That day, Prefect Liu celebrated his birthday. He followed Young Master Liu back to the Liu family’s ancestral estate for the birthday banquet.

Many guests came to the feast. Among the dishes was roast whole lamb, with a knife for carving meat placed beside it.

The moment Zhu Qing saw that knife, he knew this was his only chance.

He pretended to carve lamb for Young Master Liu, gripped the knife firmly, then pressed the blade against his neck.

He had calculated everything carefully—by taking Young Master Liu hostage and demanding a fast horse from the Liu family, once he got on that horse, no one would be able to catch him.

Everything went smoothly. Just as one foot was about to cross the threshold, an arrow shot toward him from behind.

As he dodged the arrow, he also released Young Master Liu. The guards rushed forward in a swarm, beating and kicking him. He protected his head desperately, then lost consciousness in the intense pain.

When he woke, he was in prison, hands and feet bound in chains. The blood on his body had already congealed. The bone in his left shin seemed broken—the pain made him shiver violently.

Zhu Qing suddenly had an epiphany: Actually, dying in floodwaters like his parents had wasn’t so bad. Even if the bodies couldn’t be found, at least they didn’t suffer much.

He wanted to die now.

Given his current situation, biting off his tongue seemed the only way.

Just as he steeled himself, about to bite down, the prison door creaked open. Someone walked in and crouched before him.

His eyelashes were stuck together with congealed blood—he couldn’t open them. Through the blur, he vaguely made out a silhouette. It seemed to be an official, and quite tall.

“I have a son. Since childhood, his health has been poor. I want to find him a personal attendant to protect him. If you’re willing, I’ll get you out.”

Such a good opportunity existed?

Zhu Qing struggled to open his eyes.

Indeed, it was an official. His eyes were very cold, carrying a trace of chill.

“Of course, I also have a condition. You must protect my son for life and serve him with your life.”

Later he learned that among the guests at the Liu residence that day was an official from the capital—Xie Daozhi.

Xie Daozhi had taken notice of him because when he held Young Master Liu hostage, his eyes revealed a desperate, fierce light.

He said: A child who could show such an expression must be someone who could endure, and must be more ruthless than anyone—such a person could protect his Third Son.

And so, he signed a death contract and was carried into the Xie family to recover from his injuries.

Not only was the bone in his left shin broken, but three ribs were also fractured. There wasn’t a single patch of good flesh on his entire body. When the physician came to treat his wounds, he shook his head in amazement.

“With such severe injuries, how is he still alive?”

The place he stayed was in the northwest corner of Xie Manor. Because his injuries were so severe, he temporarily lived in a room by himself. Three meals a day were delivered to his bedside by maids.

After a month in bed, he could finally walk with a crutch.

The moment his feet touched the ground, Zhu Qing truly felt—this wasn’t a dream. He really had encountered a benefactor.

Father was right: Once all the bitterness is eaten, what remains is sweetness.

So what he needed to do next was recover quickly and establish himself firmly by his new master’s side as soon as possible.

At this time, Steward Xie entered the courtyard and informed him that after another half month of recovery, he’d move to the estate, and a master had already been hired.

Half a month passed as expected. He was sent to the estate and began training in martial arts under a master.

Seven or eight children trained together.

He wasn’t the most talented but was definitely the most diligent. In the mornings he rose earlier than others; at night after everyone slept, he’d secretly get up to practice more.

Just like in the acrobatics troupe—several people could spin the large vats, but only one was truly qualified to perform on stage.

Then…

Only one could truly stand by the new master’s side.

He had to be that one.

That morning, he rose early as usual to practice.

In the morning mist, he saw a figure—small, sitting in a bamboo chair. One hand held a small paper packet, the other hand grabbed something from the packet and scattered it outward.

Sparrows fell from the trees one after another, pecking at the food on the ground.

Whose child was this?

Coming here so early in the morning to feed birds?

How idle!

He approached. It was a little girl, about seven or eight years old. Her eyes were extremely beautiful, and when she lowered them, her face showed gentle tenderness.

“These are walnut cookie crumbs. I secretly saved them yesterday. Delicious, aren’t they? Fragrant, aren’t they?”

Zhu Qing was so shocked his breathing stopped.

He had followed the acrobatics troupe to many places and seen many people, but he had never heard such a pleasant voice.

How to describe that voice?

He couldn’t describe it properly—it must be a hundred times more pleasant than a lark’s song.

“Eldest Miss, Eldest Miss!”

In the thin fog, a woman ran over and draped a cloak over the little girl. “Madam is awake and looking for the miss. Let’s go.”

“Mother isn’t in a hurry. Help me count first—how many birds are on the ground in total?”

“So many—how can I count them all?”

“Do they look pretty?”

“All dull gray—not very pretty. Not as pretty as the green-headed parrot the miss keeps.”

The woman touched the little girl’s hand. “Ice cold. Quick, let’s go back. Don’t keep Madam waiting.”

The little girl rose with the woman’s support. After just two steps, she suddenly looked toward where he was hiding.

“Mother, there seems to be someone over there.”

He shrank back in fright.

The woman looked over. “Eldest Miss, where’s anyone?”

“There is someone.”

The little girl stamped her foot. “I can’t see with my eyes, but my ears are good. I heard them.”

“This old servant’s eyes—there really is someone, a servant woman from the estate about to sweep the ground.”

“I said I wouldn’t hear wrong.”

“Yes, yes.”

The woman helped the little girl leave.

As the footsteps faded, Zhu Qing emerged from the corner. Such a beautiful pair of eyes—how could they not see?

…

The next morning before dawn, that little girl was there again, sitting alone in the bamboo chair, looking so lonely.

“It was you yesterday, wasn’t it?”

She suddenly looked toward him again. “You have the smell of medicinal plaster on you. I can smell it.”

Zhu Qing didn’t know what to say, so he could only keep quiet.

“What’s your name?”

“…”

“How old are you?”

“…”

“Are you a girl or a boy?”

“…”

“You won’t speak—do you despise me for being blind?”

“…”

“I wasn’t blind before. I could see everything…”

As she spoke, tears streamed down her face. “But now I can’t see anymore, and I never will again… Waaah…”

He panicked immediately and ran away.

After running far, he felt a bit worried and went back to look. There was only an empty bamboo chair and a few gluttonous sparrows.

A few days later, he learned from others that the legitimate eldest miss of Xie Manor had come to the estate with her mother to recuperate.

The eldest miss had a lovely name—Xie Wenshu.

Wenshu meant “talented woman,” but sadly, Miss Xie had suddenly gone blind and couldn’t become a talented woman.

But what of it?

She had a father who was an official and a mother who doted on her. Unlike him—alone and helpless, without any relatives.

He stayed at the estate for four years. After four years, he came to Third Master’s side. Selected together with him was Ding Yi.

That day, Steward Xie led them into Third Master’s courtyard. Several maids happened to be helping an elegant young lady walk out from the room.

That young lady was exceptionally fair, her features even more beautiful than before.

As they brushed past each other, the young lady sniffed and suddenly stopped, looking toward him.

“This scent is very familiar. I’ve smelled it somewhere before.”

Zhu Qing’s heart skipped a beat.