After another night of soft moans, Ji Cheng woke up in the side chamber early in the morning. As she got out of bed, her legs gave way, and she nearly fell. She had to hold onto the bedpost to stand up. After paying her respects to the Old Madam, she returned to her room for a long nap, only rising again in the evening. The maids in the courtyard thought she might be ill and reported it to the Old Madam.
The Old Madam then had someone prepare medicinal pills to boost Ji Cheng’s health.
A day passed like this. Ji Cheng remembered Hong’er’s kite and didn’t dare to deceive him anymore. Otherwise, who knew how the little rascal might throw a tantrum? Ji Cheng wanted to invite Lu Yuan to go to Chang Heng Courtyard with her, but Lu Yuan had been taken by her mother to stay at their maternal family’s home the day before.
Ji Cheng had no choice but to seek out Shen He, who had said she would take Hong’er to find bamboo sticks. However, Shen He had gone out to visit friends. Ji Cheng went to find Shen Qian, but Shen Qian complained that Shen Yu’s face was too cold and didn’t like going to Chang Heng Courtyard. In the end, Ji Cheng could only go to Chang Heng Courtyard by herself.
When Hong’er heard that Ji Cheng had come, he immediately ran out. “Sister Cheng, I knew you’d come these past two days. I got up early this morning to practice martial arts, and I’ve practiced my writing well. I’ve been waiting for you to make kites with me.”
Hong’er had Yun Zhu bring the prepared bamboo sticks to the courtyard. The bamboo hadn’t been finely split yet and still needed to be processed. Ji Cheng picked a few sticks of suitable length and was about to split them with a small knife when she saw Shen Yu enter through the main gate. “Leave it to me,” he said.
Shen Yu quickly returned to his room, presumably to change his clothes. Ji Cheng didn’t wait for Shen Yu and started splitting the bamboo with Hong’er, teaching him how to make it thinner.
The bamboo, being fresh, still had many burrs. By the time Shen Yu came out, Ji Cheng had only split half a stick. Shen Yu walked over and held out his hand, saying, “Let me do it.”
Ji Cheng said, “I’ve almost finished this one. Cousin Yu, why don’t you help Hong’er split another one? It’ll save time this way.” Ji Cheng didn’t want to stay long in Chang Heng Courtyard. Although her heart was clear, people’s words could be fearsome.
Hearing this, Shen Yu didn’t object to Ji Cheng’s arrangement. He took another bamboo stick and began teaching Hong’er how to make the kite frame while holding his hand.
“I’ve got it, I’ve got it. I’ll do it myself,” Hong’er said eagerly after learning for a short while. His sudden outburst startled Ji Cheng, causing her to lose focus. Her index finger was cut by the bamboo, and blood immediately welled up.
Ji Cheng let out a low cry of pain. Shen Yu put down what he was holding and grabbed her hand. “What happened? I’ll have Rui Xue bring you some wound medicine.”
Ji Cheng’s face turned red with embarrassment. She was about to pull her hand back when she caught sight of Shen Che standing at the entrance of Chang Heng Courtyard from the corner of her eye.
Shen Che strode in naturally as if he hadn’t seen Ji Cheng hastily hiding her hand behind her back. “Hong’er,” he called.
Hong’er, upon seeing Shen Che, ran over happily. “Second Uncle, is this for me?”
Shen Che was holding a kite depicting Nezha Conquering the Sea, with the “Pai Lou” emblem at the tail. This was the most famous kite-making brand from the South. It was no easy feat to transport a kite from the South to the capital without damage, let alone one as exquisite as a Pai Lou kite.
Hong’er fell in love with the kite at first sight, immediately forgetting about the simple eagle kite. Such was the nature of children, their attention was easily diverted.
“Hong’er, what were you all doing just now? It seemed so lively,” Shen Che asked, holding Hong’er’s hand as they walked toward Shen Yu and Ji Cheng.
Shen Che’s demeanor was very natural as if he hadn’t seen anything. Ji Cheng decided to play dumb as well, trying her best to appear calm as she looked at Shen Che and Hong’er.
Hong’er was chattering away in response to Shen Che’s question. As they got closer, Shen Che said, “So you were making kites yourselves. Would you like Second Uncle to help?”
Hong’er, of course, nodded eagerly in agreement.
Shen Che greeted Shen Yu and then turned to Ji Cheng, saying, “I thought I saw Cousin Cheng hurt her hand when I came in. Is it serious?”
Shen Yu also looked at Ji Cheng, following Shen Che’s lead. “Should we have Rui Xue treat it for you?”
“I can help Hong’er here. Cousin Cheng, since your hand is injured, why don’t you go back and rest?” Shen Che suggested.
Shen Che’s words were somewhat impolite. Shen Yu gave him a puzzled look, to which Shen Che returned a glance that said, “I need to talk to you.” Shen Yu then remained silent.
Ji Cheng patted Hong’er’s head to say goodbye. Hong’er, being fickle, had already forgotten about his “Sister Cheng” or “Aunt Cheng” now that his Second Uncle was here.
Ji Cheng returned to the side chamber of Rui Ying Hall and sat down, her heart still racing. Judging by Shen Che’s temperament, she wondered how he would deal with her later that night after witnessing that scene. This made Ji Cheng feel somewhat anxious. What bothered her more was that she had felt a sense of guilt, as if she had been “caught in the act,” which was truly a case of “submitting to adversity.”
However, when she was injured, even someone like Shen Yu immediately took her hand out of concern. This made Ji Cheng cover her face in exasperation. She and Shen Yu were almost impossible. As long as Shen Che was around, even if all ties between Shen Che and her were severed in the future, would he allow her to become his sister-in-law?
Ji Cheng frowned and sighed. She still needed to stay far away from Hong’er to avoid giving Shen Che any opportunity to make an issue out of it.
News from the Western Regions came back almost every other day, but there was still no word from Manager Mei, which made Ji Cheng somewhat uneasy. With no movement on this front, Ji Cheng didn’t dare to activate the Northern Hu line yet. That was the Ji family’s last hidden connection, and Ji Cheng was confident about this point. Even Shen Che’s Jing Shi Army might not be able to investigate it thoroughly.
As the saying goes, “A crafty rabbit has three burrows.” Any merchant with some means, as long as they had the foresight to prepare for rainy days, would leave themselves a way out. When others thought the Ji family’s escape route would be in the Western Regions, the Ji family was safe.
Ji Cheng went through her plan meticulously from beginning to end once more, thinking through all the potential oversights again. Only when she was certain there were no loopholes did she look up at the window? The sky was nearing dusk. Ji Cheng went to the Old Madam’s room to keep her company for a while, had dinner, and after digesting, prepared for bed.
After washing up and getting into bed, it was time to go to the Nine Li Courtyard as usual. But Ji Cheng felt too tired and lazy to go entertain Shen Che, so she was reluctant to get up. However, she also knew that not going tonight would make Shen Che think she was guilty, and who knew what tricks he might play.
By the time Ji Cheng arrived at the Nine Li Courtyard, the sky was full of stars, and everything around was quiet. There wasn’t a trace of light in the small courtyard above. When Ji Cheng came out of the wardrobe, at first glance, the room seemed empty. Her heart leaped with joy, ready to confirm there was no one, and then head back.
However, just as Ji Cheng reached the courtyard gate, she saw Shen Che sitting cross-legged on a rush mat in the courtyard, his back to her, motionless. She didn’t know what he was doing but assumed he was absorbing the essence of the sun and moon. After all, Ji Cheng was completely ignorant about martial arts.
Ji Cheng didn’t disturb Shen Che, content to sit alone with her knees hugged to her chest by the door. When he didn’t speak, it was truly peaceful.
After a good while, when Ji Cheng was almost asleep, Shen Che finally stirred. As he walked over, Ji Cheng’s sharp eyes caught a small dark stain at the corner of his mouth. In the darkness, she couldn’t see clearly, so she pointed to Shen Che’s lip corner, saying, “There’s something here.”
Shen Che casually wiped the corner of his mouth with his thumb. Of course, Ji Cheng didn’t think it was some food stain. She wondered if Shen Che had done something bad and gotten injured.
When people are injured or sick, their temper tends to worsen. Ji Cheng was so careful that she didn’t even dare to breathe audibly.
“Can’t even light a lamp?” Shen Che asked.
Ji Cheng hurriedly found a fire stick, removed the white paper lampshade painted with rice-grained camellia, and lit the candle.
“Is your hand alright?” Shen Che asked.
“It’s nothing,” Ji Cheng said lightly. It was still an issue. The bamboo splinter had pierced Ji Cheng’s finger, and it took Liu Ye’er a great effort to pick it out. Now Ji Cheng’s fingertip was still red and a bit painful.
“Let me see.” Shen Che took Ji Cheng’s hand and pinched the swollen area. Ji Cheng drew in a sharp breath of pain and was about to speak when Shen Che said, “There’s still something in the wound that hasn’t been cleaned out properly. It’s starting to fester. How did your maid treat your wound?”
Ji Cheng stammered, “We spent a lot of effort picking out the bamboo splinter in the afternoon. What’s left probably broke off and is still inside. It’s hard to pick out, but it should come out on its own in a few days.”
Shen Che snorted coldly, “Aren’t you usually quite afraid of pain? How come you can bear a bamboo splinter inside now?”
Ji Cheng blinked her eyes, unsure if the stone-faced Shen Che was making a lewd joke.
As they spoke, Shen Che had already squeezed out the broken bamboo splinter from Ji Cheng’s wound. Blood began to well up from her fingertip. Shen Che reached out to take Ji Cheng’s handkerchief and wrapped it around her wound. “Press on it to stop the bleeding. I’ll go get some medicine.”
The white medicinal powder quickly stopped the bleeding when sprinkled on the wound.
After treating the wound, Ji Cheng thought Shen Che was going to start settling accounts. He was used to this routine. The last time he gave her a sword, Ji Cheng thought he was happy at the time, but he changed his face faster than a woman.
However, Shen Che didn’t say anything. With slightly lowered eyelids, he began to brew tea, his expression somewhat listless. If Ji Cheng were someone like Wang Liniang, she would probably be terrified now, as fatigue is often the beginning of boredom.
Ji Cheng was quite worried too. Everything was ready, just waiting for the right moment. If Shen Che stopped playing now, she would be devastated.
When Shen Che poured tea for Ji Cheng, she covered the cup with her hand. “Why don’t we have some wine instead? We drink tea every day, it’s getting tiresome.”
Shen Che smiled, “It’s not yet time to drown our sorrows in wine.”
Ji Cheng’s thoughts were seen through by Shen Che, making her feel embarrassed. “Then what’s wrong with you? Are you injured?”
Shen Che didn’t answer.
Ji Cheng persisted, “The stain at the corner of your mouth earlier was blood, wasn’t it?”
“Are you concerned about me?” Shen Che raised an eyebrow and asked.
“No,” Ji Cheng answered decisively. If she had said yes, Shen Che would have been suspicious.
Shen Che smiled faintly and said no more.
Ji Cheng, however, felt stifled inside. Why wasn’t Shen Che asking her anything?