Nearly a year had passed since returning to Nanjing from Beijing. Throughout this year, she had lived quietly in seclusion, having almost no contact with those who had accompanied her from the capital. Suddenly seeing Jin Shi approach, she smiled first.

“Lord Jin, I trust you have been well.”

A gentle light flickered in Jin Shi’s eyes as he nodded slightly. “Has Your Highness been well recently?”

She emerged from the sedan hall and said amiably that all was well. “I eat heartily and sleep soundly—I’ve even gained weight.”

Jin Shi examined her and indeed found her more rounded. In Beijing, she had carried too many worries, consuming herself to an alarming degree. Now that all matters were resolved, with her heart at ease, she naturally put on weight.

In truth, this past year he hadn’t been entirely absent from her life. Initially concerned, he would occasionally infiltrate Prince Nanyuan’s mansion under cover of darkness to catch distant glimpses of her. However, this Prince Nanyuan’s mansion seemed to conceal many secrets. Its security was formidably strict—though appearing unremarkable on the surface, hidden sentries crisscrossed beneath, rivaling the imperial palace itself. Several times during his nocturnal ventures, he nearly encountered guards. That prince, who seemed without desires or ambitions, was clearly far from simple. If he wasn’t terrified by the emperor’s discipline and seeking self-preservation, then he was using defense as offense with other ulterior motives.

Unfortunately, despite careful investigation over a long period, he gained nothing. The other party acted cautiously, especially maintaining strict vigilance against Embroidered Uniform Guards from the capital. Unknown individuals frequently patrolled around the Grand Princess’s mansion, preventing his movements, and news from her side gradually ceased.

Fortunately, everything went well for her, and at least Prince Nanyuan was sincere toward her. Regardless of how the external situation might change dramatically, as long as she remained steadfast as a mountain, everything else was secondary. In Beijing, he could accompany her comings and goings, but on Jinling soil, this hero had no battlefield. Now it was better—she had returned to the princess’s mansion, where the guards were provided by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, and even Prince Nanyuan couldn’t dismiss them casually.

He glanced outside where the sky hung oppressively low, threatening heavy rain. He bowed and said, “The weather is changing. Your Highness should wear a cloak when going out. Please wait a moment while someone fetches one from the rear courtyard.”

Her clothing and toiletries had been sent ahead, so she carried nothing with her. Jin Shi’s reminder made her think of Xiao Duo, who in his time had always attended to every detail with such thoroughness.

Xiao You hurried to fetch the cloak. Wanwan stood inside the doorway with her hands clasped, tilting her head to observe Jin Shi as he paced restlessly in the corridor, just as before.

She smiled with pursed lips. “Having been away from the capital so long, has the Chiliarch returned home?”

Jin Shi stared down at his shoe tips. “This minister and his men are commanded to guard Your Highness. Even when Your Highness is absent, we cannot abandon our posts without authorization.”

Wanwan was astonished. “You didn’t even return for the New Year? Being away from home so long—your family must worry.”

Only then did he show a slight smile. “In our line of work, there are no festivals or holidays. Without orders from above, we cannot go anywhere.”

Wanwan made a sound of understanding. “I was thoughtless. Had I known, I should have sent someone to inform you… This year, I’ll grant you all leave during the New Year period—first to pay respects to your parents and elders, second to meet potential brides during the festivities. Don’t let it delay your lifelong happiness.”

She was a very considerate mistress who, besides providing adequate salaries, also made allowances for their time to establish families. If not for the emperor’s insistence, she would have preferred to dismiss them all. Nothing here required risking lives, and with the Eastern Depot agents that Xiao Duo had left behind, the Grand Princess’s mansion now had abundant personnel—nearly equivalent to three garrison units.

When Jin Shi mentioned lifelong matters, he became uncharacteristically awkward. “Palace guards and depot agents marry quite late. We don’t lead comfortable lives—constantly traveling and busy outside. We couldn’t bear to neglect our wives. It’s better this way—without family burdens, we can act without worries.”

Living on a knife’s edge, they probably feared leaving vulnerabilities for others to exploit, so they preferred remaining unmarried. Whether they lived or died well, they wouldn’t implicate wives and children.

Wanwan nodded with melancholy. “You all have it quite difficult.”

The Embroidered Uniform Guard had originally been the emperor’s ceremonial escort, each man splendidly dressed and handsome. Later, somehow they gradually evolved into monsters that made the entire court tremble with fear. Before having contact with them, she thought this group bloodstained and conscienceless. Now, having gotten to know them, each seemed to have his own difficulties, and she no longer found them entirely detestable.

Xiao You approached from beneath the covered walkway as light rain began pattering overhead. Always fearing she might catch cold, they draped a cape over her and put up her hood. Tonghuan opened an umbrella and said softly, “Your Highness should rest.”

Wanwan pulled her lapels together and said to Jin Shi, “I’m not so strict here. If any of your subordinates need leave, you may grant it on my behalf.”

Jin Shi agreed and glanced toward the main gate. “Did the prince not return with Your Highness?”

Wanwan said, “He still has some affairs to handle at the office.” Then she nodded slightly and proceeded toward the second gate.

Somehow, her health seemed much worse than before. Previously she dared build snowmen outside during snowfall, but now she caught cold from the slightest chill. She had also developed the ailment of stomach pain when the weather changed—sharp pains like a stick jabbing her lower abdomen. She knew this might be the reason for her inability to conceive—lingering complications from her previous miscarriage.

She lay sideways on the arhat couch coughing, her nose completely blocked, tears and mucus flowing together. This was Liang Shi’s virtue—he personally brewed and fed her medicine with such attentiveness rarely seen even with the dowager consort.

Leaning against the cushioned headrest, she asked him, “Now that we’ve moved here, what did Mother say? I fear she’s unhappy but won’t speak of it, suffering in her heart.”

He reassured her, “It’s only a few steps away—not like we’ve gone to opposite ends of the earth. Why would she be unhappy? Besides, marrying into the family was always like this—essentially becoming a live-in son-in-law. She’s not unaware of the situation. Now she has a granddaughter-in-law to keep her company daily, so she’s hardly thinking of us.”

She said that was good. “I observed Lan Zhou’s wife—she’s very sensible about propriety.”

The father-in-law showed no particular interest when mentioning his daughter-in-law, saying languidly, “What can you tell now? The truth will emerge in ten or twenty years. She’s fortunate—with a different mother-in-law, her days wouldn’t be so leisurely.”

She laughed. “You Qi people have such strict rules. The dowager consort said that when she was a daughter-in-law, she stood so long beneath the south window of the main room that she wore down the bricks. When she heard her mother-in-law cough, she’d flee like a cat avoiding a mouse—truly pitiful. I benefited from my status and was spared all that. The children below are the same—I let them be comfortable so everyone lives contentedly.”

She had a nature that avoided worldly conflicts, preferring whatever brought comfort. In the afternoon, she burned a stick of incense. As autumn rain brought coolness, the two lay together watching rain strike the banana plants outside the window, taking turns discussing household trivialities, their hearts filled with a unique sense of tranquility.

She had never intended to make things difficult for the new daughter-in-law, but Miss Yun’s circumstances seemed rather poor. The next day, the doorkeeper nanny came in to announce that the Second Princess Consort had come to visit Her Highness. The Grand Princess’s mansion rarely received visitors, so when one suddenly arrived, she couldn’t avoid the meeting. She had the visitor invited in, and since she wasn’t fully recovered, she served tea in the flower hall and had the Second Princess Consort sit there.

When she came over, she wore a lined jacket. The Second Princess Consort exclaimed and stood to assist her. “Is Your Highness unwell? I’ve come at a bad time and disturbed your rest.”

Wanwan naturally exchanged pleasantries, smiling. “We’re all family—no need for such formal words. I merely caught a slight cold—nothing serious. Please sit. Are you here for a casual visit today, or do you have some specific matter to discuss with me?”

The Second Princess Consort sat down, accepted the tea Xiao You offered, sipped it, and said, “First, I came to see Your Highness. Usually we sisters-in-law could gather occasionally, but now it’s become difficult. When I chat with them, they feel there’s no reason for Your Highness to give up space for others. I don’t think so. Your Highness is of noble blood—your detachment shows your cultivation. There’s no point in constantly staying under each other’s noses.”

Wanwan smiled upon hearing this. “I moved back to follow ancestral customs—it has nothing to do with that. If I hadn’t wanted to coexist, I wouldn’t have let them stay.”

The Second Princess Consort repeatedly agreed. “Your Highness has the magnanimity to hold a boat in your belly, but some people treat feathers like imperial edicts. With needle-eye sized hearts, they put on airs with others.”

Hearing this resentful tone, she must have quarreled with someone! Wanwan guessed she hadn’t come simply to visit—there would surely be complaints to lodge. She asked for the full story, and the woman’s face grew even more indignant—

“As Your Highness knows, we’re related through marriage. Lan Zhou’s wife calls me aunt—she’s my maternal cousin’s daughter. Originally, I arranged this match and guaranteed its success, which is why the Jin family agreed. I originally thought that with Your Highness being so magnanimous and treating everyone with such courtesy and warmth, when the child came over, Your Highness would cherish her like your own daughter, and the girl wouldn’t suffer. But yesterday when I went to the prince’s mansion, I saw our girl polishing bronze vessels in the Buddhist hall. This delicate young lady who never lifted a finger was disheveled and dirty, working continuously for three hours without even a sip of water. You’ve seen great household Buddhist halls—seven or eight large and small cauldrons, plus twenty or thirty candlesticks and offering plates. Making her do it all alone—how could she possibly finish? When she saw me, her mouth was drooping like a gourd ladle. She said the young master had gone to the military, and grandmother had declared that to taste bitterness among bitternesses, one must have the appearance of a proper daughter-in-law. Look at this torment—how did she end up in such a situation? They apparently hired someone not as a young mistress but as a servant girl!”

The Second Princess Consort spoke with eyebrows bristling, her face flushed with anger. Wanwan was also puzzled. “What’s this about? The Buddhist hall has dedicated eunuchs to attend it—why make her do it?”

“Setting rules!” the Second Princess Consort said angrily. “Since she herself was born a slave, she thinks everyone is like her. I say training daughters-in-law is proper—we all went through it. When mothers-in-law teach proper behavior, never mind polishing bronze—even beatings are acceptable. But there’s one condition: it must be done by a legitimate mother-in-law. If any concubine or secondary wife tries to act the part, then even great households become unenterable. Yun Wan is a young wife with a tender face who dares not disobey, which only emboldens that foot-washing slave. She’s been ordering people around and finding ways to torment the child since the sixteenth, clearly taking out her frustrations on the child. I don’t dare disturb the Grand Dowager Consort for fear of angering the old lady, so I came to you. I must report her and ask Your Highness to make decisions for the child, to wake up that foot-washer and remind her not to forget her place.”

So status truly could determine life and death—without proper position and legitimacy, even one’s own parents couldn’t interfere. Lan Zhou had already been transferred under the Grand Princess’s name, so nominally he no longer had any connection to Tala Shi. For Tala Shi to exercise a legitimate princess consort’s authority in training daughters-in-law was overstepping her bounds with aspirations above her station.

Wanwan frowned. She had originally preferred not to manage household affairs, but since the matter had been brought before her, she needed to address it. The Second Princess Consort was an outsider—she didn’t want others to see family discord, so she couldn’t lose her temper in front of her. She only said, “The secondary consort was perhaps too hasty and probably meant no harm. Please remain calm. I’ll send someone back to inquire about this matter. After all, she is the young master’s birth mother—we can’t completely disregard her dignity.”

The Second Princess Consort said mournfully, “Your Highness is simply too kind-hearted. Don’t let her climb over your head. When you were at the mansion, she didn’t dare act rashly. Now that you’ve moved away, it’s truly a case of no tigers in the mountains, so the monkey proclaims itself king.”

This matter couldn’t be resolved decisively in one stroke. Wanwan deflected her with a few words and saw her off.

Tonghuan supported her back to the main room, saying, “I saw through this secondary consort long ago—she’s quite restless. Regarding the young mistress’s affairs, neither the old lady nor you have spoken—when is it her turn? To put it bluntly, her status isn’t even as high as the young mistress’s. Just because she’s someone’s mother doesn’t mean the young mistress must buy her account.”

Wanwan was also displeased. “Had I known this would happen, I should have sent her back to Songjiang Prefecture. The new daughter-in-law has just arrived, unfamiliar with people and place. Instead of showing compassion, she creates difficulties.” After a pause, she instructed Xiao You, “Go back to the prince’s mansion and inquire how she has handled those two concubines. There’s no reason for the mistress to polish bronze while the subordinate concubines stand by idly. For a properly betrothed wife to be treated worse than concubines—this is beating the grass to startle the snake, putting on a show for me to see?”

When she chose not to interfere, everything was negotiable, but when she did take issue, she wasn’t easy to deal with. Speaking of rules, palace regulations were no fewer than those of princely mansions. Her unwillingness to act didn’t mean she couldn’t see clearly. This time she was truly angered and didn’t intend to be lenient.

Unfortunately, she remained feverish and lacked the strength to go out, or she should have returned to the mansion to set things straight and teach her a lesson.

Unexpectedly, after Xiao You left, Tala Shi soon arrived. She entered asking after Wanwan’s health, then knelt down asking for Her Highness’s judgment.

It seemed she already knew about the Second Princess Consort’s complaint. Wanwan sat in the place of honor with a very displeased expression.

“In such a prosperous household, is it seemly to have domestic squabbles? You setting rules for your daughter-in-law—I can’t say much about that. I only ask: does the dowager consort know about this? What are her thoughts?”

Tala Shi’s face alternated between green and white as she bowed her head. “I didn’t dare disturb the dowager consort. This servant’s rule-setting for the young mistress wasn’t for any other reason—I saw she was ignorant and couldn’t properly serve her husband. When the young master was leaving for military service yesterday, he opened his bundle to check and found his change of clothes in complete disarray. His undergarments were missing pieces, and with the weather turning cold, she hadn’t even prepared him a pair of cotton socks. When asked about it, she said she forgot… Look at this—how can she not be disciplined? She was a pampered young lady at her natal home, and we don’t expect her to manage other things after marriage, but she should at least keep her husband in mind! This servant knows Your Highness is kind-hearted and reluctant to make things difficult for the new daughter-in-law, but she’s truly inadequate. That’s why I punished her with polishing bronze. If Your Highness blames me, I dare not complain, but I fear further indulgence will make our young master suffer in the future.”

Everything had its reasons and justifications. Wanwan coughed severely, and after a long while said, “A thirteen-year-old girl is bound to be forgetful and careless. You must teach her slowly—when her mind matures, she’ll naturally improve. According to proper status, you can only ‘advise and counsel,’ not ‘punish and discipline.’ Do this properly, and others can’t find fault.” She deliberately paused before continuing, “When the young mistress was punished, what about those two concubines? Did they just stand by watching?”

Tala Shi remained silent, shrinking even lower.

Wanwan smiled coldly. “Now that’s where you were wrong. In my opinion, the concubines are even less sensible than the young mistress. When the master travels far, they should help the principal wife pack together. Where the principal wife is lacking, they should pay attention—that’s their duty. Now that mistakes occurred and the principal wife is punished while they watch from afar as if it’s entertainment—if this isn’t harboring malicious intent, what is?” She suddenly slammed the table and said sternly, “Go back and properly discipline them. Make them understand their place. If they’re conscientious, they can stay. If they remain so muddled, throw them out. Don’t bother reporting to the young master—I’m making this decision.”

She was making an example of others—using those two concubines as a pretext to remind Tala Shi not to overstep the rules.

Tala Shi was intelligent and immediately turned pale with fright from this scolding, prostrating herself on the ground and kowtowing, not daring to breathe heavily.