Chapter 9: My Sister‑in‑Law Is an Iceberg Beauty

In front of Xu Yuexin, the middle‑aged man had already stated the weight, holding the scale beam in one hand and the scale in the other to keep balance, reporting to him: "The book is two jin nine liang, watch closely."

Treat it as three jin and pack it into the box.

Xu Yuexin took out the Five Cents coin he had gotten earlier from returning a soda bottle, handed it to the middle‑aged man, showing no sign of anything unusual the whole time.

In fact, he had been curious about what was inside the box's inner compartment.

All right, here you go.

The middle‑aged man found him easy to talk to, and politely placed the books inside, closed the wooden box and handed it over.

Xu Yuexin lifted the wooden box, took Chen Qiaoqiao with him, and hurried toward the Park Gate.

Is there something special about this box?

After walking a distance, Chen Qiaoqiao whispered, "When he turned around to take the scale just now, I saw you weigh it with your hand."

Smart, you even noticed that.

Xu Yuexin affirmed, "When we get home and open the box, I'll tell you if I find anything."

It was getting late; Xu Yuexin, carrying the wooden box, walked with Chen Qiaoqiao to the Dispatch Point, took a taxi to drop Chen Qiaoqiao home, and promised to meet again next weekend before parting.

In the car, after saying goodbye, Xu Yuexin and Chen Qiaoqiao began to look forward to their next date.

Based on Xu Yuexin's past experience with long‑distance campus relationships, when lovers haven't seen each other for a long time, a sense of unfamiliarity can arise at reunion, most obviously as a rejection of physical contact, and the relationship may deteriorate.

From today's interactions and intimacy, Chen Qiaoqiao showed no such behavior; on the contrary, she liked his touches.

But because they were always in public, Xu Yuexin couldn't make any further moves.

After all, in a conservative era, a young couple sharing a kiss on the street would attract glares and be accused of lecherous behavior.

Fortunately, Xu Yuexin had just arranged with Chen Qiaoqiao that next time she would meet him downstairs at his building.

His mother had previously said that next weekend the whole family would go to the suburbs to visit relatives.

Xu Yuexin could use writing as an excuse to stay home, then bring Chen Qiaoqiao upstairs, creating a private moment and giving himself more room to act without hesitation.

Just thinking about it makes one happy.

After getting out of the taxi, Xu Yuexin bought a roasted chicken and two pork hocks at the State-run Cooked Food Shop, planning to improve the family's meals.

When Xu Yuexin arrived home, no one was inside. He placed the cooked food on the living‑room table, put the wooden box in the bedroom, went to the kitchen to fetch a kitchen knife, returned to the bedroom, opened the box and set it flat, then tapped the bottom of the box with the back of the knife.

The already fragile old wooden box cracked open a slit under the heavy strike, revealing yellowed paper inside.

It's a book.

Xu Yuexin stared at the slit, muttering to himself, set the knife down, grasped the edge of the crack with his fingers, and lifted it upward.

After a "crack" sound, the bottom of the box gave way completely, exposing five neatly stacked ancient volumes.

Each volume was remarkably intact; aside from the paper's yellowing, there were no torn edges or damage, and the surface was spotless.

Southern Mountain Old Manuscript?

Xu Yuexin read the title on the cover, feeling that he had heard it before.

Looking at the author's name, hey, Liu Kezhuang.

Xu Yuexin then recalled that he had learned about the book "Southern Mountain Old Manuscript" and Liu Kezhuang's life in the Quan Jianbao Live Broadcast Room. Liu Kezhuang, a renowned patriotic poet of the Southern Song era on par with Xin Qiji, was exceptionally talented from childhood, wrote many poems, but unfortunately the anthology "Southern Mountain Old Manuscript" that recorded his works was lost, a regret for later generations.

Until the late 1990s, someone discovered four of the five surviving volumes of "Southern Mountain Old Manuscript" in their ancestral home, and auctioned them a few years later for 4.5 million.

In 2010, a collector re‑auctioned those four volumes, finally fetching 5.6 million.

If a fragment can sell for 5.6 million, his complete set must be worth even more; excited, Xu Yuexin grabbed a freshly laundered piece of clothing from the wardrobe, tore it into strips to wrap the books, packed them back into the box, closed the lid, and stashed it under the bed.

It's a precious treasure; preserving it for future generations makes it worth more than the house they currently live in.

And all this started from the Five Cents he got from the glass bottle.

Five Cents turned into several hundred thousand, even millions—enough to brag about for a lifetime.

Achoo!

Just as Xu Yuexin was still elated, he suddenly sneezed.

Who's muttering about me?

Xu Yuexin rubbed his nose and muttered.

Mom, stop nagging. Xin Ge has indeed quit, but he earns more from submissions.

At this moment, in the Chen Family's living room, Chen Qiaoqiao sat on a small horse saddle, peeling edamame, silently trying to tell her mother, "Please don't meddle in my relationship with him."

Not long after Chen Qiaoqiao returned home, Zhou Zhifeng nagged her again, saying Xu Yuexin was an unreliable partner. Annoyed, Chen Qiaoqiao decided to explain the latest situation she knew, so her mother would have nothing to say.

Zhou Zhifeng still wasn't convinced: "Qiao Qiao, you just lack social experience. If he says something, it must be true, right?"

While the two were talking, a melodious accordion sound drifted from the bedroom ahead.

Mom… do you think Xin Ge is the kind of liar?

Amid the music, Chen Qiaoqiao choked silently, wondering if she had to wait for Xu Yuexin to bring the Manuscript Fee Slip before she could believe it. "Sigh, you child…"

Zhou Zhifeng was about to continue when the bedroom music abruptly stopped, and a female voice sounded.

Don't disturb my piano playing.

I have a performance tomorrow.

The voice was elegant and aloof, with a hint of impatience, giving an impression of cold, untouchable dignity.

Zhou Zhifeng, as if receiving an imperial edict, quickly fell silent.

The speaker was Chen Yixue, the Chen Family's eldest daughter, a National First-Class Actor, proficient in singing, playing, and dancing, billed as an All-round Artist.

When Zhou Zhifeng and her husband were sent down to the countryside for labor, Chen Yixue supported the family by performing on stage alone, earning living expenses for herself and her two younger sisters, and even sending money to Zhou Zhifeng and her husband from time to time.

The Chen Family had relied entirely on Chen Yixue back then, so she held great authority at home, and even Zhou Zhifeng dared not defy her.

Seeing Zhou Zhifeng too scared to utter a word, Chen Qiaoqiao couldn't help but feel secretly pleased: thanks to big sister, otherwise she would have been nagged forever.

At the same time, Chen Qiaoqiao knew that only when Xu Yuexin finally displayed his ability in person could her mother truly be silenced.

(End of chapter)