The child’s illness came fast and went just as fast. By midday the next day, Xing Pingchun was already bouncing around like nothing had happened. When Qian Jiaoniang deliberately asked him what had happened, he grinned cheekily and said, “Father was teaching me martial arts. I arrived late and made him wait, so he made me stand as punishment for half the day. Who knew I’d be so unlucky—it started raining, and I was super hungry, so… it was my fault, really, not Father’s!”
Qian Jiaoniang gave a small tug of her lips and said nothing, only thinking to herself—neither she nor Xing Muzheng were what you’d call good people, yet somehow their child had a heart like cotton—so pure and soft.
That night, Xing Muzheng came to the courtyard to eat dinner. The three of them ate in silence. After the meal, Xing Muzheng told Xing Pingchun to be in the study by the hour of Mao the next morning. Qian Jiaoniang’s face darkened at once. Xing Pingchun was a bit scared too, but still answered quickly and obediently.
Qian Jiaoniang asked him to clean up the dishes and leave, then turned to Xing Muzheng and said, “My lord, Chou’er has school tomorrow…”
“From tomorrow on, he won’t need to go to the academy. I’ve invited a tutor to the manor to teach him,” Xing Muzheng interrupted, then added, “You don’t need to worry about these things anymore.” Going forward, he would personally oversee the boy’s education. She no longer needed to concern herself.
To Qian Jiaoniang, those words sounded unbearably harsh.
The next day, before dawn, Xing Pingchun had already gotten up quietly, fetching water to wash his face. Qian Jiaoniang heard the movements from her room but didn’t go out. Once she heard him leave, she got up, changed clothes, washed her face, brushed her teeth with a twig, and tidied herself before stepping outside.
It was still dim outside, and the distant crow of a rooster could be heard. No one was around. Most servants were just getting up. As she neared the inner study, she ran into Ah Da yawning with two men walking toward her. Ah Da stepped forward and saluted, “Madam.”
Qian Jiaoniang didn’t bother to correct him. “Ah Da, why are you still at the marquis manor?”
“The general asked Wang Yong and me to stay in the manor from now on, in charge of security. We just finished the night shift and are waiting for Wang Yong to take over,” Ah Da said. “Madam, it’s so early—where are you going?”
“I’m taking a walk,” Qian Jiaoniang replied.
Ah Da scratched his bald head. He remembered Madam had never been in the habit of taking walks, especially not toward the study courtyard. And he had just seen Chou’er enter that very courtyard. Ah Da quickly put it all together. He waved the two others away, then chuckled and said, “Madam, regarding Chou’er’s punishment, if I may speak boldly, it really wasn’t the general’s fault! In our camp, no one dares to disobey rules. Being late? Forget it—just not standing properly could earn punishment! And raising hands as punishment? That’s the gentlest discipline I’ve ever seen from the general. If one of us were late, it’d be fifty lashes! Seriously late? We’d be strung up a post to bake in the sun all day!”
Qian Jiaoniang pursed her lips and ignored him, waving her hand to send him off. She walked alone to the study courtyard door. No one was guarding it. She gently pushed it open, and with one glance, saw Xing Pingchun in the courtyard, fists clenched at his waist, legs half-squatted in horse stance. Xing Muzheng stood behind him with his hands behind his back, smacking the boy with a ruler when his hips stuck out or when his legs trembled.
Qian Jiaoniang stood there quietly, neither entering nor speaking. Xing Muzheng had seen her the moment she pushed the door open. A flicker of irritation crossed his heart. Did she really not trust him—afraid he’d harm their son? But he said nothing and simply pretended he hadn’t seen her.
Xing Pingchun may have been a wild boy with a sturdy body, but he’d never trained in martial arts. Holding horse stance was no small feat for a child. In less than half an hour, he had collapsed to his knees multiple times. Each time, Xing Muzheng gave him no rest and ordered him to get up and continue. Qian Jiaoniang clenched her fists and bit her lip, heart aching with each fall, but still she did not step forward.
After the half-hour horse stance, Xing Muzheng finally let him rest for a quarter-hour. Xing Pingchun collapsed like a dead dog, panting on the ground. Once time was up, Xing Muzheng ordered him to run twenty laps around the courtyard. The boy dared not disobey and dragged himself to his feet to start running. That’s when he spotted Qian Jiaoniang. He winked and made faces at his mother, trying to get her to leave. She didn’t respond.
Xing Muzheng ignored the boy too, drew his sword, and began practicing.
Xing Pingchun’s eyes widened, fixed on his father dancing like a dragon with the blade. He couldn’t help but gasp in awe, completely forgetting his exhaustion.
Qian Jiaoniang had seen Xing Muzheng perform that very sword form before. Every morning since she’d married into the Xing family, she had watched him train in the courtyard. Compared to those memories, his movements were now even more refined, and the blade danced with a deadly energy it hadn’t carried before.
Suddenly, Qian Jiaoniang felt dazed.
“You really are here.” A voice abruptly snapped her out of her thoughts. She turned her head to see Qingya standing at the foot of the steps.
Qian Jiaoniang came back to her senses and cleared her throat. “You’re awake?”
“Mhm. How’s Chou’er? Did he get bullied?” Qingya lifted her skirt as she stepped up the stairs, leaning close to Qian Jiaoniang and peering inside.
Qian Jiaoniang said, “He’s only done half an hour of horse stance. Xing Muzheng then told him to run twenty laps around the courtyard.”
Qingya gasped, “Twenty laps? How could Chou’er take that?”
Qian Jiaoniang curled her lips, “Once he’s done, he’ll likely have to strike the wooden post.”
Qingya asked, “How do you know that?”
Qian Jiaoniang was silent for a moment. “That’s how Xing Muzheng trained every morning.”
Qingya said, “But Chou’er’s still a child!”
Qian Jiaoniang gently shook her head and pulled her down the stairs. “Mother once said that at eight years old, Father-in-law found Xing Muzheng a teacher, and he trained just like this since he was young… Let’s go.”
“You’re not going to keep watching?” Qingya asked. “What if the Marquis pushes Chou’er so hard he faints again?”
Qian Jiaoniang said, “If Xing Muzheng could train like that, then so can Chou’er. Besides, he must. If I let my heart soften now, I’ll only end up harming him.”
Xing Muzheng noticed Qian Jiaoniang had left and paused for a moment before continuing to practice his swordsmanship. He knew she had been watching.
Qian Jiaoniang and Qingya returned to their courtyard. Qian Jiaoniang knew she wouldn’t be allowed out today, so she told Qingya to try slipping out and pay a visit to Wang Tieniu’s home. She’d originally planned to go look for him after visiting the yamen the other day, but Xing Muzheng had followed her the entire way, so she’d had no choice but to return to the Marquis Manor.
Qingya agreed and left. But by noon, she came storming back in anger. It turned out that when she went to the Wang household, Wang Tieniu wasn’t home. Wang’s old mother, upon seeing her, immediately grabbed her and demanded compensation—claiming it was money they’d planned to use for a wedding, and that it all had to be paid back. She even hurled a slew of nasty insults. Qingya was so angry her liver hurt but couldn’t lower herself to shout back at a shrew. Furious, she returned with her anger unvented.
While Qingya was still complaining, Xing Muzheng came by—but Xing Pingchun didn’t. Qingya quickly slipped into the inner room. Qian Jiaoniang craned her neck behind Xing Muzheng but deliberately didn’t ask where Xing Pingchun was. Xing Muzheng acted as though he hadn’t noticed and simply ordered the table to be set. Still, he said nothing about Xing Pingchun.
It was Ding Zhang who was observant enough to say, “Madam, the young master was tired after this morning’s training and is sleeping quite soundly now. The Marquis said he’ll eat once he wakes.”
Xing Muzheng shot a glare at Ding Zhang. Only then did Ding Zhang realize he’d overstepped and mentally slapped himself across the face.
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