Dugu Zixuan seemed to have expected this long ago. The corner of her mouth twitched. There was no need to ask anything; she simply turned and shouted toward the back.
"Wanqing, bring over the restorative soup you prepared."
"Yes, Mother-in-law."
Zhao Wanqing had long since prepared it. She came trotting over with a black porcelain pot in hand, along with four large bowls.
She first poured Lin Heng a bowl, then Jiang Jingyi and Meng Yutong received their shares as well.
"We're drinking it too?" Jiang Jingyi froze for a moment.
"Drink it. It's for strengthening your bodies. You young people really don't know your limits—going at it for seven days, ten days, at the drop of a hat."
"Ma, I'm fine. I'm full of energy right now—I could still plow five mu of vegetable fields." Lin Heng resisted, pushing the bowl aside. No matter what, he did not want to drink it.
Dugu Zixuan looked him up and down, then raised a hand to point at the dark circles around his eyes. "Look how dark it is here. And you call that fine? Eldest son, you can't force yourself."
Lowering her voice, she sat beside him and took his hand, earnestly advising, "There's quite a lot of land at home. You have to plow it slowly, plow it properly—you can't keep plowing without stopping in one breath.
"If you wear your body out, it'll be the entire Inner Court that suffers. You must take good care of yourself. Don't learn from your father, understand?"
"Huh? M-my father?"
Lin Heng jolted. Could there be some story behind this?
Seeing that she had let it slip, Dugu Zixuan hurriedly changed the subject. "No, no, it has nothing to do with your father. Your mother is just worried that there still isn't