Chapter 47 - The warning
Chapter 47 The warning
It wasn’t the first time that she encountered concubine Yun’s scheme. However, this time Shu Huan felt particularly tired. She had thought before that after the matter of yesterday, she would be able to spend a few peaceful days. She didn’t expect that a day hadn’t even passed when she was schemed against again.
“I don’t know if it is that you don’t understand or that I haven’t made myself clear enough,” Shu Huan looked concubine Yun in the eyes. “I don’t like schemes. I just don’t like it. I’m not so stupid as to be schemed against so many times and still have no idea what is going on.”
Concubine Yun’s face paled and then turned red. She rushed to argue, “Second young mistress, I didn’t…I was just careless and negligent and forgot to clean up…”
Shu Huan smiled faintly, “If this was said by Qiaoyun, I may have still believed it. You are usually so cautious and careful, would you be negligent and careless?”
Seeing that concubine Yun still wanted to argue, she already raised her hand to stop her, “Of course, without evidence, it was only smashing a teacup and forgot to clean up. If I truly punish you, in the eyes of others, it would be that I am deliberately making things difficult for you and that I am being unreasonable. Don’t worry, I will do as if this matter had never happened. However, no matter whether you were truly careless or faked your carelessness, in the future, don’t commit such error again!”
Concubine Yun bit her lips, lowered her eyes and said, “Thanking second young mistress for the grace of not punishing. Yan will certainly be more cautious next time.”
“No need to thank me. You can also hate me,” Shu Huan said coldly. “But, I will warn you in advance. No matter how good my temper is, I also have a limit. If you want something, go ask the main character. Don’t go into circles and design schemes for me. I only know that if people don’t offend me, I won’t offend them. If I’m bullied too hard, I won’t fight back with schemes, but what I will do is not leave any face for you and make you unable to live peacefully in the future!”
After these words fell, not to mention concubine Yun, even Huiyun widened her eyes and was very surprised.
They had never met someone who acted out of the ordinary like Shu Huan!
Gu household’s madam Lin shi could be considered someone difficult to deal with. However, no matter how much she hated those beautiful concubines and maids to warm the bed, in front of master and outsiders, she had to pretend to be virtuous. She would only act behind the scenes. Now, second young master was still sitting here, this second young mistress put the fights and schemes between the wife and the concubines in the open with no restraint. She even threatened them. Could it be that she wasn’t afraid that second young master would find her too vicious?
Of course, when they sneaked a peek at Gu Xiran, they found out that not only did this second young master not show any dislike for the main wife, instead, he propped his chin and his eyes shone with crystal-clear brightness and looked at the scene with keen pleasure!
“I…,” Concubine Yun still wanted to open her mouth to redeem the image she had in front of second young master.
Who would’ve thought that Shu Huan did as if she didn’t hear it, turned and walked to the inner room? She also dropped, “No need to be surprised. I threatened you. I advise you to keep my words in mind. I wasn’t joking with you!”
At the very least, she wasn’t good-hearted enough to joke with her future and life!
However, after she vented out the words she’d wanted to say for a long time, she felt more comfortable. As for the mess outside, there was Gu Xiran to deal with that. To put it bluntly, wasn’t it all because of this homme fatale that she would repeatedly encounter such dejected things?
While she was blaming the homme fatale, the homme fatale walked in and closed the door. He laughed, “Second young mistress is ferocious!”
“Sorry.” Shu Huan smugly opened the rosewood carved jewelry box on the dressing table. She stared at the small box of jewelry and said, “I also don’t want to embarrass that beloved concubine of yours, but my silent endurance and tolerance only made her actions worst. You know, I am a selfish and vicious person. I can’t take other people’s face as more important than my life. In the future, if she doesn’t change, I wouldn’t mind putting those threatening words into action.”
“I know you won’t go overboard. Do what you want to do. You don’t have to worry about me.” Gu Xiran spoke with a serious face, but while he talked, he reached out from behind her and closed the jewelry box. “As long as you don’t calculate on how to leave me every day.”
“You…,” Shu Huan looked back in surprise. She didn’t know whether he was just saying that or that he really read her mind.
Seeing her surprised face, Gu Xiran smiled slightly, “I’m being serious. I’m not joking with you. Please remember that you are my officially wedded wife. You are not alone. If there is anything you are unhappy about in the future, you can tell me. You don’t have to bear it alone.”
Shu Huan was dumbfounded. She truly didn’t expect that he would say such a thing because from her impression, she thought he would laugh teasingly and then tell her, “If there is anything you are unhappy about in the future, please tell me to let me rejoice…”
Gu Xiran looked at her expression and probed, “I think, I should be deserving of your trust, right?”
He was not wrong!
From the moment she woke up here until now, no matter what had happened, he had protected and trusted her unconditionally…
Shu Huan had long felt tired. Her heart swayed for a moment. She truly wanted to give up, give up on leaving Gu household, give up on leaving him and living alone because that would be very difficult. Besides, she wouldn’t have such good luck again in the future to meet someone who would treat her better than him, who was more outstanding and who was worthy to let her rely on.
It was just, it was also a troublesome matter that he was too outstanding…
Thinking about concubine Yun, thinking about Huiyun and thinking about that there may be many more women in the future who would be unscrupulous because they liked him, her little swaying sentiment in her heart had disappeared.
Even in the modern society where monogamy was the public opinion and where there was moral constraint, there were still many mistresses with fatal attraction. Not to mention this ancient society without restriction to take in concubines.
Shu Huan barely squeezed out a smile and said, “I will remember your words.”
This was a sentence without much sincerity. It was like the poker monk Lu deeply saying to the elder that he would remember. Although she would remember, this didn’t mean that she would really do it. It simply meant that she would seriously think about it.
Gu Xiran looked at her silently for a while. He didn’t say anything else.
—
In the next few days, it was peaceful in Gu household. Master Gu and eldest young master returned home in advance because they encountered a little trouble in business. They closed the door and discussed for a whole day and night with old madam before it was solved. It wasn’t important to the point to affect the mood of everyone in the family. Plum Flower Pavilion was also unusually quiet.
The martial master that Gu Xiran had hired didn’t come these days because he had to take care of his mother. In the meantime, Huiyun hasn’t been married off yet, but she was banned from going out. Even concubine Yun was a lot more well-behaved. When she saw Shu Huan, she was even more submissive and docile than before. The things that Shu Huan had to do daily were: “Recuperate”, chat with Gu Xiran, find some suitable wood to practice her carving on and to use this to pass the long and slow day.
If the days were so peaceful and there were no further troubles; if Gu Xiran had never taken a concubine, then someone like Shu Huan who strove for stability and calmness, who had no grand ideals or ambitions and who was lazy could perhaps slowly give up her obsession on leaving, adapt to the circumstance with a good will and no longer deliberately find a way out for herself…
It was a pity that everything was just ifs.
On this day, she inadvertently heard Liangchen and Meijing gossip and caused her gradually calm heart to go up half in the air again.