TIPS – Chapter 44

Last time he went to the yamen, it was for the road construction matter. Song Jingwei wasn’t very familiar with the governmental system of ancient times, but he knew one thing—officials cared most about their political achievements. Without achievements, there was no way to get promoted or gain wealth.

And where did those achievements come from? That was a topic worth discussing.

Having seen a lot in modern times, Song Jingwei’s insights weren’t necessarily unique, but he had accumulated some experience. In some ways, the bureaucratic world and the corporate world shared many similarities. Once you understood one, you could grasp the other. The perspectives he brought up had greatly benefited Zhang Benqing as well.

If it weren’t for Song Jingwei’s composed and confident demeanor, as well as his sharp and unique way of speaking, Zhang Benqing would never have believed that such a young man wasn’t just making things up.

As Shen Junxi wrote the salutation “To Lord Zhang Benqing, personally,” his pen momentarily hesitated. He knew that Song Jingwei was highly capable, but he had never fully understood the extent of his connections with the outside world.

Perhaps, deep down, he subconsciously avoided looking into it—so he could keep deceiving himself, believing that Song Jingwei was just an ordinary person. Someone as plain as himself, someone willing to live a simple and peaceful life together with him.

“What’s wrong? There’s just one more line left,” Song Jingwei noticed that Shen Junxi had spaced out.

“Hmm…” Shen Junxi snapped back to reality and resumed writing steadily. His handwriting was fluid and neat, looking quite impressive. Satisfied, he carefully proofread the letter, ensuring there were no mistakes before finally handing it over to Song Jingwei.

Seeing Song Jingwei’s furrowed brows relax, Shen Junxi comforted himself with the thought, At the very least, these letters are written by me. He’s willing to let me know about them.

Meanwhile, Shen Dongying stormed back home in anger, locking himself in his study and pacing back and forth, thinking about how to word his letter to his second brother, Shen Dongqi.

The letter couldn’t be too formal—he needed to make sure Shen Dongqi’s wife, Liu Shi, would see it. But it also couldn’t be too casual, or it wouldn’t convey the severity of the situation…

Even after writing the letter, his frustration didn’t subside. That night, as he lay in bed, he ranted to his wife, Wang Shi, complaining endlessly about how foolish Shen Dongming was.

The next day, Wang Shi treated the whole affair as idle gossip and told their son, Shen Junhe, about it. Lately, she had been at odds with Old Madam Shen—she found her mother-in-law’s self-righteousness unbearable and no longer wanted to discuss everything with her.

Unexpectedly, Old Madam Shen didn’t want to talk to Wang Shi either. Ever since Shen Dongming’s family had started gaining influence and stirring things up with their plan to open a private school, she had been thoroughly annoyed. If Wang Shi came to her now, she would definitely end up so infuriated that she’d start trembling. It was a classic case of mutual disgust.

Shen Junhe, who was on his day off, thought to himself after hearing the news: Unbelievable. My uncle’s family is getting more and more out of line. What a joke of a relative. If people found out, they’d laugh at us.

“Mother, why don’t I go have a word with them?” If even his father, Shen Dongying, couldn’t handle the situation, then wouldn’t solving it himself be a major achievement?

Wang Shi warned him, “You’d better not go. Even your father couldn’t deal with them—clearly, that eldest sister-in-law is no pushover.”

“Oh.” Shen Junhe agreed on the surface but immediately slipped out in secret.

That day, Song Jingwei once again didn’t go to the construction site. At home, only he and Yang Shi remained, as Shen Dongming and the other men had gone out.

Yang Shi picked up a carrying pole and said, “Jingwei, I’m going to the vegetable garden to fertilize the crops. Will you be okay at home alone?”

Song Jingwei was feeding the dog outside the courtyard gate. Hearing her, he replied, “I’ll be fine. Go ahead.”

“Alright then, I’m off.” Yang Shi smiled and walked away briskly. Lately, whenever she went out, many people would openly or secretly glance at her. Though she was annoyed by the attention, she couldn’t deny that she enjoyed being envied.

Not long after Yang Shi left, Hei Zi suddenly started barking loudly.

“Woof! Woof! Woof!”

Song Jingwei looked up and saw a fair-skinned scholar approaching. The scholar felt strangely familiar, as if he had seen him somewhere before. Taking a closer look, he tried to recall where he had met him. Then, it hit him—this man was practically a carbon copy of Shen Dongying. Even the self-righteous aura around him was identical.

The moment Song Jingwei realized the scholar’s connection to Shen Dongying, he lost all interest and looked away.

However, Shen Junhe couldn’t take his eyes off Song Jingwei. His heart pounded wildly. Just now, that handsome young man had gazed at him with those clear, piercing eyes, making him inexplicably nervous.

Why was he feeling this way?

Stepping forward, Shen Junhe greeted him with refined manners. “Good day, sir. I pay my respects.”

Song Jingwei frowned slightly, feeling a bit annoyed, and immediately turned to leave.

“Please, wait a moment!” Shen Junhe blocked his path and quickly asked, “My name is Shen Junhe. May I know your name? Where do you live? Are you married?”

“My home is right there.” Song Jingwei pointed to the large Shen family house.

“Huh?” Shen Junhe was stunned. Isn’t that my uncle’s shabby home?

The young man before him was strikingly handsome, with an extraordinary aura. There was no way he could be from that family.

So he asked again, “Forgive my rudeness, but what is your relation to that household?”

Song Jingwei replied flatly, “I am their daughter-in-law.”

Shen Junhe was completely dumbfounded. He stood there, mouth agape, utterly speechless.

“That’s impossible… How could this be…? How could he have married you?”

“Why can’t he?” Song Jingwei asked.

“He’s mute!” Shen Junhe said dumbfoundedly, then looked at Song Jingwei with a pained expression. “Someone as outstanding as you—how could you settle for a mute? This must be some kind of misunderstanding!” He couldn’t help but imagine a tragic story in his mind… perhaps Song Jingwei had been forced into this?

“Heh…” Song Jingwei let out a sneer. He found it unnecessary to continue this conversation, so he turned and walked into the courtyard.

“Young Master—” Shen Junhe reached out, wanting to grab Song Jingwei’s arm.

Song Jingwei dodged in time and shot him a sharp look. “If you’re here to see someone, come back another time. If you’re here to cause me trouble, ha…” His gaze said everything.

Shen Junhe broke out in a cold sweat under that look and immediately withdrew his hand. When Song Jingwei’s figure completely disappeared, he dumbly came back to his senses. Staring at his palm, he chuckled to himself. That gaze had been terrifying, yet also deeply alluring.

The worst part was—he was actually his mute cousin’s wife. That was truly heartbreaking.

From that day on, Shen Junhe couldn’t stop sneaking away from school around that time to wander near the Shen family’s main house. Occasionally, he would catch a glimpse of Song Jingwei feeding the dog at the entrance or taking a stroll. Seeing him even twice in three days felt like a great success.

A few days later, Shen Junxi came out to feed the dog and noticed a letter stuffed in a crack in the courtyard wall. He suspiciously took it down, turned it over, and confirmed it was a letter, though it had neither a signature nor a recipient.

Hiding in the corner, Shen Junhe saw Shen Junxi pick up the letter and panicked. He wanted to rush out and snatch it back, but that would expose himself. Luckily, he hadn’t signed his name on it, so even if Shen Junxi took it, he wouldn’t know it was from him.

Clinging to this slim hope, Shen Junhe could only watch as Shen Junxi took the letter inside.

“Xi’er, what are you holding?” Yang Shi saw her son carrying a bowl in one hand and something else in the other, looking a bit puzzled.

“…” Shen Junxi raised the letter and waved it but shook his head, indicating he didn’t know who it was for.

“Where did it come from? Just open it and see,” Shen Dongming said. He hadn’t gone to the fields today and was sitting in the house drinking tea with Pei Hongxuan when he noticed Shen Junxi’s expression.

Pei Hongxuan, however, understood Shen Junxi’s hesitation and said, “Since it ended up in your hands, it must be for your household. Think about who it’s most likely for.”

Everyone exchanged glances and all thought of one person—Song Jingwei.

“…” Shen Junxi quickly nodded, wearing an ‘I figured it out’ expression. A few days ago, he had helped Song Jingwei write a letter and send it to the county. It should have arrived within a day or two. This was probably that official’s reply. The lack of a signature and recipient was likely due to that official’s concerns.

He took the letter inside and handed it to Song Jingwei.

Song Jingwei had the same assumption—thinking it was Zhang Benqing’s reply. He was slightly surprised at how fast it had arrived. Taking the letter, he opened it, pulled out the yellowish-brown paper, and after reading just one line, his serious expression immediately turned into one of amused exasperation.

“Hmm?” Shen Junxi was on standby, expecting Song Jingwei to ask him to write another reply.

“Burn it. It’s nonsense,” Song Jingwei said, stuffing both the envelope and letter into Shen Junxi’s hands for disposal.

“…” Shen Junxi cautiously unfolded the letter to see what exactly had made his wife dismiss it as nonsense. However, after reading just one line, his expression also changed. This wasn’t an official reply at all—it was an inappropriate love letter.

But Shen Junxi was puzzled. How did such a letter end up stuffed in the crack of their courtyard wall? Who was it meant for? Judging by the handwriting, it was definitely from a man. There were no young girls in their household, so if someone were to attract attention, it could only be their newly arrived daughter-in-law.

Realizing this possibility, Shen Junxi’s face darkened in shock. Who dared to blatantly flirt with his wife?!

He quickly signed, “Do you know who wrote this?”

Song Jingwei casually replied, “I can’t think of anyone.” He wasn’t particularly familiar with the young people in the village. However, he added, “It could be your third uncle’s son—what’s his name, Shen Junhe?”

Upon hearing this, Shen Junxi’s face turned red with anger. He had initially thought it was some outsider he could simply ignore. But to find out it was his own cousin—his own blood relative—trying to seduce his wife? Absolutely unacceptable!

“What are you going to do?” Song Jingwei, noticing how furious Shen Junxi was, asked indifferently. “He’s just a clueless kid. Why get worked up over it?” If Shen Junxi weren’t so visibly upset, he wouldn’t have bothered comforting him.

“Mm…” Shen Junxi shook his head, his face still dark. Clutching the letter tightly, he signed, “I’m very angry. I’m going to teach him a lesson.”