A month and a half later.

December arrived, and the cold winds of early winter whistled through the air. Just looking at the clear, pale sky made one feel particularly chilly.

Throughout Bamboo Stream Garden, braziers had been placed in every corner. Only the hall where the coffins were kept had just one small brazier, and even that was positioned by the door, rendering it practically useless. A maid rubbed her hands together, cupped them over her mouth and breathed out a puff of warm air as she walked into the hall from outside, saying in puzzlement, “Master Ji, the weather has been so cold lately, and you’re always staying here looking at those skeletal remains. Why not have a few more braziers brought over? Otherwise, as it gets colder and colder, if you catch a chill and harm your health, that would be terrible.”

Ji Yunshu sat behind the desk, her back straight and proper, one hand pressing down on white paper while the other held a brush, carefully and meticulously drawing a portrait.

Over the past month or two, she had spent almost every day here or in the study, working day and night without rest, occasionally catching only a few moments of sleep. Hard work always yielded rewards—she had already successfully completed four portraits.

Only the last three remained!

Getting closer and closer!

Hearing the young maid’s voice, she replied without lifting her head, “It’s fine, I’m not cold. Besides, the higher the temperature in here, the more it will affect those skeletal remains to some degree. When that happens, the portraits that emerge will have discrepancies.”

“Hm? How would that cause any effect?”

“In many ways.”

“Like what?” The maid was quite eager to learn.

Ji Yunshu smiled, but her hands didn’t stop their work as she continued to patiently explain to her, “The human body is composed of 206 bones. Of course, some people have 207 bones, but that’s usually only in children. However, we Central Plains people almost never have 207 bones—it’s mostly some Europeans and Americans with more robust skeletal structures who do. And don’t think these bones appear indestructible and unchanging—in fact, they’re all quite fragile. But each bone, like each person, has different weaknesses. Some fear heat, some fear cold, others fear wind, and some even fear water. Take the human scapula, for instance. If exposed to heat, it may contract upward or forward to varying degrees. This in turn affects the hyoid bone, and once the hyoid bone is affected, the mandible, cheekbones, nasal bones, and so on will all be affected as well. Even the slightest deviation in the skull will result in major differences in the final portrait. This is precisely why these factors must be determined before drawing a portrait—otherwise, it wouldn’t take so long to produce a single portrait.”

As the saying goes, slow and careful work produces fine results!

She spoke vividly and explained things so thoroughly yet simply.

But the maid listened in complete confusion, not understanding anything at all. After tilting her head in thought for a long while, she laughed awkwardly and said, “Master Ji is truly learned! You know more than even the teaching scholars. No wonder everyone says you’re brilliant, and even His Highness often praises you effusively.”

Such sweet words!

Ji Yunshu lifted her eyes to glance at her, seeing her face full of admiration and envy. She said, “Actually, if you read more books, you’ll understand these things too. You might even surpass me.”

“Really?”

“Of course.”

“But…” The young maid pursed her lips. “But I’m illiterate. My family was poor when I was young—how could I have afforded to study? Besides, I’m not like Young Master Wei, the type who can make up for lost time. I’m nowhere near as clever as him! He can remember things after reading them just once. If only I had half his intelligence.”

Full of envy!

Speaking of Wei Yi was like speaking of a legend!

That young man truly learned whatever he studied, and he had a photographic memory. As long as he looked at something a few times, he could usually remember most of it. In modern times, he would be what people called a “genius.”

Though Ji Yunshu felt happy in her heart, she also harbored some concerns.

On one hand, Wei Yi’s continuous improvement was a blessing.

But on the other hand, if he learned the truth behind the Linjing Case—that his entire family had perished in a fire and that the parents who had raised him for so many years were not his biological parents—he surely wouldn’t be able to accept it. When that time came, it would likely become a curse.

Her grip on the brush tightened slightly, and her almond-shaped eyes dimmed a bit as she fell silent for a long while.

The young maid noticed and stepped forward to ask, “Master Ji, what’s wrong? Are you all right?”

She immediately pulled herself out of her thoughts and shook her head. “I’m fine.”

“Then I’ll head out now. Call me if you need anything.”

“Mm.”

The maid had just stepped outside when she ran right into Jingrong coming toward her.

He wore his court robes—he must have just returned from attending court at the palace.

“Your Highness.”

He waved his hand, signaling for the maid to leave, before crossing the threshold into the hall.

The hall seemed even colder than outside.

Didn’t that woman feel cold?

He glanced at Ji Yunshu and said, “The weather is so cold—why won’t you have the maid bring over a few braziers?”

Ji Yunshu’s gaze fell on him as she raised the brush in her hand and said, “How could someone busy with work still feel cold?”

“I’m worried you’ll harm your health from the cold. Winter has already arrived, and it looks like Beijing will have a heavy snowfall before long.”

Ji Yunshu smiled, noticing his attire, and asked curiously, “You came over without even changing your clothes—is there an urgent matter?”

“Not exactly urgent.”

He walked leisurely to the table and poured himself a cup of hot tea, drinking several sips.

His brow remained furrowed!

Ji Yunshu simply set down her work and walked over.

Jingrong immediately poured a cup of hot tea and pressed it into her hands, then grasped her icy cold hands, saying with concern, “Look at you—never mind not wanting to bring in braziers, but why aren’t you wearing more layers? Your hands are frozen like this—what if you fall ill?”

The hot tea cup in her palm provided warmth that spread almost instantly along the blood vessels in her hand, and with Jingrong’s large hands gripping the back of her hands, she was thoroughly warmed inside and out.

Yet she gazed into his eyes and asked, “Tell me, what’s really wrong?”

Jingrong could see her concern. “It’s really just a small matter.”

“Mm?”

“Recently, many bandits have appeared in Shaanxi. In the Changbing area, they’ve robbed many people of their money. Even many escort agencies have had their goods stolen. Last month, a shipment of silk that a small border nation was sending as tribute to the court also fell victim—the bandits intercepted everything, leaving nothing behind. They even injured several people. The local county office was at a loss and could only mobilize troops stationed in the surrounding areas to suppress the bandits. But those bandits are extremely cunning, fighting guerrilla-style everywhere. In the end, the suppression failed, and the authorities could only negotiate, asking them to hand over that batch of tribute fabric. Who would have known that those bandits had already divided up the cloth long ago? The authorities had no choice but to report the matter to the court. Father Emperor brought up this issue in court today.”

“Since it’s a problem, just solve it. The court can simply mobilize its forces to go to Changbing.”

“That may be so, but there must be someone to take the lead and come up with ideas, right?”

Hm? Saying this, it clearly wasn’t simple!