Chapter 6.6 Pei Duo: The Zhao family can't raise this daughter-in-law well.

Jiang Ninghui and Pei Duo went back first. When they saw Jiang Ninghui heating up his food, Pei Duo said, "Sister-in-law, no rush. Brother Zhao will be back soon."

Jiang Ninghui paused, then said, "Then we'll wait for my husband to return."

Two quarters of an hour later, Zhao Zhixue returned. Jiang Ninghui set dinner on the table, and as soon as he entered, he asked Pei Duo, "Brother Pei, when you came back just now, did you see three men who had fainted at the corner of the alley?"

Jiang Ninghui was taken aback at first.

Three men who have fainted? Could they be the three drunkards that Young Master Pei mentioned?

Pei Duo: "When I came back, I only saw three drunkards fighting."

Zhao Zhixue: "Perhaps we are talking about the same group of people. I didn't notice the smell of alcohol on them."

After saying that, he instructed Jiang Ninghui: "Suihui, try to minimize going out these next few days. I'm worried that the alleys around here aren't safe. If you run into a drunkard again, you might get hurt if I'm not by your side."

Jiang Ninghui felt a warmth in her heart, picked up a piece of braised tofu and put it into Zhao Zhixue's bowl, her eyes curving into crescent shapes: "I understand."

Zhao Zhixue picked up the tofu that Jiang Ninghui had put in his bowl, ate it, and said with a smile, "The food my wife puts in is still the best."

After all, Young Master Pei was still here, and Jiang Ninghui lowered her head somewhat embarrassed by her husband's words.

The kerosene lamp in the kitchen was dimly lit, and its warm yellow light shone on Jiang Ninghui's beautiful face, revealing the faint blush on the tips of her ears. Pei Duo raised his eyelids slightly, taking in that delicate blush, and then put down his chopsticks and stood up.

Zhao Zhixue: "Brother Pei, have you finished eating?"

Pei Duo: "Hmm, I'm going to read a book for a while."

After the meal, Jiang Ninghui washed the pots and pans clean and filled a pot with hot water so that the young master and young master Pei could use hot water.

Days passed by like this. Jiang Ninghui kept her husband's instructions in mind and rarely went out. Whenever she did go out, Sister-in-law Mu accompanied her. She wandered around the town for many days. Jiang Ninghui didn't say she knew the whole of Qingping Town well, but she knew the surrounding area well.

Before we knew it, it was early November. The leaves had all fallen, and the cold wind was biting.

Jiang Ninghui has been in Qingping Town for over a month, and she plans to return to her hometown the day after tomorrow.

She still had ten copper coins left from her mother-in-law's gift, so she needed to ask her mother-in-law for some more. She could also pack a thick quilt and a few warm clothes to bring over, and ask Young Master Pei if he needed anything, so she could bring it over for him as well.

It's getting cooler now, and it gets dark earlier.

After preparing dinner, Jiang Ninghui waited outside the courtyard with a kerosene lamp, its faint light adding a touch of brightness to the dark alley.

Pei Duo strolled over from the corner of the alley and saw the person in the cold wind and moonlight from afar.

Her hair was styled with a woman's hairpin, her beautiful and delicate face was unadorned, and her headdress was extremely simple, consisting of only a wooden hairpin. She always wore the same few coarse cloth clothes, and her pair of bright eyes shone with a hint of anticipation in the moonlight.

He knew she was waiting for Zhao Zhixue.

She is waiting for her husband.

The night wind was icy cold, and the people waiting outside the courtyard rubbed their fingers together, their breath steaming in the cold air.

Pei Duo gazed at the man, and a ripple stirred within his otherwise calm heart.

It's really a shame that someone like her married Zhao Zhixue.

The Zhao family can't raise this person well.

They will not genuinely care for you.

Pei Duo approached the courtyard, looked down at the people waiting outside, and called out, "Sister-in-law."

Jiang Ninghui looked up at the extremely tall young man: "Is my lord going to be back in a quarter of an hour again?"

Pei Duo nodded: "Mm."

Jiang Ninghui stepped in and said, "Young Master Pei, please come in quickly, I'll get you some rice."

Pei Duo glanced at the woman's nose, which was red from the cold: "No rush, let's wait for Brother Zhao to come back."

Jiang Ninghui responded.

The kitchen was quite warm because a meal had just been cooked.

Jiang Ninghui sat in front of the stove, warming her hands by the stove. She heard footsteps outside the courtyard, turned her head and peeked through the half-open door. Pei Duo brought in two buckets of water from the well. She hurried over to open the door: "Young Master Pei, I can handle this. You don't need to help."

They gave her money and helped her before, so how could she let him do such rough work?

Pei Duo poured the two buckets of water into the water vat, and the rippling water reflected the young man's long, drooping eyelashes: "It's not rough work, it's fine."

Jiang Ninghui couldn't get involved and could only stand helplessly in front of the stove.

She pursed her lips and said, "Young Master Pei, I need to go back to Xiping Village tomorrow morning to get some thick quilts and clothes for winter. If you need anything, just tell me and I'll bring it over for you."

Pei Duo put down the bucket of water, his tall and imposing figure making the already small kitchen seem even more cramped.

He asked, "How is your sister-in-law going back tomorrow?"

Jiang Ninghui: "It'll only take half a day to walk back. I just won't be able to cook lunch for you. You and your husband can have a meal at the school first. I'll try to get back before dark."

Pei Duo remained silent, only glancing down at the woman's two slender legs beneath her skirt.

That day, that flash of snow-white light passed before my eyes. The young man raised his eyes, his deep, unfathomable pupils landing on Jiang Ninghui's slender figure: "I will give you a letter tomorrow morning. Please have my sister-in-law give it to my father. He will know what I need after reading it."

Jiang Ninghui smiled slightly: "Okay."

Not long after, Zhao Zhixue returned. As soon as he entered, he rubbed his arms and complained that it was too cold today. He turned his head and saw that Pei Duo was only wearing a thin dark blue robe. He was stunned for a moment: "Brother Pei, don't you feel cold wearing so little?"

Jiang Ninghui also noticed what Zhao Zhixue said.

Young Master Pei was still wearing a thin robe, but there was no sign of him shivering from the cold; on the contrary, he was as usual.

Pei Duo picked up his chopsticks and said calmly, "It's not cold."

Zhao Zhixue smiled and said, "That's true. How could I forget that you, like your father, have a lot of internal heat and have never been afraid of the cold since you were a child. You didn't feel cold when you went hunting in the mountains with your father on a freezing day."

Jiang Ninghui was quite surprised.

She never imagined there were people in this world who weren't afraid of the cold.

Jiang Ninghui was very envious. If she had this constitution, she wouldn't be afraid of the cold winter.

Her family was poor, and her parents always favored her younger brother, leaving her with all the hard and tiring work. Spring, summer, and autumn were alright, but winter was a nightmare for Jiang Ninghui. There was no charcoal in the house, so they could only rely on burning firewood for warmth. She was the one who had to collect the firewood, but she wasn't allowed to warm herself by the fire. Every winter, her hands and feet would get frostbite.

After dinner, Jiang Ninghui washed up and lay down in the cold bed with her husband.

Zhao Zhixue, being a man, naturally possessed a fiery spirit. He pulled Jiang Ninghui into his arms, using his own body heat to warm her. Jiang Ninghui nestled in Zhao Zhixue's arms, her eyes brimming with starlight and moonlight. She smiled and said, "My lord treats me so well."

Zhao Zhixue hugged her tightly and said with a smile, "You are my wife, if I don't treat you well, who else should I treat well?"

Jiang Ninghui felt a mixture of joy and worry.

She was happy to have married a man who loved her dearly.

What worries me is that this marriage was arranged by my parents through deception with the Zhao family.

If the lies are exposed in the future, will her husband still treat her the same way he does now?

Jiang Ninghui hugged Zhao Zhixue tightly around the waist, buried her face in the crook of his neck, and said in a soft voice with deep expectation and a slight tremor: "My lord, I wish you success in the imperial examinations, that you will pass with flying colors, and rise to great heights."

What scholar aiming for the imperial examinations wouldn't want to hear such auspicious words?

Zhao Zhixue kept repeating it to Jiang Ninghui over and over again.

The woman's soft voice echoed in the small room and reached Pei Duo, who was sitting at the long table next door.

The young man ran his fingertips over the pages of the book, his thin eyelids lifted as he gazed at the half-moon outside the window.

To pluck the laurel in the moon palace, to pass the imperial examination with flying colors, and to rise rapidly in one's career.

She had high expectations for her husband.

The next morning, Zhao Zhixue instructed Jiang Ninghui: "Wife, don't take the side roads on your way back. Take the main road. Although the main road is longer, there are more people on it, and if anything happens, someone can lend a hand."

Jiang Ninghui: "I understand."

After she prepared breakfast and the three of them ate, Jiang Ninghui was about to ask Pei Duo what he needed to bring when the sound of horses' hooves and the dull thud of wheels rolling over came from outside the courtyard. Jiang Ninghui went out of the kitchen and saw a young man push open the door and enter, asking, "Does Young Master Pei live here?"

Jiang Ninghui paused for a moment: "Yes, Young Master Pei lives here."

As they were talking, Pei Duo came out of the house. The young man was wearing a royal blue robe with cloud patterns. His handsome and indifferent eyes glanced at the young man standing in the courtyard. When the man saw Pei Duo, he respectfully greeted him, "Young Master Pei."

Pei Duo nodded, strolled over, and handed a letter to Jiang Ninghui: "Sister-in-law, I brought a lot of things, and you can't carry them all by yourself. I hired a carriage to take you back. My father will know what to do after reading the letter."

The young man paused for a moment, then added, "Thank you for your trouble, sister-in-law."

Jiang Ninghui took the letter and quickly shook her head: "No...it's nothing."

He was still in a daze and had not yet come to his senses.

She glanced at the carriage outside the courtyard. A large brown horse was waiting outside, its hooves pounding in place. Behind it was a dark-colored carriage, well-sealed, with a thick, dark black curtain hanging in front.

This carriage looks expensive.

Jiang Ninghui didn't even dare to imagine how much it would cost to hire this carriage.

She had only heard her husband say that the Pei family was a wealthy family in Xiping Village, but she didn't know that they could be so extravagant. She felt that since they had so many things, hiring an oxcart would be enough.

Hearing the commotion outside, Zhao Zhixue came out of the house and saw the carriage outside the courtyard.

He paused for a moment, then turned to look at Pei Duo: "Brother Pei, you really have a lot of money. It's just a trip to the countryside to pick up some things, and you've hired such a nice carriage."

Zhao Zhixue felt a little envious.

Pei Duo is better than him in every way, both in terms of his family and himself.

Both were from Xiping Village and both were scholars in the same year, but Pei Duo always outshone him. It was because of Pei Duo that he studied desperately and shamelessly asked the teacher for advice every day, for fear that Pei Duo would outshine him again in the future imperial examinations.

Pei Duo raised his eyes and glanced at Zhao Zhixue with utter indifference.

He only thought about the cost of the carriage, but he never considered whether his wife could carry so many things by herself and whether she would get cold along the way.

Pei Duo: "It's getting late, we should go to school."

Zhao Zhixue: "Yes, yes, yes, if we're late, we'll be punished by the teacher."

He instructed Jiang Ninghui, "Suihui, please give my regards to my parents. I'm going to school now."

Jiang Ninghui smiled and said, "Okay." She added, "My lord, you and Young Master Pei should come back for lunch. The carriage is faster than walking, and I can get back before noon."

Zhao Zhixue waved his hand and replied, "Understood."

Jiang Ninghui went back to her room to pack her things before coming out. Her husband had already left, but Young Master Pei was still in the courtyard talking with a young man. When Pei Duo saw Jiang Ninghui, he said to the coachman, "Drive the carriage carefully."

The coachman laughed and said, "Young Master Pei, don't worry."

Pei Duo looked at Jiang Ninghui, his clear voice now carrying a subtle, almost imperceptible undertone.

He called her "sister-in-law".

Jiang Ninghui looked up, waiting for him to continue.

A note from the author:

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There's a red envelope in this chapter!

Pei Duo: If the Zhao family can't raise someone properly, it's better to let him take over.