Chapter 63
Xun Yi's expression remained unusually cold and stern throughout the morning.
A few days ago, someone ordered a shovel. He struck it evenly, one blow at a time, until he had used up most of his strength, and only then did he feel a little better.
In the afternoon, he took the bags of dried fruit he had brought back the day before and went out.
He adopted Shu Wanxiu's suggestion and distributed dried fruit to everyone he met on his way to the center of the village.
Sure enough, others asked him about the third-day celebration the day before.
Stopping and starting, it took twice as long as usual to get to the Pang family's house.
He came to see Chen Sanhe.
Aunt Chen treated him and Xun Ai as her own sons.
After Xun Ai became pregnant, Chen Sanhe was very worried about her. She had told Xun Yi a long time ago that she could take care of Xun Ai during her postpartum period.
Love is mutual, and Xun Yi felt bad about asking Chen Sanhe to take care of Xun Ai for free.
That's why they ended up paying Lin Xinghua to take care of Xun Ai during her postpartum period.
Upon arriving at the Pang family's residence, he failed to meet Chen Sanhe.
I asked Chen Lian and learned that she had gone to the vegetable garden to tend the melon vines.
After the few bags of dried fruit that had been taken out of the house were almost distributed, Xun Yi gave the last bit to the Pang family's children.
After finding out which vegetable patch Chen Sanhe was in, they set off to find him.
There are many types of melons that can be eaten in summer, but most of them are planted in spring.
The melon vines that Chen Sanhe cultivated were wild melons. The vines were already half a person tall, but they had not yet blossomed or borne fruit, so they were obviously planted after the beginning of summer.
It's not too late.
In fact, the Pang family had previously planted a batch of wild melons, and they had already eaten several meals of the wild melons that had grown this year. This time, they planted another batch, but it was just to wait until the vines of the first batch of wild melons were old, withered, and no longer bore fruit. This batch would then continue the harvest, so that they would have vegetables to eat in the autumn.
Xun Yi walked to the edge of the vegetable patch, where Chen Sanhe was standing on tiptoe, using straw rope to tie up a wooden gourd trellis.
He walked over in a few steps and took the work from Chen Sanhe's hands.
Chen Sanhe's hand suddenly went empty, and he turned his head and squinted at the person who had come up.
"Young Master Xun?!" she said with a laugh and a scolding tone, "What brings you here?"
Xun Yi said he didn't have any urgent work in the afternoon, so he came out to take a walk in the village.
"I went to your house but didn't see you. I heard from my sister-in-law that you were here, so I came over."
While answering Chen Sanhe's question, he continued tying the rope with his hands.
Chen Sanhe took a few steps back, and seeing that he was tied up securely, he stopped caring and asked him about the drinking he had gone out to yesterday.
"How is Xun Ai doing after giving birth? Does she look well?"
"Where's your niece? Is she healthy and strong after being born? Is she fair-skinned and delicate? Is she fussy?"
While others asked about the banquet, the scale of the event, and how lively it was, Chen Sanhe asked about these 'minor details'.
Xun Yi patiently shared everything he had seen yesterday.
Finally, she relayed Xun Ai's message: "She hasn't been back for a long time. She said she misses you and asked you to wait for her for a while. She will come back to the village with her baby to visit you after she finishes her postpartum confinement."
Chen Sanhe was pleased to hear this, but after a while she said, "She's still in her postpartum period, she should just take good care of herself. Why are you worrying so much and thinking about everything after she finishes her postpartum period?"
While chatting, the melon trellis was set up. Chen Sanhe bent down and helped the slender melon vines to twine around the trellis.
"People are just like these melon vines. Once they climb up the wooden frame, they quickly grow, blossom, and bear fruit."
Chen Sanhe recalled the tiny little girl he first met and gave a brief laugh, “Time flies.”
Xun Yi looked up slightly at the top of the wooden frame.
He was several generations younger than Chen Sanhe, but as he recalled Xun Ai's appearance many years ago, he also felt that time had flown by.
Before he could recover from his daze, Chen Sanhe had already ended his brief moment of reflection.
Suddenly, he asked, "Xun Ai is already married and has children. You're so much older than her, why haven't you had any plans yet?"
Xun Yi used to politely decline matchmaking proposals for him, citing the reason that he wanted to save a good dowry for his younger sister.
Xun Ai is living a good life in Turtleback Village now. He has been married for a year and his child has already been born. Chen Sanhe earnestly asked Xun Yi when he planned to get married and what kind of girl he wanted to marry.
While Xun Yi was taken aback by the change in topic, she continued to bombard him with questions.
“You are indeed not young anymore, and it would be inappropriate to delay any longer. Tell me your conditions today, and your aunt will look for a suitable place nearby for you.”
Chen Sanhe held a place in Xun Yi's heart that was not just a relative, but even closer than a relative.
He was unwilling to deceive Chen Sanhe from the bottom of his heart.
But if I were to confess that I have feelings for Shu Wanxiu, it seems that the time is not yet right.
After much deliberation, Xun Yi finally answered Chen Sanhe's question.
"Auntie, I have someone I like."
As for who this person is, he only said, "She doesn't understand my feelings yet, so I can't say right now."
"You little rascal!" Chen Sanhe was so surprised he couldn't close his mouth.
When did this happen?
Xun Yi shook his head and remained silent on the matter.
The path next to the Pang family's vegetable garden leads from one end of the village to the other.
Many people like to walk along this path in the summer because it is shaded by trees and not so hot.
A gentle breeze rustled the branches and leaves of the trees, and fragments of light and shadow were cut and projected onto the ground overgrown with weeds, as well as onto the figure of a person leaning against a tree next to the vegetable garden, covering their mouth and eavesdropping.
There aren't many secrets in the small village.
Within two or three days, even Shu Wanxiu inadvertently learned that Xun Yi had found someone he liked.
This rumor has spread several times and has become quite detailed and convincing.
Pang the carpenter's granddaughter-in-law was fanning herself under a tree, listening excitedly as her grandmother, who could draw talismans to calm spirits, said, "That girl is very tall, with incredibly smooth skin, especially her hands—oh my, they're the kind of fair and delicate skin you can't get in the countryside! That girl probably hasn't even been in the sun twice in her life, let alone done farm work. But such a girl, standing next to Xun Yi, is truly a perfect match."
Shu Wanxiu walked by after checking the water in the field, and the two people who were having a great chat didn't notice her at all.
Grandma Pang, the carpenter's granddaughter-in-law, asked, "Grandma, did you see this with your own eyes?!"
Grandma Pang slapped her thigh. "No, I was late that day. But if you listen carefully in the village, you'll see at least ten or eight people! Xun Yi personally escorted that girl away from our village!"
Shu Shouyi knew that 'Xun Yi' was the name of his uncle Xun.
He walked alongside Shu Wanxiu, and after walking quite a distance, he looked up and asked Shu Wanxiu, "Auntie, what are they saying about Uncle Xun?"
This sun is so hot it's really annoying.
Shu Wanxiu barely managed to suppress her agitation and said stiffly, "Children shouldn't ask such questions."
"Oh." Shu Shouyi lowered his head in disappointment and kicked a small pebble on the road.
Shu Wanxiu noticed that Shu Shouyi was somewhat sullen, but she didn't try to comfort him for a long time.
She felt extremely tired.
At this moment, it was difficult for her to open her mouth to say a word or to raise her hand to touch Shu Shouyi's head.
She didn't know where her strength had gone; she just thought aimlessly that this was actually a good thing.
Whether Xun Yi is possessed by an evil spirit or is ill, others will soon discover it.
Whether it's getting him to the hospital or exorcising evil spirits, someone will arrange it for him.
Oh... there's more.
They might get married soon, and then they might have children soon after.
When they get married, should I give them something as a gift? Or should I give more money as a wedding gift? After the child is born, should I make some clothes for the child, or should I make a headband for his wife, just like I did with Xun Ai this time?
Many far-fetched ideas came to mind.
As she walked, she suddenly felt her arm being shaken a few times.
When I looked down instinctively, I saw Shu Shouyi with a bitter face.
"Auntie, where are we going? I'm thirsty."
He was covered in sweat, and the back of his clothes was mostly soaked.
Shu Wanxiu asked in surprise, "How far have we gone?"
Shu Shouyi immediately let go of her hand and pointed to a distant place, gesturing rapidly: "From this end to there, and then to..."
The rumors spread like wildfire, yet they seemed to have eyes, knowing to avoid the Pang family and Xun Yi.
After the third-day celebration, Xun Yi avoided Shu Wanxiu for several days because he couldn't forget the two foolish things he did that night.
A few days later, he got over the hurdle in his heart, only to find that he could no longer meet Shu Wanxiu.
Oh no, that's not accurate.
In fact, Shu Wanxiu could still see him, but each time Shu Wanxiu was accompanied by more than just Shu Shouyi.
She seems to be spending a lot of time down the mountain lately, either with this auntie, or with that old woman and those other women.
Xun Yi couldn't even exchange half a sentence with her, let alone use what Lin Xinghua taught him to get closer to Shu Wanxiu.
He thought, it's okay.
Perhaps because it hasn't rained for a long time, it's cooler down at the foot of the mountain.
Aunt Xinghua has been in Guibei Village for about twenty days. She has started preparing for the wedding and the marriage proposal as previously agreed.
The rest can be discussed by Aunt Xinghua when she returns.
...
Wang Jincai was angry with Lin Xinghua for a long time. Even after Lin Xinghua went to Guibei Village to take care of Xun Ai during her postpartum period, he was still angry and kept refusing to send any messages to Guibei Village, not paying much attention to her whereabouts.
He tended his few acres of meager land, working from sunrise to sunset.
One day, the rumors about Xun Yi that were circulating in the village finally reached his ears.
He had heard about the time, the place, and what the girl Xun Yi was interested in looked like from other people.
Although the girl's family background is uncertain, some say she is the daughter of a wealthy merchant in the county, some say she is the daughter of an official, and others say she is the daughter of his master who runs a blacksmith shop in the county.
In any case, it has nothing to do with Shu Wanxiu.
Wang Jincai panicked; he had no idea what Lin Xinghua had done.
If things go wrong and it breaks up the marriage... that would be a terrible thing.
So the next day he rushed to Guibei Village to question his wife, Lin Xinghua.
"You said earlier that Xun Yi was interested in Shu Wanxiu. Did you mishear something, or did you stir things up and cause problems between them? It's the talk of the village..."
His furious questioning left Lin Xinghua uncertain.
"What did I get involved in? I got involved!"
After giving a boastful reply, she recalled every conversation she had with Xun Yi recently and murmured, "That's right, he really does like Shu Wanxiu."
“I saw him standing in Shu Yatou’s field pulling weeds with my own eyes.”
"Could the rumors in the village be wrong? No, how would the villagers know that Xun Yi has someone he likes?"
Lin Xinghua believed that she had not interfered recklessly.
She was a bit quicker-witted than Wang Jincai, and soon she figured out the key to it.
The focus remains on Xun Yi.
It was that kid who said he liked Shu Wanxiu, and it was also that kid who caused these rumors with other women.
"Hmph!" Lin Xinghua sneered, "That's going to be interesting."
"Could it be that young Xun has his eye on this one and that one, and has his eye on two people at the same time?"
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