Chapter 26 She's my cousin
What else could Pei Wu say? Looking into his aunt's teasing eyes, he chose to lie through his teeth: "It's understandable that my aunt doesn't know my distant cousin."
It's strange that Pei Wu's distant cousin, her own aunt, didn't know about her.
Pei Lianzhu smiled meaningfully and beckoned to Jiang Ru: "Come here and let me see. Speaking of which, since you call Wu Ge'er cousin, then you are also my niece."
Jiang Ru hesitated for a moment, and was about to step forward when Pei Wu moved a step to the left and blocked her way. He was still very polite to his aunt, and only called out, "Aunt."
Thus, Pei Lianzhu had no choice but to wave her hand and say, "Fine, fine, I won't look then."
It wouldn't be good to ruin the relationship with Pei Wu's aunt, especially since she hadn't done anything to Jiang Ru. Jiang Ru said softly, "It's okay, you don't need to stop me."
Pei Wu hesitated and turned back. Seeing that Jiang Ru did not insist, he then let her step forward.
Pei Lianzhu was over thirty years old. She wore her hair in a bun, a light apricot-colored long jacket, and a blue long skirt. Her smile was gentle and showed no malice.
Jiang Ru stepped forward, and Pei Lianzhu smiled and pinched her cheek, saying, "I really couldn't find the time to come over the other day, and Wu Ge'er kept telling me not to come. I was worried that he was getting sick, but when I came today, I found that he was doing very well."
Indeed, every time she came before, Pei Wu was sickly. Even when she asked someone to inquire before, Pei Wu's answer was that everything was fine. She thought Pei Wu was lying.
She arrived early this time, and when she opened the gate, she found the yard thriving. The vegetables in the garden were growing at their best, with lush green leaves that looked very well grown. Even the two chickens looked very healthy and energetic.
Pei Lianzhu almost thought that the owner of this house had changed. After all, everyone in the Pei family knew that whatever Wu Ge'er raised would die. It wasn't that he was bad at it. Two years ago, he tried to inherit the family's land, but the millet he grew was either empty husks or had very few edible grains.
The land where Pei Wu planted was less overgrown with weeds than the land of other families.
She had been wondering where the vegetable garden came from, but now that she saw Jiang Ru, everything made sense.
Pei Lianzhu had initially thought Jiang Ru was someone's daughter, and thought Pei Wu had finally come to his senses. But now that he knew she was just a cousin, things were a bit hard to say.
Her nephew is extremely self-disciplined and respectful of propriety. He must truly treat this cousin as his own, and would not have any romantic thoughts about her.
And this Jiang Ru...
She was pretty and a likable girl, but it was strange how this "niece" whom she had never met before had found Pei Wu.
Pei Lianzhu couldn't help but wonder if this girl had ulterior motives for approaching Pei Wu, or if she wasn't so innocent after all.
Pei Lianzhu sighed inwardly. Pei Wu had no concept of bad people. He would probably accept this cousin after just a few words from her. Now that the die was cast, Pei Lianzhu couldn't very well send her away.
Thinking this to herself, Pei Lianzhu pinched Jiang Ru's cheek and said with a smile, "I knew it. I thought you looked familiar before, and now that I look closely, you do have some resemblance to Wu Ge'er."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Ru and Pei Wu looked at each other simultaneously. One had almond-shaped eyes and the other had phoenix-shaped eyes; one had willow-leaf eyebrows and the other had sword-shaped eyebrows. If they were to open their eyes wide at the same time, Jiang Ru's eyes would probably be twice the size of Pei Wu's, yet they could still see the similarity.
Pei Lianzhu knew his words were far-fetched, so he made up a few random things to get by.
The three sat in the courtyard. Pei Lianzhu looked around the courtyard, her gaze falling on the roof of the west wing room with a large hole. She frowned and said, "Why didn't you say your house collapsed? I could have called your uncle and the others to come and fix it."
Pei Wu said, "No need. I'm going to the capital in a few days, and no one will live in this house even if it's repaired."
Pei Lianzhu shook his head: "How can that be? You can stay here, but you can't leave it unrepaired. What if you come back someday?"
Without waiting for a reply, Pei Lianzhu made a decision: "I'll see if your uncle and the others can spare some time tomorrow. We must get this house repaired before you go to the capital."
As she spoke, Pei Lianzhu went to the door and pulled up the mule that she had tied up outside. She lived far away and needed to get home before dark.
Pei Wu and Jiang Ru accompanied him for a while, and only returned after watching Pei Lianzhu ride away on his mule.
After the figure disappeared from sight, Jiang Ru said cryptically, "I didn't know you had a younger sister."
Her words sounded somewhat sarcastic, so Pei Wu patiently explained, "The past few months have been busy with farming, and I also had to prepare for the imperial examinations, so I told them not to come yet, and to wait until after the exams."
In fact, it would be normal for Pei Wu to have a few relatives, but when Jiang Ru first arrived and saw his miserable appearance, she subconsciously thought that his persona was that of a cursed loner who would not acknowledge anyone. As a result, she forgot that she might still be exposed.
Jiang Ru turned her head and asked as if confirming something, "I'm your cousin, right?"
Pei Wu nodded: "Yes, cousin." Pei Wu thought for a moment, then continued: "Didn't we sign a contract?"
Jiang Ru felt relieved.
Pei Lianzhu was very efficient. The next morning, Pei Wu's eldest and second uncles came over with tools and materials.
Perhaps because Pei Lianzhu had mentioned it beforehand, they quickly accepted Jiang Ru's identity and affectionately called her their little niece.
Jiang Ru didn't feel guilty at all. She would occasionally help by handing over tools or something, and the atmosphere was still very harmonious. She also started calling him "Uncle," "Second Uncle," and "Aunt," which was very affectionate.
Pei Lianzhu arrived a little late and brought them some food. Their family's food supplies had been completely depleted the day before, and they hadn't had time to buy more, so Pei Lianzhu brought some along.
In the afternoon, the village children also came. They were the happiest when they learned that Pei Wu had passed the imperial examination. However, there were too many people at Pei Wu's place yesterday, and they were afraid of causing trouble for Pei Wu, so they all sensibly stayed behind.
The boys, all teenagers, clamored to help Pei Wu repair the house. They helped carry soil and planks, and they did a great job. With many hands making light work, the house, which would have taken several days to repair, was finished in just one day.
Even the threshold that Pei Wu had previously damaged was repaired.
Once the house was almost repaired, the children surrounded Pei Wu, asking all at once, "Brother Pei, you've passed the imperial examination, shouldn't you go to the capital now?"
"Brother Pei, what's the capital like?"
"Brother Pei, will you come back?"
"Brother Pei..."
They relied heavily on Pei Wu, chattering away and asking a barrage of questions, all of which Pei Wu answered.
However, when they heard that Pei Wu might not be back for a long time, some of the children couldn't help but cry.
Zhao Jing was among them. She held Jiang Ru's hand and asked earnestly, "Sister, are you also going to the capital?"
Jiang Ru was stunned for a moment. She couldn't see the emotions in Zhao Jing's eyes. The little girl must also be reluctant to see her leave.
In the past few months, Zhao Jing would always share any good things she got with her first. Jiang Ru opened her mouth, wanting to answer Zhao Jing in a more tactful way, but Zhao Jing changed her mind first: "Sister, it would be better for you to go to the capital."
Jiang Ru asked, puzzled, "Why?"
Zhao Jing didn't speak, but just repeated, "It needs to be better."
They thought they would only know that Pei Wu was leaving, but when Zhao Jing asked, the children realized that Jiang Ru was also leaving. They couldn't accept the reality and burst into tears.
Although Jiang Ru had only known them for three months, they had become good friends. She didn't know if she would ever come back, and she was going to cry.
Pei Wu had finished coaxing one child after another, but before he could completely calm them down, the children's mothers were calling them to go home. Pei Wu had no choice but to tell them to go home first, promising to meet again the next day, before finally sending them away.
Now that the house has been repaired, Pei Wu's uncles and aunts should go home. They have family matters to attend to, and they said they would go back together after sending Pei Wu to the capital.
Before leaving, Pei Lianzhu called Pei Wu aside and said he had some things to tell him.
As the two walked along the edge of the field, Pei Lianzhu glanced back and saw Jiang Ru squatting beside the chicken coop feeding the chickens. Reassured, she asked, "Wu-ge'er, just who is your cousin?"
Pei Wu answered truthfully: "Something happened in her family, and now she is all alone, so she had no choice but to come to me."
Pei Lianzhu said with exasperation, "You knew her before?"
Pei Wu remained silent, which meant he tacitly agreed that they did not know each other before.
Pei Lianzhu was furious: "You don't even know them, yet you bring them home!"
Pei Wu remained unmoved: "Now we know each other."
Although Jiang Ru is indeed a pitiful young girl, Pei Wu is more important than her. Besides, although Pei Wu's condition has improved a lot since she arrived, it's hard to say what will happen in the future.
Pei Wu is going to be an official in the future, so it's not a big deal for Jiang Ru, a young girl, to follow him.
Pei Lianzhu couldn't help but offer Pei Wu a suggestion: "Wu-ge'er, she's not your biological cousin after all. Taking her with you to the capital this time would only be a burden. Why don't you take this opportunity to send her home..."
For the first time, Pei Wu interrupted his elder, saying, "She is not a burden."
Pei Lianzhu stopped abruptly, frowning and looking at Pei Wu with displeasure.
Pei Wu repeated earnestly, "She is not a burden."
Pei Lianzhu froze: "Oh, that's not important. What I mean is, you should tell her to go home. Otherwise, if you take her to the capital, it will be inconvenient for everything in the future."
“Aunt,” Pei Wu called her solemnly. After Pei Lianzhu finished speaking, he said, “I don’t find it inconvenient. In fact, I should be the one who is more of a burden. She has taken good care of me since she came. I feel that I shouldn’t be such an ungrateful person.”
Pei Wu lowered his eyes: "Besides, she's my cousin."
It was nearly dusk, and the sunset glow on the horizon was brilliantly red. The afterglow shone on Pei Wu's profile, casting a warm glow on his face.
Pei Wu may seem good-tempered, but he is actually very stubborn. Once he sets his mind on something, not even eight oxen could pull him back.
Pei Lianzhu knew that Pei Wu was very stubborn, but she originally thought that Pei Wu's cousin, whether she was really a cousin or not, was at least a very distant relative, so Pei Wu should let her go home.
She never expected that in just a few months, Pei Wu would value this cousin so much.
For a moment, Pei Lianzhu was so shocked that he couldn't speak.
At this moment, Pei Wu said again, "Aunt, I know you mean well, but she is indeed my cousin. Can you please stop saying these things from now on?"
As he spoke, he took out a money bag from his pocket, handed it to Pei Lianzhu, and said, "Aunt, this is the money for the grain you sent earlier, and also the reward for your hard work today. I'll give it to you first."
"I will be going to the capital in ten days. I will write to my aunt often. It's getting late, aunt, you should go back soon."
Before Pei Lianzhu could figure out what was going on, Pei Wu urged her to leave. She followed her older brothers and walked quite a distance before muttering under her breath, "That stubborn bastard."
He probably thought Pei Lianzhu would be angry, so he specifically told her that he would be leaving in ten days. Fearing that Pei Lianzhu would stop him, he was prepared that Pei Lianzhu would not come to see him off, and he even gave her the money in advance.
After Pei Lianzhu finished speaking, Pei Wu's uncle became curious: "What's wrong? Why are you so angry?"
Pei Lianzhu looked at him and waved his hand: "Forget it, forget it. He's being stubborn. I won't take responsibility if he suffers in the future."
Pei Wu watched the three figures leave, then turned and went back into the courtyard. Jiang Ru had already finished feeding the chickens. Seeing him return, she tentatively asked, "What did you say?"
Jiang Ru could vaguely guess that Pei Wu's aunt had probably said something to him, but Pei Wu only explained: "I gave my aunt the money for the vegetables for the past two days, but she didn't want it and refused for a while."
That makes some sense, Jiang Ru nodded, but Pei Wu suddenly said, "Cousin."
This sound didn't seem to be calling out to Jiang Ru; it was more like talking to herself or confirming something. Jiang Ru, however, still responded, "What's wrong?"
Pei Wu shook his head: "It's nothing."
As soon as he mentioned his cousin, Jiang Ru would respond.
Therefore, Jiang Ru is his cousin.
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