Chapter 7 I Don’t Believe He Can Bear It

Apart from the fact that his entry into the mansion was somewhat hasty and strange, Zhuang Wan's days in the Pei Mansion were relatively peaceful.

However, the courtyard was desolate, the flowers and plants were bleak, and there was not even a scene for a stroll. It was a little too quiet.

According to Jingzhe, the house had been vacant for many years until the emperor gave it to Pei Xingju a few years ago, who then renovated the courtyard. However, Pei Xingju had never cared much about his daily life and food, so he didn't take care of it much.

The small courtyard she lived in was called Muxiyuan, named after the previous owner, who loved growing osmanthus. A pond had been dug to the west of the courtyard, with a circular arch bridge built over it for viewing the fish. Beside the pond stood a smooth stone with a poem engraved on it.

The sweet scent of osmanthus fills the ground;

Lotus leaves grow in the pond.

Don’t be surprised by the secluded place;

It’s good to send branches in spring.

Zhuang Wan muttered to herself, then praised, "The original owner must have been a refined person."

Lixia sneered, "Miss Zhuang is from the capital, but she doesn't even know who the original owner of this house is."

"Who is it?"

"yes......"

Lixia was about to speak when Jingzhe bumped her elbow and she immediately shut up.

Jingzhe said, "The original owner was a criminal, so it's better for Miss Zhuang not to ask about it."

"There are countless criminals throughout the dynasties. Why can't we ask about this one? Is there something special about this one?"

Jingzhe doesn't speak.

Lixia stood there for a while, but was afraid that she couldn't help it, so she turned around and left.

The two of them looked very secretive. Zhuang Wan curled her lips and said: It's not a big secret. She can find out by herself later.

She stood on the arch bridge for a while, looking at the huge pond without a single fish, and asked, "Since you have a pond, why don't you raise fish?"

"Before Miss Zhuang came, no one lived in this courtyard, and no one raised fish."

"Has no one lived in this yard?"

"Our master is not married yet, so there are naturally no female relatives in the backyard."

"Then there must be relatives, brothers and sisters or something, right?"

Jingzhe didn't answer, but pressed his lips into a serious straight line, like a little old lady.

Zhuang Wan clicked her tongue. "Even if you don't tell me, I know. What didn't Yuzhi tell me when we were so affectionate?"

With an expression that showed she knew everything, she said complacently, "I talked to him about everything, and I know his family affairs very well. Yuzhi has no brothers or sisters. He studied alone since he was young and studied under General Gu. Later, it was General Gu who recommended him to the court."

Lixia stood aside, feeling frustrated: "Miss Zhuang, if you already know everything, why are you still trying to trick us?"

Zhuang Wan said confidently, "I just want to see if you are loyal to Yu Zhizhong."

“…”

Zhuang Wan picked up a few gravel and skipped them on the arch bridge. "By the way, why don't you believe that Yuzhi and I are in love? Is it because he has lost his memory and won't admit it?"

Jingzhe said nothing, and Zhuang Wan looked at Lixia.

Lixia tried to hold it in, but couldn't hold it back: "Who is our master? The imperial teacher of the Great Zhao Kingdom, handsome and elegant like an immortal. Even if his vision is very bad, he wouldn't..." like someone like you.

"It's nothing serious." Zhuang Wan looked down at her large breasts and thin waist, feeling depressed. "Am I not good enough? I have a good figure and good looks, so what's not good about me?"

Lixia chuckled in her heart: "Miss Zhuang, don't you think your appearance is too ostentatious?"

"You mean too charming?" Zhuang Wan winked at her and smiled seductively, "You don't understand. Yuzhi really likes it."

“…”

.

Jingzhe was a good subordinate who worked diligently. He reported to Pei Xingju in detail what Zhuang Wan ate, did and said.

Of course, the above words were not left out.

Guard Lu's face flushed as he repeated the story, and Pei Xingju's forehead throbbed as he listened.

Pei Xingju was having a meal at that time. His face darkened for a moment and he suddenly put down his chopsticks.

"What a mess! You don't have to say these things anymore."

"......yes."

.

Zhuang Wan lived a leisurely life in the Pei residence. Three meals a day were delivered on time, and someone attended to her bathing and washing. All she did was eat and sleep, occasionally strolling around the courtyard. Later, someone sent a few koi fish to be placed in the pond, and after each meal, she would go to the arch bridge to feed the fish.

Life was quite comfortable, but after a few days of this, she gradually realized that something was wrong.

She seemed to be...under house arrest by Pei Xingju.

Pei Xingju rushed her into his mansion, but he remained silent for days. How could she act without Pei Xingju? How could she gain trust without acting?

Gradually, Zhuang Wan began to panic.

After a day of silence, Zhuang Wan suddenly opened the door in the evening.

Jingzhe and Lixia, who were guarding the door, both looked at her: "Miss Zhuang, what's the matter?"

"Where is Pei Xingju? I want to see him."

Jingzhe said, "Miss, the master has gone on a long journey and is not at home."

"Travelling far away?" Zhuang Wan was unsure whether this was true or not. After a moment's thought, she said, "If that's the case, forget it. Go get me some food."

Lixia was surprised: "Miss Zhuang, you just had dinner at twilight hour and you're hungry again?"

"What do you care about me? I want to have some midnight snack now. Oh, no plain porridge or noodles, give me something else."

"What do you want to eat, girl?"

"Hmm... I'm not picky. I'll have a serving of both sea cucumber, abalone, and bird's nest. I want the sea cucumber to be stir-fried with scallions, the abalone to be steamed with garlic, and the bird's nest to be stewed."

“…”

"Why? No?"

Jingzhe said, "Miss, I'm afraid these meals can't be prepared so quickly."

"It's okay, I can wait."

"Girl, it's hard to digest these tonic foods at night."

"Don't worry, I have a very good stomach and can digest it."

“…”

After a moment of silence, Jingzhe said, "Miss, these are too precious for us to decide. We need to ask Aunt Xu."

Zhuang Wan waved her hand: "Then go ask, hurry up."

The two hesitated for a while, but finally went.

Zhuang Wan walked out of the house, grabbed some bait and walked to the pond to feed the fish.

She would know if Pei Xingju was at home by trying. She would be angry for a whole day if he didn't show up. She didn't believe Pei Xingju could tolerate it.

.

On this side, after the maid reported Zhuang Wan's request to Nanny Xu, Nanny Xu went to report it to Pei Xingju.

Pei Xingju put down his pen: "She wants to eat abalone and sea cucumber?"

Aunt Xu: "That's what Miss Zhuang said."

"You didn't bring her dinner?"

"Dinner is always delivered on time, and the meals are the same as yours every day, three dishes and a soup every day."

Upon hearing this, Pei Xing remained silent.

Shen Yi, who was handling official business on the side, interrupted and said, "This Miss Zhuang is not polite at all."

"Sir..." Aunt Xu asked, "Do you want to get it for Miss Zhuang?"

"No!" Pei Xingju refused bluntly: "Just say that I am honest and honest, and I don't have these things in my house."

"Yes." Aunt Xu went out.

Chen Yi asked, "You have abalone and sea cucumbers in your house, so why don't you give them to me?"

Pei Xingju continued writing: "She's just putting on an act."

"To say that Miss Ruozhuang was acting is a bit too bold. She even dared to change the name of your Xuanzhao Pavilion secret guard. If it wasn't an act..." Chen Yi asked mischievously: "Aren't you afraid that you will really offend your 'beloved' and it will be difficult for him to deal with it by writing in his diary?

Pei Xingju was too lazy to pay attention to him.

"This Miss Zhuang has been in the mansion for five days now. I heard she eats well, sleeps soundly, and even feeds the fish in the yard when she has free time." Chen Yi said, "She is so calm and composed even after entering your Pei Mansion. Either she is generous or she is scheming. But according to the information I have received, Miss Zhuang doesn't seem to be a scheming person."

Pei Xingju raised his eyes.

Chen Yi continued, "We've been investigating for days and have done everything we need to, but we still have limited information. The servants at the Zhuang Mansion said that Miss Zhuang has always been a solitary person and rarely goes out. She has an eccentric and unpredictable personality and doesn't like to talk to people."

"But there's one interesting thing..." he said, "The servants at the Zhuang Mansion say Miss Zhuang is weak and timid, which is completely different from the one who lives here now."

"You mean..." Pei Xingju frowned, "Isn't the person living in the mansion Zhuang Wan?"

"It's Zhuang Wan," Chen Yi said. "Her maid said that Miss Zhuang once hanged herself, but suddenly came back to life half a day later, and her personality had changed. So, she must be Zhuang Wan. Otherwise, how could Madam Zhuang not recognize her own daughter?"

Hearing this, Pei Xingju seemed to be lost in thought.

"Isn't it interesting?" Chen Yi said with a smile, "This Miss Zhuang is becoming more and more mysterious."

Pei Xingju sneered, "Whether she is Zhuang Wan or not, we'll know by testing her."

.

After Zhuang Wan fed the fish, Jingzhe also came back.

She was holding a plate in her hands.

"What is this?" Zhuang Wan peeked over.

Jingzhe replied, "Miss Zhuang, Madam said our master is an honest official and that we don't have those delicacies in our mansion. This is the longan soup that Madam specially asked the chef to make for you. Please make do with it for now."

hehe......

The book describes Pei Xingju as a cunning and resourceful man, not only wielding influence in the court but also possessing his own organizations among the people. He was an expert at gathering information and conducting business. Over the years, he had amassed a fortune so rich that he could not only rival an entire nation, but also so rich that he could not even afford to eat and drink his fill.

Incorruptible? He is not honest at all!

But Zhuang Wan was not angry. She was just testing the waters originally, and now that she had gotten the answer, she was not in a hurry.

She patted her hands clean and took the bowl from Jingzhe: "Thank Aunt Xu for me."

After finishing the longan soup, Zhuang Wan buried her head in the quilt, staring blankly at the carved railing at the head of the bed.

She was sure that Pei Xingju was at the mansion, but how could she see him?

However, just when Zhuang Wan was thinking about how to make another big move, the next day, the maid suddenly came to tell her that Pei Xingju had returned home and invited her to go boating on the lake.

.

Zhuang Wan was having breakfast at that time. She was caught off guard by the news and almost choked on the braised pork.

"Didn't he say he was away on a long trip? Why did he come back so soon?"

She was not mentally prepared. Yesterday she asked for a meeting but was refused, and today he took the initiative to invite her out. She didn't know what Pei Xingju was up to.

Lixia said, "Miss Zhuang, the master is already waiting at the door, please hurry up."

"Okay." Zhuang Wan nodded, took a big bite of meat, chewed it, and went into the inner room to change clothes.

No matter what his purpose is, just deal with it accordingly.

Zhuang Wan wanted to pack carefully, but her wardrobe was limited; she only had two sets of clothes, nothing new. Without Qiu Tan and Dong Ning, she had no idea how to style her hair, and Jing Zhe and Li Xia were out of her reach.

She stood in front of the mirror for a moment, thinking she couldn't just go out with her hair down like this. After some thought, she decided to walk out, pick up a clean chopstick from the table, and then pull her black hair into a bun on top of her head. The chopstick would become a hairpin.

Lixia stood at the door, stunned. Although she had known Miss Zhuang's casual nature during their interactions over the past few days, she had never expected her to be so casual.

Zhuang Wan was dressed in plain clothes, and used chopsticks to pin up her hair, which looked out of place, as she went out like that.

When I reached the door, I saw a carriage waiting there.

Inconsistent with the simple decoration style of the entire Pei Mansion, Pei Xingju's carriage was not simple. As if to show off his status, his carriage was extremely luxurious and spacious, with seven copper bells with colorful tassels hanging under the canopy.

Zhuang Wan walked over, cleared her throat silently, and called softly, "Yuzhi, I'm here."