Chapter 44: Vinegar Essence
When the air was stagnant, a breeze blew slowly, and the branches of the pomegranate tree swayed in the wind, emitting the fragrance of the fruits that were about to ripen.
Shen Yu fumbled with the jade ring in his hand, lowered his head, and did not speak for a long time.
After a long while, he said, "The rules in your hometown are different from those in our Duan Dynasty."
Wen Wan was still embarrassed and said casually, "Every place has its own customs and habits. Isn't this quite normal..."
She stopped talking in shock, then looked at Shen Yu guiltily.
What he just said was "our Duanchao", did that mean to exclude her?
Is he testing her?
Did he already suspect that she was not from the Duan Dynasty?
There is a saying that goes, "Those who are not of my race must have different hearts."
Wen Wan suddenly broke out in a cold sweat on her back, fearing that Shen Yu would directly wipe out her, an alien.
Fortunately, Shen Yu didn't seem to notice the loophole in her words, but put the ring on his finger.
“It’s the right size.”
He raised his jade ring with a smile on his face.
Wen Wan nodded reluctantly. Perhaps she was frightened by his words just now, and she felt a little uneasy at the moment.
Shen Yu looked no different than at first, and he also took out a box from his arms.
"Since you gave me a gift, I have something to give you too."
Wen Wan didn't understand what was going on, so she took the box and opened it, only to find that it contained parts for a repeating crossbow.
She asked in surprise, "Is this one of the ones you showed me last time?"
"Yeah." Shen Yu admitted.
Wen Wan: "Why give me this?"
Shen Yu smiled and said, "Guess?"
Still keeping her in suspense?
Wen Wan curled her lips and thought for a moment, "Could it be that you took these three crossbow parts from the cemetery below the Niangniang Temple?"
Shen Yu nodded approvingly, "Yes. You never leave a tomb empty-handed. You also entered the cemetery at that time. Take this."
"Uh...are you worried that I'll return empty-handed and be cursed?"
If he hadn't mentioned it, Wen Wan would have forgotten about it. She didn't expect that he even noticed this detail.
Shen Yu didn't comment, "I've already asked someone to draw the blueprint for the part, so there's no point in me keeping it. You can just take it."
He said it so lightly, but he carried it with him, clearly taking the matter to heart.
Wen Wan felt a warm feeling in her heart, and when she looked up again, her eyes and brows were filled with smiles.
Shen Yu's eyes fell on her face, and he was burned by her brilliant smile, and unconsciously raised the corners of his mouth.
Outside the courtyard gate, Jinmu looked at the two people, one standing and one sitting, from afar, and finally let out a long sigh.
The servant standing beside him, Agui, looked puzzled. "Commander Jinmu, is that the concubine that the general has his eyes on?"
Jinmu was stunned and quickly covered Agui's mouth.
"Don't say that! If Miss Xiaowan hears this, she'll definitely be angry. If she gets angry, the general will be in a bad mood too, and we'll be the ones to suffer in the end."
Agui: "Oh. But why would Miss Xiaowan be unhappy? For her, the general even gave up the huge Shen Mansion and moved to this small courtyard."
Jin Mu explained: "You are young, what do you know? Which woman doesn't want a proper status?"
Hearing this, Agui suddenly understood, "I understand. I'm afraid that Miss Xiaowan will never see the day when she can officially become a wife. Our general already has a legitimate wife."
Jin Mu frowned. Who said it wasn't true? The general's wife is still living in the backyard of the Shen Mansion.
Thinking of this, Jin Mu warned again: "You better keep your mouth shut. The news that Miss Xiaowan lives here must not be spread back to the mansion."
Ah Gui nodded repeatedly, "Don't worry, Commander Jin, I know this."
*
Three days later, Wen Wan moved from the side courtyard into the small courtyard on South Street with a lot of bags.
The mute woman brought a group of children to help clean up. After a busy day, they finally cleaned up several rooms at dusk.
Chen Zhou was a little adult. He went to the outskirts of the city to dig up an osmanthus sapling, and took Wen En with him to plant the sapling in the corner of the yard.
Although it is a small sapling, there are some golden flowers on the branches. The fragrance is not strong, but just right.
As soon as the planting was completed, Wen En took Wen Wan to see it.
Wen Wan raised her hand and patted his head.
"That's great. Next year, this osmanthus tree will be taller than you. Then we can pick some osmanthus flowers to make wine, and you can roast a lamb. Life will be wonderful."
"Yeah." Winn nodded solemnly, his eyes full of longing for the future.
He dismissed her with another word, and Wen Wan couldn't help sighing.
"When will you be able to speak normally? You're so frugal with your words that it makes me feel like a clown performing a one-man show."
Winn frowned and said, "Not ugly. Nice looking."
"Are you saying I'm not ugly, I'm good-looking?" Wen Wan was stunned for a moment, then bent over with laughter.
"Xiao En En, alright, I take back what I said just now. Since you don't talk much but still praise me, you can say whatever you want in the future."
When Winn saw her smile, his eyes became even gentler.
Dinner was ready, and Chen Zhou came over and asked them to go to the main house to eat.
Wen Wan agreed, and then said to Shen Zhou: "Go next door and ask your brother Chai to come over and eat with us."
"Okay." Chen Zhou went happily.
Wen En's smile froze on his face. He grabbed Wen Wan's wrist and asked, "He lives next door?"
Wen Wan nodded. "Ah, did I forget to tell you? This yard was rented to us by Captain Zhou. The rent is cheap, and with him living next door, he's skilled in martial arts, so most scoundrels don't dare to act recklessly, and he can also protect our safety."
She didn't think there was anything wrong with it. She paid rent according to the market price, so it was considered a transaction.
Wen En's expression gradually turned cold.
Wen Wan saw this and said, "Well, are you still angry about the time he tested you last time? He was indeed wrong in that matter. I'll ask him to apologize to you later, okay?"
Winn lowered his head and said nothing.
"Mm-mmm..." Wen Wan called him in embarrassment, with a pleading tone.
A hint of coldness flashed across Winn's eyes, but his face returned to normal.
He uttered a word lightly, "Okay."
Wen Wan showed a gratified smile like an old father, "I knew our Enen was a generous person. Enen is so kind, I will grab a big pig's trotter for you and reward you well."
Wen En responded obediently, but out of the corner of his eye he saw the archway in the middle of the yard open, and Chen Zhou appeared behind the door, pushing Chen Yu.
His pupils shrank for a moment, and he suddenly reached out to hug Wen Wan, his face full of fear and timidity again.
"Sister, I'm scared!"
It looked like he subconsciously hugged Wen Wan because he was afraid.
Wen Wan followed his gaze and saw Shen Yu. She thought he had a shadow on Shen Yu, so she could only comfort him: "Don't be afraid, didn't sister just say that it was a misunderstanding last time, he won't hurt you."
As soon as Shen Yu entered the yard, he saw that lowly slave actually hugged Wen Wan.
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