Capítulo 32: Preparing for the Wedding
Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
The next morning, when Qiao An and the others woke up, Nanny told them what had happened the previous night.
Qiao An's face changed slightly. "We did get carried away last night!"
I really didn't expect Ji Yuxian to come! he thought.
"Did the Eldest Young Master really agree to the marriage?" Qiao An asked.
Nanny nodded. "I just don't know if he meant it or not. If they really want to get married, there's one thing we have to think about now."
"What's the matter?" Qiao An asked.
"If the Ji Manor intends to marry our young lady, they would certainly inform the Su family, and the master of the Su family will come to see their Young Lady. How shall we deal with it?"
"Well," Qiao An frowned, "Must they meet?"
"Naturally…" Nanny nodded. "How can the bride not see her parents before she marries?"
Sure, we can put up a pretense in front of others, she thought. But how could we hide it when Miss Su's real parents come?
Qiao An had no good idea for a moment, and said, "We'll wait for the Su family to arrive and make plans!"
"Alright!"
After all, it was not clear that the Ji family meant to marry Miss Su, and it was not too late to find a way to do so when the time comes.
----
In Ji Manor, early that morning, Ji Yuxian had breakfast and left the house, leaving Housekeeper Yu to deal with other plans.
Housekeeper Yu walked slowly to the Second Mistress's yard.
When she heard that Housekeeper Yu had come, Second Mistress personally welcomed him and said with a gentle smile. "Elder Yu, why have you come personally? You could have sent someone over to report it!"
Housekeeper Yu bowed respectfully. "I dare not! Moreover, it is more appropriate for me to come and inform Second Mistress in person!"
"Oh?" The Second Mistress raised an eyebrow. "What's the matter?"
"Our Eldest Young Master has already decided to marry Miss Su on the 26th of next month, may I trouble Second Mistress to help prepare?" Housekeeper Yu asked with a bowed head.
The Second Mistress was surprised and then her surprise turned to joy. "Really? Yuxian agreed?"
"Yes!"
The Second Mistress could not restrain the elation on her face, but tried her best to calm herself and said with a smile, "It is a big deal for the Eldest Young Master of the Ji Manor to marry! The 26th of next month... it's already the end of September, that's less than a month away."
"Yes! What the Eldest Young Master means is, since Miss Su has already arrived, it is better to get married early! As we are short of time, I will need more help from you, Second Mistress!"
"Not to worry. Anyway, I'm Yuxian's step-mother. His mother is gone, so naturally, I'll take care of his marriage! Tell Yuxian to concentrate on his business. I'll handle everything else!" the Second Mistress declared delightedly.
"Thank you, Second Mistress!"
Housekeeper Yu bowed and left.
The Second Mistress watched the housekeeper leave, her gaze flickering, and the corners of her mouth grinned slowly.
"Congratulations to Madame, your wish is fulfilled!" Yuan'er said with a flattering smile.
The Second Mistress nodded, remembering Su Yuejiu's subservient and weak appearance, and her smile widened. "We should congratulate the Su family...it would appear that even an imbecile can become the mistress of Ji Manor!"
She thought of her pride when she was young, remembering how she had ended up becoming a concubine of Ji Manor, and her happy mood was dampened.
"Miss Su is weak and looks like a coward, and her family is far away in Fuyang. She has no support in Shengjing. When she enters the manor, she will be a pushover and do your bidding, Madame." Yuan'er smirked, echoing the Second Mistress's thoughts.
Sure enough, the Second Mistress smiled triumphantly. "Yuxian is focused on taking care of the business, so I will naturally take care of his personal affairs then!"
"I just don't know how the three little ladies will react to the news that Eldest Young Master is going to marry." Yuan'er chuckled, ready to watch the show unfold.
"Let them do whatever they want!" The Second Mistress smiled meaningfully, "It would be better for us that they kick up a fuss!"
"Yes!" Yuan'er smiled coldly.
Ji Yuxian's three concubines all hailed from rich or powerful families and were spoiled and pampered. They usually looked harmonious but that was all putting on a front. They could not stop fighting in secret.
When the Su family's young lady is here, it will be akin to leading a sheep to the wolves' lair! they thought gleefully.
Now that Ji Yuxian was going to marry Miss Su, the three of them were already plotting in their own yard.
It was impossible for them to go out to visit Miss Su, and they could only gather news secretly. Last time they sent Shangguan Yu to visit Miss Su, and had finally heard that Shangguan Yu had been played by Miss Su. But the news they got from Yuan'er was that Miss Su was ill and cowardly.
In the end, Xie Ying and the other two were curious about which version of her was true, and what Miss Su was like.
Miss Su had no support in Shengjing, so what if she was a little clever?
Whoever Ji Yuxian pampered was the real victor!
Thus, the three focused on pleasing Ji Yuxian instead.
Moreover, they were also looking forward to Ji Yuxian's marriage.
It may be a pleasure for them that Ji Yuxian married a lady from a powerless family far in Fuyang, compared to the Official Manor's young lady!
-----
Everyone in the Ji Manor was preparing for the wedding with excitement.
The news of next month's wedding on the 26th also quickly spread to Fuyang. The lady rescued by the woodcutter had just woke up in the village at the foot of Yuhu Mountain, close to a farm in the mountain.
The woman had been raped and had suffered a knife wound in the shoulder. She was seriously injured, and her condition had just improved after resting for a dozen days.
The yard was small and had three earthen rooms. There were some mountain goods and fox skin hung on the clay wall, and dry firewood was stacked under one corner.
A fifty-year-old woman who was carrying groceries in a rattan basket, looked back at the room with a grin, laughing, "My son is a lucky man, he went into the mountain and picked up my daughter-in-law!"
This family's surname was Zhao. The father died early, and the woman brought up her son alone. They had always been poor, and what she looked forward to most was for her son to marry and produce offspring.
Seeing that their son Zhao Sheng was already 30 but did not have a spouse she was deeply saddened.
Once in a while, the villagers had tried to introduce ladies to him. But when they came to the house to see the three earthen houses, there was no further progress.
So even if she knew that the woman her son had picked up had lost her virginity, Madam Zhao was still happy.
Zhao Sheng smiled with his head down. He chopped firewood while saying, "She's just a little weak. I'll send this firewood to the city in exchange for a chicken to nourish her later!"
"My son knows how to dote on someone!" Madam Zhao teased.
The man crouched on the ground, growing more and more embarrassed.
Cough! Cough! Cough!
There were a few light coughs from the woman in the room.
The man stood up, rubbed his hands, and said, "I'll go in and see her."
"Go ahead!" his mother said with a smile.
The man strode into the house.
There were sounds of conversation in the room, and soon the man came out. His expression was dark as he squatted back on the ground, hugging his shoulders without saying a word.
"What's the matter?" Madam Zhao asked.
The man hummed and said stubbornly, "She still wants to leave!"
"What did she say?"
"She said that she is the young lady of Fuyang City's Su family. She was supposed to go to Shengjing to get married and asked me to go to Fuyang to give a letter. When her family comes, they will give us a large sum of money!"
The woman blinked her yellowing eyes, glancing at the window. She lowered her voice and said, "You can't go!"
"Why?"
"She's been raped by bandits, would her future husband's family still want her? Besides, if she leaves, who knows if she'll give us money? In my opinion, the two of you should get married first, and when you have children she won't be able to leave even if she wanted to. If she really is the young lady of a big family, you will become rich too. By then, their family will have to give us her dowry, and we can get as much silver as we want!"
If you let her go now, who knows if her word can be trusted? the mother thought schemingly. Maybe she'll run away, and by then, not only will you not get money, we'll lose the wife, too.
Her son nodded. "I'll listen to you, Mother, and when she gets better, I will marry her!"
"Don't worry, you can go up the mountain to cut the wood. I'll look after her at home. Even if she gets better, she's still weak, she can't run away!"
"Yes, yes!" the man chuckled. He was elated at the prospect of marrying a wife. What's more, she was a beautiful wife. Thinking about this, joyous anticipation bloomed in his heart.
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