CH 3

Special Fondness – Chapter 3

From the moment he knew he was going to marry a man; Fang Su knew that there will be a thousand hurdles and dangers in the future days. At present, he is staying in the wealthy mansion of someone he doesn’t know the name of, everything is as he expected, everything indeed is bewildering and overwhelming.

The night sky was dim, the lights indoor were twinkling, Fang Su’s cheeks were warm, he was currently so surprised that he was trying to fade into the background.

About a foot away from the couch, two maids were holding a medicine bottle in their hands and persuade him gently: “Young Master doesn’t need to take it badly, we servants are just here to help you to rub your foot, you sprained your ankle, if you don’t apply the medication on time, it might swell even more.”

Fang Su was very anxious for a while, his words were unclear, he could only shake his head in refusal, for fear that these two persons would come close, it would not conform to the etiquette.

Fang Su was already taken aback when he took a bath earlier, he thought that once the servants have poured the hot water into the tub they would retreat and leave him alone, who would know that not only they did not retreat but took a step closer, behind them several maids rushed in on his hind feet, saying that they were worried that it would inconvenient for him to move with his injured ankle and they wanted to help him bathe and wipe his body.

Fang Su’s belt was half untied, when he saw the situation, he adjusted his clothes again, no matter what they said, he refused to let them come even half a step closer. The girls couldn’t persuade him, they were afraid that if they delayed it any longer the bathwater will turn cold, they could only compromise and retreat outside of the screen, although they did not approach, they still stayed in the room, listening to the sound of the bathwater, in case he had an accident.

Fang Su cleaned himself quickly with a red face, he didn’t want to stay in the water any longer, he put on the thin robe prepared for him and returned to the bed with his sprained ankle and quickly wrapped himself in the quilt.

The voice in the room faded, Fang Sy breathed a sigh of relief, he thought that this awkward matter would end here, but soon after, two girls broke into the room again, insisting on rubbing medicine on his foot.

“You two girls can leave the medicine; I will just rub it on myself…” Fang Su showed embarrassment and kept persuade them to leave.

However, these two were much more stubborn than the previous ones, they refused to go no matter what he said, they went back and forth trying to get closer to the bed, very naturally, they held his left foot with care, one of them rolled up his pant legs, the other one applied and rubbed on the medicine.

The gentle act made Fang Su feel like he was tortured, he was suffering through the entire time they rubbed medicine on his foot. He only regarded these two girls as bold and stubborn, what he didn’t was these two got their order from Bai Ping –-Bai Ping said that it was Tang QiaoYuan’s idea, how would they dare to not do it well?

About a quarter of an hour later, the two maidservants finally decided to stop, they helped Fang Su put down the pant leg, and carefully pulled the brocade to cover his feet, only then, they blew out the lanterns in the room and left.

Amid the darkness, Fang Su’s face was so red it was almost dripping blood, his inner emotions went progressively from the initial shock to dazed at loss, he felt like his brain was filled with what seems to be a paste, in the end, he was so exhausted that he closed his eyes drowsily and sank into a dream.

The next morning, a gentle voice by the bed woke him up.

Fang Su gradually woke up from his dreamland, his eyes half-opened and half-closed, the silhouette in front of him swayed for a while, then his vision cleared, but he was stunned for a moment, then he recalled yesterday’s absurdity.

Fang Su, who sobered up, was a little helpless, compared to last night, Fang Su showed a look of inability to struggle, he was thinking a bit stupidly, why the girls here are so open-minded.

“Young Master, it’s almost time, you have to get up.”

Fang Su nodded when he heard this, he thought carefully what she meant by “almost time”. Forget it, he felt that there was something wrong with the scenery in front of him, he turned his head and look around the room, he was suddenly frozen, he saw that things in the room had increased, all of them were things for celebration, all he saw was a happy red1.

Fang Su was puzzled at first, then he felt cold, thinking that what must happen still will happen.

He was taken good cared of yesterday, he was well-fed and nicely clothed and had a good night of sleep, he shouldn’t forget the reason he came here. Now thinking about it, he seems to have understood why he received a preferential treatment. He ought to be taken good care of, otherwise if he gets married in such a sorry figure, wouldn’t he make that person lose face?

Indeed, no good thing comes for free in this world.

After Fang Su figured it out, his heart felt more at ease, the look of embarrassment he had displayed since last night returned to calm at this moment. He got out of bed, his obedient appearance caused all the maidservants to be puzzled, it is hard to imagine that Fang Su, who was this calm this morning, was the same person who was so embarrassed last night.

However, the time is not waiting, everybody in the whole mansion were in preparation, everyone was afraid to anger Tang QiaoYuan for such an auspicious event, they quickly and neatly took care of Fang Su. The room was silent, and no one spoke, however the maids moved between them, which made it seems very lively.

It took an hour before Fang Su was ready.

He isn’t a woman and doesn’t need to apply blush or powder, his waterfall hair only needs a simple brush and tied up, and his whole outfit is a non-cumbersome groom’s dress, he was really puzzled why these maidservants would waste such a long time just to prepare him.

Before he could think further, Fang Su was taken out of the room. Inside the courtyard, a luxurious sedan chair decorated with tassels2 was waiting, he raised his head and glanced up, wondering for a moment if he thought wrong: if they prepared a sedan chair, could it be that he had to be carried out of the house? Or does the master of this mansion wanted to gift him to someone else?

Fang Su had many suspicious in his mind, but he didn’t ask anything, he just thought that it was fine anyway, there is no differences. Now, even his life was owned by other people, how could he decide on his destiny.

He stepped closer to the sedan door, then before he got in the sedan, the maid beside him told him to wait, until someone came forward with a silver plate on which lies a neatly folded bridal veil. Fang Su understood her intentions, although he was dressed in a groom’s robe, this thing was indispensable at the end, so when the maid lifted the bridal veil, he bowed his head without showing any resistance, allowed her to cover his head with it, covering up his beautiful and delicate eyes.

The sedan chair was lifted and carried out of the courtyard.

A moment later, the sedan chair suddenly stopped, and Fang Su’s ears were filled with lively voices, he couldn’t help but feel a little astonished, he didn’t think the journey would be so short. After he thought for a while, he realized that the sedan chair he got into wasn’t going to leave the mansion, nor was going to send him to another house, he was still to marry the person of this mansion.

That person is really in a leisurely frame of mind, they were going to marry a person like him, moreover a man, yet they were so serious about it, he doesn’t understand why that is for.

While he was imagining things, someone stepped forward and kicked the sedan’s door.

Fang Su regained his composure and stooped out of the sedan chair. The bridal veil was blocking his vision, everything he saw was dark red, his field of vision was limited to the hem of a person dressed in red just like him, and a wild palm that stretched out low for him.

The palm of that hand looked slander and powerful, Fang Su hesitated for a moment before reaching for it, compared to that hand, his own looked extraordinarily thin and could easily be held firmly.

Fang Su’s heart leaped, he could feel the warmth of that palm and it inexplicably drove away some of the chills in his heart.

Tang QiaoYuan helped him cross the railing of the sedan chair, Fang Su’s sprained ankle has not yet healed, he would limp a little when walking, when he was worried about whether he would fall because he couldn’t see the road, the person beside him suddenly picked him up.

All-around, the people who came to congratulate them made noises, he could also vaguely hear people who were close to Tang QiaoYuan bravely teasing: “Master Tang really cherish Madam, you haven’t even done the ceremony that you can’t bear him to take even half a step, you are really considerate.”

People around joked and laughed, but Fang Su couldn’t listen to any of it, there was a “buzz buzz” in his mind, he didn’t where to place his hands, he could only nervously grasp the lapels on the man’s shoulders.

The group of people who surrounded them and followed them toward the front hall and saw Tang QiaoYuan who kept carrying the person in his arms inside the hall before he was willing to put them down.

There was no high hall3 in this mansion, but two memorial tablets were replacing it, Fang Su didn’t know because he couldn’t see it, he could only rely on Tang QiaoYuan and bowed to heaven and earth4.

Before he even returned to his senses, he was carried up again, he was gradually carried away from the noise of the crowd towards a quiet place.

Since he got into the sedan chair, he hardly had taken half a step on his own.

Occasionally these were servants along the road sincerely greeting them, saying “Congratulations to master”. The person who carried him didn’t respond much, barely uttered a “Uhm”, a simple sound and it can be heard that they have a deep and smooth voice. Fang Su could hear that this person was still young, he also remembered the strong palm that he had been holding, he was thinking that it would not be an old man with a weird personality as he had suspected and relaxed his body a little.

Tang QiaoYuan was holding him and could feel even the slightest change, he silently curved his lips into a smile, he carried Fang Su back to the room in the main courtyard. Fang Su heard the sound of a door opening, then came the crisp collision of beads of the bead curtain, knowing that he was in a room, then he was carefully placed onto the bed.

“All of you retreat.”

The brief command rang in his ears very closely, the maids in the room withdrew silently, Fang Su lowered his eyes, a pair of hands stretched under the bridal veil, slowly lifted the red brocade upwards.

The person in front of him came to his view, just as the object that obscured his view was about to be completely lifted, Fang Su closed his eyes flustered.

His vision was shrouded in darkness, he was seeking the last touch of peace of mind like self-deception.

Tang QiaoYuan chuckled and wasn’t in a hurry to coax him to open his eyes, his probing hand touched Fang Su’s face with the back of his hand, the slightly curved knuckle of his index slid over his eyebrows, then his thumb slowly brushed against his eyelashes, as if he couldn’t bear to part with it, his hand didn’t before a long while.

Fang Su endured it for a while, he really couldn’t bear the itchiness, he opened his eyes with trembling eyelashes and withdrew his head a few inches away.

Tang QiaoYuan let out a laugh, jokingly coaxed: “You are finally willing to open your eyes to look at me?”

Fang Su was panicked for a moment, he then looked at the person’s face seriously, he couldn’t help but be slightly distracted after a glance.

He was not surprised by Tang QiaoYuan’s handsome appearance but by the tenderness and compassion that was in this person’s eyes. Fang Su understands, he is eighteen this year, he is not so ignorant that he doesn’t anything about the word “affection”, but because he understands it, he was even more puzzled: why a person who has nothing to do with him, who is meeting him for the first time would show an expression with such deep affection for him?

Tang QiaoYuan saw Fang Su’s subtle expression, he bowed his head with a smile and dropped a light kiss between his eyebrows.

Fang Su trembled lightly, his heart was originally tense, and he couldn’t help but pray in his heart, but at a loss, he stretched out his hand and grabbed the sleeve of that person in front of him. Tang QiaoYuan couldn’t help but laugh and hold his hand with a smile, he stifled a laugh for a long while and reassured him: “Don’t be afraid.” After saying this, he took out a hand and help Fang Su to loosen his hair and said again, “I sent someone to come deliver some porridge later, you got up early this morning, after eating, you can rest for a while. Lunch and dinner will be delivered by someone, if there is anything you need for today, you can ask someone to fetch it for you. The are many visitors who came for today’s wedding, I am afraid I can only come back to accompany you in the evening.”

Fang Su understood every word, but his train of thought was still lost in astonishment, he couldn’t fully understand what he was saying and could only nod stupidly.

Tang QiaoYuan’s smiled even deeper, then tilted his head to kiss the corner of Fang Su’s lips, stood up, and turned to leave.

The room was quiet, Fang Su was dazed, and he raised his hand to touch the corner of his lips.

Notes:

The term used here is ‘喜红’ (xi hong), 喜 means joyous/happy, happy red allude to weddings because traditional Chinese weddings are conduct in red (decorations, clothes, etc.).Sedan chair like this one‘高堂’ (gao tang) so called “high hall” is actually where parents usually sits and kind of monitor the ceremonyFirst bow is toward Heaven and Earth, second bow is for the parents and last bow is between the partners. When these three bows are done, the couple is considered married.

This chapter was so painful to translate, it took me two days to finish it. Chinese way of phrasing things is short but it becomes so long in English. I think I don’t want to translate story that happens in Ancient China after that, there words and expression I am not familiar with and there’s no equivalent in English. TT

Modern setting is nice. lol