Lin Chuxia had eaten and drunk her fill, when Mrs. Qin entered the bridal chamber to take her to meet relatives and friends.
Seeing the leftover dishes at the side and then looking at Lin Chuxia, who sat quietly by the bed like a flower, Mrs. Qin was even more satisfied.
Her son was introverted, and had shown no interest in marrying despite many suggestions over the years. He had even said that as long as the Qin Family had Zhuangzhuang to carry on the family line, there was no need for him to marry.
Knowing her son was career-minded and willing to dedicate everything to the country, she felt proud of him.
However, as a mother, who wouldn’t wish for her child to marry and be successful? She yearned for his complete happiness.
This time, having finally agreed to marry, there was an unexpected issue of swapping brides at the Lin Family.
After many twists and turns, the marriage was finally arranged.
Looking at the young daughter-in-law, she indeed looked better than the eldest Lin girl. The meals had been deliberately served to the daughter-in-law by her son, hoping her young son would be pleased with a wife as lovely as a flower.
She didn’t expect the daughter-in-law to hold sway over her son; as long as the couple could live peacefully and have a child or two in a year or two, she would feel she had served her duty to the Qin ancestors.
While the Qin Family was having a lively wedding celebration, things were much quieter at the Lin household.
Mr. Lin and Mother Lin returned home with their younger son before noon, planning to join their daughter at the Qin Family for lunch.
After all, the Qin Family’s offerings surely had to be better than the Li Family’s.
She had seen it herself; the Li Family had nothing but a big pot of stew, and even the steamed buns were mixed with cornmeal.
When they got home, it was eerily quiet and there was no sign of their younger daughter, and even her dowry was gone.
Before she could even ask, a neighbor told them that the Qin Family had come to fetch the bride in a tractor, and the ungrateful Lin Chuxia had left with them.
Mother Lin was bursting with unvented frustration.
“Mom, why don’t we chase after Jiadong? Maybe we can still catch up,” Lin Jiadong spoke up, rubbing his stomach.
He hadn’t eaten breakfast and had been busy all morning; he was starving.
“What’s the use of chasing? Can your two legs catch up to four wheels?” Besides, they’ve been gone for half the day.
“What should we do then?” Lin Jiadong felt even more aggrieved, “I said we should have left earlier but you insisted on staying at the Li’s, and when I said to eat there you didn’t want to, apparently, you just want to starve.”
“Who knew your sister was so eager to run off with them? Just like a white-eyed wolf that can’t be tamed. Without her family, does she think she brings honor to herself? She deserves to be looked down upon by her in-laws.”
Mother Lin said these words with a tinge of blame towards her elder daughter in her heart; she had hoped to make it back in time, but her elder daughter clung to her, reluctant to let her go.
The daughter who had just married, she too felt reluctant to part, thus time slipped by.
Yet what angered her most was her younger daughter; what harm would waiting a little longer do?
After a bustling day, it finally quieted down at night.
It wasn’t that there wasn’t a custom of teasing the bridal chamber locally; it’s just that Qin Yang was aloof and rarely made it home in a year. Being the last to marry among his peers and the oldest among the younger generation, nobody dared to tease him.
After dinner, Lin Chuxia went back to her room.
She had spent the day acting properly, not rushing to show off in front of the Qin Family.
With the actions of her family, no matter how she behaved now, it would seem insincere; better to be herself, as time would reveal true hearts.
On the Kang, sister-in-law had already come in to help with the bedding; it was customary for a person blessed with full happiness to make the bed on the wedding night. Having Zhuangzhuang and her parents alive, the sister-in-law was truly considered a person of complete blessing in the village.
Two quilts, one red and one green, both provided by the Qin Family, were obviously new.
At this time, what was called a double quilt didn’t exist, even for newlyweds, they used two separate quilts.
Lin Chuxia climbed onto the kang and slipped under the green blanket after shedding her outer garment.
Waking up early and bustling all day, she was a bit tired.
She wasn’t worried about Qin Yang coming over. As far as she knew, in her past life, Lin Jiayi did not consummate her marriage on her wedding night. Because of this, she cried and made a fuss at her mother’s house when she returned three days later, hoping her family would intervene.
But how could her own family intervene in such matters?
Moreover, Qin Yang left for another place the day after the wedding; they couldn’t possibly ask him to come back just to consummate the marriage with their daughter. Even if the Lin Family was domineering, they couldn’t lose face like that.
Thinking thus, Lin Chuxia closed her eyes, feeling perfectly justified.
Soon after, the door opened again. The man’s footsteps paused upon seeing the scene inside the room, but only for a moment, before he walked in.
He placed the thermal flask he was carrying on the table, poured half a cup of boiling water to cool for later drinking, and then turned off the light and climbed onto the kang.
Lin Chuxia hadn’t fallen asleep. She had heard Qin Yang enter the room, but she kept her eyes closed to avoid any awkwardness.
After all, he would leave tomorrow, and she just needed to get through tonight.
The thought of having the room to herself thereafter made Lin Chuxia happy.
From their brief interaction today, she found the Qin Family pleasant to be around—the parents-in-law were kind, the elder brother was honest and straightforward, and little Zhuangzhuang was adorable, although the sister-in-law seemed a bit…
Lin Chuxia knew that, given the Lin Family’s demanding behavior and hefty dowry demands before the wedding, anyone would feel uncomfortable.
The Qin Family hadn’t separated their family assets yet.
Lin Chuxia didn’t mind the sister-in-law’s attitude; if they got along well in the future, they would interact more; if not, the things she planned to do wouldn’t impact the elder brother and sister-in-law’s interests.
Between people, as long as there were no conflicts of interest, troubles could not be sparked.
In the darkness, there came a rustling sound. Lin Chuxia opened her eyes and, using the moonlight coming through the window, saw the person beside her quickly shedding clothes and diving under the blanket.
Their blankets were laid quite close, and Lin Chuxia got nudged slightly.
She shifted a bit to the side.
At her movement, the person beside her paused for a couple of seconds before burrowing further into the blanket.
Finally, things quieted down, Lin Chuxia sighed in relief and listened to the breathing next to her, steady and deep. She couldn’t help but admire how robust young people were.
In her last life when she was ill, her breathing was shallow and slightly more rapid than that of a healthy person; sometimes she had to take deep breaths and would envy those with strong physiques.
Since she had been drinking spiritual spring water lately, her physical condition had obviously improved, and she hoped she could live a longer and healthier life this time.
While she was dreaming of a beautiful life, the blanket suddenly got pulled open at the corner. Before she could react, a warm, firm body pressed against hers.
Lin Chuxia: “…”
A large hand embraced her waist while the other began tugging at her clothes.
Lin Chuxia???
This development was wrong; wasn’t it said that this man had some issues which was why he didn’t consummate the marriage on his wedding night? And later, he even brought back a child, leaving his elder sister to live like a widow all her life?
Before she could figure it out, she found herself being flipped over and held down by the man.
Lin Chuxia!!!
Big brother, Are you on a mission here, serious as you are?
By now, she realized that regardless of whether the information was wrong in her previous life or there was some unknown reason this life, Qin Yang was not as she understood him to be.