Chapter 18: Confiscating Pocket Money

“I will make some stir-fried beans with pork, won’t you? Don’t you like beans? The beans in the garden are ripe, and it’d be a waste not to eat them. Also, how about some braised rice with beans and an egg soup? What do you think?” Lu Zhao quickly responded, thinking he had given the right answer, only to realize it was a fatal mistake.

Well, this was a feast of poison!

Su Yunqi fell silent for a moment, then gently shook her head, her voice soft and delicate. “Then I can’t let you cook anymore, Lu Zhao. From now on, I’ll take care of the cooking. You are not allowed in the kitchen.”

“Why! I don’t accept this!” Lu Zhao protested in a rough voice, wanting to get an explanation. His calloused fingers pinched Su Yunqi’s small face and twisted it roughly.

“Because I’d get poisoned.” Seeing that he was being so stubborn, Su Yunqi honestly told him about the scene she had just witnessed.

After hearing this, Lu Zhao’s ruggedly handsome face became a little awkward. His bronzed skin turned slightly red with embarrassment. “Cough, um… I can skip the beans. Next time, I’ll make sure the food is fully cooked before serving it.”

“Can you guarantee this will never happen again? I was hooked up to an IV for several days in the hospital! I felt terrible, and my arm was bruised from the needles!” Su Yunqi puffed out her cheeks, glaring at him. Her round, almond eyes showed a bit of dissatisfaction.

“It’s my fault, my fault, I’m sorry. Then you should cook from now on. I’ll help you.”

Lu Zhao apologized in a flustered manner, no longer daring to insist. He grabbed Su Yunqi’s hand and gently massaged the back of her hand, even giving it a tender kiss.

He really wasn’t human! How could he have made his wife end up in the hospital with an IV drip?

“Hmph.”

Now that he had admitted his mistake, Su Yunqi became a little proud. She turned her face away with a snort.

Lu Zhao quickly turned her face back and planted a kiss on her rosy little lips. “Today’s food isn’t poisoned, so eat some more, alright? Don’t starve yourself. Next time, I’ll go to town and buy some snacks to keep at home. That way, when you’re hungry, you can nibble on something.”

While soothing her, Lu Zhao picked up some food and brought it to Su Yunqi’s mouth.

Su Yunqi was easy to coax; she immediately opened her mouth and obediently ate the food, then softly said, “Then I want red bean pancakes and walnut crisps.”

“No, you can’t have walnut crisps. You’re allergic to them, and your skin breaks out in rashes. Don’t you remember? You’re not allowed to eat those!” Lu Zhao’s face darkened, and he sternly scolded her, forbidding her from eating such random things.

“But only if I eat too much will I get a rash. If I have just one piece every day, it’s fine. I secretly buy them and eat them.” Su Yunqi said nonchalantly.

Oh no, I let it slip!

She immediately covered her mouth, her glossy black eyes blinking rapidly, her lashes fluttering like little fans.

Guilt was written all over her face.

(≖_≖ )

Now, Lu Zhao’s anger, which was initially at a three out of ten, surged to eight. He stared at Su Yunqi in disbelief. “You’re allergic and you still secretly eat them! Have you forgotten what it feels like to get a shot? When you have rashes all over, it hurts and itches. If you don’t apply medicine, you’ll have scars! Have you forgotten how you cried when you had an allergic reaction before? I see you’ve gotten really bold! Hand over your pocket money! It’s confiscated!”

Originally, Lu Zhao had planned to let Su Yunqi manage the household finances, but after this, not only did he refuse to give her money, but he also decided to confiscate whatever pocket money she had.

Su Yunqi refused to comply. “No! I already gave you my pocket money. What will I do if I want to buy something in the future? I’m not giving it!”

This was her small treasury, saved up over many years!

Her parents gave her New Year’s money every year, and sometimes they would give her pocket money. She never spent it and kept saving, so now she had a few hundred in savings, a small fortune. How could she possibly part with it?

“If you don’t give it to me, I’ll go tell your parents that you’ve been secretly eating walnut crisps.” Lu Zhao had found her weak spot.

“Ah~ How could you do this, Lu Zhao! You’re so annoying! My parents will definitely scold me if they find out!”

“You’re aware of that, huh? Now, you can either hand over your pocket money, or I’ll go tell them. You choose. If I catch you eating walnut crisps again, you’ll see what I do to you!” Lu Zhao angrily flicked her on the forehead.

“Hmph!” Su Yunqi covered her small head, and in the end, she reluctantly handed over her small treasury.

“Sigh, Lu Zhao, you’re only five years older than me, but you manage me more than my parents do! You’re like an old man.” She complained with a sulking face.

Well, if I don’t manage you, you’ll cause trouble. How can I not manage you?

“I love being a dad, so what? Now, eat.” Lu Zhao calmly accepted the criticism and then supervised his little wife to make sure she ate her food before going to wash the dishes.

Su Yunqi sat in the courtyard, supporting her chin with both hands, lost in thought as she mourned the loss of her pocket money.

No matter how many pitiful expressions she made, it was no use. Lu Zhao was determined to confiscate her money and pretended not to notice her attempts at playing the victim.

Seeing that this tactic didn’t work, Su Yunqi decided to let it go. She would secretly earn some pocket money in the future and continue to save up her small treasury!

She immediately perked up, full of energy again. “Lu Zhao, should we go pick wild fruits on the mountain later?”

“Sure, I’ll catch a couple of sparrows to roast for you too.” While washing the dishes, Lu Zhao nodded, always ready to fulfill her requests.

His shop hadn’t opened yet, and he had just gotten married, so there was no need for him to work for the time being. Lu Zhao could focus on spending time with his little wife and, in the meantime, deal with that scum, Zheng Ye. Once that was done, he could get back to his main business.

Lu Zhao was, in fact, a very calculating person.

⋆⁺₊⋆ ━━━━⊱༒︎ • ༒︎⊰━━━━ ⋆⁺₊⋆

On the other hand, Zheng Ye had lost several of his teeth. Without teeth, he couldn’t even face anyone. Yet, despite this, Lu Zhao hadn’t been locked up. He was only made to pay a small amount of money that didn’t hurt at all. This infuriated Zheng Ye, and he called together his lackeys at home to discuss how they should get back at Lu Zhao.

“I think we should harass him every night, go to his house, knock on his door, and throw dung at it. If we do this for a while, he’ll definitely go crazy. We can’t beat him, but we can play dirty!”

“Exactly! We don’t need to face him head-on. He must have times when he’s not home, right? His wife must go out alone sometimes, right? What’s the saying again? A gentleman… a gentleman…”

“A gentleman takes revenge, and ten years is not too late!”

Another little bully reminded him.

“Yes, yes, yes! A gentleman takes revenge, and ten years is not too late! We’ll wait and see, and see who can outlast who! Master Zheng, what do you think?”

“Hm, it’s a plan.”

Zheng Ye nodded, looking sullen.

He had lost his front teeth, and now he didn’t even want to open his mouth to speak for fear of being mocked.

He would definitely get revenge! Not only would he make Lu Zhao lose all of his teeth, but he would also sleep with his wife and put a green hat on him!

Let’s see if he could still act tough!

The more he thought about it, the more passionate he became.

That night, he secretly led a few of his underlings, carrying dung, and traveled across town to Lu Zhao’s house to throw it.

⋆⁺₊⋆ ━━━━⊱༒︎ • ༒︎⊰━━━━ ⋆⁺₊⋆

The next morning, Lu Zhao woke up, opened the door, and immediately guessed what had happened when he saw the large pile of dung thrown at his doorstep.

“Heh, is this the best you can do?”

Lu Zhao sneered. He immediately grabbed a bucket of water and cleaned the dung off the door. Then he boiled some mugwort water and poured it on the door to get rid of the smell.

By the time Su Yunqi woke up, she didn’t know a thing.

Tonight, Lu Zhao would make Zheng Ye understand what true revenge was.