After several consecutive autumn rains through the ninth month, Shengjing passed the Cold Dew solar term.

The maple leaves at Wanen Temple had turned red in vast swaths. At Danfeng Terrace, visitors came in endless streams, as from this vantage point one could perfectly view the expansive red maples that resembled blood.

The chrysanthemums in the Grand Preceptor’s mansion bloomed all at once overnight.

The servants selected fresh chrysanthemums to brew wine and make tea, crafting chrysanthemum cakes whose fragrance filled the air.

When Lu Tong walked into Qi Yutai’s room, Qi Yutai had just smashed a pot of chrysanthemum-scented tea.

The golden chrysanthemum petals, scalded by the boiling water, no longer resembled the beautiful flowers that proudly stood on their branches when they scattered on the floor. Instead, they looked like crushed, filthy refuse, sticking wetly to the woven carpet.

Lu Tong lifted her foot and stepped over the debris scattered across the floor.

Qi Yutai was full of fury, but upon seeing her, his expression immediately showed wild delight. He stepped forward eagerly: “You’ve come! Where is it?”

Lu Tong turned to set down her medical case, lowered her head to take out the velvet cloth containing the golden needles, and spoke unhurriedly: “Young Master Qi, if you cannot control your temper, be careful that Lord Qi discovers something amiss. At that point, there truly would be no room for maneuver.”

Having said this, she glanced lightly at the maidservants and guards standing at the door.

Qi Yutai was rendered speechless.

Ever since his recovery, these pairs of eyes in the room had not stopped watching for even a moment. Despite Qi Yutai’s repeated protests, it was all in vain.

He knew perfectly well that his father didn’t trust Lu Tong, so he had assigned people to monitor her.

But these eyes not only watched Lu Tong—they also watched him.

It was deeply frustrating.

Qi Yutai endured for a moment, waiting until Lu Tong followed him into the inner room to administer acupuncture before asking in a low voice: “Where is it?”

Lu Tong: “There isn’t any.”

“There isn’t any?” Qi Yutai’s expression changed dramatically as he grabbed her collar: “How can there not be any?”

It had been a full five days since Lu Tong had last brought him medicinal powder.

Qi Yutai was going mad.

Though the medicinal powder wasn’t as potent as the cold food powder, he had initially found it rather mild. It wasn’t until he had gone five days without taking it, and the gnawing sensation grew increasingly intense, that he realized with shock that medicinal powder was still medicinal powder—even if it seemed less potent, it was still addictive.

He was suffering from withdrawal again.

“Don’t think I won’t dare to kill you,” Qi Yutai said through gritted teeth. “If you think you can control me with this stuff, you’d better consider whether you have the life to do so!”

Lu Tong paid no mind to his threats, only speaking calmly: “Young Master Qi, tomorrow is the grand sacrificial ceremony. Lord Qi places great importance on this ritual. There must be no mistakes.”

“Every day before I enter the mansion, I must be searched by your household’s maidservants. If they discover anything, it would be bad for both of us.”

Qi Yutai’s expression darkened.

Lu Tong was right.

Not only was she being searched, but in recent days, besides Lu Tong, other physicians invited by his father from outside the mansion would also come daily to take his pulse, fearing he might have some accident during the ceremony.

After all, during the entire sacrificial period, all officials would be present. Unlike the Rouge Alley incident, if he fell ill during the ceremony, the rumors could never be silenced.

Even though Qi Yutai had explained to his father repeatedly that he wasn’t sick, his father didn’t believe him.

For Qi Qing, the Grand Preceptor’s mansion’s reputation was more important—

“Stop making excuses to fool me!” With his inner mania having no outlet, he vented all his anger on the person before him.

Qi Yutai reached out, and Lu Tong was pushed backward by him, her spine hitting the wall behind her. She immediately frowned.

This discomfort actually pleased Qi Yutai.

He sneered: “Aren’t you supposed to be clever? Finding a way to deceive the body searches shouldn’t be difficult for you. You simply don’t want to!”

The room fell silent for a moment.

After a while, Lu Tong said: “The mansion’s searches are strict, and there are people watching closely at the entrance. This subordinate dare not take such risks.”

Qi Yutai snorted coldly, about to threaten her when he heard the woman before him change her tone: “However, this subordinate has a solution.”

“What solution?”

“Young Master Qi’s illness has not yet fully subsided, and Lord Qi’s paternal love runs deep. Therefore, he only allows the young master to recuperate within the mansion and forbids you from leaving. But during the Tianzhang Terrace ceremony, you can find an opportunity.”

Qi Yutai looked incredulous: “You want me to take it during the ceremony?”

“The ceremony is an imperial affair. If discovered, it would be a grave crime. Are you trying to kill me? Your intentions are truly malicious!”

He looked at Lu Tong, his eyes suddenly filled with suspicion.

“Not so.”

“Then what do you mean by this?”

Lu Tong said: “The grand palace ceremony has water competitions and various entertainments during the day before the ritual. After the ceremony ends and the Nuo ritual is complete, I heard His Majesty will ascend the tower platform, and all officials will view the fireworks together. Before the great Nuo ritual, there should be opportunities.”

The great Nuo ritual was originally a spring celebration. Every year-end, the palace guards would wear masks and embroidered colorful clothing, carrying golden spears and dragon banners. When Emperor Ming of Later Liang ascended the throne, he had originally abolished the Nuo ritual. But this year, with the locust plague in the south, to drive away pestilence and avoid disease, they decided to combine the great Nuo ritual with the Tianzhang Terrace ceremony, though it was not as grand as before.

Qi Yutai looked Lu Tong up and down: “You even know about the great Nuo ritual?”

Lu Tong: “On the day of the ceremony, this subordinate must accompany the Imperial Medical Academy to the feast.”

With Cui Min’s downfall, the Imperial Medical Academy was leaderless, and now Medical Administrator Chang Jin was handling affairs temporarily. With Cui Min’s theft of medical prescriptions being an established fact, naturally, Lu Tong’s three-month suspension was also lifted.

Of course, the Grand Preceptor’s mansion had also helped push things along.

“You truly have no ulterior motives?” Qi Yutai still harbored some suspicion.

“If Young Master Qi can endure until after the ceremony, that would be even better. This subordinate would not need to take such risks.”

“Why must we wait until after the ceremony?”

“Lord Qi initially told this subordinate to ensure Young Master Qi’s health before the ceremony. Now that the young master’s illness has been cured, after the ceremony passes, this subordinate will return to the Imperial Medical Academy and it wouldn’t be convenient to visit daily for consultations—such behavior would be too abnormal and would make Lord Qi suspicious.”

Qi Yutai’s expression darkened.

Once he recovered, Lu Tong indeed need not visit daily.

But his drug addiction couldn’t do without Lu Tong for even a day.

His father’s surveillance was becoming increasingly excessive. He couldn’t get out, and the medicinal powder couldn’t get in. Just five days had been unbearable—how much more so after the ceremony when their meetings would be uncertain.

“Fine, I’ll trust you this once.”

The craving for the medicinal powder ultimately overcame what little rationality remained in his heart. He moved closer to Lu Tong and threatened: “If you dare play any tricks…”

“This subordinate wouldn’t dare.”

Qi Yutai stared at her for a long while. Seeing her expression was frank and open, he finally snorted and sat down.

Lu Tong took out the needles to perform acupuncture on him.

“Actually, there’s another solution,” Qi Yutai said with closed eyes, suddenly chuckling.

“As long as I take you as a concubine, we could naturally see each other daily.”

He made malicious jokes: “Compared to being Jin Xianrong’s concubine, being a concubine in the Grand Preceptor’s mansion would be much better. Isn’t that right?”

Lu Tong remained silent.

Qi Yutai found this somewhat boring, but thinking that tomorrow evening, before the Nuo ritual, he might be able to take some medicinal powder to relieve his craving, he couldn’t help but feel anticipation in his heart.

He only wished tomorrow would come quickly.

…

The day passed quickly, and night fell with darkness.

Autumn nights already carried a chill, and the lights in the Commander’s mansion blazed brightly.

The various units had returned early today—tomorrow morning was the palace ceremony, and by noon the Commander’s mansion would be empty. When Pei Yunying entered the room, Duan Xiaoyan was just about to leave. He was about to call out to him when he noticed Xiao Zhufeng making eye signals at him, so he swallowed the words that had reached his lips and quietly left.

Pei Yunying had been very busy lately.

When not on duty, he would often spend entire days at the training grounds. Others said he was dedicating himself wholeheartedly to the grand ceremony, but those in the know at the Commander’s mansion understood this was clearly someone nursing a broken heart and numbing himself with work.

Heartbroken indeed!

Though he appeared as if nothing had happened each day and didn’t neglect any of his duties, since the night of his birthday, there were still moments when people could glimpse a hint of what lay beneath.

For instance, he no longer smiled as readily as before, and sometimes he looked rather cold.

In the courtyard, only distant streetside lamplight cast faint glowing remnants. Gardenias had already gone to sleep. Xiao Zhufeng finished organizing the desk clutter and prepared to leave.

Pei Yunying called out to him: “Xiao Er.”

“What is it?”

“Keep me company for a drink,” he said.

Oil was added to the copper lamp, and the previously weak flame blazed bright again.

Gardenia was awakened by the commotion in the courtyard, poked her head out to sniff, then retreated back.

It was indeed autumn—the wisteria flowers had been completely scattered by consecutive autumn rains. Under the flower frame, green lamps glowed like stars, with two people sitting at the stone table.

Two grown men sitting face to face was bound to be somewhat silent. Xiao Zhufeng picked up the wine cup on the table and took a sip, then immediately frowned: “Tea?”

“What else?”

Pei Yunying poured himself a cup, his tone matter-of-fact: “There’s a ceremony tomorrow—do you dare drink alcohol?”

Xiao Zhufeng choked, then stared at the tea in the wine cup: “Why is it bitter again?”

Previously, when Pei Yunying’s mind had gone astray, he had replaced all the tea in the Commander’s mansion with various sweet drinks and flavored waters that were sickeningly sweet. This pot of tea was actually bitter.

Xiao Zhufeng hadn’t had bitter tea at the Commander’s mansion in a long time.

“Isn’t it good?” Pei Yunying lifted his wine cup. “Life is inherently bitter.”

Xiao Zhufeng: “…”

He spoke leisurely: “It’s just being rejected by someone you fancy—why be so bitter and resentful? A real man need not worry about finding a wife; there are plenty of fish in the sea.”

Pei Yunying glanced at him: “Well said. It would be even better if you could avoid being so gleeful about my misfortune.”

The wind rustled through the courtyard.

After a while, Xiao Zhufeng asked: “Didn’t you say before that you’d take your time and be patient? Why did you suddenly confess your feelings?”

“I couldn’t hold back.”

Xiao Zhufeng asked again: “Why did she reject you?”

“I don’t know.”

“Is it because of Ji Xun?”

“Perhaps.”

Pei Yunying drank some tea and looked down at his wine cup, which reflected the flower frame above his head.

The frame wasn’t as lush as in summer—without flowers, the branches and leaves looked sparse and rather desolate.

“Actually, I never had confidence that she would choose me,” he said with self-mockery. “After all, Ji Xun is a gentleman, while I’m a scoundrel.”

“If the Lu family hadn’t encountered those troubles, the person who should match her now would be someone like Ji Xun.”

These words carried deep melancholy.

“Wake up,” Xiao Zhufeng said coldly. “When did you become so cowardly?”

Pei Yunying smiled and said nothing.

Xiao Zhufeng looked at him: “Didn’t you say before that even if she truly liked Ji Xun, you would break them up? You’re just giving up to that fellow now?”

Pei Yunying scoffed: “What do you mean ‘giving up’? She’s not an object.”

Xiao Zhufeng couldn’t stand seeing him like this and said sarcastically: “Then what will you do? Sit here drinking tea in depression, waiting until they’re happily married before you try to take advantage? Not even wanting a proper title?”

“Are you the type of person who’s willing to retreat to the background?”

Pei Yunying didn’t speak.

Night wind blew past, and the tall parasol trees rustled.

Pei Yunying spoke: “Xiao Er, do you still remember my horse?”

Xiao Zhufeng was startled.

Pei Yunying had once owned a red colt.

It was a birthday gift personally selected by his maternal grandfather—lively and beautiful, but later died from eating poisonous grass.

“I loved that colt very much.”

“Because I loved it so much, I inevitably showed it off, which led to my brothers fighting over the horse. When it died, I was very sad.”

He said calmly: “Later I discovered that the colt didn’t die from eating poisonous grass—it was my father who personally ordered it poisoned.”

Xiao Zhufeng paused.

This was the first time he had heard Pei Yunying speak of the truth behind this matter. He asked: “Why?”

Pei Yunying smiled, and that smile was colder than the autumn night.

“Because he believed that this thing damaged brotherly affection, so it was better to eliminate it at the source.”

Pei Yunying continued: “I don’t want her to become that horse.”

Xiao Zhufeng fell silent.

If this had been half a year ago, Xiao Zhufeng would never have believed he would see this side of Pei Yunying.

A pampered young lord would wait from daylight to darkness without complaint for one person, only to become so humble after being rejected.

“Medical Officer Lu seems like someone who’s sworn off love and ready to become a nun at any moment—it’s hard to imagine her falling in love with you,” Xiao Zhufeng comforted his friend. “Actually, you might not love her that deeply. It’s because you’ve invested so much effort in her that you can’t let go.”

“You seem to forget that originally, you went to arrest her.”

Pei Yunying smiled bitterly.

Originally he had wanted to catch her in some wrongdoing, but in the end, he was the one who got thoroughly ensnared.

He had always been carefree, able to pick things up and put them down, but with Lu Tong he was always worried, always unable to let go.

Xiao Zhufeng tilted his head back and drained the tea in his cup, then sighed.

“Is it that the Commander’s mansion has bad feng shui, or do we have problematic birth charts? Not just birth charts,” he pondered. “Including our teacher, the three of us have such troubled romantic fates—all loving but unable to obtain.”

Pei Yunying said nothing.

This was extremely true, though the peach blossom charm from Blind He hadn’t been of any use either, and might have made things even worse.

“If you really can’t let go, then be friends with her,” Xiao Zhufeng poured tea and raised his cup. “Perhaps someday she’ll change her mind.”

Pei Yunying: “…”

“I like her—how can I be just friends?” Pei Yunying scoffed. “Do you think everyone is like you, capable of enduring until the end of time?”

Xiao Zhufeng said “oh,” then continued: “Then don’t endure. Tomorrow at the ceremony, set fire to Ji Xun’s face. Without a face, let’s see what he’ll use to bewitch your Medical Officer Lu.”

Pei Yunying was shocked: “How vicious of you.”

“Dare you say you weren’t the tiniest bit tempted?”

Pei Yunying: “…”

Xiao Zhufeng said disdainfully: “Hypocrite.”

The pot of bitter tea on the table was finished, and several more distant lights had been extinguished.

“Forget it, we’ll deal with whatever comes after tomorrow’s ceremony.” Pei Yunying set down his wine cup and stood up. “It’s getting late, you should go back too.”

Xiao Zhufeng was dissatisfied: “I comforted you half the night, and you don’t know how to say ‘thank you’?”

The young man stepped back a few paces, looked at the person before him, and spoke with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes: “Your comfort was excellent—please don’t comfort me again next time. Thank you.”

…

Fog rose during the night.

The white, turbid mist was like a great net, slowly rising from underground, from distant places, silently permeating the rooms and seeping a cold, damp gloom into the lonely autumn night.

In the Grand Preceptor’s mansion, a woman’s crying suddenly echoed.

Qi Qing awoke with a start from his dreams. Hearing the commotion, he wrapped his outer garments around himself and sat up on the bed.

Being older, he was always a light sleeper. At night, the mansion required absolute quiet—even a pin drop could be heard. He had never been awakened in the deep of night like this before.

The sound was coming from the inner room.

The closer he got, the more hysterical it sounded. Qi Qing pushed open the door and entered, seeing someone lying on the bed with midwives surrounding them on all sides. A heavy smell of blood mixed with medicinal fragrance hit him in the face amid the chaos.

The person on the bed heard the commotion and suddenly turned her head. Seeing him, her reddened eye sockets suddenly sparked with life, and she called out: “My lord—”

This call made Qi Qing suddenly come to his senses.

Shuhui!

He quickly stepped forward and grasped the hand of the woman on the bed. That delicate, infinitely pitiable face no longer held its former beauty but appeared sallow and emaciated.

“My lord—”

She cried out again in anguish.

This cry made Qi Qing’s heart tighten.

“I’m here,” he responded upon hearing her.

Shuhui—his second wife—looked at him breathlessly: “I, I fear I won’t make it. If I don’t survive tonight, you must, you must raise Yutai well.”

“You won’t,” he comforted her gently, wiping the sweat from his wife’s forehead. “The child will be born soon, and you and your daughter will both be safe.”

As soon as the words left his mouth, Qi Qing himself was startled.

The child hadn’t been born yet—how did he know it was a daughter?

“I don’t believe you—swear to me,” she gripped his hand tightly like a ghostly shadow that wouldn’t give up. “Swear that you’ll take good care of Yutai. He’s your son—you must be good to him!”

Feeling inexplicably agitated, Qi Qing patiently said: “I swear.”

Women in childbirth were overly anxious. Qi Qing was impatient—Yutai was his only son, and the Grand Preceptor mansion’s future glory rested entirely on Yutai. He would carefully nurture him like tending a young sapling, wanting this son of the Qi family to become a young man envied by all in Shengjing.

What was she worrying about?

Just as he was thinking this, he heard the woman’s ethereal voice beside his ear.

“Really? Will you truly take care of him, even if he’s just a madman?”

Madman?

Qi Qing suddenly looked down and couldn’t help but feel his hair stand on end.

That beautiful face had somehow moved close to his, and her originally clear, gentle eyes were now bloodshot, looking neurotic—clearly the appearance of someone in the midst of an episode.

An episode?

How could she be having an episode?

A voice calling his name reached his ears, and Qi Qing suddenly opened his eyes, awakening from the dream with a start.

The steward stood before him, calling his name with worry.

Qi Qing pressed his hand to his chest, where his heart was beating wildly. His entire body was as if he had just been pulled from water—soaked through completely.

“Is my lord feeling unwell?” the steward asked. “This old servant will immediately summon a physician.”

“No need.”

Qi Qing raised his hand to stop him. The shock in his heart still lingered, and after a moment he said: “I dreamed of Shuhui.”

“Madam?”

Qi Qing didn’t speak.

His first wife had been chosen by his family and there had been no emotional attachment between them, and they had remained childless for many years. After his wife died, he quickly remarried.

Admittedly, it was partly because becoming in-laws with the other party’s family was quite beneficial to him at the time, but beyond that, he truly loved and cherished this young wife.

Shuhui was lively and beautiful, understanding and considerate. Even her occasional harmless petulance, he would tolerate. Qi Qing had once thanked heaven for allowing him to encounter such a good marriage, until later when he learned the truth.

She was a madwoman.

This was never some heaven-ordained match at all.

The Zhong family knew everything yet married their daughter to him, even later giving birth to the afflicted Yutai. He endured everything until he gained overwhelming power at court, finally ensuring the Zhong family received their punishment.

Retribution.

Shuhui died, and before death she begged him to take good care of Yutai. Because of her words, he had a moment of soft-heartedness—he didn’t know if it was fortune or misfortune.

Yet tonight she appeared in his dreams.

“My lord?” A voice called from beside him.

Qi Qing came back to his senses: “Go check on the young master.”

“Yes.”

The night was desolate. Qi Qing looked up as if seeing again that moment before Shuhui’s death, her hair disheveled as she looked at him with a eerily beautiful smile.

Qi Qing suddenly closed his eyes and gripped the prayer beads in his hand tightly.

Legend said that before the great Nuo ritual, ghosts and spirits roamed freely, requiring ritual exorcism.

Shuhui was already dead.

It was a dream.

Just a dream.

Xiao Er: Your story breaks my heart, but you still love her in your writing (。)

Yun Niang and her disciples: Devoted to research

Yanxu and his disciples: Three lovesick fools