At a breakfast stall, Cao Wen pointed to an empty table and gestured for Xu Duoyan to sit, while he ran to the vendor and ordered two bowls of noodles and a basket of buns.
The buns came first—four large ones in a basket.
Cao Wen picked up his chopsticks and stabbed them right through the center of a bun.
He skewered two buns onto the chopsticks and held them out to Xu Duoyan.
“How about that? Impressive, huh?”
Xu Duoyan looked at the squished buns, and the corner of his mouth twitched.
He pulled one off the chopsticks, pressed his lips together, and nodded perfunctorily.
Cao Wen beamed, revealing his canine teeth.
“I never miss. If I lived in a fishing village, I’d definitely be the best fisherman.”
These buns were cabbage-filled.
Not as tasty as meat buns, sure, but still better than coarse rice wrapped in plain flour.
Xu Duoyan didn’t mind plain flour-based food.
He held the bun and started biting into it while watching the idiot in front of him brag—it actually helped his appetite.
He gestured casually: “Too bad there’s no sea here. Can’t see your fishing skills in action.”
Cao Wen looked at him blankly for a moment.
Xu Duoyan knew Cao Wen wouldn’t understand unfamiliar words like that, and he wasn’t sure why he himself had started talking so much either.
Maybe it’s just that childish people make others let their guard down without realizing it.
“Here you go—one bowl of plain noodles, one bowl of lamb noodles!”
The vendor brought over two steaming bowls of noodles, interrupting the slightly frozen atmosphere.
Seeing a young couple, the vendor naturally tried to hand the lamb noodles to the man.
Cao Wen took the bowl but placed it in front of Xu Duoyan.
Then, using the chopsticks he had skewered the buns with, he stirred the plain noodles topped with scallions and started slurping impatiently.
Xu Duoyan noticed the difference in the two bowls.
He pointed to the noodle bowl.
Cao Wen didn’t even look up.
“I don’t like that one.”
Xu Duoyan’s eyes flickered slightly.
Such a clumsy lie—he’d only ever heard parents telling that kind of lie to their kids.
He hadn’t expected someone to lie like that to him.
He didn’t say anything and quietly picked up his chopsticks, not rejecting Cao Wen’s gesture.
Cao Wen quickly slurped down his noodles and set down his chopsticks, watching Xu Duoyan eat slowly.
“I saw that Manager Qian could understand your sign language today. Are you two close?”
Xu Duoyan gave a slight nod.
“I heard from him that your mother’s not well. Should I go visit her today?”
At that, Xu Duoyan’s brows furrowed.
Not a day went by in Caojia’ao without him worrying about his mother.
But ever since Cao Wen came back, he hadn’t found the right time to visit her.
He was still trying to figure out if he should sneak back while Cao Wen was out.
He hadn’t expected Cao Wen to offer to visit her himself.
Xu Duoyan couldn’t tell what Cao Wen was really thinking, but he was sure of one thing—his mother wouldn’t be happy to see him.
Cao Wen waited for a while, but Xu Duoyan simply shook his head and seemed to say “no need,” not agreeing to the idea.
Seeing that, Cao Wen wasn’t offended.
He understood the difficulty of the situation.
Their marriage had been rushed, not even a banquet was held.
Even if young people didn’t care about formalities, elders certainly would.
It’s no surprise his mother-in-law would be unhappy—
Xu Duoyan had worked hard after marrying into the Cao family, waking early and working late, all while still lacking enough food and clothing.
If Cao Wen showed up now, he’d only remind her of all the hardship and probably just upset her even more.
And even though they had made a bit of money now, it wasn’t enough to show real results.
Cao Wen wasn’t trying to force a visit.
He knew what kind of person he was.
Still, even if he wasn’t qualified, now that he knew the elder’s health was poor, it was only right to show some concern.
He might be an orphan who didn’t understand family customs, but he still knew what filial piety meant.
Cao Wen thought for a moment and was just about to speak again when Xu Duoyan, after hesitating twice, finally tried a new hand gesture: “Can I go back and visit my mother when I have time? She’s unwell and alone, and I’m worried about her.”
“Of course you can! If I can’t go with you now, it’s still good for you to visit her alone.”
With that, Cao Wen stood up.
“You finish your noodles here—I’ll be right back.”
Xu Duoyan immediately tugged on his sleeve.
“What are you doing?”
“I’ll bring something for your mom too—we can’t go empty-handed, right?”
Xu Duoyan frowned tightly but didn’t let go.
“Boss, check out this table first,”
Cao Wen said, patting Xu Duoyan’s back.
Only when the vendor approached did Xu Duoyan finally release his grip.
One basket of buns and two bowls of noodles—30 coins.
Earning money was hard, but spending it sure was easy.
Cao Wen glanced at Xu Duoyan, wanting to ask what his mother liked so he could pick something suitable.
But then he realized: even if Xu said it, he wouldn’t understand. So he just said: “Eat your noodles before they get soggy—I’ll be right back.”
Xu Duoyan kept looking in the direction Cao Wen had left, unable to pull his gaze away.
He curled his fingers, his emotions tangled.
Cao Wen went to the market again and came back with a burlap sack.
“I wasn’t sure what your mom would like, so I just got some practical stuff—rice, flour, candles. Will that do?”
Xu Duoyan glanced at the sack, then looked back at Cao Wen.
He didn’t say yes or no, but said instead: “If you really want to go, then come with me.”
Cao Wen raised his brows slightly, surprised and pleased.
Xu Duoyan used to live in Tonggou Village, adjacent to Yuanxi Village.
Not too far, but both villages were fairly big—one to the east and one to the west—so the distance wasn’t exactly short.
But from the market, it was only about half an hour.
Right now, the village was bustling.
As the two walked along the village road, people in the fields kept sneaking glances at them.
Xu Duoyan ignored everyone—until a brightly dressed woman appeared by the roadside.
She smiled and called out,
“Oh hey, isn’t this the eldest Miss Xu?”
Then she looked at Cao Wen behind him, her eyes flowing like spring water.
“Wow, is this your man?”
Xu Duoyan signed something.
Unusually, the woman didn’t look confused when she saw his gestures.
Instead, she coyly rested her chin on her hand.
“Oh really? You’ve always been good with words, haven’t you?”
Xu Duoyan made another gesture.
“I went to your house yesterday to get some hair oil from your mom. She’s still the same—just missing you as usual.”
Xu Duoyan pursed his lips, a smile appearing in his eyes.
Cao Wen watched the two chat so comfortably and raised his eyebrows in surprise.
He couldn’t help but glance at the woman again.
“Look at this guy, staring at me like that. Your wife’s standing right here, you know.”
The woman glanced at Cao Wen.
His features were still youthful, but his tall build was rare.
She teased with a finger under her nose and a half-lowered chin.
Cao Wen cleared his throat awkwardly.
“I was just surprised you two could communicate so easily.”
The woman laughed, her tone rising.
“What’s so strange about that? My dead husband was mute—I had to learn.”
“He taught you? How could he teach you if he was mute?”
“I was a child bride in their family. Lived with him long enough to learn.”
Cao Wen was about to ask more when the woman turned to Xu Duoyan.
“Miss Xu, I’m off now. Come visit me when you can. Now that you’re married, I hardly see you.”
With that, she swayed her still-graceful hips and walked away.
Xu Duoyan was just about to continue walking when he noticed the tall man beside him standing still, staring off at the woman who had walked away, lost in thought.
A strange feeling flickered in his heart.
Qin Xieyue was beautiful and had been widowed at a young age.
She was well-known within ten miles as the charming widow.
Even though she didn’t work, she was always well-fed and neatly dressed—like a wealthy lady from the city.
Men staring at her had long become routine.
Few could resist her.
But thinking that Cao Wen was just like those men made Xu Duoyan feel…inexplicably off.
Xu Duoyan found himself being ridiculous and lowered his head to walk on ahead alone.
Cao Wen finally snapped out of it and, seeing that Xu Duoyan had already walked far ahead, quickly caught up.
The two of them remained silent until a low, thatched hut came into view.
“Ah-Yan!”
A woman who was gathering firewood in the courtyard looked up and her eyes lit up when she saw them approaching.
She got emotional and couldn’t help but cough several times.
She dropped the firewood and hurried toward them.
Xu Duoyan also ran forward, his brows furrowed, and gently patted her back in a practiced, familiar motion.
Though the woman’s face was pale, it couldn’t hide her naturally beautiful features.
Looking at Xu Duoyan, she smiled warmly.
But the moment her eyes landed on Cao Wen, the smile vanished: “What are you doing here?”
Cao Wen had been silently mouthing the name Xu’s mother used—
“Ah-Yan.”
He thought, So that’s how she calls him.
Looking at how handsome Xu Duoyan was, it made sense—he had inherited his mother’s looks.
But he hadn’t expected that the mother-in-law would give him such a hostile face right away.
He blinked and held up the sack in his hands.
“I came with Ah-Yan to see you.”
Hearing that, Xu Duoyan’s brows tightened—this guy sure learned how to use his name fast.
He tugged on his mother’s sleeve, gesturing for her not to get angry and to go inside.
Madam Xu let herself be supported by her son as they moved into the house, all the while casting surprised glances at him.
His attitude toward Cao Wen…was oddly soft.
But since her son didn’t seem to hate Cao Wen outright, and she didn’t know exactly what kind of relationship the two had now, she could only follow her son’s lead.
Inside the house, Madam Xu still wore a stern face as she poured a cup of water for Cao Wen: “Sit.”
Cao Wen looked around at the house.
Seeing the water handed to him, he quickly nodded and accepted it.
The Xu family’s living conditions weren’t better than the Cao family’s.
In fact, the house was even smaller.
A faint smell of herbs permeated the space—clearly, this thatched hut had been soaked in medicinal scents for years.
No wonder the pharmacy manager was familiar with Xu Duoyan.
Though the house was small and the furnishings old, it was spotlessly clean.
Even in illness, Madam Xu clearly took pride in keeping things tidy.
Cao Wen looked carefully around, hoping to find some memory fragments related to Xu Duoyan and his connection to the Xu family.
But all that came to mind were blurry scenes—he seemed to remember coming here with a man to propose marriage.
Maybe the discussions didn’t go well, or maybe something else happened—he just remembered Xu’s mother scolding them angrily.
No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t recall the details.
It left him frustrated.
He turned to look at Xu Duoyan, who was signing something to his mother.
Madam Xu gently held her son’s hand, her expression soft.
The two of them looked quite happy.
Cao Wen hesitated, unsure whether to strike up a conversation with his mother-in-law.
But seeing how she refused to even glance his way, he wisely stayed quiet.
Thinking that he was just getting in the way of their family moment, he decided it was better to step out.
He stood up: “Ah-Yan, you talk to your mother for a while—I’ll go take a walk.”
Xu Duoyan felt a bit guilty and signed: “Just sit for a bit, I’ll start cooking soon.”
“It’s fine, I’ll walk around the village. Maybe even check out the mountain.”
The mention of the mountain made both of them pause—they both knew what that implied.
Xu Duoyan nodded.
Inside the house, Madam Xu watched Cao Wen leave the yard and disappear from sight.
Immediately, she stood up and pulled Xu Duoyan further inside.
She shut the front room door behind them, dragged him into the back room, and shut that door too.
“Ah-Yan, how are you doing in the Cao family? That bastard hasn’t been bullying you, has he?”
Her voice was anxious, and she couldn’t help coughing again.
Xu Duoyan gently patted her back, heart aching.
He shook his head.
Then a soft, low male voice rang out in the room: “No. He treats me quite well…”