Chapter 48: Decision

Early the next day, they set off to return to the town. Si Qingyu looked at the luxurious carriage in front of the door and the large batch of items to be transported, frowning slightly, “Shaoxuan, how can the carriage fit so many things?”

Moreover, she saw that there were quite a few valuable items in the boxes. Wouldn’t it be too eye-catching to take them on the road like this?

Luo Shaoxuan stood beside her, helping to smooth out the slightly wrinkled sleeves, looking unconcerned, “We’ll call for another carriage later and put the items in the other carriage.”

That’s better. Si Qingyu nodded and looked at Luo Shaoxuan who was sticking close to her, “Is there anything else we haven’t taken?”

Luo Shaoxuan, regardless of the presence of others, rested his chin on her shoulder, full of laziness, “Everything that should be taken has been taken. Let’s depart soon.”

He wouldn’t feel at ease until they were married.

The butler standing not far from them kept his head down, afraid of seeing something he shouldn’t.

Si Qingyu glanced at the butler on the side with the tail of her eye, moving her shoulders to indicate that there were still outsiders present and they were not officially married yet, so how could he be so bold.

But who was Luo Shaoxuan? How could he care about these things? Seeing her slightly irritated, he directly stretched out his arm to wrap around her waist as if he wanted to hang his whole body on her.

The butler beside them lowered his head even more.

Si Qingyu could only sigh helplessly and let him be since she couldn’t beat or scold him, “Since everything is ready, let’s set off.”

“Mm.”

Luo Shaoxuan was tall and slender, dressed in elegant and noble light purple robes, while Si Qingyu was in plain moonlight-colored clothes with a refined and indifferent face. Although their attire was vastly different, they seemed exceptionally well-matched.

As soon as they left the manor, people outside looked over. Although there weren’t many people, it wouldn’t hinder their gossipy nature.

“Look, is that person Doctor Si?” a woman asked her friend beside her in a low voice.

“It seems so……”

“Why would Doctor Si come out of the Luo Manor? And…… it seems like she’s very familiar with Young Master Luo.”

Her friend nudged her with an elbow, “Why do you care so much about other people’s business?”

“Aiya, I’m just curious.”

“Don’t be so nosy. There are still things to do at the shop. Let’s go back quickly.” The friend left without looking at her again.

The woman curled her lips in disdain, spat on the ground, “Hmph, it’s just a lousy shop, always ordering people around.” After mocking, she turned back with great interest, wanting to continue watching, but suddenly collided with a pair of deep, icy eyes.

The woman’s legs weakened. Looking at Young Master Luo’s peerless handsome face, she felt as if she had seen a ghost. A chill rose from her back. She hurriedly lowered her head, not daring to look again.

Si Qingyu, standing on the carriage, saw the man below not knowing where he was looking, and reached out her hand in puzzlement, “Shaoxuan, what’s wrong? Come up quickly.”

Luo Shaoxuan turned his head to look at her and shook his head. The chill dissipated. He placed his hand on her outstretched hand and got on the carriage with the force of her pulling.

Si Qingyu sat in the carriage, opened a hidden compartment, took out the prepared tea inside, poured a cup, and handed it to him, “What were you looking at just now?”

He was so engrossed that she had to call him twice before he heard.

Luo Shaoxuan took the tea she handed over and shook his head, saying it was nothing.

Seeing that he didn’t say anything, Si Qingyu didn’t ask further. She told the coachman, “Auntie, we can set off.”

“Alright.”

As the two carriages gradually moved away, the woman standing not far away finally took a breath. She patted her chest, looking frightened, “This Young Master Luo is so scary.” Just now, his eyes were like a venomous snake, scaring her into a cold sweat.

Forget it, forget it. She’d better go back to the shop to help. With this thought, the woman wiped her cold sweat and left in the opposite direction.

……

“Move over a bit. It’s a bit hot in the carriage.” Si Qingyu said to Luo Shaoxuan who was sitting close to her while drinking tea.

It was now the height of summer. Although occasional cool breezes blew in through the windows, the carriage was not as spacious as the bedroom after all. Sticking together like this was indeed a bit hot.

But Luo Shaoxuan just wouldn’t listen. He peeled the grape skin and brought it to her lips, “Wife, ah~”

“Pfft!” The tea that had just been drunk sprayed out because of these two words. Si Qingyu coughed while blocking his outstretched hand, looking at him as if she had been startled, “What… what did you call me?”

Luo Shaoxuan looked at her innocently, “Wife ah.”

“You…… you’d better not call me that for now. After all, it’s not good if someone hears it.” Si Qingyu wiped the tea stains from her mouth, quite speechless.

However, she saw Luo Shaoxuan’s eyes droop in disappointment, and he mumbled an “oh” and moved away from her.

Si Qingyu picked up a silk handkerchief to wipe the carriage wall that had been sprayed, glancing at the person sitting on the side who was clearly sulking and waiting for her to coax him. She pursed her lips, “I’m doing this for your own good. If you call me like this and someone hears it, it won’t be good for your reputation. If you like to call me that…… you can call me however you want after we get married.”

Although she had explained, the person on the other side was still unhappy, turning his face to look out the window.

She sighed, put the wiped handkerchief back into her sleeve, picked up the grapes on the small tea table, peeled off the skin and handed it to him, “Hmm? Eat it.”

Sure enough, this was effective. The side of Luo Shaoxuan’s face showed a hint of a smile. He turned his head back with curved eyebrows and eyes, slightly opening his mouth to indicate for her to feed him.

Si Qingyu fed the grape into his mouth before sitting back. She took out a book and was about to read when Luo Shaoxuan, whose mood had improved, instantly stuck to her again.

She couldn’t help but tease, “After we get married, don’t tell me you’re going to stick to me like this every day?”

Luo Shaoxuan lazily rested his head on her shoulder, glancing at her with lingering eyes, his voice ambiguous and sweet, “After we get married, we’ll be entangled with each other every day……”

They would always be entangled together, never to be separated.

For some reason, Si Qingyu felt a rush of heat rising to her face, feeling that his words were really……

She cleared her throat and focused her gaze on the book, ignoring what he had just said.

Luo Shaoxuan’s beautiful eyes were filled with a faint smile. He rested on her shoulder, smelling the medicinal fragrance on her body, and closed his eyes to feign sleep.

It was not until the afternoon that they arrived back at the town. However, they didn’t enter the town, but directly stopped the carriage at Si Qingyu’s residence.

After moving the items from the other carriage into the guest room and sending away the coachmen who helped with the moving, Si Qingyu turned to look at Luo Shaoxuan sitting at the stone table in the courtyard, “It’s a bit late today. You stay here first. I’ll go to town with you tomorrow.”

Even though they were getting married soon, they couldn’t live together now.

This time, Luo Shaoxuan wasn’t unhappy. He nodded in agreement. Now he was concerned about something else, “When shall we set our wedding date?”

“Uh……” Si Qingyu was at a loss for words for a moment. She really hadn’t thought about it, “How about we have dinner first and then talk about it?”

Luo Shaoxuan’s eyes darkened slightly. Although a bit unhappy, he still nodded, “Then let’s have dinner first.”

“Let me see what’s left at home. We’ll just eat something simple for now.” Si Qingyu said, slightly rolling up her sleeves and walking towards the kitchen. But then she thought that the food had probably gone bad during the few days she was away. She turned her head to look at Luo Shaoxuan, “Is it okay to have some porridge?”

“Mm.”

He seemed to have quieted down a lot since entering the courtyard. Si Qingyu bit her lip, hesitated for a moment, and changed direction, “Shaoxuan, come with me for a moment.”

She walked into the bedroom and took out a carefully wrapped memorial tablet from a wooden box. Opening it carefully, it clearly read “Mother Si Chan’s Tablet”.

Si Qingyu gently stroked the words on the tablet, her eyes slightly narrowed. She turned to look at Luo Shaoxuan standing at the door and said softly, “Come in.”

She placed the tablet on the table, as if talking to the person beside her and also talking to herself, “This is my foster mother. I was picked up and raised by my foster mother. She not only raised me but also taught me the art of medicine.”

Si Qingyu’s eyes showed a hint of sadness. She raised her hand to gently touch the tablet, “Mother always treated me like her own daughter. Unfortunately…… I didn’t have time to show filial piety to her before she passed away……”

She looked up at Luo Shaoxuan who was listening silently beside her, smiling slightly, “Now that we are getting married, I should introduce you to my mother.”

Luo Shaoxuan’s eyes were deep and he nodded solemnly, “Mm.”

Si Qingyu looked at him with gentle eyes, then turned her gaze back to the tablet, revealing a slightly childish smile, “Mom, this is Shaoxuan beside me. We are getting married soon, so I brought him to meet you.” She smiled and waved at Luo Shaoxuan, pushing him to stand closer.

Standing in front of the memorial tablet, Luo Shaoxuan suddenly felt a bit at a loss, as if a woman was really solemnly sizing him up. His face slightly flushed as he looked at Si Qingyu, his hands nervously twisting together under his sleeves.

Si Qingyu gave him a reassuring smile, indicating for him not to be nervous.

He pursed his beautiful lips and softly spoke, “Mother……”

“Pfft!” Si Qingyu couldn’t help but chuckle beside him. She didn’t expect him to call her mother so naturally already.

Luo Shaoxuan glared at her resentfully, and she reluctantly stopped laughing.

He slightly raised his eyes to glance at the memorial tablet, his hands respectfully clasped in front of him to show respect. He lowered his gaze a little before gently parting his lips, “I will definitely serve the wife well in the future and not let her suffer.”

Si Qingyu, who was listening on the side, felt speechless, thinking how could she possibly suffer?

Luo Shaoxuan finished speaking and bowed to the tablet. He stared at the tablet for a few seconds, thanking her for the kindness of raising Ziliang, allowing them to meet, know each other, and fall in love.

He looked at Si Qingyu with gentle eyes, a hint of shyness in them, “Mother has already agreed to our marriage.”

“……”

“Then I’ll go cook the porridge first. You sit in the courtyard for now.” Si Qingyu stepped forward and carefully wrapped the memorial tablet again, putting it back in the box.

“Alright.” Luo Shaoxuan glanced at the box before leaving the bedroom.

By the time Si Qingyu brought out the cooked porridge, it was already dark outside. She looked at the sky, considering whether to bring the porridge back to the room to eat.

“Shaoxuan, it’s dark. Let’s have the porridge in the bedroom.” She thought that she should renovate a hall someday.

Si Qingyu brought the porridge back to the bedroom and served a bowl to Luo Shaoxuan who was sitting across from her. She then said, “After finishing the porridge, if you want to take a bath, the hot water is ready. Wash up and rest early. I’ll go to town with you tomorrow.”

Luo Shaoxuan stirred the white porridge with a jade finger holding the spoon. His narrow phoenix eyes looked at Si Qingyu across from him, “Then when shall we get married?”

He always seemed a bit uneasy, as if he was still afraid that she wouldn’t marry him. Si Qingyu shook her head with a helpless smile and put down the porridge bowl, looking at him seriously, “How about next month?” It seemed a bit too soon.

But for Luo Shaoxuan, the time was too long. His delicate brows furrowed slightly, “Why such a long time? Sooner.”

His eyes shifted to look at Si Qingyu, “How about in three days?”

“…… Isn’t that a bit too soon?” She hadn’t prepared anything yet.

“Not soon. Just three days later.” Luo Shaoxuan’s eyes sparkled with fine radiance.

Seeing Luo Shaoxuan so happy, she also wanted to indulge him. Si Qingyu looked at him with a hint of indulgence in her eyes, “Alright, as you wish.”

As soon as she said that, the eyes of the man across from her immediately lit up like exploding fireworks, dazzlingly beautiful as he smiled at her.

Si Qingyu had never seen him so happy before. Forget it, it was their wedding anyway. As long as he was happy, it was fine.

She took a sip of the porridge and suddenly thought of something, looking at Luo Shaoxuan across from her, “Do you have anyone you want to invite?”

Luo Shaoxuan shook his head. For him, the wedding only needed the two of them. Anyone else was superfluous.

“Then I’ll go tell Sixi tomorrow.” Actually, Si Qingyu didn’t have many people to invite either. She was inherently an indifferent person who didn’t talk much and didn’t like to socialize.

Oh right, there was also Lord Luo. She would send a letter to see if she had time.

“Eat quickly. I’ll go to town with you a bit earlier tomorrow.”

“Mm.”

At this moment, Luo Shaoxuan was finally satisfied. He hooked his lips, his deep eyes looking at the woman across from him who had her head lowered, drinking the porridge. Soon, she would be his alone.