Mo Lingxi was not at home; she wouldn't invite the village chief, a grown man, inside.
The village chief puffed out his breath and stamped his feet, warning, "Be careful. That middle-aged man has some connections and is well-regarded by the authorities."
"This time, he's specifically targeting you. Be extra cautious tonight, you are a woman, after all."
When he came to this village to be the chief, his relatives had specifically instructed him to maintain a good relationship with the Mo family, saying that the surname Mo was not simple.
He had thought about it for a long time and finally understood that the surname Mo was more than just not simple.
How could Tao Lengshuang not see the village chief's fawning? She smiled, "Thank you, Village Chief. I will be careful tonight."
"By the way, Village Chief, did that middle-aged man mention his surname?"
The village chief said that the man didn't say anything, but his words implied that he wanted the chief to make things difficult for their family, especially for her, and that there would be benefits after the deed was done.
Tao Lengshuang's eyes flickered with uncertainty. Apart from A Qing and Sheng Li, she had not offended anyone.
Was it one of these two, or someone else?
Unable to figure it out for the moment, she pushed the matter aside and thanked the village chief.
After watching the village chief leave, she took Xiao Feng back into the house and prepared some special powders.
Since the Tao family and the middle-aged man had prepared 'gifts,' she had to return the favor properly, lest she be ungrateful for their kind intentions.
...
Before evening, Mo Lingxi returned, braving the wind and snow, carrying two large bags of supplies.
"Are you alright?"
He stood at the doorway, shaking the snow off his clothes, not entering immediately. "I heard about what happened."
Tao Lengshuang stopped Xiao Feng from rushing over. Mo Lingxi was still emanating a chill, and Xiao Feng, not yet fully recovered, could easily catch a cold if he rushed over.
"I'm fine. Your hidden guards resolved the matter."
Seeing Tao Lengshuang and her son unharmed, Mo Lingxi's suspended heart settled. "I will make proper arrangements in the future to prevent similar incidents from happening again."
Tao Lengshuang did not blame him, saying calmly, "It's treating the symptoms, not the root cause."
Mo Lingxi knew this too. To solve the problem from the root, they had to find out who the person lurking in the shadows was.
"I am investigating."
After a pause, he added, "Tomorrow, I have to go on a trip. I might be back for a while in the evening."
Tao Lengshuang understood immediately, "Be careful."
"Where is Daddy going?" Xiao Feng was very reluctant. "Can't Daddy stay at home? It's the middle of winter, it's very, very cold to go out."
Mo Lingxi also didn't want to leave, but he had to. "Xiao Feng, be good. Daddy will be back soon."
"When Daddy is not home, you must protect Mommy well and be obedient, understand?"
Xiao Feng pouted and obediently nodded in agreement.
Mo Lingxi warmed his hands and picked up Xiao Feng. "Daddy has something to do this time."
No matter how unwilling Xiao Feng was for his father to go on a trip, he knew he couldn't act up. "Then Daddy, you must come back often to see Mommy and Xiao Feng."
"Daddy, you can't keep women outside. That's very bad behavior and will hurt Mommy's feelings."
Tao Lengshuang found it both funny and exasperating. She didn't care if Mo Lingxi had women outside or kept concubines.
To her, Mo Lingxi was just a passerby in her life; eventually, they would go their separate ways.
Mo Lingxi promised Xiao Feng he wouldn't keep women outside. He didn't even have a concubine, so how could he keep women?
From childhood, women had avoided him and looked down on him.
Xiao Feng and Mo Lingxi pinky-promised, repeatedly asking him to guarantee that he would never do anything that wronged Tao Lengshuang and that he would visit them often.
Mo Lingxi agreed to everything. He looked up at Tao Lengshuang, "I will leave hidden guards behind."
"If there's anything you can't resolve or any trouble, have the hidden guards relay a message to me. If..."
"Okay," Tao Lengshuang cut him off, hooking her lips. "You should also be careful when you're out."
Mo Lingxi hummed and suddenly didn't know what to say.
For some reason, he felt a little reluctant to leave.
At this moment, some powders were stuffed into his hands. He looked at Tao Lengshuang in surprise, and ripples stirred in his heart.
"These powders are labeled with names, simple and easy to understand."
Tao Lengshuang, with a blank face, shoved another handful of powder at him. "For Xiao Feng's sake, I'm giving you these powders, but next time, I'll be charging money."
Mo Lingxi chuckled upon hearing this.
That smile was like a spring breeze suddenly blowing across a majestic snow mountain, melting the ice and snow.
It stunned Tao Lengshuang. She covered her rapidly beating chest, averted her eyes, and refused to look at Mo Lingxi, yet she couldn't help but steal glances at him.
The man's pupils were dark, his gaze profound, yet a hint of a smile flickered within them, making him incredibly handsome.
How could this man's appearance be so captivating? It was simply unfair.
"Here is fifty taels of silver notes."
Mo Lingxi handed the silver notes to her, his thin lips curving. "One of the two bags of supplies outside is for our home, and the other is for Aunt Shen Er and Aunt Wang San."
"If you lack anything, have the hidden guards buy it. Don't be stingy with money."
Tao Lengshuang suddenly withdrew her hand and clenched it with the other, as if it were burning. "Is this from Zicheng?"
Mo Lingxi was about to say it was household expenses from him.
But thinking of Tao Lengshuang's personality, he nodded.
As expected, seeing her visibly relax and accept the silver notes with a clear conscience, his mouth twitched. How unwilling was she to accept his money?
Tao Lengshuang, unaware of his thoughts, took Xiao Feng and inspected the supplies in the two bags.
There were mostly rice and flour, all of which were cheap but not the cheapest kind.
"Let's go, we should go to the Tao family for dinner."
She hid the two bags and, with Mo Lingxi and their son, went to the village chief's house.
As soon as they stepped into the village chief's house, Tao Fangfang greeted them warmly.
"Lengshuang, your family is here. Come in and sit."
Tao Fangfang, acting as the hostess, twisted her plump body and invited Tao Lengshuang's family to sit in the main hall.
She then began to show off.
"These are the teacups, teapot, and tea leaves my family just bought. I'll make some for you. I'm afraid this is your first time drinking it."
She displayed the teapot, teacups, and tea leaves repeatedly at a very slow pace, a look of pride on her face.
Tao Lengshuang rolled her eyes and snatched the teapot and tea leaves, brewing the tea roughly and quickly.
"Slow down, be careful."
Tao Fangfang dared not snatch them back, her voice changing in distress. "That's worth several taels of silver, not something you can afford to compensate for."
Mo Lingxi cast a faint glance, and Tao Fangfang dared not say another word. She stood aside, stifled and resentful, thinking that this family would have a hard time later.
After Tao Lengshuang's family had tea, Tao Fangfang said with a fake smile, "Lengshuang, why don't you let Xiao Feng go play with Da Gou and the others?"
"You're all relatives, and you're all children. You can play together."