Chapter 42, Part One

The essentials were not yet fully stocked in the newly rented kitchen, so Lin Xuexia still went back to her own room to prepare. With Chen Miaorong joining in, she headed back with the ingredients a little after two in the afternoon, took a brief twenty-minute nap, and woke up to marinate and braise the meat and vegetables.

Thinking that she was going over to Fu Wei’s place today to look at his house and meet his brothers, Lin Xuexia cooked a clay pot of ginger duck. Ginger duck in a clay pot is a relatively simple yet delicious dish. She used sesame oil—a generous amount of sesame oil to sauté ginger slices and scallion whites until fragrant, releasing a peculiar yet intense aroma. Then, she added the blanched mother-duck meat and stir-fried it. The rich fragrance of sesame oil mingled with the pungent warmth of ginger, sizzling as it seeped into the duck meat, overflowing with aroma. Next, she poured the prepared sauce into the clay pot, covered it, and let it simmer over low heat for thirty to forty minutes.

Duck meat prepared this way had not the slightest gamey odor; instead, it carried a mildly sweet, refreshing fragrance. The duck meat became tender, flavorful, and deeply infused with the seasonings. The absolute highlight inside was the duck liver, with a texture as dense and smooth as paste, completely devoid of gaminess and faintly sweet—extraordinarily delicious.

Fu Wei came to pick her up at five-thirty. Lin Xuexia had already changed into a new outfit: an off-the-shoulder red top, a plaid skirt, and her hair falling softly over her shoulders. She packed the entire clay pot of duck and had Fu Wei carry it down.

Fu Wei chuckled. "I asked you over to my place for a meal, and you ended up preparing your own food."

"If you don't want to eat it, you can save it for tomorrow," Lin Xuexia rolled her eyes.

"I want to. I wish I could eat meals cooked by my wife every day."

Saying this, Fu Wei ignored the clay pot, stepped forward instead to wrap his arms around Lin Xuexia’s waist, rested his chin on her shoulder, and felt a twinge of regret. He regretted buying his wife so many pretty dresses, making her dress up so dazzlingly every day.

"Did you just shave? It's so prickly." Lin Xuexia pushed against his chin. The man's stubble was sharp, brushing across her shoulder with a texture like fine sandpaper.

She smiled and asked, "Does this outfit look good on me?"

"Don't ask, I regret it now."

Lin Xuexia said, "We had an agreement. You're going to buy me even more pretty clothes in the future."

Fu Wei gave her a ride over on his motorcycle. By the time they reached his place, the sky had already darkened to a deep, profound blue. Streetlights flickered on, and there were still quite a few late-returning pedestrians on the road.

The motorcycle parked downstairs. Lin Xuexia got off first, and after Fu Wei secured the bike, he carried the pot of duck and led his wife to view the "collection" on the first floor. Opening the warehouse door, he set down the clay pot. A brief glance inside immediately drew Lin Xuexia’s eyes to the patterned tiles laid out across the floor near the entrance.

Various flamboyant patterns dazzled the viewer, mostly combinations of white, green, and red forming different floral motifs, making Lin Xuexia’s head spin slightly.

Aside from those, there were diamond-grid tiles in alternating black and white, bordered by begonia-patterned glass, alongside a Western-style high stool.

……

After inspecting them one by one, Lin Xuexia looked at Fu Wei, feeling that he was truly a talent to be able to gather so many items.

Fu Wei carefully introduced them to her, explaining which materials had been used by whom and what kind of results they produced. Initially, Lin Xuexia hadn't thought much of it, assuming Fu Wei would just tweak the apartment's layout and move in after they got married. As it turned out, that wasn't the case at all; he intended to tear down the entire interior decoration and completely rebuild it.

This man certainly knew how to make a fuss!

Lin Xuexia selected a few items she liked. "I want windows like these, I like this. The bathroom needs to be bigger, put the toilet here, place a bathtub over here, and put a long bamboo lounge chair on this side."

The two of them huddled together, with Fu Wei making revisions and adjustments on the blueprint. Afraid that Lin Xuexia might have missed anything, he offered her plenty of suggestions, having heard of many bizarre remodeling requests in the renovation world lately.

Everyone’s requirements for house decoration differed entirely—one man's meat is another man's poison.

Curious, Fu Wei asked, "Some people don't like washing machines because they're so used to washboards. Thinking wooden washboards break easily, they specifically ask workers to build a washboard basin in the bathroom. Do you want one?"

Lin Xuexia: "…… Do you want to kneel on one?"

Why on earth would Fu Wei think she was the kind of woman who loved a washboard? She was practically desperate to save up money to buy a washing machine.

Fu Wei: "……" He had a vague sense of danger.

"However, building a washboard basin actually sounds like a good idea. You might just find a use for it someday," Lin Xuexia mused, resting her chin in her hand.

Fu Wei gave a light cough and changed the subject. "Let's decide on the rest later. Let's head upstairs and take a look."

"Fu Wei, don't waste all these materials you've gathered. Have someone take good photos and compile a catalog album. I think it would be best if you photographed all the houses you've finished remodeling and kept the records. That way, when clients come to you for renovations in the future, you can just pull out the album for them to reference. It would save a lot of trouble."

Fu Wei thought about it and agreed that Lin Xuexia's suggestion was a brilliant idea, though currently, they were only doing batch renovations for institutional housing and lacked experience with individual residential projects.

Lin Xuexia followed Fu Wei upstairs, entering the room on the east side of the second floor. The scene now looked vastly different from when she had first woken up here; the decisive Fu Wei had already knocked down the walls and constructed the staircase. Such drive was truly admirable.

The furniture inside had been cleared out. Fu Wei had moved himself into the west room on the third floor, while the west rooms on the second floor were occupied by Xue Xiaoshan and Zhong Xiangdong.

"Fu Wei, hey brother, is your wife here?" Hearing the commotion next door, Zhong Xiangdong instantly popped his head out, stretching his neck past the doorway to peer into the east room.

He had long since heard that the wife Fu Wei had found was both beautiful and virtuous, and he wanted to see just how pretty she could be—whether she was worthy of catching Master Dong's eye.

Zhong Xiangdong had originally expected to see a young girl as pure and lovely as Xue Xiaoshan's younger sister, Xue Lingjun—dainty, full of childish innocence, and untainted. Yet, right beside Fu Wei, he unexpectedly spotted a modern glamour girl of the new era.

Languid, gorgeous curls, a red top, a plaid skirt, straight legs, slightly heeled shoes, an exquisite, delicate face, and an exceptionally poised demeanor. Seeing Zhong Xiangdong appear, she showed not the slightest bit of alarm or timidity; instead, she flashed a smile.

That smile made Zhong Xiangdong deeply wish he had slicked his hair back into a pompadour and put on a sharp suit.

With such a stunning beauty, no wonder Old Wei wanted to bring her home as his bride after knowing her for only a few days. If it were him, he’d want to do the same!

Fu Wei calmly introduced them. "Wife, this is the guy I told you about, Zhong Xiangdong, who grew up with me in the same courtyard since we were kids. You can just call him Dongzi."

"Dongzi, this is your sister-in-law."

Lin Xuexia tried hard to suppress her laughter. "Hello."

At this moment, Lin Xuexia found the situation rather confusing. If she remembered correctly, Zhong Xiangdong was actually a year or two older than Fu Wei, yet he was now addressing her as sister-in-law?

"Sister-in-law, yes, sister-in-law. Old Wei, you're something else, managing to reel in such a great beauty." Zhong Xiangdong gritted his teeth and accepted his new status as the younger brother.

Fu Wei generously said, "Come upstairs later and taste your sister-in-law's cooking."

Zhong Xiangdong: "……"

This was showing off. This was definitely showing off!

The east house was undergoing renovations, so Fu Wei had currently relocated to live in the west room on the third floor. Previously, the third-floor rooms had the best decoration, kept by the former owner for their own residence, featuring patterned tiles, Western-style wainscoting, and polished hardwood flooring that had recently undergone waxing and maintenance, making it quite gorgeous.

Originally, Fu Wei had planned to pick up a few fresh dishes from a restaurant, but since Lin Xuexia had brought a pot of duck, he put on an apron himself, stir-fried a few side dishes, and called the three men downstairs—including Zhong Xiangdong—up for dinner.

Upon seeing Xue Lingjun standing beside Xue Xiaoshan, Lin Xuexia paused for a brief moment, thinking that this must be Xue Xiaoshan's younger sister. She looked so clean and pure; remembering everything the girl had suffered in her past life, Lin Xuexia couldn't help but feel a surge of indignation.

When Xue Lingjun saw Lin Xuexia, her cheeks flushed slightly, feeling a sense of inferiority. Lin Xuexia before her was simply too gorgeous, so breathtaking that it was impossible to look away.

At that moment, she felt grateful that she was mute and didn't need to speak. Otherwise, she was bound to be clumsy with words and say things that annoyed people.

"Sister-in-law, this is my younger sister, Xue Lingjun. There's something wrong with her right here—" Xue Xiaoshan pointed at his throat. "She hasn't been able to speak since she was little. I took her to a major hospital for an examination, and the doctor said there's a chance she could recover her voice after surgery, but this stubborn girl refuses."

"In this state, she still has the nerve to make a fuss about wanting to work in a factory."

Seeing everyone's gaze turn toward her, Xue Lingjun blushed furiously. She shook her head and waved her hands frantically, trying to signal her brother not to draw the topic to her, as she was terrified of being the center of attention.

Xue Lingjun had already grown accustomed to days without speech and didn't care much whether she could talk or not—not that she truly didn't care, but rather that she was afraid. She was afraid of surgery and afraid of being a burden to her older brother.

After their parents died, she had previously lived as a dependent at her uncle's house. Even though her brother sent money back every month, her aunt and uncle still inevitably made snide remarks. Now that she was seventeen or eighteen, she really couldn't stay at her uncle's place any longer. She wanted to stay with her biological brother, yet she feared becoming a burden to him.

Her brother would still need to find a sister-in-law in the future; could a wife tolerate her presence? Not to mention how much money it cost to marry a wife nowadays. Xue Lingjun hoped Xue Xiaoshan wouldn't waste money on treating her illness, but instead save it properly to get married.

Xue Lingjun didn't want medical treatment; she wanted to sneak out behind her brother's back to find a job. She had heard that many factories in the city hired female workers and paid quite a bit of money each month. Working on an assembly line shouldn't require the ability to speak, right? Yet her brother stubbornly refused, claiming she couldn't handle it and would only be bullied.

Lin Xuexia looked at Xue Lingjun and asked, "Do you want to find a job?"

Xue Lingjun froze, her cheeks burning red. She didn't nod; instead, she feared that Lin Xuexia, like her brother, would mock her for overestimating herself.

What kind of work could a mute who couldn't speak possibly do?

"If I can arrange a job for you, would you want to do it?" Lin Xuexia felt the urge to recruit someone to help out yet again. If Xue Lingjun was merely unable to speak and had no other physical ailments, she was entirely capable of working.

Lin Xuexia was pregnant; though her belly hadn't started showing yet, she was always careful not to overexert herself, working a little and resting a little. If she could have someone by her side to help with manual tasks while she provided guidance, it would be ideal.

Working together as companions would also prevent this lifetime's Xue Lingjun from crossing paths with traffickers.

Lin Xuexia sized up Xue Lingjun, planning to buy her a whistle. In case of an emergency, even if she couldn't call out for help, she could blow the whistle.

Xue Lingjun stared at Lin Xuexia with wide eyes, her heart shouting frantically: a job, could she really work?

Xue Xiaoshan quickly chimed in, "Sister-in-law, my sister doesn't need to work. She doesn't need to work, I can support her."

"Lingjun, just stay home properly and don't run around blindly. That's the biggest help you can give your brother, and it keeps me from worrying anymore, alright?"

Xue Lingjun's body stiffened, her heart—which had just grown warm—instantly plummeting to freezing point.

That's right, with a body like hers, she would only cause her brother worry and anxiety.

"She has hands and feet, what did she do that she has to make you worry?" Lin Xuexia disagreed with Xue Xiaoshan's approach of locking his sister up at home and forbidding her from going out.

His sister simply couldn't speak; she wasn't a disabled person incapable of caring for herself. A bustling, prosperous metropolis was certainly harder for a mute country girl like Xue Lingjun to integrate into than ordinary people, but precisely because of that, she needed to learn more survival skills rather than being locked away at home to spend her days in panic, feeling unfamiliar and terrified of the outside world.

"Sister Xue, is it only that you can't speak?" Lin Xuexia continued, "Do you have any other physical ailments? Do you get dizzy? Do you get headaches?"

Xue Lingjun quickly shook her head.

Lin Xuexia asked with a smile, "Can you do some physical labor?"

Xue Lingjun nodded.

Lin Xuexia said, "Then follow by my side during the day and lend me a hand. Have your brother send you over in the morning and evening. If your brother is busy, you can stay over at my place for a day or two—the apartment I rent has an extra empty room. I'll pay you a wage based on your performance. There are a few aunts and older women over there too; you can communicate with them. Even just using hand gestures is fine; ordinary nodding and shaking the head are universally understood, and after spending time together, we'll surely learn to read your sign language."

"Work hard, and bravely undergo surgery to cure your condition. That's the only way you can truly stop your brother from worrying."