Reborn in the 70s: Pampered by Regiment Commander
Chapter 420 - 288 Open Your Heart

Chapter 420: Chapter 288 Open Your Heart

The first update is here, supplementing the one owed from yesterday.

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"Squeak!..."

Hearing the sound of the bedroom door being pushed open, Chuxia, who nestled "effortlessly" trying to sleep under the covers, felt her heartbeat accelerate instantly—she didn’t even know if it was out of shock, fear, or panic...

The sound of footsteps approached closer and closer... the blankets bulged there, rhythmically quivering with each tremor...

"Are you shivering from cold or fright?" Zhou Mikang, whose mood had already relaxed, sat at the edge of the bed chuckling, and patted the blanket, "If you are scared, just say it, I can..."

"Go sleep in another room?" Chuxia suddenly sat up, her eyes bright and expectant as she stared at Zhou Mikang, completing his sentence.

Zhou Mikang denied without hesitation, "No!"

Chuxia’s face fell, and she slowly retracted back under the covers, inching downwards... until her head was covered and still she wriggled down further...

Zhou Mikang’s mouth twitched, "Are you a maggot or what?"

"What an unpleasant thing to say." A muffled reply came from under the covers.

"What are you trying to do acting like this?" Zhou Mikang flipped the cover open with one hand and slapped someone’s buttocks, "Get up and let’s talk!"

"Talking my ass!" Chuxia glared at him as she sat up, "Since when can you just slap a woman’s butt?"

Zhou Mikang: "You’re just a girl!"

"Even more so, a girl’s butt should not be slapped!"

"Does it make a difference if this girl is my wife?"

"Hehe... Hehe..." Chuxia laughed obsequiously with various chuckles.

"Do you think playing dumb will let you escape?" Zhou Mikang stretched out his long arm, pulled Chuxia into his embrace, felt her struggle, increased the strength in his hand, and clutched her shoulder tightly—under the pain, Chuxia had no choice but to lean against his shoulder, "Speak!"

Feeling the depression deep within her, Zhou Mikang’s own heart suddenly felt blocked, and he patted her shoulder gently, "Do you dislike me that much?"

"Yeah."

"Not the slightest bit of affection for me?"

Chuxia turned her head to stare at him, "Are you stressed out or is there something wrong with your brain? I never liked you to begin with, and we haven’t met for a long time, if I say I’ve grown fond of you now, would you believe it?"

"You..." Zhou Mikang frowned at her, "Why do you talk like a porcupine when it comes to me? What I mean is, we have been married for quite some time now, regardless of whether we’ve been together during this period or not, haven’t you developed any feelings at all?"

"Isn’t that the same problem?" Chuxia’s big eyes stared with speechlessness, "What’s the difference between that and my answer?"

"Then do you like Jing Zhe?"

"Huh?" Chuxia looked at him blankly, "What do you mean?"

"I’m asking you, do you like Jing Zhe?" Zhou Mikang insisted, almost word by word—it was clear he was serious.

Chuxia nodded straightforwardly: "I do!"

Team leader Tongzi’s face turned dark instantly: "No way!"

"What right do you have to object?" She bristled defiantly.

"You are my wife!" During his declaration, team leader Tongzi pinched Chuxia’s chin, forcing her to look him in the eye, "In this lifetime, you are destined to be my wife only, and any other whims you harbor, put them away."

"Are you out of your mind?" Anger flashed in Chuxia’s eyes, "I don’t know how you’ve been these days, but if you’ve been wronged or felt aggrieved, you can talk to me about it. Whether I can help you or not, at the very least, you can confidently treat me as an emotional trash bin, and I’ll help you alleviate some of the negativity.

But what does this behavior amount to? Taking out the frustrations you had outside on your family when you get home? Let me tell you, Zhou Mikang, what I despise the most is this kind of man!"

"If you don’t want to share your thoughts, just say so. Don’t hide behind messy excuses!" Zhou Mikang snorted coldly, put on his shoes, and walked out, "I’ll sleep in the guest room. You can sleep in peace. If you really don’t feel safe, come down and lock the door. I’m not low enough to break in!"

"You..." Chuxia laughed with fury, "Just because Ye Meiru betrayed you once, are you distrustful of all women now?"

"Shut up!" Zhou Mikang turned back, his eyes red as he glared at Chuxia, "Lin Chuxia, don’t forget who you are just because I indulge you!"

"Rest assured, I will always remember who I am. I am Lin Chuxia, a peasant’s daughter. But that doesn’t make me any less than you, and I certainly didn’t beg you to marry me.

Looking down on me is looking down on yourself, because this is all your own doing. In fact, you forced me into this marriage!

If you think just because my family status is below yours, I will be agreeable to everything you want, then you are gravely mistaken. Let me emphasize again, I, Lin Chuxia, am not in any way inferior to you! To curry favor with you? Not happening..."

Watching the small figure sitting on the bed, defiantly staring back at him, moving her mouth as she spoke, Zhou Mikang felt a burning in his heart, like a fire had been lit. That was not what he meant, he did not wish to hurt her, nor did he ever despise her or expect her to ingratiate herself to him. He just, just...

"Chuxia, I was wrong!" He quickly ran back to the bed and hugged her tightly, "I’m sorry, it was all my fault, I was being petty, I apologize..."

This sudden apology caught Chuxia, who was in the middle of expressing her grievances, off guard. She was embraced so tightly that her breathing became slightly labored. Finally snapping back to reality, she struggled forcefully. Thinking she was still angry, he tightened his grip even more.

"I... you’re going to... strangle me!"

"Ah?" Zhou Mikang, frightened, quickly let go, and deciding to switch tactics, he gently cradled her, carefully probing, "Does this hurt?... How about here?..."

"I’m not made of glass!" Chuxia glared at him irritably, "I’m saying, why are you so moody? With that temper of yours, I think I’d better keep my distance from you in the future!"

"Lin Chuxia, I guess, I’ve really fallen for you!" Zhou Mikang let out a heavy sigh, "I’m baffled myself – you have such a bad temper and explode at the slightest provocation. How could I have fallen for you? But now I’m pretty sure that I like you."

"Really?" Chuxia’s eyes sparkled as she stared at him, "Quick, tell me how you figured it out. Let me help you analyze it."

"You..." Zhou Mikang was once again at a loss for words because of her.

"Come on, tell me, don’t be stingy. I want to know." Chuxia wriggled down and rested her head on his legs, looking up at him intently, "Spill it. If you lie, I can tell."

"You’re overthinking it. Now, let’s sleep." Zhou Mikang pulled open the covers, tucked her in, then got in himself, turned off the bedside lamp, stretched out his arm, and pulled her close, "Sleep."

"Hey, that’s not fair. You piqued my curiosity and now you stop talking. I’m telling you, that’s the most boring thing ever."

"..."

"Okay, I was wrong. You’re interesting, I’m the boring one. I’m just curious. I just want to know. Please, tell me."

"..."

"Don’t be silent. I’m not feeling very confident, really. Everyone used to say I’m not pretty, can’t do any work, and no one would marry me; just come out with it, give me some confidence."

"..."

"Sigh, playing dead is not the way to go. You better start talking!"

Frustrated by her own curiosity, she grabbed the sleeve he had around her and bit down hard...

When she could taste blood in her mouth and he still remained silent, Chuxia felt defeated and finally let go, dazing out into space.

"You really can’t sleep?"

"Yes, absolutely." Chuxia happily replied, "Are you going to tell me?"

"Today at the Jing Family’s, watching you and Jing Zhe chat and laugh without a care, that smile, it was genuine, utterly unguarded. It hurt me because you never smile like that with me."

"You’re pretty sensitive." Chuxia chuckled lightly, "I think of him as a brother. So, the way you feel about Zhou Xiangping, that’s how I feel about him."

"Then how do you feel about me?"

"About you..." She paused and patted him, "Alright, let’s sleep. No more talking."

Zhou Mikang: "..." Is there someone like that? Forcing others to spill their guts, and when it’s her turn, she’s so inconsiderate!

In truth, Chuxia didn’t dare to say more. She felt his body getting increasingly warmer and sensed the hardness of a certain part, and she was at a loss.

If he insisted, she wouldn’t refuse.

Yet, she would regret it. In her eyes, that sort of thing should be done only between two people who are truly in love.

Or maybe, she felt a bit of fondness for him, but love was still far away. Even when Ye Meiru came, she didn’t feel a hint of jealousy...

Zhou Mikang’s feelings were complicated.

Upon reflection, he had never truly been in love. In the past, he thought he and Ye Meiru were, but now, he knew, that wasn’t it.

Beyond being angry about Ye Meiru’s betrayal, he didn’t seem to mind her playing with other male friends, even alone.

But he knew, with Lin Chuxia, he minded.

Last night at the Jing Family’s, watching Lin Chuxia mingle so well with the Jing Family, especially when she smiled at Jing Zhe, he genuinely felt a sour sensation in his heart.

He felt embarrassed by his own reaction, a 27-year-old man getting jealous? That was the very reason he didn’t want to answer Chuxia earlier about how he knew he liked her. He truly found his own behavior embarrassing.

No, he had to ask Wang Jie someday. That guy had a clear understanding of relationships; it was him who first saw that Ye Meiru wasn’t right for him...

"Zhou Mikang, give me time to understand you. I’m serious."

Thinking Chuxia had fallen asleep a while ago, Zhou Mikang, taken aback, tightened his arm around her and snuggled his cheek against her back. Before long, his breathing had evened out...(To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for it at Qidian (qidian.com), vote for the monthly ticket, your support is my biggest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)