Chapter 5 Chapter 5 "I actually...actually...

As Fang Ying stepped into the room, she heard a resounding slap from the inner room. Her eyes widened immediately as she looked at the maid Dingxiang who was lifting the curtain at the door. She mouthed, "Did you get beaten?"

Dingxiang smiled and shook her head, and replied in a low voice, "It's okay." She invited her in.

Fang Ying thought that given her mother-in-law's style of doing things, even if she really wanted to beat her son, she would not do it in front of her, so she asked Lichun to stay in the outer room, and she took the bundle of clothes and carried it in.

In the inner room, Li was sitting on the kang with a smile on her face. Ji Yanlang was standing beside his mother, his expression normal and there was no slap mark on his face - it was indeed just a casual slap, not a real hit, right?

Fang Ying took a few steps forward, saluted Li, and stopped to speak when her eyes unexpectedly met Ji Yanlang's. She saw that his eyebrows and eyes were moving around, as if he was trying to make some secret signal.

Unfortunately, Fang Ying and he had no tacit understanding and could not understand it at all. She withdrew her gaze, looked at Li, and said with a smile: "When we were doing it, although I thought that Liu Lang might grow taller, I made the size a little wider, but I'm afraid it still isn't enough. Let's try it first."

"It doesn't matter if it's a little shorter. Today is a family dinner and there are no outsiders. It's a good opportunity to measure him and ask them to alter the clothes." Li said.

"My son thinks so too." Fang Ying said as she walked forward, put the bundle on the edge of the kang and opened it.

Xinmei, who was standing beside her, came over to help and spread out the light blue brocade robe with her. When she looked back, Ji Liulang was standing there as if nothing had happened, not moving at all.

"Why are you still standing there? Why don't you take off that old robe of yours?" Li saw her son and teased him, "Why? You haven't been home for a few years, and you're already restrained?"

Ji Yanlang hesitated for a moment before smiling and saying, "No, it's just that I've been doing everything myself for the past three years, and I'm not used to being served. Let me do it myself." As he spoke, he walked forward, took the brocade robe, and slipped behind the screen.

Fang Ying was happy not to have to wait on him, but Li was afraid that she would feel uncomfortable, so she replied, "That's fine, from now on you won't need anyone to wait on you. Just do everything yourself, and we'll have less to worry about."

Ji Yanlang laughed a few times, quickly changed his clothes and came out, "It fits me well, just the sleeves are a little short."

He had been wearing a gray robe that was neither new nor old before, and because he was good-looking, he didn't think it looked ugly. But when he put on the new clothes and walked under the lamp, even Fang Ying's eyes brightened and she couldn't help but sigh: Ji Liulang, the handsome young man who was famous in Jinguan City back then, is really back.

"Well, take it off tonight and ask them to straighten the edges, and it will be just right." Mrs. Li looked at her son and was about to get up to help him fix it, but just as she moved, she remembered and called Fang Ying, "Ying'er, fasten his belt."

Fang Ying came back to her senses, picked up the belt and walked over to Ji Yanlang, compared it with him, and turned back silently and said, "Sister Xinmei, how come..."

Xinmei came over with a smile, but did not offer any help, only gave instructions with her mouth.

Ji Yanlang let the two of them busy themselves and looked at his mother, indicating that it was time.

Li understood and glanced at Dingxiang who was guarding the door. Dingxiang called out softly, "Madam."

"Yeah." Li stood up and walked out slowly.

After a while, Dingxiang called Xinmei again. Fang Ying didn't know the details and thought something happened outside. She only had the last step of fastening her belt to go, so she asked Xinmei to do it.

Ji Yanlang watched Xinmei and Dingxiang disappear through the doorway. When he looked down, Fang Ying had fastened her belt, so he said straight to the point, "I have something to discuss with you."

Fang Ying looked up in surprise, then looked around. Belatedly, she realized they were the only two people in the room. She immediately became alert and replied in the softest tone possible, "My dear, please let me know if you have anything to say."

Ji Yanlang: “…”

Is she possessed by some ghost?

"My mother is not here, so you don't need to pretend like this." He lowered his voice, "I'm serious. I know you didn't marry me voluntarily. I've just discussed it with my mother. Let's divorce quietly. After a few months, let my mother adopt you as her adopted daughter, and then I'll find you a suitable husband. The dowry..."

"But I already have my ideal husband." Fang Ying interrupted him quietly but firmly before he could finish.

The three words "I'll go out" were stuck in Ji Yanlang's throat. He coughed twice before feeling better. He asked tentatively, "What do you mean? Do you already have a lover outside?"

Fang Ying shook her head: "No outside, but there are at home."

When she said that, even if Ji Yanlang was really stupid, he would understand, not to mention that he was pretending to be stupid - but understanding is one thing, and believing it is another.

He stared at Fang Ying, slowly lowered his head, and leaned close to her ear and said, "Just tell me what you want. There's no need to talk nonsense like that."

Fang Ying hated it when he spoke so close to her, but the play was at a crucial moment, so she had to hold on tight and couldn't back down. She answered stubbornly, "I don't want anything. I just want our family to be safe and sound."

“…”

Things turned out completely differently from what Ji Yanlang had expected. He took two steps back and looked around Fang Ying, confirming that although she had grown up a bit and looked prettier than when she was a child, she was undoubtedly the Fang Ying with whom he had had more than one grudge.

"You don't have to put on an act in front of me. Seriously, if you go out on the street and pick any woman who says this to you, I'll believe it more than you do."

Fang Ying: “…”

Hadn't he always been quite conceited? Why was he so… before she could even finish her thought, her "dream husband" continued, "Don't you know that you're the only person I've ever met who openly and honestly dislikes me to my face?"

Fang Ying was stunned: "Me...me?"

Ji Yanlang was inexplicably amused. "If not you, who else could it be? Even Li Xu pretended to be kind to me when he saw me, and never showed me a displeased expression..."

Li Xu was Li's younger brother, the later ruler of Shu, now Duke of Deng. Fang Ying glanced sideways at the door leading to the outer room and whispered, "She's my elder after all. If you call her by her name like that, even if Mother hears it, she'll feel bad, even if she doesn't say anything."

"..." She even started to lecture him! Ji Yanlang was impatient, "I'm going to ask you one last time - divorce, and then become my mother's adopted daughter, do you agree? Think about it first, you only have one chance."

"When I married into your family, I had it in mind," Fang Ying looked up at him and said firmly, "I will never marry again in this life. I am a member of the Ji family in life, and I will be buried in the Ji family's ancestral tomb after death and become a ghost of the Ji family."

Ji Yanlang: "Are you possessed by evil spirits..."

He was shocked and angry, and for a moment, he lost control of his voice, raising it slightly. Xinmei's voice immediately reached the room outside: "Liu Lang, Liu Niang, Madam said to go to the west hall once you're done packing. The family dinner is ready."

Seeing that Ji Yanlang was just glaring at her and refusing to answer, Fang Ying raised her voice and said, "I'll be right there." Then she lowered her voice and said, "You may have some misunderstandings about me. We can talk later. Let's go to the family dinner first."

"Misunderstanding? What misunderstanding?" Ji Yanlang made a bet with his mother. Success or failure depended on this one move. How could he just leave like that? "Let's talk now. No one can leave until everything is clear."

This was just a temper tantrum. Fang Ying took a deep breath, summoned all her energy, looked up at him and said, "I've never disliked you."

Ji Yanlang looked at her coldly, obviously not believing her.

"On the contrary," Fang Ying spoke slowly, her voice gradually getting lower and lower, "I actually...actually...admire you."

At the end of her words, she lowered her head and pretended to be shy, so she didn't see the look of as if she had seen a ghost on Ji Yanlang's face.

For a moment, Ji Yanlang doubted his memory: Could it be that the person who said that he was a delicate flower who relied on the protection of his father and grandfather and had never been exposed to any wind and rain was not the Fang Ying in front of him?

But who else could it be besides her?

No, that wasn't the important thing right now. She had clearly never looked down on Ji Yanlang, so why was she now lying and claiming to be in love with him? Also, when her mother kept talking about being in love and being deeply in love, wasn't that just her own guesswork, or was she being tricked by Fang Ying?

Ji Yanlang's gaze suddenly became deep as he looked at the person in front of him.

"You'd better." After saying this in a deep voice, Ji Yanlang walked past Fang Ying and went out.

Fang Ying secretly let out a breath, and when she turned around, Ji Yanlang was no longer there.

What does "you're the best" mean? Did he admit it? Fang Ying was a little unsure, but she immediately followed him out. With Ji Yanlang on either side, they accompanied Li out to the West Flower Hall.

Li held Fang Ying's hand and talked to Ji Yanlang as they walked. "You survived this disaster thanks to the blessings of the gods and Buddhas. In two days, come with me to Xiangguo Temple to fulfill your vow, and then accompany Ying'er back to the Fang family to meet your father-in-law. Later, when the government awards us, we'll have to host a banquet. However, your father will be back in Beijing in less than two weeks, so let him take charge of the arrangements then."

Ji Yanlang listened quietly, occasionally agreeing, a rare obedient

Mrs. Li thought he had lost the bet and felt uncomfortable. She continued, "As for your relationship, you weren't here when Ying'er came home, so we couldn't complete the ceremony. It's a pity. I'd like to wait for your father to come back and choose an auspicious day to make up for it. What do you think?"

Choosing another auspicious day to hold the wedding ceremony meant that they didn't have to consummate the marriage right away. Ji Yanlang naturally agreed: "I'll listen to my mother."

Li squeezed Fang Ying's hand, looked at her sideways and said, "I really want to drink the tea you two young couples offer to your father."

Fang Ying knew that her mother-in-law's words were absolutely sincere, and she also felt that this idea was a rare win-win solution. It could legitimately prevent her from consummating the marriage first, shut up irrelevant people, and at the same time give her and Ji Yanlang time to spend together. It was truly a well-intentioned idea.

"Mom is really thoughtful and will listen to you." She responded sincerely.

After he finished saying this, the lights of the West Flower Hall could be seen, and Ji Yanshou and Yue Qing'e came over to greet him.

Everyone gathered together and escorted Li into the flower hall. Wulang Ji Yanhui, several daughters-in-law, and Ji Si Niang all bowed to Li. After that, Ji Yanlang met his sisters-in-law and younger sister, and then men and women took their seats separately.

The author has something to say:

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Ji Liulang: I was careless...

Fang Ying: Don't be afraid, my dear flower. I will cherish you.