However, the matter that Zhao Shi had long been anxious about finally came to light.

Just as the Zhou family’s womenfolk boarded the boat and prepared to depart, Hu Shi suddenly suffered from seasickness and began vomiting. They summoned a physician to take her pulse, and to everyone’s surprise, she was with child!

This sent Zhao Shi — who had been desperately longing for a grandchild — into overjoyed elation.

However, this meant that for the sake of Hu Shi’s health, the already slow boat would need to travel even more slowly.

On days when there were waves and wind, they would stop and wait for the wind to calm before continuing forward.

As a result, what should have been a journey of just over twenty days ended up taking two full months.

By the time Chu Linlang caught sight of the gates of the capital, she was so worn down that she had the rare urge to shed tears — had she endured any more time aboard that boat, she might have developed symptoms of morning sickness herself, ready to retch into the wind.

Seeing that Linlang had barely eaten these past few days, Xia He suspected that the Young Mistress’s pregnancy had been troubling her, and whispered words of comfort: “Miss, your constitution has always been strong. Once we reach the capital and find a renowned physician to help you recover, you’ll surely be able to conceive…”

Dongxue let out a cold snort from beside them: “If you ask me, it all started the year the Young Miss got married — she took in cold air and exhausted her body!”

In the past, the Young Miss’s monthly cycle had been very regular. But in that first year of her marriage, because a shipment of goods had arrived at the shop and the cart had broken down and been stranded in the mountains, the Young Miss had personally led people to shovel snow, dig out the cart, and haul the goods. In the bitter cold, her monthly flow had simply been frozen away.

From then on, the Young Miss’s cycle was always delayed by a few days.

Women of other households only needed to manage affairs at home. But this one of theirs — she was the pillar that held up both inside and outside the household, truly treating herself like a rough laboring man. With such exhaustion of heart and mind, it would be a wonder if she could conceive at all!

Chu Linlang had merely had a poor appetite these past few days, yet somehow her two maids had managed to draw out this entire string of grievances.

She rose to her feet with resignation, stood by the roadside at the dock, and gazed in the direction of the capital.

After the boat docked, a manservant had already been sent into the city to deliver word and see whether Zhou Sui’an could dispatch a carriage and sedan to receive his mother.

Yet even after the trunks were unloaded from the boat, there was still no sign of anyone coming to meet them.

Chu Linlang turned to look at her thoroughly exhausted mother-in-law, and at Hu Shi, who had been sitting beneath the shade awning the whole time clutching a copper basin. She decided to wait no longer and simply find a few carts at the nearby carriage house to make do.

But just then, several fine horses came galloping from the official road not far away. The riders wore the uniforms of the Court of Judicial Review, cutting imposing and authoritative figures as they rode swiftly past.

The horses had already passed by, but after a short while the leader suddenly pulled hard on the reins and turned back, his horse trotting right up to Chu Linlang.

Chu Linlang looked up — and gave a start. As fate would have it, this narrow road had led her straight to a familiar face. The man on horseback was none other than Situ Sheng, whom she had not seen in a long while.

As it turned out, Lord Situ had been out on official business and was making his way back into the city when, by chance, he encountered Chu Linlang at the riverbank docks, having just arrived in the capital.

This was Chu Linlang’s first time seeing Situ Sheng in official uniform. The man suited the Court of Judicial Review’s attire far too well — clad in a long crimson robe with a sash belt, it accentuated his straight-backed figure, and mounted as he was atop a tall and spirited horse, for a moment she almost didn’t recognize him.

Situ Sheng asked a few questions, and upon learning that Zhou Sui’an had not yet sent anyone to receive the womenfolk, he exchanged a few words with a man in military attire beside him. Before long, several carriages bearing military camp plaques arrived, along with over a dozen soldiers to help carry their belongings.

Chu Linlang had now moved house twice with cargo, and both times Situ Sheng had turned up — she couldn’t help but remark on the coincidence, and promptly stepped forward to thank Lord Situ for his assistance.

Situ Sheng looked at Chu Linlang’s face and said coolly: “After several months apart, Madam Chu appears to have grown somewhat thinner.”

Chu Linlang responded politely with a smile: “The waterway journey was rough and I had little appetite — I may have lost some weight. Fortunately, now that we’ve arrived in the capital, I can finally get properly settled.”

The military-clad man beside Situ Sheng walked over at this point, looking at Madam Chu with curiosity, and asked: “And this lady is…?”

Chu Linlang hurried to greet him, and it was only through Situ Sheng’s brief introduction that she learned this man, who appeared to be in his thirties, was in fact General Li Chengyi of the Ministry of War.

It was said that his grandfather had once been the right-hand man of the great General Yang Xun. However, when Yang Xun set out on his campaign against the Kingdom of Jing, old General Li had not accompanied him due to illness.

After the Yang family met their catastrophic downfall, the court was left nearly devoid of capable generals. In that moment of crisis, the Li family’s elderly general had personally volunteered for battle and resolved the court’s desperate situation.

In earlier days, when Prince Tai had wielded tremendous power, the Li family had been loyal supporters of the imperial faction and had endured considerable marginalization. Now that Prince Tai’s faction had suffered defeat, the great power of the Ministry of War had fallen into the Li family’s hands.

What began as an exchange of polite pleasantries took an unexpected turn: upon learning that Chu Linlang was Zhou Sui’an’s wife, General Li’s gaze turned scrutinizing as it traveled over her — it held curiosity, and something that looked almost like pity.

However, General Li and Situ Sheng had official duties and could not linger long. After helping the Zhou household load the carts, they took their leave and entered the city ahead.

Zhou Sui’an’s current residence was in Wooden Fish Stone Lane, in the eastern part of the city. This area sat apart from the busy markets. Named for its terrain, which rose to form a shape resembling a great wooden fish, it commanded a prime position.

When Chu Linlang stepped down from the carriage, she noticed that clusters of green bamboo had been planted at the mouth of the lane, and the stone-flagged path had been scrubbed clean and bright. The several household gates along the lane all presented themselves with considerable style.

Entering the Zhou family’s courtyard, she found the space unexpectedly impressive — the rooms and yard were remarkably bright and spacious.

Although Chu Linlang was not a native of the capital, she could well guess that this courtyard was worth no small sum. If it had been allocated by the court, Zhou Sui’an’s current rank of the sixth grade hardly seemed sufficient to qualify for such a place.

Zhao Shi looked over the furnishings inside and out, her face radiant, and straightened her back without even noticing. She murmured: “My son has truly made something of himself! To have established such a household! May all the ancestral spirits of the Zhou family above watch over my son Sui’an and bring him great success!”

Having said all this, she couldn’t resist a few pointed words at Chu Linlang: “You have good fortune too — you entered our Zhou family’s doors precisely when we were struggling through hardship. When you were traveling around with your father trading salt, I don’t suppose you ever imagined you’d see such a fine life as today’s. But you’ll need to change that small-minded frugal nature of yours — that kind of penny-pinching brings shame on your husband’s face!”

These past days had not been easy on Zhao Shi either, and she kept bringing up how Chu Linlang’s choice to save money by hiring the slow boat had made the whole family suffer.

Now, after the long and arduous journey by water and land, arriving at once at such a grand and distinguished household — it truly felt like ascending to heaven in one step.

Her son had made good, and she, a widowed mother, had finally survived to see better days!

The young concubine Hu Shi was also very pleased, allowing the serving women to support her as she walked circuits around the courtyard.

Watching the whole household bask in joy, Chu Linlang didn’t feel it was the moment to voice her doubts about how all this was inconsistent with Zhou Sui’an’s current position. She suppressed her misgivings and first saw to settling Zhao Shi and the pregnant Hu Shi comfortably.

As for Yuan’er, she had fallen asleep before even boarding the carriage and had not yet woken even now. The younger sister-in-law Zhou Xiuling carried the child away to rest in her room.

By the time Linlang had seen to the old and the young, she was exhausted to the bone, her back aching, and was finally able to lie down in bed and stretch her limbs.

She slept so long that she missed the evening meal entirely. Fortunately, Zhao Shi and the others had also been worn out enough to sleep, and no one had arranged for dinner.

It was only after the lamps were lit that Zhou Sui’an — who should have gone to the city gates to welcome his family — finally came home.

According to the manservant Manfu, the master had gone to the residence of Ministry of Finance’s Minister Shen to drink wine. Today was the one-month celebration for Minister Shen’s grandson, and the master simply could not get away, which was why he had not gone to the city gates to receive the family.

Chu Linlang wrapped herself in a robe and watched as Zhou Sui’an was carried home on a manservant’s back — the wine fumes radiating off him told her he had drunk no small amount.

Thinking of Hu Shi’s pregnancy and the precariousness of an early-stage fetus, Linlang had the manservant carry Zhou Sui’an to her own room.

Counting the days, it had been almost two months since they’d last seen each other. Zhou Sui’an seemed to have adapted well to life in the capital alone. The clothes he wore must have been tailored after his arrival in the capital — they were in the fashionable style favored by the capital’s elite, and the fabric appeared quite fine…

As Chu Linlang helped him undress, something suddenly slipped out from the sleeve pocket of his robe — an exquisitely made sachet.

The sachet was crafted from plum-blossom satin, adorned with delicate embroidered patterns, and filled with fragrant herbs that gave off a sweet, pleasing scent. It was certainly nothing that had ever belonged among Zhou Sui’an’s personal belongings before.

Then again, before coming to the capital, Zhou Sui’an rarely came to her room, and his clothing had all been handled by the young concubine Hu Shi.

Perhaps this sachet had been sewn for him by Hu Shi. Chu Linlang couldn’t be bothered to look further, and casually placed the sachet in the willow-wood box on the nearby cabinet.

The next morning, after daylight had fully arrived, Zhou Sui’an finally sobered up and rose from bed. But the whole man looked listless, his expression weighted with unspoken concerns. Even when Chu Linlang spoke to him, he could hardly be bothered to respond.

Linlang sat before her dressing mirror, combing out her long hair, while directing Xia He to bring Zhou Sui’an the sobering broth.

Zhou Sui’an drank a few sips and listened as Chu Linlang recounted the events of their arrival in the city the day before.

When she mentioned that Lord Situ had helped arrange the carts, he couldn’t help but furrow his brow, and cautioned her: “You’ve just arrived and may not know — Situ Sheng’s reputation in the capital is quite foul these days. Our Zhou family would do well not to become too closely acquainted with him.”

Chu Linlang paused slightly: “Why is that?”

Zhou Sui’an gave a cold snort and brushed the matter aside: “These are matters of officialdom — a woman has no business asking. Just remember to steer clear of him from now on.”

As he said this, he picked up the clothes that hadn’t yet been washed and were still hanging nearby, and reached a hand into the pockets, his expression suddenly shifting as he patted the garment inside and out.

Chu Linlang happened to glance back and noticed, so she asked what he was looking for.

But Zhou Sui’an said nothing, only continuing to search through the pockets. Chu Linlang, with deliberate calm, said: “Are you looking for a sachet? I put it in the box on the cabinet over there.”

Zhou Sui’an heard this and immediately opened the cabinet box, and there indeed lay the plum-blossom satin sachet.

Chu Linlang could see clearly through the gleaming copper mirror: the master quietly released a breath of relief, then tucked the sachet back into his sleeve pocket…

Chu Linlang applied her rouge powder, and asked casually: “Was that sachet sewn for you by Hu Shi? I don’t recall seeing it before.”

Zhou Sui’an made an indistinct sound of assent and went off to the dining hall for breakfast.

Today was his day off — he had no duty at the Ministry of Finance — but word had it he had social engagements with colleagues. After finishing his meal, he took his manservant and headed out early.

When Chu Linlang was later helping the servants organize Hu Shi’s room, she remarked casually: “I noticed the sachet you embroidered for the master — your needlework really is lovely. Once you’ve given birth, you simply must embroider one for me as well.”

Hu Shi blinked in puzzlement, looking a little flustered: “My father always had me spend more time on books growing up, so I’m not very skilled with needlework. If you don’t mind the poor quality, Young Mistress, I’ll try to make one for you… but — I’ve never made a sachet for the master.”

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