Blutbefleckter Tod

Kapitel 3

Yes, 'little wife'.

In his eyes, the sixteen-year-old girl was still just a child.

Actually, Tong'er was only seventeen years old when she married him. How could she have aged so much in just a few short years?

"But do you feel cold at night?"

"Oh no, this is for you two..." Song Xiaohua coughed lightly, "Because Ling'er is still young, he needs to sleep with our... him..."

Looking around furtively and avoiding Lu Ziqi's probing gaze, Song Xiaohua could only pray in her heart that the heavens would occasionally have a change of heart and do something good so that he would understand her unspoken meaning!

Lu Ziqi glanced at the two dowry items, then at Song Xiaohua's strange expression, feeling slightly surprised. Could it be that she didn't want to be with him... was it because of a new bride's shyness, or was there some other reason?

That's fine too.

Let's give each other time to get to know each other, and let me miss Tong'er a few more days. Although from the moment I decided to marry her, I was prepared to treat her with all my heart, but...

He smiled bitterly to himself, secretly mocking Lu Ziqi for being nothing more than a hesitant and indecisive person, unable to let go of anything. If Tong'er knew, she would probably tease him again.

Tong'er, don't worry, I will be happy, I will be blessed, and Ling'er and I will definitely have a warm home.

This woman is completely different from you, except for her eyes. They are just as lively, just as intelligent, and just as cunning. Are you using her eyes to see if I have kept my promise?

Tong'er, my wife...

Lu Ziqi lowered his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. What was wrong with him? Why were so many complicated thoughts suddenly popping into his mind? He must have been too tired lately.

"I'll tidy up the room in the west wing later. Your body hasn't fully recovered yet and you need to rest properly, so I'll stay in the west wing with Ling'er for a while. Keep this quilt for yourself after I put it away. The weather has been unpredictable lately, and it's windy at night, so it's better to be prepared."

At first, Song Xiaohua almost thought she had misheard. Could it be that the heavens had finally opened their eyes and solved the most critical problem so easily?! But in the blink of an eye, she started to feel annoyed again.

What does this guy mean? He's voluntarily asking to sleep in separate rooms from his wife, whom he just married and hasn't even slept with yet? Is it a physical ailment caused by years of widowerhood? A mental one? Or is he perfectly healthy, just completely uninterested in her, Song Xiaohua?!

She was indeed a young, undeveloped girl, her small figure making it difficult to discern her front from her back, and she certainly wasn't arousing any man's desire. Adding to that, her sickly, sallow face showed she wasn't in good health...

However, being so blatantly disliked by her nominal husband still severely wounded her proud, "sisterly" spirit. Her crystal-clear heart, which had always been pampered and coaxed by men, shattered instantly—this was simply unbearable!

"Father, Ling'er wants to sleep with Mother." Lu Ling tugged at Lu Ziqi's clothes and pleaded, "Aunt Zhang said that when Father comes back, I can sleep with Mother."

Aunt Zhang's words... why do they sound so awkward...?

Lu Ziqi smiled helplessly, gently stroking her son's soft hair, and said softly, "Mother's illness is not fully recovered yet, we can't delay her recovery, can we?"

"oh……"

Lu Ling reluctantly agreed with a pout, while Song Xiaohua, standing to the side, twitched her eye, having already made up her mind.

"Then let's do it your way! I'm not feeling sleepy anyway, so how about I go to the kitchen and help you out?"

Lu Ziqi raised an eyebrow, looked at her, and nodded. Women are indeed fickle, but her thoughts seem to change particularly quickly...

The two adults each harbored their own ulterior motives, while the little one was overjoyed, holding Lu Ziqi's hand with her left hand and Song Xiaohua's hand with her right, skipping and hopping along the path to the kitchen.

Seeing his chubby little face, Song Xiaohua was really cute and suddenly felt playful: "Ling'er, do you want to swing on the swing?"

"I want to, but Father said I can only play after I go to a private school!"

"Tch~ Just kidding! You won't have time to play when you start school!" Having grown up with similar lies from her parents, Song Xiaohua bluntly exposed them. Only after blurting it out did she realize her mistake under Lu Ziqi's strange gaze, and she quickly laughed it off: "What I mean is, we can play on the swings now."

As he spoke, he raised his arm and gave a wink. Lu Ziqi thought for a moment and immediately understood, and couldn't help but smile.

They cooperated by bending down slightly to maintain the same height as Song Xiaohua, and together they lifted Lu Ling high into the air. The small courtyard was immediately filled with children's screams and laughter, interspersed with a woman's penetrating laughter...

They walked and played along the way, and by the time they reached the kitchen door, Song Xiaohua was already out of breath, while Lu Ling was still eager to continue playing, making her extremely regretful for her impulsive act of arousing the child's mischievous nature.

Lu Ziqi straightened up and gently patted his son on the back of the head: "Didn't you just say you were going to help Daddy with chores? Now you're just playing around?" His voice wasn't loud, but it carried an air of authority, which immediately quieted the little boy down.

"Oh... Ling'er went to get firewood."

Watching him walk dejectedly towards the woodshed with his little head drooping, Song Xiaohua, who had finally caught her breath, felt a pang of pity: "Why were you so fierce?!"

The undisguised complaint in her tone startled Lu Ziqi for a moment: "I didn't..."

"What do you mean, 'nothing'? I was wondering why he's such a tiny little kid, yet he always acts like a little old man. It's all because you scared him!" Song Xiaohua continued, shaking her aching arms. "He lost his mother when he was little... he's already pitiful enough without a mother. You, as his father, not only don't pamper and love him more, but you always leave him alone at home and are always stern and harsh with him! There's no one reliable to look after him at home. Aren't you afraid that something bad might happen to him? Let me tell you, irresponsible behavior like yours would land you in jail abroad... in that... foreign country!"

Her righteous and stern speech was meant to speak up for Lu Ling, but in reality, it was an excuse to vent her pent-up anger. After ranting away, she did feel much better.

Lu Ziqi looked down at her cheeks, which were slightly flushed from the previous exercise and the reprimand, and felt a sudden surge of emotion. She truly cared for Ling'er. A slight smile played on his lips as he softly said, "That's why I need you."

Song Xiaohua was so captivated by his sudden display of tenderness that she almost drooled and had a nosebleed, revealing her true nature as a 'lovestruck girl'. Taking a deep breath, she stood on tiptoe and patted his shoulder: "Good attitude, worthy of praise! Don't worry, Ling'er is in my care from now on!"

Lu Ziqi was surprised again. Her words and actions seemed to be natural and habitual. However, although her family was not a prestigious one, they were quite well-off. How could a Han Chinese woman who had lived a secluded life and had to abide by various etiquette rules since childhood have developed such a carefree temperament?

"You just said, 'foreign lands'?"

"Well……"

"Are you very knowledgeable about the customs of the Liao people?"

"Well……"

Song Xiaohua wanted to seal her mouth shut, for words can be dangerous.

Liao people? The Yang family generals? Empress Xiao? Someone surnamed Yelü? The Legend of the Condor Heroes? ...

I've heard a little about it.

Song Xiaohua chuckled dryly and went into the kitchen, while Lu Ziqi thought for a moment and then shook his head and laughed.

This place and the neighboring counties bordered Liao, so what was so strange about occasionally hearing some rumors? But why had he never heard of any Liao law that allowed one to go to jail for not properly caring for their children? ...

Chapter Four: The Man Who Cooks

Lu Ziqi quickly took the firewood from his son's arms, squatted down, and gently patted the dust off his son's clothes and little hands: "Ling'er, do you want to play on the swing? Daddy means, a real swing?"

Lu Ling's eyes lit up for a moment, but she immediately hesitated and murmured, "Father said that Ling'er can't play now. Ling'er will listen to Father."

Lu Ziqi pinched his rosy cheeks. This child was sometimes so well-behaved that it broke his heart. Had he really been too strict with him? "Ling'er, as long as you promise Daddy that you can only play with an adult, then Daddy will install a swing for you in the yard in a couple of days. A real swing."

"Really?" Lu Ling clapped her hands excitedly and jumped up. After jumping a couple of times, she felt like she had broken the rules, so she quickly lowered her hands, stood up obediently, and nodded solemnly: "Ling'er promises Father!"

Stealing a glance at Lu Ziqi, and seeing that he was smiling and didn't seem to be blaming her, she mustered up her courage and said, "Actually, Ling'er also really liked that swing that she played on with Father and Mother just now!"

"No, no, no!" Before Lu Ziqi could answer, Song Xiaohua, who had been 'eavesdropping' on the father and son's conversation in the kitchen, vehemently rejected the idea: "If you're going to play for real, then go ahead and play for real! My old arms and legs can't take your torment."

Lu Ling quickly and clearly called out into the room, "Mother isn't old anywhere!"

Lu Ziqi stood up with a smile, took Lu Ling's hand and stepped inside, only to see Song Xiaohua looking around with a face full of curiosity.

"What are you looking for?"

"Oh no... Your kitchen is a little different from mine, so I'm getting familiar with the place."

"It's not your house, and it's not my house! It's our house, our kitchen!"

Lu Ling spoke each word with utmost seriousness, causing Song Xiaohua and Lu Ziqi to exchange a glance before quickly looking away, a warm and strange feeling rising in their hearts at the same time.

"Alright, alright, you little rascal with so many opinions!" Song Xiaohua gently pinched Lu Ling's little nose with two fingers, then sat him on a small stool against the wall. "We won't cause you any more trouble. Today, we'll let you perform well, okay?"

Lu Ziqi didn't say anything, just smiled, rolled up his sleeves, and got to work cleanly and efficiently.

Song Xiaohua stopped talking and disturbing her, and quietly memorized the placement of various ingredients and seasonings, as well as the steps and methods for starting a fire and cooking.

It's fine to make do for one or two meals, but we can't expect Lu Ziqi to do every single meal in the future, can we? Not to mention that he looks like the kind of person who's too busy to stay home and would starve to death if we relied on him, this is a feudal era where male chauvinism is extremely prevalent. If we always let the man in our family do the housework, and that man is a local official, who knows if he'll be paraded through the streets and drowned in a pig cage... So, no matter what, we have to learn to do basic housework as soon as possible.

Sigh, it's pitiful that she's such a lazy person, not even bothering to pick up a fallen soy sauce bottle, living off takeout and instant noodles. Now, she's actually fallen to this state...

However, it doesn't seem too difficult! With her clever mind, she can definitely handle it easily.

Watching Lu Ziqi's busy figure, Song Xiaohua couldn't help but smile.

Putting aside what happened before, Lu Ziqi's performance since they met has been quite good, even surprising. His change in appearance is particularly striking, which truly surprised and delighted Song Xiaohua...

Judging from Aunt Zhang's attitude towards him, he must be a well-loved and respected official. And from his way of educating Lu Ling, it is not difficult to tell that he is definitely a strict father, but also very loving, with a fatherly love as deep as a mountain.

As for him towards me... I can't see anything yet. He's probably quite polite and courteous, right? As long as I can ignore that blatant 'disdain'...

If you can't resist flirting with a handsome man, you're either a 'femme fatale' or a 'lesbian'.