Chapter 78: God is Here Above You
Aunt Xue suppressed her hatred and closed her eyes.
The clouds cleared and the rain stopped. Seeing that she was so obedient, Qi Chengzhou held her in his arms and whispered some favors to her.
"Tomorrow I will have someone send over some good fabrics so I can make you some spring clothes."
Aunt Xue had her back to him, staring blankly into the dark night.
"My closet is full of clothes, which I can't wear out in a few years...but I don't have many good jewelry."
It was rare for her to take the initiative to ask for something, and Qi Chengzhou was a little surprised.
"Oh, what jewelry do you need? Tell me."
Aunt Xue tucked her messy hair around her shoulders and moved away from him quietly.
"On New Year's Eve, I saw the Third Madam in the East Courtyard wearing a golden necklace around her neck. It was bright yellow and looked very beautiful."
Qi Chengzhou chuckled, turned her face back and patted it gently.
"My dear, you really know what's good! That's the wife's dowry. I'm afraid there's no other one in the whole house... Even if you can find one, it won't matter. If I give you something that your grandmother doesn't even have, you'll definitely be criticized."
Aunt Xue lowered her eyes slightly to hide her thoughts.
"I don't want something that good, as long as it's gold."
Qi Chengzhou became suspicious and suddenly pinched her chin.
"You don't usually like these things, and you don't go out to meet guests. Why do you suddenly want this?"
Aunt Xue had already thought of her words. She deliberately tilted her head and bit her thin lips, revealing a hint of jealousy.
"Just now at the banquet, grandma is not to be mentioned. Sister Chun's clothes and accessories are better than mine. There are also one or two maids who look more like aunts than I do... Naturally, my sisters have won the master's favor, and I dare not argue."
Seeing that she was jealous of him, Qi Chengzhou felt a little pleased, but also felt a little guilty, so he coughed lightly.
"Okay, I'll give you a reward and I'll send it to you in the evening. Remember, don't wear it ostentatiously, especially don't show off in front of grandma."
Aunt Xue nodded obediently.
"Of course, I remember my duty."
Qi Chengzhou felt very happy. He always spoiled this girl in the past, but she insisted on going against him and rarely smiled at him. Ever since she lost her son and became ill, he had ignored her for a long time, which softened her character.
It was a dark night. Qi Chengzhou turned over drunkenly and soon fell into a deep sleep.
Aunt Xue, who was lying on the pillow, had no desire to sleep at all. She was full of things on her mind and did not close her eyes until dawn.
In the evening, Qi Chengzhou really sent a golden necklace.
Aunt Xue held it in her hand and looked at it for a long time. Although it was not as shiny as the one worn by Grandma Shen San, it was also made of real gold. She weighed it and found it was very heavy.
After being ill for several months, the monthly allowance she had saved, along with the valuable hairpins and rings in her gilded dressing box, were all gone after Xiaolian used them and stole them under the pretext of bribery with the servants.
A necklace worn around the neck is better than gold bracelets and jade hairpins worn on the head. It can be covered with clothes so as not to be seen by others, and there is no need to worry about losing it in a panic.
As long as it is gold, it is money that keeps you alive no matter where you go.
Qi Chengzhou stayed in the west wing for two days in a row. Seeing that she was obedient and more docile than usual, he doted on her even more.
The New Year is busy and in the blink of an eye, the Lantern Festival has passed.
On the sixteenth day of the first lunar month, Aunt Xue had not yet gotten up. She coughed violently a few times and gasped for a long time before she recovered.
"I don't know why. Although I'm cured, I still feel cold all over. Maybe the root of the disease is still there."
Qi Chengzhou was having a maid help her put on her clothes. Seeing her coughing on the bed with a red face, he felt a little tender.
"The disease will heal quickly. After the first month of the year, I will ask someone to invite the female doctor to see you again and prescribe some new medicine. The root of the disease will be cured in one go."
Aunt Xue covered her heart with a handkerchief, tears in the corners of her eyes, and sighed softly.
"Doctors can cure illnesses, but they can't cure fate. Maybe I have a bad fate and I have to suffer from this kind of pain."
"What are you talking about! In the first month of the year, there is nothing wrong with what you say!"
Aunt Xue frowned and lowered her head, then looked at him with tearful eyes.
"People say that on the 16th day of the first lunar month, all diseases can be driven away, crossing a bridge can ward off disasters, and touching nails can reduce illness. When I was a girl, I often went to get rid of all diseases, and I have never had any illness since I was a child. I think it is somewhat true. In the past two years, I have been confined to my house and cannot go out, so I have many more illnesses. Today is the 16th..."
She wanted to go out again.
Qi Chengzhou knew it in his heart, but he didn't respond. He just asked slowly: "Who did you go out with to cure diseases in previous years?"
She had been engaged before and almost became the wife of that short-lived ghost. She wondered if she had traveled with that ghost when she was cured of all her illnesses in previous years.
Aunt Xue was startled.
"Getting rid of all diseases is a matter for girls and women. I don't have a sister, so naturally I'll go with my mother."
Qi Chengzhou smiled in relief, but still refused: "You are not allowed to go."
Aunt Xue already knew that he would not agree, so she lowered her head slightly and softened her tone.
"It doesn't matter if you don't go... I heard from Xiaolian that there is a small Buddhist temple at home. Since we can't go out to ward off disasters, it would be good to go and recite some Buddhist scriptures."
In the past, she seldom went out of the house, and her maid followed her wherever she went. Seeing Qi Chengzhou hesitated a little, she added another sentence.
"A few days ago, my wife met me at a family dinner and asked me how I was doing. She said that when her first uncle died, she spent the whole day in the temple chanting sutras and praying for blessings. Her piety moved the gods, and then she had her third uncle. It seems that it was somewhat effective."
Madam Yue had long forgotten her and had never asked, but Qi Chengzhou was moved when he heard her.
"Since Madam has said so, then go ahead. It might be useful..."
He sighed.
"...If the gods and Buddhas bless me, I will have a child sooner or later."
Aunt Xue calmed her pounding heart and slowly revealed a soft smile.
"There are gods above our heads, and the Buddhas in the sky are watching us."
Qi Chengzhou sat on the edge of the bed, slowly stroking the snow-white cheek of the person in front of him.
"I have a banquet tonight. If I come back late, I won't stay at your place. It's windy at night and the temple is cold. The earlier you go, the sooner you can come back."
He paused.
"Bring two more maids."
Aunt Xue nodded obediently.
That night, Qin Jiangyun sent Master Qi out and heard the maid come to report that Aunt Xue was going to the Buddhist temple in the back to chant sutras and came to ask for grandma's instructions.
Qin Jiangyun ordered someone to come in and saw that she was wearing a plain jacket that was neither new nor old, with no hairpins or rings in her hair. Her face was calm, and she didn't look as frivolous as before. Instead, she looked like a devout worshiper of Buddha.
"Go ahead. Since the Second Master has agreed, how dare I stop my sister?"
Aunt Xue bowed her head without saying a word, bowed, and went to the Buddhist temple in the backyard with two maids.
Qin Jiangyun sneered when he saw the man leave without saying a word.
"The small Buddhist temple is next to the Yujin Hall. The operas being performed in the Madam's courtyard with loud gongs and drums can be heard clearly in the temple. I want to see if she can calm down and ask for the blessing of the Buddha."
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