12 Chapter Twelve: Suspicious Red
Translator: 549690339
“Third Daughter-in-law, don’t be displeased with me, thinking I’m being unfair as a Mother-in-law. I’ve laid it out here for you, if you were as capable as Fourth Daughter-in-law, you wouldn’t have to work in the fields either. There’s a saying that goes, ‘One’s actions match one’s abilities.’ Being jealous of others is pointless.” Mrs. Yang also felt that she had been sweet-talked and fooled by Mrs. Wang over time, and found it uncomfortable, taking the opportunity to give Mrs. Wang a lesson.
“Mother, I didn’t.” Mrs. Wang truly felt wronged now
“Alright, Mother, don’t pick on my wife anymore. Look how aggrieved she is. We’re supposed to go to the fields, aren’t we? Let’s hurry along.” Han Lin may have been lacking in other areas, but he was good to his own wife. Seeing his birth mother picking on his wife, he quickly helped to smooth things over.
Mrs. Yang became even more uncomfortable in her heart when she saw her own son so biased in favor of his wife and blaming her. Third Child and Fourth Child were not the same; Third Child had never been decisive and was most likely instigated by his wife. Otherwise, he would not have spoken to her like that. Furthermore, thinking about how Third Daughter-in-law had been in the Han Family for four or five years without bearing a child, her heart felt even more blocked.
However, although Mrs. Yang was somewhat biased, she was not a wicked Mother-in-law. Although unhappy in her heart, she just hmphed and left with the hoe on her shoulder.
Seeing that the family members had all gone out to work in the field, Su Wenyue was not idle either. She cleaned up the house, then called Baofu into the room. First, she taught Baofu to recognize his own name and a few simple characters, asking Baofu to practice by writing and drawing with a stick in the dirt of the courtyard.
Baofu didn’t even know the basics, like how to hold a pen, so using the stationery set she gave him would have been too wasteful. That’s why Su Wenyue came up with this idea. Moreover, teaching Baofu to read was a spur-of-the-moment decision; she wasn’t fully prepared. Su Wenyue thought about buying some introductory books for Baofu in town in a few days.
With the family out working, the task of cooking naturally fell to Su Wenyue. When the food was ready and she was about to send Baofu to call everyone for dinner, Old Man Han and the others returned. It was very hot outside today, and they all came back sweaty.
This afternoon, Han Yu didn’t join the others to work but instead took a bow and arrow and gathered everything needed to head into the mountains. Su Wenyue looked at Han Yu with some surprise, “Are you going to the mountain?”
“Tomorrow you’ll be returning to your mother’s family. The gifts I should prepare are all ready, but I can’t let them be much more than the Sisters-in-law’s, or Mother would find it hard to handle. I thought of going to the mountain to see if I could hunt some animals to bring with me. Then nobody can say anything. Besides, doesn’t Father-in-law love game? He will surely be happy to see it.”
Su Wenyue thought to herself, how could Father-in-law not be delighted with the game his Son-in-law personally hunted to honor him? Initially, she didn’t know which aspect of Han Yu had won Father-in-law’s approval, insisting that she marry Han Yu, even though the overt reason was that her grandfather and Han Yu’s grandfather had betrothed them to each other when they were kids, and Father-in-law was fulfilling the promise by marrying her to Han Yu.
But Su Wenyue knew her Father was not an obstinate man; he would not sacrifice his Daughter’s lifelong happiness for a mere promise. Now, it seemed her Father’s judgment was quite accurate; indeed, as her Father had said, Han Yu was not an ordinary man, and he was bound to achieve something in time. Her Father also said Han Yu was a man of responsibility and reliability.
Thinking about Han Yu’s future achievements, if the Su Family had a good relationship with him from the start, he would surely look after them more in the future, wouldn’t he? After all, although Han Yu was a cold person, he was also grateful and remembered favors. So she subtly spoke well of her family to him, “Of course. My Father likes you so much that he even valued you over me, his beloved Daughter since childhood. I don’t know what he sees in you?!”
As Su Wenyue said this, her red lips pouted, her cheeks which still carried some baby fat puffed up slightly, and she looked dissatisfiedly at Han Yu. These words were tinged with a hint of jealousy, like a girl whose beloved possession had been snatched away.
Han Yu looked at his wife’s jealous expression and surprisingly quite liked the feeling.
“Perhaps Father-in-law thinks this Son-in-law has a bright future, which is why he married his precious Daughter to me. Don’t worry, I won’t disappoint Father-in-law,” Han Yu said half-jokingly, genuinely pleased to have his Father-in-law’s approval, especially since this feeling of making his Wife jealous was not bad.
Su Wenyue, however, stared at Han Yu’s smile as if it were a curiosity. In her previous life, although she’d been in the Han Family for three years, she’d hardly ever seen Han Yu smile. She always saw that same expressionless face, distant and cold, wasting such a handsome countenance.
“You look very handsome when you smile. You should smile more, not always keep such a stern face, it’s not cute at all. No wonder the kids at home are afraid of you. Sometimes, even I’m a bit scared when you get angry, let alone the children. If you smiled more often, you’d surely charm a lot of girls. I’ve just realized how handsome my Husband actually is.”
Su Wenyue said dreamily. Having experienced her previous life, she could hardly be considered a New Daughter-in-law in the strictest sense. She was more outspoken now, and there was nothing embarrassing about praising her own Husband,
Han Yu, however, did not respond to Su Wenyue, and the smile on his face vanished, reverting to his usual demeanor. After a brief greeting, he headed for the mountain. However, if you looked closely, his earlobes carried a suspicious hint of red.
Han Yu felt his young Wife, raised by Father-in-law and Mother-in-law, was indeed too simple and straightforward with her words, without any subtlety, her earlobes growing redder. Although his face was motionless, his eyes could not hide a hint of amusement. This was a man both (harmonious) and scheming.
During the afternoon, Su Wenyue sorted through her Dowry, and the several large red boxes prominent in the room were quite eye-catching. Which Bride in the area had such a respectable dowry? However, for the Su Family, such an ostensible dowry really didn’t count for much, even less than her two Concubine sisters’ dowries.
Although Su Wenyue was the most beloved Daughter of the Su Family, the only legitimate Daughter, she was not the only Daughter. She had two older half-sisters born of a Concubine. Mrs. Su, considering her Daughter’s future, would never let her only Daughter be overshadowed by the concubine-born ones. After operating the family’s affairs for most of her life, Mrs. Su understood what was truly important. Especially considering her Daughter was marrying a Farmer – if the dowry was too lavish, it might attract unwanted attention. The Concubine sisters would likely feel uncomfortable, and they might cause trouble for her Daughter behind her back,
