Chapter 5

Jiang Yuning’s face flushed red from holding her breath, and she was completely speechless. She didn’t understand why he kept talking about sleep or not.

By chance, the eldest sister-in-law Wang Xiangmei and the second sister-in-law Li Chunyan came back from get off work with the villagers. Seeing the black smoke still rising, they hurried over and said:

“Li Ye, what’s going on?”

Xiao Liye put away his playful smile and said seriously:

“It’s on fire.”

Wang Xiangmei had triangular eyes and a rather strong and sinister look on her face. She said anxiously:

“Hey, Li Ye, I’m not saying anything to you. Even if you don’t want this woman anymore, you can’t be so angry that you set the kitchen on fire.”

Others traveling with me said:

“I think the third daughter-in-law is probably trying to find a permanent solution so she doesn’t have to cook anymore. Last time, that daughter-in-law added two pounds of salt to her cooking just to avoid cooking. I heard she hasn’t been allowed to cook since then.”

Wang Xiangmei said, “She’s so fussy. She cooks and burns the kitchen, and she can’t have children. What’s the point of coming here?”

Xiao Liye was about to speak, but Jiang Yuning didn’t want to be accused of being lazy by ordering the kitchen on the first day of her marriage, so she said seriously:

“He ordered it on purpose because he got angry.”

Xiao Liye turned around in surprise, only to see her expression extremely serious. She denied the charges without blushing or beating her heart. He silently swallowed the rest of his words: “……..”

Well, although it was obviously because she was not serious when he lit the fire, and I did that in a fit of rage, it was also my own fault.

Wang Xiangmei looked Jiang Yuning up and down. She had been working at the factory today and had not heard about Xiao Liye’s marriage. She only heard about it from the villagers when she was visiting the supply and marketing cooperative after get off work.

She was so anxious that she dragged Li Chunyan back without buying anything. She originally thought that letting her cousin marry into the family was a safe thing, but she was intercepted. She was furious and said:

“Li Ye, I’m not trying to persuade you. If you don’t want it, just beat her until she runs away. Why waste something?”

Aunt Fat also said:

“Of course, give her a couple of beatings to vent her anger, and she’ll probably grow back better. This kitchen needs money to be repaired.”

Jiang Yuning was incredulous. Was this even human advice? She swallowed the surprise that was spreading through her throat and said unconvincedly:

“If he dares to commit domestic violence, I will call the police. Whoever instigates him to beat me will be arrested as well.”

Xiao Liye curled the corners of his lips, feeling very funny. He even called the police, not knowing that the police were all one with him. If he really wanted to beat her, it would be useless even if she shouted at the top of her lungs.

Wang Xiangmei seemed to have seized the opportunity and said:

“Li Ye, look at you, you’re not someone who lives a normal life. You got beaten up twice, and you called the police to make a fool of yourself. You just don’t know how to take care of your family.”

Jiang Yuning knew her because there was a family photo at home. Huo Fangdong introduced her to everyone and even talked about the main topic.

Wang Xiangmei has a cousin who comes from a very good family. She is also Xiao Liye’s childhood sweetheart and they are from the same village. Wang Xiangmei wants to marry her so that her family can benefit from it.

Therefore, since there is this problem, she can’t coexist peacefully with her, so she simply said:

“You’re doing this for the good of the family. If I spank you next time, don’t scream so loudly that the whole village can hear you.”

Wang Xiangmei’s face darkened instantly. She wanted to say something, but Li Chunyan pulled her arm and said in a gentle voice:

“Sister-in-law, forget it. It’s getting late. It’s time to cook.”

“If you want to do it, you do it. I’ve been working all day and I’m tired.” Wang Xiangmei said this in annoyance, then turned around and went back to the house.

Li Chunyan’s face was much kinder than Wang Xiangmei’s. She eased the atmosphere and said:

“Okay, don’t be angry. There should still be plenty of hot water in the thermos. Go wash up.”

“Thank you.” Jiang Yuning knew her. She gave birth to a daughter as her first child, and finally had a boy as her second child, but his legs were disabled.

The third child was also a boy, but the problem was still the same and no one could find out what was wrong.

I don’t dare to have more children, so my good temper is because I have no status at home.

At least she gave birth to a normal girl, but she herself was labeled as infertile. I think her life in the next six months will not be easy.

She went into the house and poured hot water into the wooden basin. The weather was cooler now, it was already November, and the temperature difference between morning and evening was large. She didn’t dare make it too cold, so she didn’t pour much cold water.

While washing, I thought that my eldest brother Xiao Liqing and my second brother Xiao Li were coming back soon. There was a chattering sound outside the door again.

In short, they were all expressing their dissatisfaction with the fact that Xiao Fangdong had married Xiao Liye off without saying a word in order to repay his favor.

Jiang Yuning also held her breath in her chest, but did not make a sound. After taking a shower, she put on a light blue long-sleeved pajamas and let her wet hair fall behind her, but did not go out.

Xiao Liye, who was outside the door, waited a long time for the door to open, so he knocked on the door and said:

“Jiang Yuning, did you drown in there?”

Jiang Yuning opened the door with a cold face and was about to go out, but as soon as she turned around, Xiao Liye saw that the back of her pajamas was soaked with her hair.

The fluffy light blue satin fabric was now almost transparent, revealing the slender white back and even the white underwear inside.

His handsome face was burning hot, even his ears were red, but Jiang Yuning hadn’t noticed anything unusual yet, and was about to miss him when he left.

The next moment, she was grabbed by the waist by a strong arm and pushed into the house.

Then I heard Xiao Liye’s fierce voice:

“How can we go out like this? My elder and second brothers are still standing at the door.”

Jiang Yuning glanced at herself. She was wearing a well-fitting dress. It wasn’t too tight, but rather loose. She even buttoned the two buttons at the collar properly. She frowned and said,

“Is it a rule in your house that you can’t wear pajamas outside the house?”

The two of them squeezed into the narrow door frame. Xiao Liye’s eyes were unsettled and erratic, but he always inadvertently glanced at her thin waist and stammered:

“Yes, anyway, from now on, whenever you leave this room, you must dress warmly. Change quickly.”

Jiang Yuning didn’t understand, but expressed respect. She went back to the house, changed into a long-sleeved shirt and jeans before going out.

As she left the house, the discussions outside the millstone stopped abruptly. Xiao Liqing, Xiao Likuai and Wang Xiangmei all looked gloomy.

Li Chunyan came out of the kitchen carrying dishes and greeted with a smile:

“It’s time to eat.”

Jiang Yuning also went into the kitchen to serve the dishes. As soon as she entered, she found that the kitchen, which had been blackened by smoke, was now clean.

The pots, pans, and bowls were all shiny and neatly stacked in the dilapidated wooden display case in the corner.

She thought that it was Li Chunyan who helped clean up the mess, and she felt quite embarrassed.

Li Chunyan saw her embarrassment and said with a smile:

“It’s okay. Luckily the house wasn’t burned through. There’s just some dust. It’ll be fine after a simple cleanup. Go call Dad back.”

Jiang Yuning nodded and said to Xiao Fangdong, “Uncle, it’s time to eat.”

Xiao Liqing snorted softly and said:

“You’re not well-mannered. You’re married but still call me uncle. People who don’t know you would think you’re a visitor.”

Xiao Li quickly followed up in a bad mood:

“My wife made all the meals. Why are you coming to enjoy our home?”

Jiang Yuning opened her mouth and said, “Let’s call it a day on this wedding. Xiao Liye is not here, and there are only two tables of guests, one of which is from her side of the family.”

I guess it doesn’t count. After all, I was welcomed into his family with great fanfare. But we’ll be separated in half a year, so calling him dad always feels a bit inappropriate.

She pursed her lips and said nothing.

Xiao Fangdong replied unhappily:

“If you two don’t want to eat, just get out of here and stop being so sarcastic.”