Chapter 118 This is what a concubine is like; you can't be a concubine! "I like..."
When the Wang family benefited, Wang Xifeng also benefited. At that moment, she disregarded her aunt's feelings and said to Wang Ziteng, "Miss Jia is capable, but she is naive. She sees things in black and white and has argued with the servants to the point of tears more than once. It's fine if she learns things, but if she doesn't change this, she'll probably offend people when she goes there."
Wang Ziteng wanted to send Tan Chun to accumulate some political capital for his own political comeback. He was not even sixty years old yet, so why was he sidelined?
“You mean her—” Wang Ziteng paused, then immediately realized that his niece was actually referring to two issues: “She’s not tactful enough and doesn’t know anything.”
Wang Ziteng immediately looked at Madam Wang: "You only have this one illegitimate daughter. I told you back then to raise her well so that I could use her for marriage alliances in the future. Did you take my words to heart? We are both surnamed Wang, how could I harm you?"
But I feel uncomfortable.
Madam Wang argued, "All the young ladies of the Rongguo Mansion receive the same treatment. How can I show favoritism to her? If they say I'm being biased, how can I convince them? The old lady favors Miss Lin, and look at how people in the mansion are talking about her."
Wang Ziteng was speechless: "...Do you think I'm stupid?"
Wang Xifeng also wanted to talk about the Jia family's phoenix eggs.
"Where is Zhi'er?" Madam Wang insisted, "Last time we said her marriage had changed, why didn't you call her?"
Just as Prince Teng was about to speak, Aunt Xue, who had received the news, also rushed over with Xue Baochai. She originally wanted to bring Xue Pan as well, but she knew that her brother was annoying to her, so after hesitating for a moment, she only brought her daughter.
After Aunt Xue and her companion exchanged greetings, they sat down in seats slightly towards the back. Wang Ziteng continued, "Since the Marquis's family broke off the engagement, I betrothed her to Lord Meng of the Court of State Ceremonial. They will get married after the Mid-Autumn Festival."
Wang Xifeng had helped with the previous marriage to the Marquis of Baoning's family, but even she didn't know about this one.
However, she immediately understood what was going on. Her uncle was referring to Lord Meng of the Court of State Ceremonial, not Lord Meng's son, so he was probably a second wife.
There's really nothing to brag about. Although her uncle no longer holds a real position, she is still the daughter of a high-ranking official, and now she's going to be someone's second wife.
"Otherwise, where do you think this news came from?" Wang Ziteng retorted. "The Court of State Ceremonial can also manage these prisoners and hostages."
He was a high-ranking official in name only, and those in the inner circle knew exactly what was going on, but those from the outer court didn't understand.
Over the years, he had been ordered to inspect the border regions, so he still had some connections. Moreover, there were quite a few envoys and captives in the capital and the outer court. Relying on these "foreign monks," Wang Ziteng felt that he could create a protective talisman and make a comeback.
Back then, the Wang family was able to devour most of the Xue family's assets and inherit the Jia family's connections in officialdom, all thanks to their sister and niece who married into the family.
"Go and call that third young lady here so I can take a look," Wang Ziteng ordered.
The group was talking in a side room in the front courtyard of the Jia family, not far from Lady Wang's courtyard. Soon, Tan Chun was called over. She stepped forward, bowed properly, and said, "Uncle."
It's not a matter of liking or disliking, but Wang Ziteng was actually quite satisfied with Tan Chun. Over the years, she had never broken any rules, always respectfully calling him and his wife "uncle" and "aunt." Even though they didn't see each other often, she never showed any estrangement and could even make a couple of jokes in a friendly manner.
More importantly, Wang Ziteng could see her unwillingness to accept defeat.
After recounting the story of Bei Li, Wang Ziteng sighed again: "Your wife and your second sister-in-law Lian often talk about you. You've always had great ambitions since you were a child. Now that this opportunity is here, it's up to you whether you can seize it."
Wang Ziteng gave a wink, and Madam Wang looked completely bewildered.
"Give her the form," Wang Ziteng ordered in a deep voice.
Tan Chun took the list, read a few lines, and her heart began to tighten. She had never heard of many of the things on it, but that was precisely why a fierce fighting spirit rose in her heart.
"Uncle, I can learn it," Tan Chun declared her determination.
Prince Teng nodded with satisfaction and encouraged him, "I am not doing well right now. I am being ostracized by jealous people and have lost the Emperor's favor. I am unable to protect you. You can only save yourselves. The marriage alliance is the best opportunity. With this merit, His Majesty will think highly of you."
Wang Ziteng knew how to motivate a hothead. After a few words about self-reliance, hard work, and serving the country, Tan Chun was so eager to start learning that very night.
“Take a look first, so you have a basic understanding,” Wang Ziteng said again. “I’ll have your wife find you a few tutors in the next few days to teach you as well.”
Tan Chun hurriedly bowed again, took the list, and went out.
Wang Ziteng looked at Madam Wang again. Madam Wang reluctantly agreed. Hiring a tutor for the girls was quite expensive. Even in the early years when the Rongguo Mansion was doing well, it was Li Wan who taught the sisters to read and sew.
Lady Wang suddenly had another idea. How could a woman show her face in public? Why not have Baoyu teach her to ride horses and shoot arrows first? Li Wan has always lived in Daoxiang Village, so she must know a lot about farming. It would be perfect to have her teach her.
Moreover, Baoyu always speaks eloquently about medicine preparation, so why not have him prepare a few medical books for Tanchun to study?
Besides, if they're to learn these things, are we really going to ask them to fight off enemies, treat illnesses, and work in the fields? We'll just have to get by.
Wang Ziteng gave a few more instructions, but Madam Wang was a little distracted and didn't hear them clearly. By the time she came to her senses, the topic had changed.
"Does the Jia family really intend to break ties with me? I'm here, and not only are the eldest and second masters out, but even Lian Er isn't coming out?"
Lady Wang hurriedly complained about how Jia Zheng had humiliated her. Wang Xifeng originally intended to smooth things over, but seeing her aunt's attitude, she decided to let it go.
Her aunt never included her in her schemes, and the housekeeper only treated her like a key holder; why should she care about anything else?
Wang Ziteng sneered: "You really deserve to be scolded!"
After saying this, Wang Ziteng stood up. He was getting on in years and had just recovered from a serious illness. After this trip, he already felt soreness in his back and waist.
Wang Xifeng quickly stood up and glanced at Aunt Xue again.
She used to look down on this family, but now things have changed a bit.
Why did Aunt Xue bring Miss Xue along? Look at her flustered expression, it's all because of the marriage.
Since things were already like this, Wang Xifeng just wanted to have some fun.
She took Madam Wang's arm and said, "Aunt—" Then she pretended to feel dizzy and put one hand on the table. "I feel a little dizzy, but it's nothing serious. I'll be fine soon."
Wang Xifeng actually fainted in front of Madam Wang, who was so frightened that she broke out in a cold sweat. She tried to dodge, but her arm was held back, so she could only say, "You probably got up too quickly. I'll call Ping'er for you."
Outside, Aunt Xue had already pulled Xue Baochai along to see her off.
"Elder brother," Aunt Xue called respectfully, disregarding her pride, and asked directly, "What do you think of Bao'er for that job?"
Wang Ziteng looked Xue Baochai up and down, his gaze so blatant that Xue Baochai couldn't maintain her smile.
His niece is indeed quite old, but because of her age, she hasn't fully matured like a typical young girl.
Moreover, the Jia family is indeed in dire straits now, having lost all its money and power.
Wang Ziteng said, "I have to give it a try." The recommender was through Lord Meng's connections. In any case, she was just a maid; the Beili people wouldn't refuse to give face to an official from the Court of State Ceremonial.
So the only one left is to bring him in directly, bypassing the official route and taking the path of having substance first and then reputation.
After Wang Ziteng left, Tan Chun walked towards the back with the list in high spirits. She had read quite a few books and knew where to find certain things. She had already made a rather long list in her mind—
"Did you go to see your uncle again, young lady?" Aunt Zhao leaned against the door frame, a handful of melon seeds in her hand, cracking one and spitting it out. "It's a pity that my brother has been dead for so many years, and he hasn't even had a single stick of incense with you."
Tan Chun hated her lack of manners: "Auntie, be more dignified, what kind of behavior is this?"
"Why would I, a mere concubine, pretend to be the mistress?" Aunt Zhao straightened up and tried to snatch the things from Tan Chun's hands.
Caught off guard, Tan Chun had the list snatched from her hand by Aunt Zhao, who angrily demanded, "Give it back to me!"
"What is this?" Aunt Zhao asked.
Tan Chun then remembered that Aunt Zhao was illiterate, and she laughed heartily: "See for yourself."
Tan Chun originally intended to keep it a secret from Aunt Zhao, but when Lady Wang returned, she summoned Li Wan and Jia Baoyu and instructed them to teach Tan Chun first.
"You used to learn needlework, which focused on refinement. Now, you need to focus on practicality. Put aside embroidery and other crafts for now. Learning to make clothes and quilts is the priority."
Aunt Zhao was still living in Madam Wang's courtyard, so it was no longer possible to hide it from her.
At noon, Aunt Zhao served Jia Zheng his meal and brought up the matter. To her surprise, Jia Zheng's attitude chilled her to the bone.
“It’s always a way out.” Jia Zheng’s attitude was ambiguous. He added, “Our Jia family has been loyal for generations. We helped the founding emperor fight for the country. If we have the opportunity to be loyal, we can serve the court and show His Majesty our loyalty.”
Aunt Zhao choked so much that she couldn't eat more than two bites of food.
After serving Jia Zheng and waiting for him to rest, Aunt Zhao went to the front yard. She found her way to Tan Chun's room, where there was a thick stack of books beside her, all of which were medical books that Bao Yu had chosen for her.
Aunt Zhao became increasingly anxious. Jia Baoyu was blind; he couldn't even recognize Miss Lin. It would be better to become a doctor through long illness than to trust him.
Jia Zheng's refusal completely dejected Aunt Zhao, and she weakly advised, "Miss, don't take it too seriously, just be content with that."
Tan Chun knew she had a lot to learn and was feeling anxious when Aunt Zhao interrupted her, causing her eyebrows to bulge immediately.
Before she could speak, Aunt Zhao continued, "What marriage alliance? At best, you'll be a concubine. You're well-educated, surely you know what a concubine is?"
"What nonsense are you spouting now!" Tan Chun said sternly.
Aunt Zhao found it rather pointless. When the mistress's daughter was sent to the palace, the master didn't say a word. When her daughter was to be sent to Beili, the master still didn't say a word.
"You won't be chosen. Concubines must share the same surname as the girls of the same family to ensure the continuity of the two families' relationship and to guarantee that the next generation's bloodline must come from the same family. Besides, how could such a good thing possibly fall to you?"
Aunt Zhao spoke very quickly: "The Jia family has a feud with the Earl of Zhongyong. How could they possibly go to Beili to find someone with the surname Jia? You should be more careful."
These words, ironically, contradicted what Wang Ziteng had said earlier about being plotted against by a villain.
Tan Chun said indignantly, "I refuse to believe that the Marquis of Zhongyong can control everything! I refuse to believe that our Jia family has no way to survive!"
"Take your hands away, I can't see anything!" Lin Daiyu said coquettishly. "How can you ride a horse like that?"
"Didn't you say you were scared?" Mu Chuan laughed. "You also said you'd never been so high up that your feet didn't touch the ground before."
"But you can't cover my eyes."
Mu Chuan then moved his hand away.
However, his horse was really tall, with a shoulder height exceeding that of an adult. And since it was nighttime and he couldn't see the road clearly, he felt the beauty in his arms stiffen after only a short while.
"...Third Brother, I'm scared."
As soon as she finished speaking, Lin Daiyu felt a deep vibration coming from the chest pressed against her back.
"Don't laugh!"
"Madam, you are really hard to please. You are the one who wants to ride a horse, and you are also the one who is afraid. You are still dissatisfied even when your eyes are covered. Now you can't even make people laugh."
"We've only been married for five days, and you're already annoyed with me?" Lin Daiyu complained.
"No, really no." Mu Chuan's voice was tinged with laughter as he leaned down and kissed the top of her head. "Who combed your hair today? You kissed such a thick patch of hair."
Lin Daiyu laughed and pulled Mu Chuan's hand to shield her eyes.
Mu Chuan then asked, "What kind of cloud-shaped hairstyle should we have today?"
Lin Daiyu said, "The Chaoyun hairstyle. Does Third Brother like this?"
"It's not that I like it," Mu Chuan said. "I've noticed that if there's even a single strand of hair sticking out and swaying around, then that hairstyle definitely has the character 'Yun' in it."
Lin Daiyu smiled again: "Then what hairstyle do you like me to have?"
"We've only been married for five days, and you've only styled six different kinds of pictures in your album. It's not too late to choose after you've styled them all. But I really liked how you used to wear your hair in braids. You look beautiful with your hair down too, and you're gorgeous with it spread out on the bed—"
Lin Daiyu pulled his hand down from her face and bit it.
"Hiss." Mu Chuan gasped. "How did my wife, who looks like a fairy, learn to bite people?"
“I didn’t use any force,” Lin Daiyu retorted. It was quite strange, really, why did she always want to bite him?
How did this habit develop? There must be a reason, right? Why did you bite him the first time?
Lin Daiyu blushed and fell silent.
After a brief silence, Mu Chuan asked her, "Are you cold?"
Where would it be cold? It's more comfortable to lean against my third brother than against a stove.
"It's cold, my hands and feet are cold," Lin Daiyu said in a coquettish voice.
The next moment, Mu Chuan grasped her hand.
Her third brother's hands were always warm, sometimes even a little hot.
Makes you want it—
Wait a moment!
"Where are the reins?" Lin Daiyu was so shocked that her whole body stiffened. She covered her eyes with one hand and held her own hand with the other. Who had the reins?
Mu Chuan laughed as he pulled her hand forward and said, "It's tangled in the saddle. Wei Fang is very intelligent; even without the reins, it won't run off the main road."
"It's been walking for quite a while now, isn't it tired? Should we wait for the people behind it?"
"You don't even weigh as much as my full set of armor, how could it possibly get tired?"
It was completely dark, and the only sound on the official road was the clatter of horses' hooves. Looking around, the only light was the moon and the twinkling stars in the sky.
It was as if she and her third brother were the only ones left in the world.
I was a little scared, but also felt very safe.
So reassuring it makes one feel—
"Asleep?" Mu Chuan asked softly, and the reply was a voice with a thick nasal tone, "No."
Mu Chuan dismounted and carried the already dazed Lin Daiyu down. He then took out a whistling arrow from a bundle on his side, lit it with a tinderbox, and with a whoosh, the arrow flew into the sky. Before long, the caravan behind them caught up.
Lin Daiyu was so sleepy that she was already a little dizzy, but in front of everyone, she still tried her best to stand up straight, and kept warning Mu Chuan with her eyes: Don't carry me into the carriage!
Fortunately, getting into the carriage was only three steps away, and she managed to get on smoothly.
This carriage was specially prepared for traveling at night. The front half of the carriage was thickly and warmly made up, and even the curtains were extra thick.
She was so sleepy in her third brother's arms that she couldn't keep her eyes open, but once she got in the car, Lin Daiyu became more alert.
She listened as Mu Chuan's convoy circled around and gave a few more instructions before coming up.
Those who didn't marry Lin Daiyu probably can hardly understand the satisfaction of seeing a fairy waiting for them as soon as they got on the train.
Mu Chuan sat down beside her, helped her take off her outer robe, shoes, and hair ornaments, and then wiped her face and hands with a damp towel: "Anything else? Go to sleep."
Lin Daiyu said, both embarrassed and satisfied, "Third Brother, I—"
Before marriage, including the few glimpses she saw at the Jia family home, it was always the woman who served the man. But with her third brother, she didn't have to worry about anything.
Mu Chuan patted the pillow and blanket again: "They're soft now."
That's not why.
Lin Daiyu laughed while asking worriedly, "What are we going to do for washing up tomorrow morning? The car is such a small space, I'm afraid it won't be able to comb my hair properly. And the lighting won't be good for makeup either."
"Don't be afraid." Mu Chuan looked at the stunningly beautiful lady with satisfaction. "Just rub against me and your face will become rosy again."
Lin Daiyu laughed while covering her face: "You really are something—you know everything."
"The carriage will come directly home tomorrow and stop right outside our bedroom door. I guarantee that no one but me will see you just getting up." Mu Chuan spread his arms, and Lin Daiyu leaned closer.
"Don't worry, even without makeup, you are the most beautiful woman in Linjia Village, unparalleled in history."
Lin Daiyu laughed again: "Third Brother, you really know how to talk, no wonder—"
She originally wanted to say that everyone likes you, but before she could say it, she felt that she would be letting down her third brother's kindness, so she leaned in and whispered in Mu Chuan's ear, "No wonder I like you."
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