Chapter 61
Yueming hadn't been away from home for a long time, so she was very excited. She lifted the carriage curtain to take a look, and immediately started chatting with Yehu and Aiye about anything she saw that was new. Her carriage was truly the busiest place in the group.
Li Yang felt a headache after hearing this and said to Yun Kai, "You must find a way to give her mouth a rest for a while."
Yunkai waved over a little girl selling horse mulberry on the roadside. The girl looked about the same age as Yueming. To make herself visible to Yunkai, she struggled to lift a vine full of horse mulberry leaves with her thin arms as she followed Yunkai's horse. Yunkai stopped his horse and looked down at the girl. "Are the horse mulberries fresh? Are they sweet?"
"Fresh, fresh." The girl assured repeatedly: "I picked it just before leaving. It's the last crop. It's very sweet."
"How much do you sell it for?"
"One dime a bowl."
"Give me a bowl."
The girl deftly scooped a full bowl from a blue-flowered porcelain bowl. Business must have been good today; the bowl's snow-white interior had been dyed purple by the horsemulberry, and it looked like she'd already sold several bowls. She poured the scooped-up pile of horsemulberry into a small square bowl folded from a banana leaf and handed it to Yunkai.
Yunkai asked her to go to the back and get the money from Feng Xiaosai. He squeezed the horse's belly, then walked to the carriage, controlling the reins with one hand. The whip tapped the window, and Yueming lifted the curtain and asked him, "What are you doing? Do you want to take a break?"
Yunkai handed her the Ma Sang and said, "Here's some fresh fruit for you to eat."
When Ye Hu and Ai Ye saw the horse mulberry in Yun Kai's hand, they complained to themselves that the Second Young Master had to buy horse mulberry for the young lady instead of buying something else. This thing dyes very badly. If it accidentally gets on clothes, how can you wash it in the wild?
Although they were reluctant to let Yueming eat this, since the Second Young Master had personally brought it to them, they dared not say a word. They placed the horse mulberry in a tea bowl, rinsed it with water from a tin kettle, and placed it in front of Yueming on a high-legged black lacquered wooden tray.
After washing, the mulberry flowers were shiny black, their stems green and fresh-looking. Back in Kunming, a family not far from her home also grew one. Liu Ma, the family's mother, would often bring a handful of green onions and a few chili peppers with her grocery shopping, so she could enjoy scrambled eggs with mulberry flowers. When the flowers bloomed, the family would pick a bowlful and pour them into Liu Ma's basket when she passed by.
Yueming wasn't particularly fond of scrambled eggs with mulberry flowers; she craved the black berries hanging from the branches jutting out from the wall. But Liu forbade her to eat them, especially those that had been battered by rain. She threatened Yueming that eating them would give her diarrhea. She could only eat them when Senior Brother Changsheng was around.
The two brothers and sisters, carrying a small bamboo basket, sneaked to the corner of the house. She rode on Changsheng's shoulders, reaching out to grab the tempting black fruits. After picking half a basket, they ran away, hiding behind the mosque, eating one each before returning home.
Lan Yingde was shocked when he saw their lips which looked like they were poisoned. Then he looked at their claws which looked like they had been soaked in potassium permanganate and he immediately knew that they were thieves.
He didn't say anything to them. He took some gifts and the two of them to apologize to the family, saying that the child was naughty and picked their fruit.
The owner of the house didn't mind, saying that anything outside the wall belonged to everyone, and it was a customary rule, so the children could pick whatever they wanted. So the two of them were able to carry their small basket of horse chestnuts home again.
Alas! Yueming sighed softly, thinking of her father and Senior Brother Changsheng again. She wondered if they had any fresh fruit to eat in Tengchong.
He picked up one and put it in his mouth. It tasted sweet at first and then slightly sour. Yueming couldn't stop eating it and soon the whole plate of horse chestnuts was finished.
Ye Hu and Ai Ye were almost going crazy looking at her lips and fingers. Just when they were about to pour some water for her to wash, the car window rang again.
Yueming lifted the curtain and asked expectantly, "Are you buying me fruit again?"
Yunkai was stunned at first when he saw Yueming's dark purple lips, then he turned his head and covered his mouth with his hands, laughing silently.
Yueming knew what he was laughing at. Since she dared to eat it, she was not afraid of his laughter. She grinned at him deliberately, and her teeth were stained with juice, just like she had eaten betel nut.
Yun Kai laughed even harder. Yue Ming licked his teeth and asked him, "Isn't this what happens when witches in fairy tales eat children?"
Li Yang heard Yun Kai laughing, and when he looked over to see Yue Ming's silly expression, he couldn't help laughing too, and asked, "Are you eating people?"
"Hmph!" Yueming rolled her eyes at him and lowered the curtain for Yehu to pour water for her to wash her face. She only showed it to Han Yunkai. Han Yunkai laughed at her, but not others.
Li Yang rolled his eyes at her and looked at Yun Kai in disbelief: "Did she just look at me? (In Yunnan dialect, "look" means to roll your eyes) I'm her future uncle, and she actually looked at me?"
Yun Kai defended her, saying, "She's still young and doesn't understand things. Don't bother with her."
Li Yang...I think you are the most ignorant one!
They found an inn on the way and stayed for the night. During breakfast, Yun Kai saw that Yue Ming was only wearing a dress, so he asked her to go back to her room after breakfast and change into new clothes and dress more formally.
Yueming refused: "It's more comfortable to ride in the car wearing this."
Yun Kaifang put down her chopsticks and looked at Ai Ye and Ye Hu behind her with displeasure. She said calmly, "If you're not comfortable riding in the car, it's because the servants didn't serve you well. It has nothing to do with your clothes. If you want to enjoy some leisure time, then just stay in Lishengmeng and enjoy it to your heart's content. I'll pick out two more who can serve you."
Ye Hu and Ai Ye trembled with fear and almost knelt on the spot. Yue Ming glared at him and reminded him, "My first maid was found for me by the Tusi Mansion." The implication was that if the one you chose was good at serving, why would you have beaten her and sent her back to Boguang Village?
Yun Kai saw that hard tactics weren't working and could only resort to soft tactics. He gently advised, "Li Shengmeng's wife is a powerful figure. She hates your mother and grandmother like crazy. Shouldn't you fight for their reputation? Let me tell you, the key to fighting between masters is to kill with one blow. If you lose the first time, no matter how hard you try to get back at them, they'll still bring up that time you lost. You can't bring shame to your father."
This trick worked, and Yueming was filled with fighting spirit. She returned to her room with a murderous look on her face to dress up again.
She insisted on not drinking a single drop of water along the way to avoid wrinkling her dress when she went to the bathroom. Li Yang almost wanted to applaud Yun Kai: "You still have a way to deal with children."
Yun Kai said to Li Yang in a helpless but proud tone: "Of course I have to teach my own wife myself."
Li Yang used a lot of willpower to avoid fratricide.
When they arrived at Lishengmeng, Tao Tou Ren and his family were waiting at the gate to greet them. The girls in the mansion saw Li Yang and Yun Kai, one with an imposing figure and the other with a handsome face, and their hearts fluttered with excitement.
Everyone recognized the driver of the carriage as the little Lahu mute who had been sent to the Tusi Mansion from the mansion. They immediately knew who was sitting in the carriage. They couldn't help but whisper to each other. Only the second master of the Tao Mansion looked at the carriage eagerly.
The Lahu mute moved the dismounting stool tied to the back of the carriage to the side. Yun Kai stood in front of the stool and whispered to the carriage, "Get off!"
The curtain was drawn, and a girl bent down and walked out of the carriage with her skirt lifted up. She held on to Yun Kai's arm and slowly walked down from the carriage.
Looking at the girl's appearance, Mr. Tao's eyes instantly became wet, while Mrs. Tao clutched the handkerchief in her hand tightly.
The girl had her hair in a topknot, a silver comb tucked into the front and three jeweled hairpins on the side. She wore a crescent-shaped, white, gold-trimmed, cross-lapel blouse, a silver-red, gold-embroidered skirt, and a shawl of the same color draped across her arm. She stood gracefully before the crowd, looking every bit the daughter of the Tao family.
Yunkai led her to salute Tao Tou Ren. Yehu and Ai Ye placed a cushion in front of her. She performed all the etiquette meticulously according to Yunkai's teachings.
Mrs. Tao went forward to help her up, and asked her softly if the journey was difficult. Yueming answered her one by one.
Yun Kai looked at the girl proudly. Her elegant conversation, graceful manners and graceful appearance were far beyond the reach of Li Shengmeng and other young ladies who never left the house. He really deserved the credit.
The arrival of a young master from the Tusi family necessitated a banquet. The welcoming banquet had already been prepared, and Li Yang, as the successor to Prime Minister Yun, naturally sat at the head of the table. Yueming was awkward when she took her seat. Everyone knew her identity, and Master Tao hadn't given the go-ahead to seat her in the VIP section, allowing her to join the other girls. She had come with the two young masters of the Tusi family, leaving the housekeeper feeling stymied.
Yunkai didn't wait for the Tao family to figure out what seating arrangement to give Yueming. Yunkai pulled her to kneel beside him. The housekeeper breathed a sigh of relief. Since the Second Young Master was in charge, he didn't have to worry about it.
Mrs. Tao subconsciously glanced at Mr. Tao, and seeing that he had no reaction, she curled her lips secretly and ordered the servants to serve the dishes.
Servants filed in, carrying small, round trays of snacks. Li Yang raised his glass and said to Tou Ren, "When there's a happy event at the mansion, the master and mistress would have come in person to offer their congratulations, but they were forced to attend to important matters, so they sent my two brothers to do it. I hope Tou Ren, please don't mind."
Tao Tou Ren nodded and said, "It is a great honor for my family and even for Li Shengmeng that you two young masters have come here in person. If my family has any shortcomings in our hospitality, I hope you two young masters will not be offended."
While entertaining guests and dining at a chieftain's residence is traditional, meals are served around a table at the Tao residence. In the Tao residence, each person shares their food, and instead of a stool, they simply throw a cushion. Yueming wasn't used to squatting, so she straightened her back to maintain her balance. Soon, her calves felt numb from the pressure of her buttocks. But Li Yang and Tao Tou Ren were still exchanging pleasantries, and she longed to finish quickly and find a place to stretch her legs.
Yun Kai glanced at her straight back and sighed inwardly. He had taught her so many times how to kneel before the Buddha and how to sit while eating, but she still couldn't remember. Eating in the same way as the Han people kneel before the Buddha, wasn't that just asking for trouble?
He pretended to whisper something in Yueming's ear, then reached behind her waist and gently slapped her waist, then quietly pulled one of her feet out. Yueming suddenly understood, and knelt down with her legs diagonally and put her buttocks on the mat. Now she finally felt comfortable.
Yun Kai glared at her and said lightly, "Idiot." Then he turned his head back.
Yueming secretly stuck out her tongue at him.
Although Yun Kai thought he had done it secretly and everyone's attention was on Li Yang and Tao Tou Ren, this scene was still seen by the fourth lady of the Tao family.
From the moment she saw Yunkai at the gate, her attention was drawn to him. He was handsome and graceful, and his gentleness when he helped Yueming get off the carriage made her heart pound.
The scene just now made her despise Yueming's lack of etiquette, and she was even more attracted to the second young master's gentleness and thoughtfulness.
Taotouren also arranged a Zhangha to entertain the guests after the banquet. Yueming didn't want to go. She was used to taking a nap, and now that she was full, she felt sleepy. She covered her mouth with a handkerchief and yawned quietly. Her eyes were filled with mist, and she forced two tears out.
Yun Kai knew her habits and was just about to ask the maid to accompany her to the guest house where she was staying to rest when the housekeeper of the Tao Mansion came in with an embarrassed look on his face and reported.
"Du Matou heard that Miss Lan had arrived, so he asked to see her outside the mansion. He said he wanted to apologize for missing Miss Lan's birthday and also came to pay his respects to her."
Everyone's expressions were very interesting. Mr. Tao had a blank expression on his face, Mrs. Tao's face kept twitching, the eldest master of the Tao family stared at Yueming gloomily, and the second master Tao lowered his head, not knowing what he was thinking.
Yueming sensed something was amiss, but remained silent. She instructed Yehu to follow the housekeeper and reply, "Tell Uncle Du that I'm visiting the Tao residence and it's inconvenient to borrow their place for a reception. I'll go catch up with Uncle after the wedding is over." He then added, "Uncle Du has watched me grow up. Be respectful and don't look at me with such scorn."
Ye Hu said he was about to leave when Master Tao suddenly said, "Don't bother with that. Du Matou is not an outsider. Just tell him to go to the guest house and wait. He doesn't need to come over to pay his respects."
Master Tao had spoken, and the housekeeper hurried to invite someone in. Yueming clasped his hands together and knelt down to bow: "Thank you, Master and Madam, for accommodating me. In that case, I will take my leave now."
Mrs. Tao smiled kindly, "No need to be so polite. Mr. Dumas remembers his old master, so we should give him this little favor."
Did she treat Dusong and the others as her own servants? Yueming pretended not to understand her implication, smiled, and led Yehu and Aiye to meet the guests.
Mrs. Tao gave a wink, and a servant quietly followed the master and servant.
Du Song said he was coming to pay his respects, but he made a big show of it. Boxes and crates were delivered to the guest house one after another, causing the servants of the Tao Mansion to smack their lips.
Yueming arrived at the courtyard where she was staying and saw Dusong standing in the middle of the yard, his hand behind his back waving a whip, loudly directing the horse team to deliver the boxes to the room. She called out crisply, "Uncle Song."
Du Song turned around and saw Yue Ming standing at the door with a smile on his face. He called out to everyone to stop what they were doing: "Stop, stop, we'll move later. Let's pay our respects to the young lady first."
The caravan workers lined up in a row, bowed to Yueming and said with great energy, "Hello, Miss."
The sound was so deafening that even Li Yang and his companions, who were listening to Zhang Ha a few yards away, heard it. He laughed and said, "This little girl Yueming has become a mountain king. What kind of hero is this?"
Yun Kai winked at Mr. Tao Er and said, "Her father gave her a caravan. The leader is called Du Song, and he is a cousin of the head of Shengweixuan."
I had heard about this Du Song the last time I visited Li Sheng Meng. I knew that since the establishment of this caravan, Li Sheng Meng has soared to the top of the Nine Meng Thirteen Circles and its life has been extremely good. Li Yang smiled meaningfully: "If he has promoted my uncle so much, Mr. Lan should be good to my son-in-law."
Yun Kai squinted at his elder brother: "You want me to marry into your family?"
Li Yang smiled mischievously as he fanned himself: "You have a dislike for dogs and people. I'm afraid that if you want to marry into Mr. Lan's family, even Mr. Lan will dislike you."
Everyone was shocked by the two brothers' jokes, especially Mrs. Tao, who was extremely panicked. This little bastard actually hooked up with the second young master of the chieftain's family?
The second son already had a caravan, and if the bastard entered the chieftain's mansion, no matter how big or small his position was, he would be a helper to the second son in the future. His son's dream of inheriting the position of chieftain was probably in jeopardy.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
