Chapter 458 - Chapter 458: Chapter 458: Hot Feet (1/2)
Chapter 458: Chapter 458: Hot Feet
Liu Sisi insisted on waiting until Mother Zuo had taken her medicine and lay down. Only then did she leave the clinic.
As soon as she lifted her head, she saw Di Yelei holding a lantern, quickly jogging towards her. Upon seeing Liu Sisi, he was immediately overjoyed!
“Sisi, how are you? Are you having pregnancy discomfort? I just got home and heard from my father that you were at the clinic.”
Di Yelei wiped his forehead, unclear whether it was sweat or rainwater.
“I’m fine, it’s not me who’s in trouble! It’s just too cold out here; let’s get back home first.”
As she spoke, her teeth were chattering uncontrollably.
The temperature difference between inside and outside was simply too great!
When they returned home, Liu Sisi found everyone unloading box after box from the carriage and moving them into the kitchen.
“Come on in quickly, look at your hands, they’re freezing.”
Di Yelei quickly ushered Liu Sisi into the house– the inside was considerably warmer, which prompted Liu Sisi to rub her hands together and stamp her feet, which were already stiff from the cold.
“You stay in your bedroom for now; I’ll fetch some hot water for you to soak your feet.”
As soon as Di Yelei said this, he didn’t wait for Liu Sisi to refuse– he headed straight for the kitchen, leaving Liu Sisi with no chance to stop him. Helpless, she returned to her bedroom.
She took the hairpin from her hair, placed it in the dressing box, let her hair down, and it fell loosely over her shoulders. She then got up to shake out the quilt and carefully spread it out.
Finally, she sat at the head of the bed, lost in her thoughts.
The room door creaked slightly as Di Yelei returned carrying a water basin.
“Don’t worry, I’ll bring in the brazier as well. When we rented this place, we didn’t notice it wasn’t as well insulated as the old house. I’m afraid you might get cold.”
While speaking, he had already stepped out again. After a moment, he came back in with the brazier, casually shutting the door behind him.
Noticing Liu Sisi still daydreaming, he curiously smiled: “What’s the matter? Is it related to where you went tonight? Father said something which I didn’t quite understand. It seemed to be about Constable Zuo. Has there been any good news from his side?”
As he spoke, he bent down, picked up a towel from the washbasin, carefully rubbed it clean, wrung it out, and handed it to Liu Sisi.
Liu Sisi raised an eyebrow in surprise but didn’t say much. She just opened the towel and wiped her face.
“Mother Zuo has had an accident. Didn’t you tell Zhang Peng to go to Zuo’s house to check on them? The moment he entered…”
It was only then that Liu Sisi narrated the rest of the incident to Di Yelei in detail.
“Mother Zuo is seriously ill? Should I go to the clinic too? We can’t afford any mishaps.”
“There is no need, she was already asleep when I left.”
Liu Sisi hastily stopped him, passing back the towel to Di Yelei as she did so.
“What exactly is Zuo Xingyu doing? He can’t possibly be so indifferent to his mother’s well-being. He was away for so many days, over New Year as well, and he didn’t even arrange any food for his mother. Didn’t your office disburse the year-end wages? Or did he not receive his?”
Di Yelei received the towel and gingerly washed it in the hot water, then wrung it out.
“How could that be the case? As a constable, he received almost 50 taels more in silver than any of us. I find it strange too. With the money he’s made from being a constable in a year, he could easily afford a courtyard in the city, but he continues to live in that thatched hut…”
Their conversation halted here, and both of them hesitated.
“… Where did all his money go?” Liu Sisi asked softly.
She had long sensed that there was something off about Zuo Xingyu, but Di Yelei trusted him implicitly. She felt it was imperative to point this out so that he could think more deeply about it.