Chang Rong hurried in from outside. The moment he entered Siru Studio, he sensed something was off.

Although it was broad daylight, the main hall’s doors were all shut tight, the courtyard utterly silent, without a single servant moving about.

His mother stood on the steps as solid and unmoving as a door god. The moment she saw him, she came down to stop him, whispering, “Looking for the young master about something? Listen to your mother — go take a turn outside first. Whatever it is can wait until tonight.”

Chang Rong cast a puzzled glance at the tightly shut doors and windows. He didn’t actually have anything urgent — he’d only wanted to ask about the details for the young mistress’s return-home visit tomorrow. But the young master never napped in the afternoon as a rule — what could he and the young mistress possibly be doing shut up inside in broad daylight?

Before he could ask his mother to confirm, a few ambiguous sounds suddenly drifted from the room — soft, breathless, faintly tinged with something like crying, though with the doors and windows shut, he couldn’t make them out clearly.

His mind went blank with a roaring sound, and his face flushed red at once. He silently cursed his own foolishness — the young master and young mistress were newly married, deep in the height of their affection; it was no wonder they were a little less restrained these days. He himself, though, hadn’t shown the slightest consideration, still barging in carelessly as always. If his mother hadn’t stopped him just now, he would have come close to displeasing the young master.

Seeing her son so flustered, Nanny Wen, exasperated at how slow he was to catch on, pulled him aside. “Now that the young master is married, you and Wei Bo and the rest can’t just barge into Siru Studio carelessly anymore. Whatever business you have, you’re to report it in the outer courtyard from now on.”

Chang Rong understood well enough; he hardly needed his mother to tell him. He guessed that within a few days the young master would set new rules for them himself. Now that there was a young mistress, the inner courtyard truly wasn’t a place for them to enter so freely anymore.

By the time Qin Yao and Lin Xiao woke, the sun was already sinking toward the west.

Worn out these past days by all the wedding preparations, Qin Yao had risen early that morning, and after Lin Xiao’s thorough wearing-out of her just now, she had fallen into a deep, dead sleep.

Lin Xiao had initially meant to wait until Qin Yao fell asleep before getting up to go arrange tomorrow’s return-home visit in the outer courtyard. But watching her flushed, sleeping face, the longer he looked the more he adored her, and he simply couldn’t bring himself to rise. In the end, he had fallen asleep right alongside her.

This was probably the first time since he was ten years old that he had allowed himself such indulgence.

Fortunately, nothing that happened in Siru Studio would reach his father’s ears, and with Cui Shi now locked up in the Court of Judicial Review, the household was peaceful indeed.

He got dressed and turned to look at Qin Yao, who had covered her face with her sleeve, thoroughly embarrassed — especially after hearing Nanny Wen outside announce that the bathwater had been prepared, which only made her drag her feet about getting up even more. He couldn’t help laughing, holding her in his arms and comforting her for a good while before she was finally willing to go out and face people.

The next day was the return-home visit. By the time Lin Xiao and Qin Yao arrived at the Qu residence, the family was already waiting at the gate.

The return-home gifts that Prince Lan’s manor had prepared for the Qu family filled three full carriages; simply carrying them all into the house took quite some effort.

Once inside, Qu Chen Shi took her daughter’s hand and led her to the inner courtyard, while Lin Xiao stayed in the front courtyard to talk with the Qu father and son.

Qu Ziyu, having earlier seen his sister’s bright smile and glowing complexion, and noting how attentive Lin Xiao was to her in every way, knew that she hadn’t suffered any mistreatment these past days, and felt his heart ease.

Now, seeing his father question Lin Xiao about the flood disaster in Luoyang, he watched quietly to see how Lin Xiao would handle himself.

He saw that every time his father spoke, Lin Xiao listened with full attention, answering in a clear, steady voice, his manner sincere and respectful. He spoke little, but his views were sharp and fair, and Qu Ziyu found himself warming to him all the more.

In truth, Qu Ziyu was generally tolerant and easygoing toward people and matters alike — except, it seemed, when it came to this brother-in-law of his, toward whom he’d been somewhat more critical. But seeing him now, he realized he had let an earlier preconception color his judgment, and had been somewhat unfair to Lin Xiao.

At mealtime, the family sat down together.

For today’s return-home feast, Qu Chen Shi had been busy preparing since early morning, and the table was packed full of dishes, each one a feast for the eyes, nose, and tongue.

Once seated, Qin Yao had Madam Yelü serve Lin Xiao a bowl of black hen soup her mother had made, smiling as she invited him to try it.

Lin Xiao took a taste, and seeing Qu Chen Shi watching him with an expectant smile, he promptly drank the entire bowl down in one satisfying go, his actions speaking for themselves in approval of Qin Yao’s mother’s cooking.

Seeing that Lin Xiao showed not a trace of the airs typical of a noble-born young man, Qu Chen Shi was all the more delighted. She personally used her chopsticks to place some stuffed tripe and pickled fish onto his plate, saying with a smile, “These dishes are all things A’Yao loved to eat at home. What Mother makes can’t compare to those palace cooks, of course, but it’s not bad either — try a bit of everything today.”

The word “Mother” came out so naturally that it was plain she had already come to regard Lin Xiao as one of her own.

Warmth spread through Lin Xiao’s heart. Ever since his own mother had died, he had never once said the word “Mother” aloud again. Now, hearing Qin Yao’s mother refer to herself as “Mother” in front of him, far from feeling any resentment, he found it deeply endearing instead.

Honestly, the entire Qu family seemed to carry that quality which made people unable to help drawing close to them. A’Yao went without saying, but even her parents and her brother — being around them felt as comfortable and easy as basking in winter sunlight.

This meal suited him far better than any palace banquet ever had.

The family finished the lively meal together, then sat a while longer over tea and conversation, before Qin Yao had no choice but to head back to Prince Lan’s manor with Lin Xiao.

After this better part of a day spent together, much of the Qu family’s earlier distance and reserve toward Lin Xiao had melted away. They saw Qin Yao off with easier hearts, showering her with attentive instructions.

In her heart, Qu Chen Shi hoped that Qin Yao would come back often to see her parents when nothing was pressing, but aloud she only said that from now on Qin Yao must be properly filial to her father-in-law, must not act up at home, and must live in harmony with the young master, the two of them treating each other with mutual respect.

Qin Yao didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “Mother, I’m not a child anymore — why would I act up?”

Qu Ziyu laughed too. “In Mother’s heart, aren’t you forever a child? Still, it’s just an extra word of caution — Mother knows you’re sensible.”

He glanced at Lin Xiao, then said to Qin Yao again, “The young master is busy with official duties most days — you should be considerate of him.”

Since his sister had already married this man, whatever reservations he’d held before ought to be set aside; what mattered now was how to help her live well going forward. The first and most important thing, then, was to stop treating Lin Xiao as an outsider, lest it leave him feeling unwelcome.

Seeing how much warmer her brother’s attitude toward Lin Xiao had become, Qin Yao felt a rush of happiness and nodded quickly. “Don’t worry, Brother.”

Lin Xiao smiled, helping Qin Yao up into the carriage, then turned and bowed to the Qu family. “Father, Mother, Elder Brother — A’Yao and I will head back to the manor now. Please go back inside; there’s no need to see us off further.”

On the way back to Prince Lan’s manor, the two of them were chatting when the carriage passed through Chunyang Gate.

Since it was still early, the streets were bustling, full of passersby.

As the weather had been turning colder, foreign vendors had begun roasting chestnuts to sell one after another. The fragrance drifted through the carriage curtain into Qin Yao’s nose, setting off a craving. She lifted the curtain to peek outside, then couldn’t help turning back around, shaking Lin Xiao’s arm. “Let’s get down and buy some roasted chestnuts to take home and eat.”

Ever since she’d left the academy to prepare for her wedding, without Liu Bingyu — that food-loving friend of hers — by her side, it had been quite a while since she’d bought any of these little snacks.

Seeing Qin Yao act so coaxingly over such a small thing, Lin Xiao found it amusing, and couldn’t bear to refuse her. He simply said, “All right, I’ll have them stop the carriage.”

By the time they got down, quite a few people were already lined up at the stall waiting to buy chestnuts.

Qin Yao took her place at the back of the line without being told, turning to Lin Xiao. “There are always plenty of roasted chestnut sellers around Chunyang Gate every year, but last time Liu Bingyu told me there’s an old man named Duan in the West Market whose chestnuts every winter are truly the fragrant ones. Next time we have time, we should go buy some to try.”

When it came to food, no one in all of Chang’an could outdo Liu Bingyu. If Liu Bingyu said something was good, it was certain to be truly delicious.

Lin Xiao never ate snacks outside his three daily meals, and had little interest in this sort of street food. But hearing Qin Yao talk about it with such enthusiasm, he chimed in, “Whatever you want to eat at home from now on, if you don’t feel like going out yourself, just tell the servants at the manor to go buy it.”

Qin Yao was about to reply with a smile when, not far from the stall, a thin, small old man emerged from Renji Pharmacy, carrying several bulging packages in his hands that looked like medicinal herbs.

Once outside, the old man glanced around for a moment, then spotted the roasted chestnut stall across the street. After eyeing it hungrily for a while, he began walking this way.

Once he arrived, the old man clearly didn’t understand proper manners — he didn’t bother joining the line, but walked straight up to the stall, pointing at the steaming chestnuts to signal to the foreign vendor that he wanted to buy some.

At the front of the line stood a burly, bearded man, his face dark and fierce, built like an iron tower. Seeing the old man break the rules, anger rose in him, and he shoved the old man fiercely with a palm as broad as a fan, barking, “Get out of the way!”

Given the enormous difference in their sizes, and the bearded man clearly putting his full strength into the shove, Qin Yao assumed the little old man would surely go tumbling head over heels.

But to everyone’s surprise, the old man stood as unmoving as a wooden post under the shove — and it was the bearded man who staggered backward instead, jolted by the impact.

Startled, the bearded man steadied himself and stepped forward to shove again, harder this time, but the old man’s feet seemed rooted to the ground — he couldn’t be budged at all.

Qin Yao and Lin Xiao watched coolly, sensing that the old man’s internal strength was unfathomably deep — he was most likely no ordinary person, though they had no idea what he might be.

Though shoved twice by the bearded man without budging, the old man said nothing at all. Seeing the crowd of onlookers growing along the roadside, he didn’t linger any longer, turning and walking away, his hands still clutching the packages of herbs tightly.

As the old man brushed past Qin Yao, the Chixiao Sword at Lin Xiao’s waist suddenly gave a faint, almost inaudible hum.

Qin Yao started, exchanging a swift glance with Lin Xiao. Forgetting all about the roasted chestnuts, they hurried to quietly follow the old man.

The old man kept glancing this way and that as he went, unable to resist stopping whenever he spotted something delicious or amusing — behavior strangely at odds with his age and appearance. Yet it seemed he was wary of something too, for he would only lean in for a quick look before moving on without further delay.

When he reached a secluded narrow alley, the old man’s pace noticeably slowed. He first looked back to check his surroundings, and only after confirming no one was watching did he hurry into the alley.

Inside the alley was a well, and nothing else — no other way out.

The old man walked straight to the well, and just as he was about to push aside the well cover, someone behind him tapped his shoulder, saying with a laugh, “Old man, your tail’s showing.”

A flash of green light passed through the old man’s eyes, and he bared his teeth, snapping backward to bite — but the moment he turned, something was slapped onto his forehead, and he could move no longer.

Glaring furiously, he finally made out who stood before him — a young man and woman, both as fine as jade and gold, half-smiling as they looked him up and down.

The young woman circled him slowly once, then suddenly seemed to recall something, clapping her hands together and saying with a laugh to the young man beside her, “Oh, I remember now — this is a river deer spirit.”

Her tone, utterly heedless of his presence, treated him as if he were already as good as dead. He was so furious his pointed snout poked out.