Lin Bingzhong's Wife was naturally tempted, so Gu Youning went with her into the room, where a serving maid brought out a red sandalwood food box.
Lin Bingzhong's Wife hurried to receive it, delighted beyond words, but Gu Youning's mind was still on that book. She quietly surveyed her surroundings. This was clearly an outer study; the curio shelves held a few cases of books, but they were mostly for decoration. The real classics and rare volumes were evidently not kept in this outer room.
She wanted to strike up a conversation with the serving maid, who seemed good-natured and spoke kindly, so Gu Youning cautiously asked about the books inside. But the maid said, "Any books kept in the studio may only be used with the Prince's personal approval."
Hearing this, Gu Youning was sorely disappointed, but she knew she was being wishful anyway, so she could only let it go for now.
On the way back, Lin Bingzhong's Wife carried the food box while Gu Youning held the lantern. Having gone through this experience, Lin Bingzhong's Wife was thoroughly shaken. She said mysteriously, "Did you notice? The Prince was about to leave, but he suddenly stopped and kept looking back?"
Gu Youning's heart clenched instantly.
He was looking at her. Everyone knew it—even Lin Bingzhong's Wife knew. This would surely spread.
Lin Bingzhong's Wife lowered her voice. "What do you think the Prince was looking at?"
Gu Youning's heart pounded wildly. She even thought: it's over, it's all over.
Then she heard Lin Bingzhong's Wife say, "The Prince must have been thinking about Concubine Chen's matter!"
Huh?
Gu Youning's heart paused.
Lin Bingzhong's Wife looked somewhat smug and gave a knowing smile. "You probably don't know, but things are quite lively in the residence these days."
Gu Youning looked at her in confusion. "What do you mean, lively?"
Lin Bingzhong's Wife said, "I heard that the Prince's mourning period is said to be three years, but it's actually calculated in nines—three years is really just twenty-seven months. The old Prince passed away almost two years ago, and if you count it out, by autumn this year the mourning period will be exactly complete. And once the mourning period is over, then he can—"
She gave her a suggestive smile, everything left unsaid.
Gu Youning hesitated, but finally asked in a low voice, "And what does that have to do with what happened tonight?"
Lin Bingzhong's Wife said, "Think about it—it's late at night, and instead of resting, the Prince comes to Yijin Studio. And it was pitch dark, with no light at all. That's not what it looks like when someone comes to read."
Gu Youning hadn't thought it through before, but hearing this, she admired Lin Bingzhong's Wife immensely. "So why did he come?"
Lin Bingzhong's Wife said, "Obviously because he's troubled!"
Gu Youning asked, "Troubled?"
Lin Bingzhong's Wife said, "So troubled he can't sleep. He stands in the studio thinking, wondering when the mourning period will finally end so he can hurry up and pick a concubine to consummate with!"
Gu Youning said, "…"
She suddenly felt she had overestimated Lin Bingzhong's Wife just now.
She looked at her helplessly. "He's a prince. Why would he trouble himself over that?"
Obviously he could have a different woman every night, rotating through them several times a month! At worst he could simply take in more concubines. For a prince like that, keeping eight or ten concubines in the residence wouldn't be excessive at all.
Lin Bingzhong's Wife said, "Oh, how can you not understand how these things work? Everyone's hoping to be the first to conceive. Whoever bears a child first will always have the advantage!"
Gu Youning suddenly understood. "…So that's how it is!"
She knew, after all, that Prince Duan was a prize everyone longed for but few could reach. They all hoped to get close to him.
Lin Bingzhong's Wife: "Nowadays, the concubines of each household are naturally exhausting every trick, coming up with all sorts of schemes. Concubine Chen offended the Prince over that night's affair and has been confined to her quarters, and all the other households are so delighted they're rewarding their maids with silver and improving their meals! Madam Jiang is so pleased she's had two fine new dresses made!"
Gu Youning was surprised: "How do you know all this?"
Lin Bingzhong's Wife: "Do you remember Niu Er's Wife from the Flower Festival, when we were helping out in the front hall? The one with the dark, chapped face?"
Gu Youning naturally remembered. It was that Niu Er's Wife who had led the crowd in egging her on to drink, as if refusing would mean looking down on everyone, which was why she had reluctantly drunk.
And on closer thought, the cup of wine she drank that time seemed to have been poured by Niu Er's Wife herself.
She asked hurriedly: "What about Niu Er's Wife? Of course I remember her."
Lin Bingzhong's Wife: "I only found out recently—turns out Chuntao is her husband's cousin. They're close, and Chuntao would now and then bring tasty food from Madam Jiang's quarters to their home."
Gu Youning's heart paused for a moment, and then everything became suddenly clear.
That night's affair had indeed been Madam Jiang's scheme from beginning to end—putting something unspeakable in her wine, intending to hand her over to Li Shihui and ruin her reputation.
She was merely the wife of a household servant, yet the esteemed side-consort of the prince's mansion had gone to such lengths to harm her. It was truly hateful.
Gu Youning clenched her fists in hatred.
When they finally finished their night rounds, the two returned to the guard room, and Lin Bingzhong's Wife excitedly set down the food box. It was an eight-sided carrying box for warm food, with a double layer holding boiling water to keep things hot, and it was still steaming when opened.
Inside were a full seven or eight dishes: stir-fried goji shoots, pine nut and lily-stuffed yam, and two other small dishes, along with butter-dropped whelk shells and crystal dumplings, plus a bowl of green rice porridge.
Lin Bingzhong's Wife was overjoyed at the sight. She hadn't expected the Prince's midnight meal to be so lavish, and it looked as though he hadn't touched it at all. She sighed contentedly: "Look at this—this is food fit for the noble. What good fortune we have today."
Gu Youning's mind was full of worries and she had originally lost her appetite, but seeing how exquisite the food was, she began to feel hungry and ate together with Lin Bingzhong.
Lin Bingzhong's Wife saved some aside to share later with the women and old servants coming on the next shift—a way of winning hearts, so to speak.
After eating, the two were full and content, and growing sleepy, they hugged their warm pillows and lounged about chatting. Lin Bingzhong's Wife rattled on about her mother-in-law, full of grievances—her mother-in-law demanded she bear a son quickly, watching her belly every day. Her daughter was already two years old, and still her belly showed no signs of another child, which worried her too.
Gu Youning also felt drowsy, listening absently and replying in fits and starts.
Then, in the middle of the chatter, Lin Bingzhong's Wife suddenly said: "You've been married for a while now, haven't you? How come there's still no sign of anything?"
Gu Youning then recalled what Sun Feng'an's Mother had said that day, about hens being better than people. She had been annoyed at the time, but thinking about it now, it seemed that new brides would find their bellies swelling up like blown-up balloons not long after crossing the threshold, while she had been married for over a year with no news at all.
She felt a bit lost and shook her head: "I don't know."
Seeing her like this, Lin Bingzhong's Wife was taken aback: "And here I thought you were a clever one. How can you be so foolish and know nothing?"
Gu Youning was slightly startled. Foolish?
Lin Bingzhong's Wife: "You really don't know? The second daughter of Widow Sun's family—the ones who sweep the storehouses—is seventeen this year, and she's been awfully close with your father-in-law. Just a few days ago, she was seen leaning close to him, chatting away!"
What?
Gu Youning racked her brain but couldn't quite recall what that second daughter looked like—only that she had some looks to her. And her father-in-law?
Her father-in-law was nearly forty, and that girl was even younger than she was!
So her father-in-law had actually done such a thing. No wonder her parents-in-law had been sullen at home all day long, cursing at the mulberry tree while pointing at the locust—so there really was something to it.
Seeing her like this, Lin Bingzhong's Wife smiled before saying, "Sister-in-law, let me speak plainly from the heart—you'd best be more careful from now on. That said, you did marry into a good family. If you can bear a son or a daughter, you'll secure your place as a daughter-in-law of the Sun family. Otherwise, just you watch—every maid and serving girl in this household wants to climb the high branches. If they can't attach themselves to those above, can't they at least curry favor with those below? The truth is, your husband is quite the catch."
Gu Youning was silent a moment, then smiled. "What you say makes sense, Sister-in-law."
She knew Lin Bingzhong's Wife spoke sensibly, but deep down, she resisted the idea of bearing children.
Perhaps it was because her life hadn't been going all that smoothly—she was dissatisfied with her present circumstances, and deep in her heart she harbored the thought that "this life surely won't just be like this forever."
Though she was no longer young, a little dream-filled girl still lived in her heart, always harboring some hopes for the days to come.
But now she was eighteen and married off, and she knew that as a married woman, sooner or later she would have to have a child of her own.
Carrying these thoughts, Gu Youning returned home, and the moment she walked through the door she happened upon the whole family discussing some matter. Seeing her enter, Sun Feng'an's Mother shot them a look, and everyone fell silent.
Gu Youning found it amusing—in nearly a year since she'd married in, they still treated her as an outsider to be guarded against.
She pretended not to notice, went to the kitchen to ask about breakfast, made it together with the maids and servants, and then the family gathered to eat.
During the meal, Sun Futang cleared his throat and spoke up: he had accepted the assignment to go to Huzhou, and his duties at the prince's residence would be handled by Feng Gui in his absence. As for Sun Feng'an, he would no longer need to serve at the prince's side for the time being—another fine position had been found for him, one specifically managing the procurement of medicinal materials for the prince's residence. As it happened, according to regulations, Prince Duan's residence had a special inner medicine storehouse, with scheduled purchases and replacements each year. The goods procured all came from reputable official pharmacies, large medicine shops, or ginseng and medicinal herb firms outside.
Since Prince Duan's household was not large, its needs were modest, and for the past two years the steward had simply handled the purchases in passing. Now, however, it was said that a dedicated person was to be appointed solely for procurement. Seeing this opportunity, Sun Futang had specially secured this position for Sun Feng'an in front of Prince Duan.
Listening to this, Gu Youning naturally thought it was wonderful. Any position in the residence involving procurement was a lucrative one—even if one stuck to one's duties and never used office for personal gain, one could still broaden one's horizons outside. She was genuinely happy that her husband had such prospects.
What's more, with Sun Feng'an keeping his distance from Prince Duan, she too could breathe easier. Otherwise, the thought of her husband waiting so cautiously and obsequiously on Prince Duan, kowtowing and paying respects from time to time, always left a bitter taste in her heart.
Because of this news, the whole family was naturally delighted. After the meal, Sun Futang called Sun Feng'an aside for a private talk. Gu Youning helped Sun Feng'an's Mother with her evening washing, tidied up the kitchen with the maids, gave herself a quick wash, and only then returned to their room to catch up on sleep.
To her surprise, Sun Feng'an pushed the door open and came in, eagerly rushing over to hug her. He said with a smile, "Father said that if I handle this job well, come next spring I'll be moved up another step, and I'll be given even more important duties in the future."
Gu Youning couldn't even be bothered to open her eyes, only offering a reminder: "This job requires some knowledge of medicine. If you're completely clueless, you'll inevitably be taken advantage of and cheated down the road. Then you won't be able to account for it to your superiors—wouldn't that just stir up a whole lot of trouble for nothing?"