Pei Yuan pursed his lips and said, "Zhu Yuan, you have long been a member of the Pei family. I thought before, if... I can't grant you these things now, I can only give you an identity that people can recognize. There are many famous doctors in the world, you have many years ahead of you, you will have children, and you can find your own happiness. I don't want you to live in the Pei family as an outsider forever, and be looked down upon by outsiders."
With teary eyes, Zhu Yuan looked at Pei Yuan and said in a trembling voice, "Brother Yuan, you've thought about marrying me, haven't you?"
"I've thought about it."
"So, in Brother Yuan's heart, I was one of his concubines before, right?"
“No.” Zhu Yuan’s eyes darkened, and Pei Yuan sighed. “It’s my wife.”
Zhu Yuan was so shocked that she covered her mouth, tears streaming down her face, before finally managing to say, "Now, it's my sister?"
"Susu was an accident. Before her, I thought that if I could live a good life, I would marry you, but now it's different. I can't give you anything anymore."
"That's enough from Brother Yuan." Zhu Yuan slowly lay back down, facing the inside of the bed, and said, "Brother Yuan, I don't want to be your sister. Don't worry, I won't make things difficult for you. Just like this, I'll continue living as before, okay? Whenever Brother Yuan thinks of me, he can come and see me and tell me about interesting things in the capital. Zhu Yuan will be satisfied."
Pei Yuan looked at Zhu Yuan, who had her back to him, and remained silent for a long time before saying in a casual tone, "Zhu Yuan likes poetry, calligraphy, and painting, and so does Lingling. She's not leaving this time and will come to keep you company often."
Zhu Yuan closed her eyes briefly, and two lines of tears instantly slid down onto the bedsheets and disappeared.
"Brother Yuan, you go ahead with your work. I want to take a nap."
Pei Yuan nodded, sat for a while longer, and then got up and quietly went out.
****************************************************
Qingfeng Theater:
Xiaoqing: Anyone who deceives my young lady's feelings will die a horrible death.
Pei Yuan: (Touching his nose) I don't think I've ever really guided him in that direction.
Huang Tao: Bah! Anyone who deceives my young lady's feelings deserves to die a horrible death!
Pei Yuan: (wiping sweat) I am a sinner, I am guilty.
31
31. He Zhuo leaves Beijing...
Half-asleep, Qiu Su vaguely felt herself being picked up. She opened her eyes, still dizzy, and the first thing she saw was the pale white sky. Qiu Su squinted, pushed Pei Yuan away, and jumped to the ground. She looked back at Xiao Qing, who was standing in the courtyard, biting her lip and staring at her as if she wanted to bore two holes through her. She sighed and pushed away Pei Yuan's outstretched hand.
"No, it's in Sister Zhuyuan's yard."
Showing intimacy when someone is in pain is even more despicable than kicking someone when they're down and rubbing salt into their wounds, yet they seem to… sigh! Qiu Su sighed inwardly.
Lingling rubbed her eyes and followed Pei Yuan and Qiu Su out of the courtyard before waving her hand groggily, "I'm going to take a nap. My sister-in-law can sleep so much, she's really made me sleepy."
Pei Yuan composed himself, looked at Qiu Su's dazed appearance, and smiled, saying, "Don't drink anymore. Let the doctor check your pulse later."
"Huh?" Qiu Su asked blankly.
"What do you mean 'ah'? After all this hard work from your husband, isn't it normal for you to get pregnant?"
Pei Yuan seemed to be in a good mood. When they arrived at the east courtyard, he picked up Qiu Su and said with a smile, "Go to sleep. Look at how sleepy you are."
Qiu Su looked at Pei Yuan's white teeth, pouted, and sighed with relief. Having a child is a matter of fate; if it comes, you'll naturally want it, and if not, there's no point in forcing it. They've only been together for a few months.
Qiu Su slept soundly until evening. In her drowsy state, she seemed to hear footsteps in the room, as well as Pei Yuan's laughter. Then, someone grabbed her arm and pulled her to one side. Qiu Su irritably closed her eyes, kicked the door, turned over, and continued sleeping.
Pei Yuan stumbled after being kicked by Qiu Su. Pei's mother frowned as if she had been kicked and tilted her head slightly, but said with a smile, "Don't bother her, let her get some sleep."
Pei Yuan awkwardly touched his nose and had Huang Tao see Pei's mother and Qi Xiu out, also shooing away the mountain lord who had been enthusiastically following him in and out. He then pounced forward, avoiding her lower abdomen, and landed on Qiu Su. He stared at the frowning, sleeping Qiu Su for a long time, then lowered his head and nibbled on her pointed chin for a while. Qiu Su slapped him away in her sleep, but he childishly went back to nibble on her again for a while, only letting go when Qiu Su frowned, gasped, and cried out in pain. Pei Yuan stroked his chin, which was now red and purple from his sucking, and chuckled, scolding, "You silly goose, you're already a little sleepyhead and you still go out drinking."
Pei Yuan propped his head up and stared for a long time, then chuckled twice and pinched Qiu Su's ear, saying, "Tell me, should I send He Zhuo to the military camp for some training? That guy is always thinking about poaching talent. If I send him far away, let's see what he can still do then."
Pei Yuan tugged at Qiu Su's ear and shook it, "My wife, what do you say?"
Qiu Su was irritable and turned over, but she still couldn't get rid of the pulling force on her ears.
"Tell me, tell me, is it good or bad?"
"Fine." Qiu Su grabbed Pei Yuan's hand, so angry she almost cried.
Pei Yuan smiled and released his hand to rub it. "Since my wife has agreed, I can't go easy on her."
Qiu Su didn't react much to the pregnancy; in her mind, having a child was normal, and not having one was abnormal. However, the Mountain Lord was isolated, and Qiu Su pleaded and begged to allow him to retain his right to live in the East Courtyard, though that house was now out of his reach.
Her treatment changed noticeably after she became pregnant. Pei's mother would occasionally visit the East Courtyard, and no one mentioned Zhu Yuan's matter anymore. But not mentioning it didn't mean it didn't exist. Qiu Su didn't know what she was thinking, but she slowly started going to Zhu Yuan's courtyard. Pei Yuan seemed to be getting busier and busier, but every time he came home, he was all smiles and cuddled with Qiu Su every night.
Qiu Su's initial purpose for coming to the capital was put on hold due to the arrival of this child, and she lost the idea of continuing her search. It's true that a comfortable life can erode one's fighting spirit. Every day, Qiu Su would stroll in the garden, play with Lingling for a while, and after dinner, she would sit in Zhu Yuan's courtyard. Occasionally, she would visit Pei's mother. After doing this, it would be almost time for Pei Yuan to come home, and the rest of the time would naturally be spent in a sweet and intimate world for the two of them.
Pei Yuan was becoming increasingly clingy, and Qiu Su had personally experienced this. Although he had been quite assertive before, he was now very affectionate. Every night, he wouldn't stop until Qiu Su was completely nestled in his arms. He would touch Qiu Su's still-flat belly three times a day, morning and night. If Qiu Su didn't also enjoy watching him talk to her belly so affectionately, she would really be afraid that such frequent touching would cause her to develop calluses.
He Zhuo was extremely enthusiastic about Qiu Su's belly, staring at it with narrowed eyes every time they met, a habit he couldn't break even after being slapped twice by Pei Yuan. He Zhuo was still the same person, but Qiu Su felt that he had truly grown up, and there was something in his eyes that she couldn't understand.
In the autumn, He Zhuo made a decision: to join the army. Qiu Su learned of this news five days later. Thinking that she hadn't seen He Zhuo much in the past few days, she decided to go and talk to him.
As soon as she stepped outside, she saw the mountain lord rushing towards her again. Huang Tao deftly stood between the man and the dog, hands on her hips, and pointed at the mountain lord's wet nose, saying fiercely, "Miss, you're pregnant with a little master. Don't you dare pounce on me, understand? Be careful, or your son-in-law will come back and pluck your fur again."
Little Xue, who used to be by the mountain lord's side, had already been taken to Lingling's yard to be raised. Little Hei and He Zhuo's Little Susu were still following the mountain lord around. The three puppies were already the size of watermelons, fluffy and very cute. Qiu Su was extremely envious whenever she saw Huang Tao cuddling Little Hei affectionately, but unfortunately Pei Yuan never let her touch them. If she saw it even once, he would definitely grab the dog by the neck and throw it away. Qiu Su watched helplessly as Little Susu was thrown away twice, and then she never dared to hold them again.
The mountain spirit squatted down at Qiu Su's feet, looking aggrieved. Qiu Su bent down and rubbed its head before it purred and happily followed her out the door.
Qiu Su walked in front, with Huang Tao supporting her on one side. Behind them was the Mountain Lord, who hadn't been able to hold his head high in a long time, and was now walking smugly with his little feet upturned. Behind them were two small dogs, one black and one white, swaying along behind.
The people in the courtyard were quite familiar with these little darlings, and they had teased them quite a bit along the way. The two little guys were mischievous, following around whichever servant they were, tugging at their skirts or robes and biting them for a while before chasing after them from a distance.
Qiu Su entered the backyard but didn't see He Zhuo. Huang Tao said sourly, "He's out having fun, hasn't been home much lately."
Qiu Su smiled with her eyes narrowed, "I didn't realize that you, Huang Tao, had become so concerned about other people's whereabouts."
Huang Tao raised an eyebrow and snorted, "Miss, don't try to play matchmaker. I have no interest in that. Little Dragon naturally needs Little Dragon Girl to match him. I'm just a dirt worm, and I've never thought about this."
Qiu Su tilted her head in disbelief. "You don't still hold a grudge against him, do you? It's not a big deal."
"No, not at all." Huang Tao pouted. "But if something happens to Xiao Hei again, that's a different story."