The tenth day of the sixth lunar month is the anniversary of the death of the late old lady of the Xu family, Zhao, Xu Changqian's mother. After Zhao passed away, Xu Lin set up an incense tablet for his first wife in a temple in the suburbs of Beijing. Every year on Zhao's death anniversary, he would lead the whole family to pay homage. No matter how unhappy the current old lady Xu was, she had to act virtuous and generous on this day.
Xu Changqian had been away from Beijing for so many years, but at this time every year, he would never forget to burn a few incense sticks, place a few fruit plates, and kowtow to his mother who had passed away early in the direction of the capital.
The matter of worshiping Zhao was brought up early this year. Her grandson Xu Mingye not only passed the imperial examination and became a Jinshi, but also stayed in Beijing and entered the official career, which really made Xu Changqian proud, and he also wanted to share his joy with his mother in heaven.
Old Madam Xu had declared early on that she was too old and not in good health to walk long distances to pay respects to Zhao. She was the second wife, and her status was lower than Zhao's. Since Xu Lin's death, she had never taken care of the wooden tablet in the temple. More than 20 years had passed, and now she was asked to pay respects and burn incense to a tablet? She would never do it!
Old Mrs. Xu could shamelessly pretend to be sick, but her sons could not. In name, Zhao was their legal mother, and it was only right and proper for them to bring the whole family and follow their eldest brother to pay homage to their legal mother.
No matter how unwilling Hu and Li were, they dared not show the slightest dissatisfaction. They packed their things early in the morning and got on the carriage hired by the eldest wife.
There were only four carriages. Xu Changqian and his three brothers took one, Mrs. Xu took one with her two sisters-in-law, Xu Mingye took one with his three naughty cousins, and Mingyu took one with Xu Mingrui and Xu Mingyun.
As soon as Xu Mingrui came up, she glanced at the carriage with disgust. The carriage was hired temporarily. Naturally, it couldn't be kept very clean. Xu Mingrui first took out a handkerchief and wiped the seat of the carriage carefully, then sat down with a frown, fanning herself with her hands. With a reluctant look on her face, she muttered, "It's so hot, I sweat just sitting at home. You want people to come out, aren't you deliberately torturing me!"
Xu Mingyun looked at Mingyu's face, pulled Xu Mingrui's sleeve, and said in a low voice, but it was just loud enough for the people in the car to hear clearly, "Sister, please stop talking. Today is the day to pay respect to our legitimate grandmother. We have neglected the etiquette for so many years. We should go and pay respect."
Xu Mingrui was the oldest among the three. She could see what her youngest sister was up to today. She just wanted to step on Mingyu to get some favors. She was a simple person but she had a lot of tricks! The Hu family hated the third house that stared at them like a mouse, so Xu Mingrui also hated her third uncle's family, including this self-righteous little cousin.
"Hmph! Stop using moral principles to pressure me." Xu Mingrui was still fanning herself with a handkerchief. She glanced at Mingyu and said, "Of course we should go to pay respects, but in such a hot day..." Xu Mingrui raised her voice slightly, "I heard that other families put a few basins of ice in their carriages when they go out at this time. It's not hot at all. It's not like us, who went out in the scorching sun."
In fact, Mingyu also felt a little hot. The carriage for men was fine, as they could open the curtains and let the wind blow when the carriage was moving. But women like them couldn't do that. The curtains had to be covered tightly, without any gaps. But Xu Mingrui's behavior was quite annoying.
"If you feel hot, sister, you'd better go back. I will talk to father." Mingyu smiled, very understanding.
Xu Mingrui was just unhappy and wanted to take the opportunity to complain a few words to vent her anger, hoping to make Mingyu feel uncomfortable. She also knew that today was an important day and she couldn't just go back like this.
"I just said a few words about how hot it was, and you sent me back. What's that?" Xu Mingrui was unhappy. The weather was terribly hot, and she had worked so hard just to burn incense for Xu Mingyu's grandmother. No one would be happy about that.
Mingyu leaned against the carriage window, enjoying the cool breeze that occasionally leaked in through the curtains. Seeing Xu Mingrui's tigress posture, she was not angry, and said slowly: "I feel sorry for you because you are weak and can't stand the heat or the cold, but you were born into a poor family like our Xu family. There is a saying, what is it... "Mingyu tapped her forehead with her fingers, and suddenly seemed to think of something, and smiled and said: "A young lady has the body of a maid! There is nothing we can do about it."
Xu Mingyun couldn't help but covered her mouth and giggled at Xu Mingrui. Everyone said that the second sister was quiet and kind-tempered, but in her opinion, this second sister was a master at swearing.
Xu Mingrui's face flushed red, and Xu Mingyun's mocking voice in the carriage made her even more furious. She clenched her fists, gnashed her teeth and looked at Mingyu, saying, "Why are you so proud? You still have the nerve to go home after being divorced by the Marquis's mansion? When others ask about my divorced sister, I am so ashamed that I wish I could never see anyone again!"
Mingyu smiled calmly, "You can be ashamed of yourself, what does it have to do with me?" She didn't feel ashamed of anything.
Xu Mingrui was furious. She dropped her last bit of politeness and pointed at Mingyu's nose, trembling and scolding, "You have always been shameless. You have ruined the reputation of the Xu family's girls. Do you know how great an honor it was for the Xu family when the Marquis's Mansion came to propose marriage? Such a great thing fell on you, but you didn't know how to cherish and be grateful. You even turned a happy event into a feud. If I... you... you are simply shameless!"
After panting for a few times, Xu Mingrui managed to calm down a little. She glanced at Xu Mingyun who was huddled in the corner and cursed angrily, "You are also a muddleheaded person! You only know how to curry favor with her. You don't learn good things but learn bad things. Just wait until you are divorced and brought home to be embarrassed like her in the future!"
Mingyu snorted coldly, "So, big sister keeps saying so many high-sounding principles just to express her jealousy that the Marquis's marriage proposal wasn't for you!"
Xu Mingrui's breath stagnated, and she immediately denied it, "What nonsense! Of course not!"
"It's no use being jealous." Mingyu smiled sarcastically, "The Marquis' Mansion must have a daughter born to the original wife, but it's a pity that you are not the granddaughter of the original wife, so they look down on you. It's not my fault."
Actually, to put it bluntly, the marriage back then was because the Marquis's Mansion favored Mingyu's grandmother and not Xu Mingrui's grandmother, and it had little to do with the two of them. If Xu Mingrui wanted to blame someone, she might as well go home and blame her grandmother who was lying in bed pretending to be sick, why she wanted to be Xu Lin's concubine and second wife, thus preventing her from becoming the Marquis's grandmother.
Xu Mingrui was one year older than her, already sixteen. Most girls of this age were already engaged, and many were mothers. Unless there were special circumstances at home, like Sima Lian, who had to observe a heavy mourning period, most girls would get married at the age of sixteen. But she had never heard that Xu Mingrui was engaged. If she didn't get engaged, Xu Mingrui would probably become an older leftover woman, and it would be difficult to find a husband.
It was impossible for Xu Mingrui to resent Old Lady Xu who had always loved her. She stared at Mingyu, speechless. When it came to eloquence, she was no match for Mingyu at all. After going over and over again, she could only say a few words like "shameless" and then she was at a loss for words. In the end, she was so provoked by Mingyu's few words that she was speechless.
At this time, the carriage stopped. Xu Mingye knocked on the carriage outside and said, "We're here. Get off."
Xu Mingrui glared at Mingyu fiercely, got off the carriage before Mingyu, walked quickly to Hu, and ignored Mingyu.
Mingyu was too lazy to pay attention to Xu Mingrui. In her opinion, Xu Mingrui was just a self-righteous child. Like Mrs. Hu, she was vain and had the materialistic spirit of a small family. She didn't take Xu Mingrui's verbal provocation seriously.
The ceremony of worshiping Zhao was very simple. Xu Changqian led the third family to kowtow three times in front of Zhao's tablet and talked about the development and changes of the family in the past year. The third family burned incense to Zhao in turn, and then it ended. Xu Changqian also gave some incense money to the abbot, and the Xu family stayed in the temple for some vegetarian food at noon.
Mingyu had already broken out in a light sweat in the carriage. Now it was almost time for dinner and her hands and face felt sticky. She went out to the well outside the temple's wing, and wiped her face with a wet handkerchief dipped in a bucket full of water.
The freshly drawn well water was crystal clear and a little cool to the touch. The cool towel wiped across her face, making her feel comfortable and relaxed, driving away the summer heat. Mingyu wrung out the towel, stood up and was about to leave when she heard a surprised voice behind her, "Mingyu?!"
Mingyu looked back and saw Lu Hao standing not far away, wearing a white robe and a black gauze coat. He was holding a dark towel in his hand and looking at her with a smile. It seemed that he also came to wet the towel to wipe his face.
"Master Lu." Mingyu smiled and saluted, watching Lu Hao approaching her. "Why are you here?"
Lu Hao stood two steps away from Mingyu, stopped, and said with a smile: "I have enshrined the tablets of my father and grandfather here, and I came here today to pay my respects to them. What about you? What are you doing here?"
"Today is my grandmother's death anniversary. My father brought us here to pay her respects. What a coincidence!" Mingyu said.
Lu Hao smiled. If it was a coincidence that the two of them were here together, he would rather believe it was fate. The cool breeze blew gently, making the bamboo forest outside the wing room rustle. Lu Hao looked at Mingyu's cheeks, which were slightly red due to the heat, and her slightly raised red lips, like a beautiful flower bud about to bloom. He couldn't help but take a step forward, approached Mingyu, and whispered, "Last time, at your house, I asked you a question, and you didn't answer me. What are your plans for the future?"
Mingyu took a step back, curled her lips, and said evasively: "I have..."
Before Mingyu could finish, Lu Hao interrupted her with a wave of his hand, his tone slightly stronger than Mingyu had ever seen, "Don't tell me you have a shop to rely on. Just try and see how a weak woman can survive in this world."