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

Jiang He rushed in without even putting on his shoes properly, clutching a wooden stick he'd somehow found, his face contorted with malice.

Upon entering the room and seeing the mess on the floor and Lin Qingqing being pinned to the bed by Gu Qiangying, he paused for a moment, then threw down the stick.

"Sister, are you alright?" Jiang He rushed over and grabbed Lin Qingqing's foot to check on her.

"No...it's nothing, my hand just slipped." Lin Qingqing tried to pull her foot back, but it was held down by a large hand.

Gu Qiangying pinched her ankle; a small patch of skin was red from the burn, but no blisters formed.

He rubbed his thumb on the red mark twice.

"Clumsy." Gu Qiangying complained, but her movements were gentle. She took out a box of mentholatum from her pocket, picked out a little and applied it to the red mark.

Jiang He squatted on the other side, looking at those fair and tender feet in Gu Qiangying's hands. He felt a little sour, and other thoughts also popped into his head.

He reached out to pick up the broken pieces from the ground: "I'll clean it up, so my sister doesn't get hurt."

Gu Qiangying also squatted down.

Lin Qingqing felt embarrassed to watch them work, so she squatted down as well: "I can do it myself, you guys don't move, these glass shards are very sharp."

The three of them squeezed into this small space.

The water on the ground was still steaming, making the temperature in this small space even higher, as if it were trying to suffocate people.

Lin Qingqing squatted in the middle, Gu Qiangying on the left, and Jiang He on the right.

She reached out to pick up a large piece of shard, and just as her fingers touched it, another hand reached out as well.

Jiang He placed his hand on hers, his palm burning hot, carrying the dampness unique to young people.

"Sister, your hands are so soft, don't do such rough work." Jiang He's voice was a little hoarse. He didn't let go, but instead took the opportunity to hold her fingers together and gently scratched her palm with his fingertips.

Lin Qingqing's heart skipped a beat. Just as she was about to pull her hand away, Gu Qiangying on the other side suddenly spoke up: "Qingqing."

This was the first time he had called her that, omitting her surname, his voice deep, "Does your foot hurt?"

Lin Qingqing shook her head, avoiding his gaze.

***

Length of night.

By the time everything calmed down, it was already late at night.

Lin Qingqing didn't want to move a finger. She slumped limply in the quilt, her body covered in red marks.

Gu Qiangying, on the other hand, looked refreshed. Although he had sweated a lot, he seemed to be in better spirits than before. He used a hot towel to wipe Lin Qingqing's body, his movements were careful and gentle, and there was no trace of the ruthless intent he had shown earlier.

Jiang He squeezed at the foot of the bed, still holding onto Lin Qingqing's ankle with one hand.

"Go back to sleep. Qingqing probably doesn't want to get up and lock the door. I'll stay here and let her rest." Gu Qiangying put the towel on the table and pulled Jiang He outside.

Jiang He clung to the door frame like an octopus, refusing to let go no matter what.

"I'm not leaving! That room smells musty, this one smells nice!"

He pressed his face against the door frame. "Third brother, you go sleep in room 204. I need to watch over my sister. What if she wants water in the middle of the night because her foot hurts? You're a heavy sleeper, so I'll have to take care of her."

Gu Qiangying released his hand and slowly rolled up his sleeves twice, revealing a section of his smooth forearm.

"Don't you know how you sleep? Last time at home, you almost kicked my second son off the bed."

"That's Second Brother taking up space!" Jiang He's eyes darted around. "I can sleep on the floor! Right here, next to Sister's bed, I promise I won't move."

Lin Qingqing was already exhausted, but when she heard the two of them talking at the door, she couldn't help but interrupt: "Xiao He, the ground is all cold. If you get an upset stomach later, your third brother will have to give you acupuncture."

Jiang He shrank his neck at the mention of acupuncture.

Gu Qiangying was truly ruthless, quick and vicious, targeting sensitive spots, euphemistically calling it "teaching a lesson."

Seeing that Jiang He was about to back down, Gu Qiangying adjusted the frame of her glasses:

"And the lady at the front desk just said that they'll be checking the rooms."

"If we see a man and a woman together, that means they're dating. Do you want all three of us to be taken in for questioning, or do you want the village to issue a public reprimand tomorrow?"

Jiang He gritted his teeth.

That old fox, he's using his big name to intimidate people.

Jiang He was speechless, so he could only loosen his grip on the doorframe, glare fiercely at Gu Qiangying, and then put on a pitiful expression as he looked at Lin Qingqing:

"Okay. Sister, I'm going now. Call me if you need anything, I'm right next door. This wall isn't soundproof, I can hear you even if you hum."

He emphasized the last half of the sentence when he spoke it to Gu Qiangying.

If anyone dared to take the opportunity to do anything inappropriate for children, he would definitely tear down the wall and rush over.

Gu Qiangying pretended not to hear and reached out to close the door.

With a soft "click," the world fell silent.

Lin Qingqing breathed a sigh of relief: "Third Brother, you're really good at fooling people."

The lady at the front desk was knitting the whole time and didn't even look up. She didn't mention anything about checking the rooms.

Gu Qiangying turned around, her cold expression vanishing completely, replaced by a faint smile.

He walked to the washbasin stand, picked up a new towel, rubbed it with hot water again, wrung it out until it was half dry, and sat down on the bed.

"come over."

Lin Qingqing was obedient at this moment, and obediently moved her face closer.

A warm towel was placed on her face. Gu Qiangying's technique was excellent, neither too light nor too heavy. She pressed the towel against Lin Qingqing's eye sockets and temples, making Lin Qingqing feel so comfortable that she wanted to hum.

After rubbing for a while, he wiped Lin Qingqing's hands and then threw the towel back into the basin.

"Lie down."

"Huh?" Lin Qingqing clutched the blanket, looking at him warily. "What?"

Gu Qiangying was amused by her guarded demeanor and flicked her forehead: "What are you thinking about? Let me massage your back, otherwise it'll hurt when you wake up tomorrow."

Lin Qingqing then realized what was happening, her face flushed, and she obediently rolled over and lay face down on the bed.

"I'm sleepy..."

Gu Qiangying raised an eyebrow and chuckled softly, "Go to sleep."