Escape to Your Heart

Chapter 118: Parting

Fu Tingyun pointed at the cedarwood box on the tea table and asked Zhao Ling, "What should we do with this?"

"Just keep it," Zhao Ling replied nonchalantly. "A century-old ginseng like this is something money can't always buy. It'll be good for your mother's health."

But Fu Tingyun had other concerns. "How will we return the favor later? Are we supposed to maintain ties with Xiao Yiniang?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it," Zhao Ling said, clearly not considering it an issue. He pointed to a chest he had brought in. "Here are some angelica, astragalus, and bupleurum. Store them properly and see if your mother might need them later."

"Where did you get so many medicinal herbs?" Fu Tingyun was astonished.

"Where else would I get them?" Zhao Ling chuckled. "I bought them, of course." He added, "Zhangye is a crucial pass out of the frontier. You can find all kinds of merchants there."

"That's true!" Fu Tingyun was touched by Zhao Ling's thoughtfulness and softly said, "Thank you."

Zhao Ling looked slightly troubled. "When will you stop thanking me?"

Fu Tingyun was puzzled.

Zhao Ling lowered his voice. "Family shouldn't speak like strangers. Shouldn't it be natural for me to show filial respect to my mother-in-law?"

Fu Tingyun had no way to handle this man—she couldn't even muster any temper. She turned away and called for Zheng San to move the chest of herbs onto the carriage first.

Zhao Ling took the opportunity to embrace her from behind.

"A-Jun..." he murmured her name softly. "Will you miss me?"

His broad chest pressed against her back, and his warm breath faintly brushed her neck, sending a shiver through her heart and stirring that tingling sensation again.

Flustered, Fu Tingyun tried to pry his arms loose, muttering incoherently, "No, I won't... I won't..."

But Zhao Ling only tightened his embrace, as if trying to meld her into his body, making it hard for her to breathe. "But I'll miss you..." His voice was deep and slightly hoarse, carrying an inexplicable emotion that made her heart race. "I'll miss you so, so much..."

Something surged from the depths of her heart, clogging her chest and leaving her speechless.

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The carriage raced forward, and Zhangye gradually shrank into a tiny black dot on the loess slope. Yet Fu Tingyun could still vividly picture Zhao Ling's dashing figure astride his steed.

Linchun lowered the carriage curtain and asked in a childish voice, "Miss, does the capital have crystal sugar?"

Fu Tingyun had never been to the capital and didn't know. She smiled. "They probably do."

A Sen scoffed at Linchun. "Of course they do! It's the capital—where the Emperor lives." Grinning, he turned to Fu Tingyun with an eager look. "Miss, we're on the post road now. Can I ride a horse for a while?"

"No!" Fu Tingyun laughed. "We need to reach Taipingbao's relay station before nightfall. Traveling at this speed is too dangerous. When we're not in a hurry one day, you can try riding."

A Sen immediately deflated.

They would be hurrying the entire journey—when would he ever get to ride?

Back when he followed Ninth Master, the group would cover hundreds of miles overnight. He couldn't even reach the stirrups and had to cling to the horse's back, getting jostled until he was dizzy—only to be mocked for being delicate. Now, though he could already jump narrow streams on horseback, Miss was still afraid he'd fall...These thoughts, A Sen only dared to mutter in his heart, not daring to show the slightest hint in front of Fu Tingyun. He could only sulkily lift the carriage curtain, gazing enviously at Zheng San and the guards sent by Marquis Yingchuan to escort them to the capital, chatting and laughing as they rode outside.

Linchun, seeing this, imitated A Sen and pressed against the window to peer outside.

Zheng Sanniang pulled him aside and sat him down. "The dust is flying everywhere outside. If you keep doing this, the sand will get in. Be careful not to choke Miss Fu." Though she scolded Linchun, her words were meant for A Sen.

A Sen couldn't help but feel a bit embarrassed and chuckled sheepishly, about to lower the curtain.

"Let them look," Fu Tingyun said with a smile. Traveling day and night in a jolting carriage would bore even adults, let alone children. "How can you avoid getting dusty on a journey like this?"

Hearing this, Linchun cheered and threw himself onto A Sen's back. "Watch the horses, watch the horses!"

Everyone laughed.

The two adults let the children be, allowing them to play as they pleased as long as they stayed inside the carriage, while they leaned against the large bolster pillow and chatted.

"Miss Fu, are we really staying at the Duke of Fu's residence?" Zheng Sanniang asked, both hopeful and worried.

For this trip to the capital, Zhao Ling, considering they had no escort, had hired the most renowned escort agency in Zhangye and borrowed Marquis Yingchuan's name card for emergencies on the road. Upon hearing this, Marquis Yingchuan not only gave his own name card but also provided one from his father, the Duke of Fu, and sent over twenty guards to accompany them. "These are my personal guards, accustomed to traveling between Zhangye and the capital. They know the post stations and officials along the way. Why bother with an escort agency?" he added. "Tell Miss Fu there's no need to look for a house in the capital. Just see our steward, and he'll arrange a place for you."

The difference between an escort agency and the Duke of Fu's guards was like night and day. Concerned for Fu Tingyun's safety, Zhao Ling gratefully accepted the offer and brought the guards back. However, he had other plans regarding Marquis Yingchuan's suggestion. "Living in the capital is no easy matter, I know. But staying in someone else's home would feel too much like living under another's roof. It would be better to ask the Duke of Fu's steward to help us buy a house instead."

"Buy a house?" Fu Tingyun had been very surprised at the time."Hmm!" Zhao Ling nodded. "I've thought it through carefully. In the capital, even a small courtyard house costs over a thousand taels of silver. If the location is better and the condition newer, it could be five to six thousand taels. We still have five thousand taels in bank notes. Last year in Xi'an Prefecture, we bought three shops on Baoqing Street and over seventeen hundred mu of fertile land in Chang'an County. The three shops on Baoqing Street yield over six hundred taels annually, and the thousand-plus mu of land in Dongjiangcun, Chang'an County, are all contiguous. As long as we find an honest and reliable estate manager to oversee them, we can cover our yearly expenses by being frugal. However, the three hundred mu in Lujiacun and four hundred mu in Xihuaicun are problematic—they're not only small in area but also scattered, a few mu here and a dozen there. Hiring an estate manager for these would likely mean the profits end up in their pockets, which isn't worth it. When I bought these seven hundred mu, the price was one tael and one fen per mu. This year, with favorable weather, they could sell for at least five to six taels per mu. When you pass through Xi'an Prefecture this time, why not stay a couple of days and ask Shopkeeper Lu to sell these seven hundred mu? Even if we sell in a hurry, we should still get over three thousand taels. Combined with the five thousand taels from Baoqing Silver House in our case, that’s enough to buy a small courtyard house in the capital. I also have some calligraphy, paintings, and antiques left with Master Lu—you can take them to the capital to furnish the house, saving us a significant amount..."

"Ninth Master," Fu Tingyun frowned as she listened, her gaze filled with confusion. "We won’t be staying in the capital long-term. Why go to such lengths...?" She hesitated, then asked, "Are you hiding something from me?"

"You don’t understand!" Zhao Ling leaned in and whispered, "If we own a nice house in the capital, your father will feel more at ease entrusting you to me..."

"Nonsense!" Fu Tingyun shot him a glare, her face burning. "Our family has a motto: 'When taking a wife, seek virtue, not dowry; when marrying a daughter, choose a worthy son-in-law, not wealth.'"

"I know, I know!" Zhao Ling cut her off with a grin. "How could your father care about my modest assets? If I were scholarly and had earned the title of Provincial Graduate or Presented Scholar, what wealth and honor wouldn’t be within reach?" He sighed dramatically, feigning regret. "If only I’d met you earlier, I would’ve studied for the imperial exams and made something of myself. But now I’m too old—my heart is willing, but my strength is lacking. All I can do is rely on these vulgar things to bolster my confidence!"

He was teasing her again.

Fu Tingyun felt both embarrassed and annoyed, yet her heart was undeniably moved.

Whenever maids in her household were to be married off, her nurse would always say, "A woman marries for clothing and food." If they could own a house in the capital, it would at least be one argument to persuade her father!

She couldn’t help but chide him, "I still have over three thousand taels in cash, and another two thousand taels in bank notes from my mother in the case... We’re not short on silver. Why must we sell the land?"

Land could be passed down to future generations. With land came harvests, with harvests came food, and with food came survival. Unless absolutely necessary, who would ever sell their land?"Once we reach the capital, there will be many expenses. The two thousand taels bank note your mother gave you is part of your dowry and shouldn't be touched. As for the silver you have on hand, keep it with you. When you come across a branch of Baoqing Silver House, exchange it for bank notes to carry with you for future use," Zhao Ling said. "Besides, sooner or later we'll return to Jiangnan. If Xi'an Prefecture weren't just over twenty days' journey from the capital, I wouldn't even have kept the land in Dongjiangcun."

That made sense. If they returned to Jiangnan, Xi'an Prefecture would be too far away—the income from the land wouldn't even cover the back-and-forth expenses.

Fu Tingyun said, "I think you should keep the silver. You'll need it for social engagements."

"Where would I put all that silver while you're gone for most of the year?" Zhao Ling laughed. "Just leave me two hundred taels for pocket money." He added, "Don't tell me you're worried I can't get my hands on silver!"

Remembering the seven hundred taels he'd brought back earlier, Fu Tingyun cautioned him carefully: "We still have some savings at home. Don't ruin your reputation over mere money."

"Don't worry," Zhao Ling said with a smile. "I won't let them short me a single coin of what I'm owed, nor will I take a single coin more than I should."

Thinking of this, Fu Tingyun couldn't help but grumble inwardly.

Who knows what counts as "owed" and what doesn't?

She could only hope he'd serve out these two years without incident, get promoted to chiliarch, and then be transferred out of Shaanxi Regional Military Commission.

Then she answered Zheng Sanniang's question: "We won't be staying at Marquis Yingchuan's residence. Ninth Master said we should buy a house to settle down."

"Houses in the capital are terribly expensive!" Zheng Sanniang said worriedly. "Shouldn't we rent a place first?"

"It's fine," Fu Tingyun said modestly. "We may not be able to afford the best areas, but we can manage something ordinary."

Zheng Sanniang clicked her tongue, realizing Fu Tingyun's family still had some resources, and didn't press further. Instead, she asked about the capital: "Who is it that's fallen ill? Why do you need to travel all the way to the capital to visit them?"

Who was it, indeed?

She wasn't quite sure how to answer.

Leaning against the pillow, she watched A Sen and Linchun playing nearby and fell silent for a long while.

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I have business travel tomorrow, so there'll only be one update today and tomorrow. I'll make up for it with extra updates during the Dragon Boat Festival holiday!

O(∩_∩)O~

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(End of Chapter)