Feng Jin rolled her eyes in exasperation. What nonsensical thoughts were going through his head? Did she have nothing better to do than worry about his marriage?
"What are you thinking about so randomly? I was just asking if you knew any good families around, to introduce to Chu Qing."
"This…"
Ling Muzhu hesitated. He genuinely didn't want to introduce anyone, but in the end, he chose to refuse directly: "There's no one suitable at the moment. Let's wait, and besides... besides, Chu Qing doesn't want to get married."
Recalling Chu Qing's expression earlier, it was indeed clear that she didn't wish to marry. He wasn't wrong to say that.
"I knew I couldn't rely on you. I'll find a way myself."
Feng Jin glared at Ling Muzhu. She knew he wouldn't come up with any good ideas, so asking him was a waste of time.
"If you have nothing else, you should go back."
Since Ling Muzhu was of no use, Feng Jin directly gave him the eviction notice, eager to send him away and be done with it.
"Then I'll be going, sister-in-law."
Ling Muzhu slowly stood up and walked away.
...
Feng Jin had just fallen into a deep, sweet sleep when the door was pushed open from the outside, and Ling Mohan's figure appeared.
A blast of cold wind blew in, and Feng Jin, lying in bed, shivered and burrowed deeper into the quilt. "Hurry up and close the door, you're freezing me to death."
Ling Mohan quickly turned and closed the door, a faint smile on his lips.
"Are you cold? Your husband would be very willing to warm your bed for you."
He was more than happy to do such a thing, and with that, he began to unbutton his outer garment, intending to get into bed.
However, he received a firm slap from Feng Jin, making his shoulder burn intensely, leaving him stunned.
"Are you crazy? Did a donkey kick you to say such disgusting things?"
If she hadn't already shed her clothes, it wouldn't have just been a slap.
As Ling Mohan entered, she had vaguely smelled a pungent scent of blood. She scanned Ling Mohan from head to toe but found no wounds or bloodstains on his clothes. She wondered where the smell was coming from.
"What did you do today? Why do you smell so strongly of blood?"
She was certain she hadn't misread the smell, but she didn't know what Ling Mohan had been doing.
"Your nose is really like a dog's, so sensitive."
He had changed into clean clothes specifically because he was worried Feng Jin would overthink things before coming. He hadn't expected to be discovered so quickly, completely failing to hide it.
"Are you injured? Let me see."
Thinking Ling Mohan was hurt, Feng Jin's emotions immediately tensed up. She was eager to check if he had any wounds.
The man grasped Feng Jin's hand, his voice calming. "Don't worry, I'm not injured. No need to worry."
There were very few people who could injure him, so how could he be hurt so easily? After soothing Feng Jin, he slowly sat down by the bed.
"You're really not injured?"
Seeing him look so vibrant, it didn't seem like he was injured, but her worry was still difficult to let go of. Feng Jin, still uneasy, asked Ling Mohan again.
"I truly am not injured!" Ling Mohan replied firmly. Then, he leaned very close to Feng Jin, the distance between them no more than a fist's breadth. Ling Mohan whispered into Feng Jin's ear, "My dear wife, if you don't believe me, I can take off my clothes and let you check thoroughly."
Feng Jin's beautiful little face instantly flushed crimson. Instinctively, she slapped the man who was being a pervert and pushed him away.
Her small face puffed out in anger, her eyes blazing with fire as she glared at Ling Mohan, wishing she could pounce on him and bite him hard.
"If you spout any more nonsense, then… then you can sleep outside, not here!"
She had been concerned about Ling Mohan's well-being, but he had twisted it all around, completely changing the nature of things.
"Alright… alright, I misspoke. I admit my mistake, don't be angry anymore."
Seeing that Feng Jin seemed genuinely angry, Ling Mohan quickly stepped forward and coaxed her gently.
He only had this one place to stay now. If he angered Feng Jin again and she kicked him out in a fit of pique, he would have nowhere to go.
It was freezing outside. Just a walk around would leave him thoroughly chilled, let alone spending the night. The previous night he had made do on the chair in the study, and it had been truly unbearable, almost costing him half his life. He absolutely did not want to sleep outside again.
Seeing that his attitude of admitting fault was acceptable, Feng Jin didn't dwell on the matter any longer and chose to move past it.
"You still haven't told me, what exactly happened to you? What exactly occurred?"
It was all Ling Mohan's fault for deliberately provoking her, making her almost forget the important matter. Recalling it, she continued to inquire, lest she forget again later, and then she wouldn't know when she might remember it again.
Ling Mohan didn't answer immediately. Instead, after getting into the covers, he pulled Feng Jin's soft body into his embrace before slowly saying, "Today, I went out of the city to quell mountain bandits."
Feng Jin lifted her head from his embrace, her gaze scrutinizing Ling Mohan. How could she find this statement so unbelievable?
"Are you telling the truth? Or are you just making things up to fool me?"
"Absolutely true."
Ling Mohan replied firmly, reaching out to pull Feng Jin closer into his embrace.
"Then why didn't you tell me this time? You just sneaked off like this. If I hadn't smelled the blood on you myself, would you have kept it from me?"
"No, today's events were sudden. It was a last-minute decision, and I didn't have time to inform you, so I left in a hurry."
What happened today was indeed very sudden. He hadn't even had time to send someone back to the manor to deliver a message; he had hastily gathered a group of men and rushed to the scene.
What he found most peculiar was that Lu Shi was not present today. He wondered where he had gone off to mess around, and he definitely needed to punish him severely.
Feng Jin was starting to believe Ling Mohan's words by now, but she was still very displeased with his method of leaving without notice.
No matter how busy he was, there should have been time to send someone back to the manor to say a word, even if it was squeezed in. Yet, Ling Mohan hadn't even sent a single message.