After Encountering My Deceased Wife, I Became the Male Lead's Love Rival - Chapter 46

Chapter 46: You Passed

Waking up only at noon the next day, Fang Ziyue let out a low groan and rubbed her forehead. The hangover was causing a rhythmic, throbbing pain in her temples. When she forced her eyes open against the ache, she realized this wasn’t her room?

Fang Ziyue bolted upright like a fish leaping from water. “Ugh—” So nauseous.

Tsk, moved too fast! Seeing stars, she clutched the quilt. She felt sick enough to vomit, but the cool, crisp fragrance belonging to her wife on the bedding saved her life.

“Since you’re awake, go wash up.” A cold voice suddenly drifted from the side.

Fang Ziyue frowned and looked over. Her wife was sitting by the window, letting the breeze blow over her. On the dining table nearby sat the remains of the dinner the two of them hadn’t finished the night before. Wine had spilled onto the food, and after a night of fermentation, the smell was truly unpleasant.

Ling Qiu had intended to have someone clear it away, but the drunk Fang Ziyue had spent the night clinging to her and wailing: “Wife, look at me!”, “If you don’t look at me, does it mean you don’t love me anymore!”, “You still love that wild man from your engagement, don’t you?! Oh, why is my life so bitter!”

Ling Qiu, whose insomnia had improved significantly under Fang Ziyue’s care, hadn’t managed to close her eyes all night. Being mobility-impaired, she had expended a great deal of effort just to drag the woman onto the bed.

When she had called for someone to bring hangover soup, the moment there was a knock at the door, the dead-to-the-world woman suddenly “resurrected” like a corpse. She leaped up with a series of crashes, dragging the wardrobe, the nightstand, and other large furniture into a heap in front of the door.

She wouldn’t let anyone in, even if it killed her!

Having had no sleep, the veins on Ling Qiu’s forehead were bulging. Her fists felt itchy just looking at this woman now.

“Wash up, clean the room, and go to work.” Ling Qiu gritted her teeth. The fact that she didn’t swear was proof of her love for Fang Ziyue.

The woman, who had blacked out from drinking, stared with wide “puppy eyes,” looking aggrieved. She didn’t understand why her wife was suddenly so cold. The atmosphere during the candlelight dinner last night had been so good.

After a moment of silence, Fang Ziyue tested the waters: “Wife, do you not love me anymore?”

“Love?” Ling Qiu repeated coldly. Then, her tone turned grim: “How could I possibly not love you?”

If she didn’t like this woman, she would have already been dragged out by the Ling family bodyguards to be encased in a concrete wall.

Crack! The wooden storage box in Ling Qiu’s hand let out a crisp sound of “bone fracture.”

The “ruffled” woman cowering on the bed trembled. Fang Ziyue swallowed hard, her puppy eyes filled with terror. She felt that if she said one more word, that storage box’s fate would be the destiny of her own limbs.

Clutching her clothes, Fang Ziyue hugged the wall and bolted into the bathroom like a thief.

Only after that frustrating creature was out of sight did Ling Qiu press her hand to her brow. She had spent the entire night wondering how a woman who was so good at flirting and caretaking could be this stupid. What was the difference between this and someone reaching out for a ring at a wedding, only for the idiot opposite them to suddenly bring up their former fiancé?

Wasn’t that just asking for a beating?

Initially, Ling Qiu was angry enough to slap her. But the drunk Fang Ziyue had repeated the same sentiment over and over: she was jealous of, even hated, the marriage contract between Ling Qiu and Qu Haoyu. Why weren’t the names on that contract hers and Ling Qiu’s?

Drunk, Fang Ziyue had amplified her inner obsession to the extreme. She muttered incessantly, “Why couldn’t I have come a few years earlier… Wife… mm, it hurts so much…”

With a flushed face and watery eyes, the tall woman pointed at her heart and murmured, “It hurts here… Wife, why couldn’t I have come… come earlier?”

Fang Ziyue’s heart ached for the suffering Ling Qiu had endured so much so that she took the blame upon herself. She was drowning in self-reproach, becoming so extreme that she refused to forgive herself for arriving late.

Setting down the ring, the woman whose anger had vanished pushed her wheelchair to the other’s side. She pulled the woman with the bitter, heart-wrenching smile into her arms and gave the “fox head” a firm rub.

“Don’t overthink. You arrived just in time.”

Ling Qiu had never felt that Fang Ziyue was late. To her, Fang Ziyue’s arrival was a miracle. As she had always said, the past was in the past; she wouldn’t let wretched history trip her up. She was happy that Fang Ziyue cared for her, but she didn’t want Fang Ziyue to pay the bill for her suffering.

Being held and comforted by her wife, the certain someone eventually calmed down and fell into a dazed sleep amidst the cool fragrance.

This had been miserable for Ling Qiu…

A mix of touched and furious, Ling Qiu kneaded her temples and turned her head, unwilling to look at the mess of the room.

Fang Ziyue, having washed away the smell of alcohol, racked her brain but couldn’t remember a thing she did last night. However, when she came out and looked closely at the room, she was startled.

“How…” Fang Ziyue was speechless. This chaotic room was clearly the result of her own violence. The woman stood there awkwardly, rubbing her hair, looking quite pitiful.

Ling Qiu glanced at her repeatedly. Ultimately, she couldn’t resist her soft heart and said, “Aren’t you going to clean up? I’m hungry.”

She hadn’t eaten well last night out of anger, and then she had spent the night moving an adult around she was exhausted and starving. Yet she couldn’t call for food to be brought up, or the woman on the bed would have “resurrected” again.

Ling Qiu’s body trembled imperceptibly; her stomach was cramping with pain. The last time she was this hungry was when she had gone against her mother’s wishes and been locked up. Her “dear” mother, wanting to show off her authority, had starved Ling Qiu for two days. Eventually, it was Ling Qiu’s own subordinates who rescued her. From then on, Ling Qiu snuffed out the last spark of hope she held for blood-relation affection from Madam Ling.

Though Ling Qiu’s response was cold, it acted as a shot of adrenaline for Fang Ziyue.

“Okay, I’ll clean it up right away!” Fang Ziyue’s voice turned cheerful. On the surface she was happy, but behind the scenes, she wiped away cold sweat. She had just seen the ring she meticulously designed sitting in her dinner plate, next to a rose petal with a bite taken out of it.

Fang Ziyue guiltily averted her eyes. Honestly, she didn’t think her wife would do such a thing.

Alcohol ruins things, it really does! Fang Ziyue slapped her forehead in regret. she shouldn’t have listened to those internet tips about “liquid courage.” Her courage had gotten far too big!

Seeing that Fang Ziyue was stuck in a loop of regret and was about to retreat into a shell, Ling Qiu had to pick up the oil-stained ring and warn her: “I’ll give you one more chance. Within a week, put this on me.”

Never seen someone so eager to be married off, Ling Qiu inwardly mocked herself. She hadn’t expected that after she messed up the proposal, her wife would still be willing to coax her.

Fang Ziyue bit her lip, leaned in, and hugged her lover. She said with emotion, “Wife”

No matter how many times she heard that sticky, clingy tone, Ling Qiu’s ears would turn red from the flirtation.

“Wife, I was wrong. I’ll never drink again.” Fang Ziyue rubbed her face against Ling Qiu’s neck, sniffing the cool fragrance, her voice sweet and moving.

Ling Qiu couldn’t help but curl her lips. She reached out and patted the big fox acting spoiled in her arms, saying with a smile, “Don’t be so absolute.”

They were in the business world; there would always be occasions where a polite drink was necessary. Moreover, she didn’t actually hate the other woman drinking. The way Fang Ziyue held a wine glass was elegant and charming; her red lips kissing the golden liquid was like giving the wine a soul.

A tipsy “Big Fox” would shed her disguise, extend her claws, and reveal a smile of absolute certainty and an invincible aura. Every time that happened, Ling Qiu would straighten her back and confront her with an equally oppressive power. She enjoyed this feeling of being well-matched.

The certain someone, being infinitely tolerated by her wife, whined and refused to get up. Eventually, it was the growling of Ling Qiu’s empty stomach that pulled her away.

“Sorry…” Ling Qiu sighed, her face now completely flushed with embarrassment, but she openly spread her hands and looked at her sweetheart. “So, my dear Steward Fang, may I go eat now?”

If word got out that the noble Head of the Ling family had died of hunger, it would be a huge joke.

“Of course, we’re going out now.” Laughing softly, the woman simply scooped Ling Qiu up. Her slender arms were surprisingly powerful. Ling Qiu hooked her arms around the other’s neck, feeling her steady pace and strong heartbeat.

A woman full of vitality.

Ling Qiu tilted her head against the other’s chest, her thoughts drifting. To be honest, this was the first time since her legs were broken that she was away from her wheelchair. She had a complicated feeling toward wheelchairs; she hated that they restricted her freedom, yet thanked them for allowing her to “walk” again. But after spending so much time with a cold machine, she couldn’t help but crave warmth. A bit of warmth belonging to Fang Ziyue.

“Wait a moment, I’ll be right back.” Placing Ling Qiu on a soft chair, Fang Ziyue hurried to the kitchen.

Leaning against the table and chair, Ling Qiu felt a bit unsettled. She had lost her mobility device. If Fang Ziyue didn’t come back, she would have to stay here, unable to go anywhere. Ling Qiu pressed her hand to her forehead, staring blankly at the patterns on the table.

She had gambled big this time. There were two possible outcomes. One: Fang Ziyue becomes the most solid support for the rest of her life, the source of all her security. Two: because of this reckless act, she might lose all confidence in Fang Ziyue and never allow her to carry her away from the wheelchair again.

Ling Qiu’s hands on her lap clenched tightly. Her well-manicured nails bit into her palms, causing sharp pain. She used all her strength to suppress her tremors. But in her mind, chaotic memories were surfacing. She remembered when Madam Ling took away her wheelchair and threw her into a small room.

Her legs had just undergone surgery, and the wounds hadn’t healed. The bathroom in that small room was far from the bed. Even for simple physiological needs, her struggle to resolve them would leave her legs drenched in blood. The stitches would tear open, but the physical pain couldn’t compare to the insult to her dignity. Her “good mother” wanted not just her physical paralysis, but her mental brokenness as well.

“Wife! Eat some fruit first, the meal will take a while!” The woman who came running in like a whirlwind almost tripped over the carpet. The fruit plate in her hand juggled back and forth like a circus act before landing precariously in front of her wife.

There were sweet-smelling strawberries, apples cut into the shape of little bunnies, and orange segments with the white pith meticulously removed.

The woman whose forehead had been covered in cold sweat and whose lips were pale suddenly burst into laughter. She grabbed the other’s collar and pressed her cold, trembling lips against the other’s warm, soft ones.

As Fang Ziyue stood there dazed, she only heard the other woman chuckle: “You passed, darling.”

The woman leaning against Fang Ziyue had eyes curved like crescents, thinking happily: I won the bet.

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