“Haven’t I told you that I could go back by myself? Why did you come?”
Inside of the coach which was paved with mineral blue mat, Minglan held a tea pot in her arms while questioning that in a low voice with a straight face.
Since it was less than a month that Hai shi had given birth to the baby, so most of the guests who attended the Three Shower Day ceremony here were women. Also, according to the tradition, there wouldn’t be a feast either. Wang shi only invited the guests to have lunch in the mansion. After these women had rested for a short while after the lunch, they all left one after another. As Minglan was about to bid her farewell, Gu Tingye arrived at Sheng’s mansion. He chatted with Sheng Hong for a while and then took leave with Minglan.
Right now Gu Tingye didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. When he had arrived at Sheng’s mansion to pick his wife, Minglan had suggested meaningfully with a bashful look on her face, ‘Honey, it’ll be so tired riding horses back and forth. Let’s take the coach back.”
Seeing Minglan’s rosy cheeks and watery eyes, Gu Tingye got hot-headed right away and got on the coach excitedly. However, little did he know that Minglan would pour cold water right on his enthusiasm...
“I just dropped by, what’s the matter?” Gu Tingye found Minglan’s anxious look quite interesting. He, feeling his fingers quite itchy, really wanted to pinch her.
“You think I don’t know about the roads?” Minglan, feeling her intelligence being humiliated, placed three tea cups on the table right away. “The imperial city is here, our mansion is here and Sheng’s mansion is here... How’s it possible for you to drop by at Sheng’s mansion?!”
Minglan scaled down the whole city on the table. Gu’s mansion and Sheng’s mansion were situated respectively in the first and second ring roads of the capital. Gu Tingye’s workplace was in the central government.
As Gu Tingye watched Minglan arranging the tea cups with her bulging face like a child who was building blocks, he finally couldn’t help but pinch Minglan’s cheek. Then he said with a smile, “After the Morning Report, I accompanied Old General Bo to make a tour at the military camp on the Western Mountain. When I saw it was about time, I went to pick you then... Isn’t is a good thing that I could back you up in your family?”
“Not so good.” Minglan held her face while saying seriously, “You better treat me more indifferently in front of everyone else. As long as you fulfill your duty as a husband, I don’t need you to express your concern to me when there are other people around.”
Gu Tingye, being startled, stared at Minglan in surprise. He still remembered that at that year, he hadn’t picked Yu Yanhong at her family, she had nearly torn down the roof-- By the way, his first marriage really had given him a lot of lessons.
“Haven’t you seen Madam Wang, my aunt and my sisters’ faces just now? Look how sulky they were!” Luckily, Wen Yanjing was still a sensible man. One day when he had got off work early from the Imperial Academy, he had rushed to the mountain on purpose to pick his wife who had prayed there. Therefore, Rulan had seemed to be fine with Gu Tingye’s presence. After she had sung her own praises, she had only teased at Minglan for a short while.
Seeing the shocking expression on Gu Tingye’s face, Minglan explained for him patiently, “I’m not Madam Wang’s biological daughter. Not only have I married to a more prestigious family than my sisters, I have also been ennobled and lived independently. Now, even my husband treats me so well, I’m like the one who has it all! There’s no such great thing like that. Jealousy will create resentment. And in the end, I’ll only be wronged by them for no reason!”
This was the first time Gu Tingye had heard of the principle in dealing with women. Having pondered for a while, he suddenly reminded of the woman with a mean appearance who had stood beside Wang shi. He heard others call her ‘Aunt Kang’. Also, he remembered seeing hostility in that woman’s eyes. Then he looked at Minglan and said in a heavy voice, “Someone has... envied you? Bullied you?”
Minglan shook her head, answering, “The less trouble, the better. One should always be able but modest. They are all my families; it’ll be the best if our living standards are almost the same. I don’t want to be the exceptional one of my family. That’s the first reason. Second, if others see you value me a lot, they will definitely ask me for help. Should I help them if they want your help with their promotions, they evaluations or other things like their recommendations?"
Minglan, as a married woman, knew that she should always keep a low key in front of her families. She never had the intention to show off or brag about herself even if she was living a prospering life now. Otherwise, the people who wanted to borrow money, ask to stay, ask favors, ask for everything would come one after another... And as long as she was reluctant to agree to these commands, she would be sneered fiercely with extremely sarcastic words-- That was what showing off in front of everyone would bring!
After Gu Tingye had been in a daze for a long while, he said hesitantly, “So... I shouldn’t care about you so much when we are in Sheng’s mansion?”
“That’s right.” Seeing him finally being enlightened, Minglan put on a joyful look, saying, “It would be better if you can be strict and even fierce to me.”
Gu Tingye looked at Minglan, being still unable to understand, “Wouldn’t you be embarrassed?”
“Will you scold me when the elders tell me off?” Minglan asked smilingly.
“No.” Gu Tingye denied that right away.
“Will you limit my power when I handle the family affairs?
“Why would I do that?!” Gu Tingye burst into laughter.
“Will you forbid me to make new clothes, jewelries, or do things I want to do?”
“As long as you don’t have any evil thoughts, you can do everything!” Gu Tingye said that with a stern look on his face but a smile in his eyes.
Minglan waved her sleeves and held her husband’s strong arms fawningly, saying with a smile, “That’s it. I know you treat me well, that’s all I need. Vanity means nothing to me! If the other people think that you are hard upon me, they might treat me even better!”
With light flashing in Gu Tingye’s eyes, he raised his eyebrows and dragged Minglan toward him smilingly. As he held Minglan’s hands in his hands, he said with a smile, “Let me summarize it for you. You mean, you want your husband to put a white and tender sheepskin on your cunning fox body, right?”
Minglan winked her two big and clear eyes, seeming quite innocent and native, “Honey, you are a commander. Why don’t you use the art of war as a metaphor? It’s called, ‘Enemy in the light, me in the dark. That is the best situation.”
Gu Tingye who never realized that she would talk about art of war found her both funny and annoying. He dragged Minglan into his arms and hugged her tightly. The girl could only whine like a newborn feast and make little struggles. As he nuzzled her neck and shoulders, he felt her tender skin and smelled her fragrance while chuckling in a low voice.
While he raised his head, he smiled and asked, “How’s the lunch?”
Minglan covered her hair and wriggled out of his strong arms, trying her best to maintain her make up, “I seldom come back to my parents’ family. How could I eat my fill like a hungry wolf.”-- Let alone that the mean Aunt Kang had sat opposite to her.
“That’s great! Old General Bo had this rule for forty years that the commanders should eat the same things with the solders in the military camp. I said that I wanted to see the armory as an excuse and went out. So I haven’t eaten anything yet! Let me bring you to the Heaven Delicious Tower to have a nice meal!” Gu Tingye laughed loudly and said that.
Minglan, with a scornful look on her face, pointed the man with her slender index finger. Then she spoke in a soft voice on purpose with dimples showing on her face, “You high-fed childe, I see you unable to endure any hardship. Aren’t you afraid that Old General Bo would punish you fiercely after he knew about that?”
“Have you seen any childe who’s so wise and brave like me?!” Gu Tingye pretended to be angry while goggling at Minglan, “Save the nonsense, you want to go or not!”
“Yes, yes, yes!” Minglan replied quickly, being transported with joy, “Everybody says that the crisp fried pigeon and Buddha Skipping Wall in the Heaven Delicious Tower are the best in the capital. But I never have the chance to have a taste.” Heaven Delicious Tower was a famous restaurant in the capital. Only the nobility or the important officials could go there. There were private rooms upstairs for women to treat their guests. Wang shi had taken Rulan there, Concubine Lin had also taken Molan there. After Hualan had known about that, she had wanted to take Minglan there. However, on the day when they had been about to set off, Hualan’s mother-in-law had made a scene. So Minglan never got a chance to taste the food in that famous restaurant.
Seeing the cheerful look on Minglan’s face, Gu Tingye felt a little bitter inwardly but didn’t show that feeling on his face. Instead, he only held Minglan in his arms and said with a smile, “The capital has the world’s best food. Next time I’ll bring you to other restaurants. The Bean Sauce Fish and the Spicy Pepper Chicken in the ‘World’s Delicacy’ are really unique. Also, the Dongpo Pork and the Honey-Stewed BBQ Pork in the ‘Saliva Pavilion’...” He commented lots of the famous restaurants which he was already very familiar with. In the meantime, Minglan grinned and applauded for him, feeling delighted secretly-- This guy was truly deserved to be called a high-fed childe. If she was his buddy instead of his wife, he might have already taken her to hang out in the red-light district. Maybe she could even hear him ranked the famous whorehouses in the capital according to their service attitude, the charging standard and the quality of the goods.
“But...” Something occurred to Minglan’s mind suddenly. Then she said hesitantly, “It’s already late. Will there be place for us in the Heaven Delicious Tower?” If she was a man, she wouldn’t mind sitting in the hall. However, in the ancient times, it was inappropriate for women to show their faces in public. So Minglan wasn’t sure if there was a private room for them at this moment.
Gu Tingye was in the middle of his passionate speech. Hearing Minglan’s question, he raised his head and said proudly, “Who do you think I am? Even if there isn’t a table for us, I’ll make them have one!”
He sounded like the brave Robin Hood while saying that. Minglan took a tumble right away. She couldn’t blame herself for having a poor imagination. In her previous life, she hadn’t even had a chance to see a living bigwig before she died as in the line of duty. After she had been reincarnated in a new body, her father who treasured his reputation a lot never dared to overstep his authority. So Minglan never realized that she would have the chance to enjoy privileges in this life.
With excitement on her face, she put her two chubby hands on Gu Tingye’s arms. After that, she approached to him joyfully with shiny light flashing in her eyes and stammered, “Can we, can we, we... drive away the other customers in the Heaven Delicious Tower and sit at their table?”
“I can even drive away the cook of the Heaven Delicious Tower and let you cook the fish soup there!” Gu Tingye chuckled and said that. Then he rolled his eyes to Minglan and sniffed, “Think of your identity! Stop being so naive.”
With a twinkle in Minglan’s eyes, she got even more enthusiastic. She tried her best to keep herself from stammering, “Then, then... can we eat the meal for free?” Doing a ‘dine and dash’ was the second mission for the rich guys in all the TV dramas. As for the first mission, there was no need to ask!
Gu Tingye was almost choked by his own saliva. After he had stared at Minglan for almost a quarter, he heaved a deep sigh, “My wife, why can’t you be less naive, even for a little bit?”
“Haven’t I told you that I could go back by myself? Why did you come?”
Inside of the coach which was paved with mineral blue mat, Minglan held a tea pot in her arms while questioning that in a low voice with a straight face.
Since it was less than a month that Hai shi had given birth to the baby, so most of the guests who attended the Three Shower Day ceremony here were women. Also, according to the tradition, there wouldn’t be a feast either. Wang shi only invited the guests to have lunch in the mansion. After these women had rested for a short while after the lunch, they all left one after another. As Minglan was about to bid her farewell, Gu Tingye arrived at Sheng’s mansion. He chatted with Sheng Hong for a while and then took leave with Minglan.
Right now Gu Tingye didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. When he had arrived at Sheng’s mansion to pick his wife, Minglan had suggested meaningfully with a bashful look on her face, ‘Honey, it’ll be so tired riding horses back and forth. Let’s take the coach back.”
Seeing Minglan’s rosy cheeks and watery eyes, Gu Tingye got hot-headed right away and got on the coach excitedly. However, little did he know that Minglan would pour cold water right on his enthusiasm...
“I just dropped by, what’s the matter?” Gu Tingye found Minglan’s anxious look quite interesting. He, feeling his fingers quite itchy, really wanted to pinch her.
“You think I don’t know about the roads?” Minglan, feeling her intelligence being humiliated, placed three tea cups on the table right away. “The imperial city is here, our mansion is here and Sheng’s mansion is here... How’s it possible for you to drop by at Sheng’s mansion?!”
Minglan scaled down the whole city on the table. Gu’s mansion and Sheng’s mansion were situated respectively in the first and second ring roads of the capital. Gu Tingye’s workplace was in the central government.
As Gu Tingye watched Minglan arranging the tea cups with her bulging face like a child who was building blocks, he finally couldn’t help but pinch Minglan’s cheek. Then he said with a smile, “After the Morning Report, I accompanied Old General Bo to make a tour at the military camp on the Western Mountain. When I saw it was about time, I went to pick you then... Isn’t is a good thing that I could back you up in your family?”
“Not so good.” Minglan held her face while saying seriously, “You better treat me more indifferently in front of everyone else. As long as you fulfill your duty as a husband, I don’t need you to express your concern to me when there are other people around.”
Gu Tingye, being startled, stared at Minglan in surprise. He still remembered that at that year, he hadn’t picked Yu Yanhong at her family, she had nearly torn down the roof-- By the way, his first marriage really had given him a lot of lessons.
“Haven’t you seen Madam Wang, my aunt and my sisters’ faces just now? Look how sulky they were!” Luckily, Wen Yanjing was still a sensible man. One day when he had got off work early from the Imperial Academy, he had rushed to the mountain on purpose to pick his wife who had prayed there. Therefore, Rulan had seemed to be fine with Gu Tingye’s presence. After she had sung her own praises, she had only teased at Minglan for a short while.
Seeing the shocking expression on Gu Tingye’s face, Minglan explained for him patiently, “I’m not Madam Wang’s biological daughter. Not only have I married to a more prestigious family than my sisters, I have also been ennobled and lived independently. Now, even my husband treats me so well, I’m like the one who has it all! There’s no such great thing like that. Jealousy will create resentment. And in the end, I’ll only be wronged by them for no reason!”
This was the first time Gu Tingye had heard of the principle in dealing with women. Having pondered for a while, he suddenly reminded of the woman with a mean appearance who had stood beside Wang shi. He heard others call her ‘Aunt Kang’. Also, he remembered seeing hostility in that woman’s eyes. Then he looked at Minglan and said in a heavy voice, “Someone has... envied you? Bullied you?”
Minglan shook her head, answering, “The less trouble, the better. One should always be able but modest. They are all my families; it’ll be the best if our living standards are almost the same. I don’t want to be the exceptional one of my family. That’s the first reason. Second, if others see you value me a lot, they will definitely ask me for help. Should I help them if they want your help with their promotions, they evaluations or other things like their recommendations?"
Minglan, as a married woman, knew that she should always keep a low key in front of her families. She never had the intention to show off or brag about herself even if she was living a prospering life now. Otherwise, the people who wanted to borrow money, ask to stay, ask favors, ask for everything would come one after another... And as long as she was reluctant to agree to these commands, she would be sneered fiercely with extremely sarcastic words-- That was what showing off in front of everyone would bring!
After Gu Tingye had been in a daze for a long while, he said hesitantly, “So... I shouldn’t care about you so much when we are in Sheng’s mansion?”
“That’s right.” Seeing him finally being enlightened, Minglan put on a joyful look, saying, “It would be better if you can be strict and even fierce to me.”
Gu Tingye looked at Minglan, being still unable to understand, “Wouldn’t you be embarrassed?”
“Will you scold me when the elders tell me off?” Minglan asked smilingly.
“No.” Gu Tingye denied that right away.
“Will you limit my power when I handle the family affairs?
“Why would I do that?!” Gu Tingye burst into laughter.
“Will you forbid me to make new clothes, jewelries, or do things I want to do?”
“As long as you don’t have any evil thoughts, you can do everything!” Gu Tingye said that with a stern look on his face but a smile in his eyes.
Minglan waved her sleeves and held her husband’s strong arms fawningly, saying with a smile, “That’s it. I know you treat me well, that’s all I need. Vanity means nothing to me! If the other people think that you are hard upon me, they might treat me even better!”
With light flashing in Gu Tingye’s eyes, he raised his eyebrows and dragged Minglan toward him smilingly. As he held Minglan’s hands in his hands, he said with a smile, “Let me summarize it for you. You mean, you want your husband to put a white and tender sheepskin on your cunning fox body, right?”
Minglan winked her two big and clear eyes, seeming quite innocent and native, “Honey, you are a commander. Why don’t you use the art of war as a metaphor? It’s called, ‘Enemy in the light, me in the dark. That is the best situation.”
Gu Tingye who never realized that she would talk about art of war found her both funny and annoying. He dragged Minglan into his arms and hugged her tightly. The girl could only whine like a newborn feast and make little struggles. As he nuzzled her neck and shoulders, he felt her tender skin and smelled her fragrance while chuckling in a low voice.
While he raised his head, he smiled and asked, “How’s the lunch?”
Minglan covered her hair and wriggled out of his strong arms, trying her best to maintain her make up, “I seldom come back to my parents’ family. How could I eat my fill like a hungry wolf.”-- Let alone that the mean Aunt Kang had sat opposite to her.
“That’s great! Old General Bo had this rule for forty years that the commanders should eat the same things with the solders in the military camp. I said that I wanted to see the armory as an excuse and went out. So I haven’t eaten anything yet! Let me bring you to the Heaven Delicious Tower to have a nice meal!” Gu Tingye laughed loudly and said that.
Minglan, with a scornful look on her face, pointed the man with her slender index finger. Then she spoke in a soft voice on purpose with dimples showing on her face, “You high-fed childe, I see you unable to endure any hardship. Aren’t you afraid that Old General Bo would punish you fiercely after he knew about that?”
“Have you seen any childe who’s so wise and brave like me?!” Gu Tingye pretended to be angry while goggling at Minglan, “Save the nonsense, you want to go or not!”
“Yes, yes, yes!” Minglan replied quickly, being transported with joy, “Everybody says that the crisp fried pigeon and Buddha Skipping Wall in the Heaven Delicious Tower are the best in the capital. But I never have the chance to have a taste.” Heaven Delicious Tower was a famous restaurant in the capital. Only the nobility or the important officials could go there. There were private rooms upstairs for women to treat their guests. Wang shi had taken Rulan there, Concubine Lin had also taken Molan there. After Hualan had known about that, she had wanted to take Minglan there. However, on the day when they had been about to set off, Hualan’s mother-in-law had made a scene. So Minglan never got a chance to taste the food in that famous restaurant.
Seeing the cheerful look on Minglan’s face, Gu Tingye felt a little bitter inwardly but didn’t show that feeling on his face. Instead, he only held Minglan in his arms and said with a smile, “The capital has the world’s best food. Next time I’ll bring you to other restaurants. The Bean Sauce Fish and the Spicy Pepper Chicken in the ‘World’s Delicacy’ are really unique. Also, the Dongpo Pork and the Honey-Stewed BBQ Pork in the ‘Saliva Pavilion’...” He commented lots of the famous restaurants which he was already very familiar with. In the meantime, Minglan grinned and applauded for him, feeling delighted secretly-- This guy was truly deserved to be called a high-fed childe. If she was his buddy instead of his wife, he might have already taken her to hang out in the red-light district. Maybe she could even hear him ranked the famous whorehouses in the capital according to their service attitude, the charging standard and the quality of the goods.
“But...” Something occurred to Minglan’s mind suddenly. Then she said hesitantly, “It’s already late. Will there be place for us in the Heaven Delicious Tower?” If she was a man, she wouldn’t mind sitting in the hall. However, in the ancient times, it was inappropriate for women to show their faces in public. So Minglan wasn’t sure if there was a private room for them at this moment.
Gu Tingye was in the middle of his passionate speech. Hearing Minglan’s question, he raised his head and said proudly, “Who do you think I am? Even if there isn’t a table for us, I’ll make them have one!”
He sounded like the brave Robin Hood while saying that. Minglan took a tumble right away. She couldn’t blame herself for having a poor imagination. In her previous life, she hadn’t even had a chance to see a living bigwig before she died as in the line of duty. After she had been reincarnated in a new body, her father who treasured his reputation a lot never dared to overstep his authority. So Minglan never realized that she would have the chance to enjoy privileges in this life.
With excitement on her face, she put her two chubby hands on Gu Tingye’s arms. After that, she approached to him joyfully with shiny light flashing in her eyes and stammered, “Can we, can we, we... drive away the other customers in the Heaven Delicious Tower and sit at their table?”
“I can even drive away the cook of the Heaven Delicious Tower and let you cook the fish soup there!” Gu Tingye chuckled and said that. Then he rolled his eyes to Minglan and sniffed, “Think of your identity! Stop being so naive.”
With a twinkle in Minglan’s eyes, she got even more enthusiastic. She tried her best to keep herself from stammering, “Then, then... can we eat the meal for free?” Doing a ‘dine and dash’ was the second mission for the rich guys in all the TV dramas. As for the first mission, there was no need to ask!
Gu Tingye was almost choked by his own saliva. After he had stared at Minglan for almost a quarter, he heaved a deep sigh, “My wife, why can’t you be less naive, even for a little bit?”
