Chapter 76

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“I’ve got it!”

As Liu Jun entered the county town and arrived at his home, Lu Xueqi greeted him and immediately told him a big piece of news. This news caught him off guard and also made him feel somewhat surprised. It had only been a little over a month since he last left, and they had only been living together for a few days before he left.

"Could it be that you’re pregnant in less than two months?"

"My period hasn’t come for a while," Lu Xueqi added, with a look of happiness on her face. Liu Jun couldn't help but chuckle; the absence of her period didn't necessarily mean she was pregnant. This was clearly just a guess without any basis, but Liu Jun didn't want to ruin the atmosphere at this moment.

Liu Jun leaned down and kissed her on the cheek, and two red clouds appeared on Lu Xueqi's face. "Oh, we're in the courtyard, someone might see us."

"So what if someone sees us? You are my wife, the mother of my child. It's natural for a husband to kiss his wife, and no one can say anything about it."

Lu Xueqi loved hearing this and felt a sweet warmth in her heart.

"When are you going to propose to my family? If you wait a few more months, my belly will show, and I won't be able to face anyone."

"Don't worry, I'll go to your family tomorrow morning to propose. This time, I'll ask Gong Ji to help me with the matchmaking."

Lu Xueqi was pleasantly surprised and lightly tapped Liu Jun's chest with her fist a few times. "I thought you had forgotten about it. You were away for over a month and didn't come back."

"There were a lot of things to do in the team," Liu Jun said without going into details. After all, things like bandit suppression were very dangerous, and telling her would only make her worry.

Liu Jun let go of Lu Xueqi and picked up a bag from the ground.

"Open it, do you like it?"

Lu Xueqi opened the bag, and a rainbow of light shone out. Inside were several pieces of jewelry made of gold, silver, jade, and pearls, including gold hairpins, jade pendants, and pearl necklaces, about seven or eight pieces in total, all very beautiful. Lu Xueqi, though from a wealthy family and used to seeing many things, recognized that these items were quite valuable. For example, the pearl necklace, where each pearl was the same size, would cost at least a hundred taels of silver.

"Too expensive!" Lu Xueqi exclaimed in surprise.

"Do you like it?"

Lu Xueqi nodded, "I like it, I like everything."

The maids, Yaoyao and Bao'er, had been watching from the side. They hadn't come over when they saw Liu Jun kissing Xueqi, but now that he was giving her jewelry, they couldn't resist running over. Each of them picked up a piece, marveling and praising it.

Liu Jun, seeing this, took out two small boxes from his pocket and handed one to each of them. "I won't forget you. Each of you take one."

Bao'er, who was closer to Liu Jun, took the box without hesitation and immediately opened it. Inside was a pair of equally beautiful pearl earrings.

"Wow, so beautiful, Second Master, are these really for us?"

"If you don't like them, you can give them back to me," Liu Jun said with a smile. Bao'er immediately twisted her body and hid the earrings behind her back. "Once given, there's no taking back." She then called to Yaoyao, "Sister Yaoyao, help me put them on."

The two maids were overjoyed, and Liu Jun smiled as he held Xueqi's hand and led her into the house. Although they had been apart for over a month, everything at home was fine, with Bao'er's family and Yaoyao taking good care of things.

"Big Sister often comes to see me," Xueqi said shyly to Liu Jun. She had left home by climbing over the wall to live with her beloved in the county town, having a home but not daring to return. She was always worried about not being accepted by her in-laws, but fortunately, in the past month, although her in-laws hadn't come, her sister-in-law had visited several times, and the other sisters-in-law had also come, all treating her very well and bringing gifts, chatting happily with her each time.

"Big Sister is very nice. By the way, haven't your parents come?"

Xueqi shook her head, "The steward has come a few times, each time bringing a lot of things."

Liu Jun nodded. This situation was not bad. Perhaps Lu's parents were angry that their only daughter had left home in such a manner, but they were still her parents and just couldn't bring themselves to face it. However, since they hadn't taken her away and had the steward frequently bring food and supplies, it meant that Lu's parents had basically accepted their relationship.

What was missing now was the formal proposal and the presentation of the betrothal gifts.

"Tomorrow we'll go to your family together."

Xueqi nodded.

Shortly after, Li Chunjiang, Zhang Shan, and others came to visit. Liu Jun called Bao'er's father to order food at the restaurant and also had Xueqi meet the guests. Li Chunjiang, Zhang Shan, and the others were all Liu Jun's brothers, so Xueqi didn't need to avoid them. Donggouzi and Gousheng, who were also with Liu Jun, were greatly surprised to see their captain living with an unmarried woman, but even more surprised when they saw how beautiful the captain's wife was.

The group was chatting in the courtyard when Bao'er's father came to report.

"Master, a young lady has come to visit, saying she is your friend." Bao'er's father's expression was somewhat strange when he said "friend."

Liu Jun couldn't imagine who this female friend could be.

Before he could go out to see, the person had already entered.

It was none other than Li Zhen, accompanied by two maids and two servants. When Liu Jun saw her, he couldn't help but feel a headache. This girl was simply abnormal. He had saved her life, and now she was clinging to him. Last time, when he was on leave in the Queen's City, she had insisted on following him, but Liu Jun had refused.

But he hadn't expected that as soon as he got home, she would show up. What was going on? Shouldn't they be in the camp in the Queen's City?

Lu Xueqi also noticed Li Zhen's arrival and saw the somewhat peculiar expressions on Liu Jun and the others' faces. She immediately felt a sense of unease and, looking at the equally beautiful woman, a wave of jealousy rose in her heart, making her feel threatened.

"Second Master, who is this young lady?" Lu Xueqi asked.

Liu Jun was about to answer, but Li Zhen spoke first, smiling and looking at Lu Xueqi. "Sister, you must be Jun's fiancée, Xueqi, right?"

Lu Xueqi wasn't impressed by her smile and just looked at her with a puzzled expression.

"Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Zhen, my nickname is Shiniang, and my surname is Li." Li Zhen smiled and then added, "I am Jun's concubine in the Queen's City."

"Concubine!"

One word, and the sky and earth seemed to collide.

Lu Xueqi's entire face changed, her fair face turning cold, her eyebrows rising.

A killing intent, a very strong killing intent.

Liu Jun wished he could tear Li Zhen's mouth apart. What nonsense are you talking? Jokes aren't played like this. Concubine, what concubine? Have I even touched your hand or a single hair on your head? And you call yourself a concubine.

"Alright, don't joke with people you don't know." Liu Jun glared at Li Zhen and then carefully explained to Lu Xueqi, "Qiqi, this Miss Li was kidnapped by a group of bandits. We happened to be on a bandit suppression mission in the mountains and rescued her. Miss Li likes to joke, so don't take it seriously."

Lu Xueqi's expression improved slightly. "Oh, I see."

But at this moment, Li Zhen, who seemed to enjoy the drama, refused to admit it was a joke. "Jun, don't hide it. I believe Sister Xueqi is an open-minded person. Let's be honest with her today. I believe she can accept me. Sister Xueqi, don't worry. Although I like Jun, I know the order of things and will respect you as the senior wife. You will be the one in charge at home."

"Go to hell!" Liu Jun couldn't help but curse.

"Don't listen to her. She was kidnapped and the coachman and servants were killed by the bandits. She was quite traumatized, so her mind is a bit off."

But Lu Xueqi no longer believed Liu Jun. Saying Li Zhen was mentally unstable, but she seemed fine, speaking clearly, and didn't appear to have any issues.

Lu Xueqi had already decided that this woman who had come to the door must be someone Liu Jun had been involved with outside. As a woman who had received good moral education, she could accept that her man might socialize or even have other women outside. But as long as he didn't bring them home, it was fine.

But now, she had been living here for a little over a month, and a woman had already come to the door, and so openly and confidently, which really made her angry.

With a cold snort, Lu Xueqi turned and walked away, and the maids, Bao'er and Yaoyao, quickly followed.

Liu Jun called out to Lu Xueqi a few times, but she ignored him and walked away without looking back. Liu Jun turned to his brothers, who were watching the drama, and felt a deep frustration. He glared at Li Zhen, his face full of anger.

"Jokes have their limits, and you've gone too far."

"I've already recognized her as my senior, and I agreed to it. Why is she still like this? She's not very open-minded at all." Li Zhen still had that smile on her face.

"Why did you come here?"

"I asked you to take me with you, but you left me in the Queen's City and ran away. I had no choice but to come here myself. I came a few days ago, but I knew you weren't here, so I didn't come to the door. As soon as I heard you were back, I came over immediately." Li Zhen said with a smug look.

"Sister, what's wrong with you? Stop纠缠 me, okay?" Liu Jun said helplessly.

These words were quite hurtful, but Liu Jun was indeed annoyed with her. Her behavior had already affected his life, and he had to speak harshly.

Li Zhen's smile froze, and her face turned dark.

"Do you really hate me that much?"

"Yes," Liu Jun said resolutely.

"Liu Jun, you bastard, I hate you!" Li Zhen burst into tears, stomped her foot, and ran out of the house, with the maids and servants calling after her. In a moment, they were out of sight.

Li Chunjiang said, "You really hurt that girl's heart."

Liu Jun shrugged. "With someone like her, there's no other way. It's better for her to leave and for things to be peaceful."

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