Su Yurou narrowed her eyes slightly, wishing with all her heart that time would stop at this moment.
Let them remain in this pose.
She could clearly feel the warmth and strength of Shen Yun's hand on the back of hers.
This made her heart race and her feelings stir.
But she soon convinced herself to withdraw her hand.
Her second brother had said that men disliked women who were too forward.
What they desired was something they couldn't have, a game of push and pull.
Before Shen Yun could make a move, Su Yurou withdrew her hand at the opportune moment, placing it over her chest, her fair face flushed like a ripe peach.
She bit her red lip, a hint of shyness in her eyes.
She was like a blooming peony, suddenly closing its petals, gorgeously vibrant yet not fully revealed.
Watching this scene, Su Xiaoqi jumped off the mule cart, shaking her head and muttering, "Tsk tsk..." Such a pair of illicit lovers.
"Ah, Su... Xiaoqi, you, you mustn't misunderstand. There's nothing between Shen Jiefu and me. Don't think too much of it," Su Yurou explained nervously and anxiously.
She seemed afraid Su Xiaoqi would think otherwise.
Su Xiaoqi rolled her eyes to the sky, "Oh, so what if I misunderstand? What if I think too much?"
Su Xiaoqi's aggressive tone made Su Yurou's eyes well up, and she lowered her head in shame and anger.
Tears welled in her eyes, making her look pitiable even to another woman.
Even Su Xiaoqi, a woman herself, felt a pang of sympathy, let alone a man.
Shen Yun cast a reproving glance at Su Xiaoqi and cupped his hands towards Su Yurou, "My apologies, my wife is ill-mannered. Miss Su, please forgive her."
"Bah! Shen Yun, who the hell is ill-mannered? Why should you apologize?" Who do you think you are?
Su Xiaoqi launched into a tirade of complaints.
She verbally assaulted Shen Yun from head to toe, and only then did she feel a bit better.
Then, without looking back, she climbed onto the mule cart, lifted the curtain, and saw Shen Yun wasn't following.
She glared at him, "It's almost dark. Do you want to walk back again?"
This remark directly referred to the last time she had given him the cold shoulder and abandoned him halfway.
Shen Yun responded without hesitation:
"It's no trouble for me to walk back, but I'm afraid my wife might encounter that fierce wild boar again and be unable to escape."
"Bah! You just keep cursing me..." Su Xiaoqi retorted fiercely. Seeing him approach, she intended to repeat her previous trick of flicking the curtain in his face.
However, the moment she grasped a corner of the curtain, before she could let go, Shen Yun seized both her hand and the curtain.
Su Xiaoqi's small hand was completely engulfed in Shen Yun's palm.
Whether intentionally or unintentionally, the thick calluses on his palm gently brushed against the back of Su Xiaoqi's hand, causing a ticklish sensation in her heart.
But she couldn't help but recall the moment Shen Yun's hands had overlapped with Su Yurou's just moments ago.
A wave of nausea washed over her, and she mercilessly flung his hand away.
Watching the curtain fall, blocking Su Xiaoqi's view.
"Shen Gong... Jiefu, would you like me to have my carriage take you back?" Su Yurou asked softly and tenderly.
A cold glint flashed in Shen Yun's eyes, and he refused in a deep voice.
Then, with a nonchalant expression, he lifted the curtain and climbed into the cart.
He sat beside Su Xiaoqi and calmly asked Zhao Laoshi to drive.
His expression was so composed, as if nothing had happened.
It was as if all of this was Su Xiaoqi's unreasonable fuss.
But only Su Xiaoqi knew that she and Shen Yun would never go back to the way things were.
It was time for her to be clear-headed.
To Shen Yun, she was merely a beggar from the ruined City God Temple in Mianzhou.
And Shen Yun, to her, was merely someone who could help her level up.
This was different from Su Yurou's role in Shen Yun's life.
She was the male lead's destined partner, the female protagonist.
She was born with a protagonist's halo, possessing advantages in background, appearance, and temperament.
She stood no chance against her.
Perhaps after completing her role as a supporting character, she should quietly step aside.
If she dared to obstruct the path of the male and female protagonists, she would truly become cannon fodder!
Su Xiaoqi shivered.
Shen Yun, who had been watching her, thought she was cold and immediately took off his outer garment to drape over her.
Su Xiaoqi dared not accept it, nor could she afford to.
She rubbed her nose and said she wasn't cold.
But Shen Yun opened his hands and pressed them firmly on her shoulders and arms, preventing her from pulling off the garment.
"The mountain roads are windy, don't be stubborn."
Su Xiaoqi snorted and turned her face away, thinking to herself, "This great aunt isn't falling for your tricks, you playboy.
You just flirted with the female lead, and now you're coming for the supporting female. This great aunt will absolutely not be your cannon fodder."
Shen Yun's expression remained calm, but inwardly he was filled with surprise and confusion.
What female lead, what supporting female? What flirting?
Was her eyesight that bad? Clearly, he hadn't done anything.
He felt that if he didn't give her something to do, her thoughts would drift to the ends of the earth.
He turned his body, presenting his back to Zhao Xiaozhu, perfectly blocking her line of sight, and then accurately bit Su Xiaoqi's lips.
"Mmm..." Su Xiaoqi's eyes widened, looking at him in disbelief.
This scoundrel, this brazen fellow, with Xiaozhu right here, he dared to...
"We are husband and wife, what are you afraid of!" Shen Yun mumbled into her lips, his voice like a whisper.
"You..." Su Xiaoqi opened her mouth to scold, but he invaded her lips and teeth, skillfully exploring within.
Ever since she felt that Shen Yun's kiss could no longer bring her upgrades in her space, Su Xiaoqi had lost interest in such matters.
Especially now, when she was still angry.
But she couldn't withstand Shen Yun's rapidly improving technique, which left her utterly dazed.
So much so that when she heard the upgrade sound in her mind again, she was somewhat disoriented.
Upgraded?
No way.
Damn it, upgraded again!
Level twelve. So the upgrade mechanism hadn't changed!
Su Xiaoqi, dazed by the kiss, directly entered her space.
She was eager to see what new functions and new varieties her level twelve space had unlocked.
As expected, the space did not disappoint her.
The fields and the fish pond had continued to expand, one seven mu, the other seven fen.
For new varieties, she could choose to unlock one of two items: potatoes or lotus root.
Su Xiaoqi chose potatoes without hesitation.
The common people of this era had already started planting lotus root, and even the two ponds she had contracted were planted by Zhao Ye.
However, potatoes were absent.
This was a solid grain.
In the absence of staples like rice and flour, it could completely bear the important responsibility.
After making her choice, she directly planted potatoes in all seven mu of land, and in a while, she would be able to harvest them.
Upon returning home, Su Xiaoqi, as usual, took out the pastries she had bought while wandering outside and informed Old Yu Shi and Zhao Shi of her whereabouts.
Of course, she only mentioned going to the city to buy things, and did not mention the group of little beggars or the three-courtyard mansion.
Zhao Xiaozhu looked at her, her mind forming an idea.
After eating dinner, she found Su Xiaoqi and asked if she couldn't reveal what had happened before.
"It's not that you can't, it's just that there's no need," Su Xiaoqi said with a smile.
Her days in the Shen family wouldn't last too long, and those were her private assets, which she had no intention of sharing with them.
So whether they knew or not was unimportant.
Zhao Xiaozhu nodded secretly, indicating she understood, "If only I had as much dowry as a finger on Sister Xiaoqi's hand someday."
Then she wouldn't be laughed at by the village for being ruined and unable to get married.
Su Xiaoqi saw that she had mistaken the money she spent buying the house today for the dowry she brought from the Su family.
This realization was also good, and Su Xiaoqi was happy not to correct her.
"But was Big Cousin selling paintings today?" Zhao Xiaozhu remembered the transaction between Shen Yun and Su Yurou.
Su Xiaoqi's expression turned gloomy, clearly displeased.
It seemed Shen Yun had no respect for her at all.
He had promised her before that he would not sell his paintings to her anymore.