“You must be tired.” In the darkness of the room, Xu Qi suddenly spoke, holding a man who was exhausted in her arms.

Her words seemed somewhat unnecessary.

Ye Lan, struggling with exhaustion, nodded towards Xu Qi and moved closer to her embrace.

“Mistress, are you hungry? I will go make food for you.”

Ye Lan almost called out the wrong title again, but startled himself. Just moments ago, he had been pinned down by his mistress for using the wrong title, a mixture of terror and exhilaration. She kept asking him, “Who are you? What should you call yourself?”

Each mistake led to forceful inclusion and withdrawal by the woman. It was heaven and hell all at once.

So now, he almost subconsciously avoided using that title.

This was what Xu Qi wanted. Even though she made her little husband completely exhausted and weak, she still felt sorry for him.

“You’re more tired than me, lie down. I’ll make food for you.”

Xu Qi dodged slightly, carefully tucking Ye Lan into bed before covering him with a blanket, making sure not a single inch of skin was exposed to the cold before leaving the room.

Ye Lan felt utterly weak at this moment, but his heart was full of sweetness. Finally, his wish was fulfilled. His young mistress, who demanded so much, didn’t her actions show satisfaction with him?

“Um, I cooked some porridge. Would you like to come out and eat?”

After a while, Xu Qi walked in somewhat uneasily.

Ye Lan got up from the bed, the blanket sliding off along the force, revealing some pink marks on his skin, still snow-white. Xu Qi felt even more uncomfortable seeing this.

“Let me help you get dressed.”

She took a few steps forward, picking up the scattered white clothes on the ground, suddenly remembering Ye Lan’s comment about white clothes getting dirty easily, and asked with a smile, “Didn’t you say white clothes get dirty easily? Why are you wearing them to work in the fields?”

Ye Lan had his own thoughts. Before he became numb, he had fought hard to please adults, trying hard to win their favor. And to win someone’s favor, the most important thing is to cater to their preferences.

Mistress had said she liked men in white clothes, so he wanted to please her naturally by wearing white clothes. By catering to her preferences, he might have a better chance.

“Wife, I, I just happened to find this outfit and put it on. Wife, do you not like it?”

Ye Lan raised his head cautiously.

Xu Qi’s breath caught in her throat, quickly saying, “How could that be? You look very handsome in this outfit.”

Ye Lan lowered his head, blushing shyly, “As long as wife likes it.”

Xu Qi stared, holding her breath, and said, “Then, let me help you get dressed.”

She approached and helped Ye Lan put on the clothes. It took her a moment to dress him, and after finishing, Xu Qi touched her temple and said, “Come on, let’s eat.”

She gestured outside, and Ye Lan tugged at her sleeve, following her step by step.

Outside was meat porridge, with several large meat bones and some minced meat, emitting a delicious fragrance.

“Sit down quickly, I’ll serve you a bowl.”

Ye Lan nodded in response, sitting down straight, but suddenly winced.

“What’s wrong?”

Xu Qi hurried over to support him, only to receive a glare from her husband, somewhat puzzled.

“What’s going on? Where does it hurt? Should I go find Doctor Chen?”

Thinking of Xu Qi telling others about this, Ye Lan blushed with embarrassment. He really didn’t want to talk to her anymore, but he was afraid that if he didn’t, she would really go find Doctor Chen. So he reluctantly and shyly grabbed his mistress’s hand and complained softly in her ear, “It’s all because wife was too forceful. My body still hurts.”

Xu Qi was stunned, then quickly understood, her face turning red, and her eyes avoiding Ye Lan’s.

After a while, she said, “Should I get you some medicine? I can buy it for you.”

“Wife!”

Ye Lan was a little annoyed.

Why did wife still want to talk about this? It would be so embarrassing if others found out.

“Ah, what’s, what’s wrong?”

Why was she angry? Was he upset because she said she would buy him medicine?

“I don’t want wife to buy medicine!”

Ye Lan emphasized.

After experiencing intimacy together, they no longer felt so constrained. Ye Lan now looked more alive than before.

“Then, aren’t you in pain?”

Xu Qi felt a bit aggrieved. It was him who said he was in pain, yet he got upset when she offered to buy medicine.

“It hurts, but it’s not necessary to use medicine. Oh, forget it, I won’t say anything.”

Ye Lan felt embarrassed and turned to hide in Xu Qi’s embrace, burying his face and refusing to come out, only his ears were tinged with red.

“In that case…”

“I, I’ll endure the pain, as long as you don’t speak. Just accompany me more.”

Ye Lan nuzzled against Xu Qi’s bare neck, his tone full of dependence.

Relieved, Xu Qi gently rubbed Ye Lan’s thin back, promising, “I’ll always be with you, spending a lot of time with you every day.”

“Will wife find me annoying and feel that I’m taking up too much of her time?”

Ye Lan raised his head, feeling somewhat anxious.

Xu Qi smiled softly.

“Why would I? I want you to be as troublesome as possible.”

She pinched Ye Lan’s cheek and patted his thigh, gesturing for him to sit properly, then got up to serve him a bowl of meat porridge.

The porridge was full of minced meat. Xu Qi’s family was never short of meat, so there was no need to skimp on anything. Vegetables, on the other hand, were harder to come by and had to be bought in town.

Ye Lan tasted a spoonful, and Xu Qi couldn’t wait to ask him, “How does it taste? Do you like it?”

“Yes, since wife made it, I naturally like it.”

“If you like it, eat more. There’s more, and after you finish, I’ll boil some medicinal soup for you to drink.”

It was a medicinal soup for nourishing the body, as Ye Lan was weak and needed to be warmed with medicine.

“Yes, I understand. Thank you, wife.”

“You and I are husband and wife, no need for thanks.”

Xu Qi frowned, not liking his politeness.

Ye Lan naturally noticed and quickly retracted his words with a smile, “Yes, I won’t say it next time.”

Xu Qi was relieved and hugged him, gently massaging his aching waist.

Until Ye Lan finished the bowl of porridge.

Xu Qi then stood up and picked out two large pork bones from the pot.

“Here, eat this too.”

Ye Lan looked at the pork bones and hesitated, “I, I’m afraid I can’t eat anymore.”

“You can eat more. Eat a little more, okay? If you can’t finish it, I’ll eat it for you.”

As Xu Qi said this, Ye Lan reluctantly opened his mouth and nibbled on the large pieces of meat on the bones.

The next day, Xu Qi, having eaten her fill, felt refreshed. As she went out to the town, she heard some news: the enemy country was gaining momentum, their country had lost several times, and several cities had been captured!

More and more refugees were flocking here, and it was feared that soon even this small town would see refugees losing their homes.

“Hey, remember to tell the men at home not to go out for a while. There are refugees causing trouble outside. Men are vulnerable, and it wouldn’t be good if they were robbed.”

Xu Qi nodded knowingly. If there was going to be a war, they would need to build the new house sooner. She didn’t think the Yao Country would continue slaughtering the people; they just wanted to find ways to make the people submit.

“Frontline Pengcheng has already been occupied, and many wealthy families and officials are packing up and rushing here.”

Someone else said.

Xu Qi opened her eyes wide, feeling that the name Pengcheng was very familiar, as if someone had mentioned it before. Wasn’t Ah Lan from Pengcheng?