Because He Changdi had just returned to the capital, even though the emperor had verbally conferred him the position of a military officer, he hadn't gone through the proper procedures yet. When the time came, he would have to personally appoint and dismiss him during the court conference.

He and the generals of the northern border army had just returned to the capital. After meeting the emperor, they were all given a month's leave. He Sanlang could take advantage of this time to spend time with his long-separated family.

The young couple chatted in the room for a while and ate their morning meal. It was time to pay their respects.

The two first went to Qingyuan Hall, then to Countess Jing 'an's courtyard.

Countess Jing 'an's head was still leaning against the wall and her body was covered with a thick blanket. Perhaps it was because He Changdi had returned safely from the northern border and made a great contribution, but she looked very energetic.

Her originally pale and thin face also had a bit of color.

He Changdi and his wife went to see Doctor Miao. Doctor Miao said that Countess Jing 'an's health was improving. He was already preparing to use the Snow Mountain Mist Flower as a catalyst to cure Countess Jing' an's chronic illness in a few days.

Chu Lian and He Sanlang sat next to Countess Jing 'an.

Countess Jing 'an was holding Chu Lian's hand and chatting.

She said with a smile, "Lian 'er isn't at the estate. I miss your cooking."

Chu Lian smiled. "Mother, what do you want to eat?

As long as it's good for your health, I'll make it and send it over later. "

Previously at Count Jing 'an's estate, whenever Chu Lian made something new in Songtao Court, she would send a portion to each courtyard. Countess Jing' an was probably used to it.

Countess Jing 'an thought for a moment. "The candied orange I ate before was pretty good, but candied oranges are hard to find nowadays. Can hawthorn be made the same way?"

Chu Lian smiled and nodded. "Yes, I can. I'll make it and send it over later."

Countess Jing 'an asked the young couple to chat for a while longer before Chu Lian and He Changdi came out of the inner chambers.

Chu Lian's footsteps paused as soon as they left the reception pavilion.

He Changdi was curious and followed her gaze to the long corridor on the right.

He saw a pregnant woman with a protruding belly walking towards them with the help of two maids.

The pregnant woman didn't look very old. She wore a loose crabapple colored dress with a brocade cloak of the same color over her head. Her black hair was coiled up with only an ordinary gold hairpin in it.

Although her face was a little chubbier, Chu Lian immediately recognized her as Miaozhen, the head maidservant of her mother-in-law, Countess Jing 'an.

Chu Lian didn't expect that after not seeing her for a few months, her belly had become as big as a balloon.

Chu Lian sighed when she thought of her brother, He Changqi.

She and He Changdi were standing in a remote spot. From where Miaozhen was standing, they were in a blind spot.

Chu Lian and He Changdi were just about to leave when they heard Miaozhen's voice.

One of the maidservants who was supporting her said, "Sister Miaozhen, do you feel uncomfortable this morning?"

Miaozhen smiled and said, "No, I'm fine."

After that, the maid asked again, "Sister Miaozhen, do you still want to eat sour food these days?"

He didn't hear Miaozhen's voice, but she nodded shyly.

The maidservant immediately beamed with joy. "Sister Miaozhen, my mother said that girls are sour and spicy!

Sister's child will definitely be a young master. "

The young maidservant paused for a moment. As if she was afraid that someone might overhear her, she purposely moved closer to Miaozhen's ear and whispered, "Our estate doesn't have a young master yet. If Sister Miaozhen's child is a boy, then Sister's position will be stable."

Although his voice was muffled, Chu Lian still heard every single word.

She furrowed her eyebrows.

Miaozhen's face also revealed a happy expression. The maidservant who was supporting her giggled.

Just as Chu Lian was in a daze, He Changdi grabbed her hand that was hanging by her side. In February, her cold little hand warmed up.

He Sanlang's handsome face returned to its usual cold expression in front of outsiders. He bent over and whispered into Chu Lian's ear, "Let's go."

Chu Lian didn't look in Miaozhen's direction anymore. She only nodded slightly and let He Changdi hold her hand as they left.

Wenlan and the other maidservants who followed behind them all tactfully kept a certain distance from their masters and followed behind them.

Only when Chu Lian and He Changdi completely walked out of the reception pavilion's corridor did Miaozhen notice them.

She instantly stopped in her tracks and subconsciously wanted to greet Third Young Master and his wife. However, He Sanlang was walking very quickly with Chu Lian in tow. She couldn't catch up at all.

The young maidservant next to Miaozhen stared at He Changdi's slender figure in a daze. "Sister Miaozhen, is that Third Young Master?"

Miaozhen nodded. She frowned but didn't say anything else.

Then, she withdrew her gaze and turned to go to Countess Jing 'an's main room.

Chu Lian was a little distracted as she was pulled along by He Changdi.

Her mother-in-law, Countess Jing 'an, wanted to eat sour sweetened hawthorn, and Miaozhen, who was coincidentally pregnant, also wanted to eat sour hawthorn. Was this really just a coincidence?

Because she had something on her mind, Chu Lian didn't pay attention to He Sanlang's dark and gloomy face.

The couple walked for a while and arrived at the little garden outside of Songtao Court. He Sanlang suddenly stopped and pulled Chu Lian into an octagonal pavilion.

He stood in front of the wind and used his tall body to block Chu Lian. "Lian 'er, you don't have to make those sweetened hawthorn anymore."

Chu Lian was lost in her own thoughts. When she heard this, she gave a strange "Huh?" and raised her head to look at He Changdi.

Only then did she realize that the expression on his face wasn't normal.

When he met Chu Lian's clear eyes, He Changdi, who had experienced his past life, really didn't know what to say.

He pursed his lips and reached out to pull Chu Lian's petite and soft body into his arms.

The body in his arms made him sigh.

He said domineeringly, "You're my wife. You don't have to make food for other people."

Although his words sounded awkward and strange, and even had a hint of authoritarianism, Chu Lian's heart warmed.

Chu Lian buried her face in his chest and rubbed it. Then, she raised her head and glared at him. "That's your mother. How can she be considered other people?"

He Changdi didn't say anything. He only tightened his grip on Chu Lian's arm. He gazed at the lake that hadn't thawed yet, and his eyes suddenly became unreadable.

In his past life, Miaozhen's child was gone, and the murderer was "Chu Lian".

Was the hand that wanted to control everything in the dark finally unable to take it anymore?

Qingwen Hall.

The charcoal brazier in the reception hall was burning brightly. There was also a warm wall, so the entire room was as warm as before. Senior Nurse Liu felt like she couldn't even wear her padded jacket anymore, but Matriarch, who was coiled up on the kang bed, still felt cold.

Senior Nurse Liu took the porcelain bowl with the lines of fortune and longevity from the little servant girl and carried it to Matriarch He's side. "Matriarch, why don't I send someone to find Doctor Miao to take a look at you? Your body isn't as good as before."

Matriarch He waved her hand. "No need. Doctor Miao just checked my pulse two days ago. Only a deity can cure my illness.

You don't have to make things difficult for Doctor Miao. "

Senior Granny Liu sighed softly. Old Matriarch He had been worrying too much and in addition to her old age, it resulted in her poor health. If she wanted to be healthy, she had to think things through herself. It was impossible to rely on Miracle Doctor Miao's medical skills to make Old Matriarch recover.

No matter how powerful a doctor was, they couldn't withstand the wear and tear of time.

"You'd better drink this nourishing soup!"

Matriarch He didn't refuse. She took the porcelain bowl and ate two mouthfuls before finding it tasteless. She put it down.

After dismissing the servant girls in the room, Matriarch He pulled Senior Nurse Liu's hand and asked, "Xiangyun, what do you think of Third Husband's wife?"

Senior Nurse Liu stilled, then immediately realized what Matriarch was planning.

She smiled. "Matriarch is thinking about whether Third Madam can manage the household!"

Matriarch He glared at her. "You old fellow, this old one really can't hide anything from you."

Senior Nurse Liu reached out to massage Matriarch's shoulders. "This old servant will say something that's out of line. Right now, the most suitable person to manage the household is Third Madam. You should be able to tell just by looking at Songtao Yuan and Guilin Residence. No matter which one, isn't it unexpected?

Today, Third Young Master is also extremely satisfied with Third Madam. The two of them are so attached to each other when paying their respects. It makes one envious. "

Hearing Senior Nurse Liu's words, Matriarch He sank into deep thought.

Senior Nurse Liu saw that her mistress didn't speak and fell silent. She didn't disturb her and only gently massaged her muscles and bones.

After a long while, Matriarch He sighed. "How can this old one not know how good Third Husband's wife is? But isn't that child still young? At most, he's only sixteen this year, not much different from Nianzhen."

Hearing Matriarch He say this, Senior Nurse Liu already knew what was going on. She didn't interrupt, knowing that Matriarch still didn't really trust Third Madam.

If she didn't truly approve of someone from the bottom of her heart, Matriarch wouldn't be swayed no matter how she tried to persuade her. Instead, it would hurt the relationship between her and Matriarch.

Master and servant were chatting intimately in the room when a servant girl outside reported that "Commander Mo" was here to see her.

Matriarch He glanced at Senior Nurse Liu. Senior Nurse Liu bowed in greeting and went out to bring Commander Mo in.

Mo Chenggui entered the reception hall and glanced around. Seeing that there were no outsiders, he sighed in relief.

He bowed in greeting to Matriarch He.

Matriarch invited him to sit and had Senior Nurse Liu pour him some tea.

After settling in, Matriarch Mo finally spoke, "Does Commander Mo have something important?"

The guards of Duke Jing 'an's estate took shifts to guard the estate. They were under the direct jurisdiction of the heir, He Changqi, and unless it wasn't something important or related to the inner court, they wouldn't come to see Matriarch.

But looking at Mo Chenggui's current situation, it seemed like there was a special reason.

Commander Mo pondered for a moment before nodding his head.

"Matriarch, Count isn't in the estate. There's something I've thought about for a long time and decided to tell you."

After a quarter of an hour, Commander Mo left.

Matriarch He and Senior Nurse Liu were still in a daze.

The Matriarch had a complicated look in her eyes. She'd never imagined that Third Husband's wife had been kidnapped in the north!

And she'd even spent the night outside!

Although the people of the Great Wu Dynasty were more civilized, that was only relative to the previous dynasty. Even though there weren't as many restrictions on women, the reputation of noblewomen from aristocratic families was still very important.