Her Imperfection for Wifehood - Chapter 30

Chapter 30

Before Fu Wenjing arrived, An Jing stayed in Tang Yunqing’s room. After all, their friendship was deeper, and she could share certain business matters with Tang Yunqing that were inappropriate to discuss with Wei Yinxia.

“Have you found a buyer?” Tang Yunqing asked about the shares in Affordable Department Store.

An Jing shook her head: “Lu Cheng inquired discreetly. Qin Zhe is deliberately spreading rumors that the Affordable Department Store has been losing money for six months and might not last a year before closing. He has no intention of continuing the business but refuses to give up his decision-making shares, so no one is willing to pay a high price for my shares just to throw money away. Qin Zhe wants to bleed me dry.”

“How exactly did you offend him? It’s like a deep-seated hatred. I saw you two at a banquet not long ago, and you were arm in arm with him for photos. Shouldn’t he be thrilled? Logically, he shouldn’t…”

“Yunqing.” An Jing did not want to discuss the matter further. If this was the price for loving Wei Yinxia, she would bear it.

“Before the Board of Directors convenes, I can’t let this issue become public and interfere with the election. If he wants to drag it out, let him. It’s my personal asset, and it won’t affect the An Corporation’s operations.”

“Alright, I won’t mention your business with him again. However… I called my father this morning and asked if Yinghua would participate in this year’s Business Association. He didn’t deny it. Jing, times are changing.”

“Mhm, I know, and I understand what you mean.” An Jing stood up, peeled an orange, and handed it to Tang Yunqing. “Once the war is completely over and countries live in peace, cultural exchange or trade exchange will be the general trend. I’ve never resisted foreigners or foreign businesses, only the bloodshed of war.”

An Jing was still An Jing, but Tang Yunqing felt that the An Jing in front of her was somehow different from the one she knew.

There was more calmness and tenderness, and less aggression and fighting spirit.

“Xu Weiqiang, have you been in contact with him lately?” Tang Yunqing, even without leaving her home, was aware of all the major events in Shanghai. She and An Xi knew about the extent of Xu Weiqiang’s involvement with An Jing.

“He’s not dead. Don’t worry about him; worry about yourself. Xiaoyu reported to me that you were disobedient and drank that darn coffee again.”

As An Jing spoke, she raised her hand and tapped Tang Yunqing’s forehead. “You’re pregnant. That stuff is bad for you. You never learn.”

Tang Yunqing first frowned and drew a long face. No one had ever tapped her like that since she was a child.

But a strange emotion flickered in her heart. She wasn’t angry; instead, she felt shy, and her face gradually flushed.

After marriage, she and Yang Qiyuan treated each other with respect. Yang Qiyuan respected and protected her, but he had never shown her the kind of intimacy that An Jing did.

She used to disdain it.

However, after seeing An Jing’s care for Wei Yinxia, she felt very uneasy.

The door was open, and Xiaoyu ran in, throwing herself by the bed: “Mommy, Mommy, I brought Auntie Fu.”

An Jing stood up from the stool to offer her seat to Fu Wenjing: “Doctor Fu, thank you for coming all this way. Yunqing is feeling unwell. Please examine her carefully.”

Fu Wenjing nodded, sat down, and opened her medical bag.

“Qingyan, take Xiaoyu outside.” Tang Yunqing instructed, then looked at An Jing and said, “Jing, would you wait outside, too, please?”

“Alright.”

Checking a pregnant woman definitely involved bodily privacy. Although An Jing was close to Tang Yunqing, she had never seen Tang Yunqing’s body and was somewhat reserved.

She was quicker than Qingyan to scoop up Xiaoyu and hold her: “Let’s go, Xiaoyu. Let’s see if dinner is ready.”

Stepping out, she saw Wei Yinxia still waiting outside the door.

“Is Sister Yunqing alright?”

“We’ll know after the doctor’s examination.”

They had barely exchanged two sentences when Xiaoyu hugged An Jing’s neck and urged: “Godmother, I want to see the chicks in the backyard. Will you come with me to see the chicks?”

Qingyan explained: “Madam was worried that Miss would be bored, so she had the kitchen staff buy two chicks this afternoon while they were out sourcing ingredients.”

An Jing looked at Wei Yinxia, intending to ask her to come along, but Wei Yinxia, sensing her thought, spoke first: “You play with Xiaoyu for a while. I’ll go back to the room to read. I found a copy of Strange Objects in Miss Tang’s study today, and I’d like to read more of it before going home.”

“Alright. I’ll come get you before dinner.” An Jing respected Wei Yinxia’s wish and didn’t want to force her to play with a child.

She brought her out so she could relax and be free. Whatever Wei Yinxia wanted to do, she could do.

Five people sat down to dine that evening.

Fu Wenjing examined Tang Yunqing, and Tang Yunqing honestly reported that her discomfort was mainly due to emotional stress and poor sleep, with no obvious symptoms of distress in her abdomen.

Feeling reassured, Fu Wenjing suggested that Tang Yunqing undergo a comprehensive prenatal checkup at the hospital in the next few days. If sleeping aids were needed, they could only be prescribed based on the results of the prenatal examination.

As for keeping her for dinner, it was An Jing’s decision. Fu Wenjing gladly accepted the invitation without demur.

All of them were young ladies from wealthy families and were preoccupied with their own concerns, so there was little conversation during the meal. Mostly, it was Xiaoyu chattering, pestering Fu Wenjing with questions about her role as a doctor and her experiences at the hospital, finding them particularly fascinating.

After Fu Wenjing bid farewell, An Jing stayed with Tang Yunqing until she drank her anti-miscarriage medicine before returning to her room.

Qingyan exited the room: “Boss Jing, the hot water is ready. Please call me if you and Second Miss Wei need anything else.”

“Thank you for your hard work.”

Closing the door, An Jing saw Wei Yinxia holding her pajamas. She walked up to her, embraced her, and kissed her forehead: “Yinyin…”

“A-Jing, I want to wash myself tonight.” For the previous two nights, An Jing had wiped her down. Both were shy, so they had only focused on cleaning her back.

“Alright. I’ll be right outside the door. If it’s difficult, just call me, and I’ll help.” Knowing that Wei Yinxia valued cleanliness and would be uncomfortable if she didn’t wash herself properly, An Jing didn’t stop her.

“Mhm.” Wei Yinxia blushed and entered the washroom.

Just as the wound on her back was gradually healing and no longer hurting, Wei Yinxia, obeying her father’s command, ended up splitting the wound open again while forcing herself to wash up.

An Jing rushed in after hearing the crash and Wei Yinxia’s cry of pain.

Wei Yinxia, half-dressed and bare-bodied, was crouching by the wall, holding onto the bathtub. An Jing grabbed a towel and wrapped her in it: “Did you hit your body?”

“I slipped and fell when I got up. My back hit the wall.”

An Jing lifted the towel and looked down at her shoulder and back. Fresh blood was seeping out again: “The wound has split open. Get up. I’ll change your dressing.”

If she wasn’t afraid of pulling the wound and making the injury worse, she would have simply picked up Wei Yinxia in her arms.

It wasn’t until she helped Wei Yinxia lie face down on the bed that An Jing pulled back the towel and saw the bruises on her waist.

She should have expected it. She should have expected it.

How could he have struck her so hard and only hit her arms and shoulders?

Wei Yinxia, of course, knew what An Jing would see, and she knew why An Jing was silent.

“A-Jing.”

She found An Jing’s hand and held it, feigning strength: “Are the bruises still visible? Do they look awful? Don’t worry. It doesn’t hurt anymore.”

An Jing remained silent, but her eyes grew increasingly moist and warm.

She leaned down and placed one kiss of deep affection after another on the unhealed bruises.

After kissing her waist, she kissed Wei Yinxia’s hand: “They are not awful. My Yinyin is the most beautiful girl in the world.” And I will give you the truest and sincerest love in the world.

She couldn’t change what had happened in the past; what she had to pursue was the present and the future.

She pulled the blanket up to cover everything below Wei Yinxia’s waist.

When An Jing applied the medicine to Wei Yinxia, she was initially able to concentrate, but slowly, as the body temperature under her fingertips rose, her thoughts began to wander.

These past few days, every time the dressing was changed, especially when An Jing’s fingers rubbed against her skin, Wei Yinxia found it difficult to bear.

“I’ve put your clothes here. You can rest for a while before putting them on.”

An Jing said, then prepared to take a shower to cool down. Her beloved was injured like this, yet she still had such thoughts about her.

Wei Yinxia quickly propped herself up and grabbed An Jing’s hand, using the momentum to sit up.

An Jing turned back.

What did she see? She saw everything.

“Yinyin, the weather is cold. Don’t, don’t catch a cold again.” An Jing was so nervous she stammered, yet she didn’t forget to reach out and pull the blanket over Wei Yinxia.

After covering her, she turned her face away, afraid to look at Wei Yinxia. While swallowing, she picked up the pajamas and handed them to Wei Yinxia: “The gauze is changed. Put on your clothes.”

Wei Yinxia placed her hand on An Jing’s: “It hurts too much to exert myself. Will A-Jing help me put them on?”

Seduced by the soft voice, how could An Jing maintain her composure?!

“Ah? Yes, yes, I’ll help you put them on. I’ll help you.”

Just as she shook out the top, Wei Yinxia knelt up, hooked her arm around An Jing’s neck with one hand, and kissed her.

An Jing’s heart pounded like thunder. She didn’t know where to put her hands until Wei Yinxia guided them to her waist. Then both of them trembled.

For the past few nights, they had slept in each other’s arms, and An Jing had been perfectly proper, only kissing, comforting, and then peacefully holding her to sleep. Why was the fire of desire burning so fiercely tonight?

Did Yinyin want this? Or did she want this?

An Jing’s mind was in turmoil. By the time she broke away for fresh air, she realized that a certain hand had moved elsewhere.

There was no obstruction.

The sensation was fatal.

She instantly withdrew her hand: “No. Yinyin, you, you still have wounds. They’ll split open.”

With that, she dressed Wei Yinxia as quickly as possible, kissed her forehead and lips: “Be good. Focus on healing.”

She had failed again.

The bathroom door opened and closed. Wei Yinxia slumped: “A-Jing, why do you run away?”

She wanted to continue so badly. She wanted to be held and kissed by her A-Jing. She wanted to be with her until their hair turned white, growing old together right then and there.

Several minutes later, An Jing returned to the bedside, bringing a chill with her.

Wei Yinxia tenderly stroked her face: “A-Jing, you don’t have to restrain yourself. I am willing…”

“Yinyin, you have to believe me, we have a long future ahead of us.” An Jing captured her hand and kissed it. “Once your wounds heal, and once I… have fewer worries about the company, I will love you with all my heart and soul and take you away from the prison that is the Wei family. Although we are both women, I want to be with you openly and honestly. I want to be able to eat and sleep with you every day just like this.”

As a child, her world was only her mother. Her only wish was for her mother to recover, but her mother still passed away.

As an adult, her world was only the An family. Her wish was for Father and Mother An and An Xi to be healthy, live long, and have peaceful lives, but the adoptive parents who had kindly taken her in tragically died.

She felt like a jinx.

That’s why she didn’t get close to people or open her heart. The only people she considered true friends were Tang Yunqing and Xu Weiqiang.

And now even Xu Weiqiang was in danger because of her, his fate unknown.

If it weren’t for her, why would Xu Weiqiang have protected Hongying and stuck up for her?

Ultimately, the tragedy at the Xianle Gate and the murder of Xue Hua were all caused by her.

Today, Wei Yinxia was her sole selfish desire and private affection, yet she couldn’t guarantee that their future path would be smooth and unimpeded.

She was even afraid that she was truly a destined harbinger of bad luck and that ultimately, Wei Yinxia would also suffer because of her.

An Jing’s expression was strained.

“I also want to be with you every day, just like this.” Wei Yinxia didn’t know what she was thinking, but she could tell that An Jing was deeply troubled.

She wrapped her arms around An Jing’s waist and nestled into her arms: “A-Jing, will you stay at the manor with me tomorrow? I heard Qingyan say there’s a temple about five kilometers from here. Shall we go offer incense, make a wish, and see the autumn scenery?”

“Good.”

“Just the two of us, okay?”

An Jing smiled and replied: “Okay.”

On the fourth day at the manor, An Jing called home early in the morning and asked Lu Cheng to drive the car over early.

The manor also had a car, but she wasn’t sure when she and Wei Yinxia would return after going out. After all, the pregnant Tang Yunqing and Xiaoyu were key protected individuals. What if they had an emergency?

An Jing told Tang Yunqing that she was taking Wei Yinxia out for a drive and that they shouldn’t wait for them for lunch.

Since she was so clear, Tang Yunqing naturally wouldn’t take her daughter and follow. She also said that she had promised Doctor Fu yesterday to go to the hospital.

Lu Cheng drove Tang Yunqing’s car back to the city area and was pulled into a dark alley by the rarely seen Boyang.

On the other side, An Jing and Wei Yinxia drove to the temple, only to find that it was a sparsely visited Guanyin temple, with no smell of incense or candles.

A quick glance showed that the area in front of the hall was overgrown with weeds, almost half a person tall, completely submerging the original path.

“It seems this Guanyin temple has been abandoned for a long time. Should we go further inside?” An Jing didn’t believe in gods or Buddhas; she only came because Wei Yinxia wanted to.

“Since we’ve reached the entrance, let’s go take a look.”

Wei Yinxia had never lived for herself. She didn’t trust herself, nor did she have anyone she could trust. She had previously resigned herself to fate, allowing others to manipulate her. Now, for An Jing, she wanted to rely on the gods and Buddhas, asking them to protect her A-Jing.

She knew she carried sin and didn’t dare to be greedy. An Jing’s safety was her only prayer.

An Jing nodded: “Alright. Stick close to me. I’ll go ahead and clear the path.”

She scanned the surroundings, took a few steps, and picked up a meter-long wooden stick to press down the wild grass on both sides of the path.

To make it easier for Wei Yinxia to walk, she used her hands and feet to flatten the wild grass as much as possible, pressing it to the ground and carving out a wide path.

Reaching the temple entrance, she tossed the stick away.

Wei Yinxia picked up her handkerchief to wipe An Jing’s dirty hands and noticed a small cut on her right thumb.

The cut was very small, genuinely only a scratch on the skin, showing a trace of blood, but no blood was actually oozing out.

An Jing intentionally recoiled a little: “It hurts. Blow on it for me.”

Wei Yinxia actually blew on it for her. Whatever An Jing said, she was willing to do, whether it was true or not.

The wooden structure of the main hall was dilapidated and drafty. One of the roof beams had collapsed, and the statue of Guanyin in the main hall was incomplete.

Wei Yinxia spotted a jade vase-like object in a gap at the base of the stone statue. She bent down to pick it up. The neck of the vase was chipped, and the body had cracks.

An Jing looked around, then turned to see Wei Yinxia holding something. She walked closer and asked: “What are you looking at?”

“A jade vase.” She looked up at the Guanyin statue. What was missing from the stone statue was the left arm. “Judging by the size, it should be the Pure Vase that Guanyin held in her left hand.”

The arm that had fallen from the Guanyin statue was not on the ground.

Wei Yinxia carefully placed the Pure Vase on the offering table, which was covered in dust. She then took the handkerchief she had just used to wipe An Jing’s hands, brushed away some debris from the tabletop, picked up the Pure Vase again, and spread the handkerchief flat beneath it.

After doing all this, Wei Yinxia looked up solemnly at the Guanyin statue, which still wore a faint smile, clasped her hands, closed her eyes, and prayed sincerely.

An Jing stood beside her, watching quietly.

The next second, Wei Yinxia murmured something, then knelt down directly and began to kowtow. An Jing reached out to pull her up, but withdrew her hand just before touching Wei Yinxia.

They were all ordinary people. It was normal to have wishes and beliefs.

Only after Wei Yinxia had sincerely bowed three times did An Jing step forward and help her up.

“Why did you kneel without warning? If I had known you were going to kowtow, I would have brought in some dry grass for padding.” She crouched down, lifted the hem of the qipao skirt to check if Wei Yinxia’s knees were injured. “Fortunately, they are just a little red. Does it hurt?”

“No, it doesn’t hurt.” Wei Yinxia said bashfully, “A-Jing, hurry up. Guanyin Bodhisattva is watching.”

Brushing the dust off her skirt, An Jing stood up, then took Wei Yinxia’s hands and blew off the dust that had clung to her palms.

“Precisely because Guanyin Bodhisattva is watching, I want her to know that the young woman who just bowed and made a wish to her already has a good partner, so she shouldn’t try to tie any other marriage lines for her.”

She knew little about Buddhist culture, but she had often heard the phrase “Great Mercy and Great Compassion Guanyin Bodhisattva,” and she also knew the saying about praying to Guanyin for children.

Praying for a child, wasn’t that very close to marriage?

Wei Yinxia’s face instantly flushed red. She lowered her head and scolded gently: “Don’t be irreverent in front of Guanyin Bodhisattva.”

An Jing quickly kissed her face: “Irreverent?”

“A-Jing, you… why are you getting naughtier!” The person being kissed covered her face, her beautiful eyes wide, and she turned to walk out, overcome with shyness.

However, because she was walking too fast, the heel of her shoe got caught on a wide stone crack in the threshold.

She stumbled, her hand just touching the door frame, when An Jing caught her in a sweeping embrace: “Guanyin Bodhisattva won’t even let you leave me, Yinyin. You can’t run away.”

This time, Wei Yinxia didn’t argue back or struggle. She gently looped her arms around An Jing’s neck and leaned her head on her shoulder.

“A-Jing, why didn’t you ask me what I wished for to Guanyin Bodhisattva?”

“If you say it out loud, it won’t come true.”

“Mhm, I won’t say. Does A-Jing have any wishes?”

“I do.”

“Can you say it?”

“Yinyin,” An Jing looked down affectionately at the small woman in her arms. “Marrying you to be my wife is the greatest wish of my remaining life, An Jing.”

A gentle breeze blew, and An Jing’s long, soft hair swept across Wei Yinxia’s face.

Wei Yinxia carefully tucked the strands of hair that the wind had tousled behind An Jing’s ear.

She had never asked how the old scar on An Jing’s forehead came to be, but she knew it must have bled a lot and been very painful.

An Jing carried Wei Yinxia to the small car. As Wei Yinxia was being placed onto the seat, she pulled An Jing toward her, kissing her passionately, lips and tongue intertwined, following her heart’s desire.

After a long, passionate kiss, Wei Yinxia caressed An Jing’s handsome face, rubbing the scar on her forehead, and said affectionately: “A-Jing, take me away. Heaven or earth, hell or paradise, I will follow you.”

She so wished An Jing would answer her with an unwavering “Yes,” so wished An Jing would take her and “escape” immediately, so wished they would leave Shanghai forever.

And never return.

“Yinyin, just wait a few more months.” An Jing promised, “We have no hell, only paradise.”

What they didn’t know was that at that very moment in the concession, An Yi signed a large order from a Tianjin client.

Get lost.

That was the phrase he heard from An Jing’s mouth most often.

I’ve had enough.

That was the phrase he had silently screamed back at her countless times in his heart.

He thought that with this order, he could finally hold his head high, and he was secretly delighted, unaware that he had fallen into a trap specifically tailored for him by others.

An Yi was an excellent pawn.

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