Chapter 120: Consider Yourself Sensible (Part II)

Su Nanxing spoke with the tone of a seasoned veteran, "Once a man is married, he is no longer his own master."

"Wouldn't it be fine as long as you don't let your wife know?" Su Fang found it incredibly difficult to suppress his laughter.

Seeing Su Fang’s strange expression, Su Nanxing suddenly felt an ominous premonition and immediately retorted, "Is concealment the conduct of a true gentleman?"

Su Fang resorted to his usual shameless tactics, "Seventeenth brother, I’ve barely wandered beyond the imperial city and haven’t been anywhere else. Just take me to see it, won't you?"

"No, absolutely not." Su Nanxing felt that something was increasingly off and added, "Once you're married, you should stay home and properly keep your wife company. Let alone pleasure houses, you shouldn't even spare more than a glance for women on the street."

Upon hearing this, Tao Ming realized that Su Nanxing had likely become suspicious. She rose and quietly walked to the stairs, then descended with a normal, rhythmic gait, feigning ignorance as she said to them, "Aren't you two going to sleep yet?"

Su Nanxing coughed and replied, "Just chatting with my nineteenth brother for a while."

Tao Ming curled her lips, walked to the table, and peered down at the chessboard. It was a board covered in squares, laid out with pieces shaped like various birds and beasts. She asked, "What is this?"

"Bird and Beast Chess." Su Nanxing zealously pulled Tao Ming onto his lap and began fiddling with the pieces to explain the rules.

After listening for a while, Tao Ming noticed Su Fang wearing an expression that suggested he was waiting for a good show. She smiled and said, "Nineteenth brother, look, Ruanruan, Nuonuo, and I have been back for quite some time now, yet I haven't seen you present a welcome gift."

Su Fang had been waiting for Tao Ming to discipline Su Nanxing. Hearing this, he quickly produced three small boxes and placed them on the table. "Sister-in-law, I had them prepared long ago."

Tao Ming opened the boxes one by one. There were two pale green longevity locks that looked like they were carved from wood, and a pair of jade bracelets. They seemed decent enough, so she picked up a longevity lock and asked, "Husband, what material is this?"

Su Nanxing was drumming his fingers, unsure if Tao Ming had actually heard their previous conversation. He glanced at the lock and replied, "This is Bilo wood."

"Is it valuable?" Tao Ming looked at Su Fang, thinking to herself, *So you want to play games? Let’s see how I handle you.*

Su Nanxing immediately realized that Tao Ming had indeed overheard them. He silently offered a prayer for Su Fang in his heart—*Nineteenth brother, I can’t save you; you’re about to take a heavy hit.* He frowned and replied, "Wife, this is a gesture of kindness from nineteenth brother; how can it be measured in money?"

"So, it’s worthless then." Tao Ming was very satisfied with Su Nanxing’s cooperation.

Su Fang was stunned. This didn't seem right—shouldn't his sister-in-law be pulling his seventeenth brother's ear and lecturing him right now?

He then heard Tao Ming continue, "Nineteenth brother, look, I’m planning to take you to visit the otherworld; be a bit more generous."

At this moment, Su Fang couldn't determine if Su Nanxing knew he had set a trap for him. He thought, *Sister-in-law, have you no conscience, protecting the seventeenth brother like this?*

Gritting his teeth, he said, "Sister-in-law, whatever you want, if I have it, I will never refuse."

"Do you have Cold Gold?" Tao Ming only knew a few things, so she picked the most expensive one she could think of.

Su Fang’s heart twitched. Trembling, he brought out a piece of Cold Gold about the size of a fist and placed it on the table. "Sister-in-law, this is all the Cold Gold I have. I’ve never been able to bear using it, but since you want it, I’ll give it to you."

Tao Ming picked up the Cold Gold and tossed it in her hand. "Then I’ll accept it on behalf of Ruanruan and Nuonuo; it’s perfect for making them headpieces. Don't worry, if I return to the otherworld, I will definitely bring you along."

Su Fang said with a mournful face, "I’m going to sleep now."

As he rose to go upstairs, Tao Ming added, "There are plenty of empty rooms upstairs, but there are no beds."

Su Fang forced a smile. "No need to trouble yourself, sister-in-law, I brought my own bed." With that, he hurried upstairs, intending to find a room and have a quiet moment.

Once Su Fang was gone, Tao Ming shoved the Cold Gold into Su Nanxing’s hand. "Make a pair of hair accessories for Ruanruan and Nuonuo each. They must be able to stay firmly fixed in their hair, and don't forget to engrave defensive arrays on them."

Su Nanxing accepted the Cold Gold, hugged Tao Ming around the waist from behind, and whispered softly, "Wife, let’s go to sleep too."

Tao Ming pulled his hands away, smiling brightly. "I’m going to sleep. I’ll leave the hard work to you—hurry and finish the accessories so they can wear them as soon as they wake up."

Su Nanxing knew that Tao Ming had likely heard the entire conversation. He begged for mercy, "Wife, I was wrong. I was just bragging earlier."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Tao Ming blinked her watery eyes, looking completely bewildered.

"Wife, I truly am sorry."

"Oh my, I’m sleepy. You hurry up and make those accessories; you absolutely cannot let them down. I’m going to bed." Tao Ming shot him a charming glance and walked lightly up the stairs.

Su Nanxing watched her retreating figure, feeling incredibly depressed.

...

Tao Ming lay between the two little ones, closed her eyes, and quickly fell asleep.

Su Nanxing snuck into the bedroom, saw the three of them sprawled out like the character "large" (大) and taking up the entire bed, then retreated quietly. He searched around before standing still and knocking on a door.

Su Fang was lying on the bed he had brought, filled with regret. Why couldn't he learn his lesson? He had already seen this on the mountain road—knowing full well that his sister-in-law would protect his seventeenth brother, why did he let his mind be clouded by the desire to see her discipline him?

Hearing the knock, he felt strange—who could be knocking on his door?

Su Fang opened the door sluggishly and saw Su Nanxing standing outside with a dark expression. He instinctively wanted to close the door, but Su Nanxing pushed against it and said gloomily, "I wonder how much your strength has progressed lately? How about we spar?"

"Seventeenth brother, you are my own brother; spare me, please." Su Fang felt his calves cramping. Among the younger generation of the Su family, Su Nanxing had always been the best fighter; sparring with him was pure idiocy.

"Su Fang, I like to think I’ve treated you well. Why did you set me up like that?" Su Nanxing was truly furious. *You’re my own brother, is it appropriate to sabotage your brother like this?*

Su Fang hid behind the door, pushing hard. "You might not believe me, but I really didn't realize sister-in-law was there."

"My wife won't let me into bed now, and I have nowhere to sleep, so don't think you'll be sleeping either." With a slight shove from Su Nanxing, Su Fang was pinned against the wall by the door.

Su Fang held his hands against his chest to keep the door from hitting his face, and replied cautiously, "I brought extra beds; I’ll give you one."

"Fine, come help me. I need to get this done before my wife wakes up." Su Nanxing stepped into the room, saw that it contained a table, two chairs, and a bed, pulled up a chair to sit, and set the Cold Gold on the table.

Su Fang peeked out from behind the door and, seeing that Su Nanxing no longer seemed intent on pursuing the matter, let out a sigh of relief. He closed the door, walked over, sat down, and looked at the Cold Gold on the table, his heart aching. "Seventeenth brother, you have so many treasures in your private vault; can you give this Cold Gold back to me?"

"The key to the private vault has already been turned over to my wife. Right now, I’m so poor I only have my pocket money left." Su Nanxing examined the Cold Gold, pondering what to make.

Su Fang thought to himself, *Are you two conspiring to swindle things out of me?*

He gathered his courage and asked, "Now that sister-in-law is asleep, is it true that the Drunken Dream Pavilion you mentioned has so many beauties?"

"That goes without saying; did you think I was just spouting nonsense?" Su Nanxing glared at him irritably.

Su Fang thought, *Let me extract a bit more info so I can report it to my sister-in-law.* His eyes gleaming, he continued, "Then, have you ever spent a night of passion with any of those beauties?"