Chapter 7 — I Will Not Marry the Gu Family in This Life

I have never owed her anything. Any lingering bitterness that remained in my heart has now completely evaporated. It was love that birthed such deep hatred; now that the hatred is gone, it is impossible to say that any love remains either.

"Then I wish for you to have your heart’s desire in this lifetime."

My younger sister mistakenly believes that I have finally forgiven her.

"Sister, from now on, we will both have wonderful lives."

I pushed open the door and stepped out, choosing to leave our previous lives behind entirely. What her future holds, I do not know. But my own future will undoubtedly be magnificent. Yan Chu was standing in the distance, waiting for me by the corridor. I smiled at him.

"Husband, let us go home."

As we departed from my sister’s residence, we happened to pass a crowd of relatives from the Gu family who were making a boisterous scene near the bridal chamber. Yan Chu clicked his tongue and pulled me to his side to shield me.

"The Gu family certainly has many relatives."

Indeed. They were all impoverished kin who had traveled all the way from Qingzhou.

10

The longer we were married, the lazier I became. Before I was wed, I had countless social obligations to attend to. Now, with the Grand Princess as my backer, I find myself with far more leisure. Still, every month, I copy a volume of scripture. Yan Chu cannot stop me, so he simply sits by my side to grind the ink. The blood-bird’s nest soup was also consumed continuously for three months before it was finally stopped. When I spoke with the Grand Princess, she even teased me about it.

"The ladies in the palace have almost run out of bird’s nest, yet he still uses his military merits to shamelessly pester the Emperor for more."

The current Emperor is the Grand Princess’s younger brother. Their bond as siblings is profound. Yan Chu was watched over by the Grand Princess from the time he was a child, and she regards him almost as her own son.

"I have no children of my own, and Yan Chu never had the fortune of being close to his mother. Thus, I have always viewed him as my own flesh and blood."

Now that I have become the Grand Princess’s niece-in-law, she treats me with immense kindness. There was only one matter she once spoke to me about in private.

"If one day Yan Chu never returns from the battlefield, you must never remarry."

She feared that by then, she would no longer have the strength to look after Yan Chu’s orphaned children, and so she advised me thus. I promised the Grand Princess that I would be the wife of only Yan Chu in this life. I do not fear loneliness. I only fear falling into another pit of fire. Since my marriage, I have rarely returned to my maiden home. My mother writes to me occasionally, but every letter mentions that Madam Gu refuses to let my sister return to her own family. In every line, she subtly urges me to visit the Gu manor. Now that I am a woman of noble rank and Yan Chu is highly favored by the Emperor, if I were to frequent the Gu household, Madam Gu would not dare to be so harsh toward my sister. After reading, I simply act as if I never received the letters. My sister has her own life to lead; why should I interfere? On New Year’s Eve, I returned to my parents’ home. My sister and Gu Tu-yuan were there as well. They were no longer as intimate as they were before they were wed. It seemed as though a mountain of ice stood between them. My sister’s face held an unmaskable weariness. Returning this time, she spoke very little. She tried to maintain her composure, asking me, "Why do I not see your husband?"

Gu Tu-yuan, hearing this, seemed slightly agitated. "I heard you did not even return on the day you were meant to visit your family?"

My sister replied with cold mockery, "You were present that day, were you not?"

The two exchanged sharp words before falling into a tense silence.

"Shu-ning."

Yan Chu’s voice rang out from behind me. In his hands, he held a package of preserved sour plums. "I finally managed to buy them."

The plums from the shop in the western part of the city are exquisite, though unfortunately, they were closed on New Year’s Eve. Yan Chu had insisted on tracking down the owner at their home. I picked one up and popped it into my mouth.

"This is the exact taste."

I picked out another large one and placed it into Yan Chu’s mouth. He squinted at the sourness but still remarked, "Delicious."

I could not help but laugh. My mother came to call us for dinner. She looked at the package of plums Yan Chu had gone to such lengths to procure and asked, "Why rush out for those? The manor has already prepared dried plums."

Yan Chu took my hand and replied, "Only those plums are sour enough." He then turned to my parents, "Mother-in-law, Shu-ning is pregnant."

My parents were overjoyed and immediately ordered a sturdier chair to be brought for me. Only my sister and Gu Tu-yuan stood frozen at the door.

11

My parents were incredibly attentive toward Yan Chu. My father even brought out a precious jar of Daughter-Song wine that he had kept for many years.

"This is the jar of wine I buried under the begonia tree the year Shu-ning was born."

Since I became pregnant, Yan Chu has stopped drinking. He looked at me and blinked. Finding it amusing, I reached out and touched his forehead lightly.

"My father has already brought it out; you should have a taste."

Before Yan Chu could lift his cup, Gu Tu-yuan pushed his own wine cup forward. My sister’s expression changed instantly.

"Gu Tu-yuan, what is the meaning of this?"

Seeing that the atmosphere was wrong, my father quickly intervened, "Shu-ning and Shu-qiao were only born a year apart. The jar buried when Shu-qiao was born should be brought out as well; the timing is perfect."

On the table, two jars of wine stood side by side.