What a ridiculous notion! Though Chu Linlang was beautiful, her origins were humble and she was a woman who had already been married — nothing like the tender, unspoiled young girls of sixteen.

And Situ Sheng — strikingly handsome, a man of exceptional talent and character, now entrusted with great responsibilities by the Emperor, his future prospects boundless. If he were ever to enter the imperial cabinet in the years ahead, marrying the daughter of a prime minister would not be beneath him.

Back in the day, even the Second Miss Xie had harbored admiration for Situ Sheng, only to be met with total indifference — and that showed just how exacting his standards were.

Situ Sheng was not yet married and held a fifth-rank position. Even if he wished to fill the emptiness of his household, there would be no shortage of suitable women willing to serve as concubines.

A man of such deep deliberation — how would he ever blemish his own reputation by engaging in impropriety with the divorced wife of a colleague?

In all likelihood, it was simply that Situ Sheng, taking pity on Chu Linlang out of their old acquaintance from Jizhou, had given her a place to stay.

Having reasoned this out, Zhou Sui’an thought to himself: though he disapproved of Situ Sheng’s harsh official style, given time, he ought to still host a banquet to thank Situ Sheng for temporarily looking after Chu Linlang.

Alone in the capital city, and not without striking looks, she would inevitably attract unwanted advances from shameless men. Living in the Deputy Minister’s residence, at least those unnecessary harassments would be kept at bay.

As for being a steward in the Deputy Minister’s household — let her have a taste of depending on another’s charity and living in difficult circumstances.

These past years, the Zhou family had kept her in silks and fine food, and she had likely forgotten the bitterness of life at the lower rungs. Now that she remained in the capital, soaking in all its splendor while feeling the sharp contrast of high and low, perhaps she would come to understand whether casting aside so many years of marriage was truly right or wrong.

If one day Chu Linlang came to regret it and wished to return, he might magnanimously take her back, in consideration of all those years they had spent together as husband and wife…

With these thoughts, Zhou Sui’an felt considerably more at ease in his heart.

But when he turned and caught sight of his future father-in-law’s ashen face, his daydream instantly shattered. He knew there was a scolding from Xie Sheng waiting for him shortly.

Thinking of this, he couldn’t help but feel irritated at Xie Youran — did she not know what kind of person that Aunt of hers was? She had actually brought that troublemaker into the Zhou household. If it hadn’t been for Aunt An stirring up chaos, would he have been so thoroughly humiliated?

Meanwhile, Aunt An herself had no idea about this confrontation at the Xie residence, and shuffled along as usual to the Xie household, intending to help her elder sister manage the trousseau.

Her elder sister had never been sharp with money — she would help select and buy things, and there would be a nice profit in it for herself.

Little did she know that this time when she arrived, she didn’t see her elder sister, but instead her brother-in-law standing at the entrance with a thunderous expression, blocking the way and glaring at her…

That day, Xie Sheng summoned his brother-in-law, and together with his wife Su Shi, shut the bedroom door and interrogated An Shi.

The servants were all kept at a distance, yet even so, muffled shouts and the sounds of blows and desperate pleading could be faintly heard from within.

When An Shi’s husband finally dragged his troublemaking wife out, An Shi’s face was black and blue from the beating he had given her.

Su Shi, too, was thoroughly tongue-lashed by Xie Sheng, who demanded to know how she hadn’t realized what sort of shallow, short-sighted creature her sister was. And she had dared to let An Shi get involved in a family scandal like this?

When Xie Youran learned of her aunt’s schemes, she was so furious she locked herself in her room and cursed without stop.

She also thought of how her own affairs had been exposed to Situ Sheng by that Chu Linlang, without the slightest shred of consideration left for her — and she seethed with silent resentment.

Her attendant maids felt the need to comfort her, saying there was no point getting upset over a divorced woman. No matter how things had turned out, Zhou Sui’an was now a man without a wife. She had only to compose herself and wait to become the new bride.

As for Chu Linlang, she had no time these days to dwell on other matters.

She had ended up, by a strange twist of fate, as the steward of the Deputy Minister of the Court of Judicial Review’s household — and she couldn’t very well take the wages without earning them. There was so much in the house to set in order, inside and out.

Situ Sheng left early and returned late; he was generally not home. So she sought out craftsmen to repair the house, selected and purchased daily household necessities, hired a cart to clear out the broken junk piled in the rear courtyard — there was never a moment’s rest.

One day she was finally worn out and slept a little later than usual. She assumed that Situ Sheng and Guanqi would have left before dawn as they had these past few days.

But to her surprise, when she got up and walked to the rear courtyard, she found Situ Sheng dressed in a short jacket, practicing martial arts on the small flat ground in the back.

Chu Linlang had seen him before, when he had fought to stop a bandit carriage on the road in Lianzhou — but seeing a handsome and imposing man strike and leap at such close range, this was the first time.

The arms half-exposed from his sleeves were taut and powerful, and each swing seemed to carry the force of wind. In the turns and leaps, there was a momentum that seemed to swallow mountains and rivers, as if a thousand miles of battle and bloodshed were contained within. And his open collar revealed a chest glistening with sweat, radiating waves of heat.

This was genuine martial skill, utterly unlike the ornamental performances of street entertainers.

Chu Linlang was transfixed, and forgot entirely to step back and retreat.

Only when the man’s movements gradually slowed, his fists finally lowering, did Chu Linlang come to her senses and try to slip away to avoid awkwardness.

But Situ Sheng called out, “Good that you’re here — could you bring me the sweat cloth over there?”

Only then did Chu Linlang vaguely remember that she was no longer a high official’s wife, but a steward in the Deputy Minister’s household, and there was no longer any need to observe the protocol of avoiding unrelated men.

She lifted the sweat cloth hanging from a nearby tree branch and presented it to the Deputy Minister with both hands in a respectful gesture, while asking, “My lord, why have you not gone to the ministry office today?”

“The past few days have been too busy — I’ve taken a day of rest. Oh, and come to my study later. There is a document you need to sign.”

Chu Linlang had originally assumed Situ Sheng wished to go through the proper motions and have her sign a three-year service contract.

After all, she was now working in his household and managing his household funds — it was natural that there should be some written documentation to reassure the master.

But when Situ Sheng unfolded those two pages, Chu Linlang discovered that they were written in her former husband Zhou Sui’an’s hand.

These two pages were Master Zhou’s personally written mutual separation document!

Situ Sheng did not explain the process by which the Zhou family had changed its mind. He said simply, “Master Zhou recognized his fault and agreed to issue a mutual separation document. The previous divorce proclamation is thus entirely void. The Xie family, as an expression of their apology, will also compensate you double for the silver they had previously shortchanged you.”

When Chu Linlang saw the mutual separation document, her expression was calm — but upon hearing there would also be double the silver in compensation, her eyes instantly lit up with a luminous gleam.

As things stood, her reputation mattered far less to her than silver!

So after expressing her gratitude to Deputy Minister Situ, she prepared to pick up a brush and sign.

But thinking she hadn’t written in so long and afraid of making a mess of it, she first practiced on a blank sheet of paper to the side.

Her writing really was dreadful — the characters came out twisted and crooked, and she could even see she’d left out strokes here and there.

She had learned only a little to read and write since childhood. While she could read, she couldn’t write well, especially her own name, which had far too many strokes to manage.

Now she had made a fool of herself in front of her new employer.

Zhou Sui’an had mocked her for this before, telling her not to waste ink and to just stick to embroidery. After writing several lines of wriggling earthworm-like characters spelling out “Linlang,” she felt her face flush red, and thought perhaps she should just press her thumbprint directly — spare herself the humiliation of signing.

But Situ Sheng’s self-possession was truly remarkable — standing to the side watching, he didn’t laugh at her at all. He only said, “If you get the right technique, writing will become much easier. Let me… steady your wrist and guide your grip — if that is all right with you?”

He was a former imperial tutor to the princes — and he was actually willing to condescend to teach a woman how to write?

Chu Linlang had no reason to refuse such a kind offer, and agreed without hesitation.

So Situ Sheng had her sit upright in the chair with proper posture, and then moved around behind Linlang. Leaning over with one hand on the desk, he wrapped his large palm firmly around her wrist over her sleeve, and his voice sounded low and close to her ear: “Five fingers on the brush, the grip relaxed, the wrist suspended and steady, breath flowing with the brush…”

His grip was not tight, yet it guided Chu Linlang’s hand in slow, deliberate, steady movements.

Chu Linlang had never before noticed just how beautiful her own name could be — in each stroke and curve, there was a quality of free and elegant charm.

After several attempts, Chu Linlang gradually found the rhythm. Unable to suppress her delight, she turned her head to ask him whether it looked better.

But in turning her head, she found their faces were shockingly close — close enough to make out Situ Sheng’s thick, distinct lashes, and his high-bridged nose.

Yet Situ Sheng appeared entirely undistracted, his attention focused solely on guiding her hand as he taught with a composed manner, his low voice like the glide of a bow across a zither string.

This left Chu Linlang feeling a little self-conscious. She felt that to now speak up about the impropriety of a man and woman being so close would seem petty and provincial — and would be insulting to the virtue of a gentleman. So she quickly lowered her head and fixed her gaze on the paper, concentrating on the writing.

Little did she know that while she was focused on the page, Situ Sheng tilted his head ever so slightly, and his gaze fell — without leaving a trace — upon her rosy cheek with the loose wisps of hair at her temples…

This woman was beautiful without knowing it. Her jet-black hair was casually secured with just a single hairpin, and the stray strands that fell down only added infinite allure.

Gently inhaling the faint, delicate fragrance that drifted from her neck, Situ Sheng finally released her hand and slowly straightened up, telling her to practice a few more times on her own.

After several more tries, though her writing was still far from Situ Sheng’s standard, it looked considerably better than before.

With her newfound confidence, Chu Linlang finally picked up those two pages and wrote her name in a neat and orderly hand, then pressed her thumbprint as well.

From this point on, she and the Zhou family were formally and completely finished.

Once the document was signed, Chu Linlang thanked Situ Sheng sincerely, and then finally had the chance to look around the study she had never entered before.

The rest of the residence was everywhere marked by the owner’s careless neglect, but this study was, unexpectedly, surprisingly tidy.

Paintings and calligraphy hung on the walls, lending the room an air of refined scholarly elegance.

Facing the modest desk was a bamboo bookshelf, its surface densely packed with small objects.

When Chu Linlang walked over out of curiosity, she discovered they were small fired clay figurines.

These were things most beloved by children in the countryside, all arranged in sets. There were the twelve zodiac animals, the Eight Immortals crossing the sea, and even the bulging-eyed, furious-looking Zhong Kui together with a crowd of underworld sprites.

Had she not noticed the half-finished clay figurine sitting at the corner of the desk, she would truly have thought these lifelike pieces had been purchased ready-made!

So the Deputy Minister Situ, who appeared so refined and distinguished in public, actually spent his private leisure hours in this childishly naive pursuit…

No wonder he was still unmarried at his age. He looked tall and imposing, projecting an air of great depth, yet his inner self was still like a child’s!

Ah, right — he had loved playing with mud as a boy.

The son of a madwoman was never particularly welcome among the village children. The young plague-child had always played alone — a ladle of water and a pile of dirt could keep him happily occupied for half a day.

The time her new clothes had been ruined by him, a grudge had formed between them. Later they had also fallen into a quarrel over another incident in the water. When she got home, she was beaten by Chu Huaisheng, and cried herself to sleep that night hugging her bedding.

The next day, on the low stool she usually sat on by the courtyard wall practicing embroidery, she found a clay doll molded with lifelike detail.

She of course knew who had made it, but had no desire to accept the plague-child’s peace offering via a clay doll, so she dropped it on the ground and stomped it to a pulp.

But inside the belly of the clay doll, there was an unexpected treasure — a small piece of oil-paper-wrapped malt candy.

Little Linlang was unwilling to take out her frustration on such a rare sweet treat, and cautiously tasted a bit.

Just that small piece — and it was gone in a moment. In memory, the taste must have been extraordinarily sweet…

Yet now, the two quarrelsome children of long ago had both grown up, and the past had become something that could not be spoken of.

So Chu Linlang took one more look and, using the pretext of needing to make breakfast, prepared to leave the study.

But Situ Sheng pulled a calligraphy practice book from the shelf beside the figurines and handed it to Chu Linlang: “This practice book is suitable for beginners to trace from. You may practice when you have time.”

Chu Linlang hesitated and smiled, “I’m a woman — I’m not preparing for the imperial examinations. I only need to record accounts; I have no use for this.”

Situ Sheng looked into her eyes and said, “Writing cultivates the mind and calms the spirit. I can see that you enjoy embroidery in your daily life — too much of it will strain your eyes. Occasionally practicing calligraphy to vary things a bit would be quite good.”

The art of persuasion among men favored by the Emperor was truly second to none.

Hearing the Deputy Minister put it this way, Chu Linlang immediately accepted the practice book and declared she would certainly practice diligently.

Situ Sheng had gone to all the trouble of managing her dispute with the Zhou family — she couldn’t possibly be so ungrateful as to refuse. He could ask her to write calligraphy, or even ask her to dive into a river to wrestle a dragon, and she’d have to politely wade in.

So she took the practice book, humming a little folk tune from her hometown in the south, and walked off cheerfully to the kitchen.

Situ Sheng sat in the chair, still warm from her presence, attending to official documents. Occasionally he raised his eyes and, through the half-open window, heard the pleasant melody drifting in from the kitchen.

The handsome man paused his brush and let his attention drift. His slender fingers moved along the edge of the desk, tracing the scrap of paper covered in the character “Linlang,” following each imperfect stroke, retracing them line by line…

The Xie family’s silver arrived promptly — truly double the amount, a handsome sum. Though it was still some way from being enough to purchase a shop or property in the capital, it gave Chu Linlang the foundation she needed to establish herself and build a life.

Such a large sum — she couldn’t follow Situ Sheng’s example and carelessly toss it into a broken water vat.

So she planned to deposit it at a reliable bank in the capital, together with the silver Situ Sheng had already given her, to earn some interest.

When she came out of the bank with Dongxue, she suddenly noticed Hu Guiniang and her little maid standing across the street.

And in Hu Guiniang’s hand was a small child’s hand — it was Yuan’er, whom she had not seen in a long time.

Seeing Linlang, Yuan’er immediately broke free of Hu Guiniang’s hand and ran joyfully toward her. Hu Guiniang, belly swollen, also made her way over and curtseyed to Chu Linlang.

The busy street was not the place for a proper conversation, so Linlang brought them all to a nearby teahouse and took a private room for tea.

Once Yuan’er was settled with her tea pastries, Linlang finally had a moment to speak with Hu Niangzi.

Truth be told, Chu Linlang had always felt a certain awkwardness toward Hu Niangzi and had never been truly close with her. But now that she had left the Zhou household, seeing Hu Shi with a somewhat more settled heart than before, she no longer felt the same unease. From Hu Niangzi’s words, Chu Linlang also finally got a rough sense of how Situ Sheng had helped restore justice on her behalf.

That day, after Zhou Sui’an had been thoroughly berated by Xie Sheng, he had gone home and had a fierce quarrel with his mother — so violent that the newly arrived Hu Shi was completely terrified.

Zhao Shi was reproached by her son for being narrow-minded and short-sighted, and Aunt An’s grasping behavior was said to be beyond all reckoning, having caused him to lose face before his future father-in-law.

Zhao Shi, humiliated by her son’s reproaches, turned her fury on Chu Linlang, ranting that good riddance had been done casting out that cursed woman — but why bother giving her a mutual separation document on top of that? In short, it was utter pandemonium.

As Hu Niangzi spoke of all this, she was not simply repeating gossip — she was fraught with anxiety. As a concubine of the Zhou household carrying a child, she was deeply apprehensive about the incoming Second Miss Xie.

What kind of formidable woman could drive away an official wife like that? And the Second Miss Xie was also with child — when that time came, how was she, a concubine also with child, to conduct herself?

In Hu Niangzi’s own words: “If my father had known the Zhou household was this much of a mess, no matter how high an official Zhou Sui’an became, he would never have let me enter his household as a concubine.”

Chu Linlang listened and only smiled, giving no reply. She understood well enough why Hu Shi had agreed to come into the household as a concubine.

After all, the official wife of the Zhou household could not bear children, so although Hu Shi was only a concubine, the son she bore could inherit the family estate.

But now the barren Chu Linlang was gone, only to be replaced by a highborn Xie Shi who was already with child — so Hu Niangzi’s prospects had naturally grown dim in an instant, and her mood could hardly help but be gloomy.

In truth, today Hu Niangzi had brought Yuan’er to see Chu Linlang on the suggestion of Situ Sheng’s younger sister Zhou Xiuling. Ever since the day Chu Linlang left, Yuan’er had been crying and fussing on and off, wanting to see her mother, but was scolded every time by Zhao Shi.

Zhou Xiuling was too embarrassed to come face her sister-in-law herself, so she asked Hu Niangzi to bring the child to have a proper farewell with Chu Linlang.

Now seeing Chu Linlang, Yuan’er clutched her sleeve tightly and asked softly when Mother would come home.

Chu Linlang gave a bittersweet smile, stroked her head, and said, “Yuan’er, I… have separated from your father. That is no longer my home.”

Yuan’er was silent for a moment, then asked, “Can I come with you?”

Chu Linlang looked at Yuan’er, shook her head, then stroked her head gently and said quietly, “Yuan’er, you must understand — daughters grow up and marry away, and cannot stay with their parents forever. It is just that you and I are parting earlier than most mothers and daughters do. If you miss me, we can meet like this and have tea together. But you must remember — do not mention me again in front of your grandmother, your father, or your new stepmother. You are a grown girl, and you have read many books — you should know the reasons behind all this…”

Yuan’er was far more mature than most girls her age. She had long since pieced together the truth from her grandmother’s words, her father’s comments, and the idle chatter of the household servants — that Chu Linlang was not her birth mother.

As for her real mother, only a vague impression remained in her memory — a face covered in heavy makeup, and impatient shouts.

Hearing Chu Linlang’s words, she said quietly, “I know. Father and Grandmother both bullied you. When I grow up, I’ll come find you — I won’t let you suffer alone out there.”

Hu Niangzi, perhaps because of her pregnancy, and perhaps moved by thoughts of the child in her own belly, began to cry uncontrollably at the sight of this, sobbing so hard she could barely catch her breath.

Chu Linlang then comforted Hu Shi while also slipping her some silver, asking her to keep an eye on Yuan’er on her behalf in the future. After all, once Xie Shi entered the household, the Zhou family would have more children, and the servants might not attend to everyone properly.

If Yuan’er ever came down with a headache or a fever, she would be eternally grateful if Hu Shi would be willing to show her a little extra care.

Hu Shi refused to accept the silver at all, saying it was only natural and proper for her to look after Yuan’er.

But in the end, Chu Linlang pressed the silver into her hands anyway, and also bought two packets of cake pastries for Yuan’er to take home.

After Linlang saw them off, she turned to make her way back — and in that turning moment, she saw that Situ Sheng and Guanqi were standing right behind her.

It turned out that Situ Sheng had attended a colleague’s banquet that day, had a little to drink, and was walking off the wine along the way — and had happened to witness the scene of Chu Linlang waving farewell to Yuan’er.

Because of a previous argument they’d had about Yuan’er, Chu Linlang was quite worried Situ Sheng might bring it up again.

But Situ Sheng did not mention it. He only looked at Chu Linlang’s plain and subdued indigo-colored robe and said, “…Why do you dress so old? This doesn’t look like your kind of clothing.”

In his memory, Chu Linlang always wore striking shades of pink — like a butterfly in full bloom, radiant and eye-catching, easily spotted at a glance in any crowd.

Chu Linlang looked down at her clothes and gave a slight smile. “I’m a steward in your household now. Look around the capital — which household steward would wear red and green in front of her master? This indigo looks so steady and capable!”

Hearing her explanation, Situ Sheng gave a brief smile, then said, “In a few days, the palace is holding a banquet, and I must put in an appearance. But I have no appropriate clothing. You happen to be just the right person to help me pick out some fabric.”

Situ Sheng not only had no suitable court attire, he essentially had not a single new garment to his name. Chu Linlang agreed readily, and went with Situ Sheng to the fabric shop to select materials.

Dressing up men was Chu Linlang’s specialty. Half the reputation of Zhou Sui’an as a refined gentleman of jade-like elegance had been her doing.

In no time at all, she had selected fabric that suited Situ Sheng’s refined and dignified bearing.

But when she saw Situ Sheng pick up a bolt of pale rose-pink silk, she immediately said, “My lord… this color doesn’t really suit you, does it?”

He wasn’t a flashy idle aristocrat — how could he wear something so vivid?

But Situ Sheng said this fabric was being purchased for her. She wasn’t very old, and there was no need to deliberately dress like a woman of forty or fifty.

How could she accept this? Chu Linlang shook her head at once — but seeing Situ Sheng insist, she reached to pay herself.

Her own indigo steward’s uniform, since it was her work attire, was charged to the Deputy Minister’s household accounts.

But this pink-rosy fabric — she had no use for it in her work, so how could she let Deputy Minister Situ pay for it?

Situ Sheng, however, said mildly, “Chu Linlang, there is no need to stand on ceremony. Think of this as… an apology from me.”

Linlang blinked, not quite understanding why he would need to apologize to her.

Only when they left the fabric shop did Situ Sheng slowly explain that today, at the colleague’s banquet, he had happened to run into Master Zhou.

Master Zhou appeared to be in a poor mood and had been drinking to drown his sorrows to excess. In the end he had pulled Situ Sheng aside and rambled on endlessly, exhorting him to be sure to look after Chu Linlang properly.

And as a drunk man’s conversation tends to wander far afield, he had inadvertently revealed that Chu Linlang was in fact unable to bear children, and that the one daughter under her care was not even her own.

Only then did Situ Sheng understand why, during their conversation about Yuan’er’s future, Chu Linlang had indicated she could not take the child with her.

This woman who appeared so shrewd and unwilling to let herself be taken advantage of had quietly raised her husband’s illegitimate daughter for all these years. And even after the separation, she continued to conceal the truth, refusing to damage the child’s reputation.

Remembering the cutting words he had used to mock Chu Linlang for being coldhearted, Situ Sheng felt somewhat uncomfortable, and seized the opportunity of buying fabric to offer Chu Shi an apology.

Hearing Situ Sheng’s account, Chu Linlang was so furious her whole body trembled.

She would rather be misunderstood as someone heartless and indifferent to her own children than let anyone know Yuan’er’s true origins — yet that man Zhou Sui’an, with just two cups of wine in him, could no longer keep his mouth shut.

Fortunately it was only Situ Sheng who had heard this. If others had listened in, how would Yuan’er ever find a husband in the future? What kind of a father was he!

Seeing Chu Linlang’s face tight with anger and her cheeks flushed scarlet, Situ Sheng seemed to guess what she was fuming about, and added, “He was too drunk that day. I had already reminded Master Zhou to be careful with his words and not harm the child’s future prospects. Then I had his manservant escort him home. No one else heard.”

Chu Linlang let out a helpless sigh and pressed her cherry lips together. “Forget it. The Zhou family’s affairs are no longer my concern.”

Having said that, she raised her eyes toward Situ Sheng — and found he was staring fixedly at her face, lost in thought. She couldn’t help but touch her face and ask in puzzlement, “What’s wrong? Is there something dirty on my face?”

In ordinary circumstances, such a direct and unabashed stare from any other man would be considered the height of discourtesy.

But Chu Linlang had no fear that Situ Sheng was coveting her beauty. Situ Sheng knew her full circumstances — she was a divorced woman who could not bear children. What would there be for Deputy Minister Situ to covet?