Her Imperfection for Wifehood - Chapter 53

Chapter 53

Waking up the next day, the other side of the bed was already cold. Wei Yinxia sat on the bed, distraught, holding the note An Jing left, reading it over and over.

—Do not appear before me unless I initiate contact.

No salutation, no signature.

Their relationship was just as she had said: limited to one night of physical intimacy.

She let go, allowing the quilt to slide down, and looked at the prominent marks, big and small, on her body. Wei Yinxia covered her face and sobbed out loud.

A-Jing, was everything last night truly just a dream? Your calling me Yinyin was fake, your concern about whether I was hurt was fake, and your willingness to listen to my explanation was also fake.

There is no longer any love in your kisses, is there?

After a similarly wild night, Lixia woke up early from her sweet sleep. Enduring the ache in her lower back, she got up and went to the kitchen.

“Is Madam hungry, coming to the kitchen so early?” Housekeeper Rong, who was preparing breakfast, asked with a smile.

Lixia was called “Sister-in-law” last night and “Madam” this morning. It made her feel that all the suffering she endured in the past two decades was worth it.

She smiled shyly and didn’t put on any airs: “What do Boss Qiang and Sister Jing usually like to eat? Please teach me, Aunt Rong. I’m not slow; I can learn cooking quickly, and I already know how to make a few dishes. I’m just afraid they won’t suit Boss Qiang and Sister Jing’s taste.”

Housekeeper Rong waved her hand: “No, no, that won’t do. You are the Madam. Leave the kitchen work to us servants.”

An Jing happened to return, hungry after a night of exertion and an early start.

She arrived at the kitchen and “eavesdropped” on the conversation between Lixia and Aunt Rong. She let out a meaningful, light cough: “Aunt Rong, you don’t understand. The young lady wants to use her excellent cooking to capture Boss Qiang’s stomach and then firmly capture Boss Qiang’s heart.”

“Boss An, morning.” Aunt Rong bowed slightly.

“Sister Jing, you’re back.” Lixia blushed: “I won’t cause Aunt Rong any trouble after all.”

“Boss Qiang isn’t picky. He’ll eat whatever you make.” An Jing yawned, turned, and said as she walked away, “Aunt Rong, I want soy milk, fried dough sticks, and scallion pancakes. Call me when they’re ready. I’m going upstairs for a nap.”

Soy milk, fried dough sticks, and scallion pancakes? This reminded Lixia of Aunt Hong and Hongying.

She said to Aunt Rong, who was putting on her apron: “Aunt Rong, I can make all the things Sister Jing mentioned, and they will definitely be the flavor she wants. I’ll make them. You can assist me.”

“Alright.” She had to listen to Boss Qiang and Boss An, and of course, she also had to listen to the new, favored Madam.

After about half an hour of work, Lixia personally carried the breakfast upstairs to An Jing’s room: “Sister Jing, your breakfast order is ready.”

An Jing was lying on the sofa with her clothes on: “Come in.”

Lixia entered the room and set the table: “Try it and see if what I made is better than Aunt Rong’s.”

“You made it?”

An Jing rubbed her forehead, looked at Lixia suspiciously, got up, sat at the table, and commented: “Looks good.”

She picked up a scallion pancake with her chopsticks, took a bite, and her expression froze.

Lixia knew her goal was achieved: “Sister Jing, eat slowly. I’m going to wait on Boss Qiang while he washes up.”

Regarding Hongying being Wei Yinxia, although she was surprised, she had carried out the “task” assigned to her by Boss Qiang and An Jing very well and had not actively approached Wei Yinxia afterward.

It was only after learning that Wei Yinxia was imprisoned that she occasionally visited Aunt Hong’s house to keep her company.

When Wei Yinxia was released, it was Aunt Hong who brought Wei Yinxia to her to express their gratitude.

Wei Yinxia at that time was emaciated, her eyes dull. She was just a lifeless, unenergetic shell, eating very little each day, just enough to sustain life.

It was Aunt Hong who begged her to come and keep Hongying company more often.

So later, she became the only regular visitor to their home and a close, confiding friend to Hongying.

After Hongying took over Sincere Garden as the boss, Lixia, having nothing to do, returned to Sincere Garden with Hongying. She said she was going back to her old profession, but it was actually to help out.

Xu Weiqiang left her enough money before he left to live on for several years.

So during the years of war and chaos, she didn’t have to show her face and worry about her livelihood. Aside from visiting Aunt Hong and Hongying, she spent most of her time doing needlework.

For herself.

“Go ahead,” An Jing quickly returned to normal: “Thank you for the breakfast. In the future, you should act like a mistress. Cooking is Aunt Rong’s job. If you take her work, what will she rely on to make a living?”

“Yes, Lixia remembers.”

The taste of the scallion pancake was the taste of the breakfast made by Aunt Hong and Hongying that An Jing had eaten in the old town.

She picked up a fried dough stick and ate it piece by piece. It was also the familiar taste of the past.

Why can’t the taste of that bad woman be “shaken off”? Why can’t I “quit” her?

Wei Yinxia, tell me, what should I do with you? And what should I do with myself? I still like you so much, just like before.

After resting for most of the morning, it was time for business.

In the study, An Jing, Xu Weiqiang, and Bai Yang were present. Xu Weiqiang was beaming, no longer a lone bachelor.

An Jing asked Bai Yang: “Have you tracked down his movements after all these days?”

Bai Yang replied: “Sister Jing, we’ve located the person. We didn’t bother you with it earlier because you weren’t in a good mood. Boss Qiang has deployed forces based on the intelligence, and the brothers have all set out. He won’t be able to escape.”

The person they were looking for was Jin Baolu, the boss of the Sea Gang.

Lu Cheng’s revenge had not yet been taken.

When mourning Lu Cheng in the An house backyard, Bai Yang had also secretly sworn to Lu Cheng that he would assist Boss Jing in avenging him in his lifetime.

After the foreigners withdrew from Shanghai, some local gang forces revived, and the Sea Gang was the strongest among them.

Zhang Wanying’s betrayal of Chen Dong, not only cheating on him but also causing the death of his son, was a major blow to him. Chen Dong showed no mercy, personally slashed Zhang Wanying’s face with a knife, and threw her to human traffickers.

After Kahn’s death, the fighting started.

Seeing the old town fall, the South Sea invaders rushed in, committing atrocities of burning, killing, and looting. Chen Dong fought for a few days but grew tired and couldn’t continue. He disbanded his gang, telling everyone to look out for themselves.

Unlike Jin Baolu, who could play the part of a coward in the face of national crisis, Chen Dong ultimately chose to go north and join the army, becoming an honorable soldier dedicated to protecting his country.

An Jing had not forgotten Lu Cheng’s revenge for a moment. No matter how powerful Jin Baolu’s forces were, she would send him to the underworld to apologize to Lu Cheng.

And the person in all of Shanghai who least wanted to see her return must be Jin Baolu, right?

She further instructed: “Send two capable men to secretly guard the basement. I don’t want to hear about any accidents.”

“Yes.” The basement? That must refer to Boss Ying.

That person was still An Jing’s weakness.

Before she returned, no one would unnecessarily provoke the “unassuming” Boss Ying of Sincere Garden. But now that she was back, Hongying had become Wei Yinxia, and trouble would surely follow.

Bai Yang suddenly began to miss their stable life in Beijing. There was no need to be on edge every day, and no need to risk their lives to protect unrelated people.

He was tired of the killing and fighting.

He only hoped that Jin Baolu would be the last enemy they absolutely had to take revenge on.

While waiting for Bai Yang to finalize his detailed deployment plan, An Jing’s life was a two-point line between the company and home. One sunny day, she put down her official duties and went for a walk alone.

She passed the Western restaurant where she had shared dinner with Wei Yinxia, and the Wutong tree-lined path where she had walked shoulder-to-shoulder with her.

The sunlight was gentle, the years were gentle. But the seasons had changed, and things were not as they were.

“Qiyuan, look at that gold shop. Should we go have a look? It’s been a while since you bought me any jewelry.”

“Sure, let’s go have a look. Whatever you like, I’ll buy it for you.”

An Jing frowned, watching a man and a woman approaching. Their voices were particularly jarring. It was Yang Qiyuan and his mistress, Chen Fangyuan.

This was the first time An Jing saw Yang Qiyuan’s mistress, but to her surprise, An Jing knew this Chen Fangyuan. She turned out to be Yang Qiyuan’s personal secretary. In that case, the two must have been secretly involved for a long time.

“Boss Yang, enjoying yourself?”

“An Jing? Heh, Boss An, good to see you well.” Yang Qiyuan’s long-term residence was no longer Shanghai.

“I hear Boss Yang now primarily resides in Tianjin, a neighboring province. Returning to Shanghai, even if only for show, you should be spending time with your lawful wife, Xiao Yu, and Xiao Ning. Could it be that with more children, Boss Yang has forgotten his priorities? Such biased behavior might tarnish Boss Yang’s reputation as an aristocratic figure and would more or less affect Boss Yang’s advancement in the political sphere.”

When Yang Qiyuan favored Tang Yunqing and Xiao Yu, An Jing still showed him some respect. Now, she didn’t even bother with that.

“My family affairs are not for Boss An to interfere with, are they?” Yang Qiyuan said, displeased.

“Boss An is mistaken,” Chen Fangyuan, with a visible pregnancy bump—it was unclear which pregnancy it was—interrupted, “It’s the sister who dislikes us and is unwilling to move to the new house with the children. You can’t blame Qiyuan for not coming home.”

“Pardon my bluntness, but if I saw the two of you walking around hand-in-hand and passionately in love all day long, I wouldn’t be able to eat, and might even vomit a few extra times.” An Jing found the sight of them irritating and nauseating, let alone the proud, privileged Tang Yunqing?

“You!” Chen Fangyuan intended to flare up but was restrained by Yang Qiyuan.

“Boss An, if you are truly concerned for Yunqing, for Xiao Yu, and Xiao Ning, you could help me persuade her to move to Tianjin with me and settle down. Most of my Yang family business has been relocated to Tianjin, and I have influence in the business and political circles there. I wouldn’t mistreat them. Furthermore, the children are still young. Yunqing shouldn’t let her own selfishness deprive the two children of their father’s love. Once they are reunited with the family in Tianjin, I will have time to accompany them. I can also buy them a separate residence to live in, and conscientiously fulfill the roles of a husband and father.”

“Boss Yang sure has a beautiful dream of enjoying two wives.” An Jing only found the two of them odious and sickening: “Very well. Everything should have a proper start and finish, with decency. I will convey Boss Yang’s kind intentions. By then, I hope Boss Yang can be generous and respect Yunqing’s decision.”

“Naturally.”

The two parties disagreed, each having their own stance. After a clash of words, there was nothing more to say, and they parted ways.

Late at night, An Jing, clad in black, walked a long way and knocked on the basement door.

Since that day, Wei Yinxia had been staying in the basement every night, waiting for her A-Jing to visit her. After a few days, she waited again.

The moment the knock sounded, Wei Yinxia’s heart pounded, because she knew the only person who would come looking for her at this hour would be A-Jing.

The door opened, and An Jing asked, “Is it convenient for me to come in?”

Wei Yinxia pulled her hand, entered the room and closed the door. She excitedly hugged her from behind, her voice filled with joy: “It’s convenient anytime you come. I am here only waiting for you.”

An Jing didn’t move: “I’m a little hungry. Cook me a bowl of noodles.”

“Okay.”

She was finally willing to eat something cooked by her. Wei Yinxia pulled her to sit on the sofa, gazed at her for a while, and then confidently entered the kitchen.

An Jing lit a cigarette.

Wei Yinxia smelled the smoke from the kitchen, glanced at the kitchen door, said nothing, and continued cooking the noodles.

From the past to today, she knew An Jing smoked, but this was the first time she had seen her smoke in front of her. After all, she was no longer the initial person in her heart.

Wei Yinxia’s tears fell again. Her heart ached terribly. She wiped her tears and comforted herself: What does it matter? She’s alive and back with me, still willing to touch me, still willing to eat the noodles I made. That is a great blessing.

The tomato and egg noodles were served, only a small half bowl: “It’s late. I thought too much might be hard to digest, so I didn’t make much. Eat it while it’s hot to fill your stomach.”

An Jing looked up at her, picked up her chopsticks, and started eating. She swallowed a mouthful of noodles and asked, “Why are you crying?”

Wei Yinxia’s eyes were red. She wasn’t blind.

What else could it be but tears?

“No, I’m not crying. I was just stung by the steam when I took the pot off the stove.” Wei Yinxia denied it.

“Crying is crying. What’s the point of lying. Tears falling on cue, isn’t that your usual trick of pretending to be pathetic and weak?”

Wei Yinxia felt humiliated and mortified. She quickly stood up and said, “You eat first. I’ll go run a hot bath for you. Will you sleep here tonight, tonight?”

An Jing’s gaze was cold. She turned her head to look at her: “Boss Ying is so insistent, as long as your body can handle it.”

Indeed, indeed, it was a self-inflicted humiliation again…

Wei Yinxia still smiled: “Anything A-Jing does to me is fine. You eat slowly. Leave the bowl when you’re done. I’ll clean it up.”

After saying that, she rushed into the washroom as if fleeing.

An Jing ate quickly. Wei Yinxia was squatting by the bathtub, lost in thought. The hot water was about to overflow the edge, and she was still spacing out.

An Jing impatiently turned off the faucet and pulled her up: “Go all the way with the act. I suppose serving me in the bath isn’t a problem for Boss Ying either, right?”

“Okay, I’ll scrub your back.” Wei Yinxia raised her hand to help An Jing undress.

An Jing stopped her and then placed her hand on her own neckline, rubbing the back of her hand against her chin: “I want to see Boss Ying undress first.”

“Okay.”

“Everything is ‘okay,’ this is okay, that is okay. Just how shameless can you be to please me?”

Wei Yinxia’s hand paused for a few seconds before continuing to unbutton her clothes: “I did too little for you in the past. Now that I have the chance, I can do anything, big or small, as long as you don’t mind. I can wash clothes and cook. I can warm your bed and accompany you to sleep.”

An Jing chuckled: “Then Boss Ying must be terribly wronged.”

“I am not wronged.” The Qipao fell to the floor. This time, Wei Yinxia openly displayed her body, without any bashfulness. She then turned to undress An Jing: “I only survived until today for you.”

“I didn’t realize Boss Ying’s affection for me ran so deep.” An Jing lifted Wei Yinxia’s chin and bit her lip hard again.

This mouth was full of lies.

But this mouth was still so soft to kiss.

Wei Yinxia felt the pain, but she only wanted to quickly undress An Jing as well. That way, she probably wouldn’t leave, right?

During the bath, An Jing was very lazy and well-behaved. She didn’t even look at Wei Yinxia much.

After washing, they returned to the bedroom. An Jing sat in the chair, pulled Wei Yinxia to straddle her lap, brushed off her shoulder straps, lifted her loose nightgown, and began to devour her wildly.

“You said you’re not Wei Zhengqing’s daughter, nor Aunt Hong’s daughter, so who are you? Hmm?”

An Jing had heard every word of the explanation Wei Yinxia gave her that night. After saying all that, was she still not the one who had deceived her?

Wei Yinxia arched her back, her neck tilted up. A soft moan escaped her lips. She wrapped her arms around An Jing’s head, her fingers threading through her hair.

Once adapted to An Jing’s intensity, she tensed her raised toes. She held the back of An Jing’s head with one hand, freeing the other to pull open a drawer in the nearby cabinet.

Inside, there were two tin frogs.

She strained to grab both and placed them on the cabinet top. She then picked out the newer one, wound its spring mechanism two turns behind An Jing’s back.

Subsequently, the sound of the tin frog jumping on the cabinet surface caught An Jing’s attention.

She paused her movements and turned to look.

Wei Yinxia leaned in and whispered affectionately in her ear, “A-Jing, I am the little girl, still immature, whom you casually pulled out of the water.”

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