Wang Daxia had eaten a full bowl of mushrooms. He decided he wouldn’t touch mushrooms for the entire month.

Finally, he could eat chicken.

Wang Daxia picked up the serving chopsticks and timidly reached toward the iron pot like a little wife.

Fortunately, there was no Ding Wu wielding the iron ladle to force-feed him chicken soup, and no Wei Caiwei force-feeding him mushrooms.

His chopsticks successfully reached their destination, but Wang Daxia discovered a problem: it had originally been a pot of small chicken stewed with mushrooms. The two chicken legs had been taken by Ding Wu and Wei Caiwei. Small chickens were naturally small—the only meaty parts on the whole body were those two legs.

While he had been drinking chicken soup and eating mushrooms, Ding Wu and Wei Caiwei had basically finished off the remaining chicken meat, leaving only a few bare chicken breast bones with meat that wouldn’t even fill the gaps between his teeth.

Wang Daxia picked up a piece of chicken neck to eat. Fortunately, the sauced pig’s face that Chen Jingji had brought tasted pretty good, so Wang Daxia could still eat his fill—he almost single-handedly devoured the pig’s face.

After the meal, Wei Caiwei cleared the dishes and bowls into a basket and went to the well to wash them. This was a habit from Tieling—Ding Wu cooked, and she washed dishes.

Ding Wu poked the fire and boiled water for tea. He smiled and said to Wang Daxia, “Second Young Master Wang, have a cup of tea before you leave.”

Though he said this, the emphasis fell on the word “leave.” It was a surface invitation but actually an order to depart.

This smiling tiger, this hypocrite!

If it were usual times, when someone like Ding Wu said one sentence, Wang Daxia would have at least ten waiting for him. If words didn’t work, he could even resort to violence, but Wei Caiwei would break off their friendship.

Since he couldn’t out-talk him, he might as well avoid him. Wang Daxia didn’t want to spend another moment with Ding Wu, so he helped Wei Caiwei carry the basket. “I’ll help you fetch water.”

Ding Wu smiled without speaking and added a handful of firewood to the stove.

The two went to the sweet water well at the end of the alley. Wang Daxia threw the bucket into the well, drew up buckets of water, and rinsed the bowls and chopsticks.

Seeing that he knew his mistakes and could correct them, Wei Caiwei said nothing.

Wang Daxia struck up conversation with her: “Your friend has pretty good cooking skills.”

Wei Caiwei couldn’t help but find it amusing and teasingly asked, “Was the chicken soup tasty?”

Wang Daxia pretended not to understand her sarcasm and said, “The mushrooms were also delicious. I wonder if I have a chance to get a piece of Korean ginseng—even Chen Jingji and Li Jiubao got some, but I’m the only one who didn’t. We have a life-and-death friendship, after all.”

Wei Caiwei wasn’t petty and said, “Fine, I’ll give you one when we go back. Take it to honor Wang Qianhu. When you take someone’s gifts, your hands become short; when you eat someone’s food, your mouth becomes soft. After he receives your gift, he won’t have the heart to scold you.”

Hearing this, Wang Daxia felt warmth surge in his heart. So Wei Caiwei had taken to heart his imitation of how his father would find fault and scold him after returning home, and was using Korean ginseng to solve his father’s nagging.

She’s so good to me… just not as good as she is to Ding Wu. Ding Wu will be sleeping under the same roof as her tonight.

Wang Daxia probed tentatively: “How about I just stay tonight—”

“Don’t push your luck.” Wei Caiwei immediately saw through his intention. “No.”

Wang Daxia said, “I’ll just make a bed on the floor. Besides, I’m not afraid of ghosts anymore—the spirit tablet on the altar was fake anyway. It’s not like I haven’t stayed here before.”

“You can’t tell anyone about staying at my house that night.” Wei Caiwei warned. “Alright, the bowls and chopsticks are clean. You can go home now.”

Wang Daxia had no choice but to leave. After walking a few steps, he turned back and extended his right hand: “Korean ginseng. You said you’d give me one.”

Never mind Ding Wu, but why should Chen Jingji get one when I don’t?

Looking at her deceased husband who occasionally still showed childish stubbornness, Wei Caiwei immediately felt a headache coming on. If it were any ordinary man behaving this way, she would have long since chased him away with a door bolt, but he was the lover she had cherished for over thirty years.

She couldn’t bear to be harsh with him. In the previous life, her deceased husband had been as good to her as he was troublesome in this life.

Forget it. Consider it repaying what she owed him in the previous life, paying it back in this one.

Wei Caiwei picked up the bamboo basket: “Follow me back to get it.”

“I’ll help you carry it.” Wang Daxia took the bamboo basket and stubbornly reasoned, “It’s not about one piece of Korean ginseng. I just… anyway, what they have, I should have. What they don’t have, I also want to have. What is our relationship… right?”

Wei Caiwei snorted: “What is our relationship?”

Wang Daxia said, “Life-and-death friendship! Isn’t this relationship worth one piece of Korean ginseng?”

Hearing this, Wei Caiwei thought to herself: This kid still hasn’t caught on. Well, he’s only fourteen—I’d feel bad about making a move.

When the two returned, Ding Wu had already boiled water and made tea, but he wasn’t there. He’d left a note: “Went to take a bath.”

Seeing that Ding Wu wasn’t around, Wang Daxia was in great spirits and wanted to stay for tea. Wei Caiwei took out a piece of Korean ginseng, wrapped it in cloth, and stuffed it into his hands: “Here you go. Now hurry home.”

Wang Daxia still wanted to linger but was forcibly pushed out by Wei Caiwei: “Go home quickly, life-and-death friend.”

Wei Caiwei closed the door. Though she thought he was still young, she felt somewhat indignant: I pamper you, spoil you, tolerate you, and yield to you like a husband. You treat me as a life-and-death friend. Hah.

Wei Caiwei was alone at home, so she took a bath in the courtyard. By the time she finished tidying up, Ding Wu had also returned. Afraid of getting sleepy walking at night, the two drank light bamboo leaf tea. Ding Wu pointed at the neighbor’s high wall: “Has that Wang Yanei gone home?”

Hearing the nickname “Wang Yanei,” Wei Caiwei knew that Ding Wu’s trip to the bathhouse wasn’t just about bathing. She laughed: “Did you go to the bathhouse to chat with people again?”

Ding Wu nodded: “For gathering information, bathhouses are faster than teahouses. Everyone’s undressed, treating each other with complete honesty. This Wang Yanei is already a celebrity in the north city—one of the Four Scourges of North City. When I mentioned him, everyone had something to say. One person said this, another said that, and I heard many stories—like setting off firecrackers in the latrine at age five, blowing up someone’s cesspit, or by age ten, scaring away ten tutors, no matter how much Wang Qianhu offered in wages, no one dared go.”

“There’s also how he sold his mother’s dowry fields in Sanlirun to redeem a courtesan from Hongxiu Zhao, and reportedly fought with Chen Dalang over this courtesan. What a leader in conquering women, a chief among wastrels…”

After one bath at the bathhouse, Ding Wu had nearly figured out how many times Wang Daxia had wet his bed as a child.

Wei Caiwei couldn’t help but defend her deceased husband: “He’s not as bad as the rumors say. It wasn’t redemption money—it was a loan. Miss Jin Ying wrote an IOU. He was just too naive, trying to rescue someone from the pleasure quarters. He’s not a lecher.”

Ding Wu spoke seriously: “I think this Wang Yanei has ulterior motives toward you, so he shows his good side in front of you to win your favor. You can see from tonight’s meal that he’s someone who’s smooth-talking and very good at reading people’s expressions. Naive? I doubt it. You should be careful not to be deceived by him. Now that you and he are of vastly different social status, if you get too close, it will affect your reputation.”

It wasn’t that Ding Wu was prejudiced against Wang Daxia—it was that Wang Daxia’s “reputation preceded him.” Ding Wu’s relationship with Wei Caiwei was like that of a brother or friend. He would return to Tieling in two days. Who would protect her then?

Wei Caiwei nodded: “Alright, I understand. I’ll be careful to keep my distance from him.” Anyway, Ding Wu would leave in two days, so she’d agree for now to avoid making him worry.

Ding Wu asked, “Really?”

Wei Caiwei nodded seriously: “He’s my neighbor, we’ve been through life and death together, and as someone practicing medicine alone in the capital, I need backing to help me establish myself. You see how the opportunity came—I’ve been in the capital less than a month and have already made contact with Lu Bing and met Uncle Ding. In the future… I always feel the future holds hope.”

The implication was that her kindness toward Wang Daxia was utilitarian. There were no romantic feelings involved.

Ding Wu asked, “As you’ve walked the streets and alleys of the capital, have you remembered your childhood or recalled your scattered family?”

Wei Caiwei shook her head: “They should all be dead by now.” She looked up at Ding Wu: “You are my family. You can return with peace of mind. I will definitely protect Uncle Ding well, and I’ll continue pursuing this connection with Lu Bing.”

Actually, Wei Caiwei’s hope still lay with Li Jiubao—the future Imperial Consort Li, Empress Dowager Li. In the future, with just one word from her, she could have Ding Rukui released from death row.

Ding Wu raised his bamboo leaf tea: “Next time we meet, you’ll definitely be the most famous female physician in the capital.”

“I’ll take that as a blessing.”

Their teacups clinked. Ding Wu said, “I grew up in the capital and only left at age twelve. Returning to my old haunt, everything has changed while people remain the same. Tomorrow I’ll just stay home helping you make medicinal pills and won’t go out sightseeing.”

The gap between being a high-ranking family’s son and an exile was enormous—not something ordinary people could bear. Ding Wu was fine in Tieling, where everyone had come to that frontier land for various reasons and no one looked down on anyone else. But in the capital, no matter how gentle and composed Ding Wu appeared on the surface, he actually felt lost inside.

Wei Caiwei said, “Good. Then get some rest early—we’ll be busy tomorrow.”

Next door, at the Wang residence.

Wang Qianhu had indeed prepared a bellyful of words to scold Wang Daxia. But before he could open his mouth, Wang Daxia pulled out a piece of Korean ginseng: “For you, father. I have to get up early tomorrow, cross the capital from south to north to report to the Jinyiwei office and practice dragon boat rowing. Can I go to my room and sleep now?”

Wang Qianhu’s bellyful of words got stuck in his throat, blocked by this Korean ginseng. Well now, having proper duties really made a difference. This child had indeed matured—perhaps the prodigal son was returning.

The night passed without incident.

Early the next morning, Wang Daxia got up early and rode to the Jinyiwei office. He deliberately took a detour to his neighbor’s house first. Wei Caiwei was already up, combing her hair at the dressing table by the upstairs window.

Wang Daxia whistled.

Wei Caiwei looked out the window to see Wang Daxia on horseback waving at her: “Good morning! Thanks for the Korean ginseng—my father didn’t scold me for once last night.”

In the summer morning, the dawn light gilded the mounted youth with a layer of radiance. He looked heroic and spirited, full of vigor—quite handsome.

Wei Caiwei found herself unable to look away for a moment. Upstairs mirror, downstairs alley, the youth in the alley, the beauty upstairs smiling. She completely forgot yesterday’s promise to Ding Wu.

At this moment, Ding Wu also got up and opened the main door to fetch water from the sweet water well.

Seeing Ding Wu emerge from her house, Wang Daxia quickly put away his waving hands and smile, gave a brief greeting, and spurred his horse to run off.

Wang Daxia ran to the alley entrance and saw that a tea stall had suddenly appeared there. So early in the morning, it was already open, with two tea customers sitting there, cracking sunflower seeds and drinking tea.

Wang Daxia was suspicious: Idle people wouldn’t get up this early. Hardworking people would fill their bellies with steamed buns and soy milk in the morning and then go to work—who has the leisure to drink tea and crack sunflower seeds?

Something was contradictory. Wang Daxia kept this in mind and asked the patrolling North City Military Commissioner: “When did this tea stall open?”

“Just yesterday.”

What a coincidence. Whenever something involved Wei Caiwei, Wang Daxia paid attention. He told the North City Military Commissioner: “Keep an eye on it. If there’s anything unusual, send someone to the Jinyiwei office to tell me. Also keep a good watch on my neighbor—if anyone comes to cause trouble, arrest them first.”

They couldn’t repeat the Zhou Xiaoqi incident.

Wang Daxia spurred his horse and rushed to the Jinyiwei office for roll call. Lu Ying thought Wang Daxia would be late, but unexpectedly, he appeared on time!

Wang Daxia signed in on the roster, shouldered his oar, and said to Lu Ying: “I discovered a suspicious tea shop at the entrance to Tianshui Alley…”

Wang Daxia told Lu Ying about his arrangements: “The North City Military Commissioner’s people are helping investigate backgrounds. This tea shop is full of holes—obviously something’s wrong. I don’t know which brainless person arranged it.”

“Uh.” Lu Ying was silent for a moment, then said: “Tell the North City Military Commissioner’s people not to investigate anymore. I arranged the tea stall yesterday on short notice. The Ding family has enemies in the capital, so I sent people to secretly protect Ding Wu.”

Wang Daxia immediately put on a smiling face to flatter her: “Commander Lu’s foresight in planning ahead and ability to think of such a good method on short notice is truly brilliant! This subordinate truly admires you!”

Author’s Note: College student Big Brother Ding warns high school student little sister Banxia not to fall in love with middle school student Daxia.