The carriage rolled out of the gate and stopped. Xiang Lan lifted the thick felt curtain and peered through the colored cloud-patterned window screen. She saw over twenty guards gathering around Lin Jinlou as he mounted his horse. He wore a dark-colored crepe fox fur cloak and a large sable hat. He glanced at the carriage, their eyes meeting briefly. Lin Jinlou frowned slightly, seeming unwilling to acknowledge her, and turned his horse’s head toward the exit. The guards all mounted their horses and followed his entourage.

Moments later, Shuangxi came running with his hands tucked in his sleeves, his face nearly frozen but forcing a smile as he greeted them through the carriage window. Xue Ning lifted the window, and Jixiang said, “The Fourth Young Master and his wife are bringing Young Master De to view the plum blossoms as well.”

Not having seen Young Master De for days, Xiang Lan brightened at this news. She moved to the window and quickly asked, “Really? Won’t the cold weather affect the child?” Then she smiled, “Thank you for specifically telling me this.” She took out some money and had Xue Ning give it to Jixiang, saying, “It’s cold—buy some wine to warm up.”

Though the dozen or so copper coins meant little to Shuangxi, gaining favor with the Young Master’s beloved Aunt was valuable. Beaming with joy, he quickly said, “The Young Master asked me to tell Madam this.”

Xiang Lan paused. Shuangxi continued smiling, “The Young Master also asked me to tell Madam to enjoy herself when we arrive, but since we’ll be going through the streets where there are many prying eyes, please don’t open the windows to avoid being seen by strangers.”

Xiang Lan looked ahead where Lin Jinlou sat on his horse, his figure tall and straight as a pine. She pursed her lips, thinking to herself, “Finally getting to go out, and even if someone glimpses through the window screen, they won’t see clearly. More fussy than an old woman—such a difficult master.” She dropped the curtain abruptly.

Jixiang, who had been standing nearby with his hands tucked in his sleeves, saw Shuangxi rub his nose and chuckled, “What’s wrong? Did the Aunt not give you a good reaction?”

Shuangxi pushed him, “Go away, your young master is troubled.”

Jixiang slapped the back of his head, “Getting cocky, are you? I’m your elder brother—you dare call yourself ‘master’ in front of me? You tactless thing. The Aunt hasn’t left the mansion since arriving in the capital. She’s finally happy about going out, and you deliver such a message from the Young Master—aren’t you just making her unhappy? The Aunt is the Young Master’s beloved. Recently our master has been so busy with external affairs, deliberately keeping his distance. Going out in this freezing weather is just to please the Aunt… Learn quickly! Look at Gui Yuan—he’s years younger than you but so shrewd. He’s become Xiao Juan’s sworn sister and now handles all of the Aunt’s external affairs. I heard when the Aunt secretly bought an estate recently, she put him in charge.”

Shuangxi exclaimed in surprise, “When did this happen? Wasn’t the Aunt ill recently?”

“Tsk tsk, don’t underestimate her. Would the Young Master be so devoted without some capability? After what happened to her, I heard the Jiang family paid substantial compensation. She’s clever—bought a small estate and had Gui Yuan manage it.”

“Does the Young Master know about this?”

“How could he not? Though the Aunt doesn’t know, that estate was originally the Young Master’s, sold to her at a discount.”

“Why not just give it to her directly? Would’ve made her happy.”

“Tch, you’re such a blockhead. Would someone of the Aunt’s character accept that? Giving it to her this way, when she learns the truth later, how could she not be moved by the Young Master’s thoughtfulness and care?” Jixiang glared at his brother, “Oh you, you! Having the same clever looks as me but none of the wit!”

As time passed uneventfully, the carriage swayed along. Inside, Xiang Lan sat holding her hand warmer, drowsy from having risen early. She dozed off and on, leaning against the carriage wall. When she next awoke, she saw Xue Ning opening a pouch to add two banana leaf-shaped osmanthus fragrance cakes to the hand warmer, covering it before returning it to her embrace. Xiang Lan knew an hour had passed. She lifted the curtain again to see they had left the city. A squad of guards flanked the carriage, along with local yamen soldiers and runners specifically assigned to escort them.

After about two cups of tea’s worth of time, they arrived at the foot of a mountain where stood an elegant courtyard. The steward Xu Fu was waiting at the entrance. Seeing everyone arrive, he hurried forward to kowtow to Lin Jinlou, saying, “This humble servant welcomes the Young Master.” He repeatedly ordered people to take the horses and led the carriage inside.

When Xiang Lan alighted, several older women immediately came forward to escort her inside. The bedroom’s kang was already heated, with two braziers burning silver-thread charcoal and a lotus-shaped incense burner diffusing storax fragrance, making it as warm as spring. Xiang Lan sighed deeply. Xue Ning removed her cloak and went to pour tea. Sore from the bumpy journey, Xiang Lan sat down by the kang. Soon after, Lin Jinlou entered, having removed his cloak and hat, holding a thick stack of documents. He said, “It was too cold this morning. We’ll go out later, and wait for Fourth Sister and her family. Rest first and warm up.” He sat at the kang table and buried himself in the documents. Time passed until sounds of commotion and children’s laughter came from outside—presumably the Marquis of Yongchang had arrived with his family.

Lin Jinlou pinched the bridge of his nose and looked up to find Xiang Lan had fallen asleep against the kang’s headrest, her head tilted and body curled up. Her powder-white face was slightly flushed, her rouge-red lips gently closed, her expression innocent and peaceful, as if carved from jade. Lin Jinlou couldn’t help but smile, his heart softening. He quietly pulled up a blanket to cover her.

Xue Ning was just poking her head in with a cup of tea when she saw Lin Jinlou covering Xiang Lan. She quickly and tactfully withdrew, thinking to herself, “The Young Master is used to giving orders imperiously—when has he ever been so humble and attentive to a woman?” She shook her head, feeling that Chen Xiang Lan had not had an easy journey to reach this point.

The movement woke Xiang Lan. She opened her drowsy eyes to find Lin Jinlou watching her. He asked, “Awake?”

Lin Jinlou had always been domineering and fierce, but now his expression was extremely gentle, with an indescribable quality. Xiang Lan was speechless. She stared for a good while, not daring to look at him further. As she supported herself to rise, Lin Jinlou embraced her and pressed his lips to hers. His body carried a mix of pine, mint, and soapberry scents—a fragrance Xiang Lan knew too well. Day and night for so long, this had been the scent on her pillow. She had gone from initial panic to current familiarity. This man was so forceful, leaving layer upon layer of marks on her heart and bones, making past events and even her previous life’s husband, Song Ke—whom she had loved in this life but could not reunite with—gradually fade into blurry shadows. He had saved her repeatedly, humiliated her repeatedly, remaining in her shackles even now, yet he had also protected her repeatedly, standing before her to block the wind and rain in her most desperate moments.

Xiang Lan suddenly felt inexplicably sad, her throat constricting as tears rolled down. After a long hesitation, she finally raised her arms to embrace Lin Jinlou’s shoulders. He trembled, his heart suddenly racing as if harboring a rabbit. He lifted his face and asked softly, “What’s wrong? Why are you crying? Are you too happy?” Not waiting for her answer, he wiped away her tears with both hands and kissed her again.