Сhеng Сhi hаd bеen holеd uр in thе саbin with Old Mr. Song, саlculating this аnd that. Old Маdаm Guо hаdn’t hаd a prоper conversatiоn with hеr son fоr quite sоmе timе, sо when shе hеаrd Сhеng Chi wаs requesting an аudiеncе, she was naturаlly ovеrjoyеd аnd rереаtеdly urged, “Quiсklу invite Fоurth Маster in.”
Мadаm Sоng retreаtеd to thе inner chambеr.
Zhou Shaojin’s еуеs flickеred slightly as shе hid bеhind Оld Mаdаm Guо.
Yеt Сhеng Chi sроtted Zhоu Shaоjin the momеnt he stеррed thrоugh thе dооr.
Unprecеdentedly, she worе a peаch-red vеst adоrnеd with greеn lattice brocade trim, which set off her snow-like complexion, lending her an air of serene grace.
Cheng Chi couldn’t help but smile faintly as he paid his respects to his mother.
Old Madam Guo gestured to the embroidered stool beside her, signaling Cheng Chi to sit, and asked gently, “Have you finished all those calculations of yours?”
Cheng Chi replied with a smile, “Old Mr. Song and I have been calculating the springtime confluence of the Fuchun and Qiantang Rivers over the past decade, hoping to identify patterns and roughly predict the years and months of droughts or floods.”
“That’s a truly noble endeavor!” Old Madam Guo expressed strong support. “Have you made any progress? Would you like to invite Old Mr. Song to stay at our home for a while? Mr. Song worries that Old Mr. Song is lonely back in his hometown. I think if he knew Old Mr. Song shares your interests, he would surely agree.”
“We haven’t made much headway,” Cheng Chi said with a smile. “The capital is teeming with great scholars, and Liu Qi, the Director of the Imperial Observatory, possesses genuine talent and learning. Old Mr. Song wishes to seek their guidance in the capital. I also feel that relying solely on the two of us will hardly yield results, so we’ve agreed that once Mr. Song makes progress, I’ll make a trip to the capital. It wouldn’t be appropriate to invite Old Mr. Song to stay with us for now.”
“That’s all fine!” Old Madam Guo, simply happy to see her son content, smiled. “I’ve heard the Ministry of Works also has many capable individuals. Your elder brother started his career there, the brother-in-law of Prefect Wu of Jinling currently serves as a Supervising Secretary in the Ministry of Works, and the father-in-law of Prefect Gao of Zhenjiang is none other than the Minister of Works and Grand Secretary of the Hall of Prudence… Would you like your brother to personally accompany you on this trip?”
Cheng Chi knew his mother had been feeling troubled these past few years, doing everything she could to make it up to him. To humor her, he said cheerfully, “I hadn’t thought of that until you mentioned it! If Old Mr. Song doesn’t make progress, I’ll ask for your help to smooth the way.”
“You just know how to amuse me,” Old Madam Guo chided with a smile, pointing at her son. “Isn’t Prefect Gao your good friend? Last time you helped him with such a significant matter. I’ve noticed he’s been looking for an opportunity to repay that favor. If you go to him, even if he doesn’t accompany you to the capital himself, he’ll likely send his advisor to accompany you to meet his father-in-law.”
Cheng Chi was somewhat surprised.
His maternal family ran an academy and was renowned for their loyalty and righteousness, so his mother naturally knew many people. But she had never been one to boast—why the sudden change in demeanor?
Cheng Chi recalled that before he arrived, a maid had told him Madam Song was speaking with his mother. Instantly, he understood his mother’s intention.
She was giving Madam Song a warning!
She was telling Madam Song that the Cheng family not only possessed deep cultural heritage but also had disciples and old connections spread throughout the court and beyond. Whatever they wished to do, they could find a way; whatever they aimed to accomplish, it would not be difficult.
He couldn’t help but feel both amused and exasperated.
His mother must have heard his comments about Yuan Weichang and Song Jingran and feared that his brother’s single-minded allegiance to Yuan Weichang would cause him hardship. Thus, she had decided to secure him an ally in the court…Cheng Chi lifted his gaze and glanced at Zhou Shaojin.
Zhou Shaojin was baffled.
She had made up her mind to help Cheng Chi get closer to the Song family, but he and Old Mr. Song were interested in river engineering matters. What did that have to do with her?
Zhou Shaojin widened her eyes and stared at Cheng Chi.
Cheng Chi barely managed to suppress a look of disdain.
This little girl actually dared to glare at him!
If she hadn’t taken it upon herself to bring up Old Mr. Song’s wish to travel with them in front of his mother, would his mother have been talking so disjointedly, jumping from one topic to another?
He really didn’t know how she managed to stay by his mother’s side!
Cheng Chi pondered this inwardly, not sparing Zhou Shaojin another glance. Instead, he smiled and said to his mother, “We’ll be arriving at the Changzhou docks soon. Didn’t you mention earlier that you wanted to buy some Changzhou combs to take back as gifts? Old Mr. Song and I still have some calculations to work out, so I’m afraid I won’t have time to accompany you shopping. How many combs would you like? I’ll have Qin Ziping buy them.”
Zhou Shaojin immediately grew anxious.
Back in Hangzhou Prefecture, when Cheng Chi had insisted on paying for her purchases, she had felt too embarrassed. She had hurriedly bought a few sets of combs and returned to the boat. Only after she got back did she realize that while those combs would be suitable gifts for A Zhu and Cheng Jia, they weren’t appropriate for her widowed grandmother. She had thought that since Changzhou combs were renowned throughout the land and sold in most shops in Jiangnan, she could simply buy a comb for her grandmother when they reached Suzhou Prefecture. Suzhou was also a bustling city, and its goods were said to be no worse than those in Hangzhou. But Cheng Chi had become so absorbed in his calculations that when the boat docked in Suzhou, he hadn’t arranged for them to enter the city at all. She then thought it would be fine to buy one in Wuxi instead. Yet when the boat stopped in Wuxi Prefecture, they only stayed overnight before departing again. So she had pinned her hopes on buying one in Changzhou… Now, Cheng Chi didn’t plan to linger in Changzhou either, and he only asked Old Madam Guo how many combs she wanted. What about the combs she had promised her sister and her eldest aunt? She couldn’t very well ask Old Madam Guo to spare a few for her, could she? Of course, the best solution would be to have Qin Ziping buy some for her as well, but that would require Cheng Chi’s permission!
She fixed her gaze intently on Cheng Chi.
But Cheng Chi acted as if he didn’t see her, his attention entirely focused on Old Madam Guo.
To make matters worse, earlier, fearing that Cheng Chi might still be displeased with her for bringing up Old Mr. Song’s wish to travel with them to Old Madam Guo, she had deliberately positioned herself behind Old Madam Guo to avoid him. Now, even if she wanted Old Madam Guo to notice her unease and steer the conversation toward buying combs, it was impossible…
Her only hope now was that after Old Madam Guo agreed, she could speak to Qin Ziping herself.
But then Old Madam Guo said, “I already bought several combs back in Hangzhou Prefecture. If you have matters to attend to, go ahead and tend to them. There’s no need to specially accompany me shopping.”
Hearing this, Cheng Chi stood up and said with a smile, “Very well! If you need anything, just give Qin Ziping your instructions. We’ll set off for Zhenjiang tomorrow morning.”
Old Madam Guo nodded with a smile.
Cheng Chi left the cabin.
Madam Song emerged from the inner room, looking at Old Madam Guo with a different expression.
With a hint of probing in her tone, she said, “I didn’t expect Fourth Master to be so familiar with the son-in-law of Grand Secretary Qu. Why hasn’t Fourth Master taken on any river engineering projects?”
“Those are matters of vital importance to the people’s livelihood,” Old Madam Guo replied with a smile. “Making money from them would weigh on one’s conscience; not making money would still earn one a bad reputation. It’s better not to get involved at all! Besides, our Cheng family isn’t short of that money.”"You truly have the most discerning insight," Madam Song flattered Old Madam Guo.
Zhou Shaojin, however, was somewhat distracted.
Should she only give the one hundred and eight red coral prayer beads to her grandmother?
But she had planned to give the coral hairpin to her sister, and the hairpins to her eldest aunt... Everyone would receive red coral jewelry along with a set of combs, except her grandmother. Perhaps she should only give coral jewelry to her sister and eldest aunt without the combs... But she had already promised her sister, and she had also brought several sets of combs back... It seemed she could only choose a set with a simpler pattern from among these combs.
After pondering this for a long time in her mind, Zhou Shaojin went straight to her own cabin as soon as she left Old Madam Guo's room. She called Chunwan to bring out all the things she had bought for everyone this time, but no matter how she arranged and rearranged them, she couldn't find a way to resolve the issue.
Was seeking help from Qin Ziping the only option?
Zhou Shaojin went to Jiying's place.
Jiying wasn't there.
Nanny Shang told her, "The Fourth Master wants to eat Liyang stuffed liver. Chief Steward Qin has taken Miss Jiying to buy it!"
Aren't they in Changzhou?
Why eat Liyang stuffed liver?
Besides, what exactly is stuffed liver?
It sounds like offal or something similar—how could he eat such a thing?
Aren't they afraid of upsetting their stomachs?
And they even sent Qin Ziping out on this errand.
Now she couldn't find anyone to help her...
Zhou Shaojin grumbled inwardly.
Nanny Shang said with a smile, "What matter did you have for Miss Jiying, Second Young Miss? If it's urgent, you might come back a little later. I heard from Steward Qin that the place selling Liyang stuffed liver is quite far from the dock. Steward Qin only heard about where it might be sold, and they'll have to search once they get there. If it's not too urgent, you might as well come find Miss Jiying first thing tomorrow morning—she'll surely be here then."
Zhou Shaojin replied listlessly, "Forget it. I'll think of another way."
Nanny Shang then said, "Old Mr. Song was called away by Young Master Huang. The Fourth Master is free right now, tidying up those manuscripts. Why don't you go talk to the Fourth Master?"
Go ask Uncle Chi for help!
Would he settle accounts with her?
As Zhou Shaojin hesitated, she heard Nanny Shang add, "Young Master Song isn't with you today? I see he likes you the most, Second Young Miss, always clinging to you to play. We all say it's truly a case of children liking children. It's fortunate you have such a good temper, Second Young Miss—if it were any other young lady, who would have the patience to always accompany him..."
What does she mean by "children liking children"?
Zhou Shaojin felt slightly displeased upon hearing this, but as the thought crossed her mind, she couldn't help but feel a stir.
Yes!
How could she forget—she was still an unmarried young girl now. So what if she acted willfully? At worst, people might say she was "spoiled and willful." But as long as she was obedient and sensible in nine out of ten matters, with only one instance of willfulness, others would simply think she was in a mood, not that she had a difficult personality.
This was a method her sister had told her after she married into the Lin family, to minimize interactions with the Lin relatives—be accommodating in small matters, but never yield in important ones.
She had once followed her sister's advice and insisted on moving to the estate in Daxing, which had gone smoothly.
Now it seemed this principle could be applied universally!
Zhou Shaojin's eyes shifted thoughtfully. After exchanging a few hasty words with Nanny Shang, she hurried off to Cheng Chi's cabin.Cheng Chi cleared out all the discarded drafts and threw them into the wastebasket, intending to have Qing Feng burn them later. Just then, Zhou Shaojin rushed in like a gust of wind without even announcing herself: "Uncle Chi, I have something to tell you!"
This little girl has finally come!
If I don’t teach her a proper lesson, she might keep meddling in my affairs on her own!
Cheng Chi smiled and said, "What’s so urgent? Sit down and tell me!"
※
Sisters, here’s today’s update!
o(n_n)o~
※ (To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to...)
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