Now that they had a carriage at home, bringing more things wouldn't tire them out like the first time when they had to walk.
This time, Jewel directly took a big sack of premium rice and white flour from home and packed half of it. She also brought along plenty of brown sugar and eggs. That should be enough for her mother-in-law to enjoy sweet porridge for a while. Eggs were rare in farming households and could be stir-fried with all sorts of dishes.
Their usual cloud-patterned wooden carriage moved slowly along the country road, the horse's hooves softly kicking up a trail of dust behind them.
Jewel casually looked up and noticed the same spot where her little husband had tripped last time—right by the old tree on the roadside, still standing strong under sun and wind.
As they entered Dongying Village, the same group of men and young fellows were still chatting under the big willow tree at the entrance, just like last time when Jewel had come back.
Last time, Uncle Chen had been sitting on a big rock sewing shoes. This time, he was already working on the upper part of the shoe, showing his progress.
Carriages were rare in the village, especially such a beautiful and spacious one. Even the carvings on the side looked more elegant than the embroidery on their own scarves. The deep red wood shone softly under the sun, as if it had been polished.
Naturally, everyone got curious and wanted to know who was riding in that luxurious carriage.
Uncle Chen squinted at the driver and thought she looked familiar. As the carriage drew closer, he recognized her—it was that girl from the Xie family he'd seen a few days ago. Was Xavi in the carriage?
Probably…
But didn't Jewel and Xavi just get married? Why were they already back at her in-laws'?
Did Xavi do something wrong and make Jewel unhappy?
Uncle Chen started to worry. Xavi was always well-behaved. It didn't make sense that he would upset his wife right after getting married.
Xavi lifted the curtain, his delicate face appearing through the carriage window. The villagers watching at the entrance instantly started guessing what was going on again.
"Did the Xie family girl get upset with him?"
"Yeah, why is she already sending him back home after just a few days?"
To be fair, in this place, husbands who just got married didn't often return to their family homes so soon—and especially not with their wife.
The last time they saw a couple do that, it was because the wife was planning to divorce her husband.
Jewel noticed the odd looks from everyone at the entrance. Why were they staring at her and Xavi like that?
As the carriage rolled closer, she finally heard the murmuring. It left her speechless.
Ah… now she understood that saying, "No one can escape the mouths of gossiping villagers."
Uncle Chen, who had greeted her last time, stepped forward again and asked seriously, "Jewel, why are you bringing Xavi back this time?"
Jewel answered loudly and clearly, wanting everyone under the tree to hear the truth, "Uncle Chen, my mother-in-law hasn't been feeling well lately, so I brought my husband back to visit her more often. I also brought some good food to help her recover."
She didn't hide anything. Better to clear it up now than let rumors spread and twist the story into something ridiculous.
Uncle Chen relaxed after hearing that and quickly said, "Oh, I see. Well, go on in. Xavia is at home too. She called the doctor for your mother-in-law yesterday. Said she was feeling better today."
Jewel nodded, said goodbye, and headed into the village.
What she didn't know was that the gossip at the village entrance quickly shifted topics—from "Did Xavi anger his wife?" to "That Xie family carriage must have cost a fortune. When did they get rich?"
Then it turned into, "Now that Jewel's wealthy, how many concubines will she take? Will she follow those rich men who marry lots of husbands? How many will she bring in? When will she start?"
…
Once inside Xavi's house, Jewel helped Xavia unload the carriage.
Xavia carried a sack of rice into the kitchen and couldn't help laughing.
"Are you… trying to lift us out of poverty?"
Jewel suddenly remembered a video she had seen back in the modern world. A guy asked his girlfriend what gift he should bring when visiting her family for New Year. She said something practical. So he brought a bucket of cooking oil, 50 kg of flour, and 10 kg of pork. Her dad looked at him and said, "Young man, are you here to help us out of poverty?"
Yeah… that felt just like this moment.
Jewel smiled awkwardly. "I wasn't sure what to bring, so I just grabbed some stuff from home. Thought it'd be nice for Mother to have more porridge to help her recover. I hope you don't mind."
She felt helpless. If it were modern times, she'd bring something like calligraphy, paintings, jewelry, or wine. But right now, with what she had, food and supplies were the best she could manage.
"Did your father say anything?"
Xavia was worried that Jewel's father might get upset that she brought so many gifts. The gifts didn't matter, but they shouldn't cause any conflict—especially not between the father-in-law and son-in-law.
"Don't worry," Jewel replied. "My father likes Xavi a lot. He dotes on him."
She knew what Xavia meant. But ever since Jewel told her father how Xavi had protected her from those gamblers, he had really come to adore his son-in-law.
She praised her husband almost every day in front of her dad. There was no way her father would mind something so small.
"Alright then. Come on, let's go inside and talk."
Xavia was growing fonder of her little sister-in-law. This time, she barely even spoke to Xavi—she was too busy chatting with Jewel.
Their mother, Xana, was still resting in bed, but she looked much better than last time. Her cheeks had more color and her voice was stronger. She seemed much more energetic and reassuring.
Jewel greeted her father-in-law, Mr. Zhang, and he returned her greeting with a big smile.
He then took his son out of the main room, and the two of them went into the kitchen to start preparing lunch.
For a while, only the three women remained inside.
Xana now looked at her daughter-in-law with warm affection and care.
This Jewel from the Xie family had helped them when they were struggling. She treated her son so well, and when she said she'd bring Xavi home often, she truly meant it.
How could Xana not love her?