Chapter 25: Bing Wengu's love, passionate and straightforward, is like a pair of mandarin ducks...

Wang Shi's words came out of nowhere, leaving Miao Shi and Nan Jinping stunned.

"Do you really think Bing Wengu hit the jackpot? You didn't see it earlier, but the Bing family clearly borrowed eighteen coins from me but claimed it was only twelve. If they were truly wealthy, why would they quibble over six coins? Such stinginess clearly shows they're just pretending to be rich," Wang Shi twisted the truth as she spoke. "If you don't believe me, ask Li Shi. She was there and saw everything."

Back then, her second daughter despised the Bing family's poverty and broke her promise, calling off the engagement to become a concubine to an old man in town who was even older than her own father.

Now that the Bing family had suddenly struck it rich, her second daughter's actions seemed like a huge joke.

Li Shi would rather die than admit that the Bing family had truly struck it rich.

Her eyes were red as she insisted, "Everything Wang Shi said is true. She's not lying to you."

Seeing Miao Shi's disbelief, Li Shi doubled down. "The money Bing Dalang got was definitely not a gift but borrowed from loan sharks."

Wang Shi, with only one good arm, gestured wildly, nodding in agreement.

Li Shi, leaning on her crutch, propped herself against a large tree and continued, "At that time, Wang Shi and I were cautious. We didn't leave immediately after receiving the money but eavesdropped outside the Bing family's house. To our surprise, we overheard them whispering that the money came from loan sharks."

Indeed, Li Shi and Wang Shi had hidden outside the Bing family's house, eavesdropping, and had clearly heard Miao Shi exclaim about loan sharks. As for what the Bing family said afterward, Li Shi didn't catch it.

But that didn't stop Li Shi from gossiping to Nan Jinping and Miao Shi.

Miao Shi wasn't buying it. "Why would Bing Dalang borrow from loan sharks?"

"You'd never guess, would you?" Li Shi declared confidently. "At first, the Bing family didn't agree to your engagement. They only consented later. You know that, right?"

The incident with the Bing family had been so significant, with Bing Wengu nearly killing Bing Silang, that it had spread throughout the village. Nan Jinping and Miao Shi had naturally heard about it.

"The real reason the Bing family agreed wasn't because Bing Dalang nearly killed Bing Silang, but because Bing Wengu made them an offer they couldn't refuse."

Li Shi spoke as if she had witnessed it herself, making it sound even more convincing. "At that time, Bing Dalang told the Bing family, 'You care for Jin Geer. If he marries Jin Geer, your family will have to help with both the household debts and his travel expenses for the imperial exams.'"

Miao Shi found Li Shi's story increasingly unreliable. She knew their family's situation well, and Bing Wengu was aware of it too. Both families were equally poor, like two brothers. Expecting her family to help was a joke; they'd all starve together.

Miao Shi grabbed Nan Jinping to leave, but Li Shi wouldn't let them, blocking their path with her crutch while Wang Shi reached out to pull Miao Shi. Both were injured—one with a broken leg, the other with a crippled hand—and Miao Shi dared not struggle too hard, fearing they might blame her for further injury.

"Listen to me," Li Shi persisted. "Bing Dalang has a cunning plan. He's planning to use Jin Geer to threaten your family. If you don't help repay the debts and cover his travel expenses, he'll sell Jin Geer to a brothel.

Your family loves your little boy so much; you wouldn't let Jin Geer actually work in a brothel, would you? So you'd have to do as Bing Wengu says. To redeem your boy, you'd have to do whatever Bing Wengu says—sell your house, your land—and that money would be enough for the Bing family to repay their debts and cover Bing Wengu's travel expenses."

"Nonsense!" Nan Jinping snapped. Though he hadn't known Bing Wengu for long and didn't know him well, he was sure Bing Wengu wasn't that kind of person and wasn't as bad as they made him out to be.

This was the first time Nan Jinping had ever stood up to an elder in the village. Previously, to avoid causing trouble for his family, no matter how harshly these people spoke, Nan Jinping would never argue, simply walking away. If a fight broke out and Miao Shi found out, it would only upset her.

A lowly-born Shuang Er daring to stand up to her? Li Shi was furious. "If it weren't for ulterior motives, do you think any man would give a little boy like you a second glance?"

Li Shi's tone made it seem as if Nan Jinping wasn't a Shuang Er but some kind of unspeakable filth.

"Bing Dalang likes me!" Nan Jinping shouted and ran off.

"Li Shi, all you do is spew filth from your mouth, don't you!" Miao Shi, fearing for her son's safety, didn't bother to argue with Li Shi and hurried after him.

Nan Jinping ran all the way to the Bing family's house, shouting outside their gate, "Bing Dalang..."

Now that the two were officially engaged, they were proper fiancés, and even if seen, they wouldn't fear village gossip.

Bing Wengu's ears were like radar when it came to Nan Jinping's voice. Almost the moment he heard it, he recognized it as his young husband's voice. He jumped up immediately, not even bothering to put on his shoes properly, and rushed out.

"Jin Geer, what brings you here?" Bing Wengu's eyes sparkled as he looked at Nan Jinping, his joy emanating from the depths of his heart, so obvious that even a blind person could sense it.

Bing Wengu was never one to wear his heart on his sleeve. On the contrary, he was skilled in psychological tactics and adept at keeping his emotions hidden. But with Nan Jinping, Bing Wengu wanted nothing more than to express his most direct and intense feelings.

Perhaps it was this side of Bing Wengu that gave Nan Jinping courage. He asked the question that Li Shi had challenged him with, the one that mattered most to him: "Why do you like me?"

"Because it's you, that's why I like you." Bing Wengu was a Sentinel, and the attraction between a Sentinel and a Guide was a bond from the soul, needing no reason. Among thousands of people, he knew at a glance that this person was his. "I like you simply because I do, no reason needed. I like every part of you, from head to toe, even every strand of your hair."

Expressions of affection were still too bold for Nan Jinping. Now calmer, Nan Jinping was so embarrassed he felt like his head might burst into steam.

Miao Shi, who had rushed to catch up, heard Bing Wengu's repeated declarations of affection from afar. Her face turned red, and she nearly twisted her ankle.

She had spent half her life with her husband, had given birth to who knows how many children, and had never said such embarrassing words. How could Bing Dalang dare to say such shameless things?

If Miao Shi had really asked Bing Wengu, Bing Wengu would have told her that she and her husband had five children together.

Miao Shi shook her ankle; it wasn't hurt. Looking at her own young son and future son-in-law with their backs to her, Miao Shi was filled with conflict.

She wanted to take her young son away from this shameless rogue immediately, but then she remembered that this rogue was about to become her young son's husband, and she couldn't.

If her Jin Geer were a daughter, Miao Shi would have taken him away without hesitation and given Bing Wengu a good scolding. But her Jin Geer was a Shuang Er, a gender that men had never favored, which meant that young sons needed to hold onto their husbands' hearts even more tightly than daughters.

A myriad of thoughts raced through Miao Shi's mind, and in the end, she could only turn away resentfully, pretending she hadn't heard anything. Still unwilling, she muttered as she walked, "Shameless rogue, and a scholar at that. He must have read books that are even more brazen than others."

But deep down, she thought scholars were more adept at sweet-talking than the village men, no wonder her young son had fallen head over heels in just a few days, disregarding the family's objections and the fact that the Bing family was so poor they couldn't even keep the stove lit, insisting on marrying him.

Then she thought it was only natural that her young son would act this way. If she had met a man like Bing Wengu in her youth, she probably wouldn't have been able to resist either.

Bing Wengu had spotted Miao Shi well before she approached. He just didn't care. Now that he was Nan Jinping's formally engaged partner, no longer the sneaky 'adulterer' of yesterday, why shouldn't he be able to talk openly with his husband?

Anyone with any sense, seeing the engaged couple talking here, should have kept their distance.

Watching Miao Shi turn and leave, Bing Wengu nodded in satisfaction. It seemed his future mother-in-law had some tact after all, knowing not to disturb the engaged couple's romantic talk.

As for Miao Shi's muttering, Bing Wengu feigned temporary deafness and heard nothing.

Bing Wengu brought his scattered attention back, focusing entirely on Nan Jinping. "Jin Geer, did someone say something to you that made you ask me this?"

Bing Wengu had Nan Jinping in his heart, so how could he not notice that something was off with his beloved today? He had noticed as soon as Nan Jinping opened his mouth, but calming his young husband's emotions was the priority.

Now that his young husband's emotions had clearly settled, Bing Wengu asked.

"I ran into Li Shi in the village earlier. She said you didn't marry me sincerely, that no man could truly like a young son like me." Nan Jinping had never told anyone about these slanders before, not even Miao Shi. But for some reason, he now wanted to tell Bing Wengu.

"She's full of crap!" It seemed that breaking one leg wasn't enough; she could still come out and cause trouble. "Her mouth is like an ass, spewing out the most foul-smelling crap, unbearable to hear."

Nan Jinping, who had been feeling down, was suddenly amused by Bing Wengu.

Seeing his young husband laugh, Bing Wengu continued, "Li Shi is just jealous of you."

"Why would she be jealous of me?" Nan Jinping was puzzled. No one in the village was jealous of him; on the contrary, they all looked down on him.

"Look, you just got engaged to me, and I suddenly have money, even cleared all the family's debts. Meanwhile, her second daughter went to be a concubine for an old man who could be her father, all for money. Doesn't that sound like a joke?"

Put that way, it made perfect sense that Li Shi would be filled with resentment and anger, even resorting to mischief.

Nan Jinping lowered his head, kicking at the stones on the ground.

Bing Wengu's gaze fell on Nan Jinping's foot tapping the dirt with her toes. Nan Jinping was wearing a pair of straw sandals he had woven himself. Such sandals sold in town for only three wen a pair. There was also a type of shoe woven from hemp and ramie, slightly more expensive than straw sandals, costing four or five wen a pair. Both types of shoes were commonly woven and worn by villagers.

"Jin Geer, wait for me. I brought some things back from the prefectural city for you. I'll go get them." Bing Wengu ran back to his room and brought out a bundle containing a wedding dress and pearl shoes, along with two bolts of fabric.

"Here, Jin Geer, these are all for you."

Nan Jinping was stunned. Was he seeing things? How could Bing Wengu have brought out two bolts of colorful brocade?

That was colorful brocade! A single bolt cost a lot of money.

Nan Jinping didn't know exactly how much, but he knew it was very expensive. In his life, he had only been to town a handful of times, so he wasn't very familiar with the prices of such luxuries.

As a child, Nan Jinping remembered passing by the fabric shop in town and peeking inside from a distance. They sold this kind of colorful brocade, which was very beautiful, but he had never dared to go in and ask the price.

Just as Nan Jinping thought he must be dreaming, Bing Wengu opened the bundle, revealing the pearl shoes and the bright red wedding dress.

The pearl shoes were vibrant, with beautiful patterns and exquisite embroidery. At first glance, they resembled flowers blooming on the shoes. The two pearls on the toe were the finishing touch, making it immediately clear that these shoes were valuable.

Nan Jinping had only seen such shoes on the feet of wealthy young masters from official families in town. Those young men even had jade embellishments on theirs.

"How much... how much did this cost?" Nan Jinping asked, dazed.

"One guan," Bing Wengu proudly boasted to Nan Jinping, hoping for praise. "The shopkeeper tried to cheat me because I'm from the countryside, asking for one guan and three hundred wen, but I managed to bargain him down by three hundred wen."

One guan?

Nan Jinping stared at Bing Wengu, never realizing that Bing Dalang was such a spendthrift!

"And look at this wedding dress. Isn't it stunning? The moment I saw it, I knew it was perfect for you, as if it were made just for you," Bing Wengu said gleefully.

He handed the pearl shoes to Nan Jinping and unfolded the wedding dress to show him.

Nan Jinping's eyes were dazzled as the wedding dress shimmered golden in the sunlight.

Upon closer inspection, Bing Wengu saw that the wedding dress was made of silk, with golden threads embroidered into it, creating the shimmer. The dress was adorned with pearls arranged into flower petals, each one round and of excellent quality.

If the pearl shoes had stunned Nan Jinping, the wedding dress left him utterly awestruck.

Nan Jinping didn't dare ask the price, but Bing Wengu, eager for praise, volunteered the information himself.

"This wedding dress cost me eleven taels of silver, but I managed to bargain it down to ten taels."

No doubt about it, this man was a spendthrift!

If he were to manage the household in the future, Nan Jinping wondered if they'd even have wild vegetables to eat.

"Bing Dalang, take these back tomorrow and return them. Weddings in our village aren't as grand as those in town," Nan Jinping said, thinking that Bing Wengu's time studying in town had made him vain.

Bing Wengu wasn't sure if they could be returned, but even if they could, he wouldn't return them. This was just a small amount of money, and he wanted to give Nan Jinping something even more valuable.

"It's not much money, and the shopkeeper said it was a discounted price when I bought it, so no returns or exchanges."

"You have such a big mouth," Nan Jinping muttered. "And this is the discounted price? How much would it be without the discount?"

"This wedding dress doesn't suit me anyway. Why don't you take it to town and pawn it? At least you can get some money back. My mother has already bought fabric to sew my wedding dress."

Bing Wengu, of course, refused. "This is a once-in-a-lifetime event for us. What's wrong with being a little extravagant? It's not like we'll live like this every day. The most important moment of our lives should be celebrated in style. When we're old and sitting in rocking chairs, reminiscing, we won't have any regrets, and our memories will be filled with highlights and beautiful moments."

Bing Wengu believed he could offer Nan Jinping far more splendid moments than this, but it was too early to discuss those now, as it might come off as bragging.

Seeing Nan Jinping still reluctant to accept the gifts, Bing Wengu decided to reveal everything and disclose his entire fortune to Nan Jinping.

First, he had to clarify the real origin of the silver.

"Actually, the silver wasn't a reward for saving a nobleman. I found ginseng and lingzhi in the mountains."

"You went deep into the mountains?" Nan Jinping frowned, interrupting Bing Wengu, and said angrily, "The deep mountains are so dangerous, and you went there anyway! Bing Dalang, have you even taken my words to heart? I've told you I have bad luck, and my fate is even worse. Don't do dangerous things. I'm afraid you might get hurt because of me..."

As he spoke, Nan Jinping's eyes turned red.

At this moment, Bing Wengu couldn't care less about anything else and quickly stepped forward to apologize, "I'm sorry, it's all my fault. Please don't cry. I swear I won't go into the deep mountains again, okay? If you're still mad, go ahead and hit me."

As he spoke, Bing Wengu reached out to grab Nan Jinping's hand. Nan Jinping struggled hard but couldn't break free from Bing Wengu's hold. In the end, Bing Wengu let go, afraid of hurting Nan Jinping.

Bing Wengu crouched down, tilting his head and gazing at Nan Jinping's face, carefully observing his expression, "Jin Geer, are you still angry? If you are, hit me a few more times. Once you've hit me enough, you'll definitely stop being angry."

Nan Jinping had never been consoled like this before. Since childhood, when he got angry, what could he do? Who had time to console him? He would just silently absorb it in a corner, and if he couldn't digest it, there was nothing he could do.

So, faced with Bing Wengu's cheeky behavior, Nan Jinping really had no way to deal with him and didn't even know how to stay angry.

In fact, at one point, a thought suddenly crossed Nan Jinping's mind: if Bing Wengu kept comforting him like this, sooner or later, he would lose all his principles. Even if Bing Wengu killed someone, he would help hide the evidence.

But this thought came and went in an instant, too fast for Nan Jinping to even catch.

"Then you must never go into the deep mountains again, or else... or else I'll really hit you." Nan Jinping clenched his fist and threatened Bing Wengu, "Don't think that just because I'm a Shuang Er, I'm some fragile Xiao Geer. I have strength, and maybe you can't even beat me."

Nan Jinping thought he appeared fierce and domineering, but in Bing Wengu's eyes, he was like a little kitten showing its tiny claws—utterly adorable.

"Mm-hmm," Bing Wengu nodded in agreement, not foolish enough to say what he was really thinking, and even played along, "I'm really scared. I definitely won't go into the deep mountains again."

"..." Nan Jinping.

Bing Wengu quickly changed the subject, "I traded the herbs I collected for seventy-three taels of silver at the medical hall in the city. After purchasing your clothes, I also bought some food for the family, spending..." Without waiting for Nan Jinping to inquire, Bing Wengu began counting on his fingers, reporting every single expense in extreme detail, down to the last coin.

Just like any man who comes back from shopping and has to account for his expenses to his wife, Bing Wengu had to explain every penny.

He hadn't shared any of this with the Bing family, not even how much silver he had exchanged.

In Bing Wengu's view, the Bing family was like a group of soldiers in need of training, while Nan Jinping was the love of his life, the person he would lie with even after death. The Bing family and Nan Jinping were completely different.

"I also ordered a batch of bricks and tiles from the kiln, paying three taels as a deposit. I still have thirty-four taels and five hundred wen left."

Nan Jinping was completely taken aback by Bing Wengu's honesty, and for a moment, he was stunned.

Once again, he clearly felt that the Bing Dalang he was interacting with now was completely different from the person he had known from afar before. Not only was this Bing Wengu different from the past, but even the men in the village didn't report their expenses to their wives like this.

A man who could bring money home and not fool around outside was already considered a good man. How many men not only didn't bring money home but also spent it on themselves, indulging in extravagance, and even came back to beat their wives and children? Some even stole the meager earnings their wives made from embroidery to feed themselves and their children, only to squander it all.

Nan Jinping had never seen a man like Bing Wengu in the village, and for a moment, he couldn't help but feel a faint anticipation for their future life together.

"Jin Geer, I want to build seven large tiled houses, so that when you marry into my family, you can have a decent place to live, with your own room, and not have to share a room with others."

Nan Jinping nodded fiercely, very hard, very hard. It wasn't that he was particularly looking forward to the seven large tiled houses, but he saw the care Bing Wengu had for him.

This care made Nan Jinping look forward to the days they would spend together, building their life as a team.

Of course, after learning about Bing Wengu's entire fortune, although Nan Jinping still felt a bit of a pang about the money spent on the shoes and wedding dress, it wasn't as painful as before.

Putting everything else aside, Nan Jinping really liked this wedding dress. From the moment he saw it, his eyes hadn't left it.

Nan Jinping couldn't help but reach out to touch the wedding dress. Such a dress seems fit only for celestial fairies.

As soon as Nan Jinping's fingers touched the dress, he accidentally snagged the silk, causing a thread to pull.

Nan Jinping quickly retracted his hand as if he had been burned, looking at Bing Wengu with a look of guilt after causing trouble.

"I didn't mean to. I just wanted to touch it; I didn't expect it to snag," Nan Jinping said, looking at his rough, calloused hands, which were completely unlike the delicate, smooth skin of a young lady. He lowered his head in embarrassment, his face flushed red. "I'm sorry, my hands are too rough."

Bing Wengu's heart clenched painfully.

He wished he could immediately pull this person into his arms, shielding him under his protection, so that he could live a carefree life from now on.

From now on, whether it was storms or thunder, there would be no need to worry. They could simply treat it as a natural phenomenon, brew a pot of tea and enjoy the view leisurely.

Bing Wengu said gently, "You don't need to apologize; this is yours. Even if you were unhappy and decided to cut it up with scissors, that would be entirely up to you. You don't need to apologize to anyone."

Nan Jinping glanced at Bing Wengu, his expression suggesting he was looking at a madman, as if to say, "Who would be unhappy and cut up something so beautiful? Only a lunatic would do that."

Bing Wengu handed the dress to Nan Jinping. "You keep it. If you don't like it, just tell me, and I'll go to the city to buy a new one."

Nan Jinping instinctively took it.

"These two rolls of silk, you can take them back and make two sets of everyday clothes." The men in Dayong typically wore long robes, and the style for young men was similar. One roll of fabric was enough to make a full set of clothes, inside and out.

Nan Jinping genuinely liked it—really, really liked it. In his memory, he had never worn new clothes before; they were always altered hand-me-downs from adults.

He was also moved by Bing Wengu's words. This was his only wedding, and he wanted no regrets.

Even if life was hard in the future, the sweetness of the wedding day would make the bitterness a little sweeter.

Nan Jinping thought that he would be selfish just this once, keeping these things. In the future, he would live frugally and never be wasteful.

"I actually prepared a gift for you too. But the gift I made myself seems insignificant compared to what you've given me." Nan Jinping was too embarrassed to take it out, but after all, it was something he had spent a long time embroidering, enduring countless pricks of the needle.

"You prepared a gift for me too? We really are in sync." Bing Wengu had seen all sorts of treasures in the interstellar world. What others considered rare and precious were just common decorations in his estate. "What matters to me is your thoughtfulness. Something you embroidered by hand is worth more than a thousand jewels."

Nan Jinping pulled out the pouch he had embroidered stitch by stitch from his sleeve.

Bing Wengu was thrilled. Finally, he could use a pouch made by his husband's own hands. At this moment, he missed his neural interface dearly, wishing he could post the pouch his husband had embroidered for him on social media for the whole world to see.

Let his subordinates show off all they wanted. Their partners might buy them clothes or watches, but those were just store-bought items. What was there to boast about? This pouch was made stitch by stitch by his husband, a true expression of his love.

While Bing Wengu was mocking others, he didn't notice how utterly delighted he looked himself, more smug than anyone else.

Bing Wengu turned the pouch over and over in his hands, admiring it more and more, unable to put it down.

"Jin Geer, the mandarin ducks you embroidered are so beautiful," Bing Wengu said gleefully.

"..." Nan Jinping.

"I embroidered a pair of lovebirds."

"Ah? Lovebirds?" Bing Wengu was embarrassed. He really couldn't tell what Nan Jinping had embroidered. To his naked eye, it looked most like wild ducks.

But Bing Wengu knew that given their current relationship, Nan Jinping wouldn't just embroider wild ducks for no reason. He figured it must be mandarin ducks, as people of this era, especially, liked to embroider mandarin ducks on wedding items for their auspicious symbolism.

That's why Bing Wengu had said mandarin ducks, thinking he was being clever, unlike his clueless subordinates, and waiting for his husband to praise him.

As a result...

Sometimes it's not his subordinates' fault for being clueless; a partner's thoughts are hard to guess.

Bing Wengu's first try was a bust.

"Ah, the lovebirds! These lovebirds are truly beautiful! 'In the heavens, we wish to be lovebirds; on earth, we wish to be entwined branches.' I really like lovebirds, they have such a good meaning." It would have been fine if Bing Wengu had stopped there, but he just had to go and add, "Lovebirds frolicking in the water, what a novel embroidery technique."

"..." Nan Jinping.

"You're holding it upside down. I embroidered 'In the heavens, we wish to be lovebirds.' That's the blue of the sky, not the blue of the river."

Another flop.

Bing Wengu wanted to kick himself. Talk too much, and you're bound to mess up!

He swore that if Nan Jinping ever gave him embroidered items again, he'd just say they were beautiful and leave it at that.

"Bea... beautiful, lovely," Bing Wengu forced a laugh. "Well, this stuff is pretty heavy, let me help you take it back."