Yan Qing looked into his long, narrow eyes with disbelief. “We can see stars without going outside? Without even moving?”

She cast a sideways glance at the window — the curtains blocked any view completely.

“If your husband says it’s possible, then it’s possible.” Shi Ting said, leaning close to her ear and exhaling softly. “Does Madam still doubt her husband’s abilities?”

Yan Qing: “……”

Sensing another trap being set, Yan Qing quickly pointed at the ceiling. “Don’t tell me the roof is going to split open.”

She had said it without much thought, so she was genuinely surprised when Shi Ting gave a nod. “Madam is so perceptive.”

Even as he spoke, he pressed something — some hidden switch — and the triangular roof began to slide slowly open on both sides. As it retracted piece by piece, the deep blue starlit sky descended like a curtain suddenly dropped from above, flooding her vision in the most astonishing, breathtaking way.

“It’s so beautiful.” Yan Qing sat bolt upright, forgetting entirely the ache and exhaustion from moments before.

The lights and towers of the city obscured the beauty of the night sky. Pollution had long replaced clean air with a gray haze. To lie here like this and look up at a sky brimming with stars was something the people of that era could only dream of — and what made it all the more precious was that the person she cared for most was right here beside her.

Thinking of how carefully he had arranged all of this, just to give her a surprise, a warmth spread through Yan Qing’s heart, and she found herself pressing her hand over the back of his.

“This is the most beautiful night sky I have ever seen in my life.” Yan Qing tilted her face upward, her eyes reflecting the starlight as though she herself were filled with stardust.

“For me as well.” Shi Ting held her from behind, gazing upward with her. “Wherever Madam is, even a sky full of rain and clouds is beautiful.”

Yan Qing turned to look at his handsome face. “I truly underestimated you before.”

“Oh?”

“When I first met you, I thought you were the kind of man who was reserved and without desire — the sort from whom sweet words would never come.”

“And now?”

“Now I think my dear husband could publish a book. The title could be: A Complete Collection of Practical Romantic Lines.”

Shi Ting laughed quietly, the warmth of it brushing like a spring breeze across her heart. “Many thanks for the compliment, Madam.”

“If you publish it, remember to share the royalties with me.”

“Of course.” He agreed without hesitation, his arms tightening around her a little more. “You are the only one who could ever make me say such things.”

Toward other women, he couldn’t bring himself to offer so much as a glance, let alone words like these. Before he had met her, he had never known that such words could come so naturally. And when he said them, he felt no exaggeration in them at all — on the contrary, he felt they were simply the truth, the sincere and genuine expression of what he felt in this moment.

Others called it sweet talk. He preferred to call it honesty.

“Madam, are you tired?” His voice grew gradually low and husky.

Yan Qing startled, immediately on alert. That sort of thing was undeniably pleasurable — but they had already done it twice that evening already.

Director Shi’s stamina was remarkable, but surely he wasn’t going to want a third time?

Without another word, Yan Qing lay straight back and closed her eyes, letting her body go limp as a way of answering him.

“What is Madam thinking?” Shi Ting laughed. “I only wanted to give Madam a massage to ease her fatigue.”

Yan Qing pulled the blanket up over her face. She wasn’t falling for it. Who was to say a massage wouldn’t turn into something else entirely?

Having already tumbled into his traps more times than she could count, Yan Qing made a firm decision: from this moment on, she was done speaking to him.

Seeing that she had gone quiet, Shi Ting simply lay down beside her, reached out with one long arm, and drew her waist toward him. “Madam, good night.”

Yan Qing nestled a little deeper into his embrace and quietly, in her heart, said: good night.

With the vast, brilliant sky above, they slept soundly through the night.

The next morning, Yan Qing heard birdsong drifting into her sleep — cheerful and sweet.

She slowly opened her eyes. Before her was a soft pink curtain. Following it to one side, she saw the large wooden tub, and the disarray surrounding it seemed to offer a willing account of last night’s events.

Feeling somewhat self-conscious, Yan Qing quickly averted her gaze — and this time found a neatly folded set of clean clothes waiting at the head of the bed. He had prepared them early in the morning.

Shi Ting was not in the cabin. She heard sounds from outside, and guessed he was making breakfast.

Yan Qing dressed, washed up, and pushed open the cabin door. The small courtyard was piled with firewood, and Shi Ting sat on a low stool, swinging an axe that split a thick log cleanly in two.

“Good morning.” Yan Qing drifted toward him like a butterfly newly woken, her steps light.

Shi Ting had clearly been at it for some time — a faint sheen of perspiration lay across his forehead, and his rolled-up sleeves revealed forearms that radiated a healthy vitality.

“Good morning.” He smiled at her. “Once I’ve finished splitting this wood, I’ll start on breakfast.”

“Let me help.” Yan Qing rolled up her sleeves and moved to pitch in.

“Don’t.” Shi Ting immediately caught her arm. “The wood has splinters — you’ll hurt yourself.”

“But standing here eating without doing anything makes me feel bad.”

“Madam says she feels bad, yet her face shows no blush. Could it be another case of subcutaneous redness?”

Faced with his teasing, Yan Qing let out a huff, but she dragged a small chair over and sat beside him, watching him work while offering appreciative commentary. “My dear husband is truly a man of all talents — fit for the finest parlor or the humblest kitchen. Left hand for hunting, right hand for splitting wood. Most impressive.”

“Madam is no less impressive — a mouth equally suited for eating and for handing out compliments.” He suddenly winked. “I wonder what other uses it might serve?”

Catching the implication in his words, Yan Qing ground her teeth. “Hurry up and split the wood.”

Shi Ting laughed and let it drop, while Yan Qing raised her sleeve and dabbed the fine sweat from his forehead.

By the time Shi Ting had finished splitting the wood and coaxed the fire to life, Yan Qing finally asked, “What are we having for breakfast?”

With what seemed like magic, he produced a small bamboo basket holding four or five thin-shelled eggs — slightly smaller than chicken eggs and a shade darker in color.

“Wild pheasant eggs. I found them on the mountain.” Shi Ting said. “With a pot of congee and last night’s leftover venison, we’ll have more than enough.”

“Are we going back today?”

Seeing the reluctance in her expression, Shi Ting smoothed his hand over her hair. “Whenever you want to come back, I’ll bring you.”

“All right.” Yan Qing gave him a radiant smile. She knew how busy he was — not only with the affairs of the Military Police Division, but also other matters of governance she knew nothing of.

After finishing breakfast, they made their way home. Though the honeymoon had been brief, it gave Yan Qing memories that would last a lifetime.

She knew she would remember that night’s sky for the rest of her life. And she would never forget the man who had rolled up his sleeves and cooked a warm meal for her.

—

“I remember you’re taking the nursing school graduation exam — how are your preparations going?” Back in the courtyard, Jiangguo came bounding toward them, circling the two of them in excited loops, while Second Egg, not to be outdone, waddled eagerly along behind.

Whatever posturing Jiangguo got up to, it was nonetheless a dutiful older sibling. Though it occasionally put on airs as the top dog, most of the time it looked after its younger tiger brother Second Egg with genuine care.

If Shi Ting remembered correctly, the graduation exam was three days away.

Yan Qing crouched down and scooped Second Egg into her arms. “There’s not much to prepare.”

Shi Ting smiled knowingly. “That’s true enough — those foundational questions are barely scratching the surface for Madam.”

“I’ll just take that as you flattering me.”

“Flattering you — is it done like this?” Shi Ting said, and then, true to his word, gave her lightly on the backside a little pat.

Yan Qing was startled and quickly looked around. Finding no one nearby, she let out a breath of relief and turned to glare at him. “You’re absolutely shameless.”

Shi Ting burst out laughing. “It seems the flattery landed on the wrong end of the horse.”

“Flatterer!”

“Flatterer!”

The long-neglected Big Tiger had finally found its moment to shine. Ladies and gentlemen, please enjoy my performance.

Shi Ting: “……”

He had a sudden urge to put that parrot in a stew.

The bird’s outburst made Yan Qing laugh despite herself, and she couldn’t resist giving it a thumbs-up — grateful that it had helped her win this round.

“Young Master, Young Mistress.” Jin Shan came walking in from outside.

“What is it?”

Jin Shan said, “The General Commander is asking for the Young Master.”

“He’s home?”

“He just returned as well. It seems there is some urgent matter — the First and Second Young Masters are both there.”

“Understood.” Shi Ting rose to his feet. “You rest a while. I’ll be back shortly.”

“I’ll go visit Mother.”

“Good.” Shi Ting gave her hand a gentle squeeze, then turned and left.

Murong’s medicine had just finished brewing, so Yan Qing took Murong along with her to the Second Concubine’s Lanxiang Courtyard.

As they walked along a narrow path, Murong suddenly stopped, her full attention shifting to her ears.

“What is it?” Yan Qing knew she must have heard something.

“There are people talking in the grove.” Murong said.

This would not ordinarily be something Yan Qing concerned herself with — but just around the bend from here was Lanxiang Courtyard. Could the people speaking be from there?

She gave Murong a meaningful look, and Murong handed the tray to Yan Qing, then moved quietly toward the grove.

She had barely reached the edge of the trees when two figures in plain blue-gray dresses hurried out. Both looked young. Without pausing, they went their separate ways — one heading north, the other heading south.

Worried they might notice her, Murong quickly pressed herself behind the trunk of a large tree.

Only once both of them had gone did Murong return to Yan Qing’s side.

“Two maids I didn’t recognize.” Murong gave a rough description of their appearances.

Yan Qing stood for a moment in thought. “The one heading north would be going toward Mother’s Lanxiang Courtyard. Could they be from her household?”

“I remember what she looks like. One look around the Second Concubine’s courtyard should be enough to find out.”

Yan Qing nodded. Whatever those two maids had been up to, lurking furtively in that bamboo grove was never a good sign.

Living in a grand household such as this, one ought to harbor no intention to harm others — but one could never afford to be without a measure of caution. It was always better to keep one’s eyes open and think one step ahead.

Arriving at Luo Huaimeng’s Lanxiang Courtyard, Yan Qing noticed that Xiangxiu was not inside. She turned to Murong and said, “Didn’t you have something to speak to Xiangxiu about? Go ahead and find her.”

—

*Author’s comment: The author feels for the readers — after opening with a scene of spring night bliss, the rest is entirely left to your imagination! Too difficult, truly too difficult!*

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