As he spoke, the young man reached out to touch Shen Zhihe’s cheek. She sidestepped to avoid him, gazing at him with darkened eyes.
Just when he thought Shen Zhihe was about to lose her temper, unexpectedly, a smile curled at the corners of her lips, like winter snow melting under the caress of spring breeze, unconsciously drawing him two steps forward.
Watching him circle around the food cart with a smug smile, slowly closing in on her, he said, “Has the young lady come to her senses? After all, Ling-ge’er from the Sun family is quite renowned in our town—the first in decades to pass the imperial examinations. Even if your parents were still alive, you likely wouldn’t be considered a suitable match.”
Upon hearing this, Shen Zhihe let out a soft laugh, her hands still busy as she lifted the lid covering the fire pit. Inside, the charcoal glowed red-hot. She casually stirred it with an iron rod wrapped in cloth at one end.
With a sharp crackle, a spark burst from the fire pit, startling the young man into stumbling backward. He accidentally stepped on a patch of ice and landed hard on his backside.
Shen Zhihe turned toward the sound and saw Shen Zhian, turned away with his shoulders trembling as he stifled laughter. Just as the young man was about to flare up in humiliation, Shen Zhihe glanced around and noticed customers beginning to gather. Trouble, she thought inwardly.
Shaking her head in resignation, she set down the fire pit lid and walked slowly toward the young man. Taking in his flushed face, she felt nothing but disdain. Outwardly, he appeared respectable, but inside, he was all show and no substance. He must have heard about the Shen Family causing trouble for her yesterday and assumed that, with no elders to stand up for her, anyone could push her around.
Though she despised his behavior, she had a stall to run and needed to maintain a pleasant demeanor. Shen Zhihe crouched down, looking at the young man still seated in the snow. “Shall I fetch a physician for you?”
“Don’t pretend to care!” he snapped, slapping her outstretched hand away. The sharp sound drew curious glances from the onlookers outside the stall.
“Bad man! Don’t bully my elder sister!”
Shen Zhihe stopped her younger brother from rushing forward and glanced down at her reddened hand. She scanned the crowd that had formed around them, all curiously watching the scene behind the cart. Taking a deep breath, she reminded herself not to lose her temper—getting angry would only benefit others at her expense.
The priority now was to resolve the situation quickly. He had already wasted too much of her time. Just then, an impatient customer leaned over the cart, peering inside. Spotting the young man on the ground, he teased, “Has the Li Family fallen so low? Is the young master of the Li Family so broke he has to resort to playing the victim for a free meal?”
Hearing this, the young man scrambled to his feet, flustered and furious. “Zhou Yao, how dare you spout nonsense! It was… it was this young lady who seduced me! Yes! She seduced me! She saw how handsome and wealthy I am and lured me here. Then, when she noticed all of you gathering, she pushed me away, and that’s why I fell!”
As soon as the words fell, Shen Zhihe noticed the gazes fixed upon her—some frivolous, some probing. She inwardly sighed, “What a nuisance.” All she wanted was to run her stall peacefully, yet troubles kept piling up. With a resigned exhale, she set down the fire tongs in her hand.
Her eyes swept across the crowd, settling on Granny Qian hidden among them, clearly reveling in the spectacle. Shen Zhihe thought to herself that if she didn’t deal with this scoundrel today, people would soon label her as easy to bully. If that happened, her stall would surely become untenable.
She couldn’t let this rogue ruin her livelihood. At that thought, her expression darkened. The man had chosen an unfortunate time—no one else was around—and he seemed determined to slander her. She saw no reason to spare his dignity any longer. Snorting coldly, she retorted, “What a joke! With your shifty, rat-like appearance, even if you paid me, I wouldn’t give you a second glance.”
“You!” Li Chang was infuriated, his finger trembling as he pointed at Shen Zhihe. He had assumed she was an easy target to push around, but it turned out she had a sharp tongue.
“Could it be that Young Master Li was harassing the young lady and got pushed away, losing his balance and falling?” Before Li Chang could finish, Zhou Yao interjected, his amused gaze shifting between the two. Ever since he’d stumbled upon Shen Zhihe’s stall and bought some food, not only had his old man taken a liking to it, but even that notoriously picky ancestor of theirs had become a fan. For that reason alone, he couldn’t let that scoundrel Li Chang ruin Shen Xiaoniangzi’s business.
Hearing this, Shen Zhihe looked up in surprise. This stranger had just described the earlier situation almost perfectly.
Cornered and exposed, Li Chang flew into a rage. Hopping mad, he pointed at both of them and shouted, “So that’s why you looked down on me! You’ve already latched onto the Zhou Family! What status does he have? You’re just a peasant girl—do you actually think you can enter the Zhou Family? You’d be better off yielding to me now and sparing yourself the hardships of wind and rain.”
“Stop your nonsense! I’ve only just met this gentleman. He simply couldn’t stand a rogue like you and spoke up for justice. Do you think everyone is as shameless as you?”
The more he spoke, the more outrageous he became. Furious, Shen Zhihe grabbed the fire tongs lying beside the fire pit.
Li Chang trembled at the sight of the sharp tongs. He glanced at Zhou Yao’s mocking gaze, afraid of being looked down upon, and stiffened his neck defiantly. “If you weren’t trying to seduce me, why did you smile at me and lure me behind the cart?”
Shen Zhihe rolled her eyes. Throughout history, some men’s confidence had always been truly admirable—even a single glance from a woman was enough for them to assume interest.
Just then, a constable emerged from the crowd, his breath forming puffs of white mist in the air. “Who’s causing trouble here?” he bellowed.
Seeing him, Li Chang felt as if he’d found his savior. He hurried over to the constable and pointed at Shen Zhihe. “Officer, this young lady tried to seduce me! When I refused, she flew into a rage and pushed me to the ground. Look at my hand—I injured it when I fell!”
The constable glanced at Li Chang’s palm, then turned to Shen Zhihe. “Shen Xiaoniangzi, we meet again. Is what this gentleman says true?”
It turned out this person was the constable who had previously helped Shen Zhihe deal with troublemakers. Shen Zhihe curtsied to him and said, “Of course not. Clearly, this gentleman saw that I had no elders at home and took the opportunity to harass me. He was frightened by sparks bursting from my stove, and when he stepped back, he didn’t watch his footing and tripped.”
“You’re lying! It was you who saw my outstanding appearance, deliberately smiled at me, and lured me to your side.”
“That’s right, officer. This old woman saw it clearly—it was this young lady who seduced the young master of the Li Family.” Granny Qian stood in the crowd, a malicious glint in her eyes, thinking to herself that since that little hussy had stolen her business, today she must ensure she never recovers.
“Oh? This gentleman has a witness here. Does Shen Xiaoniangzi have one?” The constable only noticed Zhou Yao as he approached and inwardly panicked, thinking he had miscalculated. He had intended to just go through the motions here—how did the second young master of the Zhou Family end up here? “Second Young Master Zhou, how has Official Zhou been lately?”
“My father is well. Constable Niu, please listen to what Shen Xiaoniangzi has to say.”
Shen Zhihe, who had long grown impatient, quickly strode into the crowd, pulled Granny Qian out from where she was hiding, and pointed at her nose, scolding, “You old hag, do you know that giving false testimony warrants a beating? Previously, you deliberately sent the main branch of the Shen Family to cause trouble at my stall, and I haven’t settled that score with you yet. Today, you dare to help this scoundrel give false testimony? I saw clearly that you hadn’t even appeared when Young Master Zhou arrived.
And you! Relying on your family’s influence, you eat and drink for free every day at this market. With a face like a rat and a deer mixed together, you dare say I seduced you? If your home lacks a bronze mirror, there must be water, right? If you just looked at yourself a couple more times, you wouldn’t be so confident.
Everyone, since Young Master Zhou is here today, why not ask him to repay the silver he owes you?”
“You… you shrew!” Li Chang’s face flushed red, his chest heaving. “Who would dare marry you in the future?”
“Tsk.” Shen Zhihe clicked her tongue, realizing she had overestimated him—all he could do was threaten her with marriage. Her gaze swept around and suddenly paused at one spot. “If you had the striking looks of that young man over there and threatened me with those words, I might actually be somewhat afraid.”
Everyone followed Shen Zhihe’s gaze and saw a pale-faced youth standing in front of a tavern not far away. He truly had a remarkable appearance.
“Thank you for the compliment, miss.” The young man was not offended by Shen Zhihe’s earlier words. He smiled and walked over.
As soon as Zhou Yao saw the youth appear, he instinctively stepped behind him.
“Just as the young lady said, I saw everything clearly from upstairs in the tavern. It was this scoundrel who intended to harass her.” The youth lowered his gaze, looking at Li Chang’s pale, panicked face.
The constable, already overwhelmed by the arguing, cast a puzzled glance at the youth’s face and then at the jade pendant at his waist. He was instantly horrified but quickly put on an obsequious smile. “Young Master Lu’s words are naturally true. Arrest this man who harassed a common woman and take him to the Fu Ya to be dealt with by the magistrate.”
“Disperse now! Shen Xiaoniangzi is just running an honest business. Do not cause any more trouble here. If this happens again, I will not be lenient.” The constable watched with trepidation as the youth walked steadily toward Shen Zhihe, followed by Zhou Yao, and shouted loudly at the onlookers.
“From now on, there should be very few reckless people coming to cause trouble for the young lady.” Zhou Yao watched the retreating figures of the crowd before turning his head to see the young man standing silently before Shen Zhihe’s stall. He shook his head helplessly, “What delicacies does the young lady have today?”
“Young gentlemen have come at just the right time. My stall has just introduced new dishes today – Xiao Long Bao and Small Wonton. Would you two care to try them?”
After a moment of contemplation, Shen Zhihe spoke again. Though she could have handled those two troublemakers herself even without the young man’s appearance today, his testimony had saved her considerable trouble. “My thanks to you both today. If you’d like to try the food, this meal shall be on me.”