“You have nothing else to say?”

“No, I don’t.” Lin Zhixia looked a little confused.

Xie Jingheng’s expression darkened as he gritted his teeth. “Did you even listen to what I just said?”

“Of course I did,” Lin Zhixia replied, not understanding how he could ask such a strange question.

There was no phone in this era to play with. They were standing face to face talking—if she wasn’t listening to him, what else could she possibly be doing?

Seeing that he remained silent and still didn’t seem to trust her, Lin Zhixia repeated helplessly,

“You said that money, ration coupons, jade jewelry, gold jewelry, and even the car can’t be taken with us.”

“But washbasins, soap, towels… those things can be brought.”

“Did I get that right?”

Xie Jingheng nodded, looking at her with complicated eyes.

She hadn’t made a scene.

Did she really not care… or was she planning something else?

Lin Zhixia, unaware of his complicated thoughts, suddenly said, thinking about the fact that they had to move today,

“Are we starting to pack now?”

As she spoke, she opened the wardrobe.

Her face immediately turned dark.

The original owner had far too many clothes. The closet was packed full, messy and disorganized, and just looking at it gave her a headache.

Moreover, wool coats, fashionable lace dresses, and flared skirts—none of these were suitable for the countryside.

But… these clothes were expensive. It would be such a waste to just leave them here.

Then an idea struck her.

She remembered that aside from her only true friend Xiaoyu, the original owner also had a few superficial “friends.”

Their husbands weren’t as wealthy or powerful as the Xie family, and they were always secretly jealous of the original owner, who could freely spend money on beautiful clothes.

She could sell these clothes to them at a low price in exchange for money, ration coupons, and medicine that would be useful in the countryside.

However, there were simply too many clothes—so many colors, styles, and layers that just looking at them made her dizzy. Let alone folding and organizing them one by one.

Lin Zhixia sighed and rubbed her belly.

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Xie Jingheng standing there.

Instantly, a brilliant idea formed.

She was pregnant—she couldn’t overwork herself. Of course, the baby’s father had to help pack.

She turned to him confidently and said,

“I’m pregnant, so I can’t do heavy work. Help me pack my clothes.”

Xie Jingheng nodded. He had no objection to such a small request.

“Which clothes are you taking?”

Lin Zhixia smiled sweetly and pointed at the wardrobe.

“All of them.”

Xie’s grandmother’s old house had a layout of only two bedrooms and one living room, about 50 square meters.

There was no way these three full wardrobes of clothes would fit.

Frowning, he said,

“Grandma’s house is small. There’s no space for so many clothes.”

“Pick the ones you like.”

Afraid she would make a fuss, he added,

“Once we earn money later, I’ll buy new ones for you.”

“Just pack them first. I have a plan,” Lin Zhixia said with a playful smile, deliberately keeping it a secret.

She wanted to surprise him.

Also, she wasn’t 100% sure those people would actually buy the clothes. If they didn’t, she would be embarrassed after making such bold claims.

Xie Jingheng glanced at her, suspicion in his eyes, but he said nothing.

He turned and took all the clothes out of the wardrobe, placing them on the bed.

In just two minutes, the neat bed was covered with a mountain of clothes.

Just as he was about to start folding them, Lin Zhixia suddenly stopped him.

“Wait a moment.”

Then Xie Jingheng watched as she selected all the expensive, fashionable, brightly colored coats and dresses—the ones she usually wore and loved the most.

They made up almost two-thirds of the pile.

Confused, he suddenly heard her next words—and his expression instantly turned cold.

“Pack these separately in a bag. I have somewhere to store them. The rest should fit in Grandma’s house, right?”

Xie Jingheng followed her finger and looked at the remaining clothes on the bed.

Most of them where items Lin Zhixia rarely wore—some still had tags on.

A wave of irritation surged in his chest.

He grabbed her wrist and questioned her,

“Lin Zhixia, what exactly are you trying to do?”

Only after grabbing her did, he subconsciously loosen his grip, remembering how delicate her skin was and how easily it marked.

“What?” Lin Zhixia looked puzzled.

She didn’t understand which of her words had triggered his sensitivity again.

“These are the clothes you don’t like. Many of them you’ve never even worn.”

Seeing her still pretending, Xie Jingheng pointed at the other pile, his voice cold,

“And those—the ones you do like. Where are you planning to take them?”

“To that man’s house?”

After a moment of silence, Lin Zhixia suddenly smiled brightly.

She stepped closer, looking straight into his eyes.

“Are you thinking I’m planning to run away with these clothes? That’s why you’re acting all awkward and angry?”

“You care about me that much?”

Xie Jingheng looked away uncomfortably, stubbornly replying,

“Who cares about you? Stop being so full of yourself!”

“I just don’t want you forgetting you’re already married and embarrassing yourself!”

The next second—

He froze.

He looked up in disbelief.

“Xie Jingheng,” Lin Zhixia said seriously, “maybe I didn’t explain clearly enough before, so listen carefully.”

“I will go down to the countryside with you.”

“Wherever you are, I will be there.”

“So please… try to trust me, okay?”

After a long pause, Xie Jingheng suddenly snapped out of it.

His expression darkened completely as he almost growled,

“Lin Zhixia, that joke isn’t funny!”

“I’m not joking,” she replied helplessly.

Xie Jingheng’s voice turned colder.

“The countryside is harsh. Life there is nothing like what you have now—not even one-tenth as good.”

“You’ll eat coarse grain buns, wild vegetable porridge. You’ll sleep on mud stoves, walk on dirt roads, smell chicken waste. Bathing means heating water in buckets. Clothes must be washed by the river. Toilets are just wooden pit latrines. You—”

Lin Zhixia reached out and covered his mouth, looking directly into his eyes.

“I know. I know all of it.”

“I know life there will be hard.”

“I know it can’t compare to the city.”

“But…”

“The place where you are is our home—mine and the baby’s. The only person we can rely on is you.”

“And I believe you won’t let us suffer. You won’t let me and the baby go hungry.”

Xie Jingheng stared at her silently.

Inside him, however, it was already like a storm exploding over a calm shore—completely impossible to settle.