The husband I snatched halfway through his life is strange.

Chapter 43 Just be fine

The night is getting darker.

Perhaps due to the fright she experienced during the day, Yu Tingwan did not sleep well that night. Trapped by nightmares, her forehead was covered in sweat, and her breathing became rapid. She suddenly woke up with a start.

Yu Tingwan huddled in a corner, clutching her bedding, her eyes flickering with fear.

Images flashed by in fragments before her eyes.

Paper money fluttered in the air, accompanied by cries of grief. A fierce, biting wind and snow swept through the air.

She saw herself in her wedding dress, staggered towards the street, and begged Wei Jiajun, who was carrying a coffin, for help.

The lieutenant drew his sword from his waist, its blade flashing coldly in the air as it pointed directly at her.

"Anyone who disturbs the general's remains shall die!"

Yu Tingwan, however, did not panic or retreat. The Dong family servants behind her were the real wolves and tigers. But they were wary of the Wei family army and stopped, not daring to step forward.

The group of people in front of her were nothing less than Yu Tingwan's lifeline.

With tears in her eyes and a trembling voice, she knelt down toward the coffin, tears rolling down her cheeks.

"I was forced by my aunt to be sold to the Dong family, an elderly gentryman, as their wife. I shouldn't disturb the general's peace, but I have no other choice."

"The general has died, and His Majesty has been unable to eat or sleep. Despite the advice of his ministers, he broke with precedent and gave him a grand funeral befitting a prince. It is said that the people of the capital have spontaneously put up white couplets and hung mourning banners, and the whole country is in mourning."

"The Dong family in Keze County, just across the street, is holding a grand celebration today with gongs and drums. The whole of Keze County should be mourning, but they have shown no respect for the general. It would not be an exaggeration to call it provocation!"

The men of Wei's army all changed their expressions.

What a Dong family!
How dare you!
Not to mention them, the faces of the court officials who were ordered to receive Wei Zhao's coffin were all grim.

The magistrate of Ze County was covered in sweat, but he had no time to wipe it away.

"Guards, drag this woman of unknown origin away!"

Yu Tingwan looked over coldly.

"Is the magistrate trying to protect the Dong family, or is he afraid that the matter in Ze County will reach the Emperor's ears and he will lose his job, so he is in a hurry to arrest me?"

Without her saying anything more, the deputy general could no longer hide the anger in his eyes.

He slashed at the magistrate's shoulder with his sword.

"This sword was a gift from the general before his death; once it is drawn, it must draw blood!"

"Ze County is such a tiny place, how could you, the county magistrate, not receive news of even the slightest disturbance?"

Why don't you care!

"Did they receive a bribe, or do they think we won't stay long, and that once a person dies, it's like a lamp going out, so they don't take the general seriously?"

"The Dong family deserves to die, and you deserve to die too!"

Upon seeing this, the Dong family's maid was so frightened that she retreated repeatedly.

Yu Tingwan knew she had won her gamble.

Then, she heard someone shouting behind her.

"Mom."

A glint appeared in her eyes, and she turned around abruptly to see Hu Dazhu running towards her.

Hu Dazhu's eyes were bloodshot, and he looked extremely haggard. It seemed she hadn't slept a wink all this time.

Hu Dazhu's fingers trembled as he pulled her up from the ground.

"It's good that you're alright. It's good that you're alright."

“They all say you were carried off by a wild animal, but I never believed it. You, my child, are not destined for such a tragic fate as your mother.”

Hu Yaozu was chasing after him.

Hu Yaozu's concerned gaze remained fixed on Yu Tingwan without shifting an inch.

He hesitated, then said nothing in the end.

Having suffered a lot of grievances these past few days, Yu Tingwan was completely overwhelmed when she saw Hu Dazhu. She rushed towards Hu Dazhu, tears streaming down her face.

Hu Dazhu patted her back: "Cry, no one can bully you anymore with your uncle here. We'll go home when you've cried enough."

Yu Ting froze, slowly pulling away from Hu Dazhu's embrace.

How did my uncle know I was in the county?

Hu Dazhu didn't dare look at her red eyes. "Your aunt said so."

He didn't explain the twists and turns of the story, nor how he discovered the trickery and managed to get Wang to talk.

Seeing this, Hu Yaozu quickly said, "Wanmei, this time it was my mother who made a mistake. Father has already hit her and scolded her, and she knows she was wrong."

Yu Tingwan seemed not to hear him and just stared at Hu Dazhu.

She knew perfectly well that Hu Dazhu had treated her like his own daughter all these years. But she also knew how much Hu Dazhu valued Hu Yaozu.

Even if Hu Dazhu was furious with Wang Shi, he would not divorce her for Hu Yaozu's sake, nor would he make a big fuss about it.

How could she compare to Hu Yaozu's future and reputation?
Yu Tingwan wasn't exactly disappointed, but rather found it laughable.

She heard herself ask very softly, "After all this, Uncle, do you think I can still go back with you without any reservations?"

The scene abruptly ended, but the sorrow and helplessness slowly spread in my heart.

Yu Tingwan let out a deep breath.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Time flies, and the wedding day arrived in the blink of an eye.

Yu Tingwan got up very early, preparing to go to the Wei family's house first to put up various "double happiness" characters. On this joyous day, her eyes and brows were full of happiness.

Hui Niang had to prepare the banquet, and she couldn't manage it all by herself. Yu Tingwan thought she would go to the kitchen after the "double happiness" characters were pasted up.

She was afraid that her wedding dress would get stained with oil, so she planned to change it when the wedding ceremony was about to begin.

But as soon as she stepped out, she bumped into Aunt Wu, who had come looking for her.

Aunt Wu was wondering why the Wei family had put up red couplets at their door. She was thinking of going in to ask, but when she saw Yu Tingwan come out, she put the matter out of her mind.

She pulled the person aside and started muttering to herself.

"My dear maid, do you really know how to tell fortunes?"

Yu Tingwan: ...

What can she do?

The reason I reminded Wu's young wife not to be offended last time was because of my memories from my past life.

But her memories are incomplete.

Meeting Aunt Wu's bright eyes, Yu Tingwan hesitated for a moment: "It's hard to say."

Aunt Wu: "I'm asking for someone else. If the calculation is accurate, she's willing to pay fifty coins!"

Upon hearing this, Yu Tingwan replied without hesitation: "I am very strong!"

Aunt Wu was overjoyed. Looking around, she was still uneasy, so she pulled Yu Tingwan into the old house and then lowered her voice to explain the situation: "That child called me 'Auntie,' but he was married off by his stepmother a long time ago."

"She rarely visits her parents' home. It's almost the anniversary of her birth mother's death, so she came back for one night. And what happened was quite something. She noticed that her stepmother was acting strangely, like she was having pregnancy symptoms. At first, she thought it was just her imagination, after all, her father had been dead for several years. How could a stepmother get pregnant?"

She covered her mouth and said, "But her stepmother went to the midwife in Sandun Village like a thief and brought back some medicine. She noticed something was wrong, so she secretly grabbed some and ran to ask Old Man Qian. She found out that the medicine was an abortifacient."

"Wanniang, you were able to predict that the Xu family boy would harm my Xiufen, which shows how capable you are. This kind of adultery is not easy to catch, so please help her figure out which lover that child is with."

Yu Tingwan: ...

Do you really think fortune tellers are gods?

and many more……

She seemed to know who her stepmother was.

Matchmaker Liu.

The person Aunt Wu was talking about was Zhou Qin, the stepdaughter of Matchmaker Liu.

she knows!
This child belongs to Zhou Qin's biological grandfather!

After the child was born, it was unclear whether the child called Zhou Qin "sister" or whether Zhou Qin called someone "uncle/aunt".

They're all Zhou family's offspring anyway!

Seeing Yu Tingwan's strange expression, Aunt Wu urged her on.

"What's wrong? Hurry up and calculate."

"I dare to calculate it, but you dare not listen?"

How dirty!
(End of this chapter)