Chapter 168
After giving the silver coins, Qingyan was still somewhat uneasy, so he had Shen Min inquire around the county.
It turned out that the woman from that rich household indeed intended to remarry. The man was a businessman from out of town who had come to Muling County for business. In order to marry this woman, he bought the neighboring mansion next to the rich household.
Their doors were side by side, and it was said that he disregarded Feng Shui considerations by sawing off all the thresholds at home. Only after this did the parents and elder brother of the rich household agree to marry off their daughter.
Yu Qingxi had been beaten twice, both times by strangers from out of town.
Qingyan speculated that it was most likely this person who had ordered the assaults.
Seeing his decisive and meticulous style of doing things, and his boldness, Qingxi was simply no match for him.
Some time later, the son of the leader of the Zheng family’s merchant caravan in the county married the bride. Qingyan and Qiu Henian went to give their congratulations, and by chance, they met that businessman and his wife at the banquet.
The businessman didn’t look as good as Qingxi, but he was tall and sturdy, with clear eyes. What was more important was his patience and meticulousness towards his wife.
The woman recognized Qingyan, but Qingyan didn’t go over to speak. He just nodded from afar, and the woman smiled generously and nodded back.
Such a good wife was hard to find with a lantern, but Qingxi’s heart was too narrow, filled with resentment and jealousy. It couldn’t accommodate anything good. If this continued, he was destined to be an unlucky person.
…
At Xiao Zhuang’s home, his parents and siblings were quite worried.
They didn’t know where Wu Shuang, with such a small and thin body, got so much energy from. Inside and outside the house, he was busy with everything. After finally gaining some weight, he had slimmed down again.
Xiao Zhuang’s mother also felt guilty, blaming herself for constantly talking about having a chubby grandson in the past, which had put pressure on Wu Shuang.
When Wu Shuang was first married into the family, she wasn’t very satisfied. Her comfort was that she would be able to hold a grandson as soon as possible, so she kept talking about it. But after getting along for a long time, she grew more and more fond of this child.
People’s hearts were made of flesh. Wu Shuang had been so pitiful since he was a child, and now he had encountered such hardships. Xiao Zhuang’s mother felt sad even when seeing other families losing their cats and dogs, let alone such a poor child.
Besides, the couple was still young. Even if Xiao Zhuang didn’t have children, there was still Xiao Hong at home. In a few years, they could surely hold a grandson.
Work was a small matter, but Wu Shuang’s current state was obviously not right. Previously, after dinner, everyone would sit together happily, playing cards and chatting.
Now, Wu Shuang was always tense. Apart from sleeping, he hardly let himself idle, and this tension affected everyone else in the house, making the atmosphere constantly tense.
During the day, Xiao Zhuang’s mother went to the shop to find Xiao Zhuang, asking him to think of a way to comfort Wu Shuang.
Xiao Zhuang had also been thinking about this matter. Whether they could conceive a child depended on the will of the heavens. But to alleviate the bitterness in his heart a little, Xiao Zhuang felt he could still do something about it.
That night, after Wu Shuang finished his work, he lay down to sleep.
Xiao Zhuang looked at his figure lying on his side and made up his mind.
In the middle of the night, Xiao Zhuang woke Wu Shuang up.
When Wu Shuang was just awakened, he wasn’t fully awake yet, his face was still dazed, unlike his usual calm and resolute appearance.
Seeing his husband like this, Xiao Zhuang felt affectionate.
He kissed his forehead and handed him clothes, saying, “Put these on. We’re going out.”
After Wu Shuang put on his clothes and fully woke up, he asked, “Where are we going?”
Xiao Zhuang also put on his own clothes, picked up the bag prepared earlier in the day, and smiled, “I’m taking you out for fun.”
It was cloudy tonight, and there was not much light on the road.
Because they were afraid of being discovered, Xiao Zhuang didn’t bring a lantern. The two walked side by side in the darkness, taking steps cautiously.
After walking for a while, Wu Shuang looked ahead and said, “Are we going to the neighboring village?”
Xiao Zhuang replied with a sound of acknowledgment, gripping his hand tighter and saying, “Be prepared. We’re almost there.”
Xiao Zhuang had never told Wu Shuang what they were going to do, maintaining an air of mystery. As they walked along the road, Wu Shuang could sense Xiao Zhuang gradually becoming excited, which affected his own emotions and made him somewhat anticipate the purpose of this outing.
After entering the neighboring village and walking a familiar path for Wu Shuang, the two arrived at the front gate of a household.
This was Wu Shuang’s foster parents’ home.
Wu Shuang looked at Xiao Zhuang, who raised a finger to his lips in a hushing gesture. He then opened the package he was carrying and took out a slingshot.
Wu Shuang looked at him in surprise. Xiao Zhuang tied the package behind his back and placed the slingshot in his belt.
Bending his knees and crossing his hands with palms up, as if ready to lift something, Xiao Zhuang whispered, “Step on my hands and climb up onto the courtyard wall.”
Wu Shuang asked, “What are we going up there for?”
Xiao Zhuang smiled and said, “You’ll find out once we’re up there.”
Wu Shuang placed his hands on Xiao Zhuang’s shoulders, stepped onto his crossed palms, and with a push from Xiao Zhuang, he easily climbed up onto the high courtyard wall and comfortably sat on top.
Xiao Zhuang then stepped back a few paces. Although he was heavy, his limbs were still agile, he had a strong jumping ability, and he managed to sit up there smoothly.
Taking the slingshot from his belt, Xiao Zhuang reached into the package behind him and took out two stones.
Upon seeing them, Wu Shuang remarked, “You’ve been carrying these things all the way here?”
Xiao Zhuang replied, “It’s not easy to find stones of this size that are just right. I spent half the day looking for them.”
With that said, Xiao Zhuang placed one of the stones in the pouch of the slingshot. With one hand in front and the other behind, he aimed across the courtyard.
Before Wu Shuang could react, Xiao Zhuang released the hand at the back, and the stone shot out, making a loud bang as it hit the window frame of the house.
In the night, the sound was quite noticeable. However, it was late, and people were sleeping soundly inside, so there was no immediate response from within the house.
After shooting one stone, Xiao Zhuang loaded another and shot it out again. This time, the aim was precise, and the stone pierced through the window paper and landed inside.
With his considerable strength, even from across the courtyard, they could hear something breaking followed by a clattering noise.
Wu Shuang’s mouth hung open, his eyes wide with disbelief as he looked at Xiao Zhuang.
At this moment, Xiao Zhuang tugged his hand and whispered, “Quick, lie down.”
Wu Shuang instinctively did as he was told and lay flat against the top of the wall.
At that moment, Wu Shuang saw a lamp being lit inside the house and heard faint voices.
Soon after, someone came out, cursing and dragging their shoes.
The voice was so familiar to Wu Shuang that it had almost become his nightmare.
Wu Shuang immediately tensed up, every muscle in his body becoming rigid.
At that moment, he felt a strong hand grip his own firmly as he held onto the wall. It was slightly painful but also offered him some reassurance.
After the person from inside the house emerged, they shouted several times in the yard and looked around.
By this time, the sky was covered with dark clouds, obscuring any light, and they couldn’t see clearly.
Perhaps thinking it was a stray cat knocking stones off the wall, they cursed and grumbled their way back into the house.
The two stayed crouched on the wall for a while. Eventually, the lamp inside the house went out, and it became quiet again.
At this point, Wu Shuang felt both afraid and somewhat excited.
Xiao Zhuang stood up, took out several more stones from the bag, and handed them to Wu Shuang, saying, “Your turn this time.”
“Me?”
Wu Shuang took the stones and slingshot, looking down in puzzlement.
Xiao Zhuang chuckled, “It’s fun. Give it a try.”
Wu Shuang was naturally quick and brave, so he decided to give it a shot. He followed Xiao Zhuang’s example, loaded the stone into the slingshot, and aimed.
Despite being slender, Wu Shuang was used to heavy work, often carrying two full buckets of water, so handling this small slingshot was no problem.
Stretching the elastic band to its limit, before Xiao Zhuang could say anything, Wu Shuang decisively let go, and the stone hit the window frame with a louder bang than Xiao Zhuang’s shot.
Xiao Zhuang stared at him, dumbfounded.
From Xiao Zhuang, Wu Shuang took another stone without hesitation and shot it out again. This time, he got lucky as the stone pierced through the window paper and entered the house.
However, they couldn’t hear any commotion from inside, which disappointed Wu Shuang with a “tsk.”
Just then, Xiao Zhuang reacted quickly. He jumped down from the wall outside, reaching out his hand.
In perfect sync, Wu Shuang jumped down without even looking, landing directly in Xiao Zhuang’s arms.
They could already hear the sound of the door opening and closing in the yard, accompanied by sharp and angry voices.
Through a crack in the courtyard door, they could see flickering light approaching their direction.
Xiao Zhuang grabbed Wu Shuang’s hand and ran to the end of the courtyard wall, pulling him around the corner to hide behind it.
Just then, the courtyard door creaked open. The two peeked out cautiously and saw Wu Shuang’s foster father walking out, looking furious.
He held a lantern, scanning around and even shining it on the courtyard wall.
Fortunately, the two had escaped just in time; otherwise, they would have been caught.
The man lingered at the door for a moment, muttering curses before heading back into the courtyard. He securely locked the door behind him before going back inside.
Hiding around the corner, Wu Shuang’s eyes glinted brightly, and his expression was unusual.
Xiao Zhuang stood behind him, supporting his shoulder, and whispered softly in his ear, “Want to keep playing?”
Wu Shuang nodded enthusiastically, “Let’s play.”
With a smile, Xiao Zhuang once again lifted Wu Shuang onto the top of the wall and climbed up himself.
This time, they couldn’t shoot stones on the wall, as it would be too easily discovered.
Xiao Zhuang held Wu Shuang’s hand, and they walked sideways along the wall.
The top of the wall was narrow, only accommodating half of a foot at a time, and walking on it could easily lead to a fall.
Despite feeling his heart squeezing with fear, Wu Shuang also felt an excitement and recklessness he had never experienced before.
He liked this feeling.
Once they reached the junction of the courtyard wall and the house, Xiao Zhuang climbed onto the roof first and then pulled Wu Shuang up.
This time, instead of giving Wu Shuang the slingshot, Xiao Zhuang took out several larger stones from the bag.
Speaking in a hushed voice, almost inaudible, he grinned and said, “No need for the slingshot this time. I’ll hold you, and you just lean in and throw. I guarantee you, it’s fun!”
