It was just after midnight and everything was silent.
The moonlight was obscured by thick clouds, leaving only a few dim lights flickering on the eaves.
Not long after falling asleep, the sound of Xia Jie'er crying softly came from the next room. Wen Tang woke up from his sleep and found the quilt and pillow beside him were empty. In the dim light, Qin Gong had already sat up, wearing a loose plain silk nightgown, and then asked in a deep voice what was going on.
Wen Tang supported her weak body and stood up from the brocade quilt. Her black hair fell like a waterfall on her shoulders. The red marks on her snowy skin were faintly visible through her slightly open neckline.
She stepped barefoot on the cool pedal, hurriedly tied her tangled belt, and said to the outside, "Bring my sister in."
Sister Xia is missing her mother so much that she can't sleep.
In the past, when Qin Gong was busy with official duties, he often stayed in the government office and did not return home at night, so she took Xia Jie'er to rest together. Now that Qin Gong is back, Xia Jie'er naturally has to be taken to the wet nurse.
The door opened slightly, and the light from the lantern shone in.
The old woman quickly came in carrying Xia Jie'er, who was crying like a tearful baby. The child, who had been crying loudly just now, could only sob in grievance when she touched her mother's soft and fragrant arms. The little girl raised her wet, big eyes like black grapes and looked at Wen Tang eagerly. Her little mouth pursed, and she seemed to be crying again.
Wen Tang understood, hugged the soft little body tightly, and comforted her with gentle words.
Qin Gong came over and asked, "What's wrong?"
"You're crying like this? How are the servants supposed to take care of you?"
"Since he failed to serve me well, I sent him away and replaced him with someone more capable."
Qin Gong usually kept silent, but just standing there, the majesty of a long-time superior was enough to intimidate people. What's more, his tone was deep, and his voice was hoarse because of the aftereffects of the intense love affair just now. The old woman was so frightened that she dared not breathe and hunched her shoulders.
Wen Tang gently helped the servant out of the situation and asked her to go down first. Then he turned around and explained to Qin Gong, "Master, it's not her fault. It's Sister Xia who is hungry."
The hungry Xia Jie'er's nose twitched rapidly, and she almost rubbed open her mother's loose clothes, and her little head slipped in.
He was still standing by, and Wen Tang had not yet developed the habit of opening her clothes towards him. She subconsciously turned sideways, with her back to Qin Gong. After making sure that he could not see her, she gently patted her daughter's back. The only sound in the quiet inner room was the child's eager and satisfied drinking of milk.
Qin Gong sat silently on the edge of the couch. After Wen Tang fed the child and called the wet nurse in to take the child away, she turned around with a blushing cheek.
She gathered her clothes with her hands and said, "Master, take a rest."
"From now on, let the wet nurse take care of the baby." His voice was hoarse.
Wen Tang knew that he had disturbed his rest, so he didn't say much. He just nodded and crawled to the side of the couch to rest.
--
It was August, and the capital was like a steamer, with cicadas chirping noisily and the sun scorching. Qin Gong's official duties became increasingly heavy, and for several nights in a row he returned home only when the gong sounded at midnight.
It happened that the new Shaoqing of Dali Temple arrived in Beijing.
Qin Gong seemed to be on good terms with the other party. To show his seriousness and consideration, Qin Gong set up a banquet to welcome him and invited colleagues and nobles.
He came back very late that night, and he reeked of alcohol. When he came back, Wen Tang took great pains to take off the official robe that was soaked with alcohol. The snow-white undershirt underneath was also stained with wine. She was about to call for someone to prepare some water when he immediately pressed her down drunkenly. He was very tall, with a heavy frame, and he looked very drunk. The weight of his whole body pressed down on Wen Tang, and she almost suffocated. She struggled to roll out from under him and patted her chest uncomfortably.
She knew Qin Gong's alcohol tolerance was huge, and he rarely got drunk. In previous years, no amount of wine could get him drunk, but this time, someone with the ability came and got him drunk too.
The case of the prince of the previous dynasty that Qin Gong was handling had stalled. The crux of the matter was that when the previous dynasty fell, a fire broke out in the palace, burning everything in the palace to ashes. All the portraits of the only prince who escaped were destroyed, and no one knew what he looked like. Searching for him was like looking for a needle in a haystack. Although some people claimed to have seen him before, they only saw a blurry back. They said that the figure was not weak, and judging from his posture and gait, he seemed to be a martial artist.
Qin Gong worked tirelessly outside, and the mansion was equally bustling. Wen Tang, on the other hand, was helping her mother-in-law manage the household chores, inspecting the treasury, making purchases, entertaining guests, and everything else. Furthermore, with Qin Gong's birthday approaching, congratulatory gift lists from various mansions poured into the mansion, filling the side hall's desks with name cards and gift lists. From the housekeeper to the housekeepers, everyone was busy.
Fortunately, a sudden rain came at night, dispelling the sultry heat that had lingered for days, and a rare coolness filled the air.
There are intermittent raindrops on the eaves, and birds are singing outside the window.
Wen Tang got up early, washed up a bit, tied her hair into a simple bun, and checked the gift list in the side hall.
"Grandma, this is the list of gifts presented by the residence of Lord Yun from the Censorate."
Mrs. Zhou was holding the account book beside her.
"This is a gift from the Bo Mansion."
The uncle's mansion was sent here by the uncle's father, Wen Tang.
Mrs. Zhou didn't want to write it down, especially when she saw another name added to the end of the gift list.
Mrs. Zhou pointed and said, "Her husband also rushed over to give gifts, how come he can't control his own wife?"
How could a married woman show off her ex-fiancé's keepsake?
"Sister-in-law is well."
Before Mrs. Zhou could finish her outburst of indignation, she heard the voice of her young aunt, and her face immediately became long.
Qin Ruoyue was wearing a brand new goose yellow silk gown and was obviously in a very good mood. She walked over and bowed to Wen Tangfu in a rare polite manner to greet him.
She said, "Sister-in-law is busy receiving gifts?"
Mrs. Zhou replied, "Yes, Fourth Miss."
"Have you seen the one Sister Zhiyi sent?"
As she spoke, she leaned forward and stretched out her hand to flip the account book, but Mrs. Zhou snatched it away in one swoop, leaving Qin Ruoyue empty-handed.
"Fourth Miss, our eldest daughter has already married. Gifts should naturally be given in the name of her husband's family or her father's family. Please be more polite and tactful with your words."
"Be careful with your words."
This will save you from getting beaten up when you go out one day.
Qin Ruo snorted softly and glanced at Mrs. Zhou. "I'm just thinking of my sister-in-law. The other day I invited Sister Zhiyi to come to my house to reminisce about the past. Her husband has brought his business to the capital and opened quite a few shops. Some of them are not far from my brother's office. We see each other every day, so it's inevitable that we'll bump into each other."
Mrs. Zhou wanted to take a broom and sweep it out for her.
Qin Ruoyue seemed to have a sense of self-awareness that she was annoying today. Without waiting for Mrs. Zhou to sweep her away, she stood up by herself, said, "Sister-in-law is busy," and turned away.
Along the wet bluestone path,
Following behind her was Yinzhu, the maid whom she valued the most during this period.
Yinzhu looked around to see if there was anyone around, and hurried over to Qin Ruoyue. "Miss, I've spent a lot of effort to find out the truth. Zhang Zhuangyuan has indeed arrived in Beijing, and he will definitely be among the invited guests for the master's birthday banquet."
"Then you can find out the truth."
Yinzhu followed her, then hesitated to speak. In this vast, deep courtyard, trying to gather information about a man outside the palace was no easy task. The gates were heavily guarded, and the rules were strict; the maids and servants were not allowed to leave without permission. She had spent countless hours trying to get this little bit of information, even paying a considerable sum of her own money, before she could barely pry open the gatekeeper's lips and extract some scraps of information.
Qin Ruoyue didn't have time to care about the little thoughts in the servant's mind.
She lowered her head, the tips of her ears burning, and it took her a long while before she raised her head again.
"Does he really look like that?"
Qin Ruoyue spoke in a spoiled tone, but her cheeks flushed red.