Сhеng Сhi disagreеd: "Jiуing is thе wifе Ziрing sought, so naturаllу their feеlings are gооd." Аt this роint, his tоne pаused slightly as he hesitatеd, "Тherе's somеthing... Sеniоr Вrothеr Qin wrоtе mе а lettеr a few daуs аgo, sаying that if Nanрing agreеs, he wishes fоr hеr tо mаrrу Qin Zi'аn. Zi'аn also саme tо sее me аbout this mаttеr, but regarding Nаnрing... I cаnnot inquire toо much—she has sеrvеd sinсe сhildhood, and if I tеll hеr tо marrу, shе will сеrtаinlу do sо. Вut whethеr she trulу likes Zi'an... Zining hаs beеn gоnе for sо mаnу уears, and I still sоmetimes recall his аppeаrancе... Now thаt hе is no lоnger here, how can I fail to settle even his people properly?
"I've thought about this over and over, and only you can help me by asking her intentions.
"If she is unwilling, I cannot force her. If she is willing, I will still marry her off with a grand dowry..."
Zhou Shaojin felt she somewhat understood Nanping.
Over the years, she had lived like a young widow in mourning, rarely going anywhere, preferring to remain forever in the days of the past.
Hadn't she been the same in her previous life?
Yet only after truly stepping out did she realize there were still beautiful sights beyond.
Just like her—if she hadn't overcome the timidity and cowardice of her past life, how would she have met Cheng Chi and married him?
"I'll go ask her," Zhou Shaojin accepted the task without hesitation.
Cheng Chi smiled and kissed her forehead.
His little girl was gradually beginning to help him resolve worries and difficulties.
"Gu Jiuniao may come to the capital in a few days," he said gently to her. "Huang Li recommended him for the position of Supervising Secretary in the Ministry of Justice."
Zhou Shaojin was surprised: "Huang Li? The one who is at odds with Uncle?"
Wasn't the Gu family on good terms with the Cheng family?
She asked in confusion, "Since there is a vacancy, why didn't Uncle recommend Sixth Master Gu?"
Cheng Chi's expression turned somewhat cold. His lips parted slightly, but in the end, he pressed them together and said, "He always thinks his own relatives are not important. Whenever someone comes to him with a request, he always thinks of others first and his own family last, afraid that any stain might fall on his reputation. Yet he doesn’t realize that what is merely a trivial effort for him could be a matter of life and death for others. The restoration of the Ninth Old Master of the Gu family is indeed important, but for the other branches of the Gu family, Gu Jiuniao’s future is even more crucial. I had reminded him before—since he was already involved in the Ninth Old Master’s affairs, why not help Gu Jiuniao secure a future as well? But he brushed me off, saying he couldn’t find a suitable opportunity. I originally intended to mention it to Grand Secretary Song, but who knew Old Master Song would pass away... It was only half a month later. Jiuniao’s teacher introduced him to Huang Li. He even told Huang Li about his relationship with our family, but Huang Li said it didn’t matter. Jiuniao couldn’t even refuse... Didn’t you say that in your previous life, Huang Li entered the Grand Secretariat before Elder Brother? Now it seems that even if I help him defeat Huang Li and ensure Elder Brother enters the Grand Secretariat before him, it would be futile. Huang Li, whether in terms of magnanimity or methods, surpasses Elder Brother... If Elder Brother continues to be so muddleheaded, who knows what troubles will arise!"
Most importantly, a seed of doubt had taken root in his heart.
In the previous life, if Second Uncle had died a normal death, why didn’t the Cheng family hold a grand funeral? Why wasn’t there any royal commendation? And if Second Uncle’s death was not normal, what was Cheng Jing doing?
Cheng Chi clasped his hands behind his back and paced restlessly around the room twice.Few things could make him reveal his emotions so openly.
It seemed as if some anger had momentarily overwhelmed him, making it impossible to suppress.
Zhou Shaojin held Cheng Chi tenderly, gently stroking his back in comfort.
With her warm, fragrant, and soft presence in his arms, Cheng Chi’s emotions gradually settled.
He stroked Zhou Shaojin’s hair and said softly, "I’m fine… I was just feeling a bit irritable for a moment."
"I know," Zhou Shaojin nestled into his embrace.
He always preferred to keep things to himself.
Yet the matters he kept to himself were always significant.
Such as the execution of the entire Cheng family?
Or the safety of her, Old Madam Guo, the child, and the rest of the Cheng family if things were to reach that point…
Thinking of this, Zhou Shaojin regretted telling Cheng Chi about her past life.
She said to him, "I’ve finished half of the assignment you gave me last time. Would you like to take a look?"
Cheng Chi had painted twelve one-foot-square bird-and-flower paintings in meticulous detail and asked Zhou Shaojin to mount them for gifting later.
In the mornings, Zhou Shaojin helped Old Madam Guo handle household chores; in the afternoons, she sometimes played with Yun Ge’er; and in the evenings, when Cheng Chi returned, she attended to him—helping him change clothes, serving him meals, and even assisting with his writing and ink if he was in the study. After chatting together in the evenings, the day would pass quickly. If Cheng Chi was in high spirits… they would often stay up late into the night. Since she had to pay her respects to Old Madam Guo in the morning, she dared not sleep in and would make up for it with a nap at noon the next day. These twelve paintings were ones Cheng Chi had painted during the New Year holidays at home, and now, nearly half a year later, she had only managed to mount six of them intermittently.
If not for seeing Cheng Chi in low spirits, she wouldn’t have brought them out to show her amateurish work.
Finding something to divert Cheng Chi’s attention would gradually lift his mood.
She had often done the same for herself in the past.
Cheng Chi indeed showed great interest and said, "Let’s go take a look in the study."
Zhou Shaojin happily accompanied Cheng Chi to her own study.
Though called a study, it was actually the side room on the west side of the main chamber. Since it was only used by Zhou Shaojin, besides writing brushes, ink, paper, inkstones, books, and scrolls, there was also a three-foot-square flower stand in the corner. Next to it, a clothes rack held embroidery threads of various colors and finished tassels. On the windowsill stood a plain white porcelain flower vase filled with bright red pomegranate blossoms. The room exuded a distinctly feminine charm yet felt comfortable and relaxed.
Cheng Chi liked it very much.
Especially when he spotted a reclining chair in the corner, cushioned with an embroidered mat of golden brocade.
He could easily imagine Zhou Shaojin, in his absence, idly curling up in the reclining chair reading leisurely books.
Unable to help himself, Cheng Chi leaned down and kissed Zhou Shaojin’s forehead again.
Noticing his gaze sweep over the reclining chair before he kissed her, Zhou Shaojin blushed slightly, feeling a bit self-conscious.
Last time, Cheng Chi had taken her with her legs propped up on the armchair… That position had made her feel uneasy… and improper.
She didn’t know what had stirred him up back then… She hoped he wouldn’t act like that again…
Zhou Shaojin quickly led him to the large desk and pulled out the mounted paintings for him to see.
Cheng Chi was astonished to see that several of the paintings were mounted with such crispness and naturalness, as if they had grown onto the backing paper.
Such skill was something some people couldn’t achieve even after ten or twenty years of practice.
If she had been learning from a master, she would already be qualified to graduate as an apprentice.
After a moment of thought, he asked, "What paper did you use for the painting core?"Zhou Shaojin thought she had already done a fine job with the mounting, so upon hearing this, she nervously asked, "What? Is it not good enough?"
"No, no," Cheng Chi replied. Seeing her fingers twitch slightly, he immediately pulled her into his embrace and said with a smile, "The mounting is excellent! You could even take on apprentices now. Given a little more time, all the ancient books in the house could be entrusted to you."
Zhou Shaojin breathed a sigh of relief, feeling an inexplicable sense of pride welling up inside her. A hint of smugness inevitably showed on her face as she said, "I didn’t dare use your paintings directly for mounting practice, so I took out some of my old floral patterns to work on. But no matter what, the paper always ended up a bit wrinkled here or there, never perfectly smooth. I thought of many solutions, and finally remembered the Chengxin paper Father gave me. It’s stiffer than other papers, so I used that as the painting core... Isn’t it good?" She looked up at Cheng Chi, her eyes brimming with laughter and her expression unmistakably expectant.
Cheng Chi’s lips twitched slightly.
Chengxin paper... priceless on the market... more expensive than gold... each sheet used is one less in existence... and she used it as a painting core... He wondered if her father, upon finding out, would rush all the way from Baoding Prefecture to scold his little girl... And if the old scholars at the Hanlin Academy knew, they’d probably stomp their feet and beat their chests in despair...
But when his gaze met Zhou Shaojin’s, he felt it wasn’t such a big deal after all.
Things are meant to be used.
What’s the difference between writing on it and mounting it?
"It’s very good indeed!" Cheng Chi praised her with a smile. "How did you come up with this idea?"
Zhou Shaojin was instantly overjoyed.
She felt that all her days of deep contemplation had finally paid off.
"I was thinking about embroidery," she said, beaming. "To embroider well, the fabric needs to be stretched tight, and naturally, the thicker the paper, the better. When it comes to thickness, the only paper I know of is Chengxin paper..."
Cheng Chi said, "Once you’ve finished mounting all the paintings, we’ll send them as gifts to various households."
Let them also see Shaojin’s strengths, so they won’t keep thinking he’s somehow been wronged by marrying her.
Zhou Shaojin nodded with a smile.
Cheng Chi’s calligraphy and paintings were somewhat renowned in the Jiangnan region. Sending a piece of his work as a gift for celebrations among relatives was considered an elegant gesture.
"Then write a few more scrolls," Zhou Shaojin requested. "The sixth day of next month is Father’s birthday. You write the characters, and I’ll mount them. We can give it to Father as a birthday gift."
Father would surely like it.
"Alright!" Cheng Chi thought this was a good idea too.
Zhou Shaojin ground the ink while Cheng Chi wrote. After two hours, they finally selected a scroll with the characters "Longevity Rivals the Southern Mountains."
Cheng Chi said, "Is it too simple? Should I write a poem or something?"
"No need," Zhou Shaojin replied, thinking of how busy Cheng Chi was. If he had to write more characters, it would take at least seven or eight days. "Let’s just give these four characters this time. Next time, we’ll prepare earlier and paint a portrait of the Three Star Gods of Fortune, Prosperity, and Longevity for Father."
After discussing Zhou Zhen’s birthday gift for a while longer, they heard the second watch drum sound outside. Only then did Zhou Shaojin, feeling embarrassed, urge Cheng Chi to rest: "You still have to go to the yamen tomorrow!"
"It’s fine," Cheng Chi said with a smile. "I don’t have to attend the morning court assembly."
He still wasn’t qualified to attend the morning court.
Nevertheless, the two freshened up and went to bed together.
As she lay down, Zhou Shaojin thought of Gu Jiuniao.In her previous life, Gu Jiuniao did not help the Cheng family. Could it be related to the fact that Huang Li recommended him for an official position?
She shared her concerns with Cheng Chi.
Cheng Chi smiled and said, "If my elder brother hadn't surpassed Huang Li, Huang Li might still be competing with him. But my brother managed to get ahead of Huang Li even when circumstances favored Huang Li. Logically speaking, Huang Li should hold my brother in higher regard because of this. If that's the case, he might not necessarily be trying to challenge my brother; it's more likely that he recognized Jiuniao's talent and character. However, we won't know the specifics until Jiuniao arrives in the capital." Then he comforted her, saying, "In the eyes of others, am I not considered Grand Secretary Song's man? Don't overthink it and get some sleep. With Jiying's temperament, she'll surely come every day these next few days to teach Yun Ge'er water drifting. You'll have plenty to keep you busy..."
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Dear readers, here is today's update.
o(n_n)o~
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