Su Chunlin thought for a moment and decided to bring Su Tai and Su Zhan. Su Ming was still small; leaving him at home to assist Lady Han would be just right.
It was not yet noon, so if they hurried, they could reach Shenjia Village before dark.
The three father and sons each carried a large rattan basket.
Worried that it was unsafe for a young girl like Su Tai to be out, Lady Han specifically smeared some black ash from the hearth onto her face and had her wear the most tattered clothes in the house.
With this makeover, she looked exactly like a beggar.
Su Tai originally thought Lady Han was making a fuss, but after leaving Qingsha Township and witnessing the ill-intentioned gazes of some people on the road, she finally understood Lady Han's painstaking intentions.
The three of them walked the whole way, and by the time they entered Shenjia Village, Su Tai felt as if her legs were about to give out.
Passing by the Xu family's doorstep, Lady Xu looked on curiously. Seeing the three of them heading toward Shen Yi's house, she hurriedly chased after them, "Where are you all coming from?"
Su Chunlin turned around and studied Lady Xu carefully for a long time before asking uncertainly, "Are you... Shen Yi's aunt?"
"And you are..." Lady Xu's eyes widened, her face full of astonishment.
Su Chunlin hurriedly introduced himself and his family.
When Lady Xu saw Su Tai, her eyes lit up. She hurriedly and warmly greeted them, personally leading them into Shen Yi's house.
"A-Yi!"
Lady Xu gave a shout, and Shen Yi immediately came out of the house. Seeing the three members of the Su family, he froze for a moment before stepping forward to greet them, "Uncle Chunlin, Little Sister Tai, Little Brother Zhan, please come in and sit."
"Eh, eh, eh..." Su Chunlin set down the rattan basket and was the first to enter the house. He noticed a small door leading to the back and felt very curious.
Su Tai had already walked toward that small door. Seeing the vegetable patch outside, she exclaimed, "Brother Shen, your vegetables are growing so well!"
"Isn't that the truth! I haven't seen such a good vegetable patch in a long time!" Su Chunlin said with an envious expression.
Shen Yi stepped forward to explain, "These are just a few plots I started myself; I don't tend to them much on ordinary days. My second aunt's vegetable patch is what you'd call truly good. Since you've arrived, I'll cook some vegetable soup for you in a moment."
Seeing that Shen Yi and Su Tai got along well, Lady Xu's eyes nearly curved into crescents from smiling. She said warmly, "Yes, yes, yes, guests are honored guests. I'll bring over a few handfuls of vegetables in a moment as well."
Su Tai hurriedly declined politely, "We ate on the road, Brother Shen and Auntie, please don't go to any trouble."
"That won't do!" No matter what was said, Lady Xu insisted on going back to pick vegetables, running faster than a rabbit; she couldn't be stopped.
Su Chunlin turned his gaze toward the mountains not far away and said to Shen Yi, "The autumn harvest is approaching, but our village has almost nothing to show for it. How are things on your end?"
A hint of gravity appeared on Shen Yi's cold face. "Although our village isn't quite at the point of having nothing, the situation isn't great either. Just two days ago, the Daxun River completely dried up. Fortunately, we dug wells in advance. We have two wells, so we don't have to worry about drinking water, and we can barely irrigate the crops. Uncle, did you come here because of this?"
Su Chunlin nodded, feeling somewhat relieved upon hearing this news. "I originally intended to go into the mountains to find some wild vegetables..."
Shen Yi's expression changed drastically. "No! There is nothing to eat in the mountains surrounding Dongmen Village, and the wild vegetables in the deep mountains have almost all been picked. There are also wild beasts roaming about; it is extremely dangerous."
Su Chunlin looked at Su Tai in surprise. "You're saying the exact same thing to Little Tai! Little Tai insisted that I come look near the Daxun River or go to the Canglan River. I couldn't win her over, so I could only come to find you."
Shen Yi breathed a sigh of relief. "That's good! There aren't many wild vegetables in our mountains either, but they haven't been picked clean. Tomorrow morning..."
Shen Yi looked toward the great mountains, hesitating for a long while before saying heavily, "I will take you up the mountain to take a look."
"Then we shall trouble you!"
Su Chunlin was overjoyed and didn't notice Shen Yi's hesitation, but Su Tai did.
Taking advantage of Shen Yi going to the vegetable patch in the back, she followed him. "Is it inconvenient for you to enter the mountains, Brother Shen? Or is it inconvenient to bring outsiders into the mountains?"
Without even thinking, Shen Yi shook his head. "There are several mountains near Shenjia Village, and the villagers mostly frequent a few specific ones. If we go a bit further, it won't be a problem."
"Oh." Su Tai didn't press further. As she turned around, she whispered again, "I haven't forgotten the grain you lent me. I'll return it to you in two months."
The half-mu of wheat she had planted in her Earth Space was growing impressively. If all went well, there would be a bumper harvest; even if she could only take half, it would be quite a lot for her.
When Lady Xu came over, she happened to see this scene. She smiled so widely her face almost split, and she even brought out two precious eggs she had been saving, running into the kitchen to cook for everyone.
When the vegetable soup was served, Su Chunlin saw the egg flowers floating on top and felt very distressed. "Second Aunt, this is too extravagant!"
They had come empty-handed, yet they were being treated so grandly; he truly felt he had no face to eat it.
Lady Xu didn't care. She even went to call Shen Yi's second uncle, Shen Zhuang, to come and sit with them.
Now, Su Chunlin had to eat whether he wanted to or not.
At the dinner table, Lady Xu spoke of the matter of Shen Yi's engagement being broken by the Mo family, shedding a few tears. "Our Shen Yi has such a hard life! He lost his parents early, and now he's being bullied by that ungrateful white-eyed wolf. Before my sister-in-law passed away, she entrusted Shen Yi to me, yet I haven't taken good care of him. I won't even have the face to see my sister-in-law after I die! Waaa..."
Shen Zhuang was an honest, dull, and taciturn man; seeing Lady Xu like this, he also began to sigh along with her.
Su Chunlin hurriedly comforted her, "Second Aunt Shen, please don't be sad. I have already gone to the Mo family to stand up for Shen Yi. Unfortunately, that girl from the Mo family refused to marry him no matter what, so there was nothing I could do. However, I saw that the girl was raised by Old Man Mo to be completely clueless; she isn't a match for our Shen Yi. It's better not to have her; we will find someone better for Shen Yi in the future."
"I think your girl is quite good." Lady Xu spoke impulsively, only realizing her mistake after she said it, and hurriedly tried to patch it up. "I mean, your girl was raised well—clean, polite, and capable. One look and you can tell she's a good girl."
"Of course!" Su Chunlin was particularly proud. He then changed the subject, saying, "It's just that this girl's marriage has been full of twists and turns. Originally, our family had a betrothal arranged with the Xiong family, but then the Xiong family said my daughter was a fool and broke the engagement. Second Uncle, Second Aunt, do you think my daughter looks like a fool?"
"Nonsense! This girl is clever, bright, and beautiful. What kind of fool looks like this! The Xiong family is far too ungrateful!" Lady Xu cursed loudly, but her heart was blooming with joy. Her eyes swept back and forth between Shen Yi and Su Tai, feeling more and more that this marriage had great potential.
After the meal.
Lady Xu secretly pulled Shen Yi aside and asked in a low voice, "What do you think of the girl from the Su family?"
Shen Yi understood Lady Xu's intentions instantly. Recalling the various ways he had interacted with Su Tai, his heart involuntarily quickened, and his lips pressed tightly together.
The night was dim, so Lady Xu could not see Shen Yi's expression. She urged, "I see that the Su family has raised the child quite well. Miss Su is also quite pretty and has a very gentle temperament; she is much better than that girl from the Mo family. Although Miss Su had her engagement broken, gold shines wherever it is placed; she certainly won't have trouble finding a husband. If you don't hurry, you might miss your chance."