"When my cousin stared at me, his eyes were scary. I've never seen that before. I'm scared." Cuimei closed the door with her backhand, feeling terrified.
Jiang Yushu sighed, slowly took off her veil, and brushed her hair sideways. She smiled bitterly and said, "Silly girl, what are you afraid of? What does this have to do with you? Alas, I am the one who is uneasy."
"He has lost a lot of weight and is much less talkative. I don't dare to joke with him like I used to." Cuimei sighed sadly and lit the lamp quickly.
Jiang Yushu frowned, absentmindedly picking at the wick of a lamp, and said solemnly, "I heard that he's been suffering from acclimatization problems since he took office in Xicang, and he hasn't fully recovered yet, which is why he's become so thin."
"Actually, I quietly asked Doctor Fang about this," Cuimei said, her voice heavy with worry. She leaned in closer and whispered, "Although Doctor Fang didn't say it explicitly, I understood. He said that my cousin is suffering from both acclimatization problems and accumulated worry. In other words, it's a heart disease. As the saying goes, 'heart disease requires heart medicine,' but the girl has already married into the Guo family. What should I do?"
Jiang Yushu pounded her head, racking her brains. After a long moment, she held her head and said distressedly, "I can't think of a good way to have the best of both worlds. As for the mental illness, I can only persuade him to cheer up as soon as possible. As for the acclimatization problem, we can ask Doctor Fang to try. We had some acclimatization problems in the past, and Doctor Fang cured them all. He has a lot of experience and should be able to cure my cousin."
"I'm taking medicine now. I hope my cousin will recover soon!"
Jiang Yushu forced herself to cheer up, undressed, and prepared to bathe. She said sincerely, "I wish him well, too. I'll be at peace only if he's doing well." After a pause, she became vaguely worried and warned, "Things are different now, Cuimei. You must be more careful in front of guests. Don't speak without restraint to avoid unnecessary trouble."
"Don't worry, I understand. Even if the young lady didn't remind me, I would never dare to joke around." Cuimei sighed.
Meanwhile, in the wing room
Pei Wenfeng's face darkened as he slammed his folding fan shut. "Is that really the case?"
"Absolutely true!"
Cai Chun and Wu Liang, one packing their bags and the other packing their bedding, faithfully reported:
"I heard that Cuimei has fallen in love with Mr. Guo's confidant, and they are very close and will soon get married."
"Not only did the cousin agree, she also promised to arrange a marriage for her."
Pei Wenfeng gripped the fan handle, his knuckles whitening as he stared into the candlelight with a cold expression. "Hmph," he said indifferently, "she seems to be living a happy life, getting along well with the Guo family. That girl has been clever and eloquent since she was young, and she's deeply trusted by Yushu. Look, she came with several maids as a dowry, but Yushu only brought her with her, and she's always with her."
"Cui Mei is indeed clever." Cai Chun opened her bundle and picked out a set of clothes. Wu Liang shook the quilt, spread it neatly, and agreed, "She is a daughter of the Jiang family. She has served my cousin for many years and has always been more favored than the other maids."
Pei Wenfeng's face was pale, he felt betrayed and extremely disappointed. He couldn't help but feel angry. His tone was cold and he said slowly, "Before the incident, every time they met, Yushu's personal maid was always full of smiles. Cuimei even called her "son-in-law" and "son-in-law". Now that something has happened, she has immediately changed her attitude and become distant and polite, as if she were treating a stranger."
"Now that she has a new son-in-law, she only cares about flattering the Guo family and completely ignores the old one. It's so chilling."
As a maid, what should Cuimei do? Should she kill her new son-in-law with a knife?
Cai Chun and Wu Liang exchanged a glance, both wanting to speak but hesitant, and cautiously tried to comfort him: "Things have come to this, young master, think more positively."
"Please forgive my boldness in speaking frankly: the current situation is truly unsolvable. My cousin is already a married woman. What else can you do? Before we set off at the beginning of the year, the old master and the old lady, as well as the master and the mistress, repeatedly urged you—"
With a "pop" sound.
Pei Wenfeng threw his folding fan on the table. He grew irritable at the mention of his elders and growled, "Enough! Stop rambling. I have a terrible headache." He rubbed his brows hard, full of suspicion and bewilderment. "We haven't seen each other for over a year. Seeing each other today, do you think my cousin has changed?"
The two servants tried to persuade her in vain, but out of sympathy for her suffering, they had no choice but to comply with the patient's wishes. They thought about it carefully, and then said one after another, "She has changed. She used to be gentle and quiet, speaking softly, but now she is much more generous."
"She has become bolder and more capable in her words and actions. In this courtyard, it is obvious that she is the boss, and all the servants are respectful to her."
Pei Wenfeng's eyes were filled with heartache and pity. He sighed deeply and said sadly, "I really don't know how much suffering she has endured to be forced into this state!" He then changed the subject, but his face darkened again and pointed out seriously, "But a person's character, even if it undergoes a huge change, the things in his bones remain the same until death. I believe that what Sister Shu said today was not her true intention at all. Given her personality, she would never be cruel to me!"
"Hearing this, it seems that your cousin has advised you?" The two servants' eyes lit up, and they hoped that Jiang Yushu would resolutely cut off their old relationship to avoid any embarrassing scandal.
Pei Wenfeng slammed his fist on the table, feeling indignant and helpless. He sighed, "Her advice must have been conveying my uncle's intentions, no doubt about it! Sister Shu has always been filial and dared not disobey the orders of her elders. She advised me against her will, and I don't know how upset she must be right now. Maybe she's hiding in her room crying. She has always cried when she was little, alas."
The trusted servants sighed at the same time and looked at the young master worriedly, but they were at a loss as to what to do.
Pei Wenfeng had been exhausted for a long time. He tossed and turned countless times at night, unable to sleep. He was like a madman, his thoughts in a mess. He speculated: "Think about it carefully, Cuimei is in love with the Guo family's servant. Her heart and mouth are biased. I guess she has often persuaded Sister Shu to accept her fate, or instigated Sister Shu to ignore me. Otherwise, why would she dare not look up at anyone? She is clearly guilty!"
The summer night is hot and the moon is bright.
After Jiang Yushu bathed, she sat in her room, deep in thought, until Nanny Pan knocked on the door and asked, "Dinner is ready. What do you think we should do?"
"It's rare to have guests, especially distinguished ones, so dinner should naturally be served in the main hall." Jiang Yushu had to cheer herself up and asked seriously, "What about my third brother? He's not young anymore, he should think more about how to entertain guests."
"He's already in the hall." Nanny Pan looked calm and smiling.
Third brother, I'm sorry. Jiang Yushu had already made plans. She rubbed her forehead and frowned, saying, "Mammy, I have a headache, so I won't go out to eat. Please, you and Azhe, entertain the guests well."
She was not timid, but she could not bear to see her cousin showing his concern involuntarily - he thought he was caring about his cousin, but in fact he was facing a stranger.
There is no old ties between strangers, so it is better to meet less often, and it is even better to forget each other.
Pan Ma was shocked and believed it to be true. She asked hurriedly: "Headache? Is it serious? I'll go call Fang Sheng--"
"No! I don't need to see a doctor. I'm just tired. I'll be fine after a good sleep." Jiang Yushu waved her hand.
Nanny Pan understood and asked kindly, "Then shall we bring dinner to your room?"
Jiang Yushu nodded immediately. She had been busy all day and was starving.
"Okay!" Nanny Pan said cheerfully, "Wait a minute, I'll ask Cuimei to bring it over. You two can eat together and have some company."
Jiang Yushu nodded repeatedly.
So, there were only two people sitting opposite each other in the main hall, a host and a guest, with Zhou Yan and Nanny Pan taking care of them.
The table was filled with multi-grain rice, millet porridge, roasted rabbit meat, cured duck, stewed dried mushrooms, and several stir-fried vegetables, which was a rich meal for the remote Liu Village.
Pei Wenfeng was born into a scholarly family in the south of the Yangtze River. Although he was not rich, as the eldest grandson, he was deeply loved by his elders. He had the finest food, clothing, housing and transportation, and had never suffered any hardship since childhood.
He glanced at the food, feeling distressed, thinking to himself: When my sister Shu was still at home, she couldn't even swallow a few mouthfuls of delicacies from land and sea, and now she has to live such a hard life...
"I apologize for the poor hospitality, Brother Pei." Guo Hongzhe sat up straight and apologized. It was the first time for him to entertain guests alone, and it was such a special guest. He could not hide his nervousness, fearing that he would be rude.
Pei Wenfeng was six or seven years older than the other man. Although he hated Guo Honglei, he didn't bother to embarrass his brother. He remained calm and polite, "No, it's actually me, the uninvited guest, who's causing trouble for your family. Where's she? Why hasn't she come to dinner yet?"
"Oh," Guo Hongzhe knew what was going on, "my second sister-in-law has a headache and is resting."
"Headache?" Pei Wenfeng was stunned and thought to himself: She must be sad, or her eyes are red from crying, so she can't show up.
Guo Hongzhe said politely, "There's a doctor at home, she'll be fine. Brother Pei, please have dinner."
"Please." Pei Wenfeng couldn't eat, but due to etiquette, he reluctantly had a bowl of porridge.
After the meal, Nanny Pan served tea to the guests, but brought Guo Hongzhe a cup of goat milk.
Pei Wenfeng noticed it and glanced at it in surprise.
"Ah, this is goat's milk." Guo Hongzhe was a little embarrassed and explained, "My second sister-in-law insisted that I drink a cup every day, saying it's good for my health. Would you like to try it? It has hazelnut powder and osmanthus flowers in it, so it's not smelly."
Second sister-in-law?
Sister Shu should have been my wife, not your sister-in-law!
Pei Wenfeng found this extremely irritating and felt aggrieved and angry, but he couldn't vent his anger on the frail young man, so he endured it and replied, "No, I'll have some tea."
Several ewes gave birth at the same time, and they were fed with fresh grass. They had so much milk that they could fill a porcelain pot every day.
But most people dislike the smell of it and don’t like to drink it, so they often ask Xiaotao to steam it into yogurt for them to eat.
Jiang Yushu stayed in the room, stirred the steaming hot goat milk, and became dazed while drinking it.
@Unlimited good articles, all in Jinjiang Literature City
"Alas." Cuimei was peeling chestnuts nearby, but she left them in her teacup, unable to eat them. "When will my cousin leave?"
@Unlimited good articles, all in Jinjiang Literature City
Jiang Yushu shook her head. "I didn't ask in detail, so as not to seem like I was chasing him away. But he's in charge of patrols and thieves, and he's very busy with his duties. He probably won't be able to stay for long."
"To be honest, I hope he leaves quickly. The longer he stays, the more trouble he'll cause. I'm really afraid he won't be able to control himself and make a scene that embarrasses him in public." Cuimei was worried.
"...I'm scared too." Jiang Yushu held her chin and stared at the goat milk in a daze.
No matter how sad I am, I have to go to the fields every day during the busy farming season.
Early the next morning, the Guo family rushed to the fields to harvest the crops.
They tiptoed away, and when they left, Pei Wenfeng was soundly sleeping. Fang Sheng prescribed the right medicine, a tranquilizing and acclimatizing prescription, to help him recuperate.
But after a short nap at lunch, Pei Wenfeng insisted on following him down to the fields, and refused to listen to anyone's advice.
Jiang Yushu was helpless and advised: "Cousin, you are still sick, why don't you go to the pavilion and rest for a while?"
"No need." Pei Wenfeng, with his hair tied up in a jade crown and dressed in a white robe, sat on a small stool, rolled up his sleeves, and buried his head in picking potatoes. He pulled them hard and threw them into the basket with a "bang bang", as if he was venting his anger, as if he was competing, or as if he was sulk... He was irritable and could not suppress his anger.
Occasionally someone would come close to talk to him, and he would have to hide his anger, talking and laughing gently, and being polite and courteous.
How could Zhuang Song and the officials sit still when a newly minted scholar and newly appointed governor was working in the hot sun? They all came out of the pavilion, eager to help, and took the opportunity to get close to him.
Near dusk, a family in the village asked relatives for help and was the first to harvest two acres of potatoes. They piled them all in front of the pavilion and asked the officials to weigh them.
Zhuang Song and others were sweating profusely as they weighed themselves in public.
As dusk fell, the villagers were busy and had to pack up their food and farm tools, preparing to continue digging the next morning.
"Two hundred and seventeen pounds."
"Two hundred and twenty pounds."
"One hundred and ninety."
…
He took out basket after basket, weighing and recording the results while shouting non-stop.
Zhuang Song was fanning Pei Wenfeng with a palm-leaf fan, and the two of them were watching closely.
The Guo family had also finished packing. Jiang Yushu stood outside the pavilion and watched, very concerned about the specific yield per mu.
Pei Wenfeng glanced again and again, trying his best to restrain himself.
The abacus clattered for a long time. Zhuang Song, beaming, announced, "We harvested a total of 6,174 catties from our two mu of land. Based on the agreed 35% yield, yours will be 2,160 catties!"
Suddenly, the family was ecstatic and shouted excitedly: "Haha, more than 2,000 kilograms!"
"Oh, that's wonderful, it's really wonderful."
"Let's plant a few more acres tomorrow. When the autumn harvest comes, our family won't have to go hungry anymore." The woman in charge was pale and thin. She hugged her equally pale and thin child, almost crying with joy.
"His family has been taking good care of it, and the harvest is really good."
"I wonder how many there are in our family?"
"Dig quickly, we'll know after we weigh it."
…
The villagers were envious, crowded around to look, and talked a lot, wishing that their own grain could be weighed immediately.
Two acres of land, more than 6,000 kilograms, the yield per acre finally reached 3,000 kilograms!
Jiang Yushu beamed, thinking excitedly: "Although it's not as good as the high-yield varieties of my past life, it's still a good harvest nowadays. Moreover, potatoes can be harvested twice a year. An ordinary family can harvest enough food with just a few acres of land, thus escaping the plight of famine and no longer needing to endure hunger."
"What are you so happy about? You're smiling like an idiot." Amidst the hustle and bustle, Pei Wenfeng casually walked up to her.
Jiang Yushu's eyes lit up, her smile beaming with ambition as she cheerfully replied, "The harvest is good, of course I'm happy! I hope the harvest gets better every year, a bountiful harvest, so no one in the world will go hungry, and famine will be eradicated once and for all!"
"Strange," Pei Wenfeng asked, moving closer, puzzled. "You grew up in a large courtyard, never having touched a blade of grass before, yet you learned farm work so quickly? You can even teach the villagers how to grow new crops? That's truly impressive."
Jiang Yushu's smile froze, and she was secretly shocked. She sighed and explained, "You have to learn. Alas, I was exiled for three thousand miles and suffered so much hardship. If I couldn't endure hardship, I would have died on the way. Farming and sericulture work can be learned as long as you put your heart into it. It's not difficult." @Infinite good articles, all in Jinjiang Literature City
"Oh? Sister Shu is really smart." Pei Wenfeng's eyes were deep and unpredictable.
Jiang Yushu felt uneasy and shook her head modestly, "Cousin, you're too kind. I've only learned the basics. I'm far behind the old farmers."
When Guo Honglei and his party rode into Liu Village, it was already dark.
Soon, they gradually approached the gate:
"Whoa!"
"Look, why are there so many people gathered here? Did something happen at home?"
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Jiang Yushu: Oh no, this is bad...
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