Cultivation Begins with Caring for Sister-in-law-Chapter 522: The Stunning Yue Ruyan

The next day, at Duke An’s Mansion, in the courtyard where Chu Juan resided.

Amidst the canopy, Chen Mo lay asleep with his eyes closed. Possibly due to the months spent in the military, the long journey, and busy military duties, along with the crude conditions in the army, his previous sleep quality wasn’t good.

Upon returning, lying on the broad bed surrounded by aromatic incense, accompanied by a beauty, with a soft pillow, Chen Mo had a wonderful sleep.

It was indeed a good sleep, even his dreams were sweet dreams.

He dreamt of a winter scene where the room was cold, yet there was no firewood or cotton quilt for warmth. Instead, it was Mi’Er, An Niang, and the others who used their bodies to keep him warm, wrapping him in a realm of tenderness.

On the pillow, Chen Mo frowned slightly, feeling the urge to urinate, and directly woke up. He turned his head in confusion, noticing Chu Juan was no longer beside him. Looking down again...

Chen Mo was startled.

It turned out it wasn’t an urge to urinate at all.

Rustling sounds...

Chu Juan emerged from the bedding, her hair disheveled, her delicate eyes blinked: "Husband, you... are awake."

"Juan’Er, what are you doing?" Chen Mo raised his eyebrows.

"I knew you were considerate of me last night, husband, otherwise you wouldn’t be so energetic this morning, so..." Chu Juan’s face turned red, it was her first time being so proactive...

Chen Mo gently pinched her icy smooth cheek, then lightly patted her jade-like back.

Chu Juan immediately understood, shy yet delighted, she turned her back, placing her elbows and knees on the bed...

...

A quarter of an hour later, the voice of Chu Juan’s maid came from outside: "Madam, the Grand Dowager calls you to have a meal."

The maid was still unaware that Chen Mo was in Chu Juan’s room.

"I... I know." Chu Juan’s voice was somewhat intermittent.

...

By the time Chu Juan went over with Chen Mo, two quarters of an hour had already passed. Yi Shiyin, sitting next to Han Anniang, saw that Chu Juan came over with her husband and couldn’t help but let out a cold snort, muttering lightly: "Vixen."

Han Anniang next to her: "???"

Han Anniang really thought she heard wrong because she couldn’t fathom how the obedient girl Xiaolu could call someone a vixen.

"I was just saying how come Juan’Er hasn’t arrived yet when it turns out husband spent the night at Juan’Er’s." Wu Mi said with a smile.

Chu Juan nodded shyly and sat down in the empty seat at the round table. The maid beside her hurriedly brought over a bowl and chopsticks.

Breakfast was meat porridge, eggs, and goat milk, along with a plate of braised meat.

Chen Mo sat at the head of the table next to Wu Mi, peeling an egg, and his gaze landed on Yi Shiyin, who was pouting and seemed upset, saying, "Xiaolu, what’s the matter? Why do you look so unhappy?"

"Hmph." Yi Shiyin snorted coldly, turned her head, and ignored Chen Mo.

Chu Juan understood the reason and quickly apologized to Yi Shiyin: "Sister Xiaolu, I’m sorry. I just missed husband so much and had something to tell him. Last night wasn’t intentional."

Hearing this, Chen Mo also realized why she was upset. He placed the peeled egg into Yi Shiyin’s bowl and teased, "Xiaolu, you’re getting jealous? Not bad, not bad. Tonight, I’ll come to your place first. Better wash up nicely."

Wu Mi, Han Anniang, and the others blushed and then covered their mouths with laughter.

Yi Shiyin was instantly embarrassed to no end, wishing she could fall into the space under the table, standing up with a pout and stomping, saying: "I’m not jealous."

Xiaolu’s sulkiness came and went quickly. After the teasing, she no longer minded Chu Juan, and as she ate the egg Chen Mo placed in her bowl, a smile reappeared on her face.

Amidst the laughter, Yue Ruyan walked in from outside the hall.

Today, she did not wear a long skirt or a brocade robe but men’s attire, and her outfit was rather "peculiar," with no one in the South usually dressing like that.

Her upper body wore a white long-sleeved short top exposing her midriff and collarbone, and the clothes were open, revealing the black and red undergarments inside.

The contrast of red with black and white made the entire garment more striking, with silver patterns embroidered on the cuffs, complementing the white.

The lower part was a pair of black loose trousers, decorated with gold-stitched auspicious beast patterns, overall accentuating a sense of mystery and nobility.

This outfit of Yue Ruyan gave her both the gallant appeal of a woman and the heroic charm of a man.

Longyou, as part of the western region of the Great Song Dynasty, was a small nation of the Western Rong four hundred years ago, and the Yuezhi Clan as the royal family of that time, naturally, their customs and culture differed from both the southern and northern Song.

Yue Ruyan’s appearance in this attire immediately drew everyone’s gaze.

"Wow, Sister Ru Yan, your outfit is so beautiful." Among the women, the lively Yi Shiyin exclaimed immediately, walking up to touch and admire Yue Ruyan’s attire.

"No wonder she came from the military, this outfit suits her perfectly," Xiao Yunxi commented.

Even Xia Zhining’s eyes sparkled a bit, Yue Ruyan’s attire perfectly matched her aesthetic.

Facing the intense gazes from everyone, some panic showed on Yue Ruyan’s cool face, a trace of shyness clouding her brows and eyes.

This outfit was what she wore in her boudoir before she began leading the clan and the army.

She couldn’t adapt to yesterday’s attire, so she had someone find her mother overnight to have this outfit sent over.

"Sister Yue Yan has arrived, please have a seat."

After a moment of surprise, Wu Mi quickly invited Yue Ruyan to sit down. Once she was seated, Wu Mi smiled at Chen Mo, saying: "Husband, Sister Ru Yan like this is so captivating even I like her a lot. It seems we should hasten the marriage discussions for Sister Ru Yan."

"This attire is indeed beautiful," Chen Mo’s eyes flashed with surprise.

"Then I shall invite the Grand Dowager over to discuss the marriage after breakfast," Wu Mi said.

Chen Mo nodded.

...

Meanwhile, at the Yue Mansion.

Although the place Chen Mo arranged for the Yue Family in Xiangyang City was a large mansion, in the eyes of the Yue Family, it was still too shabby.

As the local rulers of Longyou, the Yue Family’s residence there couldn’t be called a mansion; it was more akin to a palace.

Now it was like moving from a luxurious estate into an ordinary large flat.

This disparity left them feeling melancholy.

At this moment, Yue Ruyan’s aunts and sisters-in-law gathered in Lady Yue’s room, chatting about the future of the Yuezhi Clan.

"Sister, now that the Jin Xia Barbarians have retreated, can we return to Longyou?" Lady Yue’s sister asked.

She wasn’t bothered by the current situation, but living under someone else’s roof didn’t offer the freedom they had in Longyou.

"We can’t go back," Lady Yue sighed. Although she wasn’t as perceptive as her daughter, the abandonment of tens of thousands of people during the retreat from Longyou and the severe trauma to their army indicated the downfall of the Yue Family’s foundation in Longyou, especially since Ru Yan told her that within the remaining Yue Army, discontent towards the Yuezhi Clan had begun to emerge.

As it stands, the Yuezhi Clan no longer have the capability to return to Longyou and rebuild their past foundation.