Chapter 8 The Peace Knot: Madam Xu intended to welcome her as her daughter-in-law in a grand sedan chair carried by eight bearers. ...

The carriage moved smoothly, the interior warm and cozy. Madam Zhang sat in the main seat, her hand warmer hidden in her sleeve, her palms stained red with the warm water.

She looked at her son with displeasure, "I really don't know what you see in her. This family is full of intrigue and backstabbing; how can it be a peaceful home?"

Xu Congjing smiled casually and pushed over a small plate of dried sour apricots. "Haven't you experienced enough of this backstabbing and intrigue, son?"

If he hadn't been so scheming and plotting, he probably would have died on the way, let alone entered Chang'an and served in the imperial court. Having fought his way through, it would be extremely difficult for him to return to a peaceful and ordinary life, but he had no choice.

“That’s why your mother hopes you will find a wife from a simple family.” Madam Zhang ate a little and scoffed softly. “Even if the bride has a thousand faults, she should talk about them behind closed doors. But this family is like this, as if they want everyone in Chang’an to know. If the bride is wronged, it will naturally cause chaos in the house.”

Madam Zhang never valued social status, and the Rong family she had previously chosen was not a noble or wealthy family. She only valued the Rong family because they had no concubines, and the wife had two sons and a daughter, so there was little intrigue or backstabbing. Although Rong San Niang was the youngest daughter, she was raised to be gentle and quiet without the slightest arrogance. However, she became unruly and eloped one day.

Xu Congjing understood perfectly and remained silent. He then noticed his mother wiping her eyes with a sorrowful expression. "Seeing her kneel reminds me of your sister," he said.

He reluctantly withdrew his hand, his pupils covered with a layer of frost, and his eyes lost their former brightness.

"To ensure our safety, your father raised you and your brother at your maternal grandparents' house since you were little. I was also sick in the womb and had to raise you from afar, so I only saw you once a year." Madam Zhang murmured, her thoughts drifting. "That year, as soon as I entered the house, I saw Rou'er being punished for making a mistake and kneeling in front of the door. She was so pitiful with her little head hanging down. But your maternal grandparents were hard-hearted and didn't give in even when she was sunburned and her skin was peeling."

"That night she snuggled up to me and acted coquettishly, and I thought, just wait another year, and the four of us can be reunited. But as I waited, I received the news of Rou'er's death, and even your father is now separated from us forever..."

Mentioning the past, Xu Congjing gasped for breath, closed his eyes to calm the turmoil in his heart, and almost gritted his teeth, "Mother, I will not let those who killed them go."

Madam Zhang held his hand, squinting at him. "All these years you have refused to tell me who the murderer is. Every night I dream of Rou'er and cry all night long. I haven't seen her as often lately. Perhaps I'm just getting old and numb."

"Zicheng..."

Xu Congjing's heart skipped a beat, and he stared blankly, "Why is Mother suddenly calling me by this name?"

Madam Zhang's expression softened. "When you were called Zizheng, your eyes were always smiling. Later, after you were injured and changed your name, you were often gloomy. I knew then that your happiest days were in Suzhou."

“Zheng is the clear and bright sound of jade. When I named you ‘Zizheng,’ I hoped that you would be as virtuous as jade, and that you would be open-minded and happy. I still hope that today.” She spoke with a kind smile, her thin fingers covering his brow bone. “Zizheng, I don’t want you to live like a wooden sculpture or a clay figure.”

Xu Congjing knew that Madam Zhang meant well. She only wanted to see him all alone so that he could have a wife by his side. She hoped that the young couple would live happily together and that he would not be left alone to guard the empty shell of the Xu family if she suddenly passed away.

Zhang grabbed his hand tightly, her eyes clouded with dust, determined to get him to give her a word, "Promise me."

"I can't do it." He remained silent for a long time, then lowered his head and sighed, "Mother, I can't do it."

He closed his eyes, covered his face with his hands, and then shook his head self-deprecatingly, "If I had asked one more question that day, if I had accompanied Rou'er out, I'm afraid that beast wouldn't have taken advantage of the situation."

“That damned beast has ruined our family. He was the one who caused your sister to commit suicide, not you.” Madam Zhang wept bitterly, turned to pat his back, and gently comforted him, “Zizheng, it’s not your fault.”

The mother and son remained silent for a long time. When they arrived at the gate of the Xu residence, Madam Zhang lowered her eyes and compromised, "Alright, alright, I'll do as you say. If you truly love that Second Madam Sheng, then I will naturally accept her as my daughter-in-law."

After dinner, Madam Zhang whispered many heartfelt words to Xu Congjing, and then, remembering that she was to go to Huiju Temple to pray for blessings the next day, she let him go home.

He sighed all the way, as the evening breeze swept along the path and the moonlight poured down gently.

The following night, in Bibo Pavilion, Lou Yanxu lay on her side on the bed, gazing at the bright moonlight. Feeling much lighter after being exonerated the previous day, she thought, "The moon is so bright tonight!"

Qingrui, however, was not so optimistic. After applying medicine to the wounds on her buttocks, she noticed the redness and swelling on her knees and frowned in dissatisfaction. "Madam is really heartless. Ten strokes of the cane were not enough. She even punished you by making you kneel in the courtyard morning and evening to recite the precepts for women."

"She'll have to vent her anger eventually," Lou Yanxu sighed and shook her head.

She thwarted Zeng's plans, expecting a severe punishment, but it wasn't. Perhaps Zeng feared she would tarnish the Marquis's reputation but couldn't swallow her anger, so she punished her leniently.

Qingrui rubbed some medicinal oil on her hands and pressed it onto Lou Yanxu's knees, then looked up and asked, "Madam, how can you be so sure that Aunt Zhou will help us?"

“She’s not helping us, she’s helping herself.” Lou Yanxu cried out in pain twice, and continued, “She has not borne a child in the Marquis’s mansion for many years, there must be something fishy about it, so naturally she hopes that the Marquis’s wife will have a hard time.”

Therefore, she asked Qingrui to send her two pieces of gold jewelry, a clever scheme to deceive herself into not seeing through it.

Qingrui seemed to understand, "So, does that mean we'll be on the same side as Aunt Zhou from now on?"

Lou Yanxu looked distressed, and with a grimace, she stretched out her legs and moved her body to remind her, "Qingrui, I am the wife of the heir apparent and the daughter-in-law of the Marquis's wife. Aunt Zhou is both an enemy and a friend. We should not get too close in the future."

"This servant understands."

"Go to sleep early, we still need to go to Huiju Temple to pray for blessings tomorrow."

Upon hearing about the prayer for blessings, Qingrui put away the medicinal oil, her heart filled with worry. "My knees were already swollen from kneeling and reciting the precepts for women. Madam also insists that you go to the temple to pray for blessings on the first and fifteenth of each month, kneeling for three hours at a time. Who can endure that?"

Lou Yanxu tapped her forehead, not taking it to heart, "With Aunt Jun above me, unless I disdain being a daughter-in-law of the Marquis's mansion, I have no choice but to follow her rules even if I can't stand it."

The next morning, while the morning fog was still heavy, Lou Yanxu finished getting ready, ate a couple of bites, and then put the food down.

"Are all the offerings prepared?"

Qingrui nodded, "It's all prepared. I won't let that old woman find any mistakes."

Madam Zeng specially ordered a housekeeper to go with her, ostensibly to discipline the new bride, but in reality to find fault with her as much as possible.

Last time, Lou Yanxu had little experience and was nagged for a whole hour. This time she learned her lesson and was impeccable in all manners, but she still couldn't resist being nitpicked.

Taking advantage of Zeng's orders, Granny Hua acted recklessly, poking and pressing Lou Yanxu with her withered hands, her sharp mouth spitting as she said, "Oh, my lady! Since you've come to the temple to pray for blessings, don't act so delicate. Kneel down, straighten your back, so as not to break the rules!"

Qingrui couldn't bear to see her mistress being humiliated, so she spoke up and retorted, "Although the Lou family is not powerful or noble, even servants have to lower their voices when they see their masters. Yet the servants of noble families are so obsequious and disrespectful to their masters, showing no manners whatsoever!"

However, this old servant was fearless of water and fire. He glanced at her sideways and then brought up Madam Zeng again, saying, "Madam, please don't be angry. This old servant is only acting on Madam's orders. Praying for blessings is no small matter, so naturally we must follow all the rules and not make the slightest mistake."

"Yes, I will do as you say." Lou Yanxu reassured Qingrui with her eyes, knowing that she couldn't fight city hall. She could make up for the loss she suffered here elsewhere.

Qingrui was still not very happy, and secretly glared at the old woman, wishing she could poke a hole in her.

After investigating the mistake for half an hour, Granny Hua got tired and left only the two of them inside.

Qingrui, with her sharp eyes, secretly followed her out. She returned shortly afterward, quickly helping her mistress to her feet and tenderly patting her knees, "My lady, get up and rest. If you keep kneeling, your knees will swell up."

"Just now I ordered the temple cats to pounce on her, and she fell and got a black eye and a swollen face. Now she's leaning against the wall, yelling and cursing!"

The temple was quiet, but from afar one could hear the old woman cursing and cursing. She was dragged out by the temple servants, and the two of them, supporting each other's waists, couldn't help but smile.

"Let's go."

Huiju Temple was located in Jingshanfang, outside the city wall of Chang'an. People gathered here to pray for blessings, so the temple was always bustling with activity, and everyone who came and went remained respectful and silent.

Lou Yan walked up the steps and passed by a woman. She was startled to find her swaying and about to fall. In a moment of panic, she reached out to steady her and realized that it was Xu Congjing's mother, Madam Zhang.

Madam Zhang steadied herself, rubbed her temples, and then turned to take a closer look. "You are... the new bride of the Marquis of Chenghua's household?"

Lou Yan felt slightly embarrassed, thinking that Madam Zhang had recognized her at the small banquet at the Marquis's residence, but she still responded politely, "I'm glad Madam remembers, that's right."

The young woman before her had lowered her eyes and spoke in a soft, gentle voice, reminiscent of the misty rain of Jiangnan, a quality that always softened one's heart. Madam Zhang recalled how her daughter had been raised to be just as endearing in Suzhou, and also remembered seeing Lou Yanxu being bullied and crying out in grievance at the Marquis's residence the other day. She felt both joy and pity. She had initially remained silent upon hearing the Lou family's talk of repaying kindness, but now she wanted to rebuke them, saying that kindness should naturally be repaid.

Madam Zhang's face was slightly pale, but she smiled and thanked her softly, "I had a headache just now and was careless. Luckily you caught me, otherwise I would have fallen on the step and my old bones might have been shattered."

Lou Yan and Xu Yanran smiled, "Madam, please pay more attention in your daily life and send a few more servants to wait by your side."

"I see that you are kind and gentle, and it just so happens that you had two peace amulets blessed today. If you don't mind, how about I give you one?"

The old servant beside Madam Zhang tugged at his mistress's clothes. These two safety buckles were originally requested for the young master and his wife. How could Madam Sheng bear to give one of them away to someone else?

"I suppose the amulet was requested by Madam for her family. How could I possibly take it? It was just a small favor, Madam need not worry about it." Before the old servant could speak, Lou Yanxu dared not accept it. She felt that the amulet that Madam Zhang had shown was dazzling. If she were to be associated with Xu Congjing again, Madam Zeng would probably skin her alive.

The two exchanged a few more words before Zhang left first.

The old servant kept reminding his mistress that the safety buckle was inappropriate, but Madam Zhang coughed twice and waved her hand, saying, "There's no such thing as a pair. I'll just make her another one next time."

But when she thought of Sheng Jin's spoiled and irritable appearance, her forehead suddenly throbbed with pain. She lowered her head and muttered, "This lady from the building seems to be kind-hearted and gentle, which suits my taste very well. If the Marquis's mansion hadn't gotten there first, I would have definitely brought her in a grand sedan chair to be my daughter-in-law."

The old servant was startled and looked around, breaking out in a cold sweat.

Lou Yanxu did not hear these words. Qingrui noticed that Lou Yanxu had dropped one of her hair ornaments, so the two of them turned back.

Qingrui followed closely beside Lou Yanxu and said in a low voice, "I heard that Madam Xu has to come back for a ritual at least once a month. She doesn't pray for blessings much, but mainly prays for the souls of her husband and daughter."

The clouds stopped and the sun was obscured, and a sudden gust of wind arose. Lou Yan and Xu Sheng, fearing that rain was coming, deliberately quickened their pace. "So, it seems that Minister Xu has a deceased elder sister?"

Qingrui's long eyelashes trembled slightly as she shook her head. "It was my younger sister. I heard that she drowned herself in the river when she was young."

"What is your name?" Lou Yanxu stopped abruptly, her chest heaving.

"Nobody knows." A gust of wind swept in, and Qingrui staggered. "Xu Situ was very reluctant to mention it, and on the anniversary of his death, no one was allowed to approach him to serve him."

What is the anniversary of her death?

"The sixteenth of the eleventh month." Qingrui's eyes widened. "My lady is suspicious..."

Yes, the sixteenth day of the eleventh lunar month is the anniversary of Rou's death.

Thinking of the sweet cakes that Xu Congjing sent, Lou Yan could not help but be suspicious. But no matter how she looked at that face, it was not her brother Zizheng. They had only been apart for three years, so how could their appearances be so different?

Furthermore, his grandmother clearly stated that he was already his biological son.

So she shook her head to dismiss her doubts, and then teased Qingrui, "You've only been in Chang'an for a few days, but you've already heard a lot of gossip."

Qingrui smiled and said, "This servant is willing to be your knowledgeable friend, madam."

Dark clouds loomed, and a downpour was imminent. The two took the flower hairpins and headed outside, only to be met with a sudden downpour. Everyone was caught off guard and scrambled to find shelter under the eaves.

The torrential rain splashed up a foot high. Lou Yanxu stepped back to avoid it, but unexpectedly bumped into the arms of the person behind her.

She caught a glimpse of a large, thin hand.