Lady of Fortune, Jiao Niang

agreed.
Although Qi Yun was busy at the village, only Third Son Qi Ming studied in this family.
In Fang Shi’s heart, it was the top priority to study as a scholar.
Even if the matters of the village were set aside, it was more important to pay attention to Qi Ming first.

Ye Jiao pursed the corners of her lips.
Although she remembered that Qi Yun said she should follow Liu Shi, her worries about Qi Yun still prevailed.
She faintly replied: “Mother, Xiang Gong’s body has not fully recovered yet.”

As soon as Liu Shi thought of her second son who was sick and weak, her face showed a little distress.
She turned the beads and said: “Let’s take care of his body first, so that he can rest well, and you can come.”

Ye Jiao responded with a smile and stretched her hand out to grab a cookie.

Liu Shi didn’t stop her.
She just watched and laughed.

When Liu Shi went to see Qi Yun before, she heard her second son say that her daughter-in-law was good at everything, but just a bit greedy.
In addition to three meals a day, she always gave herself extra meals.

While Qi Yun and Liu Shi were talking, he thought about how Ye Jiao always acted in front of Liu Shi.
Since this hobby couldn’t be concealed, might as well explain it first so Liu Shi doesn’t mind.

Jiao Niang liked to eat and drink, and Qi Yun was willing to spoil her, but he was afraid that Liu Shi would dislike her daughter-in-law.

Little did he know, Liu Shi didn’t dislike it, and honestly liked it a bit.

Because Fang Shi was born round, she usually ate very little.
Even if the whole family ate together, she moved her chopsticks a couple of times and put them down, afraid that an extra bite would go to her face. 

Ye Jiao was different.
She never worried about eating and drinking.
Every time she ate, the food seemed very fresh.
Liu Shi felt comfortable watching her.

She (Liu Shi) didn’t care whether her daughter-in-laws were fat or thin.
Fang Shi’s plumpness was good-looking in its own way, and Ye Jiao’s thinness was good-looking in its own way – as long as they were healthy.
But watching Jiao Niang eat well made her feel especially satisfied and comfortable.

Older people always felt that there were too few dishes in the bowls of juniors. [7]

Fang Shi still didn’t eat or drink too much.
When she left Liu Shi’s yard, she only ate apricot cheese and didn’t take a bite of anything else.

Ye Jiao went back with a full stomach.
First, she went into the house and looked for Qi Yun.
Seeing that the man’s face was as usual, she picked up the flowerpot.
She was careful not to disturb Qi Yun who was reading the account book.
Ye Jiao withdrew and lightly closed the door, whispering: “Xiang Gong looks really good today.”

Xiao Su, who was cleaning on the side, couldn’t help but poke her head out and peeked through the crack of the door the moment before it closed.

She saw a pale and gloomy face flash by.

Xiao Su: …Where is it! The Young Lady lies!

Ye Jiao strolled in the yard holding the flowerpot, looking for a place with sunlight.

The stone bud grass in the flowerpot was no longer as thin and delicate as before.
It had grown a bit taller.
It hadn’t matured except for the three flowers that were already open, but the buds have changed from half-formed to fully-formed.

Of course, it’s still small and inconspicuous.

She didn’t know if she could support this little thing.
She could only try to raise it by bringing it out to get some sun and letting fate take its course.

After strolling for a while, Ye Jiao put down the flowerpot and asked Xiao Su to teach her how to kick the shuttlecock.

Don’t just look at her gluttony for food – the Little Ginseng was not idle.
After receiving a body, it’s natural to use it properly.
She could digest as much as she ate.

Ye Jiao had never played with a shuttlecock before, and the Ye Jiao in her memory hadn’t played them as well, so she had to learn from scratch now.

But what made the Little Ginseng helpless was that while her brain was still easy to use, her physical coordination wasn’t very good.
After learning for a few days, she could only play a few times.

Xiao Su taught Ye Jiao very patiently.
In fact, for Xiao Su who was in her early teens, it was better to play with Ye Jiao than to teach her.

Of course, the little girl was happy to be accompanied by someone.

It’s just that every time she saw the black feathers on the shuttlecock, she felt pain in her heart.

Her Xiao Hei (the rooster) was so pitiful…

Compared to being taken away by the second young master to be made into chicken soup, it was worth sacrificing a few feathers.

Xiao Su was a little curious: “Second Young Lady, why do you have to learn this?”

Ye Jiao bent over to pick up the shuttlecock, sweat beading on her head, and said with a smile: “This was given to me by Xiang Gong.
Isn’t it a waste if it just sat there?”

Xiao Su didn’t quite understand what it had to do with who gave it to whom, but after hearing Ye Jiao’s words, she nodded as if she understood.
She prepared to kick the shuttlecock with her.

What they didn’t know was that Qi Yun, who got up and was going to the desk to change the account book, clearly heard Ye Jiao’s words when he passed the window.

The window was closed, and it looked tight, but the paper window could not completely block outside noises.

Qi Yun lowered his eyes as he listened to Ye Jiao’s words.
He pursed the corners of his mouth and finally lifted them into a smile.

His, Jiao Niang.

Ye Jiao didn’t stay in the yard the whole time.
At noon, she went into the house and wiped her face.
After taking down her hair, she took an afternoon nap on the soft couch.

Because Qi Yun was in poor health recently, Ye Jiao let him sleep on the bed by himself.

As for why they were separated: Qi Yun was afraid that he would pass his sickness, and Ye Jiao was afraid that she would make his condition worse again.
They got to the same conclusion by different routes and safely slept as such. 

When Ye Jiao woke up from her nap, it was still bright outside and there was a lot of time before dinner.

Ye Jiao sat up, stretched her waist, and turned to look at Qi Yun.
However, she found that Qi Yun was not in bed, and the screen beside her was gone.

“Hua la~”

The sound of water made Ye Jiao’s eyes glance over.
She saw that the screen moved to the outer room.

There was charcoal fire inside and outside the house, making it warm.
Ye Jiao put on only her coat and shoes, and walked directly behind the screen.

Ye Jiao, who was standing, and Qi Yun, who was in the bathtub, suddenly looked at each other.

Qi Yun was stunned and didn’t react for a while.

Ye Jiao blinked, her bright eyes clean and clear.
She glanced at Qi Yun and said, “Xiang Gong, your body is so white.”

***

The author has something to say: 

Ye Jiao: Xiang Gong, your body is so white… Hey Xiang Gong, why are you red now?

=w=

Sorry for the late update! [Directly lays on the ground] Tomorrow must be on time!

Random red envelopes in this chapter, covers face

***

Footnotes

[1] Shi: At the end of someone’s surname, is used to denote their maiden name.

[2] Literal translation is that she takes care of the business of the stalls in her yard.
Back in ye old days, the wife would manage household affairs of the servants (maid, chef, etc) and people in her yard (husband, concubine, children), which kept her busy.

[3] Separation of a family in ye old days meant dividing the family’s assets to each household, causing them to go independent.

[4] This description describes a young child who looks strong, healthy, and honest.

[5] Pozi: Old Lady.
She is also referred to as “Mama Liu” by Liu Shi.

[6] Xiang Gong: Husband.
This is how the FL, Ye Jiao, refers to Qi Yun.

[7] This has a similar energy to when a grandma says, “Eat more, eat more, you’re too thin!”