“Prince… Young Master, we’ve arrived.” Outside the carriage was the driver Pang Xiao had left behind. He was honest and straightforward but quick-tongued, almost habitually addressing her as Princess out of habit. Fortunately, he caught himself and promptly changed his form of address.
Qin Yining lifted the carriage curtain while stepping down, joking as she did so: “Young Master Wang—that title sounds rather nice.”
The driver’s face turned bright red as he cupped his hands and bowed to Qin Yining.
Qin Yining smiled and waved her hand, showing no intention of blame. Her one teasing remark had considerably eased the originally tense atmosphere. Even Manager Zhong felt his inner restlessness dissipate into nothing.
Manager Zhong and Jingzhe flanked Qin Yining left and right as the three of them walked together toward the entrance of the Zheng Family Cloth Shop.
The main gate was tightly closed, with only high-hanging white lanterns visible.
Following the courtyard wall along the side of the shop toward the back courtyard, they could see spirit banners taller than the surrounding walls, with corners protruding above.
The air was permeated with the smell of burning paper money.
In the quiet alley, they could faintly hear the suppressed sobbing of women.
Qin Yining closed her eyes, her heart growing heavy again, and looked back at Manager Zhong.
Manager Zhong immediately understood and stepped forward to knock on the door.
After the back courtyard gate was knocked upon, the inside fell silent for a moment, then footsteps approached and an old woman’s voice rose higher asking: “Who is it!”
“We’ve come to request an audience with your shop’s manager.” Manager Zhong answered loudly.
The old woman said “wait a moment” and walked away.
After just a moment, the back courtyard door was pushed open. Two elderly servant women positioned themselves left and right, then a beautiful woman in her prime years emerged.
The woman wore plain clothing with silver ornaments and white silk flowers in her hair, and a white cloth sash tied around her waist. Her eyes were red and swollen, giving her a rather pitiful appearance.
Perhaps seeing that three men stood outside the door, the woman was startled.
Qin Yining stepped forward and cupped her hands: “Are you the manager here?”
After Qin Yining’s disguise, she appeared as a young man with delicate, feminine features. She deliberately lowered her voice, which quite resembled the ambiguous sound of a young person’s voice. Combined with her unbound feet and free-spirited bearing, no flaws were visible.
The woman seemed somewhat more guarded and politely returned the courtesy: “This humble woman is indeed the manager of this small shop. However, something has happened in this humble woman’s family, so we’re not conducting business these past few days. If this young master has any business, please return another day.”
Qin Yining nodded, looking over the woman’s shoulder to see a scene of desolate white throughout the courtyard.
The woman frowned slightly in displeasure. Only out of a merchant’s principle that harmony brings wealth did she not immediately scold Qin Yining for impropriety, saying with displeasure: “Young master, please return.”
Only then did Qin Yining speak softly in her original voice: “My grandmother is the Duke Dingguo’s wife.”
The woman froze, looking Qin Yining up and down in astonishment: “You…”
Qin Yining turned to receive an exquisite carved redwood box from Jingzhe’s hands and presented it to the woman.
The woman looked up suspiciously at Qin Yining before lowering her head to open the box.
The interior was lined with black velvet, containing a golden seal with a small booklet beside it.
These were Qin Yining’s golden册 and golden seal from when she was invested as Princess Zhongshun. Just from the materials and craftsmanship, they couldn’t possibly be fakes.
Qin Yining said quietly: “The Duke Dingguo’s wife’s granddaughter is Princess Zhongshun. The manager must surely know this.”
The woman came to her senses, nodding repeatedly while stepping aside to make way, inviting Qin Yining’s party into the courtyard before carefully closing the courtyard gate.
Qin Yining looked at the mourning hall arranged in the courtyard, with a black lacquered coffin in the center. The sight made her hands and feet ice-cold, and after a long while she said hoarsely: “Has something happened to my grandmother? Shouldn’t she be in the south? How could she be in the old capital? What exactly is going on?”
As she spoke, Qin Yining stumbled toward the black lacquered coffin.
Her heart was both panicked and afraid. Though resistant, she wanted to see clearly whether grandmother had truly passed away.
But when she approached, she clearly saw that the coffin was completely empty.
“Princess, Old Madam Zheng hasn’t died yet, but she is in danger.”
Qin Yining quickly turned around: “What exactly happened?”
“This humble woman’s surname is Ma. When Old Madam originally ordered me to come to the Zheng Family Cloth Shop, she had already instructed that if her granddaughter, Princess Zhongshun of the Qin clan, ever came to the shop to make contact, if there were any orders, I must cooperate fully. I must also relay information to Old Madam promptly.
“When news came that Prince Zhongshun had been appointed Grand Marshal of Pingnan and would bring his family to take up the post, Old Madam immediately came to the old capital personally. She was worried that you and the Prince had been away from the old capital too long and might find some connections difficult to navigate upon arriving. So she came ahead as an advance guard.”
Qin Yining was moved upon hearing this.
How could grandmother be worried they couldn’t navigate connections? She clearly understood Pang Xiao and her situation, fearing that Pang Xiao, who had originally destroyed Great Yan, would face difficulties on Yan Dynasty territory. This was her considering everything for them, no matter how large or small.
Thinking of this, Qin Yining’s eyes moistened.
Ma Shi continued: “Originally everything was still fine, but who could have expected that just two days after Old Madam settled in at the cloth shop, she was seized by outsiders. High Commissioner Gao from the yamen brought people and arrested Old Madam for no reason at all. Old Madam argued with High Commissioner Gao on principle, but it was truly a case of a scholar meeting soldiers—reason couldn’t be clearly explained.
“With no choice, before Old Madam left, she instructed me to prepare a mourning hall for her here. She said she wasn’t making good plans for this trip—most likely she wouldn’t return. With the mourning hall prepared, she could depart with a light heart.”
Qin Yining’s tears streamed down her face.
Though Ma Shi’s account wasn’t detailed enough, she understood the Duke Dingguo’s wife’s temperament and could guess at the situation.
Ma Shi must have stood proudly in the courtyard, arguing on principle without any fear. When the argument reached an impasse, she proudly prepared to die heroically.
“With such a major incident, why didn’t you hurry to find me?” Qin Yining’s voice was somewhat sharp.
Ma Shi waved her hands repeatedly: “It’s not that I didn’t look for you, but Old Madam instructed that unless you personally came here seeking us out, we absolutely must not take the initiative to find you.”
Qin Yining closed her eyes, feeling a wet, cold sensation in her heart.
Grandmother didn’t want to implicate her.
Manager Zhong’s expression was also heavy, nearly on the verge of tears.
Qin Yining gritted her teeth and after a long while said: “When was she taken? What explanation did the yamen give?”
“It’s been a day and a night already. The yamen gave no explanation at all, only saying Old Madam was suspected of collaborating with enemies and betraying the country. They just took her away like that. We tried using silver and finding connections, but nothing worked. This time the yamen doesn’t care about money—they seem determined to take Old Madam’s life!”
Ma Shi wept uncontrollably, suddenly kneeling and grasping Qin Yining’s legs in supplication: “Please save her—you must save Old Madam!”