Casting Nets to Catch a Husband

Chapter 142: Return at night

Since only a deposit had been paid, Lu Xun and the homeowner followed the custom of giving Zhu Zhongren a token fee for his efforts. As for the intermediary fee, it would be paid once the house transaction was finalized, with the deed tax paid at the government office and the house deed completed.

Normally, Zhu Zhongren wouldn’t bring the buyers and sellers together directly like this, but the buyer was the young master of the Lufeng Cloth Shop, and Zhu Zhongren believed that such a family wouldn’t skimp on a few taels for the intermediary fee. Since the seller couldn’t move out immediately, he simply brought them along straightforwardly.

Liu Yu went out with Lu Xun and his wife, and upon returning, she told Wei Shi that the house for her and Lu Chengxiao after their marriage had been settled.

Wei Shi was startled, “It’s settled already?”

Chen Shi had called Liu Yu out to look at the house, something Wei Shi was aware of. She had heard that Lu Chengxiao had found an intermediary before going to Zhejiang and even joked that Liu Yu had fallen into a nest of fortune.

Now, after just one trip, it was settled. This was unexpected, so she asked in detail about the house’s location, price, size, and condition.

Although she hadn’t seen it, just from Liu Yu’s description, Wei Shi smiled with her eyes bent.

After feeling happy for her niece, she then became worried, “Your three brothers, especially your eldest, I’m really worried about their marriage now. He’s twenty-two, why doesn’t he feel the urgency?”

Liu Yu wanted to laugh but was held by Wei Shi, “Help me ask him indirectly.”

Wei Shi suspected that Liu Yanqing might be too shy to discuss this with her, his mother.

Liu Yu agreed with a smile. When Liu Yanqing returned in the evening, she subtly reminded him, “Big brother, what kind of girl do you like? If you don’t hurry, Aunt will probably find a matchmaker to help you.”

Liu Yanqing felt both a headache and helplessness. He hadn’t thought about marriage.

When Liu Yu asked what kind of girl he liked, he thought carefully but couldn’t come up with an answer, so he said, “Then find a matchmaker. Following the parents’ orders and the matchmaker’s words is fine too.”

He truly had no one in mind.

Wei Shi was quite disappointed when she found out. In her view, it would be best if her son’s marriage was like her niece’s, mutual affection leading to a sweet life after marriage.

But since her son didn’t seem to have that inclination, she had no choice. She decided to keep an eye out, planning to focus on her eldest son’s marriage after Liu Yu’s wedding.

Since she managed the embroidery shop, she often interacted with many people. From that day on, she paid extra attention to the young girls who came to the shop.

On the tenth day of September, with the wedding approaching, there were many preparations needed at the Lu family. Chen Shi didn’t dare stay in the county any longer and finally took Qin Shi, Lu Shuang, and several children back to Changfeng Town. Lu Chengxiao and his group had been gone to Zhejiang for over a month. According to the original schedule, they should have returned by the fifth day of September at the earliest. Now, five days had passed, and they still hadn’t returned.

Lu Xun started paying special attention to the dock, as did Liu Yu and Wei Shi.

However, a day passed, then two, and there was still no sign of Lu Chengxiao’s group. Lu Xun became so anxious that he got mouth sores, and Wei Shi was also worried, both about their safety and the possibility of delaying Liu Yu’s dowry preparation.

Before leaving, Liu Yanping had said that he would buy suitable items in Zhejiang. Now that Chen Shi had returned to prepare, the Wei family should also be preparing, but without knowing what Liu Yanping had bought, they didn’t know where to start. Apart from sending Liu Yanqing back to Yangshan Village to check on the progress of the furniture made by the Tan family, they were at a loss for what to do.

By the time they were still waiting on the fifteenth of September, even Liu Yu couldn’t sit still any longer. She lost her appetite and had trouble sleeping. Seeing her condition, Liu Yanqing went to the dock every day after leaving the yamen, staying there until the city gates closed, but he didn’t manage to catch any returning ships.

During this period, Chen Shi, who had been waiting anxiously in Changfeng Town, came to the county. She was also worried, but Liu Yu managed to calm her down.

While Liu Yu could console Chen Shi and Wei Shi, she couldn’t sleep at all when it was quiet and dark.

On the night of the eighteenth of September, the night watchman had already struck the third watch, and Liu Yu was still awake. As she tossed and turned, she seemed to hear the sound of knocking.

She immediately sat up and listened carefully. It was indeed a knock on the door.

The city gates were already closed, so logically it couldn’t be Lu Chengxiao and her second and third brothers returning. But Liu Yu’s heart couldn’t stop pounding. She got up, put on her clothes, and, using the faint moonlight, went out of her room to open the door.

The knocking sounded again, and Liu Yu softly asked, “Who is it?”

“Yu’er, it’s me.”

Two voices answered simultaneously, one filled with joy and the other with a smile.

Liu Yu recognized the voices—it was Lu Chengxiao and her second brother. She hurriedly went to open the door. Seeing them both safe and sound, she looked behind them but didn’t see Liu Yanan. Her heart skipped a beat, “Second brother, where is third brother?”

Liu Yanping smiled, “Don’t worry, your third brother is still on the boat, unloading the cargo. Chengxiao and I came back urgently to report our safety. We could enter the city because the gatekeeper is a friend of our eldest brother.”

Hearing that they were safe, Liu Yu’s pent-up fear and worry turned into a sourness in her nose. She looked at Lu Chengxiao, her eyes slightly warm, unwilling to look away.

Seeing this, Liu Yanping tactfully walked into the courtyard, giving them some space.

From the moment Lu Chengxiao saw Liu Yu, his gaze never left her. Seeing her reaction now, how could he not feel both heartache and guilt? “I’m sorry for returning so late. You must have been worried.”

Returning almost half a month late would undoubtedly cause concern, but Liu Yu shook her head repeatedly, “It’s good that you’re back.”

Not having slept at all, coming out so quickly upon hearing the knock—how could she not be worried? Lu Chengxiao felt as if his heart was gently squeezed, filling with a bittersweet ache.

He wanted to pull her into his arms, his fingers moved slightly, but in the end, he just held her hand, intertwining their fingers under his sleeve.

Guilt, heartache, and longing were all conveyed in a silent gaze as their fingers clasped tightly together.

From the main house and Liu Yanqing’s room came the sound of movement, followed by footsteps and the sound of doors opening. Wei Shi’s voice called out from inside, “Yu’er, is it Yanping and the others who are back?”

Liu Yu responded, and Liu Yanqing had already stepped out. Seeing that it was indeed Liu Yanping, Liu Yanqing was overjoyed but asked about Liu Yanan, whom he didn’t see.

Liu Yanping explained again, and Liu Yu learned that Liu Yanan and Babao were still on the boat because Liu Yanping had bought many things along the way that needed to be sent to Yangshan Village first. The boat was docked at Xifeng Town, and Lu Chengxiao and Liu Yanping had come ahead to report their safety.

“You walked here from Xifeng Town?” Liu Yu couldn’t help but look at Lu Chengxiao.

Liu Yanping laughed, “Chengxiao was in a hurry to get home and couldn’t wait until morning. It’s also my fault for wanting to buy more things, which delayed us.”

Wei Shi, having put on her clothes and come out, caught this part of the conversation and asked, “Why were you so late?”

In the main hall, Liu Yanqing had already lit the lamps, and Liu Yu quickly withdrew her hand.

Lu Chengxiao smiled and released her hand, letting her step away.

As expected, Wei Shi’s attention turned to him. Seeing Lu Chengxiao, she was pleased and asked, “Chengxiao, have you gone home to inform your family? Your parents have been very worried these days.”

Normally, if someone was delayed by ten days or half a month while on a business trip, it wouldn’t be a big deal. But with the wedding date set for the twenty-eighth of September and them not returning by the eighteenth, it was only natural to worry and imagine the worst.

Lu Chengxiao knew he had caused his family concern and said, “Not yet. I came here first. I’ll go home right away. Babao will go to inform my mother at dawn.”

Hearing that he had plans, Wei Shi felt reassured and smiled, “That makes sense. Go inform your father first. After such a long walk in the middle of the night, I’ll cook some noodles for you. Come back after you’ve spoken to your family and have a bite to eat.”

“Thank you, Aunt,” Lu Chengxiao thanked her, glanced at Liu Yu, and said softly, “I’ll be back soon.”

Liu Yu nodded, watching him leave the courtyard before returning inside.

As soon as Lu Chengxiao left, Wei Shi pulled Liu Yanping by the ear, “I told you to prepare your sister’s dowry, not to lose track of time. Do you know how worried your aunt and uncle have been, and how anxious your sister and I have been? How could you be so careless?”

“Mother, be gentle,” Liu Yanping pleaded, rescuing his ear from her grip. “I wasn’t just preparing the dowry; I also sold goods along the way and earned over two hundred taels.”

This statement made Wei Shi release her grip.

“How did you make that much?”

Wei Shi, thinking about preparing food for her son and not wanting to disturb Liu Datian and Liu Chunshan’s wife, said, “Let’s talk in the kitChen Shi.”

The four of them went to the kitchen. Liu Yanqing stoked the fire while Wei Shi worked two large pots, one boiling water for Liu Yanping to wash up and the other for cooking noodles.

Wei Shi kneaded dough, Liu Yu helped wash the vegetables, and Liu Yanping recounted their trip to Zhejiang.

It turned out that the delay was due to several reasons: they had brought much more summer cloth than before, which caused a two-day delay in Nanshi, Zhejiang. Additionally, instead of transporting raw silk back, they had Liu Huizhang from the Jiangyou Guild introduce them to a reliable dyeing workshop where they dyed the silk locally before returning.

Liu Yanping said, “Dyed silk fetches a higher price. While waiting for the undyed silk to be processed, we went to Lin’an to make some purchases. The business association’s manager, Xu, whom we got along well with, heard that I was buying dowry for my sister and that the groom was Chengxiao. He made a list of good items in the towns along our route. So, we didn’t just visit Lin’an; we bought items all the way back, stopping at every town we passed. Since we were stopping in the towns anyway, Chengxiao and I decided to sell the dyed silk to local embroidery and fabric shops at a price half a percent lower than what the fabric stores offer.”

This way, they didn’t just sell fabric; they also made the profit that would have gone to the fabric store.

Wei Shi was thrilled hearing this but still gave Liu Yanping a light smack on the back of his head, “But you can’t come back so late. You can make money anytime, but what if you missed your sister’s wedding date?”

Liu Yanping was speechless.

“Mom, I was wrong. Next time, even if I see money right in front of me, I’ll resist.”

Liu Yu burst into laughter.

Over at the Lu family’s house, a similar scene was unfolding with Lu Xun and Lu Chengxiao.

After about fifteen minutes, two large bowls of freshly made noodles were ready, but Lu Chengxiao hadn’t come over yet. Wei Shi, worried the noodles would get soggy, asked Liu Yanqing to call him.

Liu Yanping eagerly took the task, “I’ll go!”

He turned and brought Liu Yu along, “Yu’er, help me carry the lantern.”

This obvious attempt to let Liu Yu see Lu Chengxiao made Liu Yu blush, but Wei Shi found it amusing. She took a tray, placed both bowls of noodles on it, and said, “Go ahead. I figure Chengxiao will head back to Changfeng Town at dawn to prepare for the wedding. We also need to return to Yangshan Village. After that, you two can’t see each other for the three days before the wedding. Go and have a chat.”

The two bowls of noodles suggested that Liu Yanping would eat over there too. With the siblings going together and Lu Xun likely there as well, it would just be a meal and wouldn’t attract any gossip.

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