Qiu Su didn't really consider herself a treasure, yet being so openly taken away brought her a secret thrill. She felt her time as chieftain hadn't been in vain; she'd found a good husband who was both elegant and domestic, capable of upholding Qingfeng Village's reputation. At the very least, the Pei family's influence was undeniable; Qingfeng Village now had a powerful backer, truly a secure future. The authorities wanted to arrest her? Hmph, her father-in-law was a high-ranking official! Sigh, she just wondered if the Pei family would allow the child to live on Qingyuan Mountain, doing what she had done before? Hmm, perhaps she was thinking a bit too far ahead.
Thinking of Pei Yuan's bare, white body, her face flushed involuntarily. Sigh, what a pity about that back; with so many stitches, wouldn't it now have many more claw-like marks like centipedes?
Qiu Su habitually put her hands behind her back, and when she turned her head, she saw the mountain lord sitting to one side, looking at the two of them with his head slightly tilted. When Qiu Su looked over, he shook his head like a madman, and even covered his eyes with his paws and wiggled his tail.
"You stupid dog!" Qiu Su scolded lightly with a smile.
"Susu, is there anything you particularly want? I'll make it up to you when we return to the manor."
"Pei Yuan."
"Call me Ziqing, my courtesy name is Ziqing."
"Ahem, Ziqing. My original intention seems to be to recruit a husband to come up the mountain."
"I'm coming up now, my wife. You can come down with me again."
Qiu Su looked up at him, but couldn't detect a trace of a joke in his eyes. After thinking for a moment, she put her hands behind her back and nodded quite seriously, "Alright."
"Oh, and another thing. Having lived in the mountains for so long, I don't think I'm a good daughter-in-law."
"Don't worry about your parents, they will definitely like you."
"How so?"
"Didn't I say I'd seen the plum blossom on your earlobe? Actually, Mother saw it too."
Uh, really an old acquaintance? Since my mother-in-law has met him too, it shouldn't be in Pingcheng. Well, it's hard to say. Good heavens, mother-in-law? Father-in-law? Sigh, she really is innocent on the surface but lewd on the inside.
“Actually, I also wanted to ask, if you return to the capital and I live in Qingyuan Mountain, wouldn’t we be living apart? It’s really…” Qiu Su looked at Pei Yuan’s darkened face again, coughed and said, “Although this is a fact that must be faced, we can discuss it in detail later.”
At this time, Qiu Su was unaware of the deeper meaning of "simply wanting you," and it was only much later that she realized that she was the real treasure.
Oh, speaking of which, Qiu Su hasn't seen He Zhuo for a few days. It's rather unusual for a childhood friend to suddenly disappear for several days. And after Qin Qin's crying incident, He Zhuo should have calmed down enough by now. Qiu Su thought it was time to offer some encouragement; after all, matchmaking for young men and women is one of the many ways to promote harmony in Pingcheng.
Qiu Su saw He Zhuo on the stone horse's back in the northeast corner of the back mountain. It was still the same boy, but the dappled shadows of the trees cast on his face seemed less bright. He was lying on the stone horse's back, gazing at the sky with a slightly melancholy expression.
Qiu Su stepped onto another stone horse and followed He Zhuo's gaze upwards, her eyes repeatedly scanning the treetops and He Zhuo's face. After searching for a while, she discovered something amusing. The dappled sunlight filtering through the gaps between the leaves formed tiny, round suns on He Zhuo's face. Qiu Su stared at the several suns on He Zhuo's face for a while, then suddenly remembered the story of Hou Yi shooting down the suns. She wondered if he felt hot with seven or eight little suns on his face, so she put her hands behind her head and also stared blankly at the lush hazelnut tree.
At Pei Yuan's request, preparations for the wedding had begun in the village. Zhou Tong was naturally overjoyed, running around doing all the chores. He Xu, who rarely showed up, personally gave instructions this time. Qiu Su didn't really have much to do, but lately, sleeping near Pei Yuan at night always made her a little nervous. Pei Yuan would often tease her, intentionally or unintentionally, causing her to stay up late and not have much energy during the day. Listening to the mountain breeze and watching the sunlight, she quickly forgot her original purpose for coming here and began to feel drowsy and want to fall asleep.
Just as Qiu Su was having a great time blinking, she suddenly heard He Zhuo chuckle and say, "Did you come here just to sleep?"
Qiu Su snapped out of her daze and honestly asked, "No, did you and Qin Qin have a fight last time?"
He Zhuo's face darkened even more. "You came here just to ask this?"
"And one more thing," Qiu Su turned her head to look at He Zhuo, who was still gazing at the treetop, "I'm getting married."
He Zhuo didn't react for a long time before finally replying, somewhat annoyed, "I have eyes, I can see it."
"When Qinqin left last time..."
"You don't need to worry about my affairs. Just take care of yourself."
Qiu Su looked at He Zhuo's profile and smiled, saying, "Don't be angry. Qin Qin seemed quite upset last time too. She's a good girl."
He Zhuo avoided answering, only turning his face away and saying, "Are you really going to get married?"
"yes."
He Zhuo looked at Qiu Su, who couldn't hide a hint of pleasure, and snorted heavily, "Aren't you afraid Pei Yuan will sell you out?"
"I'm worthless."
He Zhuo smiled, looking forlornly at the sky, his voice hoarse, "Su Su, if one day you get tired, remember I'll always be waiting for you behind you. Remember to come back."
That expression, paired with those words, was truly touching. Qiu Su was gathering her emotions in her heart, thinking of saying something tenderly, "I'm sorry, it was my fault for misleading you into falling in love with someone who doesn't love you." Before she could finish, she saw He Zhuo sit up, pressing down on the horse's rump, clapping his hands and curling the corners of his mouth, saying, "No one says that a married person can't pursue someone. Su Su, you just wait."
Well, she was wrong again. Qiu Su sighed heavily and lowered her head.
*************************************************
Qingfeng Theater:
Mountain Owner: Actually, I'm just here to observe, right?
Qingfeng: Little puppy, you're overthinking it. Actually, there's no soy sauce to buy.
Author's Note: It's Saturday today! To give everyone a break, you don't need to check back this weekend.
Covering the head~~ Lightly whipping, raising high and lowering gently
Ah~~~~ See you Monday
11
11. Being ripped off at a wedding banquet...
The celebration in Qingfeng Village was a momentous occasion. As the county magistrate who had guided Qingfeng Village onto the right path, it was natural for him to express his concern for the village's development. The ever-upright and incorruptible magistrate not only presented a plaque but also went to great lengths to send a two-person-high artificial mountain as a congratulatory gift, with four large characters engraved on its front—Generosity and Righteousness.
Qiu Su stared dumbfounded at the magnificent artificial mountain that the laborers had painstakingly carried up the hill. To be honest, she would have been happier if Magistrate Qin had sent her a dozen large, rough porcelain bowls. The mountain lord's bowl had been accidentally kicked and broken the day before yesterday, and she had promised to replace it with two new ones as an expression of remorse. Besides, erecting such an artificial mountain on Qingyuan Mountain, where everything was rocky, was as bizarre as a tiny plate on a huge dining table, with a meticulously carved radish flower on it waiting for everyone to eat.
Magistrate Qin's artificial mountain gift was quite worthwhile. Pingcheng has plenty of things, but stones are plentiful. Just take any hilltop, carve out a large rock, chop and mince it, and you have an artificial mountain. Moreover, there were more than fifteen or sixteen yamen runners carrying the artificial mountain up, plus the Qin family, young and old, making over twenty people in total. The Qin family alone filled three tables, not counting the few wealthy households Magistrate Qin had inexplicably invited up the mountain empty-handed. All things considered, the food consumed could easily cover the price of this worthless stone. This wedding was a loss for Qiu Su. Thinking this, her gaze towards the yamen runners eating and drinking heartily at the table held a hint of strangeness.