CH 12

Chapter 12: Affirmation 

“There is no such thing as lying to the lady anymore.” Gu Ningxi said firmly.

This confession allowed him to remove the huge stone in his heart, and regain the glory of a gentleman. He was felt very comfortable. He wanted to pick up his wife and spin around twice.

However, he was aware that he committed a mistake first. So he wouldn’t dare to do anything that would aggravate the lady further.

“You’ve really told me everything?” Tao Xinhe calmed herself down. She had already thought of something, and with Gu Ningxi’s relieved expression, she tapped the wooden box brought by the shopkeeper with her chin, and asked lightly,

“Do you know what’s inside?”

Gu Ningxi opened it as she said, but only saw the scarf on top.

He pursed his lips uncomfortably, turned his eyes away, and explained softly:

“It’s my fault, Qiniang behaved abnormally in public. Presumably the lady has also seen it, this is the scarf she gave as a gift as a righteous sister. At that time, I didn’t pay attention to the wonton booth, but today I found out that the lady was there, and I was really embarrassed and ashamed.”

“This Qiniang is really caring. She knew so much about you, my own husband. She can even take out a scarf with fine stitches behind my back. You are quite famous among the female populace.” She retorted.

Although she wanted to ask about something else.

“So, husband, do you reciprocate by buying a hair accessory as a gift? Or did you buy the hair ornament long before the scarf in order to give it to Ms. Mo?” Tao Xinhe used “Ms. Mo” as her nickname to draw a line.

You can’t be fooled by multiple righteous sisters, first figure out the extent of your husband’s entanglement with her.

Gu Ningxi was taken aback when he heard these words,

Hair accessories?

After he heard Tao Xinhe’s inquiry, he quickly found a brocade box inside the wooden box.

With a smile on his face, he handed the hair ornament to the person in front of him:

“Young lady, you overthink too much. This husband bought it for you at Yanchun Pavilion yesterday afternoon. Oh, it’s in a box at Xiangyang Wine Shop. Did the shopkeeper bring it? This husband asked Shihua to to look for it but he told me that the guy at the restaurant couldn’t find it. It turned out that the shopkeeper had already returned it to our house.”

Tao Xinhe didn’t expect this answer, she just thought that Gu Ningxi wanted to buy it to please his new lover. After all, she had never received anything from her husband as a gift for the past three years. So she didn’t know whether to believe it or not, or whether she wanted to believe it or doubted it.

“The guy in that shop said that this design is the most suitable for the tail bun, and it can add some color into it. I bought it for my wife. I am ashamed to say that I have always kept my lady’s hard work in my heart, but I was not able to reciprocate it properly. This husband is not considerate enough. I have wronged you.”

Gu Ningxi held the hair ornament in his hand, and leaned closer to Tao Xinhe. He was trying to figure out how to put it on, as instructed by the assistant yesterday. But he saw that the lady didn’t wear her hair in a tail bun today. It was a style that he couldn’t recognize. His raised hand was stopped mid air, hesitating how to put it.

Tao Xinhe was still pondering the complex feeling of receiving a gift from her husband for the first time. Is she flattered? Or does she feel like it’s been long overdue?

Husband, how much of your gesture was based on you sincerely pleasing me, and how much is it for you trying to appease me due to your mistakes?

When she regained her senses, she saw Gu Ningxi’s frowning and hesitant appearance. After thinking about it for a while, Tao Xinhe also realized that he had never touched woman’s hair accessories before, so he might be embarrassed.

She smiled a bit and the worries that had been sinking in her heart for many days were finally eased out of her chest. She suddenly realized that she stretched out her hand taking the hair ornament from Gu Ningxi, and her tone was full of coquettish anger:

“Look at you being like this?”

Holding the delicate ornaments in plain hands, Tao Xinhe closed her eyes, adjusted her mood, then stared at Gu Ningxi closely, and asked solemnly:

“Husband, be honest. Can you really treat Mo Qiqi like a sister, and don’t have any feelings for her? ”

Gu Ningxi almost swore to the sky and confessed his heart to the lady.

The person in his heart is not the same as the person that his eyes can recognize, but he can tell the difference clearly. And in the future, he will pay more attention to avoiding anything that would cause suspicion and hurt his wife.

“A couple for a lifetime.” the oath he personally swore, he always remembers it in his heart.

Tao Xinhe quietly licked her dried up lips. She was trying to keep her sanity in this situation while trying to pay attention to Gu Ningxi’s every word.

After personally confirming Gu Ningxi’s stance regarding their relationship and that he doesn’t seem to plan to take a concubine to raise in this life. She felt a little relieved and pleased. She convinced herself that at least even though her husband lied to her, he doesn’t have any other intentions for Mo Qiqi.

Even though he was awkward because of the Noble feeling of finally seeing a person’s appearance. Tao Xinhe knew that she can’t prattle on about it too much and that her crying bitterly about it should be enough.

He didn’t touch his bottom line, and life will always go on.

The relationship between their husband and wife for more than three years is very important for the both of them.

Gu Ningxi watched Tao Xinhe sigh, then raised her hand. She inserted the pair of Hair Ornaments firmly into the round and thick bun at the back of her head. It looks like cloud and flowing water.

“The lady is so beautiful, and her hands are skillful. With such a wife, what more can this husband ask for?”

“Don’t be so talkative. Help me see if the position is correct. Don’t mess it up with your hands!”

Tao Xinhe followed up with the atmosphere, they talked about daily routines, and opened up about Mo Qiqi’s affairs.

***

After tossing and thrashing for a while.

Tao Xinhe’s hair was so disheveled she went to clean herself up. She noticed the tear marks on her face, so she decided to wash-up completely and rearrange her hair with the assistance of the maids.

After pondering for a while, she ordered the dexterous Zhuiyun:

“It just so happens that the flying fairy bun in the morning is out of shape, so replace it with a curled tail bun for me.”

Obviously, the mistress only had two strands of hair leaking out from her temples, which could be rearranged with a little adjustment, so why did she decide to change it? However, Zhuiyun didn’t dare to ask any more questions. She answered in a low voice, and gently redo her hair, and changed her style.

The dressing table was covered with a dozen or so hair accessories that had just been removed from her head, including hearts, gold hairpins, step shakes and so on. Tao Xinhe kept her head and neck still. She stretched out her hand to gently disperse the hair ornament that lying conspicuously on the table then motioned for Zhuiyun to help her insert it.

Zhuiyun saw the pattern of magpies on branches, and was annoyed that she wasn’t responsible for picking her Mistress’ jewelry, so she didn’t delay at all and got it done quickly.

***

Gu Ningxi sent his wife out of the flower hall, obediently stuffed the scarf to Shishu, and asked him to put it away so that his wife would not see it again.

He ignored the servant’s suggestion to change his clothes, feeling the beauty’s remaining tears on the clothes dry up and fade away. He was in a strange state of mind.

A servant passed in a post sent by someone from the second housekeeper of the Gu family. It was addressed to his wife which made Gu Ningxi a bit surprised and a little curious.

He just visited his second uncle’s family in the morning, and he didn’t hear his second aunt say that he was looking for his wife.

Speaking of the second uncle’s family, there are four sons and three daughters, and there are grandchildren, and the population is dense. The only legitimate descendant is his cousin Gu Runing, who is just seventeen years old, not much older than the third sister of his wife’s family.

The oldest is Gu Ninglie, who is ranked third, was two years younger than Gu Ningxi, but the concubine-born son is recorded under the name of the second aunt, which is counted as the first son of the second room. The youngest concubine-born girl is only ten years old this year.

The second uncle is rich and idle, with a big belly, and his belt is half a circle longer than others, so he can easily recognize the person through the size of their stomachs.

The second aunt’s family background is not high, and she has a soft temper. She has the most confidence among the three sisters-in-law. She has been treated indifferently by her mother-in-law, Gu Ningxi’s grandmother, until their family moved out from the family after the death of the head of the family, Prime Minister Gu.

The second aunt has always been kind and affectionate to him, and when she sees him from afar, she will greet him as “Brother Xi”, and her sincere voice will make Gu Ningxi smile knowingly, and return the thoughtful “Second Aunt” as a response.

According to my mother, my second aunt once had a son who was the same age as him, but he died young. I don’t know if it’s empathy, but since Gu Ningxi can remember, the second aunt had always been very kind to him, giving him children’s clothes and fresh pastries made by herself from time to time, until they moved out of the old Gu’s mansion.

Gu Ningxi can still remember back then when he was just an ignorant child. One day, after he was bullied by his cousins, he hid in a corner and reflected on himself why they don’t want to acknowledge him. Could it be that his father married his mother against his grandmother’s wishes and gave birth to a stupid son.

It was the second aunt who called “Brother Xi” loudly and softly when she found him. She even hugged him, wiped away the tears and stains on his face, and kept saying,

“Second aunt has never studied, so she can’t say much. However, Brother Xi is very smart, don’t pay attention to them. In this life, it is enough to recognize yourself.”

After coaxing him for a long time, the second aunt personally sent him back to the big room and pleaded with his father, so he was spared from kneeling in the ancestral hall that time, due to the reason of “dispelling the young master’s temper”.

Therefore, Gu Ningxi had always thought highly of his second aunt. He once asked her if she needed his help to take care of Gu Ninglie’s affairs, but his second aunt shook her head and declined politely.

Just when Gu Ningxi was wondering about what his second aunt was planning to do. Instead of asking for him she reached out for Tao Xinhe instead.

***

Gu Ningxi saw the water-red dress that he had seen earlier. He thought it was his wife, and was about to go up to meet her, but he keenly noticed that the person who came and the lady had a different hair style in the morning. So he hesitated a little then pursed his lips. His steps slowed down then completely stopped for awhile.

The lady won’t tease him again, will she?

Tao Xinhe casually asked, “Why is my husband so stunned?” Then she sat down at the table and motioned for the servants to serve lunch.

Gu Ningxi recognized the person after hearing her voice. Only then did he realized that the lady had changed her hairstyle back to the original bun that he was most familiar with.

While taking a closer look, he naturally noticed that the lady was wearing the new hair accessory that he gave her. A faint sweetness welled up on Gu Ningxi’s heart. The corners of his mouth curled up. He felt a bit apprehensive, luckily he didn’t talk nonsense just now.

“The lady is as beautiful as a fairy, I’m completely fascinated.” Gu Ningxi was trying to make up for his wife. He just wants to go back to the state of when the couple get along well with each other. He then quickly sat beside his lady.

This lunch was three quarters of an hour later than usual. Even though it was a home-cooked dish, both husband and wife felt it was very delicious.

Gu Ningxi even picked up vegetables for Tao Xinhe more frequently than usual. He even asked her attentively about whether the food was cold or had too much salt. The two of them felt different from before.

Tao Xinhe didn’t get a good night sleep last night, now that her worries are gone, after being completely satiated with food. She was swept by drowsiness and now all she wants to do was sleep for a while.

Gu Ningxi casually put down the hawthorn Kuding tea cup that tasted weird, and handed out the second aunt’s post to his wife.

From the letter, Tao Xinhe found out that the second aunt was coming to the house in the afternoon to discuss about Gu Runing’s marriage with her. So she told Gu Ningxi about it.

Gu Ningxi suddenly realized:

“I see I wasn’t aware about the fact that the second aunt was looking for a husband for Ningniang. I haven’t had any impression of anyone she could be engaged with.”

For family affairs and regarding receiving visitors, Gu Ningxi had always relied on his wife. He was not really concerned about this matter.

He suddenly remembered that Mo Qiqi was still one year older than Ningniang, and her marriage was supposed to be arranged by him. So he might have to entrust it to his wife, but how should he open his mouth?

***

TL NOTE:

Hello~

Sorry I haven’t been able to update much recently. I tried to for a couple of days but I can’t seem to fix some errors with the TL. Also, I just had the best luck of getting sick a few days after the new year.

Anyways, I’m having a bad premonition about where the story is going, it’s like a calm before a storm. I feel like something bad will happen.