Chapter 22. Inseparable.

Holding a handful of gold and silver, Ran Dian was troubled by another problem: "Now that we have so much money, what should we do with it?"

Money that comes too easily seems to be taken for granted. Yan Dian said, "Let's buy lots of fine fabrics and make lots of beautiful clothes. And my knife, it's almost rusted, and I can't sharpen it. Can I ask for a piece of fine iron? Or maybe I should just buy a new one, it'll be much easier to use."

Shimi was very generous and said yes, "There are also leather, wood, glue, lacquer and bronze mirrors... We are lacking many materials and need to replenish them quickly."

Ali Dao asked, "Does the puppet master plan to make many puppets? Last time he said things were getting tense and he had to temporarily stop working."

Shimi hummed in agreement. “Things are different now. I think we should stock up on some materials for emergencies. But it’s not as convenient for us to buy things now as it was in Lirenfang. We have to transport them in discreetly.”

Ali Dao patted his chest and said, "Leave it to me. I'll go buy it; the shops won't deliver it, I'll carry it back myself."

That's true, there's always a way. If all else fails, we can still use that mansion in Liren Lane. Just change the plaque of the Lu residence to "Grand Tutor's Wife's Residence," and that will be foolproof.

After discussing it for a while, the four of them felt that the future looked bright. Ran Dian's gaze was drawn to Shi Mi's hair bun. After studying it for a long time, she said, "It looks very complicated. Let me learn it. Once I've learned it, I'll comb A Mi's hair."

Shi Mi smiled and agreed, then changed out of the bulky formal dress and handed it to Yan Dian.

Yan Dian folded the clothes meticulously, muttering as she did so, "Madam Jie should have returned to Nightless City by now."

Because they were in a hurry and Madam Jie's health hadn't fully recovered, making it unsuitable for her to be carried on their shoulders any longer, they had prepared a carriage in advance and hired someone to take her back to the Never-Sleeping City. She had complete control over that brothel; even if she was lying down, no one should dare to make things difficult for her.

"Before, if I wanted to go to Nevernight City, I would be questioned about my origins and asked for my name card when I entered the city. Now that I have acquaintances, I can come and go without any hindrance." Shimi said happily, "It's good to have acquaintances. Now it's Jiuzhang Prefecture and Nevernight City. In the future, there will also be Xuecheng, Laoyin Pass, and Baiyujing."

So the problem Lu Min feared would one day come true. He wanted to prevent it, but she desperately wanted it to happen. The couple had conflicting opinions; what could they do?

Her eyes crinkled with laughter, a kind of childish satisfaction after a mischievous act. The thought of his indignant yet helpless face filled her with joy.

Just then, the cook brought her breakfast, several food boxes filled with exquisite soups, porridges, and snacks.

The steward laid out the food one by one, then glanced at the three women standing to the side. They were somewhat unsure about the new lady and her attendants, but they still put on smiles and whispered, "The kitchen is not far from here, and there is a special dining hall for the servants and stewards to eat in. The three of you can go there. From dawn to dawn every day, cakes and pastries are steamed on the stove, so you can take them whenever you want."

Ali Dao and Ran Dian Yan Dian were not good at handling this kind of conversation. After listening to Nei Zan's introduction, they looked at Shi Mi with some confusion.

Shi Mi then replied, "They are used to the food from their hometown and are not used to the taste of Zhongdu. They will not go to the kitchen for meals. Let them figure it out themselves. Just send me my meals as usual every day. If the lord wants to eat here, he will inform the kitchen in advance."

The steward agreed, served the queen her meal, quickly tidied up, and then withdrew.

On the first day of their marriage, aside from receiving a considerable amount of gold and silver, it seemed they had accomplished nothing else. Shimi decided to check the chests and boxes they had brought, make preparations in advance, and get busy once the materials were ready.

Half-finished Yanren cannot be exposed to light, so she led Ran Dian and the others to seal up all the windows. The depth of the room here was just right, and the huge desk seemed to have been tailor-made for her. She raised her hand and swept it over the rosewood tabletop, feeling its warm touch. The tall candlesticks and complete sets of tools were neatly arranged, which was indeed much better than the dark room in Liren Alley.

Very satisfied, she didn't want to leave. She picked up a carving knife and was examining the blade when a eunuch's voice came from the courtyard downstairs, calling out repeatedly, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty..."

Yan Dian went out to answer, standing in front of the railing and asking, "What is it?"

The eunuch said, "The Lord has gone to the council hall to handle official business and does not know when he will return. He has ordered me to convey a message to the Queen that the foundation stone laying ceremony for the east side of the Shinto will be held tomorrow, and the Lord will personally attend. If the Queen wishes, she may accompany the Lord."

Shi Mi, who was sitting in the dark room, heard the eunuch's words clearly, and slowly walked out, bowing his head to ask, "Were all the officials present at the foundation laying ceremony?"

The eunuch said, "The six guards of Zhongdu are ordered to build the city, and they will all be present at the foundation-laying ceremony, regardless of its scale."

Shimi nodded. "I understand."

She understood that Lu Min's intention in letting her meet people wasn't truly to grant her a formal status. Her true motives for marrying him remained unspoken. Rather than playing coy, it was better to give her a chance to reveal her true colors; the Grand Tutor understood this perfectly.

Ran Dian and Yan Dian rubbed their hands together, eager to try. "We'll go together tomorrow and follow Ami's orders."

Shi Mi laughed, "Tomorrow is to meet the Six Guards generals whom we have never had the chance to meet before, not to fight. For now, you heroes will have no place to use your talents."

Those talented generals who once commanded large armies and attacked Qianyu have now been sent here to build the capital. I wonder if they ever clashed with the Yu generals who defended the city back then, and how many of the mass graves outside the city were dug by their own hands.

So she was filled with anticipation for the next day's itinerary. She had long coveted Chong'an City, but due to the large number of generals in the city, it was difficult to defeat them one by one. It was not easy to befriend those above her, so why not lower herself to them? With Lu Min as a springboard, contacting those people would be a piece of cake.

Of course, her husband might be the most troublesome one, so she'll have to be patient and deal with him carefully.

As evening fell, he finished his official business and returned to the detached building. He wasn't surprised that the man was lost. "Sleeping here again tonight?"

He said indifferently, "We'll be sleeping in separate rooms on the second day of our marriage. I'm afraid it will make the Grand Tutor's wife lose face."

That's true. Sleeping separately so soon is no different from being alone in an empty room on your wedding night.

On the long, covered walkway in the distance, guards frequently patrolled back and forth. Shi Mi naturally took his arm and said, "Since that's the case, let's be even more affectionate. After all, it's only natural for newlyweds to be lovey-dovey."

He seemed to acquiesce and did not resist.

Shimi looked up at him and asked, "If you listen to your family and marry a well-educated and virtuous lady from a respectable family, won't your relationship with her be like a gentleman's friendship that's distant and bland? She's reserved, and you're neither warm nor cold. The two of you are like two blocks of ice, never touching each other. Life with her must be bland and tasteless!"

He glanced at her sideways. "Who says you have to be inseparable after marriage? There are many couples in this world who are soulmates. How could you know the joy of finding a kindred spirit in a beautiful mountain stream?"

Hearing this, Shi Mi couldn't help but mock, "I still remember how much pain you were in. You couldn't even play the zither back then, so how could you find a soulmate! As for me, I don't like formalities; I just like being inseparable. When the mood strikes, I'll pester you. Just bear with it, and it will pass."

Her words reminded him of the disgraceful incident that had occurred in the council chamber earlier that day, an incident he still couldn't shake off.

He had already witnessed the intense, inseparable love she spoke of, which made his back ache as if it were broken. The General of the Heavy Cavalry presented the garrison map, but as soon as he unfurled the scroll, it fell to the ground. His first instinct was naturally to pick it up, but as he bent over, he stopped halfway down, unable to get down. He dared not relive that scene; he had never been so humiliated in his life. The crude military officers all wore knowing expressions, tacitly understanding the restriction on his movements.

The Tiger Guard General was the most honest and straightforward. "The Grand Tutor is newly married, he should rest for a couple of days. Look, he's still handling official business while injured..."

It's inevitable that a man will suffer some damage after his wedding night, and they started teasing him about it. He was dignified, and a single glance from him silenced them, but he knew the smirk wouldn't stop; this was what she called being inseparable.

He tried to pull his hand back, but failed.

The woman, determined to defy him, asked, "Do you intend to neglect me after we get married?"

He frowned. "Can't you walk by yourself?"

The more aloof he acted, the more displeased Shimi became with him. He seemed to have chosen to forget all the tenderness that followed his life extension. This was unacceptable; she had to help him remember. So she released her arms, jumped up, and hugged his neck, grinning with her teeth showing, "Let me check if the Grand Tutor's body is still strong."

He couldn't quite handle the weight because of his aching back, and let out a soft "ah," a look of pain appearing between his brows.

Shi Mi was surprised, "Am I really that heavy? Or are you just pretending?"

He struggled to stay upright, took a breath, and said, "I think I twisted my back last night while we shared a bed."

She then realized what had happened and awkwardly fell to the ground. "I never expected the Grand Tutor to be so delicate, twisting his back while sleeping. But we didn't do anything last night, he was perfectly fine, how did you twist your back?"

His face was ashen, the experience in the council chamber was too painful for him to recall. "It was you..." He suddenly realized that his voice was too loud, and he could only try to adjust his emotions. "It was you. Last night you pushed me to the edge of the bed. I used all my strength to keep from falling off. When I woke up this morning, my back was sore and sore, all thanks to that girl."

The truth is embarrassing, and Shi Mi intends to reflect on his actions, but the fact that he injured his back in this way is still unbelievable.

"Then come inside and sit down, take a rest." As she walked, she kept glancing at him, and finally couldn't help but carefully point out the problem, "It seems that you lack strength in your lower back. I don't know if it's because of the body swap or if you're just naturally weak. Fortunately, we treated each other with respect last night. If we had become a real couple... and you ended up like this halfway through, I might laugh at you for the rest of my life."

This was like adding fuel to the fire; he said angrily, "You..."

Shi Mi quickly softened his tone, "Alright, alright, I was just talking nonsense, don't take it seriously. Let's talk about serious matters instead. Will I be able to see the ladies attending the wedding tomorrow? Yesterday was chaotic, and I didn't entertain them properly. If I can see them, I'd like to host a banquet to thank them, which would make up for the regret of not being able to enter the bridal chamber to witness the ceremony."

It's unusual for a young woman who's not very worldly to suddenly start talking about human relationships and social customs; let's just assume she's genuinely trying to make a living.

Lu Min said, "Tomorrow is the foundation-laying ceremony of the Divine Path. All those attending will be officials, and no women will be present except for you. If you need anything, you can send an invitation to a banquet. At the Divine Path site in the east of Fuyao, there is a vegetarian restaurant run by Taoist practitioners. It has all kinds of tea, food and drinks, which should be enough to make you behave properly."

Speaking of Fuyao Dongfang, it had always been a place she longed to visit, but despite its proximity, she could never find the time. Hearing his description, she was quite surprised, "Even cultivators are doing business now?"

He was already used to it. "Those who cultivate the Tao also eat grains and cereals. Why can't they make a living? They not only make a living, but also support their families. They have a wife and two or three concubines at home. Their burden is no lighter than that of wealthy families in the city."

So the world isn't completely in chaos yet. Shi Mi muttered, "I remember that the Former Yu Dynasty had a clear rule that cultivators could not marry, let alone take concubines. How come the Yan Dynasty completely ignored that?"

Lu Min sat down in the armchair. Her previously aching back seemed to have eased somewhat, perhaps due to the pressure of her weight. She calmly retorted, "Are written regulations effective? They can control people, but not their hearts. Even before this law was promulgated after the establishment of the Yan Dynasty, the people of the Taoist temple were already eager to start families." Seeing her blank expression and apparent melancholy, she changed her tone, "There have always been devout Taoists, but they're not in the east of Fuyao. Perhaps they're in the deep mountains, perhaps on the horizon. Consider that place a tourist attraction; I doubt you intend to discuss Taoism with any practitioners. Thank your guests from yesterday, then climb to a high place for a panoramic view—that will make the trip worthwhile."

Shimi sighed, "I'm just angry that these mercenary people are using the guise of Taoist cultivation to make money off tourists' incense and paper money."

He chuckled, "If you want to gain enlightenment, you shouldn't have gone to the East. You've gone to the wrong place, so don't blame others."

He was too easygoing and lacked the art of gentle conversation. She didn't want to pay him any more attention, so she walked away with her hands behind her back.

He didn't mind, sitting alone in the spacious hall. Outside the open, straight-lattice door, the setting sun cascaded like a waterfall. He sat there for a long time, watching the sunlight gradually fade, his heart feeling as if it had sunk to the bottom of the sea.

"What are your plans for bringing back those reward money?" He asked in a soft voice, as if talking to himself, but he knew she could hear him.

Shimi was rather annoyed. "You've changed your mind? You want it back?"

He looked out the door and narrowed his eyes slightly. "Keep it. If there's any need for household expenses in the future, we can draw money from you."

"That won't do." She held the red silk in her hand and gestured at him a couple of times. "Money that has been given away can't be withdrawn again. The more you withdraw, the more chaotic things become, and the accounts become impossible to keep track of. Besides, you have a monthly salary, which is enough to cover household expenses. You are not allowed to covet my money."

Just like that, it all became her money. He looked her up and down, seeing right through her greedy nature. "You keep saying you want to keep things simple, I thought you really just wanted a marriage certificate, but when it comes to gold and silver, you don't hold back at all."

She had her reasons: "I don't want anything before marriage, but after marriage, what's yours is mine. We've already gone through the wedding ceremony, why haven't you figured it out yet?"

These words were absolutely irrefutable, and even the usually eloquent Grand Tutor had no rebuttal this time, so he could only awkwardly touch his nose.

A thousand taels of gold, does it hurt your heart? It's right to feel heartache. For the grace of being given a second chance at life, this price is actually very cheap.

Feeling at ease with his confusion, he took a shovel from the tools he had brought, grabbed the red silk ribbon, and went out.

She had originally planned to look for a crabapple tree, but hadn't found one. However, there was a tallow tree in the yard. Standing under it, she watched as new buds gradually sprouted from the branches as the weather warmed, a sign of vitality and growth. She remembered that her mother had always loved tallow trees, praising their beautiful shape and delicate foliage. It was said that when she was just a month old, she developed many rashes on her head, and it was cured little by little by grinding tallow tree roots into powder and mixing it with realgar.

This is one of the few memories she has of her childhood. No tallow trees grow on Lingyin Mountain; she had searched the entire mountainside without finding one, but unexpectedly, one was planted in Jiuzhang Prefecture. Perhaps it has something to do with her mother!

She stared up at the ground for a long time, almost forgetting that she had come to dig a hole, when she suddenly caught a glimpse of the dark figure moving over and snapped back to reality.

He turned his head and asked her, "What are you doing?"

The astute man counted the leaves, saying, "Look how many have sprouted overnight in the spring breeze." Then he curled his lip in disdain, "Why do you always wear this color of clothing? It's so dark, like a crow."

He looked up at her as well, his tone casual, "This is the official uniform of the three dukes."

Shi Mi choked for a moment, but that didn't stop her from continuing to criticize, "The official uniforms of the three ministers are really ugly."

The young woman's temper flared up inexplicably, but he didn't intend to argue with her. He looked down at the red silk in her hand and remembered that it should contain the jade pendant he had broken the night before.

He was still somewhat annoyed about the broken jade, blaming himself for being careless. Since burying it in the ground with the red silk could ward off disaster, there was no need for her to do anything. He took the shovel himself and began digging, shovel by shovel.

Seeing that he had dug a hole that was both round and deep, Shi Mi asked in surprise, "It's almost a foot deep. Are you planning to bury jade or a person?"

He didn't speak, but gestured for her to put the things in. Shimi carefully placed the wrapped jade fragments at the bottom of the pit. The two of them looked so solemn that if someone suddenly visited, they would probably misunderstand and think that something terrible had happened.

Shi Mi admired his craftsmanship and exclaimed, "You're very good at digging holes."

He replied casually, "I buried a donkey when I was twelve years old."

She suddenly realized, "No wonder this hole has such a tragic backstory."

Unfortunately, he didn't have a difficult past. He calmly said, "Except for being born to a concubine and having my birth mother die young, I'm no worse than anyone else. My father only had two sons, and the eldest son had the advantage. I earned my father's favor through my own abilities. I buried the donkey because it died of illness halfway to the capital for the imperial examination that year. I didn't want it to be left to rot in the wilderness and be eaten by wild animals, so I buried it on the spot, so that it wouldn't have been in vain following me."

Shimi scoffed, "You scholars are so pedantic. I bet you wrote a eulogy for the donkey, 'If you are reborn as a human, come back to me.'"

What things did he do in his youth that weren't laughable? He did write a eulogy for the donkey, but he no longer hoped it would come to him.

"If you really become a human, don't come near me. I won't recognize you. If you accidentally offend me, you'll lose your life."

As he spoke, he gathered up the soil and filled the pit. Shimi couldn't see his face, but she knew he was telling the truth. "One general's success is built on the bones of ten thousand," he said, the number of lives he had taken was countless, a large portion of which came from the Yu Dynasty.

A storm raged within her, but she suppressed it and still joked lightly, "Being born a donkey is not easy anywhere; you're always being whipped. Why not go to a temple and be a monk donkey? You can eat beans and you won't get beaten."

He stood up and lowered his sleeves. "Monk Donkey... is the lady making veiled accusations again?"

Shimi said no, "Monks are compassionate and would not beat or scold livestock."

He sneered, “You won’t get beaten, but you’ll kill the donkey’s spirit. Being a donkey in this life means you committed an unforgivable crime in your past life, so no matter how much suffering you endure, you can’t complain. It’s all karma and retribution.”

She opened her mouth, wanting to refute but finding no words, so she gave up. This person, though cold-hearted, was indeed clear-headed. Sometimes clarity is terrifying; to live and die with clarity allows one to feel the agony of life more acutely than someone living in a daze.

Perhaps the topic was too heavy, for he noticed. Seeing her lost in thought, he gave a faint smile. "I'll start practicing my drinking tonight. I'll be returning to the capital for the Emperor's birthday, and there will inevitably be social drinking sessions. Would you like to have a drink with me, young lady?"

Shimi said, "That's fine, but I'm not a good drinker. If I get drunk, I might try to take advantage of you."

His gaze lingered on her, and she thought he was about to see the light, but after waiting for a long time, she was met with his heartless words, "I have a dragon-binding vine that I haven't used in a long time. If you don't object, you can bind her first, and then we can drink the wine."