Aerial Rain
Translating Web Novel

GNU Ch.17 Part 3 – Displeased (III)

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Cheng Yumo was restless, but in Jingyong marquis manor, Huo Xue-shi treated Huo Changyuan words perfunctorily and secretly inquiring about unmarried daughters from other prestigious families.

Cheng family’s daughters weren’t the only girls left in this world. Couldn’t she find a daughter-in-law worthy of her son? Cheng Yumo’s father wasn’t the heir of Yichun marquis manor. As soon as the current Marquis passed, the title would belong to her uncle. What did it have to do with her family? They would have been branched out. Moreover, her father’s official position wasn’t high, and his ability was also mediocre. That kind of family’s daughter, dared even to seduce Changyuan. Huo Xue-shi was reluctant to choose her as a daughter-in-law.

Huo Changyuan occasionally asked, but Huo Xue-shi simply answered perfunctorily and taking her time. In private, she was choosing other people.

Cheng Yujin had no intention to pay any more attention to the Huo family and Cheng Yumo’s affairs. To her, Huo Changyuan was no different than a dead person. Her eyes were already aiming for the next husband candidate, and she also had the important task of embroidering the screen. She has practiced copying Cheng Yuanjing’s handwriting for half a month. Yesterday Cheng Yuanjing finally gave his approval. Cheng Yujin asked her servant girl to take out her embroidery frame and prepared to start the embroidery in a few days.

This task was not trivial. Cheng Yujin’s embroidering skill was excellent, but she still practiced for several days to ensure that she could copy Cheng Yuanjing’s style perfectly before carefully making the first stitch.

The screen Yichun marquis manor was going to send for the Emperor’s longevity feast wasn’t large. It was a small table screen. Cheng Yujin took one part she had embroidered and showed it to Cheng Yuanjing. Cheng Yuanjing saw it and raised his eyebrows in surprise: “Are you going to embroider it yourself?”

“Of course.” Cheng Yujin understood Cheng Yuanjing’s surprise. Usually, when a person from a prestigious household was going to ‘personally’ do something; in fact, they simply gave orders and supervising. The ones who actually moved their hands and feet were the subordinates. Needlework was tedious and hard. A pampered young miss was even more unable to bear it. Even the first meeting gift sent to the husband’s family was usually done by servant girls with good embroidery skills. When the master only made one or two stitches, it was enough to claim it as her own.

Old Master Cheng obviously had the same intention. So, no wonder Cheng Yuanjing was surprised when knowing that Cheng Yujin actually moved the needle herself.

Cheng Yujin smiled: “Since this work is going to bear my name, I must do the best. I’m not at ease to leave it to the outside embroiderers, better do it by myself.”

Cheng Yuanjing chuckled lightly. This girl was really confident. He glanced at Cheng Yujin, opened the semi-finished product, and took a look. He didn’t have high expectations. Cheng Yujin was still young, yet she had so many skills and tried her hands on almost anything. In this case, how good her needlework would be?

But when Cheng Yuanjing touched the embroidery, there was a trace of surprise in his eyes: “Double-sided embroidery?”

“Yes.” Cheng Yujin’s smile widened, “To be precise, double-sided embroidery with different patterns.”

Cheng Yuanjing had heard about double-sided embroidery with different patterns before. The embroiderer would stitch the patterns for both the back and front sides at the same time. There wouldn’t be any visible thread ends on either side, which was why it called double-sided embroidery. Double-sided embroidery with different patterns, however, was even more impressive. Since the patterns on the front were different than the back, the difficulty was increased several folds.

Cheng Yujin amazed Cheng Yuanjing. Double-sided embroidery required excellent ability with needles that usually could only be gained after decades of experience. Due to its extreme difficulty, only a handful of double-sided embroidery products were available in the market. Most of them were sent to the palace as tributes, making it even more scarce. But double-sided embroidery with different patterns was on a whole different level. It could be called the highest embroidery technique, and purely based on talent. It wasn’t something that could be mastered simply by stacking years after years of experience, no matter how long. However, considering Cheng Yujin’s young age, seeing her able to do this kind of extreme embroidery was beyond incredible.

Cheng Yuanjing looked at Cheng Yujin for a moment and said, “No wonder.”

No wonder she dared to claim her own embroidery to be the best. Sure enough, she had the skill to be confident.

Cheng Yujin didn’t understand: “What?”

Cheng Yuanjing never repeated his words. He didn’t answer, and suddenly became a little curious: “How did you learn double-sided embroidery?”

“Ninth Uncle probably forgot, my maternal grandfather’s fief is in Jiangnan1. I was taught by the embroiderer master carefully selected by my maternal grandfather for my mother’s dowry when she was married into the capital.”

Cheng Yuanjing had some impression about Ning Wang, who had been a hereditary prince in a fiefdom in Jiangnan for many years. The embroiderers he gave to his di daughter must be of the highest skill. At the age of fourteen, Cheng Yujin had mastered the most powerful needle skill that a professional embroiderer did for a living. Looking at her, she probably already even more skilled than her needlework master.

Cheng Yuanjing asked: “Why no one ever mentioned your double-sided embroidery?”

Based on Cheng Yujin’s calculative mind, she must have learned it to gain people’s recognition.

“That won’t do. If everyone knows that I can do double-sided embroidery, wouldn’t they all come to me? I don’t have a mother to stop them, why should I do things that benefit others and make myself tired.”

Cheng Yuanjing paused for a moment and smiled. Sure enough, she was still her. It wasn’t that she didn’t calculate, but her calculation was bigger.

People like her could live well no matter who she marries in the future. Seeing just one of her work already made him surprised. Wouldn’t her future husband feel surprisingly happy after knowing that she can do double-sided embroidery?

This thought somehow made Cheng Yuanjing a bit displeased.

 

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  1. Jiangnan: Geographic area in China referring to lands immediately to the south of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River.

11 thoughts on “GNU Ch.17 Part 3 – Displeased (III)”

  1. Uh-oh! Cheng Yumo’s marriage may not be such a bed of roses as she envisions now… In their previous life Cheng Yujin bore the brunt of the mother-in-law’s disdain, while Cheng Yumo had it easy. But now even Cheng Yumo isn’t good enough for Huo Xue-shi’s precious son.
    Thank you for the translation <3
    P.S. I bet Cheng Yujin is the only woman who can make Cheng Yuanjing experience such mood swings 😉

  2. Yes, Chen Yuanjing, make sure to come up with the right answer since you’re already asking yourself the right question 😃😸.

    How will he delay Yujin’s marriage until he goes back as the crown prince? 🤔

    Thanks for the update!

  3. Thank you for the update! Loving this couple’s interactions. I can see how they are compatible with each other.

  4. 9th Uncle, why do you ask so many unnecessary questions? Why are you interested in this young 14 year old niece?

    1. Cuz having such a skill at 14 is unbelievable.

      Cuz he just noticed how hard she’s been working and no one has recognized it and she herself deliberately didn’t show her taken cuz she knows no one will protect her and she’ll be used.

      Cuz they’re in ancient fucking China where a 60 year old man can have various 13-15 year old concubines.

      Cuz they’re only really 4 years apart and clearly the girl is no ordinary 14 year old and has had an incredible rough life devoid of love shape her into a mature young lady that can set her emotions aside and as someone in the same age group that is also talented will be interested in her.

      Are we reading the same thing here sweetheart? Everything okay up there? Leaving aside that I don’t particularly think a 4 year difference is much, especially considering the era and their circumstances, I don’t think you should be reading a historical piece where there are much worse situations if you’re crying about this and definitely wanted to write pedo, which he’s not.

  5. No, men then were exceptionally petty, I wouldn’t be surprised if she was kept as just a trophy wife, change from one case to another and still just be a decoration and whenever she tried something be belittled and controlled.

  6. I’m cackling, he’s stealing such a good prize. Ninth Uncle you’ll be winning! I just looked up some double side embroidery and it’s super cool I even saw one with different patterns (one side a dog the other a monkey) and they were so lifelike. Yujin is too amazing.

  7. I really cant’t get it why Cheng Yu mo still after Huo marquis after being reborn.
    She is just obsessed of the fact that she was a second wife anyhow…
    If she was smart, she should have been glad that she had a chance to avoid marrying into Huo household.
    Her husband might love her but he is a mama boy and her mother in law is extremely horrible, an ingrate who doesn’t even know to feel grateful that her son’s life was rescued, and she wouldn’t have a son anymore if CYM didn’t sacrifice her chastity to save him and CYJ didn’t find him on time to give him shelter.
    Added to it a scheming delusional servant favored by the mother in law.
    Her married life will never be a peaceful one.

  8. It’s undeniable, our mc is a catch, characters like is usually a pretty doll side character who somehow gets outshine cause that’s the ‘typical’ standard but here our mc is not a showy different from other girls but you can just tell she’s on a different level, the ml is really the only one deserving of her, and the fact that both of them didn’t get the chance to be a proper child and matured early

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