The Daily Life Of Mei Furen Doting On Her Husband - Chapter 8

Wu Zhen ascended to the position of “Cat Lord” when she was very young. During those days, she was mischievous and her antics often disrupted the tranquility of Yan Tower. Anything that piqued her curiosity was subject to her secret exploration, from the white snake’s bracelet to Huzhu’s collection, and of course, Quack’s wordless book. Since then, Quack dared not leave his book anywhere else and always carried it with him.

In her youth, Wu Zhen’s curiosity about the wordless book was less intense. Now, she sat cross-legged and impatiently urged, “Are you done? It’s just a marriage prediction, why is it taking so long? I didn’t have to wait this long when I asked you to predict something for me before.”

Quack himself was perplexed. He kept his head buried in the book, muttering, “It’s not simple, it’s not simple.”

After waiting for a while and seeing that Quack was still flipping through the book, Wu Zhen, out of boredom, tossed a bamboo tube aside and asked, “Are you done yet?”

“Almost there,” Quack replied without lifting his head.

Wu Zhen’s patience wore thin. Just as she was preparing to leave, Quack finally looked up. He closed the book, studied her intently for a moment, and then smiled warmly. With the demeanor of an indulgent elder, he said, “Congratulations. Your marriage fate has arrived. You are ready for marriage now.”

Wu Zhen’s expression remained neutral. She simply replied, “Oh,” in a tone devoid of any discernible emotion.

Quack couldn’t quite read her thoughts. She had always been this way since she was young. Her smiles didn’t always denote happiness, and her neutral expressions didn’t always mean she was unhappy. She was unreadable, to say the least.

“What’s going on? Why did you suddenly want to know about your marriage fate?” Quack asked earnestly.

Wu Zhen furrowed her brow suddenly and remarked, “I should have died a long time ago. No, I was dead then. It was the previous Cat Lord who saved me and turned me into this.”

“I’m not suited to be with ordinary people. Marriage shouldn’t be forced.”

“Forget it, let’s not talk about this. It’s boring.”

Wu Zhen stood up, swaying her legs as she leaped onto the high wall. From there, she peered down, retrieving something from her sleeves and tossing it down. “Here, go buy yourself a new pair of shoes. Your toes are sticking out.”

Quack reached out and accepted the money—a lotus-shaped gold ingot, enough to purchase two hundred pairs of shoes. The Cat Lord was clearly affluent, yet she enjoyed teasing him with a few coins. It was simply her mischievous nature, borne out of boredom.

Wu Zhen proceeded to traverse the rooftops of the houses. When she strolled at night, she avoided ordinary paths, preferring to move along the roofs and eaves. Perhaps it was her long tenure as a cat that had made her more feline in her habits with each passing day.

Wu Zhen walked steadily on the rooftops, looking down at the brightly lit streets below, feeling a little bored. She was familiar with every corner of the place, and there was nothing interesting to see.

After strolling for a while, Wu Zhen left the market and decided to go to Pingkang Street to find her other assistant, Huzhu. The place was lively with many ladies singing and dancing. However, as she passed by a brothel in Pingkang Street, she heard a familiar voice and stopped.

Walking on the roof of the house, she could clearly hear any movement inside. At that moment, a cat-like groan emanated from the house beneath her feet.

Wu Zhen knew what the noise was. She squatted down, lifted a few tiles, and looked down. In the room below, a man and a woman were engaged in something joyous. The man was the young man from the Lu family whom she didn’t get along with. He was the one who almost got engaged to her and had a fight with her because of Huzhu, and who had kept causing trouble for her afterwards.

Mr. Lu was also the brothel owner. Watching him at work, Wu Zhen felt no rush to leave. She sat on the roof, idly turning a tile between her fingers and listening to the commotion below. When she judged the moment right, she suddenly lowered her voice and shouted loudly through the small opening, “Oh, no! Fire!”

Panic erupted from below, accompanied by the sound of things crashing. Wu Zhen tossed aside the tile, ignored the chaos she had caused, and made her escape.

Meanwhile, Mr. Lu was startled by the alarming shout, tumbling off the bed and wrenching his waist in the process. He pounded the bed in frustration and cursed loudly. Unbeknownst to him, Wu Zhen was comfortably seated among a group of beautiful ladies whom he was familiar with, engaged in drinking games with them.

The warm breeze gently blew across the Jade Belt Pond in the southern part of the city, where boats floated in twos and threes. Pedestrians strolling along the shore could clearly hear the melodious music drifting from the boats, captivating and intoxicating.

The Jade Belt Pond was a man-made canal, not very wide, accommodating only about four or five boats. Yet, it stretched long enough for a boat to circle it in a single day. In fact, it was not the busiest season for the Jade Belt Pond. Its peak was earlier, when peach, plum, and apricot blossoms lining both sides were in full bloom. At that time, from a distance, it appeared like a layer of mist and clouds. Petals cascaded down, almost covering the pond’s surface, and the boats nearly crowded its waters.

 Talented poets, ladies who enjoyed springtime, nobles, and commoners all loved to go to the Jade Belt Pond to enjoy the flowers, scenery, and beautiful spring weather. But at this moment, the flowers had all withered, leaving only the green willows on both sides, floating in the wind and dropping some catkins from time to time.

Wu Zhen leaned against the window of the second floor of a boat, squinting her eyes and taking a nap. Her younger brothers were all on the first floor, and the faint sounds of fighting and pipa music made her sleep a little uneasy.

After a while, brisk footsteps approached up the stairs. Wu Zhen opened one eye and glanced over. It was Mei Si, who hurried over excitedly with two paintings in his arms. “Sister Zhen, I finally found you! Why are you sleeping here alone again?!”

Wu Zhen sat up, leaning against the railing, and replied sleepily, “I stayed up late listening to music last night, and my old father woke me up early this morning. I’m so sleepy.”

She sneaked out to play in Pingkang street at night and returned home just before dawn. In the past, she would sleep until noon, but with Duke Yu at home, he woke her up shortly after the morning city bells rang for breakfast. He kept her at home, lecturing her throughout the morning. Eventually, she managed to sneak out again, hoping to catch up on sleep, but couldn’t rest well.

Thinking of her father, Wu Zhen couldn’t help but sigh. The old man was determined to see her married. He insisted that he wait until her marriage with the eldest son of the Mei family was settled before considering returning. It was clear she wouldn’t have much freedom during this time.

Mei Si had no idea what had happened to his boss, so he unfolded the painting in his hand and showed it to her like a treasure. “Sister Zhen, look, this is my new painting. Please appreciate it.”