Chapter 19 Chapter 19 I’m afraid last night’s drama was a bit over the top…
Fortunately, this is a once-and-for-all matter. Ji Yanlang should no longer doubt her "affection" for him. The dragon boat race ended well. Even if one day he brings up the past and makes a scene in front of Li, his emotional journey will be enough to win Li's trust.
It was also agreed that she would not have to worry about him in the future. Fang Ying was very happy and slept very soundly at night. She even had a beautiful dream. When she woke up in the morning, the happy feeling was still there.
Lichun saw that her mistress was smiling when she woke up, which was rare. While helping her dress, she asked with a smile: "My lady, did you have a good dream?"
"Yeah, I dreamed of going to see flowers with Congshan in the spring, and eating game cooked by her chef. It was delicious."
Lichun laughed: "When I dream of eating, I usually can't put my mouth to the food. It's hard to believe that my wife is eating."
"Yes, otherwise why would you say it was a good dream." Fang Ying smiled.
Lichun glanced back out the window, then leaned close to Fang Ying's ear and whispered, "Xiliu said that her husband always sleeps through the night, but last night he tossed and turned for a long time. She asked him about it, and he said he was fine. In the end, she was so sleepy that she fell asleep first, and she doesn't know when he finally went to sleep. He got up late this morning and has only been out for a while."
Fang Ying glanced at Ji Yanlang, who was practicing martial arts in the courtyard. "Can't sleep?" Was he taking it that seriously? He shouldn't be. With this spoiled young man's temper, wouldn't it be his style to get annoyed by the mere thought of something and simply forget about it and go straight to sleep?
Did something go wrong? Or did he finally find his conscience after mentioning the Water Pavilion incident and actually reflect on his actions? Impossible. Last night, his words and expressions were full of complaints about her overestimating her abilities and meddling in other people's affairs.
He was probably frightened by her last two sentences - not to mention Ji Yanlang, Fang Ying herself couldn't help shuddering when she thought of her last two sentences - she was so scared that she tossed and turned and couldn't sleep at night. It seemed that he believed it.
"Don't say anything, let's just pretend we don't know." Fang Ying retracted her gaze and instructed Lichun with a smile.
She got up, and the maids came in and out with kettles and basins of water. Ji Yanlang saw this and quickly stopped practicing boxing and went back to the east wing. After Fang Ying finished dressing up, he also combed his hair and put on his official robes before coming over.
Fang Ying looked at him and asked with concern, "Aren't you cold wearing so little? They said there was a strong wind last night, and it's especially cold this morning."
"I'm not cold." Ji Yanlang only exchanged glances with her before quickly turning away, looking out the door and saying, "Wear more clothes."
Huh? Fang Ying's eyes widened. Did she hear it wrong or... She couldn't help but look behind her at Lichun, only to see that Lichun was also filled with surprise. As for Xingniang and the others, their faces weren't just filled with shock, but also with joy.
Ji Yanlang didn't hear her response, and couldn't help but glance back, just in time to see the master and servant looking at each other in surprise.
"..." She was so happy just by being told to wear more clothes. It was obvious that no one had treated her well since she was a child. Thinking about the fact that she lost her mother at the age of eight, Ji Yanlang's tone became softer. "It is indeed colder this morning than usual."
"Ah, I... I'm wearing quite a lot. Let's go, Mom's going to be waiting anxiously." What the hell is wrong with him? Fang Ying tried to remain calm, afraid that if she failed to hide it, she would show an overly shocked expression and arouse his suspicion.
Little did she know that her efforts to conceal her feelings had a reasonable explanation in the eyes of Ji Yanlang, who was already 80% convinced that she really had feelings for him - was she a little flattered and not used to it? After all, he had never spoken to her like this before.
In fact, he himself was quite unaccustomed to it, so he did not speak again on the way out. It was not until he saw his mother's courtyard gate that Ji Yanlang made up his mind and turned to Fang Ying and said, "I will tell you in detail about Aunt Deng and her daughter when I return from office."
"Hmm?" Isn't this matter over yet? I've already promised him that I'll leave it alone, so what else is there to say?
Ji Yanlang did not explain, but just nodded and quickened his pace to enter Li's yard.
Fang Ying was filled with doubts until she finished dealing with the morning's affairs. Yue Qing'e pulled her to do the housework and asked, "Have you reconciled with Liu Lang?"
She suddenly understood a little and asked, "Reconciliation? How did sister-in-law know?"
Yue Qing'e whispered in her ear about Ji Yanlang's visit to her and her husband after dinner, and finally said with a smile, "I see Liu Lang was very touched. Did he apologize to you when he got back?"
“…” He didn’t, so she paid for it.
No wonder his attitude was so different after he came back. Fang Ying thought last night that it was because she had seized the initiative and apologized solemnly to intimidate him. But she never expected that Ji Yanlang had been intimidated before he came back...
Thinking about it this way, I think last night’s drama was a bit over the top. No wonder he couldn’t sleep when he got home, and he had that attitude again this morning... Could he have really taken it to heart?
"What? Liu Lang still hasn't... Then how did you make up? Don't let it be you who is the one to be humble again?" Yue Qing'e guessed when she saw that she didn't answer.
"..." Fang Ying cheered up, smiled and shook her head, "No, but I've spoken out. Thank you, Second Uncle and Second Sister-in-law, for upholding justice for me."
Yue Qing'e didn't quite believe it. She tightened her grip on her hand and whispered, "I advise you not to always give in to him. A man's temper gets worse the more you indulge him. Just like this time, you didn't do anything wrong, but he got angry at you and didn't even say sorry. Won't he be even more unscrupulous next time?"
These words were spoken out of genuine concern for her. Fang Ying was grateful and explained seriously, "That's not what sister-in-law thinks. He came back to argue with me, and I felt I had done nothing wrong. How could I have given in to him? Does sister-in-law really think I'm a weak woman who won't fight back or talk back?"
Yue Qing'e was amused by her: "Yes, you are really powerful. Most people can't withstand it." She leaned close to Fang Ying's ear and said mischievously, "I have always believed that you can subdue Liu Lang."
Fang Ying gently pushed her and said angrily, "Is there a sister-in-law like you?"
"What's wrong with a sister-in-law like me? Isn't she good enough for you?"
The two sisters-in-law chatted and laughed as they went to see the housekeeper together. Then the little maid from Fang Ying's courtyard came running to tell them that Madam Du had arrived.
After dinner yesterday, Fang Ying sent someone to tell Madam Du to come over and talk when she was free today. Although she really didn't intend to care about the affairs of the Deng family's mother and daughter at that time, she still wanted to get to the bottom of the right and wrong.
He then said goodbye to Yue Qing'e and returned to his own courtyard.
When Aunt Du saw her coming back, she came forward to apologize, "It was all because of my impulsive behavior that I made you suffer injustice..."
Fang Ying hurriedly supported him, "Madam, please stop torturing me. Let's go in and sit down to talk."
Lichun also reached out and helped Aunt Du into the main room.
"It seems Madam, you've heard about it." Fang Ying held Madam Du's hand, a smile on her face and a gentle tone. "I asked Madam to come here just to ask what happened to Madam Deng. There's no other intention. Madam, have a cup of tea first, and we'll talk slowly."
Xingniang immediately brought up tea. It was obvious that as soon as Nanny Du arrived, she immediately went to boil water and prepare it.
Seeing Fang Ying truly had no intention of blaming her, Madam Du felt reassured and spoke calmly, "The other day, this old servant and Sister Fu brought the things that Madam had prepared. We didn't discuss it much, simply saying that they were prepared by the mansion. It was the young lady from the Deng family who, upon seeing the prepared menstrual belt and measuring it with her small jacket, suddenly asked who had prepared these things. Was it Madam?"
At that time, Nanny Du had just arrived and didn't quite understand what the young lady from the Deng family was saying. It was Nanny Fu who answered first, saying that it was the Madam who ordered Liu Niang to prepare it.
"The old servant saw that the young lady seemed a little confused, so he followed up with the conversation and said, 'Although our Sixth Lady is young, she is always thoughtful. We had the maids rush to make these menstrual belts yesterday. As for the little jacket, we were worried that the cotton-padded jacket we bought wouldn't be warm enough, so we specially made our own, which we haven't worn yet, for the young lady to wear.'"
The young lady from the Deng family then asked, "Who is Liu Niang? Is she Ji Liulang's sister?"
Nanny Du understood what she said and replied without hesitation, "Young lady, you don't know that our Liu Lang has only four sisters. Liu Niang is Liu Lang's wife. She is filial and virtuous, and everyone in the mansion praises her."
Unexpectedly, the mother and daughter were both shocked when they heard this, and asked in unison, "Is Ji Liulang married?"
Madam Du, learning to speak, blamed herself at this point, saying, "It's all my fault. I didn't ask Sister Fu beforehand and just told her everything. If I had known that the mother and daughter didn't know, I should have explained it to them bit by bit, in detail."
"How can you blame Madam?" Fang Ying consoled him with a smile. "It's probably my fault for not thinking things through. I should have said hello to Liu Lang first."
"How can I blame my wife? In my opinion, it's Madam Deng who doesn't understand what's going on. At the time, I and Sister Fu explained the whole story to her and her daughter. But who knew that when Liu Lang arrived yesterday, Madam Deng would lose her temper with him, mumbling a bunch of incomprehensible dialect. Then Liu Lang stormed off."
Seeing that Madam Du was speaking anxiously, Fang Ying smiled and advised her, "Madam, don't be anxious. Have some tea first."
Madam Du was indeed a little thirsty. She picked up the tea and drank it all in one gulp. Then she continued, "It just so happened that neither the old servant nor Sister Fu was around at that time, and no one dared to stop Liu Lang and ask what happened. Alas, my lady has been wronged."
"Madam, you're too kind. I don't feel wronged at all." Fang Ying gestured for Xingniang to refill her tea, then asked, "From what I heard from Madam, you explained to them how this marriage came about, right?"
"Yes, this old servant said that my wife's horoscope is precious and it guaranteed Liu Lang's safe return..."
Madam Du began to boast about her achievements, but Fang Ying sighed in her heart: In front of the person's real savior, she said that it was her fortune that brought Ji Yanlang back. If she were Madam Deng, she would also be angry.
"...Then Madam Deng asked about your family background. Seeing her indignant expression and fearing she wouldn't understand, I told her that her father-in-law was an official who judged cases in Kaifeng Prefecture and had previously served as a judge under our county magistrate in Yangzhou. Only then did she stop asking."
Fang Ying was left with only despair in her heart - although Madam Deng exaggerated her words, Nanny Du was not wronged. She was not only seeking fame and buying favor, but also demonstrating.
Although Madam Du apologized profusely upon seeing Fang Ying, she truly didn't feel she had done anything wrong. She only blamed Madam Deng for not knowing what was good for her. "It's not that I'm being frivolous and trying to pressure Madam Deng. Madam, you haven't met her. This woman is really... Didn't Liu Lang hire two maids for them?"
Fang Ying nodded: "I heard it from Aunt Fu."
"Madam Deng won't give the two maids any food," Madam Du said, shaking her head. "On the first day, no matter how much food the maids cooked, she and her daughter ate it all. On the second day, the maids cooked even more, but she couldn't finish the leftovers, and she wouldn't let the maids eat them."
When Lichun heard this, he couldn't help but interrupt: "So people will be hungry forever?"
Madam Du said, "She didn't let them starve, but she only gave them the cheapest millet to eat, and wouldn't let them cook it. She personally supervised the porridge in the kitchen, and when it was done, she gave them a little pickled vegetables to eat. This old servant and Sister Fu didn't like it, and we tried to persuade them several times, saying that it wasn't customary in the capital to treat servants so harshly. But Madam Deng thought we were meddling and drove us away. This is why this old servant and Sister Fu weren't there when Liu Lang went yesterday."
“…”
Fang Ying suddenly felt that Ji Yanlang had a hard time too.
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