Chapter 11. She loathed being with Wen Qiyan.
This eldest daughter of the Ji family is not someone to be trifled with; she has a domineering and unreasonable nature.
The maid who came in to deliver the message was naturally afraid that if she was displeased, she might slap her out of displeasure.
All of these are possible.
After all, it wouldn't sound good if word got out that the eldest son left decisively after consummating the marriage on his wedding night.
The elderly woman keeping watch at the Wen family home quickly silenced everyone.
But no one dared to come and relay the message, so they pushed a newcomer like her in, putting her in a real dilemma.
The little maid kept shrinking back, and Ji Wanyuan seemed not to have heard her clearly. When she was asked to repeat herself, she was almost crying with fear.
"The eldest young master said you should rest on your own," she said quickly, swallowing hard.
The atmosphere froze for a moment. Just when the maid thought Ji Wanyuan was about to fly into a rage, she casually uttered a light "hmm."
There seems to be some...joy?
"You may leave," she said.
Not only did the young maid not understand, but even her personal maid, Emerald, was puzzled.
Logically speaking, shouldn't Ji Wanyuan be throwing a tantrum?
But she was lying on the edge of the bathtub, lazily squinting her eyes, looking quite happy.
This is our wedding night!
Being abandoned on one's wedding night, wouldn't that be... an utter disgrace?
The little maidservant slipped away as fast as she could, but Ji Wanyuan suddenly called her back.
"Jade, give her some reward money."
Jade was puzzled. "Huh?"
"Go quickly."
She found the young maid quite agreeable, except that she was a bit timid.
"Oh, oh, oh." Emerald quickly gave the little maid a silver ingot and sent her away.
Ji Wanyuan's actions left the maids guarding outside completely bewildered. They were both envious of the maids and anxious, wondering what Ji Wanyuan was up to.
"Miss...aren't you angry?" Emerald carefully helped her out of the bathtub, applied medicine to her, and carefully examined her complexion before asking.
"What's there to be angry about?"
She never wanted to sleep with Wen Qiyan in the first place, so she absolutely refused to sleep with him!
It's good that he went to the side room; it's best if he never looks for her again.
In this way, she could rest peacefully and would no longer have his ugly things rubbing against her thighs.
Thinking of this, some images flashed through her mind, and her disdain became even more undisguised.
"..."
Jade didn't know what to say, and after thinking for a while, she didn't speak.
The night passed peacefully afterward.
The next day, Ji Wanyuan stayed in bed, saying she was too tired and sleepy and didn't want to get up.
Jade had a great deal of effort to shake her awake. "Miss, if you continue to sleep, you'll miss the tea ceremony."
Ji Wanyuan hadn't slept enough; her eyes were hazy, her brows were furrowed, and she sat there silently.
Jade knew this was a sign of Ji Wanyuan's impatience. Generally speaking, if Ji Wanyuan didn't get enough rest and was urged too much, she would definitely throw a tantrum, so she dared not speak.
After a short while, I thought Ji Wanyuan would go back to sleep, but instead she sighed and said weakly, "Get up..."
Upon hearing this, everyone breathed a sigh of relief and busied themselves helping her with her hair, makeup, and dressing.
Even with all the rush, the time for paying respects and serving tea was still a little late.
She was pregnant, and the servants didn't want to rush her, so they repeatedly told her to be careful on the steps.
Wen Qiyan had arrived long ago. When Ji Wanyuan entered the main hall, she saw him standing tall and elegant to one side.
He wore a crimson moon robe that accentuated his broad shoulders and narrow waist. Because he didn't utter a word, and only half of his profile was visible, he appeared quite aloof.
Ji Wanyuan glanced at it, pursed her lips, and looked away.
She bowed respectfully to Mr. and Mrs. Wen, explaining that she was unwell and had gotten up late, hoping for their understanding and promising that it would not happen again.
There was a woman sitting next to her, and she didn't know who she was. She was looking her over. Since she was sitting on the left, she must be an elder in the Wen family. Afraid of addressing the wrong person and causing an embarrassment, she curtsied to the woman and did not speak rashly.
Ji Wanyuan's manners and wording were impeccable, which shut down the words of criticism and reprimand that were swirling on the lips of Wen's mother, who had been growing increasingly dissatisfied with her.
Mr. Wen laughed and stepped in to smooth things over, saying it was nothing, “You’re young, so it’s understandable that you’re prone to oversleeping. Besides, you’re pregnant, so it’s okay to be a little late. The important thing is to get some rest, which is good for both you and the baby.”
"Now that you've joined the Wen family, you're a member of the Wen family. There's no need for such formalities among family members."
Wen's father comforted her.
Previously, Ji Wanyuan would have genuinely thought that Wen's father was a kind and approachable elder, and her goodwill towards him would have increased significantly.
But she was no longer the Ji Wanyuan of the past. She knew that the Wen father in the storybook was a smiling tiger, who would coax you with a smile on his face, but was very decisive and ruthless behind the scenes, and was also cold-hearted.
There's a saying: "Like father, like son."
If it weren't for such a "tiger father", how could such an outstanding "dog son" like Wen Qiyan have emerged?
So she also pretended to smile at Wen's father, saying, "Thank you for your consideration, father-in-law. I will keep it in mind."
Finally, she added, "If you and your mother-in-law cherish me, I won't take it for granted and will definitely keep to my duty as a daughter-in-law."
This is... way too formal, isn't it?
Mr. and Mrs. Wen exchanged a glance, both puzzled as to why the eldest daughter of the Ji family had changed her attitude today.
To say that she was trying to please others because she was late doesn't seem likely.
He looked quite sincere in admitting his mistake.
Not only were Wen's parents surprised, but even the silent man beside them glanced at her.
Sensing a slight movement from the "ice block" beside her, Ji Wanyuan turned her head and met the man's gaze.
She was right.
Yesterday, Wen Qiyan rubbed and kneaded her so vigorously, touching the soft spot on her chest.
Today it's frighteningly red, as if it's been severely beaten, with clear and obvious finger marks on it.
Wearing the undergarment now is really painful, and even with the medicine applied, she can't bear it.
Thinking of how he had bullied her mercilessly yesterday, she was still angry and wanted to snort and turn her face away, but this was in front of Mr. and Mrs. Wen.
We cannot be willful, nor can we be as foolish and arrogant as those depicted in the storybooks, otherwise we will surely follow the same old path and die without a burial place.
She silently repeated it several times, suppressing her anger, and then calmly looked away.
Wen's parents couldn't see anything strange, but Wen Qiyan keenly noticed her unusual behavior.
His brow furrowed almost imperceptibly, “…”
Even so, Madam Wen still wanted to give her a warning. She used the pretext of introducing the woman next to Ji Wanyuan to subtly hint at her point.
"It's fine since we're all family. After all, the person sitting here is a distant aunt of the Wen family. She's a kind and gentle person. She won't say anything if you're late serving tea today. But if it were someone else, that wouldn't be the case. So you should be more careful in the future."
After speaking, he carefully observed Ji Wanyuan's reaction.
She nodded obediently as usual, and even gave a greeting to her distant Aunt Jiang again, saying that she was not feeling well today and that it was thanks to her aunt's understanding.
"What are you saying? I can't accept such courtesy from you, young mistress."
Aunt Jiang smiled and said, "Seeing is believing. She is truly a beautiful woman. It is Qi Yan's good fortune to marry such a lady."
Ji Wanyuan gave a forced smile, feigning shyness while inwardly scoffing. Who would want to marry him? If it weren't for the emperor's will, she wouldn't want to marry him.
Unable to find anything wrong with her, Madam Wen had no choice but to give up and stop scolding him.
Next comes the tea ceremony for the newlyweds, but it's just a formality.
Ji Wanyuan followed Wen Qiyan's instructions meticulously.
During this time, everyone observed her and did not notice that she showed any impatience. Even when Madam Wen deliberately asked her to serve hot tea for a while longer, she did not say a word and did not show any clue on her face.
She seemed oblivious to the heat of the tea, even though her fingertips were already red when the tea dripped down.
Wen Qiyan lowered his eyes and glanced at the woman's hand next to him. It was slender and delicate. Apart from the fingertips that had been scalded red by the hot teacup, the marks of gripping could be faintly seen hidden under the inner sleeve.
He grabbed her wrist and made her hold onto the sandalwood bed frame to get it done.
Thinking of this, I can't help but recall the passionate intimacy of last night.
The delicate, weak cries lingered in my ears, intermittent and extremely annoying.
He finally took a proper look at her face, but only saw her profile and rounded earlobes. Strangely enough, he had a photographic memory and remembered that there was a small red mole behind the tip of her ear.
Realizing belatedly that he actually remembered these things clearly, he looked displeased, quickly banished the thoughts from his mind, and looked away.
Seeing Wen Qiyan's disgusted expression towards Ji Wanyuan, Aunt Jiang calmly sipped her tea, "..."
Wen's parents had gotten used to this and didn't know what Wen Qiyan was thinking; they just thought he was the same as before.
After serving tea, everyone sat down for breakfast. There weren't many people in the Wen family. Wen Qiyan had a younger brother and a younger sister, but his sister had already married out.
As for his younger brother, it seems he was serving in a county outside the capital. Ji Wanyuan had inquired about his specific official position, but it had been so long that she couldn't recall it for the time being.
After the meal, Wen Qiyan left the mansion with his father.
He was newly married, and the emperor granted him a celebratory leave.
Wen Qiyan didn't want to stay at home. He said he was going to the Ministry of Justice. Wen's father originally wanted to persuade him to stay, so that he could spend some time with Ji Wanyuan.
But Wen's father also knew that he disliked Ji Wanyuan very much, and that they probably wouldn't get along for a while.
People who used to be calm and composed now show their emotions towards this Miss Ji, which can be considered a sign of their strong resistance.
He didn't say anything more and could only go with him.
It would be good for Wen Qiyan to go to the Ministry of Justice and observe whether any useful information has been obtained from the interrogation of those arrested in Youzhou these past few days.
Ji Wanyuan couldn't leave yet; she had to stay and talk with Madam Wen and Aunt Jiang.
She was really sleepy, but she couldn't take a nap.
Madam Wen did it on purpose; she chatted with Aunt Jiang the whole time and paid little attention to Ji Wanyuan.
But every now and then he would ask Ji Wanyuan if she was right, and what her opinion was, taking the opportunity to see if Ji Wanyuan was daydreaming.
Not wanting to give a perfunctory answer and ruin her impression, Ji Wanyuan had no choice but to listen attentively and rack her brains to reply, lest the Wen family find fault with her.
He pretended to be well-behaved on the surface, but inwardly he was furious and cursed Madam Wen many times.
How annoying! No wonder she gave birth to such an irritating son as Wen Qiyan.
She disliked none of the Wen family members.
When will this end? She wanted to cry, but she couldn't. Her mind was a fog, and she felt only despair.
"..."
As dusk fell, Wen Qiyan and his father returned.
Finally able to have dinner, Ji Wanyuan was already quite exhausted.
She couldn't eat much lunch and was very hungry, but she still didn't want to eat the food. However, she still sat down at the table.
Wen Qiyan didn't want to look, but the person was right next to him. He noticed that she was even quieter than in the morning, as if she had been wilted like an eggplant.
A note from the author:
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[Rainbow fart] is here!
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