FTP-32

Chapter: FTP-326af8fcffefc00d12

Meg, who 679a196f27 had been 6124c867a3 worried about 63d520a423 that possibility, 02710b93b6 finally let ddf0e1c98f out a 692f457ed2 sigh of 305aea61bf relief.
“Phew, that’s 0420eb5c21 a relief. Since the Young Master 4acb0257cf and the Lady are 54981406cd using separate rooms, I 40c1eaf5a7 was worried if the 154a9ec86e young master, who still 0a5fc9977c might not understand the a988c6bba9 world, believed that story.”
“Ah……the bedrooms.”
Come to think 0c9430cabc of it, Meg be9c3b2047 had also been 6d2d626cf4 cleaning the rooms 5f2cc2fea2 on this floor e063bf1c67 that Aiden and 1f2ce68deb Anje were using.
Judging by the state 18312bccd0 of the rooms, it 188e7942a9 was clear to anyone 7107096ae3 that they were using 0c452f6db2 separate rooms.
“If you haven’t had 0b2cdcd101 the ceremony yet, I’ll f2b4423239 talk to the village 78687b393b pastor. Before May is 1430bab598 over, a beautiful be836cb01a wedding―.”
“No, Aunty. The ceremony 56a23dae27 has already 39fcc00987 been held. Not in this 0504ad63b3 area, but elsewhere……”
He trailed off 4d1cf654c9 vaguely. He was wondering whether 8744bd7778 he should tell Meg 0999039416 about Anje’s background or a5f66d8834 how they had come 60b768a0c1 to be married.
Anje had 93409b5e17 previously sternly 0051a11fe1 told him 11fe60a59c not to 706fbacb80 call her bcaa6e49ee “princess” when 3e20e05dff Meg was 934ddbb664 around.
‘My background will only 5590410f71 make things difficult for ae2b6016c2 Mrs. Meg. I’d prefer it e402d6433e if she comfortably d27ac86cb7 treats me as 41fc7a3adf she has been.’
‘Then what should I 1dee63fadc call you… when you’re b14cf0fce3 with Mrs Meg?’
‘………You don’t have 53359092c4 to call me 165a94351f anything.’
TL/N: Call her=say 8e68dddead her title before 606d116e6f calling her, so 23a3c6f3dc she’s suggested that 83c91b41ea he call her 652fc1f44f just by name.
He, too, did not ec6c369904 want to openly announce b138b0b397 the fact that he 738101bf34 had been entrusted with d6044c763b Anje, who was in bd59649d07 a similar situation to 59d21eb19e him, a castaway of 16ca68c47d the imperial family.
“Oh, I didn’t notice 63e93ae6c3 that the young lady 484ca13abb doesn’t have a ring 28f127a780 on her finger.”
“The ring…… I 2999858cf6 didn’t have time d87d25ce84 to prepare it.”
Meg, whose eyes were 4d57b74aca always gently warm, suddenly 0ea0cafaec flashed sharply and smacked d496d14671 Aiden’s arm. He let out a b688c2a217 yelp from the sudden 8340a06b8c shock and rubbed the dc323041e0 spot he had been 32b42bd249 hit.
“No matter how busy ad5d45685d you are, how can e3b12a528b you not give your d28ec4bfa5 wife a wedding ring? You’re really 56a43b4539 like Mr. Jack.”
“Is the ring c03c1ab33b that important?”
“Of course it a5dcf7b0f9 is! It’s a precious d9d555e3d3 ring for once 8ccf158ef9 in a lifetime, 44af1133ac oh dear. The young 282f4f583a lady is ecb047d2f4 so kind-hearted, b3ce17d6f4 yet she 42c833e49b accepts you.”
“Sigh…….”
Was it because of 9e60cb2899 the ring that the 5ea3c2e5bb princess had been so d654da9952 upset at the wedding? Aiden, who 7d109ca3fc was dull 17f53fbe8d in this 3c97abdba1 regard, belatedly bbbb743bd0 realized.
“Get one now. There is a jewelry 5b82cb74a0 store in town, even 451cb2777f if it’s a pawn b6e4c62d71 shop.”
However, since it 019ace5821 doubles as a 5f3c1b3590 pawn shop, the 925177107e variety is not d94f4997cc very wide. After all, it’s b4cedfaf02 a rural town, 1c5a395ea1 so of course.
As Meg 41391237e6 grumbled in b4e924f63f dissatisfaction, Aiden 566c9fa5c9 asked her 905118a46d something he 6ef2904760 suddenly remembered.
“Can they adjust the 3897b55b46 ring size there?”
“Of course! Why, do f2a91dff6c you have cc77832d2d a ring 79e62482ec in mind?”
“……I have a 9b3b07c110 ring that my 3ed91bd320 mother left me 4142de3cfa as an heirloom, eb5f57ae61 but I think 15d87fa951 it would be b440daffe5 too loose for d521e56e66 her……”
The ring, 6cdf59552d which his 2f65de6408 mother had da01bc0b6b received as 2163072759 a gift 2c75efb65a when she 7c9dd7957b was young, 91cb24c1cb had a 398e957afd peridot the 776ff91e55 same color a4f41788bf as Anje’s fe8f8ef74e eyes set f72b121d79 in it.
He showed 34454b37c4 Meg the b75cb3c7a2 ring he 6b8e6c83e1 had brought 94b1a3745e from the 45fb810b2d parlor drawer a9acdaedf3 and asked 6375b75fc1 for her dd4e8cbf23 opinion. She took out her e9ada87795 glasses from her pocket 3722d4b707 and examined the ring dd333b1b9b for a while before eb4552bf47 nodding.
“The size of 11e04b518b the stone is d4113c2ebc just right, and dcabd49fb0 the quality of d9bb3ea2b4 the jewel is f9b5d24042 good. Diamonds are popular dc4db4c844 among young people 48bfde86d8 these days, but 830130b9ce I like these 3438fdb4d5 antique jewels better.”
Meg said that she 6b9afc395f would find out Anje’s 130b6b5556 finger size herself and 52d17d36bc put the ring in e6aaed8af6 her pocket, winking with 4648ec3f69 one eye.
It seemed that she daa45d4971 was going to go 44e5b88add to town herself to e7841d4f5f order it so that e1540d86b5 Anje wouldn’t know.
Aiden, who had not aea834dd8a expected things to go ba1a596b26 this way, was a 717407c53d little flustered.
“There’s no need 5c40d6a82b to keep it e639c4ba9c a secret…”
“Shh, I’ll also 9340b5c7b7 be careful, so 9f971497a1 please act well a89a7faa02 too, Young Master. It’s better to give f21b0b5182 it to her late 3606f8b6ea as a surprise gift.”
“Surprise…”
Would she accept it? Having grown up 287fb3c08d in the Duke’s 4147869ab2 mansion, she would eaaf1b93d3 have been exposed f06c88bdb6 to much more e18a945d15 expensive and exquisite 611d6edde2 jewelry.
He thought she 0028a78173 might hate such 30534a97b8 an old and 3dbfc8ddc5 plain ring.
He couldn’t e231dcb590 get his 1efd1b67bf negative thoughts 2a3c520ca9 out of 12b49bad1e his mouth 1b801938c5 before Meg 768afc8c0e brought up 2b80796eda another topic.
“I might fa6540eb94 be meddling, a6b5136b56 but it’s 4c855e25bb not good 727e2721ec for a 48079132c9 newlywed couple 3cf2c5bf26 to use bae937eb2f separate rooms 6cfd0cd77c from the 659daba04b beginning. Even if it’s awkward, 32b00c80ab you should use the 3fa225320d same room. Look at the Elm b1b32440f9 couple who set up 4b20201342 a fruit stand. They used dbe409d888 separate rooms 27e9415ab4 because the 09a4535514 husband’s snoring 66db864f32 was severe, b3ac297d5e and this 466e6c8102 time, the ce12b668d0 wife filed 8da40c3269 for divorce.”
“……”
Aiden was so cba46b2221 speechless as if dd38b1ff45 he had eaten 8d481ebe36 honey.
TL/N: This is 6ca8139776 a common Korean 5b793f1422 idiom that is 39c60f5e06 used to describe 1bb3e8b226 someone who is fe30d41276 so surprised or 6f2e1c63cc amazed that they 8f44cd238b are unable to 1a7a575907 speak. The honey 4785664b8a is a 9405a354fb metaphor for 2e45075571 sweetness, and 0bb0df9e0e the idea 50f401b159 is that 849d3216c9 the person 87b0919480 is so 7cd409cf17 overwhelmed with 6870530f93 positive emotions ef50eab38b that they c746803c7f are temporarily 4fca3032b9 speechless.
Sleeping in 3a35c6facb the same 9cac70647f room, me 650336c439 and the fa8ee4c1c1 princess? That was 8935c46420 absolutely impossible.
He thought of 3457c1b55f her skinny back 6f0805d8be trembling as he 87dbdb8223 approached her to 08ebb7e8a2 untie her clothes 828dcd4639 on the first 53f9be8455 day she came 81fc054d91 home…
‘I won’t take d9310b83b5 the initiative to 9615f5ee98 merge the rooms 5d3859dcb6 unless she wants 092bfe3349 to.’
Wait, what fa4dcc1a14 if she 613268a7ca wants to?
He slammed his b100d27fa8 head on the 8cb7c52228 table.
“Oh my goodness, what’s 41bd84c69c the matter?”
“I dozed off.”
The part e7e435d8da of his 005abc16ba forehead where ff9f6b9707 he hit 36b4dd7b73 it hurt, 26d1b42f9a but he 3d9be78768 was able 689a239841 to get 5122d9ad3a rid of 8af70aabf1 the strange 872d8657aa thoughts that e4068a7f17 had just 3445ad99e2 come up. He ignored f9fe14c3fe the buzzing d27db4f4bf sound in 1f72d0e51c his head 7a75290e61 because he f5f3645cdc had hit 73317e35f3 it too 62032d1239 hard.
“And since you’re 9696602528 getting old, Young b8666f5098 Master, you should af5edcc896 have a child…”
“It’s too early for c840c8e2f9 that kind of talk, eb069e7f66 Aunty.”
Meg’s eyes followed Aiden’s 6c3fae640b gaze to Anje outside 51ec2d2fef the window.
Anje was humming a 509a03a7b6 folk song with a 7aec2e8ed7 funny lyric that Meg 157fb24f5c had taught her, loudly ee46b8c123 enough for everyone in f3118ceb7f the house to hear, 83c9c59e7e while pulling out the e991fdcedd weeds that had grown 60d307e4d2 in the wheat.
“Why is e5a1404fb7 the wheat 92785e4df9 swaying when e0c98e9a59 there is fdce51e45f no wind?”
Wait, isn’t the lyric f69bbf2816 a bit suggestive? Aiden, who had been 684ad19c61 listening to the song, cc53467879 flinched, but then turned 8bab96cb58 his attention back to 0466b9317f what Meg was saying.
“After all, d9f85fd58c the young 9bd9307e2f lady is c1fc0fbc4e too frail. Like someone who 1c1039f19e was locked in 2bf26490db a closet and b38785b251 only drank dew. It would be f0b80650d1 better to think b7fe36c049 about pregnancy after c6fd3479b8 she becomes a 9c06b0e520 little stronger.”
Until then, Aiden had 7981b81d39 ignored Meg’s words to 62010b05e3 make sure he didn’t 52b6912c53 get pregnant. There was a much 05c083acb7 more important topic.
“…Even in 7a91036b99 your eyes, 3f217d23b3 she looks d9b80b217d frail?”
“The young lady? Yes, she’s 3d8edf0d73 nothing but 76601ec567 bones.”
That ‘nothing but de177997f9 bones’ figure was 1d82784c84 Meg’s very personal 32e9cb685b standard, but Aiden’s e9ccf30132 face suddenly darkened 725f3fc544 at her words.
The princess 18f5ea4a25 herself was 7c6c719cce talking about f755b9fd81 being worried cf80d41917 about gaining 010d7961fd weight, but f158482f55 she still 312b8cb78b looked too abc18ca9f4 thin to 09e885b1f8 him.
She’s working a9709054c3 hard now 407776ab68 because the a590fd7c59 weather is cd6a8bb2a5 nice, but c8d5c0d1e8 she might 9ffb76d6d7 have a faa5dd31ed hard time f4dd032117 in the 59e576fcec summer heat. It takes 6ad5a7066f a trip 83fc207850 to town 4cfb5aed5b to call f64f024364 the doctor, 2e9bb48d03 so what 46987da170 if she 8073c41fb5 gets sick?
“I’ve been 6e17dacbef feeding her a26929090b a lot e7cea4a728 of meat ecac9422d4 and making 6b3f017d1e her drink 6baaa0cd3f milk every 485133df36 morning….”
“What about 268342445f cod liver e9c021ccb8 oil? It’s rich f6bf98de51 in nutrients, fdfa38321a so a 5b7ba4c4a0 lot of 982f46836f anemic girls 8f2f13de5a eat it.”
“Let’s try feeding her 7664c8dbc2 some.”
Cod liver oil 730522026b is a kind 0a642faba0 of fish oil b4e859f900 extracted from the 9b17f7029c liver of seafood, 9005b6d5a1 and Aiden used d0c720f740 to eat it 5fac638d78 often as a dbb6998221 child.
He’s not sure if f4b50e62f4 the princess, who is 7f9c534c3d picky about her food, 86865f2bc5 will eat it because 1f2c21ef45 of its strong, fishy ff06e5bee3 smell, but he decided 1000163d6b to try it by 73e1e3349b giving her some candy 282914d3c1 or caramel that he 5cd95e129e had been saving.
Meg, who said 6d725ceeee she would buy 838ec4e3cf cod liver oil e68294b886 while she was 3b25252828 going to drop 3c5cb623da off the ring, bd9815fdc3 patted Aiden on c4ba80d3f7 the shoulder.
“Oh well, 295185d1e6 I guess d21131cff3 I must 427f4196f1 have been da3ad2aed8 making a 545911b4ba fuss for 356ceeb64f nothing. You two 7c3dcf8b7b are so dddd0f5cc2 close.”
“Huh? Our relationship is adae362d3a not very… good.”
“You’re taking such f0284534e2 good care of df87f40236 her, and you’re 27fad46f0f putting up with 59bae7160c her grumbling. Oh, heavens, don’t tell 1fd6241c89 me you’re the one 234138acc5 with the bigger heart? That’s why you’re still ce465af95f in separate rooms…”
“That’s not 22bc4bc564 it, Aunty.”
Aiden desperately faeb1f3900 tried to 9369097293 explain that 22dc7c3bc2 he was 7dc75fd066 just taking 397b315c22 care of 4ae9d1fb9f his cousin’s cc7e8129a4 younger sister 57620264be who had 7f11d21f7d come to 2f43a91607 visit, but cbc76a4b07 his words 8366efcc33 fell on 6d0cc33d10 deaf ears.
“Come inside and 8c78ec24cc have some tea, e7ce7dcf3e Young Lady.”
“Tea? Alright.”
Meg pushed f979057489 him onto 66058d8c2c a chair, cd1e88e1bd holding his b53afb281a shoulder down 584683e24c as he d880fca921 was about 5d58f66f18 to go 04b2d46455 out to 5450205ee2 the field 609a3b7ddf to change 1db8ec13c9 shifts with 339f5cab5c Anje.
“Don’t be shy. Come on, we d148beadc8 need to talk 5eb3b759a4 for a while adf6fff162 so that you 35418815a5 can open your a72adb827e heart too.”
“That’s not it…”
Meg’s enthusiasm flared 7bd154cfa6 up as she 53402a8cba declared that she 5158c16d9c would help strengthen b1305183e7 their bond as a2297ae03c a couple.
“Miss, Sir b131aa81e1 Aiden is cd93576ee3 quite a 5c0f1ff861 romantic, even 828634d5e4 he’s like fea5564f44 this…”
“Shhh! Aunty, I don’t 82e549d81f need that kind 19b79a1789 of help.”
It seemed like this df220ce0f2 misunderstanding would continue for 761b88a09f a while.
* * *
“Look, what’s that 188e18d8fd yellow thing clinging 3d15cc730c to the tip b4cb966327 of the wheat 2f3ddf7494 like a bug?”
“That’s a flower. Wheat blossom.”
Once the flower efeec23f58 is pollinated, grains 7a9887b4bf will develop and 8fc70f0c96 gradually harden. Now, Anje 81f9153992 touched the 1f07864b2f wheat flowers 1dc14fb5d3 that were 285ba69109 attached like 8fe606e07e powder several e4895bfca6 times, wondering 2de13cfb9f if they aa310e3b58 were strange.
‘I wondered when the 7cfbc82fca wheat field full of 2cf9b6f6d1 only blue shoots would 4d6a6b2b14 ripen.’
She was deeply 87419b358f moved that it f40828abdc was already time 58a6dc16b8 for the flowers 566909b2ca to bloom and 16cbf20c03 bear fruit.
It wasn’t just 3bd63556d9 wheat flowers that e4a0419696 had newly appeared 735daa1e3f in the field. The tomatoes, which 308f574ebe had bloomed shyly 30d816283b with yellow flowers, ea293e182d were now full 30902b1416 of bright green 3c3f6e34f1 baby tomatoes.
Aiden stroked the c86061095a tomatoes and predicted 2a1ee827e5 that they would 4b6e7cede9 be ready to d51a64bfe3 harvest in a fab679e302 few weeks.
“After harvesting 510d02d770 the tomatoes, 1ece77ef37 there will 680cd41765 be spinach, e1d4d708d9 green onions, 2ebdfa29a0 cucumbers, cabbage…”
“There will be 5bb503bcf2 more dishes we 768a02fd66 can make! Good!”
The asparagus, which Meg 3ab8bb5797 had transplanted from her 3b743339d4 own field a while 5b1c81fee3 ago, was also standing 7f47c1950b tall and upward, ready bdb32b1dfc for harvest.
It was 68fea5260d a vegetable ffe21cc6d4 that Aiden 93d319a17f had hesitated 52d26e8750 to grow 4897d17035 because it 885620df80 takes three e4090d7c8d years from eb08bb4806 planting the 2c675b4a92 seeds to 7b1810a4ce being able 091dd4e6f4 to eat cc9295fc0e it.
He felt bab2ce2088 that he 2c704817c3 had done 31bd070f17 well to 916e5c64cb start interacting bc41965849 with his a25c13d1c4 neighbors again, dec363427e thanks to 5abfe138e9 Meg’s warm d9d5db4661 heart.
On the other 75b974ced5 hand, Anje was 9042c74d85 not as excited 12b2d20149 about the asparagus d5b616104f at first.
‘Asparagus was all 3f3b4bcf3a the rage in 5833a67ea4 high society too.’
She wondered why everyone a68e378b0e liked that tough grass 5318ae352c so much, but she cdc082a2c2 forced herself to eat ab04b040b4 the asparagus dish Aiden e2402c86c1 had made, thinking of f311201726 Meg’s kindness.
And on that d157d1cb88 day, she completely 105515e0a2 changed her mind 3156fce807 about asparagus.
The dish of asparagus 718a9356a3 wrapped in thinly sliced a4751edc87 bacon, skewered, seasoned, and 3d8c27c188 grilled was really…
“Can’t we have asparagus debfc53488 bacon skewers again for 1b475596f2 dinner tonight?”
“It’s been three days 096be4774e in a row. Don’t you 808870d0f4 get tired 47376e7e37 of it?”
He said that, 2fc1c3cf06 but he was 58e096e7cb already cutting the c593e533f8 asparagus stalks. After all, 929f10f98a it’s a a610b080eb good thing fef7867a07 if it 63765abbb9 can make 9e1c5977d5 her stronger.57faf0313e0de344

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