Chapter 62 A Balance Between Work and Rest After get off work: Lord Yu, who had thrown a tantrum in front of Lady Niohuru, was in a terrible state, like an unwanted dog…

Lord Yu, who had thrown a tantrum in front of Lady Niohuru, was in a terrible state. Like an unwanted dog, he was led back to the East Courtyard by Shen Wanqing, where he plunged into the West Wing Study and refused to come out.

It was already evening when he finished his shift at the palace. Shen Wanqing felt that he must be tired after working in the palace for five days, so she specially asked Ningxiang to make crab roe buns, braised mutton stew, and braised chicken with chestnuts, all of which were his favorite flavors, which she had asked about from Granny Feng.

The food got cold after all that fuss, and not only did it have to be reheated, but even then, the person refused to come out to eat. Shen Wanqing stood outside the study and asked through the window if they wanted to eat, but there was no sound from inside. She knew then that the person genuinely didn't want to eat and couldn't eat, so she didn't force them.

After Shen Wanqing finished her dinner, she picked up a book and read half of it. Then she picked up Yulang's pocket watch, which he didn't like to wear anymore and checked the time. It was almost 9 o'clock, so she got up and went to the study.

"Sir, if you don't come out today, I'm going to lock the door and go to sleep. It'll be cold in the study tonight, don't blame me if you catch a cold."

"…………"

"The Crown Prince sent Gao Laixi with a lot of things a couple of days ago. The fox fur has been prepared, and I plan to have Xueyan make you a fur robe."

"…………"

"What style do you want it made of, a casual robe or a cloak? Are we allowed to wear cloaks when we're on duty at Yuqing Palace? Why don't you come out and take a look at the fabric? If you don't like the color, then we'll use the dark blue one."

"The Crown Prince is lenient. As long as it's not his turn to guard the gates of Yuqing Palace that day, he can wear it anywhere inside Yuqing Palace."

There were no candles lit in the study. After Yulang returned, he lay down on the recliner in the study, too lazy to move, and his mind was filled with thoughts of what would happen after his father passed away.

Many things don't seem like a big deal when you don't think about them, but when you think about them seriously, you realize how good your memory is. You remember every single grievance you've suffered over the years.

Many times he came back wanting to talk to Niohuru, but his mother was either busy taking care of the Bodhisattva or in the Buddhist hall.

At first, Yulang would patiently wait for Niohuru to come out of the Buddhist hall, but even when she did, she hardly had time to listen to her eldest son talk about things he couldn't understand outside. She also had to take care of Pusa Bao and Fangyi, who were younger and needed their mother more.

Yulang had wondered why, even though his younger siblings had wet nurses and maids, his mother still devoted all her attention to them. And why, when he was being treated like a child by the Manchus under the banner of Zuo Ling, he couldn't even find someone to talk to or get advice from.

Yu Lang couldn't understand why she believed in Buddha and Bodhisattva so much, or why she still had so many difficulties if she believed in Buddha and Bodhisattva so much. Was it because Buddha and Bodhisattva couldn't help her, or because her mother had never prayed for her in front of the Bodhisattva? Yu Lang didn't know and didn't want to know.

“Then make a cloak. Among the brocades sent by the Crown Prince, there is a camel-colored one. The color and pattern are both excellent. The fabric used to make your cloak will definitely be outstanding.”

The cloaks and capes worn by officials, especially military officers and guards, were practical. The satin overlay on the leather was mostly dark blue or light blue, and there were very few other accessories to make it easier to mount a horse in winter without being cumbersome.

Yu Lang was handsome, with delicate features that weren't effeminate, so Shen Wanqing couldn't help but want to dress him up nicely. It was a very pleasant thing to carefully dress up someone you wanted to be with, and Shen Wanqing carefully selected a camel-colored brocade satin before finally choosing one; it would be such a waste if she couldn't use it.

"It's so beautiful, so beautiful that Grandma had to come and tell Grandpa this at this time."

Shen Wanqing's tone carried a hint of joy, which made Lord Yu in the study unable to sit still any longer. He suddenly got up, opened the door, and stood at the door looking at Shen Wanqing with a mixture of helplessness and reproach. All his sadness and distress had been ruined by her.

"Grandpa has a great figure. He looks slim in clothes but muscular when he takes them off. This color won't make you look shorter or bulky. When you wear it, you'll definitely stand out in a crowd."

"What do you mean by 'tucked-out clothes reveal flesh'? You can't just say that. Be careful the maids in the courtyard don't hear you and laugh at us behind our backs."

Yu Lang had never heard such nonsense before, so he quickly pulled Shen Wanqing into the study. Only after pulling her in did he realize that the room was dark, and apart from the dim moonlight shining through the paper windows, the atmosphere between the two was indescribably ambiguous.

"Does the old man think they don't laugh at him behind his back?" Shen Wanqing rolled her eyes at Yu Lang, annoyed. The two of them were inexplicably compatible and competitive in that matter, always insisting on arguing over who was better on that small bed.

Several times when Chunqian came in to make the bed in the morning, she hesitated to speak. If it weren't for Shen Wanqing's genuinely satisfied and happy appearance every time, Chunqian would have suspected that the two of them were fighting behind their backs.

"Why doesn't Grandma comfort me? I'm already like this."

"What do you mean? I only saw the old man's swagger."

Shen Wanqing's arm draped loosely over Yu Lang's waist, her palm pressed tightly against the fabric, gently caressing her husband's lean and upright waist. She was very satisfied with Yu Lang's performance today, and only now was she willing to come over and coax him like a puppy.

"I've had my moment of glory. Tomorrow, everyone in the family will be saying that you, the eldest mistress, are not virtuous and kind. Instead of advising me, the eldest uncle, to be filial to my mother, you're even trying to incite me, the eldest uncle, to act recklessly with my mother."

When Yulang returned, he was so angry that he lost his mind. Now, after spending so much time alone in the study, he has regained his senses and realized that he did not handle the matter well.

He spends less time at home than Shen Wanqing does, giving the mother-in-law an inherent advantage over her daughter-in-law. If his mother really makes things difficult for Jiyun when he's not around, what can Yulang do besides get angry and upset afterwards?

"You're really not smart, aren't you? I'm a daughter-in-law, but isn't my mother a daughter-in-law too? With the old lady at home keeping things in check, what are you afraid of?"

The second wife is still unsure whether she'll leave the capital with the second master. Even if she doesn't, we can't count on her for household affairs. The mistress is also busy with Buddhist rituals and doesn't have time for anything else. I, the eldest mistress, am currently the only hardworking person in the household; even the old lady has to coax me to do the chores.”

"I've never seen anyone so happy to know they're a hard-working ox. Grandma says I'm stupid, but I don't think you're that smart either."

The couple said nothing of substance, and Shen Wanqing, who claimed to be there to comfort them, didn't say a single thing like "Don't be sad."

How could I not be sad? But saying it out loud would only annoy people. It's better to just let it go. If I don't think about it tonight, I won't be sad tonight. I can feel sad again whenever I think about it next time. It's not a big deal.

The two dim-witted people stayed in the dark study for almost half an hour before coming out. When they came out, there was only an old woman and a maid sitting at the gatehouse in the courtyard. The old woman was dozing off and the maid was eating dried fruit to stay awake. It seemed that the two of them were on night watch.

Hearing the door open, Qing Shuang came out from the corner room next to the side room. She was still worried about her master not having eaten dinner and was thinking of going to the tea room to light the stove and heat up some food.

"I'm not hungry, you can go back inside." Yu Lang was so agitated by Shen Wanqing's seemingly unintentional actions that he had no time to eat. He just made up a few words and pulled Shen Wanqing into the house.

After watching the two close the door, Qing Shuang stood at the door for a while and heard some rustling noises coming from the side room. Only then did she go out to the kitchen with satisfaction to tell them to leave hot water on the stove. She then went back to the tea room to heat up the crab roe buns and eight-treasure porridge that she had specially reserved for Yu Lang that evening.

Since the eldest mistress entered the household, the maids in the east courtyard have quickly adapted to serving two masters. They all feel that life is better now than when the east courtyard only had the eldest master as its master, so they are naturally more diligent and attentive in their work.

The gifts from Yuqing Palace were delivered to Hesheli's house the day before yesterday. Yulang returned from the palace yesterday, and today the matchmaker came to the door. She arrived very early in the morning, and when she did, Shen Wanqing was still lying in bed without moving.

Last night, they were halfway through their business when it started raining outside. The two in bed, still locked in their passion, neither willing to give in. Sweating profusely, they clung to each other, their breath steaming hot until their sweat cooled completely. Only then did Yu Lang reluctantly lift Shen Wanqing up to wash up.

Being unable to return to the palace for five consecutive days had a huge impact on Yu Lang. When he couldn't eat, he missed it terribly, and when he finally had some, he couldn't get enough. If it weren't for the fact that he had to be so careful about his reputation while serving the Crown Prince, he really couldn't have endured this back-and-forth torment.

Shen Wanqing was unaware of his ulterior motives and thought he was deliberately trying to challenge her. But could she indulge him? She was determined to hold on tight until Yu Lang told her to stop; let him keep going if he dared!

I sat on the tail end and got a little chilly for a while. In the morning, I felt my nose was stuffy and I had caught a cold.

"Have them heat up the kang (heated brick bed) this afternoon, and we'll sleep on the kang in the second room tonight after the dampness has dissipated."

"Then I won't go out for the next few days. I'll make pear syrup."

From the day she woke up in the bridal sedan chair until this morning, Shen Wanqing had been in this world for almost a month. In just over thirty days, she could hardly remember the days when she was constantly on construction sites and working on various projects, braving wind and rain.

Similarly, the memories and habits that originally belonged to the original owner gradually merged with Shen Wanqing. Some little gestures and quirks that she had to consciously remember before now seemed to be hers from birth. Now, when she heard Yu Lang say that he wanted to heat the kang (a traditional heated bed), she felt a slight pain in her cheek.

“Grandma’s temper is a bit too strong, so we need to make more pear syrup. I’ll serve it to her when the time comes.”

"Pah, what nonsense are you spouting in broad daylight? If someone hears you, you'll be sleeping in the study tonight."

Shen Wanqing stuck a foot out from under the covers and kicked Yu Lang, who was sitting on the edge of the bed, in the lower back. Shen Wanqing didn't hold back, but Yu Lang had guessed his mistress's move and had already secretly steadied his lower body and tensed his back. Not only did Shen Wanqing not kick him off the bed, but her foot felt like she was kicking a hard iron plate, making her toes hurt.

"Go away, all you do is act like a scoundrel in bed. If you're so capable, go act like one outside."

Shen Wanqing had already told Yulang about what had happened during her inspection of the fields and land over the past few days. She used to think that the second wife was just greedy for money, but now she realized that her supposed competence and shrewdness were just for show.

The stewards on the estates couldn't control the situation, and the shops in the city were left to gather dust for the meager profits from the Huamei family. The estates and forest farms in the public area were all occupied by the Hesheli clan, and the Zuo Ling family had no say whatsoever except for the small amount of silver they received each year.

This is because Emperor Kangxi is currently managing the Eight Banners relatively strictly, and they dare not challenge Yulang's status and position as a Zuo Ling (military commander). If they had been unlucky and arrived thirty or fifty years later, it would be even more uncertain how much silver Yulang, as a Zuo Ling, would receive from the public coffers each year.

"Don't worry, if Grandma had gone to inspect the fields two days later, their attitude would definitely not have been like this."

"That's right. If the master had gained the Crown Prince's favor earlier, I probably wouldn't have gotten the position of the eldest mistress."

"Tsk, why are you so stingy?"

Yu Lang, of course, heard Shen Wanqing's sarcastic tone. "It's just that I left some crab roe buns for Grandma last night. Why are you still holding a grudge?"

“I only ate three tonight, and I left you more than a basketful. When it was my turn to say I wanted to eat one more, look at how stingy you are. I only ate one and a half in total.”

After taking a shower in the middle of the night, the two were starving, and the steamed buns and eight-treasure porridge that Qing Shuang brought were devoured by them. Shen Wanqing asked Yu Lang to leave her an extra steamed bun, but he just nodded for a long time without leaving any, and then shamelessly took the half that was in her hand as well.

"I didn't hear that. I'm starving. Don't even mention leaving me steamed buns; you couldn't leave me gold either."

At seventeen or eighteen years old, one should be able to eat and sleep well. Last year, when Yulang went on a campaign with the army, he led a group of people as scouts to investigate the enemy's movements in advance. Once outside, he couldn't even light an open fire, and he couldn't eat anything except the hard cakes he carried with him that were hard enough to be used as pebbles.

After returning to camp, when they were able to eat, Yulang ate a whole pot of noodles by himself. He stood by the pot and waited. The cook would scoop out a bowl, and he would eat it, his eyes fixed on the noodles in the pot. He finished his bowl, but the noodles in the pot were still not cooked.

The two lingered in the side room for quite a while, not coming out because of a steamed bun. The maid who came from the main courtyard waited and waited, and had no choice but to ask again, with a forced smile, when Madam Biyun would get up.

Biyun was unwilling to go in at this time and spoil her mistress's mood, but she had just offended the First Madam yesterday, and she couldn't afford to offend the Old Madam again. Reluctantly, she turned and went into the room, standing outside the side room and gently knocking on the door: "First Madam, the Old Madam invites you to come over."

————————!!————————

Happy Mid-Autumn Festival everyone!

Mid-Autumn Festival red envelopes will be dropping in the comments section of this chapter! [Dog head carrying a rose][Dog head carrying a rose][Dog head carrying a rose]