Exclusively for the Marchioness – CH 027

Chapter 27

The place he was taking her outside the city was the towering building that the Ministry of Works had been building for six years, comparable to the Imperial Wenlan Pavilion.

The Du family’s Mian Tower was spacious and airy, only three stories high, having consumed most of his grandfather’s efforts. The Lu family’s building, however, was six stories high, with each floor soaring upwards; its overlapping eaves reached towards the clouds. The bricks, stones, and wood used were all of the highest quality, needless to say, but unlike the Marquis’s Mansion, it lacked ornate carvings and paintings, instead possessing a simple, grand, and solemn air.

At first glance, it resembled a building housing thousands of books.

Chong-Ping personally led the way for her. The building’s doors were wide open, a draft rushed down, and she climbed the stairs. As far as the eye could see, rows of bookshelves had been erected in the previously empty floors, though they were still empty, awaiting their new owner to fill them with books.

He was waiting on the third floor.

Du Lingjing walked up to the third floor, and strangely, she saw a resemblance to Mian Tower.

But the next moment, she spotted the man standing before a large sandalwood desk.

Chong-Ping asked her to step back. Du Lingjing saw that besides the bookshelves, the room had been furnished with a bright and airy study.

Sunlight streamed in through a window, falling on the sandalwood desk, making it even more like the study on the third floor of Mian Tower.

But this time, before she could ask, he spoke first.

“I sent someone to Qingzhou specifically for this,” he said to her. “Is it to your liking?”

Du Lingjing did indeed seem quite at ease, for a moment as if she were still at home in Qingzhou, except that the bamboo grove outside the window of this building was missing…

He then walked over.

“I’ve heard about the child that Sixth Young Master Jiang and Lady Hu left at home.”

Du Lingjing composed herself, hearing him say, “You probably think we cannot wait any longer. Whether it’s spreading the news widely or letting them come in peace, the fastest way is for this building to belong to you. The fastest way is for you to personally open the building and collect the books in the names of the Du and Lu families.”

Today, he wore a dark-colored brocade robe with subtle patterns, the hem swaying with his steps, like ink dripping from a brush.

With every step he took and every word he spoke, Du Lingjing knew that his words were as clear as black and white on paper, and she could not refute them.

She slowly looked around the building; the bookshelves and study were all neatly arranged.

The man let her look at it at her leisure. After a while, her gaze met his, unwavering.

From their chance encounter when she first arrived in the capital, to his insistence on marrying her using this building as a dowry, to his repeated patience after their marriage, and now his all-out help.

Du Lingjing had always had a question in her heart, one she could never answer.

Now, she asked it.

“My Lord, what do you want?”

What did he really want? What could she give him? Could he tell her?

For the first time, she asked directly, voicing the biggest question in her heart.

Lu Shenru paused for a moment upon hearing this, then smiled.

“Can Quan Quan guess what I want?”

He asked her again.

If Du Lingjing could guess, she would not be asking.

She shook her head.

The man said again, “Then even if I say I do not want it, you still will not believe me?”

Du Lingjing nodded.

She shook her head and nodded repeatedly, and Lu Shenru could not help but smile at his new wife.

But he did not rush to speak, his gaze gently falling on her eyes, brimming with clear, cool water beneath her fluttering eyelashes. Like sunlight filtering through the trees in the mountains, clear and pure, still and peaceful. Just looking at her like that was enough to calm the turbulent, chaotic emotions that rise and fall in this world.

“If I had to say,” Lu Shenru said, looking only at her, “I want you. I want to be your husband for this lifetime.”

Du Lingjing paused.

His gaze remained fixed on her.

“But this building is not a transaction; it’s a promise I made to my wife…”

He paused slightly, looking at her slightly dazed expression.

Was it affection, or perhaps, love…?

But he said gently, “It’s a lifetime of sincerity.”

He stopped there, seeing her standing quietly, lips pursed and eyes filled with confusion; he did not disturb her. He went to the display cabinet, picked up a small stone screen resembling those in Mian Tower Pavilion, and gently wiped it with a handkerchief.

Du Lingjing did not know if this was an answer or not.

She looked at the display cabinet, and seeing him consider placing the stone screen on the top shelf, he asked her softly.

“In Mian Tower Pavilion, it’s placed on the top shelf, right?”

Du Lingjing ignored him, lowering her eyes. She vaguely understood. Whether it was, as he said, love at first sight at Zhenyue Pavilion, his “affection” probably did exist.

She could not help but think of the old woman who had come to their room to light incense on their wedding night a few days ago. The old woman smiled, lit the acacia incense, and left.

When he returned, he smelled it, glanced at the incense burner, and shook his head. He said it was a custom passed down from his grandfather’s generation. It was said that his grandmother, seeing his parents so busy and never having a moment to rest, and feeling awkward about directly urging them, would have the old woman light incense every few days.

But that day, after explaining it to her, he extinguished the incense.

Looking out the window, she saw all sorts of precious trees, but no bamboo grove. Only a few bamboo stalks grew in a distant corner of the wall.

Du Lingjing knew her heart was probably hard to change.

But perhaps, she could be his wife for this lifetime…

He placed the stone screen, and Du Lingjing spoke softly.

“Thank you, Lord Marquis. I will accept this building.”

He turned to look at her, then wiped his hands and walked over, his eyes filled with a smile.

“Then, please, My Lady, bestow a name upon this building.”

He even wanted her to name it.

Du Lingjing thought for a moment and said two words.

“Guilin. ^{(Return to the forest)}“

Guilin Tower was a library she opened to search for the missing members of the Flicking Faction.

It was chosen to evoke the image of weary birds returning to their forests.

The man nodded slowly upon hearing this.

Not only of weary birds returning to their forests, but also of roosting birds returning to their nests, and of swallows returning to their young nests.

He looked at her profile and smiled.

“Truly a beautiful name.”

Du Lingjing did not understand what he was smiling about, but he chose the day after tomorrow, ordering someone to quickly carve the plaque and open the building to house the books.

On the opening day of the Guilin Tower, countless people came to offer their congratulations.

Within a single day, the entire capital region knew that Marchioness Lu had opened a library in the suburbs, named Guilin. Within half a month of its opening, anything brought in was collected at a high price.

Not only scholars, but ordinary people as well, were discussing this.

Some mentioned a rumor they’d heard somewhere: on her wedding day, Marchioness Lu was melancholic. When the Marquis lifted her veil, he saw tear stains on her face, but he paid no heed, gently wiping away her tears.

“Marquis Lu married at twenty-five to the only daughter of a high-ranking official, and it was an imperial decree. If he truly loved her, it would be hard not to move Marchioness Lu,” one of them said.

“Indeed, from now on, Guilin Tower will likely become the largest library in the entire North, besides the imperial one.”

The news spread like wildfire.

Du Runqing remained at her mother’s dowry estate in the suburbs, not returning to the capital. Her illness was cured. Standing in the mansion, she could conveniently see the majestic building nestled in the mountains.

She had a strange feeling.

She felt that perhaps this building, which the Marquis had spent six years constructing, was built for her sister.

In the capital, at the Du Mansion in Chengqing District.

Since his niece’s return visit, Du Zhiqi had not seen anyone from the Marquis’s Mansion. Everyone could tell the Marquis was not coming. He used to have friends inviting him for drinks, but now none of them were.

He could only go out to drink alone, but every restaurant was talking about how Marquis Lu had opened a study for Jing-niang. Such a big thing, and he, as her uncle, did not even know, only hearing about it from people in the restaurants.

He was too ashamed to go out again and retreated to his residence. He did not forget to send someone to Huanghua Lane next door to inquire about his brother-in-law’s injuries.

At Huanghua Lane, in the Gu Mansion.

When Old Lady Wan heard that Du Zhiqi had sent someone to inquire about her son, she snorted coldly, “He will not die.”

The news of Marchioness Lu’s book collection at Guilin Tower had spread throughout the capital, and many people had specially left the capital to support the Marquis’s Mansion.

Old Lady Wan’s Rongyu Hall was silent.

But for some reason, she kept recalling this marriage.

She was known as the “Matchmaker of the Capital,” having handled so many high-society marriages, and could guess some of the Emperor’s intentions in the palace. How could she have stumbled on this matter?

The more she thought about it, the stranger the marriage seemed.

“Du… Marquis Lu?”

Within three days, the Chief Steward Zong had successively transferred eight accountants to Guilin Tower to help out.

Du Lingjing noticed that the initial books she received were relatively normal, but the Marquis’s generosity had become increasingly apparent, and the books he’d received in the past two days were starting to look odd.

“This is too extravagant,” she thought, wanting to advise him to at least set a minimum purchase price.

He, however, said it was fine. “Guilin Tower is so large; if we followed your standards, when would we ever fill it all? Besides, we’ve just opened; it’s best to accept all comers.”

Du Lingjing remained silent, quietly flipping through a brand-new book of storybooks that had just been received.

This storybook was compiled by a modern author, crudely printed, and contained many errors.

That was not so bad, but what about the content?

Du Lingjing patiently flipped through a couple of pages, glancing at the man beside her who seemed to accept all comers without hesitation.

“Does Your Lordship even collect books like this?”

Lu Shenru glanced at the book; it was a modern-day storybook, of little collectible value. But the books they collected were not uncommon either—they were just ancient fabrications, worth keeping even after hundreds of years.

He said he’d collect it because he did not want the library to be empty.

After he finished speaking, he heard her let out a slightly drawn-out “Oh” and call to Chang-Pu, “Keep it safe for His Lordship.”

Something sounded off to him, and he could not help but glance at it again. What he saw made his neck stiffen.

A line was scrawled crookedly on the page: “A Few Anecdotes of the Marquis Lu’s Romantic Affairs.”

Flipping through it, the book meticulously “recorded” the glamorous affairs of the powerful Marquis Lu in the capital, with a host of beautiful women, including a Tatar princess, a courtesan, a noblewoman, a nun, and a charming widow.

This was only the first volume.

“…”

Lu Shenru felt his face burning, but he managed to maintain his composure, glancing subtly at his wife.

Du Lingjing remained calm and composed, pulling out several more similar storybooks from the side. “These few, put together, can form a set.”

The man murmured, “Wife, would you like to help me compile a set and then publish and sell it?”

She seemed to consider it for a moment.

“If Your Lordship wishes to publish and distribute it,” she said, “although Du Publishing House has never published such a book, if Your Lordship insists, Steward Zhao can devise a different name for it.”

Lu Shenru saw that she was extremely serious.

She said she could help him print it, but she felt ashamed to sell such a book, so it absolutely could not be done under her name.

The man could not help but laugh.

But then, a thought struck him, and he paused.

Was she teasing him? Was she joking with him while pretending to be serious?

He froze, looking at her. Her delicate and pretty face still held its usual expression, but her eyes sparkled with a delightful smile, the corners of her eyes subtly curving upwards.

He was captivated for a moment.

Anything involving romance or beauty, even if a young nun from the temple or a pretty widow came to his door, he would not care.

He only looked at his wife.

A moment of silence filled the library.

Du Lingjing, who considered herself a collector for many years, had never seen a book about him before; it must have been written by someone from the capital.

She tried her best not to smile too obviously, but when she turned around, their eyes met.

Her heart skipped a beat.

She immediately turned around and called to Qiu-Lin, “Let’s look at the bookshelves upstairs.”

She hurried upstairs.

The man watched her retreating figure for a long time, until she disappeared from sight.

He was lost in thought.

…

Within a few days, the news had spread not only throughout Beizhili but also to several neighboring provinces.

In a dilapidated Taoist temple nestled in the mountains.

Amidst broken trees and crumbling walls, several people sat around an extinguished fire.

“Guilin Tower, is it named after weary birds returning to their forests?” The man in the middle, about twenty-five or twenty-six years old, his face slightly pale, spoke softly of the news he had just heard.

As soon as he finished speaking, the woman beside him grasped his hand.

“Brother, that’s what it means!”

Hu Tinglan looked at his sister, seeing that she, Hu Tingjun, could not stop her tears. She kept saying, “It’s Jing-niang; it’s Jing-niang looking for us! She’s using the same method we used to use when we read and played together in the bookstore. She’s looking for us; she’s so anxious that she even opened this Guilin Tower!”

Hu Tinglan paused, then sighed deeply. As if a slight movement had aggravated his wounds, his face paled even more, but he said…

“In the end, Jing-niang was dragged into this.”

After his first wife passed away, and then Jiang Zhuxiu also died, Shao Boju intended to remarry her and asked the Hu siblings to mediate. But neither sibling agreed.

Jing-niang had lost her parents, and after Jiang Jieyuan’s death, she only cared for Mian Tower. She had no one else in her heart; what was the point of her becoming Shao Boju’s second wife?

Hu Tinglan knew that after Shao Boju became the third-ranked scholar, he did not want to be suppressed by his uncle anymore. He was favored by the Emperor and Grand Secretary Dou. As long as he could cultivate his own power, he could completely break free from his uncle’s control.

Shao Boju had tried to get him to contact the former Flicking Faction, hoping to use them to solidify his position.

However, the essence of Flicking Faction was impartiality, and they did not want to get involved in the power struggle between the Prince Yong and Prince Hui factions.

His intention was either to win over the Flicking Faction or to remarry Jing Niang; it all boiled down to this.

After all, the Flicking Faction had united because they followed Grand Secretary Du Zhili. They admired his scholarship and political acumen and followed his reform policies of the past. Jing-niang was his precious jewel, and her book collection and publishing house had earned her considerable fame among scholars.

But Shao Boju failed on either path.

Hu Tinglan had even advised him that he was already a third-place scholar in the imperial examinations; if he continued to advance, his uncle would not be able to keep him below him forever. Building cliques and becoming a powerful minister with widespread influence was only a step away from becoming a treacherous official.

Hu Tinglan still wanted to offer advice, but he never imagined that from the moment Shao Boju was chosen as the third-place scholar, he was already hopelessly entangled in the pursuit of power, resorting to any means necessary to build cliques and secure his position.

Only after he held the evidence of the Shao brothers’ crimes in his hands did he turn his sword against them.

Initially, Shao Boju tried to coax them into returning the evidence. Later, when they refused, he had his cousin brutally attack them.

The wound on his shoulder throbbed. Hu Tinglan knew the pain was not from the injury itself but from the betrayal of his once inseparable, sworn brother.

He had tried to transfer the evidence and had someone report it to the court.

But whoever he contacted became a target of Shao Boju’s surveillance.

Shao Boju knew him too well, so well that he resorted to threatening him with others.

He could only send letters asking acquaintances to avoid the Shao brothers and, along with a group of people who knew of his crimes, temporarily went into hiding.

He figured that with so many people gone, the court would notice.

But he forgot that those who went into hiding were all members of the Flicking Faction, already marginalized and sidelined in court, while Shao Boju was a favorite of the Emperor; everyone respected him.

Shao Boju naturally would not allow them to release evidence of his crimes. Shao Wuxing was ruthless, making even hiding difficult for them.

Later, when Shao Boju attempted to forcibly marry Jing-niang, threatening these former followers of Grand Secretary Du to hand over the evidence, rumors spread throughout the capital overnight, attracting many more people to the scene.

But with so many people, it was difficult to discern who could be trusted and who could not.

Initially, they considered simply handing the evidence over to the Marquis of Yongding’s residence.

However, the Marquis of Yongding’s residence was at odds with the civil officials, and Marquis Lu was a powerful and unfathomable figure. He discussed the matter with everyone, but it did not go through.

Unexpectedly, a decree of marriage was issued, and Jing-niang became Marquis Lu’s wife.

Everyone had discussed this matter a few days ago. Could they trust Marquis Lu now?

And today, news arrived that Guilin Tower was opening and accepting books.

“Brother, even if we dare not easily trust the Marquis of Yongding, we should trust Jing-niang,” Hu Tingjun said, looking at her brother’s pale face. “Your injuries cannot be delayed any longer!”

After being pursued for many days, everyone had sustained some injuries, with Hu Tinglan’s injuries being the most serious.

Master Liao Xu from Baoding Academy also spoke up.

“Whether we can trust Marquis Lu or not, we cannot decide. Let Jing-niang decide. If she trusts Lu Shenru, the Lu family can rescue us in no time. If she does not, we will discuss other methods.”

Hu Tinglan was silent for a moment, then slowly nodded.

He then called to his sister, “You are closest to Jing-niang. You deliver the letter to her, hiding it in a book.”

Hu Tingjun readily agreed.

Hu Tinglan thought for a moment, then said, “Giving away our location directly might be inappropriate. It would be best if one of us could go to the capital to meet her.”

Hu Tingjun then offered to go.

But Master Liao waved his hand. “The people under the Shao family know you too well; you cannot go. I will go instead.”

However, his leg was injured, and he could barely walk. Several other people offered to go to the capital. Hu Tinglan looked over and finally saw one person tighten the white bandage on his arm to stop the bleeding, stepping out from the back of the crowd.

“Why are you all arguing? I will be the one to go see my sister-in-law.”

Everyone turned to look at him.

The man appeared to be in his early twenties, dressed in a bamboo-green robe with a sword at his waist. He spoke with a hint of a smile, his every movement displaying both the refined elegance of a scholar and the agility of a warrior.

It was Jiang Fengchuan, the sixth son of the Jiang family and the younger brother of Jiang Zhuxiu, the top scholar in the imperial examinations.

When he announced his intention to go, a moment of silence fell over the crowd.

Hu Tingjun asked him, “Sixth Brother, is this appropriate?”

Jiang Fengchuan chuckled.

“What’s inappropriate? My brother’s life was tragically cut short; my sister-in-law cannot stay by his side forever, can she? Remarriage is a good thing. I was originally going to the capital to deliver congratulatory gifts to her anyway; this is a good opportunity to see how she’s doing.”

This made perfect sense.

Furthermore, Jiang Fengchuan had only recently encountered them by chance due to a conflict with Shao Wuxing’s men; Shao Boju was unfamiliar with him.

Hu Tingjun thought for a moment and nodded.

No one objected, and Jiang Fengchuan smiled and turned to set off.

But Uncle Hui, standing beside him, glanced at him.

Uncle Hui was a former companion of Third Young Master Jiang, Jiang Zhuxiu. When Jiang Fengchuan left home, he wore his brother’s clothes, took his brother’s horse, and asked his brother’s old friends if they wanted to travel with him; Uncle Hui had gone with him.

Now, Uncle Hui could not help but look at him a few more times. “Sixth Young Master, are you really going?”

“What’s wrong, Uncle Hui? Can I not go see my sister-in-law?”

He raised an eyebrow and smiled at Uncle Hui again. “Do not worry, I know what’s more important.”

After speaking, he raised his starry eyes and looked north towards the capital city.

*

In the capital city.

Over the next few days, the number of books collected at Guilin Tower increased.

But gradually, from the vast collection, the people picked out a few that were somewhat different.

When Du Lingjing first saw the handwriting, her hands trembled.

It was not anyone else’s handwriting; it was Hu Tingjun’s!

However, since the books were collected in such a scattered manner, Tingjun did not dare to send a message openly. She carefully pieced them together for several days, clarifying the time: three days later, the location was north of the capital.

As for exactly where north of the capital, she did not know.

Qiu-Lin, Ai-Ye, and the others, along with the people from the Marquis’s Mansion, were almost blinded by the sheer number of books.

There were simply too many books for Du Lingjing to identify by herself.

Her eyesight was already poor, and yesterday the pain had made it almost impossible for her to open them. Lu Shenru came and took her directly back to the Marquis’s Mansion.

But Du Lingjing still secretly had Qiu-Lin bring back two boxes of books.

Today, just as she was about to flip through them, the man walked in.

“If you do not want your eyes anymore, sell them to me; I will take any price.”

Du Lingjing: “…”

She glanced at him. He seemed quite busy these past two days with military affairs in the Northwest, but now he came over, pulled up a chair, and sat down at her desk, picking up a stack of books and flipping through them one by one for her.

She could not read them herself, so she could only watch him.

He smiled, letting her watch him as he carefully searched for any hidden codes within the books.

After some time, it grew dark.

Du Lingjing got up to light a lamp for him and was about to say that it was alright, there were still two days left, and it should be enough time.

Unexpectedly, the man’s hands suddenly stopped turning the pages.

Du Lingjing glanced at his fingers, and among the small book reviews, three characters were slightly different.

It was Hu Tingjun’s handwriting!

Found it!

Three days later, at the Fire God Temple, eight miles north of the city!

Du Lingjing took a deep breath, unable to focus.

“I just do not know who will come.”

Will Tingjun come? Or someone else?

The man also stood up, reaching out to take her hand.

“Whoever it is, I will go with you. We will definitely meet them.”

Autumn was deep, her fingertips were cold, but his palm was always warm enough.

The warmth and strength emanated from his palm.

Just then, she heard a nanny’s voice outside the door. She heard him respond, and the nanny entered. Perhaps seeing their hands clasped together as soon as she entered, her eyes blinked, a hint of a smile appearing in the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes.

Du Lingjing tried to pull her hand away, but the man did not let go.

The nanny’s smile deepened, but she said nothing, only going into the inner room, opening the incense burner, and quietly lighting a stick of incense.

It was the fragrance of spring, the scent of acacia.

The nanny lit it and then withdrew.

The enchanting fragrance swirled and diffused in the room.

The man paused, turned to look at his wife, and, seeing her also stunned, said, “I will go put out the incense.”

But before he could release her hand, he felt a very faint force in his palm, gently pulling him.

The man stopped in his tracks.

“Quan Quan?”

Du Lingjing whispered, “Do not put it out.”

Lu Shenru thought for a moment that he had misheard.

But at the slight force and her soft protest, his heart pounded.

“Say that again?”

He stared at her, but she slightly turned her head away from his gaze, looking only at the swirling incense.

“Let’s leave this incense here tonight.”