Becoming the Villain's Discarded Wife
Chapter 468: I’ll Protect You

Chapter 468: Chapter 468: I’ll Protect You

"Okay."

Wang Jingzhi nodded, drawing his wife into his embrace.

He was fortunate to have married such an excellent wife.

On the last day of the twelfth lunar month, during the hours of the pig, heavy snow fell.

Yan City was eerily quiet, only the lanterns in the streets and alleys flickered in the snow.

The bright moon hung high in the sky, casting its pristine light onto the Earth, where it reflected brilliantly off of the snow.

Amidst this radiance, two shadowy figures skulked through the streets and alleys, finally stopping at the city gate.

"Is this really going to work?"

"Let’s try."

As they spoke, one of them pulled out a package wrapped in oil paper. The moment the package was unwrapped, a burst of cumin aroma instantly wafted into the air.

"But what if he doesn’t show up?"

"If he doesn’t, we’ll just have ourselves a late-night snack."

"Alright."

The two of them slid down the nearby walls, quietly observing the roasted chicken in front of them.

Almost a quarter of an hour passed without any movement. Nanzhi’s legs began to grow numb, so she slowly shuffled closer to Shen Wenchen.

"What’s wrong?"

Shen Wenchen skillfully supported her, bearing her weight on his body while warming her hands and asking her the question.

"My legs are numb."

Nanzhi mumbled.

"Should we go back home?"

"No, let’s wait a little longer." Nanzhi shook her head, drawing even closer.

"Then let’s wait another quarter of an hour. If there’s still no movement, we’ll head back, okay?"

Shen Wenchen couldn’t help but chuckle as he rubbed her hands to warm them up.

"Okay."

Nanzhi nodded, her eyes once again firmly fixed on the roasted chicken at the city gate.

After another fifteen minutes passed, the snow had begun to pile up on the couple. They watched as the roasted chicken cooled and then froze, after which Nanzhi finally lost her spirit.

When Yuanbao initially came to Kyoto to buy ginseng, it was the old man who guided him back with the help of a roasted chicken.

She had hoped that the roasted chicken could help this time as well.

She was quite intrigued by today’s encounter.

When she was first told by a spirit that a new Heavenly Path had been born, the old man explained that the instability of fate and the dissipating spiritual energies were causing the world to collapse. But he also indicated they still had the slightest glimmer of hope, even though Ming Qin’s system claimed that the world’s condition was already irreparable.

Confronted with a stream of conflicting information, she wasn’t sure who to believe.

After all, the current situation was far from the sequence of events she’d seen in the drama.

If only she knew how to find Xiaohe, she could have him explain everything.

"Let’s just forget about it and head home." Shen Wenchen helped her up, then massaged her calf muscles before quickly moving to pick up the roasted chicken.

No matter what’s real or not, he believed that as long as they all worked hard together, they would get through it.

Although the city’s food supplies were dwindling, the citizens still had some reserves.

With so many people having left the day before, the city could hold on for a little longer.

They had no power to contend with the heavens, so all they could do was try their best.

"Okay."

Nanzhi could feel her face stiffening from the cold, her nose turning red. At this point, she could only rely on Shen Wenchen as they trudged slowly home.

This winter was truly cold.

After the couple left, their footprints remained in the snow, soon to be covered up by fresh snowfall. From the crack within the city gate, a tiny shadow made its way inside.

The first day of the lunar new year should have been a lively day. But in the wake of recent events, the city streets were unusually quiet.

Occasionally, people who hurried through the streets moved as quickly as possible, as if trying to leap three steps at once.

Thanks to Chi Sheng bringing back the medicinal herbs, the village outside the city was somewhat lively.

Patients who had been continuously suffering from high fevers were slowly waking up. Even though they still looked unwell, they were at least somewhat conscious.

"Thank you, Head of the House! Thank you so much!"

Upon seeing her son finally awaken, Auntie Li of the Li family immediately fell to her knees.

She now had only her son as her kin. If anything happened to him, she would lose her will to live!

"Auntie Li, please get up. If it weren’t for your care, they wouldn’t have made it so far."

Chi Sheng couldn’t bear to see her like this and quickly helped her up.

"Besides, the medicine was prepared and administered by the second-in-command over the last few days. And everyone chipped in to get the medicinal herbs. I couldn’t possibly take all the credit, Auntie Li. You should also stop crying; there’s medicine to be boiled."

"Ah, right." Auntie Li hastily raised her sleeves to dry her tears, then nodded with a smile.

Seeing her regain her composure to continue her work, Chi Sheng finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"Ah Sheng."

Ming Qin was leading a still-sleepy Yuanbao by the hand, her eyes filled with mirth.

Ming Qin was incredibly beautiful, replete with a dazzling smile now that she was reunited with her loved one. One look at her would leave anyone in a daze.

"You, why did you, get up so early?"

Chi Sheng was still a little unaccustomed, and instinctively reached out to pick up Yuanbao.

But the little girl was still half-asleep and widened her eyes as he reached for her.

"I want Mommy."

She tried her best to keep her eyes open and stretched her arms out for Ming Qin to hold her.

Seeing her daughter’s adorable demeanor, Ming Qin couldn’t resist. She bent down and picked her up.

"Alright, Mommy’s got you."

"Yuanbao loves Mommy the most."

The little girl naturally felt close to her mother, burying her face in Ming Qin’s chest, showing nothing but her rounded back to Chi Sheng.

Chi Sheng felt a little awkward, his ears turning a light shade of pink.

"I couldn’t sleep, so I woke up."

"Try sleeping a little longer."

"No need." Ming Qin shook her head. Seeing fresh bloodstains on the wall, she softly asked,

"Did they come again last night?"

When the matter at hand was raised, any awkwardness swiftly melted away. Chi Sheng nodded and explained,

"They came in two waves last night, but nothing major happened. I heard that the frequency and number of rat attacks have greatly decreased recently.

It seems like this rat plague might be ending soon."

"Even though we now have medicinal herbs to treat the disease, we all still need to keep our guard up. We can’t be careless about these rats. They aren’t ordinary and could potentially start a plague."

"Of course."

"I’m worried about Yan City."

Ming Qin sighed. When she arrived at the village the day before, she had taken note of the conditions of the roads around the city.

The village was only about ten miles away from Yan City. Considering the surrounding villages were already being affected by the rat plague, it wasn’t logical for Yan City to remain unaffected.

Moreover, with most of the fields in the area now unable to grow crops, what will they do if they survive this winter but starve in the following?

Implementing hydroponics in this world was an enormous challenge.

"You don’t need to be too worried. General Shen is a capable man. He’ll ensure the safety of Yan City." I’ll also ensure your safety.

Chi Sheng had a positive impression of Shen Wenchen, even admiring him. Even though they weren’t close friends, they were still drinking buddies.

"Okay." Ming Qin smiled sweetly, responding softly.