Inside the envelope was a thin IOU, clearly bearing Song Yan’s signature and fingerprint. Han Zhi had brazenly sent this letter directly to Old Master Song. If she hadn’t already discussed this with Old Master Song beforehand—

Song Yan’s complexion instantly turned deathly pale. He finally understood what his teacher meant by “worldly wisdom is knowledge, and human relations refined are literature.” He truly had been too foolish, falling into someone else’s trap without even realizing it.

Qing Ying glanced at the ashen-faced Song Yan, then at Song Chuyi who sat with lowered head in silence, her voice tinged with unease and anxiety: “Should we… inform Uncle and Aunt about this matter?” She had been specially requested from the Empress by Madam Cui to serve Song Chuyi. Though wholeheartedly devoted to her mistress, facing such a serious situation, her first instinct was still to seek help from the Cui family.

Song Chuyi suddenly felt that Song Yan needed to grow up. Although he was barely ten years old, although he was still young, with grandparents protecting him from above and her as a sister supporting him from below, the paths in this world were never fixed. Which roads might suddenly be blocked, which paths might have pits dug by others—Song Yan needed to figure these out himself. Better to teach someone to fish than to give them fish. The time had come.

She placed the IOU in front of Song Yan and asked him: “Do you know where you went wrong this time?”

Fortunately, though Song Yan lacked experience, his mind worked extremely fast, and he had a sense of responsibility. He looked directly at Song Chuyi with candor: “I was too trusting of others, and too easily agitated. When I got anxious, I lost my composure.” He paused, then continued with a tinge of guilt: “Also, I was too arrogant. I thought I could handle it myself and stubbornly didn’t want to trouble the family or my sister.”

The spirit of youth always believed oneself to be a shining hero who could save the world, always eager to stand out and fight injustice. This was all too common.

Song Chuyi smiled slightly. The gloom and anxiety that had accumulated these days due to Song Yan’s concealment dissipated completely. With radiant spirits, she waved the IOU in her hand: “In this world, besides books and essays, the hardest thing to understand is the human heart. Your teacher has imparted all the knowledge from books to you, but you’re still too young—many things cannot be immediately comprehended. Now I’ll use this incident to teach you another lesson.”

Ziyun knocked and entered, handing Song Chuyi another letter.

This time the letter finally had content. It invited her to meet at an estate in Tongzhou, signed by Han Zhi.

An estate in Tongzhou, but without specifying which one. Song Chuyi’s hand slowly tightened, a cold smile appearing at the corners of her mouth. Han Zhi had indeed known all along about her dealings with Zhang Run, but had been holding back his anger and biding his time, all for today, wasn’t it?

She turned her head to ask Qing Ying: “I ordered Ma Changjiang and the others to keep close watch on the Tongzhou estate. They went, didn’t they?”

Qing Ying quickly nodded: “As soon as you gave the order, they went. You told them to only watch and not act rashly. Last night they sent Ma San back to report that several carriages had left, looking like they were preparing for a long journey.”

So indeed, everyone has weaknesses. Even knowing Zhang Run was disloyal to him, wouldn’t he still have moments of weakness? Starting today, she would peel back his layers one by one. Not a single person he cared about would escape.

Preparing for a long journey? No need to go anywhere. Since he couldn’t bear to kill him, might as well completely fulfill himself instead. Song Chuyi raised her hand and swiftly wrote several lines on paper, carefully placed them in an envelope, sealed it with wax, and handed it to Qing Ying: “Give this to Luo Gui. Tell him to deliver it to Lord Lai.”

Qing Ying agreed and was about to leave when she turned back hesitantly to ask: “He’s asked you to meet. Will you go or not?”

Only then did Song Yan realize with shock that he had only seen this Han Zhi who had set the trap once or twice. How deep and terrifying this person’s schemes must be! He gritted his teeth in thought for a moment, then suddenly said with firm resolve: “Don’t go! I’ll go confess to Grandfather now, go confess to the clan elders. Let’s see what he can use to threaten us then!”

Song Chengru had decided to entrust this matter to Song Chuyi precisely because he didn’t want it to blow up and damage Song Yan’s reputation. If Song Yan went to admit his mistake like this, all the previous efforts would be wasted.

Song Chuyi shook her head and looked at Song Yan: “Daring to act and take responsibility is good, but sometimes you must also consider who you’re facing. If you go, wouldn’t you be playing right into that person’s hands? Besides, what good would it do even if you go confess? The fact that he dared to send back the IOU you signed means he still has other leverage against you. Search yourself—what did you have on you when you left today, and what’s missing now that you’ve returned?”

Song Yan’s eyes widened. He never imagined that human hearts could be so vicious. He searched himself up and down, his expression turning ashen as he hung his head: “My fan-shaped jade sachet carved with auspicious clouds and double fish is gone.”

For sons of great families, which of their personal belongings didn’t have a story? This was also a symbol of status—when you carried it out, people knew who you were. This jade sachet had been specially selected by Old Madam Song from items bestowed by the late Founding Empress when Song Yan returned this time, even having his name specially carved on it.

If Han Zhi took it to some brothel and casually gave it to some singing girl or courtesan, Song Yan would be unable to clear his name even if he jumped into the Yellow River. Tainted with both gambling and whoring—what future could he possibly have? The good reputation he’d recently gained from passing the children’s examination at age ten would immediately be splattered with filth.

Song Chuyi reached out to pull him close, straightened his collar, then patiently untied the bat-patterned cord hanging empty at his waist and neatly arranged it: “See? These people’s methods of harming others are endless, aren’t they? If you truly want to protect me, to protect yourself, and even to bring glory to the Song family, you must always keep an extra eye open.”

Having said this, she instructed Qing Ying: “Quickly take the letter to Luo Gui, then come back. We’ll set out for Tongzhou tomorrow.”

This completely unfamiliar Heir Apparent of Marquis Jinxiang, with whom he’d had not even half a connection, had gone to such great lengths to set up this trap against him—the ultimate goal was actually to force out his sister, wasn’t it? Song Yan clenched his fists. If his reputation were truly ruined, if he were expelled from his teachers, if his teacher and senior brothers no longer acknowledged him, if his family became utterly disappointed in him—who would suffer most?

Song Yan finally understood why Song Chuyi always maintained such vigilance, always like a hedgehog with all its spines raised. If not for this, how could she have brought down Li Shi and Song Chuning? How could she have sent him to study under his teacher in Shu?

He grasped Song Chuyi’s hand and made a firm promise: “Sister, I will definitely grow up quickly.”