Dare to shirk responsibility? This adorable little one will tear down your military district!

Gu Changfeng's grip was frighteningly strong; his fingertips pressed firmly against the centipede-like ridge on Lin Wanrou's arm, showing no intention of letting go.

"Speak." Gu Changfeng's voice was low, carrying a sense of oppression only found in an interrogation room. "Who inflicted this injury?"

Lin Wanrou shrank back, trying to pull her hand back. But the large hand was like an iron clamp, completely unmoving.

"Don't want to talk about it?" Gu Changfeng propped himself up with his other hand, the heat emanating from his muscular physique hitting Lin Wanrou's face directly. "Or are you afraid to say it?"

The air inside the blankets was thin and scalding hot.

Lin Wanrou instinctively pulled her hand back, her strength was not great, but it revealed a sense of panic.

"It's nothing, I just accidentally scratched myself while working before." She lowered her voice, afraid of waking up Ya Ya, who was fast asleep in the middle.

"Did you carve it?"

Gu Changfeng didn't let go; instead, he gripped her hand even tighter. His fingertips repeatedly rubbed the scar, the rough calluses scraping against Lin Wanrou's skin until it felt hot.

"What kind of work could cause such a deep cut? It must have broken the bone."

Gu Changfeng was an expert with knives and guns; he could tell at a glance whether it was a superficial wound or a deep, bone-exposing injury. This wound hadn't healed well; it was clear that it hadn't been stitched up or properly treated, and the person had simply endured it.

Lin Wanrou remained silent.

In the darkness, only Gu Changfeng's slightly heavy breathing could be heard, each breath striking her heart.

"Was it Wang Guifen who did it?" Gu Changfeng suddenly asked, calling her by name. His tone was devoid of emotion, yet chilling.

Lin Wanrou stiffened for a moment.

After a long while, she finally gave a soft "hmm".

"That winter, Ya Ya had a high fever, and I wanted to go to the chicken coop to get an egg to make water for the child to drink."

Lin Wanrou's voice was very soft, as if she were talking about someone else's business, "Mom... she said that was to be kept to exchange for salt, and she wouldn't let us touch it. During the scuffing, I fell on the blade of the grass cutter and bled a lot."

Gu Changfeng's breathing became heavier.

"I begged my mother for two cents to go to the clinic." Lin Wanrou laughed self-deprecatingly. "My mother said I was a jinx, a spendthrift woman, that I needed to see a doctor for even a small injury. She grabbed a handful of wood ash from the stove and pressed it directly onto my wound."

Wood ash is a folk remedy for stopping bleeding. But the wound was so deep that the bone was visible. Applying dirty ash directly without disinfection would cause excruciating pain and subsequent festering. Gu Changfeng, a military commander, could imagine the consequences.

"I had a high fever for three days afterward and almost died," Lin Wanrou said casually. "Luckily, I'm tough and pulled through. It's just that this hand always hurts on cloudy or rainy days."

Click.

A crisp sound rang out in the silent room. Gu Changfeng cracked his knuckles with his other hand.

His chest heaved violently, the breath stuck in his lungs like he'd swallowed a handful of burning coals. He risked his life on the front lines, sending most of his monthly allowance home, hoping to make life better for his family.

The results of it?

The money he sent back became the basis for Wang Guifen's abuse of his wife and daughters.

"I send back forty yuan every month, plus cloth coupons and grain coupons." Gu Changfeng gritted his teeth, each word seemingly squeezed out from between them. "Where's the money?"

Lin Wanrou looked up abruptly, and even in the darkness, her shock was palpable.

"Forty yuan?" Her voice trembled. "Mom said...Mom said you made a mistake in the army, and your allowance was deducted. You only send back two yuan a month, which you have to save for Jianjun's wedding. Ya Ya and I can only drink two meals of thin porridge a day, and we still have to do all the housework."

Two yuan.

Gu Changfeng laughed in exasperation.

His good stepmother takes his hard-earned money, treats his wife and children like livestock, and even tries to frame him.

"Then she said..." Lin Wanrou paused, her voice lowering, "that you died out there, and your ashes were scattered. If Ya Ya hadn't insisted on coming to find you this time, I would have thought..."

"You thought I was really dead?" Gu Changfeng interrupted her.

Lin Wanrou didn't say anything, but just gripped the corner of the blanket tightly in her hand.

Gu Changfeng suddenly released his grip on her wrist.

Just as Lin Wanrou was about to breathe a sigh of relief, that large hand slid down her arm, grabbed her hand, and enveloped her calloused and scarred hand in its palm.

This time it's not restraint, it's warming.

The rough palm pressed against the back of her hand, and a steady stream of heat emanated from it. Lin Wanrou felt that heat climb up her veins, burning all the way to the tip of her heart.

"I was blind before." Gu Changfeng lay down, staring at the dark beams, his voice hoarse. "I thought that as long as I paid money, there would be peace at home. I'm sorry to you, and I'm sorry to Ya Ya."

Without explanation or excuse, this man, over six feet tall, admitted his mistake in the darkness.

Lin Wanrou's nose tingled, and tears fell unexpectedly onto the pillow. All the grievances she had held back over the years were stirred up by that one sentence.

"Wang Guifen's visit this time is a good thing." Gu Changfeng suddenly changed the subject, his tone dropping sharply and exuding a chilling aura. "Now that she's here, let's settle our old scores one by one."

He turned his head and accurately located Lin Wanrou's position in the darkness.

"From now on, you're in charge of the money and the people in this family. If anyone dares to lay a finger on you or your daughter again, I'll cripple them."

That's a very bandit-like thing to say, not at all like a proper leader.

Lin Wanrou sniffed, and the hand he was holding moved slightly, turning around and hooking one of his fingers around.

"Mmm," she replied.

Just that one word, and it's like some kind of contract has been reached.

Between the two, Meng Yaya, who had been "sound asleep" the whole time, quietly exhaled the long breath she had been holding in for so long. She curled up her two toes in bed and mentally gave her cheap dad a thumbs up.

This realization, this statement, though a few years late, is at least timely. Now there's no need to worry about my mother's soft heart. With husband and wife united, their strength can break even metal. When that awful grandmother arrives, we'll just have to shut the door and beat her.

The atmosphere in the room changed.

The tense, heavy feeling from before dissipated, replaced by a sticky, peaceful tranquility.

A breeze picked up outside, making the paper windowpanes rustle. Inside, however, it was so warm it made one feel sleepy.

Gu Changfeng didn't let go, holding his wife's hand like that, his thumb unconsciously rubbing gently against her palm. The thick calluses on it made him feel at ease.

This is his woman, the woman who bore him a child and suffered for him.

Lin Wanrou was probably exhausted from crying, or perhaps a huge weight had been lifted from her heart; her breathing gradually became even and long. Before long, she fell asleep.