Insufficient balance

  News of the upcoming North-South talks has spread throughout the land, and people from all walks of life are eagerly awaiting this round of talks to bring new hope for the resurgence of this ancient nation. Whether it's young students or elderly gentlemen, or street vendors and pedestrians, everyone is looking forward to this round of North-South talks to calm the war, restore peace and tranquility, and make their lives better and better after the talks.

  When the people of the country had great hopes for this North-South peace talks, the two sides of the talks were still openly and secretly fighting each other. Although large-scale battles on the front lines of Hubei and Jiangsu have ceased, small-scale clashes occur every day. At the same time, Huang Xing, who initially controlled most of the military power near Nanjing, took a northern expedition posture.

  At the same time, the Beiyang Army also made frequent moves. After a period of mobilization, the remaining troops of the 6th and 4th Divisions under the 1st Army in Hubei had arrived in Hubei from the Beijing area. At the same time, part of the 3rd Division and some of the 2nd Division in Hubei had also set off northwards. After this reorganization, the strength of the 1st Army in Hubei was not reduced but increased. Two divisions were stationed under the city of Wuchang, making Li Yuanhong sleep uneasily. On the Tianjin-Pukou Railway line, most of the troops of the 5th Division had arrived at Xuzhou and together with Zhang Xun's Jiangsu Army, they not only ensured the safety of the northern route but also threatened Nanjing at any time.

  Military stalemate was far less attention-grabbing than the political jockeying, and even before Tang Shaoyi, Yuan Shikai's representative for peace talks, had arrived in Tianjin, a sharp conflict arose between North and South over the location of the negotiations. Huang Xing and others from the South naturally wanted to hold the negotiations in Nanjing so as to take advantage of home-field advantage to gain an edge in the negotiations, while also determining the future temporary capital through this method.

  The Beiyang warlords were not fools, and they would not be stupid enough to go to Nanjing. They advocated for Tianjin. As a result, the negotiations between the two sides had not yet officially begun, but were put on hold due to disagreements over the location of the talks. Tang Shaoyi had no choice but to wait in Tianjin.

  As time slowly passed, both sides finally retreated and chose the Shanghai Concession. As for security issues, they would be guaranteed by the concession authorities.

  When Tang Shaoyi and other Qing government representatives' special train headed south from Tianjin again, Chen Jingyun had also finished his daily tasks early and rushed back home before noon.

  After entering the hall, Chen Jingyun paid respects to Chen Yu and then sat down. Not long after, mother and son had lunch together. Since Chen Jingyun had received Luo's prior instructions before returning home, the chef in the mansion was also well-prepared. Although the dishes were all simple household styles, they were extremely exquisite, with a perfect combination of color, fragrance, and flavor.

  After dinner, Chen Yu got up and wanted to go to the backyard for a walk to help digest the food, and also asked Chen Jingyun to go together.

  The Chen family in Fuzhou was originally a prominent clan, with generations of officials and a prosperous family business. The mansion was naturally built on a large scale. However, the Chen family's father had already divided the family property, and Chen Jingyun himself had no brothers. After his two sisters got married and left, the vast Chen Mansion seemed deserted, with only dozens of servants and maidservants remaining.

  The Chen Mansion is not small in scale, and the backyard is naturally very good. Like many houses in Jiangnan, the backyard has introduced running water, dug a small lake, and planted lotus flowers in the lake. On the south bank of the lake, a small bridge with railings on both sides extends from the shore, and after crossing the bridge, there is a small pavilion. If you drink wine and enjoy the flowers in this pavilion on a summer day, it's perfect.

  Madam Chen was walking along the stone path by the lake, she was already a woman in her fifties, and had bound feet since childhood, so she didn't walk very fast. Chen Jingyun followed slowly beside her, with several maidservants following behind, and about ten paces back was Chen Cai, while in the rear courtyard, there were over a dozen guards stationed in various places. Chen Jingyun had always been very concerned about his own safety, and among the batch of Mauser C96 pistols he purchased, the first to be equipped with them was his guard team, including Chen Cai, each carrying two pistols at their waist. Chen Jingyun's guard team now numbered over 150 people, divided into three squads that took turns on duty for twenty hours a day, and the team members were all selected from the elite of the security brigade, while the main officers of the guard team were personally selected by Chen Jingyun himself, equipped with one rifle per person, in addition to two Mauser C96 pistols each. In terms of close combat and responding to sudden events, this firepower was more than sufficient.

  Of course, this guard is still mainly facing assassination and other things. If it encounters a large enemy army, it will have to rely on the Guard Corps.

  Accompanying his mother, Chen Yu Shi, walking slowly, Chen Jing Yun didn't have any impatient thoughts. Since arriving in this era, Chen Jing Yun had almost every day busy with work, and even when he had some free time, he was worried about various things. Today, accompanying Chen Yu Shi like this, chatting lightly while walking, for a moment, he actually felt a rare sense of relaxation, sweeping away the tension and worry that had been following him all day, making Chen Jing Yun truly feel relaxed for the first time.

  This is perhaps the meaning of the two words "mother"!

  "Yesterday, Luo Li said that the cooks on your side of the governor's mansion are not good, so I've already arranged for a few people to be transferred over. Later, I'll have them follow you back!" Chen Yu Shi was worried about Chen Jing Yun's every detail: "And as for clothes and such, Luo Li is fine in other ways, but she just can't seem to get embroidery right no matter what. Although there are outside tailors, everyday clothing just isn't as comfortable when it's not made by family members! Later, I'll have Seventh Aunt move over to your side too."

  As he listened to Chen Yu's words about these trivial matters of food and clothing, Chen Jingyun felt a warmth that had been absent for a long time.

  "Son, take note of this and we'll bring them back together later!"

  Madam Chen continued to nag, all about trivial matters in life. As a woman, she knew her son was doing something earth-shaking, but she didn't know the specifics and didn't even understand what "revolution" meant. So Madam Chen never mentioned these things to Chen Jingyun, as long as he was safe and sound, that was enough.

  She was indifferent to Chen Jingyun's official affairs, but she still cared about other things of Chen Jingyun.

  "A few days ago, my mother-in-law came again and brought Lin Yun with her. She accompanied me for a day. Chen Yu's expression was always satisfied when mentioning Lin Yun, and the corners of his mouth were curved up to reveal a happy smile: "Talking about some things she did while studying at Beiman Girls' School!"

  Chen Jingyun heard her mention Lin Yun and felt a little surprised, but didn't think much of it and continued to respond with an "uh-huh".

  But then Chen You turned the conversation around: "I heard from your mother's side that you've only been there once in such a long time?"

  Chen Jingyun was taken aback after hearing this, and then thought carefully, it seemed that he had only gone once, and the words he said were only a few sentences.

  At this time, Chen Yu continued: "Your wedding date is still at the end of the year, no need to avoid each other like this. When you have time, go and sit at Lin's house more often!"

  Chen Jingyun could only nod in agreement!

  Sometimes Chen Jingyun also couldn't accurately describe his feelings towards Lin Yun, saying he loved her would be a lie. Chen Jingyun had only met her once and although he thought she was beautiful and felt slightly curious about her, this wasn't reality - Chen Jingyun asked himself if he possessed that great quality of love at first sight. Dan Yao saying she didn't like him was also a lie, but regardless of other things, her appearance made Chen Jingyun have a very good impression of her.

  To put it simply, Chen Jingyun would occasionally think that there was such a beautiful woman who would soon become his wife.

  Emotions are either love at first sight or developed over time, such as Chen Jingyun and Luo Li's relationship is the latter, while Chen Jingyun and Lin Yun's relationship falls into neither category.

  With that worry gone, and Chen Jingyun being busy most of the time, whenever he had some free time, he would spend it accompanying Luo Cui in the mansion. As a result, Lin Yun was gradually forgotten.

  He agreed with Chen Yu's suggestion to go and see Lin Yun again, and Chen Jingyun didn't plan to delay any further. Since he had already pushed aside official business to return home today, he might as well make another trip to the Lin residence.

  In the afternoon, Chen Jingyun brought people to Lin's house and was greeted with great enthusiasm as before. Since Mrs. Lin was not at home today, Lin Hao accompanied Chen Jingyun in conversation.

  Lin Hao was only sixteen years old, but he was extremely tall and imposing, even taller than Chen Jingyun. However, Chen Jingyun had heard that Lin's character was not good, and at a young age, he was already frequenting brothels and gambling dens. Now, looking at his pale face, it seemed the rumors were true.

  Chen Jingyun was stalling Lin Hao while drinking tea and waiting.

  As expected, it didn't take long for a maid to appear and say that Lin Yun was waiting for him in the pavilion at the back garden.

  Chen Jingyun came here just to see Lin Yun, so he wasn't interested in continuing to chat with Lin Hao, and immediately followed the maid away. On the way, Chen Jingyun couldn't help but think that the backyard pavilion had a kind of "backyard scholar and young lady under the moon" feeling.

  As I walked, my mind wandered and I tried hard to recall Lin Yun's appearance, but for a while, I couldn't think of her delicate face, only knowing that she was very beautiful.

  The road wasn't long, and before he could think about how beautiful Lin Yun was, the maid leading the way had already stopped in her tracks. Chen Jingyun looked up to see a girl leaning against the railing of the corridor, looking out at something, and when she saw him, she seemed to smile slightly.

  The girl had quietly retreated, and Chen Jingyun slowly walked over, getting closer and closer, making her look more and more vivid. Her melon-seed-shaped face had a faint trace of powder, her eyebrows were painted, and she was wearing a pale green gauze dress. When she saw Chen Jingyun approaching, a sweet smile appeared on her face. As he walked closer, Chen Jingyun could smell the faint scent of jasmine. At this moment, the question that had been troubling Chen Jingyun earlier still lingered - she was beautiful, but how beautiful was she? Chen Jingyun couldn't describe it, and couldn't even find an answer.

  But what does it all mean anyway.

  He thought she was beautiful, so she was...