Married to a Villainous Minister - Chapter 53

Only then did Zhou Xiang turn to look at Yu Jiao. Seeing that she was just a petite, youthful girl, he asked curiously, “How did you know it was going to rain today?”

Yu Jiao raised her hand and pointed above her head, replying playfully, “Heaven told me.”

Her words made everyone laugh. No one took it seriously, just a lighthearted joke.

Zhou Xiang, who had spent years hunting in the mountains, was very familiar with weather patterns. Just yesterday, he had taken a careful walk around the foot of the mountain, there were no signs of ants moving house, no earthworms surfacing by the riverbank, and no dragonflies flying low over the grass. 

Based on all that, he had confidently concluded that the weather would stay clear for several days and there was no chance of rain.

But the rain still hadn’t let up.

Zhou Xiang rummaged through a pile of grass inside the cave and pulled out a small iron pot. He rinsed it with rainwater near the entrance and filled it again before setting it over the fire.

His son took out some dry rations from his bundle, and the two of them divided it up. Zhou Xiang said, “Let’s eat a little something. Looks like this rain won’t be stopping anytime soon.”

Yu Qiaoshan also pulled out some flatbread baked by Madam Song from his bundle and handed them to Yu Zhixing, telling him to share with Yu Jiao and Yu Fuling. Yu Jiao ate half of her flatbread and tucked the remaining half into a small pouch. When the rainwater in the pot began to boil, they took turns filling their water flasks and drank a little.

After they had eaten and drunk, the rain outside still hadn’t let up. Yu Jiao stood up, took an oil-paper umbrella from her basket, and said, “I’m going to walk around nearby. There’s a certain herb that only grows in the rain, I’m going to try and find it.”

Yu Fuling quickly stuffed the rest of her flatbread into her mouth and stood up, mumbling, “I’ll go with you.”

Yu Jiao shook her head. “I’ll go alone. You should stay here.”

Yu Qiaoshan tried to stop her. “The rain’s pouring out there, Meng girl. You’d better wait until it stops.”

But Yu Jiao had already made up her mind. She explained, “Once the rain stops, the herb will wither. I won’t go far, just nearby. If I don’t find anything, I’ll come right back.”

Still worried, Yu Qiaoshan said, “At least let Zhixing go with you. It’s too dangerous for a young girl to be out in this weather alone.”

The Zhou father and son remained silent. After all, they were outsiders, and Yu Jiao was the granddaughter-in-law of the Yu family, different from an unmarried girl. Though they had more experience on the mountain, it wouldn’t be proper for them to offer to accompany her.

Yu Zhixing hesitated. After all, Yu Jiao had a history of being accused of trying to seduce someone from the third branch of the family. Even though she had changed a lot recently, if something were to happen, no amount of explaining would clear his name.

Seeing his reluctance, Yu Jiao smiled gently and said, “This umbrella’s too small for two people. And besides, you wouldn’t recognize the herb even if you came. It’d just mean one more person getting soaked. I’ll only search near the cave. Don’t worry, Uncle.”

With that, she walked toward the cave entrance. Yu Fuling wanted to follow, but Yu Jiao had already stepped out into the rain, umbrella in hand, quickly disappearing into the downpour.

Frustrated, Yu Fuling stamped her foot and reluctantly returned to the fire.

Zhou Xiang asked curiously, “That Wulang’s wife of yours hasn’t been married long, has she? And she already knows herbs?”

Yu Qiaoshan, unbothered by the intricacies that Yu Ruhai tended to dwell on, simply explained, “Meng girl studied medicine when she was young, she’s quite skilled.”

Zhou Xiang clicked his tongue in amazement. “A woman learning medicine, huh? Guess it’s true what they say, birds of a feather flock together. Your old man really thought things through, even picked a granddaughter-in-law with medical knowledge.”

Yu Qiaoshan just smiled. But deep down, he thought, When the old man married her to Wulang to ward off bad luck, he had no idea this girl from the Meng family knew medicine.

Yu Jiao hadn’t gone far from the cave when her shoes and socks were already soaked through. She didn’t mind. Holding her umbrella, she carefully scanned her surroundings before heading toward the shadier, less wooded northern slope of the mountain.

The southern side of the mountain was sunlit and full of lush vegetation. The northern side, however, was shaded, with little sunlight, ideal for plants that preferred cool, damp environments. Yao grass, in particular, liked to grow in tight cracks on cliff faces. 

It was a hardy, forceful plant. Wherever yao grass grew, few other plants survived nearby. Even tough weeds avoided competing with it, not daring to root in its presence.