The next day, Wufu and Hongyu went to the Hundred Treasures Silver Building in the town. When they reached the village, they saw Zhou Xueli and his wife pulling and tugging at each other.
"Miss, it’s Uncle Xueli and Auntie over there," Hongyu said in a low voice, carrying a bamboo basket on her back.
Wufu stepped forward and made a curtsey to the couple, "Uncle, Auntie."
"It’s Wufu, where are you heading?" Zhou Xueli seemed quite uncomfortable.
Lady Liang, on the other hand, wiped the corner of her eyes with a handkerchief and forced a smile, "Has Wufu returned from the county?"
"Yes." Only then did Wufu notice that her eyes were red, and that she was carrying a small bundle, so she asked, "Where is Auntie going?"
As this question was asked, the two seemed even more uncomfortable.
"There’s some business at my parental home, so I thought of making a trip there," Lady Liang said without looking at Zhou Xueli and just informing Wufu.
"Oh, I have some things to do in the town. Uncle, Auntie, I’ll take my leave first," Wufu didn’t continue the conversation, curtseyed to them again, and left with Hongyu.
Behind them came Lady Liang’s soft scolding, "Husband, don’t try to persuade me anymore, I must go back to my parental home. Your elder brother, he..."
Zhou Xueli was saying something too, but his voice was so low it was inaudible.
Wufu overheard just enough to know that Zhou Xuennian had done something outrageous. What had he done to drive his sister-in-law to return to her parental home?
But what did it have to do with her?
Accompanied by Hongyu, Wufu arrived at the Hundred Treasures Silver Building. Jin Xi’s face lit up with a smile when he saw her. He asked her to sit down, then hurried to invite Shopkeeper Lin from the back office.
"Miss, please wait a moment, our shopkeeper is attending to some guests." After a short while, Jin Xi came out to relay the message.
Wufu nodded with a smile, "Have there been any new jade ornaments recently?"
Jin Xi busily presented a tray of freshly crafted Jade Ornaments for her to review.
A quarter of an hour later, Shopkeeper Lin came out accompanied by a young master and mistress, followed by three maids.
Wufu turned her head just in time to meet the young master’s gaze; he stared at her wide-eyed with surprise.
Wufu was slightly taken aback, thinking whether young men these days were so bold and rude as to stare at a woman like that.
When she saw Shopkeeper Lin, she nodded slightly and said, "Shopkeeper Lin, I’ll wait in the back office and also take a look at what the craftsmen are busy with."
"Good, good, go ahead. I’ll come find you to talk in a bit," Shopkeeper Lin waved his hand and then said to the young master, "Young master, your Jade Ornament order will be delivered to your inn shortly."
The young master watched Wufu disappear into the back office, then asked, "Shopkeeper, who was that girl just now?"
Shopkeeper Lin was stunned for a moment, then laughed, "Oh, she is also a craftsman of our Silver House."
"So young? What’s her name?" The young master was quite surprised. They didn’t have such a young craftsman at their house.
Shopkeeper Lin smiled without replying, thinking, since when is it appropriate for a man to directly inquire about a lady’s personal details?
The young master seemed to understand what Shopkeeper Lin was thinking, his face turned red, and he opened his mouth but said nothing.
"Brother, let’s go, Mother and the rest have been waiting for a long time," the young mistress pushed him.
The young master had no choice but to agree and move forward.
After seeing them off, the young mistress left with the maids ahead of her brother, who seemed reluctant and looked back towards the Hundred Treasures Silver Building once more. After a moment of thought, he finally left.
Once everyone was out of sight, Shopkeeper Lin returned to the Silver House. He first instructed another assistant to deliver the goods to the inn mentioned by the young master and settle the bill before he entered the back office.