The Yandere Queen's Manual for Training Her Wife - Chapter 85

Xia Mingtang thought she was being kind, caring for a troubled teenager, but she hadn’t expected to be so misunderstood. It made her furious.

“I don’t want you carrying me, put me down!”

Her hands were braced against Qin Yan’s shoulders and neck, ready to pinch if she didn’t agree.

To her surprise, Qin Yan was very cooperative. She immediately stopped in the middle of the road, didn’t even bother finding a step or anything, and simply let her slip off her back.

Xia Mingtang, unprepared, slid straight down.

Her still-cramping calf hit the ground unexpectedly, and the pain almost made her howl.

Xia Mingtang: ?

Seriously? That sudden? No transition at all?

Qin Yan acted like she didn’t see the colorful expressions flashing across Xia Mingtang’s face. She stood nearby with one hand in her pocket, speaking with mock concern.

“Clearly you don’t exercise enough. Run a few kilometers and you’re already like this. You’d better do a hot compress when we get back.”

Xia Mingtang kept silent, tiptoeing forward with one foot, grimacing, showing Qin Yan nothing but the back of her head.

Qin Yan walked half a step behind, watching her limp, her tone dripping with mischief.

“Are you cosplaying a penguin? If you really can’t stand steady, I can let you lean on me for free.”

Xia Mingtang shot her a glare and quickened her pace, which only made her wobble more.

Which… made her look even more like a penguin.

Somehow she didn’t fall, despite the wobbling.

Qin Yan watched with great interest, her imagination wandering.

“I’ve seen those penguins on Animal Planet—they’re always waddling, but they never seem to fall. How do you think they keep their balance?”

Xia Mingtang snapped, unable to take it anymore.

“Weren’t you the one who never liked talking before?”

Why was she suddenly so full of nonsense?

Qin Yan just blinked innocently, putting on a serious face.

“I never disliked talking. I just couldn’t be bothered before. Now I’ve got energy.”

Xia Mingtang didn’t want to ask, “Why the sudden energy?” because she was afraid the answer would be, “Because I’m watching a penguin.”

She realized that sixteen-year-old Qin Yan was not some pitiful, neglected child at all.

She was clearly a sharp-tongued, black-hearted, rebellious teen that even dogs would avoid.

Xia Mingtang almost suspected that Qin Yan had let her slip down on purpose—just to see her embarrassed.

Thankfully, the rental was close by, just a few hundred meters away. She told herself to bear with it.

While she was gritting her teeth and shuffling along, she didn’t notice a little pit in the ground. Her foot sank in halfway, making her already “poor household” even worse off.

Arms outstretched, she just managed to keep her balance. Glaring at Qin Yan, who was right beside her, she snapped.

“Back off. I said I don’t need your help.”

Qin Yan shrugged, took a step back. “I’m just watching. Didn’t plan on helping anyway.”

Xia Mingtang: …

Even angrier!

She crouched down, tugging at her heel stuck in the pit.

Qin Yan really just stood there watching, with zero intention of lending a hand.

It took all of Xia Mingtang’s strength to finally pull the heel free.

But as she yanked it out, she leaned backward—and fell.

The next second, she landed in a warm embrace.

Qin Yan’s body heat didn’t match her cold personality at all.

She held Xia Mingtang horizontally in her arms, her face expressionless.

“I promised not to carry you on my back. I keep my word.”

The sudden princess carry, combined with her blank face, made Xia Mingtang’s cheeks flare red.

Qin Yan had held her many times before, yet never once had it made her heart lurch like this.

This time, Xia Mingtang didn’t protest or demand to be put down. She knew that if she said so, Qin Yan really would let go.

Qin Yan carried her all the way home, reached into her pocket for the key at her direction. With one hand, she held her steady, and with the other, opened the door, switched on the light, fluid and practiced.

She set Xia Mingtang on the couch, then headed to the bathroom to wring a hot towel, moving around as if she lived there.

Half reclining on the sofa, Xia Mingtang watched Qin Yan’s industrious back. Memories overlapped.

Whether in Yun Town or in Rong City, Qin Yan had always been like this—quietly busying herself on Xia Mingtang’s behalf.

Though back then, half the time she was doing it to “make up” for something.

Because every time, she was also the one who had exhausted Xia Mingtang to the point of being unable to take care of herself.

But now’s Qin Yan hadn’t done anything outrageous yet.

Aside from being cold and sharp-tongued, she was… a fairly well-behaved kid.

Well, a sixteen-year-old kid.

Sometimes, Xia Mingtang even felt guilty, like she was exploiting underage labor.

While she was lost in thought, Qin Yan returned with a basin of hot water.

“Looks like your calf muscle is strained. Do a hot compress.”

“Thanks.”

Xia Mingtang took the towel, rolled up her pants, pressed it to her leg.

“Hissss—” It stung a little.

Seeing her frown, Qin Yan asked, “Want me to massage it?”

Massage…

She said it out of concern, but Xia Mingtang’s mind instantly went somewhere inappropriate.

“No need!” she refused at once, the three words tumbling out too quickly.

“Oh.” Qin Yan slumped onto the single sofa, pouting. “Fine. No need to be so fierce.”

Seeing Qin Yan’s innocent expression, Xia Mingtang realized she’d overreacted.

She was only sixteen. Even if thirty-one-year-old Qin Yan had done awful things, the current, clueless one shouldn’t bear that burden.

Xia Mingtang stared at her for a while, but couldn’t bring herself to apologize.

Luckily, Qin Yan wasn’t the type to dwell. She even joked, “Why’re you staring at me? Do I have flowers on my face?”

“No. Just thinking that after you hit your head, you’ve changed a lot.”

Being around this sharp-tongued brat had rubbed off on her—Xia Mingtang was starting to get sharp herself.

But Qin Yan didn’t mind the “head injury” comment. She asked curiously.

“Changed? Like in what ways?”

There were too many.

Xia Mingtang thought for a moment and picked the closest example.

“You’ve… started respecting people’s wishes.”

That was the truth.

The old Qin Yan, when in a good mood, would indulge her.

But when in a bad mood, she was like an emperor—no one could defy her.

Now, Qin Yan listened to everything.

So much that sometimes she couldn’t even tell sarcasm apart—maybe on purpose.

While Xia Mingtang was lost in thought, Qin Yan had somehow leaned closer, one hand on the back of the sofa, her dark eyes gleaming.

“So, do you like me better now? Or the way I was before?”

Xia Mingtang tilted her head up, almost sucked into those eyes. She quickly lowered it again, focusing on her hot compress.

“Young people shouldn’t be so narcissistic. When did I ever say I liked you?”

Qin Yan plopped down beside her, the couch sinking halfway.

“Liar. If you didn’t like me, why would you be my wife?”

Xia Mingtang bit her lip.

If she said she only married for pocket money… that truth might be too cruel for a minor.

She wanted to pretend she hadn’t heard, but Qin Yan was staring right at her, unblinking.

So she decided to change the subject.

She straightened her posture, put on the air of an elder, and lectured.

“You’re only sixteen. Calling me ‘wife’ all the time—is that really appropriate?”

“Of course. You said I lost my memory, right? Then I should adapt quickly, so I can recover faster.”

Qin Yan sat up straighter than her, sounding perfectly reasonable.

Xia Mingtang couldn’t refute, though she was curious.

“At your age, shouldn’t your head be full of schoolwork?

“How can you so easily accept a wife who came out of nowhere?

“Don’t you feel like you’ve got no emotional foundation with me at all?”

“No problem. Feelings can be cultivated.” Qin Yan leaned in closer. “You may be a little dumb, but you’re good-looking. I don’t mind this assignment at all.”

Assignment?

The word was so modern that Xia Mingtang forgot to be annoyed about the “dumb” part.

Before she could respond, Qin Yan’s face was right before hers, her arm caging the sofa so that Xia Mingtang was completely enveloped.

That once gentle and clear face was now curved into a mischievous grin, flashing a row of bright white teeth.

“And besides, you’re mistaken. I’m not some good kid. Someone your size—I could take on ten of you at once.”

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