Newlywed young couple, yet endlessly poor, poor, poor, poor, poor.
The moonlight shone upon the young girl’s face. In the past, her eyes had always shone brightly; even in the dim twilight, Pei Xiuwen could see the dancing radiance within them. But today, despite her best efforts to conceal it, Pei Xiuwen could still sense a trace of desolation.
“It’s nothing much… I was just worrying about you.”
Shen Mingyu took his hand. “Pei Lang, these days you stay up copying texts until the dead of night. You won’t even rest for a single moment, and I’m afraid you’ll exhaust yourself and ruin your health.”
The night breeze was like intoxicant, quietly smoothing away every corner. Pei Xiuwen’s long eyelashes fluttered as he silently gazed at her.
From the moment he poured out his entire savings and decided to marry and start a family, he had long since stopped caring about these things—
Yet even if he didn’t care, someone else did. This person warmed hot meals for him, washed his clothes, and mended his garments; no matter how windy or rainy it was, there was always her figure holding an umbrella and waiting for him outside the courtyard gate. Pei Xiuwen lowered his gaze, pondering for a long while before finally pulling her gently into his arms with both a-rms.
“Mingyu, I’m fine. I’m not tired.”
He lowered his head, pressing his cheek against her soft neck: “Don’t worry. Once this period passes, things will quiet down a bit.”
“How could you not be tired?”
Shen Mingyu poked her head out from his embrace and said earnestly, “Your health is the foundation of everything. Pei Lang, you aren’t allowed to take on work day and night anymore, or else I’ll really be upset.”
With her round face puffed up in mild anger, it was the first time Pei Xiuwen had heard her use the word “upset.” He was momentarily stunned, finding it both amusing and adorable. Still, he agreed to it.
“Alright, I’ll listen to you. I’ll listen to everything you say.”
Only then did Shen Mingyu nod reluctantly, lunging forward to hug him softly like a little rabbit.
Pei Xiuwen caught her firmly and steadily, then smiled, holding her very, very tightly.
At that time, the wind swept the tree blossoms across the sky, and the moonlight filled the air, as still as the boundless ocean, as though all the worldly grit had vanished into the dust. Yet the only thing on their minds was staying by each other’s side, walking through this lifetime even if it meant a long, gentle stream.
After a spell of intimate tender entanglement that night, Shen Mingyu’s delicate cheeks bloomed with a rosy flush like a ripe peach as she leaned in her husband’s embrace.
A burst of hot breath rose from the crown of her head. Pei Xiuwen’s face was even redder than hers, his strong arms tightly clasping her waist. Leaning against the head of the bed, he closed his eyes slightly, breathing lightly to recover from the overwhelming wave of passion just passed.
“Do you want it again, Mingyu?” Pei Xiuwen stroked her soft hair, reluctant to let go.
Shen Mingyu shook her head.
He could only let out a regretful sigh.
Pei Xiuwen had always considered himself an upright gentleman and was certainly not someone who would make unreasonable demands.
Thus, he could only pull her even tighter into his arms.
Afterward, as the hibiscus bed curtains stayed warm and the candlelight flickered softly, Shen Mingyu always liked to murmur things during these cozy and leisurely moments. At this moment, she leaned lazily against that sturdy chest, holding Pei Xiuwen’s waist and chattering intermittently about the day’s events.
They were all trivial, minor matters, but Pei Xiuwen listened to them earnestly.
In the past, there was only him in this home, and whenever the cold quilts left him shivering in isolation, he would always curl himself into a ball, staring out the window at the lonely, prolonged night. But now it was different; Shen Mingyu’s presence seemed to illuminate the entire cold night.
Shen Mingyu brought up what she had heard from Aunt Zhao. In the end, she opened her large, clear eyes and asked him, “Then when you studied early and late every day back then, you only slept less than two hours?”
Pei Xiuwen: “Mm.”
“It’s just a pity that you didn’t have much money later, so you had to do all sorts of odd jobs and couldn’t go to school anymore.”
“Is studying really that useful?”
Remembering today, Zhou Guan had spoken of her days at the school, discussing poetry and prose with others and reciting compositions effortlessly.
Those words and phrases burrowed into her mind, obscure like clouds and mist. Though Shen Mingyu couldn’t understand them, she knew they must represent scholarly knowledge and refined grace.
She asked Pei Xiuwen out of curiosity, yet at the same time found it hard to believe. A flicker passed through her eyes, and quietly falling alongside it was even a trace of envy that she herself hadn’t realized.
Yet, rolling her pitch-black eyes and twisting her fingers, she muttered, “It’s not all that useful either. There’s a herd boy in my village who didn’t know how to read either, but when he grew up, he followed his second uncle down the waterways to do business and made so, so much money—even more than a Xiucai…”
Shen Mingyu lowered her gaze, glittering like ripples of water. Suddenly, she was pulled back into Pei Xiuwen’s embrace.
Pei Xiuwen didn’t deny it; instead, he stroked her head and said gently, “It’s hard to say whether one earns more or less. In our Pingyang County, there is no shortage of poor scholars who have studied all their lives, nor is there any shortage of self-made merchants. But reading and learning characters can indeed make a person enlightened.”
Shen Mingyu pondered these words carefully. Suddenly, her eyes met Pei Xiuwen’s gaze.
His expression was exceptionally earnest: “Yu-niang, do you want to study?”
That look seemed to possess a piercing clarity, and Shen Mingyu instinctively avoided it. Yet feeling as though some unsightly secret had been peeked at, she broke out in nervous perspiration: “No, no, I don’t! I have too many things on my hands! There’s endless work to do, so where would I find the spare energy for these impractical things? Besides, it costs a lot of silver, and even if you spend the energy to learn it, you can’t take the Xiucai examination. Pei Lang, please don’t make fun of me.”
She hurriedly wriggled out of his embrace, lay down, and dutifully rolled herself up tightly inside the quilt.
Pei Xiuwen blew out the lamp and finally said in a low voice, “Sleep, Yu-niang. Tomorrow I’m free, so I’ll take you to the county market to do some shopping.”
Before her eyes lay pitch-black darkness, and she could no longer see anything.
With her back turned to him, Shen Mingyu felt warm all over, and a wave of joy kneaded its way into her heart—she had wanted to go out for a long time; the county town was lively, and she loved visiting markets. But Pei Lang had been too busy, and she hadn’t dared to bring it up. She never expected that she would actually get the chance.
It was truly a night of sweet dreams.
…
Due to her excessive excitement, Shen Mingyu hardly slept the entire night. Her heart fluttered restlessly, wishing she could open her eyes to find it already morning.
The next day, when she faced Pei Xiuwen with dark circles under her eyes, he was stunned for a moment: “Yu-niang… did you not sleep well? If not, we can go tomorrow; it’s not like a day or two matters.”
Shen Mingyu hurriedly rubbed her eyes: “No, Pei Lang, I’m full of energy.”
Pei Xiuwen fell silent for a moment.
In the end, he still took her hand and went out.
The things they bought weren’t considered many, mainly items the household lacked that were difficult to purchase in the village. Passing by a wheaten food stall, Pei Xiuwen first ordered a large bowl of wontons.
When the hot, steaming broth was served, Shen Mingyu blew on it and scooped up a thin-skinned dumpling. The fresh, sweet aroma of meat mixed with scallion broth instantly burst across the tip of her tongue. She quickly scooped another one and brought it to Pei Xiuwen’s lips: “Hurry and taste this, it’s so delicious, and it’s still hot.”
“You eat it. I’m not hungry; my stomach is still full.”
The aroma of scallions drilled incessantly into his nostrils. In a blind spot where Shen Mingyu couldn’t see, he gently touched his belly.
Pei Xiuwen looked away, casting his gaze toward the distant bustling crowds.
Leaving the wheaten food stall, the two intended to buy some medicinal ingredients. On the way, Shen Mingyu noticed a jewelry shop.
There were quite a few small stalls and shops selling jewelry, but in all her sixteen years of life, this was the largest signboard Shen Mingyu had ever seen, and the entire shop was built with a lavish, antique elegance. Out of curiosity, her gaze lingered a bit longer.
“Do you want to go inside and take a look?” Pei Xiuwen suddenly stopped and held her hand.
Shen Mingyu felt her pouch; there were only a few small copper coins inside, so she immediately shook her head: “Let’s not look, Pei Lang. We’re pressed for time and need to leave the city before dark.”
“Let’s go inside and take a look. We’re not that short on time.”
In the end, Pei Xiuwen pulled her into the shop.
The shopkeeper quickly noticed them; the young gentleman wore a light gray cloth robe, the only otherworldly thing about him being his face, while the young wife wore a thorn hairpin and plain cloth skirt, her bright eyes wide with occasional gasps of astonishment as she entered.
The shop is filled with exquisite pearl hairpins and jewelry. Glancing across them all, Shen Mingyu’s eyes were practically dazzled.
She caught sight of a set of hair accessories on the counter, among which was a translucent, exquisite red bracelet of exceptionally fine texture. It suddenly reminded her of the yellow jadeite she had seen at Zhou Guan’s place yesterday, which had the same style, except that the red bracelet’s texture was even clearer and more translucent.
When Zhou Guan talked about it with others yesterday, her eyes were practically turned up to the sky, and without even looking at people, she would just wave her hand to flash that shimmering yellow bracelet—worth a full five taels.
Shen Mingyu didn’t even dare to imagine how expensive this red bracelet must be.
Shen Mingyu only glanced at it, and just as she was about to move her feet away, the shopkeeper suddenly spoke: “The young lady has such a discerning eye! This jade is red chalcedony mined in Tibet, and it matches that set of accessories. The bracelet wasn’t meant to be sold separately, but if the young lady truly likes it very much, selling it by itself can be managed.”
“How much for just the bracelet?” Pei Xiuwen asked.
“Twelve taels.”
Shen Mingyu’s eyes widened, and even her two slender eyebrows knitted together involuntarily. It was enough to buy two yellow bracelets.
The Zhou family was already a very wealthy household. A casual splash of wealth by the Zhou family amounted to a year’s food rations for an ordinary person in the village. Shen Mingyu’s brain short-circuited; she could hardly fathom what kind of family could afford to wear a bracelet worth more than a dozen taels. Wouldn’t it feel too heavy on the wrist to get any work done?
“Pei Lang, I think the jewelry on that counter over there is very nice too.” She immediately tugged at Pei Xiuwen’s sleeve.
Unlike the middle, the jewelry on the counter on the other side appeared smaller, and the workmanship was relatively simpler.
This looked more like something they could actually afford.
Seeing Shen Mingyu pick up a small silver-gilded orchid hairpin, the shopkeeper chimed in again: “My lady has such a sharp eye, this hairpin is lovely too. Look, it even has a small piece of malachite inlaid at the top as an accent. This whole row of items sells the best in our shop. If you want it, you can take it for five hundred wen.”
Five hundred wen… so expensive.
Shen Mingyu could hear the sound of her own heart aching.
Yet she only glanced at it and decisively put it back down.
“Pei Lang, these pieces of jewelry are just so-so, nothing special. Let’s go, we shouldn’t delay this person’s business.”
Seeing that the customers were about to leave, the shopkeeper panicked and hurried to shout: “Young lady, if you really like that red chalcedony bracelet, I can discount it and give it to you for ten taels! Consider it building a connection of good karma!”
The figures walked straight past the threshold.
Unable to persuade them to stay, the shopkeeper scoffed disdainfully and went back to clicking his abacus: “Poor! Clearly they can’t afford it! And yet they claim they don’t like it.”
…
Naturally, they didn’t hear the shopkeeper’s muttering, but Pei Xiuwen glanced back at the direction of that shop several times.
Shen Mingyu tugged him forward, chattering as they walked: “I didn’t even have the face to say it back in the shop, Pei Lang. I feel like every single item was way too overpriced. They were obviously trying to cheat people, and we mustn’t fall for it.”
“Really, I’m not making things up. Some of that jewelry—my mother had the exact same ones, and the price there was only thirty percent of this shop’s.”
Pei Xiuwen finally smiled faintly and took her hand: “Mm, we won’t get tricked.”
Having spent two hundred wen today, they bought many things and strolled around for a long time. Shen Mingyu felt this day was especially fulfilling, and as she walked along the road, she couldn’t help humming a little tune softly.
The young girl had exceptional eyesight, and while strolling, she inadvertently caught sight of a notice board by the roadside, plastered with papers of all sizes.
However, when she caught a distant glimpse of one of the portraits, her face turned pale.
It was only an extremely brief glance, as if it were entirely unrelated. Soon, the young girl resumed her sweet, gentle smile.
Yet Pei Xiuwen keenly detected his wife’s anomaly.
She was afraid.