Chu Lingguang stood on the path by the canal, gazing at them from afar.
Even though he had given his Second Aunt and her family a significant amount of silver taels, their lifestyle remained as frugal as ever. They had set aside most of the money, planning to use it for Zhang Linghua's dowry and for their two sons' future imperial examinations.
Guo Fang would usually let Mrs. Chu of the Zhang Family take home any leftovers, which she always accepted gladly. Zhang Da would head to the tile factory early in the morning, but he would often first go into the nearby mountains to chop a load of firewood. He'd leave it there and then retrieve it after work, by which time the sky was nearly dark.
The couple often returned to Liu Family Gully together as dusk fell.
At that moment, the sky was a dusky yellow.
