The Wife of a Loyal Servant - Chapter 29

When Ling Yu and Cheng Shaoan arrived at the county office, they saw Cheng Shaotang with bandages wrapped around his chest, faint blood staining the cloth.

“How are you injured like this again?” Ling Yu was at a loss for words. It seemed like barely any time had passed since his last injury.

“If Mother knew, she would surely cry again,” Cheng Shaoan said with a frown.

“Sister-in-law, I’m truly sorry. This time, Brother Shaotang suffered in my place,” Constable Cui said to her, guilt written all over his face.

Before Ling Yu could respond, Cheng Shaotang waved his hand dismissively. “Brother Cui, you exaggerate. Weapons are unpredictable and impossible to guard against. Besides, we’re brothers—of course, we should look out for each other.”

“Brother Cheng, go back and recover. Leave the rest to us!” another tall, thin constable added.

“It’s just a minor injury, nothing to—” Cheng Shaotang didn’t finish before Ling Yu shot him a fierce glare.

Ling Yu refused to let him get another word in and thanked the constables with a bright smile. “Thank you, thank you. I’ll leave the rest to you all. Next time, I’ll treat everyone to drinks!”

“Sister-in-law, no need to be polite!”

Captain Cui personally took the reins to drive the carriage and send the three of them back to Cheng Family Village. Before getting on, Ling Yu told Cheng Shaoan, “I rushed out in such a hurry. Brother Dachun and Suwen must be worried. Go to Liufang Hall and let them know. If you don’t have anything else to do, stay and lend a hand, so the two of them don’t get overwhelmed.”

“Brother, just listen to your sister-in-law. I will definitely send your brother and sister-in-law home safe and sound,” Captain Cui added.

Cheng Shaoan had no objections and hopped off the carriage readily.

Sure enough, when the couple returned home, Madam Wang saw her son injured again and immediately burst into tears from heartache, which only deepened Captain Cui’s guilt.

“It really is just a minor injury, nothing serious. Lord Guo had a doctor examine it carefully and apply medicine. It won’t take long to heal,” Cheng Shaotang said helplessly, leaning against the headboard as he looked at Ling Yu, whose brows were tightly furrowed in worry.

“Shaotang, Constable Cui brought a package, saying it was from Lord Guo,” Madam Wang said as she came in carrying a bundle.

“It must be the medicine meant for me,” Cheng Shaotang replied, motioning for Ling Yu to take it.

Ling Yu accepted it and opened it. Inside were indeed various internal and external medicines, and besides those, there were two ten-tael silver ingots and several pieces of loose silver!

“Is this yours?” she asked, turning around.

“It’s not mine,” Cheng Shaotang said in confusion.

Ling Yu’s eyes darted as she put the bundle away. “You were injured on duty. This must be a reward from Lord Guo.”

“It’s just a minor injury. Even if it were a reward, it wouldn’t be this much. Brother Cui must have added his own. Xiao Yu, we can’t take this money. Go and return it to Brother Cui,” Cheng Shaotang said disapprovingly.

“He’s already driven off in his carriage. How am I supposed to catch up?” Ling Yu said helplessly.

“Then go back to the county town tomorrow and personally return the silver to Brother Cui!”

“But this money might not even all be his!” Ling Yu protested, clearly unhappy.

“Whether it is or not, you must return it to him in person,” Cheng Shaotang said, his tone firm and unyielding.

“If part of this came from Lord Guo, that’s his way of showing care for someone who was injured performing his duty. If you give it away, aren’t you dismissing his goodwill? And if the other officers get the wrong idea, thinking Lord Guo doesn’t care about his subordinates, not even those hurt on the job, then wouldn’t he be wronged for no reason?” Ling Yu argued, refusing to back down.

“And besides,” she continued, “if any of it was from Constable Cui, he only gave it because he felt guilty. It’s his way of hoping you recover properly. If you return it, won’t he feel even more guilty?”

“Xiao Yu has a point,” Madam Wang chimed in, unable to hold back. “Let’s do as she says! If you still feel uneasy about accepting it, I’ll cook a good meal another day and warm two pots of fine wine to deliver to Constable Cui.”

“That would be perfect, Mother,” Ling Yu agreed. “That way, everyone keeps their dignity, and Constable Cui won’t feel troubled.”

The mother and daughter-in-law exchanged arguments one after another, but Cheng Shaotang remained absolutely unmoved.

“Brother Cui’s family isn’t well-off either. He must’ve saved this silver bit by bit over a long time. We can’t take it.”

When he still clung to his opinion, Ling Yu lost her patience. She stuffed the twenty-some taels of silver into his hand and snapped, “If you want to return it, you return it. I’m a woman, if I go handing things to a man outside my household, wouldn’t that count as… improper exchange?!”

No sooner had she spoken than she realized why the words sounded so familiar. A moment later, it hit her; they were nearly identical to what Cheng Shaotang had said when he refused to deliver her jade face cream to her.

Cheng Shaotang frowned. “In that case, when Shaoan returns, I’ll have him take it.”

Seeing he was determined, Madam Wang shook her head and gave up trying to persuade him, leaving the room.

Ling Yu stewed for a bit, still irritated. In a tone neither warm nor cold, she added, “Brother Cheng, Brother Shaotang… It’s truly a pity the court didn’t issue you a commendation.”

Cheng Shaotang, of course, understood perfectly that she was mocking him. With helplessness in his voice, he said, “The situation was dire. If I hadn’t taken that strike for him, I fear Brother Cui wouldn’t have survived.”

“Yes, everyone else is porcelain or tofu, one touch and they crumble. But you, Constable Cheng, you’re an impenetrable fortress, invulnerable to blades and spears. If you don’t block the sword, who will?” The more Ling Yu spoke, the angrier she became. Truly, when a man insists on courting death, no one can pull him back.

She had thought that after he left Prince Qi’s residence and stopped serving as that useless so-called bodyguard, at least his life would be safe. Who would’ve thought he’d turn around and become a constable, still with every opportunity to chase “loyalty” and “righteousness” to the grave!

“My brother was in danger,” Cheng Shaotang explained. “If I stood by, too afraid to die, letting him perish before my eyes, what kind of man would that make me? The situation was urgent, and I had no time to think. I did try my best to avoid any vital spots…”

“Did I ask you to stand by and watch him die? I asked you to at least think of your own life! Think of us, mother and child! ‘Try your best,’ you said it yourself. What if you couldn’t avoid it? Wouldn’t you be throwing your life away for him?!” Ling Yu’s voice rose sharply.

Cheng Shaotang pressed his lips together and patiently continued. “Among brothers and friends, the word ‘righteousness’ matters. I saved him this time. Who’s to say he won’t save me someday when my life is hanging by a thread?”

“So what you’re really all about is loyalty and righteousness. You put loyalty above all else, even risking your life and neglecting your family,” Ling Yu sneered.

Seeing she still couldn’t be reasoned with, Cheng Shaotang simply shut his mouth and closed his eyes, giving her the cold shoulder.

Ling Yu was furious. She pointed at him, stammering “you, you, you” for a long time without uttering a single word.

“Fine, you’re ruthless!” she finally managed to squeeze out through gritted teeth, then turned and ran away without looking back.

Fine, you’re ruthless? Cheng Shaotang chuckled, listening to the heavy footsteps receding into the distance, finally letting out a sigh.

The next day, Cheng Shaotang indeed ordered Cheng Shaoan to deliver the bag of silver to Constable Cui. Cheng Shaoan, puzzled, looked questioningly at his sister-in-law, who was coldly changing his brother’s bandages, but received no response. He could only scratch the back of his head and agree.

As Cheng Shaoan’s footsteps faded into the distance, Ling Yu couldn’t help but press hard on her wound, successfully hearing a muffled groan from the man in front of her. Finally, she felt relieved.

“It hurts? I really thought you were made of iron! Turns out you do feel pain.”

Cheng Shaotang smiled wryly, understanding that she was still angry. But watching her gently bandage the wound, her face showing undisguised heartache and annoyance, he couldn’t help but find it amusing.

His little wife was truly tough on the outside but soft on the inside.

A surge of tenderness welled up within him, and he couldn’t help but reach out and gently encircle her slender waist, softly saying, “Please don’t be angry anymore, okay? How could I be the kind of person who doesn’t care about his wife and children?”

Ling Yu struggled for a moment but couldn’t break free. Afraid of touching his wound, she dared not move further. Hearing his words, she gave a soft hum: “When things are peaceful, of course, you care about your wife and children. But if something happens, I’m afraid loyalty and righteousness will still come first, and your wife and children will be pushed aside.”

“In the end, brothers are like limbs, and wives are like clothes!”

“Don’t say such hurtful things. I’ve never thought that way. A wife is someone you’ll spend your life with. How can you easily abandon her?” Cheng Shaotang was annoyed that she had misunderstood his feelings. He tickled her waist, making Ling Yu almost jump up.

“If you tickle me again, I’ll get even angrier!” Ling Yu scolded playfully, afraid he would do it again.

Cheng Shaotang smiled slightly, finding his little wife’s ticklishness quite endearing. So he deliberately tickled her a few more times, making Ling Yu laugh and jump.

“Stop! Stop! I’m really angry!!” Ling Yu shrank into his arms, but she couldn’t escape his clutches. In her struggle, her hand inadvertently touched Cheng Shaotang’s wound.

Cheng Shaotang gasped and finally stopped.

Ling Yu quickly pulled away from his embrace, panting slightly as she glared at him. “Serves you right! Who told you to do that!”

Cheng Shaotang smiled wryly. “Xiao Yu, this time the wound seems to have really reopened.”

Ling Yu froze. Seeing he wasn’t faking it, and noticing the newly wrapped bandage already stained red, she was immediately alarmed. She hurried forward to unwrap it and check, and indeed, the wound that had stopped bleeding had begun to bleed again.

“It’s all your fault!” she cried, both anxious and frightened, but her hands moved swiftly as she stopped the bleeding and changed the dressing. Only after quite a while did the bleeding finally stop, and she rebandaged the wound.

“If you move again, I’ll tie you up!” Before heading out with the frightening basin of bloody water, she threw the threat over her shoulder.

Cheng Shaotang nodded obediently. “I won’t dare.”

About half a month later, Ling Dachun limped over to visit the injured Cheng Shaotang.

Unexpectedly, the moment he asked about him, Ling Yu huffed, “He’s gone back to being a loyal and righteous man!”

A few days earlier, Cheng Shaotang had ignored everyone’s advice and insisted on returning to the county office to continue his duties, and he still hadn’t come back.

Ling Dachun felt a headache coming on and quickly changed the subject to business.

“Business has been excellent these past few days. Customers who couldn’t buy the Jade Complexion Cream have put in pre-orders. But I think Suwen might not be able to handle everything alone, so I set a limit on how many pre-orders we accept. What do you think?”

“That’s good. Although we’ll earn a little less this way, it will boost the reputation of the Jade Complexion Cream and Liufang Hall. Once the name is out there, sales of our other products will rise as well.” Ling Yu agreed with his plan.

“I was also thinking, once we have enough capital and our reputation grows, we can bring in some high-end cosmetics. Oh, and those ten or so garments you sent last time sold extremely well. The style, the quality, the embroidery, flawless. Quite a few customers have already asked whether there are more.” Ling Dachun couldn’t hide his excitement.

Ling Yu wasn’t surprised. She simply smiled and said, “Not yet. We’ve been rushing day and night. We have to let the workers rest.”

“If we can get the goods out earlier, I can raise the wages by another ten percent,” Ling Dachun said proudly.

Ling Yu let out a laugh and shook her head. “No amount of money will do. Even if I agreed, my mother-in-law and brother-in-law certainly wouldn’t. If I work them to the bone, they’d tear me apart.”

Ling Dachun was taken aback but understood at once. “Was it your betrothed sister-in-law who did it?”

Ling Yu nodded with a smile.

With that, they could only drop the matter. Ling Dachun felt a bit regretful.

“Brother Dachun, how much longer will you have that limp?”

“Suwen said another month, then it’ll slowly go away. Honestly, after limping this long, I’ve nearly forgotten what normal walking feels like.” Ling Dachun laughed heartily.

Seeing him so cheerful and completely unaffected by the adoption, Ling Yu felt happy for him. She asked about his parents and learned that the three of them were doing very well. Ling Laoliu and Madam Meng, perhaps because they had once declared they would “cut all ties after the adoption,” didn’t dare come looking for him even after hearing he was now the manager of Liufang Hall.

“By the way, have you heard? Master Du in the city got into a bloody fight with Changfeng Fort, many dead and injured, and the county magistrate wiped the whole lot out,” Ling Dachun suddenly said.

“Is that so?” Ling Yu was somewhat surprised.

Guo Qi’s takedown of the city’s tyrant and Changfeng Village had also happened in his previous life, but it should have taken place a year later. He had even been promoted back then for how impressively he handled the matter.

But for her, getting it done early was much better. After all, she now ran a shop in the county town, and with Du Batian defeated, his lackeys would naturally no longer dare to extort people everywhere.

“There’s another huge piece of good news. Brother-in-law Liang passed the provincial exam!” Ling Dachun’s face lit up.

“That’s wonderful. Father will be overjoyed!” Ling Yu smiled as well, though it never reached her eyes.

What was there to be happy about? Passing the exam, getting promoted, taking concubines, men’s universal failing!

Only her sister, that so-called virtuous woman… Forget it. She didn’t want to think about her; the mere thought filled her with anger.

Still, she couldn’t help feeling frustrated with her older sister Ling Bi. Voluntarily arranging for her husband to take a concubine, being that “virtuous”, was truly infuriating.

After seeing Ling Dachun off, Cheng Shaoan rushed back excitedly. “Sister-in-law, sister-in-law, something big has happened!”

“What big thing now?” Ling Yu asked, not very interested.

“Your brother-in-law passed the imperial examination. The messenger had just arrived when officials from the county office came. Right next door, they arrested a man named Liang Fang.”

Liang Fang was arrested? Ling Yu was surprised.

Then she thought again. Yes, she had heard that her brother-in-law Liang Huaisheng’s village had a wealthy gentleman who did big business outside. When the Liang clan renovated their ancestral hall last time, that gentleman even donated a large sum of money. So it turned out to be Liang Fang.

“Sister-in-law, do you know who arrested Liang Fang?” Cheng Shaoan asked mysteriously.

“Didn’t you say? Someone from the government office,” Ling Yu replied irritably.

“Exactly! Big Brother is also someone from the government!” Cheng Shaoan said proudly.

So it was Cheng Shaotang who led the men to arrest Liang Fang? Ling Yu was slightly stunned.

It seemed he had returned to work while still injured these past few days, for this matter. Although she knew that half of his effort in capturing Liang Fang was to vent her anger, the thought of him disregarding his wounds and not taking care of himself made her angry all over again.

When Cheng Shaotang returned home the next day feeling relieved, he found that his mother, wife, and younger brother were all ignoring him. Only his son, Xiao Shitou, grinned at him, but the next moment was carried off by his mother.

“Mother, I’m back.” He sighed, deciding to start with Madam Wang, the easiest to persuade.

Madam Wang shot him a glare. She had intended to ignore him, but seeing his reddened eyes, she couldn’t help feeling distressed. She clicked her tongue at him. “What are you still standing here for? Your wife already boiled hot water, go wash up and get some sleep.”

“Yes, yes! Brother, once you’ve rested, tell me everything that happened these past few days.” Cheng Shaoan, who had held it in for so long, finally rushed over in excitement.

Cheng Shaotang patted his shoulder without answering and went back into the room.

As he reached the door, he heard his wife’s usual gentle voice telling their son a story—

“Once upon a time, there was a loyal and righteous man. Later, he died. Then his wife remarried, taking his son and all of his belongings with her, and they lived happily ever after…”

Cheng Shaotang: “…”