I Transmigrated and Already Had a Wife - Chapter 22.3

However, this person had no sense of self-awareness. Her pair of clear, peach-blossom eyes stared intently at Lin Muwan, without even blinking.

Lin Muwan glared at her.

Jiang Zhou stood with her hands behind her back. “What’s the problem? Didn’t I hold you while we slept every night? If you’re shy about even this, how will that work?”

“You…”

Lin Muwan closed her eyes, ignored her, turned sideways, and started to wash up.

Arguing with her would only leave her feeling utterly exasperated.

When they finished breakfast and left the house, a carriage was parked right in front of the main entrance. The coachman was standing beside the horse, holding the reins. Seeing them come out, he asked, “Brother Jiang, can we leave now?”

“Okay, just a moment.”

Jiang Zhou transferred the basin of processed rabbit meat onto the carriage and helped Lin Muwan up.

The smell of the meat filled the entire carriage. Lin Muwan frowned, enduring a wave of nausea, and leaned against the side of the carriage.

The carriage was much more comfortable than the ox cart. It could shelter them from the wind and rain, and there were soft cushions to sit on, so her backside wouldn’t ache from the bumpy ride.

The speed of travel was not fast, and the road was uneven. The carriage swayed back and forth. Lin Muwan had been feeling a bit sleepy these past few days, and in the rocking motion, she actually fell asleep. When she woke up, she was completely draped over Jiang Zhou, her head resting in the hollow of her neck, and her lips pressed against her collarbone. Lin Muwan’s face flushed. She lifted her eyelids to look at her.

As if sensing her gaze, Jiang Zhou lowered her head, confirmed she was awake, and said softly, “I saw you weren’t comfortable leaning against the carriage wall just now, so I held you closer.”

“Mhm.”

Jiang Zhou chuckled softly.

She had just lied. How was it her who held her closer? Lin Muwan had fallen asleep and voluntarily leaned in. Knowing her thin skin, she dared not tell the truth.

“What are you laughing about?”

“Huh?” Jiang Zhou was momentarily blank. She quickly recovered. “Nothing.”

Lin Muwan let out a soft snort, withdrew from his embrace, and lowered her head to tidy her clothes.

Flirt!

Jiang Zhou’s smile was brilliant. She straightened her legs and wiggled her feet. “Hiss, my leg is numb.”

Hearing her words, Lin Muwan tilted her head to look at her. Seeing her unrestrained posture, she frowned, mentally disapproving. After a moment, she reached out and gently kneaded her leg.

Jiang Zhou moved her leg and the corner of her lips lifted. Lin Muwan, after shedding her cold exterior, was truly awkward and adorable. Jiang Zhou didn’t dare tease her. If she said too much right now, Lin Muwan would definitely withdraw this kind of treatment, and she wouldn’t even dare to hope for it in the future.

She remained silent, squinting her eyes in enjoyment.

After a short while, the carriage arrived at the marketplace and stopped in front of Jiang Zhou’s stall. Jiang Zhou jumped off the carriage. Regardless of whether Lin Muwan wanted it or not, she picked her up horizontally and carried her down. The consequence of this willful act was that Lin Muwan didn’t speak a single word to this flirt until Jiang Zhou’s friend arrived.

Jiang Miao arrived close to noon, which was the busiest time for Jiang Zhou’s stall. “You came at the perfect time.”

Jiang Miao: “…”

He was holding the child with one hand and leading Mu Liyan with the other. He stopped in front of the stall, pouting at the large basin of rabbit meat. If his wife and child didn’t like to eat it, he wouldn’t have wanted to come.

“Why are you standing there?” Jiang Zhou reached out, just about to pinch the little face of Zijing, but Jiang Miao dodged. She complained, “Behave yourself. Don’t pinch my daughter’s face.”

Jiang Zhou awkwardly withdrew her hand, reached out to take Lin Muwan’s hand, and introduced her. “This is my wife.”

“Wow, Big Sister is so pretty,” Zijing’s eyes lit up when she saw Lin Muwan. She really liked this Big Sister.

“Zijing, you should call her Auntie,” Mu Liyan corrected.

Zijing blinked her eyes, tilted her head, and thought for a long time. “Can’t I call her Big Sister?” She still wanted to call her Big Sister.

Mu Liyan shook her head, rejecting her idea.

Jiang Zhou proudly pulled Lin Muwan into her embrace. Lin Muwan struggled but couldn’t break free, so she eventually let her. Jiang Zhou became even more smug, secretly pinching Lin Muwan’s waist.

Lin Muwan didn’t expect this flirt to be so bold. Her face immediately flushed red. She glared at Jiang Zhou, and the flirt finally behaved.

After the introductions, there was no opportunity to chat further. Jiang Miao helped Jiang Zhou nearby, while Mu Liyan sat on a small stool with Zijing, accompanying Lin Muwan and chatting. Although it was their first meeting, there was no barrier between them, especially with the extremely clingy little Zijing in the middle.

Lin Muwan spoke little, mostly listening to the mother and daughter talk, a smile hanging on her face, but the sadness in her eyes was unconcealed.

Jiang Zhou’s spicy fried rabbit meat was already quite famous in the surrounding area. Right around noon, the entire basin of rabbit meat was nearly empty. She quickly packed up the stall. Regular customers knew that this young man only sold for a short time around noon, so after this time, no one would come to buy.

After a busy morning, Jiang Zhou packed up the stall and wanted to take them to a nearby restaurant for a meal. Jiang Miao stopped her, dusting off his clothes. “We won’t join you. There are too many germs in places like that. If you want to go, go by yourselves.”

Jiang Zhou: “…”

Good heavens!

So not only does he have OCD, but he also has germaphobia!

She looked sympathetically at Mu Liyan and her daughter. Living with Jiang Miao must mean missing out on a lot of life’s pleasures—this couldn’t be touched, that couldn’t be eaten.

Sigh!

Jiang Miao helped Mu Liyan onto the carriage. The horse’s hooves clip-clopped away. “Wanwan, you must come to visit us at home when you have time. Zijing really likes you,” Mu Liyan said.

“Yes, yes, Auntie must come to see Zijing!”

“Mhm,” Lin Muwan nodded.

Watching the carriage gradually move away, Lin Muwan pursed her lips, her expression somewhat blank.

A family.

When will she be able to rescue her mother and father?

She dared not even think about these things. The longer it took, the more her mother and father suffered. How unfilial she was.

After a moment, seeing that Lin Muwan’s gaze was still fixed in the direction the carriage had gone, she frowned. She retracted her earlier words. Although they were both modern people, Jiang Miao was clearly living a better life than her. She sighed inwardly and said, “When things stabilize here, we will also buy a carriage. It will be much more convenient for traveling back and forth.”

As she spoke, she was already calculating the cost of buying a carriage. Business had been good lately, and she had roughly saved about four taels of silver, which was still far from enough to buy a carriage.

But there was no need to worry. She would work harder and buy a carriage sooner. She didn’t want to have to take Lin Muwan into the city on an ox cart every time.

Her own skin was rough, and she couldn’t stand sitting on an ox cart for half a day without her backside hurting, let alone Lin Muwan, who was soft and delicate. She must feel even worse. The thought made her heart ache.

She would still need to rent a carriage to go back tonight. Let it be expensive. As long as her wife is comfortable.

“Husband, do you envy them, being together and happy as a family?”

“Huh?” Jiang Zhou turned her head to look at her, not understanding what she meant. After thinking for a moment, she nodded woodenly, replying, “I do envy them.”

Being asked that, Jiang Zhou really missed her parents and her unlucky younger brother.

She pouted, feeling low. She might never see her parents again. She didn’t know how they were doing or if they were missing her too. The envy in Lin Muwan’s eyes today was probably for their family being together, yet she had misunderstood it as something else. The thought filled her with immediate guilt. She reached out and pulled Lin Muwan into her arms. “Wife.”

“We’re outside. Let go.”

Jiang Zhou ignored her. The more she struggled, the tighter she held her. “Wife, your father and mother…”

She had heard her cheap mother mention that Lin Muwan used to be a young lady from an official’s family, but their family committed a crime, which was why she was exiled to Linyang County.

She just didn’t know if her father and mother were dead or alive.

Lin Muwan’s body stiffened, and she was momentarily stunned. The hands that had been pressed against Jiang Zhou’s chest paused for a second. The next moment, she tightly embraced Jiang Zhou, her shoulders trembling slightly, trying desperately to suppress her emotions.

“Okay, okay, I won’t ask, I won’t ask,” Jiang Zhou’s heart ached terribly. She consoled her while gently patting her back.

Jiang Zhou dared not ask again. If she was crying like this, her parents were very likely no longer alive. It was a good thing she had transmigrated here. At this moment, she was immensely glad she had come to this world. She would take good care of her from now on, giving her all her love, and the love of her parents as well.

“Don’t cry, be good. You still have me. I will be good to you.”

“My parents, they…” Lin Muwan choked up. Seeing her cry like this, Jiang Zhou’s heart ached, and she quickly interrupted her. “We won’t talk about it. Be good. You still have me.”

Lin Muwan lifted her head, her eyes brimming with tears. Her nose and cheeks were red. She sobbed, “My father was framed and is now imprisoned in the Ministry of Punishments’ jail.”

Jiang Zhou: “…”

So, she misunderstood?

It’s good that it was a misunderstanding. She breathed a sigh of relief, swallowed, and promised, “I will work with you to find a way to rescue them.”

“My mother, my mother is not locked up with my father.”

Jiang Zhou frowned. She suddenly felt like laughing. Why is Lin Muwan so cute? Was she worried that I wouldn’t help her?

Of course, she restrained herself during this serious moment. Otherwise, according to Lin Muwan’s temperament, she would ignore her for several days. She followed up on Lin Muwan’s words and asked, “Where is your mother now? We can go see her first.”

Lin Muwan sniffled, her clear eyes sparkling, even more lively than usual.

She said, “My mother and I were both exiled to the imperial kiln in Linyang County. As soon as I arrived, my mother bought me back to the Jiang family. And then later…”

Lin Muwan’s mother was also in Linyang County, so she hadn’t told her all this time. Was it because she never trusted me? If I hadn’t asked her today, she probably would have continued to hide it, right?

Jiang Zhou was practically furious with her. She gnashed her teeth. “We’ll talk about this when we get back.”

It was really not the place to talk outside. In this short time, quite a few people had looked over. If Lin Muwan hadn’t been focused only on her sadness, she would have been hiding like a quail from embarrassment by now.

On the way back, Jiang Zhou still hired a carriage. They sat facing each other in silence. Lin Muwan leaned against the carriage wall, her head bowed, lost in thought.

Jiang Zhou was too angry with her to speak.

Am I so untrustworthy?

Such a huge matter, yet she chose to bear it herself, saying nothing.

The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. When they got off the carriage, a few villagers happened to be passing by the entrance. A mischievous idea suddenly popped into Jiang Zhou’s mind. She scooped the person up, deliberately ignoring the resistance of the person in her arms in front of those people, and carried her all the way home.

The retaliation was strong.

After finishing her reckless act, she finally put the person down, feeling much better. She leaned over to talk to Lin Muwan, but Lin Muwan turned her head away, ignoring her. Wherever Lin Muwan turned her head, Jiang Zhou would circle around to that side, teasing her repeatedly.

Perhaps annoyed, Lin Muwan looked up, her eyes red-rimmed and filled with tears. She bit her lip and looked at her with hatred.

Jiang Zhou’s heart suddenly constricted. She finally realized she had made the person cry. It was too late to regret it now. “Wife…” she called out dryly. However, she thought again that Lin Muwan had provoked her first. All she did was take advantage of her thin skin and bully her a little.

She straightened her back, but then suddenly softened. Lin Muwan’s tears were falling like broken strings of pearls.

Jiang Zhou was immediately at a loss. She forgot about being angry and quickly hugged her to comfort her. Now that they were in their own room, with fewer constraints, Lin Muwan cried out loud in Jiang Zhou’s arms, as if to release all the grievances she had endured during this time.

She cried for an unknown amount of time. While crying, she actually fell asleep in her arms.

Jiang Zhou reached out and tucked her loose hair behind her ear. She carefully placed her on the bed, covered her with the quilt, and went to the kitchen. She made her a bowl of noodles. Lin Muwan hadn’t eaten anything since morning and was still hungry.

Madam Jiang had been spending a lot of time with the female butcher in the village lately, going from digging wild vegetables together to now frequently having dinner at the woman’s house. Although seeing Madam Jiang happy made Jiang Zhou feel very pleased.

But, this female butcher didn’t have a very good reputation in the village. Several times when passing by the village entrance, she heard people discussing her, saying she was ruthless, that she had beaten so-and-so. The villagers were all afraid of her.

Jiang Zhou wasn’t the type of person who believed everything people said, but since this concerned her cheap mother, she felt she had to pay attention. It was already late afternoon, and she still hadn’t seen her cheap mother return.

She secretly swore that when she returned, she would have a serious talk with her.

But by the time of yǒushí (5 PM to 7 PM), there was still no sign of her. She sighed inwardly. Another day my mother isn’t coming home for dinner.

She carried the swollen noodles back to the room and couldn’t help but sigh again. The person on the bed only had her small head exposed from the quilt. An hour had passed, but her nose was still red. She endured so much hardship, yet her skin is still so delicate. She is truly delicate.

Thinking this, she couldn’t resist reaching out and gently poking her nose, her heart filled with unconcealed joy.

Seeing that she was still asleep, Jiang Zhou simply took off her shoes, bent down, and was just about to lift the quilt to lie down with her when the woman opened her eyes.

Jiang Zhou: “…”

“What are you doing?”

Jiang Zhou: “…”

What can she be doing in broad daylight?

However, if Lin Muwan was willing, she could certainly do something.

She didn’t dare to tease her again and quickly put down the corner of the quilt. She brought the bowl of noodles over. Lin Muwan was indeed hungry at this point. After all, she hadn’t eaten lunch and had cried for so long. She was starving.

Jiang Zhou stood by the bed. “Will you eat it yourself, or should I feed you?”

Lin Muwan’s body stiffened violently, her face stained with a layer of blush. After a moment, she sat up from the quilt, saying awkwardly, “I’ll eat it myself.”

Jiang Zhou handed her the bowl and waited for her to finish eating.

The autumn sunset shone through the window and spread across the floor, reflecting onto the bed, illuminating the blush on Lin Muwan’s face.

After finishing the noodles, Jiang Zhou took off her shoes and jumped directly onto the bed. She pressed Lin Muwan down onto the bed. Now that they had eaten and drunk, it was time to settle their accounts.