Zhоu Shаоjin shооk her heаd, quiсklу рutting thеse thoughts asidе аs she supрorted hеr sistеr tо slоwlу wаlk toward thе side room Zhou Chujin had рrеpаred fоr hеr.
Сhunwаn and thе оthеrs аttеnded tо her washing and grооming.
Zhou Сhujin sat on the luоhan bed wаtching and сhаtting with hеr: "Саn уоu stay а fеw morе dауs? It’s beеn a lоng timе since wе sistеrs havе had a prоper talk."
Zhоu Shаоjin alsо wished to staу in Zhеnjiаng a fеw mоrе dауs, but shе knew thаt in hеr prеvious lifе, the Liaо familу hаd nоt treаtеd hеr sistеr very well. Аlthough things had changed sоmewhat in this life, hеr sister still had thе old mаdаm abоve her and her mother-in-law below her, so she couldn’t truly take charge at home. Over the years at Nine Prosperities Lane, Zhou Shaojin had been pampered by Old Madam Guo and Cheng Chi, which had fostered a certain temperament in her. She didn’t want to endure the Liao family’s disdainful looks, nor did she want to put her sister in a difficult position. It would be better to wait until her sister gave birth to a son and then find a way to encourage her to go to the capital. By then, the two sisters could meet in the capital from time to time and properly spend time together.
"I’ll come stay properly when you give birth to my nephew," she said with a bright smile. "Father is still waiting for me in Baoding Prefecture! I’m afraid he’ll grow impatient."
Zhou Chujin, with her crystal-clear understanding, immediately grasped her sister’s concerns.
She couldn’t help but lightly twist the handkerchief in her hand.
If only she were in charge one day—then the sisters could gather for as many days as they pleased, and who would dare gossip?
Although Madam Fan Liu wasn’t as astute as Nanny Shang, she was still quite adept in matters of human relations and social etiquette.
As soon as she saw Zhou Chujin’s expression, she understood her thoughts and quickly steered the conversation elsewhere: "Eldest Miss… no, look at my slip of the tongue—I should address you as Eldest Mistress. Old Madam Guan and Madam Mian have brought many things for you, including a few garments worn by Eldest Master Gao and Second Master Yi when they were young. They specifically instructed that you should sleep with them under your pillow every night. I’ll go fetch them for you right away and have Chixiang store them properly for you."
It was said this would help in bearing a son.
Zhou Chujin happily agreed and then began looking through the children’s clothes Zhou Shaojin had brought.
She asked curiously, "Why are there so many? Have you been resting properly at night?"
Zhou Shaojin smiled faintly and said, "These were all made by the seamstresses at Nine Prosperities Lane, not by my hand."
Zhou Chujin knew that even Cheng Mian of the fourth branch couldn’t easily command the seamstresses at Nine Prosperities Lane. She hurriedly asked, "How did this come about?"
Zhou Shaojin explained with a smile, "That day, I was cutting fabric for my nephew’s clothes when Madam Wang from the sewing room happened to come by to deliver autumn clothes to Old Madam Guo. When she learned I was making clothes for my sister’s unborn child, she volunteered to help. Thinking her craftsmanship was excellent, I agreed. I had Chunwan take several bolts of fabric as a token of thanks, but she didn’t take a single one—instead, she used them all to make small garments for my nephew. She also gave me a silver locket with the design of ‘immediate promotion to nobility’ as a full-month gift for my nephew, asking you not to disdain it… I brought it along this time as well."
Zhou Chujin could easily tell that this was clearly Madam Wang trying to flatter her sister.
What had happened after she left? How had it come to pass that even the respected figures in the sewing room were now treating Shaojin with such special regard?
After meeting with Old Madam Liao and Madam Liao, Zhou Shaojin politely declined their invitation to a banquet and instead went to her sister Zhou Chujin’s sitting room for dinner.After dinner and tea, Zhou Chujin dismissed the servants in the room and asked her seriously, "Tell me the truth, why do you suddenly want to go to Baoding? Weren’t you planning to stay in Nine Prosperities Lane before? Father also agreed... Is it because of Old Madam Guo..."
"No, no," Zhou Shaojin hurriedly replied. "Old Madam Guo treats me very well, like her own granddaughter..." It was just that she had fallen in love with Uncle Chi, and every day felt like sitting on pins and needles. She couldn’t stay any longer. "It’s just a small incident—on the second day after Cousin Gao’s wedding, during the morning greetings, someone put something like Five Minerals Powder in Cousin Xu’s tea. Cousin Xu lost his senses, and we met in the Taihu rock cave by the lake. He mistook Jiying for me and tried to drag her back to Cold Green Mountain House. Jiying thought Cousin Xu was trying to take liberties with her, and in resisting, she ended up hitting Cousin Xu, who was weak and unsteady. Old Madam Guo placed Cousin Xu in the green gauze cabinet in her inner room. I felt it would be inappropriate for me to continue living in Cold Green Mountain House, so I wrote to Father, saying I wanted to visit him and my newborn sister, and it would be a good time for the family to reunite for the New Year."
Zhou Shaojin had already made up her mind that if anyone asked about that day, she would answer this way.
Zhou Chujin was still somewhat puzzled, but seeing Nanny Shang and the guards who clearly did not belong to the Zhou family, she felt that if her sister had angered the main branch, they would not have treated her so kindly. So she didn’t press further and instead asked Zhou Shaojin about her daily life and well-being.
Zhou Shaojin chatted happily with her sister until the third watch drum sounded, and Chixiang came in to urge Zhou Chujin to rest. Only then did Zhou Chujin say, "I’ll stay here tonight."
Although Liao Shaotang had already gone to the capital to study, Zhou Shaojin was a guest from afar. Even if Zhou Chujin wanted to share a bed with her sister and whisper secrets, she couldn’t neglect arranging a guest room for Zhou Shaojin.
Chixiang smiled and agreed, helping Chunwan prepare the bed for the sisters.
The two sisters chatted for a long time, promising to meet in the capital, and then drifted into a casual conversation before falling asleep at some point.
The next day, several young ladies of the Liao family came to visit Zhou Shaojin.
Zhou Chujin’s status as the eldest daughter-in-law, along with the ruby-inlaid gold hairpin and the misty, rosy gauze robe Zhou Shaojin wore when visiting the Liao family’s matriarch the day before, made the Liao young ladies wary, no longer viewing her merely as the daughter of a fourth-rank prefect. Today, seeing Zhou Shaojin wearing only a simple bun adorned with a kingfisher-feather magnolia flower, and the pearl the size of a lotus seed on the tip of her shoe emitting a soft glow in the dim light of the room, their expressions grew subtly complex.
Zhou Shaojin had done this intentionally.
In her previous life, the Liao family had always looked down on her sister’s humble background, fearing she would subsidize her natal family. This time, she had come to make a grand display—not only giving generous tips of ten or five taels but also wearing understated yet luxurious clothing and accessories to bolster her sister’s standing.
While Madam Fan Liu noticed nothing, Nanny Shang immediately sensed something unusual.
She sent a message out.
Before noon, the wives of Zhenjiang’s Assistant Prefect Chen Shuming and Prefect Gao Yao had both sent invitations asking Zhou Shaojin to dine at their residences.
Zhou Shaojin was very surprised, unable to understand how they knew she was passing through Zhenjiang or why they had invited her to dine.She naturally declined politely and sent two return gifts over.
But this matter spread throughout the Liao residence.
When she bid farewell in the afternoon, several of Zhou Chujin's aunts, sisters-in-law, and unmarried younger sisters came out to see her off. The elderly Madam Liao even personally escorted her out of her own courtyard.
Zhou Shaojin left the Liao residence with a smile.
But as soon as she returned to the official boat, she pulled Nanny Shang aside and asked, "How could they possibly have sent me invitations?"
Especially the wife of Gao Yao, whose father was Qu Yuan, Minister of Works and Grand Academician of the Jinshen Hall, and who was related to the Dowager Lady of Liangguo. Moreover, she didn’t seem like the kind of person who would flatter others.
Nanny Shang smiled and said, "The Fourth Master once wrote a letter to Master Gao, asking him to look after you while you were staying in Zhenjiang Prefecture. As for the wife of Master Liu, I have no idea how that came about!"
"Oh!" Zhou Shaojin responded lightly and dismissed Nanny Shang. Then her expression brightened, and she gleefully threw herself onto the bed.
※
The rest of the journey went smoothly, with no further unexpected events or encounters.
Sixteen days later, they arrived in Tianjin.
Zhou Zhen’s private secretary had already brought people to wait at the dock.
Seeing the dozen or so guards accompanying them, he was greatly startled.
Li Changgui hurriedly explained, "They are from the Cheng family."
Only then did the secretary breathe a sigh of relief. While warmly receiving them, he couldn’t help but glance a few more times at the carriage Zhou Shaojin was riding in. Originally, he had thought his employer was making too much of a fuss over fetching a young lady, but now his attitude changed, and he acted with even more caution than usual.
Traveling by carriage was more tiring than by boat, but fortunately, they reached Baoding Prefecture in just five days.
Zhou Zhen had not rented a separate residence outside but was staying in the county government office.
As it was not a rest day, he was still handling cases in the courtroom. Madam Li brought a large group of maids and elderly servants to welcome Zhou Shaojin at the inner gate.
When Zhou Shaojin saw the exquisitely dressed little girl being held behind Madam Li, she immediately took a liking to her half-sister.
After greeting Madam Li, she couldn’t help but gently stroke the little girl’s jet-black hair and said with a smile, "This must be my younger sister, Youjin, right?"
Madam Li quickly urged Zhou Youjin to call her "elder sister."
Zhou Youjin was very obedient. In a childish voice, she called out "elder sister" and shyly buried her head in her wet nurse’s arms.
Zhou Shaojin giggled with delight.
Only then did Madam Li’s heart settle. She took Zhou Shaojin to the east wing room and apologetically explained, "The government office is quite cramped. Knowing you were coming, the master has already sent people to inquire about any good rental properties outside. But as the master serves as the local magistrate here, there are many considerations, and no suitable place has been found yet. Please bear with staying in the government office for a few days. As soon as we find a suitable place, we’ll move."
Zhou Shaojin thought it was because she had brought too many people and blushed slightly, saying, "Madam needn’t worry about that. Those guards were arranged by the elderly madam and will return once they’ve escorted me here. As for those serving me, we can just squeeze in together. In a few days, I’ll send a few back to Jinling."
"How could that be?" Madam Li said with a smile. "It would never do to send away all the people serving the Second Young Lady."
While they were talking, Zhou Zhen returned early to the inner residence.
Zhou Shaojin happily went up to greet him and specifically introduced Nanny Shang and Xiao Tan to her father.Since one was a person bestowed by Old Madam Guo and the other by Cheng Chi, Zhou Zhen spoke kindly to them for a few words before allowing them to withdraw. He then smiled and led Zhou Shaojin to the study to talk.
Madam Li personally directed the household maids and servants to help Zhou Shaojin settle into the side room, while Zhou Zhen had already begun speaking with Zhou Shaojin in the study.
"What exactly happened that made you rush to Baoding in such haste?" Zhou Zhen’s expression turned stern and solemn.
Some matters could be hidden from her sister, but not from her father. Besides, she owed Uncle Chi a favor that required her father’s help to repay!
Zhou Shaojin nervously recounted the entire sequence of events to Zhou Zhen in detail.
※
Dear readers, yesterday’s typos have been corrected, and a few minor inconsistencies have also been fixed. Today’s typos will likely be corrected around noon...
※ (To be continued ~^~)
OpenNovel