Now that it was past dusk and it wasn’t anything particularly important, the attendant glanced at him.
Song Wenjing said calmly, “What?”
The attendant lowered his eyes and said, “Third Master, it is already late. The Zhou residence is a quarter of an hour away from our residence for horse racing. It would be too much of a hassle for Lord Zhou to come and go.”
After the attendant finished speaking, he sensed that his master seemed displeased, and lowered his head guiltily.
Actually, it wasn’t entirely because he was lazy.
Zhou’s Jade Skin Cream uses high-quality ingredients, yet its effects are excellent.
However, because some of the ingredients are rare, ordinary people cannot afford them.
As wealthy imperial merchants, the Song family could naturally afford this ointment.
But if I were to rashly knock on the door tonight to get a bottle of ointment that wouldn’t endanger my life, I might give people something to gossip about.
The attendant was personally selected by Master Song and placed by Song Wenjing’s side, so that he would have a clever one to help him in the future officialdom.
That’s why I explained the situation to him.
Song Wenjing frowned and said unhappily, “Just go when I tell you to.”
The attendant then said no more, bowed, and withdrew.
…
After washing up, Rong Shu leaned against the window and opened the letter that had just been delivered that afternoon.
The letter was written by her younger brother, Jiang Yu. When Rong Shu saw the handwriting, which was increasingly reminiscent of her father’s style, a smile unconsciously appeared on her lips.
The letter didn’t contain anything important; it was just a routine inquiry about how she was doing and a brief update on the family situation.
Upon learning that her mother’s cough had not recurred after the weather turned cold this year because she had taken the medicine that Rong Shu had sent her in advance, Rong Shu felt relieved.
My mother had a difficult childbirth when she gave birth to my younger sister and almost didn’t survive. Her health has been poor ever since.
After the start of autumn this year, Rong Shu took the money she had saved up for a long time and bought some medicine to regulate her body, which she then had sent to Zhao County.
After reading the letter, she folded it neatly and placed it in a small box on her dressing table.
Before she went to the capital in her previous life, her younger brother had already passed the imperial examination and become a scholar, and her younger sister was engaged.
The family finally had some hope, but she tragically died on the way to the capital.
Rong Shu felt terrible, wondering how sad her mother and siblings must have been after she passed away in her previous life.
Fortunately, she survived, and she will never again cause them pain in this lifetime.
Mei Yun brought in the tray.
“Madam, the kitchen has made chicken noodle soup tonight.”
Rong Shu sat down at the table, and Mei Yun lifted the lid of the porcelain bowl. The rich and fresh aroma of chicken soup noodles wafted into the air, making one’s mouth water.
Rong Shu picked up her chopsticks and ate the noodles in small bites.
After she had eaten almost half of her bowl of noodles, Mei Yun suppressed her doubts and said softly, “The noodles for the study have also been sent over. I heard that Third Master didn’t need them, so they went to the East Courtyard instead.”
The east courtyard was the main courtyard where her parents-in-law lived. Rong Shu listened and gave a vague “hmm” before continuing to eat her noodles attentively.
After she finished eating the noodles and rinsed her mouth, she sighed contentedly, “Eating noodles on a cold day is truly comforting.”
Mei Yun looked at her strangely, and it took Rong Shu a while to notice that her expression was odd.
“What’s wrong?”
Mei Yun said, “Usually after the late-night snacks are delivered to the study, you always ask Third Master if they are useful.”
Today, however, I see that Madam is only concerned about herself and has not uttered a single word of concern for Third Master.
Even though Third Master went to the East Courtyard in the middle of the night, he didn’t ask if anything was wrong.
Mei Yun felt that his wife was acting very strangely today.
Rong Shu took a handkerchief and gently wiped her lips. “He’ll eat it when he’s hungry.”
Normally, Song Wenjing would only come back once every ten days or half a month. Each time, she would serve him carefully and secretly observe his preferences.
She would even glance at the dishes brought back from the study, judging Song Wenjing’s preferences by how much was left…
She remembered her past life. Back then, Song Wenjing was going to the capital to take the imperial examination the next day. The day before, she went to Putuo Temple to ask for a talisman and a very auspicious fortune slip.
That night, she personally brought him a late-night snack, thinking that this separation would last at least half a year, and she wanted to talk to him.
She knocked on the door, and upon hearing a curt “Come in,” she opened it to find his impatient expression…
Thinking about this, Rong Shu still felt somewhat uneasy.
Now she understands that all she needs to do is fulfill her duties as Madam Song, respect her parents-in-law, manage household affairs, and raise her children to adulthood.
As for Song Wenjing’s other matters, just follow the old ways and don’t make any mistakes.
But she wasn’t willing to give him any more, since he wouldn’t care anyway.
The night she was reborn, she even considered following the example of those brave women and getting a divorce.
Then I thought about it again. My mother was frail, my younger siblings were still minors, and there were also those clansmen who were eyeing me covetously.
Even if she gets a divorce, it will only cause trouble for her family.
Instead, she continued to be husband and wife with Song Wenjing, and out of respect for the Song family, others dared not make things difficult for her family.
Besides, it doesn’t matter who she marries. In her previous life, she had been married into the Song family for three years without having any children, and Song Wenjing did not take any concubines, which made things easier for her.
If she conceives before Song Wenjing goes to the capital, he can do whatever he wants in the capital, and she can live a life of comfort and security in Jiangzhou with her child.
Thinking about it this way, she felt much clearer about her mind.
Even though Mei Yun was very surprised, she didn’t say anything more.
She stood there for a while to digest her food, then took the embroidery basket and continued sewing the half-finished brocade pouch inside.
When Song Wenjing returned from the east courtyard, he saw his wife still doing needlework under the lamp.
She lowered her head, her slender white fingers carefully sewing with the needle, her expression extremely serious.
Rong Shu was very beautiful; Song Wenjing knew that from the first time he saw her.
From the first glance, he knew that this gentle and quiet young lady perfectly matched his ideal of a wife.
After their marriage, she devoted herself to managing all the affairs of Songtao Garden, never letting him be bothered by trivial matters.
Recalling Song Wenping’s completely unaware appearance tonight, Song Wenjing frowned. If he hadn’t gone to the East Courtyard tonight, would Rong Shu have told him about the grievances she had suffered?
Rong Shu embroidered with great care; her embroidery skills were excellent, something she learned from the nanny in her maternal family.
The brocade pouch was almost finished, so she decided to finish embroidering it tonight.
Unexpectedly, the candlelight flickered, and then a dark shadow was cast in front of me.
She looked up and saw that Song Wenjing seemed somewhat displeased.
She found it strange; although he was usually a bit cold, he wouldn’t give her the cold shoulder for no reason.
She composed herself and took the initiative to speak to him.
“Third Master, you’re back.”
Her calm and gentle expression, just like always, made Song Wenjing wonder if the person who had gone to bed with him last night and actively seduced him was not the same person in front of him.
His gaze fell on the orange brocade pouch embroidered with a qilin in Rong Shu’s hand.
“It’s so late, why are you still doing this?”
His voice was slightly low, but it didn’t have the angry tone that Rong Shu had imagined.
She was also a little surprised, because Song Wenjing usually didn’t care whether she did needlework at night.
She felt a pang of regret that she probably wouldn’t be able to finish embroidering the brocade pouch tonight, but she still put the pouch back in the embroidery basket and got up to pour tea for Song Wenjing.
“I slept too much this afternoon, so I feel energetic now and that’s when I thought about getting something done.”