“Where’s my elder brother?”
Qin Yue craned his neck and looked around.
“Your brother went out. He’ll be back later,” Qinghe replied coldly.
Qin Yue sneered inwardly.
He had already heard that his elder brother and Zhou Ye had gone into the mountains carrying their packs.
That meant they wouldn’t be back for several days.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have come.
It seemed this new sister-in-law wasn’t fond of him, and she was even trying to deceive him.
But it didn’t matter. He hadn’t come to get close to her anyway.
Patting the large bundle in his arms and raising a cloud of dust, he said,
“Sister-in-law, thanks to my elder brother, I can no longer attend the academy from today onward. I’ll have to study at home from now on.”
Qinghe looked at him indifferently.
“So?”
Her gaze fell on the bundle in his hands. It looked as thick as a quilt.
Had Madam Qin finally found her conscience and sent something over to Qin Xiao?
Unfortunately, Qinghe was destined to be disappointed.
Qin Yue walked into the main hall and placed the bundle directly onto the Eight Immortals table, right on top of the wedding robe Qinghe had only half finished.
His behavior immediately made her frown in disgust.
When the bundle was opened, dozens of men’s robes in different colors spilled out. They all reeked of sweat.
Covering her nose, Qinghe retreated two steps.
“What is this?”
Straightening his back and putting on the refined demeanor of a scholar, Qin Yue clasped his hands behind him.
“These are the clothes I changed out of during the past half month at the academy.”
“In the past, Mother washed them for me. Now that Elder Brother has married you, it is naturally the duty of the eldest sister-in-law to do so.”
“I’ll trouble you to wash them and deliver them back home.”
With that, he left, unable to hide the smug satisfaction on his face.
Today it was laundry.
As long as she complied, then during the autumn harvest a few days later, she would also be expected to work in the fields.
Zhou Sui hurried inside and grabbed Qinghe’s hand.
“Sister-in-law, are you really going to wash them for him?”
Qinghe smiled slyly.
“Of course. Why wouldn’t I? As the eldest sister-in-law, isn’t it only proper for me to help my unmarried younger brother-in-law wash his clothes?”
Though Zhou Sui could clearly hear the unwillingness in her tone, she had been preparing to encourage Qinghe to storm the Qin family’s new residence and make a scene, letting the entire village see that this so-called scholar couldn’t even wash his own clothes.
Embarrassing Qin Yue would hit him where it hurt most, his pride.
But Qinghe’s smile deepened, and her eyes sparkled with undisguised mischief.
“Zhou Sui, help me with something.”
After hearing her instructions, Zhou Sui abandoned her archery and boxing practice, grabbed her tools, and cheerfully headed into the mountains.
As for Qinghe, she really did take those filthy clothes to the small pond behind the house.
Only, her washing was extremely perfunctory.
A quick rinse in water, and that was all.
By evening, the clothes had dried.
Qinghe folded them neatly and carried them to the Qin family’s new home.
She didn’t enter the house.
Standing respectfully outside the courtyard gate, she handed the clothes to Madam Qin.
When she noticed passersby nearby, she deliberately raised her voice.
“Mother, if there are more clothes to wash at home, please bring them over. Your daughter-in-law will definitely clean them thoroughly.”
The incident of Madam Qin slapping her new daughter-in-law was still fresh gossip in the village.
Now, seeing the young bride voluntarily coming over to take on household chores, anyone witnessing the scene would praise her inwardly as a good daughter-in-law.
After returning home, Zhou Sui had just finished her boxing practice. Her eyes shone as she rushed over and linked arms with Qinghe.
“Well? Well? Did they suspect anything?”
Recalling Madam Qin’s smug expression, as though she had already gained complete control over her, Qinghe smiled.
“Probably not. Now, let’s just wait for the show to begin.”
“Come on, let’s make dinner. What do you want to eat? I’ll cook for you.”
“I want cured pork steamed rice!”
…
“Mother, why isn’t there any meat today?”
Rubbing his stomach, Qin Yue looked unhappily at the ingredients Madam Qin had prepared on the stove.
He had come up with such a brilliant idea and helped Mother vent her anger. The least she could do was buy him some meat.
Last time, she had gone to rob someone else’s belongings and even hit them.
How crude.
His elder brother was already twenty-four years old. The money he earned could be claimed, but outright robbery was too disgraceful.
People would only laugh at them.
Wasn’t this new sister-in-law skilled at hiding needles in cotton?
As though he couldn’t do the same.
Since she had become a daughter-in-law of the Qin family, she naturally had to shoulder the family’s chores.
Madam Qin pointed toward a bucket nearby.
“There is meat, there is. I bought a big carp today. We’ll braise it later.”
The family was running short on money. Fish was cheaper than pork, so her youngest son would have to make do.
“Oh, right, Yue’er. In a few days, during the harvest, if your elder brother still hasn’t returned, will that slave-born wife of his be able to help?”
Judging by her delicate skin and tender flesh, she certainly didn’t look like someone accustomed to farm work.
She probably wouldn’t even be able to stand steadily in the rice paddies.
Qin Yue casually tossed a handful of peanuts into his mouth.
“Whether she wants to or not isn’t up to her. It’ll take you a while to finish cooking, Mother. I’m going to bathe first. After climbing the back mountain, I’m covered in sweat.”
Entering his room to get a change of clothes, he unconsciously rubbed the fabric of his undergarments.
Just thinking that these underpants had been washed by his delicate and beautiful sister-in-law made his heart itch.
His elder brother truly had good fortune, marrying such a heavenly beauty.
If only he would die in the mountains and be eaten by a tiger.
Then he could…
Naturally take care of that helpless woman.
The room was dim, and with his mind full of filthy thoughts, Qin Yue failed to notice the ink stains that hadn’t been washed clean.
All he could sense was a faint fragrance clinging to the clothes, one that inspired endless fantasies.
After dinner, Qin Yue took a walk and wandered to the western end of the village.
Looking at the golden waves of rice swaying in the wind, he prepared to recite a poem.
He had barely uttered the words “beautiful lady” when his brows knitted together.
“Hiss…”
Why was it so itchy?
The itch burrowed beneath his skin with a tingling burning sensation, as though thousands of ants were crawling all over him.
And it was coming from that unspeakable area.
Unable to resist, his hand moved downward to scratch.
Feeling it improper, he looked around and noticed several people working in the fields.
Not even bothering to return home, he rushed into a patch of reeds, lifted his robe, and pulled down his trousers to inspect himself.
At that exact moment, a young woman carrying a basket happened to pass by.
Seeing the scene before her, she screamed and covered her eyes.
“Ah!”
“Pervert! Rogue! Taking off your pants outside and playing with your little bird!”
“My eyes are ruined!”
“Father! Father! Someone’s acting like a hooligan!”
Startled, Qin Yue hurriedly pulled up his trousers and ran home while enduring the unbearable itch.
“Father! Father! I’m sick!”
This kind of problem wasn’t something he could discuss with Madam Qin, so he sought out Master Qin instead.
Master Qin had just finished bathing.
Seeing his son running home clutching his crotch, his expression twisted, and he immediately realized the seriousness of the matter.
Father and son examined the problem inside the room.
Large patches of red rashes covered the area, and some places had been scratched raw and were even oozing fluid.
“Hurry! Go see a doctor! I’ll rent a cart for you.”
But before Master Qin could step outside, Butcher Zhang arrived with his daughter blocking the doorway.
Pulling Zhang Xiangqiao along, he asked,
“Tell me, wasn’t it Qin Yue who acted indecently in front of you?”
“It was him!”
Zhang Xiangqiao pointed angrily.
“When he saw me, he blocked my path and took off his pants. Father, we can’t let him off!”
She had been gathering pig fodder that day and decided to take a shortcut home.
Passing through the reeds, she saw Qin Yue with his trousers down.
Even after noticing her, he still didn’t put them back on and continued examining himself repeatedly.
She had become convinced.
Qin Yue had been lusting after her all along.
Knowing her family was wealthy, he wanted to marry her and have her father support his studies, so he had deliberately tried to seduce her.
Originally, she had liked Qin Yue.
He was fair-skinned and educated, unlike the other village men.
If he wanted to pursue her, she had no objection, and she had even considered taking the initiative herself.
But after seeing that thumb-sized little sparrow, all such thoughts vanished instantly.
Marrying someone like him would ruin her entire life.
No matter what happened, she had to shift all responsibility onto Qin Yue in order to preserve her own reputation.
As soon as the argument broke out, the entrance to the Qin family home was instantly surrounded by villagers.
Some even arrived carrying their rice bowls.
Watching the commotion while eating somehow made even plain food taste better than meat.