Another disturbance arose on the day of the bride's return to her parents' home.
The carriage stopped at the entrance of the alley where the An and Wu families lived.
An Hongdou and Wu Linglong bid farewell and returned to their parents' homes with their respective husbands.
My younger brother, An Shunyuan, was already waiting at the door.
Upon seeing An Hongdou, he hurriedly went to greet her, gave Li Zeli a quick bow, and then stood beside his sister.
“Brother-in-law, my father needs to see you. Please go first.” An Shunyuan gestured with his hand.
Li Zeli could tell that he wanted to see An Hongdou, so he nodded in agreement and said, "Wife, I'll go ahead first." Then he went to find his father-in-law on his own.
"Tell me, what are you up to? Why do you insist on getting your brother-in-law away before you can say anything?" An Hongdou looked at An Shunyuan.
"Sister, how have you been these past few days since you got married? Have you suffered any grievances?" An Shunyuan asked with concern.
"Everything is fine, as you wish. Alright, this is not your concern. Why are you acting like an older brother at such a young age? Besides, with Linglong by my side, how could we possibly suffer a loss?"
Looking at her caring younger brother, An Hongdou felt a warmth in her heart.
An Shunyuan looked closely at her face and realized that she wasn't lying. He pulled An Hongdou aside and whispered, "Yesterday evening, someone from the Li family came and delivered a letter."
"A letter? What letter?" An Hongdou looked surprised, seemingly unaware of the situation.
An Shunyuan slowly explained to her. Yesterday evening, he had arranged to study with Wu Linglong's younger brother, Wu Jigang, from next door. Just before dinner, someone suddenly came to deliver letters, one to him and the other to Wu Jigang. Although the messenger didn't say who sent them, he had seen this person among the people who came when the Li family delivered the betrothal gifts.
The two women exchanged letters at the same time, both worried that something had happened to their elder sister at the Li family. They immediately opened the letters and found that the contents were the same: "Please respect yourself and do not force a marriage."
The handwriting was messy, more like a copy than a handwritten piece. Li Zeren and Li Zeli were both scholars with excellent handwriting, so the two letters could not have been written by them.
After discussing it, An Shunyuan and Wu Jigang decided to leave it at that for now. They would find out the reason when their sister returned home for her wedding and then make a plan.
“Afraid of worrying our parents, my brother Jigang and I didn’t tell anyone.” An Shunyuan took out the letter from his clothes and handed it to An Hongdou.
An Hongdou opened it, and the handwriting that greeted her was indeed jarring. She quickly closed it and put it away, with some suspicions in her mind.
“Don’t worry about it. It’s probably just my mother-in-law’s two sisters playing around. Yesterday, my mother-in-law casually mentioned wanting to marry those two sisters into my and Linglong’s families. They probably took it seriously and are afraid we’ll bring up the marriage proposal when we return home. But they didn’t even dare to leave their names, so they probably know that this isn’t their decision,” An Hongdou explained to her brother.
"I'm relieved that the Li family didn't mistreat my two older sisters. However, I'm not in the mood to get married right now," An Shunyuan said, scratching his head to express his opinion.
"Don't worry, I won't do anything to you. Those two sisters aren't easy to get along with; if they were to enter the family, there would be no peace in the household."
"What trouble at home? How have you and Linglong been these past few days? Have you caused any trouble?" Mother An had been waiting for her daughter for a long time and came out anxiously to find out what was going on.
“Mother, why do you think of your daughter like that? Your daughter is the most well-behaved, how could she cause trouble?” An Hongdou protested.
"If it were just you alone, I would feel more at ease. You and Linglong together are even more mischievous than your younger brother. When you two were climbing trees when you were little, you lost your footing and fell, almost breaking your arm. It scared me so much that I couldn't eat or sleep for a long time. I still get scared when I think about it now. But you've completely forgotten about it!"
"It was my fault for making you worry, but that was when I was a child. I've grown up now and become much more mature."
Seeing that his mother and sister were having a great time chatting, An Shunyuan quickly said, "Let's go inside first. It's not appropriate to talk at the door."
Happy times always seem too short, and before we knew it, dusk was approaching.
Wu Linglong sent word that they should get into the carriage and wait for their return journey.
An Hongdou was seen off by her family at the door, reluctant to leave. Seeing this, Li Zeli said, "Wife, my brother and I will be going to the academy to study in a few days. We can help you deliver letters home. If you miss home in the future, you can come back with your sister-in-law often, and I will explain it to Father."
These words comforted Mr. and Mrs. An. Mrs. An said, "It's good that you have this intention. Hongdou is married now, how can she run back to her parents' home all the time? The An family will not fail to observe the proper etiquette. But we also want to make our stance clear: if your Li family mistreats Hongdou, we are not afraid to bring our daughter back."
Li Zeli agreed. The two bowed and said goodbye, then walked towards the carriage.
Once in the car, An Hongdou gestured to Wu Linglong with her eyes and whispered the word "trust." Wu Linglong nodded. It seemed she understood as well.
Back at the Li family home, Li Pan'er and her sister were feeding the chickens, chatting as they worked, taking a long break after each handful of rice was scattered. Li Zeying, meanwhile, was washing a large basin of clothes non-stop, apparently for the whole family.
"Why is it only the little sister doing the laundry?" An Hongdou asked.
Li Lai'er glanced at her and said, "Third Sister-in-law, although our Li family is considered wealthy, we are still ordinary people. How can anyone expect to do nothing and wait for things to be done? During the busy farming season, even Dad has to go to the fields to supervise the work!"
This statement clearly misinterpreted her original meaning.
Li Lai'er rolled her eyes and continued, "Could it be that Third Sister-in-law wants to do the washing? Mother originally said that since you're newly married, you should rest for a few days and wait until your two elder brothers return to the academy before you have to do the work. If Third Sister-in-law can't wait, you can start now, and no one in the family will stop you."
An Hongdou was rather gentle and never imagined that a girl two years younger than her could be so domineering. She didn't know how to respond for a moment.
“Hongdou, I came back to my parents’ home today, and my younger brother told me something interesting. Yesterday evening, someone delivered a letter to the Dean’s son! We opened it and took a look, and it seemed to say that the Dean’s son was not good enough for her. We can’t let this delay their important business, so I carefully instructed my brother to personally deliver it to the Dean tomorrow.” Before Wu Linglong finished speaking, Li Lai’er’s expression changed.
“No mistake, that letter is for your family,” Li Lai’er said loudly.
"How did you know about the letter that was sent to my family? Did you write it?" Wu Linglong retorted.
"Don't talk nonsense and ruin my reputation. I just think, how could such an important letter be delivered to the wrong place? I'm afraid your brother has messed with some girl who's too good for him." Li Lai'er stammered for a moment before saying.
After saying that, she stamped her foot, put down the winnowing basket she was using to feed the chickens, and went back into the house. Her hurried figure looked somewhat like she was fleeing in panic.
An Hongdou wanted to exchange information with Wu Linglong, so she said to Li Zeli, "Husband, you are usually busy with your studies and don't have time to care for your sister. Today is a good opportunity for you to show your abilities. Why don't you go and lend a hand?"
Li Zeli glanced at An Hongdou, who was trying to shoo them away, and realized that the two probably wanted to have a private conversation. He readily agreed and pulled Li Zeren, who was also trying to leave, along with him.
"Second brother, there is an order of seniority, please go first!" Li Zeli said, stopping Li Zeren from trying to decline.
An Hongdou pulled Wu Linglong back to their room.
After closing the door, she asked impatiently, "Linglong, what did you just say about the Dean's son? What's his relationship with Li Lai'er?"
"Want to know? Oh dear, I'm suddenly a little thirsty." Wu Linglong pretended to clear her throat.
An Hongdou understood immediately, serving tea, water, and setting out chairs. "Now you can tell me whether the service was adequate or not?"
"It's alright, let me explain in detail." Wu Linglong took a sip of tea and put down her cup.
The current headmaster of the academy, Xie Qiao, is a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations) and a collateral descendant of the Xie family, one of the nine great aristocratic families of the court. He originally served as an official in the capital, but for some reason chose to resign and settle here. The headmaster's eldest son is named Xie An, and he is fifteen years old this year. Wu Linglong occasionally saw the headmaster and his son when she brought food to her father.
“Although it’s a collateral branch, I’ve heard that the Xie family values the style of a noble family, and everyone has maids and servants to serve them. My father has praised Xie An’s talent more than once at home and even told Jigang to take him as a role model,” Wu Linglong said.
"I wonder what methods Li Lai'er used to actually have some connection with Xie An. No wonder she looks down on our two families. However, the Xie family is beyond her reach. I just hope she doesn't let greed cloud her judgment and cause trouble for the Li family."
"How come I didn't know about these things?"
“I ran into Li Lai’er once when I was delivering food to my father. I didn’t know her then and didn’t know whose daughter she was. I hadn’t thought of her before, but this letter today really annoyed me and suddenly I remembered.”
As they were talking, Li Zeying arrived.
"Second sister-in-law, third sister-in-law, thank you for your help today. Do you have any clothes that need washing? Please feel free to give them to me."
“We can wash ourselves. You’ve worked hard. Sit down and rest!” Seeing her unease, An Hongdou went over and pulled her to sit down.
Holding Li Zeying's hand, An Hongdou was somewhat alarmed. Although it wasn't obvious, she could feel several thin calluses on her hand as soon as they touched it. She probably had to do a lot of heavy work every day.
An Hongdou felt sorry for her: "Didn't you tell your second and third brothers that they were bullying you?"
Li Zeying shook her head. "My elder sister taught me to read and write. I know that in this dynasty, it is very important to pass the imperial examinations and to gain a good reputation. Among these reputations, filial piety is the most valued. My two elder brothers often help me out in private, and I am very grateful for that. If they were to stand up to Mother, I'm afraid it wouldn't change my situation, but would only bring them trouble."
An Hongdou fetched a jar of perfume and handed it to Li Zeying. "This is from Dianyun's shop. It's very good. Use it on your hands often, morning and night."
"Thank you, Third Sister-in-law. If you two sisters-in-law need anything, please feel free to come to me anytime. I need to go help set the table now, so I'll take my leave first."
"Why do you have to go to set the table?" Wu Linglong asked.
Li Zeying smiled shyly and introduced them to the two women: "The two nannies hired by the Li family are a pair. One takes care of my grandmother, and the other is kept by my mother. The two young ladies are short-term workers who take turns coming to the house. They are usually responsible for cooking and washing dishes. The two long-term workers work in the fields during the busy farming season and are responsible for heavy chores such as chopping wood and carrying water during the off-season."
"Sister Pan'er and Sister Lai'er are in charge of feeding the poultry and going out to buy groceries. I do the cleaning, washing, and other chores. There are many people in the family, and my sister who cooks is often too busy, so I help out whenever I have free time." After saying goodbye to the two of them, she left.
Watching Li Zeying's disappearing figure, An Hongdou sighed, "She was such a good girl, it's a pity she lost her mother so young. Compared to Li Pan'er and her sister, a girl like her deserves a brighter future."
Wu Linglong agreed, then suddenly had an idea. "Why let such a good girl stay in the family?"
You mean our two families?
"It's not impossible!"
The two reached an agreement to create an opportunity in the future for Li Zeying and her younger brother to meet.
The whole family gathered for dinner.
The two Li brothers spoke with Li Haikuo, informing everyone that they would be returning to the academy the next day to continue their studies.
The academy has a one-day-off-seven-days-a-week break, so to save time, the two of them will stay at the academy.
Li Haikuo was very pleased with his sons' diligent studies. He picked up his wine bowl, took a sip, and then said, "Whether the Li family can produce an official depends on you two. Don't worry about the family. Studying hard is the right path. Your wives will be taken care of by your mother."
An Hongdou was dumbfounded, thinking, "Wouldn't this make people even more uneasy?"
Upon hearing this, Chen Zaoting quickly replied, "Zeren and Zeli will be very successful in the future. Don't worry about leaving the family to your mother! By the way, second daughter-in-law and third daughter-in-law, after you send your husbands off tomorrow morning, come to your mother's place. You should learn many of the rules of the Li family."
After speaking, Li Pan'er and Li Lai'er exchanged a knowing smile. An Hongdou tugged at Wu Linglong's sleeve to convey her emotions, and Wu Linglong patted An Hongdou's hand in response to comfort her.
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