Chapter Summaries

Xu Weibei tried to care for Gu Wanning and told her he had accepted his regrets, but he was still preparing to confess something he had kept from her. The chapter left him thinking about Linglong as he struggled to find a way to come clean.

• Xu Weibei changed the subject when Gu Wanning resisted their marriage and eagerly took her to buy food.
• When Gu Wanning got a splinter, Xu Weibei panicked and explained that his father had died after a minor injury worsened.
• Xu Weibei told Gu Wanning he had stopped dwelling on his losses and wanted to value the good things in his life with her.
• Gu Wanning reassured Xu Weibei that she did not mind his defect and had little interest in physical intimacy.
• Xu Weibei said he had something important to confess, then thought of Linglong as Gu Wanning teased him about keeping mistresses.

Gu Wanning learned that Xu Weibei was wealthy and owned Baoji, then told him she would not marry him or live at the Marquis’s Residence. She left their relationship on the condition that he come to her, while refusing to submit to his grandmother’s authority.

• Xu Weibei explained that he paid three thousand taels a year to help raise Jiaoniang and that Baoji belonged to him.
• Gu Wanning was shocked by Xu Weibei’s wealth, but accepted the revelation and learned that most of Baoji’s profits went to the state treasury and the emperor.
• Xu Weibei told Gu Wanning that Fifty Thousand Taels had been worth its price and that he had bought her to please her.
• Xu Weibei enjoyed the meal Gu Wanning prepared and said it made him feel as if he had come home to his wife.
• Gu Wanning told Xu Weibei she would not marry him or return to the Marquis’s Residence, and said she could not be expected to defer to his grandmother.

Gu Wanning refused to marry Xu Weibei, explaining that she wanted to keep her independent life and avoid the burdens of his family. Xu Weibei agreed not to force her and stayed with her that night as they shared a bed for the first time.

• Gu Wanning told Xu Weibei she would not marry him and said he could take a wife or concubine if he disagreed with her terms.
• Xu Weibei promised not to force her to marry and agreed to keep his grandmother from bullying her.
• Gu Wanning took Xu Weibei's hand, and they embraced as he promised to support her and let her live freely.
• Gu Wanning asked Xu Weibei to stay the night and gave him new clothes she had made for him.
• Xu Weibei bathed using Gu Wanning's things, and the two shared a bed for the first time.

Xu Weibei worried that his grandmother would target Gu Wanning whenever he was away, and he resolved to take Gu Wanning with him wherever he went if she agreed. The chapter ended with him thinking through their future after their awkward first night together.

• Gu Wanning and Xu Weibei shared an awkward night in bed, trying different sleeping positions before Xu Weibei drew her into his arms.
• Xu Weibei stayed awake, remembering how his grandmother had controlled his life and harmed people and animals he cared about under the guise of love.
• Xu Weibei feared his grandmother would make life difficult for Gu Wanning whenever he was absent.
• Xu Weibei decided that, if Gu Wanning was willing, he would take her with him wherever he went.

After their wedding night, Gu Wanning and Xu Weibei discussed his busy day and her new responsibility overseeing his shops. Xu Weibei left to attend to court and business matters, while Gu Wanning looked forward to ordering seeds from the overseas ships.

• Xu Weibei lay awake all night worrying about his future with Gu Wanning, raising children, and whether he could lead troops again.
• Gu Wanning woke beside Xu Weibei and tried to touch his eyelashes, but he opened his eyes before she could.
• Xu Weibei told Gu Wanning he would visit the Grand Princess, thank the emperor, and handle matters at the Ministry of Revenue.
• Xu Weibei asked Gu Wanning to review the shops' accounts and said he would leave their management to her.
• Xu Weibei offered to have the ships bring any seeds Gu Wanning wanted, and she happily agreed to look into it.

Gu Wanning and Third Concubine discussed Second Concubine’s preparations for her brother’s wedding and the risk that generous gifts could provoke jealousy in the bride’s family. Xu Weibei returned late after meeting Southern Border envoys with the emperor, and Gu Wanning wondered whether war was coming.

• Gu Wanning told Third Concubine that Xu Weibei had promised to deal with the Grand Princess, though both women knew she would remain an obstacle.
• Gu Wanning and Third Concubine discussed Second Concubine’s lavish wedding preparations and worried that the gifts might stir resentment among the vice minister’s daughters.
• Third Concubine said she had warned Second Concubine to be cautious, and Gu Wanning decided to speak with her too.
• Xu Weibei returned late, explained that the emperor had kept him for a meal and to meet Southern Border envoys, then ate chive dumplings beside Gu Wanning and a dog.
• Gu Wanning remembered that Physician Bian’s home was near the Southern Border and asked Xu Weibei whether war was coming.

Xu Weibei and Gu Wanning discussed his diplomatic mission to the Southern Border, her family, and the people she had helped that day. Xu Weibei decided not to accompany her to Rongrong’s wedding after Gu Wanning admitted she would be jealous, and he told her he had informed his grandmother about their relationship.

• Xu Weibei told Gu Wanning that he had gone to the Southern Border with the emperor and Gu Yuanshi, and she urged him not to hold back his opinions for her sake.
• Gu Wanning described her visits and errands, including helping pregnant Jinxiu, whose husband Qin Lie had asked Hua Ying whether the baby could be aborted.
• Gu Wanning said she planned to attend Rongrong’s wedding, but Xu Weibei agreed not to go after she said she would be jealous.
• Xu Weibei told Gu Wanning that he had informed his grandmother about their relationship, and Gu Wanning said she rarely encountered her.

Gu Wanning visited Baoji and admired an ornate mirror, where a young man from the Southern Border delegation provoked her by insulting her relationship with Xu Weibei. She answered him with contempt, and the confrontation was left unresolved.

• Gu Wanning went to Baoji to look over its account books but could not understand them.
• Gu Wanning admired an expensive patterned mirror, then decided not to buy it.
• A young man surrounded by oddly dressed companions entered Baoji and appeared to flirt with Gu Wanning.
• The young man blocked Gu Wanning’s path and mocked her for supposedly abandoning the Marquis of Yingchuan while keeping him under her spell.
• Gu Wanning called the man noisy and told him he was not worth getting angry over.

Gu Wanning suspected that Xu Weibei’s condition might have been caused by someone harming him, but she and Third Concubine agreed to wait for Physician Bian before investigating further. After Gu Wanning confronted the Southern Border princess disguised as a man, Xu Weibei arrived to check on her and admitted he had beaten the delegation in her defense.

• Gu Wanning exposed the disguised Southern Border princess as a woman and learned that she considered Gu Wanning a rival for Xu Weibei’s affection.
• Gu Wanning told Third Concubine that Xu Weibei’s masculine build and voice seemed inconsistent with his supposed lifelong condition, and wondered whether someone had harmed him.
• Third Concubine said she had also considered the possibility but could not explain Xu Weibei’s condition, so they decided to wait for Physician Bian and keep the matter from Xu Weibei.
• Xu Weibei hurried to Third Concubine’s clinic to make sure Gu Wanning was safe after hearing about her clash at the general goods shop.
• Xu Weibei said he had beaten the Southern Border delegation, including its princess, to vent Gu Wanning’s anger.

Xu Weibei retaliated against the Southern Border delegation for provoking Gu Wanning, then the emperor settled the dispute with a private scolding and a salary deduction. Xu Weibei explained the Southern Border’s customs, but Yiling returned to confront Gu Wanning about the beating.

• Xu Weibei beat the Southern Border delegation’s men over their personal grudge against Gu Wanning and went to the palace to seek the emperor’s forgiveness.
• Gu Wanning offered to have her eldest brother plead for Xu Weibei and later welcomed him back with a hot meal.
• The emperor called the incident a misunderstanding, privately scolded Xu Weibei, and docked him three years’ salary.
• Xu Weibei told Gu Wanning that women in the Southern Border could inherit the throne and warned her to stay away from Yiling.
• Yiling came alone to see Gu Wanning, pointed to the lump on her forehead, and accused the Central Plains people of being barbaric.

Princess Yiling visited Gu Wanning to complain that Xu Weibei had kicked her, then asked Gu Wanning to keep him tied to her so Yiling would not have to marry him. Yiling offered Gu Wanning a gift of thanks and opened her pouch, leaving Gu Wanning watching warily.

• Yiling told Gu Wanning that Xu Weibei had kicked her into a wall and injured her head.
• Yiling pried into Gu Wanning and Xu Weibei’s relationship, and Gu Wanning said their feelings were mutual and he stood up for her.
• Yiling revealed that her father wanted her to marry Xu Weibei, and she was relieved that Gu Wanning was with him.
• Yiling asked Gu Wanning to keep Xu Weibei tied to her and offered her a gift of thanks.
• Yiling opened the pouch herself while Gu Wanning watched warily for a possible poisonous insect.

Yiling gave Gu Wanning two rare pearls and asked her to keep Xu Weibei from marrying her, explaining that her father still favored the match despite her objections. Xu Weibei confirmed the pearls were genuine merfolk’s tears, though he thought merfolk themselves were probably only a legend.

• Yiling showed Gu Wanning two pearls and claimed they were merfolk’s tears.
• Yiling explained that she had merfolk blood through a distant ancestor and offered Gu Wanning the pearls in exchange for keeping Xu Weibei from marrying her.
• Yiling said her father still wanted her to marry Xu Weibei, despite her mother’s efforts to delay the proposal.
• Yiling left the pearls with Gu Wanning, who did not touch them and later told Xu Weibei what had happened.
• Xu Weibei said he had never heard of the marriage proposal and confirmed that the pearls were genuine merfolk’s tears.
• Xu Weibei told Gu Wanning that merfolk were only a legend and that the story might have been invented by pearl divers to raise prices.

Gu Wanning learned that Yiling’s claim to merfolk ancestry might be fabricated, then helped Second Concubine prepare for her brother’s wedding. As the women reviewed the seating arrangements, they discovered that the bride’s maternal aunt came from a family that sold sesame oil.

• Xu Weibei told Gu Wanning that Yiling might be inventing her merfolk ancestry to raise her standing, and Gu Wanning agreed to keep the pearls for now and wait to see what Yiling wanted.
• Gu Wanning asked Xu Weibei about Rongrong’s plan to buy an official post, and he explained that the practice was no longer allowed.
• Gu Wanning warned Second Concubine that buying a sinecure could get her swindled, and Second Concubine thanked her despite looking disappointed.
• Second Concubine asked Gu Wanning and Third Concubine to help review the wedding seating, especially for the bride’s accompanying relatives.
• Third Concubine and Gu Wanning learned that Miss Shi’s maternal aunt would attend and that her family sold sesame oil, though Miss Shi had insisted she not be slighted.

Gu Wanning and Third Concubine helped Second Concubine prepare for her younger brother Jin Huayu’s wedding, but Second Concubine became troubled when Shi Xin asked for costly gifts for her mother and Jin Huayu readily agreed. The chapter left Second Concubine and her sisters weighing whether Shi Xin’s demands threatened the marriage.

• Second Concubine arranged for Shi Xin to meet Jin Huayu at the Painting Spring Pavilion while keeping their private correspondence discreet.
• Second Concubine told Gu Wanning and Third Concubine that Shi Xin and Jin Huayu had exchanged letters and seemed pleased with each other.
• Third Concubine voiced suspicion about how openly Shi Xin’s maid announced the visit, though Gu Wanning thought the household maid might have made a mistake.
• Second Concubine reported that Shi Xin wanted clothes and jewelry worth two or three thousand taels for her mother, despite already receiving generous gifts.
• Third Concubine asked whether Shi Xin or her mother had made the request, and Second Concubine confirmed it was Shi Xin.
• Shi Xin’s maid replied that Shi Xin wanted an even more expensive gift for her own mother, worth three or four thousand taels, since her legitimate mother could not be ranked below her.

Second Concubine struggled to accept her brother Jin Huayu’s costly marriage arrangements with the Shi family, while Gu Wanning and Third Concubine worried that the match would leave Jin Rongrong sidelined. The chapter ended with Xu Weibei advising Gu Wanning to stay out of the family’s trouble.

• The Shi family’s maid demanded several thousand taels for wedding purchases, and Jin Huayu urged Second Concubine to take silver from the accounts.
• Second Concubine excused her brother’s behavior and convinced herself that the Shi family’s young lady was not ungrateful.
• Gu Wanning and Third Concubine agreed that the marriage seemed ill-advised and decided not to visit Jin Rongrong again before the wedding.
• Third Concubine warned that the Shi family’s young lady might soon interfere in the shops, while Gu Wanning thought Jin Rongrong would not abandon her brother.
• Gu Wanning told Xu Weibei what had happened, and he advised her to avoid getting involved while reassuring her that Jin Rongrong could protect herself.

Gu Wanning and Xu Weibei shared a tender evening before Gu Wanning attended Jin Huayu’s wedding with Third Concubine. The wedding procession arrived amid a dispute, as Concubine Yu’s sister-in-law demanded money before the bride could leave her sedan chair.

• Xu Weibei told Gu Wanning about his day but kept his grandmother’s visit and Zhou Jingyuan’s message about returning with Physician Bian to himself.
• Gu Wanning fell asleep in Xu Weibei’s arms as he looked forward to spending each night beside her.
• Gu Wanning and Third Concubine attended Jin Huayu’s wedding, where they heard Er Ya had been kept home to strip corn.
• Third Concubine spotted someone who might have been Jin Rongrong wiping away tears.
• When the bride arrived, Third Concubine told Gu Wanning that Concubine Yu’s sister-in-law was making a scene and demanding money for the bride to leave the sedan chair.

Gu Wanning and Third Concubine intervened when the bride’s aunt demanded six thousand taels from Second Concubine on the wedding day. Second Concubine ended the marriage, forfeiting the betrothal gifts and jewelry rather than letting the Shi family’s relatives exploit her.

• Gu Wanning learned that the bride’s aunt had rejected one thousand taels and demanded six thousand, while Jin Huayu urged Second Concubine to pay.
• Gu Wanning suggested that Second Concubine write an IOU and deliver it to Madam Shi, but the aunt continued to accuse the Jin family of slighting her niece.
• Gu Wanning and Third Concubine challenged the aunt’s authority and accused her of making improper demands on the Shi family’s behalf.
• The aunt threatened to cancel the wedding, and Second Concubine told her to take the bride away.
• Second Concubine gave up the twenty thousand taels in betrothal gifts and the jewelry she had sent, then invited the guests inside for the prepared feast.

Yiling joined Gu Wanning at the wedding and mocked the bride’s family for demanding a large payment, while Jin Huayu defended the bride and the wedding descended into a public quarrel. The aunt cursed Second Concubine over accusations of withholding family property, and Second Concubine insisted she would leave her inheritance to her younger brother.

• Yiling arrived at the wedding, joked about marrying Jin Huayu, and followed Gu Wanning inside for the feast.
• The bride’s aunt demanded payment for letting the bride leave the sedan chair, but Second Concubine wanted to end the engagement and leave.
• The bride spoke from inside the sedan chair, claiming she did not want the payment and defending her aunt’s actions.
• Yiling pointed out that the bride had stayed silent during the argument, and Jin Huayu pleaded with Second Concubine not to break off the engagement.
• The aunt threw a tantrum and cursed Gu Wanning and Second Concubine, accusing the latter of keeping the family property for herself.
• Second Concubine angrily denied the accusation and said she would leave all of her parents’ property to her younger brother.

Gu Wanning comforted Second Concubine after Jin Huayu chose to proceed with his wedding without defending his sister from humiliation. She urged Second Concubine to start making plans for herself, then helped her prepare to return to the wedding feast.

• Second Concubine told Jin Huayu to decide for himself, and he pleaded with her to let the wedding proceed before the auspicious hour passed.
• Second Concubine asked Gu Wanning to accompany her inside, while Yiling wanted to stay and watch the wedding; Gu Wanning persuaded Yiling to remain with Third Concubine.
• Once alone, Second Concubine broke down in tears and told Gu Wanning she felt foolish after years of working for her family.
• Gu Wanning urged Second Concubine to pity herself and begin making plans for her own future, reassuring her that her parents would care about her suffering too.
• After Second Concubine had cried and washed her face, Gu Wanning combed her hair and prepared to take her back to the wedding feast.

At a wedding banquet, Gu Wanning ignored a woman who insulted her and called for the Marquis to come get her. The Marquis arrived, and Gu Wanning left with Yiling after exchanging good wishes with Second Concubine.

• Second Concubine arranged a separate table for Gu Wanning and Yiling, then planned to make the Shi family reclaim the silver their aunt by marriage had taken.
• The aunt by marriage mocked Gu Wanning for being a cast-off wife, but Gu Wanning ignored her and told Third Concubine to ask the Marquis to pick her up.
• Yiling praised Xu Weibei as a useful name to invoke, and Gu Wanning retorted when the aunt by marriage resumed insulting her.
• Third Concubine announced that the Marquis had arrived, and Gu Wanning prepared to leave with Yiling.
• Gu Wanning congratulated Second Concubine and invited Yiling to her residence.