As Lin Guofu carried dishes out of the kitchen, he heard this and immediately teased, "Xiaopei, you're being too anxious, who calls someone their partner the moment they meet?"
Pei Yang hurried to explain, "Master, you misunderstand, you left so quickly this afternoon, I didn't get a chance to tell you, I have gotten married on my trip back home, I do have a partner now."
At these words, both Lin Guofu and Wang Xiuzhu were taken aback.
"You just went back to attend a funeral, and in just a few days, you've already settled such a big matter?"
Pei Yang shared with Lin Guofu and his wife that he had been introduced by a matchmaker and had registered his marriage with Shen Mingzhu.
Lin Guofu disapproved, "Xiaopei, you've been too hasty in this matter, just met once and you hurried to get your marriage certificate without even knowing what kind of person the other half is. What if you made a mistaken judgement and ended up with someone unsuitable? Wouldn't that harm both the other person and yourself?"
As a husband, Pei Yang naturally had to say a few good words for Shen Mingzhu, "My partner is a very amiable person, I feel very relieved with her taking care of the home."
Wang Huizhen glanced at her niece who kept her head down in silence and sighed inwardly.
It was clear that her niece was quite fond of Pei Yang. How come she was just a bit too late?
Wang Xiuzhu had heard of Pei Yang before, was familiar with his character and style, and had also seen his photo. Before meeting Pei Yang in person, she already had a good impression of him.
After meeting Pei Yang tonight, she nearly fell for him at first sight.
She had been confident, feeling that Pei Yang could not possibly reject such an outstanding person like herself, but she never expected that Pei Yang would just go back to his hometown for a few days and get married!
Along with feeling humiliated and dejected, she was even more unwilling to accept this.
A rural woman who was inferior to her in education, family background, and appearance had snatched Pei Yang away from her just because she had met him three days earlier.
Wang Xiuzhu could not swallow this indignity, nor did she want to.
She lifted her head, her gaze boldly and passionately fixed on Pei Yang, "Do you like her?"
This question actually stumped Pei Yang.
His total time with Shen Mingzhu from the matchmaking to getting the marriage certificate was less than a day, and he really hadn't had time to think about this question.
Seeing that he couldn't answer, Wang Xiuzhu laughed, "I see, you didn't find a partner, but hired a nanny for your child."
Hearing Wang Xiuzhu liken his newlywed wife to a nanny, Pei Yang felt uncomfortable, yet couldn't refute it.
The reason he had hastily registered his marriage with Shen Mingzhu was indeed to find a stepmother for his son.
——Pei Yang, I don't mind that you have a past marriage, nor do I mind that you have a son. I will wait for you and hope that you will seriously consider whether you want to live your life with a woman you do not love.
The night was like water.
From time to time, the long sound of a car horn drifted from outside the window.
Yang lay in bed, tossing and turning, Wang Xiuzhu's words lingering in his mind.
He could not tell if he liked Shen Mingzhu or not, but he was certain of one thing, Shen Mingzhu held a special place in his heart. Whenever he heard her name or thought of her small, fair face, his chest would feel warmly stirred.
Unaware that someone was encroaching on her territory, Shen Mingzhu had been sleeping soundly until the "click" of the door handle being turned startled her awake.
Opening her eyes, she saw a small dark shadow walking toward the bed and goosebumps rose all over her body.
A thief?
Play dead or take a stand?
While Shen Mingzhu was at a mental crossroads, a flash of light passed outside the window, allowing her to clearly see the person who had slipped into her room.
With a snap, she turned on the room light and scolded Pei Ziheng in annoyance, "What on earth are you doing up and about in the middle of the night instead of sleeping?"
Seeing her awaken, Pei Ziheng was first startled, then without a word, just gazed at her with his dark eyes wide open.
Mother and son looked at each other without saying a word.
As sleepiness faded away, Shen Mingzhu suddenly remembered something from the original storyline: Pei Ziheng, the villain, had claustrophobia.
And people with that condition generally fear the dark.
Could it be that he ran over to seek warmth because he was afraid of the dark?
Thinking she had guessed the truth, Shen Mingzhu made room on half of the bed, "Come on up, but let's get one thing straight, no wetting the bed, or you'll be washing the sheets as punishment."
Watching the bad woman pat the bed, indicating that he should come up, Pei Ziheng was completely astounded.
In his last life, the bad woman despised the smell of milk on him and didn't even want him close, let alone allow him on her bed.
Thinking of what he wanted to do, Pei Ziheng silently walked to the bed, took off his shoes, and climbed in.
Seeing her stepson lying in a tiny ball on the edge of the bed, Shen Mingzhu worried he might fall off and reached out to pull him to the middle. But as soon as her hand stretched out, the stepson flipped over and jumped off the bed, his small face showing an alert and defensive stare.
Shen Mingzhu seemed to understand, "Do you think I was going to hit you?"
"I've said that I won't hit you."
Seeing the look of disbelief on her stepson, Shen Mingzhu explained patiently, "You could easily fall off sleeping at the edge, what if you broke an arm or leg? Come on, sleep in the middle. Hurry up, stop dawdling."
With her urging, Pei Ziheng climbed back into the bed half-doubting, half-believing, but he didn't come close to her; he just lay down a little further in than before.
Shen Mingzhu couldn't be bothered to say more, casually pulled the thin quilt over her stepson, then turned over to switch off the light and lay down.
As a single dog, Shen Mingzhu wasn't used to sharing a bed with the opposite sex, even if he was only four years old. She wondered if she had had too much milk, for she could smell a faint scent of milk coming from the child, not unpleasant, but unfamiliar.
Pei Ziheng was also not asleep. He had to wait for the bad woman to fall asleep and then steal the key to the safe.
With the key, he would be able to open the safe and get the money, and with the money, he could buy a ticket to find his father!
Time passed undetermined, and just as Shen Mingzhu was about to drift off to sleep, she felt a small paw touch her shoulder.
Shen Mingzhu pretended to be asleep and ignored it, wanting to see what he was up to.
After a while, there was some movement at the side of the bed.
Using the darkness, she saw her stepson carefully get down from the bed and tiptoe over to the clothes rack. He stood on his toes to open her handbag and rummage for something.
Besides the safe's key, there was nothing in the handbag but tickets and money.
So he ran over in the middle of the night just to steal money?
But the stepson was only four years old; he probably didn't even know what money was, so what could he do with it after stealing it?
Nevertheless, stealing was no small matter. Tomorrow, she would have to call Pei Yang to talk about it—maybe the stepson had some psychological issues.
The next day, Shen Mingzhu got up, washed, made breakfast, and cleaned up as usual, then she took her handbag and went out to buy groceries.
No sooner had Shen Mingzhu stepped out the door than Pei Ziheng grabbed the key and ran into her bedroom.
The moment she stepped out, Shen Mingzhu opened her handbag, wanting to see how much money her stepson had stolen from her.
But after counting the cash in the bag twice, she found that the amount hadn't decreased. Puzzled, then suddenly remembering something, she pulled open the inner compartment of her handbag.
Indeed, the safe key was gone.
Safes of this era had simple locks. Inserting the key into the keyhole and turning it clockwise three times would open it.
Seeing the contents of the safe, Pei Ziheng's small face was indescribable with disappointment and frustration.
Apart from various certificates, passbooks, and household registrations, most were tickets, with not a single cash bill to be found.
"What are you doing?"
Pei Ziheng turned around sharply, looking at Shen Mingzhu who, unbeknownst to him, had been standing behind him, his small face going pale.