Hearing this voice, a smile immediately rose in Yan Sanhe’s eyes.

She tilted her chin toward Li Buyan. “Go welcome her for me.”

Li Buyan muttered “her voice is really loud” and opened the door to go out.

Pei Xiao nudged Xie Zhifei with his elbow: I’m a bit afraid of this young mistress.

Xie Zhifei lightly closed his eyes: So am I.

The young mistress was Second Miss Zhu from the Zhu Manor, Zhu Weijin. Not having seen her for several months, she had become somewhat thinner, her chin even a bit pointed.

“Yan Sanhe, my elder brother said you were looking for my husband. I’ve brought him here.”

She strode in energetically, then turned her head to call out, “Come in quickly. Don’t let Miss Yan, Third Master and the others laugh at you.”

At the doorway, someone craned their neck to peek inside, then slowly, slowly emerged, slowly, slowly stepped across the threshold, and slowly, slowly walked to Zhu Weijin’s side.

Zhu Weijin pushed him forward a bit. “Miss Yan, this is my husband, Xiang Yanrui.”

The man’s sturdiness somewhat exceeded Yan Sanhe’s imagination. The plump and round Zhu Weijin standing beside him appeared small and delicate.

His square face was not particularly distinguished. His lips were somewhat thicker than the average man’s, making him appear honest and steady overall.

Xiang Yanrui cupped his hands. “Miss Yan.”

His voice was deep and resonant, and his speech was as slow as his walking pace.

Yan Sanhe returned the courtesy. “Xiang Yanrui, just call me Sanhe.”

Xie Zhifei had seen Xiang Yanrui several times at the Zhu family, though they weren’t very familiar. He hastily greeted him. “Second Brother-in-law, please sit.”

“Third Master.”

After Xiang Yanrui properly saluted Xie Zhifei, his body turned toward Pei Xiao.

Pei Xiao hastily waved his hands. “Second Brother-in-law, no, no, no. We’re all family—there’s no need for so much ceremony. Please sit and have some tea.”

“What tea?”

Zhu Weijin glared at Pei Xiao, scaring him into taking half a step back.

“Miss Yan, speak directly. What do you need my Yanrui for?”

Her tone was rather urgent, completely different from her former dull, question-and-answer manner.

Yan Sanhe smiled. “Second Miss, your temperament has changed.”

“She’s become more straightforward.” Li Buyan interjected. “And more likeable too.”

Hearing these words, Zhu Weijin’s eyes reddened slightly. She said, out of nowhere, “I was also wrong before.”

“Who hasn’t made mistakes?”

Yan Sanhe led her to sit down. “Does Zhu Weixi often come to see you?”

Zhu Weijin pursed her lips in disdain. “She comes every few days—it’s annoying to death. And she’s always criticizing me.”

“How excessive.”

Yan Sanhe’s face darkened. “Tomorrow I’ll go scold her for you.”

“Don’t…”

Zhu Weijin anxiously grabbed Yan Sanhe’s hand. Looking up, she discovered Yan Sanhe’s eyes held a smile as she gazed at her quietly.

She immediately understood and said reproachfully, “Miss Yan has learned to joke with people now.”

“The people I can joke with are not ordinary people.”

Zhu Weijin: “…”

Yan Sanhe patted her shoulder, then turned to look at Xiang Yanrui. “Since you’re here, I’ll get straight to the point. Third Master.”

Xie Zhifei curled his fingers and tapped the desk. “Second Brother-in-law, come look at these two items. Can you replicate them?”

Xiang Yanrui walked to the desk, picked up the waist token with his fingers and felt it lightly. “Ivory?”

“Yes!”

“Tell me—how do you want it replicated?”

This light, casual statement made everyone’s eyes in the room light up.

Yan Sanhe stepped forward. “The material doesn’t need to be replicated, but can the patterns and designs on it be made exactly the same?”

Xiang Yanrui neither said yes nor no, but pointed at the cowhide beside it and said slowly, “And this one?”

Yan Sanhe: “Same as the waist token—replicate the patterns and characters on it.”

“Use wood instead of ivory, and cowhide for the cowhide—I happen to have a piece on hand.”

Xiang Yanrui paused. “It should be ready in about two days.”

Yan Sanhe: “Could you do it here…”

Xiang Yanrui refused flatly. “No.”

“Miss Yan.”

Zhu Weijin hastily spoke up for her husband. “He has a special courtyard and special tools for his work. In an unfamiliar place, he can’t produce good work.”

Li Buyan’s eyes drifted toward Yan Sanhe: Young Master Pei said these two items are extremely important. Should I follow and keep watch?

Yan Sanhe shook her head slightly. “Xiang Yanrui, can I be beside you while you work?”

Xiang Yanrui cleared his throat unhurriedly. “If Miss Yan doesn’t trust me, please find someone more capable.”

“It’s not that I don’t trust you—I want to learn some things from you.”

Yan Sanhe pointed at the patterns on the waist token. “For instance, what our Hua Kingdom’s waist tokens typically feature as carvings, and what methods are used to carve them.”

Xiang Yanrui: “Miss Yan is interested?”

Yan Sanhe looked at him. “Not only am I interested, I also want to know what methods can make a forgery this convincing.”

Xiang Yanrui’s expression changed slightly, and the atmosphere in the room suddenly grew heavy.

Xie Zhifei, Young Master Pei and the others looked at Yan Sanhe with some confusion, not understanding why she was being honest with Xiang Yanrui that these two items were forgeries.

Wasn’t the plan just to have him make replicas?

Actually, Yan Sanhe had changed her mind the moment Xiang Yanrui blurted out the word “ivory.”

Ivory was only produced in Qi Kingdom—it was extremely rare in Hua Kingdom. Yet Xiang Yanrui could identify it with a light touch, showing he had encountered it before.

So how had he encountered it?

Through whom?

Was there some story behind it?

If time wasn’t pressing, Yan Sanhe would have planned to consult with him properly. But replication would take two days, and she was unwilling to waste that time.

After all, a stick of incense was still burning in the opposite room—burning continuously through all twelve hours of each day!

In the silence, Zhu Weijin walked to her husband’s side, tugged at his sleeve with her hand, and smiled faintly at him.

What kind of smile was this?

Bright, charming, with a hint of coquetry and flattery—it left even Yan Sanhe dumbstruck.

Was this the second miss of the Zhu family who had been full of resentment?

Xiang Yanrui’s gaze at his wife also showed a trace of surprise. After a long while, he said slowly to Yan Sanhe, “You can come to the Xiang family early tomorrow.”

Yan Sanhe: “The matter is urgent. Can we go now?”

Xiang Yanrui glanced at his wife again. Seeing her nod, he said slowly, “We can!”

…

When Xiang Yanrui said “you,” he naturally meant Yan Sanhe alone.

Under everyone’s gaze, Yan Sanhe boarded the Xiang family’s carriage.

Li Buyan was somewhat worried. “Third Master, should I secretly follow?”

Xie Zhifei: “No need. Xiang Yanrui is reliable. In two days we’ll go pick her up.”

Pei Xiao: “So what do we do these two days?”

Xie Zhifei: “You go to the yamen. I’ll go to the Bu Family Army to look at horses.”

Li Buyan: “I’ll catch up on sleep.”

Zhu Qing: “I’ll prepare for the trip to Qi Kingdom.”

Ding Yi: “I’ll accompany Third Master to the Bu Family Army.”

Huang Qi: “I’ll accompany my master to the Buddhist Registry.”

Pei Xiao looked up at the waning moon overhead, sighing while the phrase “scattered troops and stragglers” came to mind.

Just then, urgent hoofbeats sounded in the distance.

Pei Xiao looked displeased. “Who’s riding so fast in the middle of the night?”

As he spoke, the hoofbeats drew closer and closer—heading straight for the separate courtyard.

Zhu Qing had the best eyesight. Peering intently, he said, “Master, it’s Luo Daqiang.”

Why had he come?

Xie Zhifei frowned and walked down the steps.

Luo Daqiang dismounted and rushed straight toward Xie Zhifei. “Boss, we just received a report from the Northern City Bureau. Chen Pi is dead.”

Xie Zhifei’s face instantly fell apart.

“What did you say?”

—