“Move it over a bit more on that side! That side! Xiu Mu! Not that side!” On the covered walkway of the General’s mansion, Xue Ying pointed at Xiu Mu perched atop the ladder, jumping in frustration. “Why is it so difficult for you to help with one simple task? Come down! I’ll do it myself!”

Xiu Mu climbed down with a woeful expression, holding up her skirt and complaining, “Miss only says ‘that side, that side,’ but Xiu Mu doesn’t have eyes in the back of her head. How am I supposed to know which side you mean? Besides, when have I ever had to do this kind of thing… Aiya!” Before her feet touched the ground, Xue Ying had already yanked her off the ladder.

Xue Ying had already tucked up her cumbersome skirt into her waist. Ignoring Xiu Mu’s near-fainting state, she climbed up the ladder, instructing as she went, “Xiu Mu, go stand guard at the corner over there. If anyone comes, especially my father, hurry back to help me down.” Xiu Mu agreed, then asked, “What if the young master comes?”

“Young master my foot,” Xue Ying settled steadily at the top of the ladder and began arranging the flower garlands Xiu Mu had messed up. “We’re not even married yet, what young master? He left early this morning to pick up his parents, he shouldn’t be back so soon.” Xiu Mu muttered under her breath, “Says not to call him young master, but you’re already calling them Father-in-law and Mother-in-law.”

“What did you say?!” Xue Ying turned her head fiercely, “I heard that!” Xiu Mu quickly waved her hands, “Miss, you misheard. I said, aunts and uncles.” Seeing Xue Ying still glaring at her, Xiu Mu took a step back, “Um, Miss, shouldn’t I go keep watch now?” “Mm, go quickly,” Xue Ying turned back satisfied, and continued arranging the flower garlands.

This was the scene Ning Suchen encountered as he turned the corner.

At the top of the tall wooden ladder sat a petite young woman, holding a large bundle of colorful floral decorations and muttering to herself as she arranged them.

From a conventional perspective, she looked quite undignified. Her long black hair was simply braided into a single plait hanging at her side. Her skirt was inexplicably hitched up high, revealing the underskirt and her fair ankles. A pair of embroidered shoes with flattened heels hung loosely on her toes, swaying as she wiggled her feet—it looked rather amusing.

Xue Ying finished arranging and carefully stood up, beginning to hang the garlands on the eaves section by section. “…Father is so stingy, making me so short (Ling Yuguang: >_< Why don’t you say it’s your mother who made you so short), causing me to—climb—so high just to hang some flowers (Xiu Mu: Did you want to do it without a ladder?). That blockhead also always likes to hide his knife in the rafters—Ah!” Distracted, the garland in her hand fell straight to the ground. “How annoying!”

“Um… need some help?” A gentle voice came from nearby. Xue Ying was startled. Looking closely, she saw it was an unfamiliar middle-aged scholar and relaxed. Then she frowned again, “Uncle, are you here for the wedding? Didn’t you see anyone on your way in?”

Ning Suchen smiled when she called him uncle, “I just arrived not long ago, coming from the front courtyard. Everyone seemed busy, so I decided to walk around and see if anyone needed help.”

“Oh, that’s perfect then. Uncle, are you nimble? If you are, come up and help me. If not, then never mind,” without waiting for Ning Suchen’s answer, she pointed at the fallen garland on the ground, “First, help me pick up that flower.”

Ning Suchen tucked his robe into his waist, picked up the garland, and started climbing up. “You go down, I can handle this—Are you a servant of the General’s household? Why don’t they have male servants do this kind of work?” Xue Ying was stunned for a moment, then laughed dryly, “Well, it’s like this, um, the General’s household is short on servants, so they’ve been overwhelmed these past few days. So, I came to help hang these things.”

After handing all the garlands to Ning Suchen, Xue Ying slowly climbed down. “Uncle, you must be a relative of General Ning, right? He went to pick up the old master and madam, so he’ll be back later.” Safely on the ground, Xue Ying gritted her teeth and looked towards the corner, but of course, there was no sign of Xiu Mu. She cursed under her breath, “That Xiu Mu, must have snuck off to sleep again!”

“I suppose you could say we’re relatives,” Ning Suchen pondered. “How has the General’s health been lately?” “He’s as strong as an ox—I mean, General Ning has been quite well recently. He eats a lot, sleeps a lot, quite good,” Xue Ying circled the ladder once. “Uncle, pull that one up a bit more. Yes, that one. Good.”

“How about the General’s wife? Is she good to you all? I mean the one he’s about to marry,” Before Ning Suchen could finish, Xue Ying had already jumped up, shrieking, “He has other wives?! He never mentioned that!!!” Seeing her intense reaction, Ning Suchen gave her a strange look, “Isn’t this the General’s first marriage? You must be new here?”

Xue Ying coughed to cover her slip, “Indeed, I’ve only been here a short while. Uncle, step your left foot in a bit more, don’t fall—You were asking about the General’s wife earlier, right? The General’s wife is, um, both beautiful and kind. All the servants in the household like her.”

“That’s good,” By now they had finished decorating one section of the walkway. Ning Suchen came down from the ladder, and together with Xue Ying, they moved the ladder to another spot. “When did you arrive here?”

Xue Ying thought for a moment, “A little over two months ago.” “That’s not long indeed. During this time, has the General’s old injury flared up? Or have you seen him taking any medicine?” Ning Suchen asked as he climbed up again.

Xue Ying asked in surprise, “Does he have some old ailment? I couldn’t tell.” Ning Suchen smiled, “So it seems it hasn’t recurred—Back when he was fighting in the war, he suffered a severe injury once. When he was carried back, many doctors who examined him said he might not survive. But he stubbornly pulled through, though it took over half a year before he could get out of bed. Now the external wound has healed, but during the rainy season, his whole body aches. He has to use medicinal wine to rub…”

“Miss!” Xiu Mu suddenly came running from the other end, screaming, “General Ning is back and is calling for you to go to the front!” She didn’t seem to notice the person still standing on the ladder, just circling Xue Ying in a frenzy, “Skirt skirt skirt, put on your shoes properly, change your wrinkled clothes, and your hair needs to be redone too, quick quick quick quick…”

Xue Ying hurriedly adjusted her clothes, scolding as she did, “I told you to watch the corner, where did you sneak off to sleep?” Xiu Mu blinked, “I was at the corner.” Xue Ying pointed at Ning Suchen, “Then what’s this?” Xiu Mu looked and screamed, “Ah! There’s a person on the ladder!”

“Would I ask you to look if there wasn’t?” Xue Ying glared at her. “I only knew you were slacking off because someone came by. Luckily it was someone we didn’t know. What if it had been my father? What if Ning Fei had come back with his parents and walked right in?!” Xiu Mu explained with a bitter face, “Miss, it’s unfair, I was guarding the corner the whole time…”

Xue Ying put her hands on her hips, “Which corner were you at?” “That one,” Xiu Mu pointed to the other side. Xue Ying stared at her for a long while, almost wanting to howl at the sky. “Fine, forget I said anything—Hurry up, I still need to go back to change clothes and fix my hair.”

Xue Ying dashed forward a few steps, then suddenly remembered the person on the ladder. She ran back to the ladder, “Uncle, you go rest in the guest room first. Thank you for your help. Just leave things there, I’ll come tidy up later. I have to go now. If you need anything, just ask the servants. Don’t be shy!” She rattled all this off without waiting for Ning Suchen’s response, waved her hand, and ran off in a hurry.

Ning Suchen stood dumbfounded at the top of the ladder. Only after the two had disappeared did he come to his senses, muttering to himself, “Both beautiful and kind? Hehehe…”

Ning Fei was chatting with his mother Yun Moxin in the main hall when they saw Ning Suchen walk in from outside. Ning Fei jumped up with an “Ah!” and went to greet him. “Where did Father go? I only saw Mother when I arrived and thought Father was angry and refused to come.” Ning Suchen looked him up and down with a stern face, “Tell me, what should I be angry about?” Ning Fei scratched his head embarrassedly, “About the marriage, of course. Notifying you and Mother so hastily…”

Yun Moxin laughed, “You’re just scaring him with that black face. Fei, come sit down. Don’t mind your father. After receiving the letter, though he didn’t say it, he was so happy he couldn’t sleep well for days, smiling even in his dreams.” Only then did Ning Suchen smile helplessly, “We were having a father-son moment, and you always interrupt. I was anxious to see my daughter-in-law first, so I didn’t wait for you to pick me up.”

“Did you see her? What do you think?” Yun Moxin asked eagerly. Ning Suchen smiled without answering, “She should be here soon. You’ll see for yourself!”