Shi Ting followed unhurriedly behind Qin Peipei. Bai Jin walked alongside him, keeping some distance from those ahead.

“Seventh Brother, we have dug up the ancestral records of all three victims going back eighteen generations, and found no connection between them. The killer likely selected them only to set up the cipher.”

“Since there is no connection among the three victims, we can rule out a revenge killing.” Shi Ting said. “Perhaps this matter is even more complicated than what we can see.”

Bai Jin frowned. “Could the killer have deliberately led us to crack his cipher, intending to draw our attention?”

“No. He wants to divide our attention.” Shi Ting paused mid-step. “Our Military Police Division’s mission is to ensure next week’s ball proceeds smoothly, yet a portion of our focus has now been pulled toward Qin Peipei. That itself is suspicious.”

“So the killer’s true target isn’t Qin Peipei, but rather the guests attending the ball?”

“Prepare a guest list for me immediately, and pass word down — on the day of the ball, every person entering the dance hall must undergo a thorough inspection, including the venue’s service staff.”

“Yes.” Bai Jin acknowledged.

Just as Bai Jin was about to turn away, he suddenly leaned in with a conspiratorial air. “Seventh Brother, that perfume on you — you’d better make sure Sis-in-law doesn’t catch a whiff.”

Shi Ting raised his sleeve to his nose and sniffed.

Indeed.

He had already gone out of his way to keep his distance from that Qin Peipei, yet somehow the scent of her perfume had drifted this far.

It seemed he would need to change his clothes at once.

—

The Commander and Madam Shi’s pearl wedding anniversary celebration was something the Shi Family would naturally all attend. In recent days, the ladies and young misses of the Shi Mansion had been busily preparing their outfits. Even if they had no intention of competing for attention at the ball, they could not afford to disgrace the Shi Family name.

Although Yan Qin was not in Madam Shi’s good graces, she was still her daughter-in-law, and for the sake of appearances, Madam Shi had arranged for several Western-style gowns to be made for Yan Qin. These dresses had been acquired through special channels and were not available even at the country’s finest fashion establishments — wearing them would certainly bring credit to the family.

After receiving the gowns, Yan Qin thought of Shi Yutong and had her maidservant summon her.

Shi Yutong had no shortage of clothes herself, but the sight of Yan Qin’s gowns still drew an expression of admiration. “First Madam truly has her ways. Even my mother couldn’t obtain gowns like these.”

She handled a white dress, clearly reluctant to let it go.

Yan Qin quickly said, “If you like it, I’ll give it to you. I have more, after all.”

“Really?” Shi Yutong’s face broke into a delighted smile. “Yan Qin, you’re so good to me.”

They had spent every day together during their school days, when Yan Qin had been drawn by her status as the Commander’s daughter. Now Shi Yutong had taken on the additional role of younger sister-in-law, making her someone Yan Qin naturally needed to win over — someone who would be a useful ally in dealing with Yan Qing.

“We are good friends. Who should I be good to if not you?” Yan Qin smiled and took her hand.

After her laughter faded, Shi Yutong let out a huff. “You and Yan Qing are biological sisters — how can you be so different? I’m already tired of looking at her. I truly wish she would disappear from my sight right now.”

“Yutong, I heard she ran into a venomous snake that night. That wasn’t your doing, was it?”

Shi Yutong made no attempt to hide it. A flash of venom crossed her eyes. “What if it was? She didn’t dare make a sound about it, much less go complain to First Madam. Hmph — as long as I’m here, she needn’t hope for any peace. From now on, she can just wait for her bad luck.”

Hearing this, Yan Qin felt deeply satisfied. It seemed her deliberate provocations in front of Shi Yutong had taken effect.

“Enough about her. She’s disgusting.” Shi Yutong picked up a piece of cake from the table. “How are things between you and Second Brother lately?”

Yan Qin thought of Shi Guang, and a flash of revulsion crossed her eyes, though she had no wish to be laughed at by Shi Yutong, so she said, “Not bad, I suppose.”

“I heard Qiucao is pregnant. Is it true?”

“It’s true,” Yan Qin said. “Mother says it hasn’t reached three months yet, so it’s not to be spoken of widely.”

Shi Yutong’s eyes shifted. “Are you truly content to let a concubine bear the first child? If it’s a son, she’ll rise on the strength of her child and soon climb above you.”

“There’s nothing to be done. Shi Guang is fond of Qiucao.” Yan Qin thought to herself: let her have the child — what concern is it of hers? She had no interest in competing with a concubine. If anything, she would be happy if Shi Guang spent every day at Qiucao’s quarters and left her alone. She had always considered herself a devoted person. The one she cared for was only Shi Ting.

Hearing this, Shi Yutong let the matter drop.

“Yutong, I recently heard something.” Yan Qin looked around and, seeing the maidservants were all standing outside the door, lowered her voice. “The Commander intends to marry you to Sun Changyou, the son of Military Intelligence Director Sun Qiang.”

Shi Yutong’s hand froze in the act of lifting her teacup. She stared with wide eyes. “What did you say?”

“Yutong, don’t get agitated yet — I only heard it from someone else. Perhaps it’s just a rumor.” Yan Qin quickly soothed her. “I just wanted you to be mentally prepared.”

Before Yan Qin could say another word, Shi Yutong had already vanished.

Watching her rush off in such a hurry, Yan Qin had an uneasy feeling deep down, as though something was about to happen. So she called her maidservant Qing Tian in.

“Did you say the Commander intends to marry the Eighth Young Miss to Sun Changyou? Is this true?”

Qing Tian stood dutifully to one side. “I heard it while shopping at a store, from a maidservant of the Sun household. When she realized I was from the Shi Mansion, she chatted with me and accidentally let it slip. She repeatedly begged me not to spread it, saying it was a secret.”

“It seems to be true, then.” Yan Qin blinked.

She knew that Shi Yutong had long harbored feelings for the celebrated scholar Jiang Zeluo, so upon learning this news she had immediately passed it on, intending to give her a chance to prepare — after all, Shi Yutong had once helped her when she herself had been taken with Shi Ting.

“Understood. You may go.” Yan Qin picked up her teacup and took a sip. “I wonder if Yutong can manage to persuade the Commander.”

Shi Yutong returned to Xuehua Courtyard where San Yitai resided. San Yitai Du Linghua was reclining in a chair, a phonograph placed beside her with a record turning gently, releasing a melodious stream of music.

Du Linghua had been told that listening to music was the finest form of prenatal care, so she had the Commander purchase this phonograph.

Both the Commander and she hoped this child would be a son, and so even while still in the womb, the little one was already the object of great expectations.

Du Linghua was listening in a state of blissful absorption when the music abruptly stopped. She opened her eyes in displeasure, about to scold the maidservant, when she found Shi Yutong standing before her instead.

Shi Yutong had unplugged the phonograph and was glaring at her with puffed cheeks.

“What’s the matter?” Du Linghua sat up, her hand gently stroking her belly. “Don’t go frightening your little brother.”

“Little brother, little brother — all you think about is the little brother.” Shi Yutong cried out. “Now that you have him, have you forgotten me, your own daughter?”

“What nonsense are you saying? You are the child I carried for ten months. If I don’t want you, who does?” Du Linghua frowned. “What on earth is the matter?”

Shi Yutong burst into tears. “I refuse to marry that ugly Sun Changyou. If you try to make me marry him, I’ll die to prove it to you all.”

Du Linghua started. “Who told you about this?”

“Never mind who told me. The point is I won’t marry him. What right does an ugly man like him have to marry me? I am the Commander’s daughter — can he even dare aspire to such heights?”

“Be quiet.” Du Linghua snapped sharply. “Sun Changyou’s father, Sun Qiang, is the Military Intelligence Director and the Commander’s right-hand man. If he is not worthy of you, then who is?”

“I don’t care, I don’t care. If you want me to die, then go ahead and marry me off to him.” Shi Yutong stamped her feet. “You only have eyes for the one in your belly anyway. You gave up on me long ago.”

“You… you…” Du Linghua was furious, and instinctively clutched her belly.

“San Yitai.” Two maidservants hurried in — one poured water, the other rubbed her back to calm her. After much fussing, Du Linghua’s discomfort gradually eased.

“I refuse to marry him.” Shi Yutong had been briefly alarmed at first, but seeing Du Linghua recover, she only grew more stubborn. “I would rather take holy vows and become a nun.”

With that, ignoring Du Linghua’s calls, she turned and ran out without looking back.

“Outrageous, infuriating, absolutely infuriating.” Du Linghua’s face flushed crimson as she struck the armrest beside her. “What a terrible temper — all from being spoiled since childhood. She doesn’t even put me, her own mother, in her eyes anymore. *Cough, cough.*”

“San Yitai, please don’t upset yourself.” Caixia hurried to pat her back.

Caiyue also offered comfort. “San Yitai, the Eighth Young Miss is just this way. Her anger comes quickly and goes quickly. Once she thinks it through, she will naturally come to apologize.”

Du Linghua knew they were simply trying to comfort her. She knew the daughter she had raised — expecting an apology from Shi Yutong was simply impossible.

Once she gradually calmed down, it suddenly occurred to her that knowledge of the Commander’s plan to marry Shi Yutong to Sun Changyou was not widely known. Given Shi Yutong’s temperament, she was unlikely to agree, so the entire matter had been handled in secret, with everything to be finalized before Shi Yutong could object.

Sun Qiang was the Commander’s right-hand man, and marrying Shi Yutong to his son was a means of buying loyalty. As the Commander’s most trusted concubine, she naturally gave her full support. Besides, although Sun Changyou’s appearance was ordinary, his abilities were not lacking, and with a Military Intelligence Director as his father, Shi Yutong would not suffer.

“Caiyue, go find out where the Eighth Young Miss just came from.” Du Linghua’s expression grew serious, her gaze sharpening. How had such a closely guarded secret come to be exposed, and specifically brought to Shi Yutong’s attention? If there were no scheme behind this, she had lived her years in vain.

—