Chapter 168: Minglan’s Confession, Gu Tingye Dealing with Family Affairs (1)
Translator: Iris
Only until the end of the Wei Hour (Around 3 p.m) when the sky turned golden yellow did the new couple bid their farewells to the others. Gu Tingye glanced at Minglan, finding her eye sockets being red and her drooping long eyelashes being wet. Then he realized that she must have cried, which made his heart get softened a bit. He had drunken lots of wine with those men on the feast and was already slightly tipsy. After he had seen Minglan’s look, he then pretended to totter. Changbai and others saw that and ordered the servants to support Gu Tingye to get into the coach too.
A few censers were set out on the tables in the spacious coach. There was a thin carpet being laid on the ground. Minglan helped Gu Tingye lean aslant on the cushion and fan him gently with the fan she had just found to dispel the smell of booze from him. The coach kept wagging. The afternoon in the late spring was a bit muggy. The red copper censer on the table was sending out a light fragrance of Liu Lan, which disperse vaguely in the semi-closed space.
Gu Tingye had only pretended to be drunk. However, the atmosphere in the room made him a little sleepy. After he had slept for a while, he opened his eyes in a daze, seeing Minglan slightly closing her eyes and leaning on the cushion lazily with a pink gauze circular fan with coral pearl inlaid in her hand.
While Minglan was half asleep and half awake, she suddenly felt a bit itchy on her eyelids. She opened her eyes while reaching out her hand to touch that place. Then she saw Gu Tingye staring at her quietly with his rough fingers fondling her eyelids. He asked, “You are awake?”
Having nodded and put down the circular fan, Minglan held herself up to sit up while smiling with two dimples showing on the corner of her mouth, saying, “Do you need water?”
Gu Tingye, feeling dry in his mouth right now, nodded right away. After Minglan had poured the warm tea from the lodestone tea plate on the table, she served the tea to Gu Tingye’s lips and let him drink little by little. The moment she put down the tea cup, she felt the sky and earth spinning around. Gu Tingye pressed her on the carpet with the tip of his nose toward hers.
The strong breath of man along with the smell of the booze were sprayed to Minglan’s face. Minglan couldn’t even breathe under his huge body. She tried her best to push him away while saying, “... You’re too heavy, heavy...” Hearing her words, Gu Tingye moved away his body while still gazing at Minglan with his bushy eyelashes almost poking Minglan’s eyelids. Suddenly, he asked, “You have cried. Why?”
Minglan breathed heavily and said in a low voice, “I can’t... see my grandma very often afterwards. I feel sad about that.”
“No, I don’t believe that. Tell me the real reason.” He was clear of Minglan’s temper. As long as she wasn’t hurt on the body, she would be very tough and seldom get too sentimental. It was not like she and Old Madam Sheng would be part forever, there was no need for her to cry her eyes out. Even if she felt a bit sad leaving her grandma, she would definitely make some jokes to cool that off.
Gu Tingye was still staring at Minglan with his eyes which were dark like night. Minglan was a bit nervous deep down while feeling an uncertain feeling of pressure. So she could only stammered, “Grandma, grandma has scolded me...” After she had said that, she felt at ease at once. Seeing the man in front of her having no intention to move, she could only continue, “Grandma worried that I couldn’t live well. She has pointed out that I have done so many things improperly. Also, she was afraid that I would irritate you while she was not able to look after me in the future...”
With Gu Tingye’s body leaning to one side, he helped Minglan lean against the woolen cushion and let her sit in his arms. Then he raised his voice and said in a weird tone, “That’s why she has intended to let you marry into the He family?”
Minglan felt her blood freezing. Suddenly she envied those couples who didn’t know each other before their weddings. Although those wives knew nothing about their husbands, the husbands also weren’t clear about their wives past either, unlike Gu Tingye who knew everything about Minglan.
“My grandma thought his family was quite decent.” Minglan murmured that gently.
“What about afterwards?” Gu Tingye only looked at her deeply with no emotion in his eyes.
That was rather a complicated question. There were so many meanings being hidden under those words.
With Minglan’s head tilted, she suddenly changed to another subject, saying in a low voice, “On that day, Old Madam Qin let Concubine Gong and Hongxiao give obeisances to us. When you stood in front of me to speak those words, I was actually... very happy about that. That day you have saved me from being at a loss. I know you have told them to come to the mansion later in order to let me take over the family affairs first. You have protected me and treated me nice. I know all of that.”
After she had said that, the vague sullenness in Gu Tingye’s eyes all faded away while a faint smile showed on the corner of his mouth. He seemed to want to cover that smile, but failed to hide the curving corner of his mouth.
Minglan looked at the light fume in the air while saying gently, “My grandma has spoken highly of He Hongwen. However, when I was forced by Cao family, he pushed me forward to let me deal with all those things knowing that I was unwilling to do that. When facing that lady from Cao family, I was always in a dilemma no matter what I did!” Thinking of the grievance she had had at that time, Minglan couldn’t help choking with sobs. Then she turned around slowly to look at Gu Tingye directly with the expression in her eyes as clear as the spring water, saying, “But you are a different man! You always stand in front of me and protect me. You keep out all those embarrassments and troubles for me. At that time, I felt that I wouldn’t have a slight feeling of fear even if there is a mountain of swords and sea of flames in front of me as long as you were with me!”
Liu Yao had asked Yang Xianrong, “How do you compare me with that man in Sima family?” Yang Xianrong answered instantly without any hesitation, “Even since I have married to you, I finally know what a real man should be like!”—- Her words sounded extremely powerful and firm. As a middle aged remarried woman, Yang Xianrong could still be the empress of two emperors and loved dearly by Liu Yao, the emperor of Zhao dynasty. Her son had also been appointed as the crown prince. There must be a reason for that.
Making love confession did take skills. When uttering those sincere words, one shouldn’t only shout slogans, not should he or she be too mannered. Also, those words should hit right on the spot. Because the love confession should always be spoken out loudly in a clear and explicit way. There were so many restrictions to restrain the women in the ancient times. As a woman who had ‘histories’, Minglan had to react fast right now. She couldn’t make any ambiguous statements when her husband had already known about her past.
If she spoken anything wrong, she might create misunderstandings between she and her husband. Even worse, some other woman might take advantage of this and ruin their marriage.
In the meantime, there was a genuine expression glowing in Gu Tingye’s eyes. Like the water in a tranquil ancient wall in which tossed a stone, his eyes were stirred up with glowing light and color at once. There was an indescribable joyful feeling rising up in his mind. Meanwhile, he said fiercely on purpose, “You little rascal! You want me to play the devil all the time, right? Fine, I just like to be the devil!”
Minglan was waiting for him to say that. She then smiled with joyful expression in her eyes and redness on her cheeks, while throwing herself to him. After that, she kissed on the man’s cheek while saying, “Second Uncle, you are so good to me...”
Gu Tingye felt his face becoming fragrant and her lips being super soft and tender. Before he could get delightful, he suddenly reminded of something and put on a gloomy face right away. Minglan seemed to have realized her mistakes too. Then she used her sleeves to cover her mouth while opening her eyes widely to look at Gu Tingye timidly.