Cheng Tianhua finally breathed a sigh of relief after seeing Zhang Yunmei off.
Fortunately, things hadn't escalated.
"If you wanted to borrow money, why would you go to Ye Changfu?"
Song Yulian said aggrievedly, "If I borrowed from Zhang Yunmei, she wouldn't lend it to me either."
"What makes you so sure that if you asked Ye Changfu, he would definitely give it to you!"
Cheng Tianhua's gaze was fierce, staring intently at her.
Could it be that Song Yulian and Ye Changfu truly had some kind of relationship?
Song Yulian's expression was flustered. "Tianhua, what do you mean? I was desperate and truly wanted to help Cheng Tao, so I went to him to borrow money. If you don't believe me, you can ask him yourself! I've been with you for so many years, and I even gave birth to you..."
Cheng Tianhua lunged forward, fiercely covering her mouth.
"What nonsense are you spouting!"
Cheng You watched them with a smile, her eyes full of mischief.
"What was Aunt Lian trying to say just now? Why didn't you finish?"
Song Yulian shook her head frantically, not daring to say anything more.
Even though she had truly been with Cheng Tianhua for so many years, she couldn't let others know.
Cheng You smiled. "Then I'll be going back. Dad, don't keep thinking about borrowing money and not repaying it. You're already so old, doing something like this is truly disgraceful."
Cheng Tianhua's face darkened, and he remained silent.
He was filled with anger and felt uneasy all over.
Especially the matter between Song Yulian and Ye Changfu, it had planted a seed of doubt in his heart.
...
A few days later, the wooden sign Cheng You had custom-ordered arrived.
She didn't change locations and directly set up the pharmacy at Uncle Li's house.
Although it was a bit rudimentary, this was where she had started.
Together, they hung the sign, and the small pharmacy officially opened for business that day.
Besides receiving many blessings, Cheng You also received a positive reply from Old Master Jiang.
Jiang Dingcheng personally came to deliver the message and congratulate her on the opening of her pharmacy.
The day Cheng You left, the Old Master had already instructed someone to gather the villagers for a meeting.
At that time, everyone was hesitant, but Sister Yang was the first to step forward.
"My son was saved by Cheng You. Her medicine is miraculous, and it will definitely sell well in the future! I believe in Cheng You, and our family will participate!"
With her leading the way, and the Old Master's guarantee, the villagers voiced their support one after another.
"Your maternal grandfather asked me to ask you when the medicinal herb seeds can be brought over."
Cheng You said, "Uncle, it might not be that soon. We have to wait for Qi Chengyan's friend to mail them from Yancheng."
After they were mailed, she would still need to soak them in Condensed Dew.
Mainly, Cheng You hadn't expected such a quick result.
Jiang Dingcheng didn't urge her. He nodded and said, "There's no rush. Our production team will pay for this. We have the money, so you don't need to pay upfront. Cheng You, my family is your strong backing. You can do whatever you want with confidence!"
Cheng You smiled and nodded.
Only in the Old Jiang family did she feel the true sense of being protected by her family.
"Also, your second uncle and aunt asked me to apologize to you. Because of your cousin's matter, the family is in quite a stir right now."
Cheng You bit her lip, feeling a bit annoyed with herself for speaking out of turn.
She hadn't intended for a single sentence to cause such turmoil at home.
Jiang Dingcheng quickly comforted her. "This matter in our family is like a thorn. If it's not removed, it will always be bothersome. Except for Wanrou, no one else in the family thinks it's a good marriage."
Even if Cheng You hadn't mentioned it, they would have brought it up eventually.
Jiang Wanrou, however, misunderstood, always thinking that their disapproval was because Cheng You had brought it up.
When she was advocating for everyone to plant medicinal herbs together, Jiang Wanrou was pouring cold water on the side. "Planting medicinal herbs isn't that simple. If something unexpected happens midway, who will bear the responsibility? I think this plan is unreliable."
Cheng You smiled, not paying much attention.
She took out a few jars of Seven-Essence Paste from the house and said, "Uncle, please help me give these to Aunties and my cousin. Tell them it's something new I made and haven't started selling yet."
"And this bag of medicine, Uncle, please take it to Sister Yang and thank her for me."
Jiang Dingcheng accepted them all. "Alright, I'll be going back then."
Cheng You had originally planned to wait for Qi Chengyan to return tonight and ask him about the medicinal herb seeds.
Unexpectedly, he hadn't returned by dinner time.
She ate dinner alone, showered, and went back to her room.
She was still wondering why Qi Chengyan hadn't returned tonight.
She read for a while under the oil lamp before preparing to sleep.
Curled up in bed, she occasionally glanced at her watch. As it grew late into the night, she thought Qi Chengyan probably wouldn't be coming back.
Sleepily, she drifted off.
To leave the door open for Qi Chengyan, she hadn't even locked it.
In the deep, dew-laden night, a figure slowly climbed over the wall.
Bathed in moonlight, the figure slowly walked towards the room.
In the silent depths of the night, his footsteps could still be heard, creaking on the ground.
Cheng You suddenly woke up from her dream and sat up.
Immediately after, she heard sounds from outside.
Her heart leaped in alarm. While she thought it must be Qi Chengyan returning, she was also afraid it wasn't him.
In her panic, her foot missed its step, and she tumbled forward, falling to the ground.
"Hiss..."
Cheng You got up, supporting her wrist, and then heard hurried footsteps. The door outside was pushed open.
"Youyou."
Qi Chengyan strode in and picked her up.
"Where are you hurt?"
Cheng You said softly, "I'm fine. My wrist is just a little sprained, it's not serious. What was that noise outside?"
She had clearly heard a disturbance just now, and her instinct told her it wasn't made by Qi Chengyan.
Qi Chengyan said, "Someone entered the courtyard."
Cheng You's heart tightened, and a chill ran down her spine.
Tonight, Qi Chengyan wasn't back, and she hadn't even locked her door.
If he truly hadn't returned, the consequences...
"Who was it?"
Qi Chengyan shook his head and said coldly, "Not sure. I cut his hand."
He had been in a hurry to get to Cheng You, which allowed that person to escape.
He was still holding the short knife, which was stained with blood, gleaming with a cold, sharp light.
If there was a next time, this blade would have been plunged into his heart.
Cheng You held his wrist and asked, "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine."
"I thought you weren't coming back tonight."
Qi Chengyan put away the short knife and explained to her, "I was delayed by something."
However, because he hadn't informed Cheng You in advance, he had rushed back.
Thinking about it now, it was fortunate that he had returned.
Cheng You hadn't seen anyone enter the courtyard, nor had she witnessed how Qi Chengyan subdued the intruder. Naturally, she couldn't feel the heart-stopping terror.
A wave of fear washed over her but then subsided.
"I'll go boil some water for you to bathe."
Qi Chengyan stopped her. "No need, I'll do it myself."
Cheng You didn't get out of bed and stayed there waiting for him.
When Qi Chengyan returned to the room, carrying the scent of steam, she took a clean cloth to dry his hair and casually mentioned Jiang Dingcheng's visit.
"I'll contact Yu Zi and have him mail the things over."
Song Jingyu was Song Jing Tang's cousin.
Cheng You had never met him but often heard them mention him, so she was quite familiar with the name.