Chapter 13 V2 : Homecoming (1/2)

The two woke up early the next morning. They hurriedly got dressed and had a light breakfast before heading out.

For the homecoming, Sang Wan did not bring a single maidservant from Ning Garden with her to her parental home. Instead, she instructed Zhide to have her chamber and the garden looked after and only brought Liu Ya along.

As for Shi Fengju, he made a few adjustments so that only two manservants, Zhang Huan and Shi Ming, as well as their wives, Li Yan and Song He, who aided him occasionally, accompanied him to Sang Wan’s parental home.

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Two horse-drawn carriages had been prepared beforehand; one for Sang Wan and Shi Fengju, and the other carriage behind them for the maidservants. His two confidantes would steer the carriages, and their wives, together with Liu Ya, would be in the other carriage. The gifts that had been prepared were kept neatly in the compartment of the carriage the maidservants were in.

Before leaving, Shi Fengju glanced at Sang Wan, looking for her green light. Upon seeing her smile and nod at him slightly, Shi Fengju waved his hand and ordered everyone to board the carriages.

The carriages drove past the gate and left the Shi household behind them. The sounds of the horseshoes hitting the pebbled floor gradually faded into the distance. There, behind a dense cluster of pomegranate trees, stood Gu Fangzi with a gloomy face.

“Pa!” The branch she was holding snapped in half and the green leaves in her hand crumpled. Her pale white palm was stained with different shades of green.

However, Gu Fangzi cared not for the stains on her pale white palm. Instead, her eyes boiled with rage as she gazed in the direction of the gate.

That woman! Her cousin had gone to accompany that woman back to her parental house!

Though she knew the homecoming was unavoidable, she could not help but feel sullen. Her eyebrow rose slightly as the smile Sang Wan had given to Shi Fengju just then floated in her mind. The devious seed in her heart began to grow.

“Shi Fengju has no feelings for her! Shi Fengju has no feelings for her…” Gu Fangzi murmured to herself, only to pout her lips and shake her head as she sighed. “To run out here to take a look, I sure asked for it! What’s there even to see? Seriously!”

The carriages left the city gates. Pulling the curtains away, the many slopes of the distant hills could be seen. Sang Wan’s hands, clutching tightly to a handkerchief, finally relaxed and her body occasionally swayed from side to side, as if she were trying to suppress her excitement and nervousness. Shi Fengju could not help but size her up.

Sang Wan laughed awkwardly, ” To think that I’m about to meet my brother and his family, my heart’s feeling a little nervous!”

“Chi!” Shi Fengju suddenly burst into laughter. “It hasn’t even been a week since you last saw them. What’s there to be nervous about?”

Sang Wan was suddenly dazed by Shi Fengju’s words but managed to force a smile. “That’s true. It has only been a few days. I sure am hopeless! Hēhē!”

A few days? To him and everyone else, that might be so; however, to her, it had already been several years! To finally be able to see her blood relatives, whom she had not seen for several years… how could she not feel nervous? How could she not feel a sense of longing?

Her honest and good-natured elder brother, her daring yet simple sister-in-law, her lovable nephew and niece; did they still look the same as before? Would they still treat her well, like before? Of course, they would! Why? Because all the unpleasantness had yet to begin, or better still, would never begin!

Sang Wan’s heart did a few somersaults, but she quickly held a deep breath.

“No need to feel so anxious; there’s still a two-hour journey to go! If you’re feeling tired, you can close your eyes for a while.” Hearing Sang Wan snap out her reply, Shi Fengju stopped and dared not joke with her. He should be an understanding person. Perhaps every newly-wedded bride felt this way?

Sang Wan’s heart was in chaos, but upon hearing those words from Shi Fengju, she instinctively closed her eyes to organize her thoughts. She gave a slight nod to Shi Fengju and leaned against the side of the carriage.

As noon approached, the carriage finally arrived at the outskirts of Yangliu Town’s Sihe Village. Sang Wan’s parental home was located near the east entrance of the village.

The Shi family’s carriages, drawn by two strong and healthy horses, were gorgeous; the wheels were half the height of a full grown man and the body was thickly coated with paint and decorated with magenta flowers sewn from fine silk. Each carriage’s four sides had a gold tassel and were decorated with sachets hung from a string of jade beads. As the carriages entered the village, they immediately attracted the attention of many villagers. Although there were only two carriages, they still garnered the envy of many. Seeing that the carriages were heading towards the Sang family’s house, many couldn’t help but lament in their hearts. Nothing less from Qingzhou’s Shi family! Impressive! Moreover, there were a number of children giggling and following closely behind the carriages as they enjoyed the liveliness within the village.

The carriages halted at the entrance of the Sang family’s house. Liu Ya, who was dressed in new clothes, hurriedly jumped off the carriage and went to assist Sang Wan as she exited the carriage.

Not far away, in the bustling crowd, stood many wives gossiping among themselves. “Yí, isn’t that Liu Ya? The dress she’s wearing and those beautiful ornaments in her hair; āi, I’ve never seen such beautiful clothing before! The Shi family sure is rich; even a maidservant’s apparel looks better than ours!”

“Though I didn’t think so in the past, it now seems like that lass has definitely set a new standard of beauty!”

“The Sang family sure is lucky!”

“An unimaginable amount of riches! Soon, the Sang family will be basking in them! They sure hit the lottery this time around!”