Su Yu’s face instantly turned deathly pale. They had actually seen Zhao Li take her away with their own eyes. So Auntie Wang hadn’t waited for her. Most likely, she was wary of the Zhao family’s influence and assumed that once Su Yu fell into Zhao Li’s hands, she wouldn’t be returning tonight. But why hadn’t anyone even stepped forward to ask what had happened?
Deep down, Su Yu had always known the village women didn’t particularly like her. When she was younger, she hadn’t understood why. Only as she grew older did she gradually realize the reason: the way the men looked at her. Whenever she went to the river to wash clothes, someone would linger and steal a few extra glances. Whenever she chopped firewood in the yard, someone would conveniently pass by and ask if she needed help.
Over the years, she had done her best to say as little as possible to any man, yet those eyes never stopped drifting toward her.
That was why, when Su Yansong blushingly confessed he wanted to marry her, she was willing. She didn’t really understand what people meant by romantic love between a man and a woman. She had simply thought that once she married and had a husband to rely on, those lingering gazes would finally cease. But now, even though she had done nothing wrong, cruel words still came crashing down on her from all directions.
Seeing how pale Su Yu had become, the woman grew even more convinced she had struck the truth.
“Look at that! She’s so guilty she can’t even speak!”
The speaker was Aunt Gou from the far end of the village. Her deadbeat husband would always mutter after getting drunk, “That girl from the Su family is as pretty as a flower. I wonder which lucky man will marry her someday.” Unable to do anything about her own husband, Aunt Gou had instead poured all her resentment onto Su Yu.
“A young girl shamelessly fooling around with a man in broad daylight. Well, look what happened. He had his fill of you and then threw you back—”
“Shut up!” A figure suddenly burst through the crowd.
Su Yansong yanked Wu Xiu away from in front of Su Yu and stepped protectively between them. His mild, easygoing expression, which usually characterized him, had vanished completely. He clenched his fists so tightly that the veins on the backs of his hands bulged.
Staring at Aunt Gou, he spoke through clenched teeth, fury evident in his voice. “Aunt Gou, you’re a mother with a daughter of your own. Have some decency when you speak. If I hear you slander her again, don’t blame me for forgetting we’re neighbors.”
At the sight of Su Yansong, Aunt Gou’s arrogance instantly deflated. The fierce air she’d worn moments ago, as if she wanted to tear Su Yu apart alive, vanished the moment she met the scholar’s reddened eyes. She couldn’t afford to offend Su Yansong. He had already earned the title of xiucai; in the future, he would sit for the provincial examinations and perhaps even become a jinshi. His prospects were boundless. But the resentment burning in her chest had to be directed somewhere.
Not daring to lash out at a man, Aunt Gou shifted her gaze to Wu Xiu, who had been pulled aside by Su Yansong and stood there with an ugly expression. Immediately, she changed targets and shouted at the top of her lungs.
“I’m talking to you, Madam Wu! You ought to keep your son in line! A woman like that isn’t someone you should marry into the family. If you don’t stop him now, be careful she doesn’t ruin your Song’er’s future!”
With that, she lifted her chin and strode away without looking back. Only after putting some distance between them did she dare mutter another curse under her breath.
Having been shoved aside by her son, Wu Xiu staggered two steps before regaining her balance. Her face alternated between shades of green and white. All that commotion she’d caused had been for one purpose: to let the entire neighborhood witness Su Yu’s humiliation. In that respect, she had succeeded. But Su Yansong’s sudden appearance, standing protectively in front of Su Yu, had left her, his mother, looking rather foolish.
Fortunately, the dirty water had already been splashed. From now on, whenever her son brought up marriage, she could simply shut him down with, “How could a girl like that ever be worthy of entering our family?”
The thought eased much of her embarrassment. Putting on a conciliatory smile, she waved at the gathered villagers. “All right, all right, that’s enough. Everyone go home. Stop crowding around here.”
Then she turned, grabbed Su Yansong’s sleeve, and lowered her voice as she urged him to come home.
But Su Yansong did not move. Still holding Su Yu’s wrist, he let his gaze pass over the crowd and settle on a bamboo grove not far away.
Following his gaze, Wu Xiu finally noticed the carriage was still there.
The curtains hung low, and it stood quietly beside the bamboo. Despite all the commotion that had just erupted, no one inside had made a sound.
The driver was a young man with thick brows, deep-set eyes, broad shoulders, and a sturdy build. Though he looked like nothing more than a coachman, something about the way his eyes swept over the crowd felt unsettling, like a snake watching from the shadows. It instinctively made people keep their distance.
Wu Xiu’s heart skipped a beat as she took another look at the carriage. Yet no matter how she examined it, it looked perfectly ordinary. Compared with the Zhao family, it was nothing special. Even some of the county’s more respectable merchants owned finer carriages.
Still, Su Yu had just said she’d run into a bit of trouble and that she had already resolved it. And this carriage remained parked here, unmoving, almost like a guard standing watch over her.
Just as Wu Xiu debated whether to go over and sound them out, her son suddenly spoke.
“Sister Yu,” Su Yansong said, turning to look at Su Yu. “Was it the person in that carriage who bullied you?”
Su Yu did not look at him. Too many things had happened today. She had tried her best to hold herself together, but now she felt dazed and overwhelmed.
The people of her own village had stood by with folded arms, hurling insults and accusations. Yet a complete stranger had rescued her from the jaws of danger and brought her safely home.
The fact that he still hadn’t left meant he must have heard the commotion and worried about her. Unable to put his mind at ease, yet mindful of her concerns, he had chosen not to appear in person.
Su Yu did not want to drag him into this.
Those gazes were too filthy, too ugly. Someone as pure and luminous as a bright moon should never have to bear them.
She pulled her hand free from Su Yansong’s grasp. “The person in the carriage saved me.”
Without looking at anyone, she walked toward the carriage. Stopping before the tightly drawn curtain, she dipped into a slight bow and spoke in a steady voice. “Young Master Ji, I’m unharmed. Please return home.”
Then she turned to the coachman. “It’s getting late, and the mountain roads will be difficult to travel. Please be careful on your way.”
Inside the carriage, Ji Xuanyue felt a faint pang of disappointment. He had thought she would ask him for help. Whether it was to have him reveal his identity and explain what had happened, or to use his influence to crush those ignorant villagers into silence. Instead, she had merely come to his carriage and, with dignity intact, asked him to leave first.
Her voice was still trembling. Her eyes were still red. Yet she insisted on putting on a calm, strong front.
Others might not know, but he did. The grievance and hurt seeping from the tears trembling in her eyes had already washed over him like a flood, threatening to drown him. What a fragile yet stubborn mortal.
A slender hand lifted the curtain slightly.
The moment Su Yu raised her eyes, she met the amber gaze looking out at her from behind it.
The daylight had already faded. The shadows inside the carriage only made his features appear more striking and profound. His gaze settled lightly upon her face before drifting across the corners of her eyes, where traces of tears still lingered.
“Since the young lady does not wish for me to interfere in today’s matter, I shall not press for details. However, should you encounter difficulties in the future, take this token to any merchant house under the Ji family’s name, and ask for me.” As he spoke, he extended a hand from behind the curtain. Between his long fingers was a black jade token. “If you refuse it, I truly cannot leave with peace of mind.”
Hearing this, Su Yu hesitated for a moment, then finally reached out. “Thank you, Young Master.”
The curtain fell once more.
The person inside said nothing more, and soon the carriage wheels began to turn. Within moments, it vanished from sight.
Lowering her head, Su Yu saw a single character carved into the black jade token: Ji (姬), etched in restrained, elegant strokes.
“Who is he?”
As she studied it, a tall shadow fell beside her.
At some point, Su Yansong had walked over. His gaze settled on the jade token, too.
Su Yu said nothing. She simply tucked the token into her robe and turned to leave.
But Su Yansong caught hold of her arm and repeated the question. “Who is he?”
The spectators had not completely dispersed. Small groups still lingered nearby, stealing glances in their direction while whispering among themselves. One look at their expressions was enough to know they were saying unpleasant things.
Su Yu had no desire to argue with them any longer. She was exhausted.
Gently prying Su Yansong’s fingers apart, she said softly, “He is the benefactor who saved both my life and my honor.”
Seeing the carriage depart and her son’s concern met with indifference, Wu Xiu hurried forward and grabbed Su Yu by the arm.
“Yuer, don’t blame Auntie for raising her voice just now. I was worried about you. Don’t take it to heart…” But before she could finish, her hand met only air as Su Yu shook her off.
Wu Xiu froze. Then she heard the disheveled young woman in front of her speak. “Auntie, if it were your daughter who had been injured and brought home today, would you have shouted so loudly and called the entire village out to watch as well?”
Wu Xiu’s mouth hung half-open, but no word came out.
Without waiting for an answer, Su Yu stepped back. Ignoring whatever expression remained on the woman’s face, she turned and walked away.
Inside, Wu Xiu cursed the ungrateful girl, but with her son and several lingering neighbors still present, she maintained the dignity expected of an elder. “This child… I was only worried about her, so I asked a few questions. Yet somehow she’s blaming me for making a fuss…”
With no more spectacle to enjoy, the remaining villagers gradually dispersed.
Wu Xiu reached for her son’s arm, intending to drag him home. But as soon as her hand touched his sleeve, he stepped away from her. Startled, she raised her head and met her son’s silent expression.
“Song’er, come home.”
“What are you still standing here for? They’ve practically shut the door in your face. Does it look like she appreciates any of your concern?”
“And did you hear the way she spoke just now? Sharp-tongued and argumentative. Where’s the gentleness a young woman ought to have?”
As Su Yansong listened to his mother’s complaints, his thoughts kept returning to the brief moment when the carriage curtain had been lifted.
A young, handsome nobleman. When those eyes had rested quietly on Su Yu’s face, Su Yansong had inexplicably sensed both intense restraint and absolute determination beneath their calm surface. And then there was the character carved into the jade token.
Ji. The surname Ji. In all of Qingyang County, only one family bore that surname.
“Mother,” he suddenly said, “go to Sister Yu’s house tomorrow and propose marriage.”
Wu Xiu’s face instantly darkened with rage. “What nonsense are you talking about? The county magistrate personally promised that if you pass the provincial examination, he will let you marry his daughter. If you think I’m going to let you marry Su Yu, I’d rather die!”
“Mother.” Su Yansong called to her again. In the fading light, his profile seemed strangely unfamiliar. “If I am fortunate enough to pass the examination, the position of principal wife will still belong to the magistrate’s daughter.”
“W-What?”
For a moment, Wu Xiu failed to grasp what he meant.
“First, I’ll become engaged to Su Yu. If I pass, I’ll marry the magistrate’s daughter as my legal wife and bring Su Yu into the household as a concubine. If I fail, then Su Yu will become my wife.” He paused. “No matter what happens, the engagement comes first.”