After becoming a widow, I became the apple of a rough man's eye.

That night, Li Dongye slept even more soundly than he had on the hard bed at the Qin family's house.

The mattress beneath me was so soft it felt like it would swallow me whole, and the satin quilt was so slippery that it let in drafts no matter how I wrapped myself up.

The most dangerous thing is the silence.

There was no barking from Wang Dazui's dog next door, no snoring from the brothers, and not even the slightest noise Lin Qingqing made while turning over in bed next door.

This three-meter-wide corridor made him feel as if he were separated by mountains and seas.

As dawn broke, Li Dongye opened his eyes, staring blankly at the intricate, maze-like plaster ceiling above him. He sat up, instinctively reaching for the cigarettes on the bedside table, only to realize he was in the Mu family compound, not Qingshan Village, and certainly not a guesthouse.

He walked barefoot to the door and pressed his ear against it to listen for a while.

There was no sound from the other side.

The restlessness in Li Dongye's heart climbed up his veins.

He wanted to open the door and go see what was going on. His hand was already on the doorknob when the image of Mu Zhenbang's stern face from last night and Mu Wenbin's eyes, which seemed to see right through him, popped into his mind again.

"Hold."

He cursed under his breath, let go of his hand, turned around and went into the bathroom, which was even bigger than his old bedroom, turned on the cold water tap, and plunged his head in.

The icy water sent shivers down my spine, finally suppressing the urge to kick the door.

When I went downstairs, the restaurant was already full.

The Mu family has strict rules for breakfast; they don't start eating until everyone is present.

As soon as Li Dongye appeared, several pairs of eyes immediately fell on him.

"Yunqi, come here, sit here with Mom." Liu Shuyan patted the empty seat next to her with a cautious yet ingratiating smile on her face.

Li Dongye pulled out a chair and sat down.

Across from him was Mu Wenbin, a man who, even while eating breakfast at home, swayed his back so high it looked like he was going to pierce the back of his chair. His military uniform was buttoned up meticulously, and he was reading a newspaper in his hand.

As for Mu Hongying, who had just been beaten up yesterday, she was sitting at the bottom of the table with a gloomy face. Her left cheek was swollen like a steamed bun. When she saw Li Dongye come down, she didn't even lift her eyelids. She was stirring the porridge in her bowl with a spoon.

"Where's Qingqing?" Li Dongye looked around but didn't see her.

"That child got up early and was getting some fresh air in the yard. She said she'd never seen such a beautiful garden before." Liu Shuyan smiled as she served Li Dongye a bowl of congee with preserved egg and lean pork. "I thought I'd let her look around a little longer, so I didn't wake her."

As soon as he finished speaking, light footsteps came from the doorway.

Lin Qingqing walked in.

Today she changed back into the floral print shirt she wore in the village, and instead of curling her hair like city girls, she neatly braided it into a plait that hung down in front of her chest.

This outfit would look tacky on anyone else, but on her, paired with her fair and radiant face without any makeup, she looks like an innocent young wife straight out of a magazine.

"Uncle, Aunt, Big Brother."

Lin Qingqing stood by the table and greeted everyone one by one. Finally, her gaze fell on Li Dongye, and her peach blossom eyes curved into a smile. "Fourth Brother, good morning."

That one call of "Fourth Brother" made Li Dongye's bones melt.

Mu Wenbin paused in his flipping through the newspaper, glanced at Lin Qingqing with his eyelids, and remained silent.

"Please sit down, please sit down," Liu Shuyan quickly invited. "You don't have to be so reserved at home anymore. You can sleep in as late as you want."

Lin Qingqing obediently responded and sat down next to Li Dongye.

On the table were exquisite xiaolongbao (soup dumplings), youtiao (fried dough sticks), soy milk, and Western-style milk bread.

Liu Shuyan wanted nothing more than to pile everything on the table into Li Dongye's bowl, constantly muttering, "Eat more, look how thin you are, you must not have been eating well before. This milk was just delivered, it's still warm..."

Looking at the mountain of bowls piled up in front of him, Li Dongye could only bury his head and eat.

"Do not speak while eating or sleeping."

Mu Zhenbang put down his chopsticks. "Yunqi has just returned, and he needs to learn the family rules gradually. We are a respectable family, so when we go out, we must be careful about our words and actions, and not bring out those old gangster habits."

With half a steamed bun stuffed in his mouth, Li Dongye couldn't swallow or spit it out, so he could only nod vaguely.

Under the table, a soft little hand suddenly reached out and gently patted his thigh twice.

Li Dongye turned his head and met Lin Qingqing's watery eyes. She gently pushed the untouched vinegar dish in front of her to Li Dongye's side and whispered, "Fourth Brother, the buns are greasy, dip them in some vinegar."

This isn't making him jealous; it's clearly trying to soothe him.

The anger in Li Dongye's heart was instantly extinguished by this dish of vinegar.

He took the plate, and under the cover of the tablecloth, he pinched the back of her hand, his fingertips rubbing heavily against her delicate skin.

Lin Qingqing withdrew her hand, two blushes rising on her cheeks, and lowered her head to drink her porridge, not daring to look at him.

This subtle action, though done discreetly, did not escape Mu Wenbin's notice.

He folded the newspaper and put it aside, picked up his coffee, took a sip, glanced at the two of them, and gave a very faint smile, the meaning of which was unclear.

After dinner, the family moved to the living room.

Liu Shuyan held Lin Qingqing's hand tightly, asking her all sorts of questions.

She grew to like her well-behaved, sensible, and beautiful "cousin" more and more, especially Lin Qingqing's gentle nature, which perfectly matched her aesthetic of a well-bred young lady.

"Auntie, your cashmere sweater is so beautiful. The material is so soft to the touch." Lin Qingqing gently stroked Liu Shuyan's cuffs with her fingers, her eyes full of sincere admiration. "Things in J City are so good. Unlike where we are, we only have coarse cloth."

"If you like, Auntie will have someone make two outfits for you." Liu Shuyan was overjoyed by the compliment.

"No, no, I'm not used to wearing such nice things." Lin Qingqing quickly waved her hand, then seemed to remember something and glanced at Li Dongye somewhat embarrassedly, "Actually... I wanted to ask Auntie, where can I buy fabric around here? I want to buy a few feet of fabric to make a shirt for Fourth Brother."

"Make shirts?" Liu Shuyan was taken aback. "Why bother with all that trouble when you can just buy ready-made ones at the department store?"

"Fourth Brother has broad shoulders and long arms. The ready-made clothes he buys are either too short in sleeves or too big in the waist, so he doesn't look smart in them."

Lin Qingqing lowered her head, "Besides... he's used to wearing clothes I make, he's not used to other people's stitches."

There was a moment of silence in the living room after he said that.

Li Dongye was drinking tea when he almost spat it out.

When did he ever wear clothes made by Lin Qingqing? When did he ever care about the stitching or whether he was used to it?

Li Dongye couldn't help but feel smug, thinking to himself that this was something Lin Qingqing owed him. When he got home, none of his four brothers would have it, and he would be the only one who did. Just thinking about it made him happy.

But the way this girl said it was as if the word "virtuous" was engraved on her forehead, and she also subtly asserted her ownership—that I was the one who handled his personal clothing.

Liu Shuyan clearly didn't understand this implication; instead, he was deeply moved.

"Oh my, what a good girl. These days, what girl knows how to sew? Yunqi, your cousin is really amazing to you."

Li Dongye put down his teacup and looked at Lin Qingqing's obedient appearance, feeling a strong itch in his heart.

He cleared his throat and played along: "Yes, she's very skillful; she mended all my clothes."

Sitting in the corner, Mu Hongying rolled her eyes dramatically, scoffed, and started banging away on the game console in her hand.

"It's so noisy," Mu Wenbin coldly retorted.

Mu Hongying's hand trembled, and the game console almost fell to the ground.

He turned off the sound in frustration and turned his head to look out the window, where he saw a few of his friends peeking out of the courtyard gate.

"Mom, my friend is here, I'm going out for a bit." Mu Hongying felt like she had been granted a pardon, grabbed her coat, and was about to slip away.

"Stay in the courtyard, don't go outside the gate." Mu Wenbin's voice was like a tight band around his neck.

Mu Hongying gritted her teeth, gave a soft reply, and slammed the door shut as she left.