Chapter 72: Walking Together

Chapter 72: Walking Together

Lin Shu's face lit up after she spoke.

Zhou Ye frowned, clearly disapproving, but before he could voice his opinion, Lin Shu asked Old Man Liao, "Old Man Liao, if I don't take the oxcart, can you find another passenger?"

Old Man Liao waved his hand, "No problem, no problem. Plenty of folks want to ride my oxcart. Even if I don't find someone from our village, I can give someone from a neighboring village a lift. The cart won't go empty. But, girl, are you really not riding?"

Lin Shu nodded, "I've been walking around all day and don't feel tired at all. I want to go back with A Ye."

Old Man Liao said, "Alright. Next time you want to ride my oxcart, remember to tell me beforehand, girl."

"Will do!" Lin Shu replied, then turned to Zhou Ye, "A Ye, let's go."

Zhou Ye looked at her, saying nothing, only his thick brows slightly knitted.

Lin Shu also frowned, looking unhappy, "Do you think I walk too slowly and don't want to walk with me? I figured since we've bought everything we needed and it's still early, it's fine to take our time going back. Otherwise, I wouldn't go with you. I know I'd slow you down."

"A Shu." Zhou Ye suddenly called her name, his slightly furrowed brows finally relaxing, his expression tinged with helplessness, "It's not that I think you walk too slowly. Sixteen *li* is a long way. At your pace, it'll take a long time, and you'll get tired."

Lin Shu looked at him and asked, "After being out all day today, have I complained once about being tired?"

Just like before, she might have seemed delicate and weak, but no matter how hard or tiring the work was, she never once complained of hardship or fatigue.

"Let's go. You know I walk slowly. If we waste any more time, it'll be dark by the time we get back."

Zhou Ye had no choice. He said a few more words to Old Man Liao before leaving with Lin Shu.

"A Ye, what did you say to Old Man Liao just now?"

"If his oxcart gets back before us, I asked him to send a message to Aunt He, to ease their worries."

Lin Shu's eyes immediately curved into a smile, "You're so thoughtful!"

As they walked and chatted, Lin Shu didn't ask him to go too slow for her, taking slightly larger steps but not so fast that she would tire herself out.

Zhou Ye's steps, however, grew smaller and smaller. Eventually, without realizing it, Lin Shu returned to her most comfortable pace.

"A Ye, where did that lump of iron you brought during the famine come from?" Lin Shu asked curiously during their conversation.

Zhou Ye paused before answering, "Before the famine, I was an apprentice at a blacksmith's shop in town. That year, times were very hard for people. My master wanted to sell the blacksmith shop and go stay with relatives, but no one would take over the shop. Later, he sold everything in the shop that could be sold. He gave me the few lumps of pig iron he couldn't take with him."

But during the famine, grain was precious. Copper coins might not even buy grain, let alone this pig iron. So he carried the iron with him all the way.

Lin Shu exclaimed, "Wow, you used to be a blacksmith!"

Zhou Ye was silent for a moment before correcting her earnestly, "Just an apprentice. For the first few years, I was farming. My parents wanted to find me better prospects, so they sent me to the blacksmith shop."

But Lin Shu felt he must be modest. Even as an apprentice, given Zhou Ye's talent for absorbing knowledge, he must have learned everything there was to learn.

"A Ye, have you heard of iron flower forging?"

"Iron flower forging?"

"The capital's temple fair has an iron flower forging performance every year, but I've never seen it. I heard it's amazing! A thirty-foot-high flower shed, densely covered with fresh flowers and willow branches, all tied with fireworks and firecrackers. Next to it, a furnace melts iron into liquid. The blacksmith uses a special stick to strike the molten iron onto the shed, creating a shower of iron flowers sparkling like a handful of stars scattered across the sky. The iron flowers shoot up fifty or sixty feet high, igniting the fireworks and firecrackers. The scene is incredibly magnificent*..."

The original host had never seen it, but Lin Shu had. The iron flower forging performance was very impressive, and she thought it was even more beautiful than fireworks.

However, iron flower forging in the Da Yan Dynasty was only popular in the capital and a few nearby prefectures and cities. Zhou Ye definitely hadn't seen it.

Zhou Ye indeed hadn't seen it. He said honestly, "It sounds like sparks struck from hot iron. Not difficult. But Sweetwater Village has many mountains and lots of grass. Even open spaces can easily set plants on fire. It's best not to do that."

Lin Shu: ...

She felt she might be casting pearls before swine.

Zhou Ye, that big silly ox.

The big silly ox Zhou Ye noticed Lin Shu passing the bamboo basket back and forth from her left hand to her right a few times and took it from her, "I'll carry it."

Lin Shu suddenly felt he wasn't so silly after all.

The bamboo basket didn't actually hold much—just a *jin* of rock honey, a *jin* of dogwood fruit, and a *jin* of salt. Vegetable seeds and such didn't weigh much. But even just three *jin* felt heavy on the arm after carrying it for a while.

"Thank you, Brother A Ye." In her good mood, Lin Shu's "Brother" came out soft and sweet.

Zhou Ye glanced at her, thoughtful.

He often didn't understand why Lin Shu suddenly got angry, nor why something small could make her so happy. But he could remember it all.

On the way back, they inevitably ran into familiar villagers. Lin Shu was tired just from walking and didn't feel like dealing with social interactions, so Zhou Ye handled them all.

Zhou Ye didn't initiate greetings either. When he saw someone familiar from the same or a neighboring village, he would nod at them. If the other person spoke to him, he would reply briefly. Those who knew him well knew his temperament, and most didn't chat with him much, just exchanging a greeting before moving on.

But there were a few enthusiastic ones, like one woman returning from the market. Even though she was behind them, because she walked fast, she caught up with Zhou Ye and Lin Shu and couldn't help teasing them, "This is really rare. In the past when going to the market, when has A Ye ever not left early and returned early? Today I actually ran into you."

As she spoke, her eyes swept over Lin Shu. There was no malice, but it was still embarrassing.

Seeing that Zhou Ye didn't know how to respond, even though Lin Shu didn't really feel like talking, she still smiled and explained, "Auntie, it's because I walk slowly and am slowing Brother A Ye down."

The village woman laughed heartily, "When I go to the market with my husband, I always lag far behind him. He complains I walk too slowly but isn't willing to accommodate me. A Ye knows how to be considerate..."

After the woman finally said her fill and left, Lin Shu asked teasingly, "A Ye, how many people today have said you know how to be considerate? Want to count on your fingers?"

Zhou Ye explained, "It's not about being considerate. I just have many younger cousins at home, so I'm used to taking care of them."

Lin Shu paused, then suddenly asked him, "A Ye, are you this good to everyone?"

Zhou Ye's expression was calm, but the corners of his mouth turned down slightly, "It depends on the person."

Just like later, when he found out even his younger cousins feared and distanced themselves from him, he gradually grew cold-hearted.

He would still do what he should, but expecting him to pour his heart out for them was impossible.

Hearing this, Lin Shu was very happy, "A Ye, you have to always be this good to me. Likewise, I'll be good to you too. Tell me, am I good to you now?"

Zhou Ye looked down at her but didn't answer. Instead, he asked something completely unrelated, "A Shu, why didn't you want to ride Old Man Liao's oxcart on the way back?"

Even if the oxcart wasn't comfortable, it was better than walking.

"Only asking now?" Lin Shu felt her increasingly heavy steps lighten a bit after he asked this, "Of course, I couldn't bear to see you go back alone, especially carrying such a big water jar. It really made my heart ache to see it."

Lin Shu looked at Zhou Ye and smiled, her expression teasing but with a hint of sweetness.

Zhou Ye's heart suddenly started pounding wildly, so hard it threw his breathing into disarray.

"It's not heavy." He exhaled, calming his heavy and rapid heartbeat, and said with utmost composure, "This water jar isn't heavy. I can carry things weighing several hundred *jin* for a long time."

"Oh... what does that have to do with me caring about you?"

Zhou Ye had never seen the iron flower forging Lin Shu mentioned, but he had worked with iron and witnessed countless sparks flying. Her words struck him like a hammer to the head—a deafening clang that sent a shower of crackling sparks exploding in his mind.

Sparks filled the sky...

Then faded, leaving his mind blank.

Zhou Ye clenched his fists tightly, so tight that he could keep his chest from constricting and feeling stifled by his wildly pounding heart.

He remained silent all the way.

Lin Shu also fell silent; when exhausted, she didn't feel like speaking at all. But she pushed herself, unwilling to slow Zhou Ye down too much.

After a long silence, the man suddenly stopped. "A Shu, let's rest for a while."

Lin Shu quickly replied, "I'm not tired."

Zhou Ye said, "I am tired."

Lin Shu couldn't help but glance at him, but Zhou Ye had already bent down and taken off the back-basket on his back.

Looking past him toward the roadside, she noticed a stone that could serve as a seat.

"A Shu, come over here and rest on this stone."

...

After sixteen *li*, they reached Tianshui Village at dusk, but Lin Shu was pretty pleased.

Though Old Man Liao had overtaken them in the latter half of the journey and Auntie Gao had thrown a jab at them, she had only rested twice along the way. Plus, she hadn't run into Third Aunt or Cousin Yu Shu, so she felt she hadn't slowed him down too much.

Not everyone was like Zhou Ye, still so energetic after a whole day at the market. Hadn't she seen those men carrying empty baskets ambling back leisurely, humming tunes? They were walking even slower than her.

Lin Xiaopu, squatting at the entrance of the courtyard, spotted their figures and hurriedly called out toward the yard, "Mom, Sis is back—"

After setting down his things, Zhou Ye let He Guixiang know, then shouldered the water vat and headed to the Miao family. He also carried the sewing supplies for the village aunties, tucked inside his jacket without forgetting a thing.

"Hey, hey? A Ye, what's the hurry? You could've eaten first before dropping those off!"

Watching Zhou Ye's retreating figure, Lin Shu thought she had held him up. People asked Zhou Ye to bring things back surely because he was reliable and returned early from the market, but this time he came back so late.

Propping her head on her hand, she let out a slow sigh. If their paces didn't match, it was better not to force walking together. She'd be too tired walking fast, and Zhou Ye would probably be tired walking too slowly.

"A Shu, the hand-pulled noodles are ready. I'll fix you a bowl first. When A Ye returns, I'll make his portion." After saying this, He Guixiang went to start cooking.

"Mom, no rush. I'll wait for A Ye. I had steamed buns at the market earlier, so I'm not very hungry."

He Guixiang relented and asked how the market was and what she had bought.

Just as Lin Shu was about to answer, Lin Xiaopu's thrilled shouts suddenly erupted from the courtyard, "Ahhh! Sis, am I seeing things? Is this sugar? Is it rock honey?!"

Lin Xiaopu lifted the floral cloth covering the bamboo basket, intending to help her sister organize the contents, but she actually saw sugar!

So much sugar!!

Not sugar cakes, but rock honey and granulated sugar!

It was the first time she had seen so much sugar, and she nearly thought her eyes were playing tricks on her.

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Author's Note: *The iron flower forging performance is referenced from online sources.