My wife has a secret

Chapter 19 Lu Mansion
Inside the car, Lu Wanhe was wearing a slightly thin, plain white long cotton coat, and her long black hair was tied up with an ordinary long hairpin.

She usually never wears makeup, but today she put on a light makeup, which is enough to show how much importance she attaches to today.

I have to say that today Lu Wanhe's eyebrows are like emerald feathers and her teeth are like pearls. She looks very beautiful and charming.

The only thing is that her skin is a little too white, far from being as white as Qin Shuying's, which is as smooth and moist as jade.

"Wan He, I heard from Ji Xia that you want to return this dress to me?"

Xu Qing lifted the curtain and walked in, and was immediately attracted by Lu Wanhe's outfit.

My goodness, Xu Qing has picked up a treasure, why doesn’t he know how to cherish it?
"Yes."

Lu Wanhe responded weakly, and continued in her gentle voice: "My husband, it's cold today, and I caught a cold last night. I'm afraid I've neglected you all this way... How about I take the ox cart at the back?"

As soon as she finished saying this, Lu Wanhe covered her red lips with her slender jade-like fingers and turned her head away, as if she wanted to cough but was forcing herself to hold it back.

"You said you are in this situation, why do you still care about these red tapes?"

Just as Xu Qing was about to pat her back to help her calm down, Lu Wanhe stopped him in mid-air with his hand.

Seeing the stubborn look in the little girl's eyes, he suddenly realized that the other party's vigilance towards him was probably not a little bit serious.

Xu Qing put his hand down and said with a smile: "Take the towel. If you cough on it, it won't affect me."

"Thank you, husband."

Lu Wanhe pulled out a handkerchief from his arms and coughed twice softly.

"Put on this fox fur coat too. When we get to the Lu residence, I don't want the people there to think that my Xu family has treated you unfairly."

Lu Wanhe was slightly stunned. She was weak and the weather was cold today.

If Xu Qing wore a fox fur coat while he wore a cotton coat, it might cause some unnecessary rumors to spread, affecting the reputation of the Xu family.

After thinking for a moment, Lu Wanhe obediently took the fox fur from Xu Qing's hand and put it on herself.

A familiar feeling of generosity came over her, and she didn't dare to look into Xu Qing's eyes again.

There was a lot of space inside the carriage. Xu Qing crossed his legs and hummed his favorite tune.

As expected, the identity of this dude is more comfortable. There is no future for warm-hearted men.

The third wife, Mrs. Lu, appears to be gentle on the outside, but she is stubborn by nature, so this kind of words can only be used to force her to submit.

The rest of the journey was very boring. Because Lu Wanhe deliberately avoided the topic, Xu Qing couldn't find anything to talk about.

He had wanted to take advantage of the opportunity of being in the same car to have a detailed chat with Lu Wanhe about the past events, but he didn't expect that this guy would refuse to communicate with him in depth just like the day before.

Xu Qing had no choice but to draw aside the curtains and admire the appearance of the ancient city of Suzhou.

The noise of the Xu residence's return visit was so loud that even though the Lu residence was only three streets away, the sound of firecrackers could be heard from a long distance away.

Coupled with the fame of Lu Wanhe's poems that had been circulating in the past two days, almost everyone knew that Miss Lu would be returning home from the Xu family to visit her relatives today.

The streets were crowded with people, and it was a lively and busy scene. People who didn't know would think that Suzhou City was celebrating a festival today.

It was the first time that Xu Qing enjoyed the feeling of being the center of attention, and he waved to the onlookers.

"Oh no, mother! That evil guy Xu just glanced at my daughter. I wonder if she will get pregnant with his seed?"

"That thief Xu is showing off again. Bah, how shameless!"

"It's a waste for such a good girl from the Lu family to jump into this fire pit, alas."

Xu Qing smiled awkwardly and half-pulled the curtains to hide his face.

It seems that I am no longer just famous, but almost everyone despises me.

From this perspective, the woman who murdered me wouldn't have her own reasons, right?
The convoy drove to Dongchang Street where the Lu Mansion was located and passed a dilapidated courtyard wall.

Xu Qing could clearly notice that Lu Wanhe raised her head at this moment and glanced at the house through the gap.

"Where is this?"

"This is……"

Lu Wanhe paused, and his voice became weak and trembling.

Xu Qing smiled and said, "It's okay if you don't want to tell me. I can go ask Ji Xia."

Lu Wanhe grew up with Ji Xia, and knew that her personal maid could not keep secrets, so she was forced to answer, "It was the Xu Mansion before the relocation."

"Xu Mansion?"

Xu Qing blinked, thinking that Lu Wanhe was wrong.

"It's the Xu Mansion. My grandfather was the prefect of Peizhou and Suzhou twice before, so my family moved to Dongchang Street with him. At that time, the Xu Mansion was opposite the Lu Mansion."

Xu Qing suddenly realized, "Oh, so the marriage between the two families was also concluded at that time?"

"Yes."

In his spare time, Xu Qing flipped through the family tree and found that almost none of his ancestors had ever been officials. They made their fortune by selling purple gold nanmu and working with officials from the Ministry of Works.

The Lu family was originally a noble family in the Longxi area, so he always had some doubts about the marriage arrangement between the two families.

Now that I see the old site of the Xu family is adjacent to the Lu Mansion, I finally understand why.

"Master, Third Young Madam, we're here."

The carriage stopped and Xiaohuan's voice came from outside.

Xu Qing lifted the car curtain and walked out first.

At a glance, the entrance of the Lu Mansion was also crowded with people, tall, short, fat and thin, crowded together, forming a spectacular scene.

The Puyuan poetry gatherings I attended before were not as crowded and lively as this one.

The people from the Lu residence had started making preparations early in the morning. When they saw the eldest son of the Xu family get off the carriage, they immediately rushed over like a tide.

"Master Xu, I wish you good health and many children."

"Mr. Xu, I wish you a happy spring, a bright summer, a prosperous autumn and a healthy winter."

"Master Xu, I wish you all the best and everything goes as you wish!"

"..."

There were many people who came to congratulate him, and Xu Qing couldn't recognize their faces at all. He could only wave to the servants who were accompanying him, signaling them to stop these relatives.

A middle-aged woman with a kind and dignified face took the nine-year-old child into her arms and smiled at Xu Qing, saying, "Young Master Xu, this is my son. He was able to read and write when he was young, and he could recite the Confucian classics by heart."

Perhaps because the woman was with a child, the servants did not forcibly stop her outside the human wall.

"Hurry up and call mother, hello, Master Xu."

The child's face flushed red, and his little hands tugged at the corner of the woman's clothes. He seemed extremely nervous and couldn't even utter a sound.

The woman's voice was somewhat anxious, and she lowered her head and asked, "Xiang'er, what's wrong with you? Don't you always say that Master Xu is your idol at home?"

Xu Qing was delighted to hear this. He had heard a lot about his reputation on the street when he returned home. How could there be children who regarded him as an idol? Thinking about it carefully, he felt a sense of accomplishment.

"Mother...Mother! It's Sister Wanhe!"

The child responded hesitantly, and suddenly caught a glimpse of Lu Wanhe bending down and walking out of the curtain. He instantly smiled and shouted happily.

The woman's face suddenly darkened. She hurriedly pulled her son towards her and scolded him, "Stop messing around! Call Mr. Xu!"

"I won't... People on the street say that he treats Sister Wanhe badly and often bullies her in the mansion!"

These words made the peaceful scene fall into silence. The woman no longer cared about her carefully made-up face and cursed viciously, "How dare you belittle Master Xu like this? Believe it or not..." After that, she raised her hand.

"Aunt Gao!"

Lu Wanhe was helped down by Ji Xia and stopped the woman.

"Xiang'er is still young, why is Aunt Gao angry with him?"

"Humph."

The woman glanced at the frail Lu Wanhe and turned her head away, as if she didn't want to say another word to her.

But the little boy under her was different. He took the initiative to break free from the woman's fingers and ran to Lu Wanhe's side.

Lu Wanhe squatted down, held his little hand, with a gentle and kind smile on her face.

"Xiang'er, the rumors outside are not true. Sister is living well in the Xu Mansion... Look at this fox fur coat on sister, it was specially given to me by my husband."

Everyone in the Lu residence looked at each other, with some surprise in their eyes.

They had heard that Lu Wanhe was not favored in the Xu family and had not met Mr. Xu for two years after their marriage. Therefore, when they returned home, they deliberately ignored Lu Wanhe and pursued Mr. Xu.

But this fox fur coat is made of high-quality material and cannot be fake. Could it be that she, a sickly girl, is really favored in the Xu family?
"really?"

"Of course it's real. If you don't believe me, try it."

Lu Xiang was young and had never come into contact with such high-end clothing in the mansion. He quietly reached out and touched the delicate and smooth fur of the fox fur, and immediately felt an indescribable touch.

"It's true! It's much smoother than the fur of Xiao Hei in the mansion!"

Hearing this, Lu Wanhe showed a gentle smile on her face.

"Where are Baozhang and the others?"

"They were locked up by their family because of what happened last night..."

"Shut up! Don't make any noise unless you have to!"

Lu Xiang had just finished speaking when he was forcibly pulled away by the woman surnamed Gao.

After the woman bowed to apologize to Xu Qing, the two of them quickly disappeared into the crowd.

Lu Wanhe was startled and dazed, realizing that something might have happened in the Lu Mansion.

Xu Qing stepped forward and helped her up from the ground, then hooked his finger at Hai Dafu who was accompanying him.

"Master, what are your orders?"

"Wan He and I will go in first. You take out the gifts from our Xu Mansion and place them in the Lu Family's yard. Shout louder."

"do not worry."

Chief Steward Hai nodded repeatedly and began to call upon the servants he brought with him.

"Give me the list, and move the things in one box at a time..."

Xu Qing took Lu Wanhe's arm and walked into the yard. Hai Dafu came out from outside the door with a red face and shouted the name of the gift.

"The Xu family presents a pair of gold and jade Haidong Qingyan ornaments."

"The Xu family presents a pair of jade-carved lions."

"The Xu family presents a silver-plated gilded basin as a gift."

"..."

When the Lu clan members heard that the Xu family was so generous, their eyes widened and they surrounded Xu Qing to welcome him into the house.

When he entered the Lu Mansion like a star-studded moon, an older elder came forward on behalf of the Lu clan members and said with a smile, "Master Xu, the return banquet has been prepared in the front hall. If you are hungry, we can take a seat now."

"You guys take your seats first. I'll enjoy the autumn scenery of the lotus pond for a while. I'll ask my wife to take me to the front hall later."

"Okay, okay, Mr. Xu, please do as you please."

After the huge crowd dispersed, Lu Wanhe, who was standing next to Xu Qing, calmly withdrew his arm and looked at Xu Qing with complicated eyes.

"Thank you."

"I'm doing this for the Xu family's reputation, please don't get me wrong."

Lu Wanhe's face was like a tranquil lake, clear and deep.

She lowered her head and replied in a low voice: "Don't worry, my husband. I know my status and position and will never cross this line."

Xu Qing was very curious about the cordon that Lu Wanhe mentioned, but he knew that this girl was stubborn and would not tell him anything, so he turned around and glanced at the layout of the Lu Mansion.

"This Lu Mansion is not like the Xu Mansion. Apart from the lotus pond in the courtyard, I'm afraid there is only a front yard and a backyard... If you are worried about the children, why not go to the backyard and take a look yourself."

"Then...where is my husband?"

Xu Qing waved his hand and walked towards the front hall.

After walking a few steps, Xiaohuan followed from behind, holding a stack of red envelopes in her arms, which were the return money prepared in advance by Manager Hai.

Xu Qing took a look, shook his head and said with a smile: "Our Xu family is really being taken advantage of."

Xiao Huan looked at Xu Qing dully, her little head full of confusion, "Master, isn't this a rule or custom?"

"It's alright, just wait and see how the young master makes the Lu Mansion a mess."

……

Lu Wanhe walked across the mottled courtyard wall, pushed open the familiar gate, and came to the backyard alone.

She had just looked at several other courtyards, but couldn't find the children anywhere, so she had no choice but to look at the last woodshed.

The firewood shed of the Lu Mansion was not much better than those in the countryside. The ground was paved with mud and the roof was covered with a layer of broken tiles.

Lu Wanhe was used to walking in the courtyard of the Xu Mansion. When she suddenly returned here, she felt the soles of her feet were sore from rubbing.

"Bao Zhang? Xiao Han?"

Hearing the familiar voice, several pairs of eyes in the woodshed immediately looked out.

But before she could get close to the woodshed, a group of women appeared at the door and blocked her way.

"Mrs. Xu, what are you doing?"

Lu Wanhe looked at the person who spoke and recognized her as Aunt Gao's sister.

He has no relationship with the Lu Mansion. He moved in because his younger sister married into the Lu family.

"The children are locked inside. It's cold now. What if they get frozen to death..."

The woman put her hands on her hips and sneered at Lu Wanhe, "Madam Xu, this is the Lu Mansion. You have already married into the Xu family. Do you still want to interfere in the affairs of our Lu family?"

Lu Wanhe was speechless for a moment, not knowing what to say.

According to the internal training and female commandments, she is Xu Qing's wife and should not say any more about the Lu family's affairs.

"It is our job as mothers to educate our children. What do you, a woman who is oblivious to the world, know? When children are unruly and disobedient, they should be exposed to cold and hunger to learn their lesson."

"What did they...do wrong?"

The smile on Mrs. Gao's face disappeared, and she said to Lu Wanhe coldly, "Isn't it all your fault? They could have rested easy if they were attached to the Xu family, but you insisted on encouraging them to take the imperial examinations and become successful."

　I will revise the previous chapters in the next two days, and then add more chapters.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)