Sun Yi Jia subconsciously covered her mouth, tears rapidly pooling in her eyes. Hearing this from the mouth of someone one admired, in this world, were there more moving sweet speech and honeyed words than this? Even if there was someone else’s influence in this, but, if he’s unwilling, never mind his younger sister, even his own mother wouldn’t be able to sway him.
“Don’t cry.” Luo Jing Bo kissed her eye, “I owe little sis too much, in the future, let’s be good to her together, alright?”
Sun Yi Jia vigorously nodded. To have her give her everything to little sister Wan was all doable. Her happiness right now was given by Luo Jing Bo, but the root of her happiness came from little sister Wan, so how was it not that she too owed her?
Perhaps because they opened up, the feelings between the two of them rapidly heated up. Moreover, as newlyweds hugging together, the flames also uncontrollably began rising slowly. The servant girls guarding outside the door heard faint crashing sounds coming from the inside, seemingly getting more and more intense. Was that sounds coming from their miss? Their faces flushed red upon hearing.
Sun Yi Jia’s wet nurse, who noticed that something was wrong with the servant girls, very quickly thought of a possibility. For miss to do this kind of thing, really was beyond one’s expectations. She walked over to guard the door herself. It was still best for these little girls to not hear too much.
However, before Luo Jing Bo could officially begin, he was forced to stop, because his esteemed grandfather had summoned him.
Because Luo Pei Shan had put out the first fifty volumes of booklets teaching gongbi painting yesterday, already half was gone, and today, even more people came to visit. In fact, there was even a painting expert that wanted to meet Luo Jing Bo, so naturally he needed to personally come out.
In the meantime, Sun Yi Jia met with the people that originally served Luo Jing Bo. Truthfully speaking, there really weren’t many. Of his close serving personal servants, there were only two first-ranked servant girls and one servant boy. Now that he moved back into the inner courtyard[1], that servant boy was rarely seen. Afterwards, the rest were all just some rough laborers, and his wet nurse was further just left back in Qi’an Fu from the start. Thus, Sun Yi Jia very effortlessly took care of everything. Afterwards, she just arranged for the people at her side to begin inventorying and organizing her dowry. These things naturally didn’t need for her to personally overlook herself, so she just prepared to go look for Jing Wan. But afterwards, Luo Old Madam send someone to invite her, saying there were still some guests in the manor for her to meet.
As the Luo family’s daughter-in-law, meeting the Luo family’s relatives was also within her duties, so she just let someone have Hong Lian and Lu Yi’s slave contract sent over to Jing Wan.
While these two were both busying themselves, Jing Wan was still very relaxed, practicing her calligraphy, reading some books, and fiddling with flowers.
That ink orchid had already produced seeds. One has to know, in her past life, directly using orchid seeds to grow orchids, even after various treatment, its survival rate was all very low. In this place, Jing Wan pretty much had zero assurance. However, carrying a ‘let’s try’ mentality, Jing Wan used every method she could use, and after having the seeds treated, she carefully planted it. The final outcome can only depend on the will of heaven.
Just as Jing Wan finished washing her hands, the water droplets on her hand yet to wipe dry……….
“Miss, madam asks for you to come over.”
“Oh? Do you know for what reason?” Jing Wan put down the hand towel.
“Madam learned that you ask for two people from third young madam.”
“Since even my mother knows, then the entire manor from top to bottom, for the most part, all are aware too then. Let’s go.”
As long as it was something that was detrimental to Jing Wan, for Zhang-shi, it was all an enormous matter. Upon seeing Jing Wan, she didn’t wait for her to greet her, “Wan Wan, how can you be this muddle-headed?”
Jing Wan unconcernedly smiled, “Mother, I just asked for two people from elder sister-in-law, that’s all.”
Zhang-shi used her finger to tap her forehead, “Do you not have enough people serving at your side?”
“Enough, but those two, I rather like, so just asked for them. That’s my closely related sister-in-law, so what’s the concern.”
“Do you really like them? It’s fine if they were ordinary servant girls, but it just had to be those two.” Luo Rong Yan spoke from the side.
Jing Wan still just smiled, however the warmth in her eyes faded, “Naturally I like them, what other reason did father think it would be? Moreover, those two servant girls, aren’t they just two servants, is there anything special about them?”
Luo Rong Yan met with Jing Wan’s eyes and shivered inside. This daughter of his wasn’t nearly as close with him as with her grandparents, and as well as with her mother. He originally thought, with her grandparents, it was because of the generation gap, and with her mother, it was because of the inherent nature of a mother-daughter relationship. And for him, although he was her father, he was a man after all. After she grew up, the time for them to bond lessened, and when they did meet, it wasn’t possible for her to pounce up and act spoiled either. But from the looks of it now, this seemingly wasn’t just the reason. “Wan Wan really doesn’t know what’s special about those two servant girls?”
“Then, does father hope for me to know, or not know?”
Luo Rong Yan suddenly understood. She knew, and precisely because she knew, that’s why she deliberately did it. “Why?”
“Why? Because you are my father, and he’s my elder brother. He is willing, and I can achieve my goal. If he’s unwilling, I won’t even say a single word.”
“So it was like this. I just thought that you didn’t like, just never thought that it was to this degree.”
“Father, why don’t you change the perspective, if you were in my mother’s position, and my mother in yours, how would you feel?”
How? Luo Rong Yan only just thought for moment and already couldn’t help but burn in anger.
“Because the upbringing my mother received is to view one’s husband as the sky, she neither fought nor envied. She was brought up really well, but unfortunately, I wasn’t raised well. Elder sister-in-law is my close friend, and third brother is also willing, so naturally I will do a bit of something.”
Luo Rong Yan looked to Jing Wan, very much wanting to tell her, she was wrong, practically rebelling against the established norm, but meeting her cold gaze, he wasn’t able to say a single word. If he said it, then between father and daughter, they perhaps would just become estranged. “There’s indeed nothing special about those two servant girls. Since you like them, just keep them then.” Indeed, it was purely because his daughter liked them, there was no other reason.
“Many thanks father.” Jing Wan’s gaze gradually warmed again.
Luo Rong Yan nodded, “Quickly go back then, your grandmother perhaps……..” Luo Rong Yan abruptly stopped. His daughter was raised by his mother’s side. There perhaps weren’t anyone that understood her more than his mother. What she’s thinking, his mother probably long knew, yet has never tried to correct her before. What his mother’s stance was, was there even the need to say? Moreover, she was close with his father, and his father also very much doted on his daughter, so perhaps his father also knew. A few days ago, his father even had him scolded till he was drenched in dog’s blood, saying he(LRY) wasn’t a qualifying father, not spending any time or thought on his own daughter. He at the time felt he was quite wronged, but looking at it now, perhaps he wasn’t wronged in the slightest. Sigh, perhaps he’ll suffer another scolding again. “Go back then.”
“This daughter bids farewell.”
Zhang-shi still resided in a confused state. Everything her husband and daughter said, she for the most part didn’t understand.
Luo Rong Yan looked to his wife. For him to still feel the same towards his wife all these years, how was it not because she was simpleminded. She perhaps was content inside, but in his daughter’s eyes, she ought to feel wronged. Rather, it was abnormal to not feel wronged, her feelings of jealousy having been ruthlessly strangled to death. But a person’s seven emotions and six desires[2] are only considered complete with it.
“What exactly did you and Wan Wan talk about?” Zhang-shi asked.
“Just talked about the matter with those two servant girls. She just liked them, that’s all, and since they’re already at her place, don’t need to worry about it anymore.” All say ignorance was bliss. His daughter has been continuously using her own method to protect her mother, not letting her get hurt. “In this lifetime, I can’t become someone like our son, but in the future, this husband will be a bit better to you.”
Zhang-shi although didn’t understand what her husband being good to her or not had to do with their son, she still couldn’t help but blush.
Luo Rong Yan laughed in spite of himself. His wife and daughter’s personalities must have swapped, right?! He wasn’t a qualifying father, and his wife wasn’t a qualifying mother either, but for their daughter to still be able to become this outstanding, it really was all thanks to his old mother.
After Jing Wan returned, she saw Yuan Qiao Qiao who was in high spirits.
“Wan Wan, Wan Wan…….”
“What’s the matter, for you to be this excited.”
“I heard older cousin Jing Bo played ‘Feng Seeks Huang’ yesterday when he went to escort the bride, and even wrote verses for it. I heard several people secretly recite those verses, all saying why older cousin’s playing wasn’t directed at them. Actually, I also want someone to be able to play for me too.” Yuan Qiao Qiao exposed a dreamlike expression.
“You will have the chance.”
Those brothers that went with Luo Jing Bo to escort the bride, although knew he was going to play the qin in advance, they all thought that those verses were composed by him after Jing Wan had proposed her request. Aside from Chen Zheng Min, no one suspected Jing Wan. And to ask why Chen Zheng Min would suspect, he could only say it was based on a hunch.
Just as everyone expected, Luo Jing Bo’s performance ‘broke open a new path’. Those verses right now have already spread throughout every street and alley. Many people became intoxicated in it, and many became infatuated in Luo Jing Bo, this affectionate lover. Even if someone scolded him for being scandalous, it still wasn’t able to stop the hearts of maidens from piling.
Jing Wan probably didn’t expect that she would cause Luo Jing Bo to bloom peach blossoms everywhere in the future.
[1] For boys, once they reach a certain age they move out of their parent’s courtyard and into their own in the outer courtyards, and when they marry they will move back into the inner courtyard. The inner courtyard is where all the womenfolk reside.
[2] Seven emotional states in chinese traditional belief are joy, anger, anxiety, thought, grief, fear, and fright; the six desires are sight: greed for seeing pretty things, hearing: greed for hearing pleasant sounds, smell: greed for fragrance, taste: greed for delicious food, body: greed for pleasure and comfort, thought: greed for fame and love. I copied pasted my footnotes from earlier chapter for this.
T/N: Remember back in chapter 111 when JW said her grandfather probably already put a mark on her father’s head to sort him out after her comment about her parents being lovey-dovey and neglecting her. They really care about Jing Wan a lot just their way of thinking is too different from Jing Wan’s.
I like the depth in Jing Wan’s parents as characters, they really do reflect the mindset of people in ancient times, but they are written in a way where they aren’t just cardboard cut-outs of typical ancient people. I never really liked parent characters in novels because their existence and personality usually don’t stray from their character description and there’s usually two kinds, the good and the bad. It’s kinda like how in male oriented stories with female characters only existing as the love interest, same vibe. I really love the line about how Zhang-shi’s feeling of jealousy was killed off by their society, and Jing Wan’s father’s comment on how human emotion isn’t complete without it. It kinda makes you view Zhang-shi in a more tragic light, even though she gives off that airhead feel. In a way, her happiness is built upon the fact that she’s so ignorant to so many things, she really reflects the saying ‘ignorance is bliss’.
Also a bit of insight about orchids from my lovely patron, because Jen is completely blank in this regard. If anyone else has insight on this matter please do comment.
