TTLJDFL chapter 8

Everyone knew that Li Zhuzi usually took good care of Li Jin. Sometimes when Li Jin had disputes with the villagers, Li Zhuzi would even rush over from afar to mediate.

But in fact, the original Li Jin was timid, cowardly, and afraid of trouble, with no skills other than acting tough at home.

So he couldn’t really cause any major issues, and because Li Zhuzi was well-liked in the village, he could easily resolve things for him.

But this time, Li Zhuzi was genuinely supporting Li Jin wholeheartedly.

Everyone thought to themselves, ‘A divine doctor—can Li Jin, this good-for-nothing, really handle it?’

Better not be carried away by the wind and slip your tongue.

Seeing that others didn’t believe it, Li Zhuzi didn’t say much.

If Li Jin hadn’t really managed to set his bones perfectly with one hand, even he would admit to himself that he wouldn’t believe Li Jin had such skill.

Li Zhuzi pulled the ox cart to Li Jin’s doorstep, and Li Jin picked up his washbasin and said, “Thanks.”

“Thanks for what? Honestly, if we really count it, I should be the one thanking you. If it weren’t for you, my leg would definitely need a couple more days to recover, and I wouldn’t be able to go into the mountains tomorrow.”

After they said their goodbyes, Li Jin went inside.

Because Li Jin’s place was small, the courtyard actually felt a lot bigger. The kitchen doorway opened to the front yard, and against the wall was a well. Behind the bedroom, there was a back yard with two persimmon trees, and in between the trees, a hemp rope was stretched—perfect for hanging clothes.

By the time Li Jin got back, Qin Muwen had been awake for quite a while.

His body wasn’t feeling great now, and every little move hurt. At first, when he saw that only he and the kid were left in the house, Qin Muwen felt a moment of panic.

He tried calling out ‘Ajin’ a couple of times, but no one answered.

The kid wasn’t as sensitive as him and was sleeping soundly at the moment.

Qin Muwen heard voices at the door a few times and listened carefully, hoping his own door would be pushed open.

But it was just men from the village returning from farm work.

It’s not Li Jin.

When he saw Li Jin coming back with the washbasin, Qin Muwen was so startled that he almost sat up from the bed.

Li Jin didn’t bother hanging up the clothes first; he helped Qin Muwen sit up and then placed a pillow behind his back.

“What’s wrong? Hungry? There’s still some chicken soup in the pot.”

Qin Muwen shook his head and said, “The clothes…”

“I washed them. You’ve not been feeling well lately; resting is the most important thing.” Li Jin didn’t think for a second that there was anything wrong with ‘a man doing laundry by the river’.

His family was poor, just him and his husband. The husband had just had a baby—was he supposed to let the dirty clothes pile up and wait until the husband recovered to wash them?

Sorry, Li Jin really couldn’t do it.

Qin Muwen looked at Li Jin, and now his expression could no longer be described with just the word ‘shocked.’

“I…I’m supposed to wash the clothes. You’re a man…you can’t wash them…”

Li Jin held his hand: “With your current physical condition, are you telling me you want to do the laundry?”

Maybe because Li Jin’s tone was somewhat serious, Qin Muwen didn’t know how to respond for a moment.

When he was previously at the Shangshu Mansion, the people he came into contact with—from maids to servants—there were never any men who did the laundry at home.

Later, when he was sold to be Li Jin’s husband, Qin Muwen also knew that he was being punished.

Like his brother who was exiled to Ningguta and his sisters who were sent to the brothel, he was just given a more ‘respectable’ form of punishment.

In this country, a ger’s status is even lower than that of a woman, so in the end, when it came to sentencing, the Minister of Justice pitied Qin Muwen, who knew nothing, and he was implicated as well.

So all they did was have him sold off as a ger, and that was it.

During the two years of marriage, Qin Muwen felt that her daily labor—plowing the fields, washing clothes, cooking, mending, and earning money—was more like a form of disguised atonement.

Although he still didn’t know what crime his father, who was a minister, had committed.

Qin Muwen was naturally a laid-back guy who never fought for anything; even when hurt, he would just quietly tend to himself.

Over the past two years, Qin Muwen had gotten used to it.

All he could think about was giving birth to a healthy child and letting the child grow up happy; getting married to a good match could come later—this was the greatest happiness in life.

But Li Jin… why was Li Jin suddenly being so nice to him?

Qin Muwen looked at the basin of freshly washed clothes and bit his lip.

Although he had once admired the immortal couples described in books, he had now completely lost all hope in Li Jin.

Perhaps, when they had just married, Qin Muwen still dreamed of living a harmonious life like a couple in tune with each other, but later he realized that it was all a fool’s fantasy.

At present, Qin Muwen felt as if he were living in a beautiful dream woven by ants in the story of Nanke.

Although the happiness reached the tips of his heart, it was ultimately just a dream.

Li Jin looked at him without saying anything, as if he were a stubborn child who had made up his mind about something.

He felt a bit of a headache and unconsciously spoke more seriously, just like when he usually explains precautions to the families of patients.

“Right now, your body can’t be exposed to wind, let alone catch a cold, so why are you still so concerned about washing clothes?”

But in fact, Qin Muwen was just worried that Li Jin’s kindness toward him would only last for such a short time.

If he waited until his body was fully recovered, and Li Jin returned to how she used to be, frequently hitting and scolding him, he was afraid he truly wouldn’t be able to endure it.

Falling from the clouds into the mud, such a disparity is not something everyone can bear.

Qin Muwen lowered his head and said, “Once my body is better, I can do the laundry.”

He could work like before, non-stop, as long as Li Jin’s attitude toward him was just a little, just a tiny bit better.

Li Jin knew that a woman’s emotional needs after giving birth required careful attention.

But most people he had seen tended to think that having a baby was an achievement, so it was inevitable that they became a bit spoiled.

There’s no denying that women become more sensitive after giving birth and need care from their husbands and families, which is completely normal.

After all, carrying a child for ten months and finally giving birth is hard work that mothers endure more than anyone else.

Li Jin also considered this, which is why he took such meticulous care of Qin Muwen.

After all, he had just traveled over and didn’t know what kind of temper his husband had.

He only felt that the boy looked so young, and was still a kid. Having to bear so much alone naturally made him feel really sorry for him.

After all, Li Jin was both a doctor and a family member—if he didn’t take care of the boy, who else would?

But this was exactly what gave Li Jin a headache. Why wasn’t the boy delicate at all?! Could it be that he was still planning to keep working with a body that had just given birth?

What kind of man was the original owner, to be so pathetic to this extent! Relying on her husband to support her, yet not treating him well.

Li Jin said, “Don’t worry about the household chores for now, taking care of your health is what you should be doing, understand?”

The young man, hearing that his tone was a bit stricter, suddenly shrank his shoulders.

Li Jin: “…………………?” How could the original owner be such trash! He must have been abusive in the past!

Li Jin sighed, rubbed his hands to warm them, and reached into the quilt to hold the young man’s hand.

The young man’s hands had quite a few calluses, but they weren’t tough yet, which meant he hadn’t done so much physical labor since he was a child, but only after getting married was he treated like a servant.

“I won’t hit you. In the future, if you have any thoughts, you can tell me, and we can discuss them together.”

Qin Muwen was suddenly at a loss when Li Jin held his hand, even though these hands had just embraced him and helped him put on his pants.

But at that time, Li Jin didn’t say anything.

Qin Muwen also pretended not to be that close.

But now it’s different. The man’s voice came softly from above, and Qin Muwen could only nod vaguely, not daring to have any messy thoughts in his mind.

Seeing that he agreed, Li Jin went to the backyard to hang up the clothes, and then went to the kitchen to serve the chicken soup.

“You didn’t eat much before, have some more soup.” Actually, Li Jin was hungry too, but he could endure it.

The chicken soup had been simmering until now, infused with flavor and exceptionally delicious.

When Li Jin just served it, he specifically skimmed off the oil, so it didn’t look greasy at all, making it perfect for a young boy to drink.

Qin Muwen had two bites fed to him by Li Jin, and suddenly said, “Ah Jin.”

Li Jin’s hands paused in their movements, “Hmm?”

“You eat first, I’m not hungry.”

As soon as he said this, the young man’s stomach grumbled.

Women who have given birth naturally cannot eat within two hours after delivery, but now more than an hour had passed, and giving birth is such an exhausting thing; he must be hungry by now.

But the young man also guessed that Li Jin probably hadn’t eaten anything either. This chicken… the chicken, no one even knew where it had come from. A chicken costs forty wen, and it had been a long time since there had been any meat in the household.

When the young man saw that Li Jin was only feeding him and not eating himself, he immediately said a sentence that backfired.

—Saying that he wasn’t hungry, though his stomach was grumbling.

The young man was too sensible, yet Li Jin’s expression remained completely unmoved, as he brought a spoonful of soup with shredded meat to the young man’s mouth.

“Open your mouth.”

It was as if he didn’t hear the young man’s words, nor the sound of his stomach.

Now it seemed that the young man was still somewhat afraid of Li Jin.

As soon as Li Jin’s tone became low, he behaved very obediently, responding to every word and command, afraid of making Li Jin angry.

After being fed a whole bowl of soup, the young boy uncontrollably let out a burp.

Li Jin chuckled lightly: “Not hungry anymore?”

The boy nodded: “Mm.”

“Is the chicken soup tasty?”

He nodded again: “Tasty.”

“Do you know why the chicken soup is all yours?”

The boy was a bit shy and a little nervous, not saying anything.

Li Jin had been really good to him lately; in the past, his dad would also save the tasty food for him… Just then, Li Jin said,

“Drink the soup, it’ll help with milk.”

The boy was like, “???”

But, it did make sense—otherwise, if there’s so much delicious food in the world, why is it that pregnant women always get served a bunch of nourishing soups?

The young boy looked as if he was about to burst into tears.

Li Jin patted his head and stood up: “I won’t tease you anymore. I’ll go to the village to buy some goat’s milk; the child hasn’t eaten yet.”

Although the best food for a newborn is certainly breast milk, Li Jin felt that the world probably had not yet deteriorated to the point where gers could provide milk.

Therefore, he could only cook some rice porridge first, and when it was nearly done, add the goat’s milk to serve as food for the child.

At this moment, it was still not dark, and a group of people were chatting idly at the entrance of the village.

Li Jin felt that he couldn’t keep taking wool from Li Danniu forever, so he decided to go to Li Zhuzi’s house to ask if there was any goat milk, and rice would be even better.

Li Jin had already remembered something earlier—probably Li Zhuzi was the person in the village who treated him the best, so the first place he thought of was Li Zhuzi’s house.

Just as Li Jin got to the door of Li Zhuzi’s house, he saw Li Zhuzi holding bottles and jars in his hands.

He saw Li Jin and smiled, saying, “The ger isn’t producing milk well, and your little one was just born. I’ll bring you some goat milk and eggs, and here’s a bag of rice too.”

Li Jin: “???” gers can still breastfeed??? Is this world really about to turn my worldview upside down???​