Shi Guang thought to himself — if he had stood his ground against the First Madam back then, he would never have married Yan Qin, and the one who walked into his life today would still be Yan Qing.

Hearing those words, Yan Qing let out a cold laugh. “Second Young Master, do you not already know perfectly well why you chose not to hold firm back then?”

In the end, it had come down to nothing more than power and face.

“Do you know why I love Shi Ting and not you? Because Shi Ting would give up everything for me, while you would give me up for everything. What Shi Ting is able to do, you cannot. But what you are able to do, Shi Ting does just the same.” While his grip faltered for an instant, Yan Qing wrenched her hand free.

“Second Young Master, I hope you understand — there is no remedy for regret in this world. No one is willing to live your life over again with you. And I am grateful for your regret.”

Had he held to the original marriage agreement, today’s regret would never have come to pass. Naturally, Yan Qing had reason to be grateful for his moment of capitulation.

Without waiting to see Shi Guang’s reaction, Yan Qing turned and walked down the steps.

But she had barely taken two paces when she came to an abrupt stop. Luo Huaimeng was standing not far away, looking at her with an icy stare.

Behind Luo Huaimeng stood Yangliu, who was now wearing an expression of exaggerated distress as she urged, “Er Yitai, please don’t misunderstand. The Seventh Young Mistress and the Second Young Master truly have nothing between them.”

Yan Qing narrowed her eyes slightly at those words.

Luo Huaimeng’s sudden appearance here was Yangliu’s doing, no doubt. Not only had she lured Er Yitai to this spot, but this seemingly exculpatory speech was in fact a pointed reminder to Er Yitai that something suspicious was going on between Yan Qing and Shi Guang.

“Seventh Young Mistress, I owe you an apology.” Yangliu kept her gaze lowered as she spoke. “I noticed you hadn’t returned for a while and feared something might have happened to you. Since the Seventh Young Master wasn’t in the mansion, I had no choice but to seek out Er Yitai. I never expected — I never expected the Seventh Young Mistress would simply be here. Had I known, I would never have gone to trouble Er Yitai.”

The implication was clear: Yan Qing and Shi Guang had been caught in the middle of something, and it was all thanks to Yangliu’s blundering intrusion.

“You wretched girl — what nonsense are you spouting?” Jing Zhi, who had been picking flowers, came striding over. “The Young Mistress and I merely stopped here on our way to sit for a bit. I was going to cut some peonies to take back. As for the Second Young Master, he just happened to be passing through.”

Yangliu glanced over at Shi Guang. “The Shi Family’s estate is so vast — what a remarkable coincidence that the Second Young Master happened to pass by at precisely this moment. But Er Yitai, please believe: the Seventh Young Mistress is entirely innocent. You must not put stock in all those rumors that circulated before she married into the Shi Family.”

Those rumors were well known to Luo Huaimeng — she had heard no small amount of them. They amounted to claims that Yan Qing, resentful at losing her chance to marry Shi Guang, had covertly pursued him in hopes of becoming his concubine. Others whispered that Yan Qing had not been virtuous when she wed Shi Ting — that she had either been secretly involved with Shi Ting before the marriage, or had already been compromised by Shi Guang.

Luo Huaimeng had no interest in entertaining such gossip, yet somehow these words always managed to reach her ears by one route or another.

“You shameless creature.” Jing Zhi’s fury boiled over. She raised her hand and struck Yangliu squarely across the face.

Yangliu burst into loud, wailing tears. “Seventh Young Mistress, I swear I didn’t say anything — not a single word about what you’ve done. Please, I beg you to spare me.”

“Enough.” Luo Huaimeng’s voice cut through the scene, sharp and cold as still water.

She did not look at Yan Qing again. Instead, she turned in anger and strode away without a backward glance.

“Yan Qing.” Shi Guang stepped forward. “I’m sorry — I’ll go and explain things to Er Yitai.”

“Explain?” Yan Qing turned a cold gaze on him. The sharpness in it made Shi Guang instinctively halt in his tracks. “Who was it that deliberately spread rumors about me before Mother? Who was it that had people planted in my courtyard? Who was it that ‘happened to run into me’ just now? Can you explain all of that to Mother?”

Shi Guang’s brow furrowed. “Yan Qing, you’ve misunderstood…”

“Why put on this act? Do you think no one can see what’s in your heart? Shi Guang, I was right about you from the start — you have disgusted me from beginning to end.”

Yan Qing said no more. She did not spare him another glance but walked directly over to Yangliu.

Yangliu’s head was bowed so low it nearly touched her chest. As Yan Qing drew near, her hands clenched at her sides.

She had braced herself for Yan Qing’s fury — expected to be slapped several times as Jing Zhi had struck her. But she had misjudged. Yan Qing paid her no attention whatsoever and walked straight past her.

Jing Zhi quickly followed after.

Only when both of them had walked out of sight did Yangliu carefully look over toward Shi Guang.

Shi Guang’s brow was furrowed. He said nothing, turned, and walked away.

Yangliu, seeing that both performer and audience had departed, let out a cold little laugh to herself. She smoothed back the hair Jing Zhi had knocked askew and walked back to Tiaolan Court with a light step.

Back at the courtyard, Yangliu found no sign of Yan Qing. She assumed she had probably gone off somewhere to cry, and so returned to the servants’ quarters. Yangzhi, who had been waiting for news, looked up the moment she entered. “How did it go?”

“With me on the job? Of course it went perfectly.”

Yangliu drank a cup of water, excitement bright in her voice. “You should have seen Er Yitai’s face — I honestly thought she was about to rush over and slap the Seventh Young Mistress right there and then.”

“Catching your own daughter-in-law alone with another man — who wouldn’t be furious enough to faint?” Yangzhi gave a gleeful laugh, scooping up a handful of melon seeds to crack. “The Seventh Young Mistress actually thought a few days of delivering medicine would make Er Yitai think well of her. What a hopeless fantasy.”

“Still, this time around, we’ve truly made an enemy of the Seventh Young Mistress. Life in this courtyard is going to be unpleasant from here on.”

“So what? At worst, she’ll send that horrible dog to frighten us. And don’t forget — we’re the First Madam’s people. However much she despises us, she won’t dare do anything to us.” Yangzhi spat out a melon seed husk. “She’s had her eye on us for a long time already, and she still hasn’t thrown us out. Even if she did — so what? The First Madam said she’d arrange a way out for us. Don’t be afraid.”

Yangliu and Yangzhi had expected Yan Qing to make an example of them, but the storm they had been bracing for never came. Jing Zhi summoned Yangliu for a brief scolding, and that was all — Yan Qing never showed her face.

“What is that Seventh Young Mistress playing at?” Yangliu muttered to herself as she heated water.

“She’s a new bride. She has to keep the mother-in-law happy while not offending the First Madam either. She knows we’re the First Madam’s people, so naturally she doesn’t dare touch us easily. She’s afraid of the First Madam too.”

“When it comes down to it, she’s just a young girl riding on the Seventh Young Master’s favor. Who knows how much longer that favor will last — there’s no shortage of beautiful women out there.”

Yangliu grew more serious at that. “Don’t forget what the First Madam gave us as our task. Besides driving a wedge between the Young Mistress and Er Yitai, she also wants us to get into the Seventh Young Master’s bed.”

Yangzhi gave a light snort. “The Seventh Young Master is just a man like any other. With our looks, as long as the opportunity arises, it’s only a matter of time.”

“All right, all right — the water’s boiling.” Yangliu got to her feet. “Go and deliver the hot water.”

Yangzhi carried the hot water into Yan Qing’s room, and as she turned to come out, she found herself face to face with Shi Ting.

He was wearing his Military Police Division uniform, which wrapped around a lean, powerful frame. He had come in such a hurry that he had not yet removed his cap. Beneath its brim, his eyes held a deep, penetrating light.

Yangzhi had stolen more than a few secret glances at this master of the house. His looks and build were the finest she had seen in any man — and on top of that, he came from an illustrious family.

“Seventh Young Master.” Yangzhi quickly dipped into a bow, her voice carrying a soft, deliberate sweetness.

Shi Ting looked at her once and walked straight past her.

A flicker of disappointment crossed Yangzhi’s heart, but she told herself his reaction was to be expected. He was newly married, after all — there was no room in his mind for other women yet. But given time, she refused to believe he could maintain such a composed indifference indefinitely.

Shi Ting pushed the door open and stepped inside. Yan Qing had already washed her face and was going through the account books.

“You’re back earlier than usual today.” Hearing the footsteps, Yan Qing quickly set down the account book. Lately the Military Police Division had been busy, and Shi Ting typically left early and returned late.

“I missed you. So I came back.” He stepped forward and gathered her into his arms, pressing his face eagerly against her cheek for a long, contented breath. “You smell wonderful.”

Yan Qing laughed and pinched his nose. “Go wash up — you smell dreadful.”

“Do I?” He lifted his own sleeve and gave it a sniff.

Concluding that it was indeed rather unpleasant, he wrinkled his nose with an expression of mild self-disgust. He had been out to two crime scenes today — the smell on him was admittedly not ideal.

“Then would my wife be so kind as to help me change?” The man stretched his arms wide open on either side.

Yan Qing shook her head in helpless resignation, but still reached up to remove his cap, setting it to one side, then reached out to undo the buttons of his uniform.

Beneath the uniform he wore a white shirt, which was also slightly damp with sweat.

Though Yan Qing had seen his body countless times by now, helping him change was a first. When her palm made contact with his firm muscle, she still couldn’t quite stop the flush from rising to her cheeks.

“Go and wash up.” Yan Qing turned her face to one side and gave him a gentle push against the chest.

Shi Ting let out a low, pleased laugh, leaned over and pressed a kiss to her cheek, then took the clothes she had undone and headed off to bathe.

Once Shi Ting had gone into the washroom, Yan Qing opened the wardrobe and found him a fresh set of sleeping clothes. She lifted them to her nose — they still carried the faint, clean scent of soap.

She carried the clothes to the washroom door. Through it came the sound of water. She knocked gently: “Shi Ting!”

“Mm?” The sound of water lessened, and his low, slightly husky voice came through.

“You forgot to bring your sleeping clothes in.”

Her words had barely landed before the door swung open. Yan Qing instinctively glanced inside — and immediately spun her head away, cheeks burning, heart pounding — thrusting the clothes forward. “Here.”

His hand, however, did not reach for the clothes. Instead it closed around her wrist and gave a light tug. Yan Qing stumbled on her feet and fell forward, directly into his arms.

—