The three: ?
Didn’t she say we could leave once we’d apologised? So she can’t make the decision after all?
Xiao Changhe stared at her face, lost in thought, before finally saying, “I’ll do as you say.”
The three: ?
How did it suddenly become ‘I’ll do as she says’ again?
“Next time you do something, use your brains and don’t let yourselves be used as pawns! Get out of here!”
With someone looking out for her, Jiang Fusheng’s tail was practically in the air.
The three didn’t dare linger.
However, as they were leaving, they bumped into another person.
“Why are you leaving? Is it all over?”
One of them glanced at the pretty young girl standing by the door of the Xiao residence, her eyes fixed on it, and whispered to the brother who had brought her: “I’ll explain later. Just take her inside first, then get out of here quickly. Don’t get involved!”
The man was completely baffled, but seeing that they were all acting this way, he nodded and led the girl inside.
“I’ve brought her in, so I can go now…”
“Brother!” Before he could finish, the young girl spotted Jiang Wuren in the large tub. She scampered over, cupped his head in her hands and shook it. “Brother, wake up! Don’t scare me like that!”
“Ah!” Jiang Wuren screamed in pain. “My neck… my neck…”
“Brother, what’s wrong with your neck?” The young girl fumbled at Jiang Wuren’s head.
“Don’t touch me!” Jiang Wuren snapped.
“Brother…” The young girl stood there looking utterly wronged, her eyes red and brimming with tears. “You’re being mean to me.”
Jiang Fusheng gasped inwardly.
A genuine, delicate little flower!
It was a world of difference from her own act; this girl was the real deal at first glance!
This was Jiang Wuren’s younger sister, Jiang Tangyuan, whom she hadn’t had much contact with.
Sifting through her original host’s memories, she suspected Jiang Wuren was a total sister-obsessed brother, which was why he believed everything Jiang Tangyuan said and was so protective of her.
That said, Jiang Tangyuan certainly lived up to her name—her skin was as fair and delicate as a snowdrop, and she had a fresh, dewy appearance; one could tell at a glance she’d been raised in a sheltered environment.
In this era, in a village, it was quite rare for a girl to be in such a position.
The only question was whether she’d turn out to be all white on the outside but black on the inside, just like a sesame glutinous rice ball!
Jiang Wuren sighed helplessly, “You just twisted my neck… Never mind, just pull me out first.”
Jiang Tangyuan sniffed, then gave a mighty heave to help Jiang Wuren out of the tub, only then looking properly around her.
But the moment her gaze met the tall, imposing figure of Xiao Changhe, her cheeks betrayed her and flushed crimson.
Jiang Fuseng: “……”
Sis, I’m standing right in front of you. What on earth is with blushing at my man and looking all coy?
Could it be that she’s actually been flirted with?
With that thought, Jiang Fuseng turned to look at Xiao Changhe.
As it turned out, he remained completely unfazed, not even sparing Jiang Tangyuan a single glance.
Sensing her gaze, Xiao Changhe looked down, his expression softening. “What’s the matter?”
“Nothing.” Jiang Fuseng shook her head, thinking to herself that she must be overthinking it; he certainly didn’t look like a man with wandering eyes.
Thank goodness Xiao Changhe couldn’t hear her inner thoughts, otherwise he’d surely have made her find out for herself whether he was a lecher or not!
Seeing the two of them so deeply in love, Jiang Tangyuan clenched the hem of her dress in jealousy.
How dare he!
She’d never even seen Brother Changhe smile!
“Tangyuan, tell everyone here exactly how Xiao Changhe made a pass at you,” Jiang Wuren said, clutching his stiff neck and forcing himself to speak despite the discomfort.
Hearing this, Jiang Fusheng turned around as well, folding her arms and raising an eyebrow. “Go on then, tell us how my man made a pass at you?”
“Your man?!” Jiang Tangyuan’s sweet, girlish tone turned sharp.
Jiang Fuseng picked at her ear and hooked her arm through Xiao Changhe’s. “That’s right, my man.”
“You’re married?” Jiang Tangyuan’s eyes widened. She recalled the gossip she’d heard earlier that day from the village women—that Jiang Laidi had remarried Changhe after her divorce—but she hadn’t believed it.
“Mind your own business. Just answer me: what has he done to you? Stop dawdling and wasting time.” Jiang Fuseng rolled her eyes and bent down to give her aching calf a tap.
Jiang Wuren was also baffled. “Tangyuan, just spit it out! While Xiao Changhe and his mum are both here, I can sort this out for you.”
Xiao’s mother, who hadn’t spoken for a long while, picked up the stool beside her and walked over, speaking as she came. “Go on, tell us. What has my son Changhe done to you? Are you saying he’s been making a pass at you?”
Having said this, Xiao’s mother stopped in front of Jiang Fuseng, set the stool down, and said, “Come now, dear, you must be tired from standing for so long. Sit down.”
“Eh?” Jiang Fuseng was taken aback. “Auntie Xiao, you sit. I don’t need to…”
“Sit down.” Mrs Xiao reached out and gently pushed Jiang Fusheng onto the stool, pulling a small handful of raw sunflower seeds from her pocket. “Just sit there and listen carefully. Changhe and I will sort this out. These seeds were picked straight from the field—we grow them ourselves. They’re delicious.”
“Thank you, Aunt Xiao!” Jiang Fuseng’s eyes crinkled with a smile as she happily settled into the role of a bystander.
This scene made Jiang Tangyuan’s eyes nearly pop out of her head; she was seething with jealousy.
It was one thing for Brother Changhe to smile at Jiang Laidi, but for Aunt Xiao to be so kind to her as well!
Jiang Laidi is second-hand goods, after all!
What gives her the right to get the Xiao family’s precious one!
Jiang Fuseng couldn’t stand Jiang Tangyuan’s glare and waved her hand. “Stop glaring at me, just get on with it!”
“He, he… he peeked at me while I was having a bath!” Jiang Tangyuan lowered her head in indignation and embarrassment, her fingers twirling in circles.
Xiao’s mother reached out and gave Xiao Changhe a sharp twist on the arm. “Did you or didn’t you?”
Xiao Changhe shook his head, his face a picture of innocence. “No.”
“Did you hear that? My son says he didn’t.”
Jiang Wuren snapped, “It’s not enough for your son to say he didn’t do it—my little sister says it was him!”
Jiang Fusheng spat the sunflower seed husk into her palm and asked Jiang Tangyuan, “Do you have any proof it was Brother Changhe?”
“It was definitely him!” Jiang Tangyuan looked up, her face a mix of shame and anger. “Ask him if you don’t believe me! It was just three days ago, in the afternoon.”
Xiao’s mother and Jiang Fusheng both turned to look at Xiao Changhe, one tilting her head, the other looking up.
Xiao Changhe frowned, seemingly trying to recall the incident.
A minute later, he finally said, “It was Jiuliang. He saw me… and ran off. I… I didn’t catch him.”
Upon hearing this, Jiang Fuseng pieced together the story and asked, “So, you were walking past Jiang Wuren’s house, and you saw Jiu Liang peeping at Jiang Tangyuan whilst she was bathing. You tried to catch him, but he ran off, and you’re still standing there?”
“Exactly!” Xiao Changhe’s eyes lit up. His wife was truly clever!
“No, how could that be…” Jiang Tangyuan’s face turned as white as snow in an instant. “I clearly saw it was you!”
Jiang Fuseng put the remaining sunflower seeds back in the bowl, stood up, and looked around but couldn’t find the dustpan. She could only take Xiao Changhe’s hand and place the sunflower seed shells in his palm. “Hold these for a moment, will you?”
Having said that, she clapped her hands and turned to Jiang Wuren. “Xiao Changhe is a towering figure—as tall as that tree outside your courtyard wall. Standing there like a pillar, anyone with eyes in their head would spot him. If he were really peeping in broad daylight, wouldn’t that be utterly foolish?”
Jiang Wuren fell silent, his face darkening.
Jiang Fusheng continued, “Jiu Liang is small in stature. Even if he were hiding in that tree, no one would spot him. Of course, if you don’t believe me, you can go and ask Jiu Liang yourself.”
Jiu Liang was a nickname; he was called that because he was a premature baby, weighing only nine taels at birth.
Had he not been able to cry, and had he been a boy, he would have been abandoned long ago.
Over the years in the village, Jiu Liang had often taken advantage of his stunted growth to get up to all sorts of dirty tricks.
“No!” Jiang Tangyuan hurriedly intervened. “Don’t ask any more!”
Jiang Wuren was puzzled. “Why?”