Chapter 135 If I'm having a hard time, you won't have an easy time either.
After entering the twelfth lunar month, the days seem to pass by faster and faster. In the blink of an eye, it's the eighteenth day of the twelfth lunar month, and there are only a dozen days left until the New Year.
Although she didn't quite understand why Hui Niang had to prepare so many New Year's goods when there were only two people in the family, A Chan only knew how to eat, so she never voiced any objections.
That morning, Chen Hui went to Tianjie to pick up the new clothes that the two of them had ordered from the shop, while Achan stayed behind to watch the shop.
After seeing off two customers who came to buy incense charcoal, she saw Mr. Lü from next door carrying an incense burner and quickly entering the shop.
As she entered, she said, "Miss Ji, I would like to buy some face powder."
“I have a lot of face powder here, which one would you like, Mr. Lü?” Achan asked.
"Just choose any mild-flavored one."
Hearing her say that, it was clear that she wasn't buying the incense powder for herself. Ah Chan couldn't help but look at the incense burner in her hand: "Mr. Lü bought the incense powder to test the incense burner?"
When Lü Ruhui saw her looking over, she placed the incense burner on the counter: "I just received an incense burner. It looks like a Yushan burner. I've heard that incense burners made of Yushan stone produce smoke that gathers like clouds and doesn't dissipate for a long time after burning, so I wanted to try it out."
"That's amazing?"
Achan knew that Yushan was outside the Great Xia territory, but she didn't know that the stones from this mountain could be used to make incense burners with such an effect.
"I heard it from someone else."
"Then I'll have to see it for myself. I don't need to pay for the face powder."
Achan fetched incense powder and a complete set of incense seal-making tools for her. The two sat down at the table, where Boss Lü calmly poured incense ash, pressed it down to flatten it, placed the incense seal on top, and then added incense powder.
Once the incense powder filled the incense seal, she removed it, revealing a complete "福" (fortune) character that was exactly the same as the incense seal.
Achan handed over a lit incense stick, which she used to ignite the "Fu" (福, meaning good fortune) character seal, and then covered the incense burner with the incense.
The two stared at it for a while and saw wisps of smoke rising from the incense burner. The smoke did not dissipate after it rose above the incense burner. In a short while, it seemed to have gathered into a cloud-like cloud of smoke.
"It really is just like the book says, it's so amazing." Lü Ruhui's face was full of surprise. It was also the first time that Achan had seen such a fun incense burner. The two stared at it for more than half an hour until the incense powder burned out before they looked away.
"Can you buy an incense burner like this on the market?" Achan was somewhat tempted.
Lü Ruhui shook her head: "I'm afraid it's very difficult. I've only seen it in books. This is probably the biggest bargain I've ever found."
"Is Mr. Lü planning to sell?" Achan asked expectantly.
Lu Ruhui shook her head and explained, "My father likes incense, and I plan to give him this incense burner. It's almost Chinese New Year, and this is probably the last New Year's gift I'll give him, so it should be something special."
After hearing what she said, Achan could no longer take away what belonged to someone else.
The next day, when Achan noticed that the neighbor next door hadn't opened their door by 9 AM, she asked Chen Hui, "Hui Niang, why hasn't the neighbor opened their door today?"
"She's going to her parents' house today and won't be back to open the shop until after noon."
Lu Ruhui's health was deteriorating, but she refused to tell her family. Chen Hui then asked her to let her know when she went out, so that if something happened, there would be no one to help her.
She told Chen Hui about going to her parents' house last night before she left.
Disappointed, Achan leaned back on the counter and said to Chen Hui, "Yesterday, Boss Lü acquired an incense burner. It's so fun! It's a pity she's giving it to her father, otherwise I could have bought it."
"You've bought so many fun things, the second floor is almost overflowing."
"This is different."
"What's different?" Chen Hui glanced at her sideways.
"This is really fun!" After saying that, Achan exclaimed, "Boss Lü is really amazing. She can make so much money from one deal. It's a pity she won't sell."
While the two were talking about Lü Ruhui, she had already arrived at the Lü family home.
The Lü family was not particularly prominent in the capital, but three generations of them had passed the imperial examinations and become Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations). Although their official positions were not high, they were still worthy of being called a scholarly family.
Lü Ruhui's father is currently a Hanlin Academician, a position he has held for over a decade, and it's unlikely to change for many years to come.
Lü Ruhui entered the Lü family's gate, with servants behind her carrying the gifts she had brought. She walked confidently towards the main courtyard, thinking to herself that she would be able to see the whole family at once, having heard that they were all there today.
She had barely entered the house when she heard lively laughter and chatter. The laughter stopped abruptly when the servant leading the way happily told the people inside that the young lady had returned.
Lu Ruhui stepped into the main hall. She looked up and saw that her mother had a blanket covering her legs and didn't look well. She was probably sick.
The younger brother stood in front of his father, who seemed to be testing his knowledge, while the second brother mocked him. Lü Ruxin sat next to his second sister-in-law, talking to her.
The family was enjoying a happy time together.
"You still know how to come back!" When his eldest daughter entered the door, Mr. Lü slammed down his teacup and his face darkened.
"Daughter greets Father and Mother." Lu Ruhui seemed not to hear and stepped forward to greet her parents.
Mother Lü snorted coldly: "It's really difficult to see you even once."
"It's my fault," Lü Ruhui apologized, then looked at her mother: "Mother, you don't look well today, are you sick?"
"By the time you remember to ask me, your mother will have already died of illness." Mother Lü gave Lü Ruhui no kind look whatsoever.
Looking at her parents, Lü Ruhui thought to herself, "It wasn't like this before."
Before her divorce from Liu Xiangze, her parents were always kind and gentle to her. So much so that when she returned home after the divorce, she was scolded harshly. Only then did she realize that before she got married, her parents were never so satisfied with her.
"Alright, enough of this talk about death," Father Lu scolded, then said to Lu Ruhui, "I originally invited my son-in-law to the mansion today to clear things up between you two. Now that you're back, don't throw a tantrum when you see him."
"I have nothing to say to him."
Enraged by her dismissive attitude, Mr. Lü slammed his hand on the table: "What do you mean there's nothing to say? When did you become so ill-mannered? When did your mother and I ever teach you to speak to your elders like this?"
"If disobeying one's father is considered ill-mannered, then none of one's father's children are well-mannered."
"How dare you!" Father Lü was furious and was about to get up when his youngest son grabbed him.
"Father, don't take it to heart by arguing with my eldest sister."
At this moment, Lu Erge, who had been silent all along, looked at Lu Ruhui with icy eyes and said, "Since eldest sister and brother-in-law have nothing to say, why don't you tell me about how you publicly slandered second sister and brother-in-law for having an affair?"
"What?" Mrs. Lü almost screamed, "Lü Ruhui, have you gone mad?"
Lü Ruhui turned her head away: "Was there anything wrong with what I said? Lü Ruxin has been back in Beijing for a few days after her divorce and has run into Liu Xiangze a few times. Why don't we let her tell us herself?"
"Just because we've met a few times, you've already made such malicious assumptions about your sister?" Mother Lü said angrily.
“Mother, you didn’t act this way when other women ran into Father.”
Unexpectedly, her eldest daughter spoke to her like that. Mother Lü's face turned pale and then red. She had made a fuss about this kind of thing before, but in the end, the woman was still taken into the household by the master.
"Can other women be like Second Sister?" Second Brother Lu still refused to give up.
"What's the difference? Aren't we both alone as a man and a woman? Our parents taught us that boys and girls shouldn't sit together after the age of seven. Did you learn any of your rules, Second Brother?" Just now, Father Lu scolded her, and now it was her turn to scold Second Brother Lu.
Lu Erge never knew that his younger sister was so eloquent. He wanted to refute her, but what she said was actually quite right.
Seeing this, Lü Ruxin finally spoke up: "Second brother, let it go. Eldest sister is in a bad mood, and no one is going to spread this around anyway, so let's just let it go."
“Ruxin, I know you don’t like to fuss over trivial matters, but this is a matter of a woman’s reputation, and it’s absolutely unacceptable to bring it up.” Lu Ersao also looked at Lu Ruhui with disapproval.
Father Lü also said, "This matter cannot be let go. Our Lü family has strict family rules, how can we tolerate such malicious words that slander our younger sister?"
As he spoke, he said to the servants waiting nearby, "Go and fetch the family law."
Lu Xiaodi, who had been holding onto his father, spoke up to persuade him, "Dad, how old is my eldest sister? Why are you asking for family punishment?"
"No matter how old she is, she can't be ignorant of the rules! Unless she doesn't acknowledge me as her father and isn't a daughter of the Lü family," Mr. Lü said stubbornly.
"Rules?" Lü Ruhui sneered, looking at everyone in the room. "Your rule is that you don't ask how much I've suffered before pinning the blame on me?"
“What’s there to ask about this? You hurt Yu’an first. Your son-in-law just asked you to admit your mistake, but you accused him of having an affair with Ru Xin. If it’s not your fault, whose fault is it?” Father Lu pointed at her. “How could my Lu family have someone like you?”
After Mr. Lü finished speaking, Mrs. Lü continued, followed by the second brother and sister-in-law, and then Lü Ruxin.
Their voices turned into a buzzing sound, constantly swirling around Lü Ruhui's ears, and for a moment she couldn't hear anything clearly.
It seemed like a long time passed before she heard her mother say, "When your son-in-law arrives, you must apologize to him properly, do you hear me?"
Lü Ruhui's eyes flickered slightly as she looked at her mother.
For a fleeting moment, Lu's mother felt that her eldest daughter was radiating a somber, deathly aura, but she quickly dismissed the oddity.
Lu Ruhui gave a strange smile: "Since you like Liu Xiangze so much as your son-in-law, then marry your youngest daughter to him and let them continue their relationship."
"What nonsense are you spouting!" Father Lü was furious.
"Father, why don't you ask your youngest daughter if she's willing?"
Father Lü looked at his youngest daughter, Lü Ruxin, and quickly said, "Father, my elder sister was just joking, please don't take it seriously."
After Lü Ruxin finished speaking, she looked at Lü Ruhui, only to see Lü Ruhui give her a mocking smile.
"What are you laughing at? How dare you laugh, you wretched child!" Father Lü turned around and started scolding Lü Ruhui again.
As Lü Ruhui listened to his cursing, she asked herself in her heart, what exactly did I come here for today?
It took her a while to remember that she had originally come to visit her parents and give them New Year's gifts.
She looked at the servants who were still holding gifts and suddenly felt a pang of regret.
Before she could even give away the gift she had carefully prepared, her whole family had already started criticizing her.
Looking at her father, who was pointing at her and cursing her until his face was red, and her mother, who looked disappointed, she suddenly felt that nothing was worthwhile.
She interrupted Mr. Lü.
“Father, I have come today to deliver New Year’s gifts.”
Just as Mr. Lü was about to speak, she continued, "However, I think you and Mother probably feel that accepting my gift would dirty your hands, so let's just forget about it."
After saying that, she walked up to the servant, took down the small box on top, carefully held it in her arms, and then used one hand to flip the rest of the boxes from the servant's hands to the ground.
The gift box was smashed on the ground, containing a broken jade bracelet, scattered tea leaves, an exquisite hairpin, and an inkstone that had rolled out the door.
Her actions instantly silenced the room. Holding the Yushan furnace, Lü Ruhui said to them, "I've delivered my heartfelt wishes, so please don't accept the gifts. It might upset you if you see them later."
After saying that, she stepped on the hairpin, and the delicate golden petals were instantly flattened and could never be restored.
Lu Erge remembered that his wife had once said she liked this kind of hairpin.
Then Lü Ruhui bowed to her father and mother and said, "Father and Mother, your daughter is unfilial and will not stay here and get in the way."
After saying that, he turned and walked out.
"What does she mean by this!" Lu Ruhui walked away quickly, but she could still hear her father's angry roar and her mother's soft sobs behind her.
She thought to herself that she was truly unfilial, having upset her parents so much with the New Year approaching.
But it's too difficult to make them happy; if they are happy, I will become the one who is sad.
She only has a few days left to live, so she shouldn't make herself suffer.
Just as she was about to walk out of the gate of the Lü family's house, Lü Ruhui suddenly heard someone calling her from behind. It was Lü Ruxin's voice.
She stopped and turned around.
Lu Ruxin walked up to her, stared at her for a while, and then said, "Elder sister doesn't look well. Are you sick?"
Lu Ruhui looked at her younger sister in front of her without saying a word.
“I remember when I was little and sick, my older sister would always come to stay with me. You were so good to me back then.”
Suddenly, Lü Ruxin changed the subject: "But why did you steal my marriage and my life?"
"You've built up all this time just to ask this?"
“Yes.” Lü Ruxin looked at her, then suddenly said, “Brother Liu should have married me.”
If it weren't for Lü Ruhui, she wouldn't have married far away, nor would she have become a widow at such a young age. Lü Ruhui stole her marriage, yet she lives a life that others envy. Why should she?
"Did I really steal it?" Lü Ruhui looked coldly at Lü Ruxin. "Your father asked you to break off the engagement, and you didn't refuse. Does that mean you wanted to agree?"
"I don't!"
"Really? Do you really have the courage to defy your father?" Lü Ruhui mocked her. "You couldn't when you were a child, and you still don't dare now. Since you still can't forget Liu Xiangze, why didn't you answer when your father asked you just now?"
"You did that on purpose!"
“I did it on purpose.” Lü Ruhui’s expression was full of sarcasm. “Sister, I used every means to get Father to change his mind back then, now it’s your turn. Liu Xiangze is right there, I don’t want him anymore, I’ll leave him to you.”
Lü Ruxin stared at Lü Ruhui, her chest heaving. After a while, she suddenly laughed and said in a low voice, "Elder sister, do you know? Actually, I did it on purpose. I knew Brother Liu was going to pass by there, so I deliberately waited for him there."
Lu Ruhui's expression remained relatively calm, but her hands, which were gripping the box tightly, turned white from the force.
“I deliberately let you know about this. You’re so stupid. You actually asked him if he was having an affair with me and then divorced him.” She leaned closer to Lü Ruhui and said, “If I’m having a hard time, you shouldn’t expect to have one either.”
Then, Lü Ruhui slapped her across the face.
With a sharp "smack," Lü Ruxin's face turned to the side, turning bright red.
Lü Ruxin covered her face, her eyes filled with disbelief.
Seeing that she had suddenly changed her expression, Lü Ruhui turned her head and saw a servant of the Lü family leading Liu Xiangze in.
"What are you doing!" Liu Xiangze strode forward, but stopped a few steps away from Lü Ruxin.
He turned to look at Lü Ruhui, his eyes full of reproach.
"Is it any of your business, an outsider, to interfere when the eldest sister is disciplining her ignorant younger sister?"
Lu Ruhui's gaze slid away from him, and without looking at him again, she walked past him.
Even after leaving the Lü family's gate, she could still faintly hear Lü Ruxin saying to Liu Xiangze.
"Brother Liu, I'm fine. I said a few words to my elder sister just now, and maybe my words upset her, which is why she turned against me. It's my own fault."
Liu Xiangze didn't speak, probably because he felt sorry for him.
Lu Ruxin has always been like this. Her family says she has a straightforward personality, unlike themselves, who are more thoughtful.
But nobody says that straightforward people can't be disgusting.
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