SWHCBB 43

Chapter 43: Thank You, My Husband, for Protecting Me~

“I heard you had Madam Chen and Miss Su sent away from the manor… I… was afraid they might hold a grudge and try to harm you. That Miss Su, after all, is no ordinary woman. That’s why I had people follow and keep an eye on them.”

Zhiyu sat on the bed while Jiang Chuang crouched in front of him, helping him take off his boots. “Are your feet sore? Do you want a massage?”

“No,” Zhiyu replied, then cautiously added, “Later they kept making a fuss about returning. It was probably because they heard Qizhou is poor and the terrain is rough. They didn’t want to go suffer. And they believed you only decided to send them away because I instigated it, so they wanted to run back and confront me, hoping to wake you up.”

Jiang Chuang let out a short laugh, then washed his hands and helped untie Zhiyu’s hair. “Qizhou isn’t as rich and glorious as the imperial capital, sure, but it’s peaceful and laid-back. I gave them enough money to live well for years. What kind of suffering would that be?”

Zhiyu said, “They were used to being waited on in the general’s manor. How could they return to a commoner’s life? Not just them, even I couldn’t survive without help. I don’t blame them.”

Zhiyu gave a bitter smile, and as expected, it made Jiang Chuang ache for him. He quickly comforted him, “You’re different. Even though you can’t see, that doesn’t mean you’re helpless. With your mind, you could live just fine on your own using a walking stick and a little practice.”

The more Jiang Chuang spoke, the more certain his voice became. “You’re exceptionally intelligent. There are endless paths before you. You would never pin your hopes on others or rely on someone else to survive. You may look fragile, like a delicate glass vase, but in truth, you’re strong. You always find a way to pull through.”

He always had endless praise for Zhiyu. “Honestly, I think most of the time, you only act like you need help from me, Princess Chenyu, and Changning just to keep us all at ease, am I right?”

Zhiyu was actually very adept with his cane, he just didn’t use it often. His other senses were sharp, and he could locate people easily by sound. If not told in advance, most people wouldn’t even realize he was blind at first glance.

Even though his eyes couldn’t see, when he looked straight at someone, his gaze still met theirs directly. He never stopped learning. Whether it was unfamiliar braille, chess, or the zither, he put real effort into it and picked things up quickly.

Every month he would visit the library to listen to storytelling or hire scholars to read books to him. If they read too much and occasionally made mistakes, he could even point them out.

That was something Jiang Chuang had stumbled upon in their past life when Zhiyu invited people to read at home. After that, Jiang Chuang had volunteered to read to him instead. Zhiyu smiled and agreed.

But who would’ve thought the books Zhiyu wanted to hear were so complex and profound? To Jiang Chuang, it all sounded like gibberish. Still, after boasting so much, he had to grit his teeth and read.

He didn’t even get through two pages before he started dozing off, it was just not his thing.

Zhiyu never mocked him or joined in on his self-deprecation. Instead, he comforted him, saying the writing was overly ornate, and hard to read was normal.

Then he made a new suggestion: why not read one sentence at a time and explain it together? That way, Jiang Chuang could also understand what he was reading, like a study partner in another form.

And so, reading books together before bed became their favorite time together besides their conjugal intimacy.

“It’s not like that,” Zhiyu said with a helpless smile. His newly combed hair draped softly behind him, then was gathered and tied by Jiang Chuang to rest against his left chest.

“I’m not that noble. I just thought, if one day I’m left all alone, I shouldn’t starve to death. Even if there are many people to serve me, I should still have the ability to survive on my own.” Ultimately, he believed no one could stay by his side forever, only he would never abandon himself.

Jiang Chuang lifted a strand of his hair and kissed it, as if treasuring every part of him from head to toe.

Then came another round of praise. “Zhiyu, you’re amazing, thinking ahead, being prepared to protect yourself. That’s a good thing! Even I can’t promise I’ll always be with you every second of the day, but I will never leave you.”

Zhiyu nodded, though it wasn’t clear whether he truly believed it. Then he suddenly asked, “Why did you send them away?”

At first, Zhiyu had thought Jiang Chuang did it out of fear that he’d harm them. But after spending time together, he gradually realized Jiang Chuang wasn’t that kind of person.

Jiang Chuang replied, “I was afraid they’d trouble you. While I wasn’t home, they still acted like they were the real masters of the house. Even though you’re a prince, that doesn’t mean they would’ve given up their messy little schemes. Before, I didn’t care about that stuff. But now that I’ve married you, I can’t let you live uncomfortably. After thinking it over, I decided the best solution was just to send them away and avoid future trouble altogether.”

So that was it… Zhiyu froze. Of all the possibilities he’d considered, he never imagined Jiang Chuang’s motive had simply been to protect him.

And yet before, he had guarded against him with so much suspicion, always guessing at his intentions, never daring to ask, never giving Jiang Chuang a chance to explain.

Jiang Chuang might not know it, but Zhiyu was overwhelmed with guilt. He reached out, found Jiang Chuang’s position, and nestled into his arms.

Jiang Chuang, completely caught off guard, suddenly found a beautiful man in his arms, and of course, he wasted no time pulling him close and sitting him down on his lap. But to his surprise, the beauty leaned in and kissed the side of his face, then whispered:

“Thank you, my husband, for protecting me!”

Jiang Chuang felt like his soul had flown straight to heaven!!!