⟣•61•⟢
: THE SICKLY SCION'S PETITE WIFE IS SWEET AND COOL
𝙍𝙚𝙛𝙧𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙑𝙊𝙏𝙄𝙉𝙂 𝙊𝙉 𝙏𝙃𝙄𝙎 𝙉𝙊𝙑𝙀𝙇.
If I receive frequent votes, I'll block your account. 🚫𝗣𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗦𝗘 𝗦𝗧𝗢𝗣 𝗩𝗢𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚🚫
• • •
Shen Yijia chatted with An Xiu’er until Madam Li returned.
She returned earlier than Shen Yijia had expected.
Seeing that Madam Li’s basket was empty, Shen Yijia was quite curious. Because the vegetables at home had just been planted, Madam Li would bring Brother Hao and Sister Huan up the mountain every day to dig up some wild vegetables for some variety in their meals. This was the first time she had returned empty-handed.
“Xiu’er is here?” Seeing that there were guests at home, Madam Li paused.
Only then did Shen Yijia realize that Brother Hao and Sister Huan were both angry.
“My mother asked me to send over the embroidery thread that Madam Li wanted.” Perhaps realizing that the atmosphere was off, An Xiu’er didn’t stay any longer. After explaining the embroidery patterns to Madam Li, she bade farewell and left.
“Sister-in-law…” As soon as An Xiu’er left, Sister Huan threw herself into Shen Yijia’s arms and sobbed pitifully.
“What’s going on?” She’d been fine when she left the house.
“It’s nothing. She’s just throwing a tantrum like a child.” Madam Li put away the embroidery thread and said listlessly.
Shen Yijia did not believe her and looked at Brother Hao.
Seeing Shen Yijia’s gaze, Brother Hao clenched his fists and said angrily, “It’s all because of those people. They said that Sister-in-law is indecent. They said you were flirting with other men so that you could get meat to feed us. They said that we were basically eating the meat that you sold your body for.”
Although he didn’t quite understand what he was saying, Brother Hao still repeated what he had heard. Afraid that Shen Yijia would be unhappy, he continued, “Sister-in-law isn’t that kind of person. You’re the best sister-in-law!”
Shen Yijia was stunned. “Who was I fooling around with? What’s this nonsense about selling my body, were they talking about me?” she thought.
“Sister Jia, don’t worry about what the others say. Our family will live our own lives behind closed doors.” Madam Li also comforted her.
Although she said that, Madam Li was still worried. She was not worried about anything else, but she was afraid that Shen Yijia would feel awful. She knew very well how important a woman’s reputation was.
Many women in wealthy families had unhappy endings because of their bad reputation.
Not to mention that no one was stepped up to quell the rumors in this rural area. The rumors became more and more ridiculous.
“Mother, are they talking about me and An Dong?” Shen Yijia finally understood what was going on. She had been here for so long, but she had only seen An Dong a few times and barely spoke to him. The only other man she’d spoken to was the village chief.
Thinking of the village chief’s wrinkled face, Shen Yijia shivered and quickly shook her head to chase away this terrifying thought.
Without waiting for Madam Li to answer, Shen Yijia said in disbelief, “How blind do they think I am? He’s not as good-looking as my husband. Why would I leave the delicacies at home and eat the lackluster side dishes outside? Besides, if my family wants to eat meat, I can hunt it myself.”
As soon as Shen Yijia finished speaking, there was a dry cough at the door. The few of them looked out of the house.
An Dong and Song Jingchen were both at the doorway.
It turned out that An Dong had also heard the rumors when he came down from the mountain today. Afraid that the Song family would misunderstand Shen Yijia, he specially came to explain.
Unfortunately, he heard Shen Yijia’s words.
Even though An Dong had stopped thinking about Shen Yijia, he was still a little hurt when he heard this. He glanced at Song Jingchen’s face and felt doubly hurt.
Shen Yijia had always been magnanimous towards people. Moreover, she felt that she didn’t say anything wrong, so she didn’t feel awkward.
As soon as she saw An Dong, she remembered what Brother Hao had said. “Why are you here?” she blurted out.
Song Jingchen hid the smile on his face and said indifferently, “He’s here to borrow a book.”
As long as you aren’t embarrassed, only the other party would feel embarrassed.
An Dong felt so embarrassed that he wished he had never been here. It seemed that he didn’t need to explain anything. He could only take the book that Song Jingchen handed him and say with a flushed face, “Yes, I’m here to borrow a book.”
The An family had a good life before Father An’s accident. He did go to school for a few years, so the idea of him borrowing a book was quite believable, although it had been a while since he touched a book.
Shen Yijia didn’t know if it was her imagination, but she realized that Song Jingchen’s was suddenly in a good mood.
1
Even when she said she didn’t want to practice writing, he gave her a day off, even though he doubled the amount of words she needed to write the next day.
“I guess I was mistaken,” she grumbled to herself when she got her assignment the next day.
⟣•62•⟢
: THE SICKLY SCION'S PETITE WIFE IS SWEET AND COOL
• • •
The rumors outside were nothing to Shen Yijia, so she naturally ignored them.
She continued going up the mountain to hunt.
Although she didn’t encounter any more wild boars, she still managed to hunt other animals.
When the villagers saw Shen Yijia walking in and out of the mountain with prey in her hands, they realized that Shen Yijia was skilled, so they stopped gossiping. The people in the old residence were so angry that they did not sleep well for a few days.
Early this morning, Shen Yijia carried the prey she had accumulated over the past few days into the carriage and prepared to sell them in town.
Madam Li had to marinate those that were accidentally killed and keep them at home to eat. The rest of her prey were all injured but alive.
Winter was coming, so everyone in the family had to prepare their cotton clothes and blankets in advance. They also had to stock up on food.
Madam Li’s embroidery work was also done, and she planned to go with Shen Yijia.
Before setting off, Shen Yijia specially went to the An family to ask about the restaurant that collected prey. Auntie Tian also wanted to sell embroidery, so she joined them in the carriage.
The carriage drove all the way to the village entrance, where an ox cart was parked. It was already full.
There were a few women standing beside the ox cart. It seemed like there wasn’t enough space.
There were only a few ox carts in the village. After all, not everyone went to town every day. Not everyone was willing to pay two copper coins for a cart.
Usually, everyone would discuss when they would go into town, then arrange for an ox cart to bring them to town at the same time. Today’s ox cart happened to belong to the old residence, and the driver was Song Erlin.
Shen Yijia ignored him and was about to go over when a woman stopped her.
“Hey, big sister, are you heading towards the town too? I’m going the same way, may I hitch a ride?”
Once she opened her mouth, and the other women who did not manage to get a seat in the ox cart were also tempted.
The people who had gossiped about Shen Yijia were too ashamed to speak up, but they didn’t leave either. They all thought that if Shen Yijia promised to bring someone else, they would be able to hitch a ride too.
The thick-skinned villagers opened their mouths. “That’s right. We’re all from the same village. You’re going anyway, and the carriage is empty anyway. Why don’t you bring us along? We’ll remember your kindness.”
Shen Yijia glanced at those people and stopped the carriage.
The women looked delighted. They did not expect to save money on the ox cart and get a free ride on the carriage.
They all fought to get into the carriage.
Shen Yijia reached out and stopped the woman in front. She asked in confusion, “Why do I need you to remember my kindness? Would you send me food or clothes in return?”
After saying that, she rolled her eyes and pointed at one of the women. “You were the one who said that you wanted to chase us out of the village the other day. Now you want to take my carriage? Aren’t you afraid of being implicated by our family?”
“And you, you and you.” She pointed out a few more. “Yesterday, I heard the two of you gossiping about me together. Have you forgotten?”
She remembered very clearly. Although she didn’t care about the rumors, she wasn’t a fool. She wasn’t about to help someone who wanted to trample on her reputation.
She had ignored them previously because she was not good at arguing with others. She did not think it was necessary to fight them yet.
Of course, she wouldn’t go easy on them if they went overboard.
With that, Shen Yijia ignored the women and raised her whip. The carriage started moving again and quickly disappeared from everyone’s sight.
The women were left stunned and ashamed. Why did she stop the carriage if she wasn’t going to agree to their request?
“I just wanted to remind all of you to stop being so shameless.” Shen Yijia thought.
“Pfft, what’s so great about having a carriage? They’re still forced to settle down in this poor village.” A woman cursed angrily.
Regaining her dignity, the woman called out to the others indignantly, “Let’s go. We have legs. It’s not like we can’t reach the town on foot.”
“It’s indeed great. We have two carriages, not just one. It’s just that Uncle Yang is using the other one right now.” Shen Yijia thought.
⟣•63•⟢
: THE SICKLY SCION'S PETITE WIFE IS SWEET AND COOL
• • •
When they arrived in town, Madam Li and Auntie Tian went to the embroidery shop to sell their works. Shen Yijia drove the carriage to the restaurant that An Dong had mentioned.
As soon as the carriage stopped, a waiter greeted them warmly. Those who could afford a carriage could afford to eat, even if they weren’t nobility.
“Sir, leave this carriage to me. Please come in.”
Shen Yijia avoided the waiter’s hand that was about to take the reins and went straight to the point. “I’m here to sell prey. Do you accept it?”
“I guess even those who can afford a carriage might not necessarily be here to eat.” the waiter thought to himself.
However, the waiter did not change his expression because of this. He scratched his head awkwardly. “We accept prey here. Please wait a moment. I’ll call our shopkeeper over.”
Soon, the waiter came out with a middle-aged man with a big belly.
“Young lady, do you have prey to sell?” The shopkeeper did not expect it to be a delicate and pretty girl. Surprise flashed across his eyes.
Shen Yijia nodded and lifted the curtain for him to see. She said expressionlessly, “Five rabbits, three pheasants, and a mule. Do you want them all?”
1
She had always remembered what Da Hua had said. When negotiating, you have to put on a serious front, lest others think that you’re easy to manipulate.
To Shen Yijia, being serious was equivalent to not smiling, just like Song Jingchen.
The shopkeeper was indeed intimidated by Shen Yijia. He put away his contempt and looked at the things in the carriage. He was delighted and hurriedly said, “I’ll take them. If you have more, you can send them all over.”
Shen Yijia looked at him strangely. This restaurant was not big. Would they be able to use so much meat?
Having been a shopkeeper for many years, how could he not have good judgment? The fat shopkeeper laughed and said, “To be honest, it’s Old Master Liu’s 50th birthday in our town in half a month. He’s booked our Full Fortune Restaurant to prepare a banquet. That Old Master Liu likes the taste of wild meat. A few days ago, Young Master Liu came to visit and asked us to prepare more wild meat for cooking.”
The fat shopkeeper entered the carriage and was even more satisfied when he saw that these prey were only injured and that it would not be a problem for them to stay alive for a few more days.
He couldn’t help but ask curiously, “Who hunted these prey? The wounds don’t look like they were caused by a trap.”
“I hit them with a rock. Is there a problem?” Shen Yijia rolled her eyes. She didn’t know how to set traps either. “Why would you care about this when you’re just collecting prey? Just take the prey and give me the money.” she thought.
“No, there’s no problem,” the fat shopkeeper said, shaking his head. He did a double take and said in surprise, “You… you hit these animals with a rock?”
He could not help but size up Shen Yijia again. He could not tell what she was capable of.
Shen Yijia said, “Yes.”
“How about this? If you can still guarantee that they’ll be sent over in this condition, I’ll add three copper coins to the market price for each type of prey. How about that?” The fat shopkeeper’s principle in doing business was to befriend as many capable people as possible. Even if he couldn’t befriend them, he would avoid becoming enemies with them. Moreover, he needed a lot of meat. Ordinary hunters really couldn’t provide them in this condition.
“Sure, that’s all for today. I’ll send you more tomorrow.” Not only did he not scam her, but he also gave her more money. Shen Yijia’s impression of this fat shopkeeper instantly improved.
The rabbit meat was originally fifteen copper coins a catty. For each catty, it was seventeen copper coins for the pheasant, and twenty copper coins for the deer. The fat shopkeeper added three copper coins to each catty.
After weighing it, the fat shopkeeper took out two pieces of silver with a smile. “A total of 1.35 taels of silver for the meat, I’ll make it 1.4 taels to round it up. Including these furs, I’ll give you a total of two taels. Count them.”
Shen Yijia took the money. Although it was only two taels of silver, she was already very satisfied. After all, it was impossible to have the luck to encounter wild boars every time.
⟣•64•⟢
: THE SICKLY SCION'S PETITE WIFE IS SWEET AND COOL
• • •
However, this also made Shen Yijia realize that hunting for money was not a long-term solution. It wasn’t about the danger, she was confident in herself. Anyway, if she couldn’t beat him, she could run.
However, animals were also intelligent. If she hunted them too often, they would definitely run deep into the mountains. Also, if it snowed in winter, it would be difficult to hunt in the mountains.
She couldn’t just sit back and do nothing when the time came. She still wanted to knock down the house and rebuild it before winter. Otherwise, winter would be too cold for the family.
It seemed like she had to think of another way to make a living.
This was the first time Shen Yijia had thought so hard about a problem. She couldn’t think of a good solution even after thinking for a long time.
She walked to the entrance of Full Fortune Restaurant and was about to get into the carriage when she saw a bookstore from the corner of her eye.
Thinking about how Song Jingchen had already flipped through the books at home several times, she decided to go in and buy a few books for him.
When she walked in and saw the neatly arranged books on the shelves, Shen Yijia felt dizzy. She didn’t know what kind of books Song Jingchen liked to read.
She had no choice but to call the shopkeeper over. “Which are the bestsellers recently? Tell me which books are popular and help me get three of them.”
It wouldn’t be wrong to buy something that everyone liked.
The shopkeeper glanced at Shen Yijia strangely and did not say anything else.
While waiting, Shen Yijia looked around and was inexplicably attracted by an old book in the corner that was covered in a thick layer of dust.
For some reason, Shen Yijia picked up the book instinctively.
“No one can understand that. If you want it, I’ll give it to you at a discount when you buy these three books.” The shopkeeper wrapped up the books and handed them to Shen Yijia. “A total of two taels of silver.”
Shen Yijia was speechless.
She suspected that the shopkeeper knew how much money she had earned today, but she had no proof.
Feeling the pinch, she handed the money to the shopkeeper. Shen Yijia looked at the old book in her hand and felt better.
Her desire to earn money grew stronger.
Seeing that it was getting late and there were still many things to buy, Shen Yijia did not stay any longer and drove the carriage to the rice and flour shop.
She spent a tael of silver to buy some rice and noodles. There were also cheap coarse grains. Not to mention the others in the family, she was also not used to them. Thus, Shen Yijia decided to buy the grains which had better quality.
She did not want to make herself suffer in this aspect. In her previous life, she had heard that money was earned, not saved. Shen Yijia felt that it made sense.
After coming out of the shop, Shen Yijia was about to get into the carriage when a few ruffians surrounded her.
“Yo, when did such a hot girl come to our town?”
“That’s right. This is the first time I’ve seen such a hot young lady. Do you want to play with us?”
The two people at the front, one tall and one short, reached out their groping hands to Shen Yijia as they spoke. The people behind them also laughed.
When the surrounding pedestrians saw this situation, they avoided her. They looked at Shen Yijia with sympathy. Clearly, this was not the first time this had happened.
Shen Yijia tilted her head. Just as the two hands were about to touch the corner of her clothes, she took a step back, reached out, and shouted, “Wait a minute.”
They both paused and were about to get mad.
Shen Yijia continued, “There are too many people here. Let’s find a less crowded place.”
“Haha, did I hear wrongly? This young lady wants to find a quiet place to play with us.” The tall man even dug his ears.
“Big Brother, I heard it too.”
“I didn’t know she knew how to play.” The tall man’s smile faded. “Sure. Come with me. We promise to satisfy you.”
Shen Yijia blinked and nodded seriously. She did not forget to ask the waiter to help look after the carriage.
She followed the group without looking back.
They watched as the little girl followed the group of hooligans into an alley and disappeared from everyone’s sight.
Many people shook their heads and sighed.
“Unfortunately, this girl won’t be coming back…”
⟣•65•⟢
: THE SICKLY SCION'S PETITE WIFE IS SWEET AND COOL
• • •
“Young lady, are you satisfied with this place?” The tall man stopped and looked back at Shen Yijia lecherously. He even rubbed his hands together.
Shen Yijia looked around. It was an alley that could only accommodate three people. There were no outsiders here. Strictly speaking, it was not spacious enough, but it would be a waste of time to change places. It was fine.
Therefore, Shen Yijia nodded obediently.
The ruffians laughed again, and tacitly let the tall man go first.
The tall man reached out to Shen Yijia again.
There was a click.
“Ah…”
Immediately after, a scream sounded. Everyone was shocked.
Shen Yijia did not give anyone a chance to react. She grabbed the tall man’s collar and threw him over her shoulder, throwing him against the wall and knocking him unconscious.
The others reacted and pounced on her. Shen Yijia dodged one of them and swept her foot downwards. The man fell flat on his face.
Then, she grabbed one of them by the collar and threw him at the other gangsters.
The three of them were neatly stacked like a small mountain. Shen Yijia placed her hands on her hips and stepped on them, preventing them from moving.
However, at this moment, the person suddenly picked up a brick from the ground and swung it at the back of Shen Yijia’s head…
However, Shen Yijia seemed to have eyes behind her back. She spun around and kicked the person away.
Of the five people, two had fainted. The other three were unable to move under her feet. Satisfied, Shen Yijia retracted her feet and squatted down in front of the wailing three people.
She smiled at them and raised her hand to punch them.
She clapped her hands and was about to leave when she thought of something. She squatted down and groped around again.
“Tsk, there’s less than two taels of silver. They’re so poor.”
She left, satisfied. She had finally vented the anger which had built up because of the villagers in Xiagou Village.
When she returned to the rice shop, there were still many people waiting to see the results. When they saw Shen Yijia return unscathed, they were all puzzled.
Shen Yijia did not intend to explain. She thanked the waiter and drove the carriage away.
After she left, the townspeople glanced at each other.
Someone headed towards the alley out of curiosity and was shocked to see what was in the alley.
This, this was…
Shen Yijia drove the carriage to the embroidery workshop to pick up Madam Li and Auntie Tian. Seeing that Shen Yijia had come so late, Madam Li did not ask further although she was curious.
At the embroidery shop, they bought enough wool and cotton for the family to make two sets of winter clothes each. It cost nearly five taels of silver.
They stuffed the goods into the carriage before returning to the village.
Auntie Tian looked at the things in the carriage and was secretly speechless. This thin cotton cost 30 copper coins per foot. She felt that it was better to buy coarse cloth.
When they returned to the village, it was already past lunchtime. They did not expect it to take so long, so Madam Li did not prepare any food in advance.
She thought that Song Jingchen and the others were going to starve…
However, as soon as she entered the courtyard, she saw Song Jingchen and the twins eating in the central room.
Shen Yijia was quite curious.
“Mother, Sister-in-law, you’re back.” Brother Hao sat facing the door and saw them immediately.
Only then did Song Jingchen turn around.
Shen Yijia was also extremely hungry. She asked curiously, “Who cooked this? It looks quite delicious.”
Song Jingchen opened his mouth and was about to answer when footsteps came from the kitchen. An Xiu’er walked in with a bowl of soup.
Seeing the situation in the central room, An Xiu’er paused and greeted them with a red face. “Madam Li, Sister Shen, you’re back. You haven’t eaten yet, right? I just finished cooking. Sit down and eat.”
Shen Yijia tilted her head and watched as An Xiu’er placed the soup on the table and naturally filled a bowl for each of the three of them. An Xiu’er then turned around and went to the kitchen to get two sets of cutlery.
⟣•66•⟢
: THE SICKLY SCION'S PETITE WIFE IS SWEET AND COOL
• • •
Even after dinner, Shen Yijia still could not react.
Why would An Xiu’er come to the house to cook and even serve Song Jingchen soup and rice?
Furthermore… Why did she feel so uncomfortable? She clearly didn’t sense any malice from An Xiu’er. Everything was normal.
She originally wanted to tell Song Jingchen about what had happened in town and the prey that Full Fortune Restaurant wanted, and also ask him if he had any good ways to earn money.
Now, Shen Yijia was in no mood to do so. However, she could not figure out why. She put away the things in the carriage and picked up a basket. She said, “I’m going to take a look around the mountain.” Then she left.
Looking at Shen Yijia’s back, Song Jingchen frowned and paused.
In the past, Shen Yijia did not go deep into the mountains. He figured that she wanted to hunt for more things, so he didn’t worry too much.
After walking for fifteen minutes, Shen Yijia stopped. “Come out, or I’ll beat you up.”
It was unknown how long she had been followed. It was her fault for being distracted.
“Don’t… I’m coming out.” A dirty young man walked out from behind a tree.
Shen Yijia looked carefully at the young man and confirmed that she did not know him. She said angrily, “Who are you? Why are you following me?”
“You… you don’t remember me? We’ve met a few times. I was standing at the back of the crowd the day you moved into the village. Then when you dragged the prey down the mountain…”
“Stop!” Shen Yijia hurriedly interrupted the person’s stammering. She was really not in the mood to listen to anyone’s nonsense today. She could easily lose control of her fists. “Get to the point.”
“Oh, my name is Li Shen. Everyone calls me Bruiser. I’m the son of Widow Wang in the village. I happened to see you when you were fighting those hooligans in town today. I want to acknowledge you as my master and learn martial arts from you.” Bruiser immediately stood straight and quickly introduced himself.
“I don’t know martial arts, so I won’t take in disciples.” Shen Yijia refused coldly. “You’re not allowed to follow me anymore, or I’ll beat you up!”
With that, she ignored him and continued deeper into the mountains.
Bruiser was about to follow when Shen Yijia stopped. Seeing that Shen Yijia was about to disappear, he hurriedly shouted, “I know where to make money quickly.”
These words pierced Shen Yijia’s heart. She wanted to ignore him, but the prospect of money did not allow her to.
Shen Yijia did not turn around, but she did not continue walking.
Seeing that there was a chance, Bruiser quickly ran over. “I know you want to make money. I can take you there.”
“Continue.” Shen Yijia said coldly.
“There’s an underground arena in the town. As long as you participate in the competition there, you’ll get ten taels of silver if you win a match. After winning twenty matches in a row, the amount of silver will be doubled. If you can become the lord of the arena, you’ll be directly rewarded with a hundred taels of silver. If anyone challenges you, you’ll get fifty taels of silver if you win a match.”
Shen Yijia was delighted. Wasn’t this tailor-made for her? However, she frowned. “Anyone can participate?”
Bruiser quickly nodded. “You have to pay five taels of silver to enter for the first time. You can even place a bet inside. If the person you bet on wins, you can earn money.”
“Sure, but I really don’t know how to teach.” Shen Yijia had already decided to take a look at the arena, but she couldn’t leave him hanging.
Bruiser shrugged, thinking that Shen Yijia looked down on him.
Shen Yijia gritted her teeth and said, “I can take you in as my underling. If anyone bullies you in the future, come find me. I’ll help you teach them a lesson.”
“Really?” Bruiser’s eyes lit up, and he smiled widely.
Shen Yijia rubbed her forehead. His expression changed so quickly. She waved her hand and chased him away. “Yes, yes. I still have to hunt some prey. You can go back now.”
“Boss, let me go with you. I can help you carry the prey.” He had just been accepted, so he had to be proactive.
⟣•67•⟢
: THE SICKLY SCION'S PETITE WIFE IS SWEET AND COOL
• • •
As Shen Yijia walked, she went after any prey that she saw. In the past, she could do whatever she wanted with them. This time, she controlled her strength so that the prey would be captured alive.
The first few times, she accidentally killed two pheasants. After that, they never appeared again.
However, they were all pheasants and rabbits, there wasn’t a single big animal. It was unknown if they were deliberately avoiding her.
For a moment, she was immersed in the joy of the harvest, until she heard a panting voice behind him. “Boss, that’s enough for today. We can barely carry these.”
At first, Bruiser was shocked by Shen Yijia’s rock-throwing. Later on, he became used to it.
It was so tiring.
Shen Yijia turned around unhappily. She saw that there was a belt of prey tied to Bruiser’s waist. There wasn’t space for any more. There was also a string of prey tied around his chest.
There was so much prey hanging on him that she could no longer see his dirty clothes.
She rubbed her nose in embarrassment and looked at the sky. If they didn’t go back now, they would have to feel their way through the mountains in the dark. “Alright, let’s go back.”
Bruiser heaved a sigh of relief. As expected of an underling.
If Shen Yijia was alone, she would definitely be able to reach home before dark. However, she had a burden following her. His speed was not much faster than a turtle.
Unable to stand it anymore, Shen Yijia stopped and looked at Bruiser, who was panting heavily. “Give me some. I’ll take them.”
“No, no. I can do it.”
Shen Yijia was speechless. It seemed like he was going to collapse. She picked up the string of prey on his chest and left.
Even though their pace was much faster afterwards, it was already dark when they arrived home.
From afar, they saw a faint light at the door of the house.
Shen Yijia paused before walking over. She saw Song Jingchen sitting at the door with an oil lamp in his hand.
His expression did not change after seeing her. He glanced at Bruiser, who was behind Shen Yijia.
Shen Yijia felt inexplicably guilty and rubbed her nose. “Why are you sitting here? Aren’t you cold?”
“I was waiting for you.” Song Jingchen retracted his gaze and turned his wheelchair into the courtyard.
Shen Yijia’s heart skipped a beat and she quickly followed him in.
Bruiser wiped his sweat. That look from Song Jingchen was too terrifying.
He wanted to leave immediately, but he still had a lot of prey tied to him, so he could only brace himself and follow.
“Sister Jia, why are you back so late? We were worried about you.” Madam Li came out to welcome her.
“I’m sorry. I forgot the time and came back late.” It felt good to be cared for. Shen Yijia obediently admitted her mistake.
“This child. It’s good that you’re back. You can’t do this again. Brother Chen insisted on waiting for you at the door and refused to come in. He’s not in good health to begin with.”
Why was he waiting for her? Shen Yijia stole a glance at Song Jingchen, who simply turned his head away.
“Mother, I won’t do it again.” Shen Yijia wanted to hold Madam Li’s arm, she remembered how dirty she was, so she stopped herself.
Bruiser was dumbfounded. He suspected that this obedient and cute person in front of him was a fake.
“Who’s this?” Madam Li asked Bruiser.
“Ah, him. Bruiser, the son of Widow Wang in the village. He got lost in the mountains and I brought him back. I asked him to help me carry some prey.” As she spoke, Shen Yijia gave Bruiser a look.
“That’s right. It’s all thanks to Miss Shen. I’ve delivered these, so I’ll get going first.” He put down the animals and was about to leave.
“Hey, wait.” Shen Yijia stopped Bruiser and took out the two dead pheasants from her basket. She handed one to him. “Take it home and eat it.”
“No, no need…” Bruiser waved his hand in refusal.
Shen Yijia glared at him, and Bruiser immediately cowered. He took it obediently. “Then, thank you, Sister. Auntie, Brother Song, I’ll go home first.”
Song Jingchen saw the interaction between the two of them and lowered his eyes without saying a word.
⟣•68•⟢
: THE SICKLY SCION'S PETITE WIFE IS SWEET AND COOL
• • •
After a fight in the morning, Shen Yijia went into the mountains in the afternoon. Shen Yijia was exhausted and had long forgotten about the unhappiness brought about by An Xiu’er. As soon as she got into bed, she started to fall asleep.
Song Jingchen looked at Shen Yijia for a long time, waiting for her to fall asleep. She started to snore, but she didn’t roll into his arms.
He ignored the strange feeling in his heart and turned away from Shen Yijia.
He glanced at Shen Yijia and turned his back to her again. In the end, Song Jingchen resigned himself to fate and pulled Shen Yijia into his arms.
Now he felt at ease.
Shen Yijia vaguely seemed to hear Song Jingchen say something in her ear, but she fell asleep before she could hear what he was saying.
Since she went to bed early, Shen Yijia woke up exceptionally early the next day, even earlier than Song Jingchen.
Shen Yijia quietly left Song Jingchen’s arms, got out of bed, and changed her clothes.
She turned around and heaved a sigh of relief when she saw that she didn’t wake Song Jingchen up.
Madam Li was already preparing breakfast in the kitchen. In the beginning, Shen Yijia used to help out with the meals.
However, for some reason, even though they were doing the same thing, and Madam Li was guiding her from the side, the food would still taste especially bad in Shen Yijia’s hands.
1
After wasting food a few times, Madam Li stopped Shen Yijia from touching the food in the kitchen.
Some people were born to be good at something. Shen Yijia felt that she was born to be good at cooking questionable cuisines.
1
Madam Li was making steamed buns. Shen Yijia informed Madam Li that she was going to town to deliver the prey. She took a piece of cloth, wrapped three of the steamed buns in it, and left with the carriage.
When they arrived at the village entrance, Bruiser was already waiting there. He looked clean today, and his true appearance was revealed. He had seemingly changed from a sloppy beggar to a delicate young man. He looked to be about thirteen or fourteen years old, and had obviously been cleaned up.
However, his clothes were still old and obviously patched up. Shen Yijia felt a headache coming on when she saw him.
As soon as the carriage stopped, without Shen Yijia’s reminder, Bruiser jumped into the carriage and took over the driving. He said obsequiously, “I know how to do this. I’ll do it.”
Shen Yijia looked at him suspiciously but she did not refuse. She opened her cloth bag and threw a white steamed bun at him. “Eat,” she said.
With that, she started eating a steamed bun too.
Bruiser was stunned. His eyes turned red as he looked at the steamed bun.
As was mentioned earlier, Xiagou Village was prone to excluding to outsiders, let alone a widow with a son.
Their family didn’t have any fields, so Widow Wang relied on sewing and mending to earn some money. She didn’t have time to take care of the children. Bruiser had been wandering in every corner of the town since he was young. He had basically grown up fighting.
When they arrived in town, they first sent the prey to Full Fortune Restaurant. This time, there was more prey than last time, and they sold their catch for five taels of silver.
After leaving the carriage at Full Fortune Restaurant, Shen Yijia and Bruiser entered a ready-to-wear shop. When they came out again, they were disguised as two young men. Bruiser had been in town for a long time and was afraid of being recognized, so he specially painted his face with a tan.
Shen Yijia also forced him to change out of his old clothes.
The two of them were both dressed in rough clothes. This was because Bruiser had said that it was best to keep a low profile when going to such a place.
Shen Yijia had no objections.
After turning left and right, they finally found the so-called underground arena. It looked exactly like what you’d expect an underground arena to look like.
Inside was a small residence with a secret passage leading underground. Oil lamps were placed all around, so it wasn’t dark.
One had to register before entering the arena. Those who came for the first time had to pay five taels of silver first.
Shen Yijia took out ten taels. The doorman pressed a button after they registered. A stone door slowly opened, and instantly, a commotion could be heard from inside.
There were roars and cheers. Shen Yijia was shocked by the scene before her.
From afar, she could see three tall platforms surrounded by iron railings. Two of them had people fighting on them, and many people were watching from below the platforms.
⟣•69•⟢
: THE SICKLY SCION'S PETITE WIFE IS SWEET AND COOL
• • •
It had been a while since Song Jingchen stayed in his room without roaming around on his wheelchair.
He couldn’t seem to focus on the book in his hand.
He noticed a blue cloth package on top of a box in the corner.
Song Jingchen took it out.
“Big Brother, what’s this? You’ve been looking at it for a long time.” Brother Hao suddenly stuck his head out from behind Song Jingchen.
Song Jingchen, who was still struggling to open it, came back to his senses.
“Have you finished writing?” Song Jingchen asked indifferently.
Brother Hao cringed. “I just came out for a break. I’ll continue writing right away.”
Brother Hao ran out quickly, cursing in his heart. He didn’t know what was wrong with his big brother today.
He actually wanted him and Sister Huan to write 500 words. Usually, the two of them only needed to write 100 words.
He suddenly missed studying with her sister-in-law.
At this moment, Shen Yijia had already gotten a queue number. Because it was still early, not many people went on stage. Soon, it was her turn.
Bruiser had known this place for a long time, but this was the first time he had really come here. Seeing that the people fighting on the stage were all stronger than bulls, he was nervous and regretted bringing Shen Yijia along.
Seeing that Shen Yijia was about to go up, Bruiser couldn’t help but grab her sleeve. When he met Shen Yijia’s gaze, he gulped and said, “Boss, why don’t we go back?”
Shen Yijia looked at him as if he was an idiot and reminded him, “Remember to bet on my victory.” With that, she walked onto the stage without looking back.
As soon as Shen Yijia got on the stage, the noisy crowd instantly fell silent.
Shen Yijia was simply too petite. Compared to the burly man opposite her, he looked like a child who had yet to grow up. Her arms and legs were so thin that the audience wondered if Shen Yijia could withstand a single move from him.
These people were here to watch the excitement. They had never been interested in such a straightforward competition.
After a moment of silence, they started chatting again. “Who is this? He dares to fight in that state? He must be tired of living.”
“Haha, that’s right. Isn’t his opponent the second kid from the Lin family?”
“No, that’s someone different. That kid is just here to warm up and have fun.”
“I don’t think I saw him come by today.”
“After being beaten up like that yesterday, he’d have to crawl in here on all fours.”
“Haha…”
The people below were busy gossiping, but Shen Yijia acted as if she did not hear them. She looked at the burly man opposite her expressionlessly.
The burly man wanted to mock Shen Yijia when he heard the words of the people below, but at this moment, he turned numb from Shen Yijia’s stare.
The betting process resumed. Almost everyone was betting that the burly man would win. Bruiser’s forehead was covered in cold sweat. He found Shen Yijia’s fake name and placed a hundred taels on it.
Once again, everyone looked at him like he was a fool. Even the banker glanced at him. Bruiser wanted to cry.
The competition on the stage began, but the people below were not interested. They gathered in groups of two or three and chatted.
Only Bruiser was extremely nervous. He stared at Shen Yijia on the stage without blinking.
The burly man cupped his fists. “If you don’t want to die, admit defeat as soon as possible. I won’t show mercy just because you’re handsome.”
With that, he rushed towards Shen Yijia.
Shen Yijia tilted her head. She understood. There was no need to show mercy.
Seeing that the burly man was about to reach her, Shen Yijia remained standing where she was.
The people below the stage seemed to be able to imagine Shen Yijia’s blood splattering across the stage. They didn’t feel any pity for her, instead, they gloated.
Shen Yijia, who was originally expressionless, suddenly grinned and stretched out her hand to block the burly man’s punch.
A look of surprise flashed across the burly man’s face, and he suddenly felt a chill down his spine. It was too late for him to retract his fist. He could only watch as Shen Yijia tilted her body. She grabbed his wrist after blocking his punch.
Shen Yijia moved in the blink of an eye. The burly man couldn’t even see her move, and he almost forgot to cry out in pain.
The clear sound of bones breaking could be heard. The audience was so quiet that one could hear a pin drop. They were all shocked by this change.
The next moment, excited cheers erupted.
The burly man came back to his senses and tried to pull his arm back. However, he realized that his opponent was unbelievably strong. He could not pull his arm away from Shen Yijia at all.
He could only extend his other hand to grab Shen Yijia. However, Shen Yijia did not give him a chance to touch her. She pulled, causing the burly man to stagger a few steps forward. She twisted his wrist and did a flip over his head, landing behind him.
There was another crack, and the burly man’s entire arm was dislocated.
The burly man screamed in pain.
After yesterday’s experience, Shen Yijia did not dare to go home too late.
Bruiser, who was driving the carriage, was flushed and obviously still excited.
Shen Yijia was also very happy. She had fought five matches today. She lent Bruiser 100 taels of silver so he could bet on her, earning a total of 600 taels.
This was only because the odds of betting on her in the next two rounds had become extremely low. Otherwise, there would have been more.
Initially, they had to leave the arena earlier. However, someone was tailing them, and the two of them had to make many detours to shake off the stalker.
When they arrived at the village entrance, Shen Yijia generously gave Bruiser fifty taels before he got off the carriage, and drove the carriage home.
Unexpectedly, Song Jingchen was waiting at the door again.
Shen Yijia felt a little guilty. What she had done today seemed to be nothing serious.
Fortunately, she had no intention of going to that kind of place often. She’d already been followed after her first time there. She was not afraid, but she did not want to bring any danger to her family.
More importantly, she had made enough money to last them for a while.
When Shen Yijia told Bruiser about it, he thought it was a pity. However, Shen Yijia was not swayed.
After tying the horse to the crooked tree, Shen Yijia jumped off the carriage and walked to Song Jingchen. She pretended to be calm and joked, “Why are you waiting here again? What would you do if I didn’t come back?”
Song Jingchen looked at her fixedly, as if he wanted to see into Shen Yijia’s heart. After a long time, he asked, “Would you disappear?”
Shen Yijia expected Song Jingchen to coldly smack the back of her head again. She scratched her head. She wasn’t expecting this response.
She walked over and pushed the wheelchair. “Of course not. This is my home.”
“You said it yourself,” Song Jingchen said in a low voice.
His voice was so soft that Shen Yijia could not hear him clearly. She asked curiously, “What did you say?”
Unfortunately, Song Jingchen didn’t speak again.
After dinner, the family sat around the dining table. Shen Yijia took out three banknotes and placed them on the table with a mysterious expression.
Madam Li asked, “Sister Jia, where did you get so much money from?”
“I saved someone on the way to town today. This was a thank you gift,” Shen Yijia said.
She wanted to build a new house. She’d have to reveal this money sooner or later, so she’d thought of an excuse early on.
Since she had already “saved” An Dong and Bruiser, it wasn’t unexpected for her to “save” another person.
As for why she didn’t reveal all of the money she’d earned, she was afraid that it would arouse suspicion.
Song Jingchen glanced at Shen Yijia.
Shen Yijia coughed uncomfortably. “I think it’s fine to live in this house now, but it’s a little dangerous when it rains. Moreover, it’s going to be winter soon, so it’ll be too cold to live in. Sister Huan has grown up and needs her own room. We might as well build another house.”
Madam Li looked at Song Jingchen hesitantly. Shen Yijia was the one who earned this money. How could she use her daughter-in-law’s money to build a house? Wouldn’t she be taking advantage of her?
Shen Yijia also looked at Song Jingchen.
Song Jingchen was speechless.
⟣•70•⟢
: THE SICKLY SCION'S PETITE WIFE IS SWEET AND COOL
• • •
Shen Yijia did not think too much about it. Seeing that no one said anything, she could only continue to explain her plans. “I originally wanted to knock down and rebuild this house, but if we do that, we won’t have anywhere to live while the house is being rebuilt. I want to buy the empty space around the house and the new house there. After the new house is built, we’ll move in and empty out the old house to make a big courtyard.”
“I’ll accompany you to buy land from the village chief tomorrow,” Song Jingchen said.
Shen Yijia scratched her head. Actually, she could go alone. From Song Jingchen’s usual behavior, it was obvious that he didn’t like to go out. Since he took the initiative to accompany her this time, she couldn’t refuse even though she was curious.
Seeing that Song Jingchen had agreed, Madam Li naturally didn’t say anything else.
There was no need to mention the two children. They could not be happier with a new house.
Shen Yijia thought that she could let the matter of the silver taels go just like that. She just needed to buy a plot of land and build a house.
In the end, she returned to her room and helped Song Jingchen soak his legs. However, he didn’t sleep or read as usual. Instead, he stared at her.
Shen Yijia went numb when she saw this. He finally spoke. “Tell me, where did the money come from?”
Shen Yijia struggled internally and laughed. “I told you, I saved someone. He gave me three hundred taels directly. Perhaps he’s stupid and rich.”
Song Jingchen continued to stare at her. Shen Yijia admitted defeat. She lowered her head and said without much confidence, “I went to the underground fighting arena to fight.”
She struggled a little before adding, “I didn’t gamble or rob anyone.”
Song Jingchen was speechless.
However, seeing her terrified expression, he sighed helplessly. “Are you injured?”
Shen Yijia shook her head vigorously. “No, no. They’re not my match. With one punch…”
In a moment of complacency, Shen Yijia could not help but show off her achievements. As she spoke, she even gestured a few times.
Song Jingchen rubbed his temples. He could tell that Shen Yijia loved to fight. Although he knew that Shen Yijia might not listen to him, he couldn’t help but remind her, “Don’t go there again. The desires of others can be more complicated than you think. If anything happens, I won’t be able to save you in time.”
Underground fighting arenas were not uncommon in Great Xia. He had heard from people in the capital that it was mostly a place for the children of the rich and powerful to have fun.
There were poor families who took the initiative to participate in the competition for money, but most of the fighters were slaves captured from foreign countries.
To put it bluntly, it was a different kind of casino. Anyone who could support such a place definitely had ulterior motives. He didn’t expect there to be an arena in a small place like Qingyang Town.
It seemed that this place was even more complicated than he had imagined.
Shen Yijia felt that all was well as long as he didn’t blame her. She stopped talking and nodded obediently. “I’ll protect myself well.”
She originally wanted to show off that she had beaten up a few hooligans, but now, Shen Yijia no longer had such thoughts. She was afraid that Song Jingchen would stop her from roaming around outside in the future.
“You earned more than that, right?” Song Jingchen suddenly asked.
Shen Yijia’s eyes widened. “Hubby, you’re incredible.” she thought to herself.
She obediently took out all the banknotes she had. Including the ones from before, she had 700 to 800 taels of silver.
“Were you followed when you came out?”
Shen Yijia blinked. He suspected that her husband was following her, but she had no evidence.
Seeing Shen Yijia’s expression, Song Jingchen knew that he had guessed correctly.
Shen Yijia quickly said, “I got rid of them. Besides, I disguised myself as a man when I went in. I guarantee that no one will recognize me.”
Song Jingchen raised his eyebrows. She had already learned how to disguise herself, so she wasn’t as stupid as he thought.
•••
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