Chapter 156 [VIP]
The old lady of the Hou family invited Lin Sui to visit, not for any other reason than to see what the person her son was going to marry and the person her granddaughter liked looked like.
But Lin Sui didn't know that he came from a humble background and had never seen much of the world if he hadn't come to the prefectural city with his older brother and sister-in-law.
Upon hearing that she was going to the Marquis's residence, she was so nervous that she couldn't sleep for half the night. When she woke up in the morning, she had dark circles under her eyes, didn't know which clothes to wear, and didn't know how to style her hair.
He called Qingyun over to help him choose clothes, but she wasn't quite satisfied with the two she picked out. So Wang Ying came over and chose a dark blue robe that he often wore. Her hair was simply tied back, and a hairpin was chosen to put it in her hair.
Lin Sui is young and good-looking; she doesn't need much embellishment to look beautiful.
Chen Qingyun, standing behind, exclaimed in exaggerated surprise, "Our Sui'er is so handsome, a real heartthrob!"
Lin Sui looked at himself in the mirror and gave a rare shy smile. He and Lin Qiu both looked like their third aunt, who looked very much like Chen's father. So much so that when Lin Qiu, Lin Sui and Qing Yun stood together, they looked more like siblings than cousins.
"Alright, let's go to the street and buy some things to take over. It's not good to come empty-handed on our first visit."
"Okay." Lin Sui followed Wang Ying onto the street first.
They didn't buy anything too expensive. They were just ordinary people, and even if they emptied their savings, people might not even look at them.
I decided to buy some affordable items. I bought two pretty hair accessories for Qing'er and a small wooden mechanical dog that would move forward when its tail was flicked.
They bought four boxes of pastries for the old lady. It was the season for jujubes, so they also bought five catties of fresh red dates. The two of them rode in a carriage all the way to the Prince of Wuping's mansion.
The carriage had just stopped at the gate when the gate opened before Ershun could even explain to the gatekeeper. "Our Marquis instructed in advance that Lin Xiaolang should be allowed to come in directly."
The carriage stopped in the outer courtyard, and Wang Ying and Lin Sui got out and followed the servant toward the inner courtyard.
The Marquis's mansion was much larger than theirs. The courtyard not only had artificial hills and landscapes but also a pond. It was said that this was the former residence of Dou Yi, a notorious corrupt official from the previous dynasty.
When Li Mu was granted a marquisate, this mansion was also bestowed upon him. After renovation, the courtyard became less luxurious and more simple.
After walking for about 15 minutes, they finally arrived at the courtyard where the old lady lived. "We've arrived just ahead. Please come in, gentlemen."
Ms. Luo preferred quiet and did not live in the main courtyard. Instead, she chose a small courtyard in the side courtyard, where she raised cats and tended to flowers and plants, living a very leisurely life.
As soon as Lin Sui entered the courtyard, a child ran towards her. It was Qing'er, whom she hadn't seen for several days. Lin Sui picked Qing'er up and said, "Did you miss me?"
Xiao Qing'er nodded emphatically, and Lin Sui pinched her little nose and said, "I missed you too."
Qing'er struggled to get down and pulled him inside. After turning around the stone screen, she saw the old lady of the Marquis's mansion sitting under the locust tree.
The two men quickly stepped forward and bowed, saying, "We are juniors to greet the old lady."
Luo raised her hand to let them up, and looked at the young man who was close to Qing'er, saying, "You must be Lin Sui, come here and let me take a look."
Luo's eyesight deteriorated from years of embroidery; she could barely see people from a distance.
Lin Sui stepped forward cautiously, scrutinized him for a while, and said, "You're a presentable person. Are your parents well?"
"Mother is well, Father... has passed away."
"Oh, please sit down. Go and serve tea to the two gentlemen, and bring over the longan that was sent from the south a while ago for the guests to try."
The maid standing beside him curtsied and hurried off to the side room to fetch tea.
During the conversation, Luo asked Lin Sui's age again and was surprised to learn that he was only sixteen years old. By calculation, his son was nine years older than him!
Perhaps because it was their first meeting and both sides were a little nervous, Wang Ying tried to liven things up by bringing out the gifts she had prepared for Qing'er and the old lady.
The little girl really liked the wooden mechanical dog and dragged Lin Sui to play with it.
Seeing this, Madam Luo couldn't help but sigh inwardly: her granddaughter had never been able to speak since she was little, had a somewhat aloof temperament, and rarely got close to others. She wondered what kind of connection she had with the young man from the Lin family that made them get along so well.
The conversation then shifted from Lin Sui to Xiao Qing'er.
Wang Ying asked, "Was she silent from the beginning, or did she become ill and stop talking midway through?"
"You've come to the right place. When this child was first born, he was just like any other baby. He cried loudly. When he was two years old, he could even babble and call out 'Daddy.' But not long after, he had a fever and stopped talking altogether."
Although Wang Ying didn't understand medicine, she could guess that Qing'er's speech disorder might be related to this illness, perhaps because it had damaged her nervous system, causing her to be unable to speak.
Lin Sui lovingly stroked Qing'er's hair, and Qing'er rubbed against his hand, quiet and cute like a kitten.
A short while later, a maid brought over tea and said softly, "We couldn't find the longan; perhaps the Marquis took it away."
Madam Luo said, "No, I saw it this morning."
Wang Ying quickly replied, "No need to trouble yourself, we'll leave in a little while."
As the maid put down the teacup from the tray and handed it to Lin Sui, her wrist suddenly went limp, and the teacup fell, spilling scalding hot tea all over Lin Sui.
Lin Sui reacted quickly, pushing Qing'er aside while she herself gasped for breath from the heat.
Wang Ying quickly helped him wipe it off, "Did you get burned?"
The maidservant knelt down with a thud, "It's all my fault for not holding the teacup properly, please forgive me, sir."
Sitting to the side, Madam Luo also said, "How could you be so careless! Young Master Lin, go to the back and change into some clean clothes."
"No, no need."
It wasn't convenient for them to stay there any longer with their clothes damp, so the two got up to say goodbye. Just as they reached the courtyard, Li Mu happened to return from outside. "Why are you leaving after only a short while?"
Lin Sui, embarrassed, grabbed her sleeve and said, "The tea has soaked my clothes. I'll go back and change first, and come again next time."
Li Mu frowned slightly. "Wait here for me for a moment. I'll be right back."
Wang Ying and Lin Sui didn't know what he was going to do, but since the Marquis had given the order, the two of them had no choice but to go to the corridor next to him to wait.
"Does it hurt?" Wang Ying was very worried because the burn was on her leg and it was inconvenient to check.
Lin Sui shook her head, "It hurt when I first sprinkled it on, but I don't feel anything now."
Wang Ying looked around and couldn't help but mutter under her breath, "Why does it feel like that maid is doing it on purpose? She can't even hold a cup of tea properly."
Lin Sui had the same feeling, "Could it be that the old lady is not satisfied with me?"
"If you're not satisfied, just say so. Why throw tea at someone?" Wang Ying's impression of the Li family plummeted, and she even started to dislike Li Mu as well.
If Lin Sui were to marry into such a grand mansion, would she be able to endure it? It would be better for her not to marry at all.
After waiting for about fifteen minutes, Li Mu arrived. He didn't come alone; he brought the maid from before with him.
The two quickly got up.
Upon reaching her, Li Mu released her hand and pointed at the maid, asking, "Was it her who spilled the tea on you just now?"
The maid knelt on the ground and kept kowtowing, "It's all my fault, please forgive me, sir, please have mercy."
Lin Sui said embarrassedly, "I'm fine..."
Li Mu snorted coldly and said, "This maid has been restless before. She tried to sneak into my room several times at night, but I had four soldiers on guard around me, so she didn't get away with it. I didn't expect her to dare to do such a despicable thing today."
Wang Ying stared wide-eyed in surprise, her face full of gossip as she looked at the maid on the ground. So the bed-climbing plot in TV dramas is actually real?
The maidservant was so ashamed that she blushed deeply, not expecting that her actions had been exposed by the Marquis.
She was very anxious when she learned that the Marquis was going to marry a new woman. She was already twenty years old this year, and she might be betrothed to a servant by the old lady in a few years. She would rather be the Marquis's concubine than the servant's wife.
When I met the person Lord Hou mentioned today, I felt that Lin Sui was nothing special in appearance, and she was a divorced young man. How could she compare to me?
Driven by jealousy, she deliberately scalded him with hot tea when it was served. She was secretly pleased that she had chased him away, but little did she know that the Marquis would discover it shortly afterward.
Li Mu continued, "If it weren't for the fact that you've served by my mother's side for quite some time, I would have sent you away long ago. Since you're so incorrigible, there's no need for you to stay."
"This servant knows she was wrong..." The maid was now completely terrified and began to sob.
"Guards, drag her away and sell her off."
"My lord, please don't! Spare me! I was blinded by greed, I'll never do it again..."
Lin Sui didn't want to escalate the situation, and since there wasn't actually any burn, she said, "Maybe... let's just let it go..."
"If she dares to burn a guest this time, she'll dare to burn Qing'er next time. The Marquis's mansion can't keep someone like that."
Wang Ying chimed in, “That’s right. Servants should act like servants. Without rules, there can be no order. The Marquis is right!”
Lin Sui agreed with her cousin-in-law's words, "Thank you for your support, Lord Marquis."
Li Mu then took out a small porcelain bottle from his pocket and handed it to him, saying, "This is medicine for burns. Apply it carefully when you get home, and I will come to apologize in a few days."
Lin Sui took the ointment and held it in her palm. She bowed and took her leave. Even after they left the Marquis's residence, they could still hear the maid's heart-wrenching cries.
Sitting in the carriage, Wang Ying exclaimed, "The Marquis is really something; he saw right away that it was that maid who was behind it all."
Lin Sui said, "I thought it was because the old lady didn't like me."
"But all in all, it's enough that the Marquis treats you well. From now on, it's just the two of you living together. Don't be too tolerant in everything, otherwise, the servants will bully their masters, and those senior servants will trample on your head."
"I understand."
*
In mid-September, Chen Qingyan's letter was delivered to Caojia Porter's Shop in Longquan County.
Cao Kun, who hadn't received any news for a long time, immediately told his employees when he saw that the letter was from his cousin: "I'm going home. You can take the small jobs yourselves. Call me when you get the big jobs."
"Alright, Chief, go ahead."
Cao Kun hurried home. In the yard, Lin Qiu was washing clothes, and Chen Rong was feeding the pigs while carrying Erbao on her back.
"What about wheat?"
Lin Qiu put down the clothes and said, "He was asleep inside. Why are you back at this hour?"
"A letter has been sent back from the prefectural city; I've brought it here for you to see."
Upon hearing this, Chen Rong immediately put down the slop bucket and came over. She was literate, and after taking the letter from her son-in-law, she looked at it and said, "It's Qingyan's handwriting."
Lin Qiu urged, "Open it and take a look quickly."
They tore open the seal and took out the letter. The three of them huddled together and read it word by word. The first part mainly described the family's recent situation and that the results of the provincial examination would not be available until winter.
The letter took a turn in the second half, “Sui’er is doing well in the prefectural city. She’s diligent and capable, and has helped the family a lot. Now, there’s a marriage proposal I’ve discussed with my aunt. The Marquis of Wuping in the prefectural city has taken a liking to our Lin Sui and wants to marry her…”
A note from the author:
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