The guards that Ji Shi had brought to the Gu family were all from Tongzhou.

In Tongzhou, there was a Xue family martial arts school. The old master Xue had traveled far and wide in his early years, mastering many fighting skills. Later, when he returned to Tongzhou, he opened the Xue martial arts school, which specialized in teaching self-defense and combat techniques to children from poor families. Most of Ji family’s guards were selected from this school. Even Qing Pu had learned her skills from old master Xue’s third son.

The Ji family treated these guards from the martial arts school very well, paying them seven taels monthly, plus food and clothes for their families—higher than the monthly allowance of second-tier maids. This arrangement continued at the Gu family. For those without spouses, Ji shi would even arrange marriages for them. These guards, between thirty and forty years of age, were fiercely loyal to her mother.

The man Nurse Xu brought was the head of the guards, tall and strong with hands like palm-leaf fans, his demeanor extremely composed. This man was a concubine-born son of the Xue family’s collateral branch, ranked as Xue Shiliu. In Tongzhou, he had a wife and a pair of children.

Xue Shiliu clasped his fists in greeting to Jin Chao but did not speak any words of greeting.

Jin Chao knew these people weren’t too particular about formalities and didn’t mind. She had Bai Yun serve him tea and invited him to sit on a stone stool to talk.

“You are Old Master Xue’s nephew. I have a maid who learned her skills from Old Master Xue’s third son, so she would call you shifu’s uncle.” Jin Chao smiled and called Qing Pu over to meet Xue Shiliu.

Xue Shiliu remained standing, unwilling to sit down. He nodded to Qing Pu, then said to Jin Chao, “Young Miss need not be polite. If you have any instructions, please just tell me, and this humble servant will do his best to help you.”

The guards were her mother’s people, so naturally, they were willing to obey her orders, but they wouldn’t necessarily truly respect her. It had taken her mother more than ten years to earn their loyalty. Jin Chao remembered that in her previous life when she went to play at the Yongyang Baron’s mansion, her father had Xue Shiliu and several guards accompanied her. She had insisted on rowing a boat on the lake with the Baron’s third daughter, ignoring all the guards’ and matrons’ advice. As a result, she fell from the wooden boat. Fortunately, Xue Shiliu jumped into the water to save her. When they returned to the mansion, they were all physically punished by her father, who said they had failed to protect their master.

Although the guards wouldn’t complain, they would feel uncomfortable inside.

Jin Chao wanted to save Xiu Qu because of Yu Zhu. That girl was clever and loyal, and Jin Chao didn’t want her friend to be implicated. After all, Xiu Qu had suffered this misfortune because of them, and Jin Chao couldn’t bear it, as she too was a loyal servant.

It should have been a simple matter for Concubine Song to have Xiu Qu killed—who would investigate the fate of a little maid? But unexpectedly, Yu Zhu had discovered it. However, Jin Chao didn’t know where Xiu Qu was now or if she was already dead. There were several unused courtyards in the back of the Gu residence. Was this maid in one of these unused courtyards or Concubine Song’s courtyard? She would need the guards to check.

After thinking it through, Jin Chao said to Xue Shiliu: “The reason I called you here is simply to ask you to find someone—a twelve-year-old maid. She once did me a favor, but she was punished by Concubine Song for making a mistake and has now disappeared. I hope that while you’re on patrol, you can search the secluded courtyards of the Gu residence. You must search every secluded courtyard carefully, without missing a single room, to see if you can find her.”

Xue Shiliu thought for a moment and then asked, “Is this maid hiding because she couldn’t endure the punishment?”

Jin Chao replied, “The situation is urgent; let’s not discuss these details now. If you can find her, you’ll understand… If you find her in a secluded courtyard, bring her here immediately.”

Xue Shiliu frowned slightly. The young miss hadn’t matured much; she was asking him to find a maid. However, he didn’t say anything and agreed, then clasped his fists and withdrew. Cai Fu watched him leave with Nurse Xu and whispered to Jin Chao, “I think Guard Xue isn’t entirely obedient to you.”

Jin Chao explained, “Those who practice martial arts have simple minds. If you can earn their respect, they will follow your orders. Right now, I can only command them because of my mother. Otherwise, how could the Gu family afford to hire Old Master Xue’s nephew…”

After that, she didn’t mention Xue Shiliu again.

After a while, Madam Tong returned and told Jin Chao, “Doctor Liu is waiting for you in the flower pavilion.”

Jin Chao nodded and headed to the flower pavilion, saying to Madam Tong, “There are still three jars of Qiulu White in the mansion. Bring them all to Doctor Liu.”

She wanted to have Doctor Liu check if there was anything wrong with Ji Shi’s diet. Nurse Xu had already told her that poisoning was impossible; she had turned Xie Xiao Garden upside down, checking everything—incense burners, bowls, and chopsticks all had no problems. Even her mother’s bedding had been replaced.

Jin Chao had asked her to write a list of all the foods and ingredients her mother regularly consumed. If there was anything unsuitable for her mother’s condition, it could be promptly removed.

Doctor Liu examined the list very carefully and, after repeatedly confirming, said, “The madam has a weak constitution with spleen and stomach deficiency-cold, blood deficiency, and qi weakness. She should use warm and nourishing foods and avoid cold-natured foods. Everything on this list is warm and nourishing, with nothing unsuitable.”

Jin Chao was puzzled. This seemed to rule out everything. Was what Master Xiao said true then?

She asked further, “Then why is my mother’s illness recurring so frequently? Is there something unusual about it?”

Doctor Liu seemed troubled: “That’s hard to say. If it’s due to excessive melancholy in her heart, it could also aggravate her condition…”

It was impossible to find anything wrong, and asking Doctor Liu further would only put him in a difficult position. Jin Chao thanked him and had Madam Tong bring the Qiulu White to see Doctor Liu out of the mansion. In her mind, she went through everything her mother ate and used daily, and indeed, there seemed to be nothing wrong… But then again, Master Xiao had never personally diagnosed her mother’s condition, so his judgment could be somewhat biased.

Jin Chao thought about visiting Concubine Song’s place in the evening to investigate whether Xiu Qu was there.

In the afternoon, Master Xue was coming to teach her Su embroidery. Jin Chao showed Master Xue her mounted antique-themed painting. This time, she had used Su embroidery. Shu embroidery’s birds, beasts, and flower patterns were lifelike, with dense and neat stitches. Su embroidery was less realistic than Shu embroidery, being more freehand in style.

The four-panel screen was embroidered with precious tripods, vases, high tables, and other objects, with soft and elegant colors. Master Xue was full of praise after seeing it. Jin Chao had originally been skilled only in Shu embroidery, but now her Su embroidery was also excellent. Embroidery techniques were interconnected, and with some effort, she naturally had no problems.

After having dinner with her mother in the evening, Jin Chao had servants carry the four-panel screen to Linyan Pavilion.

Her father hadn’t summoned Concubine Song for a month, nor had he come to her place. If he wasn’t at Concubine Luo’s, he was sleeping at Juliuge. Concubine Song now spent most of her time in Linyan Pavilion, except when managing internal affairs.

Concubine Song had someone serve Jin Chao apricot tea: “…Apricots that have just ripened in early summer, still a bit green. I had people pick them to make apricot tea, adding several sugar cubes. Young Miss likes sweet things.”

Jin Chao glanced at the pale yellow tea, took a sip, and then casually placed it on the small table beside her.

“I’ve come to see Concubine, and to bring you something.” Jin Chao had the servants bring up the four-panel screen. “I started embroidering this when Lan’er came of age, and it took me more than a month to finish. I realized I’ve never given Concubine anything, so I thought I’d bring this up. Consider it a token of my sincerity.”

The smile on Concubine Song’s lips froze. Why did Jin Chao suddenly mention Gu Lan’s coming-of-age ceremony… When the servants brought up the screen, Concubine Song stood up to look at the four panels: “It’s truly well-embroidered. Young Miss’s embroidery skills are much better than Lan’er’s now! I find flowers and birds too gaudy, but I do like the simplicity of antique-themed paintings.” She instructed two matrons nearby, “Take the screen to the side room and store it there. Be careful not to damage it.”

Jin Chao smiled slightly: “Does the Concubine perhaps dislike my embroidery and want to store it in the side room? I see that your west chamber doesn’t have a screen; this one would do nicely.” The side room was a place for storing miscellaneous items. Concubine Song didn’t value her gift.

She understood in her heart that Concubine Song was very cautious by nature—or, to put it bluntly, suspicious of everything. If she gave her a four-panel screen for no apparent reason, Concubine Song wouldn’t be able to figure out her intentions and definitely wouldn’t use it. The more she urged Concubine Song to use it, the less likely she would.

Concubine Song’s smile inevitably stiffened as she explained: “Young Miss doesn’t know, but this room gets very stuffy once summer arrives. The door panels must be kept open for ventilation. If the west chamber had a screen, the breeze couldn’t come in, making it even hotter.”

Jin Chao found this amusing inside. Linyan Pavilion was built over the lake and was the coolest place. However, she didn’t continue pressing and reluctantly nodded: “If that’s the case, I won’t force Concubine. However, this screen is made of sandalwood and hasn’t been glazed, so it can’t get damp. You can’t put it in the side room. I think the wing rooms on the west side are quite dry.”

In Linyan Pavilion, besides the main building, east wing rooms, and lower rooms which were all occupied, if Xiu Qu was here, the most likely place would be the west wing rooms. Many locust trees were planted there, creating a canopy of shade, and maids and matrons rarely went there.