At the mention of Ling’ai, Zheng Yun’s eyes reddened in an instant. He shook his head. “I don’t want her to know, either.”

“You don’t want her to — but your sister-in-law is sure to tell her. If she found out, imagine how heartbroken she would be.” Bai Jin urged him. “Now that things have come to this, you can’t go on like this. What good does it do?”

“Then what else can I do?” He was already numbing himself with work. Beyond that, he truly had no other way.

“We help Seventh Brother, and get Shi Guang completely out of the picture.” Bai Jin clapped him on the shoulder, his tone resolute. “Only when Shi Guang is gone will she be free.”

Getting Shi Guang out of the picture…

It was as though the mist before him had suddenly been swept aside. Light came alive on Zheng Yun’s face, and he could not help but feel a surge of excitement. “Yes — you’re right. As long as Shi Guang is gone, the Di Kingdom will have no one left to exploit. Ling’ai won’t have to be their pawn in this struggle any longer.”

“I just worry that by then, you might have second thoughts about her.”

“I won’t.” Zheng Yun’s voice was unwavering. “I will never have second thoughts about her.”

He looked toward the direction of the gates, as if making a vow to the person inside. “I will wait for that day — wait for her to regain her freedom. I said it: in this life I will marry no one but her. If there is no her, then for this entire lifetime, I would rather grow old alone.”

“Please don’t.” Bai Jin grinned. “I’m also planning to grow old alone — we might as well keep each other company when we’re old.”

Zheng Yun shot him a glare and landed a fist on his chest. “Let’s go.”

“I mean it.” Bai Jin hurried to catch up with him. “I genuinely haven’t come across a single girl who meets my standards.”

Zheng Yun’s mouth twitched, and he drove his elbow into Bai Jin’s ribs. “Go.”

“I’m being serious.” Bai Jin scrambled after him. “I, your young master, am dashing and debonair, a man of towering talent — tell me, what young woman could possibly be worthy of me… hey, why are you walking so fast… I’m not exaggerating…”

~

As the Spring Festival drew near, every household began buying goods for the New Year.

Er Yitai had handed these matters over to Di Huai and Jin Shan, while she sent Yan Qing to keep her father, Master Yan, company at the Yan family home.

Master Yan’s health was declining by the day. Every physician who came to examine him could only shake his head.

Yan Xu had already been quietly making preparations for the funeral — he simply had not dared let Yan Qing know.

All the members of the Yan family had given up hope. Only Yan Qing alone continued to believe firmly that Master Yan would turn the corner and be all right.

“How come I haven’t seen Fifth Sister?” Having returned to the Yan family home for a few days, Yan Qing had not once caught sight of Yan Qin — not even now, with Master Yan seriously ill, had she come to visit.

“Don’t even mention her.” Yan Xu said, irritated. “She’s nowhere to be seen day or night. Who knows where she’s gone.”

“What about that match you mentioned last time?”

At the mention of this, Yan Xu was even more incensed. “The matchmaker’s side had everything arranged nicely. The other party also agreed to meet privately. I set up a time and place with them — but Yan Qin was nowhere to be found. The man was good-natured enough to wait for three hours, and still Yan Qin didn’t show up.”

“You didn’t notify her?”

“How could I not have notified her?”

Yan Qing let out a soft sigh. “Yan Qin probably wasn’t very satisfied with this match.”

“Given her current situation, she’s still being choosy? That someone is willing to take her in — a proper marriage with all the right ceremonies — she should be thanking heaven and earth.”

As Yan Xu was speaking, a servant rushed hurriedly inside.

“Young Master, something terrible has happened.”

“What is it?” Yan Xu frowned.

The servant said, “Several shop managers just arrived. They say the shops can’t keep running.”

“Can’t keep running? How is it I know nothing of this?” Yan Xu rose to his feet. “I’ll go take a look.”

“Elder Brother, let me go with you.”

Yan Xu did not object, and gave a nod of his head.

The siblings walked to the reception hall, where three managers were seated together whispering among themselves. When they saw the head of the household arrive, they quickly stood up.

“Young Master, Sixth Miss.” The three of them gave a bow.

Yan Xu asked, “What is this about the shops not being able to keep running?”

“Young Master, you may not be aware.” One manager stepped forward to speak. “Fifth Miss has recently been drawing on the shops’ working capital. Whenever we hesitated even slightly, she would rain abuse down on us without mercy. She’s taken all the usable funds from the shops — not only making it impossible to operate, but today the three of us also discovered that she has mortgaged the shops. The creditors are here now to collect them.”

These several shops had all been prepared by Master Yan as Yan Qin’s dowry. The shops were registered in Yan Qin’s name, so in front of the three managers, Yan Qin was the owner — she had absolute authority over all three shops.

“Fifth Miss is the mistress, and naturally we had to give her whatever she asked for.” The manager said helplessly. “Her taking money was one thing — who would have thought she’d mortgage the shops away?”

“Has Yan Qin lost her mind?” Yan Xu was alarmed. “These shops were Father’s dowry gift to her — not something for her to squander at will.”

The manager quickly produced the mortgage documents. “These are what the creditors brought when they came to collect. I had a look — Fifth Miss mortgaged them for a price worth only one third of what these shops are actually valued at. It’s essentially half-selling, half-giving them away.”

“Outrageous.” Yan Xu stamped his foot in anger. “If she needed money, she should have come to me directly.”

Yan Qing took the mortgage documents and looked them over. “Although the Yan family is wealthy, the Yan family’s sons and daughters cannot draw on the family accounts at will — let alone for large sums. If she wanted money, she would first have to get Elder Brother’s approval. And Elder Brother would certainly ask where the money was going. So, to avoid Elder Brother probing and questioning her, the only option she had was to go after these shops.”

Yan Xu’s face flushed red with anger, the veins on his hands standing out visibly.

“Someone come — someone!” Yan Xu shouted furiously toward the doorway.

At his words, two attendants walked in together. “Young Master, what are your instructions?”

“Go quickly and take several more men to find Fifth Miss. Turn Shun Cheng upside down if you have to — bring her back to me. I want to see exactly what Yan Qin thinks she’s doing.”

After the two attendants withdrew, Yan Qing said, “Elder Brother, finding Fifth Sister is the first priority — but what are we to do about these three shops? It’s written there quite clearly: if the money is not produced within the specified time, the shops will be handed over to them.”

“I can’t come up with that much working capital at a moment’s notice.” Yan Xu’s expression was grim. Yan Qin had used these three shops as collateral to borrow money at high interest rates from loan sharks, and by now the interest had compounded into a very large sum.

Even if the Yan family had that much in liquid funds, Yan Xu would not readily hand it over. He had to get to the bottom of the matter first — not simply throw money away without understanding what was going on.

“I’ll go talk to them.” Yan Xu said. “Where are those people now?”

“They’re still at the shops. We’ve had people entertaining them courteously.”

“Elder Brother, take more people with you.” Yan Qing said, worried. “Those people deal in loan-sharking — be careful not to come out the worse for it.”

Seeing the genuine concern filling Yan Qing’s eyes, Yan Xu felt a warmth rise in his heart.

He and Yan Qin were full siblings — born of the same father and the same mother — yet the bond between the two of them was not deep, and what’s more, Yan Qin was always bringing him trouble.

On the other hand, though he and Yan Qing shared only a father, he felt closer to her than he did to Yan Qin.

“I know. Thank you for your trouble with Father.”

Having said this, Yan Xu took several attendants and the managers and left the Yan family home. Yan Qing returned to the room to continue caring for Master Yan.

Master Yan had just woken up at that moment. Seeing her sitting by his side, a warm, relieved smile spread across his face. “Qingqing…”

“Father.” Yan Qing held the freshly peeled tangerine she had in her hand out toward his lips. “These are the tangerines Shi Ting brought. They’re especially sweet — have a little.”

Master Yan shook his head and began to cough again.

Yan Qing quickly set down the tangerine and supported him, gently patting his back.

“Qingqing, Father doesn’t have many days left.” Master Yan coughed for a while and then coughed up blood. Yan Qing saw that vivid red on the handkerchief, and tears welled up without her permission and overflowed.

“Father, I’m developing a special medicine. Once it’s successful, your illness will have a chance of being cured. You promised me — you will wait for me.”

Master Yan smiled. “I know Qingqing’s filial heart. But Father fears he cannot wait that long.”

“No — you will wait.” Yan Qing shook her head firmly. “Father, my experiments have already succeeded halfway, but I haven’t yet conducted human trials. Give me a little more time…”

“Qingqing.” Master Yan suddenly said. “Is it that no one is willing to be a test subject?”

Yan Qing did not deny it, and gave a nod. “I’ve already contacted the hospital, but the hospital says that patients don’t dare accept this kind of experimental treatment.”

To those people, such an experiment was even more frightening than illness itself — because they did not understand science.

She still remembered a piece she had studied in school called “The Steamed Bun Dipped in Blood.” Those people had tuberculosis, and would rather believe that a steamed bun soaked in blood could cure them than trust in medicine.

“Silly girl, don’t you have the perfect candidate right in front of you?” Master Yan smiled. “Father is in this state anyway — I might as well serve as your test subject. I’ve gotten to know a few fellow patients at the hospital, and we’ve gotten along quite well. I’ll speak with them and see if they’d be willing to join in too.”

“Father, the experiment is dangerous…”

Master Yan waved his hand. “At most, it’s a matter of dying sooner or dying later. These past days, Father has long since come to peace with things. Rather than going on clinging to life like this, it’s better to do something worthwhile before I die. This lifetime will not have been lived in vain. Qingqing — it was for me that you developed this medicine. If it can’t be used on me, it can still be used on others. Though Father is only a merchant, I want to make a small contribution to society before I die. Call it dying with purpose, and making good use of my existence.”

Yan Qing held Master Yan’s hand, moved so deeply that for a long moment she could not find words to speak.

“Good girl.” Master Yan smiled and patted her hand. “Let Father do this.”

Facing Master Yan’s sincere and resolute gaze, Yan Qing offered no further objection. She gave a firm, determined nod. “Father, I will not let anything happen to you. I believe — you will get better. You definitely will.”