Embroidered Phoenix Chronicle

Ruiqian was about to turn towards the gate when he suddenly saw Liu Ye'er standing not far away outside his sister-in-law's door. He quickly went over, clasped his hands in a salute, and returned the salute with a lingering gesture. He said solemnly, "Third brother, please have some self-respect!"

"What do you mean? Just because I chatted with you a little? You heartless scoundrel! Are you afraid of that fool? Aren't you supposed to be incredibly audacious?"

"Third Brother, you're a married man now, so don't do anything suspicious! Otherwise, I'll never see you again!" With that, he curtsied and turned to leave. Ruiqian, furious, lashed the ground with his whip. Xiao De'er followed behind him, pleading in a low voice, "Young Master, Seventh Miss's life isn't easy. If there's any gossip, it could be the death of her! You two aren't meant to be! At least exchange glances. If you arouse the Young Mistress's suspicion, how can she stay in our house? Then you might not even be able to see her!" Ruiqian glanced at him, said nothing, and walked out with his whip.

Liu Lian took a basket to the garden and picked half a basket of shepherd's purse, a handful of spinach, and a few scallions. As she was walking back, she suddenly heard a dry cough, stopped in her tracks, and turned around to see Gong Jianyun. She was puzzled, "Brother Gong? How come it's you? It's been so long! I heard you had a son, and I haven't congratulated you yet!" As she spoke, she solemnly straightened her clothes and curtsied.

"Seventh Miss, you're too kind! Go visit Xiangxiang when you have time; she misses you two sisters!"

"Great! Brother Gong, who are you...?"

"Today we're welcoming Miss Feng back to her parents' home! The Feng family doesn't have many relatives or friends in this area, so Master sent me with a few people!" Gong Jianyun said calmly. He had let Liu Ye'er down and felt ashamed to face her. Seeing that Liu Ye'er didn't seem to care, let alone resent or scold him, he felt terrible. Xiangxiang, having given birth to a son, was now very assertive and determined to regain her lost face, pressuring him to send invitations to Liu Ye'er and Xiu Luan. Gong Jianyun knew what she was up to and didn't respond, but seeing Liu Ye'er, he couldn't help himself and blurted it out. Liu Ye'er readily agreed, but he felt no joy at all; his heart was ice-cold!

"Today is the 16th, tomorrow is the 17th, not a good day. Let's go and bother them the day after tomorrow, maybe it won't just be the two of us!"

"Thank you for your trouble, Miss Seven!" Gong Jianyun cupped his hands in greeting. "The streets have been quite unsettled lately, with starving refugees everywhere. Young ladies, please be extra careful when you go out!"

"Thank you, Brother Gong!" She turned and left without a trace of lingering affection. Gong Jianyun stared at her retreating figure, a lump in his throat making it hard to breathe. One of the constables who had come with him nudged him, "Chief Gong, is this the doctor's daughter? Tsk tsk tsk, what a pity! Boss, does she have a husband yet?"

"Get lost!" Gong Jianyun cursed irritably. "Tell the brothers not to wander around. This is a respectable family! Clean up your act! Don't talk back to their maids! If anything gets back to the master, I can't protect you!"

"Yes, yes, yes! Boss, that little girl looks pretty fierce, not as lucky as your wife!" Gong Jianyun pretended to kick him to drive him away.

Liu Lian instructed Cui Cui to pick shepherd's purse and chop minced meat, preparing to make two bowls of shepherd's purse soup dumplings. Xiu Luan ran over with her hair down—these past few days, Madam Xu hadn't had time to look after her, so Xiu Luan often sneaked over to find Liu Ye'er, asking her to style her hair in a unique way, as usual. Seeing her flushed face, radiant with spring, and often giggling to herself, Liu Lian couldn't help but shake her head inwardly, knowing she'd most likely run into Young Master Liang! Poor silly girl! Knowing her fickle nature, she couldn't persuade her—Feng Xian had also warned Liu Lian not to meddle in other people's business!

"Luan'er, I just ran into Gong Jianyun. He said Xiangxiang misses us a lot and wants to invite us to his house to see her and congratulate her!" Xiu Luan turned her head and glared at her!

"Aren't you ashamed?! I'm speechless! Have you already agreed? Don't you feel uncomfortable?"

Fengxian, who was looking at the patterns, interjected, "Xiaoqi is afraid of offending Gong Jianyun! Besides, Constable Gong saved her twice, so let's give him some face! I won't go. Go to the storeroom and pick out a few patterns as a wedding gift for Xiaoqi and me! Go ask your second and third sisters-in-law if they want to bring anything." As she spoke, she picked out two patterns, put the rest away, and urged them to hurry up.

Xiu Luan rolled her eyes a few times, but remained silent. Liu Lian finished braiding her hair, carefully coiled it, and added a beaded band before washing her hands. Xiu Luan held the mirror, admiring herself from left to right, and then adorned her hair with a pink apricot blossom. After tidying up her makeup, she placed it on Feng Xian's dressing table.

Madam Xu was overjoyed! Just think, her third son, her own flesh and blood, was marrying the county magistrate's daughter—his only daughter. Though born of a concubine, what difference was there between her and a legitimate daughter? From now on, she could rule the county government with impunity! The guest staying in the garden, hearing her in-laws' hesitant and evasive words, realized he was a nobleman—someone of immeasurable importance! He had taken a liking to her Xiu Luan! Ever since Master Lin's death, Madam Xu had considered breaking off the engagement. Heaven had it, wasn't her beautiful daughter destined for a scholar?…

The banquet for the Feng family was lavish. Although Madam Xu was known for being stingy, she was willing to spend money when it came to showing off! The shepherd's purse dumplings served by Liu Ye'er were unassuming, but their freshness made them irresistible. Feng Meiyin's aunt ate several, praising them repeatedly. She took off a pair of red jade bracelets from her wrist and gave one to Liu Ye'er and one to Xiu Luan. Then she praised the old lady for her good fortune, saying that her granddaughters-in-law were eager to have children. "I'm afraid that by the time my Mei'er gives birth, the old lady won't care about babies anymore, she'll find them too noisy!" The old lady was beaming from ear to ear!

After seeing the Feng family off, Liu Lian felt her face was sore from smiling and gently pressed it. Feng Xian lay down sideways and sighed, "I'm exhausted! We were sitting and eating good food, but it felt more tiring than plowing the fields with an ox!"

He lingered, leaning against the opposite side, and said, "You talk as if you've ever tilled the land!"

"Tch, haven't you ever seen a pig run even if you haven't eaten pork? I didn't expect shepherd's purse filling to be so delicious, make some more!" Liu Lian just grunted and didn't bother to open her eyes. Feng Xian rubbed his lower back, "When you go to the Gong family another day, you must be happy. If you lose your teeth, just swallow them. Don't lose face and make a fool of yourself! No matter how good Gong Jianyun is, he's someone else's husband now! Remember that?"

"Okay, I know! Even if your arm's broken, just tuck it into your sleeve! You might as well break your frame!" Liu Lian replied lazily. Feng Xian, furious, slapped her. "Can't you just speak properly! Why do you have to be so vulgar! You've even led me astray!"

Liu Lian seemed to remember something and opened her eyes. "You absolutely must leave your brother-in-law at home the day after tomorrow! Your due date is approaching, and what if... you can't do without a reliable person by your side!"

Fengxian nodded solemnly, forgetting to correct his habit of lingering and speaking in a vulgar manner!