Pei Jiya was carried away by the Pei family servants, who were too afraid to voice their anger. Had it been anyone else who dared to lay hands on the sole precious young master of their Kunzhou Pei family, those burly guards would certainly not have been so courteous. However, the one who acted was Wu Zhen. Even their unruly Young Master Pei couldn’t handle this cousin, so what could the Pei family guards and servants do? They could only hurriedly carry away their young master, who was pretending to be dead.
If you can’t beat them, avoid them.
Mei Zhuyu had only said that one sentence and had no chance to explain further. He could only watch in shock as Wu Zhen leaped up and kicked her cousin flying. He hadn’t expected Wu Zhen to react so strongly, not even listening to an explanation before mercilessly beating the man. Mei Zhuyu watched, thinking that the frail Cousin Pei would be beaten to death.
Only after the Pei family group had hurriedly left did Wu Zhen’s expression return to normal. Seeing Mei Zhuyu’s expression, she raised an eyebrow and said, “Why are you looking at me like that? I was quite gentle this time. Although nothing happened to you, my dear, that cousin of mine truly intended to kill you. Just for this reason alone, I’ll never let him set foot in Chang’an again.”
Her tone was unusually cold, almost unlike her usual self. Given her typical style, Pei Jiya probably truly wouldn’t be able to enter Chang’an territory for the rest of his life. Mei Zhuyu didn’t know what to say. He hadn’t intended to tattle when he spoke; he was simply straightforward by nature and felt there was nothing to hide. Wu Zhen should know, and he wanted to clarify, so he had spoken.
Now that it had been said and the beating had occurred, there was no use dwelling on it. Mei Zhuyu decided not to think about it further. Wu Zhen reached out to support her husband and finally smiled, “Alright, let’s go back and see how our little gosling is doing. It’s been in Niu Yi and Niu Er’s care these days, who knows if they’ve taken good care of it.”
Only then did Mei Zhuyu remember the two ox demon attendants left behind in some inn, as well as the little gosling Wu Zhen had bought on a whim during their journey.
All three were fine. When Wu Zhen and Mei Zhuyu found them, the little gosling was following a flock of chickens in the inn’s backyard, looking for food. Wu Zhen reached out and grabbed the gosling by the neck, lifting it. Suddenly seized, the gosling fiercely opened its beak to bite, but Wu Zhen quickly pinched its beak shut and deftly tied it with a thin string from a nearby tree. She then proudly played with the fluffy little creature.
The innkeeper came over laughing, saying that this little gosling had even fought with the dogs here over the past few days. Who would have thought such a tiny thing could be so fierce?
As for the two seemingly fierce and imposing servants, Niu Yi and Niu Er, they were very docile, waiting obediently without causing trouble. They had only transformed into their original forms to graze on the nearby hillside, leaving a patch of grass bare.
With their business concluded, Wu Zhen and Mei Zhuyu leisurely returned to Chang’an, taking even longer than their outbound journey because Wu Zhen’s belly had started to grow. The couple was a bit afraid, so they could only travel slowly. Amusingly, Wu Zhen, who usually feared nothing, surprised Mei Zhuyu by being unexpectedly responsible and serious while pregnant. Apart from refusing to drink some tonics, she truly hadn’t done anything inappropriate. Even when she occasionally got carried away, she would quickly remember her condition and restrain herself.
This greatly surprised Mei Zhuyu, and he couldn’t help but feel a softness in his heart. Occasionally, seeing her bored and frustrated, he would try to do things to entertain her—like catching interesting little spirits for her to see, as she had done on their outward journey, or picking pretty flowers by the roadside to give her. Although these were all tricks Wu Zhen had used before, and they seemed silly and awkward when he did them, Wu Zhen was still delighted. The joy wasn’t in the things the young master brought back, but in watching him rack his brains trying to please her.
Mindful that Snake Gong was holding down the fort at the Chang’an Demon Market with just a few deputies, Wu Zhen didn’t have the heart to take advantage of the situation to sightsee. She obediently returned to Chang’an with her husband without taking any detours. Even so, by the time they arrived in Chang’an, it was almost October.
“The osmanthus flowers have already bloomed this year,” Wu Zhen suddenly said as they entered the city. Only then did Mei Zhuyu realize that the faint fragrance in the air was osmanthus. He didn’t pay much attention to such things, but Wu Zhen loved these elegant, enchanting pleasures of life and noticed immediately.
Not only did she notice, but she also enthusiastically told Mei Zhuyu, “Speaking of osmanthus, the best in Chang’an is undoubtedly the osmanthus garden in the Daming Palace. Unfortunately, that place isn’t somewhere one can just visit on a whim. Next time I go to Daming Palace to listen to music, I’ll bring back a few branches for you to put in a vase. They’ll stay fragrant for days.”
“After the Daming Palace osmanthus garden, the second best is in the garden of Huang Siniang’s home in An’ren Ward. Huang Siniang is good at cultivating flowers, but she’s best at those few osmanthus trees. She’s quite stingy; each year she only takes some of the blooms to make wine and is reluctant to give any to others who ask. She treasures those few osmanthus trees like precious jewels.” Wu Zhen knew all about these things and, seeing Mei Zhuyu listening attentively, she winked a bit boastfully, “But I ordered wine from her last year, and this year she’ll save two jars for me. You’re in for a treat, my dear.”
Mei Zhuyu looked at her quietly and smiled slightly. He increasingly felt that Wu Zhen was very much like the city of Chang’an itself; they both had an inherent grace and tolerance steeped in wine and flowers.
Wu Zhen could speak effortlessly about all the delicious food, fun activities, and beautiful sights in Chang’an for every season. This ‘erudition’ was accumulated over more than a decade of carefree wandering, and only such a prosperous land could nurture such an unrestrained woman with romance flowing through her veins.
“There’s another great place to enjoy osmanthus flowers in Chang’an, in Jinchang Ward. It’s also a private garden, but I have some connections with the owner. The osmanthus there should be blooming these days too. We’ve come back at just the right time to enjoy the flowers. I’ll take you to see the golden osmanthus in the next couple of days, and we’ll pick some to bring back for the cook to make osmanthus pastries. There’s a kind of rice ball made with osmanthus honey water that I love the most; you must try it…”
Before they even reached home, Wu Zhen had already planned their itinerary for the next few days. Mei Zhuyu could only nod and agree as he listened to her chatter on.
The ox cart slowly pulled up to their front door as dusk was falling. Seeing the master and mistress return, the old Mei family servant happily told the kitchen to quickly prepare a meal, but Wu Zhen waved her hand to stop them.
“We’ve been away from home for so long; now that we’re back, of course, we should eat something good. Don’t trouble the women of the house; order plenty of dishes for everyone to enjoy together,” she said, sending someone to buy a large array of delicacies from her favorite restaurants and taverns. They could eat simply while traveling, dusty and tired on the road, but now that they were home, it was time to return to their former ways. When conditions allowed, Wu Zhen was the most particular.
After a lively meal of long-missed, satisfying dishes, the only regret was not being able to drink wine. Wu Zhen patted her belly, reluctantly restraining herself with a pained expression.
After dinner, they bathed thoroughly, washing away the dust of travel and the fatigue of the journey. Even Mei Zhuyu felt a bit lazy, experiencing the comfort that comes with being home.
“These days have been too tiring; let’s rest early,” Mei Zhuyu said.
But Wu Zhen shook her head, slowly fanning herself with a round fan as she strolled in the corridor. Her wooden clogs made slow tapping sounds on the floor. Mei Zhuyu had no choice but to accompany her, walking beside her.
The moon had risen, and the shadows of the bamboo in the courtyard fell at their feet. Wu Zhen fanned herself and said softly, “It should be about time.”
Hearing her mutter to herself, Mei Zhuyu asked curiously, “About time for what?”
Wu Zhen covered half her face with the fan, smiling mysteriously. She had calculated the timing and led Mei Zhuyu to his study. Then she pushed open the large wall of doors in the study and smiled at Mei Zhuyu.
At first, Mei Zhuyu didn’t know what she was doing, until she opened those doors and he saw what she wanted him to see.
In the courtyard directly opposite these doors, over a dozen epiphyllum plants had been planted at some point. At this moment, the epiphyllums were in full bloom, large white flowers quietly blossoming in the night, emitting an intoxicating fragrance. Even in the darkness, the luminous white flower discs of the epiphyllums were exceptionally bright and eye-catching, so beautiful that Mei Zhuyu was momentarily transfixed.
He came to his senses and looked at Wu Zhen. Sensing his gaze, she also turned her eyes from the epiphyllums to look at him, smiling, “Isn’t it beautiful? I secretly had them transplanted here before we left Chang’an, thinking that by the time we returned, these flowers would be about to bloom. I hoped to give you a surprise, and I didn’t expect the timing to be so perfect.”
“These flowers have a very short blooming period. Being even a day early or late would mean missing their bloom. It seems we are indeed fortunate.”
Before they left Chang’an, Wu Zhen had been invited to a friend’s house and saw the epiphyllums planted there. Unlike ordinary epiphyllums, this variety was one her friend had come across by chance. The flowers were larger and more fragrant than usual epiphyllums, with thin petals that seemed to have a thousand layers overlapping, looking exquisitely beautiful. So this type of epiphyllum was also called the Thousand-Petal Snow.
Chang’an wasn’t particularly suitable for growing this kind of epiphyllum, but Wu Zhen had seen them in bloom and found them extraordinarily beautiful. She wanted her husband to see them too, which led to this secret flower planting. She had pestered that friend quite a bit to get these precious plants, all for this moment.
As Wu Zhen gloated, Mei Zhuyu felt both moved and amused, thinking that she truly never forgot these things, even thinking back then about him returning to see the flowers.
“Why aren’t you saying anything? Don’t you like them?” Wu Zhen leaned in and tickled Mei Zhuyu’s chin. Mei Zhuyu held her hand and softly replied, “I like them very much.”
He liked them too much to express it adequately, unable to utter even one more compliment.
How could Wu Zhen not see that he liked them? She was just teasing him by asking. Seeing her husband’s gentle expression, with focused, bright eyes, she inwardly laughed, pleased that planting these flowers had been the right choice.
It was worth all her effort to bring such joy to her husband.