Chapter 3

The moment we returned to the estate, Wei Jinfeng darted off to Concubine Zhen’s courtyard.

All the ceremonies were over. Nothing could have pleased me more.

I had not enjoyed even half a day of peace when my mother-in-law sent an old servant with orders that I begin paying my respects every morning.

“This is a rule laid down by the ancestors of the household. Not even the emperor himself could object.”

Afraid I might do something shocking again, the old woman gave me a pointed warning.

“The old madam rises early. The heir’s wife must not oversleep and arrive late!”

“Understood. Tell Mother I will pay my respects every day.” I waved her away impatiently.

I could be reckless, but I was not ill-mannered.

The rules in Grandfather’s army were probably stricter than anything this estate could invent.

It was only a morning greeting. Before I married, I had paid my respects to my elders every day.

And so, before dawn the next morning, I arrived at my mother-in-law’s courtyard.

The old woman who opened the gate rubbed her eyes and jumped.

“Young Madam? You’re… very early.”

I glanced at the sky. “Not at all. It will be light soon.”

After all those years beyond the frontier with Grandfather, my cousins and I had long been accustomed to early mornings.

No soldier slept until the sun was high.

My first morning as a bride did not count. I had been exhausted that night.

But my mother-in-law’s courtyard was silent, and none of my sisters-in-law had arrived.

The old woman smiled without warmth.

“The old madam has not risen. I am afraid the young madam will have to wait.”

So they had ordered me here early to establish their authority and intended to punish me by making me stand in the cold.

What a joke.

I loosened my limbs. The courtyard was spacious enough. I might as well practice a set of punches to warm myself.

I was cutting through the air with every blow when my mother-in-law’s senior maid hurried out while fastening the collar of her jacket.

“Merciful heavens, what a commotion! You have woken the old madam.”

I stopped.

“But Mother specifically ordered me to pay my respects. Ceremony must be observed.”

“You need not come this early, and you certainly cannot practice your fists in the courtyard. How is the old madam supposed to rest?”

I glanced at the dark main room.

“That’s all right. Mother can keep sleeping. I’ll practice while I wait.”

“You…” The maid choked on her anger.

Just then, a lamp came on inside. A trembling shadow appeared on the paper window, and my mother-in-law’s irritated voice rang out.

“Let her in before she finds something else to torment us with.”

My mother-in-law was bleary-eyed and in a foul temper.

“Did you come to pay respects or to anger me? The wives of the second and third sons wait in perfect silence. You alone make me think some street performer has wandered into my courtyard!”

“Oh. Very well.” I answered with perfect obedience.

The next day, before dawn, I hammered on the courtyard gate.

The old woman who came running to open it tripped and fell.

“Merciful heavens, you have woken the whole courtyard!”

I scratched my head, embarrassed.

“I can’t help being strong.”

My mother-in-law had said I could not practice my fists. So I held a horse stance instead and ran several laps around the courtyard.

On the third day, I practiced with my sword.

On the fourth, I brought all four of my maids. They had followed me into the Wei family and gone too long without training. Their skills were beginning to rust.

Truly, morning exercise left a person clearheaded and refreshed.

My mother-in-law experienced the opposite effect. The dark circles beneath her eyes looked ready to fall off her face. Her complexion turned gray, and each day her head drooped over her tea as if she might fall asleep at any moment.

“Zhiyu, don’t come tomorrow. You should get more rest.” Her voice was feeble.

“How could I? Paying respects every day is an ancestral rule. I would never dare break it.”

“It is fine. I say you need not come. Listen to your mother.”

“I cannot. Your maid said not even the emperor himself could object. I would hate for outsiders to call me disrespectful.”

“If I tell you not to come, then don’t come! Do you not understand human speech?”

My mother-in-law’s sudden explosion startled me.

But words spoken in anger could hardly be taken seriously.

I continued to come every morning. Once my sisters-in-law heard that I rose early to pay respects, they were too embarrassed to arrive late.

Yawning, they joined me outside my mother-in-law’s locked doors.

“Eldest Sister-in-law, why do you rise so early? Do you never sleep?”

There was a trace of resentment in their eyes.

“I sleep alone. With no one in my room and nothing else to do, I might as well get up early,” I lied casually.

Someone with an ulterior motive overheard me.

That evening, Wei Jinfeng was wrapped up and delivered to my courtyard.