Su Ling was the only daughter of Su Bei, the commandant of Qianzhou and a trusted aide of the emperor. Because of her family’s marriage ties, the whole family was implicated and exiled. Her parents died of illness on the journey, and she too became so sick she could not get out of bed. She was abandoned along the way, but Guan Hui found her and took her home, hiring a doctor to treat her properly. Once Su Ling recovered, she stayed with Guan Hui’s husband’s family. Guan Hui grew fond of her, so when her son returned from war, she arranged for the two to marry. Gu Jianjun wasn’t happy that his mother had arranged things for him, but he fell for Su Ling at first sight and eagerly went through with the wedding. Gu Jianjun and Su Ling spent six months at home. When Su Ling was six months pregnant, Gu Jianjun went off to war again, writing home more than a hundred letters every month to ask after her. Guan Hui was so worn out by Gu Jianjun’s constant letters that, as soon as Su Ling had finished her postpartum recovery, she hurriedly arranged for Su Ling to visit relatives at the border.
