Chapter 506 - 508: Accidentally Meeting Two Siblings, Slapping Faces
"Huh?" Bai Ruozhu snapped back to reality to see her older brother watching her with a mischievous grin. It was clear that he was toying with her by bringing up the term "benefactor". Meanwhile, Zhang Liliang was sitting off to the side with a barely suppressed smile playing at the corner of his mouth.
Bai Ruozhu wrinkled her nose in response. Her brother’s attempts to tease her were beneath him.
"No need. You and sister-in-law should focus on enjoying your honeymoon and start making babies." Bai Ruozhu chirped cheerfully.
Bai Zehao instantly turned beet red in embarrassment. The concept of a honeymoon was something he had learned from Ruozhu, thinking how ridiculous it was that newlyweds would take an entire trip solely for fun. Yet, he had to admit that he was quite intrigued by the whole idea of a honeymoon.
But for the matter of making babies to trip so freely from his little sister’s lips... it was utterly audacious!
Bai Zehao glared at her and chastised, "How can a young lady casually discuss such a matter? Have you no shame?"
Bai Ruozhu put on a glare to match his and retorted, "What’s wrong with discussing it? Mother has been waiting for it day and night. If you don’t start making babies, then that’s being unfilial!"
Caught off guard by her comeback, Bai Zehao fell silent. Deciding he was outmatched in this verbal sparring, he resolved not to get into a battle of words with his sister.
Upon hearing about the money they had earned, Lin Ping’er was so elated she couldn’t contain her smile. This finally put her mind at ease.
Bai Ruozhu went to the backyard garden to chat with her father. She patted his shoulder and suggested, "Father, why don’t you find a go-between to look for some available land? If we buy the land, it would be yours."
When Bai Yihong heard this, his face lit up with excitement. Before long, though, he shook his head and countered, "But I already have some land in the village. Why don’t you put it under your brother’s name? He’s married now, and he’ll have children soon. He should also have some property."
"Come on. My brother obviously doesn’t like farming. In the future, he’ll manage businesses for me. There are plenty of ways for him to make money. You should take the land and enjoy mucking around with farming. When spring comes, hire some workers to help you out." Bai Ruozhu suggested.
Bai Yihong grinned widely at the proposal. "So, I’ll become a landowner and even have servants?"
"Yes, but don’t buy too far away, get something just outside the city. In the future, I still want to buy a manor nearby." Bai Ruozhu replied.
"What do we need a manor for? Wouldn’t that make it inconvenient for your second brother to go to the Study Palace?" Bai Yihong asked in confusion.
Bai Ruozhu gave her father a knowing wink, "You’ll find out soon."
In the next two days, the Bai family began buying supplies for the New Year. Bai Ruozhu took Lin Ping’er and other female relatives out to buy some gifts to send back to the village, so her oldest brother could distribute them to everyone during his return visit to the Mountain Village.
"Let’s be practical but modest when giving gifts, so your grandmother won’t kick up a fuss when she hears about it." Lin Ping’er advised.
Bai Ruozhu nodded in agreement. She itself didn’t care about the money and was okay giving her grandmother silver bracelets; however, this might inadvertently benefit Zhou, the comically stingy widow. On top of that, her grandmother was a huge miser and would undoubtedly pressure them for more money if she found out that they were faring well.
"Let’s choose carefully to show our good intentions. We can be more generous with the Wan family, and anyway, the old woman won’t know what they get." Bai Ruozhu proposed.
Feeling slightly embarrassed, Wan Caiyue chimed in, "My parents don’t care about such things. Don’t be too extravagant."
Upon hearing this, Lin Ping’er immediately disagreed, "That’s a matter for your parents. We have to demonstrate our intentions clearly. It would also look good in front of your siblings and other relatives. When we get to the village, we’ll head straight to your house and park the horse carriage there. After resting for a bit, we’ll take the old woman’s presents and pay her a visit."
Both Bai Ruozhu and Fang Guizhi couldn’t help but burst into laughter at Lin Ping’er’s strategy for dealing with the old woman—it was as if they were warding off a wolf.
Lin Ping’er shot them a stern look, "Alright, none of you should blame me for being petty. Didn’t we all see how the Zhang family brought thank you gifts last time and the old woman started rummaging through their things even before they had left?"
"Mother, you’re absolutely right. Sis-in-law, you should keep that in mind as well. Going back with my brother, dealing with her will be all on you." Bai Ruozhu added.
Wan Caiyue nodded her head vigorously, gearing up as if she were preparing for battle.
The family ended up buying a decent assortment of items and eventually stopped by the Ronglang Pastry Shop. The thought of the amiable Wang Niangzi made Bai Ruozhu want to buy some pastries for New Year celebrations or to gift. Hence she signaled to Wei San to stop the carriage, and they all got off to go over.
Wang Niangzi was in the midst of assisting customers when she spotted Bai Ruozhu and called out joyously, "Miss Bai! I haven’t seen you in a while. Have you moved to Beiyu City permanently?"
Bai Ruozhu entered the shop with a smile and responded, "Yes, I have. This is my mother along with my sister-in-law and younger sister."
While it was true that Fang Guizhi was a tad older than Bai Ruozhu, Bai Ruozhu insisted on referring to her as her younger sister, arguing on the premise that a younger sister shouldn’t be getting married before an older one. With no other choice, Fang Guizhi had to acquiesce.
Upon hearing this, Wang Niangzi hurriedly greeted Lin Ping’er and the others. It was then that a customer facing the counter turned around, and Bai Ruozhu finally noticed the pair.
A twitch of annoyance played at the corners of her mouth. What were the odds? Beiyu City was so much bigger than Anyuan Town, so how on earth had she managed to run into them?
Also showing surprise, Du Zhongshu turned to Bai Ruozhu and remarked, "I didn’t expect to run into Miss Bai here. You seem quite friendly with the owner of this shop?"
Before Bai Ruozhu could reply, Wang Niangzi chimed in cheerfully, "So you both already know each other? Well then, I’ll give you both a 20% discount."
The woman beside Du Zhongshu didn’t even turn around. Instead, she glared at Wang Niangzi and snarled, "Who needs your discount? Are you selling or not? If not, then forget it!"
Caught off guard, a flustered Wang Niangzi spluttered in response to Du Fuling’s outburst. They knew each other, right? So why was she being so hostile? Could it be...?
A realization dawned upon her as she pieced everything together. The lady must be in love with the handsome young man but was upset because he had feelings for Bai Ruozhu. This must have caused her to harbor resentment towards Ruozhu.
Wang Niangzi grimaced slightly and said, "Business is business, and manners are manners. I don’t think I’ve offended you, young miss. So why the rudeness?"
Du Zhong pulled Du Fuling back and apologized to Wang Niangzi, "I am sorry for my sister’s behavior; please do not take it to heart."
Once again Wang Niangzi was left in confusion. So the lady was his sister? Then why would she be repulsed by Bai Ruozhu?
Bai Ruozhu knew very well what Wang Niangzi was wondering. She ignored the Du siblings and smiled to Wang Niangzi, "I’ve come to stock up on pastries for the New Year celebration. Could you recommend some new flavors to me?"
Before Wang Niangzi could respond, Du Fuling started complaining again, "Shopkeeper, this deal with us wasn’t even finished yet. Is this how you treat your customers?"
Spinning around, she glared at Bai Ruozhu and snapped, "Enough’s enough, Bai Ruozhu. Nothing good ever happens when you’re around. Can’t you leave me alone? You already broke my tooth, isn’t that enough?"
Though the bruising and swelling on Du Fuling’s face had mostly faded, and she wasn’t as terrifying to look at anymore, her nose looked a little flattened. When she spoke loudly, the gap where her front tooth used to be was conspicuous. Fang Guizhi couldn’t help but giggle at the sight.
"You wretch, you dare to laugh at me?" Du Fuling exclaimed angrily and looked like she was about to lunge at Fang Guizhi.