Ji Xinhe was by no means vexed by Ji Xiulan’s simmering provocation, or rather, she never regarded her as a worthy opponent at all.
Even Lady Ding no longer posed any threats to her now, let alone the insignificant Ji Xiulan.
Ji Xinhe curved her lips into a smirk of mockery: "Really? Then may you soon marry some high official. So you won’t be left to wither into an old maid until even the local countrymen don’t want to marry you."
"You!"
Ji Xinhe’s words were a direct jab at Ji Xiulan’s Achilles heel, and it infuriated her to the point of stomping her feet in rage.
But Ji Xinhe didn’t have the patience to waste any more words on her and turned to walk away directly.
Hong Qin laughed at Ji Xiulan: "I think you have a long way to go before getting married. You’d better spend this spare time figuring out how to earn more money. Otherwise, won’t your family have to sell more land in the future?"
"You little wretch!" Ji Xiulan was so furious that she felt like strangling Hong Qin.
Ji Dashan happened to come back home at that moment and roared at Ji Xiulan with a gloomy face: "What are you doing?! Do you think our family’s reputation is not tarnished enough? What are you kicking up such a fuss for?"
Ji Xiulan blinked in confusion, seemingly taken aback by Ji Dashan’s rarely seen assertiveness. Ji Dashan was always the least noticeable member of the household and has been at the mercy of Lady Ding’s scolding. Ji Xiulan never took him, her stepfather, seriously either.
However, now that Lady Ding and Ding Hui’s disgrace had become public knowledge and flattened Ji Dashan’s dignity, he had been in a dark mood and had grown more irritable each day. Matters involving face could directly set him off.
Nor is it solely due to shame that Lady Ding is now a recluse. It is also because she fears upsetting Ji Dashan.
Since the time he had manically beaten Ding Hui, he had changed a great deal.
Looking at Ji Dashan’s gloomy face, Ji Xiulan nervously retracted her neck and swallowed her indignation, before storming off into the room in a huff.
Ji Xinhe coldly watched all this, a mocking sound resonating in her mind. Perhaps the scandal of Ding Hui and Lady Ding may have been a blessing in disguise for Ji Dashan. It forced him to wake up to reality and be more assertive. Isn’t that better than being at the beck and call of that mother-daughter duo all his life?
——
By noon, after having lunch, Mu Houchu drove his bullock cart to pick up Ji Xinhe to the store in town.
This time, Xiao Bei was not present, and they were the only two people in the cart. Ji Xinhe, who was already conflicted due to what he said to her the day before, found it exceptionally awkward to be alone with him now.
On the other hand, Mu Houchu was in high spirits and shared with her about the day’s business at the store. "I put the canned oranges on the shelves early in the morning. Going by the price that you set before, which is four taels of silver per jin, sales weren’t bad this morning. It seems that canned food is indeed a business opportunity."
Hearing him talk about the canned oranges, Ji Xinhe felt her spirits lifting and laughed. "Absolutely! There are even bigger business opportunities in the future!"
Upon seeing Ji Xinhe relax, a faint smile formed on the corners of Mu Houchu’s lips. She probably hadn’t realized it, but despite keeping a tight rein on her emotions and tactics in front of others, she was always able to effortlessly express her emotions in his presence.
The two of them made their way to the town, driving the bullock cart at a leisurely pace.
When they reached the main street, the quietness, and tranquility of rural lanes vanished, replaced by the bustling noise of a lively town. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂
Suddenly, a wave of chatter drifted into her ears.
"Hey! How come there seem to be more officers patrolling in our small Lian’an Town? Is it necessary for such heavy surveillance?"
"Isn’t it? The officers patrolling this street don’t only belong to our town but have also been dispatched from other places. Never before have I seen so many officers. What on earth could be going on?"
Ji Xinhe instinctively turned to look at Mu Houchu. Recalling his words yesterday about the town plunge into chaos today, she was indeed surprised when they arrived at the town, and things turned out just as he said they would.
However, Mu Houchu harbored no disturbances, only guiding the bullock cart with leisure.
The people’s discussion lingered on, and since the bullock cart was moving slowly, she could still vaguely hear them.
"I don’t exactly know what’s going on. But I heard a rumor that it’s all related to the iron mine."
"What happened to the iron mine?"
"You don’t know yet? Yesterday night, there was an outbreak of water in the iron mine. Such a huge fire; it almost spread to the surrounding mountains. Can you imagine the loss?"
"But why would an accident at an iron mine require so many officers to investigate?"
Someone lowered his voice and huffed, "This shows that the owner of the iron mine has connections in high places!"
"How powerful should those connections be to have the ability to summon so many officers for an investigation? I heard that not only our Lian’an Town but even the whole of Lanshan City are being strictly inspected, even to the extent of sealing the city gates!"
"Really?"
"Yes, it is!"
"·······"
The discussion went on, but the bullock cart had moved farther away. Ji Xinhe lost interest in listening further, and turned to glare at Mu Houchu, "The fire wasn’t your handiwork from last night, was it?"
Mu Houchu nodded indifferently, "Hmm."
Ji Xinhe’s eyes widened in shock, "So you’re the fugitive wanted now all over Lanshan City!?"
"Probably." Mu Houchu continued guiding the bullock cart unperturbedly, speaking with the same insouciance as if he was merely mentioning that he had eaten lunch.
Ji Xinhe was so surprised that she almost kicked him off the cart, "Mu Chu! If you’re seeking death, don’t drag me down with you!"
She was just a humble commoner at the bottom of society now, and he was pulling all these daring stunts, yet he had the nerve to continue imposed on her family!?
Mu Houchu helplessly replied, "I honestly didn’t want to. Or else I would have turned myself in by now. Wouldn’t you then have to suffer the consequences of harboring a fugitive? When charged for that crime, I’m afraid you wouldn’t be very pleased either."
Ji Xinhe gritted her teeth. Every time he opened his mouth, it was to threaten her. She had actually thought this despicable man treated her well?
"Therefore, we really can’t delay our marriage any longer. After we get married, I can fully escape suspicion. By then, we can both rest easy," Mu Houchu said. "In a few days, it’ll be the Chinese New Year. After that, we can inform your brother and expedite the marriage. I was looking at the lunar calendar, and the seventh day of next month seems good. It’s considered an auspicious day for a wedding."
"Who said I agree?" Ji Xinhe contested, grinding her teeth.
"Otherwise, should I turn myself in?" Mu Houchu blinked in feigned innocence.
Blackmail! It’s threat again!
"Mu Chu! You bastard!"
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