Chapter 106: I Don’t Like Her
Ms. Qian’s expression twitched, and she could only pull Xing’er away with her.
Shanzi watched them, his expression shifting as he clenched his fists.
Shanzimama spat on the ground beside her. "Pah! She should take a look at her own daughter before trying to climb that social ladder. In her dreams!"
Even after her mother pulled her back, Xing’er was still in a daze.
’What on earth was Mom doing?’
’Saying something about making his bed?’
’Even a young girl like me knows how inappropriate that sounds!’
Remembering how that young master hadn’t even bothered to look up at them, a flash of shame and anger crossed Xing’er’s face. She flung off her mother’s hand and ran into the darkness.
Ms. Qian frowned but didn’t go after her, turning instead to pack her things.
Shanzi watched Xing’er run into the darkness, then gritted his teeth and ran after her. Shanzimama yelled from behind, "Shanzi, where are you going? Stay out of the dark!"
Without turning his head, Shanzi quickly disappeared into a place beyond the firelight.
Xing’er hadn’t run far. She was squatting on the ground, angrily yanking at clumps of dead grass.
Shanzi came up behind her and demanded, "What was that all about?"
Startled by the unexpected voice, Xing’er jumped. She stood up and saw it was Shanzi, and her expression relaxed for a moment before turning to shame and annoyance. "What do you mean, ’what was that all about’? How was I supposed to know what my mom was dragging me over to do?"
Shanzi took a step forward. "You really didn’t know?"
Xing’er felt incredibly wronged. "How could I have known? My mom just grabbed me and went. I never expected her to say those things!"
Shanzi breathed a sigh of relief. "I was afraid you wanted to marry up, too."
An image of the young master flashed through Xing’er’s mind.
His face was pale, his features exquisitely handsome, but he radiated an icy air.
Xing’er gave a bitter smile. "You can tell just by looking at him that he’s a young master from a great family. He wouldn’t even look twice at someone like me, not even to be a maid."
Shanzi wanted to ask, ’So if he did find you acceptable, you’d go and be his maid?’
But he thought better of it and swallowed the words, saying instead in a low voice, "You know how I feel about you."
"Once we get to the south and settle down, I’ll have my mom go to your family to propose marriage, all right?"
Caught off guard by his sudden proposal, Xing’er froze for a moment. Then, her face flushed red, and she lowered her head.
Shanzi asked anxiously, "Will you? Just give me an answer!"
Xing’er kept her head down and bit her lip. After a long moment, she let out a soft "Mhm."
Shanzi was instantly overjoyed. He rushed forward and grabbed Xing’er’s hand. "Don’t worry. I’m an only son, and my mom has saved up quite a bit of silver. I won’t let you suffer in the future."
Just as he said that, Shanzimama’s shouts drifted on the night wind. "Shanzi—Shanzi, where did you run off to!"
Shanzi gave Xing’er’s hand a squeeze. "My mom’s calling for me. You should head back, too. Don’t just stand here in the dark."
Xing’er murmured in agreement and shyly pulled her hand away.
Shanzimama had seen Shanzi run off with clenched fists and now watched him return in high spirits. It wasn’t hard to figure out what had happened.
Suppressing her anger, she pulled Shanzi aside. "You need to spend less time with that Xing’er. Her mother is trouble, and besides, Xing’er’s personality and looks can’t compare to Little Fei’s."
"When you have a free moment, you should go hang around Little Fei. That girl knows how to make money and is blessed with good fortune. Didn’t you see your Second Uncle Gu’s family just earned one hundred taels of silver?"
Shanzi mumbled sullenly, "I’m not going anywhere near her."
He had seen Gu Fei kill someone the other day and had suffered nightmares half the night because of it. Even now, his heart hammered in his chest whenever he saw her.
Frustrated by his lack of ambition, Shanzimama smacked him. She lowered her voice and hissed, "You useless boy! If you could manage to marry Little Fei, you’d be set for life!"
Shanzi snapped, "I don’t like her! If you want her, you marry her!" With that, he stalked off to the side to sulk.