Chapter 263: Education
The Yu family quickly responded, and after discussions between Madam Chen and Madam Yu, the wedding date was set for the fifth day of the tenth month.
Chen Xuanqing remained silent on the matter.
The news of Gu Jinzhao's pregnancy soon reached Daxing. Gu Lian learned of it from Madam Feng during a visit home.
"She's pregnant already?" Gu Lian was incredulous. "She’s only been married for a little over a month..."
Madam Feng nodded. "She’s fortunate. The Chen family’s only legitimate son, the Seventh Young Master, is already grown... Any child she bears will be doted on by the entire household." Not particularly keen on discussing Gu Jinzhao, Madam Feng took Gu Lian’s hand and asked, "Has Wenxiu been treating you well?"
Gu Lian nodded, then after a moment, shook her head.
Madam Feng frowned. "Child, is it good or not?"
Gu Lian now wore her hair in a married woman’s style, adorned with a jeweled knot made of strings of pearls and two gold gourd hairpins inlaid with turquoise the size of lotus seeds. She no longer smiled as often, and her complexion wasn’t as radiant as before.
"He... is good in some ways. He cares for me and looks after me, always remembering to bring me nice things. Like these Moyu bracelets—white jade with black jade accents—he even asked his mother for them to give to me." Gu Lian pushed up her sleeve to show Madam Feng the bracelets, which were of exquisite quality. Then she continued, "But the bad part... barely half a month after our wedding, he started having two bedroom servant girls attend to him again."
Madam Feng frowned. "Why didn’t you tell me about this?" It was customary for the bridal chamber to remain undisturbed for the first month of marriage.
Gu Lian murmured, "I... how could I bring myself to say it?"
Madam Feng found this matter serious and pressed, "Does his mother not intervene?"
Gu Lian replied, "She doesn’t even know! And it happened right in my courtyard, in the side room. After his afternoon nap, he called the maids in to serve him... for about a quarter of an hour. Lan Zhi only found out because she heard strange noises and went to investigate before telling me."
So it wasn’t an overnight affair... Madam Feng asked, "What did you do afterward?"
Gu Lian felt a lump in her chest as she spoke. "I wanted to storm in and scold him for such indecency in broad daylight... But the matron stopped me, saying I shouldn’t make a scene and should wait to talk to him afterward. So I held back until evening. He claimed it was the girl named Yilan who tempted him and comforted me for a while. The next day, he docked Yilan two months’ wages, but I still felt uneasy. I made things difficult for her for a few days..."
Madam Feng sighed in relief. Fortunately, she had sent the capable Matron Zhang to accompany Gu Lian. Otherwise, who knew how big a scandal might have erupted. She advised Gu Lian, "In such matters, you mustn’t make a scene. You need to learn how to manage the maids. Did you make that girl drink the medicine afterward?"
Gu Lian said, "I was so angry I forgot all about the medicine!"
Madam Feng was exasperated. "If she really gets pregnant, you’ll be even angrier later. Did you tell your mother about this?"
Gu Lian shook her head slightly. Madam Feng immediately sent for Second Madam, who then summoned Matron Zhang for questioning.
Matron Zhang replied, "Tai Furen need not worry. This servant has been ensuring the medicine is administered without fail."
Second Madam’s eyes reddened with anger. "Yao Wenxiu has some nerve. Even if the maid really tempted him, couldn’t he control himself?"Madam Feng first had Gu Lian step out to have some tea, then said to Second Madam, "You should visit the Yao family tomorrow and inform Madam Yao about this matter. Tell her that Gu Lian couldn’t bear to speak up and came to us for comfort, so Madam Yao should give Yao Wenxiu a stern warning. The boy isn’t bad in character, just too frivolous."
Second Madam replied, "If he weren’t frivolous, he wouldn’t have gotten involved in such a thing with Gu Lan..."
Madam Feng sighed, "Enough, enough. She’s already married into their family. If you don’t dwell on such matters, everything will be fine. I’m just worried Lian jie er isn’t broad-minded." Since Gu Lan was mentioned, Madam Feng asked Granny Zhang, "...Has she caused any trouble?"
Granny Zhang shook her head with a smile, "She’s been obedient. She comes morning and evening to pay respects to Third Madam, smiling even when met with cold words... The only downside is that the young master treats her well too. He takes care of her whenever possible, ensuring she lacks nothing in food or clothing. But since the marriage, they haven’t consummated it yet."
Second Madam frowned deeply. She couldn’t believe Gu Lan could endure so much. "...We should have gotten rid of her back then. I’m afraid she’ll stir up more trouble."
Granny Zhang reassured her, "Don’t worry. Her pillows and bedding have been treated. She won’t bear children and won’t amount to anything."
Madam Feng said, "Ignore Gu Lan for now. But keep a close eye on those two Bed Warming Maids. Make sure they drink the medicinal soup daily—better safe than sorry."
Granny Zhang acknowledged and withdrew.
Second Madam then asked Madam Feng, "...Gu Jinzhao is pregnant. Should we send a maid to attend to her?"
Madam Feng sneered, "The Chen Family isn’t short of servants. Besides, she’s grown her wings now—why would she need us to interfere?" She added, "But we must keep up appearances. Tell Madam Xu to buy some nourishing medicinal materials, black-boned chickens, pigeons, and the like to send over."
Second Madam had just nodded when Fuling hurried in, her face pale, and said to Madam Feng, "Tai Furen... something’s happened."
...
Gu Jinzhao had just received the gifts sent by her grandmother. There were all sorts of nourishing medicinal materials—a fifty-year-old ginseng in an embroidered box, premium gastrodia rhizome, angelica, and other herbs. There was also a cage with two plump hens, a large box of pigeon eggs, a basket of chicken eggs, and even several live four-gill perch. The sheer volume of items filled an entire cart, and moving them took half a day.
Granny Sun checked the list and had everything moved to the back rooms, which were soon packed to the brim.
Chen Xi came to play after her guqin practice, and Jinzhao fed her some chestnut cakes that had been sent over.
Her fingers ached so much from practice that she could barely move them. If she played poorly, her teacher would strike her palms, leaving her in tears. Jinzhao remembered her own struggles with the instrument—sometimes unable to hold chopsticks and needing a maid to feed her—and sympathized deeply.
She later said to Third Master Chen, "Why not let Xi Jie'er rest for a few days? Her fingers are swollen."
Third Master Chen turned a page of his book and replied indifferently, "No."
Gu Jinzhao tugged at his sleeve. "Third Master... don’t be so harsh on the child. Girls should be pampered. Look how distant Xi Jie'er is from you."
With a resigned sigh, Third Master Chen set his book down. He found her livelier since her pregnancy—even interrupting his reading. Yet he couldn’t bring himself to ignore her. "She chose to learn the guqin herself. I never forced her. I won’t interfere with how the teacher instructs her."
With that, he resumed reading.Gu Jinzhao wondered how much of the tutor's teaching methods were actually directed by Third Master Chen, who had always been strict with the children.
She didn’t plead further for Chen Xi but sent some bruise medicine to her instead.
After finishing his book, Third Master Chen came over and embraced her. He gently touched her belly. "It seems a bit bigger..."
Gu Jinzhao replied, "I just had a bowl of pig trotter soup—that must be why." It hadn’t even been three months yet; there was no way she could be showing.
Third Master Chen chuckled but said nothing. After a while, he asked, "Were you also raised in a pampered manner?"
Gu Jinzhao answered, "I wouldn’t say I was pampered... I was quite mischievous. When I lived with my grandmother, I used to climb trees with the maids and coax my cousins into taking me out to play. If I ate pastries, I’d make a mess all over the kang, leaving the maids to clean up for ages. But my grandmother doted on me and never scolded me."
Third Master Chen thought of the cartload of gifts. Madam Ji must have truly cherished Gu Jinzhao.
"The last time I saw her was in Baodi. After you give birth, let’s visit her together."
Gu Jinzhao recalled that the last time Third Master Chen had visited was when Chen Xuan married into the Ji family, and Ji Can had to address him as uncle. Back then, he was surrounded by a crowd. She never imagined she would end up marrying him. Feeling slightly awkward, she tugged at his sleeve. "...Third Master, since Chen Xuan married my cousin Ji Can, you’re now a generation above my cousins. If we visit Grandmother again, the titles will get all mixed up..."
Seeing her wide-eyed gaze, Third Master Chen pulled her into his arms and murmured, "It’s fine. I’ll bear the inconvenience." He continued stroking her belly and whispered in her ear, "Jinzhao, what if the child turns out as mischievous as you were?"
Gu Jinzhao thought for a moment. "A lively child is good—they’ll grow up strong and healthy."
Third Master Chen smiled. "If they’re as mischievous as you, I might have to discipline them."
Gu Jinzhao pictured the little one in her belly being scolded by Third Master Chen and bursting into tears. The thought unsettled her, so she replied vaguely, "...We’ll see. Maybe the child will be quiet and well-behaved."
Third Master Chen laughed heartily and called for Shuyan. "...Tell Xi Jie'er’s music tutor to take the day off."
Gu Jinzhao didn’t understand why he suddenly relented.
"So you don’t think I’m too harsh," he explained. "That child lacks perseverance, and I wanted to toughen her up. But if her fingers get blistered, she’ll have to rest for a while anyway."
Gu Jinzhao inwardly scoffed—he was just worried about delaying Xi Jie'er’s music lessons. Still, a break was good. She summoned Caifu and sent her to relay the news to Chen Xi.
Third Master Chen picked up his book, then set it down again, grinning. "Don’t worry, I won’t actually discipline the child." He paused. "At most, I’ll make them copy books. The entire 'Records of the Grand Historian'—copying it enough times will help them memorize it, which isn’t a bad thing."
Gu Jinzhao sighed and muttered under her breath, "You’re not even born yet, and someone’s already plotting how to torment you..."
Suddenly, Third Master Chen pulled her close, covering her mouth as he whispered, "...Your mother is teasing you." But he refused to let her go, holding her waist firmly. Gu Jinzhao remembered she still had account books to review and squirmed in his arms. "Third Master, I still have matters to attend to...""I know..." he murmured softly. She had been poring over those account books for hours—they were part of her dowry, so he couldn't very well interfere.
Jinchao's complexion had grown even more radiant, her skin fair with a rosy glow, the fragrance of camellias about her becoming richer. Her movements stirred him, the skin beneath his fingers as smooth and soft as fine silk... Back when he practiced abstinence, it hadn't seemed like much. But after marrying her, he often found it hard to restrain himself. Since discovering her pregnancy, they hadn't been intimate—he didn’t even dare hold her while sleeping, afraid of harming the child.
"Jinchao..." He took her earlobe between his lips, teasing it gently with his tongue.
Gu Jinzhao glanced at the stack of account books, realizing she wouldn’t finish them today... Feeling his hand slide to her waist, she gripped his arm to stop him. "Third Master, we can't..."
"Mmm, don’t worry, I have a way..." He rolled over, pinning her beneath him, his breath growing heavier.
The maids had long since withdrawn, standing guard outside the door.
But then Jiang Yan arrived and said to Qingpu, "Miss, could you announce me? It's urgent."
Qingpu hesitated. The master and mistress were... But since it was urgent, she feared delaying. Steeling herself, she called through the curtain.
The rustling of clothes, resistance, muffled chaos, whispered reassurances—then silence.
At last, Third Master Chen's icy voice came through: "...Tell him to wait in the study."
OpenNovel