She hid in the room and closed the door.
Even at home, Liu Yuan still felt a lingering fear.
"So close, just so close..." Liu Yuan recalled Wen Zhqing’s kiss, that moment of chaos and allure, her heart beating wildly, almost jumping out of her throat.
That feeling was very sweet, after all, Wen Zhqing was someone she liked, her hero.
But...
Thinking about how Wen Zhqing was now married, and how if she really went through with it with Wen Zhqing, it would mean having an affair.
Recalling the fates of those she had seen having affairs before, Liu Yuan’s face turned pale instantly.
Liu Yuan was very scared.
She didn’t want that.
So, all she could do now was to quickly get Brother Wen to divorce, help him escape his sea of suffering, and then she could marry him.
But...
Originally, Liu Yuan planned to confront her parents tonight, to tell them everything, but what just happened frightened her.
"Maybe I should wait a little longer." Liu Yuan hesitated, not daring to do it tonight.
When Liu Ruzhi and Du Juan returned home from work, they noticed something was off with their daughter.
After all, for their only daughter, Liu Ruzhi and Du Juan paid attention and loved her.
Liu Ruzhi and Du Juan had known each other from the beginning, and even now, as Liu Ruzhi reached the position of county head, even though they only had one daughter and Du Juan couldn’t have more children, despite the great pressure of public opinion around them.
But Liu Ruzhi still never thought of marrying Du Juan or adopting other children.
Even more so, their only daughter, Liu Yuan, was deeply loved by them.
So, they could detect when Liu Yuan was not acting right.
They had noticed something off about their daughter recently.
But every time they asked, their daughter said no.
"Do you think our Yuanyuan is seeing someone?" Du Juan guessed.
Liu Ruzhi frowned, "Impossible, right?"
As a father, with Liu Yuan being his only daughter, to be honest, he couldn’t accept the possibility of her marrying and leaving them to live her own life.
Also because there was no son.
So before that, he discussed with his wife the idea of having Liu Yuan bring a husband into the family.
Liu Yuan knew about this too.
And now...
"Yuanyuan, if you’re seeing someone and have someone you like, you should tell us, right?" Liu Ruzhi said.
In his view, Liu Yuan was well-behaved and sensible, and such a big matter as seeing someone wouldn’t be kept a secret from them.
"That’s true," Du Juan also thought the same.
"Maybe we’ve been quite busy recently and haven’t had much time to spend with Yuanyuan, she might feel lonely," Liu Ruzhi said.
Both of them had demanding jobs—one was a county official, and the other the chairwoman of the women’s federation—so they were often busy.
"Once I get through this busy period, I can spend more time with Yuanyuan," Du Juan said.
"By the way, last time you mentioned meeting a nice young man, with many brothers at home, suitable for our Yuanyuan..."
...
As night fell, Wen Zhqing, who had made a trip to town but came back empty-handed, inevitably suffered a beating and scolding from Bao Shanyan.
The ruckus was quite loud, causing everyone in Huaihua Village to know about it.
However, no one dared say anything.
Firstly, because someone couldn’t stand it before and went to persuade Bao Shanyan, but was immediately questioned: Do you fancy Wen, are you planning to have an affair with her husband? The aunt was so scared, she immediately fled.
Bao Shanyan didn’t feel any shame saying this, but the old lady did.
If the aunt dared not, then those young girls with ideas about Wen Zhqing definitely wouldn’t either.
As for the men? Ha, they wouldn’t care about the life or death of a pretty-faced educated youth like Wen Zhqing.
Besides, they couldn’t beat the mother and daughter pair of Bao Shanyan anyway.
Also, Bao Shanyan claimed she was hitting her husband, which had nothing to do with them.
It was her own man, he made a mistake, and she would hit him if she wanted to.
If Wen Zhqing wasn’t happy about it, he could hit back.
At this moment, lying in bed after being beaten, Wen Zhqing looked at Bao Shanyan, who was sleeping like a pig beside him, desperately wishing he could stretch out his hand and strangle her.
But Wen Zhqing restrained himself.
He knew that even though Bao Shanyan was pregnant, if she exerted force, he still couldn’t resist, especially with Bao Yingzi, who was also strong, next door.
Wait a little longer.
Women are most vulnerable during pregnancy and childbirth.
As long as he’s patient until Bao Shanyan gives birth, by using some tricks then, he could make it so Bao Shanyan would...lose her life along with the child!
Wen Zhqing lowered his gaze, hiding the ruthlessness in his eyes, enduring the pain in his body, and fell into a deep sleep.
The next day, at dawn, Wen Zhqing was again called to the kitchen to cook, with Bao Shanyan supervising naturally, while Bao Yingzi went to the fields.
In Wen Zhqing and Bao Shanyan’s room, the window, originally left open only a crack, was opened from the outside, and a figure agilely slipped in.
The figure quietly searched around the room.
Soon, they found the package Wen Zhqing had hidden and brought back from town.
Opening it, Gu Yunzhou saw the contents inside.
The first thing that caught his eye were two banned books.
Seeing them, Gu Yunzhou was secretly shocked.
Why would Wen Zhqing need these banned books?
Soon, Gu Yunzhou thought of a possibility.
Wen Zhqing definitely wouldn’t buy them for his own reading.
Which leaves using them to frame someone else.
Previously, Gu Yunzhou had been wondering in what way Wen Zhqing planned to harm his father and sister-in-law.
Choosing the sister-in-law was because she was pregnant.
Choosing his father, though—was it because he was the head of the family, or because he was the village chief?
Now, Gu Yunzhou thought his guess might be correct.
Wen Zhqing planned to use these two banned books to frame his father, or even the Gu Family.
"Wen Zhqing, you really are ruthless."
Having figured out Wen Zhqing’s intention, for a moment, Gu Yunzhou considered destroying these two books.
But after thinking it over, he held back.
If he destroyed them, Wen Zhqing would notice something amiss and become even more cautious afterward.
Moreover, if this failed, Wen Zhqing might come up with other malicious ways to frame his family.
So it would be better to turn the tables on him.
Later...
Gu Yunzhou’s eyes slightly narrowed.
With a plan in mind, he temporarily set the two books aside, then noticed a small medicine packet under the books.