Chapter 2: The princess in charge is the mistress of the No. 1 Scholar's Mansion. ...

"The Emperor has issued an imperial decree. Brother Huaiyu... I'm afraid you will have to marry the daughter of the royal family."

"Huaiyu, Huaiyu, your future will be ruined if you marry the princess!"

"He hates foreign relatives interfering in power the most, and he especially hates the prince consort interfering in court affairs. Huaiyu, your parents died young, and you've come a long way through all the ups and downs. You finally made it into the Hanlin Academy, and now you're stuck in this mess?!"

Teachers, friends, and colleagues surrounded him, sighing and worrying, their chattering making his temples swell and ache.

"I will marry."

Zhang Jinwei said this in a daze in his dream.

"If I dare not marry, I will be defying the imperial decree. Your Excellencies are already facing numerous obstacles in implementing the new policies. If I anger His Majesty, I'm afraid the new policies will be further hindered. I..."

The image of the pale girl from last night suddenly flashed through his mind, with tears in her eyes and worry between her brows, which made him feel extremely pitiful.

He and she are both helpless pawns in the turmoil of the capital. From now on, they just need to live a good life.

Waking up from a hangover, Zhang Jin had a splitting headache. He rolled over from the couch, rubbing his forehead as he whispered, "I've always had a pretty good alcohol tolerance. The atmosphere was solemn last night, and the teachers didn't force me to drink, so how did I pass out?"

He was wondering when he suddenly saw several maids standing at the door.

They came into the palace with the princess's dowry. They were all palace maids of clean backgrounds. They all had dignified looks and nimble hands and feet. At this moment, they were lowering their heads and waiting for Zhang Jinwei's instructions.

One of them saw Zhang Jinwei looking over and said timidly, "The servants pay their respects to the Prince Consort."

Zhang Jin was having a headache and asked casually, "Why are you here with me instead of accompanying the princess?"

The maids looked at each other in silence, probably suspecting their Prince Consort had drifted off to sleep. The maid who had spoken earlier stepped forward, presumably the leader. She bowed and replied, "Prince Consort, the princess thought you were awake by now, so she sent us here to help you wash and change your clothes."

So that's what it is.

Zhang Jinwei sighed and said with a wry smile, "Don't bother with this. I'm used to being alone. You guys go take care of the princess."

Orphaned at a young age, he lived with his uncle, struggling to get by at the behest of his uncle and aunt. As a young man, he was devoted to learning, so poor he couldn't even afford a servant, yet he managed to achieve the highest score in the imperial examination. Having lived a self-reliant life for so long, he felt a certain unease at the sight of this throng of servants and eunuchs.

When the maids heard this, they looked at each other and stood there motionless, not knowing whether to go in or not. The one leading them said in a low voice, "Prince Consort, you are too precious to be here. Please let the servants come."

Zhang Jinwei's headache suddenly got worse. He tried to persuade them gently again. The maids had no choice but to compromise, gently closed the door for him, and let him go.

As he tied his belt, he listened to the maids' whispers outside the room. He didn't mean to listen, but it was just that these maids were young and had no control over their mouths, so they dared to gossip in front of the master's room.

"This prince consort is really weird..."

"I heard he fainted on the princess' bed last night without even touching it!"

"Oh, how could this be! Could it be... impotence?"

The word "impotence" was whispered very softly, but Zhang Jinwei heard every word. He just smiled indifferently, treating it as a joke.

"What are you all doing standing in front of the door?!" Yu Xi's sharp voice came from the yard, sounding extremely angry. "How can you servants discuss the master's affairs? Go to the front hall, and don't say anything more about what we said today. If anyone dares to say anything..."

The group of maids hurriedly ran away, saying "I'm sorry, Auntie" and "Auntie, I know I was wrong." Yu Xi knocked on the door outside, and seemed like a different person, with an extremely friendly attitude, "Prince Consort, are you awake? The kitchen has prepared breakfast and is waiting for you!"

The princess's maid came to invite him personally, and Zhang Jinwei couldn't delay any longer. He hurried out the door and smiled at Yu Xi, "Thank you for your trouble, aunt. I had a few drinks last night and overslept this morning. Please forgive me."

Yu Xi's expression remained unchanged upon hearing this, but her eyes flickered twice. She said, "It's nothing serious. The princess just woke up not long ago and is just in a bad mood. Go and talk to her."

Not in a good mood?

Zhang Jinwei recalled some of the secrets that had leaked from the palace, and his heart ached as he saw the princess's face, soft and delicate as a white peony. Most men, seeing a beauty in trouble, a pearl covered in dust, would inevitably feel a sense of "beauty's tragic fate."

It was a pity that Zhang Jinwei was only a small-time editor in the Imperial Academy, his influence was insignificant, and even the top scholar's mansion was a gift from the Emperor. He looked around and saw that the courtyard was simple, almost shabby, and suddenly felt sorry for his wife, who came from a noble family.

As his thoughts raced, Zhang Jinwei unknowingly walked into the front hall. He glanced up and his gaze fell on the young girl sitting at the table. Maids and eunuchs surrounded her, whispering something.

The girl was wearing a pink jacket and skirt with gold sprinkled on it, a kat green bodice over it, and a circle of white fox fur around her snow-white neck. Her hair was combed in a peach-pointed bun, which was popular among the noble ladies in the capital, and she wore a full set of gold and jade headwear. Her makeup was light, with only slightly red lips and willow eyebrows. Compared with the delicate bride last night, the girl today was even more lovable.

Zhang Jinwei took a closer look and saw tears welling in the girl's eyes. He quickly stepped forward, leaned over, and whispered softly, "On the way here, I heard from my aunt that the princess wasn't very happy. Is she not used to living in the mansion?"

The princess didn't respond. She tilted her small, pointed chin slightly upward, her cat-like eyes widening slightly as she gazed up at Zhang Jinwei. She sighed softly, a tear rolling down her cheeks, followed by several more, until they became a stream of broken beads that pattered onto the back of Zhang Jinwei's hand, burning hot.

"Don't, don't cry!" Zhang Jin was at a loss what to do because of her crying. He had lived for more than twenty years and had never comforted a crying woman. Should he pull his sleeves and slap her face, or just stand there?

Seeing that the princess was shaking with tears, he quickly pulled out a handkerchief from his sleeve, bent down and gently wiped her tears. "I am incompetent and have wronged the princess. I deserve death. Even if I don't know why the princess is crying, please let me know where I have done wrong."

"Mother..." the princess whispered softly.

Concubine Jing?

Zhang Jinwei quickly perked up and listened to the princess's sorrow.

The princess sighed softly and choked up, saying, "In three days' time is Mother's birthday. I left the palace in such a hurry that I only had time to take Mother's tablet with me. Normally, on Mother's birthday, I would chant Buddhist scriptures in the palace's Buddhist temple and pray for Mother's blessings... But now that I've left the palace, away from Mother and the temple, I don't know where to go to pay my respects!"

Actually, I don’t miss it that much.

On Concubine Jing's birthday and death anniversary, Zhou Xian would indeed go to the Buddhist temple to chant scriptures. He was not welcome in the palace, so he always had to pretend to be filial and virtuous to avoid being found guilty and causing trouble.

Besides, his mother didn't believe in gods or Buddhas, so what difference did it make whether she worshipped or not? When a person died, he was dead. Zhou Xian had seen death and rebirth in the palace so often that his heart had turned cold.

Zhou Xian had put on a show early in the morning, making the bookworm anxious. He was in a good mood, so he struck while the iron was hot and fell weakly into the bookworm's arms, saying miserably, "My dear husband... I want to build a Buddhist temple in the mansion to enshrine the tablets of my mother and my uncles and aunts."

Zhang Jinwei's face flushed with embarrassment as his newlywed wife wept in his arms. He lowered his head slightly and saw the girl sobbing in his arms. He didn't know where to put his hands. Finally, he said in his heart, "I'm sorry," and gently patted the girl's back to calm her down.

Through several layers of cloth, Zhang Jinwei could still feel the girl's bony scapula. Her thin, lonely body curled up in his arms. He whispered, "From the moment Princess married into my mansion, she became the mistress of the Zhang family. Building a Buddhist temple and offering sacrifices to the ancestors is a way of showing filial piety. Princess, please do as you see fit."

Zhou Xian smiled triumphantly in his heart.

He wiped his tears with his handkerchief, sat upright, and whispered, "Thank you, Prince Consort."

Zhang Jinwei quickly let go of the person and sat back in his seat with his hands and feet together, his face so red that blood almost dripped out.

At this time, Yu Xi and the servants were preparing breakfast, and they served lotus seed and red date porridge, pickled cabbage, chives and Ge Lao cakes one after another. They also placed a cup of tea in front of the two newlyweds, saying that it was the imperial gift of Dongting Biluochun.

It was a simple meal, but one could tell the chef had put a lot of effort into it. Zhou Xian ate the porridge in small bites, her eyes always glancing at the table, she was very curious about the glutinous rice cakes.

Legend has it that this dish was presented to the late emperor decades ago by a minister. Its fragrant aroma earned the emperor's praise, but the secret recipe was unfortunately lost until it became popular again in the Jiangnan region a few years ago. As a native of Suzhou Prefecture, it's no surprise that Zhang Jinwei's family chef excelled in Jiangnan cuisine.

After dinner and tea, Zhou Xian took the washbasin from the maid and rinsed her mouth briefly. Then, she smiled faintly and said, "Is the chef in the mansion also from Jiangnan? I heard that Ge Lao Biscuits are popular in Jiangnan. I tried some today, and they are indeed very soft and glutinous."

Zhang Jinwei said, "Old Jiang was once my neighbor. He was a great cook and was very kind to me. A few years ago, he offended someone in Suzhou, so I asked him to come to the capital with me. Princess, if you want anything to eat in the future, just tell him."

"Auntie," Zhou Xian called softly, whispering in Yuxi's ear, "Please transfer some money from my account and give it to him. Tell him that I appreciate his cooking skills."

Although the voice was "soft", every word was heard by Zhang Jinwei. Zhang Jinwei suddenly remembered something and said quickly: "Princess, this reminds me that the family accounts should be taken care of by you now."

Zhou Xian, with an innocent air, feigned a flattered expression at just the right moment, thinking, "Is this idiot really going to give him the account book? If only he had known it was so easy, he wouldn't have to cry in front of the idiot so early in the morning, crying so hard that his heart ached."

"I have a lot of official duties on a daily basis. As a bachelor, I naturally don't have to worry about money. But since the princess is here, you will have to take care of the daily life of this family." Zhang Jinwei said sincerely.

Zhou Xian looked shy and evaded the question, "I'm not very good at math..."

Zhang Jinwei smiled and said, "It's okay. Princess, you only need to check the account book every month. If you have any questions, ask the accountant. If you really can't figure it out, bring it to me."

Having said that, Zhou Shan readily accepted the advice of her husband and completed the first step of his escape plan - obtaining the right to manage the accounts, so that he could secretly pawn his dowry and save money to leave the capital.

When Yu Xi brought the account book of Zhuangyuan Mansion to Zhou Shan, he flipped through it casually and suddenly felt that all his hard work had been in vain.

He didn't understand why he was making such a fuss over an almost empty account book.

Zhou Xian's face changed several times. He clutched the unlucky account book and was about to curse, but then he saw the eunuch Wang Xiang hurriedly walk up to his desk and said in an urgent tone, "Someone is coming from the palace!"

Is someone coming?

Could this be the new decree from my father?

Zhou Xian lifted her skirt and hurried to the front yard.