The General's Wife Wants to Leave
Chapter 124: One day at a time

Chapter 124: One day at a time

"Don’t do that again, Joanna." Canillas’ deep voice filled the silence that hovered between them as Joanna did not respond to the treaty of reconciliation he poked.

Getting the attention of Joanna on him as she heard his words, Canillas said, "No matter how much you are angry at me because of the mistake I am too oblivious to know about, don’t ever involve another party to be the solution to our marital issue. Instead, talk to me. Tell me what I did wrong. Isn’t it better to solve a problem by discussing rather than judging blindly, which makes the situation worse than it is supposed to be?"

Canillas then rose from his seat, took the mortar on Joanna’s lap, and handed in the mortar that was filled with the grounded raspberry leaves that he had ground into the same fine powder as the lemon balm leaves, which Joanna received.

Taking a seat back in the chair, he stared at her, who also stared at him. "We can just sit together, talking about our problems, while drinking tea that is good for our health. Doesn’t it sound more enticing?" Canillas inquired, slightly raising one of his brows. His hands began to move again, grinding the last dried leaves as he saw there were no more dried leaves in the container.

Meanwhile, Joanna took a moment of silence while listening to his speech before shifting her gaze from Canillas. She collected the grounded raspberry leaves and moved them into a clean, empty jar. While doing that, she said,

"Lady Clara is not an ordinary woman. What I said about her was not a lie. There are so many gentlemen expecting her to be their wife. Sir Canillas has also seen how beautiful she is. She had also confirmed that she still kept the one dear to her heart and was willing to accept him as her husband despite the status he held. By taking Lady Clara as a wife, the one who is still in her heart will have a happy family with her and beautiful children of his blood and flesh."

Joanna gave her response calmly, explaining her reason for introducing him to the beautiful lady, which might make him change his mind about their marriage as the opportunity was widely open for him to have a better woman as wife. A woman who was not haunted by a dream that had taken her peaceful life and was not able to accept him as her husband.

There was no barrier if he would take her as wife. It was the message that Joanna tried to convey to Canillas.

Hearing the response that was stated in a calm, serene demeanor, Canillas hummed, nodding his head. "She is indeed beautiful, and I won’t play a saint by denying that. But there is a more beautiful lady than she is that I happened to see here in Barasca. So you lied to me by telling me that she is the most beautiful lady in Barasca, Joanna."

At the words she heard, which judged her for saying a lie while she was not lying, Joanna moved her gaze from the jar that was almost fully filled with ground leaves to Canillas with a frown. "I didn’t lie." Joanna retorted. "She is..."

"You."

Joanna, who was about to retort like an unleashed bull at the accusation as a lie that she could not accept, although she had claimed herself to be a liar in front of him, took an immediate pause at the single word that was said in a firm tone. With her mouth slightly agape as she had not finished retorting, Joanna’s brows furrowed more as the words that were already on the tip of her tongue were cut off.

Joanna then went silent, despite her eagerness to protest, pursing her lips while waiting for Canillas to finish his words, as she thought he was going to say more.

Joanna waited, but she only saw a small smile spread across his face without more words coming.

When Canillas did not speak after she waited for a few more seconds, Joanna resumed to argue, as she thought he might give her a way to talk first. "Lady Clara, she is..."

"It is you, Joanna." And Joanna went silent once again.

The words to defend her from the accusation of lying that had already been at the tip of her tongue were once again hanging there, along with her mouth, which was slightly agape at the longer words she heard.

"You are more beautiful than that lady in my eyes," Canillas declared, and he smiled at the blushing Joanna, who looked dumbfounded before his eyes.

"Lady Joanna von Rodega, the wife of Canillas von Rodega, is the only beautiful lady in Canillas von Rodega’s eyes," Canillas stated more complete words, which of course made Lady Joanna von Rodega close her mouth and blush more, as she now seemed to be back to her senses, able to digest what she heard.

"And I am not lying about how my wife looks in my eyes," he added.

A chuckle followed when he found the previously upset lady flustered, looking around as if finding something to do to hide her embarrassment.

Meanwhile, Joanna, who had been attacked by the sudden, subsequent praise from the man before her, was indeed flustered. For Joanna, it was an attack that she had never expected to be aimed at her.

For a moment, she felt lost and confused about what to do to respond to the attack. She could only avert her eyes anywhere but him while trying to calm her heart, which pounded hard in her chest.

"You are beautiful, Joanna. Don’t you know that?" Canillas commented with a smile when the lady he praised was still flustered, looking like she was about to escape somewhere to hide.

"No, I am not beautiful," Joanna finally responded, despite being embarrassed. "Sir Canillas doesn’t need to show responsibility as a husband to cheer me up by telling me something that is not true," Joanna uttered in a low voice.

She felt that what he was doing was for the sake of his duty and responsibility as husband, which he held strongly as if it were his principles, as Joanna had never seen herself as beautiful. Because of those principles toward marriage as well, he was not willing to annul their marriage and remarry.

"Let me tell you a few men’s perspectives about beauty, Joanna." Canillas began to enlighten his wife, to which she gingerly shifted her attention to him. "First of all, not all men want a beautiful woman as their wife. There are men who seek inner beauty rather than outer beauty." Getting her focus fixed on him, he continued,

"Secondly, every man had his own definition and perception of beauty. If most men say a lady is beautiful, it doesn’t mean that that lady is beautiful in every man’s eyes. Just like how you have a liking for food. You said that you are a picky eater, but you enjoyed the modest-looking food that was cooked in Powel Orphanage, which might not be liked by every lady out there." Canillas tried to broaden his shy wife’s mind.

"And the tea you served to me just now. You probably like a plain and bitter tea, as you served me that way. But I would like to tell you my preference, as I really hope my wife will mind making me tea every day." Canillas grinned, pausing for a moment before continuing. "I like a sweet one, just like the honey that you gave me to calm my burnt tongue," Canillas stated with a smile.

"Having a happy family with beautiful children if one marries that lady." Canillas chuckled as he resumed speaking. "Why do I have to marry that lady in order to have a happy family with beautiful children if I can have a happy family with beautiful children with my beautiful wife?"

A chuckle echoed in the gazebo when Canillas saw Joanna flustered more as she hid her blushing face through the hat she wore as she was now lowering her head while sealing the jar that was filled with the second leaf he had grounded.

"But I have told you that I don’t want to..."

"I know." Canillas cut off Joanna’s words, who was replying to him while busying herself with the tea and the jar. "I still remember it, Joanna. And I won’t urge you about that, as I have told you that I am fine with us growing older together without children."

But deep down inside his heart, Canillas believed that they still had hope to have children of their own, just like how she behaved and responded to him out of his prediction at the moment.

People tended to change, and Canillas believed that miracles would fall upon them. One day he would have his children from the beautiful, black-haired woman, who was now staring at him with her beautiful, hazel eyes.

"Let’s respect each other, Joanna," demanded Canillas. "I respect your decision about that matter. I ask you to respect me by not treating me low like you did to me with that lady." Canillas paused before adding,

"I hope what we talked about today won’t pass into nothing. You can also tell me anything that disturbs you about accepting me as your husband. You don’t need to be in a hurry if you can’t tell me that now. We still have so many times ahead of us. Let’s take one day at a time." Canillas smiled, finishing the tea of reconciliation that was for the first time made by the woman, whom he still called his wife.

He would never forget the taste of the tea that he sipped when the autumn breeze gently blew on a peaceful, bright day.