Chapter 2

Jiang Er happily carried two sweet potatoes back into his room.

Only then did Jiang Tian look at Xie Chen, narrowing her eyes with a smile. “Come on, let’s take a nice bath.”

Xie Chen was startled by such bold words and quickly refused. “I can bathe myself.”

Jiang Tian grinned. “Nope, I’ll help you.”

It would be such a waste not to use this big basin of hot spiritual spring water.

Although the book never said exactly how the female lead cured the male lead’s illness, she had this strange intuition that the spring water could heal him.

If she could cure him and then raise him into a tall, strong man, wouldn’t her days of lying back and enjoying life finally come?

Now that she had clung to the thigh of a big shot, sitting on top of endless wealth in the future was no dream.

Thinking of this, she eagerly walked up to Xie Chen. “Come on, don’t be shy. Sooner or later, we’ll get to this anyway.”

Without giving him a chance, she started stripping off his clothes. When he was down to only a pair of shorts, she stopped.

Glancing at Xie Chen’s darkened face, she magnanimously said, “Fine, I’ll save you some dignity. Just soak like this.”

Of course, she couldn’t admit that she was embarrassed. After all, they had only met a few hours ago, and before she transmigrated here, she was still a pure maiden.

Sure, she’d seen pigs run and seen pork meat, but never handled it herself. Getting him down to this point was already her limit.

Xie Chen didn’t argue and let Jiang Tian help him into the tub.

The moment he sank into the water, he felt his whole body loosen, fatigue draining away, his mind clearing.

And he suddenly realized something he had overlooked all along.

His new bride… was no longer a fool. And Jiang Er seemed to have accepted it without question.

So how did she recover? Could it be she had been pretending all this time?

And what about this special water—where had it come from?

This Jiang Tian clearly carried secrets.

While Xie Chen was deep in thought, Jiang Tian pulled the roasted sweet potatoes from the stove, sat on a stool beside him, and handed one over.

“Eat. I know you’ve got a lot of questions, but you should understand—some things are better left unknown. Just listen to me and let me take care of you. I won’t harm you.”

Xie Chen had gone through too much that night, and his stomach was already empty.

Without hesitation, he took the sweet potato.

The fragrant sweetness filled his nose. Peeling away the skin revealed the golden flesh, soft and glistening.

He couldn’t wait—biting into it, the tender sweetness melted in his mouth. In just a few bites, the sweet potato was gone.

He cleared his throat. “I’ve finished.”

Jiang Tian looked up, took the peel from his hand, and handed him another one.

Creak.

The opposite door cracked open, and a pair of dark eyes peeked out. Jiang Tian, who was facing the door, spotted it at once.

She waved him over. “Little Ears, come out.”

Jiang Er stepped out, clutching a handful of sweet potato peels.

He called out “Sis,” but only snorted at the man soaking in the tub.

Using his water, eating his sweet potatoes—what a burden.

Jiang Tian knew Jiang Er was dissatisfied with Xie Chen, but she didn’t rush to defend him. That would only backfire.

Instead, she grabbed another sweet potato from the stove and handed it to Jiang Er. “Didn’t eat enough? Have another.”

Jiang Er dragged a stool over and sat beside her, happily munching away.

While chewing, he said, “Sis, why is this sweet potato so sweet? The ones I roasted tasted awful.”

Jiang Tian answered smugly, “Of course. Mine are delicious.”

The boy pouted and said no more, focusing on his food.

When she was done, Jiang Tian tossed the peels into the stove pit, drew some water, and told Jiang Er to wash his hands and face.

Then she slipped into the room and fetched a brand-new towel and a bar of soap.

“Use this to wash.”

Jiang Er knew soap was precious in these times. It smelled nice, sure, but he was just a boy—he didn’t need something so valuable.

He waved his hand. “I’ll just scrub with water. Sis, you keep it for yourself.”

Jiang Tian frowned and grabbed his small hand, lathering it with soap until gray bubbles appeared.

“Look at your hands, so dirty. If you don’t wash properly, you’ll get sick, you know?”

Jiang Er didn’t argue, only murmured an “Mm.”

After washing, Jiang Tian went to heat water and told Jiang Er to fetch Xie Chen’s clothes—yes, even his shorts.

The boy frowned like a little old man. “Sis, you’re a girl, don’t go saying ‘shorts’ this and ‘shorts’ that all the time.”

Jiang Tian brushed it off. “Alright, alright, I got it.”

She knew people of this era were conservative, but sometimes she just blurted things out without thinking. Besides, wasn’t she married to Xie Chen now? Talking about underwear shouldn’t be such a big deal.

She carried the bucket of water to the stove, poured it in, and covered it with the lid. By then, Jiang Er had placed the clothes on a stool.

She patted his head. “That’s enough. Don’t fuss. Go get your own clothes. Once your brother-in-law is done, you’ll take your bath.”

The boy’s short legs hurried off to fetch his clothes.

Only then did Jiang Tian realize Xie Chen had been quiet for a while. She went over and asked, “How do you feel now? Any strength back?”

Xie Chen flexed his fists. Better than before, though still weak.

“Mm.”

“Good. Here’s soap—wash yourself properly and put on clean clothes. I’ll go make the bed.”

His gaze lingered on the bar of soap, eyes dimming slightly, but he accepted it. “Alright.”

Jiang Tian turned into the east room. She gave the kang bed a quick cleaning and spread the double bedding at the foot.

When she had first transmigrated, she thought of remodeling, since she had many modern supplies in her space. But they didn’t match this era, so she gave up.

Maybe she could go to the black market later and trade for things that fit the times.

While she was thinking, Xie Chen’s voice came from outside.

“I’m done.”

She quickly opened the door. He stood there, dressed neatly.

Only now did she notice how tall he was when standing straight—at least 185 centimeters.

If only he were well-fed and strong, that would be something. But under those clothes was a body thin as a stick. Tsk tsk, he’d need some serious nourishment.

Xie Chen asked, “Is the water still useful? Should I help you carry it out?”

Jiang Tian shook her head. “Go back inside. I’ll call Little Ears to help me.”

He wanted to protest, but seeing the determination in her eyes, he stayed quiet.

Truth was, with his current strength, he could hardly lift anything.

Better to recover first.

At that moment, Jiang Er came out from the west room, snorting. “Give me a break. You don’t even have the strength of a kid like me. My sis and I can handle the water.”

Even though he’d prepared himself, Xie Chen still felt stung by those words.

Jiang Tian shot Jiang Er a glare. “Come help.”

“Got it.”

Together, Jiang Tian and Jiang Er dumped out the used water and rinsed the tub.

Then Jiang Tian refilled it and told Jiang Er to call her when he was done bathing.

After that, she slipped into the west room alone.

No one was there, so she shut the door and entered her private space to enjoy a bath herself.

She had just finished when Jiang Er’s voice called from outside. She hurried out.

“I’ll dump the water. You tidy up and go to bed—I already made the kang for you.”

Jiang Er pouted. “No way. I’m going with you.”