Chapter 164: The Matter of Guizhi
"Father, you are not feeling well, let me take you home to rest. If you don’t feel better by tomorrow, we will have Er Lang take you to Fushou Hall in the town," Bai Yihong suggested.
With a guest present, everyone felt uncomfortable seeing him leaning sickly. Isn’t that making the guest, Mr. Xie, to leave?
The old master Bai slowly stood up and said, "My chariness stems from a matter yet resolved in my heart, it’s been long enough to turn into a heart disease."
He is obviously pressing the second branch of the family and Mr. Xie to make a concession.
Yu Hongxiu subtly hinted at Mr. Xie, then smiled and expressed, "For the sake of his son, the old gentleman has gone through so much, it’s unbearable to watch. Rest assured, I will keep an eye on the Scholar and seek opportunities for him, as well as persuade my husband to assist him."
The old master’s face brightened, almost springing to his feet. With gratitude, he said, "Thank you so much, Madam." His eyes reddened, holding back his tears.
Yu Hongxiu swiftly responded, "You need to recuperate. It’s better to have Scholar assist you home and rest, don’t worry anymore."
"Alright, thank you for your concern, Mr. Xie and Madam," the old master, having reached his objective, quickly asks Bai Yibo to assist him in leaving.
After their departure, Mr. Xie with a stern face asked, "Madam, why did you..." Letting out a heavy sigh midway, what was supposed to be a peaceful meal had turned into such an ordeal.
Bai Zepei bowed profoundly to Mr. Xie, saying apologetically, "Mr. Xie, I am deeply sorry to inconvenience you." He was genuinely taken aback by his father’s shamelessness, he wouldn’t have dared to invite Mr. Xie for a meal if he had known his father would act as such.
"Nothing to worry about, doesn’t everyone have a few annoying relatives?" Mr. Xie put it quite bluntly.
Your translations should closely resemble those of a native English speaker,
Seeing Mr. Xie understand the family’s issues, relief washed over the Bai family.
Yu Hongxiu guided Mr. Xie back to his seat then smiled at Bai Ruozhu, indicating, "Madam Bai, the food is so delicious that I can’t get enough, hope you don’t mind my lack of manners."
Seeing that Mr. and Mrs. Xie enjoyed the food her daughter had prepared, Lin Ping’er was more than delighted. She hastened to add, "aren’t we all here to have a good meal, let’s continue."
Mr. Xie resumed his position at the table. However, he is still troubled by Yu Hongxiu’s promise to the old master. He genuinely cares about his students and doesn’t wish to give away opportunities to unrelated individuals.
Yu Hongxiu noticed his concern, chuckled lightly, and said quietly, "Husband, you should be more flexible. Didn’t I promise that I would help? It was not your promise. Plus, I only mentioned I would try to persuade you, not that I would definitely be able to. When someone is pestering you, can you really afford to reasoning with them patiently?"
Mr. Xie gave a mixed reaction of sighing and chuckling. Although he disagreed, he helplessly agreed, "We have no other choice. But, I fear they may accuse my wife of going back on her words in the future."
Yu Hongxiu smiled nonchalantly, adding, "As a woman, my capabilities are limited. Even if I’m not up to the task, no one will blame me. Besides, should a woman intervene in her husband’s matters?"
Everyone laughed heartily, praising Yu Hongxiu. She truly has the grace and the capability of a lady of standing.
Bai Ruozhu appreciated Yu Hongxiu’s help, she served her favorite dishes. Yu Hongxiu tasted each of them but never overate. Even so, by the end, she still exclaimed that she was too full to eat anymore.
After dinner, Mr. Xie visited Bai Zepei’s room for a heartfelt chat, evaluating Bai Zepei’s recent progress. Yu Hongxiu led Bai Ruozhu back to their room to have a personal conversation.
The pair entered the room holding the baby. Yu Hongxiu was exceptionally fond of Dengdeng, she stretched out her jade-like finger to gently touch Dengdeng’s small face, worried about hurting him. She hesitated for a long time, her conflicting emotions clear.
Bai Ruozhu played with Dengdeng’s little hand, guiding it to grip Yu Hongxiu’s finger. Now Dengdeng’s little hand had no strength, but he enjoyed lightly gripping the finger of an adult. Even when he was asleep, he would grip Bai Ruozhu’s finger tightly, bringing about a sense of security.
Yu Hongxiu gasped in surprise and couldn’t help but exclaim, "his palm is incredibly warm, it’s so amusing!"
Seeing her sincere affection for kids, Bai Ruozhu couldn’t help but wish she had children soon. She told her in a soft voice, "I will give you some recipes for medicinal meals. Both you and Mr. Xie should have them, it might help you conceive sooner."
"Really? Is it that magical?" Yu Hongxiu exclaimed.
In reality, Bai Ruozhu felt that it would be more effective if Mr. Xie took care of his health. Her prescriptions would mainly promote health and nourishment, and it wouldn’t harm if Yu Hongxiu took them as well.
"Does Mr. Xie eat a lot of vegetarian food?" She didn’t answer Yu Hongxiu, instead, raising a query of her own.
Yu Hongxiu was surprised at Bai Ruozhu’s question. "How did you know? He had developed a habit of eating vegetarian food during his mourning period, and now he rarely eats meat. Today he ate more only because he liked the dishes."
"That won’t do, if you want to have children soon, your diet must be balanced. You can’t overeat or completely avoid meat, you need a balanced diet with the correct nutritional intake," Bai Ruozhu gently advised without attributing any blame to Mr. Xie’s health conditions.
From her analysis, it’s quite certain that Mr. Xie’s malnutrition led to a lack of vitality and affected his wife’s ability to conceive. But in those times, it’s difficult for people to accept such circumstances, that’s something Bai Ruozhu found difficult to articulate directly.
The pair continued discussing dietary arrangements. Yu Hongxiu found it extremely beneficial and thanked Bai Ruozhu endlessly. Bai Ruozhu could only bitterly smile and said, "Don’t thank me just yet. I have something to request your help with."
She wouldn’t have hesitated to ask Yu Hongxiu for a favor under normal circumstances. However, after witnessing the scene where the old master begged Mr. Xie for help, her request was awkward.
"Don’t be so polite with me, I really enjoy your company and consider you a friend," urged Yu Hongxiu while holding Bai Ruozhu’s hand.
So, Bai Ruozhu told her about Fang Guizhi and laid out her plans.
"Your presence in the village was noted by many. I plan on spreading the news that you wish to buy a capable maid, who is industrious and hardworking. You are generous and willing to pay a good price. Hopefully Guizhi’s mother will be enticed," Bai Ruozhu took a small box from under the bed as she was speaking.
"This is twenty silvers, money that Guizhi and I made from trading. You can use it to purchase Guizhi, at least it symbolizes her freedom, consider the silvers to be payback to her parents for raising her."
Yu Hongxiu was extremely furious upon hearing this. "How could there be such parents? They are so senseless, willing to trade their own daughter for silver. I will surely help with this. And since you’ve made it so convenient for me, there’s no reason not to."
Bai Ruozhu handed her the silvers with a sense of joy in her heart, "Just wait for my signal. I will call upon you when it’s time to inspect the goods and sign the indenture contract."
Yu Hongxiu didn’t rush to accept the silver. She asked Bai Ruozhu, chuckling, "Aren’t you worried that I’d take the silver, buy Guizhi, and then refuse to return the indenture contract to you? Then you would have lost both the silver and the maid, right?"