“Are you Quanhui?” The man’s voice was ice-cold.

With their five-part resemblance in appearance and his condescending tone, Fu Tingyun didn’t need to ask to know that this was her long-unseen elder brother, Fu Tinggui.

Was this how an elder brother should behave?

Today was neither a rest day nor Fu Tinggui’s day off, yet he was at home… Presumably, his wife had informed him, and he was deliberately waiting here to intercept her.

Fu Tingyun’s hopeful expectations instantly deflated.

She responded coldly, “Yes, I am. And who might you be?”

Hearing this, veins bulged on Fu Tinggui’s forehead as he shouted, “I am your elder brother!”

Fu Tingyun smiled, “Since you’re my elder brother, why are you blocking the gate when your sister has come to visit?”

Wasn’t the Fu family disowning her as their daughter?

If so, she couldn’t casually enter the Fu household. But now that Fu Tinggui acknowledged himself as her brother, she had the right to step through the Fu family’s gate.

Fu Tinggui had initially thought that with his knowledge of the Four Books and Five Classics and his understanding of poetry and etiquette, lecturing Fu Tingyun would be easy. Unexpectedly, she had pinpointed his weakness in just a few sentences. He immediately flew into a rage, saying, “Who is your brother? After committing such immoral acts, you still have the nerve to come here! What do the Fu Family’s ‘Female Instructions’ say? What does the ‘Biographies of Exemplary Women’ say? You were raised in this household, yet you ignored these teachings. I didn’t believe it before, but seeing your sharp tongue now, I’m beginning to. Grandmother and Mother wasted their affection on you. Our Fu family has no such daughter, and I, Fu Tinggui, have no such sister!”

Fu Tingyun trembled with anger and laughed coldly, “You would rather believe outsiders than your sibling. You don’t have me as a sister, and I don’t care for you as a brother. Whether the Fu family has me as a daughter is for Father and Mother to decide, not you. You have no right to say these things. As for whether I can enter this door, this isn’t your residence, and your word doesn’t count.”

Fu Tinggui said triumphantly, “This is Father’s wish.”

Her brother had always been close to their father; his behavior reflected their father’s influence.

Fu Tingyun’s heart turned ice-cold, but outwardly she refused to yield. She laughed coldly, “Just because you say it’s Father’s wish doesn’t make it so. I could just as well claim my return home is Father’s wish! Stop trying to wield a chicken feather as an official token and speaking nonsense.” She lifted her skirt and stepped onto the threshold, “Get out of my way!”

“You dare!” Fu Tinggui shouted, spreading his arms to block the door.

“What wouldn’t I dare?” Fu Tingyun pushed forward.

“Jiezi!” A somewhat weary voice came from the courtyard—it was the Fifth Master Fu. “Let her in. Don’t make a scene at the door for the neighbors to laugh at. She may have no shame, but we still have our dignity!”

Hearing this, Fu Tinggui reluctantly responded with a “Yes,” gave Fu Tingyun a vicious glare, and stepped aside to let her pass.

Fu Tingyun stood stunned for a moment.

She hadn’t expected that to prevent her from seeing her mother, even if her father would be at home.

It showed how much they despised her.

Tears welled in her eyes, but she straightened her back and walked in.

The Fifth Master Fu stood under the eaves of the main house with his hands behind his back. The morning sun of summer cast a golden edge around him.

He looked coldly at Fu Tingyun and said flatly, “Why do you insist on seeing your mother?”

She hoped her marriage would receive her parents’ blessing—if not her father’s, then at least her mother’s.

Moreover, she secretly harbored a hope that she might learn from her mother why the Fu family had abandoned her.

But she couldn’t say this.

If her father knew, he would be even less likely to let her see her mother.

“And why are you afraid of me seeing Mother?” Fu Tingyun stared directly at the Fifth Master Fu, refusing to back down.

A flash of sharpness crossed the Fifth Master Fu’s eyes, but it disappeared instantly.

“Your mother is pure-hearted, and you are the child she carried for ten months,” he said calmly. “No matter how absurd your actions, your mother always thinks you have a reason. These past two years, your mother has suffered the shock of your uncle’s entire family being killed and you being abducted by refugees. Her spirit is damaged, like a candle in the wind, and she cannot withstand any more turmoil. Yet you insist on causing trouble, demanding justice for your maid and seeking to hold your eldest sister-in-law accountable. Tell me, how can I let you see your mother? Wouldn’t that be disregarding your mother’s life? So no matter how much you argue or make a scene, I will never let you see your mother. You should give up on that idea!”

“Since you know I am the child my mother carried for ten months, wouldn’t seeing me safe and sound make her happy? How would that worsen her condition?” Fu Tingyun remained unmoved, pressing aggressively. “As for seeking justice for my maid and holding my eldest sister-in-law accountable, shouldn’t my father and brother stand up for me, a weak woman? Why drag Mother into this? Otherwise, what’s the point of us women having a maiden family? Isn’t it precisely so that when we suffer injustice, we have relatives to support us?”

“You…” The Fifth Master Fu was at a loss for words.

Fu Tinggui, standing nearby, immediately jumped in: “Is this how you speak to Father? ‘Filial piety is the most important virtue,’ yet you disregard even the words ‘filial piety.’ No wonder you would do such shameless things. Besides, with your behavior, how could we stand up for you? Stop trying to twist words here.”

Fu Tingyun looked at the Fifth Master Fu.

The Fifth Master Fu remained silent.

She was his daughter, yet he allowed her to be insulted by her brother!

On this midsummer morning, the sun rose higher, shining brightly on the faces of the Fifth Master Fu and Fu Tinggui. Fu Tingyun could see the white pockmark left by chicken pox on Fu Tinggui’s forehead, yet she felt the two people before her were utterly unfamiliar, as if meeting them for the first time.

If her mother wasn’t staying in the side rooms next to the hall, then she must be in the side rooms near the south wall.

It was so dark there, surely damp as well. Wasn’t her mother ill? How could they place her in such accommodations?

Fu Tingyun walked directly toward the side rooms by the south wall.

She felt that exchanging even one more word with these two was a waste of breath.

The Fifth Master Fu’s shouts and Fu Tinggui’s pulling… brought tears to Fu Tingyun’s eyes.

Yu Wei hugged Fu Tingyun, crying loudly: “Young miss, it’s all my fault. I should have told you earlier that I had seen the young master…”

Fu Tingyun smiled bitterly: “He must have said such awful things that even you couldn’t bear to relay them to me, so you concealed it? You see, my brother isn’t as good to me as you are.”

“No, no,” a woman without a maiden family would suffer, and though Yu Wei despised Fu Tinggui, she still spoke well of him, “The young master is in the capital and doesn’t know everything. Once we find Zuo Junjie, the young master will realize his mistake…”

Fu Tingyun shook her head.

Before, she had thought that if she could prove her innocence, everything would return to how it was. Now she realized that those wounds had been etched into her bones, and she could never go back to the way things were…

She asked Yu Wei to find a way to get news of her eldest uncle: “Since I am a person without a maiden family, I can only rely on myself.”

If her father wouldn’t help her, she would seek out her eldest uncle and eldest sister-in-law herself.

A few days later, Yu Wei went to Four Happiness Alley to intercept the young mistress, leaving in the morning and returning only in the afternoon.

“The Emperor performed ancestral rites today,” she said after drinking two cups of tea. “It was packed with spectators. I barely managed to squeeze my way back.”

Fu Tingyun suddenly remembered that today was the Emperor’s ascension day.

She asked with concern, “Have you eaten?”

“There were street food vendors everywhere. I bought two baked flatbreads to eat,” Yu Wei smiled and got to the point, “The young mistress said that last autumn, the eldest master was appointed as the Prefect of Jinhua.”

Fu Tingyun was stunned.

The Prefect of Jinhua was considered a lucrative position.

How had the Fu family suddenly become so fortunate in their official careers?

Like a flash of lightning, a thought suddenly emerged.

She turned pale.

“No, no, no. It can’t be!”

Fu Tingyun mumbled, suppressing that thought, and urgently asked Yu Wei, “Did you ask who recommended my eldest uncle for the position?”

Yu Wei shook her head in confusion.

Fu Tingyun said anxiously, “Quickly, go find out clearly.”

Yu Wei hurriedly agreed and rushed out again.

Fu Tingyun paced anxiously at home.

A-Sen ran in: “Miss, miss, the Ninth Master sent a letter!” She handed over the letter like a prized possession.

Living in the same city yet sending a letter—had something happened?

Fu Tingyun quickly opened the letter.

There were only two sentences inside: first, that he had been appointed as Commander of the Left Guard in the Imperial Guard; second, that the Imperial Guard had just been rotated, there was much to do, and he wouldn’t be able to return for a few days.

The Imperial Guard was composed of the Yulin Guard, the Jinwu Guard, and the Daqi Guard. Both the Yulin and Jinwu Guards were armed escorts—the former responsible for defense, the latter for inspecting those entering and leaving the palace gates, while the Daqi Guard was responsible for ceremonial functions. These three guards were each further divided into Left, Right, Front, Rear, and Central Guards.

A-Sen beside her eagerly asked, “What did the Ninth Master say?”

Fu Tingyun told her the contents of the letter.

A-Sen exclaimed, “Ah!” with a face full of delight: “So the Ninth Master has become a leader of the Imperial Guard?” She continued, “What rank is the Left Guard Commander? Is it higher or lower than Commander Lu?”

This amused Fu Tingyun, who smiled and said, “Both are of the third rank, but the Ninth Master serves at the Emperor’s side, which is different.”

A-Sen didn’t care about such details. She only knew that Zhao Ling now outranked Lu Chengdou, who managed the vast Panlang Garrison. Her eyes curved into crescents with joy as she ran out excitedly: “I’m going to tell Master Lü and Zheng San!”

Fu Tingyun laughed.

Just as she put the letter away, Master Lü came running over, out of breath: “Is it true that the Ninth Master has become a third-rank official?”

Since there was nothing inappropriate in the letter, she simply handed it to Master Lü.

Master Lü’s eyes moistened as he read: “This is wonderful, this is wonderful. Now I can return to Xi’an Prefecture with peace of mind.”

Fu Tingyun was startled: “You’re going back to Xi’an Prefecture?”

Master Lü smiled with narrowed eyes: “Not in a hurry, not in a hurry. I’ll go back after you two are married.”

Fu Tingyun’s face turned bright red.