Chapter 66: Duanmu Cui

  It was Chen Shi who had just arrived, with a bandage still wrapped around his head and bloodstains seeping through. He rushed into the main hall, grabbed Hu Lijiang's skirt, and exclaimed, "Lijiang, I'm the one who got the embroidered ball! How could you marry him?"

  Chen Shi had just woken up and heard the servant say that Lijiang Miss was getting married tonight, so he rushed to the front hall without listening to the servant's dissuasion. He wanted to stop Miss's foolish decision and let her know that he was his most beloved and also the one who loved her the most!

  Huli Jing looked at Chen Shi's excited expression and understood his mentality, so she asked kindly: "Are you awake? Does your head still hurt? Remember not to catch a cold." As she spoke, she wrapped her handkerchief around the bloodstain on his forehead. "Go back, you're not the final holder of the embroidered ball, nor are you my choice. Rest well and when you've recovered, find a good girl from a good family to marry."

  Chen Shi buried her face in her hands and sobbed: "No, no, I don't want anyone else, I only want you, I only want you!"

  "Don't be like this, listen to me, I really don't love you, really. If I loved you, with your understanding of me, am I a person who gives up easily? Am I a person who can be bullied by others? There are things that can be tolerated and things that cannot be tolerated, I know the boundaries. Look at my chosen fiancé, in terms of appearance, he is better than you, in terms of talent, he is higher than you. He can abandon his dignity, if it's not self-destruction, then there must be a major hidden reason. I believe in my judgment. I am willing to roam the world with him, share joys and sorrows together. And you, you cannot do that."

  Hu Lijiang's words made Yang Zhong nod frequently. Hu Lijiang's judgment of Chen Shi was accurate and her words were sincere. Chen Shi is not a person who can achieve great things, he can only do well in the position of deputy, he is a talented person but not a brilliant one.

  Chen Shi looked at Hu Lijiang with disappointment, and Hu Lijiang nodded slightly. Chen Shi said, "You'd rather wander the world with a beggar than live a peaceful and comfortable life with me in the countryside?"

  "Yes, I'm willing to follow him. But I want to see how he behaves." Hu Lijiang turned around and looked at the groom: "If you respect my relatives today and acknowledge my actions, bow to them, they are my parents. If you're not willing to kneel down, please leave from here."

  The groom hesitated for a moment, and everyone waited with bated breath to see how he would decide. Hu Lijiang pulled Chen Shi up and said, "Let's become sworn siblings in front of all these people, even if the groom storms off, we won't have any husband-and-wife relationship."

  Chen Shi suddenly became furious and fainted, falling to the ground. Hu Lijiang couldn't catch him in time, and Chen Shi fell to the ground. Hu Lijiang remained calm and called out to her servants: "Someone, send Chen Shi to the guest room to rest, and make sure he is safe."

  I nodded in response, and four people came forward to escort Chen Shi back to the guest room. Looking at the groom, he was also staring at me, Hu Lijiang didn't say a word either, only using his eyes to ask, what's your decision?

  The groom smiled slightly: "Since you are my brother's wife, I should pay my respects. However, I must say this beforehand, when you arrive at my home, I cannot let you be the legitimate wife."

  Everyone found it laughable, "A beggar, yet doesn't want Miss Hu as his legitimate wife, truly speaking without fear of the wind slapping his tongue."

  "You should know that since I'm willing to marry you, I must not care about social status. As long as we get along as husband and wife, everything else is irrelevant."

  The groom said, "Alright, since that's the case, Brother Zhong and Sister-in-law, please take your seats. I'll pay my respects to you." As he spoke, he pulled Hu Lijiang along and gave a deep bow to Yang Zhong and his wife, Hu Yangshi.

  Huyang smiled and said: "Please get up quickly." Yang Zhong also smiled and invited him.

  The husband and wife exchanged bows and entered the bridal chamber. The groom said, "Madam, according to your instructions, we have already paid our respects to Lady Hu Yang. I don't know what your plan is for the next step?"

  "Of course, we've consummated our marriage." She said with a big smile, which made the groom look surprised. "Since that's the case, my wife can rest for a bit while I go out and attend to some matters, I'll be right back."

  Huli Jing sat in the bedroom, thinking about her next move, but actually she had no plan. She would just follow her husband wherever he went. Her husband said they would go somewhere and that was it. The only thing was, she was worried about Chen Shi.

  Chen Shi's desperate expression just now really made her worried. How could she heal Chen Shi's pain and make him forget himself? After thinking for a while, she finally thought of someone who could help Chen Shi get out of his pain.

  Her name is Ren Yuehua, her father works as a steward in the Hu family. They have been neighbors since childhood and grew up together, but after losing his brother, he was sent to Hong Cuishan Villa by his sister-in-law for punishment, so they rarely met. Now, introducing Yuehua to Chen Shi is the only way to prevent him from doing stupid things even if he forgets about himself.

  Today is my big wedding day, and Yuehua has also come to celebrate, so it's easy to find Yuehua. Just now, she was in the main hall, and now she should be outside the door. Quietly walking out of the bedroom, quietly calling a maid to bring her over, Yuehua came in and listened to her words: "I'll go watch him, I can guarantee he won't take his own life, but I can't guarantee he'll forget you. Emotional matters aren't something that can be put down just by saying so. The arrangements here are all set, and Sister Hu Yang is coming over too.

  Look at Hu Lijin's jewelry and fine clothes, and sneer: "Sister, after becoming a beggar, wearing gold and silver doesn't look like it. It's better to leave these things behind and change into linen clothes and wooden hairpins, which will match the identity of the young master." The meaning is very clear, wanting Hu Lijin not to take anything from the Hu mansion when she leaves.

  Huli Jing smiled and said, "That's right, I have these things but they're of no use to me. My husband is a beggar, and if I dress too nicely it will affect his ability to beg for food. Sister-in-law, don't worry, I'll do as you say. I hope in the future you can live a peaceful life and not think about me."

  At this time, the groom also returned and heard Hu Lijiang's words. He knew that Hu Yangshi had come to bully Hu Lijiang again and was angry about to scold Hu Yangshi. Hu Lijiang stopped him: "Sir, since you are a beggar, it doesn't matter where you rest at night. Why don't we just say goodbye to your sister and leave now?"

  The groom saw Hu Lijiang say so and had no choice but to agree. Hu Lijiang took off her beautiful clothes, changed into coarse cloth, removed the pearls from her head, and tied her black hair with only one red ribbon, really not worth a penny.

  The groom supported his wife, and the two of them walked out of the Hu mansion from the back door under the supervision of the sister-in-law, taking advantage of the bright moonlight to walk on the quiet streets.

  "Husband, where are we going to stay tonight?"

  The groom said: "I don't know, let's go to the government post station to spend a night. At least we should have a decent wedding night."

  Huli Jing said: "Everything will be arranged by husband." The two of them walked and talked. Huli Jing said: "Although we have become husband and wife, I still don't know where you are from, what is your surname and name?" This marriage is absurd, my sister-in-law forced herself to do it, and she didn't even ask about the other person's name or hometown. And as for me, I didn't even ask about the other person's background before marrying him.

  The groom said: "At the lower end of Tongmu, Kyoto people." Tongmu is a compound surname, which is rare in Lingbo Province. Hu Lijiang didn't think much of it and just asked: "Tongmu seems to be a compound surname, relatively rare. Which character is your Mu?"

  The groom said: "It's a character of Mu (wood) radical, my father hopes I can be like the willow tree, with many uses."

  "Hu Lijiang said: 'Indeed, it is. It can be used for furniture, carving buildings and other materials; also can make water buckets, steam baskets and so on. Also can replace hemp to make rope or bags. The color of the birch flower honey is light and fragrant, with a lot of sugar. Flowers can be used as medicine. Seeds contain high oil content, can be used for making soap and hardening oil. Indeed, it has many uses.'"

  Du Mu was surprised: "How did you know about the many uses of the birch tree?"

  "Our mountain villa has many such trees, it's well-known."

  Duanmu Zhuang nodded: "I heard that your family is a national supplier of medicinal materials, with branches all over the country, right?"

  Huli Jing said: "Yes, but she belongs to the Hu family, not me. Is it because I am a member of the Hu family that he married me? You also saw that I was..."

  The Hu family is not worth mentioning, and sister-in-law will not give me any benefits."

  Du Mu Dao said: "I certainly wouldn't think that way, I just feel strange, why is your sister-in-law so harsh on you?"

  Huli Jing said: "It's also understandable." Then she told Duanmu Zhu about how her brother had saved her life but sacrificed his own.

  "It turns out that's the case, I said why your sister-in-law looks like she's intentionally picking faults." Du Mu Ci sighed: "The power of hatred is great, it can support a person to harm others in such a way, and still think they are right. It's worth being vigilant."

  Huli Jing smiled and said, "We've already spent the night on the streets ourselves, what else is there to be vigilant about? You're acting like a worried ruler. As the saying goes, 'those who eat meat plan for it.' We don't hold office, so we shouldn't interfere with politics. Instead, let's think about how to get through tonight first."

  "If I can't make my wife and children happy and healthy, I'll feel ashamed. Will you despise me, madam?" asked Duanmu Cui tentatively.

  "Husband, what are you talking about? Since I've already agreed to marry you, I'll follow you through life and death. How could I possibly despise you? I'm not afraid of suffering, as long as it can alleviate my sister-in-law's resentment. My brother was a brilliant and powerful man, but he lost his life because of me. I've always felt guilty towards my sister-in-law, hoping to reduce the guilt in my heart by enduring hardships."

  Duanmu Cai looked at Hu Lijiang with a loving gaze and said, "Your sister-in-law has been tormenting you all these years. You shouldn't have suffered such grievances. I'll ask one question, don't get angry, I see that you clearly have feelings for Chen Shi, so why did you end up marrying me instead?"

  "If I married Chen Shi, I would only bring him suffering. Sister-in-law has been tormenting me and will also torment him. But if I marry you, sister-in-law thinks that I am suffering, perhaps her heart will feel better. This way, Chen Shi won't be implicated either. Besides, I don't have feelings for him, why should he suffer?"

  "I see, but I've observed that Chen Shi's feelings for you are genuine and sincere. He probably can't forget about you." Duanmu Tong thought back to the scene where Chen Shi grasped Hu Li Jing's skirt and begged her pitifully, knowing that his emotions ran deep and couldn't be extricated.

  Hu Lijiang said: "If others like me, I have no way to stop them. If I don't like someone, I also can't force myself. Who can make things clear in emotional matters? I've already sent my good friend to take care of Chen Shi, hoping he'll recover from his injury soon. That's all I can do."

  Du Mu Dao: "So, madam likes me?"

  "I like not to say, but at least I don't dislike. In the future, we should be able to get along, if my husband doesn't dislike me, but I don't have much hope, just hoping that my husband won't abandon me."

  "Milord, why would you say such a thing? I am holding onto the embroidered ball because I like it, how could I possibly abandon my wife?"

  "Hu Lijiang said: 'Master once told me not to fantasize about being the legitimate wife, isn't that a hint that I might be abandoned in the future?'"

  "Madam, don't take things out of context. What I mean is that I already have a legitimate wife, so you can only be my concubine."

  "Hu Lijiang said: "Such a lie can only deceive a three-year-old child, you're a beggar, and yet you have three wives and four concubines, it's simply ridiculous to say so."