Chapter 39: Husband, You Have Such a Cruel Heart

Chapter 39: Husband, You’ve Got Such a Cold Heart

Besides the four silver ingots, Manager Yang also handed over the royalties for those three hundred copies. Their bookshop priced each copy at around a hundred thirty wen, and according to the contract, for those three hundred copies, Yan Fengan could receive three liang and nine qian in royalties.

Since Yan Fengan agreed to write the sequels, Manager Yang seized the opportunity and gave him four liang in royalties, which, combined with what the two young masters had given, totaled twenty-four liang of silver.

The silver ingots on the table gleamed with an enticing luster, and when Yan Fengan handed them to Wen Xi to keep, Wen Xi's eyes lit up with delight.

After seeing Manager Yang off, the couple returned to their room. Wen Xi happily threw himself into Yan Fengan's arms, cupped his cheeks, and peppered his face with kisses.

"Husband, you're so amazing."

Yan Fengan held him close, unable to suppress the grin he couldn't hold back.

While earning twenty liang of silver was certainly nice, Wen Xi's praise warmed his heart even more. He stroked Wen Xi's head and said, "I'll work hard so you can have a good life."

Wen Xi felt that life was already wonderful now. Every day, he felt like he was swimming in honey—with every breath, even the air tasted sweet.

He grabbed the money box off the bookshelf and was about to put the twenty-four liang of silver inside when he hesitated and asked, "Shouldn't we give some of this money to Mother?"

We're part of this family, and even though we didn't earn anything before, now that we have income, we should chip in.

When Yan Fengan nodded, Wen Xi asked, "How much should we give?"

Yan Fengan took out two ingots of silver: "Let's give ten liang, and you hold on to the rest."

After giving ten liang, they'd still have fourteen liang left, plus what they'd earned before—which was still a decent chunk.

Wen Xi was still over the moon. The Yan family had always been good to him, and he was more than willing to chip in and share it with everyone.

When their son suddenly had so much silver, Yan Shichang and Chen Lanfang were quite puzzled. The bookshop manager said he wanted Yan Fengan to write something, but how could writing be worth that much?

Yan Fengan no longer wanted to make excuses to deceive them, so he came clean about writing the storybook.

The old couple's confusion finally cleared up. Chen Lanfang took the silver, grinning from ear to ear: "My boy's really made it big. Just writing a storybook can earn this much. This just goes to show that people should read more books—with knowledge, making money is far easier than for other folks."

She didn't care whether it was considered proper or not. As long as it wasn't criminal, earning money meant her son was talented.

Yan Shichang also proudly patted Yan Fengan on the shoulder. He didn't care how much money Yan Fengan made; what mattered most was that Yan Fengan cared about his family and wasn't just taking without giving back.

Aside from his parents and Wen Xi, Yan Fengan didn't mention the storybook to his brother and sister-in-law.

It wasn't that he was deliberately hiding it, but mainly because his brother and sister-in-law were young—they wouldn't just drop it after hearing it once like his parents would. If one of them got bored and bought a copy to read, he'd be mortified.

Although he hadn't written any romantic scenes in the storybook and his wording was pretty tame, given his second brother's personality, he might occasionally tease him about it. Just imagining that scenario was enough to make him want to crawl under a rock.

Mindful that Yan Fengan needed to deliver the manuscript in three days, Wen Xi stopped clinging to him so he wouldn't distract him. Worried that Yan Fengan might miss the deadline and the bookshop would take the money back, he went ahead and ground the ink for him and urged him to write the sequels quickly.

While Yan Fengan was thinking, Wen Xi picked up the storybook and moved off to the side, reading it seriously.

After studying with Yan Fengan for a while, Wen Xi couldn't quote the classics like someone who'd had formal schooling, but he had no trouble reading. Yan Fengan's writing wasn't hard to understand, so Wen Xi found it easy to follow.

No wonder those young gentlemen and ladies loved this story. After just two pages, he was deeply drawn in, unable to pull himself away—both saddened by poor Yu Niang and touched by Shen Mo and the fox spirit's love for her.

When he reached the ending, Wen Xi finally understood why those two young masters would spend a fortune to have his husband write a happy sequel. Two men who cherished Yu Niang like she was treasure both left her—that was simply too cruel.

Setting down the book, Wen Xi dabbed at his eyes with his handkerchief and looked at Yan Fengan with a sorrowful expression: "Lovers who cannot be together in the end—husband, you've got such a cold heart."

Yan Fengan had just finished writing one sequel. At that, he quickly handed the paper to Wen Xi: "I'm not heartless. Look, I've given them a very happy ending."

As Yan Fengan's husband, Wen Xi had the privilege of being the first reader before the sequels were published.

When writing the sequels, Yan Fengan followed the bookshop manager's wishes and first wrote a passage thanking the readers, emphasizing that these two sequels were commissioned at great expense by the Li and Zhou young masters, so they could look good.

"Regarding the original ending of *The Jade-Faced Fox Gentleman*, every reader sighs and reluctantly closes the book, all hoping that the fox spirit and Yu Niang can reunite and be together again. Thanks to your support, the Li and Zhou young masters have now paid generously to commission these two sequels, which I present here hoping you will enjoy."

Wen Xi's gaze quickly skipped past that line and landed on the main text of the sequel.

Sequel One: Yu Niang and the Fox Gentleman Reunite

"Through cold winters and hot summers, after the fox spirit departed, Yu Niang spent several more years alone. Every March, the sky over Plum Blossom Town was always overcast, with a fine, drizzling rain that never seemed to end. One morning, Yu Niang forgot her umbrella when she went out. On her way home, she shielded her face with one hand and lifted her skirt with the other, carefully stepping around the puddles on the stone path.

As she passed the bridge, the drizzle falling on her suddenly stopped. Yu Niang looked up in surprise and saw an umbrella had appeared above her head. Following the hand holding the umbrella, she saw a strange man in white robes gazing down at her.

Oddly enough, though Yu Niang had never seen this man before, the moment she looked at him, a dull ache spread through her heart.

The way he stood there, the look in his eyes as he gazed down at her, and the faint, elusive smile at the corner of his mouth—all of it reminded her of someone.

Someone she had waited for many years but thought she would never see again—or rather, a spirit.

'Meeting yet feeling as if we've known each other; before knowing, already longing.'

After a long exchange of gazes, Yu Niang softly asked, 'Have we... met somewhere before?'

The man in white smiled gently and reached out to wipe the raindrops from her face: 'Yu Niang, I'm back.'

It turned out this man was the very fox spirit who had been reduced to his original form. After returning to the ruined temple, he cultivated day and night without rest, determined to regain his human form and reunite with Yu Niang.

A spirit who knew nothing of love gave up a thousand years of hard-earned cultivation for a mortal woman, and even willingly tried to reunite with her—truly pitiable and lamentable.

The fox spirit's actions moved a celestial official in heaven, who made an exception to help him transform back into human form. Grateful beyond measure, the fox spirit bid farewell to the celestial official and returned to Plum Blossom Town.

...

Before long, a rumor spread through Plum Blossom Town that Yu Niang, the weaver who had remained faithful to her late husband for five years, had taken a new husband.

They said her husband was not only handsome but also had a gentle temper. One day, a neighbor passing by her door caught a glimpse of Yu Niang sitting on her husband's shoulders, reaching up to pick green jujubes from a tree.

The two lived in that small courtyard year after year. The fox spirit remained as devoted and doting as ever, even conjuring his fluffy tail to keep Yu Niang warm on winter nights, as if they had never been apart.

The only difference was the fox spirit's face. Before, he had worn Shen Mo's name and appearance, suppressing his true nature and playing another person when with Yu Niang.

Now he was free to be himself, and even with his true face revealed, Yu Niang was willing to be his rightful wife.

A human and a spirit in love was not accepted by the world, but fortunately, the fox spirit had been foresighted—before being reduced to his original form, he had sent his demon core into Yu Niang's body, so that she could share his life and never be separated.

When the celestial official happened to see the two living in harmony, he felt deeply gratified.

Why, you ask?

It turned out that the celestial official was none other than Shen Mo. He had been sent to the mortal world to undergo tribulations and settle a karmic bond, but unexpectedly became entangled with the mortal woman Yu Niang. He calculated that Yu Niang's true destined match was the thousand-year fox spirit, which was why he had asked the fox spirit to protect her before his death.

Now that Yu Niang and the fox spirit had finally found their happiness, he returned to heaven to be his carefree celestial official once more."

After reading the sequel, Wen Xi's regret finally lessened. He murmured to himself, "That's right—lovers should end up together. Two people who love each other, after enduring countless hardships, deserve to live happily together."

He savored it silently for a while, still wanting more. Since Yan Fengan hadn't written the second sequel yet, he couldn't help asking what would happen next.

Yan Fengan had some vague ideas and asked Wen Xi in return, "What do you think happens after two people marry and become husband and wife?"

Wen Xi thought for a moment, then said uncertainly, "Maybe they should have a kid?"

Yan Fengan smiled and nodded.

Getting married, having kids, and growing old together—that's really the happiest, most fulfilling thing for a couple.

But a strange thought crossed his mind out of nowhere: "One of them is human, and the other is a fox—when their child is born, will it look more like its dad or its mom? Wouldn't it be weird if Yu Niang popped out a fluffy little fox?"

Yan Fengan burst out laughing at his words, tapping him on the head and saying, "Funny you should say that—Yu Niang in this story has the exact same question. As for whether it's human or fox, you'll find out in the next installment."

Still trying to keep him in suspense, huh?

Wen Xi didn't buy that Yan Fengan would actually write Yu Niang giving birth to a little fox. In his view, the child of Yu Niang and the fox spirit was sure to be a chubby, rosy-cheeked, adorable little baby.

As it turned out, Wen Xi's guess was exactly right. The afterword in the second installment revealed that although the little fox spirit possessed innate magical powers, he was born just like any ordinary kid, and he didn't show his true form until he was eight.

Three days flew by. Manager Yang sent Li Er to the village to pick up the manuscript.

Li Er was naturally a chatty guy, and the moment he saw Yan Fengan, he couldn't stop himself from jabbering on and on.

First, he congratulated Yan Fengan on getting so much love for his very first storybook, then said that ever since the book was printed, he'd been pushing it on every customer who walked into the shop. Out of the five hundred copies sold, he could take credit for at least half.

He wasn't really bragging—more than anything, he was showing his loyalty, just letting Yan Fengan know he'd earned those ten coppers fair and square.

Yan Fengan naturally wanted to thank him and was about to hand him a qian of silver for some drinks when Li Er hastily shook his head: "Scholar Yan, please don't misunderstand—that's not what I meant. I work at the bookshop, and the more books sell, the more commission I get. Your storybook is well written, so I benefit from its sales too. If anything, I should be the one thanking you."

Yan Fengan said, "I didn't mean anything else by it—I just thought you'd come a long way in the dead of winter, and there's not much I can offer you at home..."

"Please, don't say that." Li Er smiled and pointed outside happily. "The boss hired me a carriage, so I'm not tired in the least. If you really want to thank me, there's actually one thing I'd like to ask you for."

To avoid any misunderstanding, Li Er quickly pulled out a storybook he had prepared and said with an honest grin, "My wife read your storybook and really loved it. Would Scholar Yan be willing to give her an autograph?"

That wasn't difficult at all. Yan Fengan asked, "What should I write?"

Knowing Yan Fengan had no experience with this, Li Er quickly flipped to the title page and pointed at the blank space. "Just write here: 'For Zhenniang's safekeeping, from Linxi Hermit.'"

"Alright, give me a moment."

Yan Fengan went back to his room and signed as instructed.

When he left, Li Er was beaming with joy—such a wonderful surprise would surely delight his wife.

Wen Xi found it fascinating that writing a storybook could lead to things like this, so he took his own copy and asked Yan Fengan to sign it too.

How could Yan Fengan refuse? He picked up his brush, thought for a moment, and wrote:

"For my darling to keep, from your husband, Yan Fengan."

"How is it? Satisfied?"

Wen Xi shyly pursed his lips, picked up a finer brush, dipped it in ink, and wrote below: "Thank you, husband. I'm very satisfied."

After writing, he and Yan Fengan caught each other's eye, and they both couldn't help laughing.