Zhao Xiyan really stood up, and Qi Yue was so happy!
The clinic space really had another miraculous featureâit could enhance the effects of her treatment!
âThump!â
Zhao Xiyanâs upright body suddenly sat down.
âHow is it? Are your legs weak? Youâve just recovered; youâll need to adapt for a few days.â
Qi Yue prattled on, reaching out to take his pulse. She quickly nodded in satisfaction.
âIndeed, your left leg has recovered. Iâll give you some oral medicine to consolidate the treatment effects.â
She immediately turned to prepare the oral medicine in the pharmacyâs inner room, which was actually about bottling up the essence of Panax Notoginseng.
Zhao Xiyan, soaked in his clothes, shook his head in self-mockery.
His joy-bringing little wife was perfect in every way, except she never regarded him as a husband.
But considering his current situation, perhaps being treated like a brother was for the best.
He resignedly propped up one leg and stood up from the bath tub.
For more than two years, almost three, he had once again found the feeling of having his feet firmly on the ground.
Although he had only one leg, it was of significant meaning to him.
He quickly grasped the essence of moving around on one leg, and by the time Qi Yue came out from the inner room, he had already gotten out of the bath tub and changed his clothes.
âWow, Zhao Xiyan, youâre so tall!â
At the sound of Qi Yueâs voice, he turned to look at her.
Her face bore a smile, and her gaze was so pure and clear, devoid of any additional emotions.
He sighed inwardly and smiled back at her with a lifted corner of his lips.
âYueyue is also tall.â
âHere, drink this.â She walked over and handed him a porcelain bottle.
Qi Yue was tall among women, already reaching up to his chest.
Zhao Xiyan thought to himself, slightly casting his eyes down, seeing her thick eyelashes, the proud bridge of her nose, and her pouting smiling lips.
She was so beautiful now, but in his mind, he pictured her plump appearance.
Back then, when she looked at him, she would blush with shynessâa kind of rosy hue more intoxicating than aged wine.
What a pityâ¦
When he took the bottle, he deliberately touched her pinky, but saw her quickly retract her hand, her face showing no signs of discomfort.
After he drank it, she took the bottle back to the inner room, leaving a sentence behind.
âYou can go back and sleep now.â
Zhao Xiyan had wanted to ask, âWhat about you?â but in the end, he did not.
If she could only see him as a brotherly figure, could he force her to fall for him?
After all, he was just a cripple.
So, he left with a heavy heart and did not notice that Qi Yue was watching him through the window.
These past few days, she felt that Zhao Xiyan had been acting a bit strange.
To say he didnât care about his legs, he seemed eager to stand up and walk immediately; to say he cared, he didnât seem very happy now.
He wasnât even as happy as she was, the one treating him!
Watching him confidently handle the crutches and walk steadily, Qi Yue also breathed a sigh of relief.
Regardless, with one leg healed, Zhao Xiyanâs life would be much easier, and he wouldnât be too embarrassed.
Thinking of this, her cheeks suddenly turned red, and one hand unconsciously pinched the pinky of her other hand.
The White Rhino Hornâshe must find it as soon as possible.
In the following days, the locals did not come to cause trouble, but Zhao Xiyan trained even more actively to walk on one leg.
Having used his arms a lot in the past, he had strong arms, which made it quite easy for him to control a pair of crutches.
Early that morning, Qi Yue woke up only to see Zhao Xiyan practicing martial arts in the back courtyard.
His left leg was grounded, his right arm braced against a crutch, while his left crutch flew up and down in his hand, dancing through a set of spear techniques.
The fallen leaves on the ground tumbled in the air with the surge of his aura, like a flurry of dancing butterflies.
The sight immediately reminded her of the Long Halberd she had kept in her space.
At this moment, if one disregarded the crutch under his right armpit and replaced the crutch in his left hand with that Long Halberd, his presence would have been overpowering, as if capable of swallowing mountains and seas.
She couldnât help but want to cheer for him, yet she saw Shen Yu coming over from the front yard, seemingly wiping away tears.
Her mother-in-law, though much matured through their journey, had yet to overcome her tendency to cry easily.
She must have been moved by the same scene just now, feeling stirred inside!
As Qi Yue was about to return to her room, she heard Shen Yu say something.
âYanyan, have you decided when you and Yueyue will make up for the marriage ceremony? Your father and I have picked out a few auspicious days. You and Yueyue can see which day is best.â
What? The marriage ceremony?
Qi Yue immediately stopped in her tracks.
Indeed, she and Zhao Xiyan were only a couple in name and had not even gone through the marriage ceremony yet.
She was curious to hear what Zhao Xiyan would say.
He would surely be willing to make up for the marriage ceremony with her, considering they had shared a bed for so long. From the looks of it, he seemed willing!
Then she saw Zhao Xiyan put away his left crutch under his arm, his voice as cold as a block of ice.
âMother! Donât speak of this matter againâ¦ever.â
Qi Yueâs eyes widened in shock, her ears perked up.
He was unwilling?
âWhy?â Shen Yu was clearly just as shocked. âYueyue has been wholeheartedly devoted to you. We cannot fail to treat her properly. All the necessary customs must be observed, and whatever was missed before must be made up for.â
Zhao Xiyan remained silent, just standing there firmly on his crutches, unmoving.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
Qi Yue could not see his facial expression, but from his aloof and proud silhouette, she felt his attitude.
Rejection, indifference, disinterest.
She instantly understood his intentions and quickly turned to walk away.
In the back courtyard, Zhao Xiyan finally let out a sigh.
âMother, Iâve tried already. Yueyueâ¦she sees me only as family, as a brother.â
âWhat? Youâve tried? How did you try?â
Shen Yu looked at her son, whom she had raised, with a mix of surprise and confusion.
Zhao Xiyanâs face flushed red; how could he admit to deliberately teasing Qi Yue on several occasions?
âIn any case, Iâve tried. She has no feelings for me.â
âImpossible. I clearly saw her blush when she looked at you!â Shen Yu said with disbelief.
Zhao Xiyan pursed his lips.
âThat was in the beginning, probably because we werenât familiar with each other. Mother, a girl will always be shy around a man she doesnât know well.â
âYueyue has been good to our family. I cannot keep her here for selfish reasons.â
âMother, please also promise me that if one day Yueyue finds a better place for herself, you will not stop her.â
Shen Yu could hardly believe what she was hearing. Qi Yue was not interested in her son?
She refused to believe it.
Even if Qi Yue had been forced into this marriage by her second aunt in the beginning, what about everything that happened along the way?
Which woman would treat a man and his family as her own out of the blue?
Qi Yue was not such a fool!
âNo, Yueyue is my daughter-in-law, and I will never let her leave this family. Iâm going to find Yueyue and get to the bottom of this!â