Miss and farmhand

Stone looked a little uneasy, touching his arm as he asked, "Brother, why are you looking at me like that...?"

Huang Muyun himself would not admit that it was because of that hand that touched him, but he also did not deceive himself to completely deny that it was because of Huang Chu.

He stared at the stone for a while longer, then spoke in a serious voice, "I don't object if you want to help her, but since it's not your business, don't be too eager. The more you rush in, the more likely you are to make a mistake."

It took Shi Tou a while to understand.

"Brother, what are you saying? Things have come to this point, why are we still talking about who's on whose side? You were the one who said that without evidence it's unreliable, and we can't just wait for the evidence to fall from the sky. Someone has to do this, and that's me. What kind of man would procrastinate? You don't believe me, but if I say I have a way, then I have a way."

Huang Muyun said, "What method is there? At most, we can just make a few more trips there and search around when no one is looking. If we want to find evidence, we have to look in the most secluded places, which are also the most heavily guarded and dangerous places. If you don't understand this point and continue with this casual attitude, you will definitely be exposed before long and you will also drag us down with you."

Huang Muyun's words hit the nail on the head, so he scratched his head and sighed, "...But we can't just do nothing. I understand, I'll be careful. The young lady is so good to me, I definitely won't drag her down with me."

He suddenly looked up and smiled, saying, "You know, last time I went on a ship with that kid Zhou Shitai, the little stuff we brought along, although it wasn't much compared to the Zhou family's business, still made us several dozen taels of silver after going back and forth. I originally brought it back to give to the eldest young lady, but she told me to keep it for myself and didn't want mine at all."

Huang Muyun paused for a moment, "When did this happen? How come I don't know?"

Stone made a face. "You've always been like that before, who would dare to talk to you? If anyone says a good word about a young lady in front of you, you treat them like an enemy."

"What's so good about it? It's just a few taels of silver. She didn't need that much money anyway. Giving it to you was just a casual gesture. It's obvious she's trying to bribe you. Only someone as naive as you would actually take it seriously and go out of her way to work for her. She's taking advantage of that. All these nobles are like that. They think their servants only care about money."

Huang Muyun's voice trailed off towards the end, knowing that he was only reinforcing this prejudice on his own. It was less a warning to Shi Tou and more a self-deception.

Stone rested his hand on his neck and stretched his shoulders, looking carefree and without any worries. In reality, he just didn't say anything before, but he observed everything and had his own thoughts.

He advised Huang Muyun, "Actually... you don't need to target the young lady like that. No matter what, she's been incredibly good to us brothers. Even when she needed our help, she never gave us a hard time; we always discussed things together. Go and see, where can you find such a good boss when you're out doing manual labor? So, now that you've figured it out and are willing to help, stop saying and acting like that."

Huang Muyun kept a straight face: "What do you mean by 'what do you mean'?"

Stone winked at him. "I can't say for sure. Anyway, I just know that it's easier to be honest in life, especially not to deceive yourself. Otherwise, you'll be the one who feels frustrated and regrets it in the end."

After saying that, he left Huang Muyun alone.

After that, the communication between the Zhou and Huang families seemed somewhat out of sync.

Zhou Shitai remained attentive, visiting frequently but never pestering him. He would simply come to greet him on time in the morning and then take Shitou to the dock. Shitou was also very excited, waiting for Zhou Shitai to come every day without going to the dock himself, insisting on waiting for him so they could chat a bit more on the way and appear so intimate.

Zhou Shitai came many times, but he never overstepped the bounds of propriety. Each time he would just greet Huang Chu and leave, yet he never missed a single day, rain or shine. This feeling was quite subtle.

The servants of the Huang family all liked him very much, especially the maids and old women, because he was handsome, with a long face, almond-shaped eyes, and fair skin. When he went to sea with Shi Tou, Shi Tou said that they both suffered at sea, but when he came back, his face was tanned purple, while Zhou Shitai only had a few sunburns on his cheeks, which made him look more energetic.

So when he came to pay his respects, even though Huang Chu and he didn't have much to say to each other besides polite greetings, the old woman would occasionally strike up a conversation with him, asking how his old manager was and how his business was going.

One time after Zhou Shitai left, Han's mother said, "This young manager Zhou is very likable. I'm just afraid he might be bullied when he goes out to do business. You can tell from his face that he's not one to argue with people."

Huang Chu gave a forced smile, "You can tell that? What does being bullied have to do with your face?"

Suddenly, as if feeling guilty, Han's mother bent down and whispered in Huang Chu's ear, "Young lady, you didn't see it? Last time Manager Zhou came, he happened to run into Young Master Yun. He was sitting right there, next to you—I don't know how he suddenly showed up that day—you didn't see it, but Manager Zhou and I both saw you talking to him. Young Master Yun's face is already dark, but that day he was practically Zhong Kui (a Chinese mythical beast), with his eyebrows pressing down on his eyes, his gaze like knives. Only Manager Zhou, with his good temper, pretended not to see. I was scared just watching. Tsk tsk, so frightening. He didn't act like a hospitable person at all."

Huang Chu was surprised to hear this, as she had no recollection of it at all.

She knew that Huang Muyun was wary of Zhou Shitai because of his two-faced nature and the fact that he had almost kidnapped her, which was why she wasn't giving him a friendly look. But after hearing Han Mama's vivid description, she found it somewhat amusing.

When she smiled, Han's mother couldn't help but smile too.

She muttered in the tone of an old mother from her own family, "I don't know what the master saw in him. Even if he can paint, there are plenty of young men in the city who can write and paint. Why did he have to choose him?"

She tilted her head to look at Huang Chu, the little girl she had raised since childhood, a beauty just like her mother. Even if she were to take a son-in-law, wouldn't it be better to find a handsome man like Manager Zhou? At least in terms of appearance, they would be a better match. Putting everything else aside, just standing next to Huang Chu, Huang Muyun's shadow seemed to crush her.

After that, Huang Chu couldn't help but give Huang Muyun a special look. Huang Muyun must have noticed her staring at him, but he stubbornly pretended not to notice, neither asking nor stopping Huang Chu, yet he seemed uncomfortable under her gaze. Huang Chu found it amusing and didn't look away. This stalemate continued until Shi Tou returned.

When Huang Muyun was talking to Shi Tou, Huang Chu noticed that his forehead seemed to be damp with sweat. Despite the weather being almost winter, he was sweating profusely, and even his ears were red.

Shi Tou came back very excited that day. Even though there were only the three of them in the house, he still lowered his voice and said very secretly, "I was lucky today and found a clue. Can you help me think about whether this is useful?"