Jewel gave the cart driver some extra money. After all, the woman had worked hard driving them all day, and the driver accepted it with a cheerful smile.
When the courtyard gate closed and the sound of hooves faded into the night, peace returned to the village.
The family of three sat around the kitchen table, eating dinner that Jewel's father had prepared. They chatted casually, sharing what they'd seen and done that day.
Jewel's father was shocked when his daughter said that the ginseng she found by chance sold for over sixty taels of silver.
"Are you serious, Jewel? One piece of ginseng sold for over sixty taels?" he asked in disbelief.
"It's true, Dad," Jewel said. "But we also bought some things for the house, so we've already spent a good part of it. We still have about forty taels left."
"Then it should be enough to pay off the debts, right?" her father asked.
"Of course it is. I'll pay off everything in the next few days. After that, we can live a peaceful life, and I promise I won't gamble anymore."
Jewel felt relieved when she saw that her story had convinced both her father and husband. The windfall from the afternoon had been explained well enough.
Her father also let out a long sigh of relief. Those people from the gambling dens would do anything to collect debts—getting rid of them as soon as possible was a great thing.
"Oh, by the way, Dad," Jewel said, "on the way back, I saw a jewelry shop in town. They had beautiful silver bangles, so I picked out a pair for you. Do you like them?"
She took out the delicate silver bracelets and handed them to her father.
He didn't expect his daughter to buy him jewelry. Though he felt it was a waste of money, he was also happy and deeply moved. After working hard all his life, he'd never worn anything nice. Holding the shiny silver bangles in his hands, his heart filled with warmth—his daughter had truly grown up and was now thinking of him.
"Just this once," he said gently. "Don't buy me things like this again. It's too expensive. Save the money for daily life." But he accepted the gift anyway.
"As long as you like it," Jewel said with a smile.
After their chat, the three of them continued their meal.
Xavi looked at the jewelry Jewel had bought for her father and felt a bit envious. Jewelry was something many men liked, but coming from a farming family, he could never afford such things. He could only admire it from afar when other husbands in the village wore some, maybe give them a compliment and enjoy the sight.
But he knew Jewel's father had worked hard to raise her. Now that she had money, it was right to show her gratitude. Even though Xavi felt a little envious, he didn't feel jealous. He was proud of his wife for honoring her father.
After dinner, Jewel's father suddenly remembered something and said to Xavi, "Now that your wife is feeling better, you should sleep with her from now on. Sharing a room with an old man like me isn't proper anymore."
Xavi froze for a second, his cheeks turning red. He quietly answered and began clearing the table.
Seeing his son-in-law agree, Jewel's father turned to his daughter. "Go tidy up your room. From now on, Xavi will sleep there with you."
Jewel hesitated for a moment, then nodded. It made sense, after all. She went to her room to clean up.
After washing the dishes, Xavi heated some water, cleaned himself up, and made sure everything was neat and tidy before walking toward Jewel's room.
Just then, yelling came from next door again—it was the familiar voice of their neighbor Li San.
"Look at this food! Can anyone eat this?"
"You can even mess up plain porridge! What can you actually do right?"
"You're more and more useless! Can't even cook properly…"
Each harsh word from Li San cut into An Su's heart like a knife. Things had been getting worse at their house. Li San had become more aggressive and easily angry, always picking at An Su's mistakes and yelling to blow off steam.
That day, An Su had cut his hand while slicing vegetables. Later, when he was pouring water for Li San, the kettle handle scratched his wound. The sudden pain made him spill the water, burning Li San's wrist by accident.
Then, at dinner time, things got worse. He had started cooking, then stepped out back to get firewood. The pile was tall and heavy—he tripped and fell hard.
He called for Li San to help him, but after several calls, no one came. He had to get up by himself and hurry to the kitchen, only to find the porridge burned.
What An Su didn't know was that Li San had heard him call. She was just lying in bed taking a nap and didn't feel like moving.
Xavi stood in the courtyard, hearing the yelling from Li San's house, and felt sympathy for An Su.
Was it fair to be scolded and hit just because a small mistake was made while doing chores like cooking or fetching water?
His own wife had never gotten angry at him. No—Jewel wasn't someone who got mad easily. She had never raised her voice at him…
The light in her room was still on. Was she waiting for him?
Tonight was supposed to be their wedding night, but now that it was really happening, Xavi felt nervous.
His father had also married through an arrangement. His mother never liked him and favored a handsome servant instead. Xavi had seen his father cry alone.
And he'd heard village talk too—people said that once a woman got rich, she might take in more husbands or keep handsome young men as lovers. Then, she'd start ignoring her main husband…
Xavi hated hearing the words "take a concubine." Just imagining Jewel growing tired of him someday made him feel anxious and miserable.
Would he end up like his father? Even though Jewel was kind to him, he wasn't sure if he could keep her love forever…
"Creak—" The door opened.
"Come in. Why are you standing there spacing out?" Jewel said. "Don't want to sleep in the same room?"
She had been waiting for him a while. When the kitchen got quiet, she kept peeking out the door but still didn't see him come.
Under the moonlight, she saw his fair skin glowing, his soft hair giving off a light scent, his bright eyes twinkling like stars, and his delicate face that made her heart flutter. He really was one of a kind.
Jewel smiled gently, reached out, and took Xavi's hand, leading him into the room.