The sky finally cleared the next day.
After breakfast, the four people from Shen’s Tavern busied themselves cleaning up the bloodstains and broken items in the shop. The servants left by Lin Yan also helped, all showing complete obedience to the Young Miss.
In the afternoon, Shen Shaoguang took people to the West Market to buy some items and arranged for workers to paint the walls tomorrow—might as well renovate the whole shop, following the saying that one grows stronger with each beating and more prosperous with each destruction.
While disposing of the broken items outside, they met neighbors and regular customers. Some people had heard the commotion last night and came out to look, but upon seeing all those armed men with swords, they quickly retreated inside.
Shen Shaoguang explained to them with a smile: “Some fugitives fled into our district and happened to be dining in our tavern when the Capital Prefecture’s officers came to arrest them. We were scared half to death…” Every word was true, just omitting some “not so important” details.
The neighbors looked at the state of the shop and clicked their tongues in sympathy: “Your shop got quite badly damaged…”
Shen Shaoguang winced: “Indeed!”
“Can’t be helped when you run into such things…”
Shen Shaoguang nodded: “Yes, yes.”
Lin Yan didn’t return home until evening by carriage. Since he hadn’t returned home the previous night, he first bathed and changed clothes, then went to pay respects to his grandmother. After accompanying the elderly lady for a light meal, he headed straight to Shen’s Tavern.
The front of the tavern was locked, with a sign reading “Owner away on business, tavern closed for five days.” Lin Yan went around to the back alley, where he could smell roasted lamb with Persian fennel from far away, and heard laughter from inside, including his servants.
Lin Yan smiled, ah, A’Ji…
Lin Yan knocked on the door ring, and A’Chang came to open it. “Young Lord Lin—” he hurriedly welcomed him in.
Felt mats were laid on the blue brick ground, with a roasting pit in the middle where iron skewers held large pieces of lamb, chicken, vegetables, and tofu. Yu San wore an apron and a gauze headband tilted to one side, happily grilling away, while servant Zhou Kui helped beside him. The others sat scattered around, all eating, with the Young Miss in the host’s seat—smiling contentedly as she watched others eat.
Seeing Lin Yan enter, the servants hurriedly stood up to bow with clasped hands, their expressions becoming solemn.
Shen Shaoguang sighed inwardly, wasn’t Junior Governor Lin just here to spoil the fun? Such a nice feast, now disturbed.
“Has the Junior Governor had dinner? Would you like to join everyone for some food?” Though thinking this way, Shen Shaoguang still had to ask politely.
Seeing her expression, Lin Yan cleared his throat and smiled at everyone, “I’ve already eaten, please continue.” After a moment’s thought, he added, “The roasted lamb with pepper and Persian fennel—its fragrance fills the entire alley.”
The servants secretly exchanged glances; their master was truly being kind today… and talkative!
But Shen Shaoguang knew that with him present, others couldn’t eat at ease. Since she wasn’t eating the grilled meat anyway, she brought over some drinks and fruits, “In that case, let’s sit inside away from all this smoke, my lord.”
Lin Yan’s lips curved upward: “Alright.”
This was Lin Yan’s first time entering Shen Shaoguang’s room, though it was just the main hall.
The room wasn’t large, laid with plain-colored carpets, with several simple elm wood tables and couches casually arranged. On the center long table lay half a sheet of cut Yuliangzhi paper, two pairs of scissors, a small pile of already cut flower patterns of various birds, fish, and insects, and on the other side were some face-down books, teapots, and cups, lotus leaf-shaped fruit plates containing fresh water chestnuts, with some uncleared water chestnut shells beside them.
Lin Yan lowered his head and smiled, so this was how scattered A’Ji could be.
Shen Shaoguang set down the fruits and drinks, adjusted the lamp brighter, and seeing the mess on the table, felt a bit embarrassed—in the afternoon while buying necessities for the shop at the West Market, she had gone to buy an inkstone at a stationery store since the original one was broken, but unexpectedly saw some beautiful gold-sprinkled Yuliangzhi paper and bought several sheets back. In the evening when free, she had been teaching A’Yuan to cut flower patterns and hadn’t had time to clean up…
As Shen Shaoguang was about to clean up, Lin Yan gestured for her to sit: “Don’t bother.”
Well then, this is just how it is, thought Shen Shaoguang as she pushed the pile of things to the side and poured some plum drink into a cup for Lin Yan.
“Why aren’t you eating dinner tonight?” Lin Yan noticed that earlier outside, she only had some cakes and fruits like peaches and grapes on her table, not meat like the others.
Shen Shaoguang smiled and said: “It’s nothing, just a slight throat discomfort.” After being choked and threatened with a sword last night, she had some bruising and a red mark. Though it was just an external injury, when she woke up this morning, her throat felt like it was on fire, and when she touched it, it seemed her tonsils were swollen—how could external injury turn internal? In this condition, Shen Shaoguang didn’t dare eat roasted lamb.
Lin Yan looked at her neck, where the bruise had a purple tinge and there was also a red line. She was already fair-skinned, which made the marks even more striking.
“Does it still hurt much?” Lin Yan asked gently.
His words suddenly made Shen Shaoguang’s mind wander to a certain unspeakable scene, and she quickly stopped herself, giving a dry laugh, “It doesn’t hurt, just need to take some Sanhuang Shangqing Pills.”
Lin Yan nodded, and they fell silent for a moment.
To cover up her improper thoughts, Shen Shaoguang offered Lin Yan some fruit, “These are newly ripened grapes from our courtyard, very sweet! The water chestnuts are good too, very tender.”
“Mm.” Lin Yan responded.
In front of him, beside the fruit plate with water chestnuts was a face-down copy of “Autumn Border Collection.” Lin Yan reached out to use a bird feather pattern as a bookmark for the covered page, “Watching white blades and blood scattered about, how can a martyr’s death care for merit…”① Lin Yan silently closed the book and put it aside, then picked up the nutcracker from the fruit plate to crack water chestnuts. After cracking one, he passed it to Shen Shaoguang sitting opposite him.
Shen Shaoguang was stunned for a moment, then accepted it, peeled off the skin, and took a bite of the crisp, tender water chestnut meat.
“A’Ji, shall I send someone to propose marriage?”
Shen Shaoguang almost choked on the water chestnut.
Lin Yan slightly furrowed his brows and pushed over the drink she had just poured for him.
Shen Shaoguang waved her hand, no, Junior Governor Lin, how can you speak without any warming up?
“I worry about you living out here like this.”
Shen Shaoguang nodded, understanding, and smiled, “That’s no matter, I can just buy a couple of male servants, ones with broad shoulders, thick waists, and ten feet tall.”
Lin Yan: “…”
Shen Shaoguang continued: “I heard the Guan family weapon shop in the West Market has sharp swords and long blades, and they can also make mechanical devices. I wonder if they could make a mechanism that attaches to the forearm and shoots poison needles when pressed…” She had thought of the “Storm of Pear Blossom Needles” from future stories.
Lin Yan pressed his lips together helplessly, “You know very well that’s not what I mean.”
This time it was Shen Shaoguang who fell silent.
“A’Ji, do you truly feel nothing for me?” Lin Yan raised his eyes to look at her.
Shen Shaoguang met his gaze and detected traces of sadness and grievance in it. The insincere “no” got stuck in her throat, and she gave an awkward laugh, raising her hand to scratch her ear.
“Or do you have some concerns?”
“You probably don’t know about my family situation. My grandmother is advanced in years and most hope for me to marry soon. The elder has experienced all of life’s honor and disgrace, rises and falls, and isn’t a stubborn person; moreover—” Lin Yan paused, “my late parents’ marriage was discordant and led to many misfortunes. Grandmother only hopes I won’t repeat their mistakes and won’t be picky about a new daughter-in-law. We have two close relatives’ families in Hedong’s homeland, neither of which are the type to be vain or cause trouble, so you needn’t worry about my family.”
“As for others, there’s even less need for concern. My bride will be my bride.” The final sentence was spoken with calm indifference.
Heh, who would have thought that such a serious and reserved person as Junior Governor Lin would have a touch of the “Phoenix song mocks Confucius” wildness?
Shen Shaoguang was his opposite—unrestrained on the surface but cautious and rational inside, even somewhat cold, with a modern person’s mindset.
The hope of a declining noble family, a young graduate who passed the imperial examinations, a crimson-robed high official in his twenties—what expectations did his family, relatives, mentors, friends, and he has for his future? How far would he advance in his official career? Not to mention seeking benefits through marriage to a noble family, but at least the marriage shouldn’t hold him back.
Marrying the daughter of a criminal official, facing an emperor who treated suspicion as an occupational disease, dealing with colleagues’ probing and possible exclusion because of it… Shen Shaoguang didn’t doubt his sincerity at this moment, or even doubt that with his temperament and her ability to manage life, they would have a harmonious marriage and grow old together, but she didn’t want her presence to create many obstacles in his official career.
He might become a historically renowned minister, just like Yao Chong and Song Jing, or like Wu Yuanheng and Lu Yunming.
As for a wife, how many young ladies were there in the two capitals—lively ones, dignified ones, those with feeling and interest—surely there would be one to suit his heart? Those young ladies would probably be satisfied with Junior Governor Lin’s appearance and temperament, right?
Shen Shaoguang thought until she became jealous, damn it, my five million, no, hundred million lottery ticket, just got shredded in the washing machine! It truly hurts from heart to liver to spleen to lungs to kidneys!
Feeling the pain from the heart to liver to spleen to lungs to kidneys, Shen Shaoguang casually picked up a peach: “This peach is quite good too, somewhat like Guanzhong honey peaches. My lord, please try some. Any later and peach season will be over.”
Lin Yan looked at her while Shen Shaoguang calmly peeled the peach.
She had peeled half the peach skin when her slender hand pinched it and brought it to her mouth to eat. Her cheeks puffed in and out, juice lingering on her lips as she ate with full concentration, as if the peach was extremely delicious.
After finishing, she wiped her mouth with a handkerchief, then wiped her hands, raised her face, curved her eyebrows and eyes, and smiled.
Seeing her smile, Lin Yan’s heart felt both sour and painful. After a moment, his expression finally softened, and he continued to crack water chestnuts for her, “Then you don’t need to buy any broad-shouldered, ten-feet-tall male servants, I’ll send you two.”
“I’m not being polite,” Shen Shaoguang quickly waved her hand, “it’s not appropriate. A seventh-rank official before a prime minister’s gate—having servants from the Junior Governor’s mansion of the Capital Prefecture carrying tables and serving dishes in a small tavern…” Shen Shaoguang knew that in the minds of these Tang dynasty nobles, “servants and lowborn people are comparable to livestock by law,” but surely with Junior Governor Lin’s emotional intelligence, he could understand the servants’ psychological gap?
Moreover, I have money! What kind of bodyguards couldn’t I buy? Shen Shaoguang felt her nouveau riche气 surging to the heavens.
Lin Yan pressed his lips together; it was good that the young miss had her ideas, but too many ideas… Lin Yan only felt she was more troublesome than the prisoners in jail.
To ease his mind, Shen Shaoguang analyzed further: “After this incident, the Capital Prefecture’s prison will be more secure, and kidnapping relatives of Capital Prefecture officials will certainly be useless.”
“As for revenge… those bandits had their purpose, and I was merely a tool to them. Why would they waste manpower and energy to take revenge on a mere tool?”
Revenge itself was something that particularly didn’t conform to the economics of crime. For a group of people with clear political demands, taking revenge on random NPC, taking revenge on a random NPC who would be prepared—high crime costs, no benefits… the possibility was too small.
If those people were antisocial personality disorder deviants who couldn’t be measured by common sense, Shen Shaoguang would have sought police protection without a second word.
Lin Yan looked at her for a while and finally smiled helplessly.
Lin Yan stood up and walked to the painting hanging on the side wall—light ink outlining a pink wall and black door, with a branch of crimson crabapple extending from within the wall, scattering many fallen flowers, with a small vermilion seal in seal script reading “Spring Dwells” in the corner. The characters on the seal were elegant yet forceful—she had carved it herself.
The crabapple in the back courtyard… Lin Yan felt heartache again, the old pavilions and flowers were now gone with changing times.
Not wanting to make her sad, Lin Yan looked at this seal style, combined with her small handwriting, and considering her father’s poetry and prose style, asked with a smile: “This seal is unique… brilliant spring… Shaohua?”
Shen Shaoguang’s eyes widened, he could even guess this?!
Shen Shaoguang shook her head, smiling: “Wrong.”
Seeing her slightly surprised expression, Lin Yan knew that although incorrect, he wasn’t far off, “Fanghua? Shaoguang?”
Shen Shaoguang finally couldn’t control herself and smiled flirtatiously, “Want to guess?”
Author’s Note: ①From Gao Shi’s “Song of Yan”
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The name-guessing part in the text is purely for entertainment, don’t take it too seriously.
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Lin Yan: Achievement unlocked – Guessing wife’s childhood name
Achievement 50% complete – Guessing wife’s formal name