The Substitute Bride and the Cripple

“How much is your salary?” Tang Qiu asked He Lei. “You’re my husband’s butler, aide, and even his chauffeur.”

Flustered, He Lei replied, “… 200,000 yuan a year, Young Mistress.”

That was a lie. 200,000 yuan was a fraction of what he had.

“Thank you for helping to look after my husband. I don’t know what I’d do without you.” Tang Qiu was grateful for his kindness. Nowadays, a housekeeper’s salary was about 30 to 50 thousand a month. He Lei juggled several responsibilities at once, but he only earned 10,000 yuan on a monthly basis. 𝒇𝐫ℯ𝑒𝒘ℯ𝑏n𝑜ѵ𝐞l.c𝗼𝗺

“I’m merely doing my duty, Young Mistress,” was all he said.

***

That night, Tang Qiu showed Jiang Shaocheng a notebook of sums. “These are the daily expenses I calculated. Am I missing anything?”

He hadn’t expected that she would be still dwelling on the matter. She had tallied everything down to how much their meals would cost. Did they have to live hand to mouth like this? She was so concerned about spending money, it was almost adorable.

“Let’s not think about this now, Qiu. We have to sleep.”

“You go to bed first, dear. I want to make sure the amount is correct.”

The notebook was snatched from her hands and tossed aside. Her husband pulled her towards him. “You’d rather spend time gazing at those sums than me?”

A laugh spilled from Tang Qiu’s lips, playfulness bubbling up in her. “Haven’t I done that enough already?”

Jiang Shaocheng’s arm tightened around her waist. To have her so tantalizingly close, unable to savor every inch of her body… “Looking isn’t enough,” he said roughly. “Far from it.”

His embrace had suddenly become a steel cage. “What do you want, then?”

Jiang Shaocheng threw the covers over both of them. “The doctor said I’ll recover faster if I’m in a good mood,” he whispered. His lips grazed her ear, sending an itch through her body that bloomed into a slow fire. “You want that for me, don’t you, Qiu?”

Perplexed, Tang Qiu searched his face for signs of humor and found none. “Be a good girl,” he murmured, “and I’ll tell you what’s the best way to please a man.”

“The best…?” She trailed off into a soft moan as he claimed her lips with his–again and again.

Her last thought before being pulled down into the comforting throes of sleep was,?My husband really has no restraint.?

***

Tang Qiu was awoken by her phone ringing. She answered groggily, only to sit upright the next instant. “You’re kidding, right?” she gasped.

“Why would I be joking?” came Xie Qingqing’s impassioned voice on the other end. “Everyone is about to find out the truth!”

***

The morning sun gilded Jiang Shaocheng’s gorgeously sculpted features–which, for once, weren’t hidden by his mask of false skin–as he awaited He Lei’s report.

“Last night, I found someone to stir trouble for Ning Mufan to accelerate his leaving the country. But… he went on to sleep with Niu Caijie. Niu Caijie’s family background appears prestigious, but in reality, they’re on the verge of bankruptcy. She’s been selling her body in secret to pay off her debts. It’s no secret in the industry that she’s a loose woman. She’s probably set her sights on Ning Mufan for a while. He won’t be able to get away with what he’s done.”

He Lei was filled with an unexpected pang of sympathy for the woman. But Jiang Shaocheng only said coldly, “What better way to bring someone to their knees? She mistreated my wife. She had it coming.”

He Lei nodded. The pride before the fall, as they called it…

Jiang Shaocheng donned his mask. It was thin, easy to slip on, and almost impossible to tell it was fake, unless you were looking with a practiced eye. “By the way, until I announce my recovery, don’t let Qiu find out about my wealth.”

Why? He Lei questioned inwardly. It wasn’t as if being rich was anything shameful…

Jiang Shaocheng recalled how meticulously his wife had planned their future together the night before. A touch of warmth flickered in his eyes. “I’m afraid she won’t want me anymore if she finds out the truth,” he admitted.

He Lei wanted to point out that it would likely accomplish the opposite, but he held his tongue.

***

When Tang Qiu arrived in class, Xie Qingqing pulled her to the back of the room. “Don’t be upset,” she said comfortingly. “I’m sure Ning Mufan wouldn’t do something like that. There must be a misunderstanding!”