The young man who came to visit the patient was surnamed Qin, given name Wenyuan, a close friend of the Heir of Marquis Pingjia.

To be on good terms with the Heir of Marquis Pingjia, his status was also no simple matter—he was the nephew of Crown Prince’s Junior Mentor Qin Yunchuan.

“Jincai, what exactly happened that day?” Qin Wenyuan asked the doubt in his heart.

When he first heard about this matter, he simply didn’t believe it.

Jincai was also a cautious person—how could he possibly run naked onto the main street?

Yet it had happened nevertheless.

The Heir of Marquis Pingjia’s face revealed angry color: “I was schemed against by someone.”

“Schemed against?”

“That day everyone went to watch the Top Scholar’s parade through the streets, so the bookshop area was extremely deserted. I was together with Hanfang when suddenly a thunderous sound came, also mixed with firelight. In our panic we ran to the wrong place and directly rushed out through the main entrance. By the time we wanted to go back, it was already too late…”

The Heir of Marquis Pingjia grew more furious as he spoke: “The bookshop had never stored firecrackers before—someone must have deliberately meant to make me lose face, specifically choosing that time to make their move!”

Qin Wenyuan fell silent for a moment, then asked: “Jincai, regarding the person who schemed against you, do you have any idea?”

The Heir of Marquis Pingjia slowly shook his head: “I can’t think of who would harm me for the moment. But this matter must have been aimed at me, not at Hanfang.”

The Heir of Marquis Pingjia thought of the bookshop owner Miao Hanfang and felt somewhat distressed.

Having caused such an incident, his parents definitely wouldn’t let Hanfang have an easy time, but unfortunately he hadn’t yet gotten past the novelty period.

“Hanfang has good relations with the people around him. Moreover, even if he had offended someone, if others wanted to take revenge on a mere bookshop owner, there would be no need to drag me into it. But if we talk about who I’ve made enemies with, I can’t think of anyone—recently everything has been no different from usual—”

The Heir of Marquis Pingjia suddenly paused, his expression becoming unusual.

“Jincai, what did you think of?”

The Heir of Marquis Pingjia looked toward his friend, his gaze heavy: “If we speak of what’s different from usual, it’s that I just got betrothed.”

Qin Wenyuan’s complexion changed slightly: “Jincai, you mean… the one who schemed against you was the Earl of Huai’an’s household?”

The Heir of Marquis Pingjia made no sound.

Qin Wenyuan’s brows locked tightly as he shook his head: “That makes no sense. A betrothed young lady already counts as part of her husband’s family—once the betrothal is broken off, the impact is enormous. If the Earl of Huai’an’s household was dissatisfied with you, why would they form the marriage alliance in the first place?”

“Perhaps they discovered my affairs?”

Qin Wenyuan was stumped by the question.

The Heir of Marquis Pingjia began coughing violently, coughing until tears flowed, his eyes red as he said: “Now the betrothal is also broken off, and I’ve also become like this—talking about these things is useless. Wenyuan, don’t come in the future. If people find out, it will implicate you.”

“Jincai, don’t speak like that.”

The Heir of Marquis Pingjia closed his eyes and made no further sound.

Seeing his friend’s heart-dead-as-ashes appearance, Qin Wenyuan was extremely worried, but no matter what he said, the Heir of Marquis Pingjia would no longer speak.

Not two days after Qin Wenyuan left the Marquis Pingjia’s household, news spread that the Heir of Marquis Pingjia had died of illness.

When he received the news, Qin Wenyuan was playing the zither while facing a clump of banana plants outside the window.

A zither string suddenly snapped, cutting his finger.

“The Heir of Marquis Pingjia… is gone?”

The young servant who came to report didn’t dare look at that face devoid of all color, and kept his head lowered as he answered yes.

Qin Wenyuan staggered, his hand pressing on the zither instrument and producing a harsh discordant sound.

“Young Master, are you all right?” The young servant hurriedly stepped forward to support him.

Qin Wenyuan pushed the young servant away and strode outward.

“Young Master, where are you going?” the young servant asked while chasing after him.

Qin Wenyuan seemed not to hear and walked faster and faster, nearly colliding head-on with someone.

That person had a square face that made his temperament appear stern—it was precisely Crown Prince’s Junior Mentor Qin Yunchuan.

“Second Uncle,” Qin Wenyuan stopped.

“Wenyuan, where are you going?”

“I… I’m going out for a walk.” Qin Wenyuan shifted his gaze away, not meeting Qin Yunchuan’s eyes.

Qin Yunchuan frowned: “You want to go to the Marquis Pingjia’s household, don’t you?”

Qin Wenyuan’s voice choked: “Second Uncle, Jincai and I have been friends since childhood. That year when my father passed away, I hid alone to cry and accidentally fell into a collapsed pit—it was Jincai who discovered me and had people rescue me. Now that he’s dead, how can I not send him off on his final journey?”

Qin Yunchuan quietly listened to his nephew finish speaking, then sighed: “Since you’ve brought up your father, I cannot let you go even more. When your father passed away, what he worried about most was you, instructing me to cultivate you into a talented person. The world already loves to grasp at shadows—moreover, what happened to the Heir of Marquis Pingjia was truly and clearly witnessed by many people. With your age and appearance, if you were to cry bitterly before his spirit, by tomorrow at the latest there would be rumors and gossip arising.”

Having said this, Qin Yunchuan patted his nephew’s shoulder: “Wenyuan, if you wish to have accomplishments in the future, you cannot be tainted by this kind of rumor. Your friendship with the Heir of Marquis Pingjia—just keep it in your heart.”

“Second Uncle—” Qin Wenyuan, tears filling his eyes, watched Qin Yunchuan’s departing back and murmured a call.

After grieving for two days, Qin Wenyuan called for a young servant: “Go inquire whether, on the day of the Top Scholar’s parade through the streets and during the period of time before that, there were any particular people lingering around the vicinity of Pinfang Studio.”

The young servant inquired for two or three days with no results.

Qin Wenyuan was unwilling to give up. For the first time since the Heir of Marquis Pingjia’s death, he walked out of his home and went to that street.

The street was still as bustling as ever—only the bookshop with the “Pinfang Studio” sign had its main doors tightly closed, appearing bleak and desolate.

Qin Wenyuan stood on the street staring at the bookshop’s main entrance in a daze for a while, then looked around.

A teahouse entered his line of sight.

It was a two-story teahouse that looked unremarkably ordinary. The only thing that drew Qin Wenyuan’s attention was a private room on the second floor facing the street—its window directly faced the bookshop’s main entrance.

If one were there, one would surely be able to see clearly whatever happened at the bookshop entrance.

Qin Wenyuan had a sudden flash of inspiration with this thought and lifted his foot toward the teahouse.

“Young Master, please come in. Just one person?” The teahouse server enthusiastically greeted him.

“One person. Are there still private rooms available on the second floor?”

“Young Master has come at a good time—there’s still one available.”

Led upstairs by the server, however, the room they were entering was not that particular private room.

Qin Wenyuan stopped in the corridor and pointed over there: “Is someone in this private room?”

“Apologies, Young Master, there are several guests currently drinking tea inside.”

Qin Wenyuan walked into the empty private room. While the server was pouring tea, he began to inquire: “On the day of the Top Scholar’s parade through the streets, this place must have been quite lively?”

As soon as the server heard this, he brightened up, even becoming somewhat animated: “Indeed! Originally thought that day would be so idle we’d be dozing off, never expected we’d witness such a huge spectacle.”

“I see that private room next door would be most convenient for watching the excitement.” Qin Wenyuan said without revealing his emotions.

The server smiled and nodded: “Young Master speaks truly. That private room’s window directly faces the bookshop’s main entrance. If one sat by the window, one could drink tea while watching the excitement perfectly.”

“Who was lucky enough to be drinking tea next door that day?”

This question made the server pause, stopping his endless flow of words.

Qin Wenyuan pushed a piece of broken silver across.

The server’s eyes brightened. He hastily put away the silver and smiled: “Then Young Master has asked the right person—this humble one happens to have an impression.”

“What kind of person was it?”

“It was a young lady, and like Young Master, also alone.”