The Hundred Flowers Garden had no blooming flowers. No begonias, no camellias, no narcissus—nothing at all. A few withered grasses sprouted here and there, and bare trees formed a sparse forest.
The garden wasn’t large, visible in its entirety at a glance. Scattered throughout were flower-viewing pavilions. Being winter, the white-latticed rosewood folding windows were all drawn shut. The central pavilion was the largest, with a plaque reading “Point of Command.” Seven or eight covered walkways wound their way from various corners, converging at this spot while simultaneously connecting all the flower-viewing pavilions together.
One had heard of command platforms before, but who knew pavilions could also serve for “pointing at commanders.”
Mo Zi spotted the plaque from afar and asked, “Point at which commanders?”
“Flower commanders, flower kings. Only the most beautiful flower of each season may enter this pavilion, like stars encircling the moon. Hence, it’s called the Point of Command,” Yuan Cheng explained.
“There are countless people who love pretentious elegance. Just look at flowers if you want to look at flowers—why create all this fuss? It’s nothing more than driving up prices.” As Jin Yin said this, he glanced at Yuan Cheng with apparent casualness. “I heard that a certain someone surnamed Yuan bought an orchid here last month for a hundred gold pieces. I wonder who he was trying to win favor with.”
A hundred gold pieces? Mo Zi immediately glared at Yuan Cheng. “Orchids—the gentlemen among flowers—yet used as gold to curry favor. What a waste.” He was demanding repayment of her debts, yet turned around and generously threw money away.
“Young Master Jin may not be in the capital, but your information network remains well-informed.” Yuan Cheng spoke to Jin Yin, though his eyes caught Mo Zi’s glare. He smiled and simply ignored it. “Returning only to be in the mood to invite people for flower viewing—going to such lengths to make us waste a trip to your residence, you’ve truly racked your brains. Thinking about it this way, your matter must have been successfully completed.”
Jin Yin clapped his hands. “Ha! Yuan Cheng, you’ve been tricked after all! How does it feel? The mood after making an empty trip is sufficiently stifling, isn’t it?”
“If it were just me alone, it would likely be as you say. However, fortunately I had Third Brother as company. It’s not lonely suffering alone—suffering together isn’t so cheerless either.” Yuan Cheng waited for Jin Yin to feel smug, then knocked him down from his high perch to claim complete victory.
Jin Yin indeed choked with frustration and hurriedly asked Mo Zi, “Third Brother, you’re so clever—it’s impossible you couldn’t solve the mystery within.”
Mo Zi pursed her lips. “Young Master Jin, when you set riddles, could you first confirm whether I even know of a place called Hundred Flowers Garden? In the capital I’ve only been going around to a few places—I’d never even heard the name Hundred Flowers Garden. Besides, to speak fairly, back then the invitations for West Mountain Spring Listening were identical—you had one, I had one, exactly the same.”
“Little Third, your older brother has been wronged. If I’d given him the identical invitation, in the end only you would have run to the wrong place—what would be the point of that? I didn’t want to trick you.” Jin Yin came over, wanting to throw his arm around Mo Zi’s shoulders in a brotherly fashion.
Yuan Cheng grabbed Jin Yin’s collar. “Young Master Jin only has ‘Third Brother, Third Brother’ on his lips—where does that leave me, the eldest brother? As agreed, once you completed your matter, you’d give me thanks-silver. Hand it over.”
Jin Yin pulled out the fan from his waist and forcefully struck Yuan Cheng’s hand. “Completed what ghost of a matter! You made me waste two trips for nothing, and you still want thanks-silver? Reimburse my travel expenses!”
Mo Zi knew Jin Yin had gone to find Zhou Wen to buy water-purifying pearls, so she asked, “Why wasn’t it completed? Zhou Wen is greedy for money—if you offered a good price, the transaction shouldn’t have been difficult at all.”
“The man’s already dead—who am I supposed to buy from?” Jin Yin’s eyes held a cold glint.
“Zhou Wen died?” Yuan Cheng’s brow furrowed slightly.
“This man was in his prime, and looking at his physique, he seemed quite sturdy. How did he die?” Mo Zi thought of Zhou Wen’s laughing face like Maitreya Buddha—it didn’t seem like the features of someone short-lived.
“According to the neighbors, his Pearl and Jade Records was robbed, caught fire overnight, valuables disappeared, and he burned to death. I arrived just two days too late.” Jin Yin’s face showed a self-mocking expression. “It’s as if I have no more fate with this treasure—for all my efforts, I still haven’t managed to retrieve a single one.”
This time Yuan Cheng didn’t argue. “Are you certain he’s dead? Did you see it with your own eyes?”
“Although I’d never met Zhou Wen, I inquired with the coroner from the yamen. The person was definitely Zhou Wen. In Luo City, he wasn’t some nameless nobody—it seems he not only made plenty of profit following you, but also had wide connections. When the body was carried out that day, many people saw clearly—it couldn’t be wrong. However—” Jin Yin slowed his pace and lowered his voice. “The coroner said that before the fire, Zhou Wen was already dead. To find out the cause of death cost me another twenty taels of silver—turns out he was poisoned to death.”
Mo Zi gasped, her whole body breaking out in goosebumps. “That’s so strange!”
Yuan Cheng heard this and said nothing, but his expression was thoughtful.
“Zhou Wen used to do things for you—could it be that he lost his life because of that?” Jin Yin’s reasoning seemed natural to him.
Mo Zi’s first reaction was the same as Jin Yin’s, but thinking more carefully, she felt something was off. “Even if people knew Zhou Wen had worked for Yuan Cheng, they could just hand him directly over to the authorities. Why poison him? It’s more like silencing a witness.”
Suddenly, a thought turned in her mind, and she looked at Yuan Cheng in shock. “It wasn’t you, was it?” Knowing Zhou Wen was greedy and had swallowed his last shop, Yuan Cheng had given it away very calmly at the time—perhaps he actually had plans not to honor the deal?
“For Brother Mo to view me this way is truly disappointing. Though I’m not a good person, when lives are at stake, I wouldn’t harbor evil intentions toward those who could help me. Although Zhou Wen’s asking price was very high, and Brother Mo’s asking price also wasn’t low, have I ever attempted to harm you afterward? Once a transaction is complete, it represents equal value. My life is worth more than that shop, so the exchange was made willingly.” Yuan Cheng found he very much disliked Mo Zi’s eyes when she wrongly accused him.
“I’m sorry.” She apologized immediately, Mo Zi sincere in her contrition.
Because of that sincerity, Yuan Cheng’s resentment immediately dissipated. “Never mind. Having such thoughts is unavoidable, and you’re not the only one.”
Jin Yin certainly didn’t apologize, playing with his fan with one hand. “If you weren’t silencing a witness, then why?”
“You went to buy the treasure because you have money. But some people want to do business without capital—killing people for their goods is perfectly normal. Originally, besides me and Zhou Wen, no one knew the water-purifying pearls were at Pearl and Jade Records. But after Zhou Wen got the shop, it’s very likely he wanted to use the water-purifying pearls to make a fortune and leaked the news, which would naturally attract covetous people. Though this man was cautious in business, he was extremely short-sighted. I’d also guessed his end wouldn’t be good, and now indeed my prediction has come true.” Yuan Cheng saw Mo Zi nodding repeatedly, knowing she agreed with his viewpoint. He smiled and continued, “Young Master Jin, let me offer you some advice—there are plenty of treasures in the world more precious than water-purifying pearls. The legends about water-purifying pearls are bizarre and have attracted many people to compete for them. There are already ominous signs of bloodshed—you should abandon your obsession.”
Mo Zi chimed in: “The water-purifying pearls belong to the Min clan. If there really is a secret treasure, let them worry about it. Why are you getting involved?” If childhood shadows led to his extreme pursuit of wealth, it showed his heart was still empty from losing family affection, which he could only fill with external possessions.
“Perhaps it’s precisely because it’s too mysterious that I can’t let go.” Jin Yin shrugged, as if it were no big deal. “Besides, idle is idle anyway. But let’s not talk about this. One person wouldn’t sell, one person had no life to sell, the four in the Min clan’s hands naturally can’t be obtained for now, and the whereabouts of the other several are unknown, so I can only set it aside temporarily. However, this trip to Nande wasn’t without gains. By chance, I obtained a treasure.”
“What treasure?” Mo Zi thought, so he really did want to show off.
“Yuan Cheng, when you throw gold at buying flowers in the future, remember to keep the wealth within the family—throw it at me.” Jin Yin pointed at his own nose.
Yuan Cheng’s eyes rippled with light. “Is Young Master Jin planning to change careers and grow flowers?”
“Why would I need to change careers? Just adding another line of business.” Jin Yin’s laughter rose. “Guess what treasure I obtained.”
“…” Mo Zi couldn’t guess. What valuable thing was related to growing flowers?
“A gardener is worth treating as a treasure to you?” Yuan Cheng spoke with considerable disdain, as if guessing were a waste.
Jin Yin was both annoyed that Yuan Cheng guessed correctly immediately and, hearing his disdain, argued forcefully: “Though he’s a gardener, he’s no ordinary person.”
“The best flower growers are in Yuling, yet you ran to Nande to buy one.” Yuan Cheng had finished his sarcasm, then added, “Could this gardener be a woman? Young Master Jin has always loved beauties, which is why he was moved—actually, the drunkard’s interest isn’t in the wine.”
When men chat with men, half the content relates to women, and the other half is current events, politics, plus sports.
Jin Yin opened his fan, using the winter wind to intensify the cold air. His face gradually turned pale with a tinge of blue. Perhaps he was freezing, or perhaps embarrassed into anger?
At this moment, Mo Zi’s role as the youngest showed its use. She laughed good-naturedly, mediating with a smile: “Ship craftsmen and flower gardeners are both craftsmen—one character in common, each with specialized skills. To treat as a treasure, he must have the ability to turn the rotten into the miraculous, which is why Young Master Jin is opening our eyes today. Don’t delay any longer—hurry up, I’m waiting to see.”
The three of them said no more and walked into the pavilion.
The pavilion was circular, with windows already lowered all around. From outside to inside were placed dozens of seats arranged in ancient style—the cross-legged sitting kind. Unwed female guests had a special area, separated by white silk screens, entering through another door to avoid the male guests.
The guests had mostly arrived. Seeing the host enter, they all stood up to greet him.
Mo Zi and Yuan Cheng then separated from Jin Yin’s side and found their own seats. Although Jin Yin had pranked Yuan Cheng, he’d arranged their seating positions very well—adjacent and in the inner circle, where they could clearly see a pair of tall flower stands in the center wrapped in deep red brocade satin. Serving maids came to pour wine, heated—warming to the stomach when drunk. The two each held their cups and drank on their own.
Mo Zi looked through the screen and saw over a dozen shadows behind it, with some faint laughter floating over. There were even bold ones peeking through gaps in the screen. When their gazes met hers, they hurriedly shrank back, and then laughter arose. She immediately hoped that Bai He could be this open.
Among the seats she also saw several familiar faces from Wangqiu Tower, including Yang Ling, the only son of the Minister of Rites, who was chatting happily with friends at the fourth position.
After a while, Jin Yin took the host’s seat, and the pavilion quieted.
“Everyone, Jin has received much care from all of you on ordinary days. I’d originally wanted to invite you to view red leaves in autumn, but unfortunately mundane matters detained me and I couldn’t return to the capital in time. It was also fortunate fate—I was lucky enough to obtain an outstanding gardener. In this winter season, Jin wishes to appreciate spring together with everyone, to taste the king among flowers. No more words—the wine is warm, there are no dishes, we await the flower’s fragrance.” After speaking, he signaled to the attendants standing by.
The king among flowers? Peonies?
Mo Zi unconsciously said to Yuan Cheng: “How is that possible!”
Yuan Cheng watched those attendants busily removing the brocade. “Your second brother wants to imitate Emperor Zetian and issue a decree to all flowers—we’ll just watch the spectacle.”
The brocade was pulled away, revealing two precious blue crystal porcelain flower pots.
The entire audience was stunned speechless.
Including Mo Zi. Including Yuan Cheng. Including Jin Yin. The entire audience!