Chapter 888 Inside and outside
The maid was originally from the mansion. She smiled and said, "Master has few guests, so he will entertain them in the backyard. Apart from County Magistrate Tang, there will only be Young Master Shan and his group."
"Then the other guests were entertained at the county government office in front?"
"Even if we don't entertain guests at the county government office, we usually hold banquets at restaurants outside. The master rarely brings guests home."
Cui nodded slightly. There had long been rumors in the capital that although Yang Heshu was gentle and polite, he was extremely strict with his friends. Very few people could be invited home by him. Therefore, many people secretly said that he was hypocritical, that he was only humble on the surface, but very proud in his heart.
After getting married, although Yang Heshu treated her well, she could still feel a sense of alienation, which was why she was so surprised yesterday at his easygoing and friendly attitude towards Zhou Man.
"It seems that the master and these three young guests get along well."
The girl happily continued, "Master Shan, Master Bai Er, and Miss Man are all very nice, especially Miss Man. She occasionally brings us some candy, flowers, and plants. Master once said that Miss Man's mouth is as sweet as honey, and there is probably no friend in the world that she can't make."
Cui walked over there slowly and said with a smile, "Such a high evaluation."
The girl smiled and nodded.
As they were talking, Cui also approached the rockery and heard the sound of two people talking on the mountain.
"...It's so refreshing sitting here. I really envy Lord Yang. When I have money in the future, I will buy a piece of land in the county town and build a yard as big as this one, and put up such a large rockery."
Bai Shan asked, "What are you doing on the holiday mountain?"
"It would be very pleasant to climb up to read in the morning and to watch the sunset in the evening."
Bai Shan: "Then you might as well come to my house and have a look. Why bother buying land and building a yard? I have rockeries at home, too, more than one."
"The rockery in your house isn't pretty, and it's not comfortable to sit on."
"I'll just change it for you," Bai Shan said nonchalantly, "What kind do you want?"
"Hmm..." Manbao thought for a moment and gestured, "It would be better if it were bigger and taller than this. Part of it would be flat, so I could put a round stone table and two round stone benches. The other part would be slightly raised, so I could plant flowers and grass. In the summer, I could plant climbing flowers and build a shelf hanging high up. People could sit down and avoid the scorching sun, or read or play chess. How cozy it would be. In the winter, I'd clear away some of the vines so I could bask in the sun and read. How wonderful!"
Bai Shan: "What should we do if there are bugs? Where there are flowers and plants, there must be bugs." It is obvious that he has been plagued by bugs many times.
"I can make you a medicine bag," Manbao said, "or make you some incense. Oh, I've been learning how to identify incense with Doctor Ji lately. I just realized there are so many strange and wonderful incense in the world. I'll make you some special incense to repel mosquitoes. We can burn it whenever we go to the rockery to read or play chess."
"Let's talk about it after you make it."
"I'm a quick learner. When are you going to make the rockery?"
Bai Shan said, "I'll ask my grandmother to decide when I get home."
"It's a deal."
Bai Shan nodded: "It's a deal."
Manbao flipped through the book in his hand and said, "I've finished the Spring and Autumn Annals, but I haven't finished looking for the information the teacher asked me to find. Recently, several of the assignments the teacher gave me were based on the Spring and Autumn Annals. I suspect he'll be giving me the main exam on the Spring and Autumn Annals in the middle of the year."
Bai Shan asked, "Have you memorized it?"
Manbao was distressed, "I memorized it at that time, but I didn't remember it well enough, and now I have almost forgotten it."
That's why she took it, just to read it through again and memorize what she needed to memorize. After memorizing it this time, she didn't plan to forget it again.
Bai Shan, however, had memorized the whole thing, and he also opened his own book and said, "Then let's read."
The two of them each found a seat and began reading back to back.
When Cui reached the foot of the mountain, she was stunned for a moment. She did not disturb the two of them and turned around and left silently.
After walking a long way, she said, "Go check the kitchen. When breakfast is ready, go and call the guests to have breakfast. Don't let them go hungry."
The servant agreed.
When Cui returned to the main courtyard, Yang Heshu had just finished practicing a set of sword techniques. He wiped the sweat off his face and asked with a smile, "Didn't you say you were going to see the guests? Why are you back so soon?"
"I saw Mr. Bai and Miss Zhou. They were reading in the rockery. I didn't want to disturb them, so I came back."
Yang Heshu nodded and said with a smile, "Bai Er must not be awake yet. Let's eat our own food first. If they want to eat, just ask the kitchen to send it to them separately. They will probably go out to the street soon, so don't worry about them."
Cui paused and then asked, "Master, aren't you going to greet the guests?"
"They don't need to be called specially. I'll be back from the government office to handle some government affairs. If they don't want to go out, you can let them read in my study. Oh, and ask the kitchen to prepare more food this afternoon. Zhihe might come after noon."
Cui agreed and asked, "Where will my cousin-in-law stay when he comes? Do we need to prepare a separate guest house?"
Yang Heshu was stunned for a moment before realizing that the cousin-in-law she was talking about was Tang Zhihe. She smiled and said, "There's no guest house at home. I'll have Wantian clean up the side room next to the study, and he can live there later."
Cui agreed with a smile.
Yang Heshu smiled and said, "If you hadn't mentioned it, I would have almost forgotten that you and sister-in-law are cousins. I should let you two get together when I have time later."
Cui smiled and said, "My cousin Wang and I haven't seen each other for a long time."
After Yang Heshu finished his breakfast and left, Cui sighed and sat down in front of the dressing table. Her maid, Hongxue, then tried to comfort her, "Don't worry, young lady. I think your son-in-law treats you very well. When you got married, your wife wanted to keep you in the capital. Wasn't it your master who said he would take you to take up your post?"
"But you can see that I've been here for quite some time, and I can't even get into his study. I used to think he didn't like others entering his study. After all, no one except Wan Tian could go in. But now..."
Cui clutched her handkerchief and said, "I understand Tang Zhihe coming in. After all, they've been friends for many years, but Bai Shan and the others..."
Hong Xue comforted her, "Miss, they have known each other for several years. You and Master just got married. In terms of intimacy, who in the world can compare to you two? There is still a long way to go."
Cui could only nod.
Hong Xue laughed and said, "Young lady, you are always smart, why do you get confused when it comes to your uncle? I think your uncle is just shy of strangers. It will be fine once he gets to know you."
Cui's pretty face flushed slightly, and she whispered, "I'm not familiar with him yet?"
"In the past, all we inquired about the son-in-law was hearsay. In the capital, those who have seen the son-in-law are either men or elders. You are not allowed to ask many questions. How much of this hearsay can be true?" Hong Xue smiled and said, "But it just so happens that this time there is a young lady. She is also a friend of mine. You had a lot of fun talking to her last night. Why not learn more from her?"
Cui hesitated, "That's not good. She's a girl after all. How could she..."
How can you understand your husband better than to understand him through another young lady?
Hong Xue smiled and said, "Miss, you are the one who is in the know. I think Miss Man is a very lively young lady, and she has not yet come to her senses. I am sure you can chat with her. Didn't you have a good chat last night?"
The next update will be around 9pm
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
