Chasing Jade (Zhu Yu)

"That must be Changyu's live-in husband, right?"

"I caught a glimpse of him on their wedding day. After all this time, he looks even more handsome!"

"Now we'll get to see the showdown between the live-in husband and the former scholar fiancé!"

The neighborhood women who spotted Xie Zheng and Song Yan couldn't help whispering among themselves.

Changning also saw her elder sister and immediately tugged at Xie Zheng's sleeve, running over excitedly: "Sister!"

The two little buns on her head bounced with each step, her round face fair and delicate. Bundled in a thick padded jacket, she looked like a snowball with tiny limbs.

With thin ice covering the ground making it slippery, Fan Changyu quickly warned: "Slow down! Your brother-in-law has leg injuries. Be careful not to fall!"

The term "brother-in-law" felt slightly awkward even to Changyu herself.

She glanced at Yan Zheng's expression - his refined face remained composed, showing no particular reaction to the title, as if being addressed this way was completely natural.

Indeed, Changning frequently called him brother-in-law, though Changyu still wasn't quite accustomed to encouraging it.

Changning had already reached her sister and guiltily stuck out her tongue before wrapping her chubby little arms around Changyu's leg, glaring defiantly at the Song mother and son across from them.

She'd deliberately dragged her brother-in-law over - if these two villains dared bully her sister again, her brother-in-law could just whack their legs with his cane until they limped too!

She just hadn't shared this brilliant plan with her sister yet.

Completely unaware of her little sister's scheming, Changyu patted the girl's head and said to Xie Zheng: "Your injuries haven't healed yet. Going out is inconvenient. You shouldn't indulge Ning Niang's mischief..."

Though spoken politely, to onlookers it appeared as thoughtful concern for her husband.

Many eyes kept shifting between Song Yan and Xie Zheng.

Most privately agreed that while the live-in husband was more handsome, Song Yan's scholarly achievements made him more impressive - after all, not just anyone could pass the imperial exams.

Xie Zheng glanced at Changyu's faintly reddened eyes and simply said: "No matter."

His striking phoenix eyes narrowed slightly.

She'd been crying?

Over that ex-fiancé?

Seems she really hasn't moved on.

Pathetic.

As the north wind whipped through the hair falling across his chest, he lazily lifted his gaze to the blue-robed man behind Changyu.

Though his stare seemed casual, the intensity behind it was overwhelming.

Meeting that gaze, Song Yan felt like prey caught in a wolf's sights - his hairs stood on end instinctively. Even after looking away, his chest kept constricting with lingering dread.

Like an animal trembling after narrowly escaping a predator's jaws.

Xie Zheng wasted no words on the mother and son, cutting straight to the point: "Repay the debt."

Not just the Songs and bystanders, even Changyu was momentarily stunned.

Xie Zheng hated repeating himself. Seeing no response from the pair, impatience already tinged his handsome features. "Trying to cheat the bereaved out of their money?"

Changning pressed her lips together nervously but watched her brother-in-law's cane with barely concealed excitement.

Was he about to hit someone?

Finally processing his words, Song Yan and Mother Song were further shocked by his accusation. Mother Song nearly fainted from rage.

These Fan family members! Their tongues grew sharper by the day! Before she could even speak, they'd already branded her a swindler!Mother Song was trembling with rage, needing the support of two women to stay upright. "When did our family ever say we wouldn't repay?"

She then called to Song Yan: "Yan'er, count out the silver for them!"

Even in her poorest days, when she had lost her husband and knelt on the streets begging for a coffin, Mother Song had never felt as humiliated as she did today.

After saying this, she immediately headed out of the alley, as if she couldn't bear to stay another moment.

Such was the nature of pride—when one had none, no amount of hardship seemed unbearable. But once one gained dignity, having it stripped away was an unbearable bitterness.

Fan Changyu hadn’t expected his words to provoke Mother Song to such a state and glanced at him in surprise.

The man merely gave her a faint look.

Somehow, Changyu interpreted a hint of "You're too soft; I'm collecting the debt for you" in that glance, leaving her utterly bewildered.

When Changyu's father had provided the coffin for the Song family back then, it wasn’t just the coffin—there were also burial clothes and funeral expenses, totaling ten taels of silver.

As for Song Yan’s tuition, the village schoolmaster charged two taels a year. Song Yan had studied there for five years before passing the county-level exams. The county schoolmasters, aware of his family’s poverty, had collectively waived his fees. The ten taels her father had covered were solely for the tuition.

When Song Yan handed the two silver ingots to Fan Changyu, a large, well-defined hand intercepted them on her behalf. Song Yan looked up—it was the man she had taken in as a live-in son-in-law.

The man’s expression was cold as he stated simply, "We’re even."

Yes, from now on, they were even.

Song Yan gazed at Fan Changyu, his lips twisting bitterly.

But the man didn’t give him a chance to exchange glances with Changyu. As he passed the ingots to her, he cast a sidelong glance at Song Yan and said flatly, "Let’s go."

As a fellow man, Song Yan was certain—there was no hostility in that look, only pure disdain, like a mother hen guarding her chick.

Fan Changyu, being the "chick" in question, remained dazed even after entering her own home.

Once the gate closed, the man no longer concealed his contempt. "That’s the kind of trash you’ve been pining over all this time? Even cried for him?"

Changyu, recalling her earlier lie, found herself at a loss for words and retorted weakly, "When did I cry?"

Xie Zheng detested trouble and had no patience for meddling in others' affairs. He had only stepped in because he couldn’t stand watching the woman who’d saved him continue to make a fool of herself over such a man.

Hearing her evasion now, he couldn’t be bothered to argue further.

Just then, their neighbor Aunt Zhao hurried over. "I heard the Songs put on a show of handing you silver before leaving—just for the neighbors to see, wasn’t it? That mother and son really know how to make people sick! On your wedding day, he even sent over some worthless clay dolls—"

Halfway through her rant, Aunt Zhao caught sight of Xie Zheng and immediately regretted her words, clamping a hand over her mouth to swallow the rest.

Xie Zheng said nothing, only sweeping Fan Changyu with a pair of sharp, mocking phoenix eyes that clearly conveyed, "Go on, keep lying."

Changyu, stifling her frustration, stayed silent.

She hadn’t expected a spur-of-the-moment lie to become a joke this man would hold over her for so long.

Only after Xie Zheng had gone inside did Aunt Zhao turn to Changyu apologetically. "This old woman really can’t keep her mouth shut..."Fan Changyu looked somewhat weary and simply said, "It's nothing."

At most, she'd just be mocked by that guy again.

She invited Aunt Zhao to warm herself by the fire pit. Once seated, Aunt Zhao couldn't help but remark, "That Song fellow pulling another stunt today—I hope it doesn't affect your marital harmony."

Fan Changyu thought to herself that it would be a miracle if she and that sharp-tongued, unforgiving man had any affection between them.

She wanted to tell the truth, but with the property dispute still unresolved, she decided to avoid complications and just said, "It won't."

Aunt Zhao suddenly asked, "Are you still sharing the north room with Ning Niang at night?"

Fan Changyu gave an affirmative hum, and Aunt Zhao's brows furrowed. "How about letting Ning Niang sleep with me tonight?"

Catching the implication, Fan Changyu nearly choked on her own saliva and hurriedly declined.

Aunt Zhao shot her a reproachful look. "You and your husband are properly wed—what are you being so coy about?"

Fan Changyu fell back on her usual excuse: "He's injured."

Aunt Zhao widened her eyes. "Didn't you read the booklet I gave you? There are plenty of ways—"

As she continued, even Aunt Zhao grew somewhat embarrassed and sighed. "I'm just worried for you. Your husband is even more handsome than Song Yan, and he's literate too. Right now, he's injured and relies on you. If you don't build a good relationship now, what if he decides to leave once he's healed? And even if you can't keep him, you should at least have a child to rely on. Otherwise, your uncle's family will surely come to stir up trouble again."

Fan Changyu knew Aunt Zhao meant well and vaguely acknowledged her advice.

After Aunt Zhao left, she let out a dejected sigh.

The silver hairpin couldn't be redeemed, and she'd been disgusted by the Song mother and son. At least she'd recovered the twenty taels her father had lent the Song family—having such a sum at home was a silver lining.

But being constantly subjected to that guy's "are you blind?" looks, coupled with the lies she'd spun, left her feeling rather deflated.

Just as Fan Changyu stood up to head to the kitchen, she froze.

The booklet—the one Aunt Zhao had given her!

During the wedding chaos, she'd been too busy. That day, Aunt Zhao had handed her the booklet, and after flipping through a couple of pages in a fluster, she'd hastily closed it and stuffed it under the pillow in the bridal chamber.

So many days had passed, and she'd completely forgotten about it! She had no idea if he'd seen it in the room.

The mere thought made her scalp tingle.

She quickly dug out a new set of bedding and knocked on the door of the south room.

A cool, indifferent voice came from inside: "Come in."

Pushing the door open, she said, "With the New Year approaching, I'm washing all the bedding in the house."

Everything in this room had been arranged for the wedding not long ago and didn't need washing—the excuse was flimsy at best.

But Xie Zheng sat at a rickety old wooden desk, a brush in hand, and didn't even glance at her as he gave a faint nod.

Seeing him absorbed in writing something, Fan Changyu exhaled quietly, relieved like a thief. But when she lifted the pillow to search for the booklet, it was already gone.

Fan Changyu was dumbstruck. She stole a glance at the man by the window, and seeing no sign he'd noticed anything amiss, she continued stripping the bed to look.But after lifting and shaking even the mattress at the very bottom of the bed and checking underneath it, she still couldn't find that booklet. Her heart sank like ashes.

A cool, detached voice suddenly came from behind: "Need help?"

Fan Changyu's entire spine stiffened. With a wooden expression, she said, "No need. Just shaking off some dust before making the bed."

She tossed the used bedsheets and quilts into the laundry basket and expressionlessly spread out the slightly worn sheets and quilt cover.

The quilt cover had two layers—the bottom was plain cotton fabric, while the top was embroidered decorative fabric. The cotton filling went in between, and the layers had to be stitched together.

Due to nervousness, Fan Changyu pricked her fingers several times with the needle while sewing the quilt cover. She kept a straight face and didn't make a sound.

It wasn't until she left the room that Xie Zheng finally set down his brush. His gaze swept toward the booklet he had used to prop up the table leg, his handsome brows unconsciously furrowing.

This room was only separated from the main house by a single wall—he had naturally heard everything the woman said.

Was she looking for this booklet?