Chapter 49
Xie Qinghong asked, "What did you think of the poem I just read?"
Pei Du pretended to recall and replied, "The voice was clear and crisp, the words were enunciated clearly, and the tone was gentle..."
Xie Qinghong had to interrupt, somewhat displeased: "I asked you what you thought of the poem, not how I recited it. Pei Du, were you even listening?"
Pei Du paused, then said, "I am not very proficient in poetry, but I find this poem thought-provoking. The man in the poem is fickle, but I am different from him. A man's infatuation is inescapable."
Xie Qinghong put away the poetry collection and said meaningfully, "It's easy for you to just talk. Back then, Qin Sanlang was deeply in love with Zheng Qiniang. His affection was obvious to everyone. He was willing to jump into the cold pool to save her. Now, only a few months have passed, and everything has changed. He has taken a mistress."
Pei Du was silent for a while, then looked down into her eyes, his voice so low that only she could hear: "I don't know what Qin Sanlang is thinking, nor do I know how to describe it to you, but you are all I can think about. It makes me feel that there is no one else in this world like you."
Faced with such close eye contact, Xie Qinghong finally blushed, vaguely recalling the hazy kiss amidst the fireflies in the forest and the overwhelming surge of emotion that had overwhelmed her.
She suddenly unfolded the poetry collection and held it in front of her face, blocking his aggressive gaze, before managing to say, "Your poetry is terrible. I'm going to talk to Father and have him give you a set of poetry questions for the exam."
As soon as she finished speaking, she felt his light breath brush against her fingers that were gripping the book pages, and then the soft touch on her fingertips was fleeting.
"Okay, will you review it for me? I think Xie Gong's explanation is not as good as yours."
——
Half a month passed in the blink of an eye. Wangjing City lagged far behind. However, Xie Qinghong was not very happy. Going from Wangjing to Nandi was already leaving her hometown. She had originally thought that she would marry alone, so she was mentally prepared. However, her father and brother had decided to send her to Nandi and only return to the capital after she married into the Nanwang Mansion.
She felt somewhat dissatisfied because her mother and brother couldn't be with her. But there are always imperfections in this world, and she could only console herself.
This trip to the south finally allowed her to see a region even further south than Huaizhou. The vast land was sparsely populated, truly a desolate place compared to the fertile north. However, her eyes lit up. If Yuan Qingqing saw so much land, she would be overjoyed, and the days of getting rich through farming would be just around the corner.
The Xie family's ten-mile-long wedding procession was escorted by elite soldiers to the post station. Yuecheng hadn't seen so many guests from outside for a long time, and the city and its surroundings were filled with a joyous atmosphere. When Xie Qinghong alighted from the carriage, he noticed that the shops along the street were all decorated with red lanterns and couldn't help but wonder, "Is there some kind of festival recently? Mid-Autumn Festival was a long time ago, but there are still some days until the New Year. Are the festivals in the South different from those in other places?"
Pei Du helped her out of the carriage. Perhaps because they had finally arrived in his most familiar territory, he had a relaxed smile on his face these past two days. He replied, "Recently, it's because I'm going to marry you. The people are happy and want to celebrate together."
He would never say that he had the red lanterns along the street hung up one by one, and that every household in the city had sent him wedding candy, so that everyone in Yuecheng would know that a girl from Wangjing City would soon travel a long way to marry him.
Xie Qinghong finally felt a bit more real about her impending marriage and couldn't help but glance at him a few more times, unaware that her hand was still resting on Pei Du's wrist. However, Xie Qingzhou immediately noticed and turned away, coughing loudly, "Ahem, we're not married yet."
Xie Qinghong quickly withdrew her hand and glanced at Pei Du: "Yes, we're not married yet, we shouldn't meet. I'm going in now, you can go back to the palace by yourself."
After saying that, she lifted her skirt and took a few steps into the inn, whispering to Xie Qingzhou, "Brother, I just saw a fried dough stall, I want to eat some tomorrow." Xie Qingzhou immediately agreed to buy it for her the next day.
Pei Du stood alone outside the post station, stopped by the official in charge of etiquette from entering: "Your Highness, this has been the custom since ancient times. It was fine along the way, but now that we have arrived in Yuecheng, we must follow the rules—you cannot meet with the Crown Prince's wife before the wedding ceremony. The same was true for the Prince back then."
The official in charge of ceremonies was extremely pedantic. Pei Du glanced at the post station twice, unwilling to give up. Seeing that Xie Qinghong hadn't turned around even once, he could only grit his teeth inwardly. Xie Ayao was really a heartless little thing. He wondered who had secretly cried last night. He had comforted her all night, but today she didn't recognize him again.
He ordered a squad of elite soldiers to remain on standby, while the rest were to be taken back to the Prince's residence to report. Zhou Yujin was anxiously waiting at the Prince's residence, and when he finally saw him return, he immediately rushed forward to greet him eagerly: "Adu, you're finally back! Did you see all those lanterns on the street? I hung them up with my brothers!"
Pei Du nodded: "Thank you."
Zhou Yujin almost burst into tears. After all these years, he finally heard Pei Du speak a single human word. It was truly a rare treat. A man should get married; once he has a family, he can barely be considered a human being. He wiped away non-existent tears from the corners of his eyes and said, "Just tell me if there's anything else you need."
Pei Du scrutinized him, then shook his head: "Never mind, it's nothing. If you really go to fight Xie Qingzhou, I might not see you at my wedding."
Zhou Yujin: "?" Why would you have such a dangerous idea as sending me to fight Xie Qingzhou? You don't want to get married, but I still want to live.
So, Pei Du is the kind of person who's not worth keeping an eye on. If you think even slightly good of him, he'll say something that makes you want to punch him. Zhou Yujin silently took a step back. He had heard of Xie Qingzhou before; he'd heard that Xie Qingzhou was also a troublemaker, young and invincible throughout Wangjing.
He must be tired of living to challenge Xie Qingzhou to a duel.
Pei Du probably doesn't want to get married, which is why he wants his cousin to fight his brother-in-law. Is this guy out of his mind? No, there must be a conspiracy. Does he want to make his cousin, who has lost face, amuse his brother-in-law so that he won't be troubled by his brother-in-law?
What a vicious plan!
As Zhou Yujin retreated, he kept backing up until he reached the door, almost stepping on the foot of the Prince of the South who was about to enter.
The Prince of Nan looked down at him in puzzlement, then at his son's thoughtful expression. He wondered what kind of riddle the two cousins were playing, but as an elder, he still had to be tolerant and reminded him, "Why aren't you with your wife now that you've just returned? You should take her out for a stroll."
Pei Du gritted his teeth: "The official you arranged for me said we couldn't meet before the wedding, but now I can't even get into the post station." He even suspected that his father was deliberately retaliating against him.
The Prince of Nan was taken aback, then suddenly realized: "Oh, that's right. Back then, he was just a greenhorn. He wouldn't let me see the Princess even if I wanted to. Oh well, it's a happy occasion. A couple of days won't make a difference. We'll be able to see each other every day soon after the wedding, right? Young man, you need to be more patient. You're so impatient. If you lose your composure in front of Lord Xie and the young master of the Xie family, how undignified that would be."
Pei Du sneered. It was confirmed. All that talk was just his father doing on purpose. The wedding was approaching and he was just making things difficult for himself.
He pretended to be receptive to Zhou Yujin's teachings, and when Zhou Yujin realized the situation was not right and quickly fled, Pei Du said, "I originally wanted to go to the post station to discuss matters with Lord Xie, but now it seems that we should invite Lord Xie to the Prince's residence. Father and Lord Xie have not seen each other for a long time, and he should be very happy."
The Prince of the South sneered, "Call him here and see if you or I are the ones who are happy." This brat hasn't yet experienced the authority of his father-in-law and brother-in-law. There will be plenty of fun to be had for him in the future.
Faced with Xie Wen's imposing presence, both father and son took a step back. Pei Du could only tell himself that a few more days wouldn't make a difference; he just needed to wait for the wedding ceremony, until the evening of the wedding…
As he lay down to sleep that night, he suddenly remembered that he hadn't had time to deal with the scrolls in his study. He couldn't bear to burn them, but leaving them there would surely anger Xie Ayao if she found them. After a long while, he took a chance and placed his own painting with several other masterpieces in a wide-mouthed porcelain vase. If they weren't opened one by one, no one would know that there was a painting of his among them.
The letters under the jade pillow also needed to be moved to a different place. Pei Du was busy until midnight before he finally managed to pack everything up. After packing, he realized that his bedroom had very few things. He had never been materialistic, but he realized that this seemed to be unfair to Xie Ayao as their wedding day approached.
What should I do if she marries me and feels that I have nothing?
Pei An couldn't understand his idea: "Your Highness, your storeroom is filled with countless treasures. A single pearl from the East Sea is priceless, and you have a whole chest of them, along with coral and jade as tall as a person. If you feel that Your Highness's wife is being wronged, then give her the storeroom key."
Pei Du had his own private vault, mostly filled with spoils of war. He hadn't looked at it closely, only knowing there were many things, not that they were expensive. This reminder was like a wake-up call; Pei An truly lived up to his reputation as a married man.
He nodded approvingly: "That's a good idea. It seems you and your wife have a very good relationship."
Pei An scratched his head: "Hehe, it's alright, but a few days ago she had a fight with me because she found out I was hiding money from her, and then she went back to her parents' house."
Pei Du frowned: "...Why are you still hiding money?" How can a married man be so dishonest?
Pei An sighed and said in a tone of someone who had been through it all, "Your Highness, I had no choice. A man needs some money to carry around when he's out and about, right? I give her all my monthly salary, and I only keep a little bit, which she found and almost got into a fight with me. But it's also because I didn't hide it well. Your Highness, you'd better hide your private stash of money well."
As soon as he finished speaking, he realized he had said the wrong thing. Unlike him, the Prince's son did not need to hide money. He smiled awkwardly and said, "I misspoke. Please don't take offense, Your Highness. You don't need to hide money. Your wife is gentle and kind and will certainly not quarrel with you."
Pei Du, however, said with a stern face, "No, what you say makes sense." From now on, all his monthly salary would be handled by A Yao. A Yao had already been wronged by marrying far away, and such trivial matters as money could not compare to the importance of people.
In any case, as long as Xie Ayao is happy, that's all that matters.
Xie Qinghong was taking stock of her dowry and private treasury before entering the Prince's mansion. Although she had already done so at home, she still needed to check for any losses once she arrived in Yuecheng. After all, it was normal for there to be some damage after traveling such a long distance.
She checked with both maids one by one, and found that not only had she not lost anything, but she had actually gained many more items. She wondered, "Where did this glass cup come from?"
Ah Xing said, "It was Prince Pei who saw you liked it on the way and bought it."
When asked about the other extra items, all of them were said to have been "bought by Prince Pei." By the end, Xie Qinghong frowned. Pei Du's finances were quite problematic. He bought things on a whim without even haggling, just like those spoiled brats. If this continued, even the richest family fortune wouldn't be able to withstand his reckless spending.
She was determined to get her hands on Pei Du's private treasury.
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