Chapter 60: Insufficient Reason
Lu Chengjing was startled and reflexively pulled his hand back.
“Don’t move.” Shang Wan muttered softly, “How are you still so cold under the blanket?”
Warmth transmitted from their clasped hands, as if turning into a stream of warmth that flowed from his hand straight into his heart.
Lu Chengjing opened his eyes and stared at the leaky roof for a long while, then quietly shifted toward the side until his shoulder touched Shang Wan’s before stopping.
Shang Wan leaned her head toward Lu Chengjing and asked sleepily, “What’s wrong?”
“Are you entering the city tomorrow?”
“Mm.”
Lu Chengjing said softly, “I want to go.”
“Your leg injury hasn’t healed yet.” Shang Wan opened one eye to look at him, “Give me a reason to bring you along.”
Lu Chengjing thought for a moment and said in a low voice, “I’m somewhat concerned about Tian Sheng’s suicide by poison. While Lord An is still in the county town, I want to ask him about the progress of the matter.”
“No, not sufficient reason.” Shang Wan rejected it, “I can ask for you while I’m at it.”
Lu Chengjing: “There’s also the disaster relief grain matter.”
Shang Wan rejected it likewise, “Same thing, I can ask for you.”
Lu Chengjing: “…”
“Any more reasons?” Shang Wan glanced at him, “If not, I’m going to sleep.”
“Yes.” Lu Chengjing squeezed their clasped hands. Before he could say the words, his ear roots turned red first, “I… I want… to accompany you.”
The last two words were barely audible, yet they accurately fell into Shang Wan’s ears.
Miss Shang indicated that with this chat, she wasn’t sleepy anymore.
She propped herself up halfway, reached out skillfully to find Lu Chengjing’s flushed ears, pinched them, and said with a laugh in her voice, “Not sufficient, but you’re allowed to elaborate.”
Elaborate?
A row of question marks popped up in Lu Chengjing’s mind. He tried hard to ignore the strange sensation on his ears and asked softly, “Elaborate on what?”
“The Xiucai Scholar is so clever, of course he’ll think of it himself.”
For some reason, the interest Shang Wan had demanded from him flashed through Lu Chengjing’s mind. His heartbeat uncontrollably quickened, and he gripped Shang Wan’s hand tighter.
Feeling the force on her hand, Shang Wan leaned down close and asked with a smile, “Have you thought of it?”
A faint fragrance lingered at his nose. Lu Chengjing closed his eyes briefly, then suddenly lifted his head, his pale lips lightly brushing Shang Wan’s cheek.
Just once, and he turned his head away with flushed cheeks, his long lashes trembling. His voice was soft and hoarse as he spoke, “Is this okay now?”
Shang Wan blinked, to be honest, she had only said to elaborate on the reason to make Lu Chengjing say a few more sweet words, but she got an unexpected surprise.
She looked at the person in front of her, his slender neck exposed beyond his undergarment. This time, it wasn’t just his ears and face that were red—even his neck was red.
Tsk tsk, could her fox be so shy that he spontaneously combusts?
The urge to tease the shy beauty couldn’t be suppressed at all. Shang Wan cleared her throat lightly and deliberately said, “Not sufficient, needs more elaboration.”
More elaboration?
Lu Chengjing’s eyes widened slightly in shock. Before he could react, Shang Wan quickly lowered her head and planted a stamp on his smooth side neck, making a soft “pop” sound.
Lu Chengjing: !!!
“Alright, now it’s sufficient.” Having taken advantage, Miss Shang pulled her dazed fox into her arms and wrapped them both in the quilt.
Lu Chengjing slowly blinked once, clearly feeling a slender arm draped over his waist and abdomen. Shang Wan’s soft muttering came to his ear, “Your waist is too slim. Eat more from now on, put on some meat— it’ll be more comfortable to hold.”
Lu Chengjing: “…”
The next day.
He didn’t know when he had fallen asleep. Warmth lingered around his body, and when he woke up, Lu Chengjing was still a bit dazed. His left hand subconsciously reached to his side.
He didn’t grab the fragrant wife, but caught a chubby baby.
“Daddy!” Yuan Yuan enthusiastically leaned over, puckered her little mouth, and gave her daddy a loud kiss.
Lu Chengjing patted his daughter and gently refused Yuan Yuan’s request to let the little turtle kiss him too.
Shi Tou heard the movement inside, came in to help Lu Chengjing put on his outer garment, and muttered, “Brother-in-law, how did you convince my sister to bring you? I begged her for ages and she wouldn’t agree. Teach me.”
Last night’s events flashed through his mind, and Lu Chengjing’s ear roots felt faintly hot. He coughed awkwardly, “If you go with us to the city, only Xiao Huan and Yuan Yuan will be left at home. How could we feel at ease?”
“Xiao Hui came back.” Shi Tou helped tie the belt and muttered, “It doesn’t matter if I’m there or not.”
He looked at Lu Chengjing, “Brother-in-law, just teach me.”
“You couldn’t learn your brother-in-law’s method.” Shang Wan pushed the door open, holding a wooden comb in her hand.
Shi Tou looked miserable, “Sis, I…”
“Enough, we’ll all go together.” Shang Wan interrupted the boy, “The Zhang Family’s ox cart is already borrowed back. In a bit, you drive the cart, and our whole family will go to the city to stroll around.”
“Great!” Shi Tou excitedly jumped up, but his head bumped into a horizontal wooden beam, and he crouched down with an “ow.”
Yuan Yuan followed with an “ow,” lifting her little meat hand to cover her head, extremely empathetic.
Shi Tou: “…”
You didn’t hit your head, so why are you owing?
Shang Wan shooed the two treasures out and used the wooden comb to comb Lu Chengjing’s hair.
But her own hair was combed by Xiao Huan, and apart from tangling her head of black hair, there was no progress at all.
Shang Wan decisively gave up and called Xiao Huan to help.
The family finished breakfast, exhorted Xiao Hui to watch the house well, then drove the ox cart into the city.
The disaster situation in the county town was still okay. Apart from three private houses, two restaurants, and one inn that were badly damaged, the other places were almost unaffected. There were no cases of ground cracking like in Elm Tree Village.
After the initial panic, under the government’s organization, the city had long restored its usual order.
After paying the entry fee, they easily entered the city. Shi Tou asked around and drove the ox cart to the largest wood workshop in the city.
Li Dashan temporarily couldn’t free up hands to help make the wheelchair, and Lu Chengjing’s leg wouldn’t heal in the short term. Even though Shang Wan could carry him, it wasn’t as convenient as him moving on his own, so they still needed to prepare a wheelchair.
“Customer, please come in.” The wood workshop’s shop assistant enthusiastically welcomed Shang Wan’s group inside, “Our shop has tables and benches, bed frames, screens, desks—everything. What would the customer like to buy?”
Shi Tou placed Lu Chengjing on a nearby armchair and asked the shop assistant, “Do you have wheelchairs?”
“Yes.” The shop assistant quickly glanced at Lu Chengjing’s legs and smiled broadly, “Customer, you’ve come to the right place. In the entire city, we’re the only ones selling wheelchairs. Please wait a moment, I’ll push them all out for you to choose.”
There were quite a few people in the wood workshop. Seeing the shop assistant push out four wheelchairs, they all curiously looked over.
These days, not many people buy wheelchairs—not because they’re not needed, but because they’re too expensive. Usually, only noble persons have them custom-made by sending people to the wood workshop to place orders.
These four wheelchairs in the wood workshop: two were designed by noble persons with drawings but never picked up and later abandoned; the other two were always stocked in the shop for customers in urgent need.
Shang Wan glanced over and felt that apart from the carvings and materials, the styles were all pretty much the same.
The shop assistant introduced with a smile: “Our shop’s wheelchairs are all meticulously crafted by master craftsmen, made with excellent materials—warm in winter and cool in summer when you sit on them.”
Shang Wan was speechless. What did a wheelchair need with warm in winter and cool in summer?
The shop assistant said to Lu Chengjing, “Customer, why don’t you sit on one and try it.”
Shi Tou was about to step forward to carry Lu Chengjing when a male voice came, “Yo, isn’t this Lu Xiucai? With your broken leg, why not stay holed up in some backwater village? How do you have the face to come out and show off your embarrassment?”
