Volume 1 Chapter 339: Jealousy
Seeing how uncomfortable Chen Xuanqing looked holding Changsuo, Gu Jinzhao said, "He's quite heavy. Why don't you let me take him?"
She reached out to take Changsuo, but the child thought his mother was playing peek-a-boo with him. Giggling, he buried his head behind Chen Xuanqing.
Chen Xuanqing could only awkwardly support the child's body, afraid he might fall.
"You shouldn't carry the child too much," Madam Chen cautioned Gu Jinzhao. "Now that you're with child again, you must be more careful."
Chen Xuanqing's lips tightened imperceptibly.
Apart from Gu Jinzhao and Third Master Chen, no one else knew about this yet. Immediately, everyone congratulated Jinzhao. But she felt the child had come too soon—she was already exhausted caring for one. How would she manage another?
After dinner, Second Master Chen stayed behind to speak with Madam Chen.
Third Master Chen carried the sleeping child and left first, with Gu Jinzhao following behind. When they returned to Osmanthus Hall, the wet nurse removed Changsuo's little jacket and took him to the warm chamber to sleep. Third Master Chen sat on the arhat bed, reading a book.
Gu Jinzhao had her maids assist her in washing her face and hands with a hot towel before changing into fresh clothes.
When she came out, Third Master Chen gestured for her to sit opposite him and closed his book.
"There are some household matters I can't intervene in directly, so I can only speak through you. My intention is to arrange a concubine for Chen Xuanqing."
Why was he suddenly thinking of arranging a concubine for Chen Xuanqing?
Since it was Third Master Chen's idea, Gu Jinzhao didn't voice any objections. She nodded and asked, "That's fine. It would be good for Seventh Young Master to have someone else to attend to him. Do you have anyone in mind?"
"I'm not familiar with the maids around him. But there were originally two bed-warming maids—we could elevate one to concubine," Third Master Chen said indifferently.
Gu Jinzhao agreed, though she hesitated inwardly. Was this because of her...?
She seemed to want to say something but stopped herself. After a moment of silence, she said, "Seventh Young Master has served as a county magistrate for a year now, and his temperament has broadened. A few more years of experience would do him good—he's in much better spirits than before. Those past incidents were just youthful recklessness..."
Third Master Chen listened and then asked, "Are you afraid I might misunderstand?"
Gu Jinzhao shook her head. "Not afraid of misunderstanding. I just wanted to clarify."
Third Master Chen replied calmly, "Jinzhao, do you want to hear the truth?"
What truth?
Third Master Chen continued, "I don't like it when you speak with him—but it's not that I don't trust you..." He paused for a moment before reaching out to take her hand. "Sometimes, I'm not as composed as I appear. I don't like other men looking at you too much. I can feel jealous too..."
He always seemed magnanimous, but in truth, he was just an ordinary man.
"So it's impossible for me not to be wary of you and Chen Xuanqing. Do you understand?" Chen Yanyun looked into Gu Jinzhao's eyes with a faint sigh.
Gu Jinzhao simply sighed in response.
Of course, she understood. Everyone had their own selfish desires and emotions. Third Master Chen wasn't a saint... And in some ways, intelligent people tended to be more sensitive. Gu Jinzhao wrapped her arms around Chen Yanyun's neck and nestled into his embrace, quietly listening to the steady beat of his heart.
"Yanyun..." she murmured.
"Hmm?" Chen Yanyun lifted his hand, letting his Buddhist beads slip into his sleeve. He simply rested his palm on Jinzhao's back, gently stroking.
She was wearing a satin-lined jacket of Hangzhou silk, its diamond-patterned surface smooth and slightly thin, allowing him to feel the contours of her spine beneath."I might like you more than I thought," Gu Jinzhao said softly. "I can't imagine what I would be like without you..."
She had always looked down upon women who depended on men for survival.
In truth, her own mother was somewhat like that—living a lonely existence in the inner chambers, fighting over a man, gradually becoming dependent on him. Letting his preferences dictate her own, losing all sense of self.
When Gu Jinzhao was young, she had witnessed the concubines of her eldest uncle vying and scheming against each other. At the time, she had thought disdainfully that even if she were to marry a man, she would never become like that. She was utterly selfish, concerned only with living well herself.
But when she truly began to rely on him wholeheartedly, she realized it wasn’t so simple.
"I’ve also wondered... what it was like when you lived with Jiang Shi," Gu Jinzhao smiled faintly. "See, you must have held her like this too, spoken to her, worried if she wore too little, or picked her favorite dishes for her. Mother said women must not be jealous—it’s one of the seven faults for which a wife can be divorced. But who can truly control themselves?"
Gu Jinzhao had indeed thought about these things before.
A man like Chen Yanyun—who wouldn’t like him? She didn’t believe Jiang Shi’s feelings for him were insincere, nor those of his concubines.
The longer she lived with him, the more she felt how effortlessly he made people adore and depend on him.
Chen Yanyun hadn’t expected Gu Jinzhao to say such things. He was momentarily stunned.
"Jinzhao..."
"I haven’t finished yet," she laughed. "These improper words won’t be spoken again, so let me say them now. Sometimes I wish I had been born ten years earlier, so I could have liked you from the start. I want to know what you were like when you were young, what you were like in your prime. See, all these belong to Jiang Jiejie—she accompanied you, and surely loved you for over a decade. Do you think I might envy her?"
She clung tightly to him, and Third Master Chen was surprised—but more than that, he was delighted.
He leaned close to her ear and whispered, "Jinzhao, you’ve never said these things before..."
That was because she had long passed the age of expressing her emotions fiercely. She had grown accustomed to hiding all her feelings, expressing them in gentler ways. Not out of repression, but simply habit.
He kissed her earlobe, his voice laced with joy.
"I never knew any of this. If you had asked, I could have told you about my past... though I wasn’t as composed back then. When I first earned Second Place, I was so thrilled I dragged Second Brother to the tavern to drink—only to be caught by Father..."
Where he kissed her, Gu Jinzhao felt a tingling numbness, a warmth that burned straight to her heart.
His body grew increasingly tense. She was sitting in his lap, and soon she could feel the stirrings beneath her.
His grip on her waist tightened, pressing her even closer against him.
The sensation there grew more intense.
Gu Jinzhao’s body softened helplessly, her strength leaving her, allowing him to pin her hands and flip her beneath him.
"Later, Father summoned us for a scolding, and I was punished by copying the Dao De Jing ten times..."Gu Jinzhao gave a soft hum, thinking about how busy things had been these days. The two of them hadn’t had much time for intimacy, and most nights he simply held her as she slept. Though there were moments of excitement, he had always been considerate of her exhaustion and refrained from pressing further. A man of his age was naturally vigorous, but her body was still young—perhaps a little too young to keep up with him...
After a moment’s thought, Gu Jinzhao didn’t resist. Third Master Chen had his own ideas and would never disregard her well-being.
Yet Third Master Chen still found the mood to talk to her, patiently stirring her emotions while slowly recounting stories from his past—times he was punished, moments he was ridiculed, anything unpleasant, he shared it all with Gu Jinzhao, leaving her torn between laughter and exasperation.
The two indulged in tender affection for quite some time.
Much of the earlier suspicion faded away.
The next day, Yu Wanxue arrived with Chen Xuanqing to pay their respects.
Gu Jinzhao had just risen, while Third Master Chen had already left half an hour earlier.
He had instructed the kitchen to prepare fish congee for her, along with two plates of fresh, crisp pickled vegetables and a plate of thin-skinned, broth-filled dumplings.
Gu Jinzhao, blaming his earlier recklessness for the delay, felt no gratitude toward him. Hearing that Chen Xuanqing had also come, she naturally ordered, “Have them wait in the main hall for a while!” Then, considering that Chen Xuanqing might be here to see Chen Xi, she called for Granny Sun. “...Go and fetch the Fourth Young Lady.”
Her hair wasn’t properly styled yet, making it inconvenient to receive them. In a hurry, she had her maid tie it into a simple round bun.
Chen Xi had seen Chen Xuanqing the night before but hadn’t had much chance to speak with him.
So when she spotted Seventh Brother today, she joyfully rushed toward him, only to be held back by her attending maid. “Fourth Young Lady! Fourth Young Lady! You must greet them properly...” This was a reminder. Now that Chen Xi was older, she needed to mind her manners and couldn’t just throw herself into her brother’s arms anymore.
Chen Xi pouted in disappointment but obediently curtsied.
Chen Xuanqing stepped forward to greet Gu Jinzhao, presenting a brocade box carried by a maid. It was a gift for her—a rough, uncut piece of purple jade, about half the size of a palm. Purple jade wasn’t particularly valuable, but its auspicious and protective symbolism was meaningful, so Gu Jinzhao accepted it graciously.
Chen Xuanqing explained, “I thought long about what to give you, but nothing seemed quite right. So I settled on raw jade—you can have it carved into whatever design you prefer.”
For Chen Xi, he had brought an exquisite bracelet, intricately carved with lotus patterns, which she adored.
Yu Wanxue sat to the side, smiling as she watched Chen Xi chatter excitedly to her brother.
Gu Jinzhao, however, recalled Third Master Chen’s mention of taking a concubine and glanced at Yu Wanxue. This matter should be handled by her.
When Xi Jie’er dragged Chen Xuanqing off to see the flowers she was growing in the greenhouse, leaving the two women alone, Gu Jinzhao broached the subject. Yu Wanxue froze for a long moment before nodding. “Yes, I understand. I’ll select a suitable candidate for Seventh Young Master to elevate as a concubine upon returning.”
There was no question of willingness—someone like Chen Xuanqing needed concubines.
How else could the family line flourish if he spent most of the year away from home?
Gu Jinzhao didn’t dare interfere in Chen Xuanqing’s affairs. Knowing his temperament, once he had a concubine, he wouldn’t neglect her. In fact, having someone to keep Yu Wanxue company might even be a good thing.
After keeping Yu Wanxue for lunch, she left, her mind heavy with thoughts.The maid by Madam Chen's side came to deliver a message, saying that Madam Chen wanted to see her to discuss something important.
Gu Jinzhao changed into a satin jacket with white fox fur lining on the cuffs before heading to Madam Chen's quarters.
Madam Chen's face was unusually devoid of smiles as she gestured for her to sit on a stool. She then dismissed all the maids and servants in attendance.
It seemed something serious was indeed afoot!
"...I called you here regarding Second Master Chen's matter," Madam Chen began.
Gu Jinzhao was somewhat puzzled. Why would Second Master Chen's affairs concern her? Shouldn't this be discussed with Madam Qin instead? As both a sister-in-law from a separate household and a younger brother's wife, how could she appropriately intervene?
But soon it occurred to her—this might be something that couldn't be shared with Madam Qin.
OpenNovel