Guan Inn
”Just a
little sprain , you are fine”,Hui Zhong calmly examined his sister’s legs. Yue
nodded in relief , it wouldn’t be funny
to walk like a cripple on my wedding day... Wait,why am I thinking about it so
freely?!. ”I am really sorry...”,the rude guard from before kept
apologizing ever since he arrived at the Guan Inn. On then other hand,the
slender boy named A Zhong had also been quiet for some time while chuckling
mysteriously occasionally. ”Who was the man from before anyway? Some kind of
noble?”,Yue asked the two men .A Zhong just smiled ,”You really don’t know?
He’s a minister-to-be”. Her thoughts raced back to the man who helped her up.
Gentle ,yet
strong... Yue secretly wished her husband would be that kind of man too. ”You
two can leave now , I’m sorry for troubling you this far... It’s a mild sprain
, I will recover soon”,Yue spoke while smiling. A Zhong sighed before finally
opening his mouth,”...Fine. Once again ,I apologize for the rudeness of this
guard behind me... ’Till we meet again , lady...”. With that , the two of them
left . ”Why are they so....obedient and formal toward you?”,Hui Zhong asked
while chuckling.”Maybe your reputation as future Mrs Yuan is well-known now” .”Not
funny,brother...”.
That night,
Guan family had dinner in Yue’s room so that she wouldn’t have to walk
downstairs with her sprained leg,
”Yue ,pour
me some tea”
”Yes,mom”
”....That
is not how a noble wife pours tea. You spilled a little , watch me do it!”
Damn,marriage sucks so much!,Yue
stood up ,”I’m tired of this! I don’t wish to marry this noble! Leave me
alone!Let me enjoy my last days as Guan Yue Ping and not Mrs Yuan”. She wished
she could just run somewhere now ,yet her sprain hindered that desire. Yue’s mother sighed ,then signaled her to
sit.
”Yue,
listen to me... What seems bad is not always bad. I was a daughter of a poor farmer who was always filthy with
mud and soil... My hands would occasionally get scratched or wounded when
plowing the farm and I smelled like chickens. I was sure I’d just marry the
farmer boy nearby and would forever be a farmer until your father found me. A
fine man ,heir of an inn. I am still not sure how he fell for a filthy girl who
used to be very bad in even wearing clothes neatly but...Here I am ,happy and
now even though he has left ,I have you two treasures... Your father is a very
wise man ,he knows what he is doing. Even this marriage ,he wishes nothing but
the best for you...”. Yue’s eyes teared up , she pictured her father’s face in
that painting ,with his eyes always seemed to be filled with care...
Yue’s mom
embraced her daughter,”....You will live better there. Trust me”
”I’m
sorry,mom....I’m sorry”
Without the
two women’s knowledge ,Hui Zhong was outside being greeted by some guards with
tons of huge chests filled with jeweleries , fine clothes , golds ,fine
raw ingredients , cakes ,medicines and
antiques. ”I assume this is wedding gift from Yuan family?”,he smiled.”We have
also brought a letter from Yuan family”,the chief guard handed him a scroll.
”To our
honored family of the bride,
Guan
family
We hereby
present to you the bethrothal gifts
according
to the bride price we agreed in the
previous
bethrothal letter. In fact ,we have given
more to
show our appreciation of your Father
saving
Minister Yuan’s life past years.
We have
also sent you wedding attire for
Guan
Yue Ping which is embroidered by the
best tailor
in town. We sincerely hope you like
them.
With
respect,
Yuan Xie Feng”
”Send your
master our best regards and most profound gratitude ,we will visit to
personally thank them one of these days. And thank you for your hard works
carrying these , please just place them on the living room and leave the rest
to us”,Hui Zhong calmly ordered the guards. He smiled , A man with fine manner...
Three weeks
later , Yue was trying out her wedding gown. Such beautiful bright red colour... and such fine fabric ,this must be
silk... I still can’t believe I’m going to be a married woman in a week,
she spaced out . ”You look stunning wearing that ,I’m sure your husband won’t
be patient enough to make you his”,Hui Zhong laughed. Yue pouted , not finding
her brother’s joke funny. ”...I hope he can be a kind and loving
husband...a-and I hope I’m mentally prepared to be a woman”
”A woman,huh?
Maybe soon I will carry my cute little baby niece or nephew...”
”B-brother!!”
”Yuan Xie
Feng’s father is old , I’m sure he wants to see his grandchildren as soon as
possible,hmm? Young Master Yuan needs to
move fast...”
”S-STOP IT
,BROTHER”
Hui Zhong
bursted out laughing,”Okay okay I’m sorry . I’m just joking, don’t be so
serious!”
”....”
”Heyy come
onnn ,don’t be mad”
”...”
”Seriously
,I’m...sorry,okay? As an apology,I will bring you to the lake you like”
”R-really?”
”Sure ,you
may not be able to freely go there anymore after marriage so let’s go”
”Yay!”
After
changing clothes , they walked to The Red Leaf Lake near their house . Yue had
always liked the lake even since she was a mere child. There’s something about
the lake that entrapped here and made her at peace just by looking at it...A
vast water area surrounded by trees with red leaves. The wind around Red Leaf
lake was always breezy ,as if whispering poems to anyone who was there. Yue sat
by the lake ,under a huge red tree joined by her brother.
”I like it
here so much”
’Yeah, we
both do”
After
peaceful moments of silence , they both fell asleep...
***
I couldn’t believe I will be a husband soon... , Xie Feng inwardly muttered while strolling around the lake
accompanying his little brother who claimed he needed inspiration for painting
lesson. Like the little boy he was ,Kai started running around happily when
reaching the lake and singing a song. Xie Feng looked around ,his gaze stopped
when he saw a girl under the tree sleeping so peacefully. He recognized the
girl , she was the one his guard injured.
Feng
approached and crouched ,staring at the sleeping girl. How lovely ,he smiled. ”Brotherrr where are you—”,Kai stopped when
he saw the sleeping girl in front of Feng. Feng smiled,”Sssh... Don’t wake her
up. Kai ,let her have one of the cookies you bring ”. Feng smiled and placed a
piece of sesame cookie on her lap ,stood up and left. He chuckled to himself
and thought, When I have a wife later on
I will be sure to remind her not to be so careless as to sleep alone in such
place.
As he was
about to leave ,he was stopped by the sudden presence of a silver-eyed man with
golden hair. Feng assumed he was either a ghost or a foreigner from the west.
”Long time no see”,he spoke. ”...I am sorry but we have never met”,Feng replied
”Ah but we
have ,long long ago”
”.....No we
never”
”...........We
have m—”
”No. Is
this some kind of fraud? My guards are nearby”
The
golden-haired man sighed and stepped backwards,”Alright . Just remember that
the story is about to unfold... Don’t forget me. This time , do it right”
”W do you
mean?”
”You will
see”
”......who
are you?”
”.......My
name’s Silva. Remember that”
With that
,the man named Silva left...
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