Even though she had faced ruthless villains from a young age, Zhu Yan was still an unmarried maiden. When it came to matters of chastity, she still wished to experience them with her beloved husband.
Although Shen Du was her husband, he didn’t like her.
Tightly gripping the raised front of the saddle, Zhu Yan dared not look at Shen Du again. She only felt him mount the horse, extend his arms to grasp the reins, and lock her within his embrace.
Throughout the journey, Zhu Yan was like a frightened quail.
Shen Du didn’t say anything more. Without warning, he grabbed the horsewhip and struck the horse’s rump. The horse charged forward, nearly throwing Zhu Yan off!
Losing her composure, she grabbed Shen Du’s arm. In her fright, Zhu Yan caught sight of Shen Du’s upturned lips and instantly realized that he had done it on purpose!
Yet she dared not scold him. Stubbornly turning her head away, Zhu Yan watched as the horse entered the east gate of Wuben Ward and headed towards the west gate. She asked, “Where are we going now?”
Shen Du replied, “Fengle Ward.”
Fengle Ward was where the Liang family resided. According to the plan, she was supposed to go to Fengle Ward today to gather information.
However, unlike Shen Du’s open approach to meeting the Liang family, she was meant to inquire about the Liang family’s private matters among the common people of Fengle Ward.
Sitting in the flower hall, Zhu Yan was watched by the Liang family’s servants. She lightly raised her hand, coughed, and said to Shen Du, “I say, Grand Commander…”
Shen Du interrupted: “If you don’t call me ‘husband,’ your tongue will be unnecessary once we leave the Liang family’s gate.”
Zhu Yan acquiesced. Did he think she had no temper? Besides, she had been married to him by the Emperor’s decree!
Standing up and glaring at Shen Du, Zhu Yan remained silent for a moment before saying, “Husband.”
Shen Du, drinking tea, responded, “Speak.”
Zhu Yan’s expression faltered slightly, but she still smiled and said, “You and I have different opinions on this matter. You want to meet the second branch’s master and mistress, but I might cause trouble if I stay here. I’d like to go for a walk.”
Putting down the snow-white porcelain teacup, Shen Du nodded and said, “Let Jinglin accompany you.”
Jinglin, as stern-faced and cold as his master, bowed.
At this point, Zhu Yan didn’t mind the presence of the imperial guard. As long as she wasn’t by Shen Du’s side, everything was fine.
She called a maid to ask where the garden was. Sitting down in a pavilion, Zhu Yan said to Jinglin, “I’ve been up all night without sleep. I want to nap here for a while. Go stand guard for me over there.” She pointed to the big tree at the entrance.
Jinglin didn’t move. Zhu Yan rubbed her brow, irritably tugged at her collar, and grumbled, “Fine, if you imperial guards dare to stare directly at the Grand Commander’s wife while she rests, why should I be shy? Just stand guard yourself.”
With that, she lay down on the stone table, her eyes lowered, her loose collar falling to reveal her shoulder blade.
Jinglin had thought she was trying to play a trick, but seeing her fall asleep so inelegantly, he quickly turned away and left the pavilion, even calling a maid to lower the bamboo curtains.
Hearing the footsteps fade away, Zhu Yan opened her eyes and slipped out of the pavilion from the other side as the curtains were being lowered.
The maid was startled. Zhu Yan quickly grabbed her, made a gesture of silence, and complained, “My husband can’t bear to be apart from me. He worries I might fall and die if I take a single step. He’s been watching me for a day and a night now. Just let me catch my breath, and please don’t say anything.”
The maid hesitantly nodded and left with Zhu Yan through another door. She then asked, “I remember Madam is an official’s wife from the Ministry of Justice. Doesn’t Bai Yan… I mean, the Grand Commander, let you go to the Ministry?”
Zhu Yan lamented, “He doesn’t, and the Ministry doesn’t dare to object. He’s now favored by His Majesty, and even our Minister doesn’t dare to confront him. It’s quite ironic. When I married him yesterday, I was afraid he might kill me with a sword. But after just one day, I’m afraid he’ll keep me by his side all the time.”
Shen Du was troubling her, presumably because of rumors saying she wasn’t loved and that Minister Zhang was targeting him because of this. To prevent him from causing her more trouble, she would actively cooperate to change the rumors.
Maids in such grand households were most effective for dispelling rumors.
Sure enough, after her complaint, the maid said in surprise, “But yesterday, this servant…”
“Before yesterday, we had never met, so naturally, there were conflicts,” Zhu Yan said. “If he didn’t like me, how could he, the mighty Grand Commander of the Imperial Guard, take me everywhere and even assign his most trusted Jinglin to protect me?”
The maid suddenly understood, “I see. This servant was wondering since the Grand Commander is close to our Second Master and knows that the family currently dislikes people from the Ministry of Justice, why would he still bring Madam into the household? It turns out it’s because of inseparable love. If people outside knew how much the Grand Commander dotes on his wife, they would surely be very envious.”
Zhu Yan smiled shyly and reached out to help her carry two old lanterns that had been taken down. She asked, “Is my husband close to Liang Shilang? I’ve just married into the Shen family and haven’t heard him mention it.”
The maid, feeling more friendly towards Zhu Yan due to her approachability, thought for a moment and said, “The Shilang and the Grand Commander have been in contact for several years, but the Grand Commander doesn’t come often. He just visits occasionally and brings some things.”
“Brings things?” Zhu Yan inquired.
“Yes, not anything precious, just flowers and herbs. It should be for Madam Wei, at the Grand Commander’s request,” the maid explained. Seeing that Zhu Yan didn’t know, she continued, “Madam Wei is our Second Master’s first wife. A few years ago, after she went mad, His Majesty granted our master a favor and elevated Madam Zheng from concubine to equal wife.
Madam Wei loves to tend to flowers and plants, but she often kills them. When they die, she has an episode. But how can flowers like the money plant, which grows in the south, easily survive here in Chang’an? So every time one dies, Madam Wei starts to go crazy. If Madam doesn’t know how important that flower is, let me put it this way: last month when that flower died, Madam Wei woke up, saw the flower was gone, and started hurting people. She accidentally rushed into the First Madam’s courtyard and slashed the face of the First Madam’s wet nurse. The blood splattered on the folding screen, turning the white plum blossoms red.”
Zhu Yan inwardly drew a sharp breath, asking in shock, “Did that wet nurse die?”
The maid shook her head, “No, although Nanny Jiang’s injury was severe, fortunately, the doctor who came to treat Madam Wei that day was in the mansion, so her life was barely saved.”
Zhu Yan nodded thoughtfully and asked, “Since she’s the First Madam’s wet nurse and lives in the mansion, I suppose the First Madam and Nanny Jiang must be very close. After this incident, I imagine the first and second branches of the family must be at odds?”
The maid stopped walking and looked at Zhu Yan, her eyes seeming to show a hint of wariness.
Zhu Yan quickly explained, “I went to Ximing Temple the other day and heard our manager say that as soon as the Liang clan leader saw Young Master Liang’s body, he demanded an autopsy and bitterly scolded Liang Shilang. So I wondered if there might have been long-standing grudges between the first and second branches…”
By telling the truth, Zhu Yan observed the maid’s expression.
The selection of female officials had been publicly announced by the Ministry of Personnel in various places, so her identity here was impossible to conceal. It was better to express her thoughts openly; people might trust her more that way.
Sure enough, the maid’s unease dissipated. Seeing that the procession had entered the corridor, she pulled Zhu Yan aside and continued, “This servant has also heard many people suspect this matter. I’m not afraid to tell Madam, our Second Master, and the first branch… indeed don’t get along well.”