How I Tamed My Wolfish Husband Back in 80s-Chapter 218 - 220: So Sweet_1

"What are you young couple whispering about in there? Jin, go get some soy sauce," Old Mrs. Qin knocked on the door and said.

Qin Jin left in response.

The family dog was restless. Li Qiao took it out for a walk and halfway through the suburbs, she spotted a young man’s silhouette that looked like Xue Lingqing: "Professor Xue?"

Xue Lingqing turned around, a slight smile gracing his lips: "Walking the dog?"

"Yeah." Li Qiao unhooked the leash, and the dog dashed away. She asked, "What are you doing here?" In the middle of nowhere, what’s up?

Xue Lingqing looked down: "Just wandering around because I’m bored." Actually, he was too agitated to stay at home.

His mother had somehow brought a girl home and was pressuring him to date her.

The girl was actually pretty and seemed somewhat interested in him.

He had been referred to a prestigious university a while ago, young and already working, but he felt no spark for her.

If he dated her, he definitely wouldn’t care for her half as much as he did for Li Qiao, which wouldn’t be fair to the girl.

"Professor Xue, my paper got published, and I received a thirty yuan fee. When are you free? I’d like to treat you to a meal."

Li Qiao’s words brought Xue Lingqing back from his reverie. He said, "I’m free now."

Li Qiao choked up, as her grandmother was cooking when she left home. If she ate out, who would eat the leftover food? After hesitating for a bit, she said, "How about you come to my house for dinner today, and I’ll treat you out tomorrow?"

"Okay."

Li Qiao felt he was acting odd today; usually, he wouldn’t agree.

The dog had run out of sight, so Li Qiao called out beside a tree by the roadside: "Dahuang!"

Xue Lingqing snuck a glance at her, her clear, bright eyes, gently arched eyebrows, naturally curled eyelashes, fair skin with a hint of pink. The tender green coat she wore made her appear as vibrant as a young bud.

After calling the dog back, she turned her head and he discreetly shifted his gaze, waiting a second before daring to look at her again, casually finding a topic: "I overheard you talking with a classmate the other day, you have a stepmother? Did she ever mistreat you?" Was it the stepmother who arranged her marriage?

Li Qiao was surprised; he really had heard that day. She nodded, then shook her head: "In the early years, the stepmother put on a show and was kind to me on the surface. Later, due to various reasons, we drifted apart and rarely interacted. Now that you bring it up, I suddenly worry she might come to me asking for money for her old age." These days, traveling far is inconvenient.

But what about ten years later, twenty years later?

If she stayed and taught at the university, the moment Dong Lamei made a scene, and the school feared the repercussions, her future would be ruined.

Such a huge hidden danger.

Looks like she still needs to maintain some superficial relationship when she goes back home for the New Year.

Xue Lingqing: "There is the grace of upbringing, you should give something."

"It’s mainly humiliating," Li Qiao talked about when she and her grandmother had mistaken a funeral during the spring floods, and how her stepmother remarried her off for twenty yuan. She also mentioned how her half-sister Li Jinhua repeatedly tried to harm her, either drugging her in hopes of letting the village madman defile her or bringing men into the dorm ready to ruin her. "The first time, I was lucky I ran fast. That man was short and weak, and I knocked him out. Otherwise, it would have been terrible." Even if Qin Jin didn’t mind, she would still feel sick.

Xue Lingqing listened quietly, feeling a mix of amusement, pity, and anger. After a while, he said: "It’s a miracle you grew up safely."

Li Qiao: "I had two elder sisters looking out for me; the stepmother had to weigh her actions. The half-sister was more behaved when she was younger. If she had always been like this, I definitely wouldn’t have stood a chance." She has always felt that Li Jinhua wasn’t just a little girl, the cheeks of a girl of eighteen or nineteen should be thin. Like Zhao Li and Liu Lanlan, respecting their elders after being disciplined once, behaving properly.

Someone shameless like Cheng Shuqin, still hasn’t returned to school.

But Li Jinhua became more resilient the more she faced setbacks, even using her own children as bargaining chips. Could an innocent girl do such a thing?

While they were talking, the dog suddenly started barking excitedly and jumping on the spot.

Li Qiao approached and found a nest of hedgehogs. Not easy to raise, and probably not tasty either. "Dahuang, go play." The dog seemed to understand and ran off.

Xue Lingqing: "What’s that?"

Li Qiao: "Little hedgehogs, do you want to keep one?"

Xue Lingqing: "No." If he were to keep a pet, it would be a cat or dog, who keeps hedgehogs?

"..."

Their conversation continued until the dog was tired and wanted to go home.

Li Qiao fastened the leash, Xue Lingqing said: "I’m also going back." His mood inexplicably improved after speaking with her.

As they reached the entrance of the residential compound, he said goodbye to Li Qiao.

Li Qiao: "Weren’t you going to eat at my place?"

"Next time," Xue Lingqing left.

Li Qiao didn’t understand, why did he go back on his word? Would he still eat with her tomorrow?

....

When Li Qiao got home, Old Mrs. Qin was still stewing the meat, and Qin Jin was sitting under the eaves reading the newspaper.

Li Qiao tied the dog and came closer, "What are you looking at?" It was the latest report on policies and current affairs.

"Thinking about making money," Qin Jin closed the newspaper and fantasized, "In the future, I’m going to buy you a big house, you can run around inside for three days and nights without finding your way out. You like flowers, I’ll plant all kinds of flowers for you. A few big rooms just for clothes, change into a different outfit every day, no repeats for a whole year."

Li Qiao laughed, how much money would it take to fill a house like that? He really dared to dream big. She played along, "That sounds great!" But then she thought about it, "No, don’t. If you earn that much, you’ll be very busy. I want you with me. Having enough money is good enough."

"We can have the money and I can still be with you," Qin Jin said.

Li Qiao couldn’t help but lift the corners of her mouth, "Deal!"

...

After dinner, Li Qiao sat at the desk and sketched out the look of a young man who sold scattered sweets for Qin Jin.

Qin Jin’s hand slipped and he didn’t catch it, causing the piece of paper to fall to the ground.

Li Qiao and he bent down to pick it up at the same time.

Qin Jin touched the paper first, and as Li Qiao was about to retract her hand and stand up, her face turned, and she felt a cool sensation on her lips, she opened her eyes wide and sat up straight.

Qin Jin licked his lips, his face full of smiles, "So sweet."

Li Qiao’s heart raced, she covered her mouth and whispered in reproach, "Sweet your head, you scared me."

Qin Jin was half-smiling, his expression ambiguous, "Shall we go to bed early tonight?"

Li Qiao, "Wait until grandma falls asleep."

"I know there’s a black market nearby, it’s very busy at night, they sell all sorts of things, we can go take a look first."

Li Qiao agreed immediately, and when it got dark, she went to the market with Qin Jin.

There were numerous stalls.

Food, clothing, everything that one might need.

Crispy twisted dough sticks, candied hawthorns, roasted sweet potatoes, deep-fried snacks, and more.

Handmade cotton shoes, sweaters, woolen pants, gloves, socks, and so on.

The market was crowded, and Li Qiao even saw several classmates from her class.

But she didn’t greet them; her mind solely focused on browsing through the stalls and picking out goods—nylon stockings, a hundred pairs for only two yuan and thirty cents.

In a store, even the cheapest ones cost seventy cents.

And those were in garish, earthy colors, the epitome of bad taste.

The ones at the stall were white, much nicer to look at.

She seemed to have discovered a business opportunity, whispering, "Jin, if I take these socks and sell them at school, I’ll make a fortune."

As soon as Qin Jin entered the gate, he observed his surroundings, ready to run if the patrol team spotted him. Now, he narrowed his eyes, "Sell to your classmates? Won’t they talk about you? What if someone reports you for speculating and profiteering, won’t you be in trouble? Don’t do it." For a university student to do this, it would be quite demeaning.

It better suited his status as a loser to handle such a business.

Li Qiao picked and chose, then paid for two hundred pairs.

A hundred pairs of large size, a hundred pairs of small size.

Even if she didn’t sell them, she could wear them herself.

Qin Jin wanted to stop her, but she brushed his hand away.

Carrying the socks, Li Qiao continued shopping. Thermal vests that were light and warm for only one yuan and twenty cents.

By her estimation, grandma should be able to wear them.

She bought three.

The other two, she planned to send back home for her elder and second sisters.

Cotton pants and jackets for children ranged from eighty cents to one yuan.

Li Qiao bought clothes for her little nephews, choosing sizes five centimeters larger than their current height. After buying some snacks, she and Qin Jin left.