Chapter 235

Fu Tingjun was greatly alarmed and nearly jumped off the kang: "What did you say? Ninth Master has been promoted to Commander-in-Chief of Guizhou? Why didn't anyone tell me?"

Yanqing looked at her timidly, not daring to make a sound.

Her wish was to grow old together with Zhao Ling.

No wonder Zhao Ling had rambled on and on the moment he saw her.

Fu Tingjun couldn't help but smile bitterly.

He knew her wish, but how could she know his?

Perhaps because he had lost his parents at a young age, Zhao Ling placed particular importance on her and the children. No matter how busy he was with official duties, he would always write a letter home every ten days; whenever he had the chance, he would strive to return to the capital to reunite with them; if he came home, he would decline all non-essential social engagements and stay at home with her and the children, or take them out for a stroll...

Xuanfu was only a dozen or so days' journey from the capital. Back then, when Mo Yi had earnestly invited Zhao Ling to serve as his deputy, Zhao Ling had tactfully declined even in the face of the emperor's inquiry. Let alone Guizhou being so far away—even if it was a promotion, it wasn't necessarily somewhere Zhao Ling was willing to go. Of this, Fu Tingjun was still confident.

Zhao Ling was being too cautious.

Although she wanted her husband to stay by her side, she was not an unreasonable person. Would she blame him for this?

As the thought flashed through her mind, Fu Tingjun's expression froze slightly.

No!

Zhao Ling was the person in this world who understood her best. How could he not know what she would think? He had no need to appear guilty in front of her at all.

Or perhaps there was something more suspicious going on?

Fu Tingjun thought of all the praise everyone had been heaping on Zhao Ling these past days... Her heart immediately pounded like a drum.

Could it be... could it be that this was not an ordinary promotion? Was he being sent to fight?

Once suspicion arose, Fu Tingjun could no longer sit still.

She wished she could immediately call Zhao Ling over and demand an explanation.

But what reached her ears was her Fifth Cousin's voice, both surprised and delighted: "Ninth Brother-in-law has been promoted to Commander-in-Chief of Guizhou? Really? When did this happen? We've been back for so long—why didn't he let out a word? He's truly steady in his ways!" She added, "There's no outsider here—surely he doesn't think we'd go around blabbing and lose our composure?" As she chatted and laughed, she suddenly noticed that Fu Tingjun and Yanqing both looked somewhat off. She abruptly stopped mid-sentence and said in astonishment, "Ninth Sister, what... what's happened?"

"It's nothing." Fu Tingjun didn't want her Fifth Cousin to worry, and said, "I only just heard about this myself."

Fifth Cousin had married into the Yao family only a few years ago, and as a woman, she participated in the Yao family's household affairs—she was extremely shrewd. It was just that having grown up together as sisters, she wasn't accustomed to applying the ways of the outside world to her cousins. Upon hearing this, she thought for a moment and realized that Zhao Ling's promotion might not necessarily be good news. She quickly changed the subject and didn't bring it up again. But when Fifth Brother-in-law and Zhao Ling returned that evening, she immediately dismissed all the servants attending to her and asked about Zhao Ling's promotion: "...Did you know?"

Fifth Brother-in-law showed a look of sudden realization: "No wonder Shopkeeper Ye San congratulated Ninth Brother-in-law—so this was the reason." He added, "But at the time, Ninth Brother-in-law seemed unwilling to discuss it much, so Shopkeeper Ye San didn't press further. I thought they had something they wanted to keep from me, so I even made up an excuse to go to the latrine." He said this, then remarked in puzzlement, "A promotion is a good thing, isn't it? Why is Ninth Brother-in-law being so secretive? Could it be that the official document hasn't come down yet? That doesn't make sense either! Even Lord Wu, far away in Shaanxi, knows about it—so this matter has long been made public... But why is he keeping quiet? Guizhou is so far away, full of barbarian tribes, and in such a remote location... Could it be that Ninth Brother-in-law has been exiled there..."

Fifth Cousin felt that the more her husband spoke, the more confused she became, so she simply called for her personal maid: "Ninth Brother-in-law has been promoted to Commander-in-Chief of Guizhou, yet Ninth Sister shows no joy. Go out tomorrow and make some inquiries to find out what's really going on."

The maid acknowledged and withdrew.

Fifth Cousin sat before the dressing mirror, idly combing her hair.

Ninth Sister's life had already been rough enough—she mustn't encounter any more troubles.

Fifth Brother-in-law, however, was excitedly recounting how Zhao Ling had taken him to meet Shopkeeper Ye San that day.

He sat down beside Fifth Cousin with some agitation, his eyes bright and gleaming.

"Why didn't you ask me today about my meeting with Shopkeeper Ye San?" he said, unable to contain his excitement, speaking in a torrent of words. "Let me tell you, Ninth Brother-in-law and Shopkeeper Ye San have a really good relationship. The moment he heard that Ninth Brother-in-law had arrived, Shopkeeper Ye San was in the middle of negotiating a deal with the owner of Hengtong Number—you know Hengtong Number, it's the largest tinware merchant in Jiangnan. Last time, it was only by getting in good with the second manager of Hengtong's Xi'an branch that we managed to secure that batch of new tinware from them... Shopkeeper Ye San left the owner of Hengtong Number and hurried out to greet us, and even escorted us all the way to his private study behind the branch. Both of Shopkeeper Ye San's sons came out to pay respects to Ninth Brother-in-law and addressed him as 'Uncle.'" At this point, he couldn't help but sigh, "You have no idea, Shopkeeper Ye's eldest son looked to be two or three years older than Ninth Brother-in-law. I was tempted to ask about his birth date, but seeing how respectfully he bowed to Ninth Brother-in-law, and how after learning that I was Ninth Brother-in-law's brother-in-law, he dutifully called me 'Uncle' as well, I felt a bit embarrassed to ask..."

Fifth Cousin Sister found it both exasperating and amusing.

He never said what he should say, but went on and on about trivial details.

Her mind was entirely occupied with the anxious expression on Fu Tingjun's face—she had no patience to listen to all this. So she smiled and asked him, "Just tell me what Shopkeeper Ye San said when he learned you were Ninth Brother-in-law's brother-in-law, and leave the rest for later."

Fifth Cousin Brother-in-law felt somewhat displeased and said, "Shopkeeper Ye treated us with such courtesy entirely out of respect for Ninth Brother-in-law. How can you not care about the reasons behind things and only ask about what benefits our family gained?"

Fifth Cousin Sister was at a loss whether to laugh or cry. She had no choice but to patiently say, "I was just thinking it's getting late, and I'm afraid you might have matters to attend to tomorrow, so I wanted to keep it brief." Then, following his lead, she said, "Alright then, tell me—what did you all talk about?"

Only then did Fifth Cousin Brother-in-law's expression ease slightly, and he stopped dwelling on the minor details, telling Fifth Cousin Sister about Shopkeeper Ye San's promise: "...From now on, our Yao family can directly source goods from Datong Number, and they'll sell to us at the lowest discounted price."

Even with her heart preoccupied with Fu Tingjun, Fifth Cousin Sister couldn't help but beam with joy upon hearing her husband's words.

The Yao family dealt in miscellaneous goods from north and south, and so did Datong Number. But because Datong Number had its own fleet and conducted trade both domestically and overseas, their selection was extremely comprehensive. In recent years, however, Datong Number had grown increasingly prosperous and shifted its focus mainly to businesses like silver shops, money exchanges, canal transport, and maritime shipping, handling only wholesale for miscellaneous goods. Although the Yao family was a prominent household in Lintong, in the eyes of Datong Number, they didn't even count as a major merchant—how could they possibly get favorable discounts?

Now with Datong Number as their backing, they couldn't say much else, but it was only a matter of time before the Yao family established a firm foothold in Xi'an Prefecture.

Her husband wasn't cut out for officialdom. Even if he passed the imperial examinations, he might not achieve much in his official career, and might even be influenced by the corrupt practices of the bureaucracy and take concubines. How could that compare to their current situation—a monogamous couple, loving each other, with children of their own?

Fifth Cousin Sister had long since decided not to push her husband toward the imperial examinations, letting him follow his own inclinations—writing poetry, painting, and tending flowers and plants at home.

But that meant, as the children grew older and needed to study for the examinations, and as her in-laws aged and needed medical care, they couldn't get their hands on the lucrative government-related business, making it difficult to preserve the family estate.

Now, with this introduction from Zhao Ling, she could gradually build up the Yao family business.

Fifth Cousin Sister's face lit up with excitement, and she said, "I'll write a letter to Mother-in-law right away and tell her about this." She would also make sure the elders at home knew that this was all thanks to her cousin sister's help. That way, when she and Fu Tingjun had dealings back and forth, even if the elders heard any rumors, they wouldn't have much to say.

Fifth Cousin Brother-in-law, however, didn't think that far ahead. He simply felt that since they had received a favor from Zhao Ling, they naturally ought to inform the elders at home, so that they might have the opportunity to repay it in the future. He nodded eagerly in agreement and said, "I'll write a letter to Father as well and tell him about this."

Fifth Cousin Sister naturally had no objection. She personally ground ink for her husband, and they wrote two letters to send home. Then the couple lay in bed, talking about their hopes and dreams for half the night, only stopping when their eyelids began to droop with drowsiness.

The next morning, after breakfast, Fifth Cousin Sister's personal maid came to report: "...They say the barbarians in Guizhou have risen in rebellion, and several county magistrates died defending their cities from siege. The Emperor was furious and personally appointed Ninth Uncle-in-law as the Regional Commander of Guizhou to fight those barbarians. Ninth Uncle-in-law was afraid Ninth Aunt-in-law would worry, so he didn't dare say a word..."

"Who did you hear this from?" Fifth Cousin Sister asked in astonishment.

"They all know now," the mama said. "Word is that by special decree of the emperor, they're to set off right after the third day of the new year. Ninth Concubine has already instructed Yuwei to start packing Ninth Master's trunks."

Fifth Brother-in-law, listening nearby, nodded repeatedly. "Ninth Brother-in-law really is a good man... if it truly comes to it, he could just resign his post."

Ninth Sister's heart must be in a tangle right now.

Fifth Cousin, afraid her husband might say something inappropriate in front of Fu Tingjun and Zhao Ling, quickly tugged at him. "We're ordinary folk—what do we know of official affairs? Don't go offering random advice. If you end up harming Ninth Brother-in-law, I won't forgive you."

Fifth Sister and her husband were startled by this, and upon reflection found it reasonable. He nodded. "Don't worry, I know where to draw the line."

What her husband promised, he never went back on.

Fifth Cousin breathed a sigh of relief and asked the mama, "What is Ninth Concubine doing right now?"

She should go over and help as well!

"She's in the inner chamber talking with Ninth Master," the mama said, then hesitated. "Or perhaps—since it was kept from Ninth Concubine all this time, and now that she's found out, she's angry—Ninth Master is apologizing to her. The young miss and young master have been taken to the side room by their personal attendants to play."

"Don't talk nonsense." Even if that were the case, such words must not be spoken—otherwise, what would people say of Fu Tingjun's reputation? Fifth Cousin scolded her personal mama. "Ninth Master is about to leave for Guizhou, thousands of miles away, where even letters are hard to send. Of course he must go over household matters... Why must your mind run to such wild places?"

The mama dared not argue and hastily murmured an apology.

Only then did Fifth Cousin's expression soften, and she dismissed her.

The woman couldn't help muttering inwardly: It wasn't me who said it... it was that maid named Zhenzhu who let it slip.