So, You’re the Henpecked One? 5

Chapter 5

Lin Zhao felt a pang of guilt, thinking she was utterly hopeless. Just because someone was good-looking, she was willing to overlook their fierceness.

“You’ll be able to see for yourself when the time comes,” Lin Zhao said sullenly, unwilling to admit her true thoughts.

“Come on, what’s the harm in just telling me now?” Mao Xiaoyun pouted. If, as Lin Zhao said, the wedding wasn’t until the middle of next month, did that mean she would have to wait until then to find out?

Lin Zhao ignored her, because she had just spotted a middle-aged woman and two young girls walking toward her house.

As the three of them approached, the woman in the lead fixed her gaze on Lin Zhao. “Young Lady Lin, I am Shopkeeper Wu from the Cloud Tailoring House, here to take your measurements for your wedding attire.”

Since she had already resigned herself to her fate, Lin Zhao obediently stood up and went inside. She then said to Mao Xiaoyun, “You should go home. I’m quite busy right now.”

Mao Xiaoyun stared, dumbfounded, as her boss eagerly went to get her measurements taken. She began to wonder if, in the future, her boss would ignore her now that she had a wife.

Shopkeeper Wu was clearly a frequent visitor to the Chu residence and was familiar with the people who had come from there. They exchanged smiles and nods as a greeting, then went about their respective tasks without disturbing each other.

Lin Zhao was very cooperative throughout the process. After Shopkeeper Wu finished taking her measurements, she chatted with Wang Ma for a while before leaving with her assistants.

The people from the Chu family worked quickly and meticulously. In no time, the entire house looked brand new, bright, and clean. After the cleaning was done, they prepared to clear out the furniture that looked too old and worn.

Seeing this, Lin Zhao quickly stepped forward to stop them. “Are you throwing these away?”

Wang Ma looked at Lin Zhao in confusion. “The madam will be providing new furniture. There shouldn’t be any need to keep these, right?”

Some of the furniture was so old and dilapidated that one might worry it would collapse if they sat on it.

Although no one wanted Chu Xihuan to marry Lin Zhao, since it was already a done deal, Chu Xihuan’s mother certainly wouldn’t let her daughter live in such an environment.

Lin Zhao pressed her lips together and protectively stood in front of the furniture that had been selected to be thrown away. “Who said there’s no need?” she said softly.

She picked up a chair. “I’ll move these things to the west room. If there’s anything else you want to throw away, I have to see it first.”

The others just stared blankly as Lin Zhao moved the clearly unsafe items, trip after trip. Wang Ma frowned slightly and said to the person beside her, “What are you standing there for? Go and help.”

These things belonged to Lin Zhao, after all. If she said not to throw them away, they couldn’t make that decision.

“Yes.”

The others quickly helped move the items to the west room. Perhaps because of Lin Zhao’s reaction, they were much more careful when tidying up afterward. They worked until the sun was about to set before packing up and leaving.

The courtyard fell silent once again.

Lin Zhao looked at the house, where she was the only one left, a faint light shimmering in her eyes.

In the future, another person would be living in this house.

A smile unconsciously tugged at the corners of Lin Zhao’s lips. She quickly caught herself and glanced around guiltily, as if afraid someone had seen her.

Clearing her throat uncomfortably, Lin Zhao would never admit that she was actually looking forward to the other person’s arrival.

She made a simple porridge with the remaining rice in the house, hummed a tuneless little song as she washed up, and then slipped into bed, happily patting the empty space beside her.

Soon, someone else would be lying here. This house would finally not be just her alone.

As if remembering something, she quickly grabbed the sachet she had carefully removed and placed by her pillow while washing. In the pale moonlight, she carefully traced its outline. When she brought it close to her nose, she could smell the faint scent of medicinal herbs, which was quite calming.

The thought that Chu Xihuan had an identical one on her made Lin Zhao’s face burn.

Does this count as a token of love?

Lin Zhao suddenly sat up, anxiously biting her thumb. Chu Xihuan had given her a token of love. By rights, shouldn’t she give one back?

Lin Zhao subconsciously touched the object hanging around her neck. It was the most valuable thing she owned.

This jade ring had been placed around her neck by her mother when she was born. She had worn it for so many years, and no matter how difficult things got, she had never thought of trading it for anything.

Lin Zhao hesitated, her hand dropping away. In the end, she couldn’t bring herself to give it away.

It was one of the only two things her mother had left her.

Lying back down, Lin Zhao muttered to herself, turned on her side, and placed the hand holding the sachet next to her cheek. She fell asleep peacefully, inhaling the faint scent of herbs.

**

Chu Xihuan had said she didn’t need to worry, and true to her word, she didn’t have to worry about a thing. Every day, people came to clean and decorate the house. In just one month, her house was completely transformed.

Before, it had felt cold and empty. Now, it was fully furnished, even the window paper was new. After the renovation, it no longer looked so shabby.

Lin Zhao felt a little overwhelmed by all the changes. She hadn’t paid a single coin for any of the repairs. She was completely taking advantage of the situation.

If it were the Lin family she was taking advantage of, she would be more than happy. But taking advantage of Chu Xihuan made her feel a little guilty.

And yet, she had no money to put on a show of wealth…

At the thought of money, Lin Zhao pouted. The bulk of her savings had been confiscated by Chu Xihuan!

If this wedding had been two months later, she might have starved to death!

**

The next day was her wedding day. Her wedding attire had just been delivered this morning. Although it was a rush job, it was thankfully completed before the wedding, and the size was perfect.

Lin Zhao put on the wedding clothes and looked at herself in the bronze mirror, touching the fabric here and there. She could hardly believe it was her.

She never thought she would have a day where she wore something so vibrant!

“You look so handsome in this, miss. With some makeup tomorrow, you’ll be even more stunning,” Shopkeeper Wu said with a smile, praising Lin Zhao. Although the girl was a bit of a scoundrel, she was indeed very good-looking.

Lin Zhao’s lips curled up in a restrained smile. She cleared her throat pretentiously and said modestly, “Miss Chu will be more stunning.”

It was their wedding, after all. Lin Zhao was well aware of her own standing.

Shopkeeper Wu was taken aback by her modesty and found it a little amusing. But thankfully, the wedding attire didn’t need any alterations, so she was relieved.

Lin Zhao carefully took off the wedding clothes and folded them, afraid of getting them dirty. She didn’t even trust the people Chu Xihuan had sent to help her.

The night before the wedding, Lin Zhao heated a large tub of water for a bath. She soaked herself and began to scrub, afraid that she would do something wrong and be disliked by Chu Xihuan. By the end, she had even meticulously scrubbed between her toes, feeling completely refreshed.

Looking back on the past month, she and Chu Xihuan hadn’t met even once! She had to ask Wang Ma to pass on her request to invite Mao Xiaoyun to the feast.

Thankfully, she had agreed…

Lin Zhao was both nervous and excited, which led to a sleepless night. She was woken up in the early hours of the morning to be dressed and have her makeup done, and from then on, there was no time to rest. Although Lin Zhao had tried to find out about the wedding procedures beforehand, she was still not very clear on them and had to rely on the people sent by Chu Xihuan to guide her, which was the only reason she hadn’t made any mistakes.

Mao Xiaoyun had also come early in the morning to try and help, but she ended up being more of a hindrance, following the staff around the house like a lost puppy.

It wasn’t until she was in the sedan chair on the way to the Chu residence that Lin Zhao belatedly realized she had never even met Chu Xihuan’s parents!

She grew even more nervous.

It didn’t feel real that she was getting married.

She held a small fan to cover her face. Thinking about her reputation, she wished she had something to cover her entire face!

The journey to the Chu residence was filled with the sound of gongs and drums. Perhaps because the marriage of two women was so rare, many townspeople had gathered to watch. The crowd was abuzz with discussion, but their words couldn’t reach Lin Zhao, who was so nervous her body had gone stiff.

“Miss Lin, it’s time to get out of the sedan chair.” Wang Ma’s voice came from outside. At the same time, the curtain was pulled open, and Lin Zhao’s heart beat even faster.

Even if the marriage didn’t feel real, the nervousness was very, very real.

A hand reached into the sedan. Lin Zhao, without looking, instinctively placed her hand on it. It was only when she felt the incredibly soft skin that she belatedly realized it was not the hand of someone who did manual labor.

She looked over. The sleeve of the hand was the same red as her own wedding attire. As for who the owner of the hand was, the answer was obvious.

Chu Xihuan…

Lin Zhao silently repeated the name in her mind. Her hand, resting on Chu Xihuan’s, tightened nervously. She secretly peeked at Chu Xihuan.

Chu Xihuan wasn’t covering her face!

Lin Zhao’s already empty mind went even blanker. Only then did she belatedly realize that something was wrong…

Before she could figure out exactly what was wrong, she was already being led out of the sedan chair by Chu Xihuan. A red silk ribbon was then placed in her hand.

The other end of the ribbon was held by Chu Xihuan.

It was then that Lin Zhao finally understood what was wrong.

Didn’t they say Chu Xihuan was marrying her?

How did it turn into her marrying into Chu Xihuan’s family?

**

Author’s Note:

Zhaozhao is stunned: Is this some kind of role-reversal marriage?