When Pei Yan sat absentmindedly in the council hall, Pei Tong had already walked to the wing quarters where he lived.

He had not yet stepped through the courtyard gate when he heard a burst of giggles.

Pei Tong lived in this courtyard with his younger brother Pei Fei, Second Uncle Pei Xuan, and young cousin Pei Hong.

His second uncle and third uncle were completely different types of people. If his third uncle was the summer sun, then his second uncle was the winter sun. When Grandfather passed away, Second Uncle not only refrained from competing with Third Uncle for anything, but also maintained brotherly affection everywhere. Even their eldest branch household had received considerable care from Second Uncle—otherwise, he and his younger brother would certainly be living much harder lives than they were now.

From the sound, he knew it must be eight-year-old Pei Hong playing in the courtyard with the manservants.

Pei Tong felt a wave of irritation in his heart.

When his father died, Pei Fei had only just turned twelve years old—still a child innocent of worldly matters—yet he already understood that they had lost their father. He had maturely known to comfort their mother who cried through the night, known to study diligently, and helped him with tasks.

The naive innocence of the past was gone forever.

Thinking of this, his eyes couldn’t help but moisten slightly.

But recalling Third Uncle’s attitude toward them as orphans and widows, he sneered coldly in his heart, put on a smiling expression, and only then pushed open the door and walked in.

“Young Master!” Several manservants who had been playing with Pei Hong immediately came forward to bow to him when they saw him. Pei Hong also happily called out “Elder Brother” to him.

Pei Tong smiled warmly and patted Pei Hong’s head, saying, “Why are you still playing in the courtyard at this hour? Where is your wet nurse? Have you broken a sweat? Be careful not to catch a chill. This is up in the mountains—if you catch cold, it’s not easy to find a physician.” The last sentence was directed at the several manservants playing with Pei Hong.

The manservants lowered their heads respectfully and answered in unison.

The previously cheerful and laughing scene immediately became solemn and stiff.

Pei Hong’s face flushed bright red, his lips trembling as he was about to say something, when Second Master Pei Xuan walked out from the main hall with a half-read book in hand, smiling as he said, “Ah Tong, you’re back! Don’t be angry—I was the one who agreed to let Ah Hong play for a while. I was watching from the hall, nothing would have happened.”

Pei Tong smiled awkwardly and said, “I was too rash!”

“It’s fine! It’s fine!” Pei Xuan laughed heartily and patted Pei Tong’s shoulder, saying, “You’re acting as an elder brother should. Your father back in the day also managed me this way.”

As soon as he finished speaking, both men’s expressions dimmed slightly.

After a long while, Pei Xuan sighed softly and said, “Don’t overthink it. Your third uncle is proud and disdains explaining himself to others, but he certainly means no harm. As the head of the family, he cannot consider only our one branch—he must think of the bigger picture. You are his own nephew, so you should understand and support him even more.”

“I know!” Pei Tong said in a low voice, his mood clearly quite low. “That’s why even when Uncle wrote asking me about it, I didn’t say anything.” After speaking, as if remembering something, he suddenly rallied himself, smiled brightly at Pei Xuan, and said in a clear voice, “When Heaven is about to confer a great responsibility on someone, it must first make his mind endure suffering and his sinews and bones experience toil. Second Uncle, please rest assured—I won’t be defeated by this small tribulation before me. I will study diligently and, like Father, pass the imperial examinations with honors and become a high-ranking official.”

“Mm!” Pei Xuan smiled at him encouragingly, though upon closer inspection one would discover his smile was somewhat stiff. Unfortunately, Pei Tong at this moment was also speaking contrary to his heart, his mind heavy with thoughts—how could he carefully observe Pei Xuan? He only heard Pei Xuan ask him, “Where did you go? Why are you back so late?”

Pei Tong smiled and said, “Minister Gu came by and asked me to come talk for a while, so I returned late.”

Pei Xuan was very pleased to hear this and said, “Minister Gu is excellent both in scholarship and character. Since you have the opportunity, you should seek his guidance more often.” Speaking to this point, he contemplated for a moment and said, “I have a fine Duan inkstone here. Let me have someone bring it to you, and you can give it to Minister Gu. He is your eldest brother-in-law—you’ll inevitably have dealings with him in the future. Courtesy costs nothing, and if we take the initiative, since they’ve married their sister into our family, they’ll feel more at ease.”

This second uncle of his was truly an honest man!

Pei Tong couldn’t help but laugh softly and say, “Second Uncle, no wonder everyone says you cherish Second Aunt. It seems I need to learn more from you in the future.”

Pei Xuan laughed and slapped Pei Tong’s back forcefully, saying with a smile, “You cheeky boy, daring to tease your uncle! Just you wait—go write ten thousand large characters for me!”

Pei Tong quickly smiled and begged for mercy, “I won’t dare again!”

After uncle and nephew joked for a while, Pei Xuan carried his sweat-drenched son back to his room, and Pei Tong also returned to the west wing behind the main house where he and his younger brother lived.

But before he had time to push open the door, it creaked open with a squeak, revealing Pei Fei’s childish yet somewhat heroic face.

“Elder Brother, you’re back!” he said joyfully. “I’ve been listening for sounds outside—if you didn’t come back soon, I was going to go look for you.”

Pei Tong affectionately put his arm around his brother, who only reached his shoulder, and said, “But I’ve returned now, haven’t I? Have you finished your lessons? Why didn’t you go out and play with Ah Hong?”

While ushering his brother inside, Pei Fei signaled to his personal manservant to fetch water for Pei Tong to change clothes, and muttered in a low voice, “I don’t like playing with Ah Hong. He doesn’t understand anything, and I still have to give in to him!”

Pei Tong’s hand holding the handkerchief stiffened for a moment, then he smiled as if nothing had happened and said, “Then you just stay in the wing and do your lessons properly. For a man of worth, studies are most important.”

Pei Fei nodded in agreement.

After Pei Tong washed and changed his clothes, he instructed his brother to stay in the room properly, saying, “I’m going to pay my respects to Mother.”

Because Pei You and the abbot of Zhaoming Temple were friends from outside worldly affairs, Lady Pei had received special attention from the abbot. She neither lived in the West Meditation Room with her son nor in the East Meditation Room with Old Lady Pei, but had moved into a quiet chamber not far from here that the abbot of Zhaoming Temple had vacated for her.

This was also why Yu Tang had been there several days but had not seen Lady Pei.

Hearing this, Pei Fei said happily, “I want to go too.”

Pei Tong did not stop him and took his younger brother to their mother’s residence.

Lady Pei was copying Buddhist sutras by lamplight. Seeing her two sons arrive together, she smiled and set down her brush, received their bows, and asked them, “It’s so late—why have you two come? Is there some urgent matter?”

Pei Tong smiled and shook his head, but the corner of his eye inadvertently swept past his mother’s temple and noticed a silver gleam.

He suddenly forgot to answer his mother’s question.

If he had not seen wrongly, Mother’s… hair had somehow sprouted white strands.

His nose felt sour.

Mother was not yet forty years old!

If Father were still alive, with Mother treasured like a pearl in Father’s palm, how could she have grown white hair?

He murmured, “Mother, I went to see Gu Chaoyang today.”

Lady Pei glanced at her eldest son, hinting that he should not speak of such things in front of Pei Fei.

Pei Tong obediently stopped the topic and chatted idly with his mother and brother about various things. When Lady Pei found an excuse to send Pei Fei to fetch them some pastries, only then did her face darken as she said, “Gu Chaoyang came to Lin’an? What did he want with you?”

“He said Third Uncle told him that before Father died, he left behind a final testament…” Pei Tong told Lady Pei about the scene of their meeting.

Lady Pei immediately jumped up and slammed the table, saying, “Pei Yan is spouting nonsense! When your father died, though I was not at his bedside, I inquired thoroughly about the circumstances of your father’s final moments. He didn’t have time to say a single word… not a single word…” As she spoke, recalling that day’s events, she couldn’t help but cry bitterly with grief. “Your father—how unwilling he must have been! You weren’t by his side, your younger brother wasn’t by his side, and I wasn’t by his side either…”

Pei Tong asked a question he had always harbored suspicions about: “When Father died, I happened to be at the academy, Ah Fei had been sent by Grandfather to deliver something to Third Uncle—but why weren’t you at Father’s side either? Although Father died of sudden illness, he should have felt unwell before his final moments. If he felt unwell, shouldn’t he have sought Mother? Why did he seek Grandfather instead?”

Even at this moment, there was another question he dared not ask.

His grandfather was the clan patriarch and would not ordinarily leave Lin’an. Father had just been promoted to Vice Minister of Works and was on the verge of entering the cabinet—he was at the height of his success, riding high on the spring breeze. Yet Grandfather had suddenly come to the capital quietly, even Third Uncle didn’t know about it. Moreover, after Father died, Grandfather had not accompanied Father’s coffin south. He could understand this was because it was inauspicious for an elder to attend a younger generation’s funeral, but Grandfather had moved into a temple the day after Father’s death, ordered Third Uncle to escort the coffin south and Second Uncle to return home for the funeral, while Grandfather himself returned to Lin’an alone as quietly as he had come.

Previously, he had only thought Grandfather, as one who had lost a child, couldn’t bear it and couldn’t stand seeing Father’s coffin. But looking at it now, everything seemed suspicious everywhere.

Especially his third uncle, who actually claimed that having him study at home for ten years before taking the examinations was Father’s dying wish.

If so, when his mother had wanted to send him to study at his maternal grandfather’s home, why hadn’t he stated this in front of the clan members?

Pei Tong’s chest felt as if pressed by a heavy stone as he gazed at his mother with burning eyes.

Lady Pei froze, taking quite a while to recover her senses. A trace of panic showed in her eyes as she stammered, “Yes, yes! Your father felt unwell—why didn’t he seek me but sought your grandfather instead? Your father had been promoted and might become the highest-ranking person in our Pei family this dynasty. Your father and I were both overjoyed. But when your grandfather came, he wasn’t happy at all. He must have thought your father was disobedient and had broken ancestral rules. If your father stopped being the principal heir, the Pei family would either have to choose a new principal branch or select one from your second uncle or third uncle to inherit the family business. But your second uncle wouldn’t do—he’s indecisive and has no backbone. Your third uncle at that time was competing enthusiastically with Jiang Hua—a mere junior seventh-rank official who could actually dominate a senior third-rank official. Everyone said your third uncle had a bright future and would surpass your father someday, that his official career had no limits. Yet your grandfather said nothing and just had your third uncle request leave to escort the coffin south… Besides, it’s not as if your father had no sons! He had you two sons! If your grandfather wanted to favor your third uncle, he should have let him stay in the capital instead…”