Song Jiyun asked the maid on night duty, "Isn’t the door outside properly closed?"
But Xiang Zhan walked in wearing her clothes with a beaming smile, holding a delicately woven bamboo basket in her hand, from which the fragrance of magnolia blossoms wafted through the inner chamber on the breeze.
"Miss, the young master has come over," she handed the small flower basket to Song Jiyun. Under the lamplight, the white magnolia flowers shone brightly like beautiful jade, "He knew you had lain down to rest and asked me to place this by your bedside, saying it could calm the spirit. Tomorrow morning, when you open your eyes, you can also enjoy the flowers."
Song Jiyun was very surprised.
Previously, Yuan Yunzhong said he might not be able to come back in the evening and even sent a toy to her.
"Where is the young master?" she asked, "Is the rain outside very heavy? Didn’t you have the sedan hall send a shoulder sedan over? Did you instruct the kitchen to make a bowl of ginger soup for the young master?"
Xiang Zhan helped Song Jiyun put on a garment and said with a smile, "All has been taken care of. But the young master said he came just to have a look at you and then he would leave."
Song Jiyun didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
In the middle of the night, knowing she had gone to sleep, and with such heavy rain, why did he make this trip?
Xiang Zhan said with a laugh, "The young master is thinking of you!"
She covered her mouth and chuckled.
Seeing such affection between the young master and miss made them all happy.
Worried that Yuan Yunzhong might have gotten drenched, Song Jiyun sent someone to check on him at Yinyu Hall.
In just that short while, Yuan Yunzhong sent a note over, asking what she had for dinner? Whether there was anything special she wanted to eat for tomorrow’s mountain hike? Xu Guangzeng had given him two chefs, one skilled in Huaiyang Cuisine and the other in Shandong Cuisine; they could take both chefs with them.
Song Jiyun yawned and said, "Either is fine."
The messenger went to reply.
Song Jiyun lay down, and just as she closed her eyes, the messenger came back, asking through the window to Xiang Zhan, "Our young master is asking whether the Madam likes to read travel accounts? So he can select some books to bring tomorrow."
Song Jiyun, exhausted, muttered "whatever" and promptly fell asleep.
Later, she vaguely heard someone talking, but she couldn’t open her eyes and turned over to fall back into deep sleep.
The next day, she asked Xiang Zhan, "Did that messenger come back again later?"
Xiang Zhan said with a smile, "Seeing you were asleep, he didn’t come over anymore. He delivered two boxes of calming incense on behalf of the young master, saying they were made by the young master himself, and this season is the best time to use them."
She hadn’t expected Yuan Yunzhong to be capable of such a task.
When they met in the sedan hall, she asked Yuan Yunzhong, "You actually know how to make calming incense?"
With a smile, Yuan Yunzhong gazed at her attentively, and it was as if she could see her own reflection in his clear eyes, "My maternal grandfather liked quirky things. I grew up by his side, so being exposed to all sorts of crafts, I picked up a few little skills."
Song Jiyun finally understood; his so-called ’little skills’ were likely a humble brag. Like painting, he had also said it was merely something he did in passing.
For their mountain climbing journey, they took along more than thirty people.
Wang Hua led the way, most of whom she did not recognize.
Yuan Yunzhong said, "A clan sister of mine married into Shangrao. Hearing that I was in this area and fearing that I might not have people I am accustomed to, she had her steward bring a few people over."
Song Jiyun saw some of them carrying umbrellas, some holding tea sets, and some with stools—none were empty-handed, and she suddenly missed the conveniences of modern life.
Fortunately, these servants all followed at a respectful distance behind them.
Song Jiyun asked Yuan Yunzhong curiously, "Should we thank that clan sister?
"I’ll talk about it when I return to the capital," he said, "Her husband’s ancestral home is Shangrao, but she herself has never actually been to Shangrao. It was also my brother-in-law’s clan members who sent her over." He continued, "Even if we were to express thanks, that would be Wang Hua’s responsibility. You just focus on your own tasks, and I’ll let Wang Hua handle these social courtesies."
That was all right with her.
Song Jiyun didn’t take on those tasks.
For one, she and Yuan Yunzhong weren’t yet married; for another, who wouldn’t want to be lazy if they could?
But the fact that he could think this way made her feel very appropriate, and she was in quite a good mood.
Yuan Yunzhong, perhaps sensing this, was even more enthusiastic, and he pointed out to her along the way, "Over there is a small path, said to have been created for transporting timber during the construction of the Nameless Temple. There’s a cave halfway up the mountain with a stream running through it. Some people who go into the mountains to gather firewood or hunt make their stay in that cave. I don’t know who left a set of cooking implements there, and there’s a pile of firewood about half a person’s height. You take what you need, but you must replace after using it."
"That valley is right behind the cave."
"If we walk from here, we should arrive in about one Shichen Chinese Time."
Trees thick enough to require several people to encircle them shaded them from the sun, and it was the end of spring, with wildflowers in full bloom of bright reds and purples, and occasionally, small birds would flit between the trees, making the air incredibly fresh.
As long as she wasn’t in direct sunlight, Song Jiyun did enjoy such outdoor activities.
The two of them talked as they walked.
"How did you find this valley later on?"
Yuan Yunzhong didn’t know the way.
"I told Shao Qing about it, and let Shao Qing go find it," he said. "I also saw a mulberry forest before, full of ripe mulberries. I didn’t find a place to wash the berries, so I didn’t eat any. But I think they must be really sweet. If you want to have a look, I can ask Shao Qing to find out where it is."
When Song Jiyun thought of Shao Qing’s helpless face from the past few days, she couldn’t help but chuckle and said, "Sure! You like sweets, right? I can make mulberry jam."
Yuan Yunzhong was very interested and hesitated, "Would you like to learn to ride horses?"
Song Jiyun was puzzled.
Yuan Yunzhong said, "My maternal grandfather has a horse farm on the outskirts of the capital, raising several fine horses. I sometimes go there to ride. If you’d like, you can come with me. If not, that’s fine as well."
Song Jiyun pondered the matter.
Horse riding must be an activity he truly enjoyed.
He was likely trying to gauge her level of acceptance.
Song Jiyun smiled and said, "Sure! I can ride horses, so let’s go together."
She would just keep Yuan Yunzhong company.
She also took the opportunity to ask, "Can you swim? I envy others when I see them swim, and I want to learn."
Yuan Yunzhong was a bit surprised, but didn’t say anything. Instead, he seriously considered it for a while and said, "Then we’ll need to buy a larger residence, otherwise the lake will be too small and not very good for swimming. I need to have Brother Jiang inquire about it," he said, shaking his head, "Hmm, he probably doesn’t know, better to ask Deng Chen, the Inspection Division deals with all sorts, they have the most informed news."
He accepted her uniqueness very calmly and even thought of a solution.
Song Jiyun looked at Yuan Yunzhong with eyes full of tenderness and softly said, "Let me handle this. I just need you to be willing to teach me."
Yuan Yunzhong nodded, just as he was about to say something, she saw Shao Qing running towards them and saying, "Young Master, Boss Song, Lord Wang is here, he said he has an urgent matter to discuss with you."
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