Wen Wan and Limp Wang's marriage fell through, leaving Mrs. Zhou extremely anxious. She seized the opportunity to return to her mother's home to discuss it with Granny Wu.
"It's all that bastard Limp Wang's fault for being so unreliable. He was about to marry such a beautiful bride, and he still went off to have an affair." Speaking of Limp Wang, Mrs. Wu was indignant, spitting, "Who did he go looking for if not someone better? Limping all the way to your village to find some lowly street trash, and even getting caught by so many people. My old face is red with embarrassment for him!"
After her rant, Granny Wu thought of something, "Isn't it strange? Why did Widow Liu's house catch fire precisely at that time? Could it have been someone intentional?"
Mrs. Zhou didn't dwell on it too much, "Mother, please think of something. If this marriage falls through, my five taels of silver and two acres of paddy field would go to waste. Shunzi's father might set his sights on the ox again. Without the ox, what about those fields next year? Are we really going to borrow an ox from his uncle's house? I don't get along with my sister-in-law, and if I ask her for help, who knows what kind of face she'll show me!"
Granny Wu was worried too. The little girl from the Wen family was known as a beauty for miles around, with a good figure and a pretty face, but unfortunately, she couldn't speak. If she could speak, the matchmakers would have already worn out the threshold of the Wen family with their visits, and she and her daughter wouldn't be here looking troubled.
Mrs. Zhou suddenly said, "Mother, didn't you say last time that my older brother works as a temp for a family in the town whose madam can't have children, and the master is planning to take a concubine?"
Granny Wu was startled, "If you hadn't mentioned it, I would have almost forgotten about it."
Seeing hope, Mrs. Zhou's eyes brightened, "This matter can't wait. Mother, you should go to town tomorrow and find my brother to probe him. Even if Master dislikes her for being unable to speak, we can negotiate the price. I'd be willing to sell her cheaply for five taels of silver. Someone has to compensate me for the loss on Limp Wang's side, right?"
Granny Wu also thought this was a good idea, "Alright, tomorrow morning I will go to town. You head home first and wait for my good news."
——
Wen Wan had another premonition. This time, she foresaw herself locked in a dark room, abused daily by a strange man.
Apart from this, she couldn't foresee anything else, just like the past few years, she could only sense the outcome without knowing the causes in the middle.
It was because of this incomprehensible premonition that Wen Wan suddenly realized something——
That day, before she was going to find Song Yuanbao under the big locust tree, she foresaw that Song Wei would be there with Song Yuanbao waiting for her. Coincidentally, Limp Wang passed by and saw them, thinking she and Song Wei were having an affair, so he attacked Song Wei.
It was the most complete premonition she ever had, with causes and effects, not leaving her in the dark to piece things together, guessing why she was so unlucky.
Was it a coincidence? Or did Song Wei's bad luck really overshadow her, allowing her to see complete cause and effect whenever the premonition involved him?
Wen Wan found it quite mysterious. Relying solely on that day's premonition didn't seem to explain anything, so she realized she needed to find a way to validate her guess.
——
One day, Wen Wan made two sweet glutinous rice cakes, packed them, and carried her bamboo basket to the village school. Passing by the sorghum fields, she saw a man walking ahead, wearing a blue robe, his hair meticulously combed and styled in a square knot. His posture was upright, with broad shoulders exuding a sense of gentle power, his hands clasped behind his back as he walked with grace and ease.
Wen Wan recognized the man instantly as Song Wei; no other man within a hundred miles had an aura as good as his.
Seemingly having heard a noise behind him, the man turned his head, meeting Wen Wan's clear, black-and-white eyes.
He paused, stopping in his tracks.
Having been seen, Wen Wan was too embarrassed to hide, so she mustered up the courage to walk forward. Unable to speak and unsure whether Song Wei understood her sign language, she pulled out a smile, barely a greeting.
Song Wei's deep gaze landed on her, "Heading to a lesson?"
It sounded like an ordinary question without any hint of mockery.
His perfectly timed politeness and elegance made people feel quite comfortable.
Wen Wan nodded.
"I'm going to pick up Yuanbao," he said.
Wen Wan was surprised; in the past, she'd frequently sneak to the village school to listen to the teacher's lessons and had never seen Song Wei picking up Song Yuanbao. Recently, he seemed to be coming more often!
With her mind occupied, Wen Wan failed to notice her footing, accidentally stepping on a small stone that pained her foot, and before she knew it, she was falling forward.
She was about to bump into Song Wei when he extended his hand in time to support her, his grip just right, not feeling abrupt.
Wen Wan didn't have time to blush, stunned because when he supported her, the foreseen cause and effect of that premonition materialized in her mind——
Mrs. Zhou and her mother, Granny Wu, were plotting to sell Wen Wan for five taels of silver to become a concubine for a master in town.
They called it a concubine, but it was more like a surrogacy tool because the master didn't like her. However, as the madam couldn't have children, he intended for her to conceive, and after the child was born, it would be given to the madam to raise, and she'd be kicked out.
Wen Wan had no home to return to, encountering Song Wei on the way to the county to submit his manuscripts, who kindly gave her a ride on his ox cart. However, the cart toppled into a ditch, injuring people, not to mention his manuscripts got completely soaked.
Wen Wan found it somewhat absurd.
Why was it that every premonition involving him seemed to be her dragging him down?
Nonetheless, in any premonition involving him, she could clearly see the cause and effect, an indisputable fact.
The events in the premonition frightened Wen Wan; she didn't want to be anyone's concubine or be kicked out after having a child.
She pondered carefully, realizing Song Wei could help her see the premonition's full content, and if she could foresee impending misfortune, she could find ways to help him avoid it, then——
Wen Wan's heart raced, but she had to seize the opportunity, because if she missed it, her life would be ruined.
"Not feeling well?" Song Wei noticed her face alternating between pale and green, so he asked.
Wen Wan took a deep breath, squatted down, picked up a branch nearby, and clumsily wrote six words in the dirt: "You marry me, I'll bring fortune."
She knew few characters, and even if there were other things to say, she couldn't write them. Those six words were pieced together from ones she'd learned before, but the main idea was conveyed.
Song Wei looked at her writing, then returned his gaze to her, "Do you know what you are writing?"
His tone was calm, his gaze profound and reserved, seemingly able to see through all her small schemes.
Having written it, Wen Wan could only go all in, closing her eyes and nodding vigorously.
Of course she knew what she was writing; it was her only way to save herself—marrying off before her stepmother took action.
Besides, saying "bringing fortune" wasn't her boast; a fortune teller once said it.
Once, after school with Song Yuanbao, they met a fortune teller who gave Wen Wan a free reading, saying she'd bring fortune and would one day live in affluence surrounded by servants.
Though Wen Wan thought it was nonsense, she was still overjoyed, rewarding the fortune teller with a sugar cake.
...
Wen Wan remained in her squatting position, not daring to lift her head, her peripheral vision secretly glancing at Song Wei's shadow elongated by the sun.
Song Wei lowered his head to see the girl squatting with a small, thin frame. Her coarse right hand held a short twig, scratching the dirt anxiously, betraying her nervous heart.
He swallowed, his Adam's apple bobbing before he finally spoke after a moment of silence, "Are you sure?"
Wen Wan nodded again. Even if she wasn't, there was no other option.
"Alright," he said.
His deep, assured voice, crisp and unwavering.
Wen Wan found it hard to believe as she lifted her head to meet Song Wei's eyes, very calm, with no ripples, as if agreeing to help her with an ordinary matter.