Chapter 25

Xu Qinyu remembered that when Fourth Brother jumped over the wall, he was only carrying a cloth bag. There was no sign of a puppy or anything else around him. She carefully examined his clothes, which were neat and flat, with no bulges that could hide a small dog.

She even stood up and looked around him, still puzzled. “Fourth Brother, where is it?”

Pei Weixuan extended his arm in front of her. Xu Qinyu, not understanding, leaned in to look at his sleeve. Slowly, something began to crawl out of the dark blue sleeve.

Then—

A panicked scream echoed through the kitchen.

“Ahhhhhhhhhhh!”

A small snake, entirely white with red eyes, slowly emerged from the sleeve.

Xu Qinyu never expected the guard animal Fourth Brother mentioned to be a snake. The sudden appearance of the snake startled her.

Pei Weixuan was also taken aback by Yuniang’s scream, showing a rare moment of confusion. The snake, frightened by her scream, quickly retreated back into his sleeve.

Xu Qinyu’s face turned pale, and she pointed shakily at his sleeve, her voice trembling. “F-Fourth Brother, is this the guard animal you mentioned?”

“Yes.”

Pei Weixuan hesitated for a moment before confirming. He still looked a bit unsure, not expecting to scare Yuniang.

Xu Qinyu couldn’t help but ask, “Fourth Brother, where did you find a small snake? Can it really guard the house?”

“It can grow very large and is very good at guarding the house.”

As he spoke, Pei Weixuan gently coaxed the snake out of his sleeve again. The snake tilted its head, its deep red eyes studying Xu Qinyu.

Xu Qinyu thought the little white snake looked quite delicate. Hearing his explanation, she asked, “How big can it grow?”

Wait, no matter how big it can grow, who uses a snake to guard the house?

Well, some people do keep pythons as pets, like golden pythons, which can grow very large. Having one at home would certainly deter most thieves.

Pei Weixuan lowered his eyes and said, “I found it in the mountains. For some reason, it hadn’t hibernated and was coiled on a tree. It’s still a young snake, but it can grow to about ten feet long in a year, making it quite intimidating for guarding the house.” He had indeed found it in the mountains, hanging on a tree. Without care or food, it would have frozen to death in this season. Remembering Yuniang’s request for a guard animal, he thought this snake would be more effective than a puppy, so he brought it back, hoping she might like it. He hadn’t expected to scare her.

Xu Qinyu couldn’t help but laugh. A ten-foot snake, about three meters long, would indeed be intimidating!

Who would dare come to her house then?

She planned to sell braised fish at home, but if this little snake grew into a giant python, it would scare away all the customers.

Honestly, Xu Qinyu knew that a grown snake would be much better at guarding the house than a regular puppy. At least Old Lady Luo wouldn’t dare trespass. However, snakes were cold-blooded animals, and she had never kept one before. She was still a bit afraid of such smooth creatures and preferred furry pets.

Madam Wen and Pei Jianing were also startled by Xu Qinyu’s scream and woke up. Hearing Yuniang’s scream, they both turned pale and hurriedly threw on some clothes before rushing out of their rooms. Seeing the kitchen light on, they immediately went in, not even having time to ask about Pei Weixuan’s return. Madam Wen quickly asked her daughter-in-law, “Yuniang, what happened? Why did you scream?”

Ning Jie’er immediately noticed the small white snake in her brother’s sleeve.

Well, she had expected this. Asking her brother to find a guard animal would definitely result in something unusual. He had brought back a small snake. Since it was for guarding the house, this snake must be able to grow into a giant python. Her brother didn’t seem to worry about scaring her sister-in-law. She realized that her brother’s ability to empathize with people was somewhat lacking. She had always thought it was because he had been sick and weak since childhood, but now she understood that her brother’s feelings for them and the family were similar. Even though he would help them and do everything he could for the family, it was more out of duty. She could sense that her brother sometimes showed more affection for the pets he kept in the palace.

Ning Jie’er couldn’t help but say, “Fourth Brother, why did you bring back a small snake?”

Madam Wen also noticed the snake in her son’s sleeve and was startled, taking two steps back. “Weixuan, why did you bring back a snake?”

Pei Weixuan calmly replied, “I found it in the mountains. It hadn’t hibernated and can guard the house, so I brought it back.”

Xu Qinyu thought for a moment and suggested, “Fourth Brother, keeping this snake might be a bit scary. It could even frighten our guests. How about we don’t keep it?”

Pei Weixuan looked at her and said, “The snake is too small. If we send it back now, it won’t survive the winter. We’ll send it back in the spring.”

“Alright,” Xu Qinyu agreed.

The snake was still small, and it would only be a couple of months until spring. It shouldn’t grow too much in that time. Besides, the snake was a beautiful jade color and looked quite cute, not too scary. She didn’t mind keeping it at home for now.

Ning Jie’er and Madam Wen had no objections, and both seemed to take it in stride. Xu Qinyu couldn’t help but wonder how her mother-in-law and sister-in-law remained so calm. She had no idea what her husband kept in the palace.

After this incident, Xu Qinyu decided never to ask her husband to bring her a puppy again. She planned to ask around herself to see if anyone had a mastiff. Ordinary puppies were only moderately effective at guarding the house, and during winter, there were many dog thieves. Regular puppies couldn’t withstand these thieves, but mastiffs were different. Mastiffs were loyal, fierce, and wouldn’t eat food given by strangers, making them excellent guard dogs.

The small snake in Pei Weixuan’s sleeve slithered out, crawled around the floor, and finally curled up next to the stove to keep warm.

Xu Qinyu didn’t disturb the snake and busied herself with making pancakes and frying eggs.

Ning Jie’er helped tend the stove while Madam Wen and Pei Weixuan went to clear the snow in the courtyard. The snow on the roof hadn’t been cleared for days and was quite thick. Pei Weixuan knocked it down and piled it in the backyard, making the front yard look clean and tidy.

After finishing these tasks, Madam Wen cleaned the house and took the family’s laundry from the previous night to the well to wash. She had been cleaning and washing clothes since she was a child. Even after entering the palace and serving as a concubine for over ten years and as an empress for several more, she hadn’t forgotten these tasks. In fact, even as an empress, she often did needlework, sewing clothes for the emperor and their children. Her relationship with the emperor was very good. People thought the emperor made her empress to prevent future empresses’ families from gaining too much power, as her family had no influence. But that wasn’t the case; Emperor Shengjing truly loved her and treated her as his wife. She knew her personality wasn’t suited for being an empress. She was aware that Noble Consort Fu targeted her and that making Noble Consort Fu the empress would be bad for her children. So, she wasn’t entirely naive; she also vied for the empress position. However, she wasn’t as ruthless as Noble Consort Fu, who eventually poisoned the emperor.

Noble Consort Fu was too cruel.

Madam Wen closed her eyes, her heart aching.

…

After clearing the snow, Pei Weixuan cleaned the dirt off the ginseng and found a cool place to dry it. The weather was too cold and cloudy to sun-dry it, but air-drying would work.

When he finished with the ginseng, he saw Yuniang bringing him a small basket of mushrooms. “Fourth Brother, help me wash these.”

Xu Qinyu planned to stir-fry some mushrooms and save the rest to make mushroom chicken soup with an old hen she would buy later. The soup would be both delicious and nourishing.

The humid climate in the southwest made the mushrooms particularly fresh and tasty. Stir-frying them with a bit of lard and salt was enough to bring out their flavor.

After eating porridge with the mushrooms, Xu Qinyu went to set up her stall. She didn’t let Pei Weixuan accompany her, guessing he hadn’t slept all night. He just watched her as she insisted he stay home.

“Fourth Brother, go back to bed. You can join me at the stall tomorrow.”

Pei Weixuan looked at Yuniang, her face full of determination, her eyes unwavering. She seemed to always stick to her decisions, so different from the second daughter of the Marquis of Dechang. Where did she come from?

With a hoarse voice, Pei Weixuan softly agreed and went back to sleep.

Xu Qinyu went to the stall alone. Madam Wen cleaned the kitchen and told Ning Jie’er to watch over Feng Ge’er and Yuan Jie’er before heading out to do laundry for others.

At the dock, Xu Qinyu’s meat sandwiches sold quickly. She asked the people on the merchant ships where she could find a mastiff.

Biting into a meat sandwich, Zhuang Zi told her, “Why do you need a mastiff, young lady? They’re found in the north, not here. They’re great for hunting and guarding.”

Hearing that mastiffs were only found in the north, Xu Qinyu sighed. Finding a powerful mastiff was difficult. If that didn’t work, she would see if anyone had puppies for sale. Buying a puppy would be fine, too.

After finishing at the stall, Xu Qinyu went to buy pig offal and fish as usual. Today, she also bought an old hen to make soup.

While buying fish, she noticed a small black bundle tied with a hemp rope next to the old man’s stall. The bundle had an injured hind leg as if it had been bitten. Xu Qinyu looked closely and saw it resembled a small leopard cub.

A pure black leopard cub? Xu Qinyu was surprised. She remembered that this area shouldn’t have black leopard cubs. The native leopards were usually spotted. But then again, this wasn’t her original world, and the geography might be different.

“Uncle He, is this a leopard cub?”

Having bought fish from this old man for a while, Xu Qinyu knew his family situation. His surname was He, and he lived in a nearby village. His son caught fish, and during the cold weather, with little income, they often sold fish in town. Xu Qinyu bought fish from him every day, providing a steady income.

Recently, Xu Qinyu had also asked Uncle He to help collect eggs, radishes, and cabbage from the village. The eggs were cheap, two for one wen, and the vegetables were homegrown and even cheaper, less than one wen per jin. This helped reduce her costs for making meat sandwiches.

Uncle He replied, “Yes, it’s a leopard cub. My son found it by the lake while fishing. It seems to be a young cub injured by a mountain animal and running down the mountain. We picked it up and thought of selling it in town, but we don’t know if it will survive.”

Xu Qinyu knew that in cold weather, not only people but also young animals on the mountain could easily freeze to death. She knew that some noble young men in the capital kept leopards for hunting and showing off, but they were usually spotted leopards, not black ones.

Once tamed, these creatures were like big cats, and who could resist a big cat? If she could save and raise it, it would be great for guarding the house, much better than using a giant snake.

Thinking of the small snake, Xu Qinyu’s expression faltered.

She was tempted.

“Uncle He, how much for this leopard cub?”

Uncle He quickly replied, “If you want it, it’s yours. You take care of my business every day, and this cub is seriously injured. Others probably wouldn’t buy it.”

In the end, Xu Qinyu gave him the money she earned that day.

Uncle He was reluctant to accept it, but Xu Qinyu insisted, and he finally took it. He helped load the fish onto her cart, and Xu Qinyu carefully picked up the little cub. It didn’t struggle or move, looking almost dead, but its chest was still rising and falling, indicating it was alive.

Her husband knew about medicine, so she planned to ask him to treat it when she got home.

Xu Qinyu quickly returned to Osmanthus Alley.

Pei Weixuan was already awake, chopping wood. The kitchen water tank was full, and several wooden basins and buckets by the well were also filled with water.

Seeing him, Xu Qinyu called out, “Fourth Brother, come and take a look.”

Pei Weixuan looked up and saw Yuniang holding a small black animal. Without seeing its face, he knew it was a black leopard cub and noticed the bloody wound on its hind leg. He put down the axe and walked over, taking the cub from Yuniang. It didn’t move, and he said, “The injury is severe. I’ll go buy some medicine.”

Xu Qinyu took the cub back and watched as Fourth Brother strode out of the courtyard towards the alley entrance.

Pei Jianing also came over with Feng Ge’er and Yuan Jie’er. The two children were curious about the leopard cub in her arms.

Pei Jianing couldn’t help but ask, “Fourth Sister-in-law, where did the leopard cub come from?”

Xu Qinyu explained how she got the cub.

Pei Jianing was silent for a moment, wondering if the number of animals in their home would keep increasing. She remembered that Fourth Brother had a golden eagle, a tiger, a lynx, and a yak in the palace. She didn’t know if those animals had survived after their exile or if the wicked Empress Dowager Fu had killed them. She hoped they were still alive, as they were innocent, and she used to help feed them in her brother’s palace.

Xu Qinyu took the little black leopard back to the kitchen and saw that the small snake was still curled up by the stove, motionless.

Would it sleep for two months straight? So, should I feed it or not?

Xu Qinyu glanced at the little black leopard in her arms. If it survived, would the two animals fight? Would the black leopard bite the white snake?

She was already worried before even starting to raise them.

Without thinking too much, she placed the little black leopard next to the small stove where it was warm and went out to clean the fish.

Pei Jianing also squatted down to help slowly. After the fish were cleaned and marinated, Pei Weixuan returned with the medicine. He used a small stove to boil the medicine into a paste and set it outside to cool. Pei Weixuan then treated the little leopard’s wound, shaving the fur around the injury and cleaning it with some strong alcohol. The little leopard finally reacted, letting out a weak cry like a kitten.

The whole family squatted in the kitchen, watching Pei Weixuan treat the little leopard’s wound. After cleaning the wound, he stitched it up and applied the cooled medicinal paste before bandaging it.

Pei Weixuan told Xu Qinyu, “Change the dressing every three days.”

Xu Qinyu nodded.

Fourth Brother was quite skilled, and the medicine he made was very effective. She touched her face, where the frostbite had almost healed.

In the evening, Madam Wen learned that her daughter-in-law had bought a nearly dead little leopard and wasn’t very surprised, probably used to such things.

Xu Qinyu felt relieved and even a bit excited. It was her first time raising such a big cat.

Madam Wen returned early that day and helped push the cart to sell the fish.

In the evening, Xu Qinyu fried some tofu and started making mushroom chicken soup at noon. The old hen was cleaned, and since it was a home-raised chicken that ate wild vegetables and insects, it didn’t need to be blanched. She didn’t even need to add oil to the iron pot. She stir-fried the chicken pieces until the fat was rendered, added two slices of ginger, and then added water to boil. The boiling water had no scum. She transferred it to a clay pot to simmer for an hour and a half, then added the cleaned mushrooms and a bit of salt. No other seasonings were needed. After simmering for another quarter of an hour, it was ready to eat.

The chicken soup was golden yellow and slightly oily, but just what the family needed. The chicken melted in the mouth, and the mushrooms absorbed the rich broth, adding their own flavor. Even Xu Qinyu drank two large bowls. The family finished the large clay pot of wild mushroom chicken soup.

The residents of Osmanthus Alley thought that the food from Xu Qinyu’s house smelled exceptionally fragrant today, more so than any other day, filled with the rich aroma and flavor of chicken soup.

…

The next two days saw little snowfall. The following day, Pei Weixuan went to the mountains again to gather herbs for himself and the little leopard.

The night he left, the small white snake that had been curled up by the stove woke up, flicked its tongue, and slithered over to Xu Qinyu.

Xu Qinyu was still a bit afraid of it, but seeing it stay by her side, she suddenly realized.

Was it hungry?

She knew snakes swallowed their food whole, so she got up and cut two pieces of fish, placing them on a small plate in front of the snake. It flicked its tongue, picked up the fish, and swallowed it whole.

Xu Qinyu was delighted. Seeing the two children watching eagerly, she cut two more pieces of fish and gave them to the children. “Feng Ge’er, Yuan Ge’er, give it a try.”

The children happily took the fish pieces, placed them on the plate, and watched the snake swallow them.

After eating, the snake flicked its tongue and stared at Xu Qinyu.

Guessing it wasn’t full, Xu Qinyu cut a few more pieces of fish. She and the children took turns feeding the snake, and it ate about two to three jin of fish before slithering back to the stove and curling up next to the little leopard.

On the other hand, the little leopard didn’t eat or drink and just lay by the stove, sleeping.

Xu Qinyu looked at the black and white pair, both curled up and found them surprisingly harmonious.

Pei Weixuan returned the next afternoon carrying two cloth bags. One was filled with mushrooms and the other with medicinal herbs.

Xu Qinyu recognized some of the herbs, but most were unfamiliar to her.

Pei Weixuan dried and processed the herbs, including the red fruit, which he mixed with other herbs and divided into four portions.

Two days later, it started snowing heavily again.

That evening, after dinner, Xu Qinyu finished braising the intestines, and Madam Wen cleaned the kitchen. Pei Weixuan told them, “Mother, Yuniang, I need to take a medicinal bath to detoxify my body. I may need you to stay by my side and tie me with a rope, in case I lose control and damage the house.”

Madam Wen was worried. “Weixuan, will it be alright?”

Xu Qinyu was also concerned. Tying him up with a rope sounded dangerous.

“It will be fine, Mother. Don’t worry.”

The poison in his body had to be removed, so Madam Wen nodded.

Pei Weixuan boiled the prepared herbs in an iron pot, poured the mixture into a bath barrel, and added a bucket of cold water. He removed his long robe, leaving only his pants, and stepped into the tub. He then cut his wrist, letting the blood drip into the tub.

Ning Jie’er had already been sent by Madam Wen to put the two children to bed. Only the three of them remained in the room.

Xu Qinyu noticed that the medicinal bath didn’t have the usual bitter smell of herbs but was quite fragrant. She couldn’t help but glance at Fourth Brother’s exposed back. His skin was very fair, and though he was a bit thin, he had broad shoulders and a narrow waist.

At this moment, Xu Qinyu was astonished to see that the blood from her fourth brother’s wrist, mixed with the medicinal bath, didn’t disperse. Instead, it formed thin lines, like a network of blood vessels in the water. She held her breath, and so did Madam Wen.

Pei Weixuan glanced at them. “Tie me up.”

The two women hurriedly grabbed the nearby hemp rope and bound him.

“Tighter,” Pei Weixuan instructed.

Madam Wen gritted her teeth and pulled the rope tight, embedding it into his shoulder blades. They tied his hands behind his back and wrapped the rope around his arms, securing his upper body so he couldn’t move.

After they finished, Madam Wen’s hands were trembling. It wasn’t long before they noticed Pei Weixuan’s face growing paler.

The blood in the medicinal bath finally began to dissolve and gradually dissipate, but the medicine seemed to be seeping into his bloodstream through the wound on his wrist.

Xu Qinyu watched as his veins, which should have been blue, gradually turned black, like a network of black lines spreading across his body.

T/N: I forgot to make notes; Ning Jie’er is Pei Jianing’s nickname, and Yuniang is Xu Qinyu’s nickname. Jie’er is an endearment name for girls, and Ge’er is for boys.