Chapter 17: Rebellion
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“Jiang Zhixun, could you have some shame?”
Shen Qingqing kicked the back of the front seat in exasperation.
Jiang Zhixun looked perfectly at ease as he gripped the steering wheel and prepared to start the car.
Their names were both written on the marriage certificate. It was not Shen Qingqing’s possession alone.
How exactly was he being shameless?
He glanced back at her. “If there’s a next time, I won’t come looking for you.”
“I never asked you to.”
Jiang Zhixun clenched his teeth. “Fine. I was meddling.”
Shen Qingqing was about to say something else when the car suddenly shot forward.
Thrown by the force of inertia, she was flung against the back seat.
It had happened too suddenly, and her face had gone deathly pale with fright.
One hand clutched the window frame while the other braced against the seat.
“Jiang Zhixun, you bastard!”
Her voice was too faint, swallowed by the roar of the engine.
Only after the car settled into a steady speed did her tension gradually fade.
If Jiang Zhixun had not come looking for trouble, she would still be comfortably staying at the guesthouse.
The thought left Shen Qingqing feeling terribly aggrieved, and her eyes suddenly grew moist.
She hugged her coat tighter around herself and leaned into the shadows, no longer in the mood to speak to Jiang Zhixun.
Hearing her heavy breathing, Jiang Zhixun assumed she was crying again and looked at her through the rearview mirror.
But she was leaning against the seat with her head turned aside, her long hair covering half her face. He could not make out her expression.
His hand rubbed against the steering wheel.
In the end, he said nothing.
Nor did he deliberately speed up again to frighten Shen Qingqing.
The atmosphere was cold enough to seem frozen, nothing like what one would expect between an ordinary married couple.
For some inexplicable reason, Jiang Zhixun was reminded of how they had gotten along in the capital.
Shen Qingqing was not a talkative girl. There had been several times when he drove to the school to pick her up, and they had barely spoken, but the atmosphere had been different from this.
Back then, he had felt relaxed. Now, his mind was a complete mess.
After leaving the county town, Jiang Zhixun could not help glancing at Shen Qingqing through the rearview mirror once more.
There were no streetlights, and the inside of the car was pitch-black. Shen Qingqing remained in the same position as before, making her expression even harder to see.
Having learned nothing, Jiang Zhixun tightened his long fingers around the steering wheel.
A few minutes later, he said awkwardly, “I don’t want to interfere with you either, but it isn’t safe for a woman to stay outside alone.”
Shen Qingqing still ignored him.
Jiang Zhixun had always been cold-tempered and never took the initiative to explain himself to anyone.
Yet he had made exceptions several times because of Shen Qingqing.
Since she did not appreciate it, Jiang Zhixun saw no reason to make a fool of himself any further.
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He pressed his tongue against the inside of his cheek. The girl looked gentle and easygoing, so who would have thought she had such a rebellious streak?
They remained locked in silence until they reached their destination.
The moment the car stopped, Shen Qingqing opened her eyes. They were utterly calm.
Without the slightest hesitation, she pushed open the door, picked up her things, and left.
From beginning to end, she did not say a word.
Jiang Zhixun remained seated in the driver’s seat, his dark gaze fixed on Shen Qingqing’s retreating figure.
She wore a black coat, seeming almost ready to merge into the thick darkness of night.
Alone and forlorn, she looked somewhat pitiful.
At the same time, she gave him the strange impression that she was impossible to hold on to.
Unable to suppress the restlessness in his heart, Jiang Zhixun watched as Shen Qingqing disappeared into the guesthouse.
The man abruptly shoved open the car door.
If she insisted on having a child before she would stop throwing tantrums, then so be it—they would have one!
It would also satisfy his family and spare her the pressure from her elders. She would not even dare return to the family compound anymore.
In any case, it was unsafe for a woman to stay outside alone.
Shen Qingqing had intended to go straight upstairs, but she unexpectedly spotted Lin Zhidong and Zhou Xiaomei in the lobby on the first floor.
When they saw her, the couple both let out a sigh of relief.
Although Xiaomian had sworn that she had not seen Shen Qingqing and that Shen Qingqing’s failure to return to the guesthouse had nothing to do with her, the couple had not fully believed her.
After all, Xiaomian had returned with Jiang Zhixun. Perhaps Comrade Shen had misunderstood something and refused to come back.
Once they learned that Jiang Zhixun had gone into the county town to look for her again, the couple had discussed the matter at length. They left the children in Lin Fengmian’s care and came to the guesthouse to wait.
Seeing Shen Qingqing enter with her belongings, Zhou Xiaomei hurriedly asked, “Comrade Shen, did you run into any trouble today?”
Shen Qingqing was puzzled. “Did someone say something had happened to me?”
Zhou Xiaomei teased her, “No one said anything happened to you, but Captain Jiang was frantic. He searched the entire county town and couldn’t find you. He nearly went to report you missing to the police!”
Lin Zhidong nodded in agreement. “Luckily, he found you. Otherwise, he would have been worried sick.”
Privately, he wondered: Old Jiang clearly cared a great deal about Comrade Shen, so why was he still quarreling with her?
If he remained this slow-witted, Comrade Shen would eventually be driven away by him. Once she stopped coming to the Northwest, it would be too late for him to regret it.
Just then, Jiang Zhixun entered from outside with a dark expression.
Lin Zhidong threw an arm around his shoulders. “Your wife rarely comes to visit, and you don’t accompany her into town? That’s your fault. If you keep wearing that face, I’ll have to criticize you.”
Jiang Zhixun shrugged off his hand.
“Are you done? Go home.”
The corner of Lin Zhidong’s mouth twitched. “If you refuse to heed the advice of your elders, you’ll suffer for it soon enough. Go on being a blockhead, then. Don’t come crying to me later.”
Jiang Zhixun said nothing, but the expression on his face spoke for itself.
He had always been the sort of man who would bleed rather than shed tears.
Cry? Impossible!
It was obvious that Jiang Zhixun and Shen Qingqing had something to discuss, so Lin Zhidong and Zhou Xiaomei could not stay and play gooseberry.
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Zhou Xiaomei said to Shen Qingqing, “Don’t forget to come to our place for dinner tomorrow.”
Shen Qingqing nodded in agreement.
Lin Zhidong pulled his wife away.
Once they had left, Shen Qingqing also turned and went upstairs. A conflicted look appeared on Jiang Zhixun’s face.
At last, resolve flashed in his eyes.
He stepped forward and followed Shen Qingqing.
The moment he entered the room, Shen Qingqing held out her hand. “Give it to me.”
The marriage certificate was an important document. She would need it when they divorced, so she would only feel at ease if she kept it herself.
Jiang Zhixun glanced at her without making it obvious. “Is it really that important?”
Shen Qingqing answered seriously, “It’s important.”
The man let out an inexplicable snort.
He took the marriage certificate from his overcoat pocket and handed it to her.
Shen Qingqing immediately put it away.
She had originally kept it in her trunk, but she was afraid that if she forgot about it, she would not be able to find it when she needed it. So she had placed it together with her letter of introduction.
Throughout the entire process, her expression was solemn. It was clear that she was terrified of losing the marriage certificate.
Seeing Shen Qingqing carry the certificate with her, Jiang Zhixun became even more certain that she had come this time for the sake of having a child.
His fingers curled slightly.
He turned and walked toward the door.
Assuming Jiang Zhixun was leaving, Shen Qingqing paid him no attention and continued arranging her things.
She checked the lock, making sure no one could suddenly come in.
Jiang Zhixun drew a deep breath.
He swiftly removed his military greatcoat and walked toward the bed. His body was drawn so taut that the veins in his hands stood out clearly.
They wound their way up his arms before disappearing beneath his sleeves.
Under the greatcoat, he wore only a shirt.
The contours of his muscles were faintly visible, revealing his broad, powerful build.
He casually draped the coat over a chair.
He wondered how to begin.
Shen Qingqing, who was crouched down organizing her luggage, turned to look at him. “Aren’t you leaving yet?”
Her tone was less than pleasant, and Jiang Zhixun assumed she was still angry.
Although he had no idea what, exactly, she was angry about.
His hand tightened, then relaxed.
In a dry voice, he said, “I’m going to apply ointment to your wound. Once I’m done, I’ll leave.”
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