After chatting with Gu Jin Chao for a few sentences, Ji Yu needed to go back.

“The nursemaid will be worried if she wakes up and can’t find me…” He waved goodbye to Gu Jin Chao and dashed off in a flash.

The opera performance lasted until nearly dusk before ending. Gu Jin Chao accompanied Madam Ji Wu to the west wing for dinner.

By the time they returned to the east wing, lanterns were already lit throughout the courtyard.

Song Mama stood at the entrance waiting for them: “Second Master has been back for an hour.”

Gu Jin Chao held Madam Ji Wu’s hand as they entered, and indeed saw Ji Yao standing outside the main hall with his hands behind his back, staring absently at the jujube tree.

Madam Ji Wu invited him into the west side room, and maids brought tea.

“You said there was an issue with the transport ship. What exactly was the problem?” Madam Ji Wu asked, holding her teacup.

Ji Yao replied calmly: “The cargo manifest didn’t match up… It was the Sun family’s goods from the northern and southern rice merchants. I spoke with Second Master Sun; they can first obtain stock from the Ji family’s rice store, and I’ll send people to Jiangxi to check if there’s an issue with the granaries there.”

Madam Ji Wu nodded: “We’ve had a long relationship with the Sun family. We mustn’t damage our mutual respect.”

Ji Yao smiled: “You can rest assured about my handling of affairs.”

As they were talking, Madam Zou came in carrying Chang Suo. This child was peculiar—during the day, he was content to be held by anyone and wasn’t shy at all. But when evening came and it was time to sleep, he became particular, only willing to fall asleep in Gu Jin Chao’s arms.

Chang Suo’s little face was red from crying. Upon seeing Gu Jin Chao, he lunged straight into her arms.

“He wants to sleep now…” Gu Jin Chao patted Chang Suo’s back, saying helplessly, “I’ll put him to sleep first, otherwise he’ll keep crying.”

Gu Jin Chao carried Chang Suo to the warm room and only came out after lulling him to sleep.

Ji Yao had paid his respects to Madam Ji Wu and was preparing to leave. Outside, darkness had completely fallen, and a cold wind had risen. He stood up, put on a cloak, and handed a cape from the side to Gu Jin Chao: “Cousin, are you also returning to your chambers? Let me escort you there.”

Madam Ji Wu yawned: “I’m feeling tired as well… Your cousin is leaving tomorrow, so it’s good to rest early tonight.”

Gu Jin Chao had her maids and elderly servants with her, so she hardly needed Ji Yao to escort her to her chambers. But she couldn’t refuse politely—after all, it was just a short walk. She followed behind Ji Yao out of the west side room. Ji Yao walked toward the west chambers first.

When they reached the end, he stopped. Without turning around, he asked distantly: “You’re leaving tomorrow? Why such a hurry?”

Gu Jin Chao nodded: “I’m learning to be a household manager now, so I shouldn’t delay too long…”

He remained silent for a long time. After a while, he sighed: “Would you like me to send people to escort you?”

“I came with drivers and guards, so that won’t be necessary,” Gu Jin Chao said softly. “Of course, I appreciate your kind offer.”

She was being exceedingly polite.

Ji Yao turned around and looked at her faintly, saying softly: “Then never mind.”

Gu Jin Chao nodded and was about to enter the west chamber with her maids and elderly servants when he continued from behind: “…I broke my promise to you back then. I hope you don’t blame me. I should have told you these words earlier, but I felt there was no need.” He laughed self-mockingly, “After all, it’s all in the past.”

Yes, it was all in the past.

Gu Jin Chao said nothing, remaining silent for a long time: “I saw Yu’er this afternoon. He’s quite adorable.”

Upon hearing this, Ji Yao merely smiled meaninglessly, and then left.

The lanterns under the eaves swayed slightly in the wind, their candlelight falling on the stone steps. Gu Jin Chao gazed in the direction he had left for a long time before carrying Chang Suo across the threshold.

The next day, a light rain began to fall. The courtyard was filled with the pattern of raindrops, and the autumn atmosphere gradually intensified.

Madam Ji Wu looked at the rain with some concern: “Perhaps you should leave tomorrow instead. What if the rain gets heavier?”

But Gu Jin Chao wanted to return to the Chen household quickly. She squeezed Madam Ji Wu’s hand reassuringly: “Don’t worry, autumn rain rarely gets too heavy.”

Madam Ji Wu sighed and had the servants prepare for Gu Jin Chao’s journey. She also had the carriage brought to the east wing to pick up Gu Jin Chao. Gu Jin Chao boarded the carriage, the maids and elderly servants loaded the luggage, and after the driver cracked his whip, they departed from the Ji family residence.

They traveled along the main road, which became increasingly desolate after leaving Baodi in Tongzhou.

Acres of corn grew exceptionally well by the roadside, with peanuts in the vegetable plots, but farmhouses were few and far between.

Chang Suo enjoyed riding in the carriage and quickly fell asleep with the rocking motion. Gu Jin Chao held the child and lifted the curtain to look outside. The rain was indeed getting heavier, the sky gloomy and yellowish. Though it was only afternoon, it resembled dusk, and even the corn fields in the distance were no longer visible.

The carriage suddenly stopped, and Song Chi spoke from outside through the curtain: “Madam, this rain is getting too heavy. When night falls, we won’t be able to see the road. I’m afraid it would be unwise to continue.”

Song Chi was the guard captain Third Master Chen had assigned to Gu Jin Chao.

Gu Jin Chao frowned, surprised that the rain had truly intensified. She asked Song Chi: “With no village ahead or inn behind, even if we turned back to Baodi, we wouldn’t make it in time. If the carriage stops, where could we stop?”

Song Chi replied: “I remember there’s a Baodi postal station five Li ahead. We’d better go there to take shelter from the rain.”

When night fell with heavy rain, traveling would indeed be difficult.

Considering this, Gu Jin Chao nodded her agreement, and the carriage resumed its journey.

Upon reaching the Baodi postal station, Song Chi first presented Third Master Chen’s calling card to the station attendant. Postal stations were generally reserved for official or military use, and without a calling card, they probably wouldn’t be allowed entry. Learning that this was the Chen family’s carriage, the station attendant didn’t dare show any neglect and respectfully invited them through the main gate.

Gu Jin Chao alighted from the carriage and surveyed her surroundings. The Baodi postal station wasn’t large; there was a screen wall at the entrance, followed by two courtyards. The main hall had two rooms and a corridor connected to the stables, where horses could be seen at a glance. Upon closer inspection, there were over twenty horses. Song Chi smiled and asked the station attendant: “May I ask which postal commissioner is in charge of the Baodi station?”

The attendant smiled and replied: “It’s the Luo family, who were formerly imperial merchants! Let me show you to the corridor rooms to rest first. This rain probably won’t stop anytime soon…” Among this group were women and children, and despite being well-protected by guards, they likely couldn’t withstand the hardship. Moreover, the woman surrounded by everyone wore a cloak and had never personally spoken to him, indicating her exceptional family status.

The corridor room was the third room on the side. After escorting them inside, the attendant smiled and said: “Please wait while I bring you some hot water to warm yourselves. If you catch a cold, there’s no medicine at the postal station, which would be troublesome!”

Madam Sun stepped forward and gave the attendant a silver ingot worth five taels, smiling in gratitude: “Thank you, young man. Please boil two buckets of hot water so our mistress can wash her face.”

These five taels of silver were equivalent to half a year’s wages, and the attendant’s face brightened with joy: “No problem, just wait here!”

Just as Gu Jin Chao had removed her cloak and sat down, she saw shadows moving in the corridor room opposite, through the rain veil. There seemed to be quite a few people. She called the station attendant back and asked: “Are there others staying at this postal station?”

The room was dim, with the candles just lit. Though the candlelight was yellowish and unclear, the attendant still paused for a moment upon seeing Gu Jin Chao’s face.

Song Chi frowned slightly in the shadows: “My mistress asked you a question. Do you know the answer or not?”

The attendant then replied: “How can a postal commissioner make money if not by taking in paying guests? That group paid silver to stay here. But there’s a courtyard between us, so it won’t be a problem.”

As a guard, Song Chi naturally had to be cautious. Especially since he was protecting both the mistress and the young master.

“Do you know how many of them there are and what their background is?”

The attendant shook his head: “At a rough glance, there are about ten or twenty. They speak with a strange accent, definitely not from our Northern Zhili. They arrived on horseback and were also taking shelter from the rain. At noon, they ordered eight jin of sliced cooked beef to eat… This group doesn’t talk much!”

He was just a station attendant and probably didn’t understand much. Song Chi sent him away first.

Since they were all lodgers, as long as they kept to themselves, it would be fine. After all, they would be leaving early the next morning. Gu Jin Chao thought for a moment and instructed Song Chi: “Go over and see if there’s anything unusual about these people, but don’t alert them.”

Song Chi acknowledged the order and left. The guards they had brought stood watch at the door.

The wet nurse had just removed the cloak covering Chang Suo, who was still sleeping sweetly.

Gu Jin Chao first placed the child on the kang bed, allowing him to sleep well.

Soon after, the station attendant brought hot water, smiling as he said, “We’ll be having hot pot outside later. If you’re hungry, you’re welcome to join us.”

They had brought their food, so they didn’t need to eat what the postal station provided. However, hot food was certainly better than cold. Gu Jin Chao called Song Mama and instructed: “If anyone wants to go eat, they can. Just let you know first.”

Song Mama agreed and went to tell the guards outside. Just then, Song Chi returned, wiping the rainwater from his face and saying: “I circled outside, but all the doors were tightly closed, and I couldn’t see anything… But I can use this opportunity to gather more information!”

Gu Jin Chao reminded them to be careful. However, she figured that the Chen family guards were all skilled in martial arts, so there was nothing to worry about. Even common thieves and bandits couldn’t harm them.

Gu Jin Chao glanced outside the latticed window. The rain hadn’t stopped. She wondered when it would let up, as they probably wouldn’t be able to reach Wanping tomorrow…

After half a day of long-distance travel, she also felt somewhat tired. She ate some pastries with the hot water, then leaned against the wall, keeping watch over the sleeping Chang Suo as she closed her eyes to rest.

When Madam Sun came in and saw this, she draped a dry cloak over Gu Jin Chao. She gestured to the maids cleaning the room to move quietly and dimmed the candles to make it easier for Gu Jin Chao to sleep.

Song Chi led two guards to sit in the main hall, where a fire basin was burning, eliminating the need for candles.

The station attendant who had greeted them earlier stood up to welcome them: “Come, come, don’t stand on ceremony and join us for hot pot! Please sit here!”

Song Chi quickly glanced around. Several station attendants were gathered around a pot. There were also several stoves set up, around which sat men in short garments with waistbands, eighteen in all. Their temples were bulging, and veins were faintly visible on their arms… They were likely trained in martial arts!

Song Chi smiled and sat down. The station attendant immediately brought over bowls to pour wine for them. Then he smiled at the people next door: “These gentlemen are also lodgers here. Don’t be reserved when drinking together!”

The only person among that group wearing a robe clasped his hands and smiled: “We’re just martial artists from the jianghu, so we won’t stand on ceremony!”

As he spoke, he scrutinized Song Chi from head to toe, then turned back to drink his wine.

Song Chi had already detected the man’s thick Bashu accent, which made him frown. Bashu was thousands of miles away and, not easily travel to and from. If these people were martial artists, why would they come to Northern Zhili to perform?

What was their true identity…