If that blow had landed, it would have been a fatal act of unlawful killing — it frightened Dongxue so badly she nearly bit her own tongue, and she lunged forward in a panic to wrap her arms around Sun Shi and hold her back.
Chu Linlang turned her head and realized her mother had misunderstood. She immediately called out: “Mother, this is Lord Situ — the one I told you about!”
Only then did Sun Shi manage to stop herself. She looked more carefully at the young man holding her daughter — his features were strikingly handsome, with clear, bright eyes that held a refined and distinguished air. He looked nothing like a rough brigand.
When Linlang had originally mentioned Situ Sheng to Sun Shi, it had been only a few brief words, and quite vague at that — as though he were merely a noble benefactor who had stepped in to help her during a time of hardship. So Sun Shi hadn’t given it much thought. After all, her daughter had been working for him as a steward, not as a concubine.
But now, the Lord Situ she had imagined — long-bearded and elderly — turned out to be a strikingly handsome young man of rare refinement.
The way he held her daughter in such an intimate embrace — and the way his arm seemed to have tightened around her just a moment ago — gave Sun Shi slightly more to think about.
What exactly was the relationship between her daughter and this Lord Situ?
But there was no time for further thought, because at that moment, Tao Yashu let out another sharp cry — a bandit had seized her.
On a horse beside Situ Sheng’s was unmistakably Master Liao Jingxuan, who was supposed to have been visiting friends. He too held a bow in hand and was shooting at bandits not far away.
Seeing a bandit grab Tao Yashu, Liao Jingxuan simply leapt off his horse, ran over, and kicked the man flat with a single blow.
Situ Sheng had Linlang step back to a safe distance, then moved in with Guanqi and the other soldiers to engage the remaining bandits. For a moment, the scene was once again brutally bloody.
But just then, one of the bandits Situ Sheng had wounded rallied with a final surge of strength and swung his blade toward Tao Yashu. Liao Jingxuan moved with quick eyes and steady hands, pulling Tao Yashu into his arms to shield her — and in doing so, took the blow across his back.
These final surges from the bandits faded fast. Before long, all of them had been overpowered by Situ Sheng’s men, bound and thrown to the ground.
At that point, they noticed that the saddlebags on the bandits’ horses were writhing with movement. They opened them to find several captured noblewomen inside — though Yixiu Junzhu was not among them.
Situ Sheng instructed the commanding officer of the soldiers to press forward and search the land route for any fleeing remnants of the bandits.
He then gave Linlang a brief account of how he came to be there.
It turned out that after completing his official duties, he had been tracked down by Liao Jingxuan, who had informed him of Tao Huiru’s inquiries. After making some swift arrangements, he had calculated the travel schedule and estimated he could meet Chu Linlang at the relay station, so he had rushed there to wait for the ship.
His original plan had been simply to catch a glimpse of Linlang from a distance during the part of the journey where their paths might cross, as a small comfort for his longing.
He had never imagined that Linlang’s side would run into trouble.
The previous night, when the signal fire was spotted, the naval unit at the relay station had detected it promptly and immediately dispatched troops to reinforce.
Situ Sheng and Liao Jingxuan had arrived at the relay station in the middle of the night. Upon hearing that the Rong Lin Girls’ Academy ark had not arrived on schedule — and that a distress signal had appeared upstream — Situ Sheng had wanted to take a boat upriver to investigate. But all the station’s boats had already been deployed, and they couldn’t wait, so they’d simply mounted horses and rode along the river — and by fortunate timing, had come upon Chu Linlang and the others.
The current situation back at the sandbar island was still unknown to Situ Sheng and the others.
What Chu Linlang worried about most now were the people left behind on the sandbar. Fighting back tears, she said to Situ Sheng: “Seventh Master and the others are still on the sandbar. Please, take your people and go rescue them quickly — those water bandits are terribly vicious…”
As she said this, she was also afraid that Situ Sheng going back might put him in danger. She couldn’t bear it and wanted to go back with him.
Situ Sheng held her in place and soothed her gently: “Master Liao has been wounded. You stay and look after him, and take some guards back to the relay station first. I’ll rejoin you there shortly.”
With that, he set off with Guanqi and his other followers, riding swiftly back toward the sandbar island.
The cut across Liao Jingxuan’s back was somewhat serious — the entire white robe had been soaked through with blood. It needed immediate stanching.
But his condition was still stable. He noticed Tao Yashu standing nearby, staring blankly with wide eyes, and suspected her old cleanliness habit had flared up again — and somehow still had the presence of mind to joke: “Blood isn’t considered dirty, you know. As the ancients said, blood offered to the earth altars, blood offered to appease the spirits…”
Before the scholar could finish his rambling, Tao Yashu steeled herself, tore a strip from the hem of her skirt, crouched down, and wrapped it neatly around his wound. Then she even asked if he would like some wild fruit to tide him over.
Liao Jingxuan was somewhat taken aback by this female student who was usually so prim and proper. He found himself wondering if she had been possessed by some other spirit.
But then he glanced over and saw the same Tao Yashu sitting on horseback, head bowed, patiently pulling the torn threads at the hem of her skirt until they were smooth and even — and he concluded that this student’s soul was still intact, her spirit very much alive and unaltered.
Before long, they arrived at the relay station nearest to their location.
After dismounting, Linlang couldn’t even spare a thought for washing up. She pushed aside the hot ginger tea the relay station soldiers brought her and immediately asked for a water-route military map, which she studied carefully.
With the relay station officer’s guidance, she located the sandbar where they had taken shelter.
Because the terrain here was far too convenient.
Though it was a canal, the entire waterway branched in a shape resembling the character for “tree” — connecting in all directions. After raiding a vessel on the canal, the raider boats could scatter and disappear into any number of secluded waterways.
For a moment, Linlang wondered: the fact that they had been forced to shelter overnight on that sandbar — was it truly a coincidence, or had someone planned it?
And then there were Sui Qiye and Wang Wu, and the other female classmates and scholars — she had no idea how any of them were now.
At the time, she had caught a glimpse of Guan Jinhe and Madam Hua apparently boarding a small boat — she just didn’t know if they had been as fortunate as herself and managed to escape in time.
Sun Shi was weak and timid, and had also been somewhat malnourished. After this torturous night, she had already collapsed from exhaustion and couldn’t even stand.
Once she had settled her mother, Chu Linlang stood on the relay station dock and gazed into the distance as far as she could see. Unfortunately, by this time the sky was already fully light, and the bonfire Seventh Master had lit on the sandbar was barely visible.
Yet from the river flowing down from upstream, broken ship planks and driftwood came floating past from time to time — and among them, bodies rising and falling in the current, a sight that sent chills through those who saw it.
This also sent Linlang’s heart rising into her throat, for the person she worried about most was still upstream — with no way of knowing how he and Seventh Master and the others were faring.
Chu Linlang turned and noticed Tao Yashu helping the physician treat Liao Jingxuan’s wound.
It was clear from the look of Liao Jingxuan, once his clothes were off, that he had a regular habit of practicing martial arts — he was solidly muscular, nothing like the slight, bony figure of a frail scholar.
The wound on his back was now exposed: the cut was quite deep, a disturbing sight.
At first Tao Yashu was somewhat uncomfortable — looking at a man’s bare back felt decidedly improper, and she had half a mind to excuse herself.
But at the moment she had no maids or servants with her. Many of the rescued noblewomen were also wounded, and even Xia He and Dongxue were busy tending to the injured.
The physician was stretched beyond capacity. Seeing Tao Yashu standing right there, he didn’t even pause to ask which noble family she was from — he simply grabbed her as a pair of willing hands, told her what to do about the wound, and turned away to deal with others.
Chu Linlang noticed that Tao Yashu seemed at a loss, and walked over to help — but Tao Yashu steadied herself quickly: “Master Liao was wounded protecting me. I should be the one to dress the wound. Chu Niangzi, please help the physician and tend to the others.”
Seeing Tao Yashu willing to assist, Chu Linlang naturally nodded and turned to go help with the others.
But as she turned, she inadvertently caught a glimpse of Master Liao’s shoulder — and saw, clearly marked there, two horizontal brand marks burned into the skin.
The same kind of marks were on her mother Sun Shi’s shoulder.
These were the marks left on children who had passed through the hands of human traffickers — like brands on livestock, impossible to erase…
Chu Linlang was taken aback. How could Master Liao have these marks on his shoulder?
But before she could say anything, the physician called out to her to come and assist.
Chu Linlang hurried over in response and helped alongside Dongxue and Xia He.
As for Liao Jingxuan’s side — the teacher and student who had once been at odds were, at this moment, talking together with a rare and easy calm…
Master Liao had often noticed, in the classroom, Tao Yashu busily arranging her desk before class began — everything set out with perfectly straight lines and impeccable order.
He had a habit of teasing people, so he asked Tao Yashu: this cut of his was a bit irregular — did it need to be re-cut to make it look neater, with cleaner, straighter lines? Otherwise wouldn’t it be an eyesore for her?
Tao Yashu said nothing. She simply poured a stream of disinfecting rice wine straight onto Liao Jingxuan’s wound in one unhurried move. While he yelped in pain, she asked with deliberate composure: “Does it hurt, Master Liao? Shall I tell you another ruler joke, so you have something to listen to?”
Chu Linlang shook her head and smiled, then turned away to attend to her own tasks.
By the time the wounded were all tended to and everyone had eaten breakfast, Situ Sheng returned with the naval forces by boat.
Seeing him standing at the bow, the situation was far better than Chu Linlang had feared.
The great majority of Rong Lin Girls’ Academy’s classmates and scholars had returned — though some bore wounds, and some had dirt-smeared clothes, looking disheveled and wretched.
It was said that not long after Seventh Master had signaled them to escape, the relay station’s fast vessel had spotted their signals from downstream and sent up a responding fire arrow into the sky.
This was a signal to intimidate the bandits — indicating that reinforcements would arrive shortly.
The water bandits had no desire to fight a prolonged battle, especially since this ambush had gone so far beyond their original expectations.
The official-class noblewomen they had targeted were almost entirely absent from the ships, having been transferred to the sandbar island.
On top of that, the naval soldiers had put up a fierce resistance. The effectiveness of this ambush had been drastically diminished.
Above all, the noblewomen had scattered like sparrows in all directions — there was simply no way to take many of them. After seizing a handful, they had hastily retreated and dispersed.
The group Chu Linlang and the others had encountered on the return journey were almost certainly one of those scattered fleeing parties — and through that encounter, the several captured female students had been rescued.
As for Sui Qiye, both his arm and leg had been wounded and were wrapped in thick layers of bandaging. But the old man’s spirits were good, and nothing serious had befallen him.
With so many eyes watching, Chu Linlang could not fling herself into Situ Sheng’s arms — much as she very much wanted to.
When she saw him standing unharmed at the bow, chatting with others, Chu Linlang quietly turned away to help look after the classmates and ladies who had survived the ordeal.
But as Chu Linlang looked around the group, she realized that Tao Fourth Aunt’s boatload of people, and Yixiu Junzhu, had still not been found.
The reinforcements had come quickly and the discovery had been timely — she didn’t know whether the pursuing forces would be able to bring everyone back.
After Situ Sheng finished talking with Sui Qi and Commander Wu, none of them wore a particularly pleasant expression.
Situ Sheng especially — his face had suddenly darkened. The fearsome official who made the entirety of the capital’s court tremble seemed, in an instant, to reappear.
Just as Chu Linlang had suspected, the attack on the ship was truly not a coincidence. Including the earlier breakdown mid-journey that had thrown off their schedule — it had all been the work of a ship worker who was colluding with the bandits, who had been paid to deliberately cause the damage.
The captured water bandits were immediately interrogated. With the former deputy minister of the Court of Judicial Review handling the questioning personally, no mouth could stay shut.
To everyone’s astonishment, among these bandits were several men from the Kingdom of Jing. They spoke in a stream of the Kingdom of Jing’s language, paying absolutely no heed to their interrogator — some had even curled their lips and brazenly spat at Commander Wu’s face.
That kind of arrogance was entirely characteristic of the Kingdom of Jing’s particular contempt for people of Great Jin. After all, everyone knew that since the Battle of Fu River, Great Jin had never recovered its former strength — it was no longer the flourishing dynasty that the Kingdom of Jing had once looked upon with any respect.
It was only when Sui Qiye came to stand before them with the lone-wolf ferocity in his eyes that they began to restrain themselves.
All of these men from the Kingdom of Jing knew that the failure of this ambush had much to do with this lean, wiry old man.
The sight of him standing on the tidal flat, cutting down their number one by one, was deeply memorable.
People of the Kingdom of Jing admired the strong. A warrior of this caliber inspired a kind of awe regardless of which nation he belonged to.
Sui Qiye was fluent in the language of the Kingdom of Jing. No one knew what he said to those men — but after he spoke, their arrogance visibly deflated, and they regarded the lean old man with unease and uncertainty. After that, the interrogation was able to proceed smoothly.
The traitors who had colluded internally with the enemy were soon uncovered as well. The sounds of their screaming under the lash rang out from the rear courtyard of the relay station in waves.
The shaken noblewomen, nursing a private satisfaction in their hearts, were at the same time directly experiencing the swift and thunderous methods of the capital’s feared official.
The young ladies of the academy who had previously been utterly smitten by Situ Sheng’s remarkable looks now went pale with fright, one after another — so shaken that they couldn’t even bring themselves to drink their hot ginger tea.
When Situ Sheng came back out with a blood-stained long whip in hand, followed by several soldiers, every one of those young ladies who had been unable to take their eyes off him before scrambled away like startled birds, retreating to their rooms to rest without so much as daring to glance back at him.
Chu Linlang let out a quiet sigh and turned back to her own room.
Did Lord Situ even realize that with this impatient flurry of whipping, he had single-handedly sent his own marital prospects flying straight out into the furthest reaches of the sky?
She feared it would be another long stretch of time before any young lady of noble birth could hear Situ Sheng’s name without changing color.
By now the relay station had grown quiet. The bandits had been taken away under escort. The survivors of the ordeal, having gone without sleep through the entire night, were wrung out from the shock. They had drunk their hot congee, and nothing could settle the spirit more than a deep, uninterrupted sleep.
Linlang bathed and changed her clothes and lay down, yet she was too full of thoughts to sleep. She tossed and turned, and after a while seemed to hear some small sound in the room.
She was just reaching out to lift the bed curtain when she saw a shadow slip inside. She was so startled she almost cried out — but a large hand closed over her mouth in time, and a familiar voice said close to her ear: “Don’t shout. It’s me…”
By now Chu Linlang had also caught the familiar scent that came with the person. She looked up at the man’s handsome face and finally let out a small breath, then raised her hand to thump him on the chest in annoyance: “What kind of person sneaks into someone’s room without a sound like that? Were you trying to frighten me to death?”
Situ Sheng said with complete innocence: “When I enter your room, I always have to avoid being seen. It’s not as though I can knock.”
Chu Linlang thought about it: “That’s not right either — I bolted the door just now!”
The handsome man thought for a moment, then said with perfect composure: “Ah, that’s right. Just now I didn’t come through the door. I came through the window.”
He had finished his official business a few days ago and had calculated the travel schedule, originally intending to come and see Linlang for a bit — and had ended up walking straight into this water bandit catastrophe.
After fighting and killing for the whole night, and then conducting interrogations, he had simply done a quick wash. The smell of blood still lingered in his breath — so he needed to breathe in some fragrant air, hold a soft and sweet young woman in his arms, and only then could he ease the fatigue from days of hard riding.
Since the two of them had fully “joined forces in official corruption,” Situ Sheng seemed to have found the bed that suited him best. Only when he slept beside this woman could he sleep with such deep contentment, undisturbed by dreams.
When he counted it up, this time the two of them had been apart for quite a while, and he had gone without a proper night’s rest for several days. To say he had come to steal a moment of fragrant closeness was perhaps less accurate than to say he had come in search of one night of good sleep.
Besides, the relay station’s walls were not very thick, and this young woman of his, when her interest was stirred, had a habit of making soft, trembling sounds. If things went too far, the entire relay station would likely know that Chu Niangzi had a visitor.
So when he lay down beside her with complete propriety, fully clothed and ready to settle in for sleep, the occupant of the bed raised an objection: “You’re wearing so many layers — what are you doing getting in? That outer robe is filthy!”
Situ Sheng raised an eyebrow, not bothering to explain that he had bathed and changed before coming to find her. He obligingly removed the outer robe before getting under the covers.
Chu Linlang narrowed her eyes in quiet appreciation — such a well-proportioned, long-limbed figure: to have it draped in clothing would be quite a waste.
By her count, how long had it been since she had last savored the taste of this fine wine? How was she supposed to hold back?
It quickly became apparent, once under the covers, which of the two had the less restrained nature. Those slender white hands of hers proved decidedly restless, slipping toward his inner clothing, clearly intending to take liberties…
Situ Sheng, corrupted by a certain temptress who had broken his resolve, now had exceedingly thin resistance.
He lay still and endured for a moment before turning and pressing down over her, kissing her soft lips hard. After somewhat soothing the longing between them, he held back the flame and murmured: “Should I gag your mouth beforehand, so you can’t help but make noise?”
That was absolutely not what Linlang had meant. She had been acting purely out of unthinking impulse — the man simply had a fine physique and a chest that was satisfying to touch.
But seeing that he was ready to make good on the suggestion, she quickly pulled her hands back and pinched his proud, straight nose: “Don’t you dare! My mother is right next door! Take advantage of the fact that everyone is resting and go back quickly — it’ll be trouble if someone sees you…”
As she said this, she even gave him a kick with her soft pale foot.
Chu Linlang was a merchant through and through — she believed in fair exchange of goods and payment. If there was enjoyment to be had, she would never be coy or hold back. But when it was time to send someone away, she did so without the slightest hesitation or lingering sentiment.
Hearing how frightened she was of being caught by her mother, Situ Sheng had the feeling again of being cheated by some carefree pleasure-seeker — getting the short end of the deal.
He simply pretended not to hear the young woman’s dismissal and lay back calmly beside her, eyes closed, his hand gently stroking her loosened hair.
Breathing in the familiar scent of him, Chu Linlang nuzzled her face against his neck, contentedly holding close to him.
Both of them wore protective amulets at their necks — each containing a lock of the other’s hair. Now those two amulets were entwined together, like a pair of mandarin ducks with necks intertwined, drifting in peaceful, quiet ease…
But a man who had slept his fill was like a tree replenished with water — once he woke, he was ready to stretch his branches and unfurl his leaves.
Chu Linlang hadn’t yet slept enough when Situ Sheng, who had woken first, roused her eyes open.
Seeing what was happening under the covers without any restraint, and knowing the walls were too thin to risk making a sound, she could only press one hand firmly over her own mouth and let him do as he pleased.
When she truly could no longer contain what was straining to burst from her throat, the man once again covered her lips, swallowing every sound she made completely.
When Linlang had drawn back her breath and returned to the mortal world, Situ Sheng gathered her in his arms and pressed kisses to her sweat-dampened forehead.
Linlang nestled against his chest and murmured: “Didn’t you spend all night cutting down bandits? Where do you get the energy for this? If anyone heard us, just see how I deal with you…”
Situ Sheng couldn’t bear to let go of her, but he had to leave tonight. Without soothing some of this longing, he truly couldn’t justify it.
This water bandit attack had been peculiar, and among the bandits were men from the Kingdom of Jing. He had been personally present for this case and would naturally need to follow the investigation through to the end.
Hearing him say this, Linlang voiced her own lingering suspicion as well — if these were people from the Kingdom of Jing, why had they completely disregarded plunder and instead fixated on capturing noblewomen?
Hearing her question, something like contempt flickered across Situ Sheng’s face. He said lightly: “If that scheme had succeeded — if officials’ and nobles’ daughters had been seized and taken to the Kingdom of Jing as slaves — imagine what a spectacle that would have made for the court…”
Hearing this, Chu Linlang seemed to understand. The fragile peace between the Kingdom of Jing and Great Jin was like a perfectly balanced seesaw. That balance was difficult to maintain.
It seemed there were those who could not tolerate the flourishing trade and goodwill between the Kingdom of Jing and Great Jin. But what would anyone stand to gain from doing this? Was someone selling weapons and hoping to reignite the flames of war?
Situ Sheng pressed a kiss to her forehead and said quietly: “Military camps nearby have already deployed personnel to escort your group back to the capital. You won’t be able to travel by water anymore. The road overland may be a bit bumpy.”
Chu Linlang reached up and touched his cheek: “Have you been skipping proper meals recently? You look noticeably thinner again.”
The two of them were whispering together when Sun Shi’s voice came knocking at the door from outside: “Linlang, is there someone in your room? Who are you talking to?”
Chu Linlang panicked slightly, jolted upright, and looked around, and then pointed under the bed, gesturing for Situ Sheng to crawl under.
Situ Sheng looked at her steadily and didn’t move.
Right, of course. Chu Linlang couldn’t even picture the upright and imposing Deputy Minister Situ crawling under a bed. She was the one who had been presumptuous.
So Chu Linlang took the direct approach — she threw the large quilt over Situ Sheng, covering him from head to foot, then whispered quickly: “Don’t speak!”
She then hurriedly got dressed and called toward the door: “There’s no one in here — I was just humming a tune to myself!”
Quickly tidying her hair, she opened the door: “Mother, is something the matter?”
Sun Shi looked at her daughter — she appeared to have just woken up — then peered into the room. The bed curtain was half-drawn. Sure enough, no one was there.
So she said: “I thought I heard you talking. I was afraid you might be having a nightmare. If nothing’s wrong, get some rest.”
Once Linlang had let out her breath and closed the door again, she walked back to the bed and lifted the quilt — and found the person underneath had vanished.
She glanced to the side. A window stood slightly ajar…
Honestly! She couldn’t see how jumping out a window was any more dignified than hiding under a bed.
Around dinnertime, the people from Tao Huiru’s boatload were found and brought back.
But the state they were in was quite wretched. Tao Huiru’s skirt was smeared all over with mud, and the others in the group looked similarly disheveled.
The story went that they had been rowing for a while when they ran into hidden rocks. The entire boat had been dashed apart, and everyone aboard had gone into the water. Had it not been for a fisherman coincidentally pulling in his night nets who rescued them, every person on that boat would have sunk to the bottom of the river.
But whatever the case, at least they had come back alive.
Just as Chu Linlang had finished getting herself in order and was heading downstairs to eat, she heard a crash from below — the sound of something being smashed.
She quickly went down to see what had happened.
It turned out that after Tao Huiru entered the relay station, she came face to face with Tao Yashu, who was walking down for tea.
Niece and aunt, reunited after the catastrophe, found themselves in an awkward scene. Tao Yashu said nothing. She simply hurled the teacup in her hand at Tao Fourth Aunt’s feet.
For Tao Yashu had carved indelibly into her memory the moment she had fallen into the river — and her own blood aunt had been the one to raise her voice and prevent the others from rescuing her.
—