The wedding had been postponed due to the National Mourning, and the festive red silks and satins that had been laid out earlier were all packed away. The residence had been much quieter lately.
So quiet that no one came bustling in to rouse her from bed and ask for help.
When she woke, the sky had already dimmed.
Qing Ci rubbed her growling stomach and immediately spotted a paper-wrapped package of pastries placed beside her pillow.
That Xiao Wu was far too thoughtful.
She helped herself without hesitation, warmth flowing through her heart. She fished out a small pouch of loose silver and tucked it into Xiao Wu’s bundle.
As her hand reached into the bundle, she touched a letter. On a whim, she opened it and read.
The moment she looked, she froze.
A full page of writing, documenting her every move over the past few days.
Qing Ci went to such-and-such place at such-and-such hour.
Qing Ci returned from such-and-such place at such-and-such hour.
Including today’s entry, written clearly: stayed the night at Young Master Qin’s residence, returned at the end of the Yin hour.
Qing Ci’s hand clenched the paper uncontrollably. Xiao Wu had clearly known where she went, yet at the time had pretended to know nothing, asking her with urgent concern.
And this was clearly someone reporting her every move.
But whose eyes was Xiao Wu, exactly?
Voices came from outside the room. Qing Ci quickly stuffed the letter back and pulled out her pouch of loose silver.
She returned to the bedside, pretending to be pulling on her boots, and looked drowsily at Chun Xi and Xiao Wu as they entered.
Qing Ci smiled sweetly at Xiao Wu. “You left the pastries here, didn’t you?”
Xiao Wu nodded. “At noon I meant to call you to eat together, but seeing you sleeping so soundly, I couldn’t bear to wake you.”
Chun Xi shot Qing Ci a glance. “You should count yourself lucky that Xiao Wu and I are good people who wouldn’t stoop to tattling on you. Otherwise, with you disappearing at night and sleeping all day, you’d have been thrown out long ago.”
Qing Ci folded up the bedding and gave an embarrassed smile.
“Yes, thanks to Sister Chun Xi.”
She pulled out a pouch of loose silver and pressed it into Chun Xi’s hand. “This is a token of thanks for you and Xiao Wu.”
Chun Xi’s eyes lit up. She was too embarrassed to accept, yet couldn’t bear to refuse, and looked hesitantly at Xiao Wu.
Xiao Wu frowned. “How can we accept this? Our monthly wages are so small, and saving money isn’t easy. Keep it for yourself.”
“It’s fine. The young master is generous and rewards me well. Besides, I’m an orphan with no family to support. You two should take it.”
Qing Ci’s eyes shimmered with warmth. “Xiao Wu, we’ve lived together for two years now. I’ve long considered you family.”
Xiao Wu’s gaze softened like spring water. “I think of you as a younger sister too.”
It seemed that in two years, this was the first time Qing Ci had truly looked at her like this.
She should have noticed long ago—Xiao Wu was different from the other maidservants in the residence.
Whether in the fineness of her skin or the ethereal quality of her bearing, it was clear she hadn’t grown up in rough circumstances. Dressed in fine brocade and silk, she would pass for a young lady of a noble house.
Qing Ci withdrew her gaze. “I’m going out again tonight. I’ll trouble you both to cover for me.”
“Going out again?” Xiao Wu looked worried.
Chun Xi, having pocketed the money, waved her hand grandly. “Don’t worry, we’ll cover for you absolutely.” She winked. “But give us a hint—what exactly have you been doing all night?”
Qing Ci wagged her finger. “That I can’t say. Heaven’s secrets must not be revealed.”
Leaving the room, she took a different route than usual, winding through several paths before entering Qin Chengze’s courtyard and leaping onto the eaves.
She sat up high and watched.
A moment later, Xiao Wu emerged from the room and went straight to the entrance of Qin Chengze’s courtyard. After exchanging a few words with one of the guards, she turned and headed back.
It was strange. Xiao Wu seemed only to care about whether she had come to Qin Chengze’s place, not about any of her other secrets.
Rather than being aimed at her, it seemed aimed at both her and Qin Chengze together.
Every word and stroke on that paper seemed to be digging into the nature of her relationship with Qin Chengze.
Qing Ci sat on the rooftop, letting the cold wind blow over her, her thoughts in turmoil.
Xiao Wu had entered the Taishifu two years ago.
Who, then, had been interested in Qin Chengze’s affairs for the past two years?
The Tianzi private room at Jiyue Lou.
Qing Ci arrived neither early nor late, right at the Hai hour as promised. She asked the waiter and confirmed that the room had indeed been reserved by a young master surnamed Yan.
So, though he might be a little late, he likely wouldn’t stand her up.
Qing Ci opened the window and looked out, confirming that if there were an ambush, escaping through the window would be easy.
The room held no unusual sounds, no signs of hidden mechanisms.
Qing Ci lifted the teapot and poured herself a cup, then set it down at her lips without drinking. She couldn’t consume anything here.
She sat in the black lacquered round-backed chair, and as time passed, she drew her legs up and rested them on the tea table, closing her eyes to rest.
Even in a first-class private room, the soundproofing left something to be desired. From the next room came a woman’s broken, pleasurable cries through the wooden wall, followed by a man’s low, mellow voice coaxing her, clear to Qing Ci’s ears.
“Don’t cry out. The neighbors can hear.”
The voice was all too familiar. Qing Ci roused herself slightly—though plenty of people had similar voices.
“You dare to seek me out for this during the National Mourning, and you’re afraid of being heard? Qin Chengze, you’re such a hypocrite. What could you possibly be afraid of?”
“Don’t say my name.”
“I’ll say it all I want. Qin Ji, Qin Chengze—come bite me, ah…”
The woman’s voice was seductive and alluring, the kind of charm that could drive a man to obsession.
Qing Ci’s ears went quiet for two seconds, and her face unconsciously turned toward that direction, but she could only see a partition wall.
One section of this wooden wall was covered with paper. Qing Ci walked over and poked a hole through the paper with her finger.
Through the finger-sized hole, she saw inside that lavish bedchamber, a man and a woman’s bodies intertwined.
He did indeed bite down, biting on the woman’s lips, and his forceful kiss slowly moved down to her fair neck.
Qing Ci recognized the woman beneath him—it was Commandery Princess Nanhua. She had seen her portrait before.
And the man—he had shared the same bed with her last night. Mianmian had asked if she still had feelings for him, and he had forcibly kept her for the night.
The mouth that had kissed her this morning was now lingering on someone else.
Qing Ci pressed her hand to her chest, suddenly feeling her breath tremble.
She sat back at the table and drank the tea she hadn’t dared to touch earlier.
Cup after cup.
Those chaotic sounds still thundered in her ears.
“Want some wine?” Fu Jingyi had finally arrived.
A robe of deep crimson silk caught her eye.
Qing Ci steadied her breathing. “Did you bring the item?”
Fu Jingyi produced a scroll of imperial yellow with dragon patterns and placed it before her. “Only the Feitaizi Zhaoshu. The other document wasn’t found. Take this for now.”
Qing Ci unrolled it and glanced over it, unable to discern much, then tucked it away into her pocket.
He had actually done it.
Qing Ci narrowed her eyes, studying him with a probing gaze. “Do you know who’s in the room next door?” She didn’t believe in such coincidences.
Fu Jingyi said, “I am an old acquaintance of Fu Shiyan.”
Fu Shiyan—that was Commandery Princess Nanhua’s name.
Qing Ci nodded. His frankness made her less resentful.
So this man before her, after naming the meeting place last night, had notified Commandery Princess Nanhua, who then invited Qin Chengze here to put on a show of living passion.
Fu Shiyan had deliberately shouted his name loudly, making sure Qing Ci couldn’t miss it.
“When did the Commandery Princess learn of my existence?”
“Very early,” Fu Jingyi said flatly. “Two years ago.”
Qing Ci let out an “oh.” So this marriage—Qin Chengze had been working toward it for two years already.
Then Xiao Wu must be the Commandery Princess’s person. Though the princess wasn’t in Taishifu, her resentment ran deep indeed.
“Thank you.”
For today’s events, Qing Ci truly couldn’t be angry at the man before her. If anything, she should thank him for keeping her from being kept in the dark, from foolishly hoping that Qin Chengze would make a choice.
The only thing that slightly annoyed her was that he had deceived her last night. He knew who she was—not just knew, but knew a great deal.
Fu Jingyi took a deep breath and, before she stepped out of the room, said, “His feelings for you are all false. Leave him—he’s not worth it.”
Qing Ci shook her head. “One who eats the sovereign’s grain must serve the sovereign’s cause.”