To Be the Male Lead's Deceased First Wife in a Historical Chinese Exam-focused Novel - Chapter 33

Chapter 33: You Don’t Like Me

Seeing Wen Ying’s serious expression, Yan An was speechless.

Finally, she gave Wen Ying a pained look. “We’ve learned enough for today. It’s time to sleep. Let’s not talk anymore.”

If they kept talking, it would become ambiguous. It would be like they had a criminal record, and they would have to explain their relationship to their future partners.

Wen Ying was stunned for a moment. She clearly didn’t expect Yan An to react this way, looking as if she didn’t want to talk to her at all.

Yan An was the first to get up and go back to the room. She climbed into bed and lay down with her back to Wen Ying.

Seeing that Yan An had gone back to the room, Wen Ying put out the fire in the stove. After checking that there were no hidden dangers in the house, she went back to the room. In the dark room, she could vaguely see Yan An’s silhouette with her back to her. Wen Ying thought for a moment, then climbed into bed and slowly moved closer. She asked softly, “What’s wrong? Did I say something wrong just now?”

Yan An’s body tensed up. She was so startled by Wen Ying’s actions that her heart almost stopped. She grumbled unhappily, “Just talk. Why are you getting so close?”

Her actions reminded her of what happened this morning. Although it was clear that Wen Ying was at a disadvantage in that situation, Yan An didn’t really mean to take advantage of her. She was also very embarrassed!

So she felt that they were both at fault for what happened in the morning. Since they were both at fault, it was a tie. If they acted as if nothing had happened, Yan An could still get along with Wen Ying very naturally.

Wen Ying was silent for a moment, then pulled the blanket toward Yan An.

“Yan An, why are you so resistant to me getting close?”

Wen Ying’s tone was disheartened. She was clearly bothered by Yan An’s actions. Their relationship had already improved so much. Did Yan An still dislike her?

“I just think we need to maintain some boundaries!” Yan An reiterated this point. She knew there was no future for them, so of course, she had to keep her distance to avoid future heartbreak.

“Is that so?”

Wen Ying’s voice was very soft. As she moved her body back, the distance between her and Yan An widened slightly. Yan An heard the last sentence floating from her direction.

“I know you don’t like me.”

And it was true. She and Yan An were not a good match, either in appearance or in other aspects.

After she said that, the room fell silent. There wasn’t even the slightest sound of someone turning over.

Yan An’s hands curled up under the blanket. “It’s not that I don’t like you. It’s just that I…” Yan An couldn’t continue.

It wasn’t that she didn’t like her. It was just that it wasn’t the kind of liking one has for a lover.

Yan An bit her lip, feeling a little dejected. She frowned in frustration, a little annoyed by the situation, which felt so ambiguous.

Couldn’t they just be platonic roommates?

Yan An was not the kind of person who would play with someone’s feelings with an irresponsible attitude.

After that, no one spoke again, and the room was once again plunged into a long silence.

They slept until Auntie Li’s rooster crowed, but they could still see that it was dark outside. The days were getting shorter and the nights were getting longer.

Yan An didn’t want to move from under the blanket, but she had a lot of important things to do today. If she didn’t get up early, she probably wouldn’t be able to finish them all.

She sat up and looked at Wen Ying, who was sleeping on the outside. She was surprised.

She didn’t expect that after they went to bed so early last night, Wen Ying would still be asleep. It was quite rare.

Seeing that she was still asleep, Yan An carefully got up and stepped over Wen Ying. Fortunately, the beds were hard. If it were a soft bed like in modern times, it would have been impossible to do this without waking the other person.

She got out of bed and used the faint light to put on her clothes. When she opened the door, it creaked. Yan An’s heart skipped a beat. She looked back at the bed. Fortunately, Wen Ying didn’t wake up.

But after she went out, to prevent the door from making another sound, she only left it ajar and didn’t close it completely. She thought that she had to find a way to fix this door later so that it wouldn’t make this annoying noise again.

After washing up, Yan An combed her hair and tried to tie it herself.

She sometimes tied her hair in a ponytail in modern times, but now, it felt as if her hands weren’t listening to her. Especially with a hair tie, she couldn’t focus on one side without messing up the other. In the end, she managed to tie it, but the whole thing was loose and crooked.

Yan An: “…”

“Heh, I’ve already managed to tie it like this on my first try. I’m so good, aren’t I?”

Yan An felt much better. She went into the kitchen to light a fire and prepare breakfast.

After the fire was lit, the kitchen became much brighter. She looked at the things in the kitchen, thinking about what to eat this morning. It would be very comfortable to have a bowl of steaming hot handmade noodles on a cold, dewy morning, but Yan An wasn’t very good at kneading dough. She was a little afraid that she wouldn’t do it right.

But then she thought that she didn’t know when Wen Ying would wake up. If she made it too early, it would be cold by the time Wen Ying got up. Kneading the dough now would be a good way to wait for Wen Ying to wake up.

Before kneading the dough, Yan An first started boiling the lamb soup in the pot to use as the base for the noodles.

Although Yan An had been doing physical labor for a while, she still felt that her hands weren’t strong enough. For example, halfway through kneading the dough, she was already feeling a little sore.

Yan An bit her lip in shame. Getting sore so easily was a great humiliation for a lesbian!

She managed to knead the dough with sheer determination. She then covered it to let it rest for a while. While she was waiting, she went to feed the chickens and pull the weeds from the vegetable patch. Finally, she couldn’t help but shrink her neck and pull her clothes tighter.

While she was busy, the sky gradually brightened, but the weather was still very cold. It was like a sudden drop in temperature overnight. If she touched cold water with her hands, they would quickly turn red.

As she was sweeping the courtyard, Wen Ying came out, fully dressed. She saw Yan An and a look of remorse flashed in her eyes. She walked up to Yan An, took the broom from her hand, and said, “I’m sorry. I woke up late.”

She had been tossing and turning all night with too many things on her mind. She finally couldn’t hold on and fell into a heavy sleep in the middle of the night, but she didn’t expect to sleep so soundly that she didn’t even notice Yan An getting up.

“What’s there to apologize for? Winter is for sleeping. And it’s good for you to get more sleep. Maybe you’ll even grow taller.”

Wen Ying looked at her, as if she wanted to say something, but in the end, she just said, “What are we having for breakfast? I’ll go prepare it.”

“No need. I’ve already kneaded the dough. We’ll have soup noodles later.” Yan An went to wash her hands. She went into the kitchen and saw that the lamb soup was almost ready, and the dough had rested enough, so she started pulling the noodles.

Wen Ying quickly finished sweeping and came in to help after washing her hands. She looked at Yan An, who was busy, and said, “If I don’t wake up in the future, you can wake me up.”

“Why would I wake you up?” Yan An looked at her strangely. “You should get more sleep if you can. Haven’t you noticed that you look a little better after getting enough sleep these past few days?”

Upon hearing this, Wen Ying subconsciously touched her face. Did she look better?

“If you really have nothing to do, come and help me pull the noodles.” Yan An moved to the side, making room for Wen Ying.

Wen Ying took over the task of pulling the noodles. Yan An then turned to add seasonings to the lamb soup. She then put all the lamb soup into a clay pot. They wouldn’t need all of it for breakfast, and the rest could be eaten for dinner. Now that the pot was empty, she could also fry two eggs.

Since the county magistrate’s daughter’s “generous donation,” their quality of life had improved significantly compared to the days of eating wild vegetables.

After frying the eggs, Yan An poured some of the lamb soup back into the pot. Wen Ying also cooperated by putting the pulled noodles into the pot. With Yan An’s movements, two bowls of lamb soup noodles with fried eggs were soon ready. The aroma of the food filled the air.

Their stomachs growled at the same time. Wen Ying was a little embarrassed. She picked up a bowl and started eating by herself, her ears secretly turning red.

Yan An raised an eyebrow and smiled. “What’s there to be embarrassed about? Didn’t my stomach growl too?”

After saying that, she also sat down and started eating. Since there were only two of them, they were too lazy to take the bowls outside to eat. Especially with how cold it was outside, it was much warmer in the kitchen with the fire burning.

“I’ll be going out after I finish eating. Don’t work too hard at home, okay?” Yan An couldn’t help but remind her, afraid that Wen Ying wouldn’t be able to stay idle.

“Okay, I know,” Wen Ying said.

Before Yan An left, Wen Ying untied the hair that Yan An had tied herself and re-tied it for her. It looked much better than the loose and messy way it was before.

Yan An thanked her, took a money pouch from Wen Ying, put on the bamboo basket filled with the winter bamboo shoots Wen Ying had dug yesterday, and went to the village entrance to take the ox cart.

Wen Ying watched Yan An leave. It was the first time Yan An had gone out alone. Wen Ying was a little worried, but Yan An wouldn’t let her go with her, so she had no choice but to suppress her worries.

To keep herself from overthinking at home, Wen Ying took her hoe and went into the mountain again to look for winter bamboo shoots.

…

Yan An got on Auntie Li’s ox cart. Auntie Li saw that she was alone and couldn’t help but laugh. “Is Wen Ying not going with you today?”

“No. She has to stay home to look after the chickens,” Yan An said with a smile. She put her basket in the cart and sat down.

Although the Yan and Li clans had some disputes, it wasn’t to the point where they would spit at each other if they saw one another on the road. Some people who were not naturally prone to conflict would still greet each other warmly, and Auntie Li was one of them.

After a long, bumpy ride, they arrived in town. Yan An carried the bamboo shoots, which were covered with a cloth. She didn’t go to buy a scale right away. Instead, she went to the market to ask about the price of vegetables. When she learned that the price of winter bamboo shoots was generally between 20 and 30 wen per jin, Yan An couldn’t help but be astonished.

She had dug for winter bamboo shoots once and knew how hard it was to find them, but she didn’t expect the price to be even more expensive than pork.

And compared to the few or dozen jins on other people’s stalls, Yan An had more than 40 jins, which was a lot.

With so many, if she were to set up a stall like others, she didn’t know how long it would take to sell them all. Yan An thought for a moment and decided to carry the half-full basket of winter bamboo shoots directly to the largest restaurant in town. Since it was still early and not mealtime, there weren’t many people in the restaurant, so she wouldn’t affect their business. Yan An, with a thick face, walked in.

Since this Fragrant Pavilion was the largest restaurant in town, the people who came here to eat were naturally not ordinary people. When they saw Yan An wearing a cotton coat and carrying a basket, they could tell that she was a peasant with not much money.

The most valuable thing on her was probably her cotton coat.

But…

The people in the restaurant hesitated for a moment. Although her clothes were very common, her face was extremely beautiful. And she didn’t give off the vibe of a commoner. Everyone was a little unsure of her identity for a moment.

The shopkeeper quickly came over. When he saw her face, a look of realization appeared on his face. He quickly bowed and said, “Mr. Yan, you’re here. What would you like to eat today?”

Yan An was still nervous about how to start, but when she heard the shopkeeper’s words, she was stunned. She didn’t expect him to recognize her.

“Hello, shopkeeper. I’m not here to eat today,” Yan An said, pursing her lips, her face a little flushed. “Could we speak in private?”

It was obviously not a good idea to discuss these things in the lobby of a restaurant.

The shopkeeper was stunned for a moment, then smiled and agreed. He wanted to lead Yan An to the back room, but Yan An refused. He had no choice but to take her to the backyard. The backyard was where the restaurant staff were busy. When they went in, they could see someone washing vegetables by the well.

“Mr. Yan, may I ask what you want to talk about?” The shopkeeper had a polite smile on his face. The county magistrate’s daughter had brought Yan An to the Fragrant Pavilion a few times. He saw that they were close, so he knew that he couldn’t be disrespectful to her.

Yan An put down her basket and directly lifted the cloth. She said bluntly, “I’m here to ask if you buy winter bamboo shoots. These bamboo shoots were just dug out yesterday, so they’re very fresh.”

Listening to her words and looking at the bamboo shoots in her basket, which indeed looked like they had just been dug out yesterday, the shopkeeper’s face froze for a moment. He then looked at Yan An’s face, a look of confusion flashing in his eyes.

How could a scholar be doing the work of a small vendor?

“Mr. Yan, may I be so bold as to ask if you’ve run into any difficulties?” The shopkeeper hesitated for a moment but still asked.

“No. I just want to make some money. I think I have quite a lot here. If you need it, I can sell it all to you at once. It will save you from having to buy from a bunch of different places, and it will save me a lot of trouble.” After she started talking, Yan An became more and more composed. People had to live, and there was nothing to be ashamed of.

She was so direct. The shopkeeper looked at the bamboo shoots, and their quality was indeed very good, but she didn’t agree right away. She said, “Mr. Yan, please wait a moment. I’ll go get the manager in charge of procurement and see if the kitchen needs more.”

If the kitchen had already purchased enough, they would have to store Yan An’s bamboo shoots until they were no longer as fresh.

“Okay, I understand. Thank you, shopkeeper.” Yan An bowed to her.

The shopkeeper quickly bowed back. This person was, after all, a scholar with a title, while she was just a commoner.

Not long after, the procurement manager came over. When she saw the winter bamboo shoots Yan An had brought, her eyes lit up. Their size and quality were very good, and the quantity was also enough. Most importantly, they were fresh. She couldn’t help but say, “Are these just dug out from the ground? You must be very good at digging them!”

“Yes, my wife just dug them out yesterday.” Yan An felt a little relieved when she saw her reaction. It seemed that as long as they could agree on a price, the deal was set.

When she heard Yan An say “wife,” both of them paused and looked at each other, as if they had just realized that this woman was married.

“Then your wife is very capable,” the procurement manager said with a smile. “Since you’ve come all the way here, you must know the market price. How about 25 wen per jin? I’ll take all of it.”

25 wen… This was a little different from the price Yan An had in mind.

She shook her head. “I’m sure you know what the quality of the low-priced winter bamboo shoots sold outside is like. My bamboo shoots are fresh and of good quality. How about 29 wen per jin?”

When they heard her offer, both the procurement manager and the shopkeeper laughed. “Mr. Yan, you can’t raise the price like that. The most expensive ones on the market are only 30 wen per jin.”

Yan An also laughed. “The price you would get from purchasing outside is about the same. And I’ve brought them directly to your doorstep. Isn’t that worth something?”

“Heh, you’re right. A scholar’s legs are worth something.” The manager pondered. “How about 27 wen per jin?”

Yan An listened to her tone and felt that there was still room for negotiation. She thought for a moment and said, “28. Let’s settle on that and I’ll sell them all to you.”

The procurement manager and the shopkeeper looked at each other. They thought about Yan An’s situation and decided to do her a favor. They readily agreed. “Then 28 wen per jin!”

Once they agreed, someone quickly came over with a scale. In the end, Yan An’s bamboo shoots weighed a total of 48 jins, which came out to 1,344 wen.

The shopkeeper handed the money to Yan An and finally couldn’t help but ask, “Mr. Yan, why are you not at home studying? Why are you doing these things?”

Even if she had to sell these things, she could have sent her wife. Why would she lower herself to do this?

When Yan An heard this, she knew that the news of her “amnesia” probably hadn’t spread to every street and alley. She smiled calmly. “I’m not studying anymore. I’m going to be a village cook. I came to town today to buy some tools for that.”

She said it very openly, without any shame or hiding. This made the people who heard her seem a little overly surprised.

“What? Not studying anymore?” The shopkeeper’s voice couldn’t help but get a little louder. She looked at Yan An in disbelief. “Mr. Yan, you’re still young. Why are you giving up so early?”

In her opinion, she probably thought that Yan An was so disheartened by failing the exam that she had this idea.

“I hurt my head when I fell into the water. I’ve forgotten a lot of things. It’s too difficult to pick it up again, so I’ve decided to find another way to make a living.” Yan An’s mind turned. She wanted to befriend them. These people, who dealt with the town, probably knew a lot of things she didn’t. There was no harm in befriending them.

The shopkeeper and the procurement manager looked at each other, both feeling sorry. They had truly thought that Heyun County would produce a successful imperial scholar.

Perhaps Yan An’s story was too shocking, and she seemed very easy to get along with. The three of them ended up talking for a while longer. When they heard about the things Yan An wanted to buy, the procurement manager immediately introduced her to many good and affordable places.

Yan An bowed to them solemnly. “Thank you both for your help and guidance. I will never forget it!”

She also made herself sound a little more refined.

“You’re welcome. We’re just helping each other out.” The other two waved their hands. The manager added, “Mr. Yan, if you have more winter bamboo shoots later, you can bring them over. We’ll take them all.”

Because winter bamboo shoots were hard to dig and the yield was not very high, they were a rare delicacy in winter. Whenever this time of year came, the wealthy and powerful would crave them. The restaurant would never have enough.

“Okay. Thank you both again.” Yan An bowed again. Since she had a lot of things to do today, she didn’t stay any longer. After saying goodbye to the two of them, she went straight to the places the manager had mentioned, hoping to get everything she needed as soon as possible.

She found the place that Manager Wu had told her about. When she was discussing with Wen Ying, Wen Ying had already told her about the approximate prices. Compared to the prices she had seen, the place Manager Wu told her about was indeed cheaper. After looking at the finished products in the store, Yan An immediately ordered 300 sets of bowls and chopsticks. It would take about half a month for them to be fired. She paid a 30% deposit and, after signing the contract, rushed to the next place.

She didn’t order new tables and chairs today. She was still a little hopeful about the used ones Auntie Li was keeping an eye out for. After all, even the cheapest ones that Manager Wu introduced would not be cheaper than used ones.

Cooking utensils like woks also needed to be custom-made. Yan An almost ran all over the town to order everything she needed. Finally, she went to buy an ox and a cart.

But unfortunately, the cart also needed to be custom-made. There were no ready-made ones.

Yan An ended up buying a young and strong ox for 7,000 wen, but since she didn’t have a cart… Yan An had no choice but to lead it back to Nanya Village.

Yan An: “…”

But it was true. Even if she had a cart, she wouldn’t dare to drive it back by herself.

She bought some more things in town, but she was worried that she would be too slow and it would get dark on the way back. Yan An could only lead the ox and head back early.

She looked at the ox’s back with a longing in her eyes, but she still didn’t dare to climb on it. Fortunately, the ox was quite gentle and didn’t act stubborn with her. Otherwise, Yan An would have had the urge to cry.

As she led the ox toward Nanya Village, Yan An vaguely remembered that she hadn’t discussed with Wen Ying where all this money came from. Buying an ox and other things added up to a lot of money. It was a windfall!

On the way, she also ran into people from Nanya Village. They saw her leading an ox and came over to chat with her. Yan An was feeling miserable inside. She was so tired of this kind of acquaintance-based society. Why did everyone have to come up and ask about everything? Couldn’t they have some boundaries?

“Oh, I borrowed it from the young lady,” Yan An said, biting the bullet.

These people would probably not go and ask that young lady if she had lent Yan An money, right?

When those people heard that, they probably guessed who the young lady was and stopped asking questions. They even thought that although Yan An had amnesia, her relationship with her was still good.

Halfway there, the sky was already getting dark. The people from the same village walked faster and had long left Yan An behind. Yan An’s heart was a little anxious. She quickened her pace, but she had only taken a few steps before the ox pulled her to a stop.

Yan An looked at the ox, which had stopped and started eating grass by the side of the road. “…”

“Why are you hungry now of all times?!”

“There’s food for you at home!”

She pulled at the ox, but this time, the ox was stubborn. It didn’t move no matter how hard she pulled. Its head was pulled to the side, but its mouth was still diligently chewing on the grass.

Yan An: “…”

“If you don’t go now, it will get dark!” Yan An bent down and said to the ox’s head.

“Moo—”

Yan An watched the ox continue to eat grass. She took a deep breath, her face expressionless, and sat down on the side, staring at the ox eating.

If she had a phone now, she would definitely search online for what to do if an ox refused to walk.

“Heh, this ox is so arrogant.”

As the sky got darker and darker, the ox showed no sign of stopping eating. Yan An was getting anxious, but she didn’t dare to hit the ox’s backside to make it move like other people would. She was afraid the ox would kick her.

Just as she was getting frustrated and trying to pull the ox, she suddenly heard Wen Ying’s voice coming from a distance. She was stunned. She stopped pulling and looked in the direction of Nanya Village.

From far away, a figure was running toward her.