Higher Level Wife

Chapter 77: To Care

Author: White Pear Flower

Raws: https://book.qidian.com/info/2386994/

Translated by Gumihou

Proofread by Pill Bug

Yu Jie laughed and said, “Now that you mention it, I just thought of something. The Young Marquis has come by many times, but he has always missed Aunt Yu’s signature dishes. Otherwise, I’m afraid he might wish to stay here and refuse to leave…”

[1] Before she could continue, Fu Qiuning cut in coldly, “You’re looking forward to him not leaving? Humph, I shall speak frankly to you now. Whenever he comes by, the things that should be done shall be done. However, not a single speciality dish is allowed on the table.”

“Surely there’s no need for Madam to be so anxious? The marquisate has cooks whose skills are a hundred times better than ours, right? So, what is there to worry about?” Aunt Yu said with a chuckle. Seeing that most of the leaves have been swept into a pile, she began putting the brooms away and the three ladies returned to the house.

[1] After washing her hands, Fu Qiuning went to the courtyard door and looked outside. She murmured, “Why aren’t Feng’er and Jiao’er back yet? Surely they are not being held back by their teachers?”

[1] As if to defy her words, Feng’er and Jiao’er came pattering up the garden path. Fu Qiuning quickly stepped out to greet them. When the children spotted her, their running turned into happy skipping as they seemed to bounce along the path towards her. “Mother! Today’s wind is quite strong, luckily we listened to you and brought our cloaks with us. Many other students were so cold they scattered back home as soon as class was over like dogs being let out for the first time.”

Jing Changjiao recalled the appearance of those male schoolmates and laughed again. She said, “I’m afraid the girls were the most pitiful. Boys could still run, but the girls still have to maintain their ladylike steps. Fortunately, I wore plenty of layers, but once we are inside the garden, I started running when brother rushed ahead too, hahaha…”

“You wild little girl, you still know what it means to be ladylike?” [1] Fu Qiuning laughed as she took their hands and led them into the house. She said to the maids, “Let’s have a few more stove fires and warm up the house. Otherwise, their hands will tremble at school tomorrow when they try to write.”

Then, she turned to the twins, “Quick, come onto the kang bed, we started a fire earlier and it should be nice and warm now. It’s fine, Aunt Yu. I shall take care of them, you go and prepare the meal. The sky darkens quickly in this season. Yu Jie, close the courtyard door.”

Jin Changfeng and Jin Changjiao quickly took off their shoes and climbed onto the kang. A satin quilt had been spread over the kang and the twins huddled under it. It was very toasty under the quilt, and their frozen feet, buttocks and legs suddenly felt much more comfortable. When they saw Fu Qiuning pouring tea while squatting on the ground, the twins called out, “Mother, we don’t need tea. Come up here too, the floor is cold.”

“No matter how cold it gets, it’s still nothing like winter,” Fu Qiuning said with a smile as she brought two cups of hot tea over. “Refrain from eating snacks, alright? Aunt Yu is in the kitchen stewing beans and pork rib. We shall have a good dinner tonight.”

[1] When Jin Changfeng and Jin Changjiraou heard this, they cheered.

[1] As Fu Qiuning stood by the bed looking at the happy twins, she thought: It would be nice if the days continue to pass like this. There is enough to eat and clothes to keep warm. I have two children under my care, and I can watch as they slowly grow and bloom into handsome and beautiful youths. This is the most gorgeous thing in the world. A peaceful life. A simple life. For the rest, I have no need of them.

“The courtyard gate is closed. I believe the Young Marquis will not stop by either,” Yu Jie had entered the room, shivering. “It’s much colder now than when we swept the yard. Madam should have a look outside. If it gets any colder, it might as well be winter. I shall start the fire in the kitchen and prepare more wood and charcoal.”

Fu Qiuning nodded and Yu Jie went off. The north wind howled, and the sound was similar to the cries of a ghost. As she sat by the edge of the kang bed, the twins took out their books and got started on their homework. There was really nothing much to do, merely copying out some large characters and dictions in small letters. For 9-year-olds, their calligraphy could be considered not bad. After lavishing some praise for their work, she asked if anything interesting happened at school.

Jin Changjiao was quick to reply, she hastily said, “Mother, Teacher told us to bring a qin to class tomorrow. We have been focussing on art and painting lately but we are to learn more about the qin from now on. I don’t know if brother’s side would be learning the qin too. We only have one at home, what if both of us need it?”

“That certainly is a problem. If we can’t manage it, we’ll just have to buy another one,” said Fu Qiuning thoughtfully.

[1] Jin Changfeng shook his head, “No need, the boys’ side emphasis more on the book of sages as well as essays. We won’t need to use the qin, let sister use it. Only, it’s rather old now, I’m afraid that sister will be teased by the other girls.”

Jin Changjiao puffed out her chest, “I’m not afraid. They laughed at me today, but I ignored them. As mother said, I am the eldest sister. As the eldest, I should let go when I should, and retaliate with oblique attacks when appropriate. After all, they are only girls and would not raise their fists. Today, a few of those young ladies haughtily ‘Pointed at the mulberry tree while cursing the locust tree’, but all have been soundly retaliated by me. They were all so angry their eyes nearly popped out of their heads. They were even seen by the teacher, who scolded them for their unladylike behaviour. Teacher also praised me for my poise, hahaha!”

Fu Qiuning and Jin Changfeng also laughed.

[1] Jin Changfeng said, “Something odd happened today. I do not know who instigated Little Brother Zhenyi, but he seems to be trying his best to make life difficult for me. Twice, three times, he kept making peculiar noises and saying weird things at me, but I ignored him. During our rest period, he would try and make hidden moves to attack me, but, remembering Mother’s words, I found a seat closer to the teacher. After that, he seemed to have calmed down a bit. Though the rest of them like to ridicule me, none of them was quite as bold as today.”

When he was done speaking, Jin Changjiao piped up, “Right? Right? Today, Xiuru and Xiuzhen were also the same. Though they were never nice, they had not been this excessive before…” Suddenly, she grabbed Fu Qiuning’s sleeves and cried, “Mother, do you think there is some sort of scheme?”

Fu Qiuning’s smile was indifferent, “Whether there is a scheme or not, so long as the two of you remain apathetic and maintain your present indifference, it will be enough. Jiao’er is a girl and the rest are also girls. They would only attack with their words and not their fists. As for Feng’er’s class… You say that Zhenyi targeted you? That should be Concubine Xu’s son, right? How odd, there are no grudges between us, moreover, she is merely a concubine. If Jiang Wanying hates me, that is as it should be. After all, I had taken away her position as the official wife. Only, this Xu’shi, just why did she stick her neck out for Jiang’shi? Have they united their forces against me?”

“Mother, there’s no need to worry. As you’ve said, we shall ‘Block the soldiers as earth blocks water’ and maintain our indifference. Mother should know your son’s character, I am not someone who can be incited with just words,” said Jin Changfeng.

[1] Fu Qiuning nodded, “You are right. However, boys could be more impulsive and reckless. If Zhenyi is anything like his mother, I’m afraid he will also be strong-willed and reckless. If he does initiate a fight, do not fight back, find a way to escape. Be sure not to take a loss. There is no point fighting fools made use by others to fight their battles. It is not worth dirtying your hands with them. The most important thing is to protect yourself, understand?”

Jin Changfeng nodded, “Yes, this son understands. It was not easy to survive with Mother until today. Now that I can finally enter school, this son is already overjoyed. I will study hard and make full use of my time at school and live up to Mother and Father’s expectations. Mother, look, see if my writing has improved? The teacher praised me for paying attention in class, he also said my writing is quite good.”

[1] “Is that so? Come, let mother have a look,” Fu Qiuning said. She happily picked up the piece of paper and studied it by a nearby lamp. She nodded approvingly, “Yes, you have certainly improved, no wonder the teacher praised you. Was it Scholar Lin?”

[1] When Jin Changfeng nodded, she felt prouder and happier than before.

Mother and children were happily chatting together when, over the whistling of the north wind, there was the sound of repeated knocking. Also, they seemed to hear someone shouting to be let in… however, the wind was so strong that it could not be heard clearly.

“That sounds like Steward Jin’s voice,” said Jin Changfeng.

[1] Fu Qiuning nodded, there was a confused look on her face as she muttered, “That’s odd, it is already so late, why would the steward stop by? You two stay here, Mother will go take a look.”

[1] With that, she took a slightly worn cloak off the hanger by the door, slung it about her shoulders and made her way to the door.

When she reached the courtyard, she could hear the noise of people outside. Looks like Jin Ming was not alone. Even more baffled, Fu Qiuning hastily opened the door and was greeted by Jin Fengju’s livid face, behind him was a line of shivering people with things clutched in their hands.

“Closing the door as soon as it gets dark? That’s even earlier than our marquisate,” Jin Fengju dodged around her and entered the courtyard.

[1] He was followed by Jin Ming, who directed the line of people behind him, “Come in, come in.”

“What is happening?” Fu Qiuning was confused. She ignored Jin Ming’s activities and followed after Jin Fengju. His face was nearly blue.

“Happening? Nothing’s happening, ah.” Jin Fengju tilted his head to study her, “What is wrong with you? Your complexion is unsightly.”

Fu Qiuning nearly rolled her eyes to the sky. She muttered, “Clearly Lord Husband’s face is a hundred times more unsightly than mine, but you still dare to ask me? I look like this because I was shocked by your unsightly face. It’s normally quite good-looking, but why is it so blue now? Did something happen?”

“Oh, this, ah?” Jin Fengju smiled and pointed at himself. “Did you not notice that I did not even have a cloak on? My face is frozen. Today is unexpectedly cold, ah. It’s not even winter yet, but it felt like we are on the 3rd or 9th day into winter.”

Fu Qiuning sighed with relief, she really did not know whether to laugh or cry, ah. She thought: Frozen? Your face is frozen by the wind? Serves you right for wearing so little! However, she put a touch of concern in her voice as she said, “Why did you leave without even a cloak? The Madam has always been attentive to your needs. Are you so confident with your martial arts that you refused to wear extra clothes?”

“It was not so cold earlier today. We have all been negligent.” Jin Fengju said. He turned to see the boy servants standing around, wondering where to put their load, so he said to Jin Ming, “There is no shortage of empty rooms here, have them move the things into rooms closest to the kitchen for easier access.”

“What things? Why so many?” Fu Qiuning tried to look but it was dark enough to require lanterns and she could not tell what the servants were carrying.

“It is getting colder. I believe you must not have prepared enough firewood here and brought some. You may use these first. More than 10,000 catties of firewood had been brought into the marquisate and distributed to other rooms. Yours is the only one that’s been left out. There are some good quality silver charcoal [2], ordinary charcoal and some firewood. I estimate they should last you two or three months. If you don’t have enough, I can bring more.”

[1] He rubbed his hands together, “Enough, enough, no need to look, let them put those things away. I am half-frozen, let’s get in quickly.” He was about to usher her away when he suddenly stopped, as though just remembered something and called out to Jin Ming, “Bring the qin to me. Once the boys have moved everything in, you may send them back.”

[Gumihou: If you see a lot more Note 1 now, it’s because Gumi took the time to mark every single time I had to split a paragraph into 2, 3 or 4 paragraphs. White Pear Flower has a strange habit of squishing most of her texts into a huge lump. I don’t normally do this since having too many footnotes could disrupt a reader’s enjoyment, but I thought I’d make an exception now and then, just to share the writer’s little idiosyncrasies]

[1] Some minor sentence adjustments for better flow.

[2] Silver Charcoal – last longer, smokeless