After hearing Qin Yihuai's words, Ye Zhinan didn't sleep a wink all night.
The next day, she put on the clothes Liu Ruonan had given her and came to the Liu family's door.
"Miss Ye, what are you standing at the door for? Why don't you come in?"
Wang Zhilan, carrying a basket, had just come back from the fields. Seeing Ye Zhinan, she warmly pulled her into the house.
"No wonder you couldn't get in. Old Liu has gone to the town to deliver cloth and will be back soon. We really owe it to you. Otherwise, our family would still be struggling to make ends meet!"
As Wang Zhilan was talking, she poured a glass of water.
Ye Zhinan sized the other woman up carefully. Her face was a bit rounder than before.
It seemed that they were living a fairly good life.
Wang Zhilan didn't seem to notice Ye Zhinan's scrutinizing look and continued, "It's really fortunate that Miss Ye helped us find some people to work in the fields before. Otherwise, once Ruonan got married, I'd be the only one left at home. How could I manage all the work by myself!"
"It seems that the cloth - weaving business is doing well."
Wang Zhilan paused for a moment, then let out a hearty laugh.
"To be honest with you, Miss. In order to make Ruonan feel comfortable after she got married, we emptied our family's savings and prepared quite a lot of dowry. Now, we don't have much of our life - savings left!"
In Ye Zhinan's impression, Yan Xuan was a steady young man. His family wasn't extremely wealthy, but at least they were well - educated and polite. How could this happen?
"What are you talking to Miss Ye about?"
Suddenly, Liu Dongxing's voice came from outside the door. Despite his thin build, his voice was deep and booming, which gave Ye Zhinan quite a start.
Wang Zhilan looked displeased. "Miss Ye is not an outsider. I'm not the kind of person who gossips."
"Let's just chat. Brother Liu, I'd like to ask you to weave a piece of cloth for my mother."
With that, Ye Zhinan took out some silver coins and put them on the table.
"Miss Ye, you're being too polite. Take the silver back. I'll deliver the cloth to you in a week."
Liu Dongxing's voice left no room for refusal, so Ye Zhinan didn't insist anymore. She left a packet of marinated meat and then left.
After she left, Wang Zhilan opened the packet of marinated meat and immediately noticed a small cloth bag hidden inside. The bag contained the silver coins Ye Zhinan had just given.
The couple stared blankly at the packet of silver and looked gratefully in the direction Ye Zhinan had left.
Ye Zhinan wasn't as care - free as they were. Hearing that the Liu family had gone through so much hardship because of their daughter's wedding, she felt uneasy.
Parents' deep love for their children has always been the same from ancient times to the present.
She decided to go and find Liu Ruonan to ask her directly.
But just as she reached the village entrance, she realized she had nothing in her hands. So she got into her space and randomly picked some vegetables and eggs.
Unexpectedly, as soon as she reached the Yan family's door, she heard the sound of something hard hitting the wall and shattering inside.
Worried, she rushed to the door in three quick steps and knocked on it vigorously.
"Who is it?"
The one who opened the door was an old woman with cloudy eyes. Although she was hunched over, judging from her clothes, she should be Liu Ruonan's mother - in - law.
"Auntie, I'm here to see Ruonan."
Liu Ruonan seemed to have heard her name and quickly walked out from inside.
The moment Ye Zhinan saw her, she was stunned.
Liu Ruonan's belly was bulging. Judging from the size, she was already four or five months pregnant. But just now, Wang Zhilan and Liu Dongxing hadn't mentioned a single word about it. Did they not know?
She looked at Liu Ruonan with a puzzled look in her eyes and found that there were tears in the corners of the latter's eyes.
Liu Ruonan noticed the slight change in Ye Zhinan's expression and quickly forced a smile.
"Mother, this is my Sister Ye."
With that, she warmly grabbed the other's arm but didn't immediately walk into the house. Instead, she carefully glanced at the old woman.
"Since you're an acquaintance, come in and have a seat!"
Grandma Yan still had a wrinkled face pulled tight. Her eyes openly sized Ye Zhinan up and down.
"I came in a hurry and just brought some meat and eggs. I hope you don't mind."
Fortunately, after hearing the noise inside the house, she had timely replaced the vegetables with meat.
Hearing this, Liu Ruonan looked at Ye Zhinan guiltily, but Grandma Yan wasn't the least bit polite. She took the basket and rummaged through it right in front of them.
"Hey, you've come all the way. Why bring anything? Ruonan often talks about you. I've finally met you in person. You two chat. I'll go and get busy."
With that, she took the basket and left without even inviting them into the house.
"Sister Ye, come into my room and have a seat. You must be exhausted from coming all this way!"
Liu Ruonan grabbed her hand, but she paused when they walked past the main house.
Ye Zhinan noticed the subtle change in the other's expression and took a look at the room from the outside.
Although the room was small, it was well - equipped. There were also quite a few books piled on the table.
It seemed that Yan Xuan was indeed a scholar.
Ye Zhinan quickly scanned the things in the room, and her eyebrows gradually furrowed.
Apart from the man's things, there wasn't a single thing belonging to a woman at all. There wasn't even a bronze mirror.
"Do you live here?"
She finally couldn't help asking.
Liu Ruonan nodded and nervously poured water.
"This bed is a bit small, isn't it? Could it be that your husband is a dwarf?"
Ye Zhinan didn't hold back, but seeing the slightly bulging belly in front of her, she changed her tone. "I'm just worried about you. If you still regard me as your sister, just tell me!"
After hearing this, the tears in Liu Ruonan's eyes couldn't be held back anymore and streamed down her face.
"This isn't my room. Since I'm pregnant, my mother - in - law said she was worried that I would affect Lang Yan's studies, so she asked me to move to the wood - shed next door."
"The wood - shed?"
A chill ran down Ye Zhinan's spine.
To let a pregnant woman live in a drafty wood - shed!
Although the Yan family wasn't a wealthy one, since there was a scholar in the family, they were respected in the village. So the family members were a bit arrogant. But judging from Grandma Yan's behavior just now, their arrogance was no small matter.
Liu Ruonan cried for a while, soaking several handkerchiefs. Although Ye Zhinan was angry, she didn't want to jump to conclusions rashly, nor did she want to lose her temper in front of a pregnant woman.
"Where's Yan Xuan?"
Liu Ruonan's face twitched, and she immediately wiped away her tears. "Sister, please don't blame him. He's working hard for the imperial exam right now!"
Ye Zhinan had heard that Yan Xuan was going to take the scholar - level exam. The Yan family had always hoped that there would be another scholar in the family. But what did this have to do with letting his wife live in the wood - shed?
"Don't be nervous. A pregnant woman should relax. It's good for you and the baby. I'm just asking casually."
Since Ye Zhinan had come in, she had been observing Liu Ruonan. She was newly married and pregnant, but there was no sparkle on her face at all. She was like a completely different person from the cheerful girl she used to be.
Women, from ancient times to the present, really are safest when they don't get married or have children.
Liu Ruonan's sobs interrupted her train of thought.
"Lang Yan has gone to the town. I heard that the teachers there are quite good."
Even in this lousy town, cram schools before exams are popular!
But was he really going to the town to review for the imperial exam?
A big question mark popped up in Ye Zhinan's mind.
"Since he's not here, why are you still living in the wood - shed?"