Chapter 192
Watching Mu's mother's tears, a flicker of emotion passed through Song Nianchu's eyes.
Yet that emotion wasn't stirred by Mu's mother, but by the man she spoke of—Mu Shi'an, who worked tirelessly day and night.
"Mother, what are you doing here?" Just then, a low voice suddenly sounded behind the two of them.
Song Nianchu turned around and saw Mu Shi'an. He was staring at Zheng Lanhui as he strode steadily into the main room.
When Mu's mother saw Mu Shi'an had returned, she immediately stood up from the stool beside her, raised a hand to wipe the tears from the corners of her eyes, and forced a smile.
"I... I just came by to take a look." Mu's mother wasn't good at lying, and her words clearly lacked conviction.
"Then why were you crying?" Mu Shi'an fixed his gaze on her swollen eyes.
"Was I? I was just telling Comrade Song about some things from the past. Well, I've said everything I needed to say, so I'll be heading back now." Afraid that Mu Shi'an might see through her, Mu's mother hurriedly said her farewell and quickly left.
Mu Shi'an wanted to call her back, but Song Nianchu suddenly spoke up.
"Why are you back early today?"
"The carpentry workshop ran out of wood, so I came back early." Mu Shi'an withdrew his gaze and explained.
"I see. Then I'll go make dinner." Song Nianchu nodded and turned to head toward the kitchen.
As she passed by Mu Shi'an, he suddenly grabbed her wrist.
"What's the matter?" Song Nianchu looked up.
"What did my mother say to you just now?" Mu Shi'an's gaze at Song Nianchu was somewhat grave.
"Nothing much." Song Nianchu's expression remained unchanged.
But Mu Shi'an didn't believe her.
Zheng Lanhui had arrived in their village not long before, and then his mother came looking for Song Nianchu right after. If they hadn't talked about something, he wouldn't believe it.
"No matter what my mother said to you, don't pay it any mind." Mu Shi'an spoke slowly, each word deliberate.
Song Nianchu stared at Mu Shi'an for a long while, her expression sobering slightly.
"Do you know what your mother told me?"
"Did she ask you to divorce me?" Mu Shi'an said in a low voice.
"She didn't say it outright. She told me that since you started your studies at the age of three, you've studied diligently every single day—whether in the bitter cold of winter or the scorching heat of summer, you never once skipped a day." Song Nianchu's gaze burned as she looked at him.
"Why would she tell you all that?" Mu Shi'an furrowed his brows.
"Probably to make me see how hard you've worked since childhood, so I'd show mercy and let you go." Song Nianchu spoke half-jokingly, half-seriously.
"What do you mean 'show mercy'? You make it sound like I'm some little bride you snatched up and brought home." A trace of helplessness passed through Mu Shi'an's eyes.
"In your mother's eyes, that's exactly what you are—a little bride I carried off." Song Nianchu laughed.
"You still have the mood to joke around?" Mu Shi'an truly didn't know whether to call Song Nianchu carefree or simply unconcerned.
"Mu Shi'an, don't you really want to go back to the capital?" Song Nianchu's smile faded, and she asked with utmost seriousness.
"Of course I do." Mu Shi'an answered without hesitation.
"Then why did you refuse Comrade Zheng?" Song Nianchu was puzzled.
"What I mean is, I want to return to the capital with my own ability, standing tall and proud—not by abandoning my wife and relying on connections through marriage." Mu Shi'an said firmly.
Song Nianchu raised an eyebrow. "I didn't know our Comrade Mu had such noble character."
"In your eyes, is my character that low?" Mu Shi'an's dark eyes narrowed.
"Of course not! If you were low, why would I have fallen for you in the first place?" Song Nianchu's eyes curved with a smile.
"Anyway, just remember this: no matter who comes to you asking for a divorce in the future, chase them all out the door." Mu Shi'an said in a grave tone.
"I've got it!" Song Nianchu nodded emphatically.
Seeing her like this, the heart that had been suspended in his chest finally settled back down.
"Come on, let's go make dinner together." Mu Shi'an took Song Nianchu's hand and walked toward the kitchen.
Song Nianchu lagged half a step behind him, watching his tall and upright back. For some reason, a sudden image popped into her mind—of him as a child, sitting upright at a desk, reading and studying.
He definitely wouldn't have been as mischievous as Mu Haoxuan, and he would've been a bit smarter than Mu Yongnian.
But no matter how sensible he was, a child would always yearn for the world outside.
How did he manage to endure it back then?
From what Mu's mother said, his grandfather must have been a very stern and old-fashioned man. Did he ever get his palms smacked?
Did he ever get made to stand as punishment?
"Mu Shi'an... your childhood must have been really hard," Song Nianchu murmured.
Mu Shi'an instinctively turned back. Seeing the almost overflowing tenderness in her eyes, his heart gave an unexpected tremble.
"It's fine, really. Once you get used to it, it's bearable." Mu Shi'an's voice was hoarse.
In the beginning, he had thrown tantrums too. He'd wanted to go out and play like the other kids. Those dull, dry characters on the page were impossible to understand—they looked like ants scattered across the ground, dense and meaningless.
But his grandfather had an heirloom ruler. One strike across the palm, and it would swell up immediately.
If he still refused to behave, he'd be made to kneel in the ancestral hall.
Late at night, in front of him were rows upon rows of ancestral tablets, and with the wind blowing, the candle flames would flicker—it was terrifying.
To avoid being punished to kneel in the ancestral hall, he had no choice but to study hard every day. Even when he was so drowsy his eyes could barely stay open, he would pinch his thigh hard to stay awake until he'd memorized those passages he didn't understand at all.
But as he grew older, his grandfather's knowledge could no longer teach him anything, and he also asked to board at school, which gave him much more freedom.
Eventually, he even slowly developed a taste for the joys of research—right up until the moment before he was sent down to the countryside, he'd still been in the laboratory.
When Song Nianchu heard Mu Shi'an's words, her eyes only grew more sorrowful. She tightly gripped his large hand.
Her dark eyes fixed on him without blinking, and her gaze held an unprecedented resolve.
"Mu Shi'an, believe me—if others can find a way to get you back to the capital, I can too!"
Mu Shi'an heard these words, spoken like a solemn vow, and was taken aback for a moment before he laughed out loud.
"I believe you. Our Chu is very capable." Mu Shi'an's words were more to console her than anything, but Song Nianchu didn't argue with him.
She would show him through her actions that she never spoke empty words.
"..."
Just as Song Nianchu and Mu Shi'an finished cooking, Mu Haoxuan and Mu Yongnian came rushing home in a whirlwind.
"Big brother..." Mu Haoxuan had been about to question Mu Shi'an about something, but Mu Yongnian noticed Song Nianchu beside him and quickly clamped a hand over his mouth.
"Sister-in-law, you're back so early today!"
Only then did Mu Haoxuan notice Song Nianchu. His big, dark, glossy eyes darted around.
"Yeah, the matter wrapped up quickly, so I got back a bit earlier. You two go wash your hands and come eat." Song Nianchu seemed not to notice anything unusual about the two brothers.