TTTQF Chapter 80

Hidden Concern

"Why isn't Brother back yet?" Xiao Shitou looks at the darkening sky and feels increasingly anxious. Pei Mu, like him, keeps looking up at the sky and then fixes his gaze on the door, hoping to see it open soon.

Pei Che frowns with worry and calls over the on-duty guard to inquire about the situation. Upon learning that Jiang Miao has mentioned he would try to come back if there are no urgent matters, but would return the next day if there are, Pei Che feels somewhat relieved.

"Your brother must be caught up with something. I’ll have someone bring over some food for you. Eat well and get some rest; you’ll see him tomorrow," Pei Che says.

Xiao Shitou nods dejectedly. 

When the guard brings in the food, he takes Pei Mu to wash their hands and then they start eating. Pei Che, not having much of an appetite, only eats a little before setting down his chopsticks. Xiao Shitou and Pei Mu also eat only a small amount before claiming they are full.

Pei Che couldn’t persuade them to eat more, so he decides to have the leftovers cleared away, thinking he will figure out something if they get hungry later. 

Xiao Shitou, looking at the nearly untouched food on the table, asks with concern, "Brother Pei Che, are we going to throw all this food away? Brother hates waste..." He feels uneasy, thinking that his disobedience today might be the reason why his brother hasn't returned.

Pei Che is taken aback, remembering Jiang Miao's frugal habits. Jiang Miao always estimates the amount of food needed perfectly, finishing every meal without any leftovers. When eating out, he tries to finish all the food and only leaves what he absolutely can’t eat.

"How about we eat a bit more to minimize waste? Is that okay?" Pei Che suggests, looking at the two children. They haven’t eaten much before, and since there is already an excuse, it’s just right to let them eat a bit more.

Xiao Shitou thinks for a moment and says, "Okay."

Pei Che and Xiao Shitou resume eating, with Pei Mu watching from the side. After some hesitation, he joins them at the table. Pei Che serves him a bit of rice, and Pei Mu begins eating as well.

After finishing the meal, Pei Che tells them to wash up. Thankfully, Xiao Shitou is relatively independent and can boil water himself. Otherwise, Pei Che would consider returning home that night to ask Wen Jing and Chan Yi for help to take care of the children.

After some hectic moments, Pei Che finally settles the two children into bed.

"Go to sleep now," he says, sitting by the bed and watching them.

"Brother Pei Che, aren’t you going to sleep? Is it because Brother isn’t here that you can’t sleep?" Xiao Shitou peeks out from the covers. He recalls that the last time they slept on the floor, he had woken up in the middle of the night and found Pei Che in bed with his brother.

Pei Che feels a little embarrassed. He clearly doesn’t want to sleep with these two "octopuses," but being asked like this makes him feel oddly uncomfortable.

"You guys go to sleep first. I’ll go to bed later when I get tired," Pei Che says, adjusting their blankets. He watches as their eyelids grow heavier until it finally closes. He gets up, extinguishes the candle, and heads towards the study.

...

Before dawn, Jiang Miao takes his cousin Jiang Yu out to avoid meeting people from the village who might ask questions. He came back yesterday with a hired carriage, and today, to return to the city, they encountered several cargo carts right at the street corner. The cart drivers are quite nice; upon hearing that they want a ride, they let them climb aboard directly.

The cart, while carrying cargo, moves at a decent pace. When they reach the East City Gate, it has just opened, making their entry faster than usual. Jiang Yu has never ridden in a cart before, and the jostling makes her nauseous. As soon as she gets off, she finds a secluded spot and throws up.

Jiang Miao pats her back and then goes to a nearby shop to get a bowl of water to help her recover. After a while, Jiang Yu’s complexion improves somewhat. Jiang Miao looks around, planning to find a bullock cart for a slower journey.

Jiang Yu points to the bowl and then gestures towards the shop, indicating that the bowl should be returned. Jiang Miao says, "No need to return it; I bought the bowl."

Unlike the countryside, where it’s normal to ask for a bowl of water from any household, it isn’t the same in the city.

Jiang Yu glances at the bowl with a hint of apology in her eyes. She feels she has caused trouble for Jiang Miao by coming.

Seeing her expression, Jiang Miao quickly reassures her, "Sister Yu, it’s fine. The bowl had to be bought anyway, and we can use it at home."

He signals for a bullock cart, and they both climb aboard. He instructs the driver to keep the pace slow. The old man driving the cart agrees, and they set off at a steady pace.

Without the discomfort of motion sickness, Jiang Yu begins to observe her surroundings. She has lived in Jiangjiawan all her life and is only now entering the city for the first time. The buildings in Liangjing City are tall, and there are many people; it is a bustling scene she has never imagined before.

Jiang Miao watches Jiang Yu, noting her wide-eyed attempt to adapt to the new environment, and feels a sense of relief. It seems that, indeed, shifting focus is the best way to heal a wounded heart.

He had asked his second aunt last night, who mentioned that although Jiang Yu doesn’t show much on the surface, she is actually very upset inside. Jiang Yu has been secretly embroidering her wedding dress all along.

Jiang Miao thinks, yes, each stitch and thread carries all the hopes of a young girl just beginning to dream of the future.

Jiang Yu has always felt insecure about her inability to speak; while an engagement is a source of anticipation for other girls, for her, it represents redemption. Jiang Miao fears that if she stays in the village, facing the gossip of the villagers, she might be pushed to take drastic actions.

The wheels turn round and round until they finally reach their destination. Jiang Miao pays the driver and leads Jiang Yu through the side door.

Pei Che, who hasn’t slept all night, immediately comes out of the study when he hears the door open. However, his radiant smile vanishes the moment he sees the woman next to Jiang Miao.

"Who is she?" Pei Che asks Jiang Miao, his eyes shifting to the side. At that moment, he wonders if the urgent matter Jiang Miao mentioned is simply bringing this woman home.

"What are you doing here? You didn’t skip school again, did you?" Jiang Miao is surprised. He has just pushed open the door, planning to reprimand the two children who left it unlocked, but he doesn't expect Pei Che to suddenly appear.

"Don’t you want to see me?" Pei Che’s face falls, and his tone becomes somewhat sharp. He feels Jiang Miao’s evasive attitude is suspicious.

"Have you lost your mind? I just asked a question; how does that mean I don’t want to see you?" Jiang Miao is a bit baffled, not understanding what’s going on with him.

Jiang Miao still has quite a few things in his hands. He sets them down on the table and says, "By the way, this is my cousin, Jiang Yu. Just call her Sister Yu."

"Cousin... cousin?" Pei Che feels a bit embarrassed and quickly replaces his unfriendly expression with a smile, greeting Jiang Yu.

Jiang Yu stares at Pei Che’s face in a daze and does not react to his greeting. Jiang Miao mutters to himself about troublemakers and then sends Pei Che out of the room.

After he leaves, Jiang Yu snaps back to her senses, feeling somewhat embarrassed. She has never seen anyone so good-looking before!

"His name is Pei Che, and he is my fiancé. Last time, when second uncle and aunt came, it was to arrange our engagement." Jiang Miao speaks without any embarrassment, mainly because he worries about what might happen if he says Pei Che is just a friend. Pei Che's face is very attractive to girls.

Jiang Yu nods, remembering that when her second uncle and aunt returned, they had talked about the engagement. So this must be the famous Young Master Pei. Jiang Yu smiles and gives two thumbs up, one towards Jiang Miao and the other towards the room, then brings them together to indicate they are a good match.

Jiang Miao roughly understands her meaning, and he awkwardly chuckles twice before changing the subject. "Sister Yu, I’ll go discuss the rental details now. You can sit and rest for a bit."

Jiang Yu nods. She doesn’t know anything, so she naturally follows Jiang Miao's arrangements.

When Jiang Miao arrives at the main house, Boss Bai is still there. After explaining the situation, Boss Bai immediately agrees. After Jiang Miao signs the contract and pays the rent, Boss Bai hands over the keys.

"Brother Jiang, who are you renting this house to?" Sister Bai asks curiously.

Jiang Miao replies, "It’s for my cousin, who came with me this time. Please take extra care of her; she hasn’t been out much before and is a bit timid."

"No need to be so polite. If I need anything, I’ll just call her," Sister Bai responds cheerfully.

"Sister Bai, my cousin can’t speak, but she can understand what others are saying," Jiang Miao doesn’t hide this, as it’s something that can’t be kept secret.

"I see, I understand. Don’t worry, Brother Jiang. In our courtyard, we don’t have any gossipers who’ll talk behind people’s backs." Although there are others in the yard, like Aunt Liu, who is somewhat inquisitive, they are discreet and never use others' misfortunes for gossip.

"Then I’ll trouble you, Sister Bai. I still need to sort things out, so I’ll be on my way."

Jiang Miao unlocks the door with the key and then shows Jiang Yu around the place. Jiang Yu is very pleased with the house. After a quick look around, she begins to find things to clean.

When Jiang Miao goes home to get some things for her, Pei Che can’t help but come out of the room.

"Is your cousin going to live here long-term?" Pei Che has overheard from inside.

Jiang Miao blushes slightly, realizing that if Pei Che hears this, he must have also heard the earlier silly talk about the fiancé.

"Some issues came up at home, so I brought her here to stay for a while to clear her mind."

"What happened?" Pei Che asks with concern.

Jiang Miao sighs and tells Pei Che the whole story. After listening, Pei Che says, "When things seem abnormal, there’s usually something wrong. They are in a hurry to cancel the engagement; there must be something fishy going on."

"I think so too!" Jiang Miao agrees, finding resonance in Pei Che's words. "They only said it was because Sister Yu can’t speak, but I’m sure there’s more to it!"

"I'll send someone to investigate this matter. If there is indeed something suspicious, I'll bring them over to explain everything clearly to everyone to avoid harming your cousin's reputation," Pei Che says.

"Alright, thank you for your help," Jiang Miao replies, eager to find out why the family has called off the engagement.

"Mm!" Pei Che nods with a smile, though his expression shows signs of fatigue.

Jiang Miao notices Pei Che’s pale complexion and recalls that Pei Che has come from the study. He asks, "You didn’t stay in the study all night, did you?"

Pei Che nods. He has somewhat overestimated his own endurance, and as Jiang Miao said, staying up late really does take a toll on the body.

"Are you stupid? If you really don’t want to sleep with Xiao Shitou and the others, just set up a sleeping mat like last time! The things are all there; can’t you handle it yourself? Now that you’ve had an uncomfortable night, just wait. I’ll go wake up Xiao Shitou and Xiao Mu, and you should get some rest as soon as you can…”

If someone else said this to him, Pei Che would be angry. But now, with Jiang Miao’s gentle reprimand and warm gaze, he feels the comforting sensation of being cared for. This kind of concern-laced scolding reminds him of when his mother was still alive.

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