Chapter 047

Chapter 47: A Great Opportunity on the Manor

Because it concerned a demoted prince who was also the Emperor’s younger brother, the Grand Matron did not pursue the topic. Xin An tossed the flower aside and helped her inside the manor. Hot water and food had already been prepared, and the attendants they had brought were busy serving. By the time the last streak of sunset sank into the clouds, everyone had relaxed, and it was time to rest.

Madam Wang was not in the best spirits and felt unwell. She returned to her room early.

The people at the manor knew only that Tang Mo had recently married and did not know the couple slept separately, so they had prepared a single room. There were no extra rooms to assign, either. The two did not go out of their way to avoid suspicion and tacitly stayed together.

Once they were in bed, Xin An said: “Tomorrow ask whether there are still gardeners at the manor. Keep them on and have them continue cultivating jasmine.”

Tang Mo assumed she liked the flowers and offered, happy to please: “Shall I dig some before we leave and plant them in our courtyard?”

Xin An shook her head: “More than tending flowers, I prefer keeping fish. Later, get a few handsome ones for the vat in our courtyard.”

Tang Mo stared and waggled his brows at her, puzzled that she did not like the flowers yet wanted gardeners to tend them. When she crooked a finger, he immediately leaned closer. Lowering her voice, Xin An said: “If my memory serves, Prince Jin will be back within half a year at most, and he will be even more favored than before.”

“Prince Jin holds Princess Consort Jin in high esteem. When the time comes, if we bring flowers cultivated here to pay our respects, we are sure to win favor.”

Tang Mo slapped his thigh, his eyes gleaming: “How did I not think of this?”

[Back then I had not yet kicked the bucket.] He made a face and spat: “Ptooey.”

“Are you sick?” Xin An snapped.

The spittle had even flecked her cheek. She gave him a sharp kick: “Go wet a cloth. I need to wipe my face.”

Tang Mo rushed off and came back with a fawning smile: “I got carried away. I was just thinking that I was still alive back then, so why did I not think of it? But how did you remember? This is a great opportunity for us.” He adopted a faux-enlightened expression and drawled: “I understand now. People say the older you are, the better you recall distant things. You—”

“Hey, what are you doing?” he yelped as she struck him.

Xin An, hand quick as a viper, glared at him fiercely: “Call me old again and see what happens.”

Rubbing the hot sting on his neck, Tang Mo groaned: “Grandaunt, could you at least give a warning before you strike next time?”

She tossed the damp cloth onto his chest and lay back with a huff: “Warn you so you can strike first?”

Teeth bared, Tang Mo flung the cloth far away and lay down as close to the bed’s edge as he could, leaving so much space between them that another person could have slept there. [This fierce woman may be alluring, but she is far too violent. A man could not dare harbor improper thoughts for fear she might beat him to death.] After a while, he inched back toward the middle and ventured: “Your memory is excellent. Think if there’s anything else we have overlooked. Does our manor have a mine? Any treasure? Can we make a windfall?”

Xin An turned to face him: “You have gone mad for money. This is a royal manor. If there were treasure, would it ever be your turn to find it? Being able to walk away with a few pots of flowers is already a great bargain.”

Tang Mo sighed: “So many people get something for nothing. Why can’t I be one of them?” [Two lifetimes of hard scrabbling. Why cannot fortune fall into my hands just once?]

Xin An snorted: “If you want unearned profit, that is easy. You are handsome. The capital is full of wealthy matrons. If you were willing to go all the way, they would plaster your body with banknotes.”

Rolling his eyes, Tang Mo said loftily: “This young lord is precious. Do you think anyone can win my favor, that I should give them such a chance? Forget it. I will rely on myself. This life is already better than the last. Besides, I have you.”

Better than struggling alone with someone dragging at his heels.

“Sleep,” Xin An said with a small smile, turning over to hug the quilt and close her eyes.

The manor was not like the marquisate. The moon was bright, the stars sparse, frogs called without ceasing, and the chirp of crickets added to sleepiness. Before long, both drifted into dreams.

When the morning sun pierced the window and spilled across the floor, they stirred awake. This was the most restful night Xin An had enjoyed since her rebirth. Even awake, she felt lazy about getting up. Seeing they had already missed the hour for morning greetings, they simply gave up and shifted into more comfortable positions to continue sleeping.

Out in the courtyard, the Grand Matron and Madam Wang were already breathing in the fresh morning air. The Grand Matron chuckled: “The dishes last night were truly good, so bright and fresh, just to my taste. What do you think?”

Madam Wang smiled and nodded: “They were indeed good.”

The Grand Matron glanced at her: “Since we have come out here, do not dwell on troubling matters. All these years, you have never truly relaxed. It is rare that the second boy showed filial piety and brought us out to clear our minds. Do not waste his kind thought. You should let yourself loosen up.”

The corners of Madam Wang’s lips moved upward: “Of course I am happy. I was only thinking about how the young couple’s feelings are progressing.” She looked toward the door of their room.

“Do not worry,” the Grand Matron said, amused. “The second boy is handsome and cheerful by nature, and Xin An is pretty and clever. With day and night together, they will grow feelings sooner or later. After that, everything will fall naturally into place. We elders should not urge them or ask questions. Just watch.”

Madam Wang took her arm: “Why not let me accompany you for a walk outside, and later the two young ones can go out together on their own.”

The Grand Matron laughed: “Let us go then. We will come back for breakfast in a while.”

In the morning light, the manor had a beauty all its own. The flowers and grasses by the road looked especially vigorous. Gan Lu asked the little maids who had accompanied them to pick some to take back and put in vases, but the Grand Matron stopped her: “Since we came to the manor, there is no sense in staying indoors all day. Flowers in a vase can never compare with seeing them like this.”

Steward Yang came from a distance to report that there was also a Lotus Pond on the manor and it was at its most beautiful. “Beside the pond,” he said with a smile, “a fenced patch holds many chickens and ducks. I do not know what happened last night, but they laid a great many eggs. It must be thanks to the Grand Matron’s good fortune.”

Everyone likes kind words. The Grand Matron was pleased, her interest piqued, and she wanted to go see and gather eggs. Madam Wang had never seen such a thing and wished to go as well. So when Tang Mo and Xin An finished dressing and stepped out, the two elders were already gone.

A woman came out to say that breakfast was ready and asked whether they would like to eat now. Tang Mo nodded: “Let us eat. Afterward we will stroll about too, and later meet the people of the manor.”

They ate vegetable congee with scallion pancakes and fried eggs the color of gold. Both had excellent appetites. Satisfied, they stepped out smiling. They did not go to the Lotus Pond, though, and instead wandered aimlessly along the ridges between fields, their spirits unusually light. Tang Mo, a foxtail grass stalk between his teeth, was already thinking he should set up a little garden here at the manor. When he had leisure, he could invite friends to come for a few days, which would be good for strengthening ties.