The door flew open, and Qing Xuzi appeared in the doorway, staring at Qin Yao with suspicion for a long moment. Perhaps mindful of Yuan Jue still inside the room, he swallowed back whatever words had risen to his lips and only said, “You’re here? Go play with your senior brother outside for a while — I’ll come out once I’m done talking.”

With a bang, he shut the door again.

Qin Yao made a sound of acknowledgment and slipped down the steps in a flash, pretending to watch A’Han and Fuyuan play kickball, putting on an air of complete nonchalance, even helping to fetch the ball now and then. But only she herself knew that the clothes on her back were already soaked through with sweat.

Before long, the door opened again, and her master and Yuan Jue emerged, one after the other. As they passed by Qin Yao and the others, Yuan Jue stopped and cast a glance toward Qin Yao.

Perhaps because Qin Yao had a guilty conscience, no matter how she looked at it, Yuan Jue’s gaze seemed to carry a hint of warning.

She quickly looked back at him, feigning confusion.

Yuan Jue stared at Qin Yao, and seeing her gaze clear and open, with not the slightest hint of anything amiss, he narrowed his eyes briefly, then calmly looked away and strode off.

Catching sight of Madam Zhou, Qing Xuzi froze for a moment, then asked Qin Yao, “Who is she?”

Qin Yao quickly pulled her thoughts back from Yuan Jue and led Madam Zhou before her master, saying, “Master, please bring out that elixir vial I gave you some days ago.”

Her tone carried a heaviness she couldn’t quite conceal.

Beneath her sleeve, Madam Zhou’s hand unconsciously clenched tight, and her face began to turn pale.

Qing Xuzi suddenly understood. He studied Madam Zhou closely for a moment, nodded, and said to her, “Please, follow this humble Daoist.”

Master and disciple led Madam Zhou to a side chamber. The room had no windows on any side, and once the door was shut, it fell into total darkness, like the dead of night.

Not understanding what was happening, Madam Zhou stood frozen in the room.

Qin Yao lit a lamp and began explaining everything from the start. “Madam Zhou, before I married the young master of Prince Lan’s household, I was a student at Yunyin Academy. Two months ago, one night, a wandering spirit suddenly appeared at the academy. If not for that spirit, we never would have known that an evil demon had appeared in Chang’an, nor would we have followed the trail to discover the scorpion spirit’s whereabouts. That wandering spirit is, in fact, the origin of this entire chain of strange events.”

Madam Zhou’s body swayed, and her face pale, she asked, “A wandering spirit?”

Qin Yao quickly steadied her and said in a low voice, “Yes. Though I don’t know why this spirit drifted all the way from the western outskirts of Chang’an to the academy, he kept searching for his wife the whole time, saying his wife’s name was Liniang and that he’d accidentally become separated from her. No matter who he encountered, he kept asking again and again whether they had seen his wife.”

Hearing the name Liniang, Madam Zhou understood at once. Her heart twisted in agony, but she still couldn’t bring herself to believe it, shaking her head desperately. “No. No.”

Watching her, Qin Yao’s heart ached. She held her firmly and said gently, “His devotion has bound him so completely that he refuses to enter the cycle of reincarnation. Only by seeing with his own eyes that his wife is safe and well can he let go of his attachment and be reborn. That’s why I brought you to see him one last time, so that he may pass on at peace.”

Madam Zhou’s whole body trembled uncontrollably. She covered her mouth and began to weep silently.

Unable to bear watching any longer, Qin Yao walked over to her master and whispered something in his ear. Qing Xuzi sighed, made some adjustment to the elixir vial first, and only then slowly released the half-headed ghost from within.

Because Qin Yao had specifically instructed him to use an illusion technique, in Madam Zhou’s eyes, her husband’s head remained whole and undamaged, exactly as it had been in life.

To him, this was nothing more than a trivial effort, but to Madam Zhou it made all the difference in the world — never having seen her husband’s gruesome state at death meant that, for the rest of her life, whenever she thought of her late husband, she would be spared at least some of the heartache and grief.

Once Zhou Heng emerged, his consciousness was still hazy, and he simply paced back and forth around the room, muttering under his breath, “I’m looking for my wife. She’s very beautiful, her name is Liniang. Have you seen her?”

“Heng-lang!” Madam Zhou’s heart shattered. She burst into loud sobs and ran forward swiftly, arms thrown open to embrace the figure — only to grasp at nothing, stumbling and nearly falling to the ground.

Qin Yao quickly stepped forward to steady Madam Zhou, then silently chanted an incantation to awaken and enlighten Zhou Heng’s spirit.

Without Madam Zhou present, even if awakened, Zhou Heng’s spirit would quickly sink back into confusion, rendering the effort useless.

As if waking from a dream, Zhou Heng, guided by Qin Yao, slowly turned in place. Turning, he saw Liniang and froze. “Liniang.”

His eyes gradually welled with deep, profound sorrow.

Zhou Liniang completely broke down, throwing herself forward to embrace the empty air, weeping in anguish.

Qin Yao couldn’t bear to watch such a scene. Wiping the dampness from the corners of her eyes, she pulled her master along and stepped outside, closing the door behind them to let this devoted couple of the mortal world share their final farewell.

In the courtyard, autumn leaves withered and drifted on the wind, just like the rootless, floating fate of human lives.

A long while later, the heart-wrenching sobbing inside the room finally began to quiet. Qin Yao pushed the door open and went in, finding Madam Zhou embracing the insubstantial form of Zhou Heng, her expression filled with sorrow, murmuring softly, utterly unwilling to let go.

Qing Xuzi’s brow furrowed. If the spirit hadn’t been awakened, that would have been one thing, but once awakened, it shouldn’t linger too long in the mortal world, lest the spirit, unwilling to part with this earthly life, gradually develop resentment.

Qin Yao naturally understood this principle, and so she stepped forward to take Madam Zhou’s arm, gently consoling her. “Madam Zhou, we must now perform the rite to send your husband on his way. There isn’t a trace of resentment or malice in him — he must have been an exceedingly kind man in life, which shows he accumulated much blessing in his days. With my master adding his blessing, he’s sure to be reborn into a good life soon.”

At these words, the tears Madam Zhou had only just managed to stop fell again, and she wept, “How could you ask me to bear letting go? How could I? My husband and I were married for fifteen years and never once quarreled or raised our voices. If not for that thousand-cuts-deserving son of Governor Li’s family harassing us, we never would have abandoned our home and trade to seek refuge in Chang’an. But who could have known we would meet with such a wicked calamity on the road, reduced to a state of family ruin and death — and not only my husband Zhou-lang, but my two children as well—” She wept so hard she couldn’t catch her breath, and fainted dead away.

Startled, Qin Yao hurried forward and worked for a good while to help ease her breathing, until she finally, faintly, came to.

Zhou Heng gazed at his beloved wife. Though no tears could fall from his eyes any longer, his face was still full of grief. He silently mouthed a few words to Liniang, then slowly turned and allowed Qing Xuzi to draw him back into the elixir vial.

Qin Yao thought about it for a moment before realizing what Zhou Heng had said: Live well.

Her eyes grew hot, and she let out a heavy sigh.

By the time the rite for Zhou Heng was complete, dusk had already fallen. Throughout it all, Qin Yao had needed to assist her master while also keeping constant watch to prevent Madam Zhou from taking her own life, and truly had no chance to ask her master about the matter with Yuan Jue.

Once her master had finished, she finally managed to probe a little, sidelong, only to be scolded by him for it. Not only did she fail to learn even the smallest clue, she was chased right out by her master besides.

On the way back, though Qin Yao’s mind was still full of unanswered questions, she didn’t forget to instruct Chang Rong to go to Cangzhou at once to bring Madam Zhou’s daughter to Chang’an.

She herself helped the now utterly exhausted, tear-spent Madam Zhou into the carriage and brought her back to the residence, settling her temporarily in the West Courtyard of Prince Lan’s household.

The next morning, Qin Yao used the excuse of going to the palace to pay respects to Consort Yi as a pretext to go find Lin Xiao — she had far too many questions to discuss with him and truly couldn’t wait for him to finish his shift and return home.

Once word reached Lin Xiao, he handed off all his pending matters to Xu Shenming and went to Yongshou Palace to meet Qin Yao.

Partway there, he ran into a certain Eunuch Chang from the Directorate of Ceremonial. Upon seeing Lin Xiao, Eunuch Chang glanced around in both directions, and seeing not a single palace attendant within several zhang in any direction, lowered his voice and said, “Young General Mou of Liaodong has secretly returned to Chang’an, and within the next two days he’ll petition the Emperor to grant him a marriage. If this person within the palace truly proves to be a troublemaker, Young General Mou will naturally see to it she never returns. But if her hands are clean, since the young general remains unmarried to this day, he won’t treat her unkindly either — either way, it’s a solution that serves everyone.”

Lin Xiao paused his steps for a moment and gave a sound of acknowledgment. Eunuch Chang bowed slightly, and the two passed each other by.

Just as he turned toward the eaves outside Yongshou Palace, a female official came around the corner. Upon seeing Lin Xiao, she seemed to give a start, and the scroll in her hands slipped, falling at Lin Xiao’s feet.

Qin Yuan hastily apologized again and again. “Young Master, I’m so sorry — I was too careless.”

Lin Xiao lowered his eyes, watching as Qin Yuan slowly bent down to pick up the scroll, then slowly rose again, his expression remaining completely unreadable throughout.

As Qin Yuan straightened up, she noticed Lin Xiao’s gaze had remained fixed on her face the whole time, and her hands began to tremble uncontrollably. Flustered, she bowed hastily to him and withdrew with her head lowered.

Yongshou Palace was lively indeed — besides Qin Yao, Derong and the others were there as well.

With Kangping’s wedding date drawing near, Consort Yi was discussing the specific arrangements for the ceremony with the Emperor and the others. Kangping herself, perhaps out of bashfulness, was not present in Yongshou Palace.

The Crown Prince sat to one side along with Prince Wu, keeping them company.

As Lin Xiao entered, his gaze fell first on Qin Yao. Seeing her sitting comfortably beside Consort Yi with a smile on her face, he felt a wave of relief settle over him first.

Spotting Lin Xiao, the Emperor waved him over with a smile. “Weijin, your wife is here too — have you come to fetch her? Come over here and talk with us for a while.”

Derong said with a smile, “Speaking of which, the palace really has had one happy occasion after another — we’d only just finished two weddings, and now Kangping is getting married too.”

Before she had even finished speaking, the Crown Prince, as though struck by some sudden feeling, suddenly walked to the center of the hall and dropped to his knees, ramrod straight, calling out loudly, “Father, your son has a request to make.”