Chapter 480 - 482: My Sister Seems to Have Changed
In the main house, Bai Yihong was earnestly trying to persuade Lin Ping’er.
"Our daughter isn’t wrong, do you see her spending recklessly or wasting money? She hired a carriage out of consideration for the family, she bought a horse for her two brothers, and yet you publicly criticized her. You didn’t spare our daughter’s dignity," said Bai Yihong.
Lin Ping’er was already persuaded. Blushing at his words, she stammered, "I... I was just worried. There’s a whole household to feed, it’s a lot of pressure."
Bai Yihong could not help laughing, "Look at you worrying over such small matters. You used to chide me all the time and now you’re panicking over a few more people to feed? The Zhang and Lin families came to rely on Ruozhu. As long as Ruozhu can manage them well, why should you worry unnecessarily?"
Feeling aggrieved, Lin Ping’er replied, "Am I not just worried for our daughter and concerned for her wellbeing?"
"Our daughter is very capable. We should not constantly second-guess her and hold her back. Those families came to pledge their allegiance to our daughter, and yet you publically humiliated her. How will she command their respect in the future?" Bai Yihong reiterated.
Lin Ping’er dabbed at the corner of her eyes and slightly lowered her head. In hindsight, she realized her worry was premature. Ruozhu always understood her boundaries. Having convinced the Zhang and Lin families to rely on her, Ruozhu surely must have had complete confidence in herself.
"Alright, alright. You overthink because of your concern. It would be good if you could be like me and not fret so much. In a couple of years, we’ll be playing with our grandchildren and enjoy a comfortable retirement." Bai Yihong had been in high spirits lately. Though his winter vegetable cultivation scheme was still undetermined, as if he’d discovered a treasure, his demeanor had completely transformed.
Suddenly getting up, Lin Ping’er said, "I’ll go and talk to our daughter, so she doesn’t feel upset."
Bai Yihong smiled, "Indeed, you truly care about our daughter."
By the time Lin Ping’er went to the backyard with Bai Yihong, they saw Ruozhu holding Little Dengdeng and petting a horse. Dengdeng was giggling and babbling excitedly in his mother’s hold, his face flushing with sheer joy.
Upon seeing her mother, Bai Ruozhu immediately called out with a smile: "Mother, come over here and hold your grandson. He’s overjoyed."
Lin Ping’er had been slightly embarrassed beforehand and was struggling to find the right words. But seeing her daughter’s beaming expression, Lin Ping’er instantly put her discomfort aside. She quickly walked over and took Little Dengdeng in her arms, gladly saying, "Seeing how much Dengdeng loves the horse, it was a good decision to buy it."
Bai Yihong sneakily winked at his daughter, giving her a simple-minded grin, as if to imply, "I’ve taken care of your mother". Bai Ruozhu and Wan Caiyue both couldn’t help but laugh.
The family continued watching the horse, not disturbing Wa San as he worked. He swiftly fetched water to clean the horse’s coat, explaining to Bai Ruozhu: "It’s important to wash a newly bought horse thoroughly, so that the young masters can ride it without worry."
Bai Ruozhu felt that his form of address was a bit off and told him, "You can call my parents ’Master’ and ’Madam’, and you can call me ’Miss’."
Bai Yihong felt a bit embarrassed hearing this and laughed awkwardly, "You can just call me ’Bai Bro’, I don’t like being called ’Master’."
Wa San promptly replied: "Master, please don’t say that. If I call you ’Bai Bro’, won’t Miss have to call me ’Uncle’? We can’t mess up the hierarchy."
Wa San’s position was different from the Zhang and Lin families, and since Bai Ruozhu wasn’t completely aware of his background, it was appropriate to clarify their relations.
"This is the wife of the eldest son, and this is my second sister," Bai Ruozhu introduced to him.
Wa San respectfully addressed them one by one. Wan Caiyue and Fang Guizhi found the situation a bit awkward, and both of them blushed slightly.
After a while, the family returned to the front courtyard. Fang Guizhi was somewhat excited, "I’m the second sister now, how nice."
Bai Ruozhu laughed at her, "Later, I’ll even buy a maid to wait on you. She’ll serve as your dowry maid in the future."
Fang Guizhi blushed even more and hastily retorted, "What maid? What dowry? Stop saying nonsense!" After that, she ran off to the kitchen shyly to do some work.
Lin Ping’er laughed heartily, "After the new year, we should start to find a match for Guizhi."
Bai Ruozhu thought about Guizhi’s affections for Zepei and a hint of concern flashed in her eyes. But Guizhi seemed to have cheered up a lot recently and was probably more accepting of the situation. Also, now that she could often leave the house and was no longer confined within a small courtyard, her mood seemed to have brightened quite a bit.
When Bai Zepei returned from the Academy in the afternoon, he looked somewhat unhappy. Upon seeing Bai Ruozhu, he seemed to have something to say. Upon noticing this, Ruozhu smiled and said, "Second brother, I bought a horse for you and elder brother to practice horsemanship. Would you like to come to the backyard to see it?"
Gratitude flashed in Bai Zepei’s eyes; he nodded and said, "Okay, let’s go and have a look."
As they walked towards the backyard and saw that no one was around, Bai Zepei finally started, "Little sister, did Madam Meng give you any trouble today? I heard about it in the Academy, but I don’t know the specifics."
Bai Ruozhu was surprised, "Second brother, you heard about it in the Academy already? Did the news really spread that quickly? I hope no one has been laughing at you because of it."
Bai Zepei didn’t answer her question, instead furrowing his brows and sternly saying, "We haven’t done anything wrong. It doesn’t matter what they think. I, your second brother, will stand up for you!"
"Second brother, don’t be impulsive. Master Meng and Old Madam Meng will handle this. It’s not necessary for you to offend Princess Wang," Bai Ruozhu hurriedly advised, knowing her second brother might really take a stand for her, even if it meant offending others unnecessarily.
"Don’t worry. I know what I’m doing. You just tell me what happened," Bai Zepei demanded.
Bai Ruozhu gave him a rough rundown of events. Bai Zepei felt relieved upon learning that Bai Ruozhu had luckily gone to the backyard just in time to avoid any trouble from Wang Miaoshuang. The stories he heard conveyed such an exaggerated scenario that even suggested his sister had been disfigured by Princess Wang and sent back home.
Of course, he didn’t believe those rumours. He knew his sister’s capability to some extent, but still couldn’t help worrying that she might have been wronged.
The two talked as they wandered around the backyard. Then they went to the stable to see the newly bought horse. Wa San was feeding the horse. The feed had come as a complimentary gift with the horse’s purchase.
"Miss, Young Master," Wa San greeted upon seeing them. He had been their driver for a while now and was quite familiar with the Bai family members.
"You’ve worked hard. When you finish on this, go and rest. I’ll call you when we need you to do something," Bai Ruozhu said.
"It’s not hard at all. This job is much easier compared to my previous work back on the streets. The only issue is the quality of this feed. You should buy something better for this horse," Wa San said, pointing at the complimentary feed.
Bai Ruozhu took out two taels of silver and handed them to Wa San, saying, "Well, I’ll leave it to you to buy some. Also, buy some for your own horse, just calculate how much you need."
Wa San held the silver somewhat nervously. He hadn’t expected Miss Bai to trust him so much to give him two taels of silver just like that. Wasn’t she afraid that he’d squander the money or run away with it?
"One tael will be enough, there’s no need to spend that much," he hastily said.
"You keep it. Also, while you’re out, can you help me order a saddle, stirrups and such for the horse? I think this much should cover the deposit, right?" Bai Ruozhu asked.
"Absolutely, it’s more than enough. I’ll go right away."
Bai Zepei quietly listened to his sister handling matters proficiently. He felt that she’d matured considerably and seemed to have transformed into a different person.