When Lu Tong returned to West Street from the noodle shop, she could see lanterns already lit in the Renxin Medical Clinic from afar.

Yin Zheng muttered, “At this hour, why hasn’t Manager Du gone home yet? Usually, the shop would be closed by now.”

Du Changqing was lazy. When Lu Tong first came to the clinic, he pretended to be diligent for a few days, but later on, he would arrive when the sun was high and leave before sunset, making new customers think Lu Tong was the owner and Du Changqing was a shop assistant who would soon be sold off.

As Lu Tong and Yin Zheng approached, they saw several people standing at the entrance of Renxin Medical Clinic, appearing to be in conversation.

Lu Tong called out “Manager Du,” and Du Changqing, who had been talking sideways, turned his head. Upon seeing her, his eyes immediately lit up, and he rushed over as if seeing a lifeline: “Doctor Lu, you’re finally back!”

Before Lu Tong could speak, she heard an unfamiliar voice from beside Du Changqing: “Cousin, who is this…”

Lu Tong looked up.

Two young women were standing in the shop – one dressed as a maid, the other delicate and pretty, wearing an apricot-yellow front-opening double-woven gauze dress with subtle patterns. She was partially hiding behind Du Changqing, looking at Lu Tong with a mixture of timidity and curiosity.

Du Changqing cleared his throat: “This is our clinic’s resident physician, Doctor Lu. Doctor Lu,” he then said to Lu Tong, “This is my cousin, Xia Rongrong.”

Lu Tong nodded slightly, and Xia Rongrong hurriedly returned the greeting.

Du Changqing gestured for Lu Tong and Yin Zheng to walk inside a few steps, until they were far enough that Xia Rongrong couldn’t hear, then spoke to Lu Tong and Yin Zheng in a low voice: “Well… Doctor Lu, Rongrong, and her maid might need to stay with you all for a while.”

Lu Tong asked, “Why?”

“She has no relatives in Sheng Jing except for me, and I’m a man. Since we’re both unmarried, she can’t stay at my residence – it wouldn’t look proper if word got out.”

Yin Zheng said, “Since she’s Manager Du’s fiancée, living together would be natural. Why is Manager Du overthinking it?”

“Who said she’s my fiancée!” Du Changqing nearly jumped up. His voice was a bit too loud, causing Xia Rongrong to look their way.

Du Changqing gave her a reassuring smile, then turned back and lowered his voice to tell Lu Tong and Yin Zheng: “…She’s my aunt’s daughter, these twisted family relationships even I can’t keep straight. After my mother passed, this is the only family branch that still keeps in touch.”

“Her family is poor. In the past, they would come to Sheng Jing every few years, and I could give them some spending money. Now that the old man has passed, I barely have enough for myself, so I can’t give much. She’s probably planning to stay in Sheng Jing for a few days before heading back. I thought since you’re all women, it would be convenient to stay together.”

Yin Zheng seemed to understand: “Coming to mooch?”

“How can you put it so harshly?” Du Changqing was displeased: “Every family has some poor relatives, and seeing each other once every few years, helping out won’t cost me an arm and a leg.”

Yin Zheng sighed: “Manager Du, your soft-heartedness is admirable, but I think your cousin might be after more than just a little help.”

“What nonsense,” Du Changqing dismissed it, “if she’s not after money, are you suggesting she’s after this young master’s person? Don’t think so ill of people!”

Yin Zheng: “…”

Lu Tong interrupted their argument: “It’s fine for Miss Xia to stay here. There are three empty rooms in the back courtyard, with one outermost room still available. Let Miss Xia clean it up and settle in.”

Du Changqing immediately beamed: “Doctor Lu, I knew you would understand.”

He rushed to the front to give detailed instructions to his cousin Xia Rongrong. Yin Zheng could only shake her head and went to clear out the miscellaneous items from the outer room to make space for the mistress and maid.

Du Changqing left after giving his instructions, as if not wanting to stay a moment longer. While Xia Rongrong and her maid were busy laying out clean bedding, Lu Tong, not being naturally sociable, didn’t initiate conversation with Xia Rongrong.

She sorted out the medicinal materials needed for tomorrow as usual, then returned to her room.

Outside the window, the night was deep, with a delicate crescent moon hanging in the branches, casting faint, thin, cold light.

Lu Tong walked to the desk and sat down, taking out paper and brush from the wooden drawer.

Yin Zheng was boiling water in the kitchen as Lu Tong sat at the desk, lifted a sheet of paper, and dipped her brush in ink.

Today she had seen Fan Zhenlian, Wang Chunzhi, Liu Zixian, and Liu Zide. My only regret was not seeing Uncle Liu Kun.

However… she had obtained some unexpected information.

Liu Zide was going to participate in this year’s autumn imperial examinations, which made one think.

After all, the Liu brothers were mediocre in their studies and careless in nature. Liu Zixian’s success was already a stroke of luck – what made Liu Zide dare to try?

Lu Tong didn’t believe these two cousins had suddenly become diligent students in the years she hadn’t seen them, burning the midnight oil in pursuit of knowledge.

She put brush to paper, writing down the names Liu Kun and Fan Zhenlian.

Logically, Liu Kun must have met Fan Zhenlian.

According to Ke Chengxing’s servant Wan Fu, after Lu Rou’s death, Lu Qian visited the Ke family, quarreled with them, and left in anger.

Perhaps by then, Lu Qian had already noticed something suspicious about Lu Rou’s death.

If Lu Qian had found some evidence and went to report it to the officials, it would have been natural for Lu Qian, knowing nothing about Sheng Jing, to seek help from Fan Zhenlian, who had a reputation for being “just and upright.”

But Fan Zhenlian wasn’t the impartial official of rumors, and out of fear of the Grand Tutor’s mansion’s power, he wanted to destroy the evidence.

Lu Qian noticed something was wrong and escaped in the chaos. Then Fan Zhenlian fabricated charges and ordered a city-wide manhunt for Lu Qian.

With nowhere else to go, Lu Qian could only hide at Liu Kun’s home, as the Liu family were the only relatives the Lu family had in all of Sheng Jing.

Lu Qian thought Liu Kun was still the trustworthy uncle from Changwu County, never imagining that when the price was right, even his family could betray you.

Liu Kun sold out Lu Qian.

Lu Tong’s brush tip trembled, and a large drop of ink seeped from the tip, spreading a heavy stain on the paper.

She drew a line between Liu Kun and Fan Zhenlian’s names.

Liu Kun offered Lu Qian as a token of loyalty to Fan Zhenlian, and in return, Fan Zhenlian gave Liu Kun certain benefits.

Was it the noodle shop on Que’er Street?

No, even though the noodle shop had a prime location and was well-furnished, Lu Qian’s case involved the Grand Tutor’s mansion – would they offer just a noodle shop?

Besides, Liu Kun wouldn’t be so short-sighted.

Liu Kun must have wanted more, and since Lu Qian had hidden in the Liu home, Liu Kun must have known something about Lu Rou’s case. Why didn’t Fan Zhenlian eliminate this huge potential threat? Wasn’t he afraid Liu Kun might turn against him one day? After all, only the dead can keep secrets.

Unless…

Fan Zhenlian had leverage over Liu Kun.

This leverage must have been significant enough for Fan Zhenlian to be confident that Liu Kun would never dare use the information to blackmail him.

What kind of leverage could Fan Zhenlian have over Liu Kun?

A mere noodle shop owner would be insignificant in the eyes of a judicial official, but his son who passed the imperial examinations was a different matter.

His son who passed the examinations…

Lu Tong’s eyes flickered.

That’s it!

Liu Zixian passed the autumn imperial examinations, Liu Zide was about to take them, and Fan Zhenlian… had also started his career through the imperial examinations, becoming the magistrate of Yuan’an County, which began his illustrious official career.

The autumn examinations…

If Liu Kun’s betrayal of Lu Qian was exchanged for his son’s chance to pass the examinations, then in Liu Kun’s eyes, it would have been worth it. Fan Zhenlian wouldn’t need to worry about Liu Kun revealing the truth unless Liu Kun was willing to destroy his beloved son’s future.

However… if her guess was correct, the corruption in the Liang Dynasty’s imperial examinations was far too brazen.

Lu Tong’s brush tip paused.

Or perhaps Fan Zhenlian’s success in the imperial examinations had been similarly questionable – why else would he handle Liu Zixian’s case so smoothly? It seemed Liu Zide would follow the same pattern in a few months.

She needed to first find out about Fan Zhenlian’s academic abilities back then.

However, since Fan Zhenlian was an imperial official, Old Cao’s people were probably afraid of trouble and always stingy with information about officials. Moreover, she couldn’t directly ask for it without arousing suspicion.

Lu Tong wrote “Yuan’an County” above Fan Zhenlian’s name.

Fan Zhenlian’s rise began in Yuan’an County. It was said his achievements as magistrate there were outstanding, which was why the emperor specifically transferred him back to Sheng Jing.

She needed to find out exactly what cases Fan Zhenlian had handled in Yuan’an County that earned him such “widespread fame.”

The door opened, and Yin Zheng entered with a basin of hot water.

Lu Tong put down her brush, took the paper she had been writing on, and burned it in the lantern flame.

Yin Zheng handed her a wrung-out cloth and nodded toward the window: “The light is still on in front.”

She was referring to Xia Rongrong and her maid.

Lu Tong thought she wanted to return to her room, and while wiping her face with the cloth, said: “They won’t stay long.”

Yin Zheng said: “Miss, surely you don’t believe like Manager Du that Miss Xia is just here to mooch?”

“Isn’t she?”

“Of course not.” Yin Zheng got up to make the bed, “Those relatives who come to mooch try to dress as poorly as possible to get more silver. Unlike Miss Xia – the fabric of her clothes is even newer than yours. And that agate bracelet on her wrist must be worth at least twenty taels of silver.”

Yin Zheng turned her head: “When has there ever been a poor relative coming to mooch who dressed so finely?”

Lu Tong was unconvinced: “So?”

“A woman adorns herself for the one she loves,” Yin Zheng turned back to continue making the bed, “She’s probably here for Manager Du himself, I think she’s really after him as a person.”

Lu Tong nodded: “She’s Manager Du’s cousin. If it comes to marriage talks, they’ll naturally become inseparable.” At this point, Lu Tong paused and looked at Yin Zheng questioningly: “You’re unhappy because you like Manager Du?”

“Of course not!” Yin Zheng was startled, abandoning the bed-making to quickly deny it: “How could I like Manager Du?”

Seeing Lu Tong nod, Yin Zheng sighed: “I’m not prejudiced against Miss Xia, it’s just that what you’re planning, Miss, could be exposed with one careless move. Living here was fine when there were fewer people, but now with Miss Xia and her maid… I’m just afraid… afraid it might cause trouble.”

So that was what she was worried about.

Lu Tong smiled slightly: “Don’t worry, we’ll just need to be more careful.”

……

While Lu Tong and Yin Zheng were discussing Xia Rongrong, in the neighboring room, Xia Rongrong’s lamp was still burning.

Xia Rongrong sat on the edge of the bed in her undergarments, her hair loose, looking somewhat worried.

Her maid Xiangcao stood behind her, using a wooden comb to brush her long hair, and asked, “Miss has already seen the young master, why are you still so worried?”

Xia Rongrong shook her head: “Father and Mother sent me to the capital this time to have me marry my cousin.”

“Earlier, Cousin wrote in his letter about Old Master Du’s passing, but he never mentioned that of all Old Master Du’s property, only this run-down medical clinic remains!” Xia Rongrong grabbed Xiangcao’s hand, “You’re seeing my cousin for the first time so you don’t understand, but I can tell that his current lifestyle is far worse than before. He must have fallen on hard times.”

“My… my father is waiting for me to enter the Du family so he can come to the capital. What should I do now?”

With these words, Xia Rongrong couldn’t help but start sobbing quietly.

Xia Rongrong’s mother and Du Changqing’s mother were relatives.

The blood relation was quite distant, but for Du Changqing, who lost his mother at a young age, this was his only connection to his mother’s family. He loved hearing Xia Rongrong’s mother talk about his mother’s past.

Xia Rongrong didn’t dislike Du Changqing.

Du Changqing was Old Master Du’s only son, and Old Master Du doted on him, willing to spend money on him. Whenever Xia Rongrong visited the capital with her parents as a child, Cousin Du Changqing was always very generous with them.

Moreover, Du Changqing was good-looking, and though somewhat spoiled, his character wasn’t bad – he could barely qualify as a decent match. So when her parents hinted at a marriage with Du Changqing, Xia Rongrong wasn’t opposed to the idea.

Her parents had thought it through well – Du Changqing was Old Master Du’s precious son, and after Old Master Du’s death, he must have left Du Changqing considerable property. Xia Rongrong and Du Changqing were childhood friends, and Du Changqing was easily swayed. Once Xia Rongrong became his wife, she would be a proper wealthy lady.

That’s why Xia Rongrong had brought only Xiangcao as her maid to the capital, thinking that with cousin and cousin spending time together, feelings would naturally develop. Since Du Changqing had no parents, when the time came, as long as Xia’s parents stepped in to arrange it, the marriage would be settled.

Who knew she would receive such terrible news as soon as she arrived in the capital – Old Master Du’s property had been squandered by Du Changqing until only this small medical clinic remained.

This was far from what she had imagined!

A Du Changqing without money was no longer appealing from any angle.

Xiangcao consoled her: “Don’t be sad, Miss. Although the young master isn’t what he used to be, even a lean camel is larger than a horse. Having a residence and shop in such a prime location in Sheng Jing is already better than many people.”

“Besides, nobody knows exactly how much wealth Old Master Du left for the young master. Maybe he’s just hiding it. It’s just…” Xiangcao hesitated.

“It’s just what?”

“It’s just that you need to watch out for that Doctor Lu next door.”

Xia Rongrong was startled: “Watch out for what?”

“What ordinary household would have such a young resident physician, and a woman at that?” Xiangcao warned, “Please forgive your servant’s overthinking, Miss, but the young master used to be quite the ladies’ man. If he’s already keeping a woman before marriage… then you’ll need to carefully reconsider this marriage.”

“You mean Doctor Lu and Cousin…” Xia Rongrong hesitated, “That can’t be, right?”

“You never truly know someone’s heart despite knowing their face. Your servant is just worried about you being deceived. However, since we’ll be staying here for some time, we might as well keep an eye on them, see if there’s anything suspicious.”

Xia Rongrong thought carefully for a while before finally nodding decisively: “Alright, we’ll do as you say.”