Chapter 144: Hatching Eggs Under the Quilt
This novel is translated and hosted on bcatranslation.
At the Protectorate Duke’s Mansion
Rong Che had just returned from a grueling three-year service at the border, his body draped in dust and fatigue. As he entered, the mansion buzzed with excitement, its halls brightly illuminated.
“The General is back!” exclaimed a servant, rushing toward the rear courtyard to spread the good news.
This return was a momentous occasion, one that the elders of the mansion had long awaited. It called for a celebration.
When the news reached them, the elders couldn’t contain their emotions, their eyes brimming with tears. “He’s finally home, safe and sound.”
“Quick, someone must inform the queen in the palace so she won’t worry,” urged an elderly lady, her hair as white as snow, as she dispatched a messenger.
Rong Che, his silhouette towering, knelt before the elders in the hall. “Father, Mother, your son has returned home,” he declared, his voice thick with emotion.
The elderly lady wept openly. “It’s a relief to have you back, safe.”
“Che’er, will you stay in the capital now?” she inquired, dabbing at her tears, while the Protectorate Duke watched on, a gentle expression on his face.
Rong Che responded, “The palace gates are closed today. I will report to His Majesty tomorrow. Besides, serving North Zhao is both my duty and honor. Protecting our people is a privilege.”
The Protectorate Duke’s brow furrowed slightly. “Can you put aside your duty to North Zhao for a moment and focus on the Protectorate Duke’s Mansion? You’re over thirty, yet unmarried while your peers are grandparents. What are your plans? Our Rong family risks extinction!” His worry was palpable, keeping him awake at night. “If you don’t marry soon, I won’t rest in peace even in death.”
The elderly lady, sensing a deeper issue, dismissed the servants and asked softly, “Son, is there an unspeakable reason? Perhaps a health issue we should address?”
Laughing amidst his tears, Rong Che reassured her, “Mother, I’m perfectly healthy.”
The elderly lady hesitated before voicing another concern. “Then… do you perhaps prefer men? After all, there were no women in the army camp.”
Rong Che burst out laughing, albeit with tears. “Mother, that’s not the case at all.”
This novel is translated and hosted on bcatranslation
Relieved, she pressed, “If there’s someone you fancy, tell me. I’ll ask for her hand without shame.”
She wasn’t picky now; she just wanted her son to get married. She could treat the other person like a deity. If the person didn’t want a mother-in-law in the house, she could move back to her old home a thousand miles away. Even if she had to pretend to be dead, she’d do it.
Her desperation was evident. “We even moved our ancestors’ graves to improve the feng shui, yet you remain unmarried. Could it be your name, ‘Che’? It’s an unlucky number of water radicals.”
The Protectorate Duke wondered aloud, “Or perhaps it’s the walnut and phoenix trees in our yard affecting your prospects?”
Laughing through his tears, Rong Che replied, “Father, Mother, it’s neither the feng shui, my name, nor the trees.”
The elderly lady then urged him to rest after his long journey.
After Rong Che retired to his room, she ordered, “Cut down the walnut and phoenix trees immediately.”
That night, the mansion buzzed with the sound of axes.
Meanwhile, the Protectorate Duke, somber, spoke to the ancestral tablets in the hall. “Aren’t you blessing Che’er? Help him find a spouse soon, or I’ll dig you all up.”
At the Lu Household
“Mama, Uncle Rong sent this!” Lu Chao Chao, running to Madam Xu with a skull in her hands, squealed in delight.
Madam Xu recoiled in shock. “Stop, stop, don’t come near with that.”
Disappointed, Chao Chao thought the skull was rather pretty.
“What did he say when he came?” Madam Xu inquired, her curiosity piqued.
Lu Yan Shu handed her a jade pendant. “He worries you might struggle post-divorce and sent this token from the Protectorate Duke’s Mansion for assistance if needed.”
“Why has Mama never mentioned General Rong?” Chao Chao piped up innocently.
Deng Zhi, a maid, chuckled, “Madam Xu was quite the rogue in her youth, even disguising as a man to befriend General Rong. They nearly became sworn brothers.”
“Later, General Rong avoided her, mistaking her for a man, until he was urgently summoned by the king,” Madam Xu added, embarrassed in front of her children.
[Poor General Rong, he thought he had fallen in love with a man! A grown man, drunkenly hugging his ancestors’ tablets and crying his heart out, apologizing to his ancestors because he thought he loved a man. Every time he saw Mama, he was ashamed of his feelings for his ‘brother’ and couldn’t face her. He planned to confess when he returned from his mission. Who could have known…]
It turned out, General Rong had misheard tales of the Xu family, thinking ‘Yun’ was Madam Xu’s brother, not realizing she was the one he’d escorted to her wedding.
Hearing Chao Chao’s thoughts, Madam Xu dropped her teacup, soaking her dress. “I need to change.”
“Mama, what’s wrong?” Chao Chao asked softly, her expression innocent.
Lu Yan Shu, understanding their mother’s distress, reassured his sister. “Mother’s just preoccupied.”
Chao Chao, feeling a bit hungry, innocently asked, “Big Brother, my tummy hungwy… Can I have ‘nother drumstick?”
Remembering her previous overeating, Lu Yan Shu advised, “Less meat, remember how it hurt last time?”
Unseen, Chao Chao clutched an egg she’d pilfered from the kitchen.
That night, after sneaking the egg under her quilt, she whispered, “Eggy, sleep with me tonight. Tomorrow, I’ll roast you.”
As she drifted to sleep, dreaming of delicious roasted eggs, a faint chirping echoed from beneath her quilt.