"Nanny!" Accompanied by a smile, Shi Fengju entered and gave a light laugh.
Sang Wan quickly stood up and winked at him before nodding slightly.
Nanny Li also stood up but grunted as she did so. Bowing slightly, she greeted, "Young Master!"
"I guess it can't be helped!" Shi Fengju quickly returned a greeting and smiled, "You acting the way you are will not make my heart at eased. Before, it was my bad and I hope nanny won't be angry about it anymore. Here in the small garden, you can live here for as long as you like and no one will be permitted to mention this anymore. So nanny, please cool down, alright?"
Sang Wan then added with a smile, "Yes ah, what Sir said before was because he cared for you! If you were to be tired out, Sir could not help but worry for you. These few days when you returned to recuperate, Sir was extremely concerned for your health! If you're still mad at him, he'll definitely be uneasy."
Nanny Li looked away and sighed, "Do I not know what kind of person Sir is? I'm not angry because of that. I'm just afraid that those around you aren't taking good care of you. Rest assured, once the day comes when I cannot move, I would have left without you even saying to not cause you any trouble."
"Nanny, don't say that. You're never a trouble!" Shi Fengju's chest felt somewhat warm and his nose suddenly felt a little sour.
Nanny Li's felt pleased upon hearing those words, but she gave a soft grunt and said coldly, "Young Master may have said so, but who knows when Young Master would turn away and be incited by someone else after just a few words. Then after, Young Master will begin to dislike this old lady!"
Shi Fengju understood that she was referring to Gu Fangzi and laughed it off awkwardly, "Just listen to what you just said, that will never happen! Who would have the courage to speak ill of you in front of me? If someone were to do so, that person would definitely not be let off!"
"Enough, enough! Your words, this old lady will never believe!" Although Nanny Li spoke in disbelieve, her face could not help but exposed a smile. She turned to look at Sang Wan and praised, "Now that we have Ma'am, I shall only listen to her. If Ma'am says to have me stay, I will stay! No one else will have a second say in it!"
"Yes, yes! Everything will be up to you!" Shi Fengju was secretly amazed. What kind of Kungfu did Sang Wan use to make Nanny Li and her relationship to be so close in a blink of an eye? Miracle, truly a miracle ah!
Still, having Sang Wan intervene and coax that elderly had truly saved him from a lot of trouble.
"Nanny, what you just said...Sang Wan does not deserve such praise!" Sang Wan became slightly startled and smiled embarrassedly.
"Who says you don't deserve it? You're the Ma'am of this household!" Nanny Li turned back to Shi Fengju and spoke sternly, "Young Master, pardon me for speaking out of place, but Ma'am truly is a good person! This old lady has seen countless people and thus my eye for people is very accurate. I've to say, Ma'am is truly for you! You should cherish her dearly."
"Nanny, the day isn't early anymore. You should have some rest. Sir still has a business trip early in the morning tomorrow!" Sang Wan did not expect Nanny Li to say it in front of her and Shi Fengju. She could not help but feel embarrassed, but most importantly did not wish for Shi Fengju to mistake her for having spoken something that would have magnified herself in Nanny Li's eyes.
"Yes, right, me and my muddlehead! Go back quickly, go back! We'll talk more when there's time!" Nanny Li gasped and gestured them to leave. But she did not forget to prove her point and spoke again to Shi Fengju, "Just look at her, how much she's concerned for you!"
"Right, right!" Shi Fengju's face stiffened and he felt awkward. After all, only he and Sang Wan knew of their current relationship. But for a third party to speak so highly of them, he felt somewhat apologetic. However, deep inside, he did not resent such a feeling.
"Nanny, rest early!" The two awkwardly fled from Nanny Li's chamber. Looking at each other, their faces flushed and they quickly turned away.
"Let's go back!"
"En!"
A journey back without words.
A curtain to separate the two, they each lay quietly but the atmosphere seemed to contain a strange kind of tension. Obviously, they knew the one opposite of the curtain could not see the one on the other side, but there was this strange feeling that seemed like the one on the opposite side was giving off an intense stare. The two lay motionlessly, and their breathing could not help but be extremely careful.
"You—— asleep already?" In the dark and under the blanket of silence, Shi Fengju's voice was like a small pebble that fell into a calm lake, making a rhythmic circle of ripples.
After a long while, but perhaps it was just a short moment, before Shi Fengju was about to jump to his conclusion that Sang Wan would not respond to his question, she gently answered a 'no'.
Shi Fengju turned his body over to face the direction of the bed. His hand was bent under a pillow and his other hand clenched loosely beside his cheek.
"Do you find it strange why I treat Nanny well?" Shi Fengju asked.
Sang Wan gently opened her eyes and smiled, "A little. Supposedly..."
Supposedly, the young sirs and misses would usually regard their nannies as their confidants, and their favoritism towards them could be heavily sighted. However, for someone like Shi Fengju who deeply respects and behaves well in front of his nanny lest provoking the slightest unpleasantness in the old nanny is very much less seen.
Shi Fengju sighed deeply which revealed a bottomless amount of grief, gratitude, and compassion. He spoke softly, "Nanny, who is older than my mother by a whole ten years, followed her into this household. At one point, to save my father, her husband lost his life. And as for her, she saved me but ended up losing her only son forever."
Sang Wan pursed her lips slightly and gave a soft "ah!".
Shi Fengju continued, "Nanny's son was older than me by a year. Since young, Nanny had taught him to always protect me, to always place me first. But in fact, we grew up together and played together so we were like brothers. Even without Nanny telling him, he would have done it anyway. I remember when I was nine, my mother brought me to visit my grandparents who lived far away. On the way there, we encountered a group of refugees. Nanny, her son, and I were chased by them. Seeing that the refugees were chasing after us from all directions, I was extremely frightened at that time. Nanny then grabbed her son's, and my, hand before fleeing desperately. However, we were eyed by them and two middle-aged men came chasing after us. In that dire situation, she instructed her son to lure them away from us before bringing me to hide among a patch of grass."
Shi Fengju smiled bitterly, "Later after we got home, a group of men was sent to search for Nanny's son. Who would have known that after half a year, all that was found was a corpse? It seems those two middle-aged men had caught him and sold him into slavery. When he tried to escape, he was discovered and was beaten to death."
"As such, if not for Nanny and her son, then maybe I, Shi Fengju, would have already long left this world! Our household owes nanny two lives, and in my heart, she is my second mother."
Sang Wan's heart suddenly felt a sense of emptiness and was at a loss.
"I understand," Sang Wan answered gently. "Rest assured, I'll respect Nanny and take good care of her. But most of all, I'll definitely treat her with kindness."
Having cited his story, it was actually not just to gain her compassion, but for her to make a stand. In other words, what he wanted to hear was what she had just said.
Hearing so, Shi Fengju smiled comfortably. In the end, she truly was a wise person and her words were soothing to the ear, just like a gentle river coursing through.
"Because Nanny's old, she may be a little long-winded, likes to worry a lot, and wants to manage whatever she can, " Shi Fengju could not help but add a little distress into his tone, "If you've nothing to do during the day, do pay a visit to that old lady. Also, her body isn't as fit as it used to be, so don't have her be burdened with tasks and worries!"
"Don't worry!" Sang Wan gently replied, but her heart knew: "It's all because of you that she worries a lot. If you just listen to her more often and follow accordingly, she'll naturally not have to worry so much! You giving me these instructions is like providing a temporary solution only."
"Nanny favors you quite a bit; to think she's willing to listen to you!" Shi Fengju laughed. At this point, he could not help but want to satisfy the curiosity in his heart and asked, "What exactly did you say to her after catching up with her? In such a short time span, how did you managed to persuade her to stay?" If it were him trying to do so in the past, that would simply be an impossible task to accomplish.
"Do you want to hear it?" Sang Wan hooked the edge of her lips and revealed a playful smile.
Shi Fengju could sense her playful tone. It was almost as if he could imagine her beautiful eyes and small red lips being hooked to show her playfulness. He nodded and laughed, "Yes!"
Sang Wan laughed in response, "Actually, I only said a sentence. I said that if she were to leave, it would inevitably lead to others gossiping about how Sir has no conscience."
"Just that?"
"Yes."
Shi Fengju went silent. But after a short while, he gave a long sigh as his heart had mixed feelings for his nanny. She truly does care a lot for him; regardless of her long-winded nagging or whether her method was right, her heart is truly leaned towards him. Has his affection towards her dulled?
"Nanny is actually quite nice to get along with. I'm not sure why, but I've had that feeling ever since meeting her for the first time," Sang Wan spoke. "It's just that she cares so much about you. So in return, you should also do the same. Otherwise, when it's too late to do so, it'll truly be saddening."
Once again, Shi Fengju remained silent but for a long while for his heart was slowly drifting away.
"Thanks." Shi Fengju spoke softly. He turned his body to face the opposite side before closing his eyes and falling asleep.
"No need for the thanks, we're husband and wife," Sang Wan spoke in her head.
On the next day, it was time for Sang Wan to pay her visit to her mother-in-law and Nanny Li accompanied her. Because of her absence from the Shi household, it was natural that she ought to pay her visit to Wang Shi.
After the talk with Shi Fengju last night, Sang Wan's impression of Nanny Li had added more points of respect. In turn, she secretly reminded Liu Ya.
From then on, pressing above the heads of the two, master and servant, was an additional divine being. However, the respect she had for her was actually something she quite liked.
Arriving at the courtyard, Wang Shi's eyes immediately brightened up upon seeing Nanny Li. She busily waved at her and greeted, "Old sister, is your health alright? Quick, have a seat and we'll talk more!"
Nanny Li returned the greeting by calling "Miss!" and smiled while saying she dared not receive the honor. But already, a group of diligent servant girls was already helping her to a seat.
After greeting Wang Shi, Sang Wan stood at a side to serve and to observe. While listening to Wang Shi and Nanny Li's relaxed conversation that was occasionally filled with jokes, Sang Wan understood that Shi Fengju's praise was no exaggeration; Nanny Li's presence in this household was definitely special.
"Ageing is a fact that must be accepted," Nanny Li sighed. She gave a glance at Sang Wan and then turned to give Wang Shi a smile. She sighed regretfully and spoke, "The Shi household had such a happy occasion, yet I was unable to attend!"
Wang Shi laughed, "Hai, that's alright. You have to take good care of your body so that you'll be alive when Sang Wan gives birth to a child; you definitely cannot be absent again!"