Hongdou knew the first class that afternoon was Chinese Literature, so after entering the school, she went straight to the large lecture hall behind the small chapel to look for Gu Yun.

Still at the bottom of the steps, she could hear from a good distance away Instructor Yan in the lecture hall giving a stern lecture, his voice sharp and forceful, commanding in tone—it seemed some student had been careless with their coursework and had unfortunately provoked the old gentleman’s temper.

It looked like class wouldn’t be over for a while, so Hongdou simply went to sit on a bench by the lawn across from the small chapel to wait for Gu Yun. After about ten minutes or so, the class bell rang, and just as she’d expected, the lecture hall remained dead silent—no one dared come out—until Instructor Yan strode out briskly clutching his lecture notes, and only then did the students pour out of the classroom in a swarm.

Hongdou spotted Gu Yun in the crowd and waved to her: “Gu Yun.”

Gu Yun was wearing a pale moon-colored jacket with a gold pen pinned at her chest, paired with a black crepe silk long skirt underneath. She came out carrying a stack of books, walking slowly. Hearing someone call her name, she first glanced left and right, and upon spotting Hongdou, pushed up her glasses and walked over briskly. “Huh, aren’t classes supposed to resume tomorrow? Why are you here today?”

Hongdou said: “I came to ask about Mr. Xu’s case.” So saying, she pulled Gu Yun to sit down beside her.

Gu Yun, ever unruffled, set the stack of books aside, thought for a moment, and asked Hongdou: “Did Inspector Wang tell you?”

Hongdou nodded: “Inspector Wang said that after Mr. Xu’s incident, it was you who called him, and that you’re a distant relative of Mr. Xu’s.”

Gu Yun nodded calmly: “Mr. Xu’s mother is a cousin of one of my father’s paternal cousins—very, very distant relatives indeed. Our two families basically never kept in touch before. It was only after Mr. Xu took the position of manager at Langhuan Publishing House that he and my father began having occasional contact over official business. In conversation, they discovered several mutual acquaintances, and that’s how the family connection came up. Afterward, Mr. Xu often brought Mrs. Xu and their children to visit our house as guests, and so the two families grew close. The day he was killed—which was also the day of your wedding to He Yunqin—I saw Mr. Xu there. He was drinking and chatting merrily with the others at the table at the time, and had even arranged to go compose old-style poetry at Xishan the next day. There was absolutely no sign he intended suicide. That evening, our family received news of his death, and no matter how I thought about it, it seemed strange, so I called Inspector Wang.”

She paused: “Two days ago, Inspector Wang told Mrs. Xu that it’s now confirmed Mr. Xu was hoisted up to the roof beam by someone and made to look like a suicide, but the murderer remains unidentified for now—it’s believed to have been done by a single person acting alone. I’ve thought it over for two nights now—to hoist someone like Mr. Xu up to a roof beam would take enormous arm strength. Could some kind of tool have been used? Because of this, I’ve been searching for materials these past few days, and I was just about to go home and study them properly.”

So saying, she pointed at the pile of books beside her.

Hongdou glanced over—sure enough, they were books about farming tools. She teased her: “Seems like your detective skills are getting sharper by the day, Miss Gu. Inspector Wang is looking for assistants everywhere—since you’ve taken such an interest in this, why not go apply to be his assistant?”

Gu Yun said quite seriously: “That’s exactly my intention, but Inspector Wang requires his assistant to have an excellent memory, and I’m not sure I’d pass that bridge game test of his. I’ve been practicing hard at home these past few days.”

Hongdou had only been joking, and hadn’t expected Gu Yun to actually mean it. She was stunned for a moment, then recalled the phone call between He Yunqin and Wang Bide the previous night—Wang Bide had been so overwhelmed with the investigation these past few days that he surely couldn’t afford to be picky anymore. She said: “Don’t worry, Wang Bide is desperately short on manpower right now. If you apply now, you’re sure to get in smoothly. By the way, let me ask you something—since your family are distant relatives of Xu Yishan, do you know where his family used to live? I heard he often went to the Keyu Theater to watch operas—do you know if he had any family connection to any of the performers there?”

Gu Yun asked suspiciously: “This Yang Yutian, the martial actor—I heard he also supposedly hanged himself. Why are you suddenly asking about this? Does Inspector Wang suspect the two of them were killed by the same person?”

Hongdou shrugged: “It’s precisely because Inspector Wang thinks so that he’s eager to investigate both their pasts. If we can find the point where their pasts intersected, everything will become much clearer.”

Gu Yun pondered: “I heard from my father that Xu Yishan’s family was poor in the past. Before he married, he moved around from place to place with his widowed mother—Qingqiao, Shipu, Chunying Lane, he lived in all of them. It was only after marrying Mrs. Xu that he moved into the residence in the French Concession—you could say he was practically half a live-in son-in-law.”

“Chunying Lane?” Hongdou froze. “My grandmother’s family used to live in Chunying Lane too.”

After her aunt’s incident, her grandmother had grieved so much she passed away not long after. Her uncle, feeling it a waste to leave the house empty, had it transferred through an agent before long.

She recalled that the last time Qin Xuekai visited their house, he’d also mentioned his grandmother’s family lived in Chunying Lane—she’d thought it a coincidence at the time, but who would have guessed Xu Yishan used to live there too.

That area, to be fair, wasn’t small in scope, with many mixed households living there—there was no telling how long Xu Yishan had lived there, or whether that was how he’d come to know her grandmother’s family.

Gu Yun lowered her head to think, then suddenly said: “That reminds me—last time I looked at my father’s newspaper, I vaguely recall seeing that the Keyu Theater troupe used to perform in Chunying Lane for a while. We have an old housekeeper at home who’s originally from Chunying Lane. If both Yang Yutian and Mr. Xu once lived there, and my family’s old housekeeper lived there for many years, she should have some impression of it. Unfortunately, she went back these past few days to look after her son, and I don’t know when she’ll return. Why don’t I go to Chunying Lane after school to ask her about it?”

Hongdou looked up at the sky—it was overcast, a dim gray, threatening rain.

“It’ll already be four-thirty by the time school lets out. If you go to Chunying Lane alone, it’ll be dark by the time you get back. Don’t go today—tomorrow when I’m back in class, I’ll go with you.”

Gu Yun didn’t respond, but suddenly gave Hongdou’s sleeve a light tug, signaling her to look over that way.

Hongdou turned her head, and, coincidentally enough, just as she’d been thinking of Qin Xuekai, she saw Qin Xuekai coming out of the small chapel.

In just a few short days, Qin Xuekai seemed to have grown noticeably thinner, his clothes looking somewhat loose on him, a cloud of gloom hanging over his brow.

He walked a short distance, then looked up and saw Hongdou. He was startled at first, then his expression dimmed. He nodded vaguely and walked off in another direction.

Gu Yun said: “Classmates all say that ever since Qin Xuekai saw the announcement of your marriage to Mr. He in the papers, he’s been terribly upset. He’s rarely been seen at school this past month, and has been listless about organizing any activities. Though these past few days he seems to be doing a bit better.”

Before Hongdou could respond, she saw Duan Mingyi walking over from the other direction with several faculty members, crossing the lawn toward the music classroom.

Gu Yun’s gaze fell on Duan Mingyi, and something seemed to occur to her. She hesitated a moment, then suddenly said: “Hongdou, does Mr. He treat you well?”

Hongdou went still. Vexed as she was, she had to admit that these past few days of newlywed life had indeed been quite affectionate and sweet between them, so she nodded sincerely: “He treats me very well.”

Gu Yun stared steadily at Hongdou. Hongdou’s complexion looked fine, but there was a certain listlessness about her, lacking spirit—compared to how radiant she’d been at the wedding, she now seemed considerably more subdued.

Gu Yun was in great inner turmoil. She leaned back against the bench, tilted her head to look up at the sky, and said nothing for a long while.

Hongdou’s heart stirred, and she looked at Gu Yun with suspicion. The two of them had known each other for over a year now, and she knew Gu Yun’s temperament better than anyone—people called her “the calming anchor,” rarely showing emotion outwardly. Though she said little when something happened, she was, at her core, extremely forthright, always speaking her mind honestly.

Seeing Gu Yun like this, it was clear something was weighing on her that she couldn’t bring herself to say. Hongdou lowered her head, thinking back over that odd, unexplained question Gu Yun had just asked, and said with slight unease: “Why did you ask that just now?”

Gu Yun pressed her lips shut and didn’t answer.

Hongdou pressed closer: “Tell me.”

Gu Yun was determined not to speak, letting Hongdou shake her arm, only blinking and saying: “I’m your good friend. You got married—shouldn’t I ask how you’ve been these past few days?”

Hongdou nodded with a smile: “Gu Yun, you and I have always gotten along well, and we know each other’s habits inside and out. My little worries can’t escape you, and yours can’t escape me either. Do you know something? You’d best not keep it bottled up—tell me now, or once I find out on my own, watch out, I might just cut you off.”

At these words, Gu Yun was clearly moved. She stared blankly at the large, soft gray clouds overhead for a while, then finally turned to look at Hongdou sideways and said: “On the day of your wedding to Mr. He, I spilled champagne on my dress and went to the back to get a handkerchief. Passing by the storage room in the back, I vaguely saw one of Mr. Duan’s attendants talking to Mr. He, and that attendant handed something over to Mr. He. Mr. He had originally intended to leave, but for some reason, turned back and accepted it.”

Hongdou’s heart sank, and she stared silently at Gu Yun without speaking.

“I originally thought nothing of it, but afterward, when I returned with you to the He residence, I saw a certain kind of flower on the dressing table in your new bridal chamber. I noticed the fresh petals had been fixed in color by some method I’d never heard of before. When I got home, I wanted to buy a bunch myself to put in my room, so I asked around everywhere to find out where this flower could be bought. It turned out this flower is only sold at one French trading company—apparently a new item introduced in recent years, and because of its high price, it’s never been widely advertised; almost no one in the city knows about it. If you want to buy it, you have to place a special order and wait one or two months. In recent months, that foreign shopkeeper only brought in one box total, and it was bought by a lady surnamed Duan. So I don’t know why there would be one in your and Mr. He’s room…”

Hongdou’s mind was in complete turmoil. Gu Yun wasn’t the type to make things up carelessly. If not for the earlier rumor, encountering these two things alone wouldn’t have made her think much of it. But with these several matters strung together, anyone would find it too coincidental to ignore.

She recalled that night in the bridge room, when she and He Yunqin had personally heard that Chen Baidie was the culprit spreading the rumor. But what if that matter hadn’t been fabricated out of thin air after all? What if He Yunqin and Duan Mingyi really did have something compromising that others had gotten wind of?

Watching Hongdou’s expression shift unpredictably, Gu Yun grew uneasy. She’d never been one to let things slide, and just thinking about this matter left her feeling stifled—these past few days, even attending Duan Mingyi’s classes had stirred up a sense of aversion in her. Her original intent had only been to warn Hongdou to stay alert, but seeing Hongdou’s current state, far more upset than she’d expected, she couldn’t help but regret bringing it up, and hurriedly added: “Hongdou, I think there’s likely a large element of misunderstanding here. Seeing isn’t always believing, and besides, I didn’t even really see anything for certain—this is all just my own speculation.”

At that moment the class bell rang. Hongdou stood up, lifted her face, and said with a forced smile: “Go to class. I’ll be back tomorrow—if there’s anything more to say, we can talk later.”

So saying, she walked off toward the school gate.

Gu Yun chased after her a couple steps: “Hongdou.”

Hongdou waved her hand and walked off quickly.

Hongdou hadn’t even reached the school gate when she ran into He Yunqin. He’d arrived before three-thirty, and after waiting a while at the gate without seeing Hongdou come out, grew uneasy and was just about to go looking for her when he ran into her instead. He let out a quiet sigh of relief and called out: “Hongdou.”

Hongdou’s heart was already pierced with a thorn of distress, and hearing his voice, she looked up to meet He Yunqin’s gaze. Among all the people coming and going, he was still the most striking-looking of them all—yet after what had just happened, she found his smile particularly jarring. She ignored him and walked around him to get into the car.

He Yunqin found this puzzling—barely an hour apart, and Hongdou’s mood had soured again. He glanced at her in confusion and got in after her.

Once the car started moving, Hongdou tried to speak as calmly as she could: “Gu Yun said Xu Yishan used to live in Chunying Lane, and apparently the Keyu Theater troupe stayed there for a while too. If we want to check into their past connections, we might as well ask around in Chunying Lane. The Gu family has an old housekeeper who’s a longtime resident of Chunying Lane—Gu Yun and I plan to go find her after school tomorrow.”

Her tone was as normal as could be, yet He Yunqin still caught a faint hint of resentment in it. He wanted to ease the mood, but not knowing the source of it, he had no way to address it directly, so he only said: “Wang Bide is planning to go to Chunying Lane tomorrow anyway—let’s just leave this matter to him to investigate. Tonight he’s arranged to meet Bai Fengfei; hopefully he’ll be able to get something out of her then.”

Hongdou gave a flat “oh,” deliberately maintaining her silence, and said nothing further all the way back to the He residence.

By the time they got home, the He household had already begun preparing dinner. At the meal, Duan Mingyi sat across from Hongdou as usual. Hongdou kept her eyes lowered as she ate, unable to help secretly watching for any covert exchange between her and He Yunqin. Yet He Yunqin never once looked at Duan Mingyi throughout the entire meal—there wasn’t even a single exchanged glance between the two of them. This should have seemed perfectly normal, but with the seed of suspicion already planted in her heart, she couldn’t help but feel that the two of them were being deliberately careful.

After the meal, the two of them returned to their room. Just as they reached the staircase, a servant reported that there was a call for He Yunqin.

He Yunqin, upon confirming the caller wasn’t Wang Bide, glanced at Hongdou. Without waiting for him to say anything, Hongdou returned to their room on her own.

Once inside, she found she had no energy for anything, and simply lay down on the bed still fully dressed. Before long, the door opened outside, and He Yunqin walked straight to the bed, pulled her out from under the covers, and pinched her cheek: “What’s actually wrong with you?”

Hongdou dodged his hand: “Who did you just take a call from?”

He Yunqin said: “A friend.”

“What friend?”

He Yunqin fell silent.

She stared at him quietly for a moment, then said with a cold smile: “‘No comment,’ is that it? Then, can you tell me—why did you go find Miss Qiu on the third floor back then? Why were you and Wang Bide taking measurements in my father’s study? Why won’t you get rid of that bicycle? And who’s this German friend you keep calling?”

He Yunqin’s expression cooled several degrees: “Yu Hongdou.”

Hongdou’s heart ached: “None of this can be told to me, is that it?”

She pushed him away and got off the bed, bending down to slip on her shoes. “I still need to ask my mother about Chunying Lane. I’m going back to my mother’s house.”

Going back to her mother’s house at a time like this—clearly she was picking a fight with him. The edge in him receded somewhat, and he pulled her back, saying in a low voice: “I thought we’d already come to an understanding before—you ought to have basic trust in your husband!”

Trust? The two of them had gotten married without ever really properly falling in love with each other. So-called trust was as thin and fragile as paper between them. Husband? Husband and wife could be either the closest or the most distant of relations—she’d given herself so wholly and purely to this marriage, wanting far more than merely a “husband.”

Yet when facing her, he couldn’t even bring himself to say “I love you” without hesitation.

Hongdou glanced at the bouquet of flowers on the dressing table, forcing herself to stay calm, and said in a firmer voice: “Fine, these matters concern your friends, you have your own position on it, I shouldn’t pry further. Then what about Duan Mingyi? Why did you secretly accept something from her attendant at the wedding? And that bouquet of flowers—where did it really come from?”

He Yunqin froze.

So it was true after all. Hongdou’s heart clenched painfully with anger, her eyes welling with tears as she stared at him steadily, and said, her heart turned to ash: “He Yunqin, I really should have gone to Beiping.”

This was clearly regretting having married him. He Yunqin’s face turned ashen, and he laughed bitterly in his fury: “There’s nothing at all that needs hiding about that woman’s matter—I’ll tell you everything right now. Yu Hongdou, before I met you, I never once—”

Just then, someone suddenly knocked at the door outside, and a servant’s voice called: “Second Young Master, Second Young Mistress, the Gu residence is calling to ask whether their Third Young Miss is with Second Young Mistress—she hasn’t returned home yet.”

Author’s note: Very busy today, so this is the only update. No more after this—please don’t wait for one.