In ancient times, the powerful and wealthy seized power step by step.

He gave her a hug, and that was it. Since he had already wished her and the other person a long and happy life together, Zhang Shen restrained himself and hugged Zhu Qingyu briefly before letting go.

Zhu Qingyu waved the dowry list in her hand and smiled:

"Jingyan, I've accepted the order. I'll leave the items here with you. I'll come back to you for money whenever I'm really short of cash."

Zhang Shen understood that what she meant was that she didn't want it.

This wasn't the first time she and he had been so clear about money matters.

Zhang Shen still remembers when they had been married for a month, the accountant came to hand over the accounts and he found that apart from the monthly allowance, she had never asked for any money. He even told Zhu Qingyu that if she needed money, she could just go to the accountant to ask for it. He had told the accountant that if the lady needed money, no matter how much, he could just give it to her without asking him.

Zhu Qingyu also answered very well at the time:

"Okay, I'll go to the accountant's to get it when I need it."

Another month passed, and Zhu Qingyu still hadn't received a single penny. Zhang Shen thought that some servants in the mansion were deliberately making things difficult for her, which infuriated him.

At that time, Zhang Shen even spent a whole day summoning all the servants in the mansion, starting with the head steward, and interrogating them one by one.

It was only when Zhu Qingyu returned from the clinic and noticed the strange atmosphere in the mansion that she asked him what had happened. She then learned of the whole misunderstanding and said, both amused and exasperated:

"No, what are you thinking about all day? We have everything we need at home, so I don't need to take care of anything. I really don't need the money right now. When I do need it, I'll definitely ask you for it."

Zhang Shen knew that she had never really taken their marriage seriously, which was why she wanted to be so clear about things with him.

I thought life was long, and I could wait patiently for the flowers to bloom, and that the time would come when I needed it. But time flies by, and in the blink of an eye, the time I needed it never came.

Zhang Shen had just managed to hold back his tears, but now, thinking about the past, he felt a little like crying and tried to comfort him:

"The Duke's mansion is not like other places. There are many places where money is needed, and there are many people who fawn over others. For example, when you visit other people's homes, you have to buy them clothes and jewelry, right? You also need money to reward the servants, right? This is my heartfelt gift. Don't worry that I don't have enough. Now that I've become the Imperial Textile Commissioner of Jiangning, the family's conditions will only be better than before. I have plenty of money saved up. When has our family ever lacked money?"

Zhu Qingyu accepted the dowry list and smiled:

"I have money to spend. The court pays me a salary, and when I left the northern frontier, the Grand Princess also provided me with plenty of travel expenses, which I can't possibly use up. As for the social obligations of the Duke's mansion, since it's for the Duke's mansion's sake, Shouming should naturally provide them. If he doesn't provide them, I'll just wear my plain clothes. Does anyone dare to refuse me a banquet if I wear plain clothes? Alright, Jingyan, I appreciate your kindness. Look, I've accepted the list. I have to go back to see my patients. I'll come to see you and Ruohua again on my day off."

Zhang Shen saw Zhu Qingyu off at the door, watching her get into the carriage cleanly and efficiently, heading towards Huiyi Clinic.

Only after Zhu Qingyu's carriage disappeared from sight and could no longer be seen did Zhang Shen suddenly laugh at himself.

She is as free as the wind, moving freely between heaven and earth, occasionally pausing, but never bound by constraints.

She stands firm like a tree, under the sun and moon, unmoved by the turmoil of the outside world.

Whether it's her dowry or her family background, she never needed to rely on these things for her confidence.

By tacitly accepting that he would become her family's support, she wasn't implying that she needed him as her backer, but rather that it was a last act of pity she held for him.

......

For a noble family like the Duke of Dingguo's mansion to hold a wedding, with only six months left, the preparation of the three letters and six rites was already very tight.

The two families in charge, the Duchess of Dingguo and Zhang Shen, were extremely busy with the marriage arrangements, while the parties involved, Gu Zhao and Zhu Qingyu, each had their own duties and couldn't attend to it at all.

Zhu Qingyu wants to finish and publish her two books before the opening of medical clinics in various places next year.

Since moving to the Governor-General's Mansion of Liangjiang, Gu Zhao has never been able to move back to Huiyi Clinic.

Whether it was out of consideration for his mother in Jiangning, or because he was too busy with his new post, he suddenly disappeared for days on end, sometimes not for ten days or half a month.

It was almost the winter solstice, and it was already past midnight. Zhu Qingyu was fast asleep when suddenly someone, bringing a chill, slipped into her blankets.

Zhu Qingyu shivered from the cold and raised her hand to hit him, but suddenly smelled a faint scent of blood and woke up instantly, quickly trying to sit up:

Are you injured? Are you bleeding?

Gu Zhao hugged her, his cool cheek brushing against her ear.

Feeling her warmth, Gu Zhao was breathing comfortably when he heard her say that. He quickly let go of her, jumped off the bed, and said:

"Does it still smell? I've already washed it, maybe it wasn't clean enough?"

Zhu Qingyu quickly got up, lit a lamp, and nervously pulled him to look:

"Where are you hurt?"

Gu Zhao was evasive and even tried to run away:

"No, wait a minute, I'll go next door and check again."

She was so angry at him. She was a doctor. If he was really injured, he should have told her right away. Why was he hiding it from her?

Zhu Qingyu, too lazy to waste words with him, grabbed the fleeing Lord Gu, pushed him onto the bed, reached out to undress him, and scolded him:

"Shut up, lie down, I'll see for myself."

Gu Zhao was unusually frail today, falling over at the slightest push, looking up at her with her eyes following her.

Zhu Qingyu took off his shirt and looked him over carefully.

It's strange. There are no wounds, so where did the blood come from?

Seeing her expression, Gu Zhao simply smiled:

"Why did you stop investigating? We haven't finished yet."

Zhu Qingyu realized:

"Other people's blood? Why don't you mention that! What have you been doing all this time?"

Having succeeded in his scheme, Gu Zhao reached out and pulled her into the blanket, laughing even more gleefully.

"It's someone else's blood, of course. You're just being too concerned. How many Left Wise Kings in this world could possibly harm me? You've finished your investigation, now it's my turn."

Zhu Qingyu then realized she had been tricked and accused:

"You cheated! Mmmmmm!"

Lord Gu was in a hurry, so he used force to suppress the matter with an iron fist. Once he started investigating, it was endless. He investigated Lord Zhu from head to toe, inside and out, for an entire night.

I don't know where Lord Gu learned these tricks from, he uses different ones every day, and Zhu Qingyu is always being manipulated. She spends her nights in a drunken stupor and doesn't even know when she falls asleep.

When Zhu Qingyu woke up again, it was already dawn. She was awakened by the sound of someone getting dressed. Opening her eyes, she saw that Gu Zhao was already fully armed and dressed. She quickly sat up, still covered by the covers.

"Where are you going again?"

Gu Zhao leaned down and kissed her on the forehead:

"Go and suppress the bandits. This year, the Emperor sent Lord Zhuang to promote the salt administration reform, which has been very successful. Next year, it will be extended from Jiangsu to the entire Liangjiang region. I need to wipe out the bandits in the area first so that the Emperor's new policies can be implemented next year. After all, not everyone is as determined as Lord Zhuang. Yesterday, I beheaded a bandit leader and came back to write an urgent report to send back to the capital. I missed you so much that I came to see you tonight."

Since he had important business to attend to, Zhu Qingyu couldn't keep him any longer and saw him to the door.

Just before leaving, Gu Zhao turned back and hugged her tightly, reluctant to part.

"I'm leaving now. I'll try to finish these chores as soon as possible before we get married. I don't want to have to do these chores every day after we're married. You take good care of yourself and wait for me to come back for the wedding."