Chapter 12

Wei Cai Wei stared blankly for a while before she roughly guessed what Wang Da Xia’s words meant, her face changed at once, at such a young age, he was thinking such things!

No wonder he would sell his mother’s farm, redeeming Miss Ying Ying and what not!

Wei Cai Wei casually picked up the knife used to cut the watermelon, she wanted to personally castrate him!

But…

He’s your husband, beloved.

The heavens have pity on me, letting me return to before my husband’s castration, isn’t so that I personally castrate him right.

This thought was like an invisible hand, it stopped her from attacking Wang Da Xia.

“What are you doing? Let’s talk it through, don’t make a move!” Wang Da Xia lifted the pillow to protect his body, looking like a man intensely protecting his chastity: “Even if you use a knife to force me, I won’t sleep with you. I don’t hit women, but if you’re set on forcing an innocent man, I definitely will resist.”

At this moment Wei Cai Wei suddenly experienced Wang Qianhu’s despair: a failure of a son only sold a farm to save a prostitute, he hadn’t killed anyone.

He merely misunderstood me, he didn’t take advantage of the situation and slept with a young widow.

So-called lesser of two evils, Wei Cai Wei could only comfort herself in such a way.

Wei Cai Wei put the knife down, pointing at the medicine she had mixed together on the tray: “You’re thinking is off, I only want to help you apply medication.”

Wang Da Xia thought, the young widow is thick-skinned, seeing that I forcefully refused to sleep with her, she found another excuse of applying medication to find a way out.

A wound is a wound, why do you need me to strip?

Woman, your thoughts have already been completely seen by me.

Seeing through but not destroying it, tomorrow they can regard each other as if nothing had happened.

Wang Da Xia thought of himself as lenient, putting down the pillow protecting him, he said: “So that’s the case, I misunderstood doctor Wei. But, men and women should not touch, I’ll do it myself.”

He clearly doesn’t look like he trusts me, Wei Cai Wei itched to stab Wang Da Xia in the head with the watermelon knife to figure out his exact way of thinking.

Wang Da Xia saw Wei Cai Wei was not willing to give way and was still looking at him on the spot, this young widow still didn’t want to give up so he once again picked up the pillow placing it in front of him, he said: “You…go upstairs early to rest.”

This guy dared to order me about! This is my home all right!

Wei Cai Wei held back her anger, reaching out her right hand.

As soon as he saw Wei Cai Wei move her hand, Wang Da Xia hugged the pillow shrinking back, “Why haven’t you left yet?”

Wei Cai Wei pointed at the medicine saying: “Apply the white bottle externally, the green bottle has to be taken orally, don’t let the wound touch water, don’t sweat, I guarantee it won’t even leave a scar, in total seventy qian1, my medicine is a little more expensive than those on the market, but you’ll know it’s worth it after use.”

Seeing Wei Cai Wei speak in a businesslike manner, Wang Da Xia took out a piece of silver from his bundle to give to her.

Wei Cai Wei weighed the piece in her hand, “There is at least a tael and a half here, I’ll go get you change.”

“Keep the change!” Wang Da Xia said: “I ate your food tonight, sleep at yours, I can’t just eat and sleep without paying, just take the rest as money for food and lodgings, tomorrow as soon as the patrolling northern city military leaves, I will leave here, I won’t disturb doctor Wei anymore.”

This young widow’s temperament and appearance were all good, but she seems hard to get rid of once attached, Wang Da Xia felt from now on he needed to keep a respectable distance from the young widow, he didn’t dare to make things ambiguous again, Miss Ying Ying was right, you shouldn’t have a woman who is too attached, it’s troublesome.

Wang Da Xia didn’t want to owe her a favour, the two of them only had a simple relationship of a landlord and a tenant paying money.

Wei Cai Wei felt happy and wanted to laugh, husband and wife, calculating so clearly. I’m protecting him like he’s my husband, he however treats me like a lonely pillow to avoid sleeping with, a lonely young widow seducing a young man.

I was too anxious to gain his trust, help him resolve the disaster which the Wang family will soon face, but he had been scared into pushing her away.

Too far is as bad as not enough.

“Second young master Wang is truly generous, many thanks.” Wei Cai Wei easily chucked the silver into the drawer of the incense burner table, picking up the lantern she went upstairs.

When he heard the sound of the door closing upstairs, Wang Da Xia finally put down the pillow protecting him, letting out a breath, saying to the memorial tablet on the incense burner table: “Fortunately it was me, if it was another man, how could they have controlled themselves, I didn’t touch your wife, you can’t come as a ghost to scare me in my dream tonight!”

One of the four pests of the northern city that everyone wanted to give a beating to, Wang Ya Nei’s only weakness…he was scared of ghosts.

Wang Da Xia blew out the candle and went to sleep, the faint smell of a woman on the pillow was discernible, he was at the peak of his vitality, closing his eyes, he vaguely saw the young widow with her hair down beside the pillow, his young heart was agitated, tossing and turning restlessly, it was hard for him to fall asleep.

Wang Da Xia finally understood the first poem {Guan Ju} of the {Classic of Poetry}, the modest, retiring, virtuous, young lady, gentlemen like her, seeking but failing to get, what it means to toss and turn, right now his mind was turning, he was flipping left and right on the day bed like a pancake, wicked thoughts plagued him.

Suddenly, a bang came from the incense table, scaring Wang Da Xia so much he sat up like a carp which had hit, hugging the pillow he trembled with fear: “Who?” Of course no one replied.

Wang Da Xia took out a flint from his bundle trembling, with a clatter he lit a candle, it was the memorial tablet with “Deceased husband Wang erlang” which had fallen over.

How could it just fall over for no reason?

Wang Da Xia put the memorial tablet upright, looking at it carefully, there wasn’t anything wrong with the incense burner table, it was properly placed, the bottom of the memorial tablet was flat, it was stable on the incense table burner, why did it fall over?

There was only one answer, there was a ghost!

It must have been the deceased husband of the young widow who saw me having thoughts of his wife on the day bed, he manifested himself!

The hairs all over Wang Da Xia’s body stood on end, not caring about the danger of losing his virginity, he ran upstairs, knocking on the door he said: “Doctor Wei, there’s a ghost!”

Wei Cai Wei was thinking of how to regain Wang Da Xia’s trust again so she was still awake, having heard what was said she draped a jacket over her shoulders, “What ghost?”

“Your deceased husband.” Wang Da Xia felt more comfortable seeing a living person, “His memorial tablet fell over for no reason, it must be because he saw you putting up a man for the night from the underworld, he’s so angry he wants to return.”

Wei Cai Wei was speechless, my deceased husband is you! Where is there a ghost!

Wei Cai Wei went downstairs, Wang Da Xia followed behind her, a squeak was heard, a shadow leapt from the incense burner table, it was just a rat.

Wang Da Xia took off his shoe smashing it in the direction of the shadow, the rat died instantly.

It turns out to be a rat pilfering on the fruit offerings before the memorial tablet who knocked over the memorial tablet, it had run away before Wang Da Xia lit the candle.

After the false alarm, Wei Cai Wei said: “Deal with the rat, you can’t believe in the supernatural, go to bed.”

Wang Da Xia nodded, pointing at the memorial tablet: “Can you take the memorial tablet upstairs? I…I feel scared, I can’t sleep, I keep thinking that the memorial tablet is looking at me.”

Wei Cai Wei thought it was laughable: You’re scared of yourself?

Wang Da Xia thought Wei Cai Wei was unwilling, he hurriedly said: “I’ll give you more money, is two taels enough?”

Wei Cai Wei had another new understanding of her husband: it turns out chief eunuch Wang of Eastern Depot who kills without hesitation was scared of ghosts!

Wang Da Xia: “Five tael?”

“No need, I won’t take advantage of you.” Wei Cai Wei took the memorial tablet upstairs.

Wang Da Xia finally relaxed, sitting on the day bed, he was about to blow out the candle, he hesitated, fear still lingered, he didn’t dare to sleep in the dark.

He simply let the candle burn, in this way he slept until dawn.

Wei Cai Wei was woken by the man peddling deep-fried breadsticks and soft bean curds in the alley.

She went downstairs buying five sticks of deep-fried breadsticks, a jar of soft bean curd, the seller was going to pour salt water over the soft bean curd, Wei Cai Wei stopped him, “No need, I like it sweet.”

The seller picked up his carrying pole and left, Wei Cai wei called after him, “Wait.” She took a small bowl from her house, “Place the salt water in this.”

Her deceased husband liked salted soft bean curd.

The seller added garlic, chive sauce to the salted water, just as he was about to add coriander, Wei Cai Wei said: “No need for coriander.”

Her deceased husband hated coriander, no matter if its wontons or soft bean curd or sheep soup, hotpot, he couldn’t stand the smell of coriander.

Wang Da Xia was woken up by Wei Cai Wei buying breakfast, he immediately washed up and got dressed, afraid the young widow would once again take advantage of his sleeping state to harass him.

When he was done with freshening up and tying his hair, Wei Cai Wei had already laid the breakfast out on the table.

Soft bean curd and deep-fried breadsticks, the simplest of foods, yet it made Wang Da Xia salivate, he only ate watermelon and deep fried sugar cakes yesterday, right now he was very hungry, but the northern city military had yet to leave, he couldn’t go out.

“Let’s eat together.” Wei Cai Wei added two spoonfuls of snow white sugar into her bowl of soft bean curd.

Wang Da Xia: the mouth that eats the food of others is softened, if the young widow once again put forward the outrageous demand of warming the bed…

“You paid me yesterday anyway.” Wei Cai Wei said.

Oh yes, I paid her.

Wang Da Xia sat opposite her, pouring a bowl of soft bean curd for himself, he smelled the salted sauce, after making sure there was no coriander, pouring half of it into his bowl.

Wei Cai Wei ate two deep-fried breadsticks, Wang Da Xia ate three, the amount of breakfast was just perfect, they were full, there were no leftovers, this was the tacit understanding of a thirty years marriage.

Wang Da Xia put down his chopsticks, Wei Cai Wei asked: “Can you wash dishes?”

Wang Da Xia was a dandy who had led a pampered life, he shook his head, “I can’t.”

Wei Cai Wei: “Wash the bowls— I’ll teach you, it’s very simple.”

Wei Cai Wei had Wang Da Xia pick up the dirty bowls, getting water from the water jug in the courtyard to wash the bowls, Wang Da Xia had spent the night under her charity, he wasn’t a second young master anymore, he could only comply, he rinsed it three times when he heard the soldiers on guard in the alley mount their horses, he hurriedly said: “They’re leaving, I can leave now, goodbye.”

Wang Da Xia put the bundle on his back, just as he touched the door’s frame, he heard the sound of horse hooves in the alley, could the northern city military have returned?

The sound of horses’ hooves stopped at the door followed closely by the sound of someone banging on the door, the knocking was very crude, Wei Cai Wei gave Wang Da Xia a look, she said: “Who is making a racket outside?”

The person outside said: “Embroidered uniform guards are handling a case, quickly open the door!”