Lin Xie's memories and emotions from his past life had blended together with those of this life. The woman who had not left a deep impression on him in his previous life now gradually seeped into the depths of his heart, making him feel both pain and love for Gu Yingxue. People often prioritize their own interests, but Lin Xie, having lived through two lifetimes, was neither bound by the moral ethics of this world nor did he accept the common practice of having multiple wives and concubines with equanimity. Although Gu Yingxue was technically his aunt, this familial relationship was merely an external constraint that in no way restricted the feelings he had developed for her in his heart.

  There has never been a medical technique that can bring the dead back to life, it's just that many people don't want Lin Tingxun to die and disrupt the current balance of power. They're using good medicine to keep him alive, but time won't be able to hold on for too long, and Lin Tingxun will eventually die. With Gu Wudu around, even if Gu Yingshou can't take control of the Lin family, she doesn't have to worry about being bullied by others. However, this young and beautiful woman, even if she can live a life without worrying about food and clothing, will be locked up in a deep mansion, lonely and isolated, growing old alone - can that be considered even half happy? Moreover, the situation is unstable, the world's trend is changing drastically, the party struggle in the imperial court is severe, Gu Wudu may not be able to keep his high position, and when he falls from power, how will Gu Yingshou take care of herself?

  Even if Lin Xie had to take her to Jiangning to rely on her uncle Gu Wu Chen, he also thought that she might not be happy staying in the Gu's residence. Mrs. Gu was a strong-willed and conservative woman, and Ying Juan would face great restrictions there. Lin Xie wanted even more for her to stay in He Kou. Although it would be difficult for her to find a proper reason to stay in He Kou that could shut his friends' mouths, reasons were always easy to come by; the key was whether she herself was willing or not.

  Gu Ying's words had a tone of being forced to submit under duress, which made Lin Xie's heart and soul flutter.

  Lin Xie was neither timid nor stubborn, and he didn't want to force others. He was afraid that Gu Ying's sleeves would not pass his own test. At this time, hearing her tone of refusing yet welcoming, how could he not try again? He wouldn't drag things out, and reached out to grab her small hand.

  "How can you be like this again?" In the darkness, Lin Xuan grabbed her hand again, and Gu Ying's sleeves were tenderly scolded, "Aren't you afraid of being caught by others?"

  "Come with me." Lin Xuan said, pulling Gu Ying's sleeve to his front, staring at her bright and shining eyes in the dark.

  "How dare you be so shameless? You just said you wanted to give Liu Niang a name, and now your heart is greedy for me? I am your aunt, how can you do this?" Gu Yingxiu was not a timid person either. Seeing Lin Xuan take the initiative to tear open the last layer of window paper, her heart was pounding with unspeakable joy, allowing Lin Xuan to grab her hand.

  "I don't want you to suffer or be wronged," Lin Mou said, his hand reaching out to touch Gu Ying's slender waist, but hesitating for fear she would pull away.

  "Following you means I won't suffer or be wronged? I think from now on, the suffering and hardship will only increase! There's no status, can't see the light of day, and still have to worry about death," Gu Ying said, "Even if we don't care about the Lin family, let alone my uncle and aunt being able to tolerate me following you...the Gu family won't be able to tolerate it either..."

  "......" Lin Xuan was also speechless, and what Yanxiu said were all things that needed to be considered. The current situation was such that his power had not yet been established, and to a large extent, he still had to rely on Gu Wudu, making it difficult for him to provide complete protection for Yanxiu.

  "Are you scared?" Gu Yingxu suddenly burst out laughing, she grasped Lin Xuan's face and stared into his eyes, "Have you ever seduced someone like this?"

  "He..." Lin Xie didn't get annoyed, instead she smiled. The emotions between them were now clearer than ever, and there was no need to hide anymore, nor was there time to do so. He wrapped his arms around her slender waist, pulling her soft, hot body close, and kissed her scorching red lips.

  Gu Yingxu was originally a bold and forthright person, knowing that she didn't have many opportunities to meet with Lin Xie, couldn't afford to drag things out even for a moment. Moreover, her heart had also moved with emotions, hoping to get comfort. When Lin Xie asked for a kiss, she wouldn't shyly dodge or hide, but instead gently closed her eyes and waited for the scorching breath to land on her lips, letting those soft lips cover her own delicate lips. She was just clumsy and didn't know what to do next, how to respond to him.

  Lin tied up his sleeves and lifted Gu Ying's skirt, letting her straddle/sit on his own thighs. In mid-April, the weather was already warm, and under Gu Ying's sleeveless dress, she was only wearing thin pants, while Lin Tied was also wearing a single-layer long shirt. Such bold and reckless close sitting made them feel the warm and sensual touch of each other's bodies, stirring their emotions to the extreme.

  Lin Tied held Gu Ying's head with one hand, supporting her back with the other, using his tongue to open her lips, sucking on her smooth and tender tongue tip. Gu Ying felt dizzy and lightheaded, if not for Lin Tied holding her, she was afraid she would fall off his thighs. She knew what that wooden stick-like thing pressed against her lower abdomen was, and in her heart, there was an inexplicable longing.

  She didn't want to move back, but instead, she pretended to be clueless, yet couldn't help but shift her body slightly so that the wooden stick-like thing would press against the itchy spot between her legs. Lin Tied's hands were all over her body, making her feel comfortable and relaxed, but the itchiness between her legs grew stronger.

  She wished for a spark of electricity to relieve the itchiness between their bodies. So as Lin Tied's hands continued to roam on her body, Gu Ying was even more passionate in embracing his neck, her body twisting and turning like a snake in his arms. Lin Tied's hand grasped her plump buttocks, she hoped he would grasp harder or go deeper.

  (Note: Please be aware that the translation may not fully convey the nuances of the original text due to cultural and linguistic differences.)

  Others did not follow to disturb Lin Xuan and Qi Furen discussing things, even Qi Furen's two personal maidservants retreated when Lin Xuan entered the inner room. They thought that Lin Xuan and Qi Furen had proper matters to discuss. The outer house of the wing-room was lit up, but the lights were off in the inner room without noticing. However, they were all in the adjacent courtyard, and the sounds of talking and coughing could be heard clearly by Lin Xuan and Gu Yingxiu. Their hearts were filled with emotions, and they couldn't do anything improper in the wing-room. After a long time, they also worried that people in the adjacent courtyard would wait anxiously, so Lin Xuan and Gu Yingxiu reluctantly parted ways to sit down.

  Her feelings in her heart faded, and she felt embarrassed about the emotional impulse just now. Gu Yingxu took the candle herself and ran to the outer room to light it up. Under the candlelight, she looked at Qinglang with shining eyes, feeling that every part of him was pleasing to her. Lin Xie also thought that Gu Yingxu was more charming than before, with no part of her not beautiful. He wanted to hold her delicate body in his arms and caress it all over, but if he didn't care about the people waiting for them next door to discuss things, he really wanted to settle her down on the spot.

  The maid of Gu Yingxiu thought the time was almost up and ran back to ask when Gu Yingxiu would return to the mansion. Gu Yingxiu couldn't bear to part with him, but had no choice but to leave first. She was willing to give Lin Fu anything, she was more straightforward than Liu Yue'er, daring to do what she wanted, and also had ideas, giving everything to Lin Fu without fear of getting pregnant, at worst finding a place to hide and live in secret; it's just that the timing wasn't right now, and neither was the location.

  She sat in the carriage, feeling a chill between her legs. In the darkness, she reached into her undergarments and touched her crotch, only to find it wet. Startled, she finally felt embarrassed, wondering how she could have flowed so much water. She thought to herself that even though she had lived for 28 years, she still had this fate with Lin Xie, even without a formal title, even if they weren't accepted by society, it didn't matter.

  As Gu Ying stepped into the carriage, Lin Xie suddenly remembered that he had forgotten to tell her something about Changshan Island. He thought to himself that this feeling was really making him dizzy.

  *********************

  The next morning, Gu Tianqiao presided over the tea collection at Shanglintou, where new tea from the Gu family's tea garden was collected. In addition, under the name of the Gu family, scattered tea was also purchased from tea farmers in Shanglintou, and payment was made immediately after inspection and loading onto ships.

  This trip brought, in addition to the tea payment for the Gu family, also carried over 10,000 catties of copper coins on the ship.

  Early in the morning, before the fog had cleared, Gu Tianqiao and Sun Jing Tang borrowed dozens of people to carry behind them high ships like buildings. In front of the stacks, more than sixty bamboo baskets filled with copper coins were arranged in two rows, and when they were set up at the ferry terminal, they looked very majestic.

  The Lin family set out two days earlier than planned, and the preparations at home were somewhat insufficient. The new tea would have to be delayed for another day or two before it could be transported from Lake Tang to Shanglin Ferry to load the ships. Dongyang No. and Xihai Hui's boats couldn't just wait idly at the ferry terminal.

  Prior arrangements had been made through Lin Zonghai with other members of the Lin family, and Jiyun Society would purchase loose tea in Shanglin Ferry, with a limit of sixty baskets of copper coins. On this bustling morning, the elderly members of the Lin family and the six tea merchants from Shilang County who were also purchasing tea in Shanglin Ferry merely looked on coldly.

  One basket of copper coins weighed over 160 kilograms, equivalent to twenty taels of silver, and the sixty bamboo baskets seemed impressive. In reality, they were worth only a little over 1,000 taels of silver. Other families might have had opinions about Jiyun Society openly purchasing tea in Shanglin Ferry, but they could tolerate it.

  On the other hand, Gu's family had limited manpower and needed to hire porters and mule carts at Shanglin Ferry to transport tea to Hutang.

  This year, Gu's family produced and purchased nearly 30,000 catties of new tea. Each porter carried over 50 catties, so they had to hire more than 600 porters; each mule cart could only carry less than 300 catties, so they also had to hire 1230 mule carts.

  These two things alone made Shanglin Ferry more lively than before.

  In the west of Shanglinli Village, Zhao's house was decorated with lanterns and streamers for the upcoming wedding in three days. They were preparing to host a flowing water banquet and had hired people to set up a canopy. First, they bought pigs, ducks, chickens, and fish, which were placed in basins and pens. A fat pig was slaughtered first to treat the neighbors who had been helping out over the past few days. As the weather grew hotter, the rest of the animals would be slaughtered on the eve of the wedding day. In rural areas, people could only afford to eat meat a few times a year during festivals and holidays. The Zhao family had already slaughtered a fat pig before the wedding day to treat their neighbors, which was considered extravagant in Shanglinli Village. Upon hearing the news, many more neighbors came to help out than initially expected. Zhao Hu's parents were delighted but also worried about the money spent, as they knew that buying a fat pig cost 3,000 to 4,000 yuan, equivalent to the annual harvest of five or six mu of good land in Shiliang County. The wedding day had not yet arrived, and the family had already spent tens of thousands of silver coins on treating their neighbors over the past two days. How could the Zhao family, who were used to living a simple life, not feel heartbroken?

  Yesterday night, Lin Xie was still worried that Zhao Hu would not give the silver to his family, and Zhao's family would not be willing to spend it. So he personally handed over two ingots of silver to Aunt Zhao, asking her to exchange them for small change and copper coins at Shanglin Ferry early in the morning, and to use up these two large ingots of official silver during the wedding preparations in the next few days, making it as lively as possible. Also, he wanted Zhao Hu to secretly give tens of taels of silver to the Guo family, so that they could also hold a lively banquet in Xiayuan.

  In addition, Lin Tie sent someone to ride a fast horse to the county to give a visiting card to County Magistrate Liang Zuoren, Instructor Lu Dongyang, and Chief Chen Ling, among other county officials. He also had someone specially deliver a visiting card to Xiao's family, the former husband of Liu Yu'er, and made an appointment to visit them in person tonight.

  In other people's eyes, Lin Xie thought that this time he returned to Shanglinli for three things: one was to settle the tea goods, two was to complete Zhao Hu's marriage, and three was to give Liu Yue'er a name. To be honest, these three things were enough to keep Lin Xie busy, but he slipped away at dawn and left Shanglinli by boat, taking a common riverboat from Hongze Pu, and headed north along the new waterway of Shiliang River with Cao Zikang, Zhou Pu, and Ge Cunxin, arriving at Luoyang Lake before noon.

  ***********************

  P.S: Looking for red envelopes (with money).