Qin Yao reached into her sleeve and drew out a silk handkerchief, carefully gathering the severed limbs and remnant tail pieces from the ground and tucking them safely away.

The hour was already late. Her plan to visit Qingyun Temple to find her master today was clearly not going to work. She might as well wait until tomorrow, when her master came to the manor for her coming-of-age ceremony, and present these things to him then.

The two of them were just about to make their way back to the carriage together when a hurried set of footsteps suddenly rang out from the far end of the street, someone heading in their direction.

Qin Yao squinted to make out the figures. As they drew nearer, her face brightened with delight, and she stepped forward to greet them. “Master! Senior Brother!”

The newcomers were none other than Qing Xuzi and his disciples, along with Yuan Jue.

Qin Yao bowed respectfully to her master and Yuan Jue, then turned to Qing Xuzi and asked, “Master, what brings you here?”

Qing Xuzi held his horsetail whisk and had no time to give Qin Yao a proper greeting. His gaze swept the area with the sharpness of lightning, and only then did he ask her, with a look of displeasure, “That creature escaped?”

“Yes.” Qin Yao was somewhat taken aback. Could it be that her master and the others had been tracking the evil creature’s movements all along?

She quickly recounted everything that had just happened and then presented the few severed tail segments inside the handkerchief for her master’s inspection.

Qing Xuzi picked up the rat tail and examined it, showing little surprise — as though he had already expected as much.

Seeing this, Qin Yao grew even more puzzled and could not help but speak up. “Master, have you already found out where this creature came from? Just now, that Ghost Swordsman was not only able to command a sword, but could also manipulate the evil creatures under his control to arrange them into battle formations. He doesn’t seem like an ordinary ghost.”

On the other side, Yuan Jue had already exchanged a reserved yet warm greeting with Lin Xiao. Hearing Qin Yao’s question, he turned and said, “This old monk and your master have been tracking that ghost creature for nearly half a month now. We have gathered some understanding of its habits. It is indeed no ordinary ghost —”

Before Yuan Jue could finish, Qing Xuzi noticed how intently Qin Yao was listening, her eyes visibly lighting up with keen interest. Knowing that the creature had already sparked an intense curiosity in her, he immediately cut Yuan Jue off and addressed Qin Yao brusquely. “Your master and the Abbot have already uncovered some leads. Before long, we will certainly be able to subdue this creature. You need not get yourself involved. Tomorrow you will have your coming-of-age ceremony. Your mother surely has many things she still needs to discuss with you. Do not linger outside any longer. Let the Young Lord send you home early.”

He was practically shooing Qin Yao away.

Yuan Jue had only gotten halfway through his words when Qing Xuzi cut him off. He did not bother arguing with him over it, but it occurred to him that this little disciple of his was soon to be married to Lin Xiao. He surmised that Qing Xuzi was being protective of his disciple’s wellbeing, unwilling to let her put herself in harm’s way.

Qin Yao had only just begun to grasp a thread of this chain of events, and she was naturally reluctant to let it go. However, she also understood that her master’s intention was to keep her from being distracted by outside affairs — a well-meaning concern she could not in good conscience ignore.

After wrestling with herself for a moment, she stole a glance at Lin Xiao. He happened to be looking at her at the same time. Though he had not said a word throughout, Qin Yao had a vague sense that Lin Xiao, too, did not particularly want her to pursue the matter further.

She finally yielded, reluctantly, and said to Qing Xuzi, “Very well, then. I’ll head back. Oh — that creature just now was formidable, but its flesh was already burned by the Soul-Devouring Bell. It will need considerable time to recover, and may not cause any more trouble for a while. If you and Master Yuan Jue intend to follow its trail, I’m afraid you may find it harder to track than usual.”

Qing Xuzi and Yuan Jue exchanged a swift glance, contemplative expressions crossing their faces. “Understood. Go on home now. Get some rest early. Tomorrow morning, your master and your senior brother will come to celebrate your coming-of-age ceremony.”

The next day, Princess Kangping had risen early and was happily seated at her dressing table doing her hair when Xue Nu came in and said, “Your Highness, I’ve heard that today is Miss Qu’s coming-of-age ceremony. Not only have quite a few of your academy classmates gone, but the wife of Duke Lu has personally come to the Qu manor to offer her congratulations. Would you also like to send a gift?”

Kangping’s hand paused mid-reach for a hairpin, and she looked up at Xue Nu in the mirror. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner? Not only do I need to send a gift — I should go in person. Oh, and go tell Tuo Niang to prepare a coming-of-age gift for Miss Qu. It must be something presentable. I’ll take it with me to the Qu manor shortly.”

Having served Kangping since childhood, Xue Nu knew exactly what “presentable” meant — even if not priceless, it would certainly be of considerable value. What surprised her most of all was that the princess intended to go and attend the ceremony in person.

She thought about it for a moment and understood. The reason the princess was bestowing such an honor upon Miss Qu was most likely on account of the Young Lord of Prince Lan’s household.

That time, when the princess had left Duke Lu’s manor and gone straight to petition the Emperor to grant a marriage decree for Miss Feng and Second Young Master Xia, the Emperor had not only refused, but had reprimanded the princess without any mercy.

The princess had not expected things to unfold so differently from what she had imagined, and was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan. That very evening she had gone to find the Young Lord of Prince Lan’s household. Whatever method the Young Lord had employed, it was not long before Duke Wei of his own accord petitioned on behalf of Second Young Master Xia to take Feng Chuyue as his wife, and the Emperor finally agreed to grant them the marriage decree.

She had always known that, though the Emperor doted on the princess, he could not grant her every wish. To achieve one’s desires, one had to know how to maneuver indirectly, the way the Young Lord did.

Just as she was thinking on all this, Tuo Niang arrived.

Kangping told her what she had in mind and asked her to quickly select a suitably fine piece of jewelry. Then, face flushing slightly, she asked, “The things sent to Young Master Feng yesterday — did he accept them all? Did he say anything?”

Tuo Niang kept her gaze fixed on the floor, suppressing the anger in her heart as she replied, “Young Master Feng accepted everything, and asked this servant to convey his thanks to Your Highness.”

In truth, Young Master Feng had not so much as glanced at them. The two chests of fine fabrics, garments, and footwear had merely been waved away to be carried into a room, handled with perfunctory indifference, without a trace of a smile on his face.

Hmph. Ungrateful wretch.

She genuinely felt sorry for the princess, but knew she dared not let the princess hear any of it, lest it bring about yet another bout of heartache. Come to think of it, every time the princess went to the Feng manor to visit Young Master Feng, he was either making some excuse to leave or busying himself with his official correspondence and writing at his desk.

Poor thing — the princess, with that restless nature of hers, would simply sit and watch Young Master Feng in silence, unable to bring herself to leave. She could sit there for a full hour at a stretch, and a single lukewarm word from Young Master Feng would keep her spirits lifted for quite some time. One truly could not fathom what was so special about that Feng fellow — he had a handsome face and had read a few books, yet somehow the princess loved him so utterly.

Kangping had no idea what the people around her were thinking. Recalling that Feng Chuyue had been unable to eat or sleep properly of late, she ordered further tonics and fine ingredients fetched from the storeroom to be sent to the Feng family as well, and then set off cheerfully for the Qu manor to celebrate Qin Yao’s coming-of-age ceremony.

Feng Boyu sat in his study, motionless, his head tilted to one side as he gazed quietly out the window.

He wore a half-worn sapphire-blue robe, half his figure bathed in the autumn sunlight. The ink at the tip of the brush he held had long since dried, yet the characters he had intended to write remained unformed. He sat as still and silent as a carefully sculpted statue.

A sound of dry retching from the east wing broke through his thoughts. He turned his head and stared blankly down at the paper before his brush.

In truth, he had nothing he needed to write. He had only picked up the brush and seated himself here out of habit — as though by repeating the gestures she had once made, his tangled thoughts might find some relief.

He remembered how, only a few months ago, she had sat at this very table, using a brush to write down the suspicious points in the case of the wrongfully killed women from Pingkang Ward. She had discussed her reasoning with him, listing the inconsistencies in the case one by one, her eyes, clear as water, filled with a keenness of mind that had left him deeply struck.

He also remembered the focused look on her face as she held the brush, and the faint, serene scent of wax plum blossoms at her temples — how close she had been, and how the vulnerability she had inadvertently revealed had left him not knowing what to do with himself.

After she left, he had lain awake for a long time, experiencing for the first time what it meant to pine for someone. That evening had been so profoundly beautiful that it had branded itself upon his heart, impossible ever to efface.

At this thought, a shadow of pain and regret passed through his pale eyes. What he had believed could be carried forward in a slow and steady current of feeling had, in the space of a single turn, been forever changed by circumstance.

He set down the brush and slowly drew from his breast a pair of pearl flower hairpins, turning them over in his hands, caressing them gently.

He had walked all through the jewelry shops of Chang’an to find these hairpins. At the time, he had been wholly determined to choose a gift with which to declare his feelings on the Festival of Flowers. He had visited several shops without finding anything that caught his eye. Finally, at Runyu Pavilion, he had caught sight of this pair of orchid-tassel pearl hairpins entirely by chance, and his eyes had lit up at once. He had imagined how brilliantly beautiful and charming they would look nestled in her hair, should she accept his feelings.

Yet this gift, which ought to have been presented on the Festival of Flowers, had been thwarted by a cruel twist of fate, and there was no longer any way to give it.

Footsteps sounded at the door. A middle-aged manservant entered. “Young Master, this servant has returned. Just now, A’Li said you wished to send something to the Qu family. The hour is not early — shall this servant ride swiftly to deliver it?”

Feng Boyu’s mouth tasted of bitterness. He stiffly tucked the hairpins back into his breast, and said in a flat tone, “No need.”

She was soon to be another man’s wife. He had no choice but to take the princess in marriage. The only thing he could do for her was to bury this feeling he carried for her forever in the depths of his heart.

Not long after Qin Yao’s coming-of-age ceremony, Duke Wei’s manor welcomed Feng Chuyue as their new bride.

Wang Yingning and Liu Bingyu had both been among the guests invited to attend. When they came to the Qu manor afterwards to visit Qin Yao, they spoke of the various details of the wedding that day, saying it had been fairly well-managed and suitably grand — Feng Chuyue had not been made to suffer any obvious slight.

After all, it was the eldest legitimate son taking a wife, and the Duke and Duchess of Wei could not but put on a respectable face for the family’s sake.

However, word had it that on the wedding night, Xia Di had not even returned to the inner courtyard. After the toast was done, he had vanished without a trace. Duke Wei’s household dared not make a scene of it, nor did they make any genuine effort to bring the Second Young Master back. Thus Feng Chuyue spent her wedding night alone, keeping vigil in an empty room.

The Second Young Master remained missing the following day as well. Feng Chuyue endured the humiliation alone, presenting herself to offer tea to the Duke and Duchess of Wei all by herself. Under different circumstances, any other woman would have been weeping and crying out in despair. Yet Feng Chuyue uttered not a single word of complaint, and before Princess Derong she conducted herself with the utmost humility and obsequiousness, working hard to make a favorable impression. That Princess Derong harbored no affection for this daughter-in-law was known throughout all of Chang’an. She treated Feng Chuyue with cool indifference. How things would unfold going forward remained to be seen.

Princess Kangping, however, continued to treat Feng Chuyue with the same warmth as before, visiting her at Duke Wei’s manor on several occasions, giving her ample face. Only then did the servants of Duke Wei’s household dare not take liberties against Feng Chuyue.

After Liu Bingyu finished speaking, she sighed and said, “I honestly wonder whether Feng Chuyue’s skin is made of iron, it’s so thick. If my husband treated me like that, I’d have gone straight back to my family. Even if he wouldn’t cast me out, I’d cast him out myself.”

Pei Min agreed wholeheartedly. “She chose this path herself. She should have seen this day coming long ago. Having swallowed the blow, she can only keep it down. Who is there to blame?”

Qin Yao thought of Feng Boyu, knowing how much he cared for his sister. If he were to learn that Xia Di treated Feng Chuyue with such coldness, he would not be at ease — she could not help but sigh heavily.

Time passed, and October arrived.

The Ministry of Rites had long since completed the formal betrothal process on Lin Xiao’s behalf. The Prince Lan household had also sent an exceptionally generous and proper set of five ceremonial gifts. People of the time no longer strictly adhered to the ancient custom of wild geese as the betrothal gift, often substituting geese or ducks instead — but the pair of wild geese sent by Prince Lan’s household had been personally hunted by Lin Xiao himself, alive and lively among the array of ceremonial gifts, a wonderfully auspicious omen.

As for the betrothal presents, they were so lavishly generous as to leave onlookers breathless with admiration. On the day the gifts were delivered, they drew no small amount of astonished and envious commentary from the people of Chang’an.

In the days leading up to the wedding, the Qu household was in a state of constant bustling activity from morning to night, with not a moment’s rest, for fear of overlooking or making an error in any detail. Even Qu Ziyu found himself repeatedly requesting a half-day’s leave of absence from the Hanlin Academy to help his parents manage the various miscellaneous affairs.

Qin Yao was comparatively the most idle of all. For fear of cutting her hand — which would be an inauspicious omen — Qu Chen Shi had long since forbidden her from touching any needlework. Welcoming guests and attending to sundry duties was deemed unbecomingly forward for a bride-to-be, and Qu Chen Shi firmly refused to let Qin Yao have any part of it.

She simply ordered the kitchen to prepare nourishing broths and congees daily, keeping Qin Yao fed and pampered like a little pig. With nothing to do, Qin Yao ate and slept and slept and ate, and her complexion grew so smooth and luminous it seemed one could blow on it like glass. She put on a bit of weight as well. Qu Chen Shi, seeing this, would not infrequently pinch Qin Yao’s cheeks with a grin that simply would not close.

Qin Yao looked up at the sky in helpless exasperation. Fortunately, she would be able to get out and breathe some air in just a few more days. If she were to be kept up like this any longer, her mother really would turn her into a little pig.