Fu Tingyun cowered in the corner of the bed like an injured kitten.

Master Zhao Jiu felt somewhat distressed seeing her and said, “You’ve just recovered from a serious illness. Take good rest. I’ll have someone bring you lunch…”

Before he could finish, Fu Tingyun had already jumped up: “Master Nine, please take me back to Huayin. I don’t want to go to Weinan.”

Master Zhao Jiu frowned: “Since your mother has arranged for you to go to Weinan, she must have made thorough preparations. Why disappoint your mother’s intentions? Wouldn’t it be better to go there first? If anything happens, your uncle and aunt can help negotiate for you. That would be better than being stuck in this limbo.”

How could she not know this?

Her uncle had become a xiucai scholar at a young age, but after repeated failures in higher examinations and with his family’s finances worsening, he had abandoned his pursuit of officialdom to focus entirely on business. In recent years, he had made a fortune and had quietly become Weinan’s wealthiest man. Even her eldest uncle spoke of him with admiration. Her uncle had four sons but no daughters, and he doted on her greatly. Whenever he obtained something rare, he would always send her a portion, even if his sons received none. Entrusting her to her uncle would naturally be the best option. But this situation was special—even her parents had chosen to compromise. She wasn’t confident that her uncle would stand up for her…

“I won’t go to Weinan!” Fu Tingyun’s large eyes looked at him stubbornly. “I cannot just go to Weinan like this!”

When she was young, she and her sisters were playing hide-and-seek in their grandmother’s room and broke their grandmother’s favorite plum vase. None of them would admit to it, and they were called to the main hall to kneel as punishment: “You are all young ladies of the Fu family, born of pure lineage and noble heritage. How can you all behave like those degraded people from the back alleys when facing problems, being evasive and lacking proper demeanor? It’s just a broken plum vase. What would happen if you admitted it? You would simply compensate for it and accept your punishment. Can’t you even endure that much? If you dare to do something, you should dare to admit it. If you don’t dare to admit it, then don’t do it. Today I punish you sisters to kneel not because you broke the plum vase, but because none of you dared to admit it, dared to stand tall and live with integrity…”

Thinking of this, Fu Tingyun’s eyes reddened.

“If I just go to Weinan like this, what does that make me?” She fought back tears. “A shameless woman who committed suicide after her private affair with Zuo Junjie was exposed…” She couldn’t bring herself to say the words “loose woman” no matter what. She bit her lip and continued, “So I’m being dealt with secretly, like a rat in the gutter! I’m not afraid of death. At this point, I might as well die. But even if I die, I want to die with dignity and clear my name. I cannot let Zuo Junjie’s filthy words continue to stain me…”

Master Zhao Jiu looked at her with some surprise, his expression gradually becoming solemn: “You want to go back and confront Zuo Junjie?”

Fu Tingyun’s tone was hesitant: “I know that if I go back now, it will only turn the Fu family into a laughingstock. No matter how much resentment I hold, my father, mother, brother, sister-in-law, nephew, and the sisters I grew up with still have to live in the Fu family… At least, I want the elders in the family to know…” She lowered her head, her expression somewhat lost.

Master Zhao Jiu secretly sighed in his heart.

“However, going back to Huayin now won’t do you any good!” he said. “A few days ago, the Fu family spread word that Zuo Junjie, while drunk, behaved indecently and had improper intentions toward your eldest uncle’s concubine. Unable to bear the humiliation, your eldest uncle’s concubine hanged herself. The Fu family reported it to the officials, and the county magistrate sent yamen runners to Guangtao Lane to summon him, only to find the place deserted and Zuo Junjie gone without a trace. This matter has alerted the Provincial Surveillance Commission, which reported it to the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Rites, seeking to revoke Zuo Junjie’s scholarly title. By the end of the month, the official response should arrive at Xi’an Prefecture.”

“How can this be?” Fu Tingyun looked at Master Zhao Jiu with shock all over her face.

Sacrificing her wasn’t enough; they had to sacrifice her eldest uncle’s concubine as well!

What exactly had happened?

Her mind was in chaos.

First, Zuo Junjie had acted like a madman, claiming to have had an affair with her. Then, the family elders confined her to Biyun Temple without even questioning her. Then Bibo went missing, her mother was confined, she was drugged, her eldest uncle’s concubine hanged herself, and Zuo Junjie disappeared… How had the warm and joyful Fu family turned into hell overnight?

She couldn’t understand!

Things didn’t have to reach this point.

Zuo Junjie was a sneaky villain who dared to act this way because he was certain the Fu family wouldn’t make a public scene. Rather than hoping he would have a change of heart and back down, it would have been better to just bring everything out into the open—if anyone could claim to have had an affair with a Fu family daughter by presenting some object, then wouldn’t all the Fu family daughters be doomed to die, and wouldn’t the Fu family’s reputation become a joke? Although there would certainly be rumors at that time, it would be better than being manipulated by Zuo Junjie… with one death after another…

What concerns did her eldest uncle have?

When things had become irrevocable, why did he still tolerate Zuo Junjie again and again? He even preferred to sacrifice her and his concubine.

Was there something she didn’t know?

It was like a torn picture; no matter how you pieced it together, a crucial part was missing, preventing you from seeing the true image.

Fu Tingyun’s body, which had just begun to recover, couldn’t withstand her intense emotions.

She was sweating profusely, yet stubbornly refused to lie down and rest.

Master Zhao Jiu shook his head slightly.

He couldn’t understand it all, let alone a delicate young woman raised in seclusion!

“Some things, if you can’t figure them out, it’s better not to think about them,” he couldn’t help but advise her. “Rest first, then think. Maybe everything will become clear!”

Fu Tingyun pressed her lips together.

“Master Nine!” A childish voice timidly called to Master Zhao Jiu. “I’ve made some porridge for the young lady…”

Both of them looked toward the source of the voice.

Fu Tingyun saw an eight or nine-year-old boy, as thin as a rail with a disproportionately large head, wearing a short jacket covered in patches. In one hand, he held a large coarse ceramic bowl, and in the other, a pair of chopsticks. He was staring at her with wide, curious eyes. His thin wrists made one worry whether he had the strength to hold that large bowl.

“Bring it in!” Master Zhao Jiu instructed the child, then turned to Fu Tingyun and said, “Whatever you want to do, you need to recover your health first—eat and rest for a while. We’ll leave at dusk.”

Leave?

To Weinan?

What was once a definite answer now left her uncertain.

Going to Weinan, accepting her mother’s arrangement, and giving up her identity as a Fu family daughter would be tantamount to acknowledging Zuo Junjie’s baseless accusations. Not going to Weinan—with Zuo Junjie having fled after driving her eldest uncle’s concubine to suicide, and her, supposedly dead and buried, suddenly appearing to dispute with Zuo Junjie—would expose the matter the Fu family had been desperate to conceal… Wouldn’t she just be slapping her face?

There was a faint rustling sound in the room.

Master Zhao Jiu had left.

The little boy carefully handed the porridge to Fu Tingyun: “Miss, I’ve fanned it, it’s not hot at all.”

Looking closely, she realized he was a very handsome little boy.

He had an oval face, thin curved eyebrows, and large eyes.

Fu Tingyun smiled kindly at him, took the porridge, and asked him gently: “What’s your name?”

“I’m called A-Sen!” Seeing Fu Tingyun smile at him, he smiled back, his big eyes narrowing slightly, making him look very cute. “This name was given to me by Master Nine. He said he found me in front of three trees, so he called me A-Sen.” As he spoke, he traced on the ground with his foot. “The ‘sen’ in A-Sen means three trees written like this!”

Fu Tingyun was somewhat surprised.

From his earlier arrangement, she had thought A-Sen was a strong man; she hadn’t imagined that A-Sen was someone he had picked up.

A-Sen’s liveliness dispersed the earlier cold atmosphere, and Fu Tingyun’s mood improved considerably.

“Did Master Nine tell you that?” she asked with a smile, holding the bowl but not rushing to eat.

“Mm-hmm!” A-Sen nodded. “Master Nine also had me take his surname, Zhao. I’m called Zhao Sen.” As he said this, he puffed out his chest, looking very proud.

Fu Tingyun smiled: “Then what is your Master Nine’s name?”

“His name is…” Just as the words left his mouth, A-Sen immediately realized his slip and quickly covered his mouth. Seeing Fu Tingyun smiling at him, looking as pretty as a flower, he felt somewhat reluctant. After hemming and hawing for a while, he pulled an egg from his bosom and tossed it to Fu Tingyun. “This is what Master Nine asked me to boil for you. I still need to prepare your medicine!” Then he ran off like he was escaping.

This child was truly amusing!

Fu Tingyun smiled brightly and lowered her head to drink the porridge.

The rice was soft and glutinous, leaving a sweet aftertaste in her mouth.

It was high-quality June Snow rice.

Where had he gotten it from?

Perhaps because she hadn’t eaten for some time, although the porridge tasted good, she felt full after just a few sips. She wanted to take the bowl to the kitchen, but remembering that Master Zhao Jiu had many companions, she abandoned the idea. She took the egg and rolled it in her hands for a while before cracking the shell.

The egg white was smooth, and the yolk was powdery and rich.

It was truly delicious!

Fu Tingyun looked at the sunlight streaming through the roof and suddenly felt that if time could stop at this moment forever, how wonderful that would be!

The thought flashed by, and she remembered the journey at dusk.

Why leave at dusk? In the dark, what road could they travel? If they were mistaken for vagrants and captured, wouldn’t that be unfair?

She leaned against the head of the bed.

Should she return to Huayin or go to Weinan?

Outside came a commotion, with voices of farewell, some loud, some soft.

Fu Tingyun looked up and saw A-Sen hiding beside the statue of Shakyamuni Buddha.

She smiled and beckoned to him: “Didn’t you say you were going to prepare medicine for me? Why are you back?”

A-Sen stood there, embarrassed, caught in a dilemma.

Fu Tingyun smiled: “Don’t worry, I won’t tell Master Nine!”

“I’m not afraid!” A-Sen pouted in protest. “Master Nine told me to quietly watch over you. He said it’s to prevent you from doing something foolish if you become distraught!”

Fu Tingyun was taken aback.

A-Sen walked over.

Seeing the half-bowl of porridge she had left at the bedside, he swallowed: “Why… why didn’t you drink the porridge? Was it not made well?”

Fu Tingyun thought of the first time she saw Master Zhao Jiu, the way he was gathering food in the kitchen. She sat up straight and asked A-Sen in a low voice: “What did you eat for lunch?”

A-Sen avoided Fu Tingyun’s gaze and patted his stomach: “I ate until I was full! If you don’t believe me, feel my stomach.”