“I didn’t! I really didn’t steal anything.” The maid knelt on the ground, trembling. She knew the household rules perfectly well, and the last thing she wanted was to be thrown out. Her whole family of five depended entirely on her wages.

“Get up,” Yan Qing said gently. “You say you didn’t steal. She wouldn’t accuse you without reason. What is this bundle of yours?”

“Sixth Miss, I didn’t steal it — I found it.” The maid instinctively clutched the bundle tighter. “Early this morning, when I went to dump rubbish in the rear courtyard, I saw a set of bedding and a pillow thrown there. The bedding looked brand new even if it was a bit soiled and smelly. I thought if I washed it, it could still be used, so I took it. She saw it when I was airing it outside just now and immediately said I’d stolen it.”

At those words, Yan Qing’s eyes brightened. “Was it a goose-down pillow?”

The maid hadn’t thought to wonder how Yan Qing already knew, and nodded rapidly. “Yes, a goose-down pillow.”

Yan Qing allowed herself a small smile, with a measure of certainty in her eyes.

What Jing Zhi had failed to find had turned up here of all places. Truly, one searches far and wide, only to find it where one least expects.

“And you,” Yan Qing said, looking up at the other maid, “how did you know it was stolen?”

“Sixth Miss, those things belong to the First Young Master’s room. I recognized them — they were just recently sent in and haven’t been there long. I serve in the First Young Master’s rooms and naturally know them. New bedding like that — who would throw it away?”

“I didn’t — how would I dare steal from a master?” The maid protested her innocence again.

“She didn’t steal it,” Yan Qing said plainly. “But since you know where it came from, return it to where it belongs. That’s the end of this matter. You may go.”

The maid who had been accused immediately showered Yan Qing with grateful thanks.

“But…” With the other maid now gone, the shorter maid was naturally unhappy. She was about to say something when she met Yan Qing’s gaze — those clear, crystalline eyes, calm as water on the surface, yet with a faint sharpness beneath. Whatever had been on the tip of her tongue was swallowed back down involuntarily.

Though she had never had any dealings with this Sixth Miss before, she had heard that her character was meek and easily bullied, and that her survival in the Yan Family rested entirely on Master Yan’s favor. But having met her today, she began to doubt those rumors. Why were this Sixth Miss’s eyes so penetrating? Without any apparent joy or anger, it was as though she could see straight through a person.

“As it happens, I have something to discuss with my older brother. Bring the bundle and come with me.”

“Yes, Sixth Miss.” The shorter maid picked up the bundle and followed dutifully behind Yan Qing.

Yan Qing had barely arrived at Yan Qi’s courtyard when she heard a burst of quarreling from within. The maid’s expression showed this was nothing unusual. She muttered under her breath, “The First Young Mistress is scolding the First Young Master again.”

Yan Qi’s wife, Jiang Shi, was known throughout the household as a formidable shrew. Yan Qi was entirely under her thumb — he kept a meek manner before her, without a shred of dignity. Being scolded and berated every few days was simply part of daily life for him.

“Elder Brother, Elder Sister-in-Law.” The moment Yan Qing appeared, Jiang Shi’s scolding cut off abruptly. A smile slid onto her face. “Sixth Sister, you came. This spring cold lingers — be careful not to catch a chill, or Father will worry.”

Yan Qing smiled lightly. “Thank you for your concern, Elder Sister-in-Law. I came to borrow a book from Elder Brother.”

“What book?” Yan Qi, who had just been thoroughly berated, had a stormy expression.

Yan Qing had no intention of actually borrowing a book. Her real purpose was something else entirely…

—