Becoming the Villain's Discarded Wife
Chapter 269: Not a Mute

Chapter 269: Chapter 269: Not a Mute

Lin Yicheng, cradling one in each arm, had finally managed to return home.

By the time he got home, Nanzhi had already been taken back to her room. As soon as they reached home, Zhiyu jumped down from Lin Yicheng’s arms, grabbed her little purse and hurried towards Nanzhi’s room.

Lin Ercheng had only begun to greet his brother’s return when he noticed the dirty little beggar in his arms, and fell silent in disbelief.

He looked up, a little baffled, and asked, "Bro, where did you pick up this little beggar from?"

"It’s the one who stole the chubby girl’s purse a few days ago."

Lin Yicheng looked at the little beggar in his arms who was covered in wounds with a complicated expression.

"So, why did you bring him back?" Lin Ercheng seemed even more surprised, he remembered him mentioning that he had sent this little beggar to Liu Jie, hadn’t he?

"It’s because he stole Zhiyu’s pearl. We were just at Liu Jie’s, nabbing suspects, when this kid nearly got beaten to death. I hadn’t intended to bring him back initially. But it was Zhiyu who insisted on it." Lin Yicheng let out a sigh, this kid was rather pitiful.

If they had arrived any later, this kid would have probably died there tonight.

"Take him to the side room then, I’ll go get a doctor to check on him." Lin Ercheng wasn’t particularly saint-like, but seeing this beggar the same age as his own Maomao, he didn’t have the heart to just abandon him.

Besides, Zhiyu must have a good reason to have compelled their older brother to take the kid home.

"Alright, you handle that, I’ll go check on chubby girl." Lin Yicheng had been holding on to the kids and hurrying home all the way, and was pretty worn-out. He carried Xiaomi to the side room after saying this.

The side room was cleaned regularly and looked tidy.

Just as he was about to lay the child on the bed, he saw his grimy, blood-stained clothes and Lin Yicheng scowled.

In the end, he stripped Xiaomi down completely before placing him in the bed.

"Well, you’re quite lucky, kid." Lin Yicheng grumbled as he left the side room. If it weren’t a child this young, he wouldn’t have interfered.

Nanzhi still showed no response in the room, and Mother Lin felt heartbroken at the sight of her daughter like this.

Her daughter had been home for no more than a month, how could this have happened so soon?

Little Zhiyu rushed into the room, quickly poured a cup of water and carefully dropped the pearl into it.

She exhaled a sigh of relief as she watched the pearl gradually shrink until it completely disappeared.

"Granny, don’t cry, mother will be fine," Little Zhiyu said, trying to console her weeping grandmother.

Her mother would recover as long as she drank this water.

Chen Qiulan and Sun Cui, her aunts by marriage, also sighed at the sight of Nanzhi lying in bed.

Was their younger sister-in-law lucky or not?

Unlucky would mean she had reincarnated and returned home. If she were lucky, she wouldn’t have encountered such an incident within a month of her return.

Both daughters-in-law were worried that their mother-in-law’s crying might damage her eyes, so they coaxed her to take a rest in her own room, while they watched over Nanzhi.

When the adults had left, Little Zhiyu hurriedly picked up the small teacup and headed towards Nanzhi.

She wanted to directly feed her but feared she might spill it. Just as she was wondering what to do, Chen Qiulan came back into the room.

Seeing Zhiyu’s worried scratching at her ears and rubbing her cheeks, Qiulan felt puzzled and gently touched the little girl’s head before asking, "Zhiyu, what’s wrong?"

"Auntie, mother is thirsty. Can you help me feed her some water, please?"

Little Zhiyu didn’t mention what was in the cup, she just watched Chen Qiulan with hopeful eyes.

"Zhiyu, you are such a good child." Chen Qiulan’s face beamed with satisfaction as she raised Nanzhi’s body slightly and took the cup from Zhiyu’s hands.

After pouring the water down her throat and wiping her mouth, she laid Nanzhi down flat again.

"Zhiyu, be a good girl. The doctor said your mother will be alright. You should go to bed now, while your aunt keeps watch here." Worried that the kid might exhaust herself, Chen Qiulan suggested.

"Zhiyu wants to stay with mother. Tomorrow, Zhiyu will not go to the Academy. Master said so, we have to be dutiful children." The little fellow shook his head, his words childishly refusing.

Chen Qiulan was about to say something further when Lin Yicheng entered the room.

"Let Zhiyu keep a vigil here, then." Lin Yicheng gave Chen Qiulan a comforting pat on her shoulder, taking a seat nearby.

"Zhiyu is too young to stay up all night." Chen Qiulan tried to protest further, but fell silent under her husband’s gaze.

"Zhiyu is sensible and dutiful. He worries about his mother, so let’s leave him here to keep watch. If he gets tired, he can sleep on the bed. He’ll be fine," he said.

Upon hearing this, Little Zhiyu quickly nodded in agreement.

Watching the exchange between the young and old, Chen Qiulan couldn’t help but smile. But she didn’t say more.

"Where are Doudou and Maomao? I didn’t see them when I came back." Lin Yicheng asked as if suddenly remembering something.

"They may have gone back to their rooms to sleep. They too originally wanted to keep vigil, but their father scolded them and sent them back."

"That’s good. What could they do if they were here, anyway? They’d only cause trouble. It’s better that they should go back to sleep early. Wife, I’m a bit hungry. Could you prepare some noodles for me?" Lin Yicheng’s gaze softened as he looked at Chen Qiulan.

"Alright, I’ll watch them here." Without thinking too much about it, Chen Qiulan rose and departed for the kitchen.

After all the commotion for the night, it was natural to feel hungry.

Once he was sure his wife had left, Lin Yicheng pulled his little nephew close and softly asked, "Zhiyu, did you feed your aunt that pearl?"

Little Zhiyu lowered his voice in response: "Yes, she ate it."

"How did you manage to feed her such a big pearl?" Concerned about the large size of the pearl, Lin Yicheng glanced at Nanzhi lying on the bed.

He was afraid that his young nephew had stuffed the entire pearl into her mouth — if she had choked, he didn’t know what they would have done.

"I soaked it in water first," Little Zhiyu answered. Hearing this, Lin Yicheng finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He looked at Nanzhi with some worry.

Dr. Sun had said that she was fine, so why wouldn’t she wake up?

When Xiaomi awoke, he was somewhat dazed under the blanket covering him.

Had he reached the Underworld?

But where were the ox-headed and horse-faced guardians of the underworld?

In the light of the oil lamp on the table, he began to discern his surroundings.

This wasn’t the floor of the broken loft, nor was it the ramshackle temple.

The quilt covering him was soft and clean, not straw and torn rags.

Feeling bewildered, Xiaomi sat up, but before he could get out of bed, he realized he was completely naked. He promptly drew back into the quilt.

"He’s awake!" Lin Jian, tiptoeing to peer through the window slats, saw Xiaomi stir and called out in a whisper.

"This is our home, what are you snooping around for?" Lin Zihan looked exasperated at his foolish young brother, stepping into the room first.

Hearing the door creak open, Xiaomi instinctively retreated back into the quilt, covering himself up as well as he could.

"Are you the thief who stole from Zhiyu?" Lin Zihan frowned at the figure on the bed, his face obscured by the quilt.

He could not understand why their father had brought this thief back home.

Without saying a word, Xiaomi curled up into a ball, watching Lin Zihan and Lin Jian warily.

"Speak up! Or are you a mute?" Lin Jian muttered when Xiaomi didn’t respond.

"I, I am not a mute," Xiaomi hesitated but finally found his voice.

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