Chapter 35 Dragon Boat Festival
By the time the two returned home, the sun was already setting.
After settling the remaining fare with the driver, Mantou pushed Fu Yunxiu through the door and saw Aman sneaking out of the backyard.
"..."
Hearing the door open, Aman had a bad feeling. Then she looked up and met Fu Yunxiu's clear black and white eyes, which were calm and expressionless, but made her feel even more guilty. "I just came out to take a look, just looking, hehe."
After saying that, she quickly went back to her room.
Fu Yunxiu and Mantou exchanged a glance, both looking helpless.
Mantou pushed Fu Yunxiu into the west wing. Aman was already asleep, the quilt covering her waist, her hands placed neatly at her sides, looking obedient.
Seeing Fu Yunxiu enter, Aman shrank back guiltily.
"Didn't the doctor say you shouldn't move around too much for the time being?" Fu Yunxiu asked.
Aman's injury has actually been almost healed over this period of time, but now it is in the wound healing stage, and the doctor said that he should try to minimize walking so as not to leave a scar.
Aman pouted, "I just went to the outhouse." Then he went to the backyard to check on the vegetables, and who would have thought he'd be caught red-handed.
Fu Yunxiu knew that Aman had been cooped up in her room all this time and hadn't been feeling well, so he didn't say much. He pushed the wheelchair to Aman's bedside, pulled back the wide sleeves, revealing the snow-white fur balls inside.
"I know you've been cooped up lately, here you go." Fu Yunxiu placed the rabbit on the bed.
"What is it?" Aman turned her head to look and saw a snowball on the side of the bed, a small, fluffy one.
"It's a rabbit." Aman's eyes lit up, and she couldn't resist reaching out to touch its head. "Where did it come from?"
When asked this question, Fu Yunxiu was too embarrassed to say that he had bought it himself, so he pointed to the steamed bun and said, "I bought it when I passed by the market because I was worried you would be bored."
"Huh?" Suddenly called out, Mantou was still a little confused. He pointed to himself, and then nodded helplessly after meeting his young master's cold eyes. "Yes, yes."
Fine, if it's him, then it's him!
Aman was playing with the little rabbit and didn't notice the exchange of glances between the two. Upon hearing this, he smiled and said, "Thank you, Brother Mantou."
Her smile was radiant, like the afternoon sun.
But then she seemed to remember something and looked up at Fu Yunxiu, "But young master, don't you dislike things with long hair?"
Without the young master's tacit approval, Mantou certainly wouldn't have dared to bring the rabbit back.
Fu Yunxiu was drawn to Aman's smile and blurted out his true feelings without thinking, "Don't you like it?"
Wasn't she still clinging to Zhao Hu's rabbit at the market that day?
Fu Yunxiu spoke those few simple words with nonchalance, but Aman felt her heart pound wildly in that instant, as if a disobedient donkey was living inside it.
Aman looked at Fu Yunxiu, her cheeks growing redder and redder until she looked like a boiled shrimp.
Aman withdrew her gaze, trying hard to suppress the upturned corners of her lips, and mumbled, "Thank you, young master."
With the rabbit around, Aman's days of recuperation became a little more interesting.
Fu Yunxiu quickly got into the swing of things and began to conceive and paint "Spring River Flower Moon Picture". Apart from occasionally talking with Aman, he stayed in his room most of the time.
In this way, steamed buns became the mainstay of the family.
Besides serving Fu Yunxiu, he also had to take care of Aman, who was injured. Of course, what gave him the biggest headache was the garden full of vegetables that Aman had planted.
The weather has been good lately, and the vegetables in the garden have grown wildly. Even the bok choy has sprouted flower stalks, and the radishes that Aman planted are in season, plump and juicy, truly delightful.
But now that we don't cook at home, there's really no way to prepare this dish.
After thinking it over, Ah Man realized that since the vegetables couldn't be sold and it would be a waste to keep them uneaten, he decided to do a favor and give them to his neighbors.
Thus, Mantou had an additional task every day: to act as a vegetable delivery boy, going door to door early every morning to deliver vegetables.
This area is inhabited by ordinary families, like Aunt Zhu's family, a large family that only seeks to make ends meet.
Although Aman's vegetables weren't worth much money, they still saved everyone some expenses, so everyone was very grateful and said they wanted to come and thank him in person.
Every day when Mantou returned from delivering vegetables, he would tell Aman about everyone's gratitude. Aman listened attentively and was even happier.
As the saying goes, a close neighbor is worse than a distant relative. If you get along well with your neighbors, you can find someone to help you if something happens in the future.
As the days went by, Aman's injuries were finally almost healed, and he was able to get out of bed and walk around.
The first thing Aman did after recovering was to go out for a stroll in the streets.
She's been cooped up at home all this time and she's about to suffocate.
Just then, Fu Yunxiu's ideas hit a bottleneck, so the three of them decided to go out together to buy some things for the Dragon Boat Festival.
Two days before the Dragon Boat Festival, the streets are filled with vendors selling bamboo leaves and zongzi (sticky rice dumplings). But Aman thinks it's more cost-effective to make zongzi at home.
The group strolled around for a while. Aman bought some bamboo leaves and glutinous rice, and also went to Aunt Hua's place to buy some potatoes, as a way of letting her know they were safe and sound.
Zhao Hu saw Aman and the others coming from afar. Judging from Aman's energetic appearance, he knew that his injury had almost healed.
It should have been a happy occasion, but he couldn't feel happy at all. When Aman greeted him, he just smiled and nodded.
He kept his head down and eyes down until Aman bought the tofu and left.
Aunt Hua had noticed something was off about Zhao Hu before; he seemed listless. Seeing that he was deliberately avoiding Aman today, she knew that his visit that day must have been unpleasant.
"Have you already talked it out?" Aunt Hua guessed.
Zhao Hu didn't reply; he just kept wiping the tofu rack.
Seeing his expression, Aunt Hua knew exactly what was going on. With a mix of regret and relief, she said, "It's good that you've made things clear, so you won't keep worrying about it without any resolution. Tomorrow, your mother and I will discuss it and find a matchmaker to see if there's anyone suitable. Don't keep thinking about it."
"Auntie," Zhao Hu interrupted her, "I don't have that idea for now, and don't go talk to my mother about it."
He's already talked to his mother, and she'll definitely take it to heart. He'll be in for a lot of trouble later.
Seeing his avoidance manner, Aunt Hua realized that once bitten, twice shy!
She had told him before but he wouldn't listen, and now she was like this, she didn't know who to blame. Since he wasn't in the mood for it at the moment, Aunt Hua couldn't make decisions on her own, so she could only pat him on the shoulder to comfort him.
On the other side, Fu Yunxiu was also deep in thought on his way back.
When Zhao Hu left that day, he told him that if he treated Aman badly, he would not let him off the hook.
At the time, he was still puzzled and planned to ask Aman what he had said that led him to say such a thing. But judging from his state today, Fu Yunxiu had a rough idea.
Zhao Hu liked Aman, and his eyes were practically glued to her all day. But today, he seemed to be avoiding eye contact. Considering what he said that day, it's likely that Aman told him about her identity in Wutong Garden.
But in fact, from the very beginning, he never intended for Aman to be his concubine; he only treated her as an ordinary maid.
Fu Yunxiu felt that he needed to explain this matter to Aman.
"Aman," Fu Yunxiu called her softly.
"Hmm?" Aman turned around in response, her face full of smiles, her clear eyes bright as if they contained stars.
Fu Yunxiu was so dazzled by her smile that he suddenly didn't know what to say, "You..."
"Hmm~?" After waiting for a long time without him speaking, Aman simply said, "Young master, when we get back, let's have braised pork. I haven't had any meat properly in a long time."
She'd been eating nothing but pork rib soup and stewed pig's trotters lately, and she felt like her mouth was practically watering at the taste. Today, she had to have a big, flavorful meal to celebrate her newfound freedom.
Looking at Aman's bright smile, Fu Yunxiu suddenly couldn't say what was on the tip of his tongue, and nodded, "Yes, either way is fine."
"Okay, let's hurry up." Aman was already getting impatient.
Aman moved with incredible speed, yet the wheelchair remained both fast and stable, without any noticeable bumps. Fu Yunxiu opened and closed his mouth several times, but ultimately couldn't bring himself to say the words.
Well, it's not a big deal anyway, let's talk about it later, so as not to spoil her good mood.
After returning home, Aman went to the kitchen to prepare lunch, with Mantou assisting her, while Fu Yunxiu went back to his room to continue working on Wu Daoyao's painting.
He already had a general idea for this painting, "Spring River, Flowers and Moon," but some parts still needed to be refined a little before he could put brush to paper.
After Aman went to the kitchen, he first soaked the glutinous rice, planning to wrap zongzi (sticky rice dumplings) that evening.
Tomorrow is the Dragon Boat Festival, and she needs to hurry up and wrap and cook the zongzi tonight so that she won't be caught off guard when her neighbors come to deliver them.
Fortunately, glutinous rice only needs to be soaked for three hours, so it won't delay things.
As is customary, on the Dragon Boat Festival, Fu Yunxiu was required to return to the Marquis's residence to pay respects to his ancestors and attend the family banquet. However, because he disliked crowds, he would avoid the family banquet if possible. Later, the First Madam felt that he was spoiling the fun, so she explained the situation to the clan elders and said that from now on, apart from the annual New Year's Eve dinner and the ancestral worship on the first day of the Lunar New Year, he could not participate in other events.
Although Fu Yunxiu was happy with this decision, it also revealed how much the people in the Marquis's mansion disliked him as the young master. Otherwise, how could he, as the legitimate son, remain uninvolved during the ancestral worship ceremony?
"So every year on the Dragon Boat Festival, my son and I stay at home and eat the zongzi sent by the Marquis's mansion." Therefore, making zongzi by herself is truly a first for Mantou, like a young woman getting married.
After hearing what Mantou said, Aman felt a mix of emotions.
Although she already knew that the young master was not favored in the Marquis's mansion, she still couldn't help but feel a pang of sadness when she heard these bits and pieces of information.
All of this is clearly not the young master's fault, so why should he suffer like this?
Aman turned her head slightly to look at Fu Yunxiu, only to see that he looked normal, his fair and slender fingers carefully pressing the bamboo leaves and tying the thread, looking serious, as if the steamed bun had just been talking about someone else's business.
Seeing his indifference, Aman didn't know what to say, so she could only smile and ease the atmosphere, "I wonder if the filling of the zongzi I made is as good as the Hou Mansion's. If it's not good, you can't complain."
Aman's zongzi filling consisted of glutinous rice, a small amount of cane sugar, and a few scattered red dates. It certainly couldn't compare to the richly filled zongzi at the Marquis's mansion.
Given the current amount of money in Wutong Garden, Aman could afford to buy delicious dried fruits and candied fruits. However, she wanted to spend the money wisely, especially since the young master was in poor health. In addition to eating some good food to nourish him, she also heard from Mantou that they would invite that divine doctor surnamed Cheng to interpret his health every year.
She wasn't sure if the Marquis's mansion would still care about the young master then.
Mantou laughed and joked, "It's okay, even if you make pig slop, I'll still eat it all up."
"What are you saying? You're the one making pig feed." Aman pretended to hit him with a bamboo leaf. Mantou laughed and dodged.
The gloomy atmosphere from a moment ago instantly dissipated. Fu Yunxiu looked up at the two playing around, and his thin lips curled slightly.
It seems I won't be able to experience the loneliness I felt during the holidays in previous years this year.
As for the taste of the zongzi, they still trusted Aman's skills.
*
The Dragon Boat Festival is a major festival in Aman's hometown, so it is given special importance.
Mugwort and calamus are hung on the door to pray for health and longevity. Adults and children also wear five-colored silk and sachets to ward off poison and evil spirits.
As for zongzi (sticky rice dumplings) and realgar wine, needless to say.
Aman made sure all of these were taken care of at Wutongyuan.
Early in the morning, Mantou got up and cleaned the yard. Then he and Aman hung up mugwort together. After that, he went to help Fu Yunxiu wash up, while Aman went back to her room to weave colorful silk threads.
At the breakfast table, Aman asked Fu Yunxiu to extend his hand.
"What are you doing?" Fu Yunxiu asked, puzzled, but he still did as he was told.
Aman then magically produced a five-colored silk thread from her hand and carefully tied it around Fu Yunxiu's wrist, explaining as she did so, "This is called a five-colored silk thread, used to ward off evil and bring good fortune."
After fastening it, Aman adjusted the size. "Alright, young master, do you think the size is suitable?"
Fu Yunxiu stared at the colorful rope on his wrist, feeling a strange unease, and asked, "Isn't this something only children wear?"
"So what? Who says adults can't bring them?" Aman looked at his slightly furrowed brows and knew he wasn't quite used to it.
Indeed, what grown man would wear such colorful things on his hands?
But Aman didn't care about any of that. "Once you put on these five-colored silk threads, you can't take them off, otherwise it will ruin your good fortune. You have to wait until the first rain after the Dragon Boat Festival and put them in the rainwater. The old lady said that the rainwater washing away the five-colored silk threads is washing away your troubles and worries and bringing good luck for the year. You can't just pick them off and throw them away."
Fu Yunxiu found it strange that Aman was so confident and talkative. Looking at the colorful silk thread on his wrist, the strangeness in his heart faded a lot, and what followed was a faint bitterness.
It seems that almost no one has ever talked to him about these things since he was a child.
No one ever begged for these things for him.
When he was young, his mother stayed by Fu Yunting's side all day long in the Marquis's mansion. Even the festival gifts that were due were sewn by her own hands.
Fu Yunting had so many sachets for the Dragon Boat Festival that he couldn't even hang them all on his person, but he only had one, which he didn't want because he thought it was ugly.
As for the five-colored silk, he never tied it.
The mother said it was because Fu Yunting was a child.
So he always thought that it was something only children could tie.
But if you think about it carefully, didn't he ever have children?
In the end, it's just that I don't love him.
After all, his birth almost caused his mother to have a difficult childbirth, which damaged her health. It wasn't until five years later that Fu Yunting was born. During this time, his father took Liu as a concubine and doted on her the only one who gave birth to Fu Changze, leaving his mother to suffer neglect.
Therefore, it is understandable that he is not favored.
His birth was accompanied by suffering.
"Thank you." Fu Yunxiu gently stroked the five-colored silk, trying to suppress the bitterness in his heart.
At least there are still people willing to pray for his safety; he should be content.
Hearing him say that, Aman knew he wouldn't take off the five-colored silk, and shook her head with a smile.
Actually, these five-colored silk threads also have another name, "longevity threads," which are used to pray for long life and good fortune. She hoped that the young master would be healthy and live to be a hundred years old.
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