Chapter 5

"Aying!"

Luo Xujun, who had been leaning against the couch, cried out in surprise at her words. Seeing her serious expression, he cried out, "This...what should I do!"

Jiang Fuying clutched her hands tightly within her sleeves, fearing she would collapse if she let out her anger. "Mother, we must deal with this as soon as possible, before things get really bad. If that happens..."

Luo Xujun looked at her daughter's face, tears streaming down her face like strings of pearls.

She was young, not even forty, but her hair had turned gray prematurely due to chronic illness. She had been bedridden for years, never truly contributing to the family. Now, with her only child in trouble, she could only sit on the couch and cry.

Unable to protect even her own child, Luo Xujun suddenly felt that fate had played a trick on her.

She had been raised in care and had a harmonious marriage. But her daughter had never had much peace since she was a child, leaving the family in this predicament.

She would rather endure more hardship herself than let her daughter suffer even a little.

Luo Xujun wiped her tears, mustering up the courage she rarely saw.

"No, mother won't agree," she said, looking up. "You've loved beauty since you were little. You're the best at dressing up on the whole street, and yet you cry every day here, saying there aren't any pretty pearl flowers to sell. You were noisy when you were little, and even though you rarely ask us for anything when you

grow up, mother knows you've always been unhappy..." "You're my precious child. I'd be upset if you got bumped, let alone this," Luo Xujun raised her voice. "Mother won't allow you to do this."

Jiang Fuying bit her lip. She rarely heard her mother speak so harshly, or in such a serious tone.

"If you really scratched your face, let alone whether it hurts or not, how can you bear it if others stare at your wound every day?"

Luo Xujun was not in good health, and now he began to breathe softly after talking for a while, "Your body and hair are given by your parents. You don't cherish your body like this. Have you ever thought about how sad your mother will be?"

"Of course I have!"

Jiang Fuying said with a hard face, "Now that this matter is settled, your daughter will comb her hair and not get married. She will live a good life with mother. I will take good care of mother, and you don't have to worry about what others think." "

Mother doesn't want you to take care of me in this way!" Luo Xujun also became anxious, "What about you? Your parents' eyes are so precious that they can't bear to touch even the smallest bit. Even for yourself, it will hurt if you scratch your face. How distressed will mother be?" "

But mother, you and I are alone and have no one to rely on, so we can only sacrifice ourselves in this way."

Jiang Fuying felt really unbearable, "But if I really want my daughter to rely on some powerful person for shelter, I definitely don't want to... This misfortune is caused by me, and I shouldn't involve others in this disaster."

Seeing that he couldn't convince his daughter, Luo Xujun watched her calm down and was about to leave, not knowing where she was going, whether she would scratch her face on such a summer day, and she shed tears sadly, sobbing: "Aying..."

Jiang Fuying was also moved to tears by this call.

Luo Xujun stopped her, "If you want, if you want to talk about relying on - just now, Chang Ge'er came to the rescue, mother thought, maybe... you can go and ask if he has a sweetheart, if he is engaged?"

Jiang Fuying stopped and turned around.

"Mother?"

"Mothers are always selfish, only thinking of their own children. My daughter, Ying, saved him, she saved his life... Once you get married, those young men in town will probably be more restrained and won't be obsessed with you," Luo Xujun clutched his chest, aching slightly. "If you get married, mother might feel a little more at ease." ...You'll have to get married eventually . 

The village head's wife's words echoed in his ears. You'll have to get married eventually, no matter who you marry. 

But Jiang Fuying deeply loathed the idea of a wealthy family. 

The water stains on her dress from yesterday had long since vanished, leaving only the secret touch on her waist. Thinking of it now, a burning warmth came from there again. 

She turned her head slightly, but Chang Yuan had already returned to the house, silent. It was as if he had genuinely been helping out and didn't take the matter to heart. 

The flower seeds she had casually scattered had already blossomed around the courtyard wall. Wildflowers weren't as precious as those carefully tended, but they were resilient, undestroyed by wind or rain. At the end of the flowers was Chang Yuan's hut, originally a woodshed for storing miscellaneous items and firewood, but now she had cleared out a space for Chang Yuan to occupy. 

The windows were tightly shut, not a single ray of light filtering through—Chang Yuan was blind, so he had no use for candlelight. He was also quiet, barely making a sound. Most of the time, it was so quiet that Jiang Fuying almost forgot she had saved someone and brought him home. 

Chang Yuan. Jiang Fuying's heart stirred slightly. 

It wasn't a good or bad idea. 

She'd compromised so many times to survive, so she rarely felt wronged. But the thought of being with Chang Yuan... 

it was rare not to feel a strong sense of disgust. 

Perhaps Chang Yuan simply gave her a different feeling than others. Even if the subtle gesture in his conversation yesterday had made her a little uneasy, it was only a small moment, allowing her to glimpse the cold undertone beneath his seemingly harmless exterior. 

Yet, he still came to her aid, helping her resolve a major problem today, even having someone apologize to her. 

The sun rose higher, casting a shadow into the house, making her shadow seem somewhat illusory. 

She held onto the doorframe, her fingertips exerting a slight pressure, as if she could pinch it. 

Suddenly, many images flashed through her mind, and she finally spoke, "I... will ask later." 

It was getting late. Jiang Fuying glanced at Chang Yuan's closed doors and windows, pursed her lips, and went into the kitchen. 

After a long busy day, she first boiled the medicine, then casually added some noodles and a few small vegetables. 

Thinking back to what she had just said, she thought again and again, and fried an extra egg for Chang Yuan. 

Before evening, the family of the leading child brought their sorrowful offerings to apologize, begging for mercy from this unknown master, who had so thoroughly humiliated Qiu Er. 

Even the brute-force butcher, Old Liu, had only resorted to physical beatings and intimidation with a knife. But from what the children had said, if they were correct, just a few random touches of their hands could have made Qiu Er howl like that. It was truly terrifying. 

Chang Yuan showed up briefly before returning. Jiang Fuying didn't bother to keep him. She paused for a moment, watching his back, then decisively took her spoils and began to stew the broth. 

She wasn't one to hesitate; once she had a plan in mind, she moved much more quickly. She had already found all her best ingredients by lunchtime, and by the time the aroma of the broth filled her nostrils, she had already cut out a shape, the first inkling of its shape. 

Chang Yuan was feeling much better, so Jiang Fuying didn't let him eat alone in the house. On a breezy summer evening, a small table was set up in the courtyard, filled with fragrant broth and two side dishes, and the three of them dined together. 

Luo Xujun went back to the house first, leaving the other two to clear the table and chairs. Jiang Fuying was preoccupied, thinking about Chang Yuan, and seeing him ready to help her, she felt anxious and spoke harshly, "You didn't have to come!" 

"...Madam Jiang?" 

Chang Yuan "looked" at her, not quite in the right direction, his face slightly tilted, revealing his smooth jawline. 

Jiang Fuying then realized that her tone was a little hurried, and she slowed down her voice: "Thank you for what happened today, you don't have to worry about it anymore, go back and rest early, you are still injured, you need to take care of yourself."

Chang Yuan nodded, his expression impassive, seemingly unfazed by her tone.

…He seemed quite good-tempered.

Oddly enough, when she first found him, she hadn't realized he was a grown man, different from both her and her mother. She simply thought he was treating patients like her father had done.

Today, after hearing what her mother had said, she realized he seemed… unusually mature and strong, a man she could trust.

The frailty and decay she'd previously imagined, even the jarring scars, had slowly faded with the passage of time, revealing his true self.

With other thoughts in mind, he wasn't as open and collected as before when meeting people. She could only be thankful that Chang Yuan couldn't see her; that was why he allowed her to so freely scrutinize and speculate.

"Madam Jiang," Chang Yuan said, holding the bowl of soup, "why are you staring at me?"

"Huh?"

Jiang Fuying was startled, and hurriedly averted her gaze. "No, I'm not."

Her face flushed slightly. She'd been watching him for so long, and he'd been caught.

…Could he be trying to trick her?

She huddled in the kitchen, silently waiting for the sun to set and for everyone to return to their rooms.

-

Later the next day, Tonghua came looking for her with a bag of meat.

Jiang Fuying stayed in the room, watching Chang Yuan open the door. Tonghua tiptoed in and went straight to her window.

"Sister Fuying, sister, dear sister--"

She stretched out her voice and knocked on the doors and windows a few times.

"Good sister, I know I was wrong, please don't be angry."

When she heard about Qiu Er's trouble yesterday, she felt bad in her heart. It was her who caused trouble by talking too much, and Jiang Fuying's mother fainted from anger the day before. In the final analysis, it was all her family's problem.

Tonghua leaned against the window and said softly, "My father also scolded me yesterday. The scolding was so ugly and scary... Sister Fuying, please don't be angry with me for the sake of our many years of sisterly love, okay?"

She touched the window, which was not closed tightly to let in the summer air. A figure loomed within, and it was unclear what they were doing.

Just as Tonghua was about to push the window open, it swung open from the inside.

Jiang Fuying sat by the window, her face apprehensive and pitiful. Clearly aware of her fault, she sighed repeatedly, but remained silent.

She simply asked, "What did your father scold you for?" "I knew Sister Fuying felt sorry for me!" Tonghua knew her anger had subsided. She continued, "You don't know, my father's broadsword was about to strike me. He said that if I were to be as careless as my mother, I wouldn't be able to stop him from saying anything. Hey, Sister Fuying, what are you doing?" The

woman before him, unadorned and radiant, was still strikingly beautiful without makeup. Her piercing eyes were fixed on what she was holding. Her neck was slender and well-proportioned, her head slightly bent, her brows focused.

Her fingers flew, moving non-stop, as if she had just heard what Tonghua was saying, and she tilted her ear slightly, "Hmm? What did you say?"

"...Nothing," Tonghua observed her movements, her eyes fell on the clothes in her hands: "Isn't this the material we bought together in the county last year, Sister Fuying, are you willing to make it?"

This piece of material is not cheap, but it is really beautiful and extremely comfortable. Jiang Fuying went to the county several times and finally bought it. After buying it, she has been reluctant to touch it until yesterday.

Jiang Fuying sews very quickly and she is deft with her hands. She nodded, "Well, I'm afraid it will get damp if it is kept for a long time."

The more Tonghua looked at it, the more she felt something was wrong.

She looked at it carefully for a while, and finally figured it out.

"-Sister Fuying, are you making men's clothes?!"