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Upon hearing the words “Riverside Village,” Concubine Yue seemed intrigued and asked, “Is it the one not far from here, to the east, Riverside Village?”
Seeing her interest, Zhang Baozhu said, “Yes, coincidentally, last time didn’t I give you a tiger skin? The one who killed the tiger is a farmer surnamed Shen, and this woman is his daughter-in-law, reportedly surnamed Zhao.”
Concubine Yue nodded gently, picked up a piece of purple silk handkerchief, and lightly covered her lips, her delicate movement accentuating her fair complexion. Her lips, however, were reddened from the spicy food she had just eaten, resembling a red plum blossom, quite charming.
Zhang Baozhu, looking at her, grew even fonder, gently holding her hand and feeling its chill. He said with concern, “Didn’t you just eat something spicy? Why are your hands still so cold? Xiaohong, Xiaocui, should we change the charcoal in the room? If my Yue’er catches a cold, I won’t let you off!”
The two maidservants promptly agreed and went to replenish the charcoal.
Concubine Yue smiled softly and said, “Xiaohong, Xiaocui it’s fine. It’s just that my hands are a bit cold. They’ll warm up soon.”
Zhang Baozhu suggested, “Shall I send someone to find that woman and ask her to make some stomach-warming dishes? Since she can make such fresh dishes, she must have other skills.”
“No need!”
Concubine Yue quickly stopped Zhang Baozhu and said, “There’s no need to go find her. When she comes again, let the cooks learn a few dishes from her. Why bother bringing her here? Your favoritism towards me already upsets the sisters. I don’t want to cause any more disputes because of me. I feel even more guilty then. I just want to get along well with the sisters.”
Zhang Baozhu furrowed his brows and said, “Did they bully you again? Tell me who it is, and I’ll teach them a lesson!”
Seeing Zhang Baozhu about to go outside, Concubine Yue hastily held him back and said anxiously, “No, really no, the sisters didn’t bully me. I really want to get along well with them…”
Seeing tears welling up in Concubine Yue’s eyes, Zhang Baozhu quickly embraced her, patting her back, and said, “You, always so kind. If anyone bullies you, you must tell me. I won’t let anyone bully you again. You are mine, and I will protect you for a lifetime.”
Zhang Baozhu spoke softly, recalling the autumn evening with red clouds. He remembered sitting in a small boat, admiring the beautiful lake scenery, when he saw a girl in a pink dress come to the lakeside. She was so delicate, so fragile, more captivating than the lotus flowers blooming in the lake. She instantly caught his eye. Later, he learned that she was an orphan who had come to seek relatives, only to find them gone after a natural disaster that year. She was left all alone. She immediately won his sympathy and affection.
Since then, the Zhang household had gained another Concubine, and she received more favor than the main wife, which had become almost common knowledge. Yet, Concubine Yue was a virtuous woman who rarely stepped out of the house, so few people saw her. Nevertheless, her reputation had spread, and it was a good reputation.
“Master, I will accompany you for a lifetime.”
Concubine Yue nestled gently in Zhang Baozhu’s arms, in a place where no one could see. Her face darkened with faint worry.
Su Zhi and Shen Zi’an were completely unaware of what had happened after they left. Unbeknownst to them, they had become quite an extraordinary couple in the eyes of others.
Li Shi drove the cart, while Shen Zi’an and Su Zhi sat inside, hastening towards home.
Su Zhi was thinking about the White Wolf family. When they built the house, they had planned to invite the White Wolf family to stay. So, when they were constructing the house, they left a door on one wall specifically for them, allowing only the White Wolf to pass through; people couldn’t enter, ensuring security. Therefore, she didn’t worry about them being locked in the courtyard and starving; besides, she had left food for them. But she still felt concerned.
By the time they returned to Riverside Village, it was already evening. People had either finished dinner and were busy with chores at home, collecting firewood outside, or wandering around. But strangely, they hadn’t encountered anyone on the road today.
As the cart approached the center of the village, they saw someone running out from a small alley in a flurry. Several people swiftly followed, men and women alike. Leading the group was Dazhu’s wife, howling as she ran, not slower than any man.
Seeing Dazhu’s wife in such a state, Su Zhi wondered what had happened. Although she hadn’t liked the woman before, she could tell her tears were genuine this time, heart-wrenching. She was curious about what could make her cry like this. Just as she was thinking Dazhu’s wife rushed towards them, cursing as she came, her face contorted as if they were her enemies.
“Zhao Xiaomei! You jinx! I’ll kill you! You jinx!”
Dazhu’s wife lunged at Su Zhi, fiercely cursing.
Shen Zi’an quickly pulled Su Zhi into his arms and grabbed Dazhu’s wife’s hand, swinging it backward with force. His strength was enough to stop a galloping horse, so throwing Dazhu’s wife back was easy.
Dazhu’s wife staggered back two steps, fell to the ground with a thud. The ground was hard in winter, and the pain made her scream.
Dazhu came over to help his wife up, glaring at Shen Zi’an with red eyes, “Shen! How dare you hit someone! I’ll fight you!” Though he shouted like this, he didn’t step forward. In fact, he was afraid of Shen Zi’an, but he continued to curse, albeit quieter, overshadowed by his wife’s cries.
Dazhu’s wife cried, tears and snot running down her face, her hands dirty from touching the ground. Now, wiping her face only made it dirtier, and she didn’t realize how ugly her loud cursing sounded, causing Shen Zi’an and the others to furrow their brows.
Shen Zi’an jumped down from the cart, looking at the people who had backed away from him, he said in a deep voice, “If you have something to say, speak up. If you dare to curse again or lay a hand on my wife, don’t blame me for not being polite! Speak, what exactly happened? Why all this commotion?”
Dazhu’s wife shouted, “What happened? And you’re asking what happened? You all went out and had fun! You left a few wolf pups at home, and now they’ve come out and want to eat my Tiedan. They chased my Tiedan into the river! Now I don’t know if he’s alive or dead! My child! He’s so young, he didn’t do anything wrong, why did this happen to him? It’s all because of that jinx who brought those wolves home! My child!”
Dazhu’s wife had long lost the smiling face she had when begging Su Zhi to buy her red berries, and she had even abandoned the flattering demeanor she had when visiting her house for house-warming. Now, her eyes towards Su Zhi were filled with hatred, as if she would rush forward as soon as Shen Zi’an moved aside.
Su Zhi frowned, understanding what had happened.
Dazhu’s precious son, Tiedan, had fallen into the river, and now they claimed he was chased by the White Wolf. So, Dazhu’s wife believed that Su Zhi had brought back the White Wolf, and she placed the blame for her son’s fall into the river on Su Zhi’s head, labeling her as a jinx.
Su Zhi didn’t quite believe that the White Wolf had chased Tiedan. To put it bluntly, it was the kind of wolf that looked down on people. As long as people didn’t harm it or Big Black, Little Black, and Little White, it wouldn’t bother with them at all. Why would it chase after a little child? Unless the child had done something to provoke it. But Tiedan was just a little child, what could he have done to anger the White Wolf? She remembered the first time Tiedan saw the White Wolf, he was so scared he turned and ran. What could a child like that have done to harm the White Wolf’s family? Su Zhi was very puzzled.
But now wasn’t the time for doubts; the priority was to go and see how Tiedan was doing!
Li Shi shouted from the side, “Is it useful to make a fuss here when there might be nothing wrong? First, let’s see the child before we talk about anything else! Where is Tiedan now? Has he been rescued?”
Dazhu’s wife finally came to her senses. They had just been notified about their son falling into the river and hadn’t gone to see him yet, so they didn’t know if he had been rescued. Upon hearing Li Shi’s words, she immediately thought about going to find her son.
“Shen Zi’an! Zhao Xiaomei! If anything happens to my son, I won’t let you off!”
With these harsh words, Dazhu’s wife rushed out again, followed by Zhao Dazhu and the others who had remained silent.
At that moment, Shen Zifu and Shen Zigui also ran over. Seeing Shen Zi’an, they anxiously mentioned that they had heard about the incident and were about to go see what had happened.
Shen Zi’an watched as only his eldest and second brothers came out from the Shen family, with no sign of anyone else. He knew right away that this was his trouble; his parents were probably avoiding the trouble and hadn’t come out. He didn’t care anymore. He told his elder brothers that he had just returned and had only just learned about the incident, so he was going to see what had happened.
At this point, running was faster than riding the ox cart, so Shen Zi’an handed over the cart to Li Shi and ran ahead.
Su Zhi also ran along with Li Shi. These days, drinking from the spiritual spring and using the lotus flower’s pollen had greatly improved Su Zhi’s health. She ran without getting red-faced or out of breath, not falling behind at all.
When they reached the riverbank, they saw a crowd gathered, all discussing the situation. From the midst of the crowd, they could hear Dazhu’s wife wailing mournfully.
“My child, you can’t leave like this! I only have you, my son! If you leave, I won’t be able to live! Curse that damned jinx! Give me back my son!”
Shen Zi’an and Su Zhi’s hearts sank. They wondered if Tiedan had died.