Reborn in the 1970s — Married a Proud Rough Man

Jie Jingchen kissed Qin Mei again before striding toward the bathroom.

The moment Jie Jingchen stepped into the bathroom, Qin Mei followed him in.

Qin Mei wanted to torture Jie Jingchen, to torment him until he was burning with desire, and then, when he wasn’t paying attention, she would make her escape.

The idea was good, but reality was cruel. Qin Mei played with fire and got burned, trapping herself in her own game.

Dawn had already broken by the time Jie Jingchen, still wanting more, finally let her go. Qin Mei was so exhausted she didn’t even want to move a toe and fell into a deep sleep.

All thoughts of getting even with Jie Jingchen, of not letting him off so easily, were thrown to the back of her mind.

She hadn’t been punishing Jie Jingchen; she had been punishing herself.

Jie Jingchen slept for two hours, then got up to wash and prepare to go out.

Before returning to Huaxia, he had to get all his affairs here in order.

As Jie Jingchen passed by the garden, he saw his grandmother practicing Tai Chi. He glanced at the watch on his wrist, not planning to greet her.

”Jing Chen,” his grandmother called out, stopping him.

Jie Jingchen stopped and walked over to his grandmother. ”Grandma, if you have something to say, please say it. I’m in a hurry.”

His grandmother paused her Tai Chi, gesturing with her eyes for Jie Jingchen to look at the rose bushes that had been stripped bare by Qin Mei.

’He thought of the rose petals in the bathroom. They had certainly played their part for him and Qin Mei last night. The way Qin Mei had held a rose petal in her mouth, in particular, was absolutely enchanting and soul-stealing.’

Jie Jingchen looked up toward the third floor. ’What should I do? I don’t want to work; I just want to stay with her.’

”Grandma, the petals have already been plucked. How do you want me to compensate you?” Jie Jingchen said nonchalantly.

His grandmother wanted to kick him. ”You brat, what kind of attitude is that?”

Jie Jingchen lowered his gaze and looked at his grandmother. ”Compensate you with money? Or with flowers?”

His grandmother was in no mood to continue her Tai Chi. She took a step forward and kicked Jie Jingchen in the shin. ”Do I look like I need money? Your wife plucked my flowers bare. How are you going to compensate me with flowers?”

Jie Jingchen steadied his grandmother, afraid she might fall from kicking him. ”Then what would you have me do?”

His grandmother was furious, poking Jie Jingchen’s forehead. ”You don’t even realize what you did wrong.”

”I wasn’t the one who plucked the petals,” Jie Jingchen muttered under his breath.

”You didn’t pluck them, but you put her up to it,” his grandmother accused. Her granddaughter-in-law liked them, so if they were plucked bare, so be it. No matter how much she herself loved her roses, if her granddaughter-in-law wanted them all, she would make the sacrifice. The problem was that her grandson had claimed his wife smelled bad.

’What smell could her granddaughter-in-law possibly have? Her grandson clearly just had it in for her roses. He didn’t dare to lay a hand on them himself, so he instigated his wife to do it, and he even came up with such an infuriating excuse. It was just too exasperating.’

”I didn’t,” Jie Jingchen said, feeling wronged.

”Still trying to argue? Jing Chen, what did your grandfather and I teach you? A man has to take responsibility. Shirking your duty over such a small matter...”

”Grandma, I’m really in a hurry,” Jie Jingchen interrupted his grandmother’s endless lecture.

His grandmother took a deep breath, her cloudy eyes showing her displeasure. ”Xiao Mei said you claimed she had a smell and suggested she take a flower petal bath.”

The corner of Jie Jingchen’s mouth twitched. ’What kind of story was Qin Mei spinning about him?’

Thinking again of those vibrant rose petals in the bathroom, a wicked flame surged through him. Jie Jingchen closed his eyes and took several deep breaths to suppress it. ’I really have to go. If I don’t leave now, I’m afraid I won’t be able to stop myself from going back to the room.’

”Grandma, I was the one who asked Meimei to pick them. Your roses have other uses besides just being admired.” As for what those uses were, Jie Jingchen had no intention of honestly telling his grandmother.

His grandmother fell silent. When Jie Jingchen had tried to argue, she could still lecture him. But now that he admitted it so frankly, she felt like she was making a mountain out of a molehill.

”Go, go, go,” his grandmother said, waving her hand, not wanting to see him anymore.

Jie Jingchen took a single step, then stopped again and said to his grandmother, ”Grandma, your roses... I like them very much.”

’His grandmother’s heart sank. It’s over. My grandson has his eyes on my roses now. He’ll probably pluck every one that blooms. She looked at the stripped bushes, then at her other varieties of flowers, hoping her grandson would remain devoted and not turn his fickle affections to her other blooms.’

Qin Mei was woken by hunger. The two of them had been too wild last night, and the unfortunate consequence was an aching body.

”Damn man,” Qin Mei cursed. ’What happened last night... I’m never doing that again. I admit defeat. I can’t outplay Jie Jingchen.’

Qin Mei took a medicinal pill, soaked in the bath for a while, and finally went downstairs to find food, feeling refreshed.

”Xiao Mei,” Xu Jiali called out, waving happily at Qin Mei from her seat in the living room.

”Is there anything to eat? I’m starving,” Qin Mei said, too hungry to even speak much.

”Aunt Lan,” Xu Jiali began, but before she could finish...

Aunt Lan emerged from the kitchen carrying a meal prepared for Qin Mei. Qin Mei didn’t stand on ceremony; she ate and drank her fill, satisfied.

”Sis,” Xu Jiali said, draping an arm over Qin Mei’s shoulder and giving her a radiant smile.

Hearing Xu Jiali’s form of address made Qin Mei’s scalp tingle. ”Don’t call me that at home. It wouldn’t be good if Grandma heard.”

”What’s there to be afraid of? Besides the servants, it’s just you and me here,” Xu Jiali said nonchalantly.

Qin Mei paused. She could understand her grandfather and grandmother not being home, but was Jing Qi not home either? ”Where’s Jing Qi?”

”Not Jing Qi, it’s Jing Shan,” Xu Jiali corrected.

”Stop talking crap,” Qin Mei shot Xu Jiali a look.

”Jing Shan went out with my great-uncle,” Xu Jiali said.

Qin Mei understood and said no more. With Jie Jingshan’s status, she had no need to gild her lily by taking the college entrance exams.

’She had worried that Jie Jingchen and Jie Jingshan would turn on each other over the family fortune, but now it seemed her worries were for naught. Jie Jingchen had no interest in inheriting the Qiao Family’s businesses at all; everything he was doing now was just to pave the way for Jing Qi.’

”Xiao Mei, why don’t we go out too?” Xu Jiali suggested.

”Where to?” Qin Mei asked casually, sounding unenthusiastic.

Xu Jiali nudged Qin Mei with her elbow, dangling the bait. ”Eat, drink, and be merry.”

Qin Mei’s almond eyes narrowed slightly. She shot Xu Jiali a sidelong glance and asked, ”Didn’t Uncle Zhang and Aunt Li warn you to watch your diet?”

Xu Jiali hung her head, flicking her fingernails. ”They did.”

”They did, and you still want to run off to eat, drink, and be merry?” Qin Mei poked Xu Jiali’s head.

”All doctors have the same problem; they like to exaggerate,” Xu Jiali said weakly.

”Ignore the advice of your elders, and you’ll suffer for it right away. Ignore the advice of your doctor, and you’ll die for no good reason.” ’Qin Mei really wanted to crack open Xu Jiali’s head to see what on earth was inside.’

’To say she had survived a disaster was an understatement; it was more like she had escaped the jaws of death. And here she was, still on medication, wanting to run out to eat, drink, and be merry. Does this girl truly not realize the severity of her condition? Or has she just decided to disregard life and death?’

”Then let’s not eat or drink. Just having fun should be fine, right?” Xu Jiali said, settling for the next best thing.

”No,” Qin Mei refused flatly.

Xu Jiali wasn’t happy. She complained emotionally, ”I can’t do this, I can’t do that. Living like this is worse than being dead.”

Xu Jiali’s attitude completely set Qin Mei off. Full of aggression, she retorted, ”Then go die.”

Xu Jiali was stunned. ’Why isn’t Qin Mei playing by the rules? When I throw a tantrum, isn’t she supposed to coax me with kind words? A little coaxing and I’d be fine.’

Qin Mei didn’t even try to coax her; she just told her to go die.

Xu Jiali didn’t dare to snap back at Qin Mei. She said pitifully, ”Xiao Mei, I heard from Grandma that Jing Chen made a move against the Gao family. ’When the tree falls, the monkeys scatter.’ The Gao Family have all gone their separate ways. Grandma Gao and the others moved to...”

”Are you thinking of going to offer them comfort?” Qin Mei interrupted, looking at her with exasperated disappointment.

Xu Jiali shook her head and, with a wicked grin, said, ”I want to go kick them while they’re down.”

Seeing that wicked grin on Xu Jiali’s face, Qin Mei felt that refusing to help her in her evil endeavor would be a sign of disrespect. She agreed readily, ”Let’s go.”

’Kicking people when they’re down. I like it.’

”Xiao Mei, you’re the best! I really can’t bear for you to go back to Huaxia.” Xu Jiali truly was reluctant to see Qin Mei leave. It was rare to find someone so in tune with her—at least, that’s what Xu Jiali thought.