Old Lady Wan’s prediction was correct. That night, Wan Qiqi indeed wanted to sleep in the same bed with Shaoshang.

Having changed into a light pink embroidered thin gauze sleeping garment, Wan Qiqi wanted to put a pearl chain around her neck again. Shaoshang couldn’t bear it anymore and stopped her: “Didn’t Uncle just say to have you wear two pieces less?”

Wan Qiqi said aggrievedly: “I originally wanted to wear gold bracelets and jade phoenix pendants too.”

Shaoshang sighed and lay down to sleep.

Deep in the night with no one around was the perfect time to fish for information. Shaoshang quickly asked what happened to Old Lady Wan’s eyes and ears. Wan Qiqi said curiously: “This isn’t any secret, yet you actually don’t know.”

In the darkness, Shaoshang skillfully employed voice acting, saying aggrievedly: “First, my family doesn’t permit discussing it, and second… no one told me either…”

Wan Qiqi immediately felt the Cheng family was truly an honest household. She then recounted everything in detail: “At that time my father wasn’t even ten years old yet. My grandfather left too suddenly and didn’t have time to entrust reliable people. So the collateral clan members pressed to the door, saying my grandmother came from a poor family, originally wasn’t a proper match, telling her to quickly hand over my father to them to raise and remarry herself. My grandfather’s private property given to her could all be taken with her entirely, counting as a dowry. My grandmother refused. They then said my grandmother definitely couldn’t hold on, perhaps in the future would give my grandfather’s family estate to another man…”

Shaoshang retorted: “Hmm, that gang of clansmen certainly wouldn’t give it to another man, because they would give it to themselves!” The old script of collateral branches seizing power when the direct line was young and weak—no novelty.

Wan Qiqi laughed heartily, then immediately became downcast again: “Hatefully, among my grandfather’s troops there were originally quite a few Wan family children. They all helped their own family elders, waiting to get a share of the spoils. Thus, no matter how my grandmother swore poisonous oaths, they just wouldn’t give up. So my grandmother gouged out one of her own eyes and cut off one of her own ears, throwing the eyeball and ear onto the leading person, saying she would absolutely never remarry. My grandfather’s trusted confidants originally couldn’t properly interfere in Wan family affairs, but hearing of this matter they were also enraged beyond endurance. They immediately started fighting, wanting to support my grandmother and vent her anger.”

“Then… what happened after?” Shaoshang listened with her heart pounding.

“After confronting like this for over a month, my maternal great-grandfather brought men and horses rushing from far away. He was my grandfather’s sworn brother, and moreover a famously righteous and chivalrous hero—everyone in Sui County knew him. With both soft and hard approaches, those scoundrel uncles finally withdrew their hands!”

Shaoshang fell silent, saying: “Hehe, so that’s how it was.”

Wan Qiqi said hatefully: “Later my grandmother slowly replaced generals, won people’s hearts, gradually established prestige. My maternal great-grandfather finally didn’t have to run to Sui County seven or eight times a year. After several more years passed, my father received his capping ceremony early and led men and horses himself, then began one by one dealing with those scoundrel uncles who had pressured my grandmother back then.”

“How did he deal with them?” Shaoshang was very interested in the specific steps.

Wan Qiqi said: “There were many methods. Have their children go for training suppressing bandits—a few die here, a few die there. Or get into some legal trouble, then die a few more on the exile road. Let those old ones watch with their own eyes as their children and grandchildren withered away.”

Shaoshang felt a chill. This girl who treated her with such warmth and affection spoke of killing so casually, not taking it seriously at all. For her, a small-town delinquent, the most ruthless thing in her life was hitting someone’s head with a beer bottle—and she hadn’t even broken it.

Speaking to here, Wan Qiqi suddenly sighed deeply. “So, not only does our Wan family’s main branch have thin descendants, even the collateral branches don’t have many sons either. Grandmother always says Father was too ruthless toward clansmen of the same blood, harming harmony, which is why his knees are empty. But Father told me, after Grandmother gouged her eye and cut her ear, sometimes her head ached, sometimes the wound seeped blood—she couldn’t sleep entire nights for over ten years before she endured through it. He witnessed Grandmother suffering such great torment in his youth. Thinking of it makes him hate.”

Shaoshang was silent for a long time, so long that Wan Qiqi thought she had fallen asleep, before she finally heard her ask: “Were your grandfather and grandmother very devoted to each other?” In this era, widows remarrying was truly most ordinary. Especially since Old Lady Wan at that time was not only young and beautiful, but also had a large dowry.

This time even Wan Qiqi was quiet for a long while before saying: “I never met my grandfather, but I heard my grandmother say, she came from humble origins, yet my grandfather never looked down on her. He always respected her, admired her, married her with complete propriety, and also said she was the very best woman in this world. For my grandfather’s words, even if she scraped off the flesh from her body piece by piece, she wouldn’t be afraid.”

After finishing these words, both girls lay quietly on their backs, silent for a long while.

Shaoshang said softly: “…If you treat me as a national warrior, I must repay you as a national warrior.”

Wan Qiqi turned on her side close to her shoulder and cried softly. After crying until exhausted, she fell into deep sleep.

The next day when they rose, both girls had red-rimmed eyes. The difference was that Shaoshang’s redness and swelling were concealed under the bruising and couldn’t be seen, while Wan Qiqi looked exactly like two large peaches hanging on her face. Shaoshang quickly contributed the white jade jar that Yuan Shen had given her. The medicinal balm inside was light red in color, with a faint fragrance wafting gently. Applied to the face it was even more soft, moist and comfortable.

“Where did this balm come from? It’s even more effective than my father’s wound medicine.” In just half a day, the redness and swelling on Wan Qiqi’s eyes had completely subsided.

Shaoshang gave a fake laugh, saying: “My third aunt gave it to me. It seems like some disciple from White Deer Mountain presented it to Great-grandfather Sang.”

Wan Qiqi said: “So that’s how it is!… Eh, but it doesn’t seem very effective on you.” Her beloved sworn sister’s face still had blue-red swelling, like overnight soaked eight-treasure rice.

“…” Because a certain person couldn’t distinguish between external injuries and internal bruising! From this it seemed Yuan Shen certainly never fought in his childhood.

Just after finishing the morning meal, Shaoshang’s three brothers all came together.

Cheng Yong sincerely apologized to Old Lady Wan, saying their family had caused trouble for the Wan family. Cheng Song dragged Wan Qiqi to Lady Wan’s presence telling marketplace rumors he’d heard outside, amusing them until they couldn’t stop laughing. Cheng Shaogong brought Shaoshang a full bundle of snacks, plus a self-drawn protective talisman he had just enshrined for his sister, telling her to sleep on it and see if she could turn around her recent bad luck.

At the same time, they brought Shaoshang clothing and other personal belongings, also saying Lady Xiao had tacitly permitted her to stay at the Wan family for several days. Those wooden slips were temporarily noted down—she could slowly do the punishment writing when she returned.

At this point, even Shaoshang’s last worries were gone, and she settled down with peace of mind. Apart from her injuries healing rather slowly, her days at the Wan family could be called perfect in every way. Every day eating together and sleeping in one bed with Wan Qiqi, brocade and silk, mountain delicacies and sea flavors, all kinds of decadent comfort—even when washing feet there were four or five maids separately pinching her ten toes.

Wan Qiqi also taught her gambling chess, pitch-pot, throwing flower dice… Sometimes when there weren’t enough people for games, Wan Qiqi would even pull in several of Wan Songbai’s older concubines. Everyone laughing and playing without cease, occasionally when the gambling got heated they would even find Lady Wan to arbitrate. The family environment was harmonious beyond measure.

“These few concubine-mothers and your aunt are very nice to you?”

Since coming here, Shaoshang had been covertly looking forward to watching once a purely authentic, original ancient wife-concubine battle, but unfortunately the Cheng family fundamentally didn’t have creatures called concubines.

“What do you know? My mother treats them incredibly well, providing them with good food and drink, just hoping they’ll leave a heir for Father. Unfortunately, when I was small the concubine-mothers still had some ambition and aspirations. Now one by one they’ve all become dispirited…” Wan Qiqi shook her head, expressing disappointment in these concubine-mothers’ professional capabilities and enterprising spirit.

After sighing, she continued dragging Shaoshang to play.

If not for the ice surface being unreliable, she even wanted to pull Shaoshang to go ice skating. She even stole a jar of Wan Songbai’s stored wine. The two girls drank until heavily intoxicated. They also prepared several colorful roosters, planning to wait until Shaoshang wasn’t a pig head anymore before taking her to the marketplace cockfighting arena to broaden her horizons.

The two girls played joyfully to the heavens. Lady Wan wanted to cry but had no tears, worried that after Shaoshang returned home, Lady Xiao would discover her daughter who originally was naughty but ignorant of all these matters, after one visit staying at their home, returned having mastered eating, drinking and playing in every way.

At this time, Shaoshang as an adult soul with self-control demonstrated her advantage. After muddling through several happy days, she suddenly asked Wan Qiqi for brush, ink and wooden slips, and began reading books and practicing characters for two hours every day, insisting on finishing studying before she could play—the ancient script she had just learned, the memory wasn’t yet solid, she couldn’t forget it.

At first Wan Qiqi wanted to forcibly drag Shaoshang to play, but couldn’t withstand Shaoshang’s eloquent arguments.

“In this world there are two kinds of friends. One kind is called fair-weather friends—ordinarily eating, drinking and playing, when it matters they’re not half useful. One kind is called showing complete devotion—that is, seeing a friend has difficulties, one can sacrifice oneself to accompany them.”

For complete devotion, Wan Qiqi had no choice but to sacrifice her body—accompanying Shaoshang to study together.

Lady Wan immediately stopped crying and hurriedly expressed to her mother-in-law: Your venerable self truly has penetrating insight, simply far-sighted and commanding from on high, naturally gifted and heaven-sent talent… Then was impatiently driven away by Old Lady Wan.

However, Shaoshang also had times when she was alone.

Though Lady Wan’s social circle wasn’t vast, she still needed to occasionally take Wan Qiqi out for banquets. At these times Shaoshang would wander aimlessly all over the residence, curiously exploring the surrounding ancient-style architecture. Among them, what interested her most was a small wooden bridge.

This arc-shaped small bridge was just over a zhang wide, seven or eight zhang long, arching high like a bent rainbow. The entire wooden structure had not a single iron nail or copper wedge—it relied completely on the carpenter’s superb skill and precise calculations. Timbers of varying lengths and widths mutually supported and wedged each other up, down, left and right, forming layer upon layer.

Once while chatting with the Wan residence’s steward, Shaoshang learned that in the previous Bu clan defection case, this small wooden bridge had been impacted and beaten by soldiers who came to search the house. Now it already had a swaying and tilting feeling. Unfortunately, the bridge was made so ingeniously that it wasn’t something ordinary craftsmen could repair by hammering around. The steward said they could only dismantle it completely and rebuild a new one.

Shaoshang secretly sighed with regret. This day when alone taking an afternoon nap, her heart suddenly stirred. Her spirit of inquiry erupting, she hurriedly put on clothes and rose, dismissed those around her, carefully climbed under the bridge to examine it—below the bridge the small stream was less than half a chi deep. Under the thin ice surface the water flowed slowly. The colorful pebbles spread below were faintly visible. Presumably this bridge and stream were originally for viewing.

Shaoshang curled her body, bending her waist and hunching her back, struggling to look up, raising her hand to touch those several critical joints. After a long while, she smiled slightly. There was no need to laboriously find craftsmen to dismantle it—one only needed to pull out several small wedge timbers, and before long that wooden bridge would fall apart by itself. Rebuilding would also be easy, because she could already draw the structural diagram of this bridge exactly as the original!

Just thinking of the satisfying part, Shaoshang suddenly heard from above on the bank at her side came the sound of many footsteps. She immediately realized many people were walking this way. Shaoshang suddenly felt embarrassed. Coming as a guest to someone’s home, yet covered in mud lying under a bridge touching this and that—in ancient people’s eyes, what kind of strange fetish would this be? Thinking about it, she simply didn’t go out, planning to wait until people walked by before climbing up.

That group of people walked while talking, their steps slow, their voices going from far to near. In the front was precisely Wan Songbai’s rough laughter—

“…Lord Ling jests. I, Wan So-and-so, in this life most love beautiful concubines and treasures—who doesn’t know this? What paintings or diagrams—where would I understand such things! No, no, absolutely not, hahaha…”

Then came a cold and gentle young man’s voice: “Since Marquis Wan says there aren’t any, then there aren’t any. However, yesterday this one heard Marquis Wan arranged with Official Wang to play kickball. Presumably the leg ailment has healed…”

The footsteps by the bank suddenly stopped. One could only hear Wan Songbai laugh dryly several times, but Shaoshang had already heard this laughter wasn’t very sincere.

Sweat faintly appeared on her forehead. In her heart she shouted loudly, hurry up and scram! This old lady doesn’t want to hear things she shouldn’t hear! What about legs? Can’t people whose legs are healed want to kick balls?

Fortunately, this group only paused briefly, then immediately lifted their feet to walk again. This time their footsteps were hurried, quickly departing. Shaoshang only vaguely heard Uncle Wan say ‘Lord Ling, please follow me.’ The rest of the words were too faint to hear.

After the people walked far away, Shaoshang quickly climbed out from under the bridge, patted the mud from her body, and hurriedly slipped back to her room to eliminate evidence.

Having been frightened like this, the afternoon nap couldn’t be slept. After washing and grooming, Shaoshang simply changed into a folded-sleeve wide-skirt waist-bound riding outfit, preparing to go to the horse arena to consolidate the horsemanship Miss Thirteen had just taught her.

The old soldier managing the stables very carefully led out for Shaoshang a small gentle-tempered mare she habitually rode daily, and even changed to a beautiful brand-new saddle. Shaoshang very much admired for a while the exquisite bright copper buckles on the stirrups, then happily led the horse herself to walk, not having that old soldier follow.

The horse arena in the Wan family’s back courtyard wasn’t large. Judging from Uncle Wan’s belly, those who frequented this place weren’t many. Leading the horse to stand in the arena, Shaoshang’s left foot stepped on the stirrup, leaped up in the air and sat steadily on the saddle, her posture standard and graceful—though this body’s appearance was somewhat weak chicken, the coordination of her four limbs wasn’t bad. Shaoshang was just feeling proud when, who knew, as soon as she sat on, she felt something was wrong.

It turned out this new saddle hadn’t been adjusted for the length of the stirrup leather straps according to Shaoshang’s leg length. After she sat down, she discovered her two feet actually couldn’t reach the stirrups.

This was a small mistake beginners commonly made.

Shaoshang deeply felt she shouldn’t have done this. Horseback riding wasn’t like riding a bicycle—even if you couldn’t brake you could still put both feet on the ground. The risk of horseback riding was not small. If she didn’t want to fall and be unable to take care of herself for the rest of her life, she must be extremely cautious in the future.

Because both feet were suspended in air, she could only use her thighs to firmly clamp the horse’s belly, avoiding an unstable center of gravity. Fortunately, this small mare had a gentle temperament. With the master on its body not moving, it also honestly stood in place, only occasionally kicking its feet and snorting through its nose.

Shaoshang stiffened on the saddle for a long time, slowly turned her body to the side, struggling to extend her left foot to reach the stirrup below, planning to dismount and adjust the leather strap before riding again. Just as half her body’s center of gravity had turned to the side, she suddenly felt the surroundings were particularly quiet. She raised her head to look and was immediately frightened into a cold sweat, nearly falling straight off the horse.

She saw at the horse arena entrance, not knowing when, stood a circle of people—still over ten sword-wearing guards with crossbows slung and arrows on their backs. However, today they weren’t wearing black clothes and black armor, but snow-white knee-length robes with brown leather armor, quietly surrounding that ‘Lord Ling.’

According to Miss Wan Thirteen’s not very clear introduction: This person was called Ling Buyi, courtesy name Zicheng, the Son of Heaven’s trusted close minister. One of his positions was Vice Commander of the Guanglu Xun, commanding the Yulin Guard Left Cavalry Battalion, and also separately led the Yueqi Commander of the Northern Army’s Five Schools, with the added title of Palace Attendant, permitted to enter the forbidden palace to attend to affairs.

And, so on.

—Being able to remember these awkward titles had already exhausted Wan Qiqi’s strength. Shaoshang expressed great appreciation.

Today he wore a cross-collar narrow-sleeve curved-hem deep robe. The deep blood-red robe was woven with intricate dark gold beast pattern, draped outside with a same-color wide-sleeve outer robe, right arm exposed, waist bound with a five-finger-wide dark-colored gold-woven belt. Wind swept the arena’s sand and dust, moving the hem of the robe on his body, as if rolling up blood-colored sky.

Shaoshang had never seen a man wear such a deep blazing red color. She only felt that this overwhelming yellow sand and crimson earth set off his skin white as jade, eyebrows and features handsome and beautiful, with a kind of heart-stopping beauty.

Ling Buyi slowly walked out from among the guards, step by step walking toward that girl half-hanging from the horse.

Shaoshang was extremely embarrassed.

At this moment she could neither go up nor down. Adding the eerie atmosphere, despite her hundred schemes, she actually for a moment didn’t know what to do.

Ling Buyi had already walked before the horse. Shaoshang was just thinking to make a joke, first exchange some pleasantries to ease the atmosphere before saying more. Who knew that handsome and elegant man said not a word, extending his right hand to support the girl’s slender waist.

Shaoshang’s entire body stiffened nervously. She watched wide-eyed as that fair and slender male palm almost enclosed half her waist—oh heavens oh earth, she urgently needed Director Xiao to popularize etiquette knowledge right now. This, this, was this proper?!

Before she could react, Ling Buyi exerted slight force, pushing her slantingly hanging body back.

Shaoshang sat dazedly upright on the saddle, her soul not yet settled. She saw that Ling Buyi lower his head to unfasten the stirrup’s leather strap. While adjusting the length, he casually asked: “Are you surnamed Wan, or surnamed Cheng?”

Shaoshang’s two hands tightly gripped the reins, staring fixedly at his jet-black hair. Her not-yet-resigned intuition told her it would be best not to let Ling Buyi know who she was. She smiled with difficulty: “…The Wan and Cheng families are closely interdependent. The younger generation mutually observe disciple etiquette…”

Ling Buyi said: “Oh, then you’re surnamed Cheng.”

Shaoshang: …

Ling Buyi adjusted one side of the leather strap, slowly moved to the other side to continue unfastening the strap, and said again: “The Cheng family has three brothers, each with children. Which one is your father?”

Shaoshang continued her dying struggle, laughing dryly: “The siblings are intimate, how do the children distinguish between each other…”

Ling Buyi said: “Mm, then you’re General Cheng’s daughter.”

Shaoshang: …Then why do you still ask me!

Both leather straps adjusted completely, Ling Buyi raised his head, directly gazing at the girl on the horse. He was very tall—standing on the ground he could still look directly into the girl’s eyes. This time, Shaoshang finally saw his face clearly.

—Sword-like eyebrows slanting into his temples, eyes like stars, nose like a mountain ridge, elegant bearing, clearly smiling on his face, yet his whole body filled with desolate murderous air. He was very young, even younger than she had imagined. She had originally thought someone with official rank similar to Uncle Wan would be of similar age. Now seeing him, he was probably about the same age as Yuan Shen.

He looked at the girl full of wariness and fear, smiling faintly: “Just now, the words between Marquis Wan and myself—how many sentences did you hear?”

Shaoshang’s heart turned cold. This person indeed had detected her hiding under the bridge! She struggled to stay calm, using her life’s most sincere tone to answer: “Only two sentences. You asked Uncle Wan if his leg ailment had healed. Nothing else, truly nothing else!”

Ling Buyi gazed at her, one hand pulling over the stirrup, the other hand clasping her ankle to slowly place it inside.

The girl was born delicate and childish, like a small exquisite and charming little bird. Through the knee-high riding boots, he could still grasp her calf with one hand. Then, he slowly closed his palm: “The ice surface hasn’t melted. What were you doing underneath?”

Shaoshang could feel her calf being tightly gripped, extremely horrified, as if placed in a fierce beast’s mouth. The huge sharp beast teeth would tear and bite her flesh in the next moment.

She said in a trembling voice: “I was looking at the bridge, truly, I was looking at how the timber under the bridge was assembled. You must believe me! This is true!” She knew these words were a bit far-fetched. How many ancient people could understand the great spirit of engineering and science? But these words were truly completely factual. It was rare in this life for her to be this sincere!

Ling Buyi gazed at the girl for a long time. He suddenly recalled that night at the lantern market, fireworks brilliant, splendor like weaving. The crescent-moon-beautiful little girl was also full of curiosity with her head raised, watching without blinking one after another variously shaped revolving lanterns.

He smiled slightly: “Perhaps you don’t believe it, but actually I believe your words.”

Shaoshang: …You guessed right, she truly didn’t believe it.

After the initial horror passed, Shaoshang began rapidly turning her brain: Should she call loudly for help? After calling for help, could those who came in response rush past that group of armored sword-wearing guards before Ling Buyi squeezed her to death?

As for why Ling Buyi would want to squeeze her to death, she also didn’t know. But making the worst plan was always correct.

Just as her mind was full of wild thoughts, who knew Ling Buyi spoke no more, turning to the other side to also place Shaoshang’s other foot into the stirrup. Then he brushed his sleeves and walked away. In just a moment, even those guards had all walked away cleanly.

The yellow sand in the horse arena slightly rose, bringing several dried leaves swept from distant courtyards. The surroundings were so quiet it was as if nothing had just happened. Shaoshang stayed dazed for a long time. Not until the good-tempered little mare impatiently kicked up sand and earth did she come back to her senses.

What a pity. She so liked the Wan family. Here there was no Director Xiao managing hands and feet, within the residence there were no nephews easy to create romantic scandals with, and there was Miss Thirteen who could accompany her in causing havoc with compatible spirits. Every day was comfortable and pleasant. She had originally wanted to stay longer. But now, she felt she had better go home.

Shaoshang wiped the cold sweat from her forehead, urged the horse to walk slowly, gradually circling around the horse arena—

Having mixed in the marketplace for several years, the greatest benefit to her was making her possess without instruction a kind of small animal-like instinct, intuitively knowing how to seek benefit and avoid harm.

Yuan Shen wasn’t easy to provoke, but after seeing him a few more times and becoming familiar, occasionally she could still provoke him a tiny bit.

Ling Buyi absolutely must not be provoked. Provoking him would cause major trouble. She must be polite, polite, and polite again.

After thinking for a long time, Shaoshang suddenly became puzzled. Speaking from the heart, Ling Buyi was the most handsome man she’d seen so far, worthy of being called a city-toppling appearance. She herself also wasn’t fated to be a nun. Why just now did she not have the slightest romantic thoughts?

Circling until the ninth round, Shaoshang touched her own face and suddenly understood: It turned out at this moment she was still a pig head. What romantic thoughts could there be!