The steward and servants: …
After a brief silence, they recounted everything Su Ning had done, aggrieved from beginning to end. Finally, one of them added:
“Young Master, forgive me for saying so, but Miss Su is already this overbearing before she’s even married into the family. If she really enters the Huo household, I’m afraid…”
Huo Xiang was genuinely taken aback.
He hadn’t expected Su Ning to dare behave like this under such circumstances.
And then… he felt somewhat reassured.
That was right.
Old habits die hard. In the end, this “dream” was still only a real dream. The surroundings had changed and her memories were gone, but she was still the same person. Such an “unreasonable” display proved that the one who had come was indeed Su Ning.
“Shut up.”
Huo Xiang frowned. “Miss Su is my fiancée and the future mistress of the Huo family. Who gave you the nerve to gossip about her here? Flies don’t gather around eggs without cracks. Miss Su isn’t insane. You must have said or done something wrong to make her lose her temper.”
The steward: …
Heaven and earth knew he hadn’t said anything offensive, much less done anything else.
“You’ve disgraced the Huo family. Go to the Su residence tomorrow and apologize… No, forget it. I’ll go with you.”
This was a good opportunity.
Huo Xiang realized it.
Just think about it. A girl who had been living in poverty suddenly gained a handsome, wealthy, refined fiancé—one who treated her well, stood up for her after she had been wronged, and punished the servant who had bullied her.
Anyone with a heart would be moved, wouldn’t they?
“No matter what method you use—kneeling and kowtowing, or carrying a thorn branch on your back to beg forgiveness—you must obtain Miss Su’s pardon. Otherwise, I won’t let you off!”
What a domineering speech.
The steward nearly vomited blood.
Still, he could only swallow his grievance and nod.
Huo Xiang waved a hand and dismissed him. His thoughts were already filled with tomorrow’s meeting. He wondered what to wear, what to say, and how to casually show off his favorable circumstances and how lucky Su Ning was to be marrying him.
Amid all these chaotic thoughts, a fleeting notion suddenly surfaced…
It was perfectly normal for Su Ning to be arrogant and treat people as though they were beneath her, but why did it seem as if even the way she treated animals was different here?
…
The answer was simple.
Even if both rich and poor people were vicious and unpleasant, they had different ways of being bad. In short, the rich did it in a more sophisticated and impressive fashion—the sort where they could kill without getting their hands dirty.
That was what suited their character, after all.
Su Ning had only managed to figure this out after observing, analyzing, and summarizing for a long time.
To be honest, maintaining that air of superiority was exhausting.
Even after her persona had been firmly established later on and she could relax a little, she still had to keep pretending. So now that she was here, she could finally let herself go a little…
No, she could try out a new persona.
“Ah, I too am burdened by my own reputation,” Su Ning sighed mournfully.
She waited two seconds, but didn’t hear the system’s familiar mocking retort.
That made her even more melancholy.
So, to cheer herself up, she said to the Su family, “Let’s go out shopping. We can sell these betrothal gifts and turn them into cash while we’re at it.”
Half-Immortal Su hesitated. “But wouldn’t that be bad if the Huo family found out?”
“What’s there to be afraid of?” Su Ning replied righteously. “If they hadn’t given us enough money, I wouldn’t have had to sell the betrothal gifts for cash. When you get right down to it, this is all their fault. At worst, they can buy the things back from us. Then it won’t be embarrassing anymore.”
Who knew how normal people would react to such twisted reasoning?
The Su family, on the other hand—
“That makes sense. We’ll listen to our grandniece.”
“Mm. Let’s go.”
Freed from the restrictions of her persona, Su Ning felt completely at home in Beiping. She happily sampled cheap snacks and treats to her heart’s content: almond tea, dried fruit, lamb bones, smoked fish, pig’s head meat, spun-sugar figures, pea cakes, and more. She gave the famous fermented mung-bean drink a hard pass, however.
As for the expensive jewelry, furs, silk fabrics, Western-style dresses, and foreign novelties…
Su Ning found herself rather perplexed.
In the real world, she had plenty of things far superior to anything available here, yet she considered them ordinary and could barely be bothered to glance at them.
Here, however, she was brimming with enthusiasm.
The jewelry store’s newest colored-gemstone necklace? Buy it!
A fox-fur coat? Buy it!
A fragment of the imperial jade seal—possibly genuine? Buy it too!
And so—
Huo Xiang arrived at the Su residence early that morning with several people in tow. He waited from morning until the sun was nearly setting. The residents of the tenement courtyard peeped at him and whispered among themselves, and the smile on his face had long since stiffened by the time Su Ning and the Su family finally returned, laden with bags and still reluctant to call it a day.
“So, you’re my fiancé?”
Su Ning smiled.
Her eyes sparkled as she gazed at him. She looked completely different from the cold, contemptuous woman he remembered. Her entire appearance seemed light and lovely, and there was even a hint of shyness in her expression.
His trip had definitely been worthwhile.
Huo Xiang felt secretly pleased. He nodded with dignified restraint, then turned his head and called the steward over. In a gentle voice, he said, “I’m sorry. I only just found out that this servant dared to show you such disrespect. I was worried you might misunderstand me, so I came here without invitation. This ignorant servant is yours to deal with. As long as it makes you happy…”
The winter sunset was warm and golden.
Against the backdrop of white snow, the handsome young master from a wealthy family was being so tender and considerate in the filthy, chaotic tenement courtyard that the neighbors were green with envy. At the same time, they resented the Su family’s good fortune. It seemed that even after Su Ning married into a rich and powerful household, she wouldn’t have a difficult life.
The steward was inwardly suffering. He stepped forward and was just about to kneel when Su Ning interrupted him indifferently.
“Forget it. I usually settle my grudges on the spot, so I’ll spare him.”
“But I’m very happy that you came.”
Su Ning smiled brightly.
At this, Huo Xiang’s heart grew so excited it seemed to sprout wings and soar toward heaven. He said, “Really? I’m very happy to see you too…”
“Just in time. Someone else is here to pay.”
Su Ning pointed at him. Turning to the people behind her, she said excitedly, “Look, this is my fiancé. His family is extremely wealthy. Now that he’s here, all of you can go to him to settle the bills. Oh, and remember his face. Don’t go to the wrong place next time.”
These people had been sent by the shopkeepers.
By the time Su Ning had finished spending, she had run out of money and could only buy things on credit. The shopkeepers had agreed because of the sheer volume of her purchases, but they were still uneasy.
So they had sent people over, claiming they were delivering the goods when in fact they were there to get the address and investigate the situation.
Now that they knew such a wonderful opportunity had presented itself, they immediately demanded payment in full, their faces lighting up with delight.
Huo Xiang: …
He had crashed halfway to heaven.
“Pay them quickly,” Su Ning urged.
Then, her expression turned suspicious. She raised her brows and launched into an accusation:
“Aren’t you the Huo family’s eldest young master? You don’t even have enough money for this? Could it be that you’re actually a pauper pretending to be rich to trick someone into marrying you?”
Huo Xiang nearly choked to death.
He reminded her, “Miss Su, as I recall, the betrothal gifts were delivered just yesterday. There was a thousand silver dollars in cash alone.”
“Oh, I spent it all.”
Su Ning looked utterly unconcerned. She arched her brows and turned the blame back on him.
“I’m telling you, you people are far too stingy. What can a thousand silver dollars even buy? Luckily, I was clever enough to sell all those miscellaneous things, or I wouldn’t have been able to buy half of what I wanted. Oh, and don’t forget to buy everything back, or it’ll damage my reputation.”
