Li Zhengguo said gently to his mother, "Mother, I really like Tiantian. Thank you, sister, for arranging the marriage for me. I am very grateful to her."
Then, Li Zhengguo told his mother what had happened when they entered the village. "...Mother, if it weren't for Tiantian's quick wit, that scoundrel would have surely caused trouble for our family. In the future, if that Zhang Fangcao comes again, please send her away. What she said to my sister is definitely not true."
"Which married woman always goes to the home of someone she was once engaged to? She doesn't avoid suspicion, but we should. She's just taking advantage of Uncle's guilt towards our family, trying to get favors from both sides."
"Mother, what else does our family have to be fawned over or remembered for? It's just a woman's vanity, wanting me to remember her forever. Am I that cheap, to let a married woman have feelings for me? Just thinking about it makes me sick."
His elder brother's words stunned Li Min.
Sister Fangcao hadn't said it like this. She said that her sister-in-law shyly leaned on her elder brother's back, and everyone saw her languid appearance. She even winked at those around her, attracting the attention of many men.
Sister Fangcao also said that if they didn't give the new sister-in-law a stern warning, she would surely dominate the elder brother and their mother in the future.
Sister Fangcao also said...
Sister Fangcao genuinely still had feelings for her elder brother, and she herself thought her elder brother was very charming. A woman was already married, yet she couldn't let go of her elder brother. But why did her elder brother find it disgusting?
"Alright," Li Mu agreed. She also felt it was inappropriate for Fangcao to come over so often, but her own health was poor, and she would be out of breath after just a few steps. She couldn't push and shove with people. Since her son said so, she should also pay attention.
Otherwise, if something happened in the long run, they would not only take the blame but also fall out with their cousin's family.
Li Mu knew her daughter's character very well. She would have a good talk with her later when they rested at night.
"Minmin, hurry up and make dinner. Your elder brother and sister-in-law haven't eaten all day, they must be hungry."
"Mother, shouldn't the new bride cook on her first day?"
Li Min felt uneasy when she saw her elder brother doting on Tian Jing like a treasure.
"Nonsense!" Li Mu was very angry. "Which new bride cooks on her first day? Who told you that?"
"Making the new bride cook on her first day is to give her a warning. The next morning, when the new bride cooks voluntarily, it's to show her virtue."
"How many times have I told you this? Why can't you remember? You remember all sorts of random things clearly."
Li Mu had not intended to embarrass her daughter, but who knew that a sister-in-law would overstep the mother-in-law and give the new bride a warning? What would Tian Jing think of their family?
Moreover, if her daughter went to the Tian family and had to cook on her first day, she didn't know how much she would be mistreated by her in-laws in the future.
"Hmph!" Li Min turned and left the room. Tian Jing was indeed a seductress, just as Sister Fangcao had said. As soon as she entered, she had already charmed their mother and elder brother.
"Tiantian," Li Mu called out softly to Tian Jing, "Don't mind her. My health isn't good, and she's busy with chores. She's a bit stubborn, and with Fangcao instigating her, she only listens to pleasant words."
"I can't teach her for many days. Whether she changes or not, it's up to her. In the next few days, if she disrespects you, you can discipline her as you see fit."
Tian Jing didn't believe it. No one would be willing for someone else to discipline their child, especially in front of them.
However, with Li Mu's words, she wouldn't be polite to Li Min. "Thank you, I will."
Li Mu didn't show any change in expression because Tian Jing agreed so readily. Instead, she waved her hand and said, "Zhengguo, take Tiantian to tidy up the room."
"Mother, you rest."
Li Zhengguo pulled Tian Jing and walked out. As soon as they were out of the main hall, Tian Jing let go of his hand and started complaining. Wasn't that enough?
"Our room is just opposite."
Li Zhengguo, not embarrassed at all, extended his hand again and continued to pull her along. He led her into a room on the other side of the main hall, which was the west room of this dilapidated thatched hut.
A thatched roof, adobe walls, a small window, and a dim room.
A kang took up one-third of the room. At the head of the kang was a kang cabinet. On the floor was a square stool, and next to the stool were three new wooden basins of different sizes.
Inside the wooden basins was a small object that looked like a wooden bucket. It had no handle, but the rim was the same as the wooden basin. It was smaller than the basin and taller, with two ear-like things on the sides of the bucket, which were probably for holding with both hands.
Seeing Tian Jing's curiosity about these things, Li Zhengguo's earlobes turned red. He lowered his head and whispered in her ear, "I made those. The middle one is for urine. The board by the bucket is the lid. I'll empty it every day."
Cough, cough, cough. Tian Jing choked on her saliva. Why was this person so meticulous?
Even if she could accept him emptying the chamber pot for her, she couldn't accept urinating inside the house in front of him.
Li Zhengguo naturally raised his hand and gently patted her back.
Tian Jing dodged his touch. She didn't want to get involved with this person, but he always found ways to approach her and shorten the distance between them.
It made her feel as if she knew him very well and unconsciously let down her guard. "Where is my luggage?"
"In the main hall, I'll get it."
Li Zhengguo felt a sense of loss but not sadness at Tian Jing's evasiveness. Today was the first day they met, and he couldn't rush things.
Tian Jing continued to survey the room. Besides the items she had already seen, there were a few small things on the kang cabinet: several bamboo cups. Two of the shorter bamboo cups contained toothbrushes, and next to the bamboo cups was a tube of toothpaste.
Great, she had a toothbrush to brush her teeth.
When Li Zhengguo entered with the luggage, he saw the joy blooming on Tian Jing's face, and his heart also rejoiced. It was good that Tiantian liked it.
Hearing the movement, Tian Jing turned her head. Seeing that it was him, she gave him a smile without reservation. "Thank you, Comrade Li Zhengguo."
Her exquisite smile blossomed in Li Zhengguo's heart, mind, and eyes like fresh flowers, rooting him to the spot, unable to move his feet.
He just gazed foolishly at the young girl holding the toothpaste. His Tiantian was so beautiful, so beautiful that he wanted to hide her away and prevent others from seeing her beauty.
Tiantian, this time, I will definitely protect you, so that you will always be happy and worry-free, and always stay by my side.
Seeing Li Zhengguo in a daze, Tian Jing quickly restrained her smile. She forgot that this person had fallen in love at first sight with this body. Really, she had just reminded herself to maintain a distance.
But this person's actions always made her forget that they were still strangers. "My luggage."
"Uh, here it is," Li Zhengguo placed the luggage on the kang. "You tidy up, and I'll go and heat the kang for Mother."
"Okay, go ahead."
Li Mu's health was not good, and she needed a heated kang as soon as it got cold. In the future, she would gradually help Li Mu recuperate, and her health should improve.