Xie Zhao pouted.
“If I got you thrown into prison, Father would probably climb out of his coffin just to strangle me.”
“That wouldn’t be good.”
Although Xie Zhao had verbally agreed to Jiang He’s request and promised not to work on raising roof beams anymore…
She still wasn’t convinced.
That afternoon, she brewed a kettle of tea and carried it to Master Zhang’s new residence, where the construction was taking place.
She wanted to see whether he had actually listened to her.
The first person she spotted was Lu Changgeng.
He was mixing pigments, painting colorful designs onto one of the newly completed buildings.
Since he was the only person she recognized, she called out to him.
“Brother Lu, do you know where my brother is?”
Hearing her voice, Lu Changgeng turned around.
“Miss Jiang He?”
“What brings you here?”
“I was passing by.”
“I came to see my brother and bring him some tea.”
“I see.”
“There he is.”
He pointed ahead.
“He’s working on that house over there—the one that hasn’t been roofed yet.”
Jiang He looked up.
Just in time to see Xie Zhao climbing onto a towering roof beam.
Her hand trembled violently.
She almost dropped the teapot.
Suppressing the urge to run over, she instead asked Lu Changgeng,
“What kind of work is he doing now?”
“He’s become one of the roof-beam workers.”
“That’s what he’s been doing these past few days.”
“Isn’t that dangerous?”
“It is.”
“I was worried too and tried to persuade him not to do it.”
“But I never expected him to be so skilled.”
“He once fell from a wall that high and wasn’t hurt at all.”
“If it had been anyone else, they’d have been killed or seriously injured.”
Jiang He clenched her fists.
Her heart ached.
After a long pause, she asked in a trembling voice,
“How much… do roof-beam workers earn?”
“Fifty copper coins a day.”
“And if they complete especially difficult jobs, they receive bonus rewards.”
“Last time, no one could get the beam onto the west house.”
“Even one of the veteran craftsmen broke his leg trying.”
“But he succeeded.”
“The homeowner was so pleased that he rewarded him with five taels of silver.”
So…
That was where the five taels had come from.
She’d thought it had been some sort of protagonist’s luck.
Jiang He’s heart tightened once more.
Watching him balancing high atop the dangerous beams, drenched in sweat…
Watching the foreman bark orders at him while he humbly nodded along…
Her chest felt unbearably heavy.
The anger she’d been holding melted away in an instant.
Instead of rushing over and dragging him down from the roof…
She quietly turned and left.
Before leaving, she specifically asked Lu Changgeng not to tell Xie Zhao she’d been there.
She didn’t want him to know.
When Xie Zhao returned home that evening, he immediately sensed something strange.
He finished two bowls of porridge.
Jiang He had barely taken a few bites from her own.
The oppressive silence made him increasingly uncomfortable.
Unable to bear it any longer, he finally asked,
“Jiang He…”
“What’s wrong today?”
She had been waiting for him to ask.
Now that he’d opened the conversation, she spoke directly.
“I’m giving up on the money in Liang City.”
Xie Zhao slowly put down his chopsticks.
He stared at her in shock.
“What do you mean?”
“Didn’t we agree we’d go collect it whether we succeeded or not?”
“I told you I’d help you get it back.”
“Even if I had to take it by force.”
“Without that money…”
“How are you going to start the business?”
Jiang He didn’t answer.
Instead, she calmly continued,
“I’m giving up on the business too.”
Her voice was as still as an ancient well without a ripple.
Xie Zhao was stunned.
He’d seen how many drafts she’d written for her business plans.
He’d also heard from Auntie Zhang how she’d gone from house to house, persuading people and asking Auntie Zhang to guarantee her credibility.
After reading those plans himself, he’d been impressed.
She was intelligent.
Her ideas were entirely workable.
The only thing she lacked was startup capital.
So…
Why had she suddenly changed her mind?
“Why?”
His voice trembled slightly.
He was afraid something had happened to her.
Ever since they had spoken honestly with each other, she’d changed.
It was as though she’d grown up overnight.
He simply couldn’t tell whether that change was good or bad.
She made him feel relieved…
Yet worried at the same time.
“There’s no reason.”
Her voice remained calm, tinged with a faint, almost imperceptible weariness.
“I just don’t want to do it anymore.”
By the end, her voice had become much softer.
After all…
Giving something up—
Compromising—
Neither was ever easy.
But compared to unknown dangers…
Compared to someone’s life…
What did those dreams amount to?
If something happened to Xie Zhao…
A powerless orphan like her, living alone in such a large house…
Would become easy prey.
It was only two years.
She was only eighteen now.
No…
She was actually still a few months short of eighteen.
She could afford to wait.
“Why?”
Xie Zhao looked at her earnestly.
“Did something happen?”
“Please stop asking.”
Jiang He turned her face away.
“I just don’t want to do it anymore.”
“I went door to door collecting goods.”
“I was trying to help everyone make money together…”
“And I still had to smile and flatter them.”
“They were afraid I’d fail and cause them losses.”
“They even wanted me to mortgage the house as collateral.”
“You said it yourself.”
“Even when Father was dying, he absolutely refused to sell the house.”
“No matter what…”
“We can’t mortgage it.”
Only then did Xie Zhao finally relax.
He smiled faintly.
“So…”
“You got upset.”
She was still just a young girl.
Perhaps she simply couldn’t bear being slighted.
But…
What businessperson never suffered humiliation?
If something like this made her miserable enough to quit…
Perhaps she really wasn’t suited for business after all.
“Then let’s leave it for the future.”
“I’ve always believed that accomplishing great things requires experience.”
“You’re still too young.”
“Trying to catch this year’s autumn silkworm season was already too rushed.”
“Mhm.”
Jiang He quietly nodded.
“Oh, right.”
“How’s your shoulder?”
“Uh…”
“It isn’t healed that quickly.”
Jiang He’s expression immediately darkened.
“You didn’t listen to me, did you?”
“Were you just pretending to agree with me last night?”
“N-No…”
Feeling guilty, Xie Zhao still forced himself to answer.
“I listened.”
“I switched to an easier job after talking to the foreman.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
“Fine.”
“Then I’ll go with you tomorrow.”
“We’ll see whether you’re lying.”
Thinking that the roof beams had already been completed that day, Xie Zhao secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
“Alright.”
“We’ll go together.”
Although she’d said she’d accompany him…
She never actually showed up.
Still, Xie Zhao had already begun to suspect something.
The next day, he casually asked his coworkers.
It didn’t take long before someone mentioned that a young woman carrying a teapot had indeed come looking for someone the previous afternoon.
No one had noticed whether she’d actually found the person she was looking for.
Xie Zhao immediately guessed it had been Jiang He.
Otherwise…
She wouldn’t suddenly have abandoned both the debt collection and the business.
During lunch, he walked straight over to Lu Changgeng.
“What did Jiang He say to you yesterday?”
Lu Changgeng froze.
He honestly didn’t know how to answer.
Acting as though nothing was unusual, Xie Zhao continued eating while speaking.
“Don’t bother trying to fool me.”
“I’ve already asked around.”
“Everyone saw my sister come looking for you yesterday.”
Lu Changgeng nervously swallowed the food in his mouth.
Looking troubled, he replied,
“Miss Jiang He specifically told me not to tell you.”
Xie Zhao nodded casually.
“You didn’t.”
“Someone else told me.”
“The fellow painting beside you.”
With things already at this point, Lu Changgeng had no choice but to tell the truth.
“She… didn’t actually say much.”
“She just asked me about you.”
“Then…”
“I think she was very worried about you.”
“She stood there watching you from a distance for a long time.”
“And then…”
“Without saying another word…”
“She quietly left.”