Chapter 40: Talking About Peonies

  What's going on here?

  I believe everyone knows more or less about it already.

  Not bad, all of this was Liu Qingqing's plan, but Peony stabbing Feng Gonggong wasn't part of it. She couldn't have foreseen that Peony would take action against Feng Gonggong. Or perhaps she thought that after living in the State of Hanhai for a few years, people should be open-minded about men and women, but she underestimated the power of hatred. Many times, we overlook love, but hate is etched in our bones. Peony was different from other women, she was a woman who dared to love and hate, her purpose in marrying Hu Zhongren was different from the start.

  In the past, people attached great importance to their parents' orders and matchmakers' words. Peony was not a young lady from a wealthy family, but an ordinary girl from a common household. After Hu Zhongren's reputation for being cruel to his wife and children spread far and wide, even if some families were willing to curry favor with the Hus, they would think that their good daughters would suffer a tragic fate in the Hu household, so they gave up on the idea. Even ordinary girls from common households tried to avoid marrying into the Hu family. Moreover, Yang Liuqing's notorious reputation for bullying his sister-in-law also spread far and wide, making it even more unlikely for a girl from a good family to join the Hu household. Some people even suspected that Hu Zhongren must have had some leverage in Yang Liuqing's hands, or else why would he allow Yang Liuqing to cause trouble and still keep his enemy at home, letting his own reputation suffer without taking it down.

  Most people say that Hu Zhongren relied on Yang Liuqing's father to keep the family business, and Yang Zhong was loyal and dedicated, just like Zhuge Liang assisting Emperor Shu, with a single-minded devotion, without any selfishness. After Hu Zhongren grew up, he handed over all of the Hu family's affairs to him, and himself retreated to a quiet life in the countryside, still managing the Yang family's estate, which had less than 100 households. Truly, he was kind-hearted and generous, like King Wen of Zhou reborn, or Zhuge Liang reincarnated.

  It's just a guess.

  Having such an excellent father, the son should be like that too. However, because his father had been managing the Hu family business for a long time, Mrs. Hu brought Yang Liuqing to live with the Hu family and grow up together with Hu Zhongren. The two of them studied together, practiced martial arts together, and chased after girls together. As a result, they both fell in love with Xiu Lian, the daughter of the Ren family. In the end, Xiu Lian chose Hu Zhongren as her husband, leaving Yang Liuqing defeated. In a fit of anger, Yang Liuqing agreed to his father's request and married into another family, having children without much thought. That's why there is now a Mrs. Young in Yangjia Village who is the wife of Yang Liuqing, living a life of widowhood.

  After hearing that Xiulian was burned to death, Yang Liuqing cut his wrist and attempted to die with her. He was rescued by an old Taoist priest who persuaded him not to give up on life. Yang Liuqing then went to the Hu family and began to seduce Hu Zhongren's subsequent wives, one after another, abandoning them in the end. It is said that they all died, but in reality, most of them had unknown fates.

  Over a decade or so, Hu Zhongren married nine wives in total, including his previous ones. He also maintained a relationship with Chen Xixi, but did not give her a formal title. Additionally, he took Xiaolian as his concubine. Yang Liuqing managed to get involved with all of Hu's wives from the second to the eighth, except for the ninth wife and Xiaolian. One could say that he was a prodigal son, but in reality, he was worse than an animal.

  It's common knowledge that Yang Liuqing is heartless and unrighteous. He ignores his wife, neglects his children, and abandons his concubines. Yet, there is one person who still likes him - Peony.

  Who is Peony? Peony is a person from Yangjiabao, and she is the younger sister of Yang Liuqing's first wife. In the year Yang Liuqing got married, he lived in Yangjiabao, and Peony had the chance to meet her brother-in-law, and fell deeply in love with him at first sight. To be fair, Yang Liuqing was indeed very handsome and charming.

  When everyone else was hesitant to marry into the wealthy Hu family, Peony took the initiative to propose marrying Hu Zhongren to Yang Zhong. Yang Zhong was overjoyed upon hearing this. It's rare to find someone willing to marry into the Hu family, and now there's even someone who is volunteering for it - they can get married right away!

  On the night of his wedding, Hu Zhongren made an exception and didn't put on a poker face because he was also very curious - who would dare to marry him after leaving his wife's position vacant for three years?

  The bridal chamber was lit up with candles and lanterns. The attendants held the handles of the sedan chair, gently lifted the red veil covering the bride's head, and she looked just like Xi Shi reborn, Diao Chan reincarnated!

  Under the bright red candlelight, the peony truly resembles a peony flower blooming under the warm sunshine of a spring morning, elegant and luxurious, proud and beautiful.

  Before Hu Zhongren could make a move, Peony suddenly pulled out a pair of scissors from her sleeve: "Back off! If you dare to take one step closer to me, I'll die right here!"

  Look at you, what's wrong with you? If there's something on your mind, just say it. Do you have to be so desperate and anxious?

  "Hurry back two steps, Miss! Don't be impatient, let's talk things through clearly, I absolutely won't offend you!"

  "What's wrong with this? Is it worth it? I'm trying to enter the bridal chamber, but Xixi is crying and making a fuss, not letting me in. What's going on now? This one is also crying and looking for death, not letting me stay here?"

  The peony spoke out boldly and straightforwardly: I love Yang Liuqing, not you Hu Zhongren!

  Hu Zhongren is so clever, he understood immediately. His own wife was seduced by Yang Liuqing, but he himself doesn't flirt with women, except for my wife, Hu Xianglin, he doesn't love anyone else. He's harming that poor girl, making her sacrifice herself to save the country! Marrying me is no different from marrying Yang Liuqing, isn't it?!

  "I get it, you're here for my cousin. However, since you're here for him, I'll kindly remind you that you need to pretend to like me in order to quickly capture his heart. Do you understand? So, tonight, it's best if you stay with me."

  Peony was taken aback for a moment, then immediately understood and quickly knelt down to thank him, "Thank you, Hu Shao."

  Two people sweet talk three days, Hu Zhongren took Chen Xixi to Kyoto, Yang Liuqing stretched out his magic claws, Peony was waiting for this moment, started refusing, wanted to refuse but welcomed, didn't take long before falling on the bed **lah, Yang Liuqing said in a messy and unfulfilled tone.

  Peony always remembers Hu Zhongren's entrustment, and must not let Yang Liuqing see her true intentions, otherwise, Yang Liuqing will leave her.

  The peony exhausted its brain, and finally brought Yang Liuqing around itself. It can be said that she is the one who has been with Yang Liuqing for the longest time, and also the only one who has a child with Yang Liuqing.

  Peony was looking forward to such a day going on forever, because she had obtained Hu Zhongren's tacit consent. After leaving for three days after the new marriage, Hu Zhongren never came back. Peony was thinking about when to tell Yang Liuqing that she was pregnant, but something happened.

  On this day, Peony came to the ancestral temple of Qian Cui An to offer incense. In Qian Cui An, she saw several portraits and plaques of wives, which made her feel extremely panicked, as if the Buddha's smile was not benevolent, and the dragon and tiger were about to come down and capture him. The paintings also made her shiver with fear. She hastily rushed out of the temple hall, hurrying to walk quickly out of the narrow path. Just when she was about to reach the Moon Gate, she saw Yang Liuqing's figure in the distance. She wanted to call out to Yang Liuqing, but before she could speak, someone covered her mouth and took her away.

  She thought it was her own actions that had brought shame and caused heaven's anger and people's resentment, thus inviting disaster, but it wasn't.

  When Peony woke up, she was in the Caishen Inn. What she saw and heard was the same as what Liu Qingqing saw and heard: Feng Gonggong and Yun Popo were greeting each other, Li Xiao'er responded to prepare food, went to find Lan Jie Niangniang, then Lan Jie Niangniang gave Yun Popo and Feng Gonggong a silver note, and bid farewell before leaving.

  Peony arrived at the Smoke Flower House, after receiving some training, she began her days of coming and going. She was unruly, but the whip of the Smoke Flower House was wet, the bodyguard brother was tiger-backed and bear-waisted, like a wolf and a tiger, these, she did not fear, but she had one thing that made her afraid, that is the child in her belly. This was the crystallization of Yang Liuqing's love, she must keep the child safe, so she submitted.

  The country of Haan treats women well and has good welfare for children. However, there is one bad thing: if you give birth to a boy.

  Giving birth to a girl can accept national welfare, and the child is raised by oneself; giving birth to a boy also accepts national welfare, but the child must be...

  Focused on nurturing, the birth mother can only see her child once a month because the boy will grow up to join the army and prepare for the great cause of unifying the country. So, Peony can only visit her child in the army once a month and spend one day with him. This has almost become the spiritual pillar that supports her to live on, but after meeting Yang Liuqing, his frozen heart has come back to life again.

  Yes, Yang Liuqing also arrived in the country of Hanhai. He had already set up everything in Hanhai, thinking that one day he would meet his beloved cousin face to face, but he didn't expect his cousin to take action first, quickly dissolving all his arrangements, easily resolving the crisis, and forcing him to flee to Hanhai to save his life.

  Peony didn't expect to meet her former lover in a foreign land, and Yang Liuqing didn't expect to run into her sister-in-law here. The two of them clicked immediately, like dry wood meeting a raging fire - no need to say more. Sweet talk was always Yang Liuqing's forte; just a few words were enough to dispel Peony's doubts, and she believed that it was all because of the greedy Cloud Granny and Wind Grandfather who had sold her here, while her beloved Yang Liuqing hadn't been involved at all. Little did she know, it was actually because Yang Liuqing had grown tired of Peony's daily entanglements that she had sent a message to a mysterious person, leading to her life as a wandering woman in a foreign land. Pitifully, this devoted woman still cherished thoughts of her lover and took care of their child with all her heart.

  We who are in the know can only sigh deeply, foolish women and heartless men!

  So, when Peony saw the Wind Grandfather and Cloud Granny, her anger was understandable. It was they who had ruined the happy life she had shared with Yang Liuqing, and destroyed the joy of their family of three. If Yang Liuqing knew that she had killed the Wind Grandfather and Cloud Granny, their enemies, how would he feel?

  The result is unknown.