With Wei Rao’s second tea ceremony, Duke Ying Mansion had indeed undergone some changes.

For instance, Fourth Master, who had returned to office, had trimmed the full beard he wore during the first tea ceremony, leaving only a short mustache. His face was scholarly, and his gaze gentle, completely dispelling his previous gloom and appearing very approachable. Fourth Madam had become a mother, her temperament even more gentle and graceful. Though their eldest son, An’ge, was only two years old, Fourth Madam’s belly had swelled again.

Besides the fourth household, another change was in the second household. Second Young Master Lu Ya had newly married Qiao Shi last August. Qiao Shi came from a distinguished family, gentle and beautiful, personally chosen by the Second Madam as her daughter-in-law.

After finishing her intimate conversation with Duchess Ying, Wei Rao walked back to Songyue Hall with Lu Zhuo.

“What did grandmother say to you?” Lu Zhuo asked knowingly on the quiet, winding path.

Wei Rao looked at his serious face and suddenly found it somewhat amusing. Why was she the only one who could see through Lu Zhuo’s gentlemanly disguise, while others were all deceived by him? Or was it that Lu Zhuo only acted ungentlemanly in front of her?

Due to the natural disparity in strength between men and women, Wei Rao had been completely suppressed by him last night, with no power to resist. Early this morning, Lu Zhuo was teasing her again. Wei Rao refused to let him feel smug. After thinking for a moment, she lifted the corners of her mouth and looked at the spring scenery by the roadside: “During our first marriage, we delayed consummating for so long that grandmother was a bit worried whether you had some physical ailment, so this time she’s still not entirely at ease.”

Lu Zhuo’s expression changed slightly – not because he truly believed grandmother would ask such a thing, but because he was shocked by Wei Rao’s unguarded tongue.

Lu Zhuo looked around, confirming that even the nearest mansion servants couldn’t hear their conversation, before looking back at Wei Rao’s fair face and asking in a low voice: “Is that so? Then how did the princess answer?”

Wei Rao’s smile deepened. She walked to a willow tree, broke off a branch, and played with it as she walked. The flexible willow branch was long and slender, wound into a circle by the beauty’s delicate jade-colored fingers, then springing back to its original shape when she released her hand.

Wei Rao said nothing, only smiling meaningfully.

She only regretted that this wasn’t at the dinner table – if there were also a plate of bean sprouts, it would have matched her grandmother’s words from years ago, making it truly amusing.

Lu Zhuo looked at the willow branch in Wei Rao’s hands, at her mischievous smile, and after his expression shifted, he also smiled.

The servants of Songyue Hall paid their respects to the young madam again. With all proper business completed, Wei Rao told Lu Zhuo to stay in the front while she returned to her room to catch up on sleep. Lu Zhuo had tormented her so much last night, pestering her until the third watch. It was only because Wei Rao had practiced martial arts for many years that her delicate body wasn’t weak – if it had been an ordinary young lady, she probably wouldn’t have been able to get up this morning, or might even have died from exhaustion.

Wei Rao felt somewhat uncomfortable and had only forced herself to endure for the tea ceremony.

The rest lasted until the red sun was setting in the west. When she woke, she found Lu Zhuo sitting by the window with a book in his hands.

Wei Rao’s expression changed slightly. This man-he wouldn’t be reading some bedroom manual again, would he?

With only the two of them in the room, Wei Rao worried Lu Zhuo might act recklessly, so she first rang the bed bell, calling Bitao and Liu Ya inside.

By the time Lu Zhuo reacted, the two maids were already requesting permission at the door.

“Come in,” Lu Zhuo said with considerable regret, glancing at the curtains behind the screen.

By the time Wei Rao was properly dressed, two quarters of an hour had passed.

It was still early before dinner, so Lu Zhuo suggested taking Wei Rao to stroll through Songyue Hall’s back garden.

Wei Rao followed him there.

As the heir, Lu Zhuo’s status was naturally different from Lu Ya and the others. Songyue Hall had a three-courtyard structure, equivalent to a separate three-courtyard residence outside, so Songyue Hall’s back garden was naturally quite substantial.

Wei Rao had been here before. At that time, the back garden had many trees but few flowers, as Lu Zhuo seemed to have no leisure interest in gardening. However, coming here today, Wei Rao suddenly discovered the back garden had completely changed appearance. In the center of the garden, living water had been channeled from the main lake of the Duke’s mansion’s landscaping, creating an exquisite lotus pond, just like the one in Yan Garden at the leisure estate.

Wei Rao walked to the pond’s edge and looked down to see fresh green lotus leaves inside, with a school of palm-sized little red carp swimming carefree.

“I remember the princess enjoys watching fish,” Lu Zhuo said, standing beside Wei Rao but looking toward the beauty’s rest in the pavilion. To this day, he still remembers going to Yan Garden to find Wei Rao to discuss traveling together to Jin City. That day Wei Rao wore a crabapple pink jacket and crimson long skirt, lying against the beauty’s rest with her head lowered, feeding fish, her snow-white neck bent down, her enchanting body resting boneless against the chair, with the tip of an embroidered shoe peeking from beneath her skirt hem.

Though one shouldn’t look upon what’s improper, that scene had taken root in Lu Zhuo’s heart and could never be forgotten.

Wei Rao indeed liked it. She cast Lu Zhuo a flirtatious glance and walked smiling toward the pavilion entrance, lifting her skirt to enter.

The spring light was beautiful, and this newly built pavilion offered perfect views of the most exquisite spots in the back garden. To the east was a bamboo grove, along the north wall a row of weeping willows followed the water channel, small bridges and artificial hills were scattered about, the west wall was newly covered with green climbing roses, and not far away were both a swing and a grape arbor. Drawing the view closer, just across from the lotus pond, was a flower bed planted entirely with… peonies.

Wei Rao lightly bit her red lips.

Lu Zhuo had been observing her expression. Seeing this, he said: “If the princess doesn’t like peonies, I’ll have the gardener replace them with other flowers.”

Wei Rao had been compared to peonies from very early on. Those idle people used peonies to mock her lack of propriety, but Lu Zhuo felt that peonies truly were the flowers that best displayed Wei Rao’s beauty. So after Wei Rao left, Lu Zhuo personally planted a bed of peonies in the garden, using them to think of her whenever they bloomed.

But Lu Zhuo wasn’t certain whether Wei Rao would be pleased by his thoughtfulness or angered that he used peonies to insult her, though Lu Zhuo had no such intention.

Wei Rao remained silent for a long time. Lu Zhuo suddenly felt somewhat anxious – Wei Rao’s temper was too fierce, and if she truly erupted, he would have a headache too.

“Does the young master like peonies?” Wei Rao turned her head to look at Lu Zhuo and asked: “Before me, before you heard about tree peonies and herbaceous peonies, did the young master have any favorite flowers?”

Lu Zhuo thought for a moment and shook his head: “No, I have no elegant interest in appreciating flowers and composing poetry.”

Wei Rao leaned back against the chair, facing that bed of peonies: “When I was small, I liked crabapple blossoms. Tree peonies and herbaceous peonies looked much the same to me – all very beautiful, just too large to wear in one’s hair conveniently, unlike crabapple blossoms, small and delicate and pink, which could be worn in a circle around one’s head. Later, when I grew up and heard people say I resembled peonies, heard people criticize peonies unfavorably, I went to carefully observe peonies and came to love them.”

Whether peonies or tree peonies, Wei Rao liked them both. Such beautiful, such gorgeous flowers – what did they understand? They only grew quietly and bloomed quietly.

Wei Rao liked peonies, and she also liked Lu Zhuo’s thoughtfulness in planting this bed of peonies for her.

“No need to change them. They’re quite nice as they are.” Wei Rao smiled at Lu Zhuo.

The spring breeze stirred a strand of her hair, and Lu Zhuo raised his hand to tuck it behind her ear.

Wei Rao’s cheeks warmed slightly. She stood up and said, “Let’s continue strolling. In a few days, I’ll take you to see my princess mansion.”

Lu Zhuo’s heart stirred as he asked: “The princess’s mansion – how do you plan to arrange it?”

Such a large residence would be quite a waste if Wei Rao didn’t live there, but as the heir, it would be inconvenient for him to move out with Wei Rao.

Wei Rao had considered this problem before marrying. Since Lu Zhuo asked, she said: “With grandmother here, I’ll only move to the princess’s mansion in summer. It has more water there and is cool, very suitable for escaping the heat. The other three seasons I’ll return to serve my grandmother filially.”

Currently Second Madam and the Third Madam jointly manage the household. Wei Rao didn’t plan to immediately take over household management – she had quite a few enterprises of her own, and while young, it was better to enjoy a few more carefree years. When the old madam passed away and the inner quarters lacked her oversight, Wei Rao would properly assume her role as the Lu family’s principal wife. However, the old madam was in robust health, so considering such matters was still too early.

“What does the young master think?” Wei Rao asked. After all, they were truly husband and wife now, so she needed to consider Lu Zhuo’s attitude. If Lu Zhuo hoped she would immediately establish the dignity of the Lu family’s main branch, then Wei Rao would respect his wishes.

Lu Zhuo trusted the character of Second Madam and Third Madam. The aunts had jointly managed the household for over twenty years without ever acting for private gain, and they responded to all of Mother’s requests. Since Wei Rao still wanted a few more carefree years, Lu Zhuo had no reason to insist she immediately take over the Duke’s mansion’s internal affairs.

“That’s fine too. In a couple of years, I may be posted outside the capital. If you’re not managing the household, you can come with me.”

Wei Rao said in surprise, “Aren’t you a deputy general of the Shenwu Army? Without warfare, why would you still be posted outside?”

Lu Zhuo explained: “The capital is a comfortable place for training troops, but you can’t train good generals there. As a military leader, one must understand border conditions. Moreover, border generals are rotated every three years, which also prevents the problem of generals gaining too much power through controlling troops.”

Except for the main generals of the upper four armies, who were always chosen from among the worthy clan members of the Lu, Han, Qi, and Li families, all other border generals were rotated regularly.

Wei Rao understood, but didn’t immediately agree to follow Lu Zhuo to the borderlands. Her family members were all in the capital, and she didn’t want to follow Lu Zhuo so far away for now.

“What, you don’t want to come with me?” Lu Zhuo keenly perceived her thoughts.

Wei Rao evaded the question, smiling: “You said yourself it would be two years before you’re posted outside. We’ll see when the time comes – maybe it won’t even be your turn.”

She ran to swing on the swing, sitting on it and calling with a flower-like smile for Lu Zhuo to push her.

Lu Zhuo smiled back and walked behind her, but the smile disappeared once he was there.

He had known early on that Wei Rao didn’t marry him because she liked him so much, but because, looking throughout the capital, there was no young man more outstanding than him. If there had been, if that person had also pursued Wei Rao with equal fervor, Wei Rao might have completely abandoned him and happily thrown herself into someone else’s arms.

Wei Rao’s marriage to him was more like vanity, because she had gotten revenge for his previous aloofness and pride. She had gotten revenge on those who looked down on her because she had indeed married the most outstanding young master of the capital’s noble families. Just as men took pride in winning peerless beauties, in Wei Rao’s eyes, Lu Zhuo was more like a trophy she could show off to harvest admiration.

But last night they had done such intimate things, he had made her so happy – yet Wei Rao wouldn’t even be willing to follow him to an outside posting?

Lu Zhuo recalled some idle talk he’d heard from young soldiers at the border. In the eyes of those young soldiers who didn’t even have prospects of wives, women were all easy to subdue – once you had a woman’s body, she would be devoted to the man unto death. At worst, make her bear a child, and the woman would willingly stay, serving her husband with single-minded devotion from then on.

Lu Zhuo had never regarded Wei Rao as one of those docile women, nor did he disdain using a child to tie down Wei Rao’s heart. But last night, he had truly thought Wei Rao had already surrendered in his embrace.

Yet she had clung to him so tightly in the night, only to forget by daybreak?

Lu Zhuo suddenly applied force with his hands.

He had been gently swaying before, making Wei Rao very comfortable. When the swing suddenly flew high, Wei Rao’s heart seemed to fly with it. Gripping the swing tightly with both hands, she angrily cried out: “Lu Zhuo!”

Lu Zhuo came to his senses to see her already flying high with the swing, her bright red gorgeous skirt spreading like butterfly wings. After a brief pause, she rapidly fell toward him.

Beautiful as it was, Lu Zhuo broke out in a cold sweat. She was holding on now, but what if her hands loosened and she fell from mid-air?

Lu Zhuo quickly adjusted his position. When the swing reached its lowest point, he grabbed the rope with one hand and reached for Wei Rao’s waist with the other: “Let go!”

Hearing his voice, Wei Rao immediately released the rope, but it was still a step too late. The swing pulled her and Lu Zhuo backward together. The swing continued flying high while she and Lu Zhuo tumbled forward!

The only thing Lu Zhuo could do was quickly cushion Wei Rao’s head with his hand.

With a “thud,” the newlywed couple fell heavily to the ground.

Wei Rao had been sitting low on the swing, and her head was protected by Lu Zhuo, so she wasn’t hurt by the fall, but was left breathless by Lu Zhuo’s weight pressing down on her chest.

She drew a sharp breath and was just opening her eyes to glare at Lu Zhuo when the light above darkened – Lu Zhuo had lowered down to kiss her!