Holding a rake for gathering firewood, Yuhe replied, “Mother, I noticed we’re out of pine needles and fallen leaves for lighting the stove fire. I’ll go gather some and bring them back.”
“I’m taking Yun’er with me, so please don’t worry.”
Yun’er had been longing to head up the mountain to pick wild fruit anyway, so she readily agreed without a second thought.
Momo, the dog, trotted closely behind the young woman and little girl.
Inside Shuhuai’s room, the door stood half-ajar; he had heard every single word exchanged between Yuhe and Lady Cui. Thus, when Lady Cui brought the pouch into his room, he showed not the slightest hint of surprise.
“Mother, return the silver to her,” Shuhuai said calmly. “I have money of my own.”
Seeing her son refuse to take it, Lady Cui grew somewhat vexed. “What you have is yours! Since she wants to return it to you, just take it! There are still plenty of places where we need silver.”
“In the past, it was precisely because you doted on her too much that she developed such a lazy, self-indulgent nature.”
“Besides, she won’t be staying in our household forever anyway; just consider this payment for her living expenses during this period.”
“Once you marry Yunluo in the future, you must learn your lesson. No matter how much you love a woman, you cannot spoil her endlessly,” Lady Cui added firmly. “You must make sure she covers her own share of expenses.”
Lady Cui thrust the pouch into Shuhuai’s hand and turned to leave. Before she could even step out of the room, however, she heard a sharp, heavy thud as Shuhuai set the pouch firmly down onto his writing desk.
“Mother, do not speak of past matters ever again,” Shuhuai said, his voice laced with clear displeasure. “I do not want this silver. Take it back.”
This was the very first time Shuhuai had ever contradicted Lady Cui. She froze in place, startled. Seeing how adamantly he refused to accept it, she had no choice but to tuck the pouch into her own robes.
The forest atop the hill by Red Leaf Village served as a natural divide, separating them from the neighboring Qingshui Bay.
Local villagers frequently came here to chop firewood. It wasn’t far from Shuhuai’s home—just two winding turns up the slope.
Most people in Red Leaf Village ostracized the Xie family. Every time Lady Cui or Shuhuai went up the mountain to cut firewood, they were subjected to a barrage of ridicule from the villagers. Unwilling to trade harsh words with others, mother and son gradually stopped going up the mountain altogether, relying mostly on purchased firewood to supply their home.
However, if Yuhe went to gather firewood, no one dared to mock her to her face; at most, they would grumble a few complaints behind her back.
A strong gust of wind had blown through the previous night, allowing Yuhe to swiftly fill a whole bamboo back-basket with dry pine needles. She also picked plenty of wild fruit for Yun’er, and the two headed home in high spirits.
As Yuhe paused to rest on a set of stone steps, a man approached them from the opposite direction.
He wore a long cotton robe, possessed refined and handsome features, and carried a book in his hand.
Yun’er bounded forward in delight. “Uncle Zhu!”
Zhu Jinwen’s expression softened as he stroked the young girl’s head gently. “Yun’er, where have you been?”
“I went out with Auntie to gather firewood!”
Upon catching sight of Yuhe, Jinwen’s expression instantly shifted, turning dark and cold.
Jinwen and Shuhuai had been close classmates and friends for many years, so he visited the Xie household often. Naturally, he was well aware of the bitter grievances between Yuhe and Shuhuai.
Yuhe extended a polite invitation, “Young Master Zhu, why are you in such a hurry? Why not come to our home for lunch before taking your leave?”
“I must return to the academy to attend lectures,” Jinwen replied stiffly. “I shall take my leave.”
Yuhe noticed that the book in his hand was none other than The Doctrine of the Mean, one of the Four Books, which only deepened her growing suspicion.
Back when Shuhuai failed the provincial examinations, she had pawned off his core set of Four Books in a fit of rage. When Li Yunluo brought books over last time, Yuhe had assumed those were the exam texts Yunluo had repurchased for him.
“Young Master Zhu, wait a moment—is that book yours?”
Jinwen was already annoyed by her presence. Hearing her pry with question after question, he lost his patience entirely. “Naturally it is mine! Weren’t Shuhuai’s Four Books pawned off by you long ago?”
“Why must Mistress Lin ask such a redundant question?”
There were plenty of people who disliked Yuhe, so she couldn’t care less about an outsider’s cold attitude.
Hearing him mention the academy, she ignored his obvious annoyance and pressed further, “At your Ruxiang Academy, is there a Master Chen? He was once a successful imperial scholar who served in the imperial court for many years.”
Jinwen looked at her in complete astonishment.
Judging by the shocked look on his face, she knew her guess had hit the mark.
Having obtained the answer she sought, Yuhe ceased bothering him any further.
“I shall trouble Young Master Zhu no longer. Have a safe journey.”
Zhu Jinwen cast her a baffled, bewildered look before hastily taking his leave.
Shuhuai’s failure in the provincial examinations had nothing to do with his scholarly talent; rather, it was tied directly to his family’s background. Someone had deliberately thwarted his path to becoming a gongshi, wanting to keep him contained at the status of a juren.
These conspirators were the very same powerful and influential faction that had framed his father years ago. Shuhuai had simply been no match for them.
However, his future turning point lay precisely with this Master Chen.
Yuhe returned home absentmindedly and put away the firewood. By then, Lady Cui had already finished cooking lunch.
Having little appetite today, Yuhe retired to the west room first. She was completely at a loss as to how she could convey this vital information to Shuhuai without rousing his suspicion, all while helping him steer clear of unnecessary detours and keeping him from risking his life in the capital.
In her past life, once Shuhuai learned the truth, he had taken immense risks and navigated countless hardships before finally reaching Master Chen’s father-in-law—Meng Shangrong, the Senior Tutor to the Crown Prince. As a thoroughly incorruptible official, Lord Meng had gone out of his way during the provincial examinations three years later to ensure Shuhuai reached the palace examinations safely.
Yet, Lord Meng’s protection had come with a single condition: Shuhuai had to enroll in Ruxiang Academy so that his son-in-law, Chen Jinzhan, could closely observe and test Shuhuai’s talent, character, and virtue, determining whether he truly possessed the caliber of a worthy scholar.
Fearing their past crimes would be exposed once they learned Shuhuai had secured Lord Meng as his backing, Shuhuai’s enemies dispatched a horde of assassins along his return route to Xuyang. Had Shuhuai not possessed a modest foundation in martial arts, he would have lost his life long ago.
Even so, he suffered severe, life-threatening injuries and spent half a year bedridden at home before he could walk again. During those grueling months, Yuhe’s wandering spirit had remained by his side, watching him endure agonizing pain day after day while she could do nothing but weep silently beside him.
As Yuhe remained lost in these painful memories of her past life, the door was suddenly pushed open. Yun’er stepped inside carrying a fried oil cake in her little hands. “Grandmother asked me to bring this to you!”
“She said even if Auntie doesn’t want to eat, my little baby cousin still needs to eat!”
“Auntie, are you feeling unwell because you walked too much today? Let Yun’er massage your legs!”
Taking the oil cake, Yuhe felt a wave of warmth wash over her heart. “Good girl, Yun’er. Auntie is just a bit tired; I’ll be fine after a little rest.”
“Tomorrow is the Dragon Boat Festival, and Auntie needs to go to the county town later to buy some supplies. Would Yun’er like to come along?”
Yun’er grew instantly ecstatic, hopping down from the edge of the bed. “Of course I do! Auntie, can you buy me a clay figurine like the one Sister Xing plays with?”
Yuhe used her handkerchief to dab away the smudges around the girl’s mouth. “I can, but only if your grandmother agrees. Only then can Auntie take you along.”
Ultimately, Lady Cui still harbored lingering doubts about Yuhe and didn’t dare let her take Yun’er into the county town. Yun’er cried for a long while, only stopping her tantrum after Yuhe repeatedly promised to bring her back candied haws and a clay figurine.
Upon reaching the county town, Yuhe visited the bank first to withdraw her silver, then headed straight to the pawnshop to redeem Shuhuai’s Four Books. Fortunately, since they had been pawned not long ago, no one had purchased them yet.
Along the bustling streets, she overheard numerous passersby talking about how affordable the garments were at the Li family’s tailoring shop. Yuhe found it rather odd—ready-made clothes from a tailoring shop were hardly something ordinary households could afford. Yet looking around, even the village women were actively gossiping about it.
She treated it as mere idle chatter and thought nothing more of it.
Noticing the hour was growing late, she quickened her pace toward the marketplace to buy glutinous rice and dried red dates, along with the candied haws and clay figurine she had promised Yun’er.
Although they still had potted preserved meat and cured bacon at home, she wanted to wrap extra zongzi dumplings this year to give to others, so she purchased an additional cut of fresh pork. As for the bamboo leaves, plenty grew right along the ridge behind their house.
By the time she made her way back, dusk had already fallen.
Before she even stepped into the courtyard, she spotted Yun’er and Momo waiting for her behind the house. As she drew closer, she saw Shuhuai bent over in the vegetable garden right behind Yun’er, quietly watering the young crops.