The name of Yuwen Feng's firstborn son was Yuwen Yi. He was a quite bluff boy with a resonant voice, which made him more like a descendant of a general than his father was. Though only five years old, he was the tallest of all children his age. Ling Zhang had seldom seen him. The first time that Ling Zhang had carefully observed this boy to assess his personality was when Yuwen Feng brought him to the banquet that day, and he'd discovered that the boy liked Ling Maomao pretty much. At that time, the boy had also had a group of peers clustering around him, for he was the Marquess Huaiwen's legal wife's firstborn son, which was a noble identity.

On this day, when Ling Zhang arrived at Yuwen Feng's residence, it was this boy that Yuwen Feng brought with him to the front gates to welcome Ling Zhang. Yuwen Yi was sturdy, almost as strong as a calf.

Yuwen Feng's firstborn son was bluff and stocky, but his second son was much thinner. Also, his second son was very quiet – the complete opposite of his big brother. As regards Yuwen Feng's two-year-old daughter, Ling Zhang had never seen her. He'd only heard that her mother had been raising her, that she was very like her mother in terms of both looks and personality.

Although Ling Zhang was here to call on Yuwen Feng's wife, he was a man after all, so after arriving at the abode of the Marquess Huaiwen, he went to see Yuwen Feng after instructing the court physician to feel Yuwen Feng's wife's pulse.

"Thank you for being so kind as to come here to call on my wife, Your Highness. Her condition is much more stable now," said Yuwen Feng. What with the hectic days he'd been having recently, his face, which had become full after a long rest cure, was now sunken again. Apart from the piles of preparatory work for the Spring Festival, the severe understaffing of the Ministry of Rites had also been a contributing factor.

When the Zhou family, the former imperial household, had been brought down, too many officials of the capital city had been incriminated, including a lot of staff members of the Ministry of Rites. To make things worse, the former Minister of Rites had insensibly resigned from office and returned to his hometown. Currently, Yuwen Feng was the only decision-maker in the Ministry of Rites and had to deal with all kinds of matters, which was why he'd been working flat out. Owing to Ling Zhang's visit, he had to take half a day off and stay at home to entertain Ling Zhang. The very thought of the tons of matters in the Ministry of Rites he had to attend to later gave him headaches.

Ling Zhang was aware that Yuwen Feng was a busy man, so he had no intention to linger for long. In fact, he didn't have much in common to talk about with Yuwen Feng, for he didn't know much about Yuwen Feng, and what with the history between them, there were many things that he felt it inappropriate to have an in-depth talk with Yuwen Feng about. After the court physician felt Yuwen Feng's wife's pulse and prescribed her some anti-abortifacient medicine, Ling Zhang offered her some words of comfort and reminded her to take care and then rose to his feet, preparing to take his leave.

Yuwen Yi had been standing beside his father all along. Bluff as he was, he had a sense of propriety and had been quiet all this time. At this moment, seeing Ling Zhang was about to leave, he tentatively looked at Ling Zhang, as though having something to say.

Ling Zhang, who noticed, specially asked him, "Is there something you want to say to me?"

Yuwen Feng, with a whiff of admonition in his eyes, looked at his firstborn son and cautioned him to be on his best behavior, but Yuwen Yi, eyes on Ling Zhang, heedless of his father's warning, asked, "Do you think maybe I could see Maomao, Your Highness?"

Ling Zhang didn't like it when people referred to him as 'the empress'. All those officials of the capital city who were worldly-wise had drummed it into their family that they were to address Ling Zhang as 'Your Highness' when they met him, that in no circumstances were they to address him as 'Niangniang' (a form of address people use to address an empress or an imperial concubine in feudal China). Yuwen Yi looked up at Ling Zhang, an expectant expression in his eyes.

Ling Zhang was somewhat surprised. Judging from the heartfelt anticipation in Yuwen Yi's eyes, he believed that the boy did want to see Ling Maomao.

But, 'Maomao'? This kid was clearly younger than Maomao, but he was actually referring to Ling Maomao by his given name.

Ling Zhang inwardly lifted his eyebrows, but he wouldn't in the presence of Yuwen Feng specially ask about it or remind the boy that it was inappropriate for him to address Ling Maomao as such, lest Yuwen Feng get the impression that he deemed the Ling family superior to everybody in this residence.

"By all means. Maomao lives in the Ling Mansion. You may go there to visit him whenever you have the time."

On hearing this, Yuwen Yi smiled a happy smile and bowed with hands folded in front. "Thank you, Your Highness."

It struck Ling Zhang that this boy was pretty interesting, that he was more like a child from a family of military officers than a child of Yuwen Feng, the Minister of Rites.

"This brat is fond of play. Please forgive him, Your Highness," said Yuwen Feng, glancing at his delighted firstborn son.

Ling Zhang said, "It's okay, Marquess Huaiwen. Kids should have the privilege of socializing without consideration of formality."

Yuwen Yi liked Ling Maomao, but there was no telling whether or not the two of them would become friends. It wouldn't be a bad thing if they made friends with each other. Apart from everything else, Yuwen Feng's unborn baby was to be adopted by Yuwen Tong, which meant it would be his baby as well...

Yuwen Feng gave a smile and then walked Ling Zhang out with Yuwen Yi.

After Ling Zhang's carriage went far away, Yuwen Feng took Yuwen Yi back inside and asked him, "You like Ling Maomao?"

Yuwen Yi happily inclined his head. "He strikes me as a better playmate than the others. Can I go to the Ling Mansion today, Father?"

Looking at his firstborn son, Yuwen Feng pondered for a moment and then replied, "We need to send a message there first before you visit them. I'll have someone do that for you in a few moments. You may go after we receive a reply from the Ling Mansion. If...you two hit it off, you may hang out with him more."

"Thank you, Father!" Yuwen Yi said cheerfully and then went to make preparations, scampering all the way.

Yuwen Feng summoned a servant and instructed him to send a message to the Ling Mansion.

And then he went to check on his wife and asked her, "What did the court physician say?"

The marchioness was well-featured and ample-figured. When she'd married Yuwen Feng, the latter had merely been known as Yuwen Zhi's firstborn son. The Yuwen family was quite prestigious, so Yuwen Feng's wife, naturally, was not from some obscure family, but she was not a native of the capital city. The first reason was that the former emperor, though heavily relying on Yuwen Tong to defend the borders, had at the same time had to prevent the Yuwen family from growing too powerful for him to keep under control, so it'd been next to impossible for him to allow Yuwen Feng to marry a daughter of a high-ranking courtier. To avert suspicion, Yuwen Feng, discontented as he'd been, had had no choice but to compromise. The second reason was Yuwen Feng's mother's selfishness. She'd believed that if her son married someone from an aristocratic family in the capital city, she would have difficulty having her daughter-in-law who had powerful elders at her back toe the line. In order to make sure she would always be at the top of the pecking order in the house, and to get herself a submissive daughter-in-law, she had convinced Yuwen Zhi to have Yuwen Feng marry a daughter of an official of a provincial city.

As a result, the marchioness' father was an official of Taizhou, a prefectural Tongpan (an official under assistant governor), to be specific. She was a gentle woman, but her gentleness was different from that of Fu Caiwei. Fu Caiwei was amiable, but at the same time there was some simplicity in her temperament, and she also had a bluff side, while the gentleness of Yuwen Feng's wife was typical of ladies from big, respectable families. However, she also had something in common with Fu Caiwei, which was that she was similarly open-minded and easy to get along with.

On seeing Yuwen Feng walk inside, she rose to her feet with the help of a handmaid, made towards her husband and responded, "The court physician just gave me some notes of caution about how to ensure a safe and comfortable environment for the baby. The medicine he prescribed me are all mild anti-abortifacient medicine."

"He didn't say anything else?" inquired Yuwen Feng.

The marchioness smiled, "No. It would seem he could tell that my pregnancy is not compromised."

Yuwen Feng gave a nod. By saying that her wife had compromised her pregnancy, he'd actually been making an excuse. A few days before Yuwen Tong and Ling Zhang had paid a visit to Yuwen You. In order to keep the balance, they would have to pay a visit to him as well, so he'd send word that her wife had accidentally compromised her pregnancy, in an effort to give the two of them a reason to visit him. Unsurprisingly, Ling Zhang had caught on to it and conveniently come to call on him.

"I hope it's a boy," said Yuwen Feng.

His wife's face slightly changed and with that she told the handmaids to leave. Then she asked Yuwen Feng, "What do you mean by this, my darling? Are you..."

Yuwen Feng glanced at her and slightly shook his head. "You misunderstood, my dear."

The marchioness was gentle, thoughtful and also broad-minded. Yuwen Feng had always been very pleased with his wife. Otherwise he wouldn't have got her pregnant again after having her bear him two sons and a daughter in succession when none of his concubines had ever been pregnant.

"If it's a boy, we'd both be able to relax, and His Majesty would feel relieved as well. If both yours and Yuwen Qian's wife's baby are girls, you two may have to..."

Coming to understand what he meant, his wife stroked her belly and said, "Let's keep it if it's a girl. I think His Majesty and His Highness would agree if you talk to them, given how kind they are."

Yuwen Feng looked at her. "But in the future we'll still have to–"

"Darling," his wife interrupted him, "I know what you mean. Actually I don't have the heart to have our baby adopted, be it a boy or a girl. Still, although I'm ill-educated and haven't seen much of the world, I know that currently the political situation is not very stable, that His Majesty is unwilling to take concubines. For the sake of the Great Wen, and to...to ensure the security of the Yuwen family, the glory of this house and the future of our sons, we must help His Majesty and His Highness get a couple of sons. Only by making sure their positions are secure would we be able to guarantee a prosperous future for our family and the Yuwen family."

Astonished, Yuwen Feng gazed fixedly at his wife. Ever since he'd made the decision to foster his unborn baby with Yuwen Tong, he'd been feeling guilty about being so cruel to his wife, and he'd been trying to console her and had never talked about any of these things in detail. It had never crossed his mind that...

"You don't have to be surprised, darling," said the marchioness, slowly sitting down. Gently stroking her belly, she continued, "You've always wanted to protect me, which is why you treat the other women in this house as though...as though they weren't there. How could I not know your feelings for me? For your sake, and to ensure a peaceful and smooth life for our children, I'm willing to bear a child for His Majesty and His Highness."

Yuwen Feng took in a large gulp of air and looked at his wife earnestly. "Thank you, darling. I was being narrow-minded. During our so many years' marriage, I've always been making assumptions about your thoughts with my own ideas. I should've known better."

He'd underestimated his wife. Still, what his wife had said just now had also enlightened him.

"Please don't say that, darling. Whatever I do, I do it out of my selfish motive. It's not this unborn baby but you and the other three children of ours who mean the world to me. I would do anything for you. Besides, His Majesty and His Highness are both fairly kind. Otherwise we would've been incriminated by the deeds of my parents-in-law and brother-in-law alone."

She didn't put it explicitly, but both she and Yuwen Feng were aware that were Yuwen Tong an emperor with a suspicious mind, on no account would either of them have still been alive, and nor would Yuwen Feng have been promoted to a position of responsibility, and nor would Yuwen Tong have decided to adopt their child.

Yuwen Feng's consciousness of these facts was the very reason why he knew how laudable it was for his wife to have come to understand these things, and how precious her love for this family was.

After leaving the abode of the Marquess Huaiwen (AKA the Marquess of Moderation), Ling Zhang sitting in his carriage flicked a backward glance at the residence. He hadn't seen Yuwen Feng's wife during the visit. The marchioness had always dwelt in deep seclusion and rarely come out. Ling Zhang had merely glimpsed her a couple of times at palace banquets, and his only memory about her was her smile befitting her status at palace banquets.

A few moments before, when he'd been leaving, the court physician had given him a significant look, which had confirmed his suspicion that there was nothing wrong with the marchioness' pregnancy.

The so-called "compromised her pregnancy" had indeed been a story Yuwen Feng and his wife had made up, one meant to be a reason for him to pay them a visit.

Recalling the process of his visit in the abode of the Marquess Huaiwen, Ling Zhang had some speculations about what Yuwen Feng might be thinking.

...

When Ling Zhang returned to the palace, Yuwen Tong was still in the consultation hall, so he made arrangements for some matters to be dealt with.

At noon, Yuwen Tong returned from the consultation hall, and Ling Zhang told him about his visit to Yuwen Feng.

"His wife's father is the Taizhou Tongpan (an official under assistant governor). I don't know much about her, but I do know a thing or two about her father. He's been in that position for several years. According to related regulations, he should've long since been transferred back to this city. However, for some unknown reason, two transfer orders issued by the imperial court eventually ended up being ignored. I did some digging and I have a sneaking suspicion that he secretly did something which made the former emperor change his mind and let him continue to stay in Taizhou."

After hearing Ling Zhang mention Yuwen Feng's wife, Yuwen Tong brought up something about her father.

"He made the former emperor change his mind twice?" Ling Zhang was somewhat surprised. The marchioness' father was merely a Prefectural Tongpan and didn't wield as much power as a high-ranking official of the capital city did, but he actually had influential contacts in the capital city and had made the emperor change his mind twice? "Does he have some force at his back that is unknown to us, by any chance? Is he...dangerous?"

On top of that, why had he refused to be transferred to the capital city? All Tongpan were officials of the capital city sent to provincial areas, and they were supposed to return to the capital city when their terms ended. If they made achievements during their terms, they without exception would be promoted. Why had he thrown such good opportunities away instead of seizing them?

Ling Zhang, before marrying Yuwen Tong, had done his best to acquaint himself with the background of the officials of every description in this country. The Taizhou Tongpan was a fairly high position, so he still had some recollections of this official, but he didn't remember reading anything about this person having any particular force at his back.

Yuwen Tong said, "He's not really dangerous, but he's pretty visionary and smart. He had the former emperor change his mind by taking advantage of the power struggles between the couple of princes of the Zhou family. His position is neither high nor low, because to the north of Taizhou was Jingzhou. It's a coastal prefecture, but what with its geographical location, the maritime trade industry there is not as thriving as that of Haizhou. It's not of great strategical importance, and it doesn't have any obvious commercial advantages; the Taizhou governor is in charge of prefectural affairs, and the commander of the Taizhou garrison is in charge of military affairs, so the Taizhou Tongpan is a position neither important nor insignificant, and the former emperor had much less trust in him than he did in the Tongpan in more important prefectures. The couple of princes were also not very interested in him. Transferring him back to the capital city would mean that one of the princes' subordinates in an important position would lose his job. Therefore, after they weighed up the pros and cons, they decided to let him stay there, which made it easier for him to line his pocket. I said he's smart because he knew how to take advantage of that, and he achieved his ends by have his contacts in the capital city pull strings for him. I deem him visionary because at that time the situation in the capital city was too complicated, and many officials whose ranks were much higher than his were dragged into power struggles; had he returned to the capital city and been assigned to a particular position, he would no doubt have been forced into taking sides. He saw it clearly, which was why he chose not to return."

After hearing this, Ling Zhang finally came to understand what Yuwen Tong meant – the Taizhou Tongpan was a smart person.

"Yuwen Feng married his daughter because Zheng shi insisted. At that time, the Taizhou Tongpan's daughter had a reputation for being gentle and kind and honest, and her repulsion spread to the capital city. Zheng shi set great store by her place in the pecking order, and a daughter-in-law from a powerful family was the last thing she wanted, which was why she chose the Taizhou Tongpan's daughter. After marrying Yuwen Feng, his daughter has indeed been keeping a low profile, and she never fought her mother-in-law for power in the house. She always focuses on serving her husband and raising their children. Never once did she come into conflict with her mother-in-law. Since she's almost invisible, many people are beginning to forget about her."

Ling Zhang bobbed his head as he listened, coming to have a general idea of what kind of person the marchioness might be.