Grandma Sheng finished washing the pots, bowls, and utensils, meticulously swept the floor, and had just washed her hands and settled in the yard to rest when she saw her granddaughter burst out like a gust of wind.
Seeing her granddaughter’s face as red as a monkey’s bottom, Grandma Sheng asked worriedly, “What’s wrong?”
Sheng An didn’t notice her grandmother’s words. She kicked the stone stool a couple of times, then slapped her own face with a sharp smack:
“Why did you have to blurt that out? Why don’t you think before you speak? Are you out of your mind!”
Thinking back to the suffocating atmosphere in the study just moments before, Sheng An wished she could slap herself again.
How thoughtless did she have to be to say something like that?
At this moment, Sheng An desperately wished she could flee to Mars at top speed, unable to face Xu Jinnian’s expressionless face that somehow seemed to say everything.
Seeing her granddaughter’s outburst, Grandma Sheng seemed to guess what had happened. She glanced toward the house and decided not to interfere, instead sitting at the stone table to trim the chives.
Sheng An had been craving Chinese chive boxes, so when she went to the vegetable garden at noon to pick vegetables, she casually cut a bunch of chives and brought them back.
After venting her frustration, Sheng An finally noticed Grandma Sheng.
Feeling a bit awkward, she sat down beside her grandmother and picked up a handful of chives to trim.
Grandma Sheng glanced at her granddaughter, a smile in her eyes. “Seeing how well you and Jinnian get along puts my mind at ease.”
Sheng An paused, looking at Grandma Sheng in disbelief. “Where did you get the idea that we get along well?”
At most, she considered Xu Jinnian a roommate or a partner in their arrangement—there was no talk of feelings between them.
“You silly child, still trying to fool your grandmother? I’ve eaten more salt than you’ve eaten rice. The way you and Jinnian interact is just like an old married couple. If that’s not getting along well, what is?”
Grandma Sheng gave her granddaughter a reproachful look, feeling that Sheng An was underestimating her.
An old married couple? What nonsense was that?
Sheng An rubbed her forehead, knowing the old lady had misunderstood but unable to explain clearly. She could only mumble vaguely, “Whatever you say, Grandma.”
If it put the old lady’s mind at ease, then so be it—old married couple it was.
Even as she thought this, Sheng An couldn’t shake her discomfort.
She hadn’t even experienced the sweetness of romance, yet here she was, fast-tracked into an “old married couple” dynamic. Was that even fair?
Feeling resentful, Sheng An’s gaze unconsciously drifted through the main hall toward the study.
That certain someone’s faintly smiling face began to flicker in her mind again.
Well, considering how good-looking he was, maybe she could try a “marriage first, love later” scenario?
Although Liu Huazhi’s wild ramblings had warned her that Xu Jinnian might be a massive pitfall, that was a problem for the future.
Judging solely by his behavior recently, she felt he deserved at least an 80 out of 100. Leaving someone like that untouched felt like such a waste, and her conscience wouldn’t allow it.
What else could she do?
This wasn’t like her previous life, where couples could divorce if they had doubts about their marriage.
To put it bluntly, unless Xu Jinnian agreed, she couldn’t escape him, whether by social norms or public opinion.
In other words, in this marriage, she was the passive party.
Sheng An quickly convinced herself through this mental pep talk. She immediately tossed down the barely trimmed chives, rushed excitedly into the study, and plopped back into her original seat under Xu Jinnian’s surprised gaze.
“Xu Jinnian, continue teaching me how to write!”
It was the first time Sheng An had called him by his full name, and she suddenly found it rolled off the tongue quite smoothly.
Xu Jinnian gazed deeply at Sheng An, as if trying to discern her innermost thoughts through her eyes.
Sheng An allowed him to look, picking up the Jian Hao brush from earlier and urging him with her eyes to start teaching promptly.
Without a word, Xu Jinnian set down the book in his hand, rose once more to stand behind her, and leaned over to gently grasp her hand. His voice was low and clear: “Don’t exert force with your hand. Focus on feeling the movement of my brushstrokes.”
Sheng An’s ears grew slightly warm, and she unconsciously shifted away from the man’s presence.
Noticing her movement, a shadow crossed Xu Jinnian’s expression, though his tone remained measured: “Concentrate.”
Sheng An immediately froze, holding her breath as she listened attentively to the man’s instruction.
This teaching session lasted longer than the previous two, ending only when Xu Jinnian had to leave for his meeting with the Fuzi.
Instead of returning to her room to rest, Sheng An remained alone in the study practicing her calligraphy.
The final results were ink blots of varying sizes and irregular shapes.
Never mind—beginners always struggle like this!
Sheng An comforted herself, firmly denying any inherent academic incompetence.
That evening, worried that Grandma Sheng might struggle to sleep in an unfamiliar bed, Sheng An brought her pillow to the guest room to keep the elder company.
To her surprise, Grandma Sheng immediately shooed her away without hesitation: “You and Jinnian are still newlyweds! What would people think if you slept with an old woman like me?”
If the in-laws found out, they’d assume this half-buried old crone had no sense of propriety.
Helpless, Sheng An could only clutch her pillow and return to her own room.
Just as she lay down, the door opened and Xu Jinnian entered holding a small porcelain container.
“What’s this?”
Sheng An sat up, curiously examining the object in Xu Jinnian’s hand, unaware that her collar had loosened to reveal a generous expanse of her not-so-fair skin.
Xu Jinnian saw it clearly however, instinctively averting his gaze as he sat on the edge of the bed and opened the container. “This is moisturizing cream. It nourishes the skin—for your hands.”
As he spoke, he scooped out a generous amount with his fingertips, took Sheng An’s hand, and began carefully applying it to her palms and the back of her hand.
“I-I can do it myself.”
Sheng An tried to withdraw her hand, surprised he was applying it for her manually.
But Xu Jinnian firmly held her wrist. In the dim lamplight, his usually gentle eyes seemed to flicker with flames: “Didn’t you ask your husband about the irritation that night? How could I give you an answer without letting you experience it personally.”
Sheng An: “…”
Revenge! This was blatant revenge!
Sheng An’s face threatened to combust again, and she desperately wanted to bury herself in the blankets like an ostrich.
But having been provoked so directly, wouldn’t she be acting like a coward if she retreated now?
So Sheng An lifted her head and glared at Xu Jinnian, demanding fiercely: “What? You are disgusted? If you were so disgusted that night, why didn’t you run? You seemed plenty enthusiastic to me—almost broke my waist, mmmph—”
Her words were cut off as her mouth was sealed.
Sheng An stared in shock.
She had decided she wanted to build a proper relationship with this man, but wasn’t this progress a bit too rapid?
Xu Jinnian felt the softness against his lips, his breathing growing somewhat unsteady as exhilaration surged through him.
The gloom that had lodged in his chest yesterday vanished completely in an instant.
Both being novices at kissing, they naturally had no technique to speak of.
Sheng An stared blankly, wrestling with whether she should just push him down.
The night was young and beautiful—a heaven-sent opportunity not to be missed.
Before Sheng An could collect her thoughts, a cool sensation touched her lips as a man’s amused voice sounded by her ear: “You didn’t take an afternoon nap today, so rest early.”
Sheng An: “…”
That’s it?
Xu, are you even capable?!
Fuming with resentment, she lay down and closed her eyes angrily, facing inward to avoid looking at that infuriating person.
But then came something even more aggravating.
“Niangzi, we haven’t finished applying the moisturizing cream yet.”
Xu Jinnian took Sheng An’s left hand resting on her waist and patiently continued applying the cream with gentle care.
A delicate fragrance gradually permeated the air, adding a touch of intimacy to the quiet room.
Sheng An tried hard to pull her hand back but failed, eventually resigning herself to letting the damned man continue.
Only after both her hands were thoroughly moisturized—every crease carefully tended to—did the man release her.
Just as Sheng An thought it was over and secretly tried to withdraw under the covers to scratch her itchy back, she felt a shadow suddenly fall over her head.
Instinctively opening her eyes, she met Xu Jinnian’s smiling gaze.
“W-what are you doing?”
Her throat dry and her voice lacking strength, Sheng An questioned him, feeling as though he was mocking her.
“Nothing, sleep well.”
Xu Jinnian reached out to tidy the stray hairs on her forehead, revealing her entire face, then leaned down and pressed a kiss to her lips under her stunned gaze.
“An An, we are husband and wife.”
Xu Jinnian lifted his head, his thumb gently stroking Sheng An’s cheek, his low voice incredibly tender: “On our wedding day, I vowed in my heart to spend the rest of my life with you, growing old together by your side.”
Spend the rest of my life with you, growing old together.
Lying alone in bed, Sheng An repeated these words over and over in her mind.
She believed that when Xu Jinnian said this, he truly meant it from the bottom of his heart.
That night, Sheng An had a chaotic and brutally cruel dream.
In the dream, she cried heart-wrenchingly, as if she had lost everything overnight.
But when she was woken up the next day, Sheng An couldn’t remember what she had dreamed at all, only feeling a strong sense of suffocation in her chest that made her heart ache terribly.
In a hurry to knead dough in the kitchen, she had no time to dwell on the dream’s content, quickly getting out of bed and heading to the yard to wash up.
As usual, Xu Jinnian pushed the cart to the market while Sheng An and Grandma Sheng followed behind, carrying a bucket of bone soup between them.
Since they had nearly run out of soup base yesterday and had prepared more wonton wrappers today, Sheng An had stewed an extra bucket of bone soup.
Just like the previous day, before the soup base could be reheated, people began lining up at the stall, with the old man at the very front.
Watching Grandma Sheng bustling about, the old man cheerfully said to Sheng An: “You should’ve hired help from the first day. Just these past two days, young boss, you’ve missed out on quite a bit of money.”
Sheng An smiled: “Money can never all be earned. Besides, with such a small business, we can’t afford to hire many people.”
The old man suggested: “You could learn from Yun Ji—rent a shop dedicated to selling wontons, and maybe offer steamed buns and mantou on the side. You’d earn more in a day than by running a stall.”
But Sheng An had no intention of copying Yun Ji and replied vaguely: “We’ll see in the future.”
As always, no matter how good the wonton business was, the profits would always be limited.
She still preferred the idea of opening a proper restaurant.
As the sun gradually rose, the rich aroma once again drifted through the market. The line in front of the stall grew longer, with many people following the old man’s example by carrying bowls in their hands.
Grandma Sheng was utterly astonished, gaining a crystal-clear understanding of just how popular her granddaughter’s wonton stall was.
Even with an extra helper, Sheng An was still bustling about without a moment’s rest.
Just as she managed to send off one wave of customers and before she could catch her breath, a well-dressed, bearded middle-aged man stepped forward, cupping his hands in a respectful salute:
“Young proprietor, my surname is Yang, and I am the steward of the Ding family. My master has an important matter to discuss with you and has specially invited you to our residence for a detailed conversation.”
Behind the middle-aged man stood a young man, whom Sheng An immediately recognized as the servant who had left a piece of broken silver as a deposit yesterday before dashing off with the wontons.