When Xu Di went back to sleep, it was past midnight, and Li Yuexi was still waiting for him with the lamp lit.
Li Yuexi made him some wontons for a late-night snack. The wonton wrappers were so thin that you could even see the bright red meat filling inside. She also chopped some scallions, cooked them, sprinkled some chopped cilantro on top, and added a few drops of sesame oil. Xu Di also added some chili sauce and ate a big bowl of it while it was still hot.
Xu Di was sweating profusely as he ate. When he put down his chopsticks, he saw Li Yuexi tidying up two bundles. One bundle contained several sets of fine cotton undergarments, and the other bundle contained several pairs of finished shoes.
Xu Di asked her, "Is this meant to be taken to Ganzhou?"
Li Yuexi said, "Yes, I made two pairs of shoes for my father and several sets of undergarments for my mother."
Xu Di nodded and said, "If you have anything for your father-in-law and the others, please send it over as well."
Li Yuexi said, "We've only just gotten back, and I haven't prepared anything for them."
Xu Di said, "You've made so many things for your in-laws, why didn't you make anything for your parents-in-law?"
Li Yuexi said nonchalantly, "Sister-in-law, make it for them. I'm Xu's daughter-in-law now, so it's only right that I make it for my parents-in-law."
Xu Di was speechless at Li Yuexi's thoughts. Should he be happy that his wife didn't always think about her parents' family?
Li Yuexi finished packing and said, "I just made some dry food that keeps well and stir-fried some pickled vegetable shreds. I'll have them take it with them tomorrow so they can have something to eat on the road."
Xu Di said, "Thank you for your hard work, my wife."
Li Yuexi said, "Husband, have you thought about how we're going to live our lives in the future?"
Xu Di said strangely, "How do people live their lives? Aren't we doing just fine now?"
Li Yuexi said, "I shouldn't be saying these things to my husband at this time. He is focused on his studies right now, and saying these things would affect his reading. But I've thought about it a lot, and I feel that I really should talk to him about it."
Xu Di said, "I've been thinking that you've been acting a bit strange lately. Come on, tell me what you've been thinking."
Li Yuexi said, "When we went to Ganzhou last time, I went to Hexi. My brother took one of my sister-in-law's maids as his wife. My mother said that when my husband is to be sent to a post in the future, as the eldest daughter-in-law, I need to take care of the household chores and serve my parents-in-law. She told me to take advantage of the time when I can find an easy-to-manage maid to train by my side, so that she can go to the post with my husband in the future."
Xu Di asked, "So what are your thoughts?"
Li Yuexi said, "Of course I didn't want to. I told my mother that our family doesn't have this custom. My mother didn't say anything, but my sister-in-law laughed at me, saying that I didn't know what was good for me. She said that in the capital, which wealthy family doesn't have three wives and four concubines? She also said that if our family doesn't have a concubine in the future, people will laugh at me for being jealous."
Xu Di still couldn't understand modern women. Even though the wife and the concubines had various conflicts, she still insisted on arranging for her husband to take concubines. If she didn't want to, she should have resisted. Instead of resisting, she would have laughed at others.
Seeing that Xu Di remained silent, Li Yuexi's voice trembled slightly as she said, "Husband, we've been married for a long time, so I naturally know what kind of person you are. But we can't keep being apart from our parents-in-law forever; they need someone to take care of them."
Xu Di said, "Yuexi, our family is different from your father's family. We will have to separate from the Marquis's mansion after Hua Ge becomes the Marquis. This is a rule set by our ancestors, and we must abide by it. At home, our family is only the third branch of the Marquis's mansion. Although I am the eldest grandson, I am not the eldest son. Even if I stay at home to serve my parents, it is not my turn. As for you, you are not needed."
Li Yuexi looked at Xu Di with some doubt. Xu Di said, "That's the advantage of a large family. Everyone lives together, there are many servants in the house, and parents are taken care of. As for the two of us, we can just live our own lives. Not only me, but apart from Hua Ge'er, any of the other brothers who get married and are sent to a post outside the capital must also take their wives with them. The kind of thing that happens in other families, where the principal wife stays at home to take care of the elders while the concubine accompanies her to the post outside the capital, is not allowed. According to the family rules, even if you have no children in your life, you are allowed to adopt, but you are not allowed to take a concubine."
Li Yuexi asked, "Why are there such rules?"
Xu Di said, "In the early years, many things happened in the family because of the concubines, so the family set this rule: Yuexi, it's just the two of us living our lives, and what others say has nothing to do with us."
Li Yuexi said somewhat embarrassedly, "Husband, I'm afraid that because of me, you will be laughed at."
Xu Di said, "Let them laugh. People can say whatever they want. We can't control what they say. Besides, even if they laugh at us, we don't lose anything. I don't think that a few jokes from others can erase all the efforts I've made. Only mediocre people are not envied, don't you think?"
It was late at night, and the young couple chatted for half the night. Li Yuexi woke up before dawn.
Although she went to bed late and woke up early, Li Yuexi felt relaxed, probably because she had finally resolved a major issue that had been weighing on her mind. Seeing that Xu Di had just woken up, she said, "I arranged with the kitchen yesterday to make dumplings this morning. I'll go make them now, and then we'll let Uncle, Di-ge, and Yu-yuan eat the dumplings before we set off."
Xu Di agreed and got up with him. He followed his usual routine, exercising, washing up, and then went to Xu Bai's room in the backyard.
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