After reading Jiang Changyi’s letter, Jiang Zhong remained silent for a long while before finally asking, “You still haven’t found him?” He showed no intention of letting Jiang Changyang see the letter, and in fact, seemed worried that Jiang Changyang might ask to read it.
Jiang Changyang could tell from his expression that it was about those troublesome official matters again and had no interest in getting involved. He simply said, “Liu Chang delivered the letter. He said it was from around Chongyi Fang. I’ve already sent people to investigate, but I’m not sure if they’ll find anything.”
Jiang Zhong let out a long sigh: “If you find him, what will you do?”
Jiang Changyang gave him an ambiguous answer: “I’ll do what needs to be done.” In reality, he subconsciously believed that Jiang Changyi would probably never appear before them again in this lifetime. Liu Chang’s special trip was not a coincidence. Something would surely be found near Chongyi Fang.
Jiang Zhong fell into deep thought.
Wu entered with his hands lowered and said softly, “We found Xiao Ba’s body in an empty courtyard near Chongyi Fang. He’s been dead for five or six days.”
Before Jiang Changyang could speak, Jiang Zhong’s face had already changed color: “Xiao Ba is dead? Are you certain?” Xiao Ba was Jiang Changyi’s trusted personal attendant who had disappeared along with him that day. If he was dead, what good fortune could have befallen Jiang Changyi?
Wu felt somewhat disdainful. How could they doubt their ability to handle matters? They wouldn’t bring unconfirmed information before their master. He replied with certainty, “There’s no mistake. It’s Xiao Ba.” He didn’t explain to Jiang Zhong how they were so sure, but his tone left no room for doubt.
Jiang Zhong turned pale: “Do you know who did it?” Was it the Xiao family? The Du family? Or someone else? He had resented Jiang Changyi before, but now he was distressed.
Wu glanced at Jiang Changyang, and seeing his expressionless face, said, “We don’t know yet.”
Jiang Changyang stood up: “I’ll go take a look.”
Jiang Zhong hesitated, then stood up as well: “I’ll go with you.”
Jiang Changyang gave him a cold glance: “You’d be of no use there. I’ll go alone.” His tone of impatience and contempt was unconcealed.
He’s a useless person. Jiang Zhong was stunned, then slumped back onto his meditation cushion, his shoulders sagging. He stared blankly at the Buddha statue before him, with ten thousand questions to ask. But in reality, Buddha would not answer any of his questions. If he wanted to know the answers to some things, he might as well ask Lady Du, who had become a Daoist nun. Jiang Zhong thought about this and acted on it. As soon as Jiang Changyang left, he hurried off to seek Lady Du.
“The owner of the courtyard has no connection to any of the families,” Wu said, keeping pace with Jiang Changyang and speaking rapidly. “There were no wounds on the body. It seems he died of suffocation. We found a piece of Your Lordship’s sleeve not far away. There was dried blood on it. It doesn’t look good.”
Jiang Changyang said softly, “No need to search further. Report it to the authorities.”
Wu was stunned. Report it to the authorities? That was just going through the motions. Were they going to let it go like this? This wasn’t like Jiang Changyang.
Jiang Changyang looked up at him, his eyes dark and cold: “Don’t you understand? If we keep investigating, we’d be asking for trouble. Trust me, even though there’s no evidence now if we search for a few days, we’ll surely find evidence pointing to the Xiao family or the Du family, and Liu Chang won’t be able to escape involvement. But if we follow that trail, it’s a different story. What then?”
“Liu Shu’s intentions are sinister,” Wu thought for a moment and understood. This matter was linked to Liu Chang, and his boldness in coming to their door showed he had no fear. Who was backing him? Without that person’s approval, he wouldn’t dare act this way. That person might have wanted to eliminate future troubles for Jiang Changyang, but Liu Chang was the one who carried it out. No matter who the evidence pointed to, the fact remained, and in the end, Jiang Changyang would be the one caught in a dilemma. So it was better to do nothing.
Jiang Changyang looked up at the evening glow on the horizon and said softly, “Life and death are destined. Whatever the case, we’ll consider him dead. The Jiang family no longer has this person. In a few years, we’ll erect a cenotaph for him. We’ll speak of this matter again in the future.”
Wu nodded heavily, but couldn’t help wondering if Jiang Changyi was dead. If he were Liu Chang, would he let Jiang Changyi die? But Wu wasn’t Liu Chang and couldn’t guess his thoughts.
“Give Xiao Ba a proper burial,” Jiang Changyang said as he mounted his horse and rode home. As his horse approached Qujiang Pool, the twilight deepened. He stopped his horse and squinted at the horizon. The sun hung like a dark red egg yolk on the horizon, appearing passionate but cold and indifferent. Regardless, Liu Chang had accomplished his goal, and Jiang Changyang’s mood was very poor.
“Are you hungry?” Mudan, keenly aware of Jiang Changyang’s mood but not asking about it, attentively served him dishes and soup. She smiled and chatted about Zheng’er’s bad temper and Xian’er’s good behavior, and discussed with him how people say you can see a person’s future from their childhood, so although Zheng’er was still young, they shouldn’t spoil him…
Listening to her chatter earnestly for half the day, Jiang Changyang’s mood gradually improved. He smiled and said, “The child isn’t even a month old. How can you teach him? How have you spoiled him? He cries because he’s uncomfortable. Should we just let him cry without caring for him? You’re overcompensating. Worrying so much now, be careful not to turn into an old nanny.”
Mudan laughed, “If I didn’t worry, how could you smile?”
Jiang Changyang sighed softly and embraced her, not mentioning Liu Chang’s matter. He said in a low voice, “Xiao Ba is dead. Although we haven’t found my brother, it’s likely he met with misfortune as well.”
“Not necessarily,” Mudan said quietly, resting in his arms. “You haven’t found him, right? No news is good news. In any case, we must continue living our lives.” She knew that Jiang Changyang had no real emotional connection with Jiang Changzhong, Jiang Changyi, and the others, but psychologically, he still considered them blood relatives. It was natural to feel uneasy when something happened to them. But for Jiang Changyang to be so dejected, there must be other reasons, most likely related to official matters.
Jiang Changyang stroked her hair and smiled, “You’re right. We must continue living, and live well. Don’t tell Yunqing about this for now. We’ll see how things go in a few days.”
Mudan said, “I understand.” Jiang Yunqing and Jiang Changyi were close. Even after learning about Jiang Changyi’s misdeeds, although she didn’t say anything, she still worried about his safety in her heart, remembering his kindness to her. Telling her would only make her sad, so why bother?
The next day, Jiang Changyang rose early as usual and practiced some martial arts. He had just wiped himself down and hadn’t fully dressed when a servant who had been attending to Jiang Zhong at Fashou Temple came urgently seeking an audience, unable to wait even a moment. Not knowing what had happened, Jiang Changyang hurried out. Shortly after, he sent someone to tell Mudan that he had to go to Fashou Temple immediately.
Mama Lin complained in a low voice, “They say he rushed out as soon as the ward gates opened. Who knows what happened again? Even in seclusion, there’s always some commotion every other day. It’s not letting people have any peace. I wonder what kind of meditation this is.”
Mudan said, “He might be ill.” Jiang Zhong had already suffered a series of blows, and his state of mind was different from usual. After hearing about Jiang Changyi’s situation yesterday, he was likely feeling unwell. At his age, with a troubled mind, sudden illness was not uncommon.
By noon, Jiang Changyang still hadn’t returned. Instead, Yuan Shijiu’s wife, Madam Rong, came personally with their daughter Guiniang, bringing four sets of handmade baby clothes and a box of homemade pastries. Seeing Mudan, she smiled warmly and said, “The two children are almost a month old. We know you can’t hold a full moon celebration, so we didn’t know what to bring. We just brought some things we made at home.”
Mudan quickly had someone receive the gifts, played with the Yuan family’s Guiniang for a while, and accompanied the mother and daughter to see Zheng’er and Xian’er. Then she had the wet nurses take the children away to play and sat down with Madam Rong to drink tea and chat.
Seeing that no one else was around, Madam Rong lowered her voice and said, “My husband asked me to pass on a message. Don’t get involved in His Lordship’s matter. Let the officials investigate. Don’t interfere, lest you fall into a trap.” She then whispered a few more words in Mudan’s ear, almost inaudibly.
That persistent green fly! Mudan narrowed her eyes slightly, then stood up and bowed in thanks, “I thank Master Yuan on behalf of my husband.”
Madam Rong said, “What’s there to thank? Such formality makes us seem distant. Have you ever seen my husband thank you?”
Thinking of Yuan Shijiu’s awkward manner, Mudan laughed heartily, “I hope Guiniang doesn’t inherit his temperament.”
Madam Rong also laughed, “I’m always on guard against that. If a girl develops such a temperament, she’ll never get married.” She didn’t stay long, leaving after finishing a cup of tea.
Mudan then called for Shuer, “Go to the outer courtyard and see if it’s Steward Wu or Shunhou who went out with the master today. Whoever is at home, please ask them to come. I have something to say.” Jiang Changyang’s arrangements always put her at ease. These two capable men would usually leave one behind with her, rarely taking both out at the same time.
Soon, the person arrived. It was Wu.
Mudan relayed what Madam Rong had said about Jiang Changyi to Wu, “Yesterday, the master didn’t tell me specifically what to do…”
“Master Yuan is a good person,” Wu remarked, then added with a hint of pride, “Don’t worry, My Lady. His Lordship gave instructions yesterday. We’ve reported it to the authorities, and they’ll handle it.”
Mudan felt relieved and sighed, “Do you know what happened at Fashou Temple? Send someone to check. If it’s not a major issue, please ask the master to come back for a while.” She needed to quickly tell Jiang Changyang about the other information Madam Rong had disclosed, but it wasn’t convenient to send a message. She needed him to return in person.
Wu, being perceptive, became serious and said, “I’ll send someone right away. I heard that at Fashou Temple, he went to Fuyun Temple yesterday, and after returning, he shut himself in. This morning when he opened the door, his first words were about wanting to become a monk. The servants couldn’t make that decision, so they had to come and find His Lordship.”
Mudan sighed helplessly. When an elderly father wants to become a monk, even if the son is reluctant to get involved, he must put on a show for others to see. He would have to plead earnestly for a long time, and only when he couldn’t dissuade him would he reluctantly let him go, heartbroken. This was the custom and filial piety of this era. Regardless of whether Jiang Zhong was sincere or how long Jiang Changyang would pretend, he indeed couldn’t return for a while.