With her daughter married out, Yun Shuyao felt lost and empty, thinking even more about the progress on Lin Ruhai’s side. His task wasn’t completed yet. The reward for merit would have to wait until he finished. She didn’t know how Kangxi would reward merit, but she wanted to go to Fourth Prince’s residence to see Luo Yu.
Although it wasn’t impossible to send messages now—they could still have servants pass word, and if there were any contingencies that weren’t suitable to say in letters or have servants relay, they could use code words to express them. They had agreed to use a book as their codebook.
Moreover, there were shops in the capital included in the dowry. Certain specific goods in the shops also had the function of transmitting messages. But these ultimately couldn’t replace face-to-face communication, which would allow for more direct and thorough understanding.
On this day, it was still Chen Yu carrying his sister out the door. He had carried both sisters out when they left. Chen Yu felt as if there were a thousand pounds on his back, making him advance slowly, step by step.
From now on, elder sister’s future would largely depend on Fourth Prince. Only when elder sister’s children grew up might there be a possibility of replacement.
Previously, elder sister was a Lin family daughter. Henceforth, elder sister would be an Aisin Gioro family wife.
The Aisin Gioro family was the imperial family. If he didn’t stand high enough in the future, he fundamentally wouldn’t be able to help elder sister.
——
The scale of this wedding was higher than the previous one. After all, Fourth Prince was an imperial prince, so it also made people talk about it even more enthusiastically, causing the Lin family to be mentioned frequently recently. For those who didn’t understand the Lin family before, now they had a superficial impression of the Lin family because of these two happy occasions.
One impression was that they doted on their daughters. The second impression was that they were wealthy and generous.
If not for the Lin family’s third daughter still being young, quite a few people were already planning to seek marriage for their own sons.
However, the Lin family’s third daughter was still young, but the Lin family’s only son was of proper age! If the dowries of the married-out daughters were already this much, how much of the Lin family wealth would he be able to inherit in the future?
Thinking this way, quite a few people’s hearts stirred with excitement.
The sky had darkened, but the lively sounds seemed still to echo in her ears. Her daughter’s appearance seemed still to linger before her eyes.
This day seemed to pass very quickly—so quickly she had no sense of reality. Yun Shuyao turned over in bed and sat up, discovering that tonight she wouldn’t be able to sleep.
She got up and dressed. The entire Lin residence was very quiet now. Perhaps the masters couldn’t sleep, but the servants had all fallen into deep slumber.
These almost consecutive two weddings had drained all the servants’ energy.
Yun Shuyao didn’t have people attend her closely at night, and the movement of her getting up wasn’t loud, so she didn’t wake others.
Yun Shuyao opened the window and looked at the moon outside, sighing. Today was her daughter’s wedding night. Tomorrow they would still have to enter the palace to pay respects to the masters in the palace—to see the Empress Dowager, Kangxi, Noble Consort De, and others.
After returning, she would also have to shoulder her own life…
The more she thought, the less sleepy she felt. She simply went to the study next door.
Ordinary maids couldn’t enter her study, and others could understand this. The study was an important place, and moreover, the master would often come over. It was normal to have things inconvenient for others to see.
In reality, half of her study was truly a study, while the other half was a greenhouse she had filled with various plants.
The plants here were basically all personally tended by her. Perhaps others would think this was the secret to how she could raise so many outstanding flowers and plants. For this secret, she made her security measures better.
In essence, the reason Yun Shuyao didn’t let them enter casually was mainly to conceal the rice and wheat she grew here, because she would accelerate them, speeding up their growth period.
If they occasionally came to look, they wouldn’t remember very clearly what their condition and size were at that time.
If she planted them outside, these attending maids and those brought up from the estates understood crops well and knew their growth cycles. If there were anything wrong on her side, they could easily discover it.
So she kept them in her study. Sunlight, water, and fertilizer—she could satisfy all these needs, and there was also her special ability to regulate them.
It was mainly the special ability, so she didn’t worry about not being able to grow them well in flowerpots.
Lin Ruhai also knew she kept a few pots of crops in her study. He thought she was growing potted plants to look at, because she raised quite a few strange and unusual things. Crops, speaking of it, were still normal.
Yun Shuyao did this also so that when improved varieties appeared in the future, it wouldn’t be abrupt.
She couldn’t produce improved varieties out of thin air—that would be too suspicious. But if she said she had been researching them on and off for many years, and there were witnesses and evidence to prove it, then the credibility would be high.
She came to the study to look at the flowerpot planted with wheat, checked the soil and the wheat leaves, and transmitted a wave of “great tonic pills” to them. The wheat’s stalks imperceptibly straightened up even more.
When would there finally be good results?
Tonight, Lin Ruhai in Yangzhou also couldn’t sleep. He stood in the courtyard, looking up at the bright moon above.
Although they were separated by two places, the bright moon was the same one. Perhaps someone was also looking at it at this moment?
Thinking this way, Lin Ruhai walked to the table, picked up the tea cup, and shallowly took a sip of tea. Originally he had wanted to have wine, but because of his physical condition he needed to abstain from alcohol, and Doctor Zhou didn’t agree, so he switched to tea instead.
If he could have gotten away, even if it meant rushing, he would have hurried back to participate in his two daughters’ great happy occasions. Their wedding days were very close together. As long as he could return, he could personally send both daughters out the door.
How were they now?
What were the two sons-in-law thinking?
Lin Ruhai held the tea cup. Without realizing it, the tea cup in his hand had emptied. He brought it forward to his mouth, but with nothing there, he realized the tea had already been finished.
Putting down the tea cup, Lin Ruhai looked up again at the high-hanging bright moon, returned to his room, took out paper and brush, carefully deliberated over each word and sentence as he moved the brush, slowly writing a letter…
One night passed. The Lin family in the capital changed from quiet to lively again. Having slept enough, today everyone was still somewhat sluggish, but at this time, even the strictest person would turn a blind eye.
They moved somewhat languidly, tidying up yesterday’s utensils, decorations, and gifts for inventory—all sorts of miscellaneous matters.
After tidying up, they still had to prepare for the eldest miss’s—no, now they should say eldest young madam’s—and eldest son-in-law’s return visit, which was the time when they would return to the natal home to stay for the double-month.
The length of time for staying the double-month varied, but Old Madam hoped they could stay for a full month. On this point, eldest son-in-law had no objections. In this aspect, both families were amenable and accommodating. Knowing the Lin family doted on their daughter, the Xilin Gioro family cooperated more in these matters.
Then there was the second young miss’s return visit day. The possibility of Fourth Prince staying for the double-month was low, but he should come for the return visit, right?
The servants prepared their tasks, while the masters of the Lin residence, from Old Madam down to Daiyu, all got up late today.
After getting up, they waited for news.
Waiting for news about whether the palace visit to pay respects went smoothly.
Logically speaking, it shouldn’t not go smoothly—it was just going through the motions. It was just that if by any chance there were any problems at this juncture, the impact would be too great. As maternal family members, they inevitably felt anxious.
Afterward, hearing that Luo Yu had smoothly left the palace with rewards, the whole family felt at ease.
——
The first to return for the double-month stay was Ying Yu and her husband.
When Ying Yu was helped down from the carriage by eldest son-in-law with her face blushing, everyone could tell at a glance that nothing unhappy had happened after she married over.
Moreover, the kind of understanding between the two as they interacted could explain many things. Watching them walk in, Old Madam’s anxious heart returned to her belly. Concubine Mei was even more beaming with smiles as she stood there watching this scene, feeling wonderful.
She just knew it—with her daughter’s talents, character, and appearance, how could she possibly not capture her son-in-law’s heart?
Da Chun’s physique wasn’t particularly robust, not like his elder brother who practiced martial arts and was now a guard in the palace.
Although not very robust, compared to ordinary scholars he was taller and larger. Looking at him, he was also a refreshing young man. Coming to the Lin family, hearing the maids and old servants constantly calling him “eldest son-in-law” still made him blush.
Old Madam liked very much to watch them blush and look at each other, then shyly turn their heads away.
Because Father wasn’t here, as the only male in the household, Chen Yu shouldered the important task of “instructing” his brother-in-law to treat elder sister well—otherwise he’d have to watch out for this younger brother-in-law. Additionally, there was the inevitable wine-urging scene.
Da Chun had originally had a relaxed attitude about this step, because this younger brother-in-law clearly wasn’t someone with a great capacity for alcohol. Even if he urged wine, if he lost and drank more himself, as long as the other party had shallow tolerance, it could end respectably. However… he kept drinking and drinking. Except for that first cup, younger brother-in-law never lost again.
Da Chun deeply suspected that was a deliberate loss to give him face, otherwise younger brother-in-law could not touch a drop of alcohol.
Chen Yu looked at his dizzy appearance and smiled. As the saying goes, wine loosens the tongue—this was exactly the desired effect.
Of course, one also had to grasp the proper degree. Going too far would only result in harvesting a drunkard.
Having asked to his satisfaction, he had people help him back to elder sister’s courtyard to rest. They would live there for the next month.
Ying Yu saw Da Chun’s drunk appearance and felt both heartache and amusement. She had people bring sobering soup and fed it to him, otherwise when he woke up he would suffer greatly.
Old Madam watched this scene with a smile. After the son-in-law was sent back to rest, she asked her: “How is it? Does he treat you well? Has anyone made things difficult for you?”
Concubine Mei at the side said nothing, but her body unconsciously leaned forward, clearly very concerned about this question too.
Ying Yu smiled somewhat embarrassedly. “He treats me very well, and others haven’t made things difficult for me either. Grandmother, please rest assured.”
At this time, a maid at the side laughed: “On the wedding day, when the son-in-law lifted the veil, he was completely stunned.”
Ying Yu’s face grew even redder.
Old Madam smiled with gratification: “When husband and wife are of one mind, their sharpness can cut through metal. If he treats you well, you must also treat him well. Harmony between husband and wife—that’s what makes a harmonious family.”
Ying Yu replied softly: “Grandmother, I know.”
Da Chun adapted to the Lin family very quickly. Because his father-in-law wasn’t here, he relaxed a lot. It was just that inevitably when occasionally attending class together with younger brother-in-law, he would feel defeated. No wonder the other could achieve the top three in all three levels of examinations while he had only barely passed the county student exam. Their gap was indeed quite large.
He planned to take the Imperial Academy exam next year. If he couldn’t pass, he could only donate money to enter. He was currently also studying at home with a hired tutor. Now coming to his wife’s family to stay the double-month, he studied together with Chen Yu before Tutor Lin. Studying was like rowing upstream—not advancing meant retreating. If during this month he had to rely on self-discipline to study, he felt he would only regress.
However, having just gotten into the groove not long before, Da Chun became nervous.
Because his brother-in-law Fourth Prince was about to bring second younger sister-in-law back for the return visit. He was going to see Fourth Prince up close.