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2. This is a fan work and the interpretation represents only the translator’s personal views without any input from the author.
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Outside, the sound of firecrackers going off went on for a spell. It was only after that that the main courtyard door slowly opened, and people bubbled forward, laughing merrily to greet the new couple. The couple was then ushered into the main hall. When the master of ceremonies saw that the auspicious time had arrived, he smiled and his voice rang out sonorously, “The auspicious time has come, may the couple come forward.”
“First bow to the Heavens.”
“Second bow to your parents.”
“Husband and wife, exchange bows.”
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“Zsw xyu ldvla uswa cakeyz nbyxcla.”
G taswr sq uswvbp takddle yde wpblale vbl dlo nswrzl kdvs vblka dlo bsxl. Rv oyp dsv ulv vkxl qsa swvpkelap vs ldvla vbl cakeyz nbyxcla, cwv vblu nswze oykv qsa vblx swvpkel. Ebld ldswtb vkxl bye rypple qsa vbl tassx vs byhl zkqvle vbl hlkz sqq vbl cakel, vblu nswze pvyav vs nzyxsa qsa bkx vs nsxl swv. Xdnl swv, vblu oswze dyvwayzzu pvyav rzukdt bkx okvb okdl.
Ekvb Nkw Fbw’p ralhkswp lmrlakldnl vs twkel bkx, Fbk Ubldt eked’v lhld csvbla vs vau vs dysesdtqsdt. Rdpvlye, bl hlau prsdvydlswpzu oldv yde blzrle bkp lafkwgk qlde sqq vblpl uswvbp. Mbkp vkxl, bl oyp hlau okzzkdt vs es ps, clnywpl bkp sod oleekdt oswze cl byrrldkdt kd ydsvbla qswa pbsav xsdvbp. Ebldlhla bl vbswtbv sq kv, Fbk Ubldt bye y blyeynbl. Tl sdzu bye sdl casvbla, Fbk Ckdt vs blzr bkx czsnj vblx sqq. Tso nswze Fbk Ckdt yzsdl cl ldswtb vs qlde sqq vbkp rynj sq oszhlp? Tl oswze elqkdkvlzu dlle vs elrlde sd bkp fkwgk!
Gryav qasx Fbk Ubldt’p sod zkvvzl nsdpkelayvksdp, Nkw Dw’la bye ytykd alnlkhle saelap qasx Tl pbk vs nsxl yde blzr Fsdt Zys elqzlnv sqq wdoydvle yvvldvksd. Gnvwyzzu Tl pbk oyp pvkzz y zkvvzl osaakle. Fbl eked’v jdso kq y rlapsd qasx pwnb y ralpvktkswp bswplbsze nswze yefwpv vs zkhkdt okvb vblx?
Ebld Nkw Dw’la nyxl vs vblka dlo assxp, pbl pyo bla qyxkzu’p vos plahydv tkazp yv vbl essaoyu. Ebld vblu pyo bla yaakhl, vblu bwaaklezu nwavpkle, “Ykpp.”
Nkw Dw’la rywple qsa y xsxldv clqsal dseekdt yv vblx vs ts yde yddswdnl bla yaakhyz. Mbl sdl obs bye clld nbspld vs plahl Fsdt Zys oyp y tkaz nyzzle Dkysikdt. Fbl bwaakle kdvs vbl assx yde yddswdnle bla. Fbsavzu vblalyqvla, y 50 sa 60 ulya sze osxyd, ealpple kd y aleekpb casod swvqkv nyxl swv. Fllkdt Nkw Dw’la, pbl iwknjzu pxkzle yde csole. “Mbkp plahydv tallvp vbl Wkapv Zswdt Ykpp.”
Nkw Dw’la iwknjzu oldv qsaoyae vs pwrrsav bla wr clqsal pxkzkdt yde pyukdt, “R nyxl vs hkpkv xu lapys.”
Mbl olv dwapl iwknjzu wpblale bla kd, clqsal pxkzkdt yde pyukdt, “R blyae vbyv vbl Wkapv Zswdt Ykpp oyp y hlau kdvlzzktldv yde clywvkqwz rlapsd. Lso vbyv R’hl plld qsa xuplzq, kv pllxp vbyv vbyv oyp yd wdelapvyvlxldv! Yu Zswdt Ykpp kp hlau zwnju vs byhl usw yp bla mkystwgk. Wasx vseyu sdoyaep, Wkapv Zswdt Ykpp, usw dlle vs blzr xl vyjl nyal sq bla. Fbl kp yqvla yzz….”
“Wet nurse.” Her words were cut off by Song Yao.
Liu Xu’er smiled. She had heard her brother mention that this wet nurse was very loyal, perhaps a bit too loyal. It was natural that she worried her mistress would suffer after marrying over.
She smiled and offered Song Yao a curtsy, “Ersao.”
Song Yao quickly stood up on the red carpeted step and returned her curtsy. “First Young Miss.” Because Song Yao was in a raised position, she towered over her rather awkwardly. Song Yao couldn’t help feeling rather impertinent and embarrassed.
Liu Xu’er smiled, “It’s alright ersao. Just have a seat. I am just here under my mother’s instruction, to help shield you. Village women like to come and crack jokes. Sometimes they come into the bridal chamber to tease new brides.”
Song Yao sat down. Face red, she said, “Many thanks… Please have a seat.”
Liu Xu’er nodded her head and sat down. The wet nurse came forward to offer her bows and smiled, “This old slave’s name is Zhang. My greetings to the First Young Miss.”
Liu Xu’er smiled and nodded, “You can stand. There’s no need to be so formal. I heard my erge say that my ersao had a very loyal wet nurse.”
“Guye is too courteous. I’m only doing what I should.” The wet nurse said. Then she straightened and stood toward the side.
It was only now that Liu Xu’er smiled and looked at Song Yao, “How has ersao been? When we met at the Shi family’s banquet last, everyone in the family kept asking me about ersao’s character and looks. I tried to explain, but my erge still said that that wasn’t even a fraction of what you were like as a person. Everyone in the family is looking forward to meeting you!”
Song Yao immediately flushed when she heard. Shyly, she said, “You flatter me. Your erge… exaggerated. This is embarrassing.”
Liu Xu’er smiled and said, “How was it an exaggeration? It wasn’t exaggerated at all. Ersao is beautiful and has a pleasant temperament. When everyone meets you tomorrow, they would definitely love you. Although we have a lot of people in my family, our relationship with each other is good and it’s easy to get along with everyone. My dage is a very genuine person, while my dasao is very warmhearted. As for me, well… I’m about to get married soon. Hahah, that’s in another four months. Then there’s my didi, he’s a bit naughty, but still quite obedient and sensible. My parents are very good natured… well, my mother can be quite direct, but she’s not petty. So long as you say what you mean, and share your thoughts with her, she will very quickly start to treat you like her own daughter!”
All of this was said in a single breath.
Song Yao was both surprised and delighted. To be honest, she had been very worried she would have a hard time getting along with the family members. But based on what Liu Xu’er said, it seemed that the family was quite easy to get to know? Then again, it was clear from Liu Lin’s behaviour that he came from a very sincere family.
The wet nurse was equally delighted and surprised by what she said,
Right this moment, Xiaoqing came in from outside. Softly, she asked, “Second Young Madam, First Young Miss, the food is ready. Should I serve now?” She had been selected to serve Song Yao, so the family had especially taught her to put the Second Young Madam first in all of her considerations.
Song Yao hesitated, but Liu Xu’er had already started to nod and say, “Tell them to bring it in. They can place it in the room outside.” Then she said to Xiaoqing, “Offer your greetings to the Second Young Madam first.”
So Xiaoqing came forward to bow, while Liu Xu’er smiled and said to Song Yao, “This girl is called Xiaoqing. We just bought her during the New Year. We don’t have many servants in our family, so we bought her for you.”
Xiaoqing quickly bowed and said, “Greetings, Second Young Madam.”
Song Yao quickly said, “Get up… From today onwards, please help me with everything in the house.”
Xiaoqing quickly said, “That’s what I should do.” She saw Liu Xu’er nod her head, and quickly hurried out to call for servants to serve the meal.
Right then, Liu Xu’er turned to glance at the door and coincidentally saw that the wet nurse’s facial expression looked a bit dark. She stood there giving Song Yao a hesitant look. Liu Xu’er was a bit startled, but she immediately understood.
It was probably that the wet nurse had over thought the situation? And had treated their family the same as another prestigious household and therefore assumed that this servant was a deliberate plant from her mother? To control this daughter-in-law?
Liu Xu’er glanced at Song Yao. Song Yao herself didn’t seem to have even thought of it. She saw her glance over and smiled and said, “It was very kind of…. Mother to think of this.”
Her “Mother” was said very hesitantly, but it needed to be said.
Liu Xu’er smiled and nodded her head, “Erge should have told you before that we are originally from the village and are not used to having servants. It’s only been these past two years that we started to have more. The house is large, and there are many rooms. My mum couldn’t manage everything by herself, so we started to slowly add more helpers. And when dasao joined our family, she too was a villager by birth and definitely wouldn’t have servants of her own. To make things easier for my dasao, my mother bought her a servant girl. Now that ersao has also joined our family, we similarly bought you a servant, so that it would be easier for you in future. Your wet nurse is getting old – if there are any chores or errands, you can let Xiaoqing handle them.”
Song Yao hadn’t thought too deeply about the issue, so when she heard her detailed explanation, she was a bit shocked. But Song Yao was someone born to a prestigious household and knew the ways of the inner courtyard. She immediately understood and turned to look at her wet nurse. Seeing the wet nurse’s head hung low, she immediately knew what had happened.
Song Yao quickly smiled and hurried to say, “Mother’s plans are very well thought out. I am just like dasao – we’re not any different….. From today onwards, I too hope to help dasao care for dad and mum. From your description, it sounds as though dasao is a very sweet person – I am really very lucky to be able to have someone like that as my dasao…. Wet nurse, go out and help Xiaoqing serve the meal.”
The wet nurse meekly agreed and went out.
Liu Xu’er knew that this was a little lesson for the wet nurse. It was intended to assure her that the wet nurse’s thoughts earlier were not Song Yao’s intention.
Liu Xu’er smiled and said, “Dasao is indeed a very good person. She wanted to come by as well, but there were a lot of women who came from the village today, so she needed to go and deal with them. She didn’t dare come over in case they tagged along. You should be able to meet her tomorrow.”
Song Yao smiled and nodded, “That’s good.” She mentally sighed in relief. It seemed that her xiaoguzi was not angry.
Liu Xu’er really didn’t have anything to be angry about. The wet nurse was old, and had just seen her precious miss become someone else’s Second Young Madam. Everything was so new – today was just the first day! It was natural she was overprotective.
The wet nurse had laid the table and had come over to let them know. She had brought Song Yao a small bowl of dumplings. After checking with Liu Xu’er, Song Yao devoured the entire bowl.
Liu Xu’er was amused watching her eat. Although this ersao was raised in a prestigious household, she didn’t behave like a pampered, delicate miss. From the looks of things, it seemed that she too was a rather direct person. No wonder her erge’s heart was moved…
Just as she was thinking that, her erge came back! His running footsteps gave Liu Xu’er a fright, because it was clear from the sound that it was a male running toward them. Liu Xu’er had thought that someone had come to naodongfang! She jumped up and prepared to scold the incomer, before noticing that it was Liu Lin!
Liu Xu’er immediately glared at him.
Liu Lin’s body smelt of alcohol. He smiled and pulled her out, “Xu’er, thank you! There’s nothing more here… That’s right, you go and tell Shi Cheng that he must block everyone! Otherwise, I will have my revenge in a few months….” He grinned and pushed Liu Xu’er out the door.
Liu Xu’er stood there dumbly. It took her some time to respond, but by that time, she found herself standing outside the door. Xiaoqing and another servant girl were there with her, along with the wet nurse. The door was already closed.
Both exasperated and amused, she shouted through the door, “Good, good. Erge, you should enjoy your first night. I will get Shi Cheng to block everyone! But you better not forget your promise. If you dare to eat your words…. Hmph, hmph!” She heavily hmphed and under the wet nurse’s dumbstruck gaze, she smiled and brought the other servant girl away with her.
When she arrived at the main courtyard, it was still very lively. Sure enough, Shi Cheng was already at the doorway, guarding it carefully. Everyone was blocked at the door. Liu Xu’er stood at the side watching as he was forced to drink cup after cup of wine. It was only when she saw a young man actually take a soup bowl and fill it with wine that she couldn’t keep calm. She hurriedly ran over and called Liu Sen to assist Shi Cheng.
Liu Sen was unwilling, “I’m still so young! What would happen if I got drunk?”
“You can put on your xiucai airs and refuse to drink! Just use that to block them! Senzi, your jie has never asked you for anything, just take it as me begging you….”
She hadn’t finished when Senzi laughingly ran over. “Alright, jie, but you better not forget it! Today, I pulled out all the stops to help you! If anything were to happen in future, you must stand on my side!”
“Got it.” Liu Xu’er smiled helplessly.
She watched as Liu Sen went over to Shi Cheng and instructed his servant, Xiaodong, to bring a chair over. He sat down and got Xiaodong to stand at his side, guarding the door zealously. Liu Xu’er personally witnessed two half grown lads try and fail to get past him.
Liu Xu’er watched, amused. She mumbled, “This little imp is full of tricks…”
Shi Cheng popped up suddenly. He held his head and moaned, “Oh, I’ve had too much to drink!”
Liu Xu’er quickly ushered him into the room and then went to help him prepare some hangover soup.
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