The Daily Life of a Stepmother in the 1980s
Zhao Weiguo was exceptionally ruthless in beating the man. Only after the man was barely breathing did Zhao Weiguo stand up, go to the storage room to find a rope, and tie up the man's hands and feet before throwing him next to the yard's toilet.
In the room, Zhao Linan had already fallen asleep. Xu Tao covered the child with a blanket to prevent him from catching a cold and sat on the edge of the bed in a daze. She only looked up when she heard a sound and saw Zhao Weiguo walking in.
"I'll take him to the police station tomorrow."
Xu Tao nodded softly. The lingering fear was long-lasting, but Zhao Weiguo's presence gave her an immense sense of security, filling her with trust in him.
"Scared, huh?" Zhao Weiguo noticed Xu Tao remained silent. She slightly lowered her eyelids, and her long lashes fluttered gently.
Knowing she must be frightened, Zhao Weiguo stepped forward, squatted in front of Xu Tao, and gently wrapped her hands in his large palms. "Don't be afraid, I'm here."
He looked at Xu Tao as he spoke, his tone serious.
"Why did you come back early?" Xu Tao's red lips finally relaxed.
Seeing Xu Tao relying on him, Zhao Weiguo's tightly pressed thin lips involuntarily curved upwards. "I missed you, so I rushed back overnight."
Xu Tao blinked uncomfortably upon hearing his words, feeling a bit relieved. "Good thing you came back."
"Yeah!" Zhao Weiguo also nodded, feeling a lingering fear.
After spending six days in Hu City, he was worried about his family at home. Although he could've stayed in Hu City to rest, he called his colleagues and rushed back.
The truck stopped at the road junction, and he grabbed his luggage and got off, eager to return home. Unexpectedly, he ran into that scumbag outside.
"It's late. That man is tied up and left by the toilet. I'll take him to the police station first thing in the morning. You should go to sleep" Zhao Weiguo comforted Xu Tao.
Xu Tao pursed her lips. "I can't sleep."
It wasn't exactly that she couldn't sleep—her body was already protesting from exhaustion, and her eyelids were heavy. But the earlier terror still lingered. Even though Zhao Weiguo's return eased her mind, sitting in the room still brought back the horrifying image of the man leaning against the window.
She had developed a psychological shadow.
"Want me to stay with you?" Zhao Weiguo raised an eyebrow at her.
Xu Tao hesitated, glanced at Zhao Weiguo, bit her red lip, and after a moment of consideration, finally nodded.
"..." Zhao Weiguo was surprised but understood that Xu Tao must've been genuinely scared to be this uneasy. Otherwise, she would've hurriedly sent him back to his own room to sleep.
Though it felt a bit opportunistic, Zhao Weiguo couldn't deny that his presence now would naturally deepen their relationship. Maybe this was heaven's reward for him patiently sleeping alone every night?
"Alright" That single word "alright" came after much internal debate.
Zhao Weiguo stood up, gently patted Xu Tao's head. "I'll go take a shower. You sleep first."
"Mm" Xu Tao felt afraid but somehow found Zhao Weiguo's words "I'll go take a shower, you sleep first" incredibly seductive.
Wearing her pajamas, she lay on the bed, pulled up a small blanket, and her mind wandered wildly. Her cheeks even began to flush.
Xu Tao, calm down! You're married. Just because he says something suggestive, you're this happy? How shameless!
Xu Tao mentally splashed herself with cold water to calm down.
Zhao Weiguo showered quickly. After finishing, he glanced at the half-dead Xiao Baogui before drying his hair and returning to the room.
Xu Tao hadn't fallen asleep. She was intently listening for sounds. When she heard Zhao Weiguo's familiar footsteps approaching, she immediately shut her eyes to fake sleep.
Zhao Weiguo entered and saw Xu Tao pretending to nap. He didn't expose her act, nor did he plan to return to his own room.
Even though the bed was only 1.2 meters wide and would be cramped for three people, Zhao Weiguo wasn't about to give up over something so trivial.
Tonight, he had permission to share the bed. If he didn’t seize this opportunity, tomorrow when she was no longer scared, she might refuse him again.
Zhao Weiguo understood Xu Tao's temperament well. He wasn't giving her a chance to back out. Entering the room, he saw the small portion of the bed left for him, turned off the light, and walked over.
Xu Tao had placed Zhao Linan in the middle. Normally, Zhao Linan slept on the right while she took the left. But after agreeing to let Zhao Weiguo stay, she had a fleeting moment of regret.
However, a woman's word is as solid as a nail. Since she had agreed, she couldn't back out. So, while Zhao Weiguo was showering, she switched Zhao Linan's position to the middle and moved to the right side herself.
"Asleep already?" Zhao Weiguo lay down. Though he'd been driving all day and was exhausted, he was still energetic and in the mood to tease her.
He knew that Xu Tao was not asleep. Although she was pretending to be asleep, her breathing was heavier than when she was truly asleep.
After all, when you close your eyes to pretend to sleep, subconsciously you feel a bit tense, and that kind of tension in your body is easy to distinguish.
Xu Tao pursed her lips and didn’t speak, closing her eyes and trying to fool him.
Zhao Weiguo didn’t insist on a response from her. He lay on the bed, turned over gently, and faced Xu Tao to the right.
Xu Tao perked her ears, and when she heard Zhao Weiguo turn over, her heart started pounding. The sensation wasn’t fear, but it made her adrenaline spike. She also secretly regretted lying on the right side earlier, wishing she had gotten used to lying facing inward.
Now Zhao Weiguo was lying on his side, and she was too, as if they were face to face, but with little Zhao Leinan between them.
Xu Tao wondered whether turning over and pretending to sleep, avoiding his gaze, would seem too obvious.
“How about I go and have a big bed custom-made tomorrow?” Zhao Weiguo asked as he looked at Xu Tao.
A big bed! A big bed, my foot!
“...” Xu Tao subconsciously wanted to stop him, and her eyes opened quickly in the dark, only to meet Zhao Weiguo’s gaze full of amusement.
The man clearly knew she was pretending to sleep and was teasing her on purpose.
“Why would we need a big bed?” Xu Tao rolled her eyes at him and huffed, turning her body to face the ceiling to avoid the awkwardness of facing Zhao Weiguo.
“This bed is too small” Zhao Weiguo said. He didn’t actually find the bed small; he was used to small beds from his years in the military. A 1.2-meter bed was already spacious enough for him.
But he also knew that Xu Tao slept in a very restless way, so for the sake of their future happiness, Zhao Weiguo felt that getting a big bed custom-made was something that should be prioritized.
“It’s not small!”
“It’s small” Zhao Weiguo said firmly.
Xu Tao was irritated by his firm tone, and her voice became a little harsh. “Go to sleep. I’m tired.”
Zhao Weiguo chuckled softly, and his laughter sounded particularly pleasant in the summer night. Xu Tao’s ears turned red from his laughter, and she couldn’t help but feel a little annoyed.
“You’re still laughing. This whole thing tonight is your fault.” Xu Tao had heard the perverted things that man, Xiao, had said. The fact that he dared to act so arrogantly and barge in was definitely due to Lin Fang’s help.
Xu Tao hadn’t expected Lin Fang to play such a trick. But when she thought back to how Lin Fang had specifically asked about Zhao Weiguo’s whereabouts earlier in the day, she realized that Lin Fang must have been keeping an eye on their house recently.
“It’s my fault” Zhao Weiguo admitted honestly, without a hint of trying to shirk responsibility.
“...” Xu Tao didn’t know what to say. Zhao Weiguo was so straightforward that she felt helpless, and even if she tried to get angry with him, he wouldn’t give her the chance.
"Zhao Weiguo, you should really reflect on yourself." Xu Tao said after a moment of silence.
"Hmm?" Zhao Weiguo was a little puzzled. He turned sideways to look at Xu Tao. In the darkness, Xu Tao's expression was somewhat sulky, but her tone couldn't hide a hint of petulance.
"You brought Lin Fang here, you deal with her yourself, I'm annoyed with her."
Zhao Weiguo looked innocent. After a long while, he asked "Is Lin Fang the woman who came to buy the small buns last time?"
"What do you think?" Xu Tao couldn't help but laugh at Zhao Weiguo's question.
Although she didn't know Zhao Weiguo very well, through their interactions, Xu Tao believed in her judgment of people. She couldn't help but feel a little sorry for him, after all, he was actually quite innocent.
"Sigh! I really didn't see it before, you, a divorced old man, are quite popular." Xu Tao puffed out her cheeks and teased him with a sour tone.
Divorced? Old man!
"Am I old?" Zhao Weiguo raised his hand in the darkness and touched his cheek. He admitted to being divorced, but he couldn't bear the word 'old'.
It wasn't that he was old, she was just saying it casually. Xu Tao smiled without replying, she just closed her eyes and took a deep breath, preparing to sleep.
After tossing and turning for half the night, she was actually very tired. Now Zhao Weiguo was lying beside her, Zhao Linan was sleeping soundly. The little guy slept so soundly that when neither of them spoke, the little guy's shallow breathing was very hypnotic, and unconsciously, Xu Tao felt sleepy.
Zhao Weiguo was a little excited. He lay on the bed, very close to Xu Tao, the fragrance of Xu Tao's body kept entering his nostrils.
After a long time, Zhao Weiguo couldn't help but reach out.
Xu Tao, who was half asleep, heard Zhao Weiguo sit up from the bed, and she looked at him curiously. Her eyes blinked in the darkness, she couldn't see what Zhao Weiguo was doing, but her heart couldn't help but pound.
"Xu Tao." Zhao Weiguo called her name, and the next moment the man's breath pressed down on her face.
Xu Tao felt Zhao Weiguo approaching her, and she also knew that he had just picked up Zhao Linan and put him aside. Now she was taking the child's place, lying on the bed close to her neck, his breath spraying on her neck, and at the same time, he called her name in a low and hoarse voice.
"..." Xu Tao trembled all over, that unconscious tremor made her a little at a loss.
The next moment, the man's hot and strong breath approached, without giving her a chance to refuse, he blocked her lips. On a summer night, Xu Tao felt hot, the man who approached her was also hot, but his lips were slightly cool, invading domineeringly.
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