Lu Xiao Shu blinked in confusion and after a moment, she finally understood what he just said. She said in bewilderment, “You stole your third brother’s cockerel? Why did you steal his cockerel? Also, don’t you think that your third brother is kind of petty? It’s just a cockerel. Why did he have to complain to the Old Master when he’s already an adult? Shouldn’t he be ashamed of himself?”
“Hey,” Lu Xiao Shu thought that it was suspicious and could not help asking, “Did you just make this up to fool me? Pfft! Rich people like you probably got used to everyone fawning over you. You’d come and play if you feel like it. When you found something new and interesting, you’d be gone for a few months. Once you lose interest in that thing, you’d come right back as if I’m just a plaything! If you don’t treat me as your friend, I’m fed up with your antics too!”
Lin Fang was very upset as he explained, “That wasn’t what I meant. I swear that I couldn’t leave… Err… That cockerel was the one that we sent into the fighting ring… My brother wanted to use it to gamble under the name of my family and I lost the fight. He was looking for it for one whole night, so it’s no wonder that he got mad…”
“Oh, that one?” Lu Xiao Shu was shocked and she started to believe Lin Fang’s words. She could not help bursting into laughter, “I didn’t know that your brother has a taste for things of such low quality. That terrified cockerel, pfft, you won’t win any gambling money with it. Instead, you’d lose more than you can afford! Your third brother expected it to win?”
Lin Fang was helpless as he had no choice but to retell the story of his humiliation again.
Lu Xiao Shu said nothing when she heard everything. She was not angry anymore!
“You’re so—” she could not help complaining, “clueless, and yet you still have the nerve to boast? I knew it! You rich people have high standards but little skills. There’s nothing you can do right…”
As she said that, she felt distressed and regrettable again. It was obviously the famous King of Cockfighting, one which could easily win them the first prize. Who could have expected them to turn it into a joke, embarrassing her as well?
She could not help herself when she started nagging Lin Fang once again.
Lin Fang could not argue back as he endured it in distress.
When she was almost done venting, Lin Fang tried smiling and asked, “So, does this mean it’s forgiven and forgotten? You, you won’t be mad at me anymore, right?”
Lu Xiao Shu tilted her head and thought before asking, “When can we go horseback riding?”
Lin Fang was so happy that he almost jumped. He said, “Anytime! Anytime! How about tomorrow?”
Lu Xiao Shu grinned, wanting to agree to it, but she suddenly shook her head and said, “No, we can’t go that soon! The village is busy fixing the water canal. Things are busy back at my home too. We can go after we’re done with all the tasks!”
“Sure, anything you say!” Lin Fang replied happily.
However, his words earned him another look from Lu Xiao Shu.
From that day onwards, the Lu Family’s house would always be visited by two uninvited guests almost every day. They came on the pretence of looking for Lu Qi or helping the people of Feng Ye Village with the water canal. Sometimes, they helped with work in the village, sometimes in the Lu Family’s backyard, making themselves extremely busy.
How could Miao Cui Lan know what they were actually here for? All she knew about Lin Fang was that he was Mr Wu’s student since young and he would often visit their house. How would she have known that his motives had changed?
As for Zhou Yuan, he looked fat and round like a dumpling. When he smiled, his eyes squinted into a thin line, making him look very friendly and honest. No one would ever think badly of him. Strange enough, he gave Miao Cui Lan a good first impression, and she merely assumed that he tagged along with Lin Fang to play and hang out. She never thought of other possibilities.
In the beginning, Xiao Xue was terrified and wary of Zhou Yuan, but after some time passed, the feeling started to disappear. She even felt confused that such an honest and good-natured boy could do something that shameless with the help of his servants.
Zhou Yuan wanted to explain it to her long ago, but he was frustrated that he never had a chance of privacy with her. He was anxious but he did not dare to be rash.
As someone who had a bad record on her list, he would lose his only chance to have her if he did something rude again. Being such a gentle girl, Xiao Xue probably would not do anything to him, but Lu Xiao Shu would drive him away with her hot temperament, and Lin Fang would definitely help her send him away!
Cousins? What a joke! They were not really cousins! Who knew if he would be glad to send me away?
While the weird method to hang out with the girls was ongoing at the Lu Family without any word going out, Miao Chu He had been staying in the Miao Family’s Village for quite some time.
Suddenly thinking of her parents, Tong Yu Er was a little worried and she brought it up to her husband. Thus, Miao Chu He helped her find a way to send Mistress Tong a letter that invited her to meet up in a private room at an inn called “Shuang He” in town.
When they received word that her mother agreed to meet, Tong Yu Er broke down into happy tears. Early that day, they dressed up nicely and while holding their son, the couple arrived at Shuang He inn to a room which they had booked previously.
Mistress Tong did not have much sleep the night before. The next morning, she excused herself to pray at the temple before finishing her breakfast in a hurry and leaving the house with a trusted old maid.
Both mother and daughter embraced each other with tears as they wept. They talked incoherently for a moment before Miao Chu He finally comforted them to calm down.
Mistress Tong wiped her tears dry and sat down, finally having a good look at Miao Chu He.
She had known for a long time that Miao Chu He was a Juren. Seeing that he was polite, gentle, and kind, not to mention, a complete gentleman to her daughter, she spoke to him with a bright smile. However, she thought to herself silently and sadly: God must be playing with us! If only you became a Juren earlier on, or if the thought of marrying Yu Er off crossed my husband’s mind a little later, things wouldn’t have turned out this way…
Tong Yu Er brought Jin Er over and told him to greet her as “grandma”. As Mistress Tong looked at her chubby little grandson and heard him calling her “grandma” softly, she was over the moon! She could not help pulling him into an embrace and calling him “dearest” with a warm smile. She held him and let him sit on her thighs adoringly, stroking him and not willing to let him go.
Jin Er had his parents’ explanation and he saw how this grandma was treating him with affection and love. So, he stayed in her embrace obediently and even clung to Mistress Tong’s lapel with his white chubby hands. It melted her heart.
Tong Yu Er was also delighted to see that, smiling so brightly that her face was glowing.
Seeing his wife’s rare untroubled smile, Miao Chu He felt really happy, but he too silently sighed. Back then, she might have chosen to marry him knowing that there was no return, spending the rest of her originally pampered life with plain tea and simple food. However, she had always missed her mother.
Who knew that his stubborn father-in-law had such a bad temper, not approving of their wedding even until today! I could not convince him now but I’ll work harder! In the future, I’ll become a Jin Shi or a Zhuang Yuan and return to visit. I’ll do everything to make him approve of us!
“Mother-in-law, Yu Er, you both can chat first. I have something to do and I’ll be back later.” He said tactfully. Miao Chu He knew that they must have lots to tell each other, especially since they could hardly ever meet.
Mistress Tong slightly shuddered when she heard him call her “mother-in-law”. Naturally, she would not refuse his offer. She simply nodded vaguely while Tong Yu Er was elated. She gently smiled at him, “You can go get your things done. Jin Er and I will be here waiting for you.”
Miao Chu He nodded before greeting Mistress Tong goodbye and leaving.
“Oh, dear!” Mistress Tong could not help sighing. She was thrilled but wistful at the same time. “I can see that your husband is nice to you. I think God is just being cruel to us! It could have been a proper marriage, but it turned out this way!”
Tong Yu Er’s expression turned dark too. She laughed bitterly, “Father still won’t accept our marriage?”
“That damned old man,” Mistress Tong got worked up as she fumed, “He’s just stubborn! As stubborn as a bull! Two years ago, I tried to talk him into it, but I almost got yelled at!”
At the mention of that, Mistress Tong got mad again and she could not help nagging about him once again.
It was a hard pill to swallow for Tong Yu Er. She forced a smile, “I can’t blame him anyway. It was my fault back then, causing him to lose his reputation…”
“Can his reputation bring him money? Not to mention that his reputation is far lesser than yours. Especially now that Jin Er is so big, why is he still angry?” Mistress Tong huffed.
Naturally, Tong Yu Er could not complain about her father to Mistress Tong. She smiled and changed the topic with a smile, “How have the both of you and Yi Er been these few years?”
The “Yi Er” that she mentioned was her biological little brother, Tong Yi. He was a son that Master and Mistress Tong had very late in their lives. He was only eight years old this year, a little younger than Lu Xiao Shu.
Finally, Mistress Tong forgot about her anger towards Master Tong as she smiled and nodded, “We’re all good. Everything is great at home!” She too asked about Tong Yu Er and her family.
Both mother and daughter gossiped and chattered away. It felt like they had too much to say but too little time. Unknowingly, more than an hour had passed.
Mistress Tong lowered her head and looked at the blushing Jin Er before chuckling to Tong Yu Er, “Jin Er is so big now. I think you should consider having another child! It would be nice to give Jin Er a few siblings.”
“Mother!” Tong Yu Er was slightly embarrassed. She smiled, “Jin Er is still little. We’ll think about it when he’s older.”
“You shouldn’t do that!” Mistress Tong got annoyed, “More sons means more fortune! Your husband has a bright future ahead. He might love you dearly now, but once he becomes wealthy, he definitely won’t be as loving to you as before! One son will not do it! Your husband will become an officer in the future, and perhaps even a senior officer! Your backyard might be a busy place one day! You should be more virtuous and don’t be petty with jealousy. Was there any officer that did not want to put up a front? You’re his rightful wife, so you should have three or four sons. Besides, giving birth now would mean that your boys would have grown up by the time he becomes an officer. Even if he takes in concubines, he can’t abandon you anymore! I’m saying this for your sake, so don’t think that it’s all nonsense! I don’t wish to see the day you think back to what I’ve just said, thinking that it made sense. By then, it would be too late!”
