A'Yuan, back when we learned instruments together, I chose the guqin while you studied the konghou. Now, over a decade later, I find myself somewhat regretful.You said I was too soft, afraid to stake everything on one throw. I didn't understand then, but now I feel a courage rising within me to abandon everything and learn anew. If I ever have the chance to go to Jiangnan again, my A'Yuan must teach me well.—For Zhiwei's eyes aloneWhen Ye Nanyuan returned, the room was already empty.The "Two Eagles on the Snowy Beach" painting behind the bookshelf still hung in its place, untouched.Banxia pointed at the jade thumb ring on the table, hopping with agitation: "Miss, I said that man was no good—he left without a single word, leaving this strange thing behind. Who knows if it's worth anything."So he truly had left?Had he kept a shred of conscience, unwilling to deceive her?Ye Nanyuan picked up the jade thumb ring from the table and rubbed it gently in her palm: "This thumb ring is a fine thing, made of top-grade mutton-fat white jade." She kept her head lowered, her expression calm, but a cold laugh rose within her heart.The hand holding the thumb ring clenched suddenly. The meaning of Fourth Prince leaving this behind needed no explanation.But he didn't know—what he owed her was her elder sister's life!
Yinzhen hadn't been out of the opera house long before the guards sent to find him located him.Though only a night had passed, the guards had been scared half to death. Fourth Prince's noble person—if anything had happened to him, every head accompanying the party would be forfeit.Fortunately, he was found. Yet looking at the Beile's demeanor, his mood seemed rather good? The guards looked at their master's expression, scratching their heads in bewilderment.Back in the guest room at Sanqing Temple, the physician was already waiting inside."The wound on Fourth Prince's thigh is not serious—it merely looks frightening," said the physician, an old hand at his craft. He then examined the sprained leg bone: "The Prince reset the bone himself in time. With a few more days of rest, it will be fine."Yinzhen nodded, his stern features relaxing somewhat. Su Peisheng stood to the side and let out a heavy sigh of relief upon hearing this. Since Fourth Prince had gone missing, his heart had been twisted tight without a moment's release—now he finally felt the tension ease.If anything had happened to Fourth Prince, he, as the personal attendant, would have been the first to suffer the consequences. Never mind the Emperor—any one of the Consorts and Gege in the mansion could have taken his measly life."Master." He presented a cup of tea with trembling hands, gesturing for the physician to hurry and change the Beile's dressings.The wound on the leg was wrapped with a handkerchief—an apricot-yellow one with two pear blossoms embroidered at the corner. Su Peisheng's eyelid twitched at the sight. Just then, the physician let out a soft "Oh?""What is it?" Su Peisheng asked frantically, cold sweat beading on his forehead.The physician brought the blood-stained handkerchief to his nose and sniffed it, then said: "This servant merely observes that the person who saved the Prince must have come from Jiangnan.""Oh?" It was only now, since his return, that Fourth Prince's mood was visibly good—even his brows had relaxed. "How so?""The medicine applied to the Prince's wound is only found in Jiangnan. Its efficacy is exceptional—a mere dab can quickly close a wound and regenerate damaged flesh.""This medicine is precious. A single small bottle is worth a hundred taels of gold, and sometimes there's none to be had even at that price. This servant only managed to procure a bottle through connections, and brought it along when attending to the Prince. As it turns out, the Prince's wound has already healed, so it won't be needed."As he spoke, the physician offered the medicine from his case with both hands. Yinzhen took it and brought it to his nose, inhaling.That night, within the pale blue silk curtains, this very scent had filled the air—the young woman kneeling small and delicate at his side, her snow-white body bending over him.Beneath her waist-length black hair, her waist seemed slender enough to encircle with one hand. Her soft, boneless fingers had carefully applied ointment to his wound. Even now, he could recall that gentle touch, and those misty eyes with their reddened corners.Yinzhen drew a deep breath and instinctively reached for his thumb ring. His fingers found nothing, and only then did he remember—he had left the jade thumb ring behind when he departed.Given the young woman's temperament, she was probably furious right now.At this thought, his ordinarily cold and stern face suddenly broke into a smile. Su Peisheng, however, was so startled his eyes went wide as saucers, as if he'd seen a ghost.He had served at his master's side since childhood. In earlier years it had been manageable, but in recent times the master had grown increasingly inscrutable, wearing a perpetually cold expression. Such a visibly pleased demeanor was something he hadn't witnessed in a long while.Su Peisheng's gaze flickered to the handkerchief wrapped around the wound. Judging by the master's manner, could it be that he had taken a liking to that young woman?His eyes darted shiftily, pretending not to notice the finger now bare of its thumb ring, and ventured: "Since someone saved you yesterday, Master, shall this servant send some gifts of gratitude and make arrangements—to properly thank the young lady for her care?"Yinzhen's drooping eyelids flickered, a moment of hesitation crossing his face. He seemed to think of something, his gaze flashing briefly before he suppressed it. "No need."He lifted his teacup and moistened his parched throat. "Tell the Crown Prince that I haven't found it yet. His Majesty won't return from the frontier expedition for several more months. In the meantime, have people keep a close watch on Soctu's movements.""Yes.""And also—" After hesitating for a moment, Yinzhen said, "Tell them to stop searching for Zhu Song's 'Two Eagles on a Snowy Bank.' Instead, have them look for other paintings by Zhu Song.""Yes." Su Peisheng was taken aback. The Emperor was fond of Zhu Song's paintings, and especially loved eagles. His Highness had been secretly searching for this very painting, yet for some unknown reason, he had suddenly given up.But he dared not ask a single question. Seeing Fourth Prince like this, he quietly withdrew.After he left, the room fell empty. Only then did Yinzhen raise a hand to rub his brow, clearing the chaotic thoughts from his mind.
In the dead of night, the Pear Garden was exceptionally still. Through the green gauze window, a faint warm yellow glow could be seen within—a flame the size of a fist flickering gently, casting a hazy, indistinct light.At the candlelit desk, Ye Nanyuan was reading a letter.Fourth Prince had been gone for three days now. If not for the reminder, Banxia would have nearly forgotten the man existed. Though Ye Nanyuan had made no move these past few days, she had people constantly watching the guest rooms at Sanqing Temple.The noble person in the innermost room near the bamboo grove was still there. That was all that mattered.Everything had been within her control—until today, when the person sent to gather information suddenly brought back a letter. She had poured a fortune into her efforts before, but Fourth Prince's residence was, after all, a prince's household. Not a single scrap of information could be gleaned.As for the Jiang residence, Ye Nanyuan had no desire to go there. She had set out for the capital the moment she received word, only to learn that Jiang Zhiwei had been buried the very day after her death.The entire Jiang household—not a single person had stepped forward to speak for Jiang Zhiwei. She was hastily buried.But today, the people she had sent out unexpectedly uncovered a name.Liu Jie, the younger brother of Fourth Prince's concubine Lady Liu, was a palace guard. On the day of the incident, it had been Consort Ula Nara's birthday, and the Imperial Household Department had dispatched a group of guards to assist. Lady Liu's younger brother had been among them.There had been a crowd coming and going that day. Lady Jiang, drunk and flushed, her clothes in disarray, had been discovered. The maidservant who found her later only said that the person seen with Lady Jiang had been a guard.After much investigation, a guard surnamed Li had stepped forward to take the blame and was secretly executed. The next day, on the eighth day of the third month, Lady Jiang hanged herself from the eaves with a white silk sash.And now, this letter had appeared out of nowhere.Ye Nanyuan let out a cold laugh and held the letter to the candle flame, setting it alight. She had investigated that guard surnamed Li—he came from a poor family, had a gentle disposition, and had only a younger brother and sister at home. He had risen from the military ranks, earning great merit on the front lines before being selected as a palace guard.As for this one surnamed Liu—Ye Nanyuan didn't need to investigate. The letter already detailed Liu Jie's character. He came from an official family with some wealth, and relying on his sister's favor as a concubine in Fourth Prince's household, he bullied men and violated women outside.The letter specifically noted that Liu Jie was fond of beautiful women, frequenting brothels regularly. Though unmarried, he already kept three or four concubines in his household.This man surnamed Liu—on the surface, he was indeed far more suspicious than the one who had died.Ye Nanyuan stared at the familiar handwriting on the letter, her slender, jade-white fingers clenching tight. She closed her eyes.
The next day, Ye Nanyuan brought her konghou to the Pear Garden to play.At the lower right of the Pear Garden was a small path leading to a pavilion, in front of which lay the bamboo grove of Sanqing Temple. But the path was far too narrow, and few people knew of it on ordinary days.Ye Nanyuan only knew of it because she had purchased the property and studied the terrain map.She had learned the konghou in her previous life—classes twice a week at the youth palace. She had been clever since childhood and picked things up quickly, so after earning her certificate, she had set it aside.Then she had transmigrated to this Great Qing Dynasty, where all young ladies of noble households were required to learn a musical instrument. Jiang Zhiwei had chosen the guqin because she loved it; Ye Nanyuan chose the konghou because she had a foundation and could fool the instructor.Little did she expect that the instructor would come to regard her as a prodigy. Moved by admiration for her talent, she had poured her entire lifetime of knowledge into teaching her, forcing Ye Nanyuan to master the konghou completely.Ye Nanyuan had been diligent for several years. Even after being banished to Jiangnan, she never abandoned the konghou, taking it out to practice from time to time.She closed her eyes, and ethereal music flowed out from between her fingertips.It passed through the bamboo grove, reaching the other side as she intended.When the sound of the music drifted over, Fourth Prince's hand holding a chess piece paused. His eyes followed the melody, glancing outward.Master Liao Kong across from him noticed the shift in his demeanor and suddenly smiled. "That young lady has started playing her music again." His expression was calm, which only drew Fourth Prince's gaze over for a moment."Master, you mean there was music here before as well?"Master Liao Kong placed his piece on the board without lifting his head. "A young lady lives in the Pear Garden behind us. Since moving in, she practices regularly. Her music is quite beautiful—ethereal and pure."He said this while teasingly adding, "Otherwise, how do you think this poor monk always manages to arrange our chess games here, Beile?"Yinzhen's gaze on the chessboard darkened, a hint of obscure emotion flickering in his eyes. He composed himself anew and smiled, saying, "Indeed, it sounds very pleasant." The zither music was so beautiful—no wonder that little girl had been so proud that day, her tail practically wagging in the air.At the thought, he smiled and shook his head.If he had truly made that bet with her, he would have been bound to lose.Master Liao Kong across from him suddenly spoke again: "A few days ago, I heard that the Beile went missing for a day while chasing that fox, and was saved by that little girl.""Yes." The Fourth Prince hesitated for a moment, but still replied.However, he raised his eyes… "Why does the Master ask this?" From his understanding, Master Liao Kong was not one to inquire about such matters."Nothing much—it's just that this poor monk has noticed the Fourth Prince seems rather unsettled these past few days." Master Liao Kong placed a piece before the Fourth Prince without lifting his head, saying calmly, "For one who is fated not to be yours, it is best to cut ties decisively."