А fеw dауs lаter, Chеng Wеn rесеived a lettеr sаying that Мadam Wеn hаd fаllеn ill аnd rеquesting Wu Bаozhang to return home tо аttend tо her.
If this lеttеr hаd аrrived bеfоrе thе trоuble аt Cheng Wen’s shор, he wоuld have urged Wu Вaozhаng to leаvе withоut а sесоnd thought. But it саme рrесiselу aftеr his shоp had run intо diffiсulties, аnd Cheng Wen fеlt a surge of rеsеntmеnt. Hе asked the mеssеngеr, “Was this sеnt thrоugh thе роstаl statiоn оr by thе six-hundrеd-li exрress sеrviсе used bу thе Сhеng family eldеrs?”
The messenger smilеd and repliеd, “It was sent thrоugh the роstal stаtion…”
Before he could finish, Cheng Wen crumpled the letter into a ball, threw it on the ground, and roared, “Get out of here! If she’s so gravely ill, why not use the six-hundred-li express instead of the postal station? It seems her illness isn’t serious at all. Let her suffer on her own. If she truly can’t bear it, aren’t there still those loyal maids and servants by her side? Let them take good care of her. When the time comes, they can mourn her and carry her funeral basin—that’ll be the end of their loyalty. Why torment her own daughter-in-law for no reason? Go tell the steward to reply to her, word for word as I’ve said. Do you understand?” Still seething, he stepped forward and stomped on the crumpled paper ball several times.
The terrified messenger fled.
Cheng Nuo, who had rushed over upon hearing his mother was ill, witnessed the scene and quietly retreated.
No matter how flawed they were, they were the ones who had given him life and raised him. He didn’t want to get involved.
When Wu Baozhang found out, she was filled with regret.
She had considered everything but overlooked Cheng Wen’s resentment toward Madam Wen.
Now it was all over.
She had wasted twenty taels of silver for nothing.
Wu Baozhang’s personal maid also regretted it deeply, saying, “If only we had known, we should have sent it by the six-hundred-li express!”
“What do you know?” Wu Baozhang frowned. “The six-hundred-li express is reserved for government offices. Even ordinary officials don’t have the right to use it, let alone people like us trying to sneak in.” She clenched her fists. “That path is blocked now. We’ll have to find another way…”
The maid couldn’t help but complain, “If only we hadn’t given him those twenty taels of silver in the first place!”
“It wouldn’t have made a difference,” Wu Baozhang said dejectedly. “He’s changed now. He’s not the same Cheng Lu he used to be. Reasoning with him about propriety and shame is like playing the lute to a cow. If I hadn’t given him those twenty taels, he would have found some other way to get money from me. What I don’t understand is how he knew I was in the capital and found me so easily. When he saw me, it was as if he knew I would help him…”
In the past, they had only shared some ambiguous feelings. Couldn’t he have feared she might refuse to help him?
Suspicion swirled in her mind, but she couldn’t figure out why.
Was it because she was easier to bully?
As Wu Baozhang pondered, she considered writing a letter to Madam Shi, asking her to help find a way to bring her back.
But as soon as the thought arose, she dismissed it.
If she told Madam Shi, one more person would know about her relationship with Cheng Lu. Wouldn’t that be handing them a weapon against her?
But if she had to spend another three hundred taels of silver, her personal savings would shrink by a third.
Yet, besides Madam Shi, who else could help her?Wu Baozhang began pacing around the room once more.
※
Over at Chaoyang Gate, Zhou Shaojin was leaning against the headboard of her bed, covered with a red silk quilt embroidered with mandarin ducks playing in water. She gave a restrained smile to Zhou Chujin, who was holding a spoon ready to feed her bird's nest soup, and whispered, "Sister, I... I'm just pregnant... I can still hold the bowl myself..."
The implication was that her hands and feet were perfectly fine.
Zhou Chujin glared at her resentfully.
Zhou Shaojin immediately lowered her head and obediently began sipping the bird's nest soup.
Seeing her sister's meek demeanor, Zhou Chujin felt both angry and frustrated at her lack of assertiveness. Unable to hold back, she chided, "You... back then, why did Father insist you delay consummating your marriage? Wasn't it because he feared you were too young and would suffer during childbirth? Do you think Father didn't know that having children would truly secure your place in the Cheng family? Do you think I don't understand how important children are for a woman? But both Father and I hoped more than anything that you would live well, enjoy a long life, and be blessed with prosperity. Yet here you are, letting Cheng Zichuan have his way so easily..." As a young woman who had only recently become a mother herself, her face flushed with embarrassment as she spoke. Lowering her voice further, she continued, "Listen to me, you mustn't let Cheng Zichuan act recklessly. During the first three months of pregnancy, you absolutely must sleep separately. This is no trivial matter. If you lose the first child, future pregnancies will likely be difficult. Even if it causes conflict between you two, don't be soft-hearted. Do you understand?"
Zhou Shaojin nodded obediently and submissively, then glanced toward the door.
Zhou Chujin was so exasperated she hardly knew what to say. After a long pause, she finally asked, "Did you actually listen to what I said?"
"I did, I did," Zhou Shaojin hurriedly replied. "You told me to... sleep separately from Si Lang!" As she spoke, she glanced at the door again.
Since she was pregnant, Si Lang, worried she might feel afraid, had sent someone to inform Zhou Chujin, asking her to visit whenever possible to keep Zhou Shaojin company.
Upon hearing this, Zhou Chujin had immediately flared up and rushed over with Nanny Shang, who had been sent to deliver the message.
But when she entered, she found her sister happily half-lying in bed, sewing clothes for the baby.
Her anger surged uncontrollably. After barely managing to suppress it, the kitchen brought in a bowl of bird's nest soup stewed with rock sugar, and her sister, acting as if nothing were wrong, even offered her some. Seeing her carefree sister like this, Zhou Chujin couldn't help but resent Cheng Chi intensely.
If it weren't for him, her usually obedient and sensible sister wouldn't have gotten pregnant so early.
Yet she couldn't say Cheng Chi was wrong.
After all, what family wouldn't hope for their daughter-in-law to bear children and continue the family line? Were they supposed to treat her like a goddess instead?
Take herself, for example. Her son, Guan Ge'er, was not yet two years old, and her mother-in-law was already anxious about why she hadn't conceived a second child. How much more so for Cheng Chi, who was over ten years older than Zhou Shaojin, whose mother-in-law was advanced in years, and who had just established his own branch of the family? Naturally, Cheng Chi longed for a child even more.
Otherwise, what was the point of working so hard to build such a vast fortune?
But understanding was one thing; when it came to her own sister, she couldn't help feeling uneasy.
Still, what was done was done, and further words were useless.
Zhou Chujin sighed, handed a small mirror to Zhou Shaojin, and whispered, "Remember what I told you."
Puzzled, Zhou Shaojin took the mirror and saw red marks on her neck.Her face flushed crimson instantly as she shyly looked at her sister, her lips trembling, unable to speak for a long while.
Zhou Chujin watched her like this and couldn't help adding, "You absolutely cannot do this again."
Zhou Shaojin lowered her head almost to her chest but couldn't resist defending Cheng Chi: "He didn't do anything to me..." Then, remembering the undeniable mark on her neck, she added, "He was just very happy... and kissed me..."
"You're still speaking up for him!" Zhou Chujin was furious. If things continued like this, if something were to happen, it would be Shaojin who would suffer in the end. If Shaojin had married someone else, she could have used her status as an elder sister to pressure her mother-in-law. But Shaojin had married Cheng Chi, and her mother-in-law was Old Madam Guo—someone she had revered since childhood, someone who didn't even pay attention to the ancestors of the second branch. How could she possibly suppress Old Madam Guo?
Under the weight of such authority, Zhou Chujin conceded defeat without a fight. She could only pull open Zhou Shaojin's collar and whisper, "Look for yourself. Look for yourself..."
Zhou Shaojin, of course, knew and was so embarrassed she felt tears welling up.
Zhou Chujin watched her and suddenly lost her temper. Sighing, she helped her sister straighten her collar and said, "I'm just concerned about you. Don't take my words lightly. You must live well."
Seeing that her sister was no longer fixated on those matters, Zhou Shaojin felt as if a weight had been lifted, and her expression gradually relaxed. "I know you care about me... He treats me very well and wouldn't act recklessly. He was just too happy, and it won't happen again..."
Though Zhou Chujin's heart was still uneasy, she couldn't bring herself to pressure her sister further.
She sat Guan Ge on her lap and, pointing at Zhou Shaojin's belly, asked Guan Ge with a smile, "Is Auntie carrying a little brother or a little sister?"
Guan Ge was exceptionally clever, speaking before he was even one year old, though he couldn't walk yet. Madam Liao was very proud of this and would boast about her grandson whenever she went visiting, saying Guan Ge was a thinker and would surely excel in his studies in the future.
Guan Ge quickly replied, "Little sister!"
Zhou Chujin's expression darkened, and she asked him again, "Look carefully, is it a little brother or a little sister?" Her implication was clear.
Unfortunately, Guan Ge was still too young to understand such subtleties and repeated, "Auntie, little sister!"
Zhou Shaojin giggled.
Zhou Chujin was exasperated. "What are you laughing at? Neither of you is easy to deal with."
Zhou Shaojin reached out to Guan Ge and said, "Come, sit with Auntie!"
Guan Ge wanted to crawl over but was stopped by Zhou Chujin. "Auntie is carrying a little baby in her belly. You mustn't be naughty." Guan Ge sat there, not daring to move.
Zhou Shaojin couldn't help but smile. She took a small nine-compartment snack box from a hidden compartment by the bed, opened it, and handed it to Guan Ge to eat.
Guan Ge happily sat in his mother's lap, eating the snacks.
Zhou Chujin raised an eyebrow and said, "He certainly is attentive to you! He even prepared this for you."
"He was just afraid I'd get hungry," Zhou Shaojin replied sheepishly. "I don't have any other symptoms now—I just want to sleep and eat all kinds of snacks. Si Lang even hired a pastry chef specifically for this. Sister, why don't you and Guan Ge stay for dinner today? Try the chef's cooking."No wonder people say the Cheng family is wealthy—just because Shaojin wanted to eat pastries, they hired a pastry chef for her. The money is trivial; it’s this gentle, caring attention that Shaojin truly desires in life, isn’t it?
Zhou Chujin felt relieved and teased her sister, "If you ever develop a taste for spicy food, wouldn’t he have to hire a Sichuan chef for you?"
"Fourth Master said the same thing," Zhou Shaojin laughed. "He said it’s hard to find an authentic Sichuan chef in Beijing!"
Zhou Chujin felt a bit deflated.
Uncle Chi... spoiling Shaojin like this—who knows what Old Madam Guo would say if she found out?
※
Dear readers, this is an extra update for Suyan.
The evening update will proceed as usual.
PS: I’d like to recommend a book to everyone.
Title: Reborn with Good Fortune
Book ID: 3569830
Synopsis: Born a noble lady of a prestigious family, how could she tolerate anyone’s insolence!
※ (To be continued ~^~)
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