Thirteenth Lady's Comback: Her Everyday Life as a Bystander-Chapter 224 - 9: Communication Is Essential (Part 3)

The village chief and the old clan members have already learned that border soldiers are not allowed to leave their assigned garrison within a hundred miles without cause. If it weren’t for Hong Sheng’s great achievements this time, he wouldn’t have been able to return to the Capital.

Now that Hong Sheng has taken a wife, he is about to return to the Northwest. Who knows in which year or month he’ll get the chance to come back again.

Hong Sheng also knows that the village chief and the clan members cannot stay for long. Hearing this, he didn’t press them to stay, only saying, "I’ll first take my wife to meet that group of friends. At lunchtime, I’ll accompany the village chief and the clan elders for a couple of drinks, just as a farewell for you all."

One of the clan elders laughed and said, "We drank too much yesterday, and I still have a headache this morning, so we can’t drink anymore. Your wife just entered the family, and you should spend more time with her. Leave us old ones to entertain ourselves."

Amidst the teasing from these elders, Hong Sheng and Susu left the house and went straight to the guest room where Hong Sheng’s brothers were staying.

The group had already drunk too much, and they got up early just to have a reason to mock Hong Sheng. Now seeing they couldn’t tease him, they went back for a nap and had just gotten up, eating breakfast.

They weren’t accustomed to those delicate small dishes, so they asked the kitchen to make meat buns, paired with rice porridge, along with braised beef and a large bowl of salted vegetables.

Though they ate heartily, they didn’t have any regard for their image. Even "The Cold Scholar," who is a true Northwest man, accustomed to the army’s quick meals, naturally didn’t care about appearances.

Everyone was eating when suddenly Hong Sheng pushed the door open and entered, followed by the incomparably beautiful young lady. For a moment, they were caught off guard, some choked, some coughed, and all pointed at Hong Sheng without being able to speak.

Susu also saw her usually reserved husband’s childish side, which was truly something else.

Thus, they couldn’t bother with eating anymore and had someone clear the table. Susu met with each of the soldiers. Hong Sheng introduced them solemnly, firstly because of his deep love for Susu, and secondly because these people were his loyal subordinates. In the future, Susu would inevitably have to interact with their wives.

These loyal subordinates of Hong Sheng were all under his command when he was overseeing households, now promoted to the rank of Hundred Households. Though each had their quirks, they were all loyal and righteous men.

One person who teased everyone yesterday, Zhang San, isn’t really named Zhang San. It’s just that because one of them was surnamed Li, everyone called them "Zhang San and Li Si."

"The Cold Scholar" isn’t actually a scholar; he has just read more books than others, has a clever mind, and is somewhat weaker physically, leading to the playful title of scholar.

The black-faced man who seemed a bit dense, named Yang Xiaoshan, actually had the most delicate thoughts and was the most famous scout in their household.

And the other several people each had their own nicknames.

Susu greeted each one respectfully, and the soldiers looked at the seemingly gentle young lady with the demeanor of a heroine, and regarded her with newfound respect.

Susu asked someone to serve the dishes again, and then returned to the new room with Hong Sheng. The kitchen, having received notice, also brought up the breakfast that Hong Sheng had long ordered. Seeing the large jar of old hen red date soup, Susu felt warm inside.

However, when she saw the large table full of all kinds of breakfast, Susu couldn’t help but find it a bit amusing. With just the two of them, how could they possibly finish it all? It seemed she would have to talk to Hong Sheng about the little savings.

After finishing the meal, Susu wasn’t shy and pulled Hong Sheng to the east chamber. They sat face to face on the big kang under the south window and said, "Since there’s nothing now, let’s have a chat!"

Susu’s straightforwardness made Hong Sheng, who was blushing because his wife took his hand, feel a bit nervous. However, for the sake of a man’s dignity, he appeared calm on the surface and said, "What does my lady want to talk about?"

"Though we’ve known each other for seven or eight years, you can count on one hand the times we’ve met, let alone any in-depth understanding. In the future, you’ll find that I might not be as thorough and considerate as you imagined, but I’ll do my utmost to be a good wife."

Hearing this, Hong Sheng quickly said, "I didn’t marry you because you were thorough and considerate. Maybe that was part of the reason before, but most importantly, I genuinely like you. Just be yourself; do whatever you want, and eat whatever you feel like. It’s more open-minded in the Northwest. If there’s nothing going on, I can take you around. I remember you mentioned your curiosity about the border scenery in your letters."

A real man should be able to meet even such small requests from his wife; otherwise, he’s not worthy of being called a man!