Chapter 10

When Huo Shu arrived at the Ji family, it was roughly after Ji Taoyu had left, about the time it took for an incense stick to burn.

Ji Taoyu had just returned home, fed the chickens and ducks with some rice bran, washed her hands, and was about to make tea to put under the cool pavilion in the courtyard when he heard a knock on the door.

She wiped his hands and hurried to open the courtyard door, only to see a person almost as tall as the door holding the food box he had brought over.

“Not to your liking?”

Taoyu couldn’t help but ask.

Huo Shu lowered his gaze, seeing the young man staring straight at the food box, and said calmly, “If I said it’s not to my liking, would you not let me in?”

Only then did Ji Taoyu realize that she was blocking the courtyard door. He quickly stepped aside and said, “Ah, please come in, Sir.”

“The food box is being returned to you.”

Ji Taoyu pursed her lips, closed the courtyard door, and followed behind Huo Shu.

Seeing him with his back turned, Taoyu asked, “How does it taste?”

Huo Shu sat down in the cool pavilion without answering Taoyu’s question. Instead, he opened the lid of the food box and let Ji Taoyu see.

Inside were three empty bowls and plates neatly arranged. They had originally contained a stack of osmanthus cakes, a dish of crispy bamboo shoots with preserved meat, and a bowl of crucian carp soup. The taste was undoubtedly excellent, all of which ended up in Huo Shu’s stomach.

Actually, the meals cooked by Zhao Mu could also be considered delicious, but in comparison, Ji Taoyu’s culinary skills were even better. This wasn’t achieved overnight; it was the result of constant practice at home.

The Ji family was well-off in terms of food and drink, with ample ingredients on the table, which naturally provided conditions for experimenting with flavors.

Perhaps it was also for the sake of her scholarly husband-to-be that Ji Taoyu honed her cooking skills.

Huo Shu raised an eyebrow, wondering why he was thinking about this. “They’re just ordinary home-cooked dishes, not as flavorful as those in restaurants in the city.”

Seeing the empty food box, Ji Taoyu felt happy in her heart. After a polite remark, she took the food box and went to the kitchen.

Huo Shu watched as Ji Taoyu, with the food box in his hands, walked lightly into the house. His brows relaxed again.

When Ji Taoyu returned, Huo Shu immediately shifted his gaze away and casually picked up a cup of tea to sip. “Are your parents at home?”

“My mother is at home. My father just went out to record this year’s autumn harvest, and a mute laborer also went to work in the fields.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Huang Manjing heard some movement outside and came out of the house.

She politely greeted Huo Shu. Ji Taoyu had already told her that Huo Shu was coming over for something and had specifically asked for Ji Taoyu.

After asking a couple of questions, Ji Taoyu didn’t say what the matter was. Seeing that he assured her it wasn’t anything bad, she didn’t inquire further.

As the child grew up, there were always some things of her own. It wasn’t a bad thing, as long as he could handle them herself. It would be a good thing for him to be able to handle them on her own after she got married.

She then went out and said a few words to Huo Shu: “If you have anything to discuss with Taoyu, feel free to do so. His father will be back soon.”

“Alright.”

With that, she went to attend to her tasks, not eavesdropping on the conversation between the two.

Ji Taoyu saw her mother leave and then sat down beside Huo Shu, who was leisurely drinking tea. She took a breath and said, “Brother Huo…”

Before he could finish her sentence, he was interrupted. “You can just call me by my name.”

“Huo…”

Even though she had never heard Huo Shu call himself by his name, Ji Taoyu still knew his surname and full name. She looked at Huo Shu, who always seemed reticent and serious, and felt that, unlike her peers, she should address him respectfully. So she changed his address: “Brother Huo.”

Huo Shu’s hand holding the teacup tightened slightly upon hearing this, but he didn’t look at Ji Taoyu. His gaze was warm and gentle, but it remained unseen.

“What is it?”

Ji Taoyu blinked. “Um, I was just wondering, what are your plans for the future? When do you plan to leave?”

Huo Shu put down the teacup. “Do you want me to leave?”

“It’s not what I meant.”

Ji Taoyu looked serious. “I just want to ask about Brother Huo’s plans. Today, I heard some things on the road that shouldn’t have been heard, and they weren’t very pleasant.”

This morning, after Ji Taoyu prepared the dishes, she took the food box and delivered it to Huo Shu while her parents were not paying attention. On her way to the Zhao family, she saw Madame Yuan leaving her house and exchanged a few words with two villagers.

Initially, it was just a polite conversation, but unexpectedly, after Madame Yuan walked away, the villagers started gossiping.

“Do you know that a tall Northern man arrived in our village a few days ago? He’s currently staying at Madame Yuan’s house.”

“Look, in just these few days, Madame Yuan’s complexion has improved, and she looks much healthier.”

During the conversation, a man chuckled, “You guys have no shame, saying such things.”

“You don’t need to worry about shame. Didn’t you see how happy she looked when she passed by just now? It was like a festival. Haven’t you noticed?”

“During these days, I’ve seen Madame Yuan buying meat and slaughtering chickens. They eat well at home every day. It’s not like this during previous festivals. Having a man in the house really makes a difference!”

Although they didn’t directly say anything, Ji Taoyu could tell from their teasing smiles that they were gossiping about someone.

Feeling annoyed, Ji Taoyu was upset by their words, which seemed to target her mother and himself. It was very improper.

She hid the food box in a distant place and stepped forward to argue, “My father said that the Northern man staying at Madame Yuan’s house is their relative. What you’re saying is too offensive!”

Seeing Ji Taoyu approaching, the group of people stopped talking and smiled apologetically, “We were just joking around, Taoyu, don’t take it seriously.”

“I’m not taking it seriously. But I heard that the Northern man is a veteran who has been to the battlefield. He has a fiery temper, and he and the Long Sui from the Zhao family are sworn brothers. If he hears these words, and Madame Yuan and her husband can’t handle him, what then?”

Not all of them had seen Huo Shu, but they had heard that he was a tall and fierce man from the North. After hearing Ji Taoyu’s words, they couldn’t help but break out in a cold sweat.

“We won’t talk about it again in the future.”

As Ji Taoyu talked about hearing gossip in the village today, Huo Shu’s expression changed.

Regardless of the North or the South, gossip was inevitable.

Northern people were straightforward, and there was more blatant gossip, but he didn’t care much about the words of outsiders.

However, if it involved insulting elders and deceased people, his gaze inevitably turned cold. “Who said that?”

Seeing Huo Shu’s icy tone, Ji Taoyu hurriedly said, “I didn’t say these things to make you settle scores. Words come from others, even if you go and teach them a lesson, it might not make them shut up. It might even attract more gossip.”

Huo Shu looked at Ji Taoyu. “So your suggestion is for me to leave as soon as possible?”

“No.”

Ji Taoyu said, “They said those things because they don’t know the relationship between you and the Zhao family and that you’re living under the same roof. If things are made clear, they won’t be so talkative anymore.”

“Made clear?”

“Yes.”

Ji Taoyu continued, “Brother Huo can formally propose to Madame Yuan, and we can have the respected elders in the village serve as witnesses. Once the matter is settled, everyone will understand the relationship, and the villagers won’t be so exclusive anymore. It will also be much more convenient for Brother Huo to find someone to help with things in the village.”

“Of course, this is just a suggestion I made because I heard Madame Yuan being criticized and feared it would damage her reputation. Reputation is very important for women and men in our area. I also thought about Brother Huo being my lifesaver, so I spoke up. Perhaps Brother Huo has his own plans.”

Huo Shu looked deeply at Ji Taoyu.

“You’re right, I didn’t consider it properly.”

Seeing that Huo Shu took his words seriously, Ji Taoyu couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief.

She was worried that someone like Huo Shu, who was originally from the North and had fought on the battlefield, would disregard such gossip and not care about it. If she simply left after finishing her business, it would leave Madame Yuan with a lot of gossip.

Under similar gossip, people were usually more tolerant towards men. In the end, it was women and younger men who bore the brunt of the consequences.

“I’ll discuss it with Auntie when I get back.”

Ji Taoyu nodded.

There was a breeze in the courtyard, rustling the leaves of the camphor tree and causing some dried leaves to fall on the roof of the pavilion.

Huo Shu looked at the time and realized it was getting late. He took out the hairpin he had brought back from Zhao Changsui and handed it to Ji Taoyu.

“This is the token. Changsui had a lover before he went off to war, and she gave him this.”

“Although he never mentioned this person to me, he always kept this hairpin close to him. Before he died, he asked me to return the hairpin and the retirement money to our parents.”

“I could have just handed it over to Auntie directly, but considering that she might not know about this person, I felt that since Changsui thought of her before he died, I should personally deliver the items to her, just to be accountable.”

Ji Taoyu carefully took the hairpin and looked at it curiously. It was a simple silver hairpin with a few peony flowers on the head, with two flowers missing a corner.

“This hairpin is ordinary and not very valuable, and it’s a style from a few years ago. There are probably many people who have similar hairpins. However, from the design, you can tell that it belongs to a girl. Generally, young men wouldn’t wear such hair accessories.”

Huo Shu’s brow furrowed.

“And Changsui has been away for over ten years now. Considering his age, that girl should have been married by now. It’s not appropriate to openly announce that we’re looking for her.”

“That’s what I thought too, which is why I find it tricky.”

Ji Taoyu asked, “Was the hairpin damaged later?”

“No, it was already like this when it was in Changsui’s hands.”

Ji Taoyu raised an eyebrow. “That’s different from other peony hairpins of the same style.”

She put down the hairpin and thought for a moment before saying, “Brother Huo, if you trust me, you can let me keep the hairpin for now. When there’s a gathering in the village, I’ll wear it in my hair. Others will definitely find it odd, and they might ask me about it privately if the owner sees it.”

“Also, if Brother Huo respects Madame Yuan as an elder and explains to the respected elders in the village that you’re Changsui’s sworn brother and specially brought back this token, it will have the same effect when attending gatherings in other families.”

Huo Shu closed his eyes.

“It seems I’ve found the right person.”

“Then… should I keep the hairpin for now?”

Huo Shu agreed.

Just as the two finished their conversation, a voice came from outside, “Taoyu, come and see who’s here.”

Ji Taoyu heard the laughter outside and stood up quickly.

As she went to open the door, she said in advance, “Dad is back at a good time. Brother Huo is here. I don’t know what’s going on, so I’ll make him some tea and let him wait for a while.”

Ji Yangzong heard this and said, “It might be about Changsui’s matter.”

After speaking, he said to the young man beside him, “Erlang, come into the courtyard quickly.”

Huo Shu stood with his hands behind his back not far away, watching as Ji Yangzong led in a young man of about seventeen or eighteen, dressed in neat green clothes that complemented his slim figure.

With a bamboo hairpin in his hair and a gentle smile on his face, he exuded an air of scholarly elegance that made people feel as if they were bathed in spring breeze.

“Erlang, big brother.”

Ji Taoyu’s eyes softened with a slight smile when she heard the call, giving off a mischievous vibe.

However, Huo Shu’s expression turned cold and indifferent when he heard the address, raising an eyebrow in response.