Old Mrs. Zhen sat beneath the eaves, watching Hao Chunniang work and pointing out every place she had not cleaned properly. Hao Chunniang was accustomed to living well; how could she endure such treatment? She truly wanted to drop everything and stop working.
Seeing the expression on Hao Chunniang’s face, Old Mrs. Zhen could tell what she was thinking. After watching her for a while longer, she rose from beneath the eaves and walked to the courtyard gate.
The moment Hao Chunniang saw her leave, she tossed the broom aside and sat down on the bench where Old Mrs. Zhen had been resting.
Old Mrs. Zhen turned her head slightly and saw what Hao Chunniang had done. Suppressing her displeasure, she began chatting with someone passing outside. “Second Sister-in-law Liu, have you just come back from the fields?”
Second Aunt Liu replied, “Yes, I just got back.”
Then she lowered her voice and asked, “How is your new daughter-in-law?”
Old Mrs. Zhen raised her voice. “My daughter-in-law is especially good—she’s so capable. This morning, since she had just gotten married, I took pity on her and didn’t make her cook. But she felt bad about it, so after eating, she went and swept the courtyard of her own accord. No one else’s daughter-in-law is as hardworking as mine.”
Hao Chunniang’s expression froze when she heard this.
Second Aunt Liu glanced at the messy courtyard. Seeing Hao Chunniang resting instead of working, she said, “It doesn’t look very clean.”
Old Mrs. Zhen replied, “She’s just tired. She’ll definitely keep working in a little while. Won’t you, Chunniang?”
Hao Chunniang clenched her fists, then stood up with a smile. “Mother is right. I was just tired and took a short rest. I’ll get back to work now.”
Second Aunt Liu said to Old Mrs. Zhen, “You’re truly blessed. Your son is a good scholar, and your daughter-in-law is so capable.”
When Old Mrs. Zhen saw Hao Chunniang pick up the broom and continue sweeping, she smiled in satisfaction.
“That’s right. I’m in poor health, so it’s fortunate that the younger ones are obedient and sensible.”
Second Aunt Liu was in a hurry to go home and eat. After exchanging a few more words with Old Mrs. Zhen, she left.
Old Mrs. Zhen did not return inside. She continued chatting with the next passerby, praising Hao Chunniang at every opportunity. This left Hao Chunniang no chance to slack off. She worked for the better part of two hours, until she had swept the courtyard clean of the mess left by the wedding feast.
As soon as she finished, Old Mrs. Zhen returned from outside.
“Chunniang, you must be tired after working so hard first thing in the morning. Go rest for a while. It’ll soon be time to make lunch.”
Hao Chunniang had not done any work in a long time, and by now she was so exhausted that she could barely speak. Her steps faltered. She turned to look at Old Mrs. Zhen and, unable to control her emotions, asked unhappily, “I’m making lunch?”
Old Mrs. Zhen acted as though she had noticed nothing and said with a smile, “Of course. Your mother said you’re an excellent cook. Wangzu is a picky eater, so make some tasty dishes. Perhaps he’ll pay a little more attention to you. I’m only doing this for your sake.”
Hao Chunniang opened and closed her mouth, unable to think of what to say. She still needed Old Mrs. Zhen’s help to win Scholar Qian’s heart back. In the end, all she could say was, “I understand,” before turning and going inside.
Behind her, Old Mrs. Zhen smugly smoothed the stray hairs at her temple. How dare a little girl give her that attitude? She would teach her a proper lesson.
Night fell, and the village grew quiet.
While Huo Hanye was out of the room, Su Nuanru wiped herself down with hot water. The previous day, she had just been reborn and was so exhausted that she could barely pull herself together, so she had only washed her feet. Today, now that she had adjusted, she could no longer stand it. After wiping herself down, she felt much more comfortable.
By the time Huo Hanye returned, Su Nuanru had already finished washing.
The two of them extinguished the lamp and climbed into bed.
Although Su Nuanru guessed that the rumor about Huo Hanye was true, lying on the same bed with him still made her nervous and uneasy. Only after they had lain there for a quarter of an hour without any reaction from the person beside her did her tense body finally relax, and she gradually fell asleep.
Hearing the long, steady breathing beside him, Huo Hanye opened his eyes. His gaze was perfectly clear, without the slightest trace of sleepiness. Wisps of fragrance drifted into his nose, disturbing his thoughts and leaving him somewhat unsettled.
Early the next morning, when Su Nuanru woke, Huo Hanye was long gone. She had slept late again. In the past, she had slept uneasily in the Qian household and always woke early. Yet for some reason, although she was clearly afraid of Huo Hanye now, she slept deeply.
After getting up, she apologized repeatedly, but Old Mrs. He showed no displeasure at all. Instead, she comforted her with a few words, which made Su Nuanru feel even more embarrassed.
“Hanye has gone to town to buy some things,” Old Mrs. He said. “Wash up first. We’ll be eating soon.”
“All right,” Su Nuanru replied.
Before long, Huo Hanye returned, and the Huo family sat down to eat.
Today was the day of the bride’s homecoming visit. Since Su Nuanru and Huo Hanye were from the same village, they did not need to leave early. After breakfast, the two of them tidied themselves up and then carried the gifts out the door.
They had barely taken a few steps when Old Mrs. He called Huo Hanye back.
Su Nuanru could tell that her mother-in-law had something to say to her husband, so she tactfully took the gifts and went outside.
By coincidence, someone else came out of the opposite house at the same time.
This was not the coincidence Su Nuanru thought it was. Hao Chunniang had done it deliberately. She had been standing in the courtyard for some time, keeping watch on what was happening across the road. The moment she saw Su Nuanru appear, she came out of her house.
In her previous life, when Huo Hanye accompanied her on her homecoming visit, they had brought only one jin of eggs and five jin of flour. The gifts Su Nuanru had taken back to her parents’ home, however, had been twice as much. The villagers had mocked her behind her back more than once. For quite some time, she and her parents had been unable to hold their heads up in the village.
In this life, the Qian family had prepared two jin of eggs and ten jin of flour. At her insistence, they had also added a packet of tea. The gifts she was carrying were even more plentiful than those Su Nuanru had taken home in her previous life.
She had deliberately waited for Huo Hanye and Su Nuanru to leave before coming out, all so she could show off in front of Su Nuanru and, incidentally, watch her make a fool of herself.
When Hao Chunniang caught sight of the eggs and flour in Su Nuanru’s hands, the corners of her lips lifted. As expected, the Huo family had prepared the same things as before. So what if Huo Hanye liked Su Nuanru? Their family was so poor they could barely scrape by. They could not produce anything of value at all.
“Lady Su, you’re taking only this little bit home for your bride’s homecoming visit?”
Su Nuanru looked at Hao Chunniang across the road. Since her rebirth, this was the first time she had seen her. Hao Chunniang’s clothing was not as luxurious as it had been the last time Su Nuanru saw her in her previous life, but her expression was even smugger.
Ever since her entire family had returned from the capital, Su Nuanru had clearly sensed Hao Chunniang’s dislike of her. Not only that, but at times there had even been a strange hostility in her manner. As far as Su Nuanru knew, she had never offended Hao Chunniang, and she truly could not understand why Hao Chunniang treated her this way.
Later, both of them married. Although their husbands’ families lived opposite each other, they rarely spoke in daily life.
At that moment, Su Nuanru did not want to say anything more to Hao Chunniang and simply answered, “Mm.”
Just then, Scholar Qian emerged from behind Hao Chunniang, carrying a large pile of things and grumbling, “I can’t carry all this by myself. Hurry up and give me a hand.”
The smile on Hao Chunniang’s face stiffened, but because Su Nuanru was standing across from her, she maintained it. She turned toward Scholar Qian, wrapped her arms around his arm, and said coquettishly, “I’d like to help, but didn’t I get tired last night?”
Scholar Qian’s face reddened. Hao Chunniang had clung to him again the previous night, and he had been unable to resist. At that moment, he was too embarrassed to ask her to carry anything.
“Forget it. I’ll carry it myself. Stop bringing that sort of thing up all the time.”
“All right, I know,” Hao Chunniang said. “Thank you, Father and Mother, and my husband, for preparing so many things for me.”
Scholar Qian was very pleased by those words and said nothing more.
After soothing Scholar Qian, Hao Chunniang looked smugly at Su Nuanru across the road. “Lady Su, we’ll be going first.”
Only then did Scholar Qian notice that Su Nuanru was standing opposite them, watching the two of them. His expression changed, and he tried to pull his arm out of Hao Chunniang’s grasp. However, his hands were full, and Hao Chunniang was holding on tightly, so he failed to free himself.
In the courtyard, Old Mrs. He instructed her son, “This is the first time you and A-Ru are going to your father-in-law’s home since getting married. Once you arrive, be diligent and help with the work. Don’t always wear such a cold expression, or your father-in-law will feel uncomfortable seeing it.”
“Mm. I’ll remember, Mother,” Huo Hanye replied.
Old Mrs. He gave her son a few more instructions.
When Huo Hanye heard the commotion outside, he said goodbye to Old Mrs. He and hurried out.
As soon as he stepped outside, he saw the two people opposite him squabbling. He merely glanced at them before looking away and turning toward Su Nuanru. He took the flour from her hands. Just as he was about to free one hand to take the eggs she was holding in her other hand, Su Nuanru stopped him.
“Both your hands are already full. I can carry the eggs.”
Huo Hanye refused. This little bit was as light as a feather to him and hardly weighed anything. He placed the wine and flour in one hand, then took the basket from Su Nuanru with the other.
Su Nuanru did not continue arguing with him over such a minor matter.
Hao Chunniang felt thoroughly humiliated when Scholar Qian refused to cooperate. Seeing Huo Hanye take the things from Su Nuanru of his own accord made her even more uncomfortable. Comparing people really could drive someone to fury.
The instant Hao Chunniang saw what Huo Hanye was carrying, her anger intensified.
“What are you carrying?”
Huo Hanye thought this woman must truly have something wrong with her. What did what he was carrying have to do with her? And the tone in which she spoke was far too strange. He glanced at Hao Chunniang, then turned his head away without even bothering to answer.
Seeing Su Nuanru look toward the opposite house, he shifted the basket to his other hand, freeing one hand to take hers.
Su Nuanru’s hand was suddenly clasped in someone else’s. She stared for a moment, then withdrew her gaze and looked at Huo Hanye, confusion in her eyes. Why had he suddenly taken her hand?
Huo Hanye offered no explanation. “Let’s go.”
Su Nuanru tugged at her hand.
Not only did Huo Hanye not let go, he tightened his grip. He fixed his eyes on Su Nuanru.
“Come on. We shouldn’t keep your parents waiting too long.”
Su Nuanru was somewhat afraid of Huo Hanye. Seeing him look at her like that, she did not dare struggle again. Besides, she did not want the two people across the road to watch them make fools of themselves.
“Mm.”
When Huo Hanye saw that Su Nuanru was no longer resisting, he loosened his grip and stopped holding her so tightly.