All his worries vanished, and his heart settled.

Liu Qishuang knew he was right—as long as Wan Dongyang made up his mind, he would always find a way to make it happen.

On the way home, Liu Qishuang laughed heartily, not caring if anyone saw him. Even when they reached the front door, he merely restrained himself slightly, though a smile still lingered on his face.

When Liu Congxiang and her husband saw that he had nothing left in his hands yet was still smiling so happily, their expressions both darkened. Liu Congxiang shouted at the top of her lungs, “Did his family take the cash?!”

“They took it. Brother Wan even gave us some ginseng slices. Five qtaels of silver was already a bargain.” Liu Qishuang was still thinking about continuing to save cash; he didn’t want to let go of this excuse to save.

As soon as Liu Congxiang heard the words “ginseng slices,” she instinctively reached for something to throw at her son. Liu Qishuang recoiled in fear, taking two steps back. Just as he was debating whether to run or try to fight her off, his father grabbed his mother’s arm.

Liu Qishuang looked at his father with a complex expression. He had no idea what was going through his father’s mind—that he would go to such lengths for the Xu family.

In the past, when faced with situations like this, his father would have beaten him even more mercilessly than his mother.

Before he had much time to think, Xu Shifan had already taken a few steps forward to Liu Qishuang’s side. He even pulled him into the house. More astonishingly, he actually took out five qian of cash and told someone to take it to the Wan family.

“Settle the debt, and don’t go to the Wan family ever again. Every member of the Wan family is the same—cut all ties with them. There’s already gossip in the village about you and Wan Changlin, the third son of the Wan family. You’re a young man about to be married; your reputation is important.” Xu Shifan lowered his head slightly, looking at the ger whose height had already reached his chin, and sighed inwardly—he hadn’t heeded his wife’s words.

The boy had grown up; he could no longer be treated the way he used to be. Now, he needed to be coaxed.

Besides, once he married into the Xu family, whoever he sided with, Shunzi would surely side with as well. As for whether he or his eldest brother’s family would ultimately hold sway in the Xu household, that would depend entirely on the ger’s attitude.

“Mother agreed?” It was as if a thunderbolt had suddenly struck his mind; all he could hear was a buzzing in his ears. Liu Qishuang watched in shock as his father nodded, still muttering something under his breath—but he couldn’t hear a word of it, nor did he care anymore.

As he approached Liu Congxiang with the silver in his hand, Liu Qishuang still harbored a glimmer of hope, but Liu Congxiang’s attitude only made his heart sink even further.

“Don’t you want me to marry into the Wan family? If not Wan Changqing, then Wan Dongyang would do, right? Isn’t Wan Dongyang’s family even better off? Mother, Mother.” Liu Qishuang reached out to tug at his mother’s sleeve, trying to get her to give him a definite answer.

Liu Congxiang swatted her son’s hand away and poked him on the forehead several times. “Wan Dongyang? Are you dreaming? Does he even have eyes for you? Even if he did, this old woman wouldn’t want him as a son-in-law.” Liu Congxiang wasn’t stupid—didn’t she already know whether Wan Dongyang was worth her trouble or not?—otherwise, why would she have been so fixated on Wan Changqing all along?

The Wan Dongyang family was far wealthier than the Wan Changqing family.

“Mother, what if he does take a liking to me?”

“Do you have cotton stuffed in your ears? Are you even listening to me? Stop talking nonsense. Forget about the Wan family—forget about any family at all. Just wait patiently until you’re of age to marry into the Xu family—it’s only a year away.”

It’s over, it’s over.

He had no idea how Liu Qishuang had ended up at the Wan family’s house; he could only anxiously pound on their front door.

When Wan Dongyang opened the door, all he saw was a tear-streaked, dazed figure standing before him.

“My mother has arranged my engagement—and she’s agreed to it. They’re going to marry me off to the Xu family!” Liu Qishuang shoved the silver in his hand into Wan Dongyang’s palm, and he quickly explained the entire situation to him.

The Wan family truly never expected Liu Congxiang and his wife to be so shameless.

“They’re brothers! How could they possibly marry?” Mother Wan was roasting soybeans at the time; the girls in the house had asked for some, but her hands had slowed in shock.

Lin Qiuyue was tending the fire beneath the stove; her eyebrows were nearly knitted together. She regretted having opposed the two children’s marriage that morning—that Liu-ger was truly pitiful. But since his parents had already made up their minds, it was too late for them to take him in, even if they wanted to.

Many thoughts crossed her mind, but she didn’t utter a single word. As soon as Wan Dongyang finished speaking, he left to find his older brother.

His uncle was a major landowner and the most influential person in the village. His uncle was very fond of his older brother, and he intended to ask his older brother to help him with something.

“Is it really decided?” Wan Yongan now ran his own pharmacy; he was cutting herbs there when he heard his younger brother’s words, yet he didn’t seem the least bit surprised.

Wan Dongyang hadn’t expected this reaction from his older brother—hadn’t he opposed the idea just yesterday? “Aren’t you going to try to talk me out of it?”

“What’s there to persuade you about? I already know everything I need to know.” Wan Yong’an set down the piece of medicinal root he was holding, composed his expression, and said to his younger brother with great seriousness: “Now that you’ve made your decision, you must remember this firmly: that ger is the one you’re determined to marry despite the entire family’s opposition. Whether the Liu family causes trouble in the future, or even if my son faces difficulties with his lineage or suffers from illness, you must protect him well and never make things difficult for him in the slightest—because you sought this out all on your own.”

“Big Brother, I understand.”

By the time Liu Qishuang returned home, his troubled heart had finally settled.

Wan Dongyang had told him not to be afraid; after his birthday, he would go to his family’s home to ask for his hand, and they would be married by the end of the year at the latest. His birthday was on the 18th of the seventh month—which meant there were only about ten days left.

With Wan Dongyang’s assurance, Liu Qishuang didn’t say much to his parents; he only secretly confided in his grandfather.

In the blink of an eye, ten days had passed. On the eleventh day of the seventh month, Liu Qishuang and Song Saixue went to the riverbank together to pick yellow thorn berries. At the village entrance, they ran into Wan Dongyang’s second sister-in-law, who was carrying a full load of soybeans on her back in the form of a carrying frame. A few handfuls had fallen out, and since she was bent over under the weight of her load, it was difficult for her to bend down to pick them up. Seeing this, Liu Qishuang hurried over to gather them up for her.

“Second Sister-in-Law Wan, let me help you put them back on,” Liu Qishuang said. In truth, he was a bit afraid of Ma Cuilan—not only because she had a fiery temper and was physically strong, but also because she opposed his marriage to Wan Dongyang.

He feared that if he stepped forward to help, Ma Cuilan would scold him for fawning over her, but he didn’t expect to be wrong.

Ma Cuilan didn’t scold him; she even thanked him. Although her tone was flat, she had indeed expressed her gratitude.

“No need to thank me, no need!” Liu Qishuang quickly waved his hands. Just as he was about to leave, Ma Cuilan called him back.

“Brother Liu, there’s a fine young man from my sister-in-law’s family. If you’re interested, one of these days Xiaohua will come to your house to call you over—just come by and take a look. If you like him, tell him to go to your house as soon as possible to propose marriage; your parents will have no reason to object.”

Ma Cuilan spoke these words in a very low voice; even she felt awkward saying them. When had she ever spoken in such a furtive tone? But she had no choice but to say it.

Her third younger brother had lost his mind; he was set on marrying this ger.

She thought to herself that, after all, the Third Brother had only considered taking him in to care for him out of pity for the grandfather and grandson. If this ger could find a good home, he would let go of that idea, and it would spare the family a lot of trouble.

Liu Qishuang knew that Wan Er’s wife was opposed to his marriage to Wan Dongyang, but he didn’t hold it against her. He and Wan Dongyang were indeed not a good match.

“No, thank you, Mrs. Wan Er.” After shaking his head in refusal, Liu Qishuang took Song Saixue—who was beaming with curiosity—by the hand and walked away. Ma Cuilan watched their retreating figures and shook her head. “He’s so thoughtless. He doesn’t realize how important a good marriage is.”

Only after they had walked a good distance away did Song Saixue dare to speak up: “That Da Li guy seems pretty nice—they even helped you look for a match. Why didn’t you agree?”

Song Saixue and Liu Qishuang were born on the exact same day, month, and year. Since the Song family was arranging a match for her, she naturally felt anxious on Liu Qishuang’s behalf. She didn’t yet know about Liu Qishuang and Wan Dongyang’s relationship, so she simply felt it was a pity for Liu Qishuang.

She’d heard that the second daughter-in-law of the Wan family came from a well-off family, so her relatives must be respectable as well. Liu Qishuang was wavering inside, unsure whether to tell Saixue about his relationship with Wan Dongyang.

He was afraid Saixue would get angry if she found out later, and he was also afraid that if things didn’t work out, it would become a laughingstock in the village. After hesitating for a long time, he decided not to for the time being.

After all, his birthday was coming up soon.

The two of them left the village and headed straight for the big river in front of it.

When he saw a group of children heading toward the riverbank, Liu Qishuang glanced over at the water. A heavy rainstorm had fallen the night before, causing the river to rise dramatically; even though a day had passed, it hadn’t receded yet, and the water was still somewhat murky.

“Saixue, go tell those kids not to go down to the river.” Liu Qishuang noticed that the sun wasn’t shining brightly today; though the clouds were thin, they showed no sign of clearing, and not a patch of blue sky was visible.

It wasn’t particularly hot, so there was no need to go to the river—playing by the ditch would be enough.

Song Saixue knew that Liu Qishuang didn’t usually say much in front of the villagers. She smiled in response and called out to the group of children, but children wouldn’t be children if they actually listened—they still headed toward the riverbank.

The two picked wild berries in a patch of wild grass not far from the riverbank, slowly making their way downstream, and soon filled their leaf pouches—made from tung tree leaves—to the brim.

Afterward, they each picked a small piece of grass to seal the openings of their leaf pouches, then began to treat themselves—picking more fruit and simply popping it into their mouths.

At this time of year, yellow-thorn berries were most abundant. Although these wild berries had a slightly bitter taste, once the bitterness faded, their fragrance became even more intense, and the more they ate, the better they tasted. Just then, they heard shouts coming from upstream. Instinctively, they looked out at the river’s surface, and sure enough, they saw several heads appearing and disappearing in the distance!

The two were terrified out of their wits. In all the years this great river had flowed past the village, who knew how many lives it had claimed? It wasn’t just children who had perished in its waters; during floods, even adults could be swept away.

They dropped the fruit they were holding onto the ground and ran toward the riverbank, shouting at the top of their lungs. Fortunately, they were downstream, so they hurried to the river’s edge to see if they could reach the people in time.

Although the riverbed was wide, even during a flood the water in most places was less than a person’s height. The real problem, however, was the numerous large boulders jutting out from the riverbed and the swift current—if you lost your footing, there was no way to get back up. If you didn’t drown, you’d surely be crushed to death!

The two of them, holding hands, waded into a spot where the current wasn’t too strong and finally managed to grab the unfortunate child who had been swept right in front of them. But there was more than one child in the water—there was no way they could pull them all out one by one in time.

Seeing that Wan Xiaohua was about to be swept away, Liu Qishuang quickly let go of Song Saixue’s hand and lunged forward. But perhaps out of fear, the child—having finally grasped a lifeline—clung to him with all her might. Once Liu Qishuang was pulled under, he lost all his strength, and both of them were swept away by the current.

When he finally felt he could breathe freely again, Liu Qishuang realized he was in a small pool of water surrounded by several large rocks.

The current in this pool wasn’t strong, and he felt he was still holding onto something. He quickly pulled the child toward the shore. By the time he climbed out of the water, Song Saixue, her face streaked with tears, had finally caught up.

“Shuangshuang, Shuangshuang! You scared me to death, you scared me to death!” Song Saixue pulled her over to sit on the bank and roughly pushed away Wan Xiaohua, whom Liu Qishuang was holding onto.

After being shoved aside, Wan Xiaohua fell straight to the ground. She was completely drained of strength, her head still spinning, and she didn’t understand what was going on. All she could hear was someone crying and someone yelling at her, accusing her of nearly killing someone.

“It’s all her fault! She’s the one who dragged you down!” Song Saixue was seething with rage at that moment!

Why weren’t the other kids as clumsy as Wan Xiaohua? Not only did she fail to climb up, but she even dragged someone down with her! She nearly got Shuangshuang killed!

Liu Qishuang didn’t have the strength to speak right now. He was exhausted and felt a dull ache in his stomach and head—probably from hitting the rocks in the river earlier.

When the adults from the village finally arrived, all they saw was a group of children by the riverbank with wet clothes and pants, ranging in age from seven or eight to their teens.

“Why weren’t you all swept away? How dare you come down to the river when the water’s rising? Every single one of you ignores what your parents tell you!” The first to arrive was Zhou Daniu, an older bachelor from the village.

Living all alone, he envied the harmony of other families more than anyone. Now, seeing a group of children in trouble, his anxiety and heartache made his words a bit harsh, but he was genuinely worried about them.

After yelling at them, Zhou Daniu quickly asked each of the children who had fallen into the water if they were okay and if they were feeling any pain.

Liu Qishuang was crouched beside Wan Xiaohua at that moment. He shook his head, then pleaded with Zhou Daniu to help carry Wan Xiaohua home—he couldn’t manage it himself. After saying this, Liu Qishuang asked Song Saixue to take him home; he was feeling a bit under the weather and wanted to go back to sleep.

When Liu Qishuang got home, his parents weren’t there. He climbed into bed without a second thought, but just as his head touched the pillow, he suddenly remembered he hadn’t brought the prickly fruit back.

But he didn’t feel like moving now, so he just let it go.

The next time Liu Qishuang regained consciousness, it was already late in the night—nearing the hour of Yin—and he had been woken by hunger; otherwise, he would have slept on. In the dead of night, with all the villagers fast asleep, the darkness belonged to the insects.

As the chirping of insects reached his ears, Liu Qishuang’s stomach began to growl. He was starving, and knowing that his parents were fast asleep—as still as the dead—he wasn’t the least bit worried about being discovered. He got out of bed to find something to eat.

“Shuangshuang, are you awake?” Grandpa Liu had been keeping watch by his grandson’s bedside the whole time; the moment the child stirred, he noticed.

Liu Qishuang had just opened his eyes; all he could see was darkness. He was startled by his Grandpa’s voice at first, but in an instant, joy filled him—his Grandpa was there with him.

“Grandpa, I’m hungry.”

“Hungry? Wait a moment—Grandpa Liu will warm up some food for you.” Grandpa Liu’s voice also carried unbridled joy; the child had woken up—how wonderful. Wan Yongan had said that once the child woke up, he’d be fine.

Liu Qishuang was ravenous and didn’t want to wait in bed, so he got up in the dark and followed his grandfather to the kitchen.

Both grandfather and grandson knew full well what the couple was like; they knew the couple wouldn’t wake up, so they lit the oil lamp without a second thought. While Liu Qishuang rummaged through the cupboard for something to eat, Grandpa Liu told him everything that had happened that afternoon.

That afternoon, the Wan family had sent quite a few gifts as a token of gratitude. Moreover, aside from those gifts, his parents had also accepted other items.

Citing his rescue as justification, his parents demanded five taels from the Wan family—which just so happened to cover the cash they’d given away earlier.

“Hmph!” Liu Qishuang was furious! Those five taels of silver were his cash! They really got off easy!

If he’d known, he would’ve forced himself to stay awake instead of sleeping. After all, it was just one afternoon—and he could’ve earned five taels. What a great deal that would’ve been! Having eaten and drunk his fill, Liu Qishuang lay in bed, not the least bit sleepy.

He was worried about losing his cash, wondering if Xiaohua was all right, and even more concerned about whether the Wan family would dislike him even more—after all, his parents had actually asked for cash outright.

But his only concern was whether the Wan family would dislike him; he wasn’t worried about his marriage to Wan Dongyang. He knew that Wan Dongyang would definitely come to his house to ask for his hand in marriage.

Liu Qishuang couldn’t sleep, and neither could Wan Dongyang.

He had discussed it with his parents that day: as soon as Liu-ger’s birthday on the 18th of July passed, he would go to the Liu family to propose. The ten or so days slowly slipped by amid the blazing sun and the constant chirping of cicadas.

Early on the morning of the 20th of July, the town’s most famous matchmaker, Mrs. Zhang, entered Wanjia and headed straight for the home of the Wan Family at the back of the village.

Before long, Matchmaker Zhang emerged from the Wan residence, closely followed by Wan Dongyang’s sister-in-law, Lin Qiuyue. Both women, their arms laden with gifts, set off for the Liu family’s home at the foot of South Mountain.

In no time at all, villagers who encountered them along the way spread the news that had shocked the entire village.

The Wan family had come to the Liu family to propose marriage.