Chapter 42: A Mysterious Gift

Song Dalang had attended school for a few years, so writing a letter was not difficult for him.

Madam Jiang’s eyes narrowed, revealing a greedy expression: “Su Wan, that bitch, is becoming difficult to deal with. You should have Mixue bring some money. With money in our hands, we can be more dedicated to handling things for her.”

Song Dalang finally had a smile on his face, and he hinted that Su Mixue should get him a government position with little work but good benefits.

After finishing the letter, Madam Jiang carefully read it over. She didn’t recognize many characters, but thinking about the benefits this letter would bring her, her face was full of smiles. She put the letter into an envelope and stuffed it into Song Dalang’s arms, and gave him a few copper coins.

“Take it to the town’s post station.”

“Sure!”

Song Dalang left happily.

——

Su Wan put the money into her sleeve pocket and returned to the house, and felt that the atmosphere was a bit strange.

The two little ones were sweeping the yard with brooms.

Gu Huaizhi was chopping wood in the storage room.

Mother Gu was organizing the things Su Wan had bought from the town.

Su Wan entered the house and helped with the cleaning.

“Why did you waste money buying so many clothes, girl?”

Mother Gu said this, but her fierce-looking face revealed a smile, showing she was very pleased: “Why didn’t you buy a few sets for yourself?”

Su Wan took out the clothes she had bought for Mother Gu and compared them against her, and smiled: “Dark-colored clothes are more durable for work. Bright-colored clothes suit you very well; they make you look much healthier and more energetic. You can wear them when visiting neighbors.”

“I don’t need them; I still have a few sets to wear. You should take them and change into new clothes yourself.” Mother Gu didn’t want to waste Su Wan’s kindness and pushed the bright-colored clothes back to Su Wan. “I’ll keep one dark set, and I appreciate your thoughtfulness.”

Su Wan really had forgotten to buy clothes for herself. She pushed the clothes into Mother Gu’s hands and said gently, “Didn’t Mr. Zhao send some fabric yesterday? Could you make me a set of clothes by hand?”

Mother Gu heard the closeness in Su Wan’s tone and was particularly moved. She nodded repeatedly, “Sure! I’ll go to the town’s tailor shop tomorrow, see what’s fashionable, and make you a few sets of clothes.”

Su Wan felt warmth in her heart and reached out to hug Mother Gu, and put her cheek against her neck. “Thank you for being so understanding.”

This made Mother Gu almost tear up, her eyes wet as she said, “You were the apple of your parents’ eye, growing up pampered and cherished, and now you’ve married into our family to live a hard life. Apart from giving you my true heart, there’s nothing else I can offer to prevent you from being wronged.”

Su Wan felt that coming to this time wasn’t such a bad thing.

She let go of Mother Gu, her eyes misty, and her expression soft: “Have you been doing odd jobs in town, washing dirty clothes?”

“No, no, no. Since you told me not to, I haven’t done it,” Mother Gu said nervously, fearing Su Wan would be angry.

Seeing how much Mother Gu cared about her feelings, Su Wan felt both sour and inflated inside. “You don’t need to do that anymore. If you can’t stay idle, how about working as a cook at a restaurant? You cook very well and have experience from before.”

Mother Gu looked despondent, her mouth twitching as she said, “At my age, no restaurant would want me.”

“They would! Zuixiang Pavilion would!” Su Wan touched Mother Gu’s graying hair, with a sweet smile on her face. “If you want to go, you can start at Zuixiang Pavilion tomorrow.”

Mother Gu couldn’t believe it but agreed hesitantly.

A huge weight lifted from Su Wan’s heart. Doing odd jobs was hard and tiring for Mother Gu, and she barely earned any money. Working at the restaurant would be easier and pay better.

After tidying things up, Su Wan went to her room. Her eyes paused when she saw a floral bundle on the bed.

She vaguely remembered that when they hired the carriage back, Gu Huaizhi had been carrying this floral bundle.