Ning Mufan's brow pinched together. He pushed back his glasses and clamped down on his rising temper, trying to make her see reason. "You're still young, Qiu. There are some things you don't understand right now. You can't have a child with that cripple. He can't give you a normal life. Don't you see? A woman's life is incomplete without children. If you give all that up to spend the rest of your life looking after him, you'll regret it."
Tang Qiu's smile stiffened. A woman's life is incomplete without children. If so, why did her mother abandon her?
"My husband has been nothing but kind to me, Senior. Thank you for your concern, but I don't want to divorce him."
"You're giving in just because he was kind to you?" No matter how he thought about it, Ning Mufan just couldn't understand. That man wasn't just ugly, he was crippled. Whatever his character, he simply wasn't the kind of man anyone would want to spend their life with. She must be repressing her true sentiments. "Qiu, trust me, please. I just want to help you."
The more Tang Qiu listened to him, the stronger the itch along her scalp grew. Her senior, whom she didn't even know all that well, was advising her to get a divorce. He meant well, so she didn't want to put him in a difficult position, but the way he was so quick to jump to conclusions about Jiang Shaocheng didn't sit well with her. All traces of humor fell from her face.
"I'm not hiding anything, nor am I saying this because I'm being forced into a spot. I know my husband isn't good-looking, and he's been confined to a wheelchair because of his injuries, but we get along well. I'm an adult. I can decide what's good or bad for me. I'm content with my current situation. You're not me, Senior. How do you know that my life right now isn't what I envision my future to be? When it comes to marriage, isn't the important thing to find someone that you genuinely like, and spend the rest of your days with them?"
Ning Mufan's hands curled into fists. "I… I admit, you do have a point. But there are other things to consider as well. He's a cripple who can't take care of himself. How is he going to make a living to support the family? At his most fundamental, he doesn't have what it takes to provide you with financial stability. If anything happens to you in the future, he can do nothing but watch helplessly from a wheelchair. Not to mention, you'll still need to pour your time and energy into looking after him! You have so much potential, Qiu. Or do you really think that Professor Sun chose you for his assistant to clean up the lab after him?"
He continued, "Maybe that really was what you thought. But Professor Sun asked you to translate those documents. Surely you can tell he has high hopes for you. Stop letting a cripple hold you back from what your life could be!"
Tang Qiu took a deep breath. "I've thought about everything you've just said before," she said evenly. "I can work and earn enough to support us both in the future. And I'll continue to study hard, so I can help heal him."
Ning Mufan had participated in debate tournaments before. Normally, he was good at getting his point across. But now he was left speechless. "Tang Qiu…"
"The food is here. Let's eat, Senior." She was thankful, even happy that someone cared enough to look out for her, but his good intentions were just putting her in a spot. She finished her food in a few bites and left after saying goodbye, without waiting to hear what Ning Mufan had to say.
Ning Mufan watched her figure grow smaller in the distance and clenched his fist in frustration. If he had just told her about how he felt earlier, she might not be married to that man. Even now, a part of him refused to take this lying down.
After school that evening, Tang Qiu saw He Lei waving to her. She dashed over, only to find that Jiang Shaocheng wasn't with him. She couldn't hide the flash of disappointment in her eyes.
"Why didn't my husband come? Is he busy? Or unwell?"
He Lei watched her crestfallen expression. Earlier, he had informed the young master that he would be picking up the young mistress, but Jiang Shaocheng had dismissed him with a wave of his hand and said that he wouldn't be coming. He Lei had been puzzled then, especially after his young master had added something else about creating a sense of anticipation.
"The young master didn't come because he's prepared a gift for you at home."
Tang Qiu breathed a sigh of relief at hearing that her husband was alright. A gift, though? She couldn't hold back her eagerness. "What kind of gift is it?"
"You'll know once we get back, Young Mistress." Secretly he thought, She's sure to like it.
Jiang Shaocheng was waiting for them at the entrance of the mansion. "We haven't seen each other for more than eight hours, Qiu," he greeted. "Did you miss me?"
Tang Qiu ran up to him, blushing, and leaned down to kiss him on the lips. "I did." He did say before that she needed to prove her affection for him with her actions.
Deeply satisfied, Jiang Shaocheng inquired, "Why so clingy all of a sudden, Qiu?"
Tang Qiu nearly choked. "I thought you told me I had to show you how sincere I was."
"Sure. And who was it that kept fondling me while sleepwalking, trying to take off my clothes and touch me?"
Tang Qiu buried her face in her hands, trying to conceal her embarrassment. "I was sleepwalking. That doesn't count!"
He smiled, hooked her by the waist, and kissed her again.