Chapter 198 : Han Jianye’s Wedding (2)

The maid fetched two cushions and placed them on the floor. Han Jianye and Lu Xiu both held the tea in their hands and handed it to the Old Lady.

The Old Lady accepted it, took a couple of sips and gave a pair of mandarin duck jade pendant as a gift. The jade pendant was emerald green and of perfect colour, but they were more than a notch below the one given to Ye Shi that day.

Yuxi glanced at the jade pendant and quickly bowed her head. She knew that the Old Lady did not mean to take such things as a gift. Because of the Palace Rebellion night, the Old Lady had suffered heavy losses, and now her treasury was still empty.

Duke Han was a strange man. He didn’t even want to come to his own son’s wedding. It was Han Jianming who personally went to the other courtyard to invite him. But he had gone to the other yard again yesterday, so naturally, he was not there for this morning’s acknowledgement of marriage. In this regard, everybody was unusually calm. He was good enough to attend the wedding yesterday, so it didn’t matter if he wasn’t there today.

Qiu Shi drank the cup of her daughter-in-law’s tea and gave her own gift for meeting her一a pair of double happiness ruyi mutton fade jade hairpins. Not particularly impressive, but not too shabby either.

Yuxi understood. Perhaps Eldest Aunt didn’t want to overstep the Old Lady. That was why she gave such a first meeting gift.

The elders were the ones to give the first meeting gifts, while they, the juniors, were the ones to receive the first meeting gifts from the bride. The gift that Lu Xiu gave to the juniors was a lotus bag embroidered with auspicious cloud patterns. As for what was inside the purse, only the receiver would know.

Yuxi took the purse and said with a smile, “Thank you, Er Sao.”

Lu Xiu had known their meeting at Lingshan Mountain that day was not a chance encounter as she answered with a smile, “Si Meimei is too polite.” She had heard from her mother that both her mother-in-law and her husband were very fond of Yuxi. Her mother even asked her to get along well with Yuxi after she married. Hence, in the future, she would have someone to help her in the residence.

After the greeting ceremony, it was time for breakfast. At breakfast, everyone sat down except Ye Shi and Lu Xiu. Both of them would mainly serve the Old Lady and Qiu Shi, but not the others.

The Old Lady had lost her special cook, and the newly hired cook was not nearly as good as the original cook.

After eating breakfast, the crowd dispersed. When going out, looking at Er Ge, who was still outside the house, Yuxi smiled. “Er Ge, I will go back first.” Needless to say, she also knew that Er Ge must be waiting for his wife.

Han Jianye responded absentmindedly. His eyes were still on the door curtain. Yuxi felt that it was thanks to the fact that his Eldest Aunt was a forgiving person. If it was other people’s mothers, who wouldn’t know how unhappy they would be if they saw their sons being so clingy to their newly married daughters-in-law!

Back at Taoran House, Zisu opened the purse. Inside the purse were two precious stones and two diamonds. She was shocked. “Miss, this is a generous gift from Er Nainai!”

Kufu was also amazed. “I heard that the Lu family property was large, but I didn’t think that Er Nainai would be such a big spender.” If Miss added up all of these, how much would it cost!

East Pearl

They are produced in Songhua River Basin. It comes in 3 colours一white, black and yellow, and have lines on it. They were precious during the Qing Dynasty. Only Royal Family could wear them. If other people wore them other than the Royal Family, they would be punished.

Image Credit | 獨立觀察員 (東珠的三種顏色：白色、黑色和金色, Feb 19, 2019)

Yuxi said to her three maids, “Don’t tell anyone about this. If anyone asks, just say that there were six East Pearls in it.” Although the East Pearls were valuable, they were no better than these things.

The three maids were not stupid and immediately understood. “What Miss means is that this gift was the only one?” If that was the case, then they could not tell the matter to others.

Yuxi explained, “Even if they were generous people, they couldn’t each give us such thick gifts.” Why would Lu Xiu send such a generous first gift to her? It certainly wouldn’t be because they had met before. Nine out of ten, it was because the Lu family had inquired about their family circumstances and knew that Er Ge doted on her, so they gave her such a generous gift.

Kufu and Bingmei nodded. “That’s true.” These things added up to thousands of taels of silver. No matter how rich Er Nainai was, she wouldn’t spend it like this.

While on the Master Courtyard side, as Lu Xiu came out, she was slightly embarrassed to see Han Jianye. Han Jianye took a big stride over and said, “Mother, I’ll take Ah Xiu back first.”

Qiu Shi responded with a smile, “You guys should go back!” It was a rule for new daughters-in-law to serve meals to their in-laws on the first day of their marriage, and it was not a deliberate attempt to make things difficult for the daughters-in-law.

Lu Xiu answered with a red face.

Walking out of the Master Courtyard, Han Jianye wanted to take Lu Xiu’s hand, but Lu Xiu was reluctant. “I don’t want to. There are so many people around. Don’t you know how embarrassing it will be?”

Han Jianye smilingly said, “What is there to be embarrassed about? I am holding my own wife’s hand, not someone else’s. When they see it, they will only be envious.” After saying this, he still held Lu Xiu’s small hand in his palm.

Qiu Shi looked at the young couple in love and said with a smile, “It seems that I will be able to hold a grandson soon.”

Mama Li looked at Ye Shi, who seemed to have an unnatural expression next to her. She immediately changed the subject by saying, “My Lady, now that the Second Master is already married, you will be able to enjoy the blessings of your children and grandchildren in peace from now on.” She knew that as long as Han Jianye had not gotten married, Qiu Shi would not be able to rest in peace. Now that Han Jianye finally became a family man, a heavy burden had finally been relieved from her Lady.

Qiu Shi shook her head and said, “How can I enjoy my children and grandchildren in peace? Yuxi will be thirteen in a year, so she needs to start looking for her future husband. I can’t truly rest until I find a good home for Yuxi.” Yuru and Yu Jing’s marriage had already been decided, and it was not her responsibility to worry about Yuchen’s marriage. The only one she had to worry about was Yuxi. There was no one else in the residence who worried about Yuxi’s marriage except for her.

Mama Li said with a smile, “Our Fourth Miss is pretty and smart. She will surely find her own ideal husband.” She thought that Yuxi was good in every way, except for one thing, that was, she had a strong temperament. Generally speaking, mothers-in-law did not like a daughter-in-law who had this kind of temperament.

Qiu Shi smilingly replied, “That’s true, but it’s not that easy to find someone who is good in every way. The good thing is that Yuxi is only going to be thirteen years old, so she can take her time to find one.” Qiu Shi decided that after the New Year, she would take Yuxi out for more social engagements so that the marriage could be finalised before Yuxi reached maturity.

When Ye Shi returned to Songxiang Courtyard, her face was not looking very good.

Upon seeing Ye Shi’s face, Old Woman Hua asked, “Da Nainai, what’s wrong? Are you not feeling well?”

Ye Shi waved her hand as she said, “I’m a bit tired. I’ll be fine after a rest.” Seeing how precious Lu Xiu was to Han Jianye, she was in a bad mood. Master Shizi had never treated her that well.

Old Woman Hua cautiously suggested, “Da Nainai, how about you lie down on the bed for a while?” During this period, Da Nainai had been extremely busy, so she must have been exhausted.

Ye Shi shook her head and said, “There are still a bunch of things to take care of! By the way, yesterday Mother brought Ye Yin over. What do you think of her?” Last night Han Jianming had come to Songxiang Courtyard for the night, but the two of them hadn’t had the time to talk about it.

Old Woman Hua hesitated for a moment before commenting, “Da Nainai, Ye Yin is indeed good looking, but her temperament is not acceptable. The Lady and Master Shizi, nine out of ten, will find her unsuitable.”

Ye Shi said, “What’s the point of being so good-natured, as long as you can have a son?” If she was going to have a capable and beautiful second room, wouldn’t she have to fight with her?

Old Woman Hua said, “That’s true, but the matter still needs to be approved by the Lady and Master Shizi. Grandma, if you have the time, you can ask Master Shizi first. Then, if he agrees, it will be easier to speak with the Lady.” The First Lady had hardly objected to the decision made by Master Shizi.

Ye Shi was a little annoyed as she spoke, “Let’s talk about this matter after the New Year.” If they talked about the second room right now and there was no agreement on it, they would be facing a rough year.

When Old Woman Hua saw Ye Shi’s reaction, she changed the subject, “Da Nainai, do you think we should have someone reveal what happened to Qiu Yanfu to someone close to Er Nainai?”

Ye Shi shook her head after a moment’s thought and said, “No need, put down the brother-in-law’s matter aside for a while.” Although she hated Lu Xiu, she was only her sister-in-law, and they had no direct conflict of interest. If she kept making small moves, sooner or later, her mother-in-law would know about it, and it would not be worth it to make her mother-in-law unhappy with her for such things. The most important thing was to settle the matter of the second room, which was a matter of great concern to her.

Qiu Shi had already prepared the gifts for the couple’s visit to the bride’s home. Thus, all Han Jianye had to do was just brought them over when he went to his wife’s parents’ house.

When the couple arrived at the Lu family, Han Jianye was called to the study by the Second Lord Lu. As he left, he couldn’t help but glance at Lu Xiu.

Seeing this situation, Second Lady Lu was delighted and pulled Lu Xiu into the room and asked, “Ah Xiu, is Guye treating you good? Do you get along well with the Han family?”

Lu Xiu blushed and said, “Husband is quite good to me, and so is everyone else. Especially my mother-in-law. She even said that I should only pay respect to her on the 15th day of the first lunar month, and I don’t need to go there early at other times.” As for Qiu Sho’s words about giving her a big, fat grandson soon, Lu Xiu did not have the nerve to say them out loud.

After listening to this, Second Lady Lu became even more satisfied. “Although your mother-in-law has a straightforward temperament, she is a very easy person to get along with. I also agreed to this marriage because of this.”

Lu Xiu smiled a little. “Yes, my mother-in-law is very nice.”

Second Lady Lu nodded slightly and said, “There is something that I have kept from you because I was worried that it would affect your mood. However, now that you have already married, there is no need to hide this matter from you anymore.”

Lu Xiu’s gut told her that it wasn’t going to be good. “Mother, what is it? It can’t be ……” She wanted to say if something had happened to her Dage and Er Ge, but she soon realised that these words were ominous, so she swallowed them back.

Second Lady Lu told her about Qiu Yanfu. “Mother specifically told you about this because Mother you to be on guard against Ye Shi. She must have something to do with Concubine Fu’s affair.”

Lu Xiu was dumbfounded. She did not know that her husband just had a noble concubine before she was even married to him. Lu Xiu felt both aggrieved and sad. “Mother, why didn’t you tell me earlier……”

Second Lady Lu could not tell what Lu Xiu was thinking as she argued, “What’s the point of telling you this? At that time, the wedding was only ten days away, and it would only add to your sadness if you knew about it. Moreover, Guye was not prepared for this matter to happen. So you can’t blame it on him, and the way he dealt with it afterwards was entirely appropriate.”

Lu Xiu felt so aggrieved that tears fell from her eyes.

The Second Lady Lu was also sad to see her daughter in tears. How could anyone feel comfortable with the sudden appearance of a concubine after their marriage? Yet, she had to persuade her daughter. “I know you are upset, but you can only swallow this grievance. Fortunately, Guye is not muddle-headed, and your mother-in-law is also sensible. Both have promised not to bring her back until you give birth to your firstborn son.”

Lu Xiu wiped her tears and retorted, “Mother, when Second Master Ye came to our door and muttered about withdrawing from the marriage, we finally withdrew the marriage only after it became unbearable. So why should she blame it on me? And to even do such disgusting things?” If it were the Lu family who had first gone to withdraw the marriage, Ye Shi’s annoyance at her would have been justified. But she was the primary victim in this matter, so why should Ye Shi take out her anger on her?

Second Lady Lu said, “This is also what I was concerned about at first. But even if Ye Shi is malicious, she is only your Dasao. So at most, she will make things difficult behind your back, but she will not dare to make things difficult for you on the surface. So just watch out for yourself.” How could any marriage be perfect? What was more, her daughter had withdrawn from marriage once, which made it even harder to find an alternative that was good at everything. If she could say, the Han family was a pretty good match.

Lu Xiu was a person who could easily be bullied either as she said, “Don’t worry, Mother, I won’t let her bully me. If she dares to mess with me, I won’t let her get away with it either.”

Second Lady Lu shook her head and said, “The most urgent thing is to have a son quickly. Once you have a son, you will have a firm foothold in the Han family. Even Ye Shi can’t even make a commotion in front of you.” The fact that Ye Shi would have difficulty to conceive was not a secret, and one could find out about it with a bit of inquiry.

Lu Xiu blushed again. “Mother, we have to let nature take its course.”

Second Lady Lu said, “Your health has been good since you were a child, and I have asked someone to take good care of you during this time. As long as you and your husband love each other, you will soon have good news.” Her daughter was like herself, who had been in good health since she was a child. If there were no error, she would probably have a big fat grandchild next year.

The young couple didn’t go back until they finished their lunch at the Lu Residence. On their way back, Lu Xiu kept her head down and didn’t speak a word which worried Han Jianye. He stopped riding his horse and went straight into the carriage.

Han Jianye noticed Lu Xiu’s red eyes that he asked, “What’s wrong? Why are you crying? Did mother-in-law say something?”

When Lu Xiu heard his questions, her tears fell again. Han Jianye was so anxious. He feared nothing in heaven or on earth, but he was afraid of women’s tears. “Don’t cry. Tell me, what’s wrong?”

Lu Xiu choked back a sob. “Mother told me that you had taken a noble concubine before you were married. Why did you hide it from me? If my mother hadn’t told me, did you intend to keep it from me all along?”

Han Jianye stiffened and then said modestly, “You know?” Seeing Lu Xiu’s tears fallen down once more, Han Jianye hurriedly explained, “I didn’t mean to hide it from you. I just wanted to get married soon. You know how bad this matter was! I was going to wait until after the New Year to tell you, but I didn’t expect mother-in-law would tell you first.”

Lu Xiu stared at him with her tear-stained face and asked, “Then what’s going on with Concubine Fu? My mother said something vague that I didn’t understand. How did she set you up? And why did she set you up?”

Han Jianye poured it all out like a peapod at that moment. He told her everything except for Yuxi’s involvement in it. He left out the part about Yuxi because he had promised her that he would not tell anyone about her. Han Jianye lacked in other areas, but he was remarkably tight-lipped on this.

When Lu Xiu heard that Qiu Yanfu had set Han Jianye up because she didn’t want to be Wang Shaoqi’s concubine, she was furious. But although she was angry, she hadn’t lost her senses. The reason why this Concubine Fu had schemed against her husband must have been because she was sure that he was a responsible person. “If you send her to the hamlet, you can’t just leave her there forever, can you? When do you plan to bring her back?”

Han Jianye looked at Lu Xiu, who still had tear marks on her face, and said, “I was previously prepared to wait until we had a son before letting her return to the residence. But if you don’t like her, then let her stay at the hamlet all the time.” Qiu Yanfu was nowhere as important as his wife.

Lu Xiu thought for a moment before saying, “Then we should wait until I have my firstborn son before bringing her back. In any case, she is San Shen’s niece. It’s inappropriate just to leave her in the hamlet, right?” Then surely someone would say she was jealous if they did.

Han Jianye nodded and said, “It’s up to you to decide.” He had received the most orthodox education. For them, the male would dominate the outside, while the female would dominate the inside. Men worked hard outside, and women dealt with all matters in the inner courtyard.

After listening to his answer, the knot in Lu Xiu’s heart was utterly untied.