I'll Raise Pigs to Support You - Chapter 23
The next day, Song Yugui brought her little wife to the entrance of the tavern. The proprietress, Lanxiang, was leaning against the door, watching the flow of passersby. When she saw Song arrive, she smiled and asked, “Oh, you’re so early today?”
Song Yugui lowered her head slightly, embarrassed. “Mm. Proprietress, this is my wife. She wanted to come keep me company today.”
“Your wife?”
Lanxiang’s cherry-like lips parted slightly, her expression one of disbelief.
She hadn’t expected that the young server in her tavern was actually a lesbian.
Though the current dynasty was open-minded, relationships like women who love women were still rare in some remote areas, and even rarer was someone who would admit it so openly.
Song Yugui nodded earnestly, without the slightest intention of hiding it. “Yes. She was alone at home today, and I was worried, so…”
Shen Xizhi clung shyly to the back of Song’s robe, looking utterly devoted.
After a long moment, Lanxiang finally snapped out of her surprise. Without commenting further, she curved her red lips into a smile. “So it’s little sister! Come in quickly. Master Wang’s wife is also here. The two of you can sit and chat together.”
The tavern had a small side room where family members could gather when they visited.
Master Wang’s wife was nine months pregnant, and with no one at home to care for her, he had asked the proprietress for permission to bring her to the tavern’s side room so he could keep an eye on her occasionally.
Song Yugui knew about this, which was why she had the idea to bring the villainess along with her.
Her reputation in the village wasn’t great, and since the villainess wasn’t from the village—and had married a lesbian—her reputation wasn’t any better.
What if the villagers bullied her behind my back or talked trash about me to her?!!!
Hmph, I’ll defend my honor to the death!
Shen Xizhi rarely spoke to strangers. Hearing the proprietress’ gentle voice, her long lashes fluttered slightly, and she hid even more timidly behind Song Yugui, nodding with flushed cheeks.
Lanxiang swayed her voluptuous figure as she walked ahead, fanning herself, the smile never leaving her face. Who would’ve thought that Xiao Gui’s wife would be such a timid, delicate little thing?
Song Yugui led her to the side room. Master Wang and his wife hadn’t arrived yet. “Sit here for a bit. Someone will come to chat with you soon. I’ll go clean up the tavern.”
Her plan was simple: it didn’t matter if she worked harder. The important thing was to take good care of her wife.
Her little wife was so thin she was practically a skeleton—she couldn’t let her suffer anymore.
However…
Heaven rarely grants our wishes.
The moment Song Yugui finished cleaning the private rooms on the second floor and came downstairs, she saw the wife she had sworn to pamper diligently sweeping the floor with a broom, bending over as she worked hard. When she got closer, she even heard the proprietress praising her for cleaning so thoroughly.
Wait—
Since when was she your employee? Why are you praising her?
“Xizhi.”
Song Yugui’s temple twitched. “Didn’t I tell you to just sit and wait for me?”
Why are you working?
Hearing her wife’s voice, Shen Xizhi’s eyes lit up. Even though she could tell Song was a little unhappy, she still shuffled over eagerly, lifting her damp eyes. “The main hall is already cleaned. The other young lady and I finished it together. You should rest for a bit.”
……
Lanxiang shook her head and sighed. “Xiao Gui, you’re really blessed.”
Where did you find such a wife—so well-behaved and considerate?
Tsk tsk tsk.
Song Yugui sighed. “I told you not to help me with work. Why won’t you listen?”
First, she sneaked off to help others with farm work. After several exhausting days, today was supposed to be a day of rest where she didn’t have to do anything—just wait in the room for her to finish work. Who knew Shen Xizhi couldn’t sit still?
She just had to sneak out and start working again.
“Your wife is just worried about you. How can you scold her? It’s heartbreaking.”
Lanxiang took Shen Xizhi’s side. After saying this, she added with a smile, “Alright, the first floor is pretty much cleaned up. You two can rest for a bit. Customers will start arriving soon, so don’t lecture her anymore. This little one seems timid and inexperienced—if you make her cry, we’ll have to help you comfort her.”
Lanxiang hid her wide grin behind her round fan.
Song Yugui raised an eyebrow. Inexperienced? She’s been through more than most people.
And she’s incredibly resilient.
But it’s true that she cries easily.
Afraid that Song would stay angry, Shen Xizhi cautiously peeked at her, then secretly hooked a finger around hers, giving it a little shake—like a plea.
Don’t scold me anymore.
No matter how upset she was, faced with such a gesture from her little wife, it was impossible to stay mad.
After staring at her for a moment, Song Yugui couldn’t resist reaching out to ruffle the soft hair at the back of her head. Ah, my wife must have suffered so much in the past that she became this obedient, always looking for work to do.
Fine, I won’t bully her anymore.
Song Yugui knew that given their relationship, being harsh with Shen Xizhi was tantamount to bullying—she wouldn’t dare fight back. But sometimes, she just couldn’t help it. The girl was infuriating.
Song Yugui clasped her little wife’s hand and replied with an “Mm,” then led her away.
Shen Xizhi curled her lips into a gentle smile and obediently followed.
“Tired?”
Song Yugui reached out to smooth Shen Xizhi’s slightly disheveled hair.
Shen Xizhi’s eyes sparkled as she shook her head. “Not tired. I worked with someone else, so it wasn’t too much.”
“When customers start coming, it’ll get busy. I might not be able to pay attention to you, so stay in the side room. If you get bored, you can go out for some air or buy something to eat, alright?”
Her tone was like she was coaxing a child.
Song Yugui tucked a small money pouch into Shen Xizhi’s hand. As usual, Shen Xizhi tried to refuse, but Song cut her off with a stern “Be good.”
She didn’t dare disobey—otherwise, her wife would get angry and scold her again.
Right then, Shen Cui hesitantly approached, her eyes fixed intently on the two of them.
Her stare was so intense that Song Yugui couldn’t ignore it. Forcing a polite smile, she asked, “Sister Shen, what’s the matter?”
Shen Cui’s gaze roamed over Song Yugui’s body, growing increasingly strange. Then, she pointed at the woman beside Song and asked seriously, “Is this Shen Xizhi?”
She didn’t know Song Yugui’s wife, but she had seen Shen Xizhi before!
They weren’t close, though—she’d only occasionally caught glimpses of the girl working in the fields.
After Shen Xizhi married into Song Village, Shen Cui had only heard about her but never saw her again. She never even came back during New Year’s.
So when she saw this stunning beauty sweeping the floor early in the morning, it was like seeing a ghost. After some discreet inquiries, she learned that this was Song Yugui’s wife.
Song Yugui was a lesbian!
Shen Cui hugged herself weakly.
Aside from the woman who married Shen Xizhi, was there a second lesbian in Song Village?
She hadn’t heard of any, so it was almost certain…
Shen Xizhi had already been interrogated once downstairs. Seeing this woman now questioning her wife, a faint displeasure flickered across her face. She tugged lightly at Song’s fingers and explained softly, “This is someone from my old village, but I don’t know her.”
She hardly recognized anyone from Shen Village anymore, so she hadn’t recognized Shen Cui at first. Who knew Shen Cui would recognize her and start bombarding her with questions—even asking if Song Yugui often beat or scolded her.
Well… in the past, that had been true. But now, Song treated her incredibly well. There was no abuse at all.
Shen Cui laughed awkwardly, desperately trying to remember their first meeting. Had she badmouthed the woman who married Shen Xizhi?
She had. And Song Yugui had even argued with her. So that’s how it was. Who could tolerate being criticized to their face?
Shen Cui’s heart sank. Even someone who loved to gossip had principles—like never gossiping directly to someone’s face!
Unaware of Shen Cui’s internal turmoil, Song Yugui nodded. “Yes, this is my wife, Shen Xizhi. You probably know her. This is Shen Cui, my… friend.”
She almost said “colleague.” Oops.
Shen Xizhi held her wife’s wrist, completely indifferent to who Shen Cui was. She nodded perfunctorily, her eyes fixed adoringly on Song as she said gently, “You’ve been working hard. You should go drink some water, alright?”
When the villainess wasn’t throwing tantrums, she was incredibly considerate. Song Yugui felt dizzy from her increasingly sweet voice and followed her without protest.
Shen Cui watched as they walked away hand in hand, cursing inwardly. Gossip has deceived me!
This didn’t look like a strained relationship at all. On the contrary, they seemed far more affectionate and close than most ordinary couples.