“How could that be allowed?” Wu Lanshu immediately objected. “Qingzhu, you’re a Kun Ze, how can you stay with a bunch of men?”

Even if they had nothing to feel guilty about, people would still gossip.

“Wu Lanshu is right, you should go ahead with them,” Zhou Song added, trying to persuade him.

Shen Qingzhu might seem easygoing, but deep down he was incredibly stubborn. Once he set his mind on something, no amount of persuasion would change it. The only time he had compromised was when he agreed to come to the village with Wu Lanshu.

“No matter, Zhou Song makes sense. The horse can’t handle all that weight. With the people and cargo on board, it’s better if I stay behind.”

It wasn’t that Shen Qingzhu was being difficult, but Zhou Song had injured himself helping him today, and Shen Qingzhu felt responsible for seeing him home safely. He never took others’ kindness for granted.

Wu Lanshu, knowing his temperament well, realized he wouldn’t budge and stopped trying to persuade him. However, she also couldn’t leave her young master alone with a group of men.

“How about this,” Wu Lanshu proposed. “You send someone who can drive the cart to take the ladies back to the village first, and I’ll stay here with Qingzhu to wait.”

Shen Qingzhu had no objections to this, but Aunt Wang and the other women felt bad. How could they let the master of the house give up his seat while they rode back in comfort? They suggested staying behind themselves.

Without giving them a chance to argue, Wu Lanshu waved them off, telling them not to be so formal with her. She told them to take the horse carriage back to her house for safekeeping once they returned.

At this point, Aunt Wang and the others couldn’t refuse her offer anymore.

After a bit of discussion, they decided that the quiet middle-aged man would drive the cart and take the ladies back to the village, while the others stayed behind to fix the ox cart.

As they watched the carriage slowly pull away, Shen Qingzhu and the others returned to the ox cart.

Lin Erzhu was squatting beside it, figuring out how to repair the broken wheel, while Zhou Song stood by. Seeing them approach, Zhou Song said, “It’ll be dark soon.”

Shen Qingzhu understood that Zhou Song was hinting that he should leave instead of wasting time here, but he just smiled and shook his head. “I’ve never experienced something like this before, so why not give it a try?”

Zhou Song didn’t say anything further and turned his attention back to Lin Erzhu. “Can you fix it?”

“It’s not a big problem,” Lin Erzhu nodded. “But I’ll need to take the wheel off. I’ll move some stuff around, and Brother Song, you can lead the ox away for now.”

Unhooking the ox from the cart wasn’t too difficult, and Zhou Song could handle it with just one hand. Besides, he didn’t dare to boss the other two around.

“I’ll do it,” Shen Qingzhu interrupted, walking over to the cart before Zhou Song could respond.

Zhou Song quickly followed. “You shouldn’t touch it. The rope is rough.”

He still remembered how Shen Qingzhu’s hands had been rubbed raw by a sickle handle last time.

Wu Lanshu, who had been about to help, changed direction to assist Lin Erzhu instead. However, she couldn’t help but feel something was a bit odd. Was Zhou Song being overly concerned?

Although securing a horse was different from securing an ox, the general idea was the same. Shen Qingzhu quickly loosened one side of the ox’s harness.

Seeing this, Zhou Song reluctantly went to the other side.

Shen Qingzhu looked up at him over the ox’s back. “Don’t use your right hand.”

Zhou Song, reminded by the warning, softly acknowledged and used only his left hand.

Once freed from the harness, the old ox shook its head happily, and Zhou Song tugged the rope attached to its nose ring. “Let’s lead it over there to graze for a while.”

This place was far from town and still quite a distance from the village. There weren’t many people around, but plenty of wild grass grew on both sides of the road.

Shen Qingzhu followed him.

The ox, now free to eat, obediently munched on the grass and didn’t wander off.

Zhou Song glanced at Shen Qingzhu, who was observing the surroundings. He wanted to say something but didn’t quite know how to start.

Noticing his hesitation, Shen Qingzhu walked over to him. “What’s wrong? Does your hand hurt?”

Zhou Song wanted to say no, but seeing Shen Qingzhu’s concerned expression, he couldn’t help but nod. “A little.”

He wasn’t lying. His wrist did ache, though normally it wouldn’t have bothered him much. Yet, after admitting to the pain, it suddenly seemed to intensify. He added, “It hurts quite a bit.”

Shen Qingzhu had gotten to know Zhou Song’s personality after meeting him several times. If Zhou Song admitted to being in pain, it must really hurt. Frowning, Shen Qingzhu asked, “Should I apply some more medicinal oil?”

Seeing the worry on Shen Qingzhu’s face, Zhou Song didn’t want to trouble him further, so he quickly shook his head. “It’s not that bad. It’ll pass soon.”

But Shen Qingzhu thought he was being stubborn and, without hesitation, gently took Zhou Song’s right hand, carefully lifting his sleeve to examine the still swollen wrist.

Zhou Song froze the moment Shen Qingzhu touched him, standing as stiff as a stone, letting him inspect his wrist. All of a sudden, he seemed to lose the sensation of pain, as if it had disappeared completely.

At the same time, the sensation of being touched felt magnified tenfold. The soft, warm palm and fingertips tracing his wrist were all too clear, sending his heart racing. The sound of it beating was so loud, he feared Shen Qingzhu might hear it.

A mix of emotions swirled within Zhou Song. On one hand, he was elated that his vulnerability had brought him such unexpected care, but on the other, he felt guilty for taking advantage of Shen Qingzhu’s gratitude and concern. His conflicting feelings tugged at him, yet he couldn’t bring himself to pull his hand away.

Zhou Song had never felt more ashamed of himself. He was exploiting the Kun Ze’s kindness, letting Shen Qingzhu unknowingly get closer to him.

“It doesn’t seem to have worsened,” Shen Qingzhu gently lowered Zhou Song’s hand. “I have some medicinal wine at home for treating sprains and bruises. I’ll send some to you later.”

Zhou Song nodded absentmindedly and quickly hid his right hand behind him, as if trying to conceal the chaotic thoughts in his mind.

Suddenly, Shen Qingzhu let out a soft hiss and reached up to rub his neck.

“What’s wrong?” Zhou Song immediately looked at him with concern.

Shen Qingzhu rubbed the side of his neck a few times, frowning slightly. “It’s nothing, just a mosquito bite.”

Although the weather was gradually cooling, the lingering summer heat meant that mosquitoes were still around in full force.

With the abundance of grass in this area, it was a haven for mosquitoes. Even the old ox was swishing its tail vigorously to shoo them away.

Zhou Song, being mindful of Shen Qingzhu’s status as a Kun Ze, didn’t stare at his neck too long. He only glanced briefly and saw the small red bump forming there. “Let’s head back to the road. There should be fewer mosquitoes there. The ox won’t wander off.”

Shen Qingzhu nodded and scratched at the bump again, feeling a small welt under his fingertips.

Seeing him scratch, Zhou Song quickly cautioned, “Don’t scratch it, you might break the skin.”

His warning reminded Shen Qingzhu of his mother, causing his movements to pause.

Back when he lived in the manor, despite annual pest control efforts, some insects would always slip through. Whenever he got bitten, he couldn’t help but scratch at the bite. His mother would always stop him and have the servants apply ointment to soothe the itch.

“Shen Qingzhu?” Zhou Song called out softly, noticing his sudden silence.

Shen Qingzhu snapped out of his thoughts, met Zhou Song’s concerned gaze, and lowered his hand from his neck, shaking his head. “It’s nothing. Let’s go back.”

Zhou Song sensed that something had been on Shen Qingzhu’s mind for a moment, but it wasn’t his place to pry, so he quietly followed behind him.

Back at the main road, Lin Erzhu was still crouched by the broken cart, fiddling with the damaged wheel.

With no tools on hand and far from any village or town, fixing the wheel was proving to be quite the challenge.

Wu Lanshu couldn’t do much to help, so she stayed beside him, assisting when needed. Seeing Shen Qingzhu and Zhou Song return, she asked, “Did you leave the ox over there?”

“Mm,” Shen Qingzhu nodded but couldn’t resist rubbing his neck again. “Zhou Song says it won’t wander off.”

Wu Lanshu followed his hand and saw the mosquito bite on his neck, as well as the reddened skin around it. She gasped, “Got bitten by a mosquito?”

She leaned in for a closer look. “It’s a big one, too. That mosquito must have grown teeth!”

Mosquitoes from the wilderness were particularly venomous, and the swelling would likely take days to go down. “We still have some ointment at home. You should apply some once we’re back.”

Hearing Wu Lanshu’s comment, Zhou Song couldn’t help but glance at Shen Qingzhu’s neck again. In just a short while, the bump had swollen considerably. He frowned slightly.

Shen Qingzhu, not overly concerned, casually agreed and then turned his attention to Lin Erzhu. “How’s it going?”

“It’ll still take a while,” Wu Lanshu replied, not really understanding much about cart repairs. “I’ll go get some candles.”

By now, the light was fading, making it harder to see. Fortunately, she had prepared ahead and had left some candles in the cart, along with some snacks and cooked food.

She lit the candles with a fire striker and placed them next to Lin Erzhu to give him more light to work by.

These candles, much more expensive than the usual oil lamps they used, were practically burning money. Seeing this, Lin Erzhu suddenly felt motivated and quickened his pace.

Wu Lanshu opened one of the oil paper packages she had brought. Inside was some braised chicken, originally meant for dinner, but now it could serve as an emergency meal. “Let’s take a break and eat something first. You need to fill your stomach if you’re going to keep working.”

They hadn’t eaten much at lunch, and after a long day, the smell of meat was enough to make anyone’s mouth water. Lin Erzhu, who had just gotten a second wind, immediately felt his motivation vanish again. He glanced up at Zhou Song with pleading eyes.

After exchanging a glance with him, Zhou Song sighed and nodded, knowing it wasn’t the time to be polite. “Let’s eat.”

“Alright!” Lin Erzhu eagerly jumped up, quickly rinsing his hands with water from the canteen.

The food Wu Lanshu had left wasn’t much, and with two men who could eat a lot, it wouldn’t be enough for everyone to get full. But it was enough to take the edge off their hunger.

The group gathered around the small candlelight, sharing the braised chicken and some pastries. It was a bit comical, but also oddly heartwarming.

Shen Qingzhu chuckled softly. He had never experienced eating by the roadside like this before. It wasn’t bad at all.

With his stomach no longer growling, Lin Erzhu felt recharged. He stretched and got back to fixing the cart wheel.

Perhaps it was the food that gave him the extra energy. After tinkering for a while longer, he finally managed to repair the broken axle.

Once everything was loaded back onto the cart, Zhou Song fetched the ox, now full from grazing, and hitched it back to the cart.

Shen Qingzhu had never ridden in an ox cart before. His previous experience with a handcart had been quite different, and now he wasn’t sure how to get on.

As he hesitated, Zhou Song approached. Holding the fabric he had brought to make clothes, he placed it over the rough wooden cart bed, patting it down without a second thought. “Sit here. The cart is hard, and it won’t be as comfortable as a horse-drawn carriage.”

His gesture made Wu Lanshu, who had been about to board from the other side, pause and glance at Zhou Song a couple more times.

“That fabric is for making your clothes. How could you use it for me to sit on?” Shen Qingzhu looked up, but in the dim light of the moon, it was hard to read the expression of the Qian Yuan.

Zhou Song hid his reddening ears well and shook his head. “Go ahead and sit. I’m not that particular about it.”

Without waiting for Shen Qingzhu to argue further, Zhou Song went to sit at the front of the cart with Lin Erzhu.

Shen Qingzhu glanced at Zhou Song’s back, then said nothing more and sat down on the neatly folded fabric. It wasn’t exactly soft, but it did cushion the hardness of the wooden planks.

Wu Lanshu quietly withdrew her gaze, feeling a subtle, complicated emotion stir inside her.