Chapter 85 A surge of anger welled up in his heart, and he grabbed her...

After the meal, everyone brewed tea in the pavilion. Deng Jie discussed the matter of finding sulfur with Deng Zhao. Deng Zhao thought it was too dangerous for her and Guo Jia to go alone. Even if they were just scouting, they wouldn't know when they would be able to return. It would be better for her to send Old Chen with a few old caravan members to inquire in the nearby counties and towns if they could buy sulfur ore.

Yu Qiu nodded in agreement: "Yuanming is right. If we really can't buy them, let them explore the mineral resources along the way, and bring more people with them."

Deng Jie lowered her head and pondered, still having some ideas in mind. Guo Jia gently comforted her, "Miss, why don't you prepare a sulfur mine atlas first and have Old Chen take it with him, so that you can be more targeted?"

“There happens to be a copy of the *Shennong Bencao Jing* in the study; it should contain records.” Yu Qiu stood up and was about to shoo them away, “Fengxiao, go and help Ajie make a few more copies! We’ll clean up here!”

After the two had gone far away, Deng Zhao finally asked, puzzled, "What's wrong, Madam?"

Yu Qiu happily took Deng Zhao's hand, "Since we're going to be family, we should naturally live together! Come on, let's get Fengxiao a different room!"

Inside the study, Deng Jie took the "Shennong's Classic of Materia Medica" from the bookshelf, unrolled the scroll, found the entry for sulfur, and began to practice copying it on a thin piece of paper.

Guo Jia leaned down to take a look and saw that she had carefully drawn an outline the size of a fingernail on it. He couldn't help but laugh: "With such frugality, young lady, Old Chen and the others probably won't be able to find it even next year."

He pointed to the rolls of silk on the shelf. "Your family is in the silk business, and you're still reluctant to use it?"

Deng Jie suddenly realized, got up and fetched several pieces of cloth, but as soon as he picked up his brush, his hand hovered in the air, afraid to put it down: "My painting skills are really..."

"Try this first, draw it bigger." Guo Jia pulled out a blank bamboo scroll and unfolded it, his eyes smiling, already having anticipated this.

The brush tip moved across the bamboo strip, and a soft, limp shape appeared in ink. Deng Jie tried to correct it, but the more he tried, the blurrier it became, resembling a burnt pancake.

Guo Jia slapped the table and laughed: "Wonderful! Your painting skills are just like your embroidery skills, both are like this... it all comes down to the artistic conception!"

"Guo Fengxiao!" Deng Jie angrily reached for the medicine pouch at his waist, "Give me back my medicine pouch!"

Guo Jia nimbly dodged to the side, pressing one hand against the medicine pouch: "It's mine! There's no reason to take back what's been given away!"

Deng Jie cried out in a panic, "That was also a gift from my elder brother!"

Guo Jia then demanded from her: "I still owe you the new medicine pouch you promised me."

Deng Jie was both ashamed and annoyed. He pushed the bamboo slip in front of him and said irritably, "Then you do it!"

But then she saw Guo Jia pick up his brush, dip it in ink, and, skipping over the bamboo slips, directly sketch the mineral on the silk. With just a few strokes, he had perfectly outlined the mineral, almost identical to the original. She stared in disbelief, muttering after a long while, "I should have let the master do it alone..."

"Let's divide the work. You can't see anything just like this. It needs to be drawn in more detail." Guo Jia moved the finished silk cloth in front of her. "Miss, copy the text, and I will draw the illustrations."

The bamboo slips were laid out between the two men, and they began working on them simultaneously.

When Deng Jie finished copying five copies, Guo Jia had only finished painting three.

She watched as Guo Jia carefully examined her, then suddenly realized, "Oh no! I still have to change my clothes to see Xu Hong!"

Guo Jia looked up and saw her hurriedly packing up her writing materials. He couldn't help but chuckle, "Go ahead, I'll take care of the rest."

After Guo Jia finished copying, he stretched and walked towards his room, where he bumped into several servants carrying his books and clothes out of his room and carrying them towards the main building.

"What is this for?" he asked, grabbing a servant in quick succession. The servant could only shrink back and say that it was ordered by the madam.

Guo Jia hurried into the room, only to find Deng Zhao and his wife standing inside. Yu Qiu was directing the servants to move things and clean up. When Deng Zhao saw Guo Jia, he gave a stiff smile.

"Fengxiao, you've come at the right time," Yu Qiu squeezed past Deng Zhao to greet Guo Jia, holding up a scroll of bamboo slips with frayed threads. "When I was cleaning just now, I found some rats causing trouble. This room is no longer safe to live in. It won't do for you to chew up your precious bamboo slips!"

She pointed to the main building, "The charcoal fire in the main building is warmer than here. I'll arrange for you to stay over there."

Guo Jia stared at the spot where the thread had broken cleanly and neatly, as if cut by a sharp weapon. Just as he was about to open his mouth, he saw Deng Zhao suddenly cough violently, his eyes fixed on the roof beam, where the orange cat that always followed him was lying.

"Sister-in-law!" Deng Jie, who had just changed into his hemp clothes and whose hair was still in a bun, rushed over along the corridor. "They said you arranged for Mr. Fengxiao to stay next to me..."

When she entered the room, she saw that the three people had different expressions, and she stopped talking.

"There are rats." Yu Qiu waved the bamboo slip in his hand. Deng Zhao closed his eyes to avoid Deng Jie's gaze, while Guo Jia covered his face and chuckled.

After noon, Yu Qiu and Deng Zhao were ready to set off.

Before they left, Yu Qiu insisted on seeing Deng Jie off, lightly tapping her brow with her fingertip: "Fengxiao is an honored guest, so you must not neglect him."

"Sister-in-law, aren't you ashamed? Such a deliberate arrangement only makes you a laughingstock." Deng Jie still insisted that Yu Qiu's sudden change of attitude towards Guo Jia was due to yesterday's events, and his eyes revealed his dissatisfaction.

Yu Qiu, however, remained quite composed, letting her look at him as she pleased, displaying an attitude of "that's just how I am," and continued to use Deng Zhao as a pretext: "Since your brother has recognized this man as his brother, I should also do him a favor." After saying that, she gave Deng Zhao, who was standing not far away with his hands behind his back, a wink.

Deng Zhao understood, strode forward, put his arm around his wife's shoulder, and told Deng Jie to hurry back and take them to the main building to familiarize themselves with the place.

After the two had walked away, Yu Qiu grabbed Deng Zhao's collar and said, "You came up with the idea, but I have to do all the acting?"

Deng Zhao chuckled awkwardly, "How could I possibly have your methods, Madam?" Before he could finish speaking, his wife had already tugged at the jade pendant at his waist, making it jingle. He quickly begged for mercy, "Alright, alright, I have a way, I have a way..."

After seeing off Deng Zhao and his wife, Deng Jie led Guo Jia to visit the second floor of the main building. She told Guo Jia that after the main building was expanded, her mother and brother and sister-in-law moved to the third floor. Ming'er originally lived with her wet nurse, but later her mother felt that it was inconvenient for outsiders to live on the third floor, so she sent her wet nurse to live with her.

The original master bedroom on the second floor was instead converted to provide Deng Jie with a spacious place to live.

She led Guo Jia to the room that was originally Deng's mother's room. Although it was more spacious than the one in the corner tower, it was also warmer and had a larger bookshelf. The room was still filled with the aroma of freshly burned mugwort.

"What is this compartment used for?" Guo Jia noticed that there was another small compartment in the room. He opened the door out of curiosity, thinking it might be for collecting things. But when he opened it, he found several braziers inside, only one of which was burning at the moment.

"My mother has always been sensitive to the cold, so this room was specially made for her by my brother. This way, even if we burn more charcoal, there won't be any smoke disturbing her rest," Deng Jie explained to him, then pointed to the room upstairs, which had the same design.

Guo Jia nodded in praise, "Brother Yuanming is indeed meticulous."

He continued to look around the room. On the wall hung peach wood charms written by Deng's mother, which still retained some of the scholarly fragrance. Guo Jia thought to himself that this family was really interesting, as they had gathered together scholars, warriors, merchants, and pharmacists.

His gaze swept over the spotless bronze lamp and the simple cushions, and Guo Jia couldn't help but praise, "Your wife is so considerate."

Deng Jie moved closer to him, his expression awkward as he whispered, "Sir, please don't be offended, my sister-in-law is just that kind of businesswoman..." Then he suddenly looked up and said seriously, "But she is genuinely kind to people!"

Guo Jia didn't think Yu Qiu was trying to please him solely for that reason, but it seemed the girl hadn't understood her brother and sister-in-law's intentions. He chuckled and replied, "Jia understands."

After the two went downstairs, Deng Jie suddenly seemed to remember something, quickly turned to the medicine cabinet on the west side, pulled out a few drawers without any purpose, reached into them and rubbed them, then rubbed his hands on his body.

"What are you doing, young lady?" Guo Jia asked curiously, moving closer and reaching out to pinch and play with the herbs.

“He smelled medicine on me yesterday, but I changed my face powder this morning.” She said, stuffing some medicine into her sleeve. “I have to change back to the smell of medicine.”

Guo Jia felt a surge of tenderness in his heart when he saw that she had even taken care of these details.

Then he thought about how he could even smell the medicine, and wondered just how close the two of them had been in the rice shop. He couldn't help but frown.

He tried to lean out and bring his nose closer to Deng Jie. Just then, Deng Jie was tickled by a spiciness and sneezed, bumping his head hard with Guo Jia's. Both of them were stunned and burst out laughing while clutching their sore spots.

"Why are we going to the herb garden next?" Guo Jia followed closely behind Deng Jie, his hands tucked in his sleeves. "With you so well prepared, do you really think you'll run into Xu Hong?"

"These clothes are too clean, that's not right! I didn't have time to turn the soil this morning, so this is a win-win situation." Without the constraints of the folding skirt, the little girl's steps became light and cheerful.

Guo Jia shook his head helplessly; she was simply preoccupied with her herbs.

Deng Jie squatted by the edge of the field, deftly rolling up her sleeves to her elbows, revealing her slender arms.

She focused intently on loosening the soil, her low bun swaying gently with her movements.

Guo Jia sat on the bluestone beside the old locust tree, his gaze unconsciously following her hair bun back and forth. When Deng Jie bent over, her hair bun slipped to one side, revealing a section of her snow-white nape, which somehow stirred his heart. He squatted down as if possessed, dipping his fingertips into the dust on the edge of the stone.

"Ah!" Deng Jie shuddered and almost fell to the ground.

She turned and glared at Guo Jia, only to see him pointing innocently at her neck: "A bruise, of course. A poor family's wife who wants to elope needs some scars to look presentable."

Deng Jie blinked, then suddenly realized, "That makes sense!" She leaned closer, "Come on, let's put some on here too."

Guo Jia suppressed a laugh, his fingertips gently tracing her cheek. The smooth touch sent a shiver down his spine, and he quickly masked it with a teasing remark: "The young lady is so eager; it's as if she really wants to elope with someone."

"Stop talking nonsense!" Deng Jie grabbed a handful of dirt and slapped it onto his hand. "Even if we're a poor couple, you still have to have something!"

The two played around like children, and soon they were covered in dust.

When Deng Jie scooped water from the well to look at her reflection, she chuckled: "She doesn't look like she's been beaten by a wicked husband at all; she looks like a fire-starting maid who just crawled out of the stove!"

Looking at the dusty-faced girl with her bright, smiling eyes, Guo Jia suddenly felt a burning sensation in his chest.

He casually dusted off his sleeves, feigning composure: "It's alright, poor couples still have to work in the kitchen anyway."

"Then I'll add some more for you! Consider it a sign of losing money and getting beaten up at the gambling den!" Deng Jie suddenly pounced over, wiping his muddy hands on his face.

Caught off guard, Guo Jia was caught off guard and caught off guard. The two burst into laughter. Looking into Deng Jie's bright eyes, Guo Jia suddenly wished that this act could go on for a little longer.

As they passed through the courtyard, Deng Jie asked a servant for his headscarf, and Guo Jia also went to the dining hall, picked up a half-full pot of Jiu Yun Chun wine from the table, tilted his head back and took two gulps, deliberately tilting his head slightly so that the wine would slide down his chin into his clothes.

Deng Jie pinched his nose and backed away: "Is this also to play an alcoholic?"

Guo Jia ripped open his shirt, smeared the wine on his chest, and deliberately leaned close to Deng Jie, grinning, "Don't you look like you just rolled out of a tavern?"

Guo Jia deliberately slowed his pace and let her push him: "How can that be? A wicked husband has to keep a close eye on his runaway wife!"

When they arrived near the rice market, Deng Jie straightened Guo Jia's coarse cloth headscarf at the corner and made the stray hairs on his forehead even more messy.

"Xu Hong and I have only met once, so he shouldn't be able to tell, right?" Guo Jia lowered his voice and deliberately hunched over.

Deng Jie took a half step back to look him over. The disheveled fellow in front of her was completely different from the handsome man she knew. She smiled with satisfaction: "Look at him this morning, you definitely wouldn't recognize him!"

Inside the rice shop, the shopkeeper snorted as Deng Jie entered, "Madam, have you brought all the money? My master has promised you two thousand five hundred coins."

Deng Jie rubbed his sleeves and peered inside: "Is...is the master still there?"

The waiter rolled his eyes and scurried into the back room, whereupon Xu Hong, pressing down on his belt, emerged from behind the curtain, letting out a laugh that made Deng Jie uncomfortable: "Has my wife changed her mind?"

"My family... can't even scrape together two thousand yuan."

Deng Jie's feigned sobs were tinged with a genuine fear and trembling, "That damned bastard gambled away all the money for the New Year's food, and yesterday when he went back, he even attacked me..." She deliberately showed the gray mark on her wrist that looked most like a bruise.

Xu Hong took two steps forward, grabbed her wrist, and glanced at her sideways: "If that's the case, then stay tonight?"

Deng Jie's heart pounded, but he forced himself to remain calm: "Isn't the lord leaving tomorrow? If I stay in the city today, he will surely find me. Why don't we set a time, wait for the lord to leave, and then sneak out and come back here?"

Xu Hong snorted and tossed her wrist aside. "I've changed my mind. I'll stay for five more days."

Deng Jie was startled. The plan had changed? A sudden panic gripped her, but she couldn't abandon her goal. She straightened herself and exclaimed, "Then...how about five days later at 9:00 AM? If it's earlier, I won't be able to get out..."

He scanned you up and down with his eyes, "Let me see how badly you are injured first."

As he spoke, he reached out to pull off her collar, startling Deng Jie who hurriedly raised her hand to stop him and backed away, bumping her lower back against the door frame: "Once I'm with the master, things will naturally change..."

Xu Hong tightened his grip on her clothes: "Just take a look, why be shy?"

Deng Jie struggled against his hand, turning her head away as she tried to maintain her composure, "My lord, my lord, please don't be impatient..." But the moisture squeezed out of the corners of her eyes betrayed the fear in her heart at this moment.

"You slut!" Guo Jia rushed forward and shoved Deng Jie aside, but in the instant he shoved her aside, he softened his strength and steadily supported her waist with one hand, holding her tightly in his arms. The strong smell of alcohol made Xu Hong take two steps back.

Before Xu Hong's lewd gaze had even left her mind, Deng Jie was suddenly struck by Guo Jia's powerful blow, leaving her momentarily stunned.

But then he grabbed Deng Jie by the shoulder and roared in a rough voice, "You think you can run away just because I lost money? I'll break your legs!"

Although Guo Jia avoided Deng Jie's gaze and stared straight at the floor, his bloodshot eyes and bulging veins still frightened her, reminding her of the gambler she had seen outside the gambling den venting his anger on his wife. The angry shouts made Deng Jie momentarily think of herself as a runaway slut, and her previous fear burst forth with grievance, tears welling up in her eyes.

Xu Hong instinctively pressed his hand on the sword at his waist. Deng Jie tried to push Guo Jia away and break free, but he used his strength to lift her up by the waist. This was completely unexpected. The feeling of weightlessness while suspended in mid-air made her kick her legs instinctively and cry out to Xu Hong, "My lord! My lord, don't forget!"

In the chaos, she pulled a wooden hairpin from her hair and threw it to the ground, then held up five fingers at Xu Hong.

The moment Guo Jia stepped out, he bumped into the charcoal seller who had just squatted down at the door and stumbled. He was startled and hurriedly turned into the back alley.

Only after they entered a residential area did Guo Jia finally put Deng Jie down, panting heavily.

Deng Jie trembled all over, his disheveled hair stuck to his tear-streaked face, and his coarse cloth collar was torn open in the struggle.

She couldn't tell whether she was frightened by Xu Hong or Guo Jia. She never knew that lewdness could happen at any time and place, and so suddenly. She also didn't realize that even though Guo Jia looked thin, she was completely powerless against him when he really got going.

She was trying her best to suppress her emotions, taking deep breaths with her mouth open.

Guo Jia was speechless for a moment. He originally wanted to wait for her to calm down, but when he saw her body trembling, he felt a sudden pang in his heart and a surge of emotion welled up in his heart. He pulled her into his arms.

Deng Jie's forehead rested against his collarbone, and warm tears seeped into his wine-stained clothes.

The hawking cries at the alley entrance gradually subsided as the sun set.

Guo Jia could feel the trembling in his arms gradually subside, but he dared not let go.

He himself had seen too many scenes like that.

A woman being beaten by a drunkard on a street corner in Yangdi; refugees being robbed by Black Mountain bandits outside Yecheng.

The women trembled as they were thrown onto the oxcart like cargo, not daring to utter a sound of crying.

He acted so realistically just now that he was even startled by his own performance.

The force with which he grabbed her shoulder, the tone of his shouts—he was exactly like those villains who drove orphaned girls to their deaths.

The sensation of pulling her still lingered on his right palm, and his thumb and forefinger were slightly swollen.

These hands have copied books, drawn plans, and even killed people to protect themselves... Now they can even play a thug so convincingly, but it frightens her.

For some reason, Guo Jia felt disgusted for the first time. A sour and bitter taste suddenly welled up in his throat. He didn't know if it was the lingering wine or his turbulent emotions that made it hard for him to breathe.

He even wished that the hands holding her at that moment were cleaner.

Xu Hong and I have only met once. He might not even remember me. I should have gone in to investigate yesterday.

But the thought of secretly protecting her made him inexplicably want her to go, and he even excitedly wanted to play the villainous husband, and even tried to figure out the villain's expression.

He was now filled with regret for shouting "bitch" out loud. He should have held back a bit; how could he have recklessly shoved her aside? How could her small frame withstand his full force?

Even though he had many apologies in his mind, only three words came out: "I'm sorry..."

Deng Jie in his arms gently shook his head, slowly exhaled, his nose brushing against the wine stains on his chest, then he burst into laughter through his tears: "It stinks..."

The reproachful tone, still nasal, made Guo Jia relax.

He looked down and met Deng Jie's upturned face, his tear stains still wet, but his eyes were already shimmering with a clear light.

The two of them were stunned at the same time.

An invisible stirring passed between them, and they stood there, stunned, staring at each other without saying a word.

Guo Jia swallowed hard to regain his senses, raised his hand to straighten her clothes, took off his headscarf and wrapped it around her disheveled hair to tie it up simply.

From the distant Drum Tower came the deep sound of the evening drum. Two disheveled men walked side by side. After a long silence, Deng Jie asked seriously, "Why does Xu Hong want to stay five more days?"

“There’s more to this than meets the eye.” Guo Jia’s expression cleared. “Let’s go back and find out what’s going on with Brother Yuanming and the others, and then we can make a decision.”

As dusk fell, their shadows stretched long by the setting sun, appearing both near and far. No one spoke of the embrace from before, but they both sensed something silently sprouting in their hearts.