"Hongxia, you mustn't let your head get fuzzy. Thinking this life is good enough for you—you’re not even thirty! Your life is still long. How hard it is to live alone. Before, when Yuanzhu and Yuanbao were little, I was afraid the children would suffer if they followed you to someone else's home, but now Yuanzhu can work, and Yuanbao is older too. You need to think about yourself. While you’re still young, find someone, and you can still have more children. Life will be easier later on." Madam Zhao was speaking to Hongxia.

"Mother, now that I’m divorced, does that mean the children won't suffer? Yuanzhu can work, but Yuanbao is still young. If I take him along, Yuanbao will just be a burden. Would anyone even welcome him? I don't want the children to go through that hardship. Let's talk about it again in a couple of years."

"In a couple of years, you’ll be old, and you won't be able to bear children. Who will want you then? Listen to your mother. Find someone quickly in these next few years. If you worry about Yuanbao, leave him with me. In a couple of years, Yuanbao will be old enough to work too."

"Mother, even if I wanted to remarry, I wouldn't find a suitable person. Who would want someone like me?"

"Don't you worry about that. Just agree, and I will arrange everything."

"As you wish, Mother. I'm tired; I'm going back to rest." With that, Hongxia walked toward the room.

Hongxia hadn't paid much mind to her mother's words. Her mother had brought this up many times before, but it always ended up unresolved. She figured Madam Zhao must have given up because she couldn't find a suitable match. When Madam Zhao brought it up again this time, Hongxia thought her mother was just saying it casually. But this time, Madam Zhao seemed genuinely serious. Every other time this topic arose, Hongxia would say it hadn't been long since the divorce, and marrying again would invite gossip, plus Yuanzhu and Yuanbao were too young, and Madam Zhao hadn't been entirely at ease. But this time, things were somewhat different.

However, after the matter concerning Da Fa, things quickly got busy. Madam Zhao’s family also had some fields. Although in the last two years, Er Niu would send people to help Madam Zhao, she still had quite a bit of work to do herself, such as fertilizing and weeding, which she had to handle personally. Madam Zhao didn't have time to dwell on the remarriage matter for the moment.

While everyone was busy, the situation at Lin He’s house remained the same as usual. The field work was all done by the hired hands. Lin He only instructed the chief retainer each day to take the young servant out to buy more vegetables, ensure the hired hands’ meals were better, and always keep some herbal tea ready by the fields for the workers during their breaks.

When Chang Geng arrived, he was initially just the carriage driver. But over the past few years, almost all the household affairs had been managed by Chang Geng, effectively making him Lin He's steward. Chang Geng managed the household quite capably, and Lin He's family was pleased, planning to formally promote him to steward soon. The job of driving the carriage had already been taken over by someone else.

The fertilizing took only a few days. It seemed Lin He's family's wheat crop was set for another bumper harvest this year. They had acquired more fields the previous two years, and all the land was sown. With the wheat growing so well, once the grain was harvested, their granaries would be filled to the brim again. Er Niu would be delighted, and everyone would receive bonus money at year-end. The master was happy, and the workers were happy too.

After the fertilization, it was soon June. The weather was already quite hot in June. Lin He hadn't been tinkering with anything new lately. She spent her days in the courtyard watching Chen’er practice embroidery, or playing with Da Xiong and Xiao Xiong in the yard. It was a rare moment of peace. Sometimes, though, she would think of Wen Ningxuan, busy in Qinghe County, wondering how the development of Caidie Xuan was progressing. It had been quite some time; Caidie Xuan should be finished. Why hadn't Wen Ningxuan returned yet? Just as she was thinking this, she heard voices coming from the entrance: "He'er, Chen'er, I’ve arrived! Are you at home?"

Lin He instantly recognized the voice of that fellow Wen Ningmo. He must have been bored at home again and came to her place for some distraction. This often happened; he would frequently show up without so much as a preliminary greeting. Lin He stood up from her chair. Madam Huang, presumably having heard the maid's announcement, immediately came out, smiling, "Is it Little Mo?"

Madam Huang, Lin He, and Chen’er, who had been embroidering nearby, all stood up and started to walk toward the entrance. Lin He shot her a look, then quickly sat back down. When Lin He and the others reached the courtyard gate, there stood that scoundrel Wen Ningmo, gesturing animatedly while talking to Ziyu. However, what surprised Lin He was that Wen Ningxuan was also standing there by the entrance, wearing a faint smile when he saw Lin He emerge.

Because Wen Ningxuan hadn't been standing right at the main entrance when Lin He and the others came out from the courtyard, they hadn't seen him. But as they reached the gate, everyone spotted him. Seeing Madam Huang emerge, Wen Ningmo called out cheerfully, "Auntie Lin, I'm here again! Today, I even brought my second brother. Look, this is my second brother." He then pointed toward Wen Ningxuan.

Madam Huang had already noticed Wen Ningxuan but wasn't sure if he was the Second Young Master they often spoke of. Now, after hearing Little Mo’s words, she understood and immediately scrutinized Wen Ningxuan without blinking. Wen Ningxuan politely called out, "Auntie Bo."

Madam Huang didn't react at first. Lin He reached out and nudged her; only then did Madam Huang come back to her senses, smiling, "So you are the Second Young Master. Come in, quickly."

"Auntie Lin, why do you only see my second brother? What about me?" Little Mo sounded a bit disgruntled.

"Mm, Auntie knows. Come here, Little Mo. Let me see. Why haven't you visited Auntie's home in so long?" Madam Huang said with a smile.

"There’s been a lot going on at home recently, and Father didn't let me come out to play. It was only because my second brother returned that Father agreed to let us come out and play for a few days," Little Mo explained.

"Oh, is that so? Quick, come inside; we can talk there." Madam Huang beckoned everyone in.

Once inside the courtyard, Madam Huang initially wanted to invite Wen Ningxuan to the main hall to sit, as this was his first visit, which called for some formality. But Little Mo and Chen’er were chatting right there in the courtyard, and Wen Ningxuan said sitting in the courtyard was fine too. Everyone settled down in the courtyard to talk.

Madam Huang told Lin He to attend to Wen Ningxuan properly and then went into the house, saying she needed to prepare some refreshments for Little Mo and the others. As soon as Madam Huang entered the room, Wen Ningxuan sat on a chair next to Lin He and said, "He'er, show me around your house?"

Lin He nodded and led Wen Ningxuan around their courtyard. Wen Ningxuan expressed surprise at every spot he saw. The house didn't look large, but it was incredibly functional. Virtually every usable space had been utilized, yet it didn't feel cramped or empty; it was truly quite special.

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