Pei Zhiheng’s cool gaze swept over her slender waist, so narrow it seemed scarcely wider than his hand. Then his eyes moved back to her lovely, composed face.
He still remembered first meeting Xie Rutang, not long after Brother Shen’s wedding.
As a new bride, she had been as radiant and delicate as a spring blossom. Her eyes held warmth and compassion; she was like a white plum arranged in a Buddhist vase, or like the Bodhisattva Guanyin herself.
The next day, he saw her serving tea to her parents-in-law at the Shen Residence. She had changed into a jacket embroidered with gold-thread lotuses. Her fair cheeks still held a rosy flush from having been cherished, and her trembling lashes looked as though they were beaded with dew.
She stood there with perfect decorum, doing her best to please everyone, playing the daughter-in-law they all liked—pouring tea and serving water.
After only one glance, Pei Zhiheng looked away.
At the time, he had thought her terribly dull.
When they first met, she had wanted to show off her embroidery and sincerity as a new bride.
Xie Rutang had given him, Second Master, a sachet embroidered by her own hand with a bamboo pattern.
Pei Zhiheng disliked the vulgar, cloying fragrance clinging to it, so he casually tossed it into a storage chest.
He never opened it again.
Yan Wenzhao continued, “You have no idea. Ever since Shen Yuan died and she was widowed, countless people have come to me by roundabout ways, asking me to put in a word and find out about her through you.”
“Honestly, plenty of people have their eye on Shen Yuan’s wife. The fact that she’s been married before doesn’t bother them. No wonder—she has the kind of face every man would think about.”
If Xie Rutang remarried a year from now, she would only become a plaything for powerful men.
Pei Zhiheng glanced at the dignified figure in the distance. “Is that so?”
Then he calmly looked away.
……
Yan Wenzhao smiled, his expression unreadable. “A man and a woman alone together. Aren’t you going to take a look?”
If Xie Rutang really had something going on with someone else, it would affect the reputations of both the Shen and Pei families. If Madam Xie really had been unfaithful, that would be quite a scandal.
Pei Zhiheng said nothing. Did he look like a man with so much free time that he’d go meddling in other people’s affairs?
Perhaps the gaze from afar was too unnerving. Xie Rutang turned around without thinking and saw Pei Zhiheng standing beside Yan Wenzhao. She sucked in a frightened breath, her scalp instantly prickling.
She was very afraid of him now.
Who in the capital wasn’t afraid of Pei Zhiheng, Minister of the Dali Temple? People privately said he was like Yama, and that his name alone could stop children from crying at night.
Even she was afraid of him.
Wasn’t he supposed to be going boating on the lake with Miss Su today?
What was he doing here?
Since Scholar Zhang had taken care of his nephew’s enrollment, and Sister-in-law’s household had only women and children left, with no man to support them, Zhang Qingci had also brought over some local produce.
Zhang Qingci’s eyes were bright. Rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment, he held out a food box. “My mother made these dumplings herself. It’s only a small gift. I also brought some fresh fruit we grew in our own yard. If you don’t mind, please let Sister-in-law and the children try some…”
He scratched his head again. “If your household is ever short of food or clothing, just send word to my family. I’ll bring some over for you.”
“Thank you.” Xie Rutang felt quite uncomfortable accepting so much, so she walked him to the gate herself.
She also wanted to ask whether the scholar might have some connections and could help her get her elder brother released from prison.
She never expected Pei Zhiheng to happen upon the scene.
Xie Rutang nervously clutched her handkerchief.
Before long, however, Pei Zhiheng got into his carriage and left, as though he hadn’t seen her with Zhang Qingci.
He had many major cases to handle every day, overseeing the realm’s criminal affairs. With a single word from his brush, he could decide the fates of powerful men and corrupt officials.
Xie Rutang lowered her eyes.
As expected, Pei Zhiheng didn’t care about her at all.
He was a cold moon hanging high in the heavens. How could he ever lower his gaze to notice a speck of dust as insignificant as her?
Xie Rutang stared at her skirt.
Because of him, she no longer dared to wear pale purple, afraid it might bring back memories he would rather forget.
After hesitating for a long while, Xie Rutang finally spoke. “Brother Zhang, you know your way around the capital. Do you happen to know of any way to get my elder brother out of prison?”
Zhang Qingci’s gaze lingered on her face for a moment, as if weighing something. His heart softened, and he said quietly, “I’ll look into it for you. Don’t worry. I know a few people at the Ministry of Justice. They may be able to help.”
“I’ll find out what the situation is in the prison and ask about the money and procedures needed to secure his release. I’ll come tell you as soon as I hear anything. Please don’t worry too much.”
Xie Rutang felt the heavy stone in her heart lift. Her eyes warmed slightly. “Then I’m very grateful to you, Brother Zhang.”
Xie Rutang had been a young lady from a wealthy family since childhood.
If she hadn’t fallen on hard times and been widowed at home, he might never have had the chance in his entire life to speak with her properly like this. It was a kind of fortune he had never dared to dream of.
Zhang Qingci’s ears turned faintly red.
He stared at her lovely face, so close to his, and held his breath. He felt almost giddy.
Who could have imagined that the young lady from a wealthy family in their county would end up in such straits? Back then, he hadn’t even been worthy of holding her shoes.
Zhang Qingci came back to himself, his expression turning gentle. “We’re from the same hometown and have been neighbors for years. Your family is left with only women and children, helpless and alone. Helping out a little is only right. It’s nothing worth mentioning.”
And he truly took the matter to heart. For several days in a row, he went about making arrangements on her behalf.
……
After seeing Zhang Qingci off, Xie Rutang was about to head back when, at the mouth of an alley by the street, she came face-to-face with several idle ruffians.
The man at their head narrowed his eyes and leered at her from head to toe. His tone was lewd and taunting, and he even whistled.
“Well, well. Which household does this pretty little widow belong to?”
“With a face like that, left alone in an empty room night after night—aren’t you lonely? Why not come spend the day with us, brothers? We’ll make sure to treat you right and send you into a blissful daze…”
Laughing and jeering, they crowded around her.
In an instant, they had blocked every way out, in front of her and behind.
The ringleader rubbed his hands together and edged closer. He grabbed her slender wrist and reached for her clothes, trying to pull them off.
His gaze stayed glued to her face, and his words grew more and more shameless.
Xie Rutang instinctively shrank back half a step and struggled with all her might. Nausea rose in her throat; she wanted to vomit, but couldn’t. Cold sweat broke out across her back.
Her fingertips turned white from gripping so hard. Just as she was feeling utterly helpless and despairing, a shout suddenly rang out from nearby, cutting off the men’s harassment.
“Shameless! Right by the Dali Temple, in broad daylight, you dare harass a married woman in the street!”
Xie Rutang’s heart lurched. She saw two constables armed with batons scolding the ruffians.
Behind them, Pei Zhiheng stood at the mouth of the alley in his dark official robes. His gaze was as cold as December snow, stinging like a cutting wind. His lips were pale red, his bearing clear and icy as jade.
As he approached, he caught sight of her tear-filled eyes and frightened expression. Her exposed, snow-white shoulders trembled, making her look heartbreakingly vulnerable.
A fine drizzle had just passed. The woman’s clothes were soaked through, and she was trembling all over, her figure outlined by the wet fabric.
Pei Zhiheng’s gaze swept coolly over her body.
He watched with cold indifference. His refined, dark eyes held not a trace of pity. Instead, he raised his chin in a perfunctory, official manner, and the constables behind him immediately stepped forward, quickly forcing the ruffians to the ground.
The batons tapped their shoulders lightly. Terrified, the men kowtowed again and again, begging for mercy, their voices shaking.
“Have mercy, sir! We were blind to our own actions. We’ll never do it again!”
In the blink of an eye, the men were shoved and dragged away, taken back to the Dali Temple.
Pei Zhiheng didn’t look at them again. He had already turned and left, leaving Xie Rutang, disheveled, in the corner.
Xie Rutang braced herself against the wall and slowly stood up. Watching that solitary figure, aloof from the world, she couldn’t help wondering:
If the woman those ruffians had harassed had been the Crown Princess, renowned for her talent, surely he would have shown her every kindness.
It was only when a constable came over and found her a garment to cover her shoulders that she was brought back to herself.
“Madam Shen, we’ll escort you home.”
She had nearly been violated by ruffians while out that day, and she was still badly shaken.
After returning home, Xie Rutang shut herself in her room and sat alone for a long time, overcome with sorrow.
In the silent, empty room, with no one around, the grievances she had bottled up for days could no longer be held back. Scalding tears slid soundlessly down her cheeks.
Xie Rutang wiped them away with the back of her hand and pulled herself together.
That evening, shortly after returning to the Shen Residence, Xie Rutang was summoned by Old Madam Shen.
Second Master would be staying at the Shen Residence for another month.
Old Madam Shen said, “Zhiheng has been investigating cases lately and has lost some weight. Tomorrow, make him a bowl of chicken-and-shredded-meat soup and take it to him yourself.”
Xie Rutang’s hand tightened. This red-date chicken soup had been her husband’s favorite.
She could guess exactly what Old Madam Shen was plotting again.