“Yuanzhu.”
Xie Xuchuan’s eyes were rimmed red, choked with emotion and unable to speak for a long while.
He didn’t utter a word, yet his brows and eyes were filled with sorrow and grievance as if he had been forced into a corner.
The unmistakable plea of “don’t make things difficult for me” in his gaze made Shen Yuanzhu understand his stance.
With a soft sigh, Shen Yuanzhu pointed to the stone table inside the pavilion. “You’ve traveled a long way. Have something to eat first.”
Xie Xuchuan hadn’t expected her to react this way, and his heart grew even more uneasy.
But he knew Yuanzhu was soft-hearted, and the bond between them ran deep. Over the years, Shen Yuanzhu had never refused any of his requests. Hesitating for a moment, he nodded with reddened eyes.
Looking at the still-warm food box, a sour bitterness welled up on his tongue.
The incident had happened too suddenly. He had been in a daze these past few days. Only now, seeing Yuanzhu, did that surge of resentment seem to smooth out, bringing him some peace.
Xie Xuchuan picked up a piece of tea cake and put it in his mouth.
His gaze swept over the rosewood chest on the ground, and his fingers trembled. “Yuanzhu, that chest…”
Every time he went out to source materials, Yuanzhu would embroider some small items for him. Though never explicitly stated, Xie Xuchuan knew it was a hidden expression of longing beneath shyness—a young maiden’s unspoken affection.
Shen Yuanzhu followed his gaze. “Nothing important. I’ll have Ling’er take care of it later.”
A pang shot through Xie Xuchuan’s heart. He wanted to say more, but then he heard Shen Yuanzhu speak again. “What’s the price of madder root in Huizhou this year?”
Originally intending to discuss the matter concerning Jiang Wansu, seeing Shen Yuanzhu ask this, Xie Xuchuan understood she didn’t want to hear it. He could only suppress the anxiety in his heart.
“About the same as last year.”
Madder root had the effect of cooling the blood and dispelling stasis, working wonders for bruises, injuries, and abnormal uterine bleeding. For merchants in the weaving and dyeing trade like them, madder root was also an important dye. Whether it was bright red, lotus red, silver red, or water red, none could be achieved without madder root.
Moreover, achieving the true color required nine soakings and nine sun-dryings, so a significant amount of madder root was consumed each year.
With this year’s price unchanged, she could set the prices for some fabrics in her shop by referencing last year’s rates.
Shen Yuanzhu forced herself to think only about business matters, unaware that Xie Xuchuan’s thoughts had already churned a thousand times in his mind.
“The road to Huizhou is long. Once you’ve settled your stomach, you should head back.”
“Yuanzhu.”
This was the first time Shen Yuanzhu had ever asked him to leave, inexplicably making Xie Xuchuan somewhat flustered.
But after the words churned on his tongue countless times, all that came out was: “Then, about Wansu’s matter…”
Shen Yuanzhu glanced at him. “On this trip to Huizhou, were you traveling with Jiang Wansu?”
Xie Xuchuan hesitated for a moment. “It wasn’t just the two of us. It was the Jiang family…”
“I understand. You may go.”
Jiang Wansu’s father was the biological nephew of Jiang You, the Superintendent Eunuch of Weaving. Though he held no official rank, his authority was considerable. Even the Xie and Shen families showed him respect on the surface.
Precisely because of this, Shen Yuanzhu had always known that the Jiang family was very eager to form a marriage alliance with the Xie family.
However, the Jiang family’s tacitly agreed candidate for the marriage alliance was not Jiang Wansu, but her elder legitimate sister, Jiang Naizhen.
And the favored match was not Xie Xuchuan, but his third uncle, Xie Jingyuan.
If news of Jiang Wansu’s affair reached the Jiang family and ruined this marriage arrangement, it was hard to say what her father’s attitude would be, but Jiang Naizhen certainly wouldn’t let Jiang Wansu off easily.
One thing after another—no wonder Xie Xuchuan was so overwhelmed.
It was just a pity he had miscalculated.
The mess he and Jiang Wansu had created—thinking she and the Shen family would step in to resolve it—was simply naive.
Seeing Xie Xuchuan dawdling and reluctant to leave, Shen Yuanzhu said, “Go ahead. Miss Jiang is pregnant and has no home to return to, and you also need time to settle her in.”
“I…”
Xie Xuchuan hesitated for a moment, but after thinking it over, he still felt uneasy. After struggling internally, he finally nodded.
“I… I’ll go settle Wansu first and come find you tomorrow.”