Chapter 7 Chapter 7 He couldn't have believed her words about admiring him...
As he walked, Ji Yanlang recalled what everyone had said at the table just now, hoping to find out the changes in his family in the past three years. He was so focused on his thoughts that he didn't even notice that he had reached the gate of the yard. If the gatekeeper hadn't called him, he would probably have walked all the way to the second gate before he noticed.
"Liu Lang, you haven't been home for three years. You don't recognize the door anymore? Why didn't you ask someone to hold a lantern to guide you?"
Ji Yanlang felt the servant's tone sounded familiar. Upon closer inspection, he realized it was the maid who had served him since he was a child. He quickly reached out and said, "Madame Du, why are you here? Who asked you to guard the gate here? There's no one else in the yard, and we can't..."
"No, no, I am the one who is waiting here for Liu Lang to come back. Liu Niang said it was cold at night and she was afraid that I would get cold, so she asked me to go inside and wait, but I am anxious and want to see Liu Lang as soon as possible."
As Nanny Du explained, she pulled Ji Yanlang into the courtyard. The lanterns in the corridor were brightly lit, illuminating the scenery in the courtyard clearly. He looked at everything that was familiar yet unfamiliar, and felt a little dazed for a moment.
Ever since the Ji family moved to Tokyo and moved into this mansion, Ji Yanlang has lived in this small courtyard.
The courtyard is oriented from north to south and is slightly long and narrow, so in addition to the main house facing north and south, only three east wing rooms were built.
The three main rooms face the courtyard gate. The study on the east side was decorated by his mother together with him. In the past, his mother always hoped that he could be a writer like his second brother. She invited famous teachers for him and urged him to practice calligraphy diligently. Unfortunately, his mind was on riding and archery, and he never looked at the famous calligraphy hanging on the wall.
The bedroom was on the west side. His mother did not interfere, so he arranged it as he pleased. He used latticed fans to divide the room into inner and outer rooms, and secretly hid a few military books in the inner room. After finishing his homework every day, he would return to the room and quietly read the military books for a while. That was the happiest time for Ji Yanlang at that time, and it was also the scene he dreamed of most often during the three years he was in Jiaozhi.
At this moment, he finally returned home and entered the courtyard he had been dreaming of, but it had been occupied by someone else and no longer belonged to him.
Ji Yanlang looked around with a rather unpleasant feeling, and thought that he might as well not go in, as there were so many empty rooms in the house... Just as this thought came to his mind, a figure swayed at the door of the main hall, and the "dove" came out to greet him.
"Sir, please ask Madam to come in and sit down and talk. It's late and very cold outside." Fang Ying walked all the way to the steps and said with a smile.
"No, no, I'm relieved to see Liu Lang. It's getting late, you should go to bed early." After saying this, Nanny Du turned around and quickly walked out of the yard without waiting for Ji Yanlang to react.
Fang Ying hurriedly called a little girl to carry a lantern and send her off, repeatedly instructing her, "Watch the road carefully, don't let Madam fall, and send her home before returning."
Nanny Du was originally a maidservant to Li's mother, the empress of the first Lord of Shu. When Ji Yanlang was raised in the palace by the first Lord of Shu, she served him and later followed him back to the Ji Mansion. Even Li did not treat her as a servant, so Fang Ying did not dare to neglect her.
Seeing the little girl catch up, she turned back and met Ji Yanlang's gaze.
"This old lady is quite fast on her feet." Ji Yanlang muttered nonchalantly, raised his foot and took a step, passing Fang Ying and entering the main hall.
Fang Ying followed him in and saw him just standing in the hall looking around. She said, "There's hot water in the kitchen for you to take a bath. Would you like to take a bath now?"
"Not yet."
Apart from a few more bonsai pots and new incense, there seemed to be no changes in the hall. Ji Yanlang turned and walked to the door of the east room, looked inside, and was surprised to find that it was almost exactly the same as he remembered. When he took a closer look, he found that even the pens hanging on the pen holder were the ones he had carved words with with a knife when he was naughty.
"I didn't dare touch my husband's things in the study. I kept them as they were." Fang Ying said, standing at the door.
Ji Yanlang turned around and looked at her: "In the study?"
"Yes." Fang Ying explained slowly, "My mother had someone clean up the bedroom before I got married, so..."
It meant that she hadn't moved it. Ji Yanlang walked behind the desk, sat down on the chair, and pointed at the chair by the wall. "Sit down. I have something to ask you."
Fang Ying didn't move, and asked him first: "What kind of tea would you like, sir?"
When she asked this, Ji Yanlang felt thirsty. Thinking about the wine and meat at the banquet, he thought he should drink some tea to relieve the greasiness, so he asked, "Do you have Emei Mountain tea?"
"Yes." Fang Ying turned around and told the maids to make tea. After they were done, she went inside and sat down. "What do you want to ask, my lord?"
Ji Yanlang frowned: "Can't you call me something else?"
"My dear, what do you want me to call you?" Fang Ying said in a very good manner.
"What did you call me?"
"..." Fang Ying's question stumped him. What had she called him before? Behind his back, of course, it was Ji Liulang. But to his face? After thinking carefully for a while, she finally confirmed that she had never called him that in person before.
Ji Yanlang also remembered at this time that this "dove" had always been insinuating himself to his face and had never called him anything. He sneered and said, "Alright, let's just call each other by that name. I just sent my mother home. She said a lot of things had happened at home in the past three years, but she was tired and refused to elaborate. I wanted to ask you, what was it?"
"Is it related to what was said at the table just now?"
She was quite clever. Ji Yanlang nodded. "Third sister-in-law seemed to have ulterior motives when she said those things today. Also, you've only been married for two years, and I don't know where you are. Why would my mother let you help Second sister-in-law manage the household? Isn't Second sister-in-law managing the household well herself?"
"It's a long story. When the news of the defeat at Baijiang came back, Mother learned that you had drowned and disappeared, and she fell ill immediately. My second sister-in-law was busy tending to her and taking care of everyone in the mansion, and she was exhausted. Just as Mother was getting better, she couldn't hold on any longer. We called a doctor, who discovered she was pregnant."
Ji Yanlang had heard from his brother that his second sister-in-law had given birth to another daughter, so he was not worried and listened quietly to Fang Ying continue.
"To let my second sister-in-law rest assured and take care of her pregnancy, Mother asked my third and fourth sisters-in-law to help with household chores. Unexpectedly, as soon as my third sister-in-law took over, she was eager to replace all the housekeepers with her own people, causing the servants in the inner house to come to Mother to complain. Mother had no choice but to remove the third and fourth sisters-in-law's power and take charge of the household herself for a while, until my second sister-in-law's pregnancy was stable, and then she handed the responsibility back to my second sister-in-law."
But the pregnancy was stable, and there was always a day when the fruit would ripen. Yue Qing'e's delivery was not smooth, and she gave birth to another daughter. Although Li and Ji Yanshou both said that daughters were good, with An and Cheng, her two sisters-in-law, constantly making sarcastic remarks about her, how could Yue Qing'e relax and recuperate? She became more and more depressed day by day.
"Second sister-in-law nursed for a full hundred days before she felt better, but then Jiaozhi sent back the captives... At that time, everyone thought you wouldn't come back. Not only in the mansion, but even outside, there were a lot of rumors."
At this time, Lichun brought in tea. Fang Ying stopped talking and watched Ji Yanlang drink half a cup of tea. She explained, "This is this spring tea. The taste is a little bland now, but it's just right for drinking at this time."
Ji Yanlang had been drinking Mengding tea at his mother's house during the day, so this was his first time drinking Emeishan tea in three years. Although the tea tasted light, it had the flavor he remembered. He nodded with satisfaction and continued, "What are those rumors?"
"It's just... it's nothing more than the decline of the direct lineage, and the Ji Mansion is likely to be passed down to Third Uncle and his men."
"They really dare to think so." Ji Yanlang sneered and gritted his teeth for a while, then suddenly remembered and asked Fang Ying, "People outside say so, why do you still dare to marry in?"
Fang Ying didn't answer, but looked at him as gently as possible. Sure enough, Ji Yanlang only held her gaze for a moment before quickly looking away as if pricked by a needle and saying, "Pretend I didn't ask."
Fang Ying couldn't help wanting to laugh, so she quickly lowered her head and picked up the tea to cover it up.
"What happened next? Did the third sister-in-law really make a scene?"
"It wasn't a big deal, but I just wanted to replace my second sister-in-law and take over the housework. Mother didn't have the energy and didn't bother to pay attention. After I came in, she asked me to help my second sister-in-law."
Ji Yanlang looked at her and said, "You must have done something to please my mother before that. Otherwise, no matter how exhausted she was, she wouldn't have asked you to help her second sister-in-law."
"Nothing much. I just gave my second sister-in-law some advice, asking her to let her suffer a little and not be so arrogant."
"You were in contact with my second sister-in-law before you came in?" Ji Yanlang felt as if he had grasped some clue and asked, "Why don't I remember you two knowing each other?"
"Perhaps it's because you don't pay attention to what's going on in the harem. Actually, I've come with my stepmother to pay my respects to Mother every year for years, and I've seen Second Sister-in-law quite often, but we've only really gotten to know each other well in the past three years. When I was a child, Mother was kind enough to not only live in the Ji Mansion for a year, but also learn to read and study with the mansion's female tutor, learning etiquette and broadening my horizons. Unfortunately, I never had the chance to repay Mother. That year, I heard Mother was ill, but I didn't dare to disturb her. Instead, I often went to the temple with my stepmother to burn incense and pray for Mother. One day, I happened to meet Second Sister-in-law, and we struck a chord, so we gradually became friends."
Her words came from her heart, and she spoke with such sincerity that even Ji Yanlang, who suspected she had ulterior motives, could not find any fault with her.
He drank another half cup of tea and suddenly asked, "How did they find you? You couldn't have recommended yourself, did you?"
Fang Ying suddenly realized that he was suspicious of her and was plotting to take advantage of his wife by using his relationship with his second sister-in-law. How could he change his mind so quickly? Before the family dinner, hadn't he believed that she had been married against her will?
Wait, did he believe her words of admiration for him?
That would be a bit troublesome. Fang Ying answered carefully, "Although I've been bolder than other young ladies since I was a child, I wouldn't dare mess around with such a big deal as marriage. Haven't you asked Mother about this?"
"I've asked, but I still want to hear what you have to say."
Could it be that Li refused to elaborate? Fang Ying pondered for a moment and said, "You might not believe me even if I told you. Why don't you ask your second uncle and his wife tomorrow? Besides, I only know about my family's affairs. They should know better what the Ji family is thinking."
She didn't give Ji Yanlang a chance to ask further questions. She stood up and said, "It's getting late. You have to see the emperor tomorrow morning. You should take a bath and rest early. The west room was used as a warm room last year. I asked them to heat the kang early today. You must be tired after returning from a long journey. You..."
Ji Yanlang interrupted her: "What about you?"
"I'll sleep on the bed in the outer room."
Ji Yanlang didn't enter the west room, and didn't know what the layout inside was like. He was a little hesitant, so he changed the subject and asked, "Where's my luggage?"
"I told them to put it away in the east wing first. I wanted to wait for you to come back and ask you before I clean it up."
"Oh, what is the east wing used for now?"
Before he came back, there was no male owner in the courtyard. Apart from the two dowry girls, Lichun and Xingniang, Fang Ying only had two adults and four children, and six maids assigned by Li. The two side rooms were enough for her to live in, and the east wing was only used to store some things that were not needed for the time being.
She told the truth, and Ji Yanlang's eyes lit up. He said, "That's perfect. I'll live in the east wing."
Fang Ying liked his suggestion very much, but said, "Isn't this inappropriate? The East Wing hasn't been cleaned for a long time, and there's no reason for you to condescend to live in the East Wing."
"Then you go?" Ji Yanlang immediately retorted.
“…”You’d better live in the East Wing forever!
The author has something to say:
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Ji Yanlang: I hope there will be medicine for regret later...
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It doesn’t matter if you can’t remember the names of the Ji brothers, just remember their ranking!
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