Chapter 21 Chapter 21 Uncle returns to the village.

Zhang Jingxian had a dream, or more precisely, she dreamed of a scene from her previous life.

Those people came to Xishan Village, and on the second day after she mustered up the courage to propose to Xie Yun by sending wild geese, a man named Gong Chengyue walked into her fenced courtyard and excitedly called Xie Yun "Envoy".

Lord Xie, Marquis Xie, and son of the Xie family, each title implies a noble status, which Zhang Jingxian would never have been able to meet and get to know in the past nineteen years.

Zhang Jingxian's heart sank, and she stood there in a daze. Although she was still in the house that she had decorated herself, she suddenly felt out of place.

They were never from the same world as her... They even ignored her presence.

Among the people Gong Chengyue found, the one with the deepest relationship with Xie Yun was not only Xie Yun's counselor, but also Xie Yun's close friend since childhood.

Upon learning that she had rescued Xie Yun from the mountain and helped heal his leg injury, Gong Chengyue led everyone in paying her a respectful and polite salute, and immediately thanked her generously with generous gifts.

Before she could react, the alive and well wild goose came into everyone's sight.

Xie Yun walked forward and said lightly that this was the wild goose she gave him, and took her hand without hesitation in front of Gong Chengyue and others to show his closeness to her.

The other half of Zhang Jingxian's heart was warm.

Then, Gong Chengyue smiled at her while waving his feather fan, and directly changed his words to call her "little lady".

Hearing this name, Zhang Jingxian's cheeks turned slightly red, and she explained very embarrassedly that she and Xie Yun had just proposed and were not married yet.

Gong Chengyue laughed again and said to her, "The fact is done, what's the point of etiquette?"

He saw two beds placed side by side in the room. Although they were separated by a wooden screen, it was difficult to explain why a man and a woman were alone in the same room.

Zhang Jingxian suddenly realized that Gong Chengyue had misunderstood that they were already married, and she refuted him with great seriousness, "Wedding rites are the foundation of etiquette. There are six rites: accepting the bride's proposal, asking for the bride's name, accepting the marriage proposal, accepting the betrothal gift, asking for the date, and welcoming the bride. My husband and I haven't completed all the rites, so our marriage is not a marriage, and I don't deserve to be called Madam, Mr. Gongcheng."

At that time, she still didn't understand the difference between a young lady and a lady. The former could be any concubine of Xie Yun, while the latter was the legal wife who had gone through the six rituals to establish a harmonious relationship between the two families.

Hearing this, Gong Chengyue's expression changed slightly, and he asked her if she had studied the Book of Rites and could read and write.

Zhang Jingxian glanced at Xie Yun and nodded with some gratitude and pride. "It didn't take me long to learn. My husband taught me."

Gong Chengyue then changed his tone again and called her with a smile, "Madam Zhang."

Zhang Jingxian noticed something strange, but seeing Gong Chengyue smiling, she suppressed her feelings and felt that he had his own persistence.

Later, she followed Xie Yun and left Xishan Village. Gong Chengyue was always very polite to her. She also had a good impression of Gong Chengyue because she felt his way.

However, after gradually understanding some of the upper-class rules, Zhang Jingxian slowly discovered the contempt behind the politeness.

"Little Madam" is the name given to Xie Yun's concubines, "Madam Zhang" is the name given to the three concubines under Xie Yun's wife, and only "Madam" needs to complete the six rituals.

Does learning characters and gaining knowledge mean she can avoid becoming a fool? No, in the eyes of Gongcheng Yue and others, she has simply transformed from a concubine to a noble concubine.

Her humble origins could never be changed. An ordinary peasant girl, no matter how educated she was, could never become Xie Yunming's legal wife.

Among Xie Yun's many friends and confidants, Gong Chengyue was the friendliest to her and protected her many times, both openly and secretly.

What about the others who were indifferent or even disdainful? Zhang Jingxian only thought about it for a moment, and she felt like she was falling into an icy cave.

Even now, when time goes back and the years go by, she still wakes up suddenly with cold hands and feet and trembling all over.

Because of this dream, Zhang Jingxian kept silent in front of Xie Yun. She would let him fool her, but she was determined not to have any more involvement with him.

After dinner, she resumed her busy life. She never spoke, never looked at him, and when he approached her, she walked in a completely different direction as if nothing had happened.

Either go to the village, or go to Aunt Qin's house, or carry a hoe to the fields.

Zhang Jingxian's stubbornness made Xie Yun very angry for the first time. When he was angry, he usually had a blank expression on his face and stared at people with a straight and sinister look.

The oriole on the tree was so scared that it hid in its nest. The black cat came running from the mountain, meowing, but sensing the sinister aura from the black cat, it also tucked in its tail and ran away in a hurry.

When she was giving him acupuncture on his leg, Zhang Jingxian forced herself to remain calm before speaking her first words of the day, "...My dear, look, the blood clots on your leg seem to have disappeared. When Doctor Meng comes back, maybe you'll be able to stand up and walk again."

Her tone was soft and contained a hint of joy, as if she was truly happy for him.

This time, the person who ignored him coldly was Xie Yun.

In reality, his anger was completely unfounded. This peasant girl, ungrateful and adamant in her refusal of his offer, had nothing to lose.

She was the one who missed the opportunity, and she was also the one who was willing to spend her life in ignorance.

He just had to watch coldly, because there would come a day when this peasant girl would regret it.

Not getting a response, Zhang Jingxian silently put away the silver needle and left with the candlestick.

The bed, which had been made after two days of hard work, was placed where the straw mat was originally laid, emitting a faint scent of mugwort.

She thought she would sleep comfortably, but Zhang Jingxian had another nightmare. Although she didn't dream about the sad things in her past life, she couldn't help shaking.

In the forest in her dream, an extremely huge and ferocious beast was staring at her.

It grabbed her, its sharp claws digging into her shoulders, nearly piercing her flesh. Just as Zhang Jingxian thought she was about to be killed, the beast, its cold eyes wide open, slowly approached her face and bit down on her throat, where it was most vulnerable...

She desperately tried to wake herself up, but she couldn't. Her body was too tired, and once she touched the soft reed-cotton quilt, she didn't want to leave.

In the end, she wasn't bitten to death. The beast seemed to notice she was trembling and laughed at her coldly. Then, she felt a sharp pain in her wrist, and was forced to do something.

The next day, when Zhang Jingxian woke up, she saw a black charcoal stick in her hand, and her name was written on the linen cloth under her.

She looked at it twice in disbelief, and without even putting on her shoes, she stood up and rushed to the room where Xie Yun was.

Pushing open the door, he stood with his tall body leaning against the wall, his jaw and arms tense, trying to walk slowly.

Zhang Jingxian clearly saw the blue veins on his forehead and the back of his hands that were about to burst out. She swallowed her doubts, temptations, and questions.

"My dear, the blood clots in your legs have only been removed, so you'd better not..." She spoke with a complicated expression and took a few steps towards him to prevent him from falling.

Xie Yun opened his eyelids, his dark eyes devoid of any warmth. "Get out of the way."

His voice was even colder.

Zhang Jingxian pursed her lips and didn't do what he said. Instead, she took another step and reached out to help him. If he fell to his death here, she could easily guess how Gong Chengyue and his men would retaliate.

Seeing this, Xie Yun, furious, grabbed her wrist mercilessly.

At this time, a voice called out to Zhang Jingxian from outside the courtyard, "Ah Xian, your uncle and his family are back in the village!"

Zhang Jingxian's mind wandered and her wrist was grabbed. Pain and numbness surged over her. She lost all strength and leaned in the man's arms.

The author has something to say:

----------------------

Mmmmm, it's another short day~ The red envelope for the last chapter has been sent~