TSWPF -Chapter 317 A Heavy Heart

When Liu Zhimou returned to the room, he saw Li Qingling still tidying up. He walked up behind her, wrapped his arms around her, and rested his chin on her shoulder, holding her silently, without a word.

Li Qingling put down the clothes in her hands, turned her head to glance at him, then reached back to stroke his hair, asking, “What’s wrong?”

She had truly never seen him like this before—so pensive, burdened with worries.

Liu Zhimou tilted his head to kiss her ear, then let out a soft sigh and said, “Nothing.”

The affairs at the yamen (government office) were troubling him, but he didn’t want her to worry, so he chose not to tell her.

“Nothing,” he said—but that was far from the truth.

Li Qingling gently released his hand, turned to face him, cupped his face in both hands, and asked again, “Is it about the yamen? Something going wrong?”

He had returned looking like this after just going out once—so it had to be related to the yamen.

Was the situation at the yamen really that bad to make him so troubled?

Liu Zhimou closed his eyes briefly, kissed her on the lips, and gave a bitter smile. “Nothing can be hidden from you.”

She really was like a parasite living in his heart—she knew everything.

Li Qingling shot him a sidelong glance. They had been together long enough; how could she not see through him?

She pulled him to sit on the edge of the bed and asked him to tell her what was going on. It was better to confide than to let her worry in silence.

Liu Zhimou thought for a moment and realized she was right. He tapped her forehead playfully, briefly explained the situation at the yamen, and in the end reassured her not to worry—he would handle it.

He would manage the outside world; she only needed to take care of the home.

Before, when he was studying, she bore the responsibility of the household inside and out. Now, it was time for her to rest properly—she shouldn’t have to work so hard anymore.

Li Qingling nodded. “I don’t care about the other things, but you must stay safe. Think about us, understand?” If he acted rashly, it could provoke retaliation and put him in danger.

Liu Zhimou understood she was worried about his safety. He held her hand firmly and nodded, reassuring her he would not act impulsively and would plan everything carefully.

He had elders above and children below at home—he wouldn’t allow himself to be harmed.

“We’re new here; we can’t rush anything. We have to take it slowly.”

“I know. Even if we act, it can’t be now. We have to wait for the right moment to eliminate them all at once.” He had no one by his side supporting him yet; he wouldn’t recklessly fight alone.

Only when someone stood with him could he gradually root out the pests in Ninghua County.

Li Qingling responded with a nod, lightly kissing him in reward, and told him to rest while she continued tidying, since her work wasn’t finished.

Liu Zhimou didn’t let her go. He wrapped his arms around her waist, insisting she rest with him.

Li Qingling ruffled his hair, coaxing him like a child to go sleep alone.

“No. Together,” he said, not waiting for her reply. He pulled her onto the bed, straddling her, holding her down to prevent her from leaving.

Li Qingling rolled her eyes helplessly, tugged his cheek, and said, “Fine, fine. I’ll rest with you a bit; then we can get up and finish tidying later.”

Seeing her agree, his eyes sparkled. He cupped her face and kissed her rosy lips.

If Li Qingling weren’t slightly clear-headed, something might have happened even in broad daylight…

Annoyed, she glared at the culprit and pulled a blanket over herself, warning him not to touch her again—or else he could sleep in the study tonight.

He absolutely couldn’t bear to be separated from his soft, delicate wife. Liu Zhimou hugged her through the blanket, obediently nodding, promising he wouldn’t overstep again.

After checking him twice and seeing no further movement, she finally relaxed and nodded.

Liu Zhimou held her tightly, sighed deeply, and said, tortured, “Just one more month… just one more month…”

One more month of patience, and then he could be with his wife…

Thinking of this, his ‘fire’ flared up again.

Li Qingling completely understood what he meant by “one more month.” Her face immediately flushed red. She struggled to turn her back to him and gruffly said, “Sleep.”

If they continued talking, she wouldn’t be able to sleep.

She didn’t want to stir up his ‘fire’ again and have to put it out.

Liu Zhimou kissed the back of her head, tightened his hold on her, and closed his eyes.

Both of them were exhausted, sleeping straight through until nightfall.

Li Qingling opened her eyes to see complete darkness. What time was it? It was so dark?

Carefully, she moved Liu Zhimou’s hand and tried to climb out of bed, but he pulled her back, groggily asking what time it was.

“Awake? Get up—we probably missed dinner.” The sun was down; the children had likely already eaten. “Xichun, are you there?”

“Madam, you’re awake? Hungry? Shall I bring you some stew?” Xichun’s voice came from the doorway.

She knew the rules with Li Qingling and Liu Zhimou: no one could enter their room without permission.

Xichun always remembered this. She would ask loudly and only act after receiving confirmation.

Li Qingling rubbed her empty stomach and told Xichun to bring the food. They needed to eat.

Xichun nodded and signaled Nian Xia, who called out, “Madam, the wash water is ready. Shall I bring it in?”

Li Qingling lit the candles, pulled the lingering Liu Zhimou from the bed, and told Nian Xia to bring in the wash water.

Nian Xia quietly pushed the door open, set the water down, then left.

Li Qingling and Liu Zhimou washed their faces and finally fully woke up.

Looking at the time, it was already the hour of the snake (around 9–11 a.m.). They had slept quite a long time—clearly exhausted.

“We slept straight through… no need to sleep tonight,” Li Qingling sighed, sitting in a chair to wait for Xichun to bring the food.

Liu Zhimou sat beside her, squeezing her fingers. “After traveling so long by carriage, it’s natural to be exhausted. Sleeping longer is normal.” The rough journey had left them weary; a good rest made them feel much lighter. “Grandmaster and the children should be asleep by now, right?”

“By this hour, yes.” She wondered if the little ones were used to this new place—it was extremely poor, much worse than Niutou Village.

Here, she truly understood what it meant to be surrounded by mountains on all sides, with little farmland and lazy villagers. No wonder their food and clothing were insufficient.

Now that Liu Zhimou was here, they had to find a way to make use of the surrounding mountains.

“Zhimou, have you figured out how to utilize these hills? What do you think about planting crops?” She thought of modern terraces—perhaps they could implement them here.

Thinking of the hills, Liu Zhimou sighed worriedly. “To cultivate all of these hills will require massive manpower and resources. And we don’t even know if the land is suitable for planting.”

Li Qingling propped her chin on her hand and said she had a good idea—did he want to hear it?

Seeing her charming expression, Liu Zhimou kissed her again, using his magnetic voice to ask, “What’s the idea?”

Li Qingling rubbed her ears—this man was trying to tempt her again.

Heaven had been generous to him: handsome and with such a pleasant voice.

Whenever he deliberately lowered his tone to speak, she felt weak inside, heart flustered.

She was a voice-control type, after all.

“Stay away from me.”

“What’s wrong? Hmm?”

Here he went again—deliberately teasing her.

She swallowed nervously, putting her hand against his face to keep him from leaning closer.

Liu Zhimou chuckled lightly, licked her palm, causing a tingling sensation that made Li Qingling cry out and pull her hand back.

“You… you…”

“Wife, what’s wrong? Hmm?”

This shameless man—what did she even want to do to him? She couldn’t decide for a moment.

Just then, Xichun brought the food. Li Qingling had never seen Xichun so happy before.

Liu Zhimou sighed in disappointment—if he didn’t push his wife, she complied voluntarily. What a pity.

Li Qingling gave him a sidelong glance, placed a rib on his plate, and told him to eat quickly and stop thinking about other things.

“My mind is full of you, wife. Nothing else.”

“….” Was that rib sweet? Why was his mouth so sweet?

Li Qingling decided to ignore him—if she indulged him, she’d never finish her meal.

Seeing her response, Liu Zhimou smiled silently, placed her favorite dishes on her plate, letting her eat slowly with no competition.

Li Qingling nodded twice and slowed her pace.

After a warm meal, she leaned back in her chair, unwilling to move. Liu Zhimou had Xichun clear the table, then poured her a glass of water and pushed it to her.

Li Qingling took two sips and set it down, gazing at Liu Zhimou without speaking.

He affectionately tucked the strands of hair behind her ears and gently pinched her cheek, asking if she could share her idea with him.

He was curious—what could solve the problems he faced now?

Li Qingling gave him two more glances and smiled, saying simply, “Terraces.”

“Terraces?”

Liu Zhimou looked puzzled. “What do you mean?”

Terraces? Open fields on the mountains?

Li Qingling stopped playing coy and explained everything about terrace farming to Liu Zhimou.

“This is just a sudden idea I had. I don’t know if it will work, but you can try.” Based on modern methods, it was feasible. She didn’t know much about it herself—she could only offer the suggestion and let him put it into practice.