When they reached the fork in the road, Lin Wan happened to run into Tian Guihua, a neighbor who lived next door. Smiling, she greeted her, “Aunt Tian, where are you going?”
“I just came back from the excitement over at the east end of the village,” Tian Guihua said. “That man the Wang family bought at the village entrance yesterday started making a scene after seeing Wang Daya. He refused to marry her no matter what. They were at it all night yesterday, and they’ve been arguing all day today too. It’s been quite a commotion!”
Tian Guihua was the type who loved gossip. Any time something lively happened in the village, she was always the first to show up. However, she wasn’t a bad person—on the contrary, she was quite kind-hearted. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have stepped forward yesterday to speak up for Lin Wan.
“No one knows what the Wang family was thinking,” Tian Guihua shook her head. “Even if their family is well-off, they shouldn’t have raised their daughter like that… Now look at this mess. She couldn’t find a husband before, and now even the man they bought refuses to marry her. Wang Daya is really stuck now.”
“If you ask me, the man they bought is pretty unlucky too. He looked decent enough—what a pity.”
As they walked, Lin Wan listened to Tian Guihua talk about the latest village gossip, occasionally responding to avoid awkward silence. Tian Guihua only became more excited as she spoke. Suddenly, she leaned closer to Lin Wan and lowered her voice.
“Xiao Wan, didn’t you also buy a man yesterday? I heard his health… how is he doing now?”
Although Tian Guihua’s tone was still gossipy, there was also genuine concern in it.
Yesterday, Lin Wan had been seen carrying the man into her courtyard for quite a long time. Anyone not blind would have noticed. At the time, the man had been turned sideways, so Tian Guihua hadn’t seen his face clearly, but he did seem to be in poor health.
“A woman’s marriage is a lifelong matter. You must choose carefully, or the rest of your life will be difficult.”
Tian Guihua had watched Lin Wan grow up and knew how hard her life had been, so she genuinely hoped things would go well for her.
“Yes, I understand. Thank you for the reminder, Aunt Tian.”
Lin Wan replied calmly. At the moment, she was quite satisfied with her so-called husband. He was like jade—gentle, refined, and courteous. The warmth in him seemed to come from within his bones, and being around him felt very comfortable.
The two chatted as they walked, and soon arrived at home. After saying goodbye at the gate, they each returned to their own houses.
As soon as Lin Wan entered the courtyard, she smelled the aroma of rice drifting from the kitchen. At the doorway, she saw a tall, slender figure standing with his back to her, holding a ladle and stirring the pot. The rich scent of rice filled the air.
Surprised, Lin Wan spoke up, “You actually know how to cook?”
Gu Zhixing turned his head slightly at the sound and nodded. “A little.”
Lin Wan was genuinely surprised. In ancient times, it was said that “a gentleman keeps away from the kitchen,” and even among rural men, very few knew how to cook.
Yet Gu Zhixing clearly came from a wealthy family—possibly even an official’s household. A noble young master like him actually knew how to cook? Lin Wan became curious. What kind of family could raise such an outstanding man?
Gu Zhixing… Gu Zhixing… why did that name feel so familiar the more she thought about it? She must have seen it somewhere before, but she just couldn’t remember. Frowning, she searched through her memories—even the original owner’s memories—but still found nothing.
However, no matter what Gu Zhixing’s background was, the marriage contract had already been written. From now on, he was hers.
At that moment, Lin Sheng was sitting by the stove adding firewood. Hearing Gu Zhixing’s words, he immediately chimed in.
“Sis, let me tell you, Brother Gu is amazing! He not only works efficiently but can also cook, and he’s great at studying too. He’s way better than our school teacher!”
Earlier, while studying, he had encountered something he couldn’t understand. Gu Zhixing had casually explained it, and it immediately made everything clear to him. They had talked more afterward, and he found Gu Zhixing’s insights extremely impressive.
Lin Sheng had always admired knowledgeable people, and now Gu Zhixing was clearly one of them.
He even pointed outside. “Look, the whole yard was cleaned by Brother Gu. He originally wanted to chop firewood too, but I stopped him.”
Hearing Lin Sheng repeatedly call him “Brother Gu” so familiarly, Lin Wan raised her eyebrow and corrected him, “You should call him brother-in-law.”
It seemed that during the time she was away in town, quite a lot had happened between Gu Zhixing and Lin Sheng. One thing was certain—the courtyard was spotless.
“Huh?” Lin Sheng froze.
At that moment, Lin Wan took out the official marriage certificate stamped by the authorities. There were three copies: one kept by the government, and one each for the two spouses.
She handed her copy to Gu Zhixing, smiling brightly. “From today on, we are husband and wife.”
In ancient times, once there was a marriage certificate, they were already considered married. The wedding ceremony could always be held later when they had more money.
Gu Zhixing’s gaze fell on the certificate. After a moment, he reached out and took it.
Lin Sheng looked back and forth between the two of them, still a bit uneasy. After seeing Gu Zhixing’s abilities today, he was quite satisfied with this brother-in-law. His only concern was that Gu Zhixing seemed to be in poor health.
Gu Zhixing folded the certificate carefully and put it into his robe. Then he said gently, “I made some porridge. Would you like a bowl later?”
“Of course!” she replied immediately.
She had eaten two buns on the way, but she was still not full. Moreover, the aroma of the porridge was very appetizing.
Today, Lin Wan had bought quite a lot of grain—rice, white flour, and some coarse grains. Mixing them together would still taste decent.
She had also bought two jin of pork, planning to stew it into braised pork that evening. The cut she chose had layers of fat and lean meat—perfect for a rich dish.
Besides the porridge, Gu Zhixing also used some vegetables Lin Wan had brought back from Old Village Head Zhang’s house the day before to make a simple side dish. Light, refreshing, and delicious.
The simpler the ingredients, the more they tested a cook’s skill. Gu Zhixing’s cooking seemed even better than hers.
After eating, Lin Wan sorted out the medicinal herbs she had bought. Both Gu Zhixing’s antidote and the medicine to regulate Lin Sheng’s body required musk. However, musk was expensive, so she only bought a small amount—enough for about four days.
Although she still had some money, she couldn’t spend it all on medicine, or the family would soon be broke again. The crops in the field would take more than three months to harvest, so before that, she needed to find a way to earn money.
As for musk—since both men in the house needed it—she had to find a way to get more.
Her gaze drifted toward the distant mountains. After clearing the weeds in the fields, she planned to go up the mountain to take a look. Maybe she would find some opportunity. After all, she had transmigrated into a novel—even if she wasn’t the protagonist, surely fate wouldn’t give her nothing at all.