Chu Qilin withdrew his stance, frowning as he took the letter from her hands.
After reading the signature at the end of the letter, his small brows knitted tightly. "Mother investigated before—there doesn't seem to be any merchant surnamed Wei in the city. Who is this man, and why does he want to do business with us?"
Caier replied, "This servant doesn't know either, but I could tell that Master Wei isn't an ordinary man. When he stood there with his hands behind his back, he carried himself with quite the air of authority!"
Chu Qilin hesitated for a moment, then sheathed the small sword in his hand and said, "Go send him off—tell him the master has gone out on business and won't return until tomorrow. I'll sneak a few glances and see what kind of man he is."
"Yes!"
Caier acknowledged and headed to the front courtyard.
Wei Minghan had been ordered to come and offer amnesty, but worried that too grand a display might make the other party feel pressured, he disguised himself as a refined scholar-merchant.
In addition, Li Yingfeng had instructed Yang Xing and Li Hui to disguise themselves as attendants and come along as well.
Upon learning that the head of the household was away and wouldn't return until tomorrow, the three men showed no sign of displeasure. Instead, they sat leisurely in the hall, finished an entire pot of tea, and only then rose to take their leave.
As they passed through the garden, Yang Xing surveyed their surroundings and murmured, "This residence of a capable man is too strange—such a large estate, yet hardly any servants about."
By all logic, someone with great skill would be particular about appearances. Even if not extravagant, they'd still have a retinue of maids and servants. But in this courtyard, they'd only seen one maid bustling about. Had it not been for the trimmed flowers and trees in the garden, they might have thought they were in some abandoned estate in the wilderness.
Li Hui suddenly stopped and pointed to the left, lowering his voice. "Look—there's a child over there!"
Wei Minghan and Yang Xing halted and followed his pointing finger.
Indeed, there was a child.
Judging by the small frame, he looked about five or six years old, squatting under a tree pulling weeds.
The three men scanned their surroundings once more. Aside from this child, there truly was no one else—even the maid who had received them earlier had disappeared.
Wei Minghan was the first to step forward. Reaching the child's side, he bent down with a genial smile and asked, "May I ask, young master, do you know the master of this residence?"
Chu Qilin turned his head, his dark, ink-black eyes brimming with innocence, and replied in a childish voice, "What business do you have?"
The moment he turned and revealed his face, Wei Minghan's eyes flew wide open.
Yang Xing and Li Hui at his sides were equally stunned.
The three men looked as though they had witnessed something uncanny—every face was etched with utter disbelief.
Chu Qilin had intended to use his young age as an advantage to probe these men, but never expected that a single question from him would turn them all into stone statues.
He frowned, tossed away the wild grass in his hand, straightened up, and studied them seriously. "I am the young master of this establishment. Who exactly are you?"
Wei Minghan snapped back to his senses and, heedless of any impropriety, hastily pulled Yang Xing and Li Hui aside. Trembling with excitement, he asked, "This… this child… when did the Prince take a wife and sire a son?"
Yang Xing and Li Hui looked as if they'd been scared senseless. Even after being pulled aside, their gazes remained fixed on the child's face—a face that bore a ten-out-of-ten resemblance to their Prince's.
The Prince taking a wife and siring a son?
That was utter nonsense!
To refuse marriage, the Prince had outright deceived Consort Dowager Qin by claiming he was impotent. How could he possibly have secretly fathered a child with a woman?
Besides, they had served at the Prince's side for fifteen or sixteen years now—if the Prince had a woman, how could they not know?
Wei Minghan observed their reactions—clearly, they knew nothing about this child either. As shrewd as he was, he immediately lowered his voice and said, "This child looks far too much like the Prince. Something is amiss here. We must return at once and report this to the Prince!"
Not far away, watching them whisper among themselves, Chu Qilin narrowed his small eyes, his heart steadily growing wary.
But just as he was about to step forward, he saw the three men flee as if demons were chasing them—without so much as a word, they turned and bolted toward the gate—
"…" His little face tightened, cold and stern.
Could these people be enemies his mother had provoked outside, disguised and sent to snoop around their home?
The next morning at dawn.
Chu Qilin was helping Caier prepare breakfast when he saw a familiar figure step into the kitchen. His usually taut little face blossomed like a flower bud unfurling, revealing a row of neat little white teeth as he rushed over to greet her. "Mother, you're back? Caier and I just finished making breakfast—come have something warm to drink."
The moment she saw her son, Chu Xinrao couldn't help but break into a smile.
Led to the table by her son, she took the rice porridge he offered and downed more than half the bowl in one breath, slurping noisily.
"Mmm, Linlin's porridge is always delicious!"
"Mother, did the delivery go smoothly? Did you collect the full balance?"
"Of course! With me handling it personally, everything was bound to go perfectly!" Chu Xinrao said as she pulled a heavy pouch of silver from her bundle and handed it to her son. "Hurry and log it into the accounts!"
"Got it!" Chu Qilin took the silver pouch, didn't even bother counting it, and ran off clutching it.
Just then, a loud bang bang sounded at the front gate.
Caier quickly said, "Master, let me go see who it is!"
"Mm." Chu Xinrao waved her hand and picked up her porridge bowl to continue drinking.
Before long, Caier returned, her steps hurried and her expression somewhat tense. "Master, that Master Wei's men from yesterday are back—and they've brought a noble young lord with them!"
"Yesterday? Which Master Wei?" Chu Xinrao asked, puzzled.
Caier quickly recounted the visit from the three men the day before.
After listening, Chu Xinrao set down her bowl and rose to her feet. "I'll go take a look. Perhaps they're admirers from elsewhere who've come seeking to buy books!"
The mistress and her maid headed toward the gate.
However, about a dozen paces from the gate, Chu Xinrao suddenly stopped dead in her tracks, her entire body frozen as if struck by a paralysis point.
And the man leading the group at the doorway, upon seeing her, likewise stared wide-eyed in stunned disbelief.
Their eyes met—one pair filled with guilt, the other with blazing hatred.
In that instant, the very air seemed to solidify.
Caier, noticing her mistress's strange behavior, couldn't help but whisper, "Master? Are you alright?"
Similarly, Yang Xing and Li Hui, following behind Li Yingfeng, noticed their Prince's inexplicable fury and couldn't help but call out to him.
Chu Xinrao snapped back to her senses and immediately turned to run!
But she had only taken a few steps when a figure flew over her head, landing steadily in front of her, whirling around with fury blazing in his eyes—
"Ah!" Caught completely off guard, she slammed into a wall of solid flesh. After a startled cry, she clutched her forehead and looked up at him. "You… I…"
It wasn't that her tongue had been cut off—it was that looking at this man she had once forcibly pinned down, her guilt was simply overwhelming!
Six years. That night had been nothing short of a nightmare to her!
And the one who had committed the crime was her!
"What's the matter? Knowing you've done something wrong, too ashamed to face him?" Li Yingfeng clenched his fists, his icy eyes filled with fierce murderous intent.