Manager Du did not know.

He was a merchant himself and didn’t think that merchants were lowly.

However, just as farmers hope their children will study and enter government service, it wasn’t that being a peasant was shameful, but rather that reaching the emperor’s court would be better for the future of their descendants.

He only wanted to give the best to the young lady.

More importantly, although Manager Du had not been able to enter the palace in recent years, he kept track of the palace’s affairs and knew that the young lady had the Crown Prince in her heart, or rather, had only the Crown Prince in her heart all these years while waiting in the palace.

So, from yesterday until today, he didn’t dare to advise reconciliation or separation.

He was in a difficult position, fearing that any advice might hurt the young lady’s delicate feelings.

After all, he had already made a wrong choice ten years ago.

Manager Du couldn’t help but glance at Wei Yu, whose eyes were slightly reddened, and sighed, reflecting on how the little girl who once pleaded so earnestly for “only Brother Jinghuan” and couldn’t even be taken away by the Grand Marshal had truly grown up.

Seeing Manager Du’s changing expression, Zanying gently asked, “Uncle, is there something troubling you?”

“No,” Manager Du said, covering his eyes. “I am happy, truly happy.”

Since the young lady had made her decision,

Manager Du composed himself, adjusted his demeanor, and gave a deep bow to Zanying. “From now on, young lady, please follow your heart. I will protect you and never disgrace my duty.”

After speaking, he turned to the astonished Mrs. Ren and, as if finally standing straight, said, “Why are you still standing there? Quickly call the accountants from the East Market, West Trade, Yuan Sheng Pavilion, and Longshan Kiln. The accounts are complex, and we might not be able to finish them today.”

His commanding tone lasted less than a moment before, under Mrs. Ren’s wide-eyed gaze, he quickly added with an embarrassed smile, “I apologize for the trouble, Mrs. Ren.”

Zanying closed her eyes, feeling a mix of emotions.

The accounts involving four chief accountants and Manager Du couldn’t be fully compiled in one day—just how many were there?

She hid her pained feelings, clasped her hands, and returned the bow to Manager Du.

While giving these instructions, she did not avoid the Grand Marshal.

Turning her gaze, she saw Wei Yu still standing beside her, his deep eyes fixed on her for an unknown length of time.

Zanying, with a calm demeanor, asked in a lighter tone, “Grand Marshal, have you had breakfast? If not, would you care to join me?”

She had asked this question once before, and asking again now showed her sincere invitation.

Because she had come of age overnight, her attitude towards him had changed completely, becoming pure and easy to please.

Wei Yu’s gaze grew colder.

Yet his tone remained patient and gentle as he responded with a counter-question, “Have you rested enough? If you don’t mind, I can take you down the mountain to find a place to have a meal. Will you come?”

It was unusual for the Grand Marshal to use the term “mooch” for a meal.

Manager Du, who was about to leave for his tasks, instinctively stopped.

Not daring to overstep, he politely asked with a smile,

“Uh, Grand Marshal, if you don’t mind me asking, where exactly are we going?”

At the same time, Zanying said, “Let’s go.”

Wei Yu’s eyebrows twitched slightly, and Manager Du helplessly said, “The young lady didn’t even ask where we’re going.”

Wei Yu glanced at him, “Jiang Cheng County, Gu’s villa.”

Manager Du’s spirits lifted.

The Gu family was the prominent Gu family of Jiangnan, once connected with the Empress.

From what he knew, the Emperor had felt indebted to the Gu family for years.

Since that incident, the head of the Gu family had secluded himself, and many distinguished talents had sought to visit Gu Gong but found no access.

Watching the backs of the Grand Marshal and the young lady as they descended the steps together, Manager Du understood.

He adjusted his sleeves and turned back to Xu Shi with a bow.

Xu Shi smiled and said, “Manager Du, do you think that you’ve been expressing thanks more frequently recently?”

Manager Du responded with a smile, feeling both touched and gratified. “Visiting the Gu family will have its benefits for the young lady. If the Grand Marshal is so considerate of her, I am more than willing to show my respect every day.”

Xu Shi, with a solemn expression, turned to look at Manager Du, sighing lightly. “It seems I misjudged Miss Fu.”

He had always prided himself on understanding people.

Seeing Miss Fu braving the rain to climb the mountain yesterday, he felt sympathy for her but also thought her departure from the palace was a fleeting impulse.

After all, a person’s place of upbringing has a profound impact.

After ten years in the palace, a burst of anger, no matter how intense, would eventually dissipate.

With some sweet words from the palace, Miss Fu might have been persuaded to return.

Yet, the fragile young lady had such determination to break away.

“Don’t forget,” Manager Du said with a proud smile, “the young lady’s mother was someone significant.”

Today, there was no need to take the shortcut up the mountain.

Instead, they would use the wide official road from the White Stone Round Platform at the bottom of Fengque.

The carriage was ready, accompanied by a handful of capable men.

This didn’t seem like a sudden decision.

Zanying had initially thought the Grand Marshal intended to take her to a restaurant outside.

She had never been out there before, so having an elder guide her made her feel secure.

Thus, she agreed to go.

But when she heard about the Gu family’s villa, she realized it wasn’t just any ordinary place.

In Jiangzuo, only those from prestigious families could afford to build private gardens known as villas.

Therefore, the Grand Marshal was likely going to a place of significant status.

Before getting into the carriage, she hesitated a bit and asked, “General, should I prepare a gift to bring? It seems rude to come empty-handed.”

The clear sound of her voice was more pleasant than the small stream in the mountains.

Wei Yi’s brows relaxed slightly, and he said, “You don’t need to. It would be impolite for me to let you spend money on a meal.”

Zanying was unsure whether he was teasing her again. Wei Yi continued, “The Gu and Wei families are old friends. Did you not know?”

Zanying stayed silent.

In the Yuzhu Palace, there was never any mention of matters related to the Wei family.

She gently shook her head.

Wei Yi’s gaze grew deeper. “In the families of the gentry in Jiankang, young women are taught to read. Didn’t Yu Linghong teach you about family trees and the gentry’s lineage?”

Zanying shook her head again.

She hadn’t found anything strange about the Grand Marshal addressing the current Empress by name, but she didn’t want to dwell on past experiences and lowered her eyes.

Wei Yi’s expression became even more inscrutable, but he didn’t ask further.

He extended his arm, palm down, and his flowing sleeves in dark silk billowed as the young lady took his arm to get into the carriage.

With a glance at the female attendants following behind, he instructed his guards, “Send another carriage to follow us.” Then, without using the step, he lifted his leg and entered the carriage.

However, as he stepped in, the entire carriage, with its iron-bound wheels, sank heavily.

Zanying settled into the carriage, feeling the jostling, with the silk flower pinned to her hair trembling lightly.

She had thought the Grand Marshal would be riding a horse, but he joined her in the carriage instead, so she quickly moved to make room.

Those accustomed to horseback riding rarely take a carriage ride.

Wei Yi, however, maintained his dignified posture, sitting upright with his sleeves draped.

His face, cold and distinguished, appeared like that of a refined poet or scholar from afar.

Only those close to him knew he was not like that.

Because of the lingering aura of military discipline,

Wei Yu’s gaze lightly swept over, and Zanying realized she had almost backed into a corner.

She quickly said, “A Fu is not afraid.”

She only feared that his tall stature might not have enough space, so she wanted to give him more room.

She still remembered the look in the Grand Marshal’s eyes when he had said, “Don’t be afraid of me,” last night.

She didn’t want him to think she was afraid of him.

Since he acknowledged her mother as a sort of elder sister, in Zanying’s heart, Wei Yu had already become a kind of uncle to her.

Last night, he had gone out of his way to help her, personally assisting with her coming of age ceremony.

Although in the grand scheme of the Grand Marshal’s vast and illustrious life, this might seem trivial, it was of great significance to Zanying.

It was a deep, heartfelt gratitude that was etched into her soul.

But expressing these feelings might seem like flattery.

So she kept them to herself.

“Don’t be afraid. Come sit closer.”

Wei Yu opened a hidden drawer in the small tea table, finding two plates of fresh rice cakes.

He must have ordered them prepared earlier.

He pushed the green porcelain plates towards the young girl. “It’s about a half-hour drive to the county; have some first.”

Zanying, who had always had a weak stomach and a strict meal schedule, felt quite hungry when she saw the white, tempting rice cakes.

She thanked him softly and carefully picked up a piece with a handkerchief before putting it in her mouth.

Wei Yu did not disturb her.

Instead, he took out a thin bamboo slip from his sleeve.

The slip was covered in densely written black ink with red annotations—unclear which book it was from.

He held it in one hand and read.

As Zanying ate half a piece of osmanthus rice cake, the carriage, which had been descending the palace slope, suddenly stopped on the flat ground.

“A Ying,” came a deep and familiar voice from outside the carriage.

Zanying’s gaze became still as she remembered that Li Jinghuan, who had been waiting outside the palace, would encounter her on the way down.

“If you don’t want to see him, I can drive him away.”

Wei Yu, hearing the commotion outside, did not lift his gaze and spoke casually.

Zanying dabbed at the corner of her mouth with a handkerchief and shook her head.

For someone who was almost a stranger now, even giving him a glance was giving him too much.

Her soft voice held a hint of indifference. “If he’s not in my heart, he won’t be in my sight. I’ll go on my way, no need to care about him.”

Hearing this, Wei Yu’s gaze remained on the bamboo slip, but his expression gained a hint of amusement, as if he had smiled.

Li Jinghuan had left the palace city before dawn, taking the royal carriage to the palace.

In fact, after leaving the Tai Chi Hall last night, he had returned to the Jade Candle Hall, guarding the empty bed where the incense had already faded, and listened to the thunder without sleeping all night.

From the time Zanying entered the palace at three years old until yesterday, she had never spent a night outside the palace.

Even when she went back to the Fu residence for visits, it was always a same-day round trip.

This had become a customary practice for many years.

But last night, someone who had waited there for ten years, someone he could see whenever he wished, had disappeared.

As one grows from childhood to youth and then adulthood, many things are lost and many old things are discarded.

Li Jinghuan might lose a pouch, a gemstone from his belt, or change clothes he dislikes, but in the changing times, one thing he was certain of was

That Fu Zanying would never be lost.

After all, since he was made Crown Prince, he had known that this woman would one day be his wife.