Сhеng Сhi smilеd аnd nodded.
Zhоu Shаоjin hеsitаted for a mоmеnt. Seeing thаt Cheng Сhi hаd nо intеntiоn оf urging her to stаy, she felt extremеlу disaрpоintеd, уеt she still bid him fаrеwеll with а smilе.
Chеng Chi sighed inwardlу.
Тhis girl has а pair of еloquent еyes.
Сlеаr аnd trаnsраrent, as if соuntless wоrds wеrе cоndensеd within thеm.
He соuldn't helр but stand up and wаlk to the window, рushing it орen.
Undеr the bright moonlight, Zhоu Shаоjin, dressеd in а mооn-whitе vеst, aррeаred slеnder and grаcеful, аs light аnd supрlе аs willоw branches swаying in the breeze.
Сheng Chi lowеred his eуelids, his ехprеssion inscrutable.
※
Zhou Shaojin pouted all the way back to Floating Emerald Pavilion.
The next day, news of Madam Dong's serious illness and Cheng Lu selling off family property spread throughout Nine Prosperities Lane.
Upon hearing this, Wu Baozhang turned pale. Clutching a comb, she pondered for a long while before finally stepping out of the room with a beaming smile. Seeing Cheng Nuo lounging on a luohan bed, being attended to by a maid while reading travelogues, she said cheerfully, "Is the master not going out today? I noticed the begonias behind the house are blooming beautifully. Why not have the kitchen maids prepare a few dishes, and I'll accompany you for a drink?"
Cheng Nuo was so startled he nearly fell off the bed.
He scrutinized Wu Baozhang carefully. Seeing her smiling warmly and amiably, he couldn't help but widen his eyes in surprise.
This was truly like the sun rising from the west.
Ever since he married Wu Baozhang, not only had she been cold toward him, but she had also progressed from initial admonishments to outright lectures. There wasn't a single thing about him she approved of, which annoyed him endlessly. Considering they had just married and his parents frequently argued loudly, becoming the laughingstock of Nine Prosperities Lane, he had no choice but to suppress his many grievances.
But what was wrong with Wu Baozhang now?
Suddenly, she was treating him with such tenderness.
Cheng Nuo always remembered a piece of advice from his grandmother: "Unwarranted flattery often hides ulterior motives."
Could it be that Wu Baozhang had done something wrong and needed his help to resolve it?
He cautiously asked, "What's gotten into you? Just yesterday, you were scolding me for lying in bed all day reading travelogues, saying I was worse than a child just starting school..."
Wu Baozhang flushed and replied, "I was just upset that you weren't studying the art of composition properly. Later, Mother-in-law scolded me. I've been thinking it over these past few days and realized she made a good point..."
Madam Wen was rather indulgent toward Cheng Nuo.
This was something Cheng Nuo was well aware of.
At the time, Wu Baozhang had been quite displeased, making comments like "indulgent mothers raise spoiled sons." He had been so afraid others might overhear that he almost covered her mouth.
Unexpectedly, he had followed his father's example. After ignoring Wu Baozhang for a few days, she finally understood his authority.
Hearing this, he raised his chin slightly, letting out a proud and somewhat arrogant "hmm," and said, "It's good that you understand. Our Cheng family has passed down a legacy of poetry, literature, and etiquette. We excel in scholarly pursuits. There are proper times for reading specific books and appropriate moments for study. If you don't understand, don't stand by offering unsolicited advice..."
Wu Baozhang barely restrained herself from storming off in anger.
How had she ever thought marrying Cheng Nuo was a decent choice?
Beyond the daily necessities of life, having such an infuriating husband was another form of torment.
It was a pity that Cheng Lu was also unreliable, having reached the point of selling ancestral property to treat his mother's illness. Thankfully, she hadn't insisted back then. If she had married him, she would have lacked even the basic necessities.
But in the end, daily necessities were more important than mutual affection.She should be nicer to Cheng Nuo, right? Let Cheng Nuo go deal with her unreliable father-in-law and mother-in-law.
Once she gave birth to a son, she would raise him well. With the Cheng family as a sturdy tree to shelter under, she didn’t believe she couldn’t nurture a jinshi scholar.
Thinking of this, Wu Baozhang felt life had hope again.
She smiled at Cheng Nuo and said, “Are you going to the back garden to admire the flowers?”
“No need for flower admiring,” Cheng Nuo said carelessly. “Have the kitchen maid stir-fry a couple of dishes and bring a pot of good wine—that’s the proper way!”
Proper way, my foot!
Wu Baozhang cursed inwardly, but on her face, she smiled and agreed, instructing a maid to go to the kitchen while she accompanied Cheng Nuo to the backyard.
Cheng Nuo looked at the obedient Wu Baozhang and felt his life was quite good. He ordered his attendant, “Go, send an invitation to Elder Brother Ju. Tell him I’m inviting him for food and drinks.”
The attendant dashed off.
Wu Baozhang trembled with anger, barely restraining herself from splashing the hot tea in her hand onto Cheng Nuo’s face.
The Cheng family was a scholarly household that followed ancient customs, so there was no tradition of wedding-night pranks. Yet on the day she married in, that Cheng Ju had led a group of men who seemed to appear out of nowhere to her bridal chamber to cause trouble. At the time, she didn’t know the Cheng family followed ancient rites and paid it no mind, thinking she just had to send them away. Who knew that Cheng Ju would be so despicably lecherous, secretly groping her?
After she learned that the Cheng family didn’t have wedding-night pranks as a custom, she wished she could drink his blood and devour his flesh. Yet no matter how she explained it, that fool Cheng Nuo wouldn’t listen, insisting she was too narrow-minded, that Cheng Ju leading the pranks had embarrassed her, and that she was biased against Cheng Ju… The two nearly argued over it.
Wu Baozhang would remember that man for the rest of her life!
But she still smiled and said to Cheng Nuo, “Sending an invitation to Elder Brother Ju on such short notice—isn’t that too impolite? Why not invite him over specially another day?”
Cheng Nuo said, “What do you know? He loves lively gatherings the most. As long as he hears I’m inviting him for drinks, he’ll definitely come!”
Then he’s even less of a decent person!
Wu Baozhang felt that if she kept talking to Cheng Nuo, she’d cough up blood. She simply closed her eyes, silently recited “Namo Amitabha” a few times in her heart, took a deep breath, and smiled. “Then I’ll go check how the kitchen is preparing the dishes. We can have them served once Elder Brother Ju arrives.”
Cheng Nuo nodded.
Wu Baozhang hurriedly stood up and headed to the kitchen.
As she left, she heard Cheng Nuo instruct his attendant, “It’s rare for us to gather today. I’ll send out a few more invitations…”
Out of sight, out of mind. Wu Baozhang quickened her pace and left the backyard. Only after drinking half a cup of tea in her inner chamber did her emotions settle.
Her personal maid, Baiguo, brought over a plate of tangerines.
Wu Baozhang’s mood improved even more. As she peeled a tangerine, she said to Baiguo, “At least after marrying, I can eat as many tangerines as I want without having to watch my mother-in-law and that second sister of mine.”
“Exactly!” Baiguo smiled and fetched a towel for Wu Baozhang. “Madam clearly knew you loved tangerines the most but insisted they cause internal heat. Even during tangerine season, she only let you eat five or six. I always felt Madam was deliberately making things difficult for you.”
Wu Baozhang grew up in Sichuan and loved tangerines the most.
She nodded repeatedly and handed a tangerine to Baiguo.Baiguo, eating an orange, whispered, "Just now when I passed by the sedan hall, I saw the elder brother of Si'er, the head maid serving Old Madam Guan of the fourth branch, showing off a few oranges. He said they were Fujian tribute oranges, a tribute item. The eldest master of the main branch had sent several baskets over. Second Miss Zhou of the Zhou family received one basket and sent over half a basket to honor Old Madam Guan and Madam Mian of the fourth branch. Si'er also got a few as a reward. Mistress, shall we also buy some Fujian oranges to eat?"
Wu Baozhang was hearing about this for the first time. She smiled and said, "Then buy a basket. Later, I’ll also reward a few to the trusted maids serving Madam Wen."
Baiguo happily agreed. That evening, she bought the oranges, spending nearly three taels of silver. Wu Baozhang tasted one and found it indeed more delicious than ordinary oranges. She took half a basket to Madam Wen.
Madam Wen, with medicinal plasters on her temples, was lying in bed groaning. When she saw the oranges, she didn’t even taste one and instead rewarded them to the servants attending her.
Wu Baozhang’s face flushed so red it seemed blood might drip from it. Humiliated and angry, she returned to her side chamber.
A couple of days later, when she went to the fourth branch to attend Cheng Gao’s wedding banquet, she tasted the oranges served at the feast and immediately asked the maid serving the fruit platter in amazement, "What kind of oranges are these? They’re truly delicious!"
The maid proudly replied, "Thanks to our Second Miss Zhou. Guang Sheng Lou specially brought in a batch of Fujian oranges from Fujian. Though they may not compare to the ones the eldest master presented to Old Madam Guo, they’re certainly not like the leftover ones sold in the market."
No wonder Madam Wen had rewarded away the oranges she sent without even looking at them!
Who knows what those who received the oranges were saying about her behind her back?
Wu Baozhang felt that the maids and matrons of the fifth branch no longer treated her with the same respect as when she first entered the household.
Feeling as if sitting on pins and needles, she found an excuse to leave the Water Pavilion where the opera was being performed. In low spirits, she walked alone along the lake embankment for a while.
Voices could be heard from the adjacent path.
And they were the voices of a man and a woman.
Curious, Wu Baozhang tiptoed over.
In front of a green hedge trimmed from holly bushes stood a tall, handsome man and a slender, gentle woman, like a perfect pair from a painting.
Looking more closely, it turned out to be Cheng Xu and Zhou Shaojin!
Wu Baozhang’s heart stirred.
Recalling the ambiguous interactions between Cheng Xu and Zhou Shaojin during the eightieth birthday celebration of the second branch’s matriarch of the Cheng family years ago.
Wu Baozhang suddenly felt as if she had drunk ginseng soup, certain there was more to the story.
Crouching low, she cautiously moved closer and heard Zhou Shaojin say in an exasperated tone, "...I’ve told you many times, I don’t like you and don’t want to marry you. Whether you pass the provincial examination as top scholar or become the top scholar in the palace examination, it has nothing to do with me. Even if you go to ask my father for my hand, he will still ask for my consent. I advise you not to bring humiliation upon yourself!"
Though her words were blunt and sharp, her soft, gentle voice didn’t make one feel insulted.
Cheng Xu felt the same way.
He spoke humbly, "If there’s something about me you don’t like, I can change. Besides, now that I’ve passed the provincial examination as top scholar, I can decide my own marriage..."
Zhou Shaojin felt utterly helpless.
She didn’t know what to say to make Cheng Xu understand her feelings.
Zhou Shaojin could only remain silent, listening as Cheng Xu rambled on. Finally, she said, "If you block my way like this again, I’ll go and tell Old Madam Guo!"
Unexpectedly, upon hearing this, a flicker of joy flashed in Cheng Xu’s eyes.
Zhou Shaojin was stunned, then so angry it felt like her liver ached.
Why was Cheng Xu always like this?Last time, he had forced his family to acknowledge him by trying to force the issue; this time, he brazenly cornered her, hoping to use the rumors and gossip to make the elders back down.
Zhou Shaojin didn’t want to say another word to Cheng Xu. She called out to Chunwan, saying, “Let’s go! If Master Xu isn’t afraid of losing face, let him make a scene on his own.”
Only then did Wu Baozhang notice that not far away stood Zhou Shaojin’s personal maid Chunwan, along with Cheng Xu’s servant Huanxi and attendant Da Su.
※
Dear readers, I thought today was the 30th and I could leave work a bit early, only to realize I got the date wrong… and then tragedy struck… There’s only one update today… What’s even more tragic is that I’ll be working normally and overtime during the May Day holiday, so I’m not sure if I can manage double updates… (>_<)
※ (To be continued ~^~)
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