Chapter 82

Chapter 82

The man was a sturdy, solidly built fellow in his prime, deeply tanned, with thick calluses on his hands. According to Yao Sheng, he was a villager from a place called Linshui Village in Songyun County, who had returned a bit earlier than the others. He had also served four years at the frontier, and his skills and character were both solid.

Most of these men coming back from service had little pay to show for it. A few had done well, but the majority went back to their previous hardscrabble lives.

After all, those conscripted to the border usually came from families with little to offer.

Lin Aniu was exactly such a case—his family was poor, and upon returning to the village, all he could do was sell his labor, not even owning a scrap of land.

When he heard that Pei Mu was hiring—a month away from home, room and board covered, with a full tael of silver as pay—he jumped at it.

Pei Mu spelled out the dangers of the journey and what would be expected of him, and Lin Aniu nodded. If there weren't risks involved, the pay wouldn't be so generous. He thumped his chest. "Brother Pei, rest assured. I never ran from a fight on the battlefield, and I won't start now. Since you've hired me, I'll give you every ounce of my strength—no holding back."

And with that, the two settled it.

Besides Lin Aniu, Pei Mu also needed to hire two carts, and since they'd already screened candidates before, that was settled quickly as well. The villagers watched Pei Mu's setup grow bigger and bigger, muttering to themselves that this really looked like the start of something big.

The more they saw, the more envious they grew. Looking at Pei Mu, they wished they'd married him off to someone back when no one thought much of him. Looking at Zhong Yizhu, they felt they'd missed their chance. Both were people capable of great things, and they'd ended up together—of course their household would be booming.

As for folks like Zhang Guihua and Wu Cuijuan, who'd really burned their bridges with the two of them, Wu Cuijuan was already kicking herself, while Zhang Guihua was still running her mouth. But no one sided with her anymore. In fact, people kept their distance, scared that being seen with her might cost them a job down the line.

Zhang Guihua had long lost her old swagger. She looked haggard now, and on top of that, her son was blaming her for everything. Zhang Tieniu couldn't find a wife no matter how picky he was, because word had gotten around that he'd pissed himself when Zhong Er Ye's ghost supposedly came back. After that, whenever anyone laughed nearby, he assumed they were mocking him. After he'd thrown a few weird fits for no reason, no one in the village wanted anything to do with him. Mother and son had brought this whole sorry, shunned mess on themselves—karma had a way of working out.

At the Bamboo Fragrance Shop, word got around that someone from Rongyang Prefecture had come all the way just to buy incense. Business picked up practically overnight, but with stock running low, the shop briefly had a situation where incense was so hard to get that it was like gold—which left their competitors feeling pretty conflicted.

Within a few days, Zhong Yizhu restocked and everything went back to normal, but that buzz brought a new opportunity—a traveling merchant came knocking, wanting to buy in bulk and sell the stuff in other towns.

For the shop, this was obviously great news.

Songyun County was only so big, and there were only so many folks around. To grow their business, they had to look beyond the county. Selling to traveling merchants meant slimmer profits, but it would spread their reach a lot wider.

After Zhong Yizhu signed the first bulk order, Pei Mu stopped selling his spices to anyone else, saving it all for Zhong Yizhu. His sudden stop in sales actually got the other two incense shops asking questions. When they heard there wouldn't be stock for over a month, both shops put in orders for the first batch he brought back.

That night, after Zhong Yizhu and Pei Mu finished the books, they sat together over the ledger, planning.

"Take all the silver in the accounts with you. I'll keep a little for emergencies. It's better to have more than you need on the road—even if you don't use it, it's good to have."

Pei Mu had made less than thirty taels from selling spices these past few weeks. Most of his stock had gone to the Bamboo Fragrance Shop at cost. Counting what was left, Zhong Yizhu had paid him in full, leaving Pei Mu with two hundred and twenty taels in cash.

That sum obviously wouldn't be enough to stock up in Quzhou Prefecture. Originally, Zhong Yizhu would pay for the spices in advance, and the shop's accounts had enough. Their main expense was spices anyway—Pei Mu could just offset the cost with the spices themselves when he got back.

But they weren't just business partners. Zhong Yizhu planned to give Pei Mu all the money from his own accounts to take with him. The purchases wouldn't need that much, but having more cash on hand meant Pei Mu could handle anything unexpected on the road.

Pei Mu didn't argue. This time, besides a big load of spices, he also planned to pick up some finer, pricier varieties. Whether anyone else used them or not, Zhong Yizhu wanted to try bringing in some premium incense for folks who needed it.

After sorting out the money, the two washed up and lay down. Zhong Yizhu's mind drifted to what had gone wrong on their last trip—this time, he was set on packing Pei Mu's luggage properly. This time of year meant watching out for mosquitoes and bugs, and especially snakes.

He'd been burned before, so he was extra careful. Even though Pei Mu's caravan would stick to main roads where snake bites were unlikely, Zhong Yizhu wasn't about to take any chances.

A couple of days earlier, he'd gone to He Agong for snake repellent and general antidotes. He'd tried to pay, but He Agong wouldn't take it, just telling them to be careful on the road.

So Zhong Yizhu packed item after item into Pei Mu's luggage, not saying a word, putting all his worry into every piece.

Pei Mu, for his part, couldn't hide his own worries. When the shop opened, someone from the Wu family had come sneaking around—they'd surely already reported to the Zhong family. Who knew when the Zhongs would make their move? If they came while he was gone, could Zhu Ge'er and his mom handle it?

But their business was booming—they couldn't just quit halfway. The more they grew, the more they had to stand firm, until they were beyond the Zhong family's reach.

It was nearly the fourth month now. Only early mornings and evenings still carried a chill, though indoors there was no trace of cold.

These days, both of them were busy. Zhong Yizhu had things weighing on his mind, but the person he cared about was right beside him. Exhausted, he drifted off after only a few words. Pei Mu leaned over, gently brushed his cheek, and closed his eyes, sinking into sleep.

Perhaps it was true that you dream of what occupies your thoughts—that night, Pei Mu truly dreamed of the Zhong family.

He dreamed that when he returned from Quzhou Prefecture, Zhong Yizhu and Sun Yunniang had both been taken to the prefectural capital by the Zhong family. He charged off to find them, but the people at the Zhong estate were each more fiendish than the last. Everyone's face was blurred except for Zhong Youtong and her brother, but he counted the Zhong family members and crushed them one by one, until he was utterly spent and nearly collapsing. Only then did he finally see Zhong Yizhu. Overjoyed, he ran to him—but Zhong Yizhu looked at him with confusion and asked who he was...

Pei Mu jolted awake from the dream, his heart suddenly hollow—only to meet a pair of bright eyes in the next instant.

Zhong Yizhu was already dressed, propped on his elbow as he lay at the bedside, chin in hand, as if waiting for him to wake. His beautifully shaped eyes were full of laughter, a sight that brought joy to anyone who saw it.

"You're awake." He didn't know how long he'd been waiting there. The smile at the corners of his eyes deepened when Pei Mu woke, and he set his arm down, leaning in closer.

Pei Mu curved his lips, reached up, and brushed the back of his hand against Zhong Yizhu's cheek. His voice was a little hoarse. "Why are you up so early?"

Zhong Yizhu leaned forward and kissed his cheek, his voice as sweet and crisp as a peach chilled in summer water. "Get up and you'll see."

To wake to such a scene—even the most terrifying nightmare dissolved in an instant. Pei Mu sat up and was about to reach for his clothes when a set of new garments was offered to him.

The fabric bore a subtle pattern. Shaken out, it was a bamboo-green knee-length short robe with arrow sleeves and a round collar—practical for travel, walking, or conducting business. Paired with it were darker trousers. Such an outfit could only have been sewn by Zhong Yizhu's own hands.

"How—" Pei Mu froze for a moment, the question leaving his lips before he suddenly remembered what day it was.

Zhong Yizhu didn't make a fuss about it, only saying, "Try it on and see if it fits."

Pei Mu changed into the new clothes, and Zhong Yizhu had him turn around, then nodded with satisfaction. "I knew my sewing had improved." Though, of course, it was also because Pei Mu was tall and long-limbed that the clothes looked so good on him.

Pei Mu thought of how busy Zhong Yizhu had been these days, yet he'd still quietly sewn him new clothes. He only wanted to pull the man into his arms and kiss him thoroughly.

Zhong Yizhu was pulled sideways onto his lap, barely managing not to wrinkle his newly made robe. Pei Mu kissed him relentlessly, refusing to let go no matter how Zhong Yizhu pushed at him.

Fortunately, he remembered they both had things to do. After delaying nearly two quarters of an hour, he finally led Zhong Yizhu out of the room.

Steam rose from the kitchen. Pei Mu assumed Zhong He was busy in there, but when he walked in, he froze.

On the cutting board lay noodles, a bit crooked and uneven, yet forming one complete, unbroken strand. Beside it, a bowl held prepared toppings, clearly meant for the noodles. The pot on the stove steamed gently, with only a single thick log burning slowly beneath it—just enough to keep the water warm.

His arm was tugged from behind, and Zhong Yizhu gave him a push. "Go sit. I'll cook the noodles for you."

Everything else was already prepared—cooking the noodles took no time at all. Before long, a steaming bowl of noodle soup was set before Pei Mu.

New clothes, longevity noodles. The birthday he didn't want to observe had been honored by the person before him with the most precious blessing, delivered in such a quiet, unobtrusive way.

Pei Mu ate slowly. This was probably the best bowl of noodles he'd ever had in his life.

After finishing the noodles and washing the dishes, the two went to the side courtyard together. Only then did Pei Mu realize he hadn't seen Sun Yunniang or Zhong He all morning—they'd likely gone to the old Zhong family residence.

The rest of the day passed like any other. Zhong Yizhu made incense, while Pei Mu built wooden crates for the spices. Later, Wang Ping'an and his husband came by—Chen Xiaorong went to Zhong Yizhu's side, while Wang Ping'an helped Pei Mu with the carpentry and complimented his new clothes.

After that day, the departure date drew one day closer.

Without anyone knowing, Pei Mu equipped Zhong He with a knife and bow, and brought back two dogs from a neighboring village to keep in the side courtyard. They weren't as affectionate as dogs raised from puppies, but they'd do well enough as watchdogs.

He bustled about, making sure everything at home was in order, and repeatedly asked the village head to keep an eye on things. Before he knew it, the day of departure had arrived.

The moment Pei Mu stirred, Zhong Yizhu opened his eyes.

It was still dark outside, but unlike usual, Pei Mu didn't tell Zhong Yizhu to sleep in. The two rose in silent unison—building the fire, washing up. Sun Yunniang and Zhong He were already up, taking over the stove, frying and stirring as they prepared breakfast.

It felt a little like the first time they'd set out together.

Pei Mu finished his breakfast and was loading his luggage onto the oxcart when Zhong Yizhu couldn't hold back his tears anymore.

He didn't want to cry—he wanted Pei Mu to leave without worrying—but around Pei Mu, he could never hold anything in.

Pei Mu pulled him into his arms, letting him bury his face against his shoulder and cry, his voice gentle as he murmured by his ear, "Stay safe at home and wait for me. I promise, nothing will happen to me."

Zhong Yizhu choked out a tearful reply. Pei Mu rubbed his back in slow, soothing circles, and before long, Zhong Yizhu himself took a step back.

His eyes, red from crying, met Pei Mu's, and his voice still trembled with sobs: "Go ahead. You set a time—you shouldn't be late."

Pei Mu looked at him hard, his gaze heavy, like he wanted to scoop him up and take him along, but he forced himself to hold back and turned to climb onto the oxcart.

Sun Yunniang spoke up then, repeating the same advice as before: "Safe travels, take care of yourself, and remember that people matter more than goods. We'll all be waiting at home for your return."

Pei Mu gave a short "mm" in reply, then took one last deep look at Zhong Yizhu. "Mother, Zhu Ge'er, take care, both of you. I'm heading out."

This time, Pei Mu didn't bring the covered cart, so he could fit a lot more goods.

In the morning mist, Zhong Yizhu and Sun Yunniang watched Pei Mu's figure until it vanished from sight. Zhong Yizhu instinctively took two steps forward, but Sun Yunniang caught his arm.

Zhong Yizhu stared wide-eyed into the depths of the mist, a sense of lost unease rising in his heart, when suddenly a clear whistle pierced through the thick fog from afar and landed in his ears.

His nose stung again. He'll definitely come back safe, he told himself.

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Author's note: No angst—dreams are just the opposite.