When they reached Yangshu Village, Chen Er first visited Yang Da’an, distributing some of the goods he brought with him. Then he and Yang Dongzhi, loaded with goods, proceeded to Yang Chuxia’s house.
However, on reaching Yang Chuxia’s gate, he was genuinely startled. It was his first visit to Yang Chuxia’s house, and he had not expected the courtyard of the third branch of the Yang Family to be so expansive, matching those of the wealthy families in town.
There were even two red lanterns hanging at the entrance, and the stones that built the courtyard wall had designs on them. The place exuded affluence.
After entering the courtyard, a young servant escorted the two of them to the front courtyard, where a maid brought them tea. After a while, Yang Chuxia’s whole family, supporting Old Yang, came over.
The grandeur of it all left Chen Er, a man from the mountains, utterly dumbfounded. As a matter of fact, even Yang Dongzhi, who had been married for two years and never visited this place since her wedding, was surprised at the wealth of Yang Chuxia’s household.
"Is everything at home settled?" Old Yang spoke first.
Chen Er snapped out of his stupor, bowed to Old Yang, and replied, "Thank you, grandfather, everything at home is settled. I came today to bring Dongzhi home."
"Good, that’s good. If anything happens in the future, send a message here. Don’t act foolishly like your mother did." Old Yang, still worried, issued a few more orders.
Once Old Yang gave his instructions and asked Chen Er to chat with Yang Dachuan and the others, he finally allowed him to take Yang Dongzhi back to the mountains.
Several days passed, and Yang Chuxia, keeping track of time, realized it was time to check on all her businesses. She would typically pay a visit once a year after opening each of these businesses, but she hadn’t visited any this year since Chinese New Year.
Although each business had trusted personnel stationed, people could change, so occasional visits were still necessary.
After thinking it over, Yang Chuxia decided to stop by Ye Zi’an’s house. She had to tell him about her intended business inspection trip.
Upon reaching the small building, she found Zi’an lounging and drying his hair while holding a book in one hand.
"Why are you washing your hair at this time?"
"The weather is too hot. I took a bath and just washed my hair as well." Seeing her come in, Zi’an chuckled as usual.
Yang Chuxia saw him with his hair loose and wet, droplets sliding down the strands of hair onto his forehead. Perhaps due to the heat, his cheeks were slightly flushed, and his dark eyes were clouded with mist.
Confronted with Zi’an’s sensual gaze, his lips slightly parted, and a charming smile at the corner of his mouth, Yang Chuxia was spellbound.
Snapping out of her reverie, she suddenly threw herself onto Zi’an, "My beauty, you’re so beautiful! Let me tease you a bit."
With that, she hooked a finger under Zi’an’s chin and leaned in to kiss him.
The weight of both of them made the lounge chair creak under their combined weight. This sound, so strange to Yang Chuxia’s ears, reminded her of the creaking sounds made during lovemaking.
"Ah, with such an attractive man, I am sure I will miss you terribly on my trip," she sighed.
"Where are you going?" Zi’an grasped one of her hands, kissed it, and asked.
"I am going to inspect the businesses. I had originally planned to do so in June." Yang Chuxia replied, "But your return delayed my plans. Now, I really can’t put it off any longer."
"I’ll go with you. Then you won’t have to miss me."
"You?" Yang Chuxia looked at him, then shook her head, "You better not go. Stay home and prepare; I intend to become the Madam of the Recommended Man."
"But I want to accompany you." Zi’an murmured, "We haven’t spent much time together in the latter half of this year."