Embroidered Phoenix Chronicle

As usual, Tang Guihua came to visit Liu Ye'er, and the two sat on the kang (a heated brick bed) chatting and laughing. Guihua was skillful and sweet-talking, and Sixth Sister liked her too, often coming over to chat whenever she had free time. Now, Liu Ye'er's main job was making paper flowers—much cheaper than buying ready-made ones. These were an important part of a girl's dowry, not only for her own use but also as gifts to exchange.

Guihua lived not far away. She was the youngest child in the family and the most favored by her parents. With her sister-in-law taking care of the household chores, she had a very leisurely life. The Huo family had very strict family rules, and Liu Ye'er had a good reputation, so the adults in her family did not forbid her from coming to the Huo family to play. Before long, the two became inseparable.

Liu Lian sensed that Guihua had been restless and absent-minded these past few days, and couldn't figure out what was wrong with her. When they were together, Guihua usually did all the talking, but today she kept hesitatingly asking Liu Ye'er about pregnancy and childbirth. Alarm bells rang in Liu Lian's mind. Even in modern society, premarital pregnancy wasn't something to be ashamed of, let alone in ancient times; it could even lead to being thrown into a pool. Could it be her and Xue Gong? No way, even if they wanted it, they wouldn't have this place, would they? In broad daylight…

Liu Lian tried to change the subject several times, but was pulled back each time. After all, she was once an adult, and her mind was far more mature than that of a fourteen or fifteen-year-old girl. She carefully steered the conversation towards the girl, suggesting that perhaps the girl was under too much pressure and had nowhere to confide in, or perhaps the girl wanted to use her as a messenger. In any case, the girl hadn't changed her clothes for four months. Liu Lian inwardly groaned and called her sixth sister over.

The girls in the Huo family all knew a little about pulse diagnosis. Sixth Sister grabbed her arm, took her pulse, and poked her forehead hard with her finger. "You're so stupid! Seventh Sister, call Father over."

After taking her pulse, Old Man Huo lowered his head and remained silent. After lingering and understanding the diagnosis, he couldn't help but wonder: Guihua lived at home, while Xuegong lived in the front yard of the Huo family. How did the two of them end up together? You know, the Huo family has very strict access control. They would definitely lock the door after dark. The Tang family would never allow their daughter to go out after dark—respectable families would never allow their girls to go out after dark.

Old Man Huo called Xuewen into the house for a private talk, and then called Xuegong in as well. Liulian, who was closely watching the movements in the courtyard through the window, was smacked on the neck by Sixth Sister. Sixth Sister glared at her fiercely and told her to go to the backyard.

In the backyard, Little Tiger and Eldest Brother were taken out to play by Aunt Jiang. Lingering around, bored, Little Tiger picked up a small shoe sole and started sewing it—Little Tiger's feet were like they had teeth, and no number of shoes were enough for him.

At noon, when Liulian returned to the main courtyard for lunch, Guihua had already left. The others didn't mention anything about what happened that morning and ate their meals as if nothing had happened. Liulian was full of questions and could only suppress them with her rice.

The matter was quickly resolved: the Qian family refused to arrange a marriage with the Tang family—those tales of romance and intrigue, where a brocade quilt conceals all the passion, didn't actually come to life. Not only did the Qian family refuse the marriage, but they also had no intention of taking any responsibility—not even as a concubine. The Qian family swiftly took Xue Gong away, or rather, abducted him. Guihua had nowhere to turn; an abortion was dangerous, the fetus was too large, and if she didn't…

The Tang family was in chaos. Guihua, like a frightened little rabbit, huddled in a corner of the room, trembling. The matter was simple: the two young lovers had just had a little affair. The problem now was that the Qian family refused to acknowledge it and even threatened: if the Tang family continued to cause trouble, they would sue them for letting their daughter sell herself into prostitution!

Xuewen, who was mediating between the two sides, was scolded from both sides. He was like a rat in a bellows, and his mouth was covered with blisters. But there was nothing he could do. After all, he couldn't sway his uncle's decision. His uncle had been a government official all his life and had seen all kinds of storms. Xuegong went on a hunger strike and threatened to kill himself. No problem. He would boil a bowl of ginseng soup, pry open his mouth and force him to drink it. Although the Qian family was not rich, they could still afford a few ginseng roots.

Now that things had come to this, perhaps to warn Liu Ye'er, they stopped sending her to the backyard. Liu Lian finally couldn't bear it any longer: Gui Hua could only die or marry far away and then endure a lifetime of humiliation. The problem was that Gui Hua refused to marry far away and was determined to die.

"Brother-in-law, can you find a way to inform Xuegong and tell him to take Guihua away? Why should only Guihua suffer for what the two of them did? No matter where Guihua marries, she will never be able to hold her head high in this life! Unless she marries Xuegong, they can be a perfect match, neither of them should look down on the other!"

"Grandma, you make it sound so easy..."

"How will we know if we don't try? I'll talk to the Tang family, and you can figure something out for Xue Gong. It's better than this awkward situation. Guihua's life is definitely ruined. Do you think Xue Gong can live with himself for the rest of his life?"

Sixth Sister and Xuewen stared wide-eyed at the usually stern and upright old man, finding it unbelievable! They exchanged glances and nodded deeply. It was one thing for Liu Ye'er to be young and ignorant of the hardships of life to spout nonsense, but the old man... well, it was better than watching the two of them commit suicide together. The two little ones might not even be buried together after they died.

Things went smoothly, though it was still dishonorable, but it was better than having their daughter hang herself at the Qian family's doorstep—it was probably the only way to save face. Face was just a trivial matter; the Tang family made their living through manual labor, so whether they were ashamed or not didn't affect their livelihood!

But why send the two children to suffer such hardship? Although the Tang family was poor, they could still support a son-in-law. Guihua's father made the decision to have the son-in-law move in! And so, Xuegong, who was good at scaling walls, stole one hundred taels of silver from his father under the cover of darkness and ran away to the Tang family. The Tang family had an old mansion, which they renovated and decorated, and then invited a few tables of guests to hold the wedding for the two of them.

Xuegong could no longer apprentice under Huo Lang. He wasn't capable of opening his own clinic, and after carrying loads for a few days, he couldn't endure the hardship. So, he naturally started learning to do small business. Old Man Huo found him a master, and he learned the skill of steaming buns. After opening, business was quite good.

The Qian family couldn't hold back any longer. The moment Xuegong ran away, his father knew things were bad. He had been hoping the two would elope while he endured the stomachache, but instead, he'd been tricked by a mere porter. All his skills were useless. Xuewen lay on the kang (heated brick bed), legs crossed, pouting, and said, "Serves him right! Beg me? No way! His son got someone pregnant, what right does he have to scold me? Now he knows he's ashamed, but it's too late..." His uncle had begged him to persuade Xuewen to come back, even promising to let Guihua into the family, but Xuewen wasn't going to help him. He offered a few perfunctory words of advice, and unsurprisingly, was kicked out. Sixth Sister wholeheartedly agreed, nodding approvingly, "Who knows what your uncle is up to! He might trick them back and then do whatever he wants with them!" Sixth Sister was still resentful about the scolding her husband had received a few days ago!