That Lianyi could live well made Song Chuyi very happy for her. These maids who had been loyally devoted to her and her mother—Song Chuyi always felt she owed them.

Thinking of them, she couldn’t help but think of Song Yi and Yin Yunduan. Song Chuyi restrained some of the smile on her face. Holding her red date tea and watching the dates floating and sinking in the water, she asked Nanny Xu, “Counting the time, Brother Shi should be nearly one year old. Now that we’re in national mourning, it’s not appropriate to hold a grand celebration, but Nanny, please prepare rewards for me to bestow.”

Yin Yunduan had long since given birth to a son. However, because of the later Xibei military campaign and the chaotic situation, they hadn’t held a grand celebration—merely inviting her natal family over for a meal.

Now that the situation had stabilized and Brother Shi was exactly at his first birthday, the Song family would certainly hold a first birthday banquet. The gifts should be prepared in advance to avoid scrambling at the last minute.

Nanny Xu acknowledged with a sound but stood still without moving, looking at Song Chuyi with some hesitation. “There’s another matter. Fifth Master has also returned to report on his duties… I’m telling you first.”

Nanny Xu thought very poorly of Song Yi, but no matter what, he was Song Chuyi’s biological father. And though he was somewhat foolish, she feared he might cause trouble, so she still wanted to remind Song Chuyi.

Hearing that Song Yi was also returning to the capital, Song Chuyi didn’t quite react at first. She hadn’t seen Song Yi for a long time and actually had some difficulty remembering what he looked like. After pausing, she nodded.

When Zhou Weizhao returned that evening, she mentioned this matter to him. “When Father returns, I want to see him. At this time, nothing must go wrong. Father is easily swayed…”

Like the Cui family, the Song family was at a time when they should retreat from rushing currents. If Song Yi still couldn’t understand priorities like before, trouble would likely arise again.

But Zhou Weizhao didn’t want her worrying about these matters. He had heard from the imperial physicians that overthinking easily harmed one’s spirit. He wished Song Chuyi wouldn’t think about anything and could live peacefully and stably for a lifetime. Hearing her say this, he replied, “Meeting him is naturally necessary, but there’s no need to admonish him further.” He looked at Song Chuyi. “I have this matter in hand. Rest assured, your father-in-law won’t cause any trouble. If you’re truly so idle with nothing to do, isn’t there still a marriage match waiting for you to arrange? Why not busy yourself more with that matter and pay more attention to it?”

Song Yi was someone you could call muddled yet not muddled—in any case, not a very clear-headed person. Zhou Weizhao knew that although Song Chuyi had become very strong, he still didn’t want Song Yi to accidentally do anything that would make Song Chuyi unhappy.

Seeing Song Chuyi frown, Zhou Weizhao counted on his fingers for her. “If this match succeeds, then you can proceed with the next one. Think about it—you surely don’t feel comfortable leaving Yan’er’s marriage for your father and mother to arrange, right? You must personally oversee it to feel at ease. There’s also your Cui family cousin. Aunt will certainly ask for your help, at least to help assess things… If you’ve finished with your Cui family cousin’s affairs, there are still Qing Zhuo and Han Feng. You surely can’t bear to watch them remain bachelors, can you?”

Song Chuyi was made to laugh by Zhou Weizhao. “I have to manage Qing Zhuo and Han Feng too?”

Qing Zhuo and Han Feng were people from Longhu Mountain—would they lack people to arrange marriages for them?

Zhou Weizhao spoke very seriously. “Of course you must manage them. How can you not? Qing Zhuo’s temperament is too flighty, and Han Feng is too sullen. If no one arranges wives for these two, they’ll probably die lonely.”

This was truly talking nonsense with eyes wide open. Song Chuyi glared at him, watching him take a knife to cut an orange. Propping her chin on her hand, she asked him, “How are things in Fujian?”

Though she didn’t listen to outside affairs, she wasn’t completely ignorant either.

She had heard something had happened in Fujian.

How long had it been since the Xibei matter was settled? And now Fujian was in turmoil again. If not handled properly, the court would likely face more upheaval.

Zhou Weizhao’s movements paused. He picked up a section and peeled it for Song Chuyi, watching her eat while deliberating for a moment. “Trouble has indeed arisen.”

He had said he wouldn’t hide things from Song Chuyi, no matter what.

Song Chuyi wasn’t an ordinary young lady—wanting to hide things from her wasn’t that easy.

Seeing Song Chuyi put down the orange in her hand, he frowned. “Speaking of which, the Fan family caused this incident.” He rubbed his temples. “Too many matters—we originally said we would deal with Fan Shikun but actually forgot. By the time the court remembered this person, he had already joined the pirates and was highly valued under Wang Lun. Having formerly been the Taizhou Deputy Commander, he knew the coastal defenses extremely well. Wang Lun was almost undefeated in battle, and Guo Huaiying was beaten into retreat after retreat. Later, Sun Ergou returned…”

Song Chuyi had feared something would happen in Fujian without Han Zhi there, which was why she had specifically sent Sun Ergou back to Fujian—for precisely this reason.

She opened her eyes wide and listened to Zhou Weizhao continue.

“After Sun Ergou returned, he devised many schemes to create discord between Fan Shikun and Wang Lun, and achieved some results. Unfortunately, Fan Shikun had already gained momentum and wasn’t afraid of Wang Lun. He led a group of people out on his own. Moreover, he surrendered to Guo Huaiying…”

Surrendered?!

A court criminal actively surrendering to Guo Huaiying?

Song Chuyi sighed. “Lord Guo agreed?”

“If it were you, would you refuse? After all, he did have reasons to surrender—being a court criminal who had already made an enemy of Wang Lun, seeing that he could no longer survive at sea.” Zhou Weizhao, seeing she had stopped eating, took a cloth to wipe her hands. Seeing her very serious expression, he quickened his speech. “On one hand surrendering, representing the court, he went to find Wang Lun and spoke in extravagant terms, moving Wang Lun’s heart. On the other hand, he returned to tell Guo Huaiying that Wang Lun refused to surrender, suggesting they first capture Wang Lun’s family members in Zhejiang to use as leverage to threaten Wang Lun.”

Wang Lun’s family members had concealed their identities, and Guo Huaiying had searched for many years without finding them. Following Fan Shikun’s directions, they actually captured them and wrote a letter to Wang Lun telling him to recognize the times.

“When Wang Lun heard his parents and children had all been captured, he wrote to Guo Huaiying expressing willingness to talk properly. Who knew Fan Shikun had already bribed insiders and poisoned the hostages to death…”

With Wang Lun’s temperament, he would certainly be furious.

Any thought of recruitment was impossible now. Instead, he completely began opposing the court, opening the door wide for the Japanese pirates, making them cause even more havoc along the coastal borders.

Fan Shikun had done this deliberately.

Killing two birds with one stone—he both took revenge on the court and Guo Huaiying and used the court’s power to strike at Wang Lun. With these two sides in conflict, neither had the mind to deal with him. He transformed from a target both sides sought to attack into a fisherman reaping the benefits. His scheming could not be called shallow.

He had truly carved out a path for himself.

Song Chuyi asked Zhou Weizhao, “So how is the situation in Fujian now?”

Having enraged Wang Lun, Guo Huaiying’s days were probably very difficult.