Cun Yin went up the mountain without saying a word. He dragged a small stool and sat a short distance away from the fire pit, busily combing through sheep’s wool.
Not a single complaint came out of him, yet every exaggerated motion and every grim little expression on his face gave away the frustration bottled up inside.
Liu Yun glanced over and whispered to Yun Cheng, “Go check on him. He’s the one Ye Cunshan raised. The two brothers have always been close. Don’t lose patience with him.”
Yun Cheng didn’t find the boy annoying at all. “He’s actually quite cute,” he said.
He once had a younger sister, two years older than Cun Yin, and since Yun Cheng had always stayed home, he’d spent plenty of time with her.
That was probably why he had a natural soft spot for children this age, an instinctive fondness that couldn’t be helped.
He walked over and asked gently, but Cun Yin didn’t seem inclined to talk. “It’s going to rain tomorrow,” he muttered, “So I’d better get all this wool done before then.”
Rainy days kept him indoors. The cold made him uncomfortable, and it was hard to find a place to work.
Yun Cheng caught the look in his eyes and immediately understood. When Cun Ye Cunshan had still been at home, the boy had spoken freely, because telling Yun Cheng anything back then was like tattling to an adult who had authority to stand up for him.
But now that Ye Cunshan wasn’t around, Yun Cheng had no real say in household matters, and so Cun Yin stayed quiet.
Reflecting on it, Yun Cheng realized the boy wasn’t wrong. He truly couldn’t help much. The best he could do was make sure Cun Yin had a safe place to retreat to whenever he needed it.
He wondered, after dealing with that old fortune teller Li Bansian, whether Chen Jinhua’s superstitious business of hiring people to predict death dates would finally be exposed.
Maybe then she’d learn to restrain herself a little. Yun Cheng didn’t expect her to start treating the boy like her own child, but at least she could stop tormenting him for no reason.
He thought for a moment and then asked, “Cun Yin, do you have an eyebrow pencil?”
The boy blinked at him, thinking Yun Cheng was just being vain. “My brother’s not home,” he said, pouting, “who are you trying to look good for?”
“For you, of course.”
Yun Cheng’s tone was playful, and that single line made Cun Yin’s face turn red. “Do you always talk to my brother like that?” he demanded. “You’re so straightforward!”
Yun Cheng thought for a moment. When he was comfortable with someone, yes, he did tend to speak rather directly. So he nodded and said honestly, “I do.”
Then, to cover up his real intent, he added, “Besides, he’s not home right now. I can practice on my own, can’t I?”
That seemed to satisfy the boy. “Fine. When I go home tonight, I’ll get it for you and bring it over.”
Yun Cheng smiled. In truth, he needed it for something else entirely. His stamina was limited, and if he tried to take on Li Bansian head-on, he’d probably lose. Getting beaten up would do no good.
But if he didn’t take some kind of strong countermeasure, that fraud would surely find another excuse, claiming that some river or mountain spirit demanded a sacrifice, and somehow it would always turn out that Yun Cheng’s life was the most fitting offering.
Since he didn’t have any helpers, Yun Cheng could only fight fire with fire, and use magic to defeat fake magic.
He had one disadvantage, though: his night blindness. Any plan that depended on darkness would lose much of its power. So he would need other forms of support.
Luckily, he had once learned sketching, and he still had paper. He decided to draw several “Wanted Notices from the Underworld,” listing all of Li Bansian’s “crimes.”
As for the characters themselves, well, Yun Cheng was confident that even if the writing was missing strokes or shaped oddly, as long as he added the words “From the Underworld” at the top, no one would dare question its authenticity.
He couldn’t push the man too far; if cornered, Li Bansian might lash out desperately, or worse, incite the villagers into doing something irreversible. Yun Cheng would give him a deadline to come clean.
If this plan failed, he’d simply wait until Ye Cunshan returned.
When that time came, he’d drag Ye Cun Ye Cunshan into it with him and pretend to be a ghost messenger together.
He already had the image in mind, wearing white underclothes outside, letting his hair fall wildly over his face until he looked like a terrifying apparition whose entire front and back were nothing but hair.
From what Yun Cheng had learned, people who dabbled in the occult were often the most superstitious.
Liu Yun had told him that Li Bansian never dared to walk alone at night.
If even that didn’t scare him off, Yun Cheng decided he would resort to force. Once he had money, he’d hire a few strong men, and every time he saw that fraud, they’d beat him up.
By afternoon, Ye Hu came up the mountain as well. He carried a ladder and began fixing the roof so it wouldn’t leak when the rain came.
Ye Hu was the eldest son of Ye Cunshan’s second uncle. His mother had nagged him all morning before he finally came up, dragging his feet the whole way.
When he arrived, he glanced at Liu Yun, then at the two young men sitting together near the fire pit, and let out a disdainful snort. “What’s the use of studying books?” he scoffed. “When the roof leaks, you still need a mud-legged laborer like me to fix it!”
Yun Cheng didn’t know him and felt awkward at the tone.
Cun Yin called out, “Big cousin, you’re already here, so just help properly. We’re grateful enough for that. Why say things that make people uncomfortable?”
Ye Hu frowned, irritated. “Oh, so now you’re the one lecturing me?” he said. But still, he climbed the ladder with heavy steps.
Liu Yun steadied the base nervously, worried he might fall, and kept telling him to be careful.
Since Ye Hu wasn’t getting paid, Yun Cheng felt bad about standing idle. He quickly put aside his grand plan and went over to lend a hand.
Ye Hu muttered, “You sure were happy enough eating those fish and shrimp I caught for you.”
Cun Yin pretended to scold playfully, “That’s because all my older brothers have wives now. Look at me, I just say a few words to you, and you’re already bringing up old debts!”
After that exchange, Ye Hu couldn’t stay angry. The two brothers joked back and forth for a while, and the tension in the air eased.
It was the first time Yun Cheng had seen Cun Yin talking so freely with someone else. The boy was clever and quick-tongued, a little cheeky, but it only made him seem even more lovable.
Whatever hardships he’d suffered, he still had that innocent brightness in him, the kind of light that belonged to children who should have grown up surrounded by joy.
Yun Cheng hoped that light would never be snuffed out, that no disaster would come to darken the coming years.
Liu Yun introduced Yun Cheng to Ye Hu, but the young man barely nodded, giving him a cold, dismissive look.
Yun Cheng couldn’t figure out what he’d done to offend him. Thinking back, he realized that the body’s original owner had always been timid, bullied more often than not. It seemed impossible that he’d ever provoked anyone.
So perhaps Ye Hu’s attitude had something to do with Ye Cunshan, or maybe he’d simply arrived already in a foul mood.
To avoid making things worse, Yun Cheng said nothing and just focused on helping. He did everything asked of him without complaint, even as sweat ran down his temples.
Still, as the day wore on, he found himself missing Ye Cunshan even more.
After a whole day of idle fantasizing, Yun Cheng’s longing had reached new heights.
He was no longer just hoping Ye Cunshan would come home and lend a hand with the chores, he was dreaming of a future where Ye Cunshan became successful enough to hire others to do the work for him.
Meanwhile, Ye Cunshan was worrying about his trip.
He didn’t have much silver left, and his time away was limited. He couldn’t trade like he used to, buying goods in one place, selling them in another, then circling back to earn extra profit before finally taking on a big venture.
With too little capital, he could only manage small trades now but small trades weren’t really worth the trouble of traveling this far.
After wandering through the familiar streets, he took out the jade ornament Yun Cheng’s mother had left behind and went to a jewelry shop, hoping to see if it could be repaired.
They had discussed it before, this time he just wanted to ask around, to have an idea. Once the family was better off, they could properly hire a craftsman.
Since he wasn’t planning to spend money today, Ye Cunshan walked straight into the largest jewelry store in the city.
Inside, it was bustling with customers, mostly young women and delicate-looking men.
Seeing those refined customers, Ye Cunshan suddenly remembered that Yun Cheng didn’t even own a single ornament.
A thought crossed his mind, and his gaze began to drift over the counter displays, following the clerk’s enthusiastic introductions.
He was tall, with sharp eyes, so even from a distance he could see clearly.
Hairpins, pendants, beaded chokers, bracelets, earrings, all gleaming under the lamplight. The more he looked, the deeper his frown grew.
The jewelry was exquisite, no doubt about it. Yun Cheng was fair-skinned and fine-featured, he’d look beautiful wearing any of these things.
But imagining him adorned in such delicate finery only made Ye Cunshan uneasy. It felt… wrong. Too soft, too effeminate.
Just then, a clerk, having sent off another customer, came over to serve him. “Sir, are you buying for your wife or for your master’s lady?” he asked politely.
It was late autumn, and Ye Cunshan was dressed in a narrow-sleeved cotton robe, plain but neatly kept. The fabric was of decent quality for a villager, without a single patch, though here in the city it looked humble.
To the clerk, he probably seemed like a household servant sent on an errand.
Ye Cunshan didn’t care to correct the assumption. “Do you repair jade here?” he asked.
The clerk’s demeanor brightened immediately. “Of course, please follow me to the back. I’ll have our master craftsman take a look.”
The craftsman examined the broken jade carefully. His carving skills were fine, he could replicate a piece exactly, but repairing one that had shattered was another matter entirely.
“There are too many fractures,” he said at last. “Unless you’re willing to encase it fully in gold or silver.”
Ye Cunshan had only wanted a small metal fitting at the break, maybe engraved with a few simple patterns, enough to piece the bracelet or pendant back together.
But what the craftsman described was an entire shell of metal, which not only cost a fortune but also went against the whole purpose of repairing the jade itself.
The craftsman, Hu Yongxing, laid the fragments on the table and carefully fitted them together. As he studied the carving, a dragon and phoenix twined in elegant relief, something tugged at his memory.
He could swear he had seen a piece just like it before. The details were exquisite, the workmanship intricate, and even though years of neglect had left faint marks across the surface, it still radiated a quiet, aged beauty.
Ye Cunshan confirmed again, “The bracelet at least could be repaired with a small sleeve at the crack, right?”
Hu shook his head. “There are too many internal fractures. Even if I patch one spot, the rest will crumble the next time it’s bumped. Eventually, you’d still have to encase the whole thing.”
Ye Cunshan sighed and gave up.
When Hu reluctantly returned the fragments, he hesitated and asked, “What’s the surname of the owner of this jade?”
His shop was the largest in the city, known for refurbishing old jewelry and melting down metal for new pieces. He’d seen countless designs over the years, yet this particular one, the material, the motif, the carving, was rare.
He felt certain he’d encountered it before, but no matter how he searched his memory, he couldn’t recall where.
Ye Cunshan misunderstood, thinking Hu was asking about his employer. “I work for the Yun family,” he said simply.
Hu smiled faintly, still puzzled, and handed back the jade with a sigh. “What a pity. If your master had the means, you could take it to the capital someday. There are still a few craftsmen there with palace training, perhaps they could restore it.”
Going to the capital felt like an unreachable dream. Who knew how many years it would take to make that come true?
Leaving the workshop, Ye Cunshan found the same clerk waiting for him expectantly.
Embarrassed to admit he hadn’t planned to buy anything at all, Ye Cunshan cleared his throat and said, “The jade can’t be repaired. But do you have any simple hairpins? I’d like to buy one for my husband.”
The clerk brightened immediately and began to show him several plain styles.
This time, Ye Cunshan’s mind was clear. Unlike that night when he’d been drunk and splurged on an expensive jade pin, he now chose a simple wooden one.
The clerk, sharp as ever, suggested, “Would you like to have it engraved? It’s only two coins per character. You could add ‘A Gift from So-and-so’ or ‘So-and-so Admires You’, those are quite popular right now! The wood’s soft; it won’t take long.”
That gave Ye Cunshan an idea of his own. His merchant’s instincts stirred, and he grinned. Without hesitation, he bought the entire basket of wooden hairpins displayed by the door.
He’d carve them himself.
And the very first one, he decided, would be for Yun Cheng.
On it, he would carve the words, something delicate and Charming.
✦ ✧ ✦
[Translator]
☕ A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR THE TRANSLATOR
Emergency! Someone feed the translator. 🚨☕
☕ BUY THEM A COFFEE →
✧ (づ｡•ㅅ•｡)づ ☕ ✧
✦ thank you for reading ✦
← PreviousNext →
ChaptersChapter 1 · I Shall Go With YouChapter 2 · You Are ResponsibleChapter 3 · Just make A DoChapter 4 · You Have To Hold MeChapter 5 · Live A Good LifeChapter 6 · Meet The ParentsChapter 7 · Lucky for My husbandChapter 8 · ThreatenChapter 9 · Turning Waste paper into NewChapter 10 · New Paper!Chapter 11 · He will look good in thisChapter 12 · Too HonestChapter 13 · Make Him HappyChapter 14 · WorshipChapter 15 · Feeling Sorry for moneyChapter 16 · I’m so reluctant to leave you.Chapter 17 · My feelings for him are no longer pure.Chapter 18 · Thinking about helping him in some wayChapter 19 · Buy one for my husbandChapter 20 · Cause troubleChapter 21 · Aftermath of the incidentChapter 22 · He led him home obediently.Chapter 23 · Why are you hugging me?Chapter 24 Part 1 · Sweet TalkingChapter 24 Part 2 · Sweet TalkingChapter 25 · You are my drean ManChapter 26 · I don’t fall for flirtingChapter 27 Part 1 · Teaching You How to Like MeChapter 27 Part 2 · Teaching You How to Like MeChapter 28 Part 1 · Picking up kid from schoolChapter 28 Part 2 · Picking up kid from schoolChapter 29 Part 1 · I Have a FriendChapter 29 Part 2 · I Have a FriendChapter 30 Part 1 · Pampering My HusbandChapter 30 Part 2 · Pampering My HusbandChapter 31 Part 1 · Don’t compare yourself with othersChapter 31 Part 2 · Don’t compare yourself with othersChapter 32 Part 1 · Come here and kiss me yourselfChapter 32 Part 2 · Come here and kiss me yourselfChapter 33 Part 1 · Let me explainChapter 33 Part 2 · Let me explainChapter 34 Part 1 · Little SecretChapter 34 Part 2 · Little SecretChapter 35 Part 1 · Going to the New Year MarketChapter 35 Part 2 · Going to the New Year MarketChapter 36 Part 1 · Please coax his little husbandChapter 36 Part 2 · Please coax his little husbandChapter 37 Part 1 · I want you to pamper meChapter 37 Part 2 · I want you to pamper meChapter 38 Part 1 · He wants to marry into the family!Chapter 38 Part 2 · He wants to marry into the family!Chapter 39 Part 1 · This is a separate priceChapter 39 Part 2 · This is a separate priceChapter 40 Part 1 · Husband, children, and a warm bedChapter 40 Part 2 · Husband, children, and a warm bedChapter 41 Part 1 · Biting SpringChapter 41 Part 2 · Biting SpringChapter 42 Part 1 · Isn’t managing you the important thing?Chapter 42 Part 2 · Isn’t managing you the important thing?Chapter 43 · Shameless!Chapter 44 Part 1 · Head of the HouseholdChapter 44 Part 2 · Head of the HouseholdChapter 45 · DatingChapter 45 Part 2 · DatingChapter 46 · You Were the One Who Got HookedChapter 47 · I Like Being Looked AfterChapter 48 · A Weighty AffectionChapter 49 · Go On, Say It AgainChapter 50 · There’s plenty of time in the futureChapter 51 · Karma and RetributionChapter 52 · Playing the “Villain”Chapter 53 · I’ll Be Very Gentle!Chapter 54 · Rural RomanceChapter 55 · Don’t CryChapter 56 · Unable to Afford TuitionChapter 57 · Coax MeChapter 58 · Do You Want Me to Keep You Company?Chapter 59 · You’re Not Good EnoughChapter 60 · WoofChapter 61 Part 1 · Are the Words “I Love You” Too Hot for Your Mouth?Chapter 61 Part 2 · Are the Words “I Love You” Too Hot for Your Mouth?Chapter 62 · My skin gets itchy if I don’t take care of it for a day.Chapter 63 · ClingyChapter 64 · Night TalkChapter 65 · Top Scholar TransmigrationChapter 66 · Imperial examinationsChapter 67 · Exams Over!Chapter 68 · You’re making fun of me as soon as you get back?Chapter 69 · Shameless!Chapter 70 · Truly unbelievableChapter 71 · One taelChapter 72 · Did you draw one for my brother?Chapter 73 · Bad LuckChapter 74 · Look like youChapter 75 · You’re so clingyChapter 76 · Careful your elder brother doesn’t beat you upChapter 77 · If you’re going to hit me, then just hit meChapter 78 · Cheng GegeChapter 79 · Thank you, DidiChapter 80 · Poor scholars from humble backgrounds usually have strong prideChapter 81 · Twenty two?Chapter 82 · Have you started preparing a new book yet?Chapter 83 · We’re PoorChapter 84 · I Still can’t believeChapter 85 Part 1 · But What happened in the end?Chapter 85 Part 2 · But What happened in the End?Chapter 86 · I’m a little kidChapter 87 · The person in this painting is my younger brotherChapter 88 · Yun Xiaocheng Even Has This SkillChapter 89 Part 1 · Preparations Before DepartureChapter 89 Part 2 · Preparations Before DepartureChapter 90 Part 1 · On the Road, a Transitional ChapterChapter 90 Part 2 · On the Road, a Transitional ChapterChapter 91 Part 1 · NarrativeChapter 91 Part 2 · NarrativeChapter 92 · Narrative, transitional chapterChapter 93 · Make you happyChapter 94 Part 1 · Burial and AdmonitionChapter 94 Part 2 · Burial and AdmonitionChapter 95 · Song Jin said she was very good to Cheng HuilanChapter 96 · She has a good older brother.Chapter 97 · Simplicity is the bestChapter 98 · HomecomingChapter 99 Part 1 · Going homeChapter 99 Part 2 · Going HomeChapter 100 Part 1 · AugustChapter 100 Part 2 · AugustChapter 101 Part 1 · How come you’re pregnant but still have such a slim waist?Chapter 101 Part 2 · How come you’re pregnant but still have such a slim waist?Chapter 102 · This is the love you have for me.Chapter 103 Part 1 · SeptemberChapter 103 Part 2 · SeptemberChapter 103 Part 3 · SeptemberChapter 104 Part 1 · Ye Xiaoshan, you’re so shamelessChapter 104 Part 2 · Ye Xiaoshan, you’re so shamelessChapter 105 · Ye Xiaoshan, what are you doing?Chapter 106 Part 1 · Daily lifeChapter 106 Part 2 · Daily lifeChapter 107 · The novel has many plotsChapter 108 Part 1 · Daily life + novel plotChapter 108 Part 2 · Daily life + novel plotChapter 109 · Monthly Exams and Daily RoutineChapter 110 · Mainly exams