. Go check on your second sister-in-law. It’s almost time for dinner,” Qian Xiuying shot her a warning look.

Lan Yusui instantly fell silent. Since Mom had spoken, she had no choice but to unwillingly head over and knock on the door.

Meanwhile, Lin Qiyue had just finished counting the money Lan Yuchu gave her earlier—over 30 yuan, nearly equivalent to her monthly salary.

Knock knock.
“Second Sister-in-law, it’s me,” Lan Yusui called through the door.

Lin Qiyue quickly put the money aside on the table and got up to open the door.

When it opened, Lan Yusui saw that Lin Qiyue had tidied herself up. Her expression wasn’t angry like Shen Qingmiao’s had been—in fact, the two of them were only three years apart in age.

“Mom said it’s almost time to eat,” Lan Yusui said, sounding a bit awkward.

Lin Qiyue nodded, “Okay, I’ll be right out.”

Lan Yusui didn’t say anything else and left after tidying up the room a bit.

Back in the kitchen, Lin Qiyue said, “Mom, can I help you with anything?”

From her memories, this mother-in-law had always been rather cold since she married the second son. There was no anger, no questioning—just neutral, everyday small talk.

“There’s just one dish left to finish. You can help by washing the bowls for everyone,” Qian Xiuying replied, glancing at her daughter-in-law.

Her temperament had always been like that—just like her daughter’s. Neither warm nor cold.

But even so, she hadn’t expected this typically weak and quiet daughter-in-law to have the guts to fight with someone as aggressive as Liu Zhaodi.