While the men feasted at the Eight Immortals Gathering Hall, the womenfolk set a table at the Understanding Pavilion. The Great Lady apologized: “Though the Hundred Fragrance Garden looks large, it’s actually packed full. Year after year, we use these same few places—the two ladies must find it amusing.”

Lady Li and Lady Zhang repeatedly said it was no matter. “Whose residence isn’t full of people?”

Lady Zhang took the opportunity to sigh: “In the blink of an eye, our eldest daughter-in-law will be adding to the family. The garden at home grows increasingly cramped. If not for fearing what people would say, I’d rather divide the household and let Second Son and Third Son live separately.”

Master Zhang had no official rank, which made many things inconvenient. Being a cautious man, his residence in Suzhou was indeed rather cramped.

But surely not to the point of needing to divide the household?

Rather than speaking of changing residences or expanding, she only mentioned buying two separate houses for the second and third sons. With the Zhang family’s assets, they could surely afford it.

The Great Lady was indeed somewhat surprised. “I still remember you have two properties at Shantang—”

Lady Zhang smiled bitterly. “We’re all close friends, so I’m not afraid of airing family troubles…”

Glancing at the several Yang daughters with their eyes wide with curiosity, she ultimately held back from continuing: “However, I shouldn’t spoil everyone’s mood. Let’s drink, let’s drink.”

The Great Lady looked thoughtful.

But Third Miss could no longer restrain herself, her face full of concern.

Seventh Miss observed this and couldn’t help frowning secretly.

Even if she’d taken a fancy to one of the Zhang family’s young masters, did she need to be so obvious about it?

She shot Third Miss a glance. “Third Sister, what are you thinking about so intently? You’re about to tip over the bowl in your hand.”

Everyone looked toward Third Miss.

Third Miss at least still knew to conceal herself. “I was thinking about northwest affairs!”

The several ladies then turned to discussing the northwest military situation’s impact on Jiangnan.

Long discourses about land holdings, harvests, commerce… enough to make the daughters’ heads spin.

After hastily finishing the meal, Fifth Miss pulled Sixth Miss and Seventh Miss to go boating at Ten Thousand Flowers Falling to feed the fish.

Fourth Miss had already excused herself early to return to the Jasmine Garden.

Since the scars appeared on her face, Fourth Miss had become increasingly like a mute—you couldn’t beat three words out of her with a stick. When free and idle, she merely secluded herself in the Jasmine Garden without emerging.

Third Miss sat a while longer. Seeing the Great Lady signal to her, she could only disappointedly follow Fourth Miss back to her quarters.

The several ladies then discussed with First Miss: “Fourth Miss is truly a pity—such a beautiful girl…”

“Not that I as a mother-in-law dislike my daughter-in-law…”

Fifth Miss, Sixth Miss, and Seventh Miss listened from the pond for a few sentences before finding it dull.

Unmarried young ladies—how could their minds hold the affairs that occupied the ladies’ thoughts? Whose daughter-in-law didn’t know how to conduct herself, whose son-in-law didn’t know how to manage a household—the young ladies heard such talk as wind passing their ears, blowing so much their ears ached.

“Let’s go ashore and sit in the artificial mountain.” Sixth Miss’s eyes turned. “With weather this hot, sitting in the mountain cave is the only comfortable place.”

The group went ashore by the pond, circled past the Creek Guest Studio, and entered the corridor.

“We have to pass by the Eight Immortals Gathering Hall.” Seventh Miss hesitated somewhat.

“Eh, only the Gui family’s young master is our generation,” Fifth Miss didn’t much care. “The rest are all uncles. Even if we ran into them, what’s the big deal?”

The three young ladies chatted chirpily as they approached the Eight Immortals Gathering Hall.

Outside the hall, they all coincidentally lowered their voices.

Fifth Miss tiptoed, trying to eavesdrop on activity inside the Eight Immortals Gathering Hall. Her sneaky appearance was actually rather adorable.

The Eight Immortals Gathering Hall was indeed lively—there were singers’ soft and graceful songs, and the sounds of stringed instruments. The bamboo curtains were all lowered, screening the hall completely from wind and rain. Only when a south wind came could one briefly glimpse the coolness within.

Laughter occasionally emerged from inside. Second Uncle from the main branch had the loudest voice.

The several young ladies quietly passed the Eight Immortals Gathering Hall, circled behind the jade flower bushes, climbed the artificial mountain, and squeezed together to sit in the mountain cave.

In such hot weather, even with ice blocks at home to cool the air, how could it compare to the refreshing coolness of the artificial mountain’s shaded spots?

Fifth Miss and Sixth Miss both sighed contentedly.

Seventh Miss pressed her lips thoughtfully. “Second Uncle has always been an unsmiling character. I don’t know why he’s so happy today.”

To have Ninth Brother and Seventh Miss written under the Great Lady’s name involved quite a few connections to smooth over.

Though others didn’t know, the clan head’s branch certainly had an idea… During those years when Ninth Aunt lived in the northwest with Seventh Miss, though they had no outside contact, they constantly relied on the clan head’s protection—put plainly, regarding such a large family matter as the Yang family’s minor fourth branch, to say the main branch had no thoughts about it, no one would believe.

Seventh Miss and Ninth Brother’s birth origins naturally couldn’t be hidden from interested parties.

It was just that a thousand birds in the forest weren’t as good as one bird in hand. If the Master was truly willing to spend money to smooth connections, the main branch might not be unwilling to turn a blind eye.

If Ninth Brother could transform into a legitimate son, naturally he would face fewer obstacles when inheriting the family business in the future.

Second Uncle from the main branch was laughing so happily—presumably he also understood this principle.

She slowly exhaled.

To say she wasn’t moved by legitimate daughter status would be false.

Though all were daughters, legitimate daughters stood a full head higher than concubine-born ones. When marrying out in the future, they could take several more taels in dowry. People climb toward higher ground—who wouldn’t be moved?

It was just that with Second Lady watching like a tiger, whether this matter could succeed or would encounter unexpected complications was hard to say…

Fifth Miss glanced at Seventh Miss and whispered with Sixth Miss: “She’s the one with the most worries. When sisters are playing together, she still has to put on such a troubled face.”

Though it was a whisper, the volume wasn’t small.

Sixth Miss quickly nudged Fifth Miss. “Fifth Sister, just say a few less words—you won’t become mute!”

Fifth Miss snorted but didn’t say more.

Seventh Miss came to her senses with a start.

The tallest tree in the forest—the wind will surely destroy it.

These past years her prominence had already been quite strong. Now being elevated under the Lady’s name…

Third Miss and Fourth Miss’s jealousy and wariness were unavoidable.

And didn’t Fifth Miss’s words also carry a trace of sourness?

The Great Lady’s remaining dowry had originally all belonged to Fifth Miss alone. Now it had to be divided between Seventh Miss and Ninth Brother…

She quickly signaled to Sixth Miss.

Sixth Miss smiled and changed the subject. “Lady Zhang has grown close to our family these past years. If I didn’t know Master Zhang had no intention of taking office, I would think…”

Fifth Miss was indeed drawn in.

“Lady Zhang also has it hard. Master Zhang has no official rank, so the land tax alone each year is considerable. Though they’ve always been close with our two families, the King of Hell is no match for the little devils—in this matter we have no way to help.” Fifth Miss, having gone out frequently with the Great Lady, was indeed well-informed and knew many secrets. “After all, every move is watched by so many eyes… A few years ago when the Wang family was still around, they always registered under the Wang family’s name. Now the Wang family has fallen, and though the eldest son has a xiucai degree, it still doesn’t count for much. He also married a formidable wife who says the land registered under the eldest son’s name is divided family property, making a fuss about household division every other day… Lady Zhang is quite angry about it!”

Disputes between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, and between sisters-in-law over property in great households were common occurrences. The several young ladies had heard such things often.

Sixth Miss snorted. “This eldest daughter-in-law is quite calculating. I hear of the Zhang family’s three young masters, the second young master is the cleverest. She’s probably worried that in the future the east wind won’t prevail over the west wind, and the parents-in-law will be partial… So she might as well divide the household early and still benefit from being the eldest son, getting more family property.”

All being Jiangnan’s notable families, Seventh Miss was also clear about the Zhang family’s affairs.

Though not as wealthy as the Yang family, they were still a rare prosperous household—over a hundred thousand taels of family assets was certainly there.

Otherwise, how could Master Zhang leisurely pursue scholarship for pleasure, calling himself the “wine immortal whom even the Son of Heaven cannot summon”? What gave Lady Zhang the confidence to associate with wealthy families like the Li and Yang?

Though they now had a difficult daughter-in-law causing the Zhang family some embarrassment, that was only for the present.

The marriage arrangement Fourth Aunt had selected for Third Miss demonstrated her seasoned judgment.

Speaking of it, if the Wang family hadn’t acted imprudently themselves, why would Third Miss need to languish until today?

No matter how good Fourth Aunt’s judgment, she couldn’t overcome the great thigh of fate.

“Having many people also has its disadvantages,” Seventh Miss followed Fifth Miss’s words to sigh. “The Zhang family’s household is considered simple, yet still has such matters. Who knows what chaos the Li family will become in the future!”

“Indeed,” Fifth Miss murmured. “Our family only has Ninth Brother, so it’s quite peaceful. The several cousins also all seem trouble-free. The Li family is now divided into several factions, fighting internally quite unreasonably. Lady Li, such a meticulous person, has fainted from anger several times and is gradually becoming disorderly in her affairs.”

The three young ladies coincidentally fell silent.

At the end of the day, the Yang family’s small disputes, placed before other families, truly didn’t even qualify for gossip.

“These are all other families’ affairs—speak of them and be done. Why keep them in your heart?” Fifth Miss laughed at herself. “Just sitting here is boring. Let’s see if anyone goes to the Understanding Pavilion to call a maid over to sweep the Four Seasons Pavilion, and we can play shuanglu there. When Eighth Miss comes over, she’ll also have something to do.”

Eighth Miss had poor health and always took medicine after lunch. Even if she came out to pay respects to the several aunt-in-laws, she would only enter the Hundred Fragrance Garden in the afternoon.

The several young ladies had left midway through the meal to play, so they hadn’t brought maids with them.

Fifth Miss and Sixth Miss simultaneously turned to stare at Seventh Miss.

Seventh Miss had no choice but to stand. “When there’s work, the younger sister serves, right? Fine, I’ll go, I’ll go.”

Fifth Miss laughed heartily. “Little Seven’s way of speaking is just so amusing. Go quickly, go quickly.”

Sixth Miss also smiled while covering her mouth, whispering with Fifth Miss: “Look at Little Seven’s troubled face. Soon she’ll be complaining to the Lady that we don’t show consideration for her as a younger sister.”

Though it was a whisper, the volume wasn’t small.

Seventh Miss made a face at Sixth Miss. “Your cleverness won’t kill you!”

While bantering with Sixth Miss from a distance, she descended the artificial mountain. Unexpectedly, as soon as she turned around the mountain, she collided squarely with someone beside the rocks.

“Oh my!” Seventh Miss couldn’t help but cry out softly.

“What happened, what happened!” Two small heads immediately popped out from the artificial mountain.

Seeing the situation clearly, they quickly withdrew.

“Brother Gui!” Seventh Miss had nowhere to hide and could only smile and curtsy in greeting. “I didn’t expect to encounter Brother Gui here.”

The Hundred Fragrance Garden was only so big, and the artificial mountain was right behind the Eight Immortals Gathering Hall—Gui Hanchun’s appearance here was not surprising.

Rather, it was the several young ladies who had been rash, knowing there were male guests at the Eight Immortals Gathering Hall yet still playing nearby.

Seventh Miss felt somewhat embarrassed.

Gui Hanchun was also quite startled.

“I’ve been presumptuous toward Sister.” His face showed a blush.

The composure he’d shown before the several ladies had vanished without a trace.

Seventh Miss also grew awkward. “Not at all—I shouldn’t have wandered about. Brother Gui, please proceed!”

She wasn’t a fool.

The Great Lady had long ago said the Gui family was interested in forming a marriage alliance with the Yang family, and earlier the several ladies’ expressions toward Gui Hanchun had been such.

They had even teased her…

How could she not guess the Great Lady’s intention?

Gui Hanchun had also been in Suzhou for a while and naturally had channels to obtain Yang family news.

She heard he was also close with Second Uncle from the main branch…

Presumably he could also guess that the Yang family favored Seventh Miss.

When the two met face to face, there was extra awkwardness.

Gui Hanchun’s complexion was already deep, but now his face was an even deeper shade.

His originally tiger-like, vigorous, and bright eyes were now extraordinarily luminous. He glanced at Seventh Miss once before lowering his head and making way.

Seventh Miss was actually more composed than Gui Hanchun.

After all, Gui Hanchun had lived year-round in military life and probably rarely encountered Jiangnan young ladies, while Seventh Miss had experienced both the desert’s wind and sand and Jiangnan’s silk and bamboo music.

She nodded to thank Gui Hanchun and stepped forward to proceed.

Suddenly a low call came from the artificial mountain.

“Seventh Sister.”

It was Fifth Miss’s voice, and it carried some urgency.

Seventh Miss had no choice but to turn back into the mountain.

Fifth Miss and Sixth Miss were both waiting behind the Taihu rocks.

“Should we ask Brother Gui to avoid us?” Seventh Miss asked softly.

With Gui Hanchun nearby the artificial mountain, the two young ladies feeling uncomfortable continuing to stay in the mountain cave was human nature.

However, they were all past ten years old, and Fifth Miss was already twelve—of age for marriage discussions.

It wouldn’t be proper to show their faces before Gui Hanchun.

Presumably they wanted her to pass a message asking Gui Hanchun to avoid them for a bit.

Fifth Miss shook her head, but her face carried three measures of guilty conscience.

“I want to ask after Cousin!” She looked at Seventh Miss with some pleading. “Brother Gui came from the northwest and must know about Cousin. Usually there’s nowhere to ask… “

Fifth Miss’s face showed frank concern.

Seventh Miss was put in a difficult position.

Though she and Gui Hanchun should perhaps avoid each other, if Fifth Miss missed this opportunity, it would be very difficult to inquire about Xu Fengjia’s news next time.

After all, she’d reached the age for marriage discussions and couldn’t go around every day mentioning her cousin’s name to inquire about him.

But she herself was still young, not yet at the age requiring such avoidance.

Moreover, Fifth Miss’s heart was probably feeling somewhat uncomfortable right now…

Sixth Miss also chimed in from the sidelines: “In any case, you’re still young. Speaking a few words with Brother Gui doesn’t count as anything.”

“I’m afraid Brother Gui has already left.” Seventh Miss could only reluctantly concede. “If he hasn’t left, I’ll help you ask.”

She emerged from the artificial mountain.

Unexpectedly, Gui Hanchun actually hadn’t gone far and was still looking left and right at the end of the corridor.

Seventh Miss could only steel herself and approach.

“Brother Gui.” She called softly. “I’d like to ask Brother Gui a few questions!”

Gui Hanchun came to his senses, suddenly understanding.

Immediately he grew several measures more awkward, his hands and feet seemingly not knowing where to place themselves.

“Please ask, please ask.” He was excessively polite.

Seventh Miss found it somewhat amusing. She glanced at the artificial mountain again and asked with a smile: “I hear Cousin Xu is also at the front lines. You know, Cousin is like… to our family’s Fourth Young Master…”

She paused before continuing: “Close as brothers. Fourth Brother has always worried about Cousin, always wanting to know if Cousin is well. But he’s quite shy and didn’t dare ask Brother Gui personally…”

Though she spoke in Ninth Brother’s name, just looking at Seventh Miss’s performance, one could guess she’d been sent by the Yang family young ladies behind the artificial mountain to inquire.

Gui Hanchun naturally wouldn’t expose this.

“Oh! You mean Duke Pingguo’s heir?” He laughed heartily, showing a soldier’s frankness. “The young heir is doing well. According to news from the northwest the other day, it seems he’s already led troops into battle. He was quite hungry, but presumably the first batch of grain supplies should reach the front lines soon. Hunger—he won’t be hungry much longer.”

Speaking of the military life he was familiar with, Gui Hanchun’s eyebrows lifted, his shyness naturally faded, revealing a soldier’s confidence and roughness. His face seemed to glow.

“Speaking of which, the young heir’s left-handed blade technique is truly exquisite. I hear he’s only practiced for a few years. I haven’t sparred with him yet. My third brother has competed with him, and though his skill is still shallow, for self-defense and physical fitness, it’s certainly sufficient.” He spoke enthusiastically, laughing heartily.

But Seventh Miss lightly gasped.

“Left-handed blade technique?” She murmured in repetition.

“Yes.” Gui Hanchun’s face was full of admiration. “I hear he invited a famous master from Cangzhou to teach him, for the young heir’s use in battlefield self-defense!”

As he spoke, Gui Hanchun turned to leave. “I should ask Sister to show me how to return to the Eight Immortals Gathering Hall.”

He showed slight embarrassment again. “This is my first time in such a garden. It’s laughable—I actually got lost!”

Seventh Miss quickly collected herself. “Brother, please this way. I happen to be going that direction… We can go together part of the way.”

She couldn’t help but ask: “Hungry… very hungry?”

Her mind was elsewhere. She casually stopped in the corridor, playing with the golden door of the ivory birdcage.

The skylark inside pecked along, following the movement of Seventh Miss’s finger.

Gui Hanchun also stopped to answer: “It was quite severe! Duke Pingguo governs the troops strictly and doesn’t allow soldiers to plunder civilians. Actually, our grain supplies were already very tight in the twelfth month.”

A shadow crossed his face. In that instant, he seemed to have returned to the battlefield of golden spears, iron horses, and iron-blooded yellow sands.

“It’s also fortunate that Duke Pingguo governs the troops strictly. Otherwise, the wealthy households in our Shaanxi would have suffered.” Gui Hanchun said softly. “Even so, the Yang and Gui clans were still scraping by last year. Even with money, they couldn’t buy grain. I heard people actually starved to death in Yang Family Village… In our military camp there were also some common soldiers who starved to death…”

Seventh Miss was shocked again.

She’d only heard the northwest lacked grain—she hadn’t imagined people had actually starved to death!

Then Xu Fengjia… the relatives in Yang Family Village…

Unknowingly, her finger sank.

The golden door suddenly flew wide open, and the skylark flew out, heading straight toward Seventh Miss’s tender face.