The following day, the weather was uncooperative — fierce winds howled, nearly strong enough to send sand and stones flying through the air.
When Hua Zhi rose and heard the screaming wind outside, she laughed. Even weather like this couldn’t dampen her spirits if she had to go out.
Fearing something might happen today, Ying Chun insisted on accompanying her no matter what. Hua Zhi relented and let her come along, still remembering to send one of the junior maids to pass word to Fourth Aunt that they should stockpile more firewood and charcoal this year.
“Miss, Third Young Miss is here.”
Hua Ling? Hua Zhi glanced at the water clock and signaled the maid to let her in.
“Elder Sister.”
“Why are you here so early? Is something the matter?”
“I heard Elder Sister is going to the Wei family. I’d like to go along.”
Hua Zhi was a little surprised. Among all her sisters, Hua Ling was actually the most timid — she hadn’t expected that after everything that had happened, the girl seemed to be developing something of a recklessly bold streak.
“Today won’t be a pleasant affair, and the weather’s bad too. You don’t need to come and put yourself through the trouble.”
Hua Ling shook her head. “I want to go.”
She had learned of this matter the day before, by chance through Fourth Aunt, and after thinking it over at length, she still wanted to go. Elder Sister was accustomed to shouldering everything alone, always charging forward by herself. Even if she herself wasn’t much use, she could at least stand in the way if someone tried to hurt Elder Sister.
She had grown up in the capital and knew better than anyone what it looked like when those people set out to be cruel. Like the time they had gone to the manor — on the way out of the city, she had run into her maternal cousin, someone with whom she had once been so close they shared a bed. Yet that day, in response to her smiling greeting, her cousin had said with a laugh: I heard you were almost defiled? How truly unfortunate. The gloating look on her face, saying “unfortunate” in a tone that sounded like regret that it hadn’t actually happened — if her cousin held such an attitude, it wasn’t hard to imagine how the rest of her maternal family thought of her. It was from that moment she had cut off every last thread of feeling for them, and it was also from that moment she understood, far more deeply, just how good Elder Sister was — someone who had been willing to sacrifice her own reputation to pull her out of the mud.
Hua Zhi looked at her for a moment without asking for an explanation, then turned and gave the order: “Bring Third Miss a cloak.”
Then her gaze fell on the maid standing behind Hua Ling, whose head didn’t dare to lift. “Attend to her properly. Going out in weather like this dressed so lightly — if she falls ill, won’t it be you who has to run about after her?”
The maid answered in a trembling voice and lowered her head even further.
The carriage rolled out through the side gate. Hua Zhi had just been quietly lamenting how quickly the cold had set in when she felt the carriage come to a stop. Before she could ask what was happening, a voice rang out from outside: “Good thing I came in time — had I been a step later, I’d have ended up behind my cousin.”
Hua Zhi quickly lifted the window curtain and saw Zhu Ziwen on horseback alongside two others. She recognized them vaguely — sons of two noble families in the capital, their households a rank or two below the Zhu family.
When the two men noticed Hua Zhi’s gaze sweep toward them, they bowed from their saddles. She inclined herself slightly in return, then looked at Zhu Ziwen. “Was Cousin especially here to meet me?”
“Grandfather drummed it into my ears — I absolutely must bring Cousin back without a scratch.” Zhu Ziwen leaned down from the saddle. “There will likely be quite a few people today. Cousin, you’d better be prepared.”
“The Wei family sent an invitation; this young woman is simply accepting it. What preparation could I possibly need?”
Zhu Ziwen pointed at her with his riding crop. “You won’t say an honest word even in front of Cousin. You deserve a scolding.”
“Cousin is bullying me — I’ll go complain to Maternal Grandfather when we get back.”
“Fine, fine, I’m afraid of you.” He shot her a look. “Let’s go, we can’t be late.”
The carriage set off again. Hua Zhi gave the other two a small smile and lowered the curtain. The smile slowly faded. A question flickered through her mind: what was Cousin doing… putting on a show for whom?
Though they were on good terms, it was nothing to the degree he was displaying now. When something is out of the ordinary, there must be a reason behind it — but no matter how she turned it over, she couldn’t find where the reason lay. Maternal Grandfather and Maternal Grandmother had always been sincere with her; even if they had some ulterior motive, there was no need for them to go about it this way. The only person in the Zhu family who liked scheming like this was one person — the eldest maternal aunt by marriage.
But what was the point of Cousin acting this way?
Hua Ling watched her elder sister’s expression shift and didn’t dare utter a single word, afraid she might interrupt her train of thought. She truly couldn’t understand how Elder Sister got through days filled with this much thinking and second-guessing of everything.
The Hua family’s residence was in the south, while the nobility all lived in the north. The carriage rocked along for quite a while before it finally stopped.
They had arrived!
Hua Zhi drew a deep breath, steadied herself, and prepared to face what lay ahead.
But as she stepped out of the carriage and found the original three had grown into a much larger group, she paused — entirely at a loss.
Zhu Ziwen gave a light cough to stifle his amusement, swung down from his horse, walked over, and raised his arm for her. “Everyone’s here for the Pure Discussion Gathering,” he said casually. “We happened to cross paths on the way and came together.”
Did he think she was three years old? Hua Zhi shot him a glance and took his arm as she stepped down from the carriage.
Even with the wind gusting fiercely, whipping her cloak into loud snapping ripples, Hua Zhi descended from the carriage with complete composure. Wherever her gaze landed, not a trace of the timidity or nervousness one might expect from a young woman could be found.
The contrast was especially striking when there was something to compare it to.
Hua Ling, stepping down a beat later, found herself stared at by more men than she had ever encountered in her life. She kept silently fortifying herself, yet she could only manage to keep her head from dropping — her face was flushed, her skin hot, and her eyes drifted about beyond her control.
Zhu Ziwen hadn’t expected Hua Ling to have come along either. He glanced at his cousin before turning to Hua Ling with a greeting. “I didn’t expect Cousin Ling to be here as well.”
Hua Ling dipped a curtsy. “Cousin, I hope you are well.”
Hua Zhi could see her nervousness, but she could also see the girl trying to do better — so she didn’t pull her behind her back as a shield. Instead, she turned and lifted her gaze to the firmly shut gates of the Wei residence.
When the Hua family hosted a Pure Discussion Gathering, they would spend several days beforehand cleaning every inch inside and out. The lane all the way up to the front steps would be washed down with clear water. On the day itself, the main gates would be thrown wide open from early morning to welcome scholars. On that day, the Hua family placed themselves on the same footing as the scholars — there were only scholars of such-and-such a name. There were no officials.
The Wei family’s approach, by contrast, resembled a banquet — and not a particularly hospitable one, the kind where the guests were left standing outside in the cold to wait.
Just as she was thinking this, the main gates slowly swung open before her eyes. Three generations of the Wei family walked out wearing broad smiles, with Wei Jing at the head — styled Rongwen, Senior Third-Rank Minister of the Ministry of Personnel.
Behind him were two familiar faces: Wei Chenze, and Wei Chengxi — the one who had very nearly done Hua Ling a grave wrong.
Hua Ling’s breathing immediately grew unsteady. Without turning her head, Hua Zhi said quietly, “He’s a man who cannot pass the imperial examinations and cannot draw a war bow — worth nothing except his family name. What is there to fear from him? If he dares lay a hand on you again, I’ll dare to draw a blade.”
Hua Ling’s breath caught first — then, to her own surprise, she was genuinely soothed. This was the capital. With so many eyes watching, what could he do to her? She didn’t even need Elder Sister to draw a blade — if he dared come within a step of her, she would cry assault. She would very much like to see whether the Wei family still had any face left after that.
Zhu Ziwen, standing right beside the two of them, heard all of this and hastily coughed. Show a little awareness — how could she say such things right in front of the Wei family’s gate? Though they were far enough away that no one would have heard, talk of drawing blades at the drop of a hat was the kind of thing that couldn’t be overheard by just anyone!
Author’s Note: Ladies, no need to worry — she’s still in trade. It’s just that the small dealings of before are becoming a very large enterprise, and it will start to touch on affairs of the court.