Wife, Don't Be Like This!

Chapter 7 - A Small Horse Pulling a Large Cart

On a summer morning, the sunlight on the horizon dyed the thin clouds an orange-red color. Song Prefecture was a windy city. The summer cicadas chirped tirelessly. Fallen leaves were swept up by the wind, playfully spun a circle in mid-air, and quietly landed on one's head.

The voices of house servants came from outside the small courtyard:

"Did you hear? The Yicui Pavilion was sealed."

"I heard it was for harboring a criminal wanted by the imperial court."

"How come I heard it was for rebellion? I heard they found a dragon robe in the Yicui Pavilion..."

Song Yan was very sad.

As the only brothel in Ningping County, he had originally planned to go and experience it... but alas, to die before the mission is complete, the Yicui Pavilion was gone just like that.

A place like a brothel has always been a disaster zone for harboring wanted criminals, so it wasn't particularly strange. But plotting a rebellion was too ridiculous. What kind of rebellion could a mere brothel plot? Could it be that after a successful rebellion, only they would be allowed to run a brothel?

They probably offended someone important.

After listening for a while, Song Yan lost interest. Compared to the brothel, he was more concerned about the situation on the Luo family's side. Four days had already passed. He reckoned the Luo family should have already verified the efficacy of the Isoniazid and would definitely make a move.

Isoniazid was, in essence, a specific miracle drug for consumption. For the people of this world who had not yet developed drug resistance, its effects would be extremely exaggerated.

Thus, he could use the marriage into the Luo family to escape the Duke's mansion... A light flashed in Song Yan's eyes, but it was quickly hidden. Wealth without power, a poor family with a beautiful wife, weak but precociously intelligent. These were the three great taboos in life. Before he possessed sufficient strength, he would continue to lie low.

He closed the courtyard gate, took out the 'Hundred Treasures Compendium' from under the ground again, and started flipping through it once more. Perhaps because he had lived two lives, his memory was very good. Although he couldn't be said to have a photographic memory, he could still remember seventy to eighty percent of it after one read-through.

After doing this several times, the contents of the book were firmly memorized. He recited it silently once more, and after confirming there were no mistakes, he hid the 'Hundred Treasures Compendium' again.

In the mid-afternoon, around the Hour of Shen (3-5 PM), the Duke's mansion suddenly became lively, and a commotion could be heard from outside. Not long after, footsteps sounded outside the small courtyard, followed by a knock on the door. An old servant woman in her fifties stood outside.

Yang Guifang.

The old servant woman who personally served Yang Shi. It was said she was even Yang Shi's wet nurse and was also distantly related to Yang Shi. When Yang Shi married into the Duke Song's mansion, she was brought along. Relying on Yang Shi's favor, Yang Guifang was extremely domineering in the back residence of the Duke's mansion. Apart from the legitimate sons, she looked down on all the concubine-born young masters and all of Song Hongtao's concubines.

Song Yan especially remembered, when he was three years old, his mother was punished by Yang Shi over a trivial matter. The one who did the beating was this Yang Guifang. This old hag was extremely vicious. His mother's face was beaten until it was red, swollen, and cracked. Even a tooth was knocked out. He rushed up and bit Yang Guifang, and was slapped in the face by this damned old hag, leaving him unable to hear for several months.

Scenes from the past flashed through his mind, but the expression on Song Yan's face was extremely well-controlled. He even bowed to Yang Guifang in greeting:

"Mama Yang, is there something?"

Large households have many rules. No matter how favored Yang Guifang was by Yang Shi, she was ultimately just a servant. No matter how disliked Song Yan was, he was still a master of the Duke's mansion. Where was the logic in a master bowing to a servant? But Yang Guifang didn't think that much about it, and without avoiding it, she calmly accepted Song Yan's bow.

Obviously, this was a brainless idiot.

"Ninth Young Master, be quick about it. The Old Master wants to see you." Glaring at Song Yan, Yang Guifang said coldly.

On the way, many servants passed by. The way they looked at Song Yan was clearly strange, not with the pity and contempt of before, but with more surprise, and even envy.

There were already many people in the reception hall. Song Hongtao and Yang Shi were both there, and even Song Zhen was present.

Besides the members of the Song clan, there were also the three Luo brothers. Behind them stood a woman, but it was not Luo Tianyi.

In short, she was big, very big, extremely big.

Gathered like peaks and mountains, scattered like clouds; her tender skin held a fragrance, her soft flesh was evenly distributed.

She was twenty-four or twenty-five years of age.

Her temperament was gentle. Although she couldn't compare to Luo Tianyi's nation-toppling beauty, she was still delicate and lovely. Her black hair was draped behind her, not coiled up like that of a married woman, indicating that she was still unmarried... In this world, an unmarried woman of twenty-four or twenty-five was truly a rare sight.

Luo Tianyi was not present. Although Luo Tianyi was probably not the white-robed woman from the cave that day, after several days, Song Yan's mind still unconsciously superimposed Luo Tianyi's image onto that of the white-robed woman.

No one knew the thoughts in Song Yan's mind. When they saw Song Yan appear, the eyes of the three Luo brothers suddenly lit up.

The corners of Song Yan's mouth curved up. He bowed in greeting: "Greetings, three Young Masters."

But before his waist could even bend down, it was supported by a pair of large hands. A relatively gentle yet irresistible force came from Luo Tianshu's palm. His body, which had just bent a little, immediately returned to normal.

Rumor has it that the Luo family's Eldest Young Master was as gentle as jade, skilled in zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting, and had already achieved the rank of Juren at a young age. But now it seemed this person was probably not just a mere scholar.

Luo Tianshu said with a light laugh: "Brother-in-law, no need to be so polite. From now on, we are family. There's no need for these empty formalities."

He called him brother-in-law.

The Luo family had three sons and four daughters. Luo Tianxuan was the eldest daughter. Although Luo Tianshu and Luo Tianxuan were twins, he was, after all, born half a quarter-hour later.

He was very smart and didn't mention the Isoniazid. On the last trip to the Duke's mansion, Song Yan had only taken out the tablets after being some distance from the mansion gate, clearly not wanting the Duke's mansion to know about his medical skills.

Luo Tianshu was also very curious. Song Yan had been imprisoned in the Duke's mansion's backyard for years, and the number of times he had left the mansion could be counted on one hand. Where on earth did he learn such medical skills?

But Luo Tianshu also understood that everyone has their own secrets. If both sides wanted to maintain a good relationship, then prying into the other's secrets was a major taboo. He would not do such a foolish thing.

The term "brother-in-law" made Song Hongtao's eyelids twitch slightly. He had long been prepared for the Luo family to agree to this marriage, but he hadn't expected the Luo family to place such importance on Song Yan, a mere concubine's son.

The betrothal gifts sent by the Luo family this time were astonishing, a full eighty-eight carrying poles, worth at least seventy to eighty thousand taels of silver. Even the marriages of the legitimate sons and daughters of the Duke's mansion were only on this scale.

He really couldn't understand what it was about this youngest son that the Luo family valued so much. He always felt that something he didn't know had happened. This feeling of being out of control made Song Hongtao's brow furrow tightly.

But Song Hongtao was also an old fox. He just chuckled:

"Yan'er, don't just stand there in a daze. Madam Luo has already agreed to your marriage with Miss Tianxuan. The wedding date is set for three days from now. When you go to the Luo residence, you must abide by your duties, take care of your wife, serve your mother-in-law, and not be neglectful."

Towards the end, his tone became stern and severe:

"Although you are marrying into their family, your every word and action also represents the face of our Song family. If I hear that you are acting recklessly in the Luo family and damaging the reputation of our Song clan, even if you have already married into the Luo family, I will definitely not let you off. Do you understand?"

Living cautiously and fearfully for more than a decade had taught Song Yan the ability to observe people's hearts. Although Song Hongtao hid it extremely well, Song Yan could still clearly feel that Song Hongtao's breathing had become slightly faster, his mouth twitched subconsciously when he spoke, and his pupils contracted slightly. These were all signs of excitement.

This was very abnormal. Song Hongtao's attitude made Song Yan suspicious. Originally, he also felt that he was just a substitute groom, taking the place of the legitimate son, Song Zhen, to step into a fiery pit. But thinking about it carefully, it didn't seem right. After all, the Luo family had already expressed that they could call off the marriage, yet both Song Hongtao and Yang Shi seemed determined to send him into the Luo family.

Strange. Could it be that they want me to do something in the Luo family? Am I a pawn?

Thinking this, Song Yan bowed his head: "This child will remember Father's teachings and will definitely not bring shame to the Song family."

After all, for Song Yan, the most important thing right now was to escape the Duke's mansion. As for whether he would be drawn into other vortexes, that was a matter for the future.

Next, some details of the marriage were discussed. It's just that Song Yan had no right to interject in these matters. He stood quietly to the side and listened.

When the sky gradually darkened, the discussions here finally concluded. Although Song Hongtao and Yang Shi repeatedly urged them to stay, the Luo brothers clearly had no intention of staying. However, when they left, they left one person behind. It was that woman.

"I heard that Brother-in-law has been living alone with no one to care for him, so Mother had Sister Banxia come over to provide personal care."

"Sister Banxia, from now on, you will stay by Brother-in-law's side. Serve him well and do not be neglectful."

Hearing this, Song Yan looked up and saw that Gu Banxia's face was slightly red. She nodded lightly and accepted. She probably knew what was going to happen next.

Song Zhen, however, felt a wave of regret and envy in his heart, his eyes unable to hide a trace of greed and desire.

Gu Banxia was the bed-warming maid.

As expected of the Luo family, even their bed-warming maid was quite beautiful. Although she was a bit older, her mature and gentle temperament was all the more alluring. Her expression was dignified without a hint of coquettishness, yet her pure look, combined with her curvaceous body, exuded traces of a hooking charm.

Giving this kind of woman to Song Yan was simply a waste.

Song Zhen couldn't help but start scheming in his heart about how he could get Gu Banxia. That Song Yan was just a good-for-nothing. He reckoned that as long as he asked, Song Yan would obediently send Gu Banxia over, right? Thinking this, his heart couldn't help but stir restlessly.

Song Hongtao, on the other hand, frowned deeply. Others might not know, but he was clear that this Gu Banxia was Luo Yuheng's personal handmaiden. To have her own personal handmaiden become her son-in-law's bed-warming maid, what was that woman thinking?

But that woman was Luo Yuheng, after all, so it wasn't strange.

In this era, the sons of large families all had many bed-warming maids around them. The role of a bed-warming maid was to let the young master get familiar with a woman's body and become skilled in the techniques of the bedchamber, so as not to lose face on the wedding night due to being too inexperienced.

Often, those young masters from rich families would already begin to enjoy the pleasures of the bedchamber at thirteen or fourteen. Some were even earlier, like Song Zhen. This fellow had tasted a woman at the age of twelve and reveled in song and dance every night, to the point where he now needed to rely on medicine to maintain himself.

You say this kind of behavior is disrespectful to women, a trampling of human rights? Please, this is a feudal society. In an era where just staying alive is very difficult, and a human life is worth less than a cow or a horse, who's going to talk to you about human rights?

A human life being worth less than a cow or horse is no joke. The value of a plow ox or a warhorse was far beyond that of an ordinary commoner.

And the rules on the imperial family's side were even more complex, especially for princesses marrying down. Before the wedding, the imperial family would arrange for the princess's personal handmaiden to go to the Prince Consort's side to consummate the relationship. The purpose, naturally, was to check if the Prince Consort's body was normal. What if the Prince Consort was impotent? Could they let the princess marry him and live as a widow?

And what if the princess couldn't endure the loneliness and found a bunch of pretty-boy lovers? Wouldn't that bring shame to the imperial family? From ancient times to the present, the number of princesses who played around was not small.

Although Luo Yuheng had already been expelled from the Imperial Jade Record, she ultimately still had royal blood flowing in her veins, so all matters were handled according to royal rules.

Of course, when Luo Yuheng got married, Gu Banxia was still young, so she was not the bed-warming maid.

This time, in choosing a bed-warming maid for Song Yan, normally, one should be chosen from Luo Tianxuan's side. But Luo Tianxuan suffered from consumption, and those around her were all female physicians providing care; she had no handmaidens. It was naturally inappropriate to have those female physicians act as bed-warming maids.

Choosing handmaidens from the sides of Luo Tianshu, Luo Tianquan, or Luo Tianyang was even more out of the question.

As for Luo Tianyi, she had no handmaidens either; she even washed her menstrual sashes herself.

The handmaidens of the other two daughters were also too young.

The only ones left were some rough-task handmaidens, whose looks and figures were somewhat lacking. Not to mention it would be difficult to find a suitable one on short notice, their loyalty also couldn't be guaranteed. After thinking it over and over, Luo Yuheng sent Gu Banxia.

On one hand, Gu Banxia was someone she knew through and through, and she was also completely loyal to the Luo family.

On the other hand, it was also taking the opportunity to settle Gu Banxia's lifelong matter. In the future, she would be elevated to a concubine. Although not the main wife, with the relationship between Gu Banxia and Luo Yuheng, she would not be treated unfairly in any way.

Although Song Yan was intelligent, he didn't know about these twists and turns. Looking at the shy, timid, and gentle-as-water woman opposite him, he couldn't help but feel in his heart that his mother-in-law, whom he had never met, was truly a good person.

Did she know that Luo Tianxuan's constitution was not suitable for consummating the marriage, and so she specially arranged a beautiful woman by his side, wanting to use this method to tie him down?

How did she know that I have no resistance to a beauty trap?

However, looking down at his own still somewhat tender and immature physique, his age of fifteen, and then looking at the twenty-five-year-old big sister opposite him...

A small horse pulling a large cart?