Ah Zhu’s brother?

Zhu Kun, Zhu Pengju?

But what did this have to do with them?

Zhou Shaojin, Zhou Chujin, and Miss Gu Shiqi exchanged bewildered glances.

Nanny Gong smiled bitterly. “Our eldest miss originally planned to take advantage of this outing to visit the Drum Tower. But if she runs into the heir apparent, she definitely won’t be able to go to the Drum Tower…”

So that was it!

Zhou Shaojin, Zhou Chujin, and Miss Gu Shiqi couldn’t help but smile as they hurried after Ah Zhu. But they had only taken a few steps when a guard’s voice came from behind them: “Eldest Miss, please wait! The heir apparent is this way.”

Upon hearing this, not only did Ah Zhu not stop, she ran even faster.

With a few leaps, guards landed in front of Ah Zhu and Cheng Jia, bowing their heads respectfully and saying in a deep voice: “Eldest Miss, the heir apparent requests that you stop!”

Ah Zhu planted her hands on her hips and stamped her foot reluctantly.

Cheng Jia laughed heartily, her face flushed red from running, displaying a childishly mischievous expression.

She probably found this very amusing, didn’t she?

Zhou Shaojin smiled and shook her head.

Ah Zhu, accompanied by Nanny Gong, was led by the guards to see her brother, while Zhou Shaojin and the others stood waiting for her beneath the trees by Lake Mochou.

Before long, a middle-aged man with a pale, beardless face came over to greet them.

Zhou Chujin and Miss Gu Shiqi were greatly startled.

Cheng Jia studied him curiously.

Zhou Shaojin knew this must be a eunuch from Zhu Pengju’s household. Seeing that the other three said nothing, she had no choice but to step forward with a smile and express her thanks.

The eunuch seemed rather surprised and said with a smile: “This servant’s surname is Yang. You must be Second Miss Zhou. Your uncle, Fourth Master Chi, is touring the temple fair with our heir apparent!” As he spoke, he looked up at Zhou Chujin and the others, saying, “I wonder which is First Miss Zhou? Which is Seventeenth Miss Gu? The sixth master of the Gu family is also touring the temple fair with our heir apparent. Our heir apparent has courtesy gifts to present!” He spoke in fluent Mandarin.

Zhou Shaojin hadn’t expected that Cheng Chi would be touring the temple fair… Someone like him, shouldn’t he be sitting aloof and alone atop some mountain, drinking tea in the cold wind?

However, if he really did run off to blow in the cold wind on a mountaintop—now that late summer was transitioning to early autumn, the evenings no longer had the sultry heat of summer—she wondered if he would be shivering with cold…

At the thought of Cheng Chi also falling from heavenly realms into the mortal valley, Zhou Shaojin couldn’t help but burst out with a “pfft” of laughter.

Everyone’s gaze fell upon her in confusion.

Oh no!

Zhou Shaojin’s face turned crimson. She quickly straightened up and said, thinking fast: “I hadn’t expected there would be courtesy gifts…”

Eunuch Yang just smiled without speaking. Cheng Jia, however, shot her a contemptuous look, as if to say “who are you fooling?” But Miss Gu Shiqi, after all, came from a distinguished background and had many connections with noble families through marriage. She had already understood the situation and, wishing to help explain for Zhou Shaojin, quickly stepped forward. “Eunuch, my surname is Gu, and I rank seventeenth in my family.”

Once she said “Eunuch,” Zhou Chujin and Cheng Jia both understood.

Zhou Chujin smiled and curtsied to the eunuch, adopting the same manner of address as Sister Gu Shiqi: “My surname is Zhou, and I rank first in my family.”

Cheng Jia studied Eunuch Yang for a moment before saying: “My surname is Cheng, and among my sisters I rank fourth. Fourth Master Chi is my uncle.”

Zhou Shaojin almost wanted to rush forward and cover Cheng Jia’s eyes.

In her previous life, she had dealt with palace eunuchs. They all appeared quite normal, some even graceful and refined. But privately, they had various peculiar habits. For someone like Cheng Jia to curiously study them even after learning their identity would likely earn their resentment.

Eunuch Yang, however, seemed unconcerned. He smiled and waved his hand, and a young servant came forward carrying a small tray carved with red lacquer in a crabapple flower pattern.

Zhou Shaojin watched with great trepidation.

Some eunuchs, the more they resented someone in their hearts, the calmer they appeared on the surface.

What kind of person was this Eunuch Yang? She should mention this to Ah Zhu later and see if they could let this matter pass… Or should she tell Uncle Chi? After all, it concerned the Cheng family. Who knew if this eunuch might make trouble for the Cheng family before Duke Chengguo? Uncle Chi had a good relationship with Zhu Pengju, so he should be able to speak to him.

Lost in thought, she glanced at the tray. On it lay deep red velvet, upon which four jade pendants were neatly arranged, carved respectively with designs of plum blossoms, bamboo, orchids, and pine trees. The jade quality was ordinary, the carving workmanship rather crude—clearly something hastily purchased from some shop to suit the occasion.

But it was Zhu Pengju’s kind gesture after all, so they expressed their thanks.

Zhou Chujin was the eldest, so by rights she should choose first. Considering that she, Zhou Shaojin, and Cheng Jia were family, she yielded to Miss Gu Shiqi to choose first.

Miss Gu Shiqi didn’t engage in endless deferring but quite straightforwardly thanked Zhou Chujin and selected the jade pendant carved with pine. Then Zhou Chujin let Cheng Jia choose. Cheng Jia also said nothing more, looked them over, and picked the one carved with plum blossoms. Zhou Chujin gave the one carved with orchids to Zhou Shaojin and kept the one carved with bamboo for herself.

Throughout this, Eunuch Yang stood watching. Only after they had selected their jade pendants did he smile, clasp his hands in salute, and leave with the young servant.

Miss Gu Shiqi said quietly to Cheng Jia: “Those eunuchs are all people with physical disabilities. You shouldn’t have looked at him like that—he’ll hold a grudge.”

“There’s such a thing!” Cheng Jia exclaimed in surprise, not taking it to heart.

Zhou Chujin, however, became somewhat worried upon hearing this and asked Miss Gu Shiqi: “Will there be trouble? Is there any way to resolve this?”

Miss Gu Shiqi had the same thought as Zhou Shaojin. “We should still mention it to an elder in the family, shouldn’t we? Uncle Chi and the heir apparent of Duke Chengguo Mansion have a very good relationship. Just in case… we could ask him to intervene.”

Cheng Jia, however, showed no awareness that she had caused trouble. Instead she said: “Oh well, no matter what, he’s just a servant. I’ll mention it to Ah Zhu later—it won’t be a problem, right?” Then she pulled Miss Gu Shiqi aside to ask about Duke Chengguo Mansion. “…Isn’t their family a duke? How can they employ eunuchs?”

Miss Gu Shiqi had pretty much figured out Cheng Jia’s temperament and knew that saying more would be futile. She didn’t argue with her and said: “Duke Chengguo Mansion was originally Prince Liang, the blood brother of Emperor Taizong, true imperial relatives. Later they were implicated in the Liu Lanyu case and demoted to duke, but they still enjoy princely allocations…” At this point, she glanced at Zhou Shaojin. “Those eunuchs who serve closely are all dispatched from the Inner Bureau. I think they rotate every three years or every six years—I can’t remember clearly. I’ll have to ask my sixth uncle when I return.”

It took Zhou Shaojin a moment to understand.

Miss Gu Shiqi was telling them about Duke Chengguo Mansion’s awkward position within the imperial family, wasn’t she? And those eunuchs, ostensibly there to serve Duke Chengguo Mansion, were actually there to monitor Duke Chengguo Mansion…

She nodded toward Miss Gu Shiqi to indicate she understood.

Miss Gu Shiqi breathed a sigh of relief.

But Cheng Jia remained completely oblivious and said: “I never imagined these eunuchs were so formidable…”

Zhou Shaojin didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. She resolved to tell Uncle Chi as soon as possible.

Ah Zhu returned with her head hanging. She apologized to Cheng Jia: “I’m sorry, we probably won’t be able to go to the Drum Tower now… My brother sent people to follow us. If he reports this to my mother, I won’t be allowed out again until after New Year’s. I was planning to invite you all to our house for a crab feast in September!”

Cheng Jia quickly said: “It’s fine, it’s fine. If we can’t go this time, we’ll go next time. There will always be another opportunity!”

What kind of talk was this?

Zhou Shaojin and the others couldn’t help but cover their faces.

But Ah Zhu immediately perked up, grasping Cheng Jia’s hand with a beaming smile. “Right, right, right! You understand me best.”

These two were truly birds of a feather…

Zhou Shaojin actually felt a bit sorry for Nanny Gong.

Ah Zhu asked Cheng Jia: “So where shall we go next?”

Cheng Jia pondered: “I heard that Victory Chess Tower has a handwritten inscription by Emperor Taizu. I wonder if it’s real or fake?”

“It’s real!” Ah Zhu smiled. “When I was little, I went with my grandfather to see it… Sister Jia, do you want to go see it? Then let’s go to Victory Chess Tower!”

“No!” Nanny Gong blocked Ah Zhu without hesitation and persuaded her: “Eldest Miss, today is the Ghost Festival, and many scholars have come out to tour the temple fair. Victory Chess Tower is a place they must visit. It’s not very suitable for us to go there. Why don’t we tell the duchess another day and have those idle people clear out? Then you and Miss Jia can tour Lake Mochou thoroughly. What do you think?”

Zhou Shaojin now only wanted to go home.

She had seen something of Ah Zhu’s temperament and said: “Nanny Gong makes sense. There are too many people today. Even if we went, we could only see the plaque. Why not make a special trip another day? Moreover, the fifteenth of the seventh month is also the Ghost Festival—it wouldn’t be good to return home late.”

No girl was unafraid of ghosts.

Ah Zhu and Cheng Jia both shivered and said in unison: “Then let’s go another day.”

Nanny Gong looked at Zhou Shaojin gratefully.

Everyone prepared to return.

Someone ahead asked: “Excuse me, is First Miss Cheng from the third branch of the Cheng family on Jiuru Lane touring the lake here?”

Looking for Cheng Jia?

Everyone looked at Cheng Jia in surprise.

Cheng Jia herself was equally bewildered.

Ah Zhu had the guards let the person in.

The arrivals were a master and servant. The master appeared to be in his twenties, tall in stature, wearing a bamboo-green lake silk robe with a blue kudzu cloth belt around his waist. Blue and multicolored pouches hung from each side. His features were quite ordinary, but his nose bridge was straight with a slight aquiline curve, lending him an air of dash and vigor. The servant was fifteen or sixteen, wearing a rattan-yellow cloth short jacket and black cloth shoes with leg bindings. His eyes darted about alertly.

Who was this?

Zhou Shaojin looked toward Cheng Jia.

Cheng Jia’s face was blank—clearly she didn’t recognize the man either.

The man stopped at a distance, smiled, and bowed to Cheng Jia. “Cousin, I’m your cousin from the Li family. Don’t you remember me? I came to bid farewell at your mansion this morning…”

Li Jing!

It was actually Li Jing.

He had actually pursued them here.

Zhou Shaojin couldn’t help but peek out from behind Nanny Gong.

In the dim lamplight, her lovely face was like a flower, dazzling and brilliant. Li Jing’s gaze involuntarily swept toward her. But he only lingered for two breaths before shifting his gaze to rest on Cheng Jia, as if he had suddenly seen something very beautiful and looked carefully for a moment… but only looked carefully for that moment.

Zhou Shaojin immediately felt very favorable toward Li Jing.

Too many people couldn’t take their eyes off her when they saw her, their eyes filled with greed…

If Cheng Jia could marry him, that would truly be a blessing earned through cultivation!