Pei Yuan smiled, "My wife's nervousness makes me feel very comfortable."
Tch, what kind of logic is that?
"But my lady, there's no need to be nervous. The Prime Minister's family is just an ordinary family. Once you get home, you'll definitely need to wash up. It's not too late to pay your respects to your parents later."
Pei Yuan took Qiu Su into a restaurant and ordered two servings of plum juice. After Qiu Su finished drinking them, they continued walking home.
After turning off the main commercial street, the houses changed again, becoming walled courtyards. The road widened as she walked, until she turned onto another, more spacious avenue after walking two streets. Two enormous stone lions came into view, and Qiu Su felt a pang of anxiety as she said to herself, "We've arrived at my in-laws' house!"
We've arrived at my in-laws' house.
Before Pei Yuan, holding Qiu Su's hand, even reached the door, two rows of servants came out with their heads slightly bowed and stood in unison on both sides of the road. Before Qiu Su could react, she heard a clear female voice say, "Aunt, hurry up, Brother Pei Yuan has arrived."
Qiu Su subconsciously narrowed her eyes, then opened them wide to see a girl in a pink dress with puff sleeves running out. The girl stopped right in front of them, her smile vanishing as she stared at Qiu Su and said, "Who is it? What are you doing grabbing Pei Yuan-ge?"
Qiu Su shook her hand and pulled it away. Pink Lantern then smiled and grabbed Pei Yuan's hand, pushing Qiu Su away while glaring at her, before saying to He Zhuo, "Brother Pei Yuan, you've been gone for a long time. Qing'er heard from her brother yesterday that you were coming back today, so she came over early."
Taking the opportunity of bowing to the woman who followed, Pei Yuan pushed aside the hand holding the pink lantern and respectfully asked, "Why did Mother come out?"
The woman's face beamed with joy. She patted Pei Yuan's hand and said with a smile, "Let's go home."
Pei Yuan nodded, withdrew his hand, and pulled Qiu Su, who had been pretending to be a wooden figure, over. "Mother, this is Qiu Su, my wife. I will explain the details to you later."
The woman paused, her expression tightening noticeably upon seeing Qiu Su's attire, but she still nodded with composure and turned to enter the mansion first. Pink Lantern, however, objected, pointing at Qiu Su and saying, "This ugly hag? Brother Pei Yuan..."
"Qing'er, call her sister-in-law." Pei Yuan's tone was displeased.
"No!" Pink Lantern pouted, paused on her little feet, turned around and quickly followed the woman, grabbing the woman's arm and entering the courtyard together.
Even without a mirror, Qiu Su could picture herself looking like this. A month on the road, with her constantly vomiting and poor appetite, had turned her once rosy face gaunt and her complexion sallow. Add to that dark circles under her eyes, dry lips, and disheveled hair, and she truly looked like a bandit fleeing a disaster.
Pei Yuan tightened his grip on Qiu Su's hand under his sleeve and said with a smile, "I know my wife's beauty myself."
Qiu Su smiled, looked up at the two characters "Prime Minister's Residence" written in a flamboyant style at the gate, and secretly took a breath.
*********************************
Qingfeng Theater: (The Problem of Naming Three Dogs)
Pei Yuan: Let's name this one Qingfeng.
Qingfeng: (scratching the wall) →→
Qiu Su: That's not good, is it? (Qingfeng smiles ingratiatingly), but it does fit Xiaobai's image, as refreshing and gentle as Qingfeng.
Qingfeng: Tch, I may be refreshing and gentle, but that's not fair. I swear I'll never share a name with Xiaobai! (Clenches fist~)
Pei Yuan: So it's settled then?
Qingfeng: Order my ass! I'm not doing it!
twenty two
22. Whose tattered clothes...?
Having made a bad start, Qiu Su foresaw the tragedy of her future relationship with her mother-in-law.
Upon entering the mansion, a young maidservant led her to wash and dress. Qiu Su longed for Huang Tao to serve her, but seeing a middle-aged man approaching to invite Pei Yuan to the main courtyard, she was so frightened that she tiptoed and followed the maidservant to the side courtyard. If her mother-in-law was already so cold-faced, what kind of expressionless face would her father-in-law, who held the high position of Prime Minister, have?
The little maid was quite adorable. She had been expressionless, but she came alive as soon as she stepped into the side courtyard. As she led Qiu Su toward the room, she said, "Sister, you must have suffered a lot on the way. Don't worry, Sister. Madam treats servants very kindly. If they don't make a mistake, she generally won't punish them."
Oh, so they thought she was Pei Yuan's personal maid, or perhaps Pei Yuan's concubine? Qiu Su frowned and looked at herself. Did she not have any of the domineering aura of a chieftain? How come she remembered that all the hundred or so people in the village obeyed her orders? Sigh, getting married is really not good.
"What's your sister's name?"
"Autumn Plain".
"Sister Qiu, my name is Dongmei. Will you be living in the young master's courtyard in the future?"
"...Yes." I guess so. Should the Pei couple live in separate courtyards?
“Anyone who can enter the young master’s courtyard is blessed. In all these years, only Miss Zhuyuan has entered, and she has won the young master’s heart. When the young master left his ex-wife, he said he would give Miss Zhuyuan a proper status. Now that he’s back, it seems he really is going to make it official. You can tell when you see Miss Zhuyuan, she’s truly a gentle and graceful person.” Dongmei covered her mouth and smiled. “But since you can serve the young master, that day is probably not far off.”
Qiu Su couldn't quite describe her feelings; she just felt as if she were back in a carriage, and an indescribable discomfort welled up inside her. If only she could vomit, or at least get out and rest. Her head was buzzing. See, not eating, drinking, or sleeping well for so long, and then vomiting again and again—it really wasn't good for her health.
"Sister Qiu?"
"Ah." Qiu Su came to her senses. "Um, Miss Zhu Yuan is the young master's..."
Dongmei smiled, "It's hard to say exactly what it is, but it's just a young master in that courtyard over there. Did you bring any clothes with you, sister?"
Qiu Su shook her head.
"The older sister can wear the younger sister's clothes first."
“Sister Dongmei, have you seen a girl named Huang Tao? She just entered the manor.”
"Oh, my sister doesn't know that. She serves in the back and doesn't leave the second courtyard."
Depressed, more than just depressed.
After taking a bath, Qiu Su lost all interest in dressing up when she looked in the bronze mirror. Her face was already so dry and brittle, she didn't care what happened. Dong Mei, holding Qiu Su's half-dry hair, asked, "Sister, what hairstyle do you want?"
Qiu Su initially wanted to say "whatever," but then she thought about how she was already a married woman and sighed inwardly, "The same as before."
Sigh, I wonder where the mountain lord and his three little darlings have settled down. Does Huang Taoji remember to make some meat soup to nourish them?
After tidying up, Qiu Su sat at the table in a daze. Dong Mei smiled and asked, "Sister, why don't you go back to the East Courtyard? It's not good to be away for too long. We can talk again when you come back to stay here later."
Qiu Su emerged from the row of dormitories, looking bewildered. East Courtyard? Eastwards? She encountered many servants along the way, but none stopped to question her given her attire. Heading east, she passed through two moon gates and entered a more luxurious courtyard. The courtyard seemed empty. Qiu Su stood for a moment, then casually found a shady spot to sit down.
Let's wait!
Pei Yuan really deserves a beating. Not only did he leave her alone to bathe in the servants' courtyard, but he also didn't even provide her with clothes. It's morally wrong of him!
"Ugly freak? What are you running around for? Do you think you can just walk into Pei Yuan's yard?" It was that arrogant voice again, still as unpleasant as ever.
Qiu Su didn't even lift her eyelids, continuing to stare at the pebbles on the ground and count them. What number was she counting to again?
"Hmph, even Pei Yuan didn't protect you, did he? He still made you go to the servants' courtyard to take a bath, didn't he? Hmph, look at the clothes you're wearing, which servant did you pick up? You're really disgracing the Pei family."