The Wealthy Eldest Sister Rules Supreme

“Auntie is home alone and still has to cook lunch. It’s quite inconvenient. If it’s not too much trouble, you can join us for lunch. Coincidentally, Mingli is here, and Mr. Chu and Jinzhou are visiting us today. We were just thinking about whether to have a hot pot meal for lunch. You might as well join us to eat something warm and comforting.” Zhuang Qingning suggested.

“I couldn’t…I couldn’t…”

Mrs. He rapidly waved her hands to refuse, “When Mr. Fan was around, I didn’t dare lift my head, but this time it is Master Chu, I’m sure my hands would shake so much I wouldn’t even be able to hold the chopsticks.”

“Young Miss Zhuang, it’s a bit funny, but when Mingli texted me that Master Chu was coming to tutor them, my heart started pounding and I couldn’t sleep for a whole night. It wasn’t until I remembered what you’d said before about Master Chu and his family being kind-hearted people who don’t mind small customs that I started to feel a bit better.”

“It’s alright if he is here to tutor Mingli, but if I join them for a meal, it would be too much trouble…”

For Mrs. He, she was a commoner, and was considered the lowest class. Like an ant, she was nowhere close to the powerful and influential Chu Jinnian. He wasn’t someone she could dine and converse with.

Even though this era followed strict hierarchical order, Zhuang Qingning knew that Chu Jinnian was a personable individual. But understanding how deep-rooted the class distinction was in Mrs. He’s mind, she did not try to persuade her further.

“If you are reluctant to come to my house, I will make a bowl of vegetables for you at lunch, and some sourdough pancakes. Please eat a warm meal.”

“That works, I feel quite tired, might as well take a break.”

Before Mrs. He finished speaking, Zhuang Yonghe entered the courtyard with his head bowed.

“Uncle Yonghe.” Zhuang Qingning greeted as she rose to her feet.

“How come you’re home?” Mrs. He asked in surprise, “Weren’t you supposed to send the betrothal gifts? Why didn’t you have lunch there? Where are your second and third brothers?”

If he returned without eating lunch, there was only one possibility, that the marriage proposal was not accepted.

“What happened? Was the marriage proposal not accepted?”

“No, nothing.” Zhuang Yonghe hurriedly said, “There’s nothing wrong with the marriage proposal, your second and third brothers are still there…”

“My stomach just started hurting real bad, so I came back…”

“It hurts again.” Zhuang Yonghe covered his stomach and bent over, “Young Miss Zhuang sit down, I need to rush to the latrine.”

Saying this, he quickly went towards the outhouse built at the corner of the courtyard.

“Did he eat something bad?” Mrs. He saw that Zhuang Yonghe had severe diarrhea and appeared as if he could not bear it any longer. She looked anxious, “But everyone at home eats the same meals and it’s not summer when food easily goes bad.”

“Diarrhea is not a small matter, if it’s severe, it could be life-threatening. We have to take him to the doctor.”

“Don’t worry too much, Auntie.” Zhuang Qingning attempted to comfort the panicking Mrs. He. “Since Uncle Yonghe managed to walk all the way back home, I believe it might not be that severe.”

“Dehydration is the major concern with diarrhea. We should have Uncle Yonghe drink some water with added salt. I will go find Brother Sifu to take Uncle Yonghe to the doctor.”

“Let’s go to Doctor Du in the town.”

Zhuang Wencheng wasn’t home at the moment, he was at the county government office. But if it was just a minor case of diarrhea, Doctor Du in the town should be able to handle it.

“Okay.” Mrs. He quickly started to prepare some warm water, adding a bit of salt as Zhuang Qingning suggested.

Meanwhile, Zhuang Qingning went to look for Zhuang Sifu.

“No need to worry, I guess I’ll be fine after a bit of rest.” Zhuang Yonghe came out of the outhouse and said, “I guess I just drank some cold water in the morning when I was a bit thirsty. Then my stomach started to grumble; I probably caught a chill.”

“It’s winter and you’re a grown man, yet you are so careless. I will prepare some hot soup for you to warm you up.” Mrs. He reproved him.

“Alright.” Zhuang Yonghe scratched his ears in embarrassment, then turned to Zhuang Qingning and said, “Young Miss Zhuang you don’t need to fuss over me. It’s a minor issue, warming myself up should be enough.”

Noticing that Zhuang Yonghe looked lively and his complexion didn’t resemble that of a person suffering from diarrhea, she reassured herself. Moreover, Zhuang Yonghe’s family was living comfortably now; they wouldn’t avoid seeing a doctor out of fear of the expense.

Zhuang Qingning felt if he didn’t need to see a doctor, then he was probably just suffering from a chill. He’d probably be okay after warming himself, so she didn’t insist, “Alright, But Uncle Yonghe you should keep an eye on yourself. If the diarrhea stops, it’s okay. If it persists, then you need to go see a doctor. Getting to the town isn’t laborious. Just hitch up the bullock cart, and you’ll be there quickly.”

“I understand, don’t worry. I’m not a child anymore. I know how serious it could be.” Zhuang Yonghe grinned, “you need not to worry.”

Seeing Zhuang Yonghe speak so confidently, Zhuang Qingning did not think much of it any further, and just advised him to rest.

Seeing that it was getting late, she needed to go home to prepare lunch, so Zhuang Qingning decided to leave first.

Mrs. He saw Zhuang Qingning out, then handed Zhuang Yonghe the prepared hot soup, “Hurry up and go lie on the bed for a while to warm up and let the chill dissipate.”

“Look at you, you’re a grown man acting like a child in this cold winter.”

Technically, Zhuang Yonghe was supposed to be out delivering betrothal gifts. As the bride’s uncle, he should have been supporting her. Arriving and leaving after a short while made him seem disrespectful. If the girl’s family didn’t care, it was okay but if they were the kind to talk, then it could become an issue.

After marrying into the family, Mrs. He prided herself on supporting her husband’s family and not overly assisting her birth family. She usually didn’t ask Zhuang Yonghe to help her family much.

Having barely managed to get her grandnephew’s betrothal gifts delivered, the nuisance caused by Zhuang Yonghe made others think that he didn’t know how to act properly. But behind the scenes, it seemed like they would blame Mrs. He for being unable to ensure her husband’s family backed up her own family’s face.

Of course, Mrs. He was not very happy about it.

Although Mrs. He didn’t explicitly mention what bothered her, Zhuang Yonghe could tell that she was blaming him, but it wasn’t really his intention…

Alas!

Zhuang Yonghe lip movements suggested he wanted to explain but he ultimately kept quiet.

In the end, he just smiled awkwardly and said, “There’s nothing I could do, isn’t it? Usually, I don’t have any issues but who could have known that drinking cold water today would upset my stomach? I couldn’t stay out any longer, if I kept farting, it would be even more embarrassing. So I left the two kids there and informed your oldest brother.”

“I regretfully drank a toast as punishment, and specifically sealed a hundred taels in the red envelope, so I guess it should be okay…”

Seeing mention of the red envelope, Mrs. He’s face finally eased a bit.

In most joyous occasions, uncles were supposed to support the event; as such, giving a red envelope was considered optional.