Chapter 257

Chapter 257

Pei Yan had initially thought it was some shameless person who stared at others' husbands without restraint. He never expected it to be Lin Jinping.

With his excellent memory, he never forgot a face, especially since the Lin family once lived in Xiaohe Village and they had met several times, so he naturally recognized him.

The incident in the mountains years ago, though no longer on his mind, left a deep impression.

Lin Jinping, already at the door, felt uneasy and inexplicably frightened, and quickly ran away in a panic.

Gu Lanshi's peripheral vision caught this movement, and he turned his head, looking puzzled.

He only managed to see a fleeting back and a glimpse of the person turning left, revealing a bit of their profile. Clearly a man, his clothes were old but clean, suggesting he was someone who took care of himself.

Gu Lanshi glanced at the floor again. The large restaurant was indeed well-maintained, with tiles laid neatly, making the tables stable.

He didn't recognize Lin Jinping and picked up the bowl of water, blowing on it before feeding Xingxing a couple of sips.

At home, he usually let Xingxing drink from the bowl by himself, but outside, the bowls belonged to the restaurant, and children could be clumsy, risking spills.

Pei Yan subtly withdrew his gaze and looked at Gu Lanshi's expression.

Seeing that Gu Lanshi hadn't recognized Lin Jinping, he took a few sips of tea, remaining silent as if nothing had happened.

Hearing someone at another table order a bowl of chicken noodle soup, he asked, "Do you want noodles? For Xingxing to eat?"

Gu Lanshi put down the water bowl and wiped the water off Xingxing's chin, saying, "Sure, he can't eat much meat, so it's better for him to have some noodles."

Pei Yan nodded. "Alright, one bowl should be enough. Xingxing will finish it in a few bites, you can taste a little, and if there's any left, I'll eat it. After this meal, we'll go out for a walk and try some snacks."

"Okay, save some room," Gu Lanshi smiled. It was rare to come out, so they should explore and try more food. Snacks generally don't cost much.

Pei Yan called over a waiter and ordered a bowl of chicken noodle soup.

They exchanged a few casual words, and Gu Lanshi remained completely unaware of Lin Jinping's presence.

Pei Yan, however, had something on his mind. He suddenly remembered that Gu Lanshi had once been engaged to Lin Jinping, which ended when the secret in the mountains was exposed.

In the years since their marriage, he had never thought about this. Seeing Lin Jinping now, he felt a sense of reality.

Their married life seemed like an incredible dream, smoothly progressing until now. He couldn't recall that before him, Gu Lanshi had been engaged to someone else.

Perhaps it was a misconception or the result of the turmoil in his heart, but he had never doubted that Gu Lanshi was meant to be his spouse, making everything feel natural.

So natural that he subconsciously ignored the fact that Gu Lanshi had been engaged to someone else, even forgetting it.

*

Outside the restaurant.

Zhao Lao San looked at Lin Jinping in surprise. "I say, Brother Lin, what's wrong? Why are you so agitated? You've only walked a few steps, yet your forehead is covered in sweat."

Lin Jinping chuckled dryly, raised his sleeve to wipe his forehead, and made an excuse to cover up: "I wasn't paying attention for a moment and tripped over a crack in the pavement."

Afraid that Zhao Lao San would see through him, he took a step forward, trying to lead the man away. After calming down, he thought his excuse was too lame and couldn't help but add, "Don't laugh at me, Brother San. There were so many people in the building. I've lived this long, and if I stumble on flat ground in front of everyone, it would be too embarrassing. I got nervous and started sweating."

"Tsk, what's the big deal," Zhao Lao San thought.

The two walked towards the northern part of the city. Despite feeling uneasy, Lin Jinping occasionally thought of Gu Lanshi but still tried to chat and please Zhao Lao San, making sure not to let his mind wander.

After setting a date with Zhao Lao San and parting ways, he stopped in a shady spot at the street corner, looked at the sky, and took out the purse from his pocket, weighing it in his hand. It was noticeably lighter than when he arrived in the city. He sighed silently, feeling very distressed, but had no choice. The money had to be spent; otherwise, today's task wouldn't have been settled.

Lin Jinping put the purse back into his pocket and headed towards the northern gate, his brows furrowed and his mind restless.

One moment, he felt regretful about the money spent on the meal at the restaurant—just one meal, and three taels were gone.

The next moment, he thought of Gu Lanshi and Pei Yan.

How could he not know Pei Yan? When he still lived in Xiaohe Village, he was quite interested in Pei Yan, who had returned from the border. He had never been there himself, only read about it in books, and wanted to ask Pei Yan about what the border and the northern desert were like.

He wasn't close to Pei Yan. Whenever they met on the road, he wanted to greet him and maybe learn something, but Pei Yan ignored him as if he hadn't heard anything.

Lin Jinping also had some pride. His expression turned cold, and he never spoke to Pei Yan again. Indeed, Pei Yan was a bad omen, fit only to live in the back mountains.

There was little interaction with Pei Yan, which didn't matter much, but Gu Lanshi...

Lin Jinping's brows furrowed deeply. The humiliation of being dragged back to the village by the Gus and beaten, then being driven out of Xiaohe Village, having to travel dozens of miles to seek refuge with distant relatives, and still having to live under others' scrutiny—it all made his face grim.

He never imagined that Gu Lanshi would follow him up the mountain.

If those events hadn't happened, he would have already been working as an accountant in Ningshui Town. Even without great wealth, he wouldn't have worried about food and drink. Now, even if he wanted to do temporary work and keep accounts, he had to spend money to treat people to drinks, and even then, it wouldn't last long.

Lin Jinping's face was dark with resentment towards Gu Lanshi, which surged again in an instant. He gritted his teeth, and his once decent and handsome face twisted into a grotesque expression.

Outside the city, carts pulled by donkeys and mules passed by, along with carriages. He could only walk on foot.

His family's village was about fifteen miles from the city. On the way here, he had gotten a ride with an old acquaintance on a cart, but now he had to walk back.

No matter how angry he was, after walking for a while, although the sun wasn't as scorching as in summer, he still broke into a sweat and his lips dried out. Thinking of Pei Yan, his anger dissipated instantly.

Lin Jinping squinted his eyes and continued walking. All these emotions eventually turned into a lingering gloom in his heart, and the past few years had been particularly unlucky.

When they moved from Xiaohe Village, they thought moving dozens of miles would be far enough, but they still encountered people from Xiaohe Village, even Gu Lanshi.

Yu Qingqing had returned to her mother's house this summer. Yu Laizi lost a bet and got into a fight, ending up with a crooked nose and lying in bed for days. He sent someone to look for Yu Qingqing to serve him and cook for him.

Yu Qingqing served him for two days, growing increasingly impatient. Hearing Yu Laizi's insults, she found an excuse and exploded like a lit firecracker, crying and arguing back, then packed her bags and left.

Without a mother and with a father known for being a rogue, Yu Qingqing was not easy to provoke. She didn't even care about her own father. Pretending to be more upset than she was, she said Yu Laizi was trying to drive her mad and ran away during the day.

Yu Qingqing stayed in Wenshui Village for two days. Despite her poor reputation, she still heard some rumors, especially about Xiaohe Village.

Gu Lansi almost suffered a terrible fate but still managed to get married. The one who married her was Pei Yan.

Pei Yan was even more formidable. Not only did he marry Gu Lansi, but before their wedding, he killed Lou Jin from Loujia Village and crippled Pei Sheng's legs and hands. It was a mystery how the Gu family dared to marry their daughter Shuang'er to him.

Later, he beat up the neighbors of Li Mei—the Zhao family. Liu Qingzi and Liu Shuan, who were thieves, were caught by Pei Yan and beaten half to death. This also implicated several others, including Lou Wu, known ruffians from Loujia Village, who never rose again.

Each incident was brutal—killing and maiming people in such a bloody manner. Ordinary people would never dare to do such things; truly, he was a star of calamity.

What Yu Qingqing could not get over was that Gu Lansi and Pei Yan were living a good life, even building a large mansion.

Lin Jinping was also unhappy, but after hearing about these incidents, he dared not cause any trouble for Gu Lansi, especially since they were so far away, and he didn't dare return to Xiaohe Village.

Pei Yan's glance just now made him even more intimidated.

He was a man with little knowledge or courage, relying on his few years of schooling and good looks to appear cultured and dignified. In reality, he was nothing but an empty shell, though he was unaware of it.

With all sorts of worries, Lin Jinping's frown remained unrelenting, and the vertical lines on his forehead deepened.

He remembered a dream he once had. Although he didn't know who the person was, they were gentle and considerate, treating him with great affection and compliance.

After waking up, seeing Yu Qingqing's sharp face and acid tongue shattered his beautiful dream. He knew it was all fake, but he understood that it was because of Yu Qingqing that he yearned even more for someone warm and caring by his side.

Today, he suddenly saw Gu Lansi, whose temperament was much better than Yu Qingqing's. If he hadn't met Yu Qingqing back then, perhaps he and Gu Lansi could have been like in his dream.

But there is no medicine for regret.

As Lin Jinping walked, he sighed repeatedly. With too many troubles, his head ached, so he tried not to think about Gu Lansi anymore.

Speaking of which, today's invitation to eat was a show of bravado. He had barely saved a few coins, and he didn't even dare to order expensive wine. As for the Dripsweet Abalone Snails, he didn't even mention them, fearing that Zhao San might want to try them.

Thinking about it, his jealousy and anger grew. Pei Yan and Gu Lansi could actually afford a whole serving of Dripsweet Abalone Snails.

Perhaps they were just putting on a show outside and would tighten their belts when they got home.

The more he thought about it, the more he believed this. Pei Yan was just a peasant, illiterate, and only brought a few coins. Yet he came to the city to act rich without realizing how he looked like a country bumpkin to everyone.

After comforting himself, Lin Jinping felt a bit better.

*

In the restaurant, Xingxing had never seen many things before and curiously looked around. Sitting on a bench, due to his short stature, his two chubby hands clung to the table, revealing only his forehead and eyes. He laughed happily at something he saw.

"Here it comes, Dripsweet Abalone Snails—" the waiter approached with a dish of snow-white delicacies, placing it on the table with a smile. "These are the Dripsweet Abalone Snails. You can pick them up with chopsticks. Enjoy your meal."

Gu Lansi and Pei Yan did not immediately start eating but watched for a moment.

"Milk can make such a thing," Gu Lansi marveled.

It was Pei Yan's first time trying it as well, finding it equally amazing. To them, milk was just a liquid, yet someone had come up with such a delicate and ingenious idea.

There were eight Dripsweet Abalone Snails in the dish, all snowy white and fluffy, no bigger than Xingxing's fist, small and exquisite.

As the waiter said, one could see clearly that the pastries were shaped like flowers, with two of them. The mountains were formed into tiny peaks, with two small hills. The snails were coiled like shells, with four of them.

"Try it," Pei Yan said.

Gu Lansi picked up the chopsticks cautiously, as it was his first time. He started with half a snail.

Seeing them start eating, Xingxing became anxious and pawed at the table: "Eat, eat, Xingxing wants to eat."

"Okay, okay," Gu Lansi reassured him, still tasting it himself first to ensure it was safe for the child.

The snowy white pastry was light and fluffy, melting in the mouth, sweet but not cloying.

Gu Lansi's eyes lit up for a moment. He had heard it was delicious, but the texture was beyond his expectations. No wonder his uncle said those who hadn't tasted it couldn't imagine the flavor.

"Delicious!" he exclaimed, looking at Pei Yan.

Pei Yan also put half a snail in his mouth, his expression showing surprise.

Xingxing couldn't hold back and started crying and fussing.

Gu Lansi quickly gave his son half a snail, feeding it to Xingxing.

Xingxing tasted it and smacked his lips. It was sweet and fluffy, and his eyes widened. He kept pulling at Gu Lansi's hand: "Ah Mu, want to eat, want to eat!"