After dinner, Jiang Lin was lively again as if nothing had happened.

She listened to Jiang Xinglei vividly describe how Cheng Xinda was caught and was surprised, saying, “He’s so young, yet so wicked?”

Cheng Rushan said, “That’s nothing. I was even more wicked than him.”

Jiang Lin gave him a sideways glance and gently tugged his ear, telling him not to talk nonsense.

Cheng Rushan kissed her on the cheek and didn’t say anything.

He had also thought of many wicked ways when he was a child, but he never used any of them because they would require sacrificing himself.

He didn’t want to waste himself like that.

He wanted to achieve his goals in a fair and open manner.

Jiang Lin asked, “So what are you planning to do with Cheng Xinda?”

He’s still a minor.

Nowadays, even if there weren’t laws protecting minors, children who make mistakes generally aren’t punished.

From what they’ve heard locally, when kids do something bad, it’s usually resolved with the family apologizing, paying compensation, or the kids getting a beating.

The community leaders would mediate, with one side making demands and the other negotiating until they reach a settlement.

If they remain unsatisfied, it doesn’t usually lead to anything serious.

For example, in a nearby village, a fourteen-year-old boy took a younger boy to go swimming, and the younger boy drowned while they were playing.

The community leaders mediated and compensated, but the deceased boy’s mother couldn’t accept it and refused to forgive.

Eventually, the leaders stopped getting involved, and the boy’s parents refused to pay the compensation.

The grieving mother went mad in the end.

In another village to the south, a thirteen or fourteen-year-old boy assaulted a twelve-year-old girl.

After a commotion, the boy’s family paid compensation, and surprisingly, the two families ended up marrying off their children.

Everyone thought this was a good outcome because some girls who were assaulted not only didn’t get compensated but were also blamed.

Some girls were even killed, and the men who harmed them didn’t face any punishment.

Among these men were some teenagers.

So, Jiang Lin didn’t have much hope for a proper punishment for Cheng Xinda.

Instead, she wanted to use this opportunity to get Cheng Fuwan removed from his position so he could no longer be a leader.

Cheng Rushan comforted her, “Leave it to me. There will be an explanation.”

Jiang Lin said, “We must be careful from now on.”

She told her children, “From now on, you two can’t go out to play by yourselves. You must go with your grandparents.”

She never expected a child like Cheng Xinda to be so wicked.

If he grew up, who knows what he could do? If he saw a child alone, he might kidnap them and cause even more harm.

The children replied, “Don’t worry, Mom. We will be careful.”

Wensheng said, “Don’t worry, Mom. I will protect you in the future.”

It was getting late, so Jiang Lin told everyone to go to bed.

Covered in sweat, she went to the bathroom to wash up.

When she returned to the room, she lay down on the kang cabinet and read some poetry by the leaders.

As she recited a few lines, her eyes couldn’t help but follow Cheng Rushan.

How could he be so handsome?

Broad shoulders, narrow waist, long arms and legs, and a captivating presence in every movement—he was practically a walking embodiment of male hormones.

She never thought she would fall so deeply for a man in her lifetime, and not just for the sake of marriage or starting a family, but genuinely for love.

The irony was that he was the type she never liked before.

So, could a person’s tastes really change?

Cheng Rushan was sorting and folding clothes, putting their underwear in the kang cabinet.

When he reached into the cabinet, her slender fingers touched his firm arm, and she gave him a flirty look.

Cheng Rushan’s heart skipped a beat, but he stayed calm and offered his face to her, “Go ahead, give me a kiss.”

Jiang Lin didn’t kiss him. Instead, she used her foot to tickle his waist, saying, “I’m just scratching your itch.”

Cheng Rushan grabbed her delicate arch, “Message received, my dear wife.”

He tossed aside the socks and other clothes, gripped her foot with one hand, and propped himself up on the kang with the other, climbing up to pin her beneath him.

Her clear eyes sparkled with a sweet smile, making him feel warm and tingly inside, almost melting his usually strong self-control.

He wrapped his arms around her waist, flipped over, and let her lie on top of him.

Jiang Lin stared at his eyes and brows intently for a moment, as if trying to imprint his image in her mind, “Cheng Rushan, I want to make three agreements with you.”

Cheng Rushan raised his eyelashes, his gaze becoming a bit lazy, “In our home, you make the rules. Three agreements or ten, it’s all up to you.”

Jiang Lin poked his cheek, “It’s not about the home, it’s about us.”

“Us?” Cheng Rushan’s deep eyes lit up with a fiery smile, “There’s only one thing between us.”

He started to get mischievous.

Jiang Lin gasped and pressed her hands on his shoulders to lift herself up, “Behave yourself.”

Cheng Rushan moved his lips away slightly, “Okay. Go ahead.”

“During our marriage, you’re not allowed to cheat on me… and of course, I can’t either.”

Cheng Rushan asked, “Cheat?”

Jiang Lin clarified, “It means you can’t betray me and look for other women.”

Cheng Rushan looked at her in surprise, “Have I ever made you feel I’m not loyal?”

Jiang Lin said, “No interrupting.”

Cheng Rushan closed his mouth.

“If you ever like another woman in the future, you need to tell me. I’ll divorce you on my own and won’t make a fuss. Just don’t think you can have it both ways—keeping the home stable while flirting outside.”

After the economic reforms and opening up, the economy was getting better and better.

A capable and ambitious man like Cheng Rushan was bound to succeed in his career.

With his good looks and rising status, many girls would certainly be drawn to him.

Even though he treated her well now, she couldn’t be sure that he wouldn’t lose interest in three, five, seven, or ten years if someone better came along.

The thought of this felt like a needle prick in her heart.

In the 80s and 90s, there were so many salons and massage parlors, providing services for men away from home.

They were very attentive!

He often traveled for work and might get lonely… If he ever dared to visit one of those places, she would never forgive him!

She remembered reading an article that said love makes people selfish and anxious.

Once you fall for someone, you want to know more, control more, and set more restrictions.

You start worrying about everything.

She didn’t want to become that kind of person, so she needed to make it clear to him.

This was her bottom line.

If he ever crossed it, no matter how much she loved him, she would kick him out!

He couldn’t think like other men who believed they could fool around casually and still come home to their wives.

Cheng Rushan’s dark eyes glinted with dissatisfaction.

He only noticed that she was talking about divorcing him.

Divorce? Not a chance.

“You didn’t even say you definitely wouldn’t!” Jiang Lin glared at him, annoyed by his silence.

Cheng Rushan, feeling wronged, said, “You told me not to interrupt.”

He flipped over and pinned her down on the bed, kissing her until her eyes became soft and watery, leaving her no time to think about anything else.

When she couldn’t take it anymore, he bit her lip gently and whispered, “Linlin, you see, in our relationship, we’ll always face each other or I’ll hold you close. There will never be a time when I turn my back on you.”

She could no longer speak coherently, tears unconsciously welling up at the corners of her eyes, losing her rationality completely.

“I only need you, both physically and emotionally. Apart from my mother, wife, and daughter, other women are no different from men to me. I have no emotional or physical needs for them. It was like this when I was young and full of vigor, and it will naturally be the same in the future. And you—”

He paused but didn’t continue.

Instead, he showed her with his actions just how much he was obsessed with her and needed her.

Right now, he couldn’t even be sure how he would react if she ever betrayed him.

He had imagined many scenarios, but he couldn’t bring himself to be truly angry with her.

He didn’t understand what love was, but he had unknowingly fallen deeply for her.

It was something he couldn’t rationally explain, so he just went with the flow.

After all, she was his woman.

No matter how much he loved or spoiled her, it wouldn’t be too much.

But he indulged his feelings too much and couldn’t resist her attraction, which led to the current situation where she was pulling his ear, half pleading and half threatening, “Cheng Rushan… we have a long life ahead… a very long one…”

“Today will soon be gone… we should cherish every day…”

Jiang Lin thought to herself: … Every day? Keep dreaming!

…

The next morning, Cheng Rushan got up early.

Yan Runzhi and Cheng Yunzhi were already up, preparing breakfast.

Yan Runzhi asked, “Dongsheng, is Bao’er’s mom completely recovered?” Although Jiang Lin seemed normal last night, she was still a bit worried.

Cheng Rushan nodded, “She’s fine now.”

Yan Runzhi sighed with relief, “Luckily she’s fine. If anything had happened to her, I would have gone after those people for sure.”

Cheng Rushan rubbed her shoulder, telling her not to get angry, then glanced at the west room and asked, “Is Wensheng okay?”

Yan Runzhi replied, “Yes, he’s fine. He seems more sensible now.”

Wensheng’s words now made him seem like a ten-year-old child.

Cheng Rushan said, “That’s good. Keep an eye on him and let me and Linlin know if there are any changes.”

“Don’t worry.”

Despite being very tired last night, Jiang Lin woke up feeling refreshed, though she did have some soreness in her waist and legs.

Jiang Xinglei peeked through the door crack, “Sis, are you okay now?”

Jiang Lin yawned, “I’m fine. Why wouldn’t I be? Oh, and don’t tell Mom and Dad about this.”

“Why not? You were so scared… Okay.”

Jiang Lin gave him a glance.

Was being that scared something to be proud of?

She found it embarrassing. Collapsing in the street and unable to walk, looking foolish—it was really embarrassing.

Wensheng, Da Bao, and Xiao Bao also ran over, each competing to say good morning.

Jiang Lin laughed, “Good morning, good morning! Go wash up, I’ll get up too.”

Jiang Xinglei led Wensheng out, and Da Bao and Xiao Bao also held hands and left, thoughtfully closing the door behind them for Jiang Lin.

Jiang Lin quickly got dressed, feeling refreshed, and went to wash up and have breakfast.

After breakfast, Cheng Yunzhi continued to take the children to an informal nursery class, but Da Bao and Xiao Bao really wanted to stay with Jiang Lin.

Jiang Lin reassured them, saying she was fine and didn’t need them to stay.

Wensheng said, “I’m older now, I don’t need to go to the nursery class. I’ll stay with Mom.”

Da Bao and Xiao Bao looked at Wensheng.

He had always been the same age as them, even younger at times, but now he seemed much older.

How strange!

How could he grow up overnight while they remained the same?

They looked at their own small arms and legs, still so little.

They really wished they could grow up overnight too!

So envious!

Wensheng looked at Jiang Lin seriously and said, “Mom, from now on, whenever you go out, I will go with you.”

He wanted to make sure that whenever she went out, he would be there to protect her from any bad people, bad dogs, or anything else.

Seeing how serious and determined he was, Jiang Lin hesitated for a moment and asked, “Don’t you want to go with Da Bao and Xiao Bao?”