Chapter 15: His Taste

The side courtyard's garden wasn't large, and unlike the General's Mansion, lanterns weren't lit everywhere in this ordinary household.

Using the excuse of taking a walk to aid digestion after dinner, Wen Wan sat alone on the swing beneath the great banyan tree.

Even now, she still felt a lingering fear.

Today at the teahouse, if she hadn't turned away in time when Madam Zhao looked over, she would have nearly been discovered.

Actually, when she was first brought to this courtyard, she had had a chance to escape.

At that time, A Chai had only posted a few guards at the courtyard gate, but the gate wasn't the only way in or out of the courtyard.

Moreover, with her cleverness, finding an opportunity to leave the courtyard wouldn't have been difficult.

She stayed only because she was going along with their plan.

After all, she was a lone woman; rather than facing uncertain dangers outside, it was better to seek temporary safety under the Little Commandant's confinement.

Her original plan was to reappear after Madam Zhao and the others had conceived the Great General's heir.

That way, she wouldn't be reduced to a mere breeding tool for the General's Mansion.

Who knew plans couldn't keep up with changes—the Little Commandant had actually used poison on her!

Honestly, even now, she couldn't believe that a man who valued the common people and his subordinates so highly would employ such despicable means.

Wen Wan sighed and murmured to herself, "Now, I can only take it one step at a time. I just hope he keeps his word and lets me go free once things are settled..."

The mute nanny carried a lantern and searched the courtyard for Wen Wan for a long while before finding her sighing away.

The mute nanny didn't know why she was sad; she just took her by the hand and led her back to the room.

As it turned out, the mute nanny had already packed the luggage for tomorrow's trip.

A few changes of clothes and a few pieces of jewelry.

The jewelry designs were a bit outdated; they must have been what the mute nanny wore when she was young. Though not very valuable, it was clear they were her most treasured possessions, kept at the bottom of the trunk.

Shen Zhou translated for the mute nanny on the side, "A'po says since this trip is to visit your natal family, you must bring a few presentable pieces of jewelry, so your family doesn't think you've been wronged here."

A Chai was taking Wen Wan to Zhuzhou under the pretext of visiting her natal family, so both the mute nanny and Shen Zhou thought she was going home to visit her parents tomorrow.

Shen Zhou added, "A'po also said that although A Chai Ge hasn't given you a formal status yet, as long as you bear A Chai Ge's child, A Chai Ge will definitely treat you well and ensure you have no worries for the rest of your life. You must seize the opportunity on this trip and serve A Chai Ge well. If you can conceive a child by the time you return, it will be a joyous occasion for all."

Upon hearing this, the corner of Wen Wan's mouth twitched.

She really found it hard to adapt to a half-grown youth like Shen Zhou speaking such words in a deep, serious tone.

It gave her a surreal, disoriented feeling.

Shen Zhou himself felt embarrassed saying it; his face flushed slightly towards the end, but for the sake of Little Sister Xiao Wan, he steeled himself and finished translating the mute nanny's words.

They truly meant well for her. Hearts are made of flesh; Wen Wan found it hard to refuse their kindness, so she could only feign shyness and indicate she had taken note.

In this feudal society, a woman's purpose seemed to be only bearing children.

She was just a small figure, unable to change the greater environment. She could only hide herself in the crowd, disguise herself as one of them, to seek a stable life.

*

At daybreak, layered mountain peaks were shrouded in swirling mist.

Shen Yu changed into coarse linen short clothes and drove a cart loaded with goods.

Wen Wan also wore a peasant woman's attire, a piece of indigo embroidered cloth wrapped around her head, sitting bored beside Shen Yu.

Basking in the morning light, swaying along the mountains and rivers in the cart, the not-fully-awake Wen Wan yawned and leaned her head onto Shen Yu's shoulder.

"Husband, I'm sleepy. Let me take a little nap."

Shen Yu held the reins with both hands, only feeling a weight on his shoulder, followed by a wave of osmanthus fragrance.

He frowned instinctively, his arm twitching.

But he heard the eyes-closed Wen Wan say lazily, "I said I'd pretend to be your concubine, you disagreed. Now I'm pretending to be your wife. If you push me away, people will get suspicious."

She curved her lips in a smile. "So, be good and don't move."

Shen Yu endured it in the end, letting her lean her entire weight against him.

He had never seen a woman so disregard the proprieties between men and women, yet she was useful, and he couldn't openly do anything to her.

He didn't know what scented powder she used, but after she leaned over, a faint fragrance floated in the air.

In the past, many women who threw themselves at him wore all sorts of powders. Every time he smelled those messy scents, he felt uncomfortable all over.

But now, he actually found the fragrance on this woman... quite pleasant?

Qi Ling, riding a horse at the front, glanced back unintentionally and saw the delicate woman leaning intimately on Shen Yu's shoulder. The two behaved intimately, not looking like a fake couple at all.

Qi Ling looked thoughtful, a trace of realization flashing in his eyes.

*

The merchant caravan consisted of twenty or thirty carts. Half belonged to the Qi family, the other half to other merchants from the border city who had come along to sell goods.

All the merchants pooled money to hire seven or eight escorts, so the procession numbered a hundred and eighty people, mighty and grand.

Near noon, the caravan stopped to rest on a riverbank.

The women of the caravan began setting up stoves to cook. Accustomed to traveling far and wide, their movements were extremely practiced. In a short while, cooking smoke curled up, and the smell of food gradually spread.

Wen Wan was woken by hunger.

She opened her eyes to find herself lying at the edge of the cart bed, covered with a blanket. Perhaps fearing she would fall off, wooden crates had been placed as a barrier beside her.

Wen Wan looked around but didn't find Shen Yu. Instead, she saw Qi Ling walking over with a smile.

Wen Wan jumped down from the cart. "Where's A Chai?"

Qi Ling only smiled without speaking, raising a hand to point toward a small grove by the shore.

His expression was exactly that of a shameless onlooker enjoying the show.

Wen Wan was puzzled but walked toward the grove half-believing, half-doubting.

Before she got close, she heard a soft, mournful sobbing coming from the grove. Then, a woman with disheveled clothes rushed out from the trees.

The woman ran two steps, then suddenly noticed Wen Wan's presence. She forgot to cry, her face alternating between pale and green in fright.

The woman stumbled, turned, and ran back as if she had seen a ghost.

"Uh..." Wen Wan paused, figuring it was best to watch less of such scandalous secrets.

She was just about to turn around when a voice drifted languidly from behind her.

"Young Master, your wife has come to catch you cheating. Whatever shall we do?"

Wen Wan started. "Your wife?" Was he talking about her?

Could it be that A Chai and that woman were committing adultery in the grove?

Impossible, that woman looked very ordinary... though her figure was quite good, curvy in all the right places—the type any man would like.

The corner of Wen Wan's mouth twitched. So A Chai likes busty married women?

This taste... is quite... that of a normal man.

(End of Chapter)