Chapter 546: Ah Jian enters the mountain

Everyone chatted and laughed as they entered the door. The dining table was already set and Third Aunt went to help in the kitchen, but Aunt Zhang stopped her with a smile: “It’s not necessary! Don’t work today, the three of us will handle it.”

Lian Fang Zhou laughed. “We better listen to Auntie! Where is Uncle Li, he hasn’t come back yet? Let’s eat when he gets back!”

Aunt Zhang laughed. “He went to herd the cattle this afternoon and should almost be home. Don’t worry, he’s even better at pinching food than you!”

Sure enough, Uncle Li came back in just a little while. Sure enough, he was quick to joke with everyone and steal a little food.

Luckily, the food was served quickly. People in the countryside didn’t have many rules. They sat in a group and it was very lively.

After dinner, everyone sat around for a long time, chatting about family affairs before Lian Fang Zhou and her family got up to leave.

It was very late by the time they got home and everyone was a little sleepy. After washing up, they all went to bed.

As she walked upstairs, Lian Fang Zhou suddenly remembered that Ah Jian would be leaving for Xianteng mountain early tomorrow morning. Her heart tightened and she subconsciously slowed down to look at him.

Ah Jian was also looking at her and their eyes met. He smiled and instinctively stepped to her side, saying with a low laugh: “Wait for me to come back. Don’t worry about me, trust in my ability.”

Then he laughed a little louder: “Even if you don’t believe in me, believe in yourself! You wouldn’t choose the wrong person!”

Lian Fang Zhou couldn’t help but laugh at this. Sighing, she said: “What time is it and you are still in the mood to joke? You, you must come back safely!”

Her voice was filled with a faint tremor. “Ah Jian, I finally met you. I want you to stay with me forever, always together!”

“Fang Zhou…” Ah Jian’s heart trembled. Strong emotions rushed into his heart and for a moment, he almost regretted his decision. The words to change his mind were caught on his lips.

Instead, he said: “Don’t worry, I promised you I would pay attention to my safety! I will come back and we will travel the world together.”

“Okay!” Lian Fang Zhou nodded lightly. Only then did she realize that they were completely alone. It was dark and everyone had gone to bed.

No need to ask, Lian Fang Zhou knew that it was Third Aunt arranging things for her again!

Ever since their marriage was decided, Third Aunt had spared no effort to facilitate them.

It was just that she was too ostentatious to hide it, how embarrassing…

Too shy to keep talking to Ah Jian in the hallway, she whispered: “Let’s go in! Don’t forget your promise to me…”

“I won’t forget!” Ah Jian smiled and followed her into the room.

The next day, when Lian Fang Zhou got up and went downstairs, Ah Jian had already left.

She didn’t sleep well and she had woken up when the first light of day had peeked into the room. She thought silently: At this time, he must be just about to leave, right?

She really wanted to get up and see him off, but in the end, she didn’t get up.

So what if she went to see him, talk to him, and make him promise more? It was just a waste of time. He would go anyways. As long as he left quickly and returned quickly, it was fine.

Apart from Lian Fang Zhou, no one else knew about this matter.

When she sat down for breakfast, Ah Jian wasn’t there. Third Aunt asked casually: “Where did Ah Jian go? When will he be back? If he’s going to be gone for a while, should we leave something for him to eat?”

She thought Lian Fang Zhou and Ah Jian had gotten up to something!

Lian Fang Zhou sighed bitterly in her heart but said calmly: “Ah Jian has something to do and has gone far away. I’m afraid it will be ten days before he comes back!”

“What is Ah Jian doing? Did he go alone?” Lian Ze asked quickly.

“You’re about to be married, where is he going?” Third Aunt was also anxious. A thought couldn’t help but pop in her heart: He wasn’t running away from the marriage right? Oh, this was no good! Where would this put Fang Zhou’s face? After this, no good man would marry her!

“What a fuss!” Lian Fang Zhou smiled uncomfortably, her heart depressed. “He just has some private affairs to attend to! Don’t worry, he will come back as soon as possible. I said ten days but this is the maximum amount, maybe he will be back in six or seven, okay? Maybe even five.”

“Then, you don’t know where he went?” Third Aunt asked doubtfully.

Lian Ze and Lian Che nodded, expressing their admiration. Third Aunt hit the nail on the head!

Lian Fang Zhou froze. What should she saying?

“Oh, tell me!” Third Aunt pressed hurriedly, “The date of your marriage has already been booked, he must come back!”

“Of course I know where he is!” Lian Fang Zhou laughed. “Don’t worry, he will be back before Che’er takes his exam.”

This was the result of Lian Fang Zhou’s insistence. She told Ah Jian that if he didn’t come back in time, Che’er’s mood would definitely be affected. What if he didn’t perform well in the exam? This was why Ah Jian agreed to return before Lian Che’s exam.

Calculated, this fourteen days at most.

“Good!” Third Aunt said, relieved. “If he’s delayed, we will just have to go find him.”

“Yes.” Lian Fang Zhou forced a smile.

Lian Che and Lian Ze obviously still had some doubts in their hearts and felt that things were not so simple, but since Third Aunt had asked and their sister had answered, they couldn’t say anything more.

Lian Ze went back to the city and Lian Che went back to studying. Lian Fang Zhou continued to prepare for their wedding with Third Aunt.

But no matter how busy she was, she couldn’t help but think of Ah Jian in her heart. She didn’t know what was happening. Where was he now? Had he encountered any poisonous insects, snakes, or ferocious beasts? She didn’t know what this deep forest was like or how dangerous it was. The deep forests were also humid, so Xianteng was probably humid as well, right? She was afraid that he would suffer a lot, especially at night…

The more she thought about it, the more uneasy she felt, to the point that her heart felt like it was being scratched repeatedly.

One night, she awoke from a nightmare. Her back was covered in cold sweat and the center of her chest was pounding violently. Panting, it took Lian Fang Zhou a long time to calm down and regain her composure.

She couldn’t help but regret it. If she knew it would be like this, she wouldn’t have let him go at all! This person was too annoying, so stubborn…

Complaining in her heart for a long time, she didn’t know what to do.

Thankfully, Third Aunt was not an observant person. As long as Lian Fang Zhou devoted herself to preparing for the wedding, she didn’t notice anything was wrong.

Bi Tao and Chun Xing seemed to have caught some clues but they were servants and dared not to bring it up.

Then, in the blink of an eye, it was mid spring and the county exam was scheduled for the sixth day of the fourth month. Lian Fang Zhou booked several rooms in the inn a few days earlier so they could stay with Che’er before the exam.