Since Su Qingyu gave birth, her mother had been with her at the Lu family.

The mother and daughter seemed to have never been so leisurely. They usually took care of the child and talked together. Mother Su either taught her how to take care of the child or talked about all kinds of gossip, which made Su Qingyu understand a lot about the surroundings. It was no longer just her shop.

After two days, Mother Su went back. After a period of chaos, Su Qingyu gradually adapted to the life of a new mother.

Hongxiu usually helped her, and Aunt Zhou would come to help when she was not busy so that she would not be too tired.

And Lu Shengcai would come to see his eldest grandson every day when he came back from the shop, holding the child happily and not letting go. The family had not heard the cry of a child for more than ten years. Now, when the child cried, Lu Shengcai felt that the family was lively, as there was a new addition to the family. However, Wu Shi, Lu Yuzhu, and others felt that it was too noisy and made them unable to sleep well at night.

But Lu Shengcai was very happy and said that he would hold a good celebration for the hundredth day.

Lu Bozu and Lu Yuzhu never came to see the child, but Lu Bozong came every few days. Maybe he thought that such a young child was too rare, and he even competed with Lu Shengcai for holding the child. After Lu Shengcai corrected him several times, he finally held the child properly.

The day after Mother Su left, someone finally came from Guangning Mansion.

That afternoon, two dusty palace soldiers entered the Lu family. Lu Shengcai was so shocked when he heard the news that he trotted back. Seeing that they were going to take Su Qingyu away for questioning, he was surprised and confused.

“Sir, tell me what’s the matter. I am the master of this house. My daughter-in-law just gave birth a few days ago and is still in confinement…” Lu Shengcai bowed respectfully in front of the two officers, feeling very nervous.

Two yamen runners had rushed all the way from Guangning Prefecture, their clothes and faces covered in dust. They hadn’t even stopped to rest once and were in a foul temper. Waving Lü Shengcai aside, they said, “Enough nonsense. The Tongpan daren^[1]assistant prefect in ancient China’s administrative system wants to take someone in for questioning—do you still have doubts? Never mind that she’s in confinement; even if she couldn’t move from her bed, we’d carry her there if we had to!”

The two officers looked so ferocious that Lu Shengcai was frightened. He didn’t even dare to raise his head.

Su Qingyu heard the noise and had already made preparations. She dressed up, handed the child to Hongxiu, and wrapped her head and face with a shawl before leaving the room.

“Sir, I am Su Qingyu. I will go with you.”

The two officers looked at her for a while and were satisfied with her cooperation. Seeing that she really looked exhausted after giving birth, they also restrained their expressions a little.

He nodded at her and said, “The daren only said to summon you for questioning. Just cooperate, don’t make excuses or refuse, and don’t make things difficult for us.”

“Yes. This humble woman wouldn’t dare. Then let’s go now.”

“Hey, Bocheng’s wife, you are…”

“Father, it’s fine. The daren was only calling me over to ask a few questions, that’s all.”

Lu Shengcai looked back and forth between the two officers and Su Qingyu, rubbing his hands. Seeing Su Qingyu lift her legs and follow the two officers out, he hurriedly followed her: “Then Dad will go with you.”

Wu Shi, who was hiding in the shadows, rushed out and grabbed him, whispering, “Why are you following? Do you want to die?”

“What nonsense are you talking about? I haven’t done anything wrong. What is there to worry about? My daughter-in-law and I will go and be back soon. She is young and inexperienced; it will be better if I am here.”

“You can’t go!”

“Don’t make trouble.”

The couple kept pulling and tugging, and the noise was so loud that the two officers turned around to look. Wu Shi immediately became timid and lowered her head in fear.

Lü Shengcai seized the opportunity to break free from her and trotted after them.

Wu Shi gritted her teeth and stamped her feet in anger, terrified. She wondered what Su Shi had done wrong. She wondered why she was being taken away by the yamen runners. Had she gotten into trouble? What if it affected her family? Had someone died from the food in her shop?

Oh my god! What should we do?

Su Qingyu and Lu Shengcai followed two officers to a courtyard. They saw two palace soldiers standing upright on the left and right of the gate, one hand on the waist, the other hand on the sword at the waist. When they saw a group of people coming, they just glanced at them lightly and continued to stand at the door with an expressionless face.

That cold and stern look scared everyone; no one dared to pass by the door.

Lu Shengcai’s legs went weak after just one look. He was a small businessman who lived a peaceful life. He had never seen such a scene before. Thinking that he would have to see the tongpan soon, he couldn’t help but tremble.

“Dad, it’s okay; I’m just called in for questioning.” Su Qingyu glanced at him and comforted him.

“But, but Dad is still afraid for you…”

The two officers walking in front turned their heads and glanced at him, secretly disdainful that this grown man was not as calm as a young woman.

“Dad, why don’t you just wait for me at the door?”

 “Well, no, I’d better go in with you.”

Seeing that he insisted, Su Qingyu didn’t know what to say. Following the two yamen runners through a corridor, they came to the third courtyard.

This courtyard was obviously more crowded than the previous two. People coming and going trotted in to answer questions, and there were also runners in the courtyard leading other people waiting there for the tongpan to summon them.

Su Qingyu stood in the courtyard for a long time, feeling dizzy and weak in the legs, before waiting for the news of the Tongpan’s summons in the main hall.

“Greetings, Master Tongpan.”

“Greetings, Master Tongpan…”

Sitting at the head of the seat was a slightly plump official in his forties or fifties with a beautiful beard, wearing an official uniform and boots, with a stern face. Next to him stood a middle-aged man who looked like a legal advisor. In the hall, on the left and right, two clerks were taking notes. Su Qingyu only took a glance and lowered his head, staring at the ground.

“Are you Su Qingyu? And who is the person next to you?”

“To answer your question, sir, I am Su Qingyu, and the person next to me is my father-in-law. My husband left home for conscription last June. I just gave birth to a child and am currently recuperating. My father-in-law was worried about me, so he accompanied me to see you, sir.”

“Yes, yes, your humble servant, your humble servant…”

“I’m not asking you a question!”

The Tongpan was impatient to listen to Lu Shengcai and interrupted him with a wave of his hand. This made Lu Shengcai’s legs and feet tremble even more.

The man turned to Su Qingyu and said, “Su Shi, I ask you questions, and you must answer truthfully. Otherwise, I will make sure you get a beating!”

“Yes, I will tell you everything I know.”

“Very good. Then I want to ask you, is the owner of the Yangwei Martial Arts School in town your husband’s master? Are you on good terms with his family?”

“Yes. A few years ago, the master saw that my husband had a talent for martial arts, so he recruited my husband into the martial arts school to learn the craft. After my husband left, this humble woman thought that Master Ma had, after all, taught my husband martial skills for several years, allowing him to have some means of self-defence when he went to the battlefield. Therefore, this humble woman would usually make some food and take it to the guan to help fulfil some filial duty. Master Ma’s wife was frail and often ill, rarely going out, and she liked to hear this humble woman talk about matters from outside. So this humble woman often kept her company and chatted with her…”

The Tongpan stroked his beard after listening, his expression serious.

After a while, he asked again, “Do you know the origins of this couple?”

(End of this chapter)