Luo Yongping listened to Gu Jin Chao’s instructions and secretly noted them down. These matters would be better handled by Cao Ziheng than by himself, so he planned to discuss them with Cao Ziheng. Although he hadn’t signed a contract of indentured servitude, he was still considered a servant of the Gu family—more specifically, he was Gu Jin Chao’s man. Their fortunes rose and fell together. If Young Miss Gu eventually married into an unfavorable family, none of them would fare well either.
Gu Jin Chao took a sip of tea, planning to wait for Gu Lian and the others before leaving. Luo Yongping went to fetch the account books of the new silk shop for her to review. Gu Jin Chao looked out the window and noticed a blue-curtained carriage traveling along the clean bluestone road, stopping in front of the Liuhe Restaurant. A rhinoceros-patterned ram’s horn glass lantern hung at the front of the carriage, which was driven by a large man.
Gu Jin Chao immediately recognized it as the Chen family’s carriage. The Chen family’s carriages all used rhinoceros-patterned ram’s horn glass lanterns, which were quite rare… But wasn’t the Chen family in Wanping? Why would they come to Daxing?
And who exactly from the Chen family had come to Daxing?
She lifted the blue fine cloth curtain to look more carefully. After the carriage stopped, the large man lifted the carriage curtain, and a man wearing a gray cloak and blue straight robe stepped down. The man had handsome and scholarly features, with deep, unfathomable eyes. Once he alighted, the large man immediately lowered the carriage curtain and respectfully invited him into the Liuhe Restaurant. A middle-aged man in yellowish-brown official robes came forward to greet him.
Gu Jin Chao’s eyelids twitched in surprise. Why would Chen Third Master come to Daxing? She also recognized the man in yellowish-brown official robes—Jiang Yan, a Military Commander who often helped Chen Third Master with various matters. She wanted to get a clearer view and lifted the curtain a bit more.
Chen Third Master, however, seemed to sense someone watching and glanced in her direction across the bustling street.
Gu Jin Chao immediately lowered the curtain. Chen Third Master typically disliked crowds when he went out and didn’t bring guards. His carriage driver, Hu Rong, was a skilled fighter who could split a bowl-thick tree with his bare hands. But why would such a high-ranking official—a Grand Secretary and Minister of Revenue, a second-rank official—come to Daxing for tea? Gu Jin Chao noticed several more carriages parked in front of the Liuhe Restaurant. She beckoned a shop assistant and gave him a few instructions, asking him to go to the Liuhe Restaurant to gather information.
The assistant quickly ran off and soon returned to report: “…Young Miss, please listen to my humble findings. We shop assistants often chat with those from the Liuhe Restaurant and are quite familiar with them. But when I asked, they refused to tell me. I went to look at the carriages—the one accompanying them belonged to our Daxing’s Lord Zheng, and several others looked unusual. I suspect they are high officials from the capital…”
The silk shop assistant was quite clever. Gu Jin Chao had Qing Pu reward him with a few small pieces of silver.
Lord Zheng from Daxing… that should be Zheng Yun, the Left Vice Minister of Revenue.
Gu Jin Chao felt this matter was quite unusual.
But affairs of the imperial court had little connection to her. She didn’t want any association with the Chen family either.
Gu Jin Chao felt she shouldn’t meddle in these matters.
A while later, Gu Lian and Gu Lan returned from visiting other silk shops. Gu Lian glanced at Gu Jin Chao and asked with a smile, “Cousin Jin Chao, you’ve been selecting for so long—aren’t you going to buy any silk?”
Gu Jin Chao repeatedly declined, saying, “…I didn’t bring much silver with me when I went out, so I’d better not.”
Chen Yong’s wife smiled and said, “Please don’t stand on ceremony. The Grand Madam said she would cover the expenses for both you and Miss Lan.”
Gu Jin Chao said she truly didn’t fancy anything, and after some more conversation, the three women strolled out of the silk shop.
Chen Yan Yun ascended the stairs of the Liuhe Restaurant, with Jiang Yan following behind him, speaking softly: “Lord Zhang has already arranged everything, but that Records Office Director wasn’t very cooperative and was transferred to the Measurement Office by Lord Zheng… If the secret leaks out, he can be removed immediately.”
Chen Yan Yun nodded and said calmly, “When you speak with that Records Office Director, if the information is leaked, even his family members… shouldn’t blame us for being ruthless…” Before he could finish, they reached the second-floor gallery, where Zheng Yun, who had been waiting, clasped his hands in greeting and smiled, “Lord Chen, the honored guest arrives late; we’ve been waiting for you for some time.” With a gesture of his hand, he invited him to take a seat first.
Chen Yan Yun smiled faintly: “I met my son on the way and gave him a few more instructions. The lords should have started eating without waiting for me.”
Chen Yan Yun handed his cloak to Hu Rong. At the table, besides several officials from Daxing, there was also the Grand Secretary of the Prudence Palace Hall, Wang Xuan Fan, who was equally ranked as a Grand Secretary. Everyone paid their respects to Third Master Chen, and Chen Yan Yun exchanged greetings with Wang Xuan Fan.
Wang Xuan Fan smiled and said, “I just saw Third Master pause downstairs, looking at the Suzhou-Hangzhou Silk Shop across the street. There were two young ladies from noble families out for a stroll at the entrance. Not just Third Master, but anyone would want to take a second look at such youthful beauty.” He called over a servant boy and told him to go down and inquire which family the young ladies were from. “…If they’ve caught our Third Master’s eye, they must be extraordinary. You people from the Chen family all act as if you’re immune to female charm.”
Chen Yan Yun traced his finger around the rim of his wine cup and laughed deeply: “I don’t deserve to be called ‘Third Master’ by Lord Wang. In terms of age and experience, Lord Wang far surpasses me.” This Wang Xuan Fan was decent in all respects except for his lecherous nature—he had over thirty concubines and serving girls in his household. Wang Xuan Fan had never been on good terms with him; both served under Zhang Julin, so conflicts were inevitable.
The smile on Wang Xuan Fan’s face froze. In terms of age and experience, he certainly didn’t lag behind Chen Yan Yun, but within the Grand Secretariat, he had to yield to Chen Yan Yun. He was truly somewhat resentful—if Chen Yan Yun wasn’t Zhang Julin’s disciple, could he have entered the Grand Secretariat at such a young age?
He immediately burst into laughter again, patting Chen Yan Yun’s shoulder: “Last time, when Lord Zhang heard that everyone in court calls you ‘Third Master,’ he also jokingly used the term. It gave everyone a good laugh. It’s truly remarkable how highly Lord Zhang values you.”
Just then, the servant boy who had been sent down returned with news: “…Reporting to Lord Wang, they are said to be the Second Miss and the Cousin Miss from the Gu family in Daxing.”
Wang Xuan Fan asked, “Which Gu family in Daxing?”
Someone at the table immediately responded: “Lord Wang may not know, but our Daxing’s Gu family produces beauties—they’re famous far and wide. The eldest daughter of Censor Gu has married into Cangzhou. His second daughter, even before coming of age, was engaged to the second son of Grand Secretary Yao. I’ve heard that the eldest daughter from the branch of Lang Zhong Gu is exceptionally beautiful, though unfortunately her reputation isn’t good, so there aren’t many suitors.”
Wang Xuan Fan smiled and asked Chen Yan Yun: “If Third Master has taken a fancy to any of them, why not speak to the Gu family? Taking one as a concubine would be quite acceptable.”
Chen Yan Yun glanced at Wang Xuan Fan before smiling: “…Lord Wang is overthinking. I merely thought I saw an acquaintance, so I looked a bit longer. Don’t make false accusations—I have no interest in such matters.”
Wang Xuan Fan felt that glance was indeed rather cold.
He thought for a moment but couldn’t figure out which of his words had been inappropriate. Chen Yan Yun was known for his good temper, but if provoked to anger, it wouldn’t end well… Could it be that he truly had taken a liking to one of the Gu family’s young ladies?
Wang Xuan Fan made a mental note to thoroughly investigate these two young ladies from the Gu family after returning.
After several rounds of drinks, everyone was in high spirits.
Yet Chen Yan Yun felt increasingly clear-headed with each cup of wine. He gazed toward the window, where the sunlight was just right.
He rose and walked toward the window, wanting to feel the breeze. Jiang Yan hurriedly stepped forward to support him: “Third Master…”
The Third Master Chen gave him a look that made Jiang Yan feel quite alarmed. He quietly asked, “Would Your Excellency like this official to find a room for you to rest for a moment?”
Chen Yan Yun waved his hand: “…Go call Hu Rong over.”
He walked to the window and looked outside. Below was the extremely prosperous Dezhong Alley, with its rows of shops and teahouses. Snow covered the rooftops and street edges, making the snow-covered ground particularly dazzling in the sunlight. A carriage was parked in front of the Suzhou-Hangzhou Silk Shop, with servants surrounding three young women as they boarded. The woman wearing a honey-colored winter jacket with branch patterns and a lake-colored embroidered skirt was the last to board. She raised her hand to adjust the hair by her cheek, smiling and saying something to the maid beside her, a black jade bracelet sliding down her wrist.
Hu Rong came over to drape the cloak around him, whispering, “Wasn’t she the one looking at us earlier? Why are you watching her?”
Chen Yan Yun smiled and said, “She… doesn’t remember me at all.”
The last time at the Ji family, when he accompanied the Ji family members to see Ji Can and Chen Xuan’s new room, he overheard Gu Jin Chao commenting on his painting: “Although the painting is grand, this ‘standing above all peaks, looking down upon the mountains’ spirit, when applied to an ordinary scholar, seems too pretentious… I think a simple ink bamboo painting would be more elegant.” Her tone was very serious.
He had obtained his jinshi degree in both civil and military examinations in the 31st year of the Jiajing Emperor’s reign and was imperially appointed as the second-ranked scholar. Now he was also a Grand Secretary of the Eastern Hall, a senior official serving two emperors. He had never heard anyone describe his paintings as pretentious. He wasn’t angry, though. When Gu Jin Chao turned and saw him, she was startled but showed no sign of familiarity.
Come to think of it, they had only met twice, and Gu Jin Chao was still young then—how could she remember?
Hu Rong asked curiously, “You’ve met her before?”
Chen Yan Yun’s fingers lightly tapped the windowsill as he pondered for a moment.
She should have been living carefree in the inner chambers, waiting to marry and then support her husband and teach her children, but it seemed she might not get her wish… If the Gu family fell into chaos, how could she live a peaceful life? Political struggles always require sacrifices… Originally thinking he shouldn’t interfere, he now felt reluctant to stand by.
It was truly inappropriate.
He closed his eyes briefly and said softly, “Go find paper and brush for me.”
…
Gu Jin Chao had just boarded the carriage, and Qing Pu had put away the mounting stool and was about to board as well when someone tugged at her sleeve. She turned to look and saw an unfamiliar large man. The man quickly handed something to her, saying softly, “For your young mistress…” Then he walked away as if nothing had happened, the entire process happening so quickly it was as if he had merely strolled around without doing anything.
Who was this person? Did he want to give something to the Young Miss?
Qing Pu watched the man’s retreating figure, certain he was a trained fighter with exceptional skills.
She pressed the object in her hand, feeling it was likely a rolled piece of paper, and discreetly tucked it into her sleeve. Chen Yong’s wife was speaking with the carriage driver, instructing him to drive steadily, and gave him a small silver piece as a reward.
The carriage finally started moving, with the entourage following behind towards the Gu family residence. Qing Pu’s hand pressed against the rolled paper, her palm beginning to sweat.