To Be A Virtuous Wife

57

The hot springs in the Jing suburbs were located not too far from the city. Qu Qing Ju saw that the nameplate of manor's front gate had "Fu Lang Manor" written on it. Releasing the curtains, she commented to He Heng sitting beside her, "This name is popular and literary. The meaning is very good."

"En, this property was bequeathed by fuhuang, and mufei named it." He Heng tilted his head to smile, "After entering this gate, we would be travelling for quite a while before reaching our residence. There are many crops planted here. Some off-season fruits and vegetables can only be grown near the springs. Much of our fu's fruits come from this manor."

The intelligence of the ancients were, as expected, endless. They didn't have any plastic tarps or greenhouses to plant vegetables. Instead, they used the aid of nature to grow the food that shouldn't be in season. And their produce were a lot more natural compared to those that grew in the greenhouses.

"There's a patch of peach and pear blossoms blooming right now on the mountain. After we rest today, I'll accompany you there tomorrow," He Heng saw her face was full of admiration and his smile became more visible. "Bai Yun Mountain is very close by. If we have the time, we should go see the Five Estates Monastery at the peak."

Bai Yun Mountain Five Estates Monastery? Qu Qing Ju felt the name sounded familiar but couldn't recall where she had heard it. It probably wasn't anything important. Otherwise, she would have remembered it. She didn't think about it any further and raised the curtain occasionally to look at the scenery.

The road had been constructed well. It was completely paved with black stone. Large trees were planted beside the road. To her left, some sections of the field were planted with wheat and all kinds of vegetables behind the trees. To her right were several fruit trees. The surroundings didn't look very symmetrical but Qu Qing Ju didn't have an obsessive compulsive disorder so she thought it looked rather interesting.

After travelling for a while, the carriage stopped. Qu Qing Ju heard a voice speaking just outside the carriage.

"This humble person Zhang Hong greets wang ye, wang fei."

Qu Qing Ju stilled for a beat before she understood. This Zhang Hong was most likely the chief steward of this manor. No wonder he had come out to welcome them in the middle of the road. She looked at He Heng and saw the other seemed to think it was normal behavior.

"Steward Zhang doesn't have to be so courteous. Has everything in the manor been prepared?" Qian Chang Xin smiled insincerely at Zhang Hong as he could see the other's desire to curry favour, "Today marks the first time wang fei has come to this estate. If you serve them well, naturally there will be rewards. If a mistake occurs, you yourself will receive the punishment."

"Don't worry, Chief Steward Qian. Us humble people will serve well, and wouldn't be remiss in any way," Zhang Hong didn't expect wang ye or wang fei to pay any attention to him. He smiled as he retreated to join the other stewards, "Hot water and food have already been prepared on the mountain. It cannot compare to the fu, but it wins at having more of a wild taste. Wang ye and wang fei can taste something new."

"Smart. Coming out here at this time, it's good to eat something fresh," Qian Chang Xin spoke quietly and gave Zhang Hong an appreciative glance before he waved his hand for the procession to move ahead.

As they watched the train of carriages depart, the steward behind Zhang Hong asked: "Chief Steward Zhang, what should we do now?"

"Do now? Hurry and keep up. If any of the people down there do something wrong, we will all be affected," Zhang Hong's fawning manner instantly disappeared and he glared at the speaker. He started chasing after the carriages.