What if Gao Dazhuang hadn’t withheld the poison? If they asked about it, wouldn’t that reveal that they hadn’t taken the poison? Given Gao Dazhuang’s loyalty, he might even give it to them retroactively.
Upon careful consideration, they realized they couldn’t bring it up carelessly.
After discussing for a while without reaching a solution, the three decided to rest for now.
When An Jiu entered her room, she found a letter on the table. Noticing a tiny “Chu” character in the corner, she opened it.
Chu Dingjiang had arranged for replacements and instructed her to leave the palace in three days. Besides Mei Yanran, Sui Yunzhu and Li Qingzhi would also be leaving with her.
It seemed Chu Dingjiang had not only recruited Sui Yunzhu but Li Qingzhi as well.
Among this team, Lou Mingyue had the highest martial arts skills, while Qiu Yunran specialized in poisons. Why had Chu Dingjiang chosen two people with average abilities?
An Jiu pondered this as she lit a lamp and burned the letter completely.
Sighing, she wondered if Mei Yanran would be able to leave with her in three days.
Boom boom!
Someone knocked on the door.
An Jiu opened it to find Mei Yanran standing outside.
“I’ve decided to leave with you, but before that, I want to see Jiu’er,” Mei Yanran stated her purpose.
She had gone to the Hua residence today but couldn’t guarantee she wouldn’t alert the guards. She had considered sending a note to ask Mei Jiu to come out but had some reservations. To be safe, she returned to find An Jiu.
“Alright,” An Jiu said, “Wait a moment, I’ll go request a travel permit.”
“No need,” Mei Yanran tossed her a token, “This will work just as well.”
An Jiu caught the token and left the palace with her.
As they left, the sky was just beginning to brighten. After changing into casual clothes, they found a teahouse for some breakfast.
Mei Yanran had little appetite, watching An Jiu, who wore a human skin mask, stuff steamed buns into her mouth. She felt a twinge of sadness.
With few people in the teahouse at this hour, Mei Yanran asked, “What did you do before?”
An Jiu swallowed a large mouthful of bun and washed it down with some soup. “The same as now.”
The Controlling Crane Army had many female shadows. Perhaps because An Jiu now inhabited her daughter’s body, Mei Yanran felt somewhat moved. “What about your parents?”
“Died long ago,” An Jiu said, sensing Mei Yanran’s weakened hostility. She thought to herself that she finally understood where Mei Jiu’s personality came from. Like Mei Jiu, Mei Yanran would lower her guard for inexplicable reasons, despite her intelligence.
“What about you?” Mei Yanran asked.
An Jiu wondered what she wanted to know. After a moment’s hesitation, she said softly, “Died during a mission.”
The teahouse quickly filled with customers. Soon it was almost full, so Mei Yanran stopped asking questions.
An Jiu quickly finished off a bun and her soup, then looked at the sky outside. “Let’s go.”
Mei Yanran thought An Jiu had some way to arrange a meeting with Mei Jiu, but to her surprise, An Jiu went straight to the main gate and knocked. She told the gatekeeper, “We’re here to see your Madam.”
The Hua family had only two mistresses: the Old Madam and the Madam. Hua Rongtian held a high official position, so his wife also had an imperial title. To avoid confusion, people respectfully called Prime Minister Hua’s wife the Old Madam.
The gatekeeper saw that although the two women were dressed plainly, they carried themselves with dignity. Not daring to be negligent, he said, “You’ve come at an unfortunate time. Our Madam is ill and isn’t receiving visitors lately.”
“We’re from the Mei family. We came because we heard she was ill,” An Jiu said.
The gatekeeper glanced behind them, thinking it was the first time he’d seen anyone come to visit a sick person empty-handed. However, the young master had instructed them not to neglect the Madam’s guests, so he said, “Please wait a moment, I’ll go report your arrival.”
Mei Yanran asked curiously, “Is she still part of the Mei family?”
“Yes, it was an imperial marriage decree,” An Jiu replied.
Mei Yanran then remembered hearing about the Emperor granting marriage to the Hua family some time ago. But she had been on a mission then and didn’t know the details.
After about the time it took to drink a cup of tea, the main gate opened again. The gatekeeper said, “Please come in.”
Mei Yanran’s hand, hidden in her sleeve, clenched tightly. By the time they walked from the main gate to the second gate, her palm was already damp with sweat.
Mei Jiu was already waiting at the second gate, her face somewhat pale, apparently truly ill and not just making excuses.
Mei Jiu stared for a moment at An Jiu, who wore a human skin mask.
“It’s me,” An Jiu said as she approached.
Mei Jiu then smiled and quickly came to greet them, tears in her eyes. “You’ve finally come to see me.”
Mei Yanran looked at this unfamiliar woman in fine clothes, whose every expression and movement reminded her of Mei Jiu. Her eyes immediately welled up with tears.
Mei Jiu wanted to take An Jiu’s hand but, considering An Jiu was dressed as a man, awkwardly withdrew her outstretched hands. Her gaze swept over Mei Yanran, pausing briefly before looking questioningly at An Jiu.
Although Mei Yanran was still dressed as a married woman, she also wore a human skin mask. Mei Jiu didn’t recognize her at first. Fearing she might lose composure in front of others, An Jiu said, “Let’s talk inside.”
Mei Jiu nodded, constantly glancing at Mei Yanran as they walked. She stumbled on the steps but was quickly steadied by an attentive maid.
Once inside, Mei Jiu dismissed all the servants.
She then looked carefully at Mei Yanran. As their eyes met, her voice caught in her throat. After a long moment, she tentatively called out, “Mother?”
She could recognize her even like this?!
An Jiu glanced at Mei Yanran, thinking that even if her deceased mother were standing before her now, not disguised as someone else, she probably wouldn’t recognize her. The image of her mother, emaciated beyond recognition, had left such a deep impression that her original appearance had become blurred in An Jiu’s mind.
“You two talk. I’ll take a walk outside,” An Jiu said, turning to leave.
As she walked out past the curtains, she heard Mei Yanran sigh, “Jiu’er.”
Immediately followed by Mei Jiu’s sobs.
Outside, the sun shone brightly. An Jiu squatted on the steps when a maid approached, saying, “Young sir, why don’t you sit in the pavilion over there?”
“No. Stay away from me,” An Jiu said coldly.
The chilling voice made the maid’s hair stand on end, and she quickly retreated three zhang away.
This maid was a fourth-rank martial artist, likely serving either the Emperor or Hua Rongtian. An Jiu turned to look at her and said, “Back off ten zhang.”
The maid felt the pressure emanating from An Jiu but bit her lip and stood her ground.
An Jiu’s spiritual energy exploded towards her. The maid felt her mind go blank with a buzz, and her body collapsed to the ground.
An Jiu stood up, personally dragged her to the garden, and gave her another chop on the back of the neck.
“The one on the roof, do you want me to act, or will you leave on your own?” An Jiu called out.
Inside the room, Mei Yanran and Mei Jiu’s voices paused.
An Jiu waited for the person to quietly retreat, then called towards the door, “Continue. I’ll wait outside.”
This interruption caused the mother and daughter inside to dry their tears and begin discussing what had happened since they last met.
Mei Jiu’s appearance was quite different from before. At first, Mei Yanran found it very jarring, but the Mei family all had similar noses – small and high-bridged. Looking closely, there was also a hint of similarity in the brow area. Combined with her expressions while speaking, the overall impression was three or four-tenths similar to her original appearance. Mei Yanran decided to think of it as her daughter’s features maturing during their time apart.
An Jiu sat cross-armed on the corridor railing, basking in the sun. Sensing a third or fourth-rank martial artist approaching, she looked up.
A young man in blue robes entered.
He carried a scroll painting, his handsome face as radiant as the moon. His smile was still dazzling, but compared to before, he now carried an air of melancholy.
Hua Rongjian saw An Jiu’s human skin mask and smiled even more deeply. “I didn’t expect you to still be using that.”
At this time, Hua Rongtian should be attending court or at his office. An Jiu bluntly asked, “What are you doing here? Don’t tell me you’re not even sparing your sister-in-law?”
Hua Rongjian was taken aback. “Is that what you think of me? And here I’ve been faithfully waiting for you all this time.”
An Jiu didn’t believe him.
“It’s true! As soon as I heard the gatekeeper say someone from the Mei family was here, I knew it must be you,” Hua Rongjian peeked inside. “Why are you out here?”
“None of your business,” An Jiu said.
Unperturbed, Hua Rongjian sat down next to An Jiu. “Have you thought about what I told you last time?”
An Jiu thought for a moment, recalling what he was referring to. “I’m not interested in you. Didn’t you think you’d dodged a bullet?”
Hua Rongjian chuckled, “That was just a joke. Don’t take it seriously.”
“Have you ever said anything serious?” An Jiu squinted at the pomegranates hanging heavily from the trees in the courtyard.
Hua Rongjian unrolled the painting and nudged her with his elbow. “This is the betrothal painting Mo Shenyi drew for us.”
An Jiu glanced at it. “He drew it for you. What does it have to do with me?”
“This is just the female!” Hua Rongjian pointed to one of the figures.
An Jiu said nothing, looking at him as if he were an idiot.
Hua Rongjian put down the scroll, his smile gradually fading, his gaze revealing loneliness and bitterness.
He may not truly want to marry her; it’s just that there were too few people around him he could confide in. He had told himself to live a good life and forget about the mystery of his birth, but he couldn’t help noticing things. He hadn’t deliberately investigated, but after paying attention, everything seemed off.
“Mei Fourteen,” Hua Rongjian slowly rolled up the scroll. “Have a drink with me.”
An Jiu was puzzled. Her recent pattern seemed off. Why did people keep coming to her to confide? Had Chu Dingjiang’s “understanding uncle” attribute somehow become contagious?
“Just drinking,” Hua Rongjian said.
His desire to confide was obvious, and An Jiu didn’t doubt it. “We’ll see this afternoon.”
Hua Rongjian finally smiled again. “Alright. As a reward, I’ll tell you that my elder brother will return at noon today.”
Mei Jiu was sent by the Emperor, so Hua Rongtian would certainly be wary of her. Their sudden visit today might cause some trouble for Mei Jiu!
“How do your elder brother and sister-in-law get along?” An Jiu asked.
“Respectful and polite on the surface? That’s how it appears,” Hua Rongjian leaned in close and whispered, “But I hear they haven’t consummated the marriage yet.”
An Jiu looked at his grinning face and couldn’t help but comment, “Sleazy.”
“That’s just what the maids at home were saying. I only overheard a bit!” Hua Rongjian said, displeased. “You get the benefit and still mock me!”