Chapter 010

Lingshui Village was one of the larger villages in the area, with over three hundred households.

The Xiao family had originally been newcomers and their house was built in the northwest corner. To return to the Tong family, they had to pass through the village from west to east and then take a dirt road on the eastern edge.

The Xaos seemed to have good relations with the villagers. Everywhere the donkey cart passed, people greeted Xiao Zhen with smiles. At the same time, they curiously glanced at Tong Sui sitting in the middle of the cart, eager to see what the new daughter-in-law looked like.

This was human nature, and Tong Sui had prepared herself for it. Whenever Xiao Zhen introduced her to someone, she would smile and greet them as Uncle Zhang or Aunt Li, following his lead.

She wasn't particularly outgoing but also wasn't overly reserved.

As the donkey cart moved away, several women dressed in coarse clothing gathered to comment:

"The young bride is truly beautiful; she looks honest."

"So fair-skinned, I haven’t seen such a fresh-faced girl in years."

"The Xiao family’s sons are indeed fortunate; none of their wives are ugly."

"Of course, look at the conditions of the Xiao family. If not for Xiao Qianhu's lack of ambition, our village headman would have been replaced long ago, instead of being dominated by the Sun family."

Because Elder Xiao Mu had once been a Qianhu (a military rank), the locals still respectfully referred to him as "Xiao Qianhu."

In the donkey cart, Tong Sui smiled all the way until they were about to leave the village. She finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Xiao Zhen turned his head to look at her and then gestured towards himself with a nod: "Sit closer?"

Tong Sui first pushed two jars of wine, a smoked pig leg, and two packages of tea fruits towards the front of the cart, then moved closer, leaning against the one-foot-high guardrail on the side of the cart. Xiao Zhen faced west while she faced east.

Other couples might sit close together in the cart to chat, but after a while, the man who called her over showed no interest in conversation.

Tong Sui couldn’t move back either, so she silently observed Lingshui Village and the vast fields ahead.

The wheat seedlings planted last autumn had turned lush green after a winter's rest, while the empty fields were left for planting corn, peanuts, or sweet potatoes later.

For rural folks, seeing well-tended fields was as comforting as seeing their parents. Tong Sui recalled the happy times of her childhood when she ran around the village with her brothers. Taohuagou was remote and its residents were poorer than those in other villages, but everyone could eat enough and didn’t have to worry about their men being conscripted by the government or their women being harmed by bandits.

The dirt road was bumpy, causing the donkey cart to jolt occasionally, yet Tong Sui continued to gaze at the fields.

Xiao Zhen casually observed the houses and crops nearby until the cart turned onto a small path to the east, where several figures, some squatting and some sitting, suddenly came into view.

Xiao Zhen frowned slightly, looking at those people and quietly warning the girl behind him: "They're from the Sun family, the village headman. They don’t get along well with us."

As soon as he finished speaking, someone from the opposite side started heckling rudely: "Xiao Er, visiting your wife's family with your new bride?"

The tone clearly indicated ill intent.

Tong Sui tilted her head, her gaze sweeping past Xiao Zhen's relaxed posture, and saw four men of varying heights standing up from the roadside. The two in front were tall and sturdy, with similar features and arrogant expressions. The two behind were thinner and shorter, clearly followers.

All four turned to look at Tong Sui.

Tong Sui lowered her eyes, leaning back slightly to hide behind Xiao Zhen.

The four lined up across the road, forcing Xiao Zhen to stop the cart.

Sun Dian walked up to Xiao Zhen, staring at Tong Sui for a few moments before saying with a casual grin: "Xiao Er, aren't you going to introduce us?"

Xiao Zhen said to Tong Sui: "This is Sun Dian, the eldest son of the village headman, and that is Sun Wei, the second son."

Tong Sui smiled slightly at the two brothers.

Up close, she noticed a prominent scar near Sun Dian's right eye, resembling a centipede, while Sun Wei appeared a bit paler and more refined.

Sun Dian circled the donkey cart, occasionally glancing at Tong Sui: "Impressive, I didn’t know we had such a pretty girl hidden here. My brother's mother has been dead for years, and even Matchmaker Fang hasn’t introduced me to a sister-in-law. Instead, she let you, just back from the battlefield, have her."

One of the followers chuckled: "Brother Dian, don’t blame Matchmaker Fang. She knows you have your heart set on someone else and wouldn’t want to introduce anyone else."

Sun Dian laughed twice, returning to Xiao Zhen's side: "Xiao Er, now that you have a wife, you must know how delightful it is in bed. Why can’t you let your wife..."

Before he could finish, Xiao Zhen suddenly jumped off the cart and punched Sun Dian in the face, sending him reeling back several steps. If not for Sun Wei catching him, Sun Dian would have fallen into the ditch between the road and the field.

"You dare hit Brother Dian?"

The two followers rolled up their sleeves, ready to attack.

"Scram!"

Sun Dian shouted them back, wiping the blood from his nose, and glared at Xiao Zhen: "Years ago, both our families proposed to the Liu family. Your elder brother was better-looking than me, and Liu'er chose him. I accepted my loss and married someone else, living separate lives without any trouble. Now that your elder brother has been dead for years and I am a widower, why can’t you marry Liu'er to me? Why should she remain alone?"

Xiao Zhen replied: "If Sister-in-law really wants to remarry, we won’t stop her. You’re simply not worthy of her."

Sun Dian retorted: "How am I unworthy? Apart from your Xiao brothers, who in this area is better than me?"

Xiao Zhen: "If you cannot make her love you, then you are unworthy. Move aside."

Sun Dian refused.

Xiao Zhen picked up the whip from the cart.

Only then did Sun Dian step back with his three companions. As the donkey cart passed, he followed behind, addressing Tong Sui: "Sister-in-law, the Xiao brothers are unreasonable. As a woman, you should understand the hardships of widowhood. Please persuade Liu'er for me. If you help me achieve my wish, I’ll give you whatever you need, whether it’s money or effort. I, Sun Dian, will never go back on my word!"

The young bride in the cart faced forward, showing no reaction except for the slight swaying of the cart.

Sun Dian stopped, suddenly laughing derisively: "Well, a wooden man married a wooden woman!"

---

After the donkey cart had traveled far, Tong Sui turned to look back. Sun Dian and the others were already out of sight.

Xiao Zhen seemed to hear her movements and said, "There's no need to tell Sister-in-Law about this. You don't have to ask her anything either."

Tong Sui wasn't one to gossip: "I understand."

There was no need to ask; Sun Dian had already blurted out the whole story himself.

Xiao Zhen and his brothers were all handsome; the eldest brother Xiao Chong, who died in battle, must have been equally dignified. It was only natural for Liu Chu to choose the Xiao family.

Being a widow did have its drawbacks, but the men of the Xiao family were reliable. The specifics of the Sun family were unknown, so remarrying into the Sun family might not necessarily be more comfortable for Liu Chu than staying with the Xaos.

Considering daily life, marriage also required mutual affection. If Liu Chu didn't like someone like Sun Dian, then even if the Sun family had mountains of gold, she wouldn’t be willing.

Tong Sui had just married into the family and her relationship with Liu Chu was still shallow. Some old matters were better left unspoken and uninvolved.

The twenty-mile road became increasingly desolate as they approached Taohuagou. In the distance loomed the majestic Longxing Mountain range, while nearby were small hills and wild woods.

Tong Sui closely observed the woods on both sides.

Xiao Zhen inadvertently turned back and saw her doing this, silently withdrawing his gaze.

Approaching noon, the mule cart entered Taohuagou.

This time, it was Xiao Zhen's turn to be surrounded by the townsfolk of Taohuagou. Tong Sui smiled and introduced everyone to him.

"Turn at the next corner," Tong Sui reminded him.

Xiao Zhen: "I've been here twice, I remember. Is that your village’s private school?"

The private school was located in the middle of Taohuagou, in an old house left by a widowed old man after he passed away. The villagers decided to convert it into a private school and invited an elderly scholar from the village to teach the children. Later, when Song Lan came to Taohuagou with his son to live in seclusion, the elderly scholar stepped down voluntarily, and Song Lan took over, teaching the children diligently whenever times were peaceful.

At that moment, the private school echoed with the clear voices of children reading aloud.

Tong Sui nodded, looking towards the private school, trying to identify her brother Tong Shan's voice.

Xiao Zhen: "Do you want to find Little Shan?"

Tong Sui: "No, he'll come home after school. Going there early would just waste his study time."

Xiao Zhen continued driving the mule cart past the private school.

When they arrived at the Tong residence, Tong Youyu, Zhou Qing, and Tong Gui were already waiting at the door.

Even though they had only been apart for three days, seeing her father's honest smile and her mother's gentle face made Tong Sui's eyes well up with tears.

Without waiting for the mule cart to stop, Tong Sui jumped off the back and ran straight into her mother's arms: "Mother..."

Zhou Qing scolded her daughter with a smile while greeting her son-in-law: "I thought you were mature enough, yet you still act like a child, leaving your husband behind."

Tong Sui lowered her eyes, hiding the slight resentment towards Xiao Zhen that had surfaced upon seeing her family.

He was perfect in every way except for being too rough at night, almost as if he wouldn't stop until he made her cry. His strength was overwhelming, making it impossible for her to push him away.

"I apologize for keeping my in-laws waiting."

Behind her, Xiao Zhen parked the mule cart and walked over carrying gifts for the family.

Tong Sui turned around, lowering her eyes, transforming back into a gentle and obedient wife.

Tong Youyu, seeing his son-in-law carrying a smoked ham leg, sighed: "You two should have just come back empty-handed. Your family is large; take it back tomorrow and keep it for yourselves. Ah Gui always hunts in the mountains, we don't lack meat."

Xiao Zhen: "Ah Gui is Ah Gui, this is a gesture from your son-in-law. Father-in-law, please don't be so formal with me."

Tong Youyu laughed and shook his head.

Zhou Qing: "Come, let's go inside and talk. Ah Gui, bring the mule cart into the yard."

The Tong residence consisted of three rooms. The east wing of the front courtyard was converted into a room for Tong Gui and Tong Shan, while Zhou Qing and her husband lived in the main room. The west room was Tong Sui's former bedroom.

The courtyard was small, with a shed on the west side for firewood, farming tools, and drying animal skins, all neatly organized.

The backyard was enclosed by a wooden fence, where chickens were raised and vegetables were grown.

Zhou Qing and her husband gave their son-in-law a quick tour of the place before moving into the east room.

Both Zhou Qing and Tong Gui were good conversationalists. Tong Sui sat beside her mother, observing Xiao Zhen and realizing that he simply didn't like or was accustomed to initiating conversations. However, when engaged, he was articulate and adept.

"Alright, you two chat. Aman and I will prepare lunch."

After the initial greetings, Zhou Qing led her daughter to the main room.

With her son-in-law visiting, Zhou Qing prepared some special dishes. She went with Tong Gui to gather fresh wild vegetables from the mountains, mixed them with pork, and kneaded corn flour dough. Mother and daughter sat facing each other at a low table in the north part of the main room, making buns while chatting quietly.

Zhou Qing was most concerned about her daughter's life in her husband's home.

Tong Sui: "It's good. There are two maids who do the laundry. My sister-in-law and I cook every other day. Aunt He is a bit cunning, but I don't listen to her."

Zhou Qing listened and said, "Your sister-in-law is easy to get along with. How about the younger sister-in-law? I heard she was originally a noble lady from the prime minister's mansion. Has she looked down on you?"

Tong Sui: "No, she hardly leaves her room. She stays there most of the time."

Zhou Qing: "Given the significant changes in the family and having never done household chores, it's understandable. The Xiao family accepts her behavior, so you don't need to worry about it. Just focus on what you need to do, and peace of mind is the best thing."

Tong Sui smiled: "Don't worry, Mother. I won't compare myself with her."

Zhou Qing kneaded a lot of dough and prepared a large bowl of filling. Mother and daughter worked quickly, soon filling an entire tray with corn buns, eight in each row, five rows in total, with one extra large bun because there wasn't enough dough left, so they stuffed all the remaining filling into it, making it bulging and full.

Zhou Qing clapped her hands, satisfied: "We'll eat these today, and you can take the leftovers back tomorrow. Even if each of you eats just one, it counts as a return gift."

A daughter-in-law who only takes things from her husband's family to her parents' home would be looked down upon.

Tong Sui knew that her parents and brothers doted on her, so she didn't say any polite words but helped to start the fire.

Zhou Qing braised a rabbit in another pot, worried that eating only corn cakes might be too dry, so she also cooked a pot of egg drop soup.

When the corn cakes began to emit their aroma, Tong Shan ran back from the private school, happily calling out to his sister and brother-in-law as soon as he entered the door.

The house became even livelier. During the meal, Tong Gui brought out a jar of wine and said to Xiao Zhen, "We don't usually drink, this was sent by the second master. Come, let's accompany the second master for a good drink today."

Xiao Zhen was six years older than him, so Tong Gui couldn't call him "brother-in-law" and simply addressed him as "second master."

Xiao Zhen smiled, raised his wine bowl, clinked it with Tong Youyu and Tong Gui, and then downed it in one go.

It was the first time Tong Sui had seen him drink. His face was hidden behind the large bowl, revealing only his Adam's apple bobbing with each swallow.

Looking at her father and second brother trying to mimic Xiao Zhen's heroic demeanor, she saw wine spilling from the corners of their mouths, causing her mother to look at them with disdain.

"If you can't handle it, drink less. Don't get drunk later," Zhou Qing said, pouring another bowl for each of them before taking the wine jar away. "If you want more, have it tonight. There's no need to compete and hurt yourselves among family."

Xiao Zhen: "Mother-in-law is right. At home, my grandfather also restricts our drinking."

After tasting the rabbit meat, he complimented his mother-in-law's cooking. After trying the wild vegetable-filled corn cakes, he praised her again, using elegant words without repetition, which kept Zhou Qing smiling throughout.

"If you like it, come back more often with Aman, and I'll make different dishes for you."

Xiao Zhen: "As long as you don't mind us coming too frequently."

Zhou Qing beamed with joy.

Tong Sui: "..."

She blamed herself and her brothers for being tongue-tied, never having made their mother this happy before.