Upon hearing this, the old woman's eyes imdiately began to shine, and she quickly said, "So, what can be done?"
"We can have a set of silver jewelry made for Ni'er."
"Oh dear, oh dear." The old woman covered her mouth and laughed, then yelled towards the kitchen, "Ni'er, did you hear that? Did you hear that?"
The woman in the kitchen was too embarrassed to speak.
The old woman, however, eagerly grabbed Yu Huaping's hand, anxious to finalize this matter. If it weren't for Little Yu's decent looks—and the old woman, having been young once herself, knew that it wasn't just n who adored beautiful won; won secretly liked good-looking n too, so she understood what her daughter-in-law was thinking—otherwise, given Yu Huaping's dawdling, she would have chased him out with a big broom long ago.
Sigh, won often say that marrying a steady man is the safest choice, but who wouldn't want a handso man by their side?
"My Dahu... I'm quite open-minded. Later on, if he takes on the Yu Clan na—a hundred years ago, the Yu Clan na was a glorious national surna, wasn't it? Taking the Yu na is no loss. I just hope you'll treat him and my Ni'er well. If you do, even when I close my eyes for the last ti, I'll be at peace."
Yu Huaping just smiled and said nothing.
Shortly after, the woman brought out the food. als in a humble household required no grandeur. Two square wooden stools were pushed together to hold the dishes, and a few smaller square stools were set out for seating; that was all it took. There were plenty of at dishes today, and Liu Dahu ate very happily.
The old woman winked. Halfway through the al, she couldn't help but ask, "You'll still have to go back and pack up later, right?"
"Ah, um."
Yu Huaping understood. The old woman was afraid he would stay the night after dinner.
That was exactly what the old woman was thinking. Although they had talked things over nicely earlier, he was going off to war. Who could guarantee there wouldn't be any mishaps? If he stayed here tonight, wouldn't her Ni'er be at a great disadvantage? Even though Ni'er was already a mother and not so untouched maiden, there was still a big difference between being widowed once and being widowed twice. And if Little Yu truly had no luck and died in battle, wouldn't that just confirm Ni'er's destiny of being fated to be a widow? It would be hard for her to find soone else later. To be safe, it was fine to have him for dinner today. But if he wanted to stay the night, to fully establish the relationship, that would have to wait until after he returned from the war. If Little Yu returned safely, even if he was a bit injured, she, the old woman, would accept it and take care of this son-in-law. If sothing happened to him and he couldn't co back, then when they burned incense for the child's father on holidays, they'd burn so paper money for him too, just as a gesture of their connection. And if he earned military honors, beca successful, and then looked down on Ni'er upon his return? Well, so be it. If he was that kind of person, Ni'er would be better off not having married him anyway.
However, no matter how loudly the old woman's abacus clacked in her mind, it couldn't stand against a single sentence from the younger woman.
The woman, holding her rice bowl and eating small mouthfuls, said very calmly, "Stay here tonight."
Won from the Jin land, much like those from the Yan region in so ways, possessed a certain bold and magnanimous streak, unlike the won from Qian and Chu who were bound by so many restrictions and formalities. Besides, as a widow who had been married and borne a child, she managed this household alone, with an elder to care for and a child to raise. Without so decisiveness and the ability to take charge, it would have been impossible.
Hearing this, the old woman quickly nudged her daughter-in-law's shoe with her toe.
Yu Huaping's smile, however, grew even brighter.
He reached into his robes, took out a bag of silver, and placed it on the table.
THUD.
It was heavy.
The old woman's eyes practically bulged!
"This is my army pay. You hold onto it for now. When I co back from the war, we'll fix up the house properly. No matter what, I can't have you live so shabbily with ."
When a Sword Saint married in the past, even monarchs would send envoys with congratulations. Although the Jin State was no more, the rulers of other states would only be more enthusiastic, because a Sword Saint without a holand was much easier to recruit.
"Heavens, Mother, why is there so much silver? I did hear Erniu's wife next door say this afternoon that General Zheng, out of consideration for the soldiers, paid out next month's double salary in advance. But you're just a gate guard; how can your pay be this much? Little Yu, tell Mother the truth. General Zheng has been good to us common folk. He didn't charge us for my dical treatnt or for Dahu's schooling. You mustn't take what isn't rightfully yours. Look there, those officials' chairs are covered with layer upon layer of human skin—all flayed from those who were caught embezzling silver and found out!"
"This includes my pay from the past few months. I haven't used any of it; I've just been saving it up, so it looks like a lot."
It wasn't just that he'd saved it; he hadn't even gone to collect his salary at all. This was because the Sword Saint's room and board were entirely covered by the General's Residence. In Shengle City, even if the Sword Saint wanted to frequent the top courtesans in the brothels every day, General Zheng would have had to foot the bill and ensure he was well looked after. It was only because he saw everyone else going to draw their pay today that the Sword Saint inquired about his own and collected all the back pay he hadn't received.
Handing his pay to the woman, the Sword Saint suddenly felt a warmth spread through his heart.
"Oh, so that's how it is! That's how it is! Ni'er, quickly take it and put it away for Little Yu."
The woman didn't reach out.
The old woman nudged her again with her foot, signaling her to hurry.
Yu Huaping also said, "Take it. When I return... I have no other family here."
The woman bit her lip, nodded, and then began to count the silver in front of him.
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