Chapter 23: Why No Candle

“What are you hiding?” Jiang Han clasped her hand with displeasure. Seeing her look like she was resisting humiliation, his face darkened. He knew she didn’t want him to touch her!

“Lift it yourself.” His voice was cold.

He just wanted to see if the marks he had left on her waist had faded. Her reaction made him very unhappy.

Hu Yao clutched her clothes, silently refusing.

Jiang Han was impatient, and with a sullen face, he reached out. As he pulled at her clothes, a glimpse of her emerald green undergarment was revealed.

Her waist was slender, showing no trace of childbirth. Her skin was white and smooth, naturally so, but also due to him feeding her well these past few years.

A gentle breeze blew across the exposed skin of her waist, sending a shiver of coolness.

Hu Yao’s eyes turned slightly red, a wave of inexplicable grievance washing over her, along with complex and stifled emotions.

She turned her face away, refusing to look at him.

That inexplicable agitation rose again, and Jiang Han’s face darkened even further. He impatiently slapped her clothes, “Looking at it makes you feel wronged? I’ve seen it all! Go make your food!”

His voice was rough, his tone heavy with angry agitation.

Hu Yao’s heart tightened, and she walked towards the kitchen without a word.

Jiang Xiaochao’s small eyebrows were about to knot together. He was sullen and unhappy, staring at Jiang Han with his clear black and white eyes, accusingly, “Dad always yells at Yaoyao! I’m going to bite you!”

“I’ll knock your teeth out!” Jiang Han was in a bad mood and had no patience for him either.

“You hit me! You hit me! You dare, go ahead and hit me!” Jiang Xiaochao stuck out his little neck and yelled, his small ponytail and his arrogant tone made him look even more annoying.

Jiang Han’s temples throbbed.

“Mommy said I still have teeth growing,” Jiang Xiaochao added, confident and fearless.

“Dad doesn’t have any anymore, I’m going to knock your teeth out too!”

“I’ll beat you till you’re this big and see if you still have any teeth left!” Jiang Han snorted, picking him up and starting to hit him.

This wasn’t the first time he had beaten Jiang Xiaochao. Every time Hu Yao watched, she felt a pang of heartache and worry. She rushed over to stop him.

In a split second, his raised hand brushed against her.

A dull pain shot through her shoulder, Hu Yao gasped, it hurt quite a bit.

Thinking about how that slap would land on Jiang Xiaochao, her face turned even paler.

He’s so small, Jiang Han always beats him like this, he’s going to get hurt!

“What are you doing here? Get back!” Jiang Han seemed even angrier, his expression towards Hu Yao was dark and terrifying.

Jiang Xiaochao had already been spanked a few times before Hu Yao came over. Actually, Jiang Han often made threats, and hitting him did hurt, but not as severe as Hu Yao imagined.

He heard Jiang Han yell at Hu Yao again and was unhappy, “Dad hit Yaoyao, and he’s still being mean! Bad guy!!”

Jiang Han ignored him, looking at her furrowed brows, thinking about how she had run over to get beaten herself, he felt even more confused and annoyed. He glared at her and scolded her too.

“From now on, when I discipline Jiang Xiaochao, it’s none of your business. If you want to get beaten with Jiang Xiaochao, tell me in advance!”

Hu Yao pursed her lips, saying nothing.

Her shoulder still hurt. Because of the momentum, his hand had quite a force behind it.

…

The meal was not very pleasant. Jiang Han was in a bad mood, and Jiang Xiaochao was unusually quiet.

The mother and son clearly held a grudge against him and were angry with him.

Jiang Han laughed in annoyance, and didn’t bother with them anymore. He went out after dinner and didn’t come back until late at night.

Hu Yao slept with Jiang Xiaochao tonight, and the candle in the hall that was waiting for him to return tonight was gone.

Jiang Han’s face darkened even further. He strode to Jiang Xiaochao’s room and lifted her from the bed, easily carrying her back to his room with one arm.

Jiang Xiaochao, curled up on the bed like a little turtle, was completely undisturbed by the commotion, still snoring softly.

“Hu Yao, are you trying to make me angry?” he asked coldly.

Hu Yao was awakened by his sudden actions, and before she could react, she was already on the bed in the main room. She was still drowsy, her hair was messy, and she looked at him in a daze, not understanding what he said.

“Speak!” Jiang Han growled impatiently.

He had never been gentle. He already looked intimidating, and now he was standing in front of her like a dark mountain, exuding a menacing aura, making her feel even more scared.

“What?” She didn’t hear his first sentence clearly. Now that she had come to her senses, she heard his angry tone and felt inexplicably nervous.

“Why didn’t you light the candle tonight!” he asked directly.

Hu Yao was stunned, bewildered, “We ran out.”

Was he so angry over something so trivial? Hu Yao thought he was even stranger.

Actually, he didn’t know when he would come back every night, and he came back so late. It was a bit wasteful to light a candle for him every day.

After listening to her explanation, Jiang Han’s face softened slightly, but not by much.

“Did I agree to you sleeping with Jiang Xiaochao?”

Hu Yao lowered her eyes and didn’t speak. Because of what happened at noon, she really didn’t want to sleep with him today, so she went to Jiang Xiaochao’s room.

She was still nervous before she went, and now he really brought her back.

“I, I’m on my period.” She said softly.

It meant she couldn’t share a bed with him tonight.

He had lifted her clothes at noon, and she realized afterwards that he wanted to see if the marks on her body had faded. But in broad daylight, he could do whatever he wanted to her, which made her feel a little annoyed.

Except for that night, they had slept in the same bed without doing anything else these past few days. Hu Yao vaguely felt that he was reluctant to touch her because she had been so badly abused that night, her body was covered in marks.

Now the marks on her body were gone, and he had seen them, so he wouldn’t–>>

Maybe he would let her go again.

The things between husband and wife were actually so unpleasant. After that night, Hu Yao recalled her experience of getting pregnant with Jiang Xiaochao a few years ago. It wasn’t just dislike, but also fear.

She lay beside him, always feeling uneasy, worrying and overthinking for a long time.

Fortunately, he slapped her that afternoon, scaring her period to come early!

Jiang Han looked down at her, his eyes narrowed, seeing the undisguised joy on her face. He did intend to touch her tonight, but her period came at the worst time, ruining his mood.

What made him even more annoyed was her delighted look, completely confirming her unwillingness to be touched by him.

“Oh, I don’t mind.” Jiang Han glanced at her, starting to undress himself.

Hu Yao froze, her eyes widening in shock and fear.

“I… I can’t, it’s not possible!” She looked at his bare upper body in front of her, shaking her head like a garlic clove, her face flushed, her words becoming incoherent: “It will, it will get dirty.”

Seeing his posture, she realized he wasn’t joking. She was panicked, her eyes were red, and she was wronged.