That night, outside the window, autumn rain fell in torrents, covering up all the sounds of the Cloud and Rain Pavilion.

  After everything was done, Jin Xiang began to complain about the current days. "I'm so late in getting pregnant, and now I've missed my chance..."

  The man said with a sly tone: "Do I need to try harder?"

  Qin Xiang patted his paw and said slightly angrily, "I'm talking seriously with you, why are you being ridiculous again."

  The man listlessly lay down on one side, and in the darkness he said no more.

  After a long while, he spoke in a cold voice: "You really want to be the mistress of the Marquis's manor?"

  "Of course. Why can a lowly merchant's daughter do it, but I, an official's descendant, cannot?"

  If it weren't for the Liu family's misfortune, she would also be a renowned lady in Pingyang City, not to mention a small marquisate, even entering the palace as a noblewoman would be suitable. What about Qin Miao, full of copper stench, without any noble air, what right does she have...

  "What's the use of being a lady? Why not run away with me and roam the world? Although we won't have the wealth and nobility of the imperial city, but we'll be free! And we won't have to worry about food and clothing either." The man usually only came to do that one thing with her, and after a few days he couldn't hold it in anymore. It was rare for them to chat like this, as they did today.

  Qin Xiang was slightly startled, and then said jokingly, "Why are you speaking in such a mysterious tone?"

  "I was just...just saying it casually, why must you take it to heart..." The man's eyes, mixed with the darkness of night, revealed a hint of sorrow.

  Tossed by waves, silk curtains billowing, worldly affairs hard to tell, only Wushan shares the rain and clouds.

  Xie Xuan has been busy with official duties for the past few days, and it seems that there is some unusual movement among the Northwestern Qiang people. The Ministry of War is busy dealing with this matter, and reports are being submitted to the Emperor every day. However, the Emperor has not made a decision yet, and the Grand Council is at its wit's end, so they can only let the Ministry of War keep a close eye on things, and everyone dares not relax their vigilance. After many days of this, everyone is exhausted.

  Qin Miao didn't go himself, but he still had Da Ya Tou Zi Xuan deliver meals and soup to the yamen every day, worried that Xie Yan's body wouldn't hold up. There were many people in the yamen with relatives, but how could they compare to the thoughtful consideration of the Xie Houye's family? Colleagues occasionally teased Xie Yan, but more often they envied him. Every time colleagues mentioned it, Xie Yan would calmly change the subject, but his heart felt warm.

  On this day, Qin Miao had Moon Lady stay in her own room for lunch. The servants had just finished laying out the dishes and chopsticks when Xie Yun strode in from the courtyard with his long legs.

  Xie Xuan usually had his lunch in the government office on weekdays, so Qin Miao did not expect him to come. "How come you're here at this time?"

  "Today is the day for the shift change at the yamen, and it's my turn to take a half-day off." Xie Yan asked casually when he saw that there were still others in the house, "Who is this?"

  "Oh, this is Qingfengpu's embroidery girl, Yiyue. I've invited her to stay at our manor for a short while."

  Qin Miao sat at the table, leaning to one side as she spoke with Xie Yan. After listening, Xie Yan didn't say much and went straight into the inner room to change her clothes. Qin Miao gave a signal with her eyes to Ru Mo, who was standing by the door, and Ru Mo quickly followed her in.

  "How about you go and help him change his clothes yourself?" Yueniang said with a smile, tilting her head.

  Qin Miao sat upright as before, her expression calm and composed, explaining lightly: "These things should be handled by the people below, it's only right."

  Yue Niang saw this, opened her mouth, and wanted to say something else, but ultimately didn't speak. When Xie Lin changed into casual clothes and came out, she hesitated slightly in front of the seat before sitting down and directly picking up her chopsticks to eat. Yue Niang looked at Qin Miao with some unease, but Qin Miao patted her hand under the table, and she was slightly reassured. After all, she was an outsider and sat at the same table as an unrelated man, so she didn't care, but weren't ancient people particular about etiquette?

  Ru Mo was very obediently serving on the side, spreading out dishes for Xie Yan. Although Xie Yan's stomach was empty and growling with hunger, he still ate elegantly, his movements refined. In contrast, Qin Miao and the two maids scattered the dishes, eating what they loved to eat themselves.

  After lunch, Xie Xuan bid farewell and left the front yard without lingering. Only when his figure disappeared at the gate did Yueliang let out a long sigh of relief.

  "Is this how you usually interact with each other?" This meal had exhausted Meng Yiniang, who didn't say a word and didn't even dare to breathe loudly. The key was that Lord Xie remained expressionless from start to finish, and even after the meal, he only exchanged a few words with Qin Miaodan.

  "You haven't seen each other for several days, how... don't you have that feeling of a small reunion like a new marriage?" She thought for a moment and pushed Qin Miao. "You too, from head to toe, you're like someone who doesn't care. You two are husband and wife, why do you look so estranged?"

  Qin Miao took the tea water handed over by Zi Xuan, looked at Yue Niang's tension and comforted her instead. "It's nothing, he's just like that, get used to it." Although Yue Niang was young, she had actually been a mother in her previous life. Even if she pretended to be nonchalant, she could still see the flash of disappointment and bitterness in Qin Miao's eyes.

  The weather is slowly cooling down. The maids in the courtyard are taking advantage of the good sunlight to dry and put away their summer clothes. Qin Miao is reading letters in her small study.

  The ancestors let the elder sister write a letter to Qin Miao, saying that everything at home is fine. The little nephew has already turned one year old, and on the day of the week, many people were invited to hold a lively birthday banquet. According to the elder sister, the little nephew grabbed the pen and inkstone in one go, which made the ancestors very happy. As the Qin family was originally a small merchant, if they could let the next generation study and become officials, it would be considered as the blessing of their ancestors and the glory of their family.

  Xin also mentioned that not long ago, Qin Lao Ye and Qin Da Ye went to Huzhou Jiaxing to sell silk. Originally, this kind of raw silk business was not done by the Qin family. However, Father's heart is big, he doesn't want to be limited to just cloth and satin, so he had the idea of selling raw silk. Selling silk is a very costly thing, if the capital is insufficient, it's hard to get a good price, only with large quantities can you make a thin profit. Therefore, Father united several good families in the city, the Qin family took the lead, and jointly went to Huzhou Jiaxing to sell silk.

  After reading the letter, Qin Miao felt a little worried. At this time of year, it was not the best season for producing raw silk, and even if they bought out of season, the cost would be lower, but the quality would still be average.

  She stood in front of the window, gazing leisurely at the purple bamboo by the door of the study room. Perhaps Father just wanted to make a profit...