The carriage fell silent once more. Jia Xiangwei was at a loss for words, her smile frozen on her face.
She hadn’t expected Chi Yan to be so direct.
She couldn’t help but glance at Gu Ning again, wrestling with her thoughts for a long while without finding the right words. If she admitted it outright, sharing a name with someone deceased would inevitably stir up strange discomfort in people’s minds…
“Actually, Madam Shen, there’s no need for any hesitation,” Chi Yan said, as if guessing her thoughts, smiling again. “As a physician, if I can make the patient feel somewhat familiar through my name or appearance, the treatment will be easier.”
“Moreover…” He naturally took Gu Ning’s hand in front of Jia Xiangwei, his smile gentle. “Both Ah Ning and I are a little curious about what kind of person Young Master Shen’s beloved, who shares the same name as Ah Ning, was like. From Madam Shen’s earlier description, she seemed to be… a kind, gentle, considerate, and dignified young lady?”
Kind, gentle, considerate, and dignified?
Was that… her?
Recalling the persona she had painstakingly crafted over the past three years… Gu Ning was instantly overcome with a sense of shame and awkwardness, as if being stripped naked in front of someone familiar. She clenched her fists, dug her toes into the ground, and bit the inside of her lip.
“Um… Madam Shen,” Gu Ning wrestled with her thoughts for a long time, still unable to discuss her past alias nonchalantly in front of someone familiar. “If it’s inconvenient for you to talk about it, just pretend we never asked. Actually, treating hysteria isn’t limited to just one method…”
“Ah, it’s not really inconvenient,” Jia Xiangwei sighed, a nostalgic expression appearing on her face. “Ah Yan’s beloved was truly an exceptional young lady. Every time I think of her, I feel regretful…”
According to Jia Xiangwei, Gu Ning of the Vice Minister’s residence was not only accomplished in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting but also had a gentle temperament. Even when conflicts arose, she rarely lost her temper.
“Most importantly, she was utterly sincere toward Ah Yan. Every time Ah Yan went on duty at the Ministry of War, she would personally prepare food and send it over.”
Although Ah Yan would suffer from stomachaches nine times out of ten after eating these things… it was, after all, the sincere affection of his beloved. Recalling her son’s past predicaments, Jia Xiangwei couldn’t help but chuckle softly, but as she laughed, her eyes grew moist.
She dabbed the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief: “Not only toward Ah Yan, but she was also good to me, her future mother-in-law, and everyone in the general’s residence. In my heart, I regarded her as my own daughter…”
“Madam Shen, please accept my condolences,” Gu Ning said, her heart aching with sorrow. “Perhaps she… also regarded you as a mother in her heart. I’m truly sorry. We shouldn’t have asked so much, making you recall these sad memories.”
She really deserved to die.
What on earth had she been doing back then?
Looking at Jia Xiangwei’s reddened eyes, Gu Ning couldn’t empathize with her three-years-ago self at all.
“I think if that young lady’s spirit is watching from above, she wouldn’t want to see you grieving so much for her.” After a long pause, she could only offer this feeble consolation.
“It’s alright, it’s alright. I’m the one who’s being impolite,” Jia Xiangwei had already composed herself, her cheerful smile returning to her face as she lifted the carriage curtain. “We’ve arrived.”
The group stepped out of the carriage.
Although it was the ancestral home of the general’s estate, it lacked the ornate carvings and grand opulence typical of wealthy households. Gu Ning carefully observed the surroundings—whitewashed walls with dark tiles, willows green and peach blossoms pink. Particularly striking was the dense peach blossom branches stretching over the wall from one side, a riot of blossoms in varying shades of pink blooming exuberantly from one end to the other.
Amid the rich fragrance of peach blossoms, she recalled that Shen Jinyan had once mentioned the peach orchard at his ancestral home.
“What’s so special about the peach blossoms in the capital? The peach orchard at my ancestral home is truly unparalleled. I remember when I went back at the age of eight, nearly the entire town flocked to see the blossoms, some even hiring painters to capture their portraits there…”
“Why… why are you looking at me like that?” Seeing her tilting her head as if listening intently, his ears flushed red before he could finish. “I… I was just telling you about it. I didn’t mean to take you back to see the blossoms, and painting portraits together with you is even more impossible…”
Yet, in the end, she did see the peach orchard he had spoken of.
Only as someone who had never met him before.
“Doctor Gu, do you like the peach blossoms here?” Seeing her gaze fixed on the pink clouds of blossoms drifting over the wall, Jia Xiangwei couldn’t help but smile. “Our peach blossoms here are indeed renowned far and wide…”
“Madam, madam, something terrible has happened!”
Just as Jia Xiangwei was about to continue, a middle-aged man who appeared to be the steward rushed over in a panic, clapping his hands together. “Young Master… Young Master has disappeared!”
“Disappeared? That can’t be! I locked the door with three locks before I left…”
“All three locks were broken!” The steward stamped his foot in frustration. “The servants have searched everywhere, but they can’t find him!”
Jia Xiangwei momentarily panicked but took a deep breath to force herself to calm down. She managed a strained smile toward Gu Ning and Chi Yan. “Doctor Gu, Doctor Chi, I’m afraid I must excuse myself due to this urgent matter. Let me have someone show you to the guest rooms to settle in.”
“Why don’t we help search?” Gu Ning offered. “More hands make lighter work.”
“Then I’ll trouble the two of you.” Jia Xiangwei, anxious to find her son, nodded and hurried away.
The rich fragrance of peach blossoms filled the air, and a few petals landed in her hair. Chi Yan gently reached out to remove them, his voice soft enough for only the two of them to hear. “Did A-Ning forget what you promised me last night?”
Last night, he had asked her to agree to three things. First, to accompany her as her “fiancé.” Second, to leave immediately if she were injured. As for the third…
“You promised me that under no circumstances would you reveal your identity,” he said with a gentle smile. “If you had said a few more words in the carriage earlier, do you think Madam Shen would have grown suspicious?”
“I know my limits,” Gu Ning replied, somewhat annoyed at the thought of what had happened earlier. “Senior Brother, why did you mention the name earlier… Wait, were you trying to prevent Madam Shen from becoming suspicious later?”
“Finally realized it? Good,” he patted her head casually and smiled. “Sometimes, going against expectations yields better results. Rather than hiding things and arousing suspicion, it’s better to address the suspicion openly from the start.”
This way, even if Jia Xiangwei later grew suspicious, she would overlook it due to their earlier candor.
“Moreover, Senior Brother specifically asked about how I appeared in Madam Shen’s eyes earlier, which will help me avoid arousing her suspicion in the future,” Gu Ning added after a moment’s thought. “But I don’t think I should avoid it completely either—that could also raise doubts. Mixing truth with falsehood, making it hard to distinguish between reality and illusion, is what Senior Brother meant by doing the opposite.”
“Ah Ning is truly clever,” Chi Yan smiled gently. “Since Ah Ning is so smart and even volunteered to take on the task of finding that person, how about we make a bet on who finds your long-lost Shen Jinyan first? If Ah Ning wins, I’ll grant you three wishes. But if I win, you’ll owe me three wishes. How about that?”