Chapter 23: Meeting Auntie-in-law

  Inside the house, Su was talking to the wet nurse when suddenly Xiao Yatou reported that Qin Daihe had arrived. Her heart was overjoyed, and she was about to get up, but a pair of hands firmly pressed her down. She looked up to meet a pair of slightly concerned eyes.

  "Auntie, just lie down and don't get up." Qin Dai pulled Su Shi's hand and sat down beside her on the kang.

  There was a heating dragon in the house, warm as spring. Su Shi wore only a moon-white small jacket, with a soft satin skirt underneath, and her hair was simple, without any accessories, except for a jade Guanyin pendant around her neck. This woman, who was nearly forty years old and dressed so simply, made Qin Dai feel an unprecedented sense of closeness and comfort, as if she were facing one of her own relatives. She didn't know whether it was the blood in her body playing tricks on her or her heart, which had been frozen for too long due to family relationships.

  After rebirth, she had only taken a few vague glances at him. Now that she was taking a closer look, although Su Shi wasn't the type of breathtaking beauty that left a lasting impression on people at first sight, her eyebrows were like distant mountains with a hint of elegance, her lips were like red fruit, and her eyes shone like stars. The more she looked, the more flavor she found in him.

  "How is your aunt's body?" The tone was calm and comfortable to listen to, completely without the impatience of usual times.

  "Good, good." Su was overjoyed, never having thought that Third Miss would be so nice to her.

  The wet nurse looked on and also couldn't help but comfort her, saying: "Auntie just has a poor appetite, if she smells something bad then she'll want to vomit, and at noon she didn't even eat a few mouthfuls."

  "What's the point of saying these things?" Su Shi was afraid that Qin Dai would be annoyed, so he hastily said: "The month is still young, it will be better after a few more days."

  Qin Dai Xin understood her meaning, and a few points of reluctance arose in her heart. "I just got back, haven't had dinner yet, why don't we eat here at Aunt's place? It can be considered as accompanying me, and using some more is fine, right?" She actually started to act coquettishly.

  It's all right, what's wrong. Su had been looking forward to this day for a long time, but was also afraid of committing some taboo and getting into trouble.

  Qin Dai Xin knew that the rules inside the mansion were many, and understood what she was worried about. She smiled and said: "My courtyard is being tidied up, I'm afraid there isn't even a single corner left untidy. Auntie is keeping me for a meal, can't bear to part with me?"

  Hearing her say this, both Su and the wet nurse couldn't help but smile at each other, feeling doubly reassured.

  "I'll have someone prepare it right away." The wet nurse went downstairs to instruct the servants to prepare food, and Ruyu also quietly retreated with Fangqiao, the head maid of the Su family's house, leaving only this mother-daughter pair talking inside the room.

  Su Shi asked her about her life on the farm in a subtle way, and also asked about her health. Qin Dai's heart was afraid that she would worry, so she brushed off everything as being fine, and then changed the subject, telling her about Fang Shi letting her go to Jia Fu to admire the plum blossoms.

  Su Shi hastily said, "A Li, don't take it to heart." After finishing speaking, she felt that her reaction was excessive and changed her words: "What I mean is, Third Miss should be a bit worried. The Jia residence must have invited many ladies, not to mention the complex relationships between various residences, so it's probably not as enjoyable as Miss thought."

  Qin Dai's eyes had a deep meaning as she looked at her, thinking to herself: Could this be fate? Is the third young lady's name really A Li?

  "My aunt said it all and I understand."

  Su wanted to say something more, but was worried that the relationship which had just eased would be affected, and hesitated.

  Qin Dai Xin squeezed Su Shi's hand and said in a low voice, "Even if you don't say it, I understand. Having gone through life and death together, if I still can't figure this out, wouldn't that be a waste of my second chance at life?"

  Her voice was not loud, but it lingered in Su's heart, unable to disperse for a long time. Originally, Su had already been excited, but Qin Dai's next words shocked her even more, causing her to become so emotional that she shed tears.

  "Reborn, Dai Xin is no longer the Dai Xin of the past. Nowadays, I don't want to live like before. In private, my aunt calls me Ali, it sounds more intimate."

  Su was unable to hold back any longer and covered her face, sobbing softly. This day, she had finally waited for it.

  Qin Dai Xin understood her feelings at this time, but also felt that crying like this would inevitably harm her body, so she had to persuade and comfort her repeatedly, and finally calmed down her emotions with great difficulty.

  Qin Dai Xin called someone to bring warm water for Su Shi to wash her face. Before long, a second-class maid came to serve the meal, placing it only on the kang table, which was quite convenient.

  In a daze, Qin Dai suddenly smelled a faint fragrance, which was refreshing and not pungent, but surprisingly had the sweet scent of osmanthus.

  "As you wish."

  The maid, Ruyi, who was standing by, hastily stepped forward, "Miss."

  Qin Dai'er said, "Just now the little girl who delivered the meal had a fragrant osmanthus scent on her body, I found it quite pleasant. Go and ask that little girl for some, just say I want them, remember?"

  She thought it was just a novelty, but the fragrance on Yaotou's body was better than what the young ladies in the mansion used. Although she had doubts, she couldn't ask in front of Su Shi, so she followed Qin Daihe's instructions and hurriedly chased after her.

  Only Qindai Xin and Su Shi were left in the house, even Fang Qi, who was serving Su Shi, quietly retreated, leaving this rare moment to the two women. On the table, there were four dishes, two meat and two vegetarian. One dish of braised fish, one dish of Four Happiness Meatballs, one dish of assorted stir-fry, and one dish of silver sprout mixed with vegetable threads. The staple food was white porridge and small steamed buns the size of apricot kernels.

  Qin Dai Xin had only eaten a few mouthfuls when she realized why Su Shi's interest was lacking.

  Pregnant women generally like to eat something sour and refreshing, but the dishes on the table are either greasy and meaty or bland and tasteless vegetables, which not only can't alleviate Su's morning sickness, but also make her hard to swallow and vomit constantly.

  Perhaps because Qin Dai Xin was there, Su Shi surprisingly ate a few more bites than usual and didn't show any discomfort. After finishing their meal, the two of them chatted warmly together.

  "The Jia family has come to ask for your hand in marriage three or five times, but each time the Fang family has refused with various excuses. This time, the Jia family invited her to admire the plum blossoms, and it's likely that they will bring up this matter again." Su Shi worriedly said: "If you don't return, I wouldn't have to worry so much. The old lady suddenly changed her attitude, which really makes me uneasy."

  As a mother, she naturally thinks for her children. Although Su Shi was only a concubine and did not have the qualifications to raise her children herself, she was truly thinking for Qin Dai's sake.

  "A Li will be gone tomorrow, it's best if you don't go alone, no matter what, stay with someone by your side." Su said with a somewhat tense tone.

  Qin Dai Xin knew she was scared by what happened last time, and her heart warmed up, so she agreed.

  "It's good to bring some small gifts when visiting, they don't have to be expensive, just thoughtful. When meeting young ladies of the same age, it's customary to give them something they like as a gift." Madam Su lectured tirelessly on the various rules of etiquette for visiting the mansion, fearing that Qin Dai would encounter something and not know how to handle it.

  I suppose Fang Wanru rarely took her out before!

  Time slipped away unnoticed, and before I knew it, evening had arrived.

  The wet nurse was delighted with the way mother and daughter were getting along, but she couldn't help reminding them: "If Auntie doesn't let Third Miss go, I'm afraid you'll have to stay for dinner at Lan Garden too. Why don't you get Miss to head back early? Tomorrow isn't a day off from visiting the Jia Mansion to admire the plum blossoms, after all."

  Su felt that time had passed very quickly and didn't think it was already this late, although she was a bit reluctant to part with her nanny, she also knew that the nanny's words were reasonable.

  Qin Dai's heart could see that Su Shi was a bit reluctant and slightly uneasy, so she thought for a moment and understood. She said softly: "Nanny is absolutely right, Auntie, there's always tomorrow."

  There's a long time ahead, this phrase is really good.

  Su nodded comfortingly and called the wet nurse to bring over a square jewelry box, which she handed to Qindai Xin, saying: "When I got married, my family had already declined, and there were only a few pieces of dowry jewelry that could be brought out. You're grown up now, you should have some decent things, take it!"

  Qin Dai Xin finally understood that she was going to use her most precious jewelry to make herself look more attractive.

  "I'm still young, what's the use of these things? Auntie, you keep them for yourself!" Qin Dai repeatedly pushed away, refusing to accept.

  Su smiled calmly and said: "The old master has never treated me unfairly, I have everything I need to eat, wear and use. These accessories can also be considered as Su family heirlooms, you can keep them!"

  Qin Dai's heart saw a hint of pleading in Su Shi's eyes, and she couldn't bear it. She took the box from Su Shi and made a full bow: "Thank you so much, Auntie." Then she asked the wet nurse, "Has Ruyu returned?"

  "I returned early and saw that you were talking to the aunt, so I didn't come over to disturb you." The nanny was in an unusually good mood today. Third Miss finally made a recovery, not only speaking to her with warmth and moderation, but also being more polite even when looking for herself, truly having grown up.

  Just then, Ruyi and Fangqiao came in laughing and chatting. They greeted Qin Daihe and Su Shi. Ruyi smiled and asked: "Miss, are you leaving?"

  "Back." Qin Dai's heart said a few more words to let Su Shi rest well, and then turned around and left the house, all the way to her own yard.

  Qin Dai Xin lived in Chang Xiao Garden, not far from Su's Orchid Garden. Before long, the master and servant returned to Qin Dai Xin's residence.

  The courtyard inside and out had been swept clean, Chunli had arranged everything neatly, waiting for Qindai to return home. She saw her lining up the servants in the courtyard, probably to welcome their master back home and make it convenient for him to give them a lecture.

  The allocation of slaves in the Qin manor was regulated, and a young lady's courtyard usually consisted of one housekeeper mother, one personal maid, two second-class maids, three third-class small maids, and two rough-serving women.

  When Qin Daiyu had her accident earlier, the housekeeper who was in charge of the household chores was punished and is no longer working here. Now, except for her, all the maids and slaves in the house have arrived.

  Qin Dai Xin stood under the corridor, took a glance at the maids and wives who were lowering their heads, and suddenly felt that something was missing by her side. In terms of loyalty, no one in the courtyard could compare to Ruyi and Chunli, but what she wanted wasn't just ordinary confidants...