Her soul seemed to have left her as she listlessly returned to Xihui Courtyard. Yue Ning hung her head in dejection, plopping down on the steps with a heavy sigh. She blinked, lifting her face to the sky, where the stars had once again emerged. Did his wife also despise him? He knew he was not smart. His eldest brother was all mysterious, doing who-knows-how-many good deeds outside, but the eldest brother was impressive. Although the second brother was ailing, he knew a lot about many things—music, chess, calligraphy, painting, almost masterful in everything. Third Brother was good at doing business, fourth brother was better at hunting than him, and Little Liu was thoughtful and meticulous, taking care of his wife in every possible detail. Thinking this way, it seemed that he was the most useless one in the whole family. His wife must have disdained him, so today was the fifth day, and according to what second brother had said, following the family hierarchy, it should be his turn. But because his wife despised him and didn’t like him, was that why she was gone? Was this getting the cold shoulder or was this a soft rejection? The more he thought, the more downhearted he became; brooding, he rested his arms on his knees and buried his face between them, not even wanting to see the stars anymore. "Yue Ning?" Dong Huiying, stepping out the door, was a bit baffled at the sight of Liang Yuening sitting outside the house. She had had a stomach upset after dinner and had gone to the latrine. Afterwards, she had assumed that, as on previous nights, someone would come over, but Yue Ning was nowhere to be seen. She was still puzzled and could not help but think a bit too much, yet she had not expected to find Yue Ning outside her door. Noticing his body was stiff with cold, his face almost purple from the chilly wind, she quickly reached out to pull him up, only to find him staring straight at her, sniffling hard. "You’re avoiding me!" "You, just like Mother, you must also despise me." "You want them, you don’t want me!" Liang Yuening felt much aggrieved; since he was young, he was never the favored one. His mother did not like him, his temperament was not good, and apart from his own brothers, others did not like him either. He blinked his eyes, which were a bit sore, and then, as if angry, he pouted and turned around. "Wait a minute?" She quickly tugged at him, Dong Huiying asked with a puzzled face, "What are you sulking about now? When did I avoid you? When have I ever despised you?" "Then why couldn’t I find you?" "I’ve been in the room the whole time." "You weren’t there, you’re a liar!" Dong Huiying: "..." Why was it suddenly impossible to argue with reason? "Hold on, hold on, let’s sort this out properly!" And so, the two of them hashed it out in the cold air at the doorstep. Eventually, everything was explained clearly: it seemed that when his wife went to the latrine, the two just happened to miss each other. He became uneasy again, looking at her with the forlorn eyes of a begging, big dog, "So, you really weren’t avoiding me, and you didn’t despise me?" She was still confused, "Why would I avoid or despise you?" If she really had those thoughts, she wouldn’t be here. Liang Yuening instantly cheered up, he was easy to appease, as long as she smiled at him, no, even imagined her smiling—as long as she paid attention to him, unlike his mother who used to ignore his presence, he would be delighted. So, he hugged her tightly, his arms squeezing so hard that they hurt her bones a little. "You said it yourself!" Lifting her by the waist, he cheerfully carried her back into the room. He first set her down on the brick bed, then grabbed a blanket to wrap around her, and dashed off to shut the door. When he returned, his eyes shone brightly. "Wife, wife..." His speech was broken and slightly stammered, but it was clear he was immensely happy.