TIPS – Chapter 54

Yang Shi nodded slowly, “Where’s your wife? Asleep?”

“Mm…” Shen Junxi gestured, “How about you stop doing embroidery work from now on?” In the past, it was necessary because the family was poor, and it helped with household expenses. But now, Yang Shi was getting older, her eyesight wasn’t great, and the money from embroidery wasn’t even enough to buy a good cup of tea for Song Jingwei.

“Son, our family may not be poor anymore, but all of that is your wife’s money. You have to understand that,” Yang Shi said seriously. She didn’t want her son to become a man who relied on his wife for everything.

Shen Junxi gestured, “I understand, Mother. My wife said he wants to farm, so I’ll help him with it.”

Yang Shi poked his forehead and laughed, “What do you know about farming? You’re just fooling your wife.”

Shen Junxi also laughed when he thought about how clueless his wife was about farming too.

“If you’re serious about farming, ask your father for help. At least he has decades of experience as a farmer.” If their daughter-in-law truly wanted to farm, they had plenty of hired hands outside, and having his father involved would just be an extra layer of guidance. But thinking about it, their family didn’t seem to be of much help after all. “Sigh!” The more Yang Shi thought about it, the more she sighed.

“Don’t overthink, Mother. We’re a family,” Shen Junxi smiled and gestured, the warm glow of the lamp casting a soft halo on his clean face.

Family—a word full of warmth and love.

Yang Shi smiled, “Hurry up and give us a little one, will you?”

Shen Junxi wanted to say yes, but that was up to his wife. He shook his head and gestured, “I’ll ask my wife tonight.”

“You…” Yang Shi couldn’t bring herself to scold him or Song Jingwei, so she could only sigh.

After chatting for a while, Yang Shi told him to go back, thinking that his wife might be looking for him.

Shen Junxi returned to the courtyard and quietly stepped inside. He saw that Song Jingwei was fast asleep… Lately, his wife had been sleeping deeply and was not easily woken.

Because of this, Shen Junxi hesitated between the Luohan bed and Song Jingwei’s bed. Should he be bold and sleep in his wife’s bed, or should he behave and sleep in his own?

The former meant he could enjoy a night next to his wife, but there was a risk of being caught and kicked out. The latter might be lonely, but at least it was a safe choice—slow and steady wins the race.

Thinking about the long-term benefits, Shen Junxi gritted his teeth and chose the Luohan bed.

Song Jingwei turned over, cracked his eyes open, and thought, “At least he keeps his word. Otherwise, how would we get along in the coming months?”

He touched his already slightly rounded belly. In a few days, it would be six months. Right now, when he took a bath, his stomach looked like a woman who was about four months pregnant. Normally, he wore loose clothes to hide it, and no one noticed anything.

Still, this matter would have to be told to the Shen family sooner or later. Song Jingwei was considering how to break the news—should he just tell them outright, or let them notice on their own? If he told them directly, would it scare them? But if he didn’t say anything, knowing how dense the Shen family was, what if they never figured it out?

As he pondered, sleepiness overwhelmed him, and he decided to think about it tomorrow.

Shen Junxi usually woke up half an hour earlier than Song Jingwei. He dressed, walked over to the bed to take a look at his wife’s peaceful sleeping face, and then left, satisfied, to wash up.

He helped Yang Shi with household chores and cleaned up the mess from the previous day. The pigs and chickens they brought from the old house were now kept in a shed outside the courtyard.

Feeding the pigs was Shen Junxi’s job. While Yang Shi mixed the chicken feed, she said, “Take this along too. I’ll cook breakfast soon.”

She had been so busy cleaning up that she hadn’t even started making millet porridge yet. The millet was newly harvested in the summer, and her daughter-in-law said it was delicious—fragrant, smooth, and tasty. So now, she made a pot of it every morning.

“Where’s Dad?” Shen Junxi gestured.

“He went out for a walk. How would I know?” Yang Shi dusted off her hands, picked up a broom, and went back to the kitchen.

Their old man was probably still admiring the new house. He had been looking at it for days and still wasn’t satisfied. Last night, he even said he couldn’t sleep well because he wasn’t used to it.

For breakfast, Pei Hongxuan and Wu Xi came over to eat. This time, they used a large round table. With six people, there was plenty of space, and no one was in each other’s way.

Wu Xi actually wished the table was smaller—then he could sit closer to Pei Hongxuan. But now, if he tried to move closer, Pei Hongxuan would glare at him as if eye daggers were free.

“Ahem, Xi, how’s your studying going?” Shen Dongming asked. He knew Wu Xi was now working at the School, teaching children while studying himself.

“Uncle, it’s going well. Hongxuan is a great teacher.” Wu Xi carefully glanced at Pei Hongxuan as he spoke, making sure to choose his words carefully. He was always afraid of saying the wrong thing and making Pei Hongxuan avoid him.

Yesterday, Pei Hongxuan didn’t want to move into the new house with the Shen family, so he had followed Wu Xi back instead. But even then, he still wasn’t giving Wu Xi a good attitude.

For Wu Xi, though, this was already a big step forward, so he had no complaints.

“Hongxuan, is teaching difficult?” After asking Wu Xi, Shen Dongming turned to Pei Hongxuan.

“Uncle Shen, it’s not tiring,” Pei Hongxuan said. Everything was fine—he just refused to give Wu Xi a good attitude.

Song Jingwei added, “If it gets too tiring, I can hire another teacher.” Recently, they had enrolled ten more students, and the number of students in the School would only continue to grow.

“Young Master Song, aren’t the two of us enough?” Wu Xi became a little nervous. Right now, they were just managing to handle forty to fifty students. If another teacher was hired, their workload would decrease, but that made him uneasy.

“It’s fine. There will be more students in the future,” Song Jingwei said. Many villagers were still observing from the sidelines. Once this batch of students completed their studies, there would be no shortage of students willing to enroll.

Hearing this, Wu Xi fell silent, continuing to eat while secretly watching Pei Hongxuan’s expression. He sighed, then encouraged himself—if he couldn’t win him over in a day, he’d spend a lifetime doing it. He was willing to devote himself to Pei Hongxuan forever.

The Shen family was used to the ongoing tension between these two. As always, they believed things would take time.

The same sentiment applied to Song Jingwei. Watching the two bicker, he thought to himself, Take it slow. Maybe it wouldn’t be long before Pei Hongxuan was pregnant. If that happened first, it would make it easier for Song Jingwei to bring up his own situation.

After breakfast, those who needed to go to school went to school, and those who needed to work in the fields went to the fields. Pei Hongxuan and Wu Xi headed to the School, Shen Dongming carried his hoe and went to the fields, and Shen Junxi was reluctant to leave home but had work to do.

Yang Shi stayed home, but there was plenty to do in the large courtyard. She barely had a moment to rest. The most leisurely one was Song Jingwei, who had nothing to do except take walks in the courtyard and enjoy the breeze outside.

It was October, the golden autumn season, with perfect weather—not too hot, not too cold.

Standing at the doorway for a while, he noticed two unfamiliar women approaching from a distance. Song Jingwei found it strange—outsiders rarely came here unless they were looking for the hired workers.

As they came closer, he saw that one was a middle-aged woman, about the same age as Yang Shi, and the other was a young girl around seventeen or eighteen. They were heading straight toward him. The older woman smiled as she held the girl’s hand and asked, “Young man, is this Shen Dongming’s house?”

“It is. Who are you looking for?” Song Jingwei asked.

The woman sized him up. He looked young, but the way he spoke carried an imposing air, making her feel as if she were speaking to a noble young master. She said, “I’m the elder sister of Shen Dongming’s wife. My surname is Yang, and this is my daughter, Niuniu.”

“Oh?” Upon hearing that she was Yang Shi’s sister, Song Jingwei’s expression softened a little. “I’ll go call her. Please wait here.”

Yang Shuangjiao quickly said, “No need, no need. Let’s go in together. She’s inside, right?” She pulled her daughter forward, intending to enter.

“Hold on.” Song Jingwei firmly blocked the way, his gaze steady. “Please wait a moment. I’ll be right back.”

His tone was neither warm nor cold, but it wasn’t impolite either. However, it left Yang Shuangjiao feeling a bit awkward. She muttered, “I’m her biological sister. Do I really need to follow such formalities just to visit? It’s not like this is some wealthy household.”

When she and her daughter had heard about the Shen family’s newfound wealth, they had been ecstatic. Seeing this large house now only made them more eager to move in.

Song Jingwei’s slight goodwill toward them disappeared the moment she started complaining. Without another word, he turned and went inside, shutting the door behind him as he went to find Yang Shi.

Yang Shi was busy considering what to plant in the family’s plot of land when she noticed her daughter-in-law approaching. Smiling, she said, “Jingwei, come take a look. Would this spot be good for a vegetable garden?”

Song Jingwei glanced over. That was the area he had planned to turn into a flower bed, but if Yang Shi liked it, he wouldn’t object. “Sure, go ahead and plant it.”

Yang Shi beamed. “Alright!” She had finally made a decision, and her daughter-in-law’s opinion carried the most weight.

“There’s a mother and daughter outside claiming to be your elder sister and niece,” Song Jingwei said.

“Huh?” Yang Shi was startled, then fell silent for a long moment before saying, “They’re outside? I’ll go take a look.”

“What’s your relationship with them like?” Song Jingwei asked as they walked toward the door.

“When we were younger, we had some conflicts, but that was a long time ago,” Yang Shi said with a smile. “Besides, you said it yourself—she has a daughter now. She must be living a good life.”

Yang Shuangjiao had always been smart and outgoing, unlike Yang Shi, who was quiet and reserved. Even as they grew up, Yang Shuangjiao stood out more.

People always praised Yang Shuangjiao endlessly, while Yang Shi was merely described as gentle and virtuous. But who could predict a man’s preference? Perhaps some men liked gentleness more than boldness.

Thinking about the mother and daughter outside, Song Jingwei doubted they were truly “living well.” One look at their shifty eyes told him they weren’t people who could sit still and be content.

Meanwhile, outside the house, Yang Shuangjiao and her daughter, Niuniu, stood awkwardly after being shut out.

“Tsk, tsk, look at your little auntie,” Yang Shuangjiao sneered. “She’s barely gotten her hands on a bit of money, and she’s already putting on airs.”

Niuniu’s real name wasn’t Niuniu—it was Wang Chunxing. She was a proud girl. When her mother had suggested visiting their “poor relatives,” she had been completely unwilling. She would have rather stayed home, trying to win her father’s favor so he’d give her more silver for new clothes and jewelry.