Zhou Xueli supported Lady Liang back to her own room to lie down, bustling about as he fretted, "Does it hurt a lot? Do you want to call the doctor to prescribe some fetus-preserving medicine for you?"
Lady Liang saw the urgent look on his face and sighed inwardly. This family was bizarre, but her husband was a good man. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have been able to stay.
"Husband, don’t fuss, I’m fine," said Lady Liang, pulling him to sit down.
"Ah?" Zhou Xueli looked at her face, which showed not the slightest pain, and couldn’t help feeling bewildered.
With a slight smile, Lady Liang caressed her belly and said, "I faked it, otherwise Uncle Zhou would have had me playing the villain."
Thinking of Zhou Xuennian’s smug face and plans, Lady Liang felt like vomiting. He was so calculating, coming up with such a bad idea, expecting her to play the villain, which was simply ridiculous.
Why should she, an aunt by marriage, have to clean up the mess Zhou Dajun made and even take the role of the villain?
Zhou Xuennian and Lu Zhenzhu weren’t afraid of retribution, but she, Liang Guilin, was scared, especially of retribution falling upon her child.
Zhou Xueli’s face turned pale, and he pounded the bed fiercely, gritting his teeth and saying, "That brute, Zhou Dajun, is worse than pigs and dogs, how could he bring himself to do it."
Lady Liang pursed her lips, pondered a moment, and still decided to reveal Zhou Dajun’s behavior: "He didn’t just covet Guilan, but even normally, he would ogle my chest."
"What?" Zhou Xueli stood up suddenly, his face full of shock as he asked, "Are you speaking the truth?"
Lady Liang snorted and said, "I just thought he was a child who didn’t understand. Once he got married, he would grow sensible. I didn’t want to cause an uproar in the family, so I endured it and didn’t say anything."
"You should have told me. I would have beaten that scoundrel to death." If he dared to be so rude to his aunt, what else wouldn’t that beast dare to do?
Tears welled in Lady Liang’s eyes as she said, "How could I speak of it? If I did, wouldn’t it just cause needless quarrels? You know well enough what the people in the main house are like. I’ve only just returned to the family a few months ago. If I spoke of such things, how would the in-laws view me? I fear they would label me the troublemaker."
Seeing his wife’s distress, Zhou Xueli softened and hurriedly sat beside her, taking her hand and saying, "Don’t cry, my dear. I’m not blaming you; it’s just that, ah, dear, it is me who has wronged you. Being married into the Zhou family has wronged you!"
Lady Liang sobbed a few times and leaned on his shoulder, saying, "Husband, I willingly married you, as long as you are wholeheartedly devoted to me."
"Of course, I will be good to you," Zhou Xueli reassured her as he hugged her shoulder and gently touched her abdomen, "and to our child."
Lady Liang looked up and said, "Husband, speaking of this, I’m willing to be the villain if necessary. You saw what happened today. How could Uncle Zhou and the others harbor such thoughts, to blame the victim, bully a widow and an orphan? Even speaking of it brings shame. I fear our child might follow their example in the future, and I dread the day something goes wrong, and we are the ones sacrificed and driven out."
"What are you suggesting?"
"Husband, I can make a living with my crafts. My suggestion is, let’s separate from the family. I truly can’t bear to live with the selfish and indifferent people of the main house with our child!" Lady Liang’s eyes shimmered with a plea, "I don’t want the main house’s wealth; I believe you won’t let your wife and child go hungry. I don’t require our children to be greatly accomplished; I only wish them to be upright, kind, understanding, and courteous."
A wave of shock went through Zhou Xueli; his lips tightly pursed, he said, "Mother won’t agree."
Lady Liang’s heart leaped with hope. "How will we know without trying?"
Zhou Xueli thought about the day’s events and fell silent; he knew all too well that Lady Liang’s plans were right. The people of the main house were truly unbearable and cold-hearted.