Ms. Lu was vexed at that moment, and she voiced her dissatisfaction.
The person who had accompanied her all along the way was her daughter, Pei Wanyue whom she had before.
"Don't be anxious, Mother. Those who live here in the Taoist temple are inevitably laid back Taoists. They usually don't care much about worldly matters and their families." Pei Wanyue smiled.
Ms. Lu huffed.
This trip was not just to collect Xie Qiao.
Before she married Xie Niushan, she had a daughter from her previous marriage and kept her at her mother's place. With her husband's permission, she was going to bring her back this time. However, on her way back, she received an untimely messenger pigeon from her husband, saying that his first daughter was getting old. It was time she returned to live a good life.
That was why she had come all the way here.
She was Xie Niushan's third wife. She married him only after the Xie family became officials in the imperial court. So, she did not know who his first wife was.
She only heard rumors that his first wife was childhood friends with her husband. The first wife was known as Ms. Peng, and her father was the previous head of the bandits' mountain stronghold. After he died, her husband and the Peng family had managed the mountain stronghold.
It is said that those from the Peng family were not pretty.
She was certain that this must surely be the case.
Even though she had never met Mrs. Peng, she had met Mrs. Peng's son, Xie Pinggang, who was Mrs. Lu's husband's eldest son.
That child was built tough and stocky, plus he was half a head taller than his dad and twice as large as an average person. He was a frightening sight to see. This Xie Qiao was Xie Pinggang's biological sister, there was no way she would be petite, right?
Ms. Lu sighed.
"Her father said so too. He was afraid that this child was not pretty, so he wants to bring her home earlier to get her married off..." Ms. Lu rubbed her temples. "The children from our family are all infamous in the imperial city. Now that we are bringing one more home, we are really going to be the laughingstock of the town."
Pei Wanyue was shocked too. "But now, Uncle Xie is no longer a bandit. He can't exactly go around kidnapping a man to marry my sister, right?"
"I know, right? When the time comes and she can't marry, Mr. Xie would surely point fingers at me and say that I didn't put enough effort into it." Ms. Lu shook her head.
Pei Wanyue had always been rather wary of this Ms. Xie.
Now that she heard this, she sighed in relief.
She was around the same age as Ms. Xie, and they were to enter the imperial city together. At some point, they were going to be up against each other. So if the other's reputation was in the gutter, then it would not spell anything good for her either.
However, if Ms. Xie looked too ugly, it would make Pei Wanyue look good instead.
"Relax, Mother. If I can't marry, then I can cling on to Father for the rest of my life. There is no way they could blame you for that." Xie Qiao strode in as she spoke with a soft voice. It sounded weak and feeble.
Ms. Lu jumped in shock and turned around immediately. Then, she was stunned.
The newcomer was clad in a muted navy colored Taoist robe. She carried herself tall and proud. Her voice was as clear as a river flowing through a bamboo forest. It rang crisp and light.
She did not look very lively, but there was a gentle look in her eyes. Her figure was slim; her waist was thin and slender. Even so, not a single part of her suggested she was seductive. She had a light scent of incense on her, and she gave off an otherworldly presence to the point that she made everything around her appear dull...
"You… you are..." Ms. Lu could not quite believe this. Could this be the ugly Ms. Peng's daughter?
"Greetings, Mother." Xie Qiao respectfully gave a simple bow. "I am Xie Qiao."
Ms. Lu swallowed dryly.
Xie Qiao did not pay attention to Ms. Lu and the surrounding people.
In fact, she dipped her head slightly. She seemed to be staring at the feathered fan in her hand. At a glance, it looked as if she was not paying attention.
Yet the young Taoist by her side knew that she had seen something supernatural, or she had seen through the other person's intentions.
"Your looks… looks are not bad. It's just that you look so lazy, it makes you look improper. When we get back to the imperial city, you cannot act so inappropriately when you meet others. You have to set a good example for both of your younger sisters."
Ms. Lu watched her own daughter, then looked back at Xie Qiao. Immediately, she felt a pang of discomfort.