Chapter 66 She's a good match

As dusk fell, the last rays of the setting sun refracted onto the remaining snow on the eaves, reflecting two points of orange light.

Inside Shou'an Hall, the masters chatted and laughed, surrounded by servants, creating a warm and cozy atmosphere.

Zhou Lan stood by the window, raised an eyebrow, and her arrogant gaze fell on the kneeling figure in the courtyard.

A faint, triumphant smile played on his lips, yet his eyes held a look of disdain for the woman in the courtyard.

Turning to the side, she saw her daughter and mother, one old and one young, laughing happily on the couch.

She was waiting for Zhou Jin to arrive!

She wanted to see if that arrogant bastard Zhou Jin would dare to call himself "Master" in front of his own mother!

*

In the courtyard, Li Qu knelt upright.

Standing next to her was Aunt Li, who was holding a rattan whip.

If she leans even slightly to one side, a whip will come down.

Aunt Li would remind her in a cold tone: "There is a proper way to stand, and there is a proper way to kneel. Aunt, please straighten your posture."

When Zhou Jin entered the hospital, what he saw from afar was that slender and desolate figure wearing only a single hairpin, her posture crooked as if she wanted to move her knees, but she was whipped and sat crookedly on the ground.

He frowned, suppressing the coldness in his eyes, quickened his pace, and kept his gaze fixed on her.

Then he saw her slowly get up from the ground, and she rubbed her calves as if she were saying something to Aunt Li.

Aunt Li raised her whip as a warning.

She slowly stretched her legs and continued kneeling.

Aunt Li put down the warning whip.

His brow relaxed slightly, but he didn't stop walking, his momentum undiminished.

This scene, however, caused Zhou Lan, who was inside the window, to furrow her brows.

Her haughty gaze fell incredulously on her trusted aunt, Aunt Yan: "Is this Aunt Li?"

Aunt Yan clearly did not expect Aunt Li to go easy on Li Qu.

Zhou Lan smiled enigmatically, "Why didn't the whip in her hand fall?"

"Can't Aunt Li see that she's being lazy and trying to shirk her duties?"

Why does Aunt Li treat her so leniently?

She asked three questions in quick succession, but didn't wait for Aunt Yan's reply, instead letting out a sly, cold laugh: "Heh!"

"When did the rules of the Zhou family become so lax!"

Before she could question the housekeeper's second sister-in-law, she saw that imposing and annoying figure appear outside the window.

He took a deep breath, flicked his sleeves, and walked towards his seat.

"They arrived quickly!"

*

Outside, Zhou Jin took off his turban and covered Li Qu's head with it, then instructed Xu Mama and Hongguo, who were standing guard, "Send your mistress back."

Then he walked straight into Shou'an Hall.

When Li Qu peeked out from the cloak that was filled with his aura, his figure had already disappeared behind the curtain of Shou'an Hall.

Granny Xu quickly stepped forward to help Li Qu up.

Li Qu stood up, with Zhou Jin's cloak draped over her shoulders, and bowed to Aunt Li: "Thank you for your kindness and mercy, Aunt."

Aunt Li's face remained cold and stern: "This servant is acting under orders. I hope you will understand, Aunt."

"I thank you for your kindness, Aunt."

Aunt Li bowed and turned to leave.

"Auntie, how are you?" Granny Xu asked quickly.

Li Qu shook her head, indicating that this was not the place to talk, and started to leave.

Granny Rong lifted the curtain and came out: "Please wait, Madam."

Li Qu was left outside the door to await a summons.

The second wife, Madam Yao, who was entertaining guests inside, carefully helped Qiao Gu out of Shou'an Hall. She nodded to Li Qu to indicate that she had greeted her before leaving.

Li Qu bowed respectfully to him, in a very proper manner.

Inside Shou'an Hall.

The old lady sat at the head of the table, Zhou Jin sat in the honored seat, and opposite her sat Zhou Lan, who was ready to avenge his previous humiliation.

Standing behind Zhou Lan was Chu Yingyang, who looked aggrieved.

The atmosphere was somber.

The old lady was the first to break the stifling atmosphere in the room.

"Where did the third brother come from?"

Zhou Jin leaned back in his chair, his expression unreadable: "The Great Prison."

"Your robes are stained with blood, your appearance is disheveled, what kind of behavior is this?" The old lady stood upright, fiddling with her prayer beads, looking at her youngest son.

"I know she is your precious treasure. I will not torture her until you are convinced."

"Making her kneel at the door is also a reminder to her not to forget her place."

"No rush, go change your clothes first."

A maidservant brought over spare clothes.

Zhou Jin stood up: "I didn't realize I was being rude, Mother, please don't be offended. I'll go change my clothes now."

The old lady was too lazy to call him out: "Go ahead."

Zhou Jin stepped out of the house and went to the side room to change his clothes.

Unexpectedly, when I lifted the curtain, she was still standing at the bottom of the steps.

The orange-red rays of the setting sun broke through the chill of deep winter, enveloping her beneath her cloak and casting a hazy beauty on her fair face.

*

She seemed to sense something, and looked up. Her face, no bigger than a palm, had perfectly delicate features.

She clearly hadn't expected him to come out so suddenly. Her eyes were initially respectful and indifferent, but when she recognized him, they instantly lit up.

She smiled and bowed respectfully to him, saying, "Greetings, Third Master."

He suddenly felt a little uncomfortable with her strict manners and etiquette.

"Come forward."

The surrounding maids cast surprised glances at them.

Li Qu didn't move.

He repeated, “Come forward.”

Li Qu didn't know what he was going to do. She lifted her overly long cloak and walked up the steps one by one, getting closer and closer to him.

He unconsciously stepped closer to her, and after she reached the top step, he reached into her cloak and took her slightly warm hand in his.

“Aqu”.

He stared straight at her.

She frowned slightly and scolded him, breaking free from his hand, her eyes indicating that this was Shou'an Hall and they should not be presumptuous.

Zhou Jin didn't care.

From the moment he saw the assassin until now, she has always been on his mind.

Tension, worry, crisis, bloodlust... a variety of emotions tormented him, keeping him constantly on edge.

He originally wanted to return to Fanghua Garden to get closer to her, but now that she was right in front of him, he couldn't resist.

He pulled her toward the side room: "Come and help me change my clothes."

She was holding onto his overly long cloak with one hand and being pulled along by him with the other. She stumbled and had to jog to keep up with him.

"Walk slower."

The long, flowing cloak couldn't conceal the way he held her hand tightly, leaving the servants of Shou'an Hall stunned and speechless.

Only after the two figures disappeared into the side room, and the maid carrying the tray of clothes who had followed behind was locked outside, did the servants realize what had happened and blush with embarrassment.

Inside the door, Zhou Jin pinned the person against the door, looked at the living person in front of him, and said in a hoarse voice, "Aqu, call me Jinlang."

She pushed him away, saying, "This is Shou'an Hall; you mustn't be rude."

"Aqu." His gaze fell on her eyebrows, her nose, her lips, "Call me Jinlang."

Her hand, which had been pushing against his chest, gradually became draped over his lapel. Her long eyelashes fluttered as she softly called out, "Jinlang~"

He closed his eyes, and the thumping sound of his chest made him deaf and blind.

He leaned down and kissed her, gently and carefully.

She lowered her long eyelashes, letting him treat her sweetly and gently.

He reached out and slipped his hand under her waist, supporting her lower back with his large palm, lifting her towards him.

She lifted her heels off the ground, getting closer to him and touching him more tightly.

He simply couldn't.

She reciprocated his affection.

His reason was clouded by lingering fear and an inexplicable sense of dread, and he became fierce, wanting to possess her.

She blocked his uncontrollable, groping hand and rejected him.

He became increasingly persistent.

"Is Jinlang trying to force me to die?"

"How can I bear the grave crime of seducing Jinlang in Shou'an Hall?"

He stopped, breathing heavily in her ear, and raised his hand to hold her tightly.

"A-Qu, do you love Grandpa?"

She gently hugged him and comforted him, saying, "I love Jinlang."

Will you go with him?

She knew who he was talking about.

She firmly dispelled his wild thoughts: "No."

He wanted to meld her into his flesh and blood, to become one with her, inseparable.

She said, "We will sleep together in the same bed, always the same. My heart belongs to Jinlang. Wherever Jinlang is, I will be there."

"I would never leave Jinlang on my own initiative."

"Unless Jinlang doesn't want his concubine anymore."

He slowly released her and looked at her quietly: "Huaixia is very skilled. I'll have her protect you closely from now on, so I can rest assured."

"Okay," she agreed without hesitation.

I'd rather keep people under my nose.

"This is not the place to talk. Let me help you change your clothes."

She pushed him away, straightened her own clothes, and then reached out to straighten his clothes.

Seeing that he was still staring at her, she tiptoed and gave him a soft kiss on the lips, coaxing him with a smile, "We'll talk about it when we get back."

Then she turned around, opened the door, took the tray from the maid at the door, turned back into the room, and helped him change his clothes.

She admonished him: "In this world, filial piety is the foundation of governance. Jinlang, you must not tarnish your reputation."

"When speaking to an old lady, one should be calm and reasonable, and persuade her with reason."

He watched quietly as she obediently and gently served him.

"Raise your hand."

Turn around.

Is it tight enough?

He let her do as she pleased, like a rag doll: "It's not tight."

"As for the eldest aunt..." she said, fastening his waistband, "If we lose in the east, we can find it in the west."

There's no need to argue with the old lady and cause her unnecessary trouble.

She looked at him: "Jinlang, did you hear that?"

He liked her nagging: "Hmm."

She smiled and said, "Jinlang, please help me put on this cloak. Your cloak has your scent, and I like it very much."

He helped her put on the cloak.

She urged him, "Go on, I'll have Xu Mama go back and prepare the meal."

He then took her hand and walked outside.

At the entrance of Shou'an Hall, she forcefully broke free from his hand.

"I'll be waiting for you outside."

He watched her stand there obediently smiling, raised his hand to rub the back of her head, turned around, and the gentleness on his face turned into coldness.

Be calm and reasonable, and persuade others with reason.

That's all.

Listen to her.

*

What happened inside Shou'an Hall could not be kept from the old lady's ears and eyes.

As soon as Zhou Jin entered the door, Zhou Lan sneered: "Mother, that Li Shi dared to seduce men in your Shou'an Hall, she has no manners at all!"

"If the younger generation in the household follows suit, how will the Zhou family's reputation be maintained?"

Zhou Jin sat down: "What business is it of yours, Mrs. Chu, of the Zhou family's reputation?"

"You!" Zhou Lan looked at the old lady. "Mother, look how infatuated he is with that Li woman!"

"I was just stating a fact, and he spoke to me so disrespectfully."

"I'm not exaggerating what happened at the Wei family. You can see a glimpse of it just by looking at him now!"

The old lady remained calm and went straight to the point: "The Wei family's affair has caused both the Zhou and Chu families to lose face."

"Putting everything else aside, for a lowly concubine who is not even worthy of the title to dare to sprinkle pepper and chili powder on the young lady of the manor is an act of insubordination."

"Don't say that Yingyang started the trouble with her. She's just a lowly concubine. What's wrong with Yingyang kicking her a couple of times if she's unhappy?"

"Third brother, it was your concubine who forgot her place and broke the rules first."

“Yingyang did nothing wrong, and neither did your older sister.”

"The Li family must be punished."

This is the old lady's attitude.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Lan raised an eyebrow and looked at Zhou Jin, a smile spreading across her face: "Those who defy their superiors are called traitors, and traitors deserve to be punished."

Zhou Jin picked up his teacup and took a small sip.

The old lady said, "If Li is not punished, she will dare to be disrespectful to Yingyang today, and she will dare to be disrespectful to me tomorrow."

“I know you dote on her, but there is no greater evil than indulging your own desires.”

“You can’t spoil her without limits and rules, which would violate ancestral etiquette and rules.”

Zhou Jin slammed the cup down on the coffee table.

The old lady paused, her hand holding the prayer beads still.

She didn't actually want to have a falling out with her youngest son.

Zhou Lan's face showed provocation, and she asked smugly, "She offended the young lady of the manor and disgraced the manor."

"What? As the matriarch of the Zhou family, can't I use family discipline?"

"Mother keeps talking about rules, but when I talked to you about rules back then, what was there for you to be afraid of?"

As soon as Zhou Jin finished speaking, the old lady's expression changed.

Zhou Jin looked at the old lady: "I only killed a servant who didn't follow the rules, why did you drive me away from home for twelve years?"

"When did I ever drive you away!" the old lady hurriedly tried to explain.

"Why did you send your son to study under the teacher and force him to leave home to travel? What did you do wrong when you followed the rules back then?"

The old woman was speechless.

"Isn't it about rules and etiquette?" Zhou Jin felt as calm as she had been instructed.

But the old lady thought he was extremely cunning: "You were only seven years old then, and you killed a long-time servant, and his entire family!"

“When a son is seven years old, he talks to his mother about rules, and the mother talks to her son about human relationships.”

“My son is almost twenty-seven. He wants to talk to his mother about human relationships, but his mother insists on talking to him about rules.”

"How are rules and personal relationships defined?"

"Whoever has the higher seniority has the final say?"

"Whoever has the power calls the shots."

The old lady felt that Zhou Jin was ostensibly protecting Li Qu, but in reality, he wanted to seek justice for the years she had sent him away from home.

Looking at her youngest son, now grown up, skilled in both literature and martial arts, and holding power in his own region, she already felt ashamed, and now she was even more speechless.

"Zhou Jin!" Zhou Lan shouted, seeing the situation was turning against her. "How dare you disrespect your mother?"

Zhou Jin, now calm, turned his gaze to Zhou Lan: "Elder sister, I'm talking to Mother properly, why are you stirring up trouble?"

"Do you perhaps think that the Zhou family is a place where you can do whatever you want?"

Zhou Lan frowned: "Why are you bringing up the matter of the lowly concubine Li when your mother was telling you about it!"

"How is the matter concerning the Li family any different from what happened back then?"

"Li has committed an offense and overstepped his bounds..."

“That old servant who died by my sword also committed an act of insubordination.”

Zhou Lan: "This Li family member should be treated the same as that old servant."

"But Mother said that the matter was handled wrongly back then. She said that I was heartless and would frighten people."

The old woman gripped her prayer beads tightly and closed her eyes.

Zhou Lan: "You were only seven years old then, and you drew your sword and killed the entire family of the wet nurse who had served you since you were a child."

"Your wet nurse is like a second mother to you; you murdered her entire family. Who wouldn't be afraid!"

"Oh, so you were afraid I'd follow the rules, but now you want to follow the rules with me. What kind of logic is that?"

Zhou Lan was speechless for a moment, and after a long while she finally spoke: "You're just arguing!"

Zhou Jin glanced indifferently at the restless old lady at the head of the table.

“Mother, you can stuff as many women with vested interests into Qinghuai Courtyard as you want, I don’t care.”

"But she was the only one in the room, and after the mistress entered, she was the only one there."

"Please, Mother, for my sake, be more lenient with her."

“She comes from a poor family and this is her first time going out. My son was afraid she would be bullied, so he prepared pepper powder and black pepper powder for her to protect herself.”

"So she made her prioritize protecting herself, no matter what situation she was in or who bullied her."

"The fault does not lie with her."

"As for her offense against her elder sister, given Yingyang's previous hostility towards her, it was her instinct to seek advantage and avoid harm."

"We can't blame her either."

He was adept at manipulating people's hearts: "Mother, can we show some consideration today?"

His blunt tone stirred up memories for the old lady, causing her to feel a mix of emotions—bitterness, guilt, and heartache—and she trembled, unable to utter a sound.

Zhou Lan warned, "Mother! You mustn't let a lowly concubine do as she pleases! Be careful she doesn't bring disaster to the inner quarters!"

The old lady closed her eyes.

Thinking back to that year, my hands trembled with fear and heartbreak as I held that innocent child's shoulders, earnestly asking, "Child, why don't you show some compassion?"

What did that well-behaved and polite little person from my memory say?

He said, "Mother, didn't you tell me to be disciplined and self-restrained? Why are you talking about human kindness and tolerance now?"

The fingers that were holding the prayer beads loosened in despair.

She was checkmated.

The words of argument that were about to be spoken ultimately turned into compromise.

"Does she deserve your protection?"

"She deserves it."

Zhou Jin stood up and bowed to the old lady, saying, "Thank you for your kindness, Mother."

Zhou Lan refused to accept the outcome: "Mother!"

Zhou Jin turned to look at Zhou Lan: "She never causes trouble, and I don't hold her to any particular methods of protecting herself."

"Big sister, if you provoke her again, and she hurts you, you'll have to suffer the consequences yourself."

"Don't blame your third brother for not reminding you."

Zhou Lan was furious: "Zhou Jin...you...you..."

"Yes, I will always protect her!"

He added, "Speaking of which, I'm grateful to the older sister for taking action against her this morning."

"Otherwise, my third brother wouldn't have been able to move people to her side to protect her in time."

"It saved her from the assassination attempt that afternoon."

Zhou Lan was utterly incredulous: "You're still worried I'll use dirty tricks on you!"

Zhou Jin glanced at her, bowed to the old lady, and said goodbye: "I will take my leave now so as not to disturb Mother's dinner."

As she turned around, her cold gaze swept over Chu Yingyang, who stood silently behind Zhou Lan.

Startled, Chu Yingyang staggered backward, clutching her handkerchief to her chest, too afraid to look up.

Only after Zhou Jin's footsteps disappeared did Zhou Lan burst into tears: "Mother, where do you put my dignity?"

*

The sound traveled through the door curtain and reached Li Qu's ears.

As the last rays of sunlight faded, lanterns were lit in Shou'an Hall.

There was a movement in the curtain. She looked up and saw a man standing two steps away from her. Under the dim lantern light, he stood upright, exuding an air of understated nobility.

She smiled and stepped forward to greet him, but his hand was already outstretched in front of her: "Are you cold?"

"My face is a little cold, but my body isn't."

She handed him the hand warmer: "Sister Zheng came to pay her respects earlier and left this hand warmer for me. It's still warm."

Zhou Jin looked at the hand warmer in his hand: "..."

"I want to hold your hand."

She smiled at him, her beautiful face appearing even more delicate in the dim light.

"Of course I know."

"Hold this for me."

She was very polite, kowtowing outside the door to thank the old lady for her great kindness, and also thanking her eldest aunt and cousin.

After the ceremony, she got up and went to his side.

She took the hand warmer back and placed her hand in his palm.

He gripped his hand tightly: "Let's go back and have dinner."

She smiled and obediently followed him.

Once they left Shou'an Hall and entered the garden, the usually obedient and quiet girl suddenly pulled him backward with all her might.

He stopped, turned to the side, and asked, "What...?"

She was like a fluttering butterfly; she suddenly stepped forward and kissed him, then let go and ran away.

She ran ahead, turned back to him with a smug smile, and loudly reminded him, "Jinlang, you forgot to take me riding today, remember to make up for it."

A faint smile unconsciously appeared on his lips, but his steps remained unhurried.

"Um."

She probably can't hear me.

A cool breeze brushed my face, carrying her smile and her sweet scent.

"ah!"

She was suddenly tripped by his overly long cloak.

I tripped and fell.