The courtyard for the wedding had once been the Second Young Master’s residence.
The inner room was the bedchamber, while the outer room was the Second Young Master’s study. Books, account ledgers, and the like were arranged on the desk and in the cabinets.
That faint rustling grew more and more distinct.
I lifted off the red bridal veil.
Beside me, Xiao Yin curled into a ball and said, “Miss, it can’t be the Second Young Master’s ghost coming back, can it?”
I ordered in a low voice, “Blow out the candles.”
Ghosts?
I did not believe in ghosts.
In this world, the ones who made mischief had always been people.
Once the room was plunged into darkness, the movement outside grew a little louder.
I told Xiao Yin not to make a sound, then grabbed a wooden club from behind the door, pushed open the bedchamber door, and slipped out quietly. A dark figure was hurriedly rummaging through something.
My soft satin embroidered shoes stepped across the floor without a sound.
“Bang—”
I used all my strength and brought the club down.
The dark figure was struck senseless.
Taking advantage of it, I seized him tightly and shouted toward the outside, “Someone come! There’s a thief in the residence!”
The household servants rushed in. “Second Young Madam, what happened?”
I pointed at the man in black and said, “This person broke into the Cheng residence at night and was sneaking about suspiciously. Send him to the authorities at once!”
The man in black shook his head desperately, but his hands and feet were already bound.
The commotion was great.
The lamps in every courtyard of the residence lit up.
The Eldest Young Madam and Third Miss both came, and even the Old Madam was alarmed.
Third Miss walked to my side and asked, “Second Sister-in-law, are you all right?”
I shook my head.
The Eldest Young Madam looked the thief over, took out a handkerchief to cover her mouth, and said, “Second Brother’s wife, you truly are capable. A mere woman, yet you caught a thief just like that…”
The Old Madam’s face was ashen. “A thief causing trouble in a widow’s room—is that something worth making a clamor about? And you want to take it to the authorities? Aren’t you afraid of being laughed at? Give this thief a few blows and throw him out of the residence. That will do.”
I hurriedly said, “Mother, you must not.”
“What sort of rules are these for a daughter-in-law? When your mother-in-law speaks, you dare to contradict her on the spot.” The Old Madam looked as though she was about to grow angry.
I bent and said, “Mother, Second Master died outside, and when all is said and done, the matter is unclear. It is obvious he was murdered. This thief entered the Cheng residence, yet he did not steal from the main hall or the principal rooms. Instead, he went straight into Second Master’s study and rummaged everywhere, as if searching for some important object. Your daughter-in-law believes this thief may be connected to Second Master’s murder. If he is sent to the authorities and interrogated under torture, perhaps some clue may be found. I beg Mother to examine the matter clearly.”
When the man in black heard my words, his face turned deathly pale with fright.
The Old Madam looked at him, then at me. After thinking for a while, she sighed. “Fine, fine, fine. Send him to the authorities.”
Having received the order, the household servants twisted the man’s arms behind him and escorted him to the yamen.
I said to the Old Madam, “Mother, there are more than ten soldiers guarding the main gate of the residence, but at the small rear gate, there are only two young servants keeping watch at night. If a thief wanted to sneak in, he would have an opportunity. From now on, more men should be assigned to the small gate as well. In addition, the night guards in each courtyard should rotate in two shifts, so that they do not grow unable to endure the night and doze off. Now that something has happened to Second Master, the residence should be even more vigilant.”
The Old Madam did not speak.
Watching her expression, I said softly, “This is only your daughter-in-law’s foolish opinion. Mother must have thought of it long ago.”
After a long while, the Old Madam said, “Then do as Second Young Madam says.”
The young servants and maidservants all answered in unison, “Yes.”
Everyone dispersed.
This unquiet night had finally passed.
I lay on the wedding bed, but could not fall asleep no matter what.
So I simply got up and sat before Cheng Huaishi’s desk. The desk had been turned into a mess by the thief. Several books had been opened, with annotations written upon them in neat, orderly characters.
Every stroke, every line, was written with great care.
Judging the man by his handwriting, this Cheng Huaishi must have been a meticulous and earnest person.
Then how had he been murdered?
And by whom?
The next morning, after rising, I went to the north courtyard to pay respects to the Old Madam.
The Eldest Young Madam had arrived long before me.
A little maid was serving the Old Madam as she rinsed her mouth with rose water.
After she had finished rinsing, the Eldest Young Madam handed her a handkerchief, and the Old Madam wiped her mouth.
“You have only just come to the Cheng residence. Are you used to living here?” she asked unhurriedly.
I lowered my head and said, “Thanks to Mother’s blessing, everything is well.”
“In this residence, your eldest sister-in-law manages the household. If you lack anything or are short of anything, ask your eldest sister-in-law for it.”
“Yes.”
Outside, a young servant reported, “Someone from the yamen has come.”
The Old Madam rose to receive him. A man who looked like a clerk walked in and cupped his hands. “Respectful greetings to the Old Madam.”
The Old Madam ordered a maid to serve tea.
The clerk waved his hand and said, “Old Madam, this humble one is here on official business, so there is no need for tea. His Excellency the Prefect ordered this humble one to report back. The man your residence sent over yesterday has already been interrogated. He is merely a ruffian and petty thief from the streets who entered the residence hoping to steal some things. He has now been imprisoned. Old Madam may rest assured.”
The Old Madam nodded and said, “Thank you for your trouble.”
The clerk then left.
Several yamen runners followed behind him.
I watched his retreating figure and sensed something unusual.
The Old Madam’s face was filled with disappointment, and tears flowed again. “My ill-fated Huai’er…”
She lifted her head. Her two daughters-in-law stood before her. The Eldest Young Madam was dressed in splendid brocade and finery, while I wore the coarse linen garments I had brought from my maiden home.
Set side by side, the contrast made her lament the decline of the second branch all the more.
She summoned the steward. “The wedding was arranged in haste. Aside from the wedding clothes, nothing else was prepared for the Second Young Madam. The tailor only comes once every ten days. Take the Second Young Madam to the silk shop and have several good outfits made for her. The residence often receives guests and visits relatives. Dressed like this, she will invite ridicule.”
“Yes.”
Yangzhou Prefecture lay beside the canal.
With the grain transport running north and south, goods from all under heaven could be found there.
The steward brought me to a rather large silk shop in the city, where we selected cloud brocade from Jinling, gambiered silk from Liangguang, and Huanhua satin from Shu. All were in plain, subdued colors.
Expensive, but not ostentatious.
The tailor went into the inner room to take my measurements.
The shopkeeper smiled and said, “They will be finished tomorrow and sent to the residence.”
The steward nodded.
When we came out, we saw a woman hurrying toward the apothecary next door to the silk shop. The steward called out to her. When the woman saw him, she said, “His father, Brother Chun fell ill this morning. His fever won’t go down.”
When the steward heard this, he became anxious as well. He cupped his hands to me and said, “Second Young Madam, this is this humble one’s wife. My son is ill, and this humble one would like to return home. I will go back to the residence later. Please rest assured, the coachman knows the roads well. Let him take you back to the residence first. Would that be all right?”
A parent’s love for their child—how could I not understand?
I said, “Go on, then.”
The steward thanked me profusely and left.
On my side, I returned to the carriage, only to suddenly see a young man lying inside. He had been wounded in the chest, and blood had soaked through his clothes. Looking at his face, it was extremely delicate and feminine, possessing both a man’s handsomeness and a woman’s charm. Long, narrow eyes, thin lips, a pair of peach-blossom eyes—beautiful beyond compare.
He held a knife against me. “Don’t make a sound.”
His voice was very strange, unlike any I had ever heard before.
Outside, carriages and horses crossed back and forth, and people came and went.
The clerk I had seen that morning was leading yamen runners in search of something.
I thought for a moment, then quietly lowered the curtain, sat inside, and said to the coachman, “Go.”
The carriage began to move.
Only after the sound of official boots had gone far away did the man let out a breath.
“Who are you?” I asked.
He did not speak.
“What did you do to offend Lord Liu?”
As soon as I finished speaking, his knife came against me once more. “Do not meddle in other people’s affairs.”
I smiled. “If I do not meddle, who will save you?”
He was stunned.
The thief from last night had clearly been suspicious, yet Prefect Liu had shielded him and ignored the matter. There had to be something very fishy about it.
An enemy’s enemy might perhaps be a friend.
I decided to save this man.
“I must return to the capital at once,” he whispered.
“Go to the ferry.”
I lifted the curtain and instructed the coachman.
He looked me over. “For Sister’s grace in saving me today, Feng Gao will surely repay you in the future.”
When we reached the ferry, I sent the coachman to buy some food.
Then I lifted the curtain. “Go.”
Just then, several men charged over. Judging by their appearance, they were not with the government soldiers from the yamen. They were all dressed in blue robes and looked more like people of the jianghu.
They shouted for me to move aside, but I did not budge. I stood at the pass that allowed only one person through.
Feng Gao moved swiftly. With a leap, he jumped onto a boat heading north.
The leader, a masked man, angrily set his blade against my neck. “Foolish woman!”
I forced myself to remain calm and said, “How dare you be so rude. I am the younger sister-in-law of Cheng Cangshi, a fifth-rank qianhu of the grain-transport army—the Second Young Madam of the Cheng family!”
He looked as if he had heard the most absurd joke under heaven.
“What? Who did you say you are??”
I felt the cold edge of the blade pressed against my neck, bearing down with force.