Splendid peasant girl busy farming

Chapter 12055

You could say it's one thing in other situations, but here the whole family is eating glutinous rice balls!
"What's wrong with you, old man? It's the Lunar New Year, the first month of the lunar calendar. Eat some glutinous rice balls and talk less!"

Wang Cuilian's smile vanished, her face darkened, and she spoke to Luo the blacksmith in a somewhat displeased tone.

Luo the blacksmith's smile froze on his face. Only then did he realize that not only was Wang Cuilian criticizing him to his face, but even Yang Ruoqing and Luo Fengtang had very calm expressions on their faces.

They didn't try to stop the old man from saying anything, nor did they constantly comfort him or try to steer his worries in a positive direction.

They all chose to remain silent at that moment.

When the old man looked over, Yang Ruoqing even lowered her eyes to avoid Luo the blacksmith's gaze.

Luo Fengtang forced a smile at Luo the blacksmith and said, "Uncle, you're right, everything will be alright. Let's eat some glutinous rice balls, or they'll get cold."

Hearing Luo Fengtang speak, Yang Ruoqing also looked up and smiled at Luo the blacksmith: "Yes, Yuanxiao should be eaten while it's hot."

Luo the blacksmith opened his mouth, about to explain what had happened earlier, but at that moment, Yang Ruoqing had already turned her head to talk to Tuantuan and Yuanyuan.

She said to the two children, "You must eat your glutinous rice balls properly from now on, so you don't get choked by copper coins. Save anything you want to say for after you've eaten."

The two children nodded, half understanding, and buried their heads in the glutinous rice balls in their bowls, trying to find copper coins to prove themselves.

Luo the blacksmith wasn't stupid; by this point, he had also figured out what was going on from the expressions and attitudes of his whole family.

Luo the blacksmith chuckled self-deprecatingly, then nodded, lowered his eyes, picked up his chopsticks, and didn't utter another word until he finished eating the glutinous rice balls and went back to his room for a midday nap.

"Auntie, did what we did earlier offend Uncle?" Yang Ruoqing looked at Luo the blacksmith's departing figure and felt that his back looked lonely and desolate.

However, she was really annoyed. It wasn't like any of her family members had such a tormenting illness, but from the second half of last year to the first month of this year, it had been half a year, and the entire Luo family had been affected by Luo Da'e's recurring illness. It was like taking someone else's dark clouds and putting them on their own roof. Why bother?

Wang Cuilian's shoulders slumped at this moment, completely lacking the imposing manner she had displayed when she was berating Luo the blacksmith at the dinner table.

“We have to offend him, we can’t just let him say those things inappropriately, can we?” Wang Cuilian said.

Yang Ruoqing fell silent. Indeed, it was unacceptable; it would severely affect her mood and disrupt her family's fortune.

Wang Cuilian continued, "Don't panic. I was the one who criticized him at the dinner table earlier. Even if I offended him, it was me who offended him. He won't blame you."

"Auntie, that's not what I meant... I just... I don't agree with it, but I also feel sorry for Uncle..."

Anyway, I have very conflicted feelings.

Wang Cuilian patted Yang Ruoqing's hand: "I understand, you don't need to explain anything, just go do what you need to do."

"As for your uncle... I'll go inside and talk to him privately. There won't be any major problems, don't worry!"

"Auntie, you've really had to go through a lot." Yang Ruoqing said sincerely. Only Wang Cuilian, as her husband, could say such things; it wasn't appropriate for them, the younger generation, to say them.

Especially since they had a major grudge against Luo Da'e back then, it was even more inconvenient for them to say anything.

Wang Cuilian gave Yang Ruoqing another smile to reassure her, then turned and followed Luo the blacksmith to the backyard.

After Wang Cuilian left, Yang Ruoqing was left alone in the main room.

Because the children had gone out to play after eating the glutinous rice balls, and Luo Fengtang had gone to handle official business, Yang Ruoqing was sitting in the main room and didn't feel like going to visit her parents' house next door.

Back home, she now sees Da'an as if he were a criminal suspect.

As long as the truth about Ruan Xiaowei's matter doesn't come to light, Yang Ruoqing won't let go of her suspicions about Da'an, and yet Da'an doesn't seem to feel any discomfort whatsoever.

Yang Ruoqing felt that every time she interacted with Da'an, it was like a battle of wits, which was particularly mentally taxing.

I don't want to go anywhere today. I'm going to go back to my room and sleep for the rest of the time.

For a woman who is 35 years old (36 by Chinese reckoning) and just celebrated her 36th birthday a few days ago, no magic pill is as effective as relaxing her mind, eating properly, clearing her head, and getting plenty of sleep whenever she has free time.

She didn't know how long she slept during that afternoon nap, but when she regained consciousness, she felt that Luo Fengtang seemed to have gone back into the room.

I vaguely saw him sitting at his desk, waving a calligraphy brush as if he were writing something.

Then he went to the window, summoned a guard, and sent out what he had written.

Haha, our family's general is the kind of general who truly embodies the spirit of a valiant man from the inside out. The first impression he gives is one of security and reliability, like an impregnable fortress or a towering mountain.

Our family's general... never gets cakey.

"Are you awake, Qing'er?" Luo Fengtang approached the bedside and asked in a low voice.

Yang Ruoqing stretched and opened her eyes. Sure enough, she saw him standing leisurely by the bed, looking at her with a slight smile on his lips.

"How long have I been asleep?" she asked.

Luo Fengtang glanced at the hourglass on the bedside table. "Not long, only an hour and a half."

An hour and a half? That's three hours!

God!

No wonder I had so many dreams, I slept for so long!

"Oh no, I won't be able to sleep tonight." Yang Ruoqing laughed, trying to sit up.

Luo Fengtang had already bent down and lifted her up from the quilt.

“That’s perfect, we can do something we do when we can’t sleep.” As he helped Yang Ruoqing get dressed, his chin rested on the back of her shoulder. His seemingly casual teasing remark felt like a spark igniting in Yang Ruoqing’s heart. She quickly pushed this ‘hot potato’ away, “No way! The night before last, and yesterday afternoon… my back is still sore!”

The women in the village were washing clothes by the pond, telling all sorts of jokes, both risqué and vulgar, while also revealing all the little things that happened in their neighbors' houses.

According to the experience of those aunts and sisters-in-law, a man over 25 is like 65.
When Yang Ruoqing first heard them say this, she thought it was the advice of experienced people.

But in Luo Fengtang, Yang Ruoqing felt that he would always be that handsome young man in his early twenties...

It's true that when God is kind to someone, He really showers them with all sorts of attribute buffs. This is especially true for female authors, who are particularly fond of their male protagonists. Every one of them has top-notch physical abilities, a perpetual motion machine, a little motor...

Thank you, author! Thank you for bringing your imagination to life and creating such a perfect Luo Fengtang. It's such a blessing for me, Yang Ruoqing, that I, this chubby girl, am eating so well!

"How about I give you a massage with some medicinal wine?" Upon learning that Yang Ruoqing was feeling slightly unwell, Luo Fengtang immediately dropped his earlier jokes and replaced them with concern.

"No need for that, just... don't make me exert myself these next few days." Yang Ruoqing said this, too embarrassed to look him in the eye.

That's so embarrassing.

Luo Fengtang, however, did not think so. He raised his hand and gently rubbed Yang Ruoqing's hair twice. "I'll listen to you."

"By the way, there's new news from Changhuaizhou."

"Oh? What did you say?"

All her shyness vanished instantly, and Yang Ruoqing sat up straight.

Luo Fengtang frowned slightly: "Qing'er, you have to promise me that you will take a deep breath and not fly into a rage after reading this!"

His words are practically a spoiler.

As for talking about taking deep breaths and getting furious... sorry, Yang Ruoqing's blood pressure is already soaring.

"You damn bastard, I promise I'll beat him to a pulp!" Yang Ruoqing gritted her teeth. "Bring him here so I can see him!"

Luo Fengtang stuffed a piece of paper into Yang Ruoqing's hand.

Yang Ruoqing read it quickly, feeling as if all the blood in her body rushed to the top of her head.

The letter said that Da'an did indeed send people to Shu, but it wasn't the ship that Luo Fengtang's men were tracking.

It was a different ship.

Ruan Xiaowei is not in Changhuaizhou at all. She is in Shu, and the maids, servants and housekeepers who serve her are all from Da'an.

In addition, Da'an not only bought a house for Ruan Xiaowei in Shu, but also a house for her in Changhuaizhou.

There are still stewards and servants managing the house in Changhuaizhou. According to the information that Luo Fengtang sent people to find out, Da'an has taken Ruan Xiaowei as his mistress in that house. The stewards and servants said that Madam Ruan went to another place to give birth, and after the child is born, Lord Yang will bring her and the child back to Changhuaizhou.

Therefore, they will take good care of the houses in Changhuaizhou.

After reading the letter, Yang Ruoqing crumpled it into a ball and sat on the bed angrily, cursing, "That brat Da'an is two-faced, three parts truth and seven parts falsehood. He's playing a smokescreen on me, mainly trying to delay the inevitable!"

"Hmm... Qing'er, we can't completely believe what those servants say. We should mainly look at Da'an's own actions." Luo Fengtang was worried that Yang Ruoqing would get sick from anger, so he stepped forward again and gently touched the top of her head to comfort her.

Yang Ruoqing looked up at him and said, "Don't try to comfort me. If that house had been sold, or if it wasn't Da'an who bought it for Ruan Xiaowei, the servants inside wouldn't dare to say that."

It's impossible for someone to fabricate the owner of the house. After all, Da'an is the governor of Changhuai Prefecture. Which servant would dare to make up such a story?
“Since that house was only recently purchased, it means one thing,” Yang Ruoqing continued to analyze, “that he never intended to break up with Ruan Xiaowei. He bought the house so that he could bring Ruan Xiaowei and her child back after she gave birth, and keep them as mistresses outside, without Xiaohua knowing.”

It truly proves the saying, "The red flag at home doesn't fall, while colorful flags flutter outside." Da'an's greed is on full display.

Even though he possessed a brilliant mind, a noble character, and was ambitious, loyal, and devoted to the people and the emperor, when it came to personal feelings, Da'an could not escape the vulgar tastes of most men…

“Qing’er, this is what I’m thinking, you can listen to it too.” Luo Fengtang was silent for a moment, then suddenly spoke up.

Yang Ruoqing gazed into Luo Fengtang's eyes, trying to calm herself down, and said, "Go on."

Luo Fengtang gently kneaded Yang Ruoqing's hands: "I think that taking care of Da'an and Xiaohua is something an older sister should do, but it's not something she has to do."

Yang Ruoqing was a little surprised, but she didn't interrupt him. What he wanted to express was definitely much more than that.

“When they were little, you were good to them, loved them, protected them, and prevented others from bullying them. Or when they had conflicts, you acted as a fair arbitrator and exercised your authority as the eldest sister.”

"But now, Da'an is 30 years old, and they have three children together. They have been a couple through thick and thin for more than ten years!"

"Their marriage has now entered a period of stagnation and dullness. Da'an has encountered a calamity with a beautiful woman. Although this matter has indeed hurt Xiaohua, I personally feel that you have stood by Xiaohua's side and made decisions for her, forcing Da'an to cut off contact with that other woman. As the eldest sister, I think you have fulfilled your responsibilities. As for how they should proceed, let's leave the initiative to Da'an and Xiaohua to handle themselves!"

"Tang Ya Zi, how could you say that?" Yang Ruo Qing pulled her hand back from Luo Feng Tang's palm, frowning. Instead of the usual shock and anger, she stared at Luo Feng Tang with a cold gaze, her voice as if frozen: "I've only ever heard of officials protecting each other, I never imagined there was such a thing as men protecting each other? Are you saying that I'm going to wash my hands of this and turn a blind eye to Da An?"

"Or is it that if one day you also meet your soulmate outside, I should learn to turn a blind eye? Hmm?"

"I knew it, you'd get angry at me for saying that..." Luo Fengtang smiled wryly.

I felt a hundred times wronged, but I couldn't utter a sound.

"Don't blame me for being angry with you. Even if Xiaohua wasn't the sister I picked up and raised, even if she was a sister-in-law who was formally married into another family, as her sister-in-law, as a woman myself, I couldn't just stand by and watch her be deceived by Da'an and live her life in the false world he created for her!"

Even if I am ultimately powerless to intervene in the young couple's affairs, I must at least make my stance clear!
"Never mind, I'll pack up and head to Changhuaizhou first thing tomorrow morning!"

"What? Qing'er, you're going to Changhuaizhou yourself?" Luo Fengtang exclaimed in shock. "You can't go, Qing'er!"

"Why can't I go? Could it be that you, General Luo, have also bought a house in Changhuaizhou and kept a mistress?" Yang Ruoqing asked Luo Fengtang with a cold smile, her eyes like icy knives that could pierce Luo Fengtang's heart.

Luo Fengtang really wanted to slap himself. What a stupid thing he had said! Now he had earned Qing'er's suspicion!