Chapter 71

Wu Mei and his companions didn’t ask any questions when they found that Xu Ran’s pack basket was empty. Since Xu Ran came to town frequently, he must have acquaintances here, so it was normal for him to give them a few things. Besides, that was the extra amount Xu Ran carried here.

“How is the business going?” Xu Ran approached them and asked.

Wu Mei answered with a smile, “Not bad. Many of the people who bought yesterday came to buy again and also introduced quite a few friends to come here. Xu Ran, you are so smart. You could even think of such a method.”

“Yes, yes!” Wu Lan and Liu Qing echoed.

The job was not tiring, but it was much faster to make money than living off the land.

When they had just exchanged a few words, someone came to make a purchase. Then, Xu Ran saw Wu Mei greeting the customer, and he realized that there was nothing he could do here. More importantly, it was easy for others to gossip if a man like him stayed together with the three Ge’ers. Thus, Xu Ran picked up some chestnuts from the place where they put their chestnuts and put them into his pack basket. Only when Wu Mei finished his business did Xu Ran say to him, “Wu Mei, I’ll give these chestnuts to others. You just prepare two more bags of fried chestnuts for me.” As he spoke, he was about to pass the prepared money in his hand to him.

Wu Mei gave him two bags of fried chestnuts but didn’t even look at the money in his hand. “Done. Just go! As for the money, how could I accept a friend’s money? It would be unpleasant to have others know!”

Xu Ran scratched his head with embarrassment. “But I’m going to give them to others, after all.

It is different from the situation that I eat them myself. Just take the money! Otherwise, you won’t be able to verify your accounting records when you do it at night.”

Wu Mei still refused to accept it. “There is no such thing as verifying accounting records correctly. It’s such a small amount of things. You just treat them as something we have eaten ourselves, okay? Don’t think about it. Just go! Don’t make me miss my business deals,” Wu Mei said as he pushed Xu Ran away.

Seeing that someone had come to buy the fried chestnuts, Xu Ran felt it inappropriate to say anything anymore. Therefore, he left with the chestnuts in his hand and a pack basket on his back.

The place Xu Ran was going to visit was Zhuo Yun’s shop because Xu Ran wanted to give Zhuo Xun some chestnuts.

But it happened that Zhuo Yun was not in the shop today. After Xu Ran left his gift and was about to leave, the shopkeeper stopped him and said, “Mr. Xu! Please wait a while. My master said that if you come, I shall go and ask him to come back. Please go into the room and sit there for a while. I’ll be back soon.”

Before Xu Ran could say anything, the shopkeeper had left in a hurry, even without asking anyone to help watch the shop. Speechless, Xu Ran stood at the door. After a while, he fetched a stool and sat there when he saw no one coming in.

Soon the shopkeeper came back with Zhuo Yun. When Zhuo Yun saw Xu Ran, he immediately did the fist-palm salute and said, “Brother Xu! I must thank you for the chili paste you brought the last time. I wonder if there is still any left in your family? How about selling me some?”

Xu Ran rose to his feet and said, “Mr. Zhuo, you’re so courteous. It’s just home-made chili paste. It’s not worth anything. I’ll bring you some when I come next time.”

Zhuo Yun was about to lead Xu Ran inside. When they came to the door, he saw the two paper bags placed on the counter and the chestnuts in the pack basket on Xu Ran’s back. While pointing at the pack basket, he said, “Are there chestnuts in it, Brother Xu?”

Xu Ran nodded and said, “Right, I got them from the mountain. Today I came to town for something, so I brought them to you, Mr. Zhuo.”

As he spoke, he handed the two paper bags on the counter to Zhuo Yun and said, “Mr. Zhuo, these are fried chestnuts sold on the street, and they are still warm. Take them home to your spouse, and let him try them.”

Zhuo Yun took them. Indeed, they were still warm. He opened a bag and looked inside, finding that the chestnuts in it were all open and their full yellow insides were shown. Zhuo Yun picked up one and tasted it before saying to Xu Ran, “Brother Xu, it tastes very good. I don’t know where I can buy such things. I should go and buy a lot.”

“This snack has just been sold since yesterday. Mr. Zhuo, you will know if you ask about it on the street. It is sold every day. No need to worry about it.”

Seeing that Xu Ran learned his idea with a guess, Zhuo Yun gave an embarrassed smile.

“These things are only delicious when they are warm. Mr. Zhuo, please send them back to your spouse first! There are still some chestnuts here, which are also prepared for you. You can peel them off and eat them by putting them in the meal. Take them too!”

Seeing that Xu Ran was about to leave, Zhuo Yun stopped him hurriedly and said, “No, Brother Xu, don’t leave today. We’ve met each other several times, but we were in a hurry every time. I want to make friends with you. Wait for me for a while. I’ll be back soon. I’ll be back soon!”

Before leaving, he even asked the shopkeeper to buy a few dishes at the luxury restaurant opposite his shop and bring them here.

Xu Ran felt awkward to leave right away. He told Zhuo Yun to take his time and assured him that he wouldn’t leave.

When Zhuo Yun excitedly went back to Zhuo Mansion in a hurry, Qin Shuwen was reading on the deck chair. He had poor health, so a brazier had already been placed beside him.

Zhuo Yun drove the young male servant who was serving away

and then passed the chestnuts in his hand to Qin Shuwen like presenting a treasure, saying, “Shuwen, these are fried chestnuts. Have a try. They are still warm.”

Seeing his flattering smile, Qin Shuwen didn’t refuse him. He took the paper bags from Zhuo Yun’s hand and opened one in front of him. Zhuo Yun immediately took out one chestnut, peeled it off and handed it to Qin Shuwen.

This kind of service had been done often, so Qin Shuwen had been used to it. He took it and put it into his mouth.

It was delicious. This was the first reaction of Qin Shuwen. When looking back at Zhuo Yun’s nervous face, Qin Shuwen couldn’t help smiling, “It’s delicious. Thank you!”

The politeness and alienation made the trace of joy coming out of Zhuo Yun disappear completely.

He forced a smile as he said, “It’s good that you like the snack. When you have finished it, just tell me. I’ll go and buy it. I still have something to do, so I won’t come back for lunch today.”

Zhuo Yun quickly left the room as if he was running away in a panic. When he arrived at the door, he still told the young male servant to watch his lord eat at noon, making sure he ate much. If his lord had no appetite, he should ask the kitchen staff to put chili paste into his noodles.

Seeing Zhuo Yun running away, Qin Shuwen was lost in thought. He couldn’t remember why his relationship with him had been reduced to such a state. Zhuo Yun had been fawning on him since they got married. Now, five years had passed, but he still hadn’t changed at all. Zhuo Yun said that he was marble-hearted, and he himself even thought that was right. Zhuo Yun had endured for five years but still hadn’t done anything to him. Then he couldn’t help putting a mocking smile. “How long can you hold on, Zhuo Yun?”

When he went back, Zhuo Yun had no good mood at all. Fortunately, he still remembered that Xu Ran was waiting for him in the shop. He really wanted to find someone to talk about the pain in his heart. Undoubtedly, Xu Ran was his best choice.

By the time he returned to the shop, the shopkeeper had already brought the dishes back. At this moment, he was talking to Xu Ran.

Zhuo Yun had a gloomy face. Both Xu Ran and the shopkeeper could tell that, but the shopkeeper slipped away at once, leaving him to Xu Ran.

Xu Ran felt helpless but said, “What’s wrong, Brother Zhuo? You were happy when you went home just now?”

“Don’t mention it. Brother Xu, come and drink with me.”

Xu Ran was helpless and knew that this was another man who wanted to drown his sorrows.

He sat opposite him. “Mr. Zhuo, if you have any pain in your heart, tell me. A person should not put worries into his heart. If he does it, he will easily get tired and sick. It’s better to find someone trustworthy to talk about them. If there are difficulties, we can work together to get solutions, right?”

“Brother Xu, you’re right. I really want to find someone to talk to. Are you interested in hearing a story from me?”

Xu Ran poured Zhuo Yun a cup of wine, then poured himself a cup of wine, and finally held the cup with his hands, saying, “I’d love to.”

Zhuo Yun studied Xu Ran a few times and drank a few cups of wine as if he was ready. Then he began to talk to Xu Ran about the story between him and Qin Shuwen.

Zhuo Yun and Qin Shuwen

had been married for five years, but they had been pestering each other for ten years.

Zhuo Yun was from a business family, which ran the business of seed. Actually, his family was rich, but his father passed away early. Therefore, he had long been the host of the family. Due to his low profile, not many people knew the Zhuo Family.

After his father passed away, Zhuo Yun ended the business of most of the family’s seed shops and just left one shop open. As for himself, he began to join a trade caravan to do business. Although it was a bit dangerous, he could make money much faster than keeping those shops.

The Qin Family was also a family in the town, in which, there were four brothers, with Qin Shuwen being the only Ge’er. Since he was young, he had been treated like a treasure. The place where Zhuo Yun met him was the funeral feast of Zhuo Yun’s dad. A young man at the age of fourteen, who knew little about worldly affairs, went to the mourning hall of Zhuo Yun’s father. When he saw Zhuo Yun kneeling in front of the memorial tablet, he consoled him with kind words.

At that time, Zhuo Yun was in a difficult situation. Not long after his daddy passed away, his dad died, leaving him alone in the Zhuo Family. Although he had eldest uncle in the clan, he had been unable to get along with him. After his dad died, his uncle even wanted to take the family properties from him. At that time, the only person who comforted him was Qin Shuwen, so he put this Ge’er into his heart.

In Qin Shuwen’s eyes, Zhuo Yun was nothing more than a person whom he consoled because of a short-time kindness, but he never took him seriously at all, so there was no such person like Zhuo Yun in his world.

It was not until four years later that Zhuo Yun suddenly went to the Qin Family to ask for marrying him.

After fully controlling the business of the Qin Family, Zhuo Yun then dared to visit his family to propose to him. Over the past few years, he had been paying attention to Qin Shuwen. He knew that Qin Shuwen was the only Ge’er and the favorite Ge’er of the Qin Family. He also knew that Qin Shuwen didn’t marry anyone even when he was eighteen because he fell in love with a poor young man, but his family did not allow it.

And Qin Shuwen was never willing to marry anyone else. When she was fifteen or sixteen, people from some rich families in the town went to his family to talk about marrying him, but they were all refused by his family with the excuse that he was still young.

It was not until Qin Shuwen was seventeen that she fell in love with a poor young man from the outside world. By then, the Qin Family finally realized that it was unsuitable and wanted to ask someone to introduce a person to him, but those who had been declined by the family knew that he loved someone. Naturally, none of them was willing to marry him, and he did not want to marry anyone of them, either, because he only wanted to marry the poor young man. Therefore, his marriage had been delayed until he was eighteen.

Knowing that this was a good opportunity, Zhuo Yun entrusted the matchmaker with the job of going to his family. Except for Qin Shuwen, all the others of the Qin Family were satisfied with Zhuo Yun and immediately agreed. As for Zhuo Yun himself, he gave the poor young man money and sent him away. Initially, Qin Shuwen was unwilling to marry and insisted. But when the poor young man had left the town and he did not know where he had gone, then he was forced by his dad to sit in the bridal sedan chair. Yet, a year had passed.

That year they married, Qin Shuwen was nineteen and Zhuo Yun was twenty-one. Qin Shuwen didn’t like Zhuo Yun and also learned from somewhere that it was Zhuo Yun who sent away the poor young man, so he had never shown Zhuo Yun a kind face ever since he got married.

Zhuo Yun knew that he married Qin Shuwen while he was in a disadvantageous situation. Therefore, he cared for Qin Shuwen in every possible way — he would bring Qin Shuwen whatever he wanted and had given him the right to deal with everything in the family. But Qin Shuwen was still not satisfied.

Qin Shuwen said that he didn’t want kids, so Zhuo Yun didn’t have any children now. Qin Shuwen said that he didn’t want to see Zhuo Yun, so Zhuo Yun joined the trade caravan to do business and often went away for two or three months at a time.

In the past five years, he had not really spent much time with Qin Shuwen, and the latter would not show the former a kind face each time the former stayed with him alone.

All the people in Zhuo Mansion knew that their lord and their master were at odds with each other. Quite a few Ge’ers had thought about going to Zhuo Yun’s bed, but he ignored them all. As of now, he had been holding on for five years.

Because of him, Qin Shuwen had not even been back to the Qin Family in the past few years.

Zhuo Yun felt guilty towards the Qin Family, so he would visit the family in person during festivals and new years.

Five years had passed, but the situation had not improved. In this case, he was so happy when Qin Shuwen smiled at the bowl of noodles a few days ago. It was a smile he hadn’t seen for a long time.

He only saw it when Qin Shuwen was talking to the poor young man.