My rigid, jealous husband has fallen for me, even though I'm a hopeless romantic.

Chapter 31 Attitude Shift

Wei Dongning refused Xiao Fu's company and went to the garden alone.

Seeing that no one was around, she squatted down without caring about her image, rolled the snow into a snowball and slowly made it bigger, gradually forming the shape of a snowman.

She just wanted to do something random to clear her mind.

Stop thinking about those unhappy things.

Just thinking about how much Bai Suyun used to dote on her, and how she was urging her to have a child today, gave her a strong sense of disconnect.

Especially just now at the banquet, Bai Suyun and the other ladies half-jokingly and half-seriously urged her to have a child soon.

For a moment, she was in a daze, wondering if this mother truly loved her.

Fortunately, she was an outsider and didn't have a deep emotional connection with her parents yet.

Xiao Wu noticed Wei Dongning's emotional fluctuations but didn't know how to comfort her.

It's clumsy with words, and Ningbao always has to comfort it in return.

"Ningbao, how about I play some relaxing music for you? You shouldn't play in the snow anymore, it's very cold."

"Don't worry, Xiao Wu, I'm not too sad. Don't you think building a snowman is a fun thing to do?"

She just couldn't accept the pressure to have children right now.

The electronic figure pursed its lips, its face full of disapproval: "Your body isn't suited for playing in the snow right now. You'll get sick."

"It's okay, little housekeeper. I promise I'll go back and drink hot water after we finish building this snowman, okay?"

Wei Dongning continued working, placing the smaller snowball on top of the larger one to serve as the snowman's head.

Just as Wei Dongning was concentrating on using the fallen branch to attach a prosthetic leg to the snowman, a questioning voice came from behind her.

"Mrs. Gu? Why are you squatting here?"

Wei Dongning turned around at the sound and was surprised to see the woman who had been arguing with the rockery earlier—Ruan Qingshuang.

The redness and swelling on her face had subsided considerably, and Wei Dongning's anger at seeing her being beaten had lessened somewhat.

“Mrs. Jiang,” Wei Dongning smiled politely, “I came out for some fresh air and saw that there was snow here, so I thought it would be nice to build a snowman and have some fun.”

"Oh?"

Wei Dongning turned to the side, revealing the snowman, which was about the height of her calves: "There are not many materials available, so it looks a bit rudimentary."

Ruan Qingshuang pulled her to a sunny spot and sat her down, tucking the hand warmer she was holding into her arms: "You were here when we were at the rockery, weren't you?"

Wei Dongning was caught off guard by her zero-frame start.

For a moment, I didn't know what her purpose was.

Ruan Qingshuang continued, seemingly oblivious to her surroundings: "Isn't it embarrassing? We've been married for over two years, and this is the first time he's ever hit me."

"It must have hurt a lot, right? I saw your face was all swollen."

"It hurts, but I feel more ashamed than anything else." Ruan Qingshuang lowered her head and picked at her nails, her voice so soft it sounded like she was talking to herself: "I don't know what to do anymore. He has never learned how to respect me. He calls all my pet cats 'little beasts' all the time."

Wei Dongning's fingers kept stroking the hand warmer. After thinking it over and over, she decided to offer some advice: "If he hits you once, he'll hit you again. You need to think carefully about whether you really want to continue living like this."

"What else can we do if we don't continue? He and I were betrothed as children by our parents' generation."

Ruan Qingshuang bit her lower lip, her face clearly showing grievance, embarrassment, and reluctance.

Wei Dongning stared at the newly built snowman, her tone calm: "Do you love him?"

"Let's not talk about me, let's talk about you. How has it been since you and your husband got married?" Ruan Qingshuang subconsciously began to avoid the topic.

Although Wei Dongning initially had the idea of ​​standing up for her, it didn't mean she was willing to talk about her private matters with a complete stranger.

He tried to brush her off with a laugh: "I'm a pretty boring person. I just read storybooks all day. There's nothing much to say."

Ruan Qingshuang suddenly placed her hand on the back of her hand and said with genuine concern, "Just now at the banquet, when I heard Madam say that you should have a child soon, you seemed very unhappy. I have some medical knowledge, and if needed, I can take a look at you."

“No need.” Wei Dongning narrowed her eyes: “I was just shy because we were talking about such private topics in public.”

Ruan Qingshuang looked embarrassed: "So that's how it is. It seems I was being presumptuous."

Wei Dongning considers herself a fairly outgoing person, but she always feels that she and Ruan Qingshuang don't quite click.

But this person was completely oblivious, and kept pulling her along, chatting about this and that.

He would either complain to her about his own misfortunes or inquire about her life after marriage.

As Ruan Qingshuang continued the conversation, she became increasingly unrestrained, even trying to inquire about matters concerning the inner courtyard of the Marquis of Zhongxin's residence.

Wei Dongning's initial affection for her gradually turned into impatience.

At this moment, she could somewhat empathize with those who found their friends annoying and were gradually drifting away.

If she had a friend like that, she would have made the same choice.

Besides, she and Ruan Qingshuang weren't exactly friends.

Wei Dongning's expression grew increasingly grim, and even Ruan Qingshuang, who was slow to notice, sensed something was wrong: "Madam Gu doesn't look well. Is something bothering you?"

"It's nothing. I just drank a bit too much soup and need to use the restroom. I'll take my leave now."

"Then shall I go with you? I feel quite compatible with you when we chat."

Wei Dongning quickly waved her hand and put the hand warmer back in Ruan Qingshuang's hand: "Thank you for the hand warmer, I can go by myself."

Then he pulled his cloak tighter and quickly left the place.

As the saying goes:

While using the excuse of needing to urinate is shameful, it is undeniably useful.

She didn't think they clicked, but she knew she'd get a headache if she kept talking to Ruan Qingshuang.

Xiao Wu had been feeling sleepy ever since Ruan Qingshuang started nagging about how unhappy she was with her life, and she was fast asleep in Wei Dongning's mind.

She only woke up slowly after feeling a jolt: "Ningbao, she's finally finished talking?"

"I guess not, but I can't stand listening to it anymore."

Xiao Wu spread his hands: "She seems to be a carbon copy of Xianglin's Wife."

Wei Dongning chuckled after hearing this, and a warm current gushed out from below her: "Oh no, I really need to go to the outhouse now."

When Wei Dongning came out of the outhouse after relieving herself of this important life event, she saw Xiao Fu looking anxious.

“Miss, I’ve finally found you.” Xiao Fu stepped forward and grabbed Wei Dongning’s arm: “Come quickly to the front yard and take a look. It’s a complete mess up there.”

"Then hurry up and drink it while things are in disarray!" Wei Dongning reflexively shuddered.

Xiao Fu stomped her foot in anger: "Miss, this is not the time to joke. Come with me and take a look."

"What's the rush? Has a fight broken out up ahead?"

"No, but it's about the same. Miss, you'll know once you go and see for yourself. There's also the matter of the Second Miss."

Wei Dongning was led by Xiao Fu to the front yard, where she saw a group of people gathered.

Wei Qiuci stood in the middle with an unhappy expression, along with Jiang Hongwen and a couple of strangers.

Wei Dongning pushed through the crowd on both sides and squeezed to Bai Suyun's side: "Mother, what happened?"