Xi Ming’s group speedily found the spot Lin Zhen was buried: his body had been transported to the Lin family’s ancestral tombs in their Luling County’s suburbs.
That area wasn’t far from the County, but since what they were about to do was not fit to be seen, they obviously couldn’t go plain dig up the grave in the light of day; it needed to be done in secret. Therefore, after Xi Ming had come back with the report, Tang Fan decided to head over the next night, because the day after tomorrow was Double Seventh — Ji’an nighttime would be having a lively lantern festival, and everyone of every age in the city would be coming out to see and release lanterns. On that night only, all the city’s gates would not be shut for curfew, and their group coming and going would not attract anyone’s notice.
After getting back from the Lin home, Tang Fan made no other movements for two days straight, instead bringing Lu Lingxi and the other with him every day in strolls around Ji’an’s various streets, coming and goings from restaurants of all sizes, and sampling the local foods, which was all inscrutable to onlookers. Unavoidably, some believed that he had made no progress on the case, and since it was heard that the Court was on the verge of appointing a second imperial ambassador, he must be feeling moody and stopped bothering.
Regardless of what anyone else though, Tang Fan continued to do his own thing. He didn’t even go into the prefectural bureau, let alone say he was going to go look for Shen Kunxiu. For these two days, Ji’an was vast, and he was going to tour the whole thing.
Tang Fan did not seek out Shen Kunxiu, but the latter was not even a little bit happy about that. The most dramatic thing that happened in Ji’an these two days was not Tang Fan cracking the case, but Consul Shen beating his son half to death, until he purportedly wasn’t about to get up for half a month.
Don Shen was really quite the troublemaker. Had he only done some stupid, off-key things, that would have been fine, but he had run off to a brothel, and because he had fallen downwind in the fight for a girl’s affections with another fop, he had brought out his father’s name, completely destroying said father’s reputation.
As was known, Shen Kunxiu still bore this case. Every day it went unsettled was another day he carried the suspicion of harshly judging a case and forcing a scholar unto his death. And yet, his son was the opposite of good, not only not sympathizing with him, but making a mess all over the place. Who knew what Shen Kunxiu felt, having sired a son like this?
Still, Don Shen was his only son. As could be imagined, Shen Si having become what he was today was likely Shen Kunxiu’s blame to bear.
Whatever Shen Kunxiu was feeling, Lu Lingxi had no idea of it for right now, though his current emotions might not be much different than his.
That was because Tang Fan was going to pick up his distantly-related cousin.
Supposedly, her surname was Qiao, and she had some sort of relation to Tang Fan’s mother. Since the two families had neighbored and diligently visited each other during his childhood, they had gone with the flow to pledge the two to each other before they were born, establishing a childhood betrothal. However, due to the fickle ways of the world, the Tang family had fallen, and Tang Fan had traveled far away in his youth, gradually cutting off contact. It wasn’t until recently that correspondences had been re-established. His cousin’s family had fallen, too, and now she was pitifully alone in the world, which was why she had come to seek shelter with her older cousin. Once he had finished the case, she was going with him back to the capital… all of that, Lu Lingxi had learned straight from Tang Fan’s mouth.
Today happened to be Double Seventh, and there were already more people walking around in the daytime than was usual. There was also a bustling temple festival at the Temple of the City God, which was so crowded, water wouldn’t be able to squeeze through it. At the same time, womenfolk were hurrying to the monastery for incense, their litters blocking up the road — the sea of people made a huge uproar.
However, this was only the daytime scene. When night came, there would be the even more bustling lantern festival, whereupon young men and women would all pour out of the city to light up lanterns and make wishes. The lantern festival inside the city would also afford a spectacular sight; it was said that in years prior, there had been no lack of wealthy people uniting to buy fanciful lanterns and hang them up all over Ji’an City, making it a true display of trees of fire and flowers of silver, the lanternlight resplendent.
Tang Fan did not join in on the fun. Instead, he went out at daybreak for tea and a chat with Ji Min, and when he returned, he hired a cushioned sedan chair, then told Han Jin to lead it to Fortune Comes Inn for picking someone up. It was the closest inn to the city gates, and many foreign traders chose to rest there after entering the city.
“I already made plans with her,” he said to Han Jin. “I told her to wait at the entrance of the inn after coming into the city, and I’m guessing she should be arriving right about now. Go over there a bit in advance, and wait if you get there earlier than her.”
Lu Lingxi, who was listening at the side, butt in. “Brother Tang, do you want me to help, too? Miss Qiao should have brought just maidservants. A few frail women on the road alone would be terrified the whole journey. If they have a mishap, that would be terrible.”
“No need. They also have a few from their hometown that came with them, else they wouldn’t have made it here. Han Jin alone is enough.”
Lu Lingxi was forced to give up. At heart, he was really very curious about this never-before-seen Miss Qiao. Casting out those thoughts no one was to know about, he had always felt that for someone like Tang Fan, the talent of generation that was of good moral character, a future woman worthy of him must be beautiful outside, intelligent inside, and of good heart. To be more specific, it was a thought much like, ‘Even though I might not have any hope myself, I hope that the one I like can have the best.’
It was precisely because of him covering up like this that he typically portrayed his familiarity by being clingy and childish. As Tang Fan was especially slow to grasp emotions, he had no suspicion that Lu Lingxi’s feelings towards him were abnormal, and came to treat him as a junior and younger brother that had not yet grown up. This could be said to be Lu Lingxi’s massive mistake — when he later came to learn that he had used the wrong method to begin with, who knew how he would feel?
Anyways, Han Jin was ordered to pick the woman up at noon, and did not return until it was nearly nightfall. Alongside him was a small cyan sedan chair, with two people following it on either side. Judging by their dress, they should be Tang Fan’s alleged cousin’s maidservant and manservant.
Hearing that his cousin was here, Tang Fan brought Lu Lingxi and the rest to personally welcome her. However, the second they stepped out of the posthouse, everyone — Tang Fan included — solidly jumped in fright.
No mention was going to the cousin right now, only about the two beside the sedan chair.
The manservant was around twenty years old with a beard and stocky stature, while his face was full of pockmarks, his visage course. That was all, though; servants naturally had to look like servants — if he looked like a jadeite tree facing the wind, would he be called a servant? Apparently, it was exactly due to the presence of this guy that Lady Qiao and her maid could safely arrive here from Zhejiang. He could be said to have made a great contribution.
However, seeing the maid could make one much more speechless.
The other’s upper body was covered with a round-necked duijin, no sleeves to be seen, under which was an embellished, short coat of vivid coloration. On her lower half, she had a grass-colored horseface skirt. Her hair was combed back into two topknots on either side of her head that were tied up with red silk ribbons, and a string of tassels hung from them, swaying with each of her footsteps, fine and lovely.
And yet, her loveliness was only in her dress. Had this outfit shown up on a fourteen-year-old girl, it would have been pretty and adorable… but if it showed up on someone that was around the same height as the manservant next to her, could it still be called cute?
It could practically be called a horrorshow!
The least impressive thing was that the the maid’s face had been assailed with a thick layer of makeup, her lips were daubed with bright red rouge, and her brows were made up slender and long. Her walking steps were very small, her feet hidden beneath the bottom of her skirt and refusing to show; her bearing was graceful and delicate, but when paired up with that tall skeletal structure, it looked oddly ridiculous.
The only thing desirable about any of her was that she had a pair of sharp eyes on her, full of life as they looked about, inlaid upon a face whose foundation powder was thicker than the paint brushed on walls, which was not jarring. Also, her features were somewhat defined, causing her to have something of an exotic grace.
Lu Lingxi was caught off guard for along while, uttering out, “Brother Tang, could your cousin’s maid be… a Semu?”
Semu was a label from the former Yuan Dynasty. Yuan had classified the commonfolk it governed as fourth-class, and Semu second-class. After this Dynasty’s establishment, Han and Tang attire had been restored, and non-Han language and clothing forbidden. Even so, the Han regions had many Semu left behind from Yuan. Seeing the maid’s high nose bridge and deep eyes was what made Lu Lingxi ask.
Truthfully, Tang Fan was no less shocked at heart than he. He had thought that Sui Zhou would dress up as his cousin, yet he had dressed up as a maid… in that case, who was the ‘cousin’ in the sedan chair?
“Maybe,” Tang Fan vaguely answered. His line of sight shifted away from the maid’s thick white makeup and flowery clothes, unable to bear looking at them again.
“Greetings, Young Lord.” The maid paid courtesy to him, her voice hushed, with a somewhat androgynous tinge. If he hadn’t been looking at her face, Tang Fan would nearly be unable to hear the owner’s voice.
He coughed lightly. “What are your names.”
“My name’s Tie Zhu! Greetings, Young Lord!” the manservant said.
“…”
That was clearly Pang Qi’s voice.
“A-Answering you, Young Lord, this maid is called Xiao Zhou.”
“…”
While she spoke, she looked up and quickly glanced at him, then bowed her head again, as if shy. It appeared incidental, which everyone caught sight of.
Lu Lingxi: “…”
“Your Miss must be in the sedan chair? Request that she come out now,” Tang Fan said. He felt like if he couldn’t go back inside, he likely wouldn’t be able to keep a straight face.
Hearing this, Xiao Zhou leaned over, gathered up the curtain, and said softly, “Miss, we’re here. Please come down.”
A fair, slender hand reached out from the cabin, then settled on Xiao Zhou’s, after which someone walked out.
Everyone’s eyes shone at once.
This woman had a heart-shaped face, willowy brows, eyes like autumnal waters, and a cherry-lipped mouth — an objective beauty. Like Xiao Zhou, she was also wearing a coat and skirt of eye-catching colors, but while Xiao Zhou’s adornment caused people pain, the beautiful Miss Qiao was complemented by beautiful dress, the two going together well.
In other words, from looks alone, a woman like this was a match set in Heaven with Tang Fan.
“Cousin!” When Lady Qiao saw Tang Fan, her face broke out into a brilliant smile. “You must be him, right?”
Despite this maiden giving him an overall sense of indescribable familiarity, Tang Fan went all in on the play, smiling and nodding. “Yes, I’m your cousin. We haven’t met for many years. You’ve indeed become a grown woman, the spitting image of my aunt. You’ve been traveling for so long, that you must be tired. Let’s go in before we talk.”
“You still remember what my mother looked like?” Lady Qiao bowed with her hands held in front, then immediately came forward to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with him — firmly crowding out Lu Lingxi to be behind — like she had known him for a long time.
Xiao Zhou closely followed behind her Miss, and by wielding her figure, she crowded Lu Lingxi back even further.
Lu Lingxi was extremely depressed, but as he couldn’t bicker with two women, he could only admit this defeat.
Unexpectedly, yet another figure came in close. With a raise of his head, he saw Tie Zhu smiling naively at him.
“…You’re a manservant! Why are you following so closely!”
Tie Zhu smiled dumbly. “But I followed the whole way over like this. Miss said a lot of bad people are outside. She had me follow close so that I don’t end up alone and get kidnapped!”
Who would want to kidnap someone that looks like you?
Lu Lingxi’s mouth twitched. “Your Miss and Brother Tang haven’t seen each other in a long time and probably have a lot to discuss. Don’t bother them by going in there.”
“But aren’t you goin’ in there, too? If you can go in, why can’t I?”
“I. Am. Not. Going. In.”
Tie Zhu hummed, rubbing his stomach. “Then I’m not goin’. Hey, Brother, can I dare to ask if there’s anything to eat here? I only ate ten buns today! I’m really hungry!”
Lu Lingxi had believed himself to have already met enough people and experienced plenty, but after he started following Tang Fan, he was having to write new pages in his memory over and over again. Seeing the other’s cow eyes blinking as he watched him, he immediately lost his verve. “Yes… I’ll bring you there,” he said powerlessly.
Tie Zhu turned excited, following after him as they headed for the kitchen, not neglecting to ramble on. “Thank you, Brother! You’re a real nice guy. In our hometown, everyone except the Miss and Xiao Zhou look down on me. You don’t! You’re worthy of being by the Young Lord’s side! Brother, what’s your name? Brother—“
On the other end, Tang Fan led Lady Qiao into the hall. Xi Ming and Han Jin did not come in the room, ordered to watch outside.”
“Okay. What’s going on, here?”
Tang Fan subconsciously avoided Xiao Zhou’s gaudy clothes, his expression a bit disconcerted from the horrible sight.
Lady Qiao could be described as gorgeous, but that wasn’t enough to make Tang Fan shocked enough to think her a heavenly being — all he needed to do was look at ‘Xiao Zhou, then at Lady Qiao, and the comparison between the two looks made the latter instantly more beautiful than an immortal.
She sneered. “Sir Tang, how could you forget me after such a short time apart?”
Tang Fan was stunned for a good while, then said, “You’re… Xiao Wu?”
Xiao Wu threw him a coquettish look over her sleeve’s cover. “Could it be anyone else?”
Upon a closer look, that silhouette really was mostly similar to Xiao Wu’s, but back when they had parted ways in Suzhou, he had handed her over to Wang Zhi for proper placement. Who could have though that once he turned around, they would meet again here?
Tang Fan couldn’t help but look up at Sui Zhou. “You two have really thrown be for a loop!”
Xiao Wu smiled. “Allow me to give you an explanation.”
As it was, after the conclusion of the Suzhou case, Xiao Wu had felt that as a single woman with her looks, even if she sat on a pile of wealth, she might not be able to protect it; once Tang Fan and Wang Zhi left, she would likely get caught in circumstances like before, where someone would steal from her and take her as ‘exclusive property’. For that reason, she needed to protect her capital. Furthermore, she had long been accustomed to an exciting life, and returning to the tranquil life of a good woman was inevitably impossible for her, so after pondering things, she had asked Wang Zhi for help, hoping that he could grant her protection. In exchange, she would help him enact things, becoming his spy and scout.
Although she had no martial arts, she had stunning looks and was used to putting on acts. She didn’t even need to invest with her body to make many men grovel at her pomegranate-colored skirts. She was not totally useless, but the Western Depot had collapsed, and Wang Zhi’s scope of influence had long transferred to the palace’s internals. There was no way he could get her into the palace by making her the Emperor’s concubine, right?
Therefore, Wang Zhi had contacted Sui Zhou. With the latter’s consent, Xiao Wu was transferred into the Brocade Guard, becoming a spy under its banner, helping it act when needed, and naturally having its shelter. When necessary, the signboard it was could block any external harassment for her, allowing her to live the life she wanted.
All kinds were under the Brocade Guard’s banner. It wasn’t like it had never had women in it before, but it had never had as dazzling of a subordinate as her.
The reason she had been willing to seek asylum in either the Brocade Guard or Wang Zhi was that she knew that they had good relations with Tang Fan, and with his character, if his counterparts were not good people, he would never associate with them. At the end of it, her trust in him had caused her to come to a decision.
After getting the whole stoy, Tang Fan learned that her first assignment after joining the Guard was to pretend to be his distant cousin, betrothed to him in childhood. A beauty dressing up ugly would have it easier than an ugly dressing up beautiful; all that had been needed was a bit of a dextrous hand to change her pallor a little, modify her facial features slightly, and change her voice somewhat to lower her timbre, her intonation going from alluring to relaxed. Even Lu Lingxi hadn’t recognized that the charming lady before him was Xiao Wu from back in Suzhou, not thinking that Chen Luan’s concubine could instantly morph into a Brocade Guard ally.
If he couldn’t recognize her, no one else could, naturally. Her disguise as Tang Fan’s cousin was more convincing than Sui Zhou. As a ‘maid of Semu descent’, how tall he was didn’t matter; anyone seeing the master-servant pair would generally be paying attention to Xiao Wu, and not too much to her maid.
“How are you all going to track down and capture the White Lotus Society’s remnants?” Tang Fan asked.
“With Li Zilong’s cunning, the most dangerous place is also the safest,” Sui Zhou said. “His probability of having left the city isn’t high. He might still be hiding somewhere in it, but in order to prevent the Court from finding his nest, they’re definitely going to move. Yan Li and the rest have already gone out to Ji’an’s outskirts to secretly probe around. It shouldn’t be long until they find something. What’s happening on your end?”
Tang Fan explained his plot to go dig up Lin Zhen’s grave.
Sui Zhou pondered for a moment. “In that case, you can use the chance of going out of the city to look at lanterns with Xiao Wu to go. It wouldn’t grab attention. Pang Qi and I can help, too.”
Tang Fan thought it over. “Sounds good—“
Just as he said those two words, the loud voice of ‘Tie Zhu’ came closer. “Brother Lu, you’re a real swindler! There were clearly no buns in the kitchen! You lied to me by saying there were!”
Lu Lingxi was glum. “You ate an entire bowl of beef noodles! You’re still complaining about there being no buns? I’ll let you eat my whole portion!”
Hearing the two’s commotion, they stopped talking, watching them walk in one after the other.
Lu Lingxi saw that Tang Fan was not seated at the head seat, but down closer to Lady Qiao, one tea table partitioning them, and he couldn’t help but get even more glum. He thought to himself, You only just met. Why are you getting so familiar? Lady Qiao, too, really… even if you had a childhood betrothal, why are you going without a woman’s reservedness?
Unexpectedly, as if to confirm his silent criticisms, Lady Qiao truly didn’t have a bit of reservedness — not worried about Lu Lingxi being nearby, she said flirtily to Tang Fan, “Cousin, I heard that there’s a lantern festival outside the city. Can you come see it with me?”
Now, Xiao Wu’s acting brilliance could be seen. In Suzhou before, Lu Lingxi had seen her, but Xiao Wu had been just like her name, both charming and gentle, fully able to automatically invoke pity — and totally different from her current vivacious look. It was little wonder as to why he didn’t recognize her. Him aside, even Tang Fan, who had spent a few days around her, hadn’t recognized her when they first met.
Nevertheless, Tang Fan showed her a warm and indulgent smile. “Lots of people will be there. What if you aren’t careful and get lost?”
“I won’t be afraid if you’re with me!”
“Okay, okay. But you’re not allowed to run all around!”
“Alright. I’ll listen to everything you say.”
Seeing this, Lu Lingxi had to remind, “Brother Tang, we’re going to do work. It’s probably not appropriate to take Miss Qiao, right?”
Lady Qiao unhappily pursed her lips, glaring at him. “What does this have to do with you?!”
“Don’t be impolite!” Tang Fan gently scolded her, then smiled. “I’ve been careless. You two haven’t been formally introduced. This is Lu Lingxi, courtesy Yiqing; he’s a junior friend. You can just call him Yiqing. Yiqing, my cousin is no outsider; there’s no need to keep anything from her.”
Even though Tang Fan did not reveal any identities, Xi Ming and Han Jin, as onlookers, clearly got it, quickly hearing something off in his undertones. They couldn’t help but stare a bit at Lady Qiao. Lu Lingxi, however, as someone involved, knew nothing; seeing Tang Fan put so much trust into a fiancee he had just met made him rather downtrodden.
Noticing that he seemed to not be reacting, Tang Fan added, “If she comes with us at night, we can deceive others better.”
Reluctantly, Lu Lingxi accepted that reasoning, looking at Sui Zhou and the idiot Tie Zhu who were standing close behind Lady Qiao. “Then they don’t need to go, right?”
Tie Zhu’s voice was like a great bell, rattling Lu Lingxi’s eardrums into buzzing as he stood beside him. “Young Lord, you can’t leave me here! I’m big and strong! I can do any work!”
The maid Xiao Zhou gripped the hem of her clothes, saying shyly, “Miss said that I will later be the Young Lord’s bedmaid, so wherever the Young Lord says I will go, I will.”
Lu Lingxi: “…”
Tang Fan quickly bowed his head to drink his tea, which was actually to conceal that his mouth had started twitching again.
Everyone ate and rested for a bit. After night descended, they left the posthouse in preparation to go out of the city.
As expected, homes were emptied of people, a stretch of white light shining in the distant night sky. Evidently, people were setting off fireworks outside the city, loud noises faintly heard. All along the route, there were many passersby like them, supporting their children and elders in heading out of the city.
By contrast, Tang Fan’s group was all young people, but they still blended completely into the crowd, not conspicuous at all. The only difference was that while everyone else was going to view lanterns, they were going grave-digging.
The Lin ancestral gravesite was not far from here, the carriage driving out for under half a shichen before it got there. The surroundings were quiet all around. A small town was nearby, where the Lin home family was, but most of its people had gone out to lantern-view today. Those remaining were the old, infirm, or wives and children; even if they heard any commotion, they would not rush out to see.
Xi Ming’s group had long pinpointed Lin Zhen’s burial plot, straight-up walking to the grave, taking out the shovel and other tools from the carriage, and starting to dig.
Lady Qiao, seated in the carriage, poked her head out at this time, but there was no surprise or fear on her face, as if she saw everything they were doing as ordinary.
Were Lu Lingxi stupid, he would still be able to tell that something was unusual about Tang Fan’s cousin right now — and he wasn’t stupid in the least. Tang Fan had dared to tell his suddenly-appearing, previously-undiscussed cousin that he had just met about something so important, then had brought her to a place like this, so the two must have long known each, their relationship not at all shallow.
Thinking so, Lu Lingxi felt some mix of emotions on the inside. Still, as a subordinate, he didn’t hold up his work; everyone here, sans Tang Fan and Lady Qiao, was of prominent martial arts, making excavation overkill for them. After not long, the corner of a coffin was revealed.
Everyone sped up their motions, one after the other. The full appearance of the coffin was soon exposed. They hefted it up together, then used their tools to pry off the rivets on top of it, lifting away its lid.
There was no need for Tang Fan to do an autopsy. Upon seeing the corpse beneath, everyone was greatly astounded.
Lady Qiao, who had gotten off the carriage, couldn’t help but softly gasp
Xi Ming’s group speedily found the spot Lin Zhen was buried: his body had been transported to the Lin family’s ancestral tombs in their Luling County’s suburbs.
That area wasn’t far from the County, but since what they were about to do was not fit to be seen, they obviously couldn’t go plain dig up the grave in the light of day; it needed to be done in secret. Therefore, after Xi Ming had come back with the report, Tang Fan decided to head over the next night, because the day after tomorrow was Double Seventh — Ji’an nighttime would be having a lively lantern festival, and everyone of every age in the city would be coming out to see and release lanterns. On that night only, all the city’s gates would not be shut for curfew, and their group coming and going would not attract anyone’s notice.
After getting back from the Lin home, Tang Fan made no other movements for two days straight, instead bringing Lu Lingxi and the other with him every day in strolls around Ji’an’s various streets, coming and goings from restaurants of all sizes, and sampling the local foods, which was all inscrutable to onlookers. Unavoidably, some believed that he had made no progress on the case, and since it was heard that the Court was on the verge of appointing a second imperial ambassador, he must be feeling moody and stopped bothering.
Regardless of what anyone else though, Tang Fan continued to do his own thing. He didn’t even go into the prefectural bureau, let alone say he was going to go look for Shen Kunxiu. For these two days, Ji’an was vast, and he was going to tour the whole thing.
Tang Fan did not seek out Shen Kunxiu, but the latter was not even a little bit happy about that. The most dramatic thing that happened in Ji’an these two days was not Tang Fan cracking the case, but Consul Shen beating his son half to death, until he purportedly wasn’t about to get up for half a month.
Don Shen was really quite the troublemaker. Had he only done some stupid, off-key things, that would have been fine, but he had run off to a brothel, and because he had fallen downwind in the fight for a girl’s affections with another fop, he had brought out his father’s name, completely destroying said father’s reputation.
As was known, Shen Kunxiu still bore this case. Every day it went unsettled was another day he carried the suspicion of harshly judging a case and forcing a scholar unto his death. And yet, his son was the opposite of good, not only not sympathizing with him, but making a mess all over the place. Who knew what Shen Kunxiu felt, having sired a son like this?
Still, Don Shen was his only son. As could be imagined, Shen Si having become what he was today was likely Shen Kunxiu’s blame to bear.
Whatever Shen Kunxiu was feeling, Lu Lingxi had no idea of it for right now, though his current emotions might not be much different than his.
That was because Tang Fan was going to pick up his distantly-related cousin.
Supposedly, her surname was Qiao, and she had some sort of relation to Tang Fan’s mother. Since the two families had neighbored and diligently visited each other during his childhood, they had gone with the flow to pledge the two to each other before they were born, establishing a childhood betrothal. However, due to the fickle ways of the world, the Tang family had fallen, and Tang Fan had traveled far away in his youth, gradually cutting off contact. It wasn’t until recently that correspondences had been re-established. His cousin’s family had fallen, too, and now she was pitifully alone in the world, which was why she had come to seek shelter with her older cousin. Once he had finished the case, she was going with him back to the capital… all of that, Lu Lingxi had learned straight from Tang Fan’s mouth.
Today happened to be Double Seventh, and there were already more people walking around in the daytime than was usual. There was also a bustling temple festival at the Temple of the City God, which was so crowded, water wouldn’t be able to squeeze through it. At the same time, womenfolk were hurrying to the monastery for incense, their litters blocking up the road — the sea of people made a huge uproar.
However, this was only the daytime scene. When night came, there would be the even more bustling lantern festival, whereupon young men and women would all pour out of the city to light up lanterns and make wishes. The lantern festival inside the city would also afford a spectacular sight; it was said that in years prior, there had been no lack of wealthy people uniting to buy fanciful lanterns and hang them up all over Ji’an City, making it a true display of trees of fire and flowers of silver, the lanternlight resplendent.
Tang Fan did not join in on the fun. Instead, he went out at daybreak for tea and a chat with Ji Min, and when he returned, he hired a cushioned sedan chair, then told Han Jin to lead it to Fortune Comes Inn for picking someone up. It was the closest inn to the city gates, and many foreign traders chose to rest there after entering the city.
“I already made plans with her,” he said to Han Jin. “I told her to wait at the entrance of the inn after coming into the city, and I’m guessing she should be arriving right about now. Go over there a bit in advance, and wait if you get there earlier than her.”
Lu Lingxi, who was listening at the side, butt in. “Brother Tang, do you want me to help, too? Miss Qiao should have brought just maidservants. A few frail women on the road alone would be terrified the whole journey. If they have a mishap, that would be terrible.”
“No need. They also have a few from their hometown that came with them, else they wouldn’t have made it here. Han Jin alone is enough.”
Lu Lingxi was forced to give up. At heart, he was really very curious about this never-before-seen Miss Qiao. Casting out those thoughts no one was to know about, he had always felt that for someone like Tang Fan, the talent of generation that was of good moral character, a future woman worthy of him must be beautiful outside, intelligent inside, and of good heart. To be more specific, it was a thought much like, ‘Even though I might not have any hope myself, I hope that the one I like can have the best.’
It was precisely because of him covering up like this that he typically portrayed his familiarity by being clingy and childish. As Tang Fan was especially slow to grasp emotions, he had no suspicion that Lu Lingxi’s feelings towards him were abnormal, and came to treat him as a junior and younger brother that had not yet grown up. This could be said to be Lu Lingxi’s massive mistake — when he later came to learn that he had used the wrong method to begin with, who knew how he would feel?
Anyways, Han Jin was ordered to pick the woman up at noon, and did not return until it was nearly nightfall. Alongside him was a small cyan sedan chair, with two people following it on either side. Judging by their dress, they should be Tang Fan’s alleged cousin’s maidservant and manservant.
Hearing that his cousin was here, Tang Fan brought Lu Lingxi and the rest to personally welcome her. However, the second they stepped out of the posthouse, everyone — Tang Fan included — solidly jumped in fright.
No mention was going to the cousin right now, only about the two beside the sedan chair.
The manservant was around twenty years old with a beard and stocky stature, while his face was full of pockmarks, his visage course. That was all, though; servants naturally had to look like servants — if he looked like a jadeite tree facing the wind, would he be called a servant? Apparently, it was exactly due to the presence of this guy that Lady Qiao and her maid could safely arrive here from Zhejiang. He could be said to have made a great contribution.
However, seeing the maid could make one much more speechless.
The other’s upper body was covered with a round-necked duijin, no sleeves to be seen, under which was an embellished, short coat of vivid coloration. On her lower half, she had a grass-colored horseface skirt. Her hair was combed back into two topknots on either side of her head that were tied up with red silk ribbons, and a string of tassels hung from them, swaying with each of her footsteps, fine and lovely.
And yet, her loveliness was only in her dress. Had this outfit shown up on a fourteen-year-old girl, it would have been pretty and adorable… but if it showed up on someone that was around the same height as the manservant next to her, could it still be called cute?
It could practically be called a horrorshow!
The least impressive thing was that the the maid’s face had been assailed with a thick layer of makeup, her lips were daubed with bright red rouge, and her brows were made up slender and long. Her walking steps were very small, her feet hidden beneath the bottom of her skirt and refusing to show; her bearing was graceful and delicate, but when paired up with that tall skeletal structure, it looked oddly ridiculous.
The only thing desirable about any of her was that she had a pair of sharp eyes on her, full of life as they looked about, inlaid upon a face whose foundation powder was thicker than the paint brushed on walls, which was not jarring. Also, her features were somewhat defined, causing her to have something of an exotic grace.
Lu Lingxi was caught off guard for along while, uttering out, “Brother Tang, could your cousin’s maid be… a Semu?”
Semu was a label from the former Yuan Dynasty. Yuan had classified the commonfolk it governed as fourth-class, and Semu second-class. After this Dynasty’s establishment, Han and Tang attire had been restored, and non-Han language and clothing forbidden. Even so, the Han regions had many Semu left behind from Yuan. Seeing the maid’s high nose bridge and deep eyes was what made Lu Lingxi ask.
Truthfully, Tang Fan was no less shocked at heart than he. He had thought that Sui Zhou would dress up as his cousin, yet he had dressed up as a maid… in that case, who was the ‘cousin’ in the sedan chair?
“Maybe,” Tang Fan vaguely answered. His line of sight shifted away from the maid’s thick white makeup and flowery clothes, unable to bear looking at them again.
“Greetings, Young Lord.” The maid paid courtesy to him, her voice hushed, with a somewhat androgynous tinge. If he hadn’t been looking at her face, Tang Fan would nearly be unable to hear the owner’s voice.
He coughed lightly. “What are your names.”
“My name’s Tie Zhu! Greetings, Young Lord!” the manservant said.
“…”
That was clearly Pang Qi’s voice.
“A-Answering you, Young Lord, this maid is called Xiao Zhou.”
“…”
While she spoke, she looked up and quickly glanced at him, then bowed her head again, as if shy. It appeared incidental, which everyone caught sight of.
Lu Lingxi: “…”
“Your Miss must be in the sedan chair? Request that she come out now,” Tang Fan said. He felt like if he couldn’t go back inside, he likely wouldn’t be able to keep a straight face.
Hearing this, Xiao Zhou leaned over, gathered up the curtain, and said softly, “Miss, we’re here. Please come down.”
A fair, slender hand reached out from the cabin, then settled on Xiao Zhou’s, after which someone walked out.
Everyone’s eyes shone at once.
This woman had a heart-shaped face, willowy brows, eyes like autumnal waters, and a cherry-lipped mouth — an objective beauty. Like Xiao Zhou, she was also wearing a coat and skirt of eye-catching colors, but while Xiao Zhou’s adornment caused people pain, the beautiful Miss Qiao was complemented by beautiful dress, the two going together well.
In other words, from looks alone, a woman like this was a match set in Heaven with Tang Fan.
“Cousin!” When Lady Qiao saw Tang Fan, her face broke out into a brilliant smile. “You must be him, right?”
Despite this maiden giving him an overall sense of indescribable familiarity, Tang Fan went all in on the play, smiling and nodding. “Yes, I’m your cousin. We haven’t met for many years. You’ve indeed become a grown woman, the spitting image of my aunt. You’ve been traveling for so long, that you must be tired. Let’s go in before we talk.”
“You still remember what my mother looked like?” Lady Qiao bowed with her hands held in front, then immediately came forward to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with him — firmly crowding out Lu Lingxi to be behind — like she had known him for a long time.
Xiao Zhou closely followed behind her Miss, and by wielding her figure, she crowded Lu Lingxi back even further.
Lu Lingxi was extremely depressed, but as he couldn’t bicker with two women, he could only admit this defeat.
Unexpectedly, yet another figure came in close. With a raise of his head, he saw Tie Zhu smiling naively at him.
“…You’re a manservant! Why are you following so closely!”
Tie Zhu smiled dumbly. “But I followed the whole way over like this. Miss said a lot of bad people are outside. She had me follow close so that I don’t end up alone and get kidnapped!”
Who would want to kidnap someone that looks like you?
Lu Lingxi’s mouth twitched. “Your Miss and Brother Tang haven’t seen each other in a long time and probably have a lot to discuss. Don’t bother them by going in there.”
“But aren’t you goin’ in there, too? If you can go in, why can’t I?”
“I. Am. Not. Going. In.”
Tie Zhu hummed, rubbing his stomach. “Then I’m not goin’. Hey, Brother, can I dare to ask if there’s anything to eat here? I only ate ten buns today! I’m really hungry!”
Lu Lingxi had believed himself to have already met enough people and experienced plenty, but after he started following Tang Fan, he was having to write new pages in his memory over and over again. Seeing the other’s cow eyes blinking as he watched him, he immediately lost his verve. “Yes… I’ll bring you there,” he said powerlessly.
Tie Zhu turned excited, following after him as they headed for the kitchen, not neglecting to ramble on. “Thank you, Brother! You’re a real nice guy. In our hometown, everyone except the Miss and Xiao Zhou look down on me. You don’t! You’re worthy of being by the Young Lord’s side! Brother, what’s your name? Brother—“
On the other end, Tang Fan led Lady Qiao into the hall. Xi Ming and Han Jin did not come in the room, ordered to watch outside.”
“Okay. What’s going on, here?”
Tang Fan subconsciously avoided Xiao Zhou’s gaudy clothes, his expression a bit disconcerted from the horrible sight.
Lady Qiao could be described as gorgeous, but that wasn’t enough to make Tang Fan shocked enough to think her a heavenly being — all he needed to do was look at ‘Xiao Zhou, then at Lady Qiao, and the comparison between the two looks made the latter instantly more beautiful than an immortal.
She sneered. “Sir Tang, how could you forget me after such a short time apart?”
Tang Fan was stunned for a good while, then said, “You’re… Xiao Wu?”
Xiao Wu threw him a coquettish look over her sleeve’s cover. “Could it be anyone else?”
Upon a closer look, that silhouette really was mostly similar to Xiao Wu’s, but back when they had parted ways in Suzhou, he had handed her over to Wang Zhi for proper placement. Who could have though that once he turned around, they would meet again here?
Tang Fan couldn’t help but look up at Sui Zhou. “You two have really thrown be for a loop!”
Xiao Wu smiled. “Allow me to give you an explanation.”
As it was, after the conclusion of the Suzhou case, Xiao Wu had felt that as a single woman with her looks, even if she sat on a pile of wealth, she might not be able to protect it; once Tang Fan and Wang Zhi left, she would likely get caught in circumstances like before, where someone would steal from her and take her as ‘exclusive property’. For that reason, she needed to protect her capital. Furthermore, she had long been accustomed to an exciting life, and returning to the tranquil life of a good woman was inevitably impossible for her, so after pondering things, she had asked Wang Zhi for help, hoping that he could grant her protection. In exchange, she would help him enact things, becoming his spy and scout.
Although she had no martial arts, she had stunning looks and was used to putting on acts. She didn’t even need to invest with her body to make many men grovel at her pomegranate-colored skirts. She was not totally useless, but the Western Depot had collapsed, and Wang Zhi’s scope of influence had long transferred to the palace’s internals. There was no way he could get her into the palace by making her the Emperor’s concubine, right?
Therefore, Wang Zhi had contacted Sui Zhou. With the latter’s consent, Xiao Wu was transferred into the Brocade Guard, becoming a spy under its banner, helping it act when needed, and naturally having its shelter. When necessary, the signboard it was could block any external harassment for her, allowing her to live the life she wanted.
All kinds were under the Brocade Guard’s banner. It wasn’t like it had never had women in it before, but it had never had as dazzling of a subordinate as her.
The reason she had been willing to seek asylum in either the Brocade Guard or Wang Zhi was that she knew that they had good relations with Tang Fan, and with his character, if his counterparts were not good people, he would never associate with them. At the end of it, her trust in him had caused her to come to a decision.
After getting the whole stoy, Tang Fan learned that her first assignment after joining the Guard was to pretend to be his distant cousin, betrothed to him in childhood. A beauty dressing up ugly would have it easier than an ugly dressing up beautiful; all that had been needed was a bit of a dextrous hand to change her pallor a little, modify her facial features slightly, and change her voice somewhat to lower her timbre, her intonation going from alluring to relaxed. Even Lu Lingxi hadn’t recognized that the charming lady before him was Xiao Wu from back in Suzhou, not thinking that Chen Luan’s concubine could instantly morph into a Brocade Guard ally.
If he couldn’t recognize her, no one else could, naturally. Her disguise as Tang Fan’s cousin was more convincing than Sui Zhou. As a ‘maid of Semu descent’, how tall he was didn’t matter; anyone seeing the master-servant pair would generally be paying attention to Xiao Wu, and not too much to her maid.
“How are you all going to track down and capture the White Lotus Society’s remnants?” Tang Fan asked.
“With Li Zilong’s cunning, the most dangerous place is also the safest,” Sui Zhou said. “His probability of having left the city isn’t high. He might still be hiding somewhere in it, but in order to prevent the Court from finding his nest, they’re definitely going to move. Yan Li and the rest have already gone out to Ji’an’s outskirts to secretly probe around. It shouldn’t be long until they find something. What’s happening on your end?”
Tang Fan explained his plot to go dig up Lin Zhen’s grave.
Sui Zhou pondered for a moment. “In that case, you can use the chance of going out of the city to look at lanterns with Xiao Wu to go. It wouldn’t grab attention. Pang Qi and I can help, too.”
Tang Fan thought it over. “Sounds good—“
Just as he said those two words, the loud voice of ‘Tie Zhu’ came closer. “Brother Lu, you’re a real swindler! There were clearly no buns in the kitchen! You lied to me by saying there were!”
Lu Lingxi was glum. “You ate an entire bowl of beef noodles! You’re still complaining about there being no buns? I’ll let you eat my whole portion!”
Hearing the two’s commotion, they stopped talking, watching them walk in one after the other.
Lu Lingxi saw that Tang Fan was not seated at the head seat, but down closer to Lady Qiao, one tea table partitioning them, and he couldn’t help but get even more glum. He thought to himself, You only just met. Why are you getting so familiar? Lady Qiao, too, really… even if you had a childhood betrothal, why are you going without a woman’s reservedness?
Unexpectedly, as if to confirm his silent criticisms, Lady Qiao truly didn’t have a bit of reservedness — not worried about Lu Lingxi being nearby, she said flirtily to Tang Fan, “Cousin, I heard that there’s a lantern festival outside the city. Can you come see it with me?”
Now, Xiao Wu’s acting brilliance could be seen. In Suzhou before, Lu Lingxi had seen her, but Xiao Wu had been just like her name, both charming and gentle, fully able to automatically invoke pity — and totally different from her current vivacious look. It was little wonder as to why he didn’t recognize her. Him aside, even Tang Fan, who had spent a few days around her, hadn’t recognized her when they first met.
Nevertheless, Tang Fan showed her a warm and indulgent smile. “Lots of people will be there. What if you aren’t careful and get lost?”
“I won’t be afraid if you’re with me!”
“Okay, okay. But you’re not allowed to run all around!”
“Alright. I’ll listen to everything you say.”
Seeing this, Lu Lingxi had to remind, “Brother Tang, we’re going to do work. It’s probably not appropriate to take Miss Qiao, right?”
Lady Qiao unhappily pursed her lips, glaring at him. “What does this have to do with you?!”
“Don’t be impolite!” Tang Fan gently scolded her, then smiled. “I’ve been careless. You two haven’t been formally introduced. This is Lu Lingxi, courtesy Yiqing; he’s a junior friend. You can just call him Yiqing. Yiqing, my cousin is no outsider; there’s no need to keep anything from her.”
Even though Tang Fan did not reveal any identities, Xi Ming and Han Jin, as onlookers, clearly got it, quickly hearing something off in his undertones. They couldn’t help but stare a bit at Lady Qiao. Lu Lingxi, however, as someone involved, knew nothing; seeing Tang Fan put so much trust into a fiancee he had just met made him rather downtrodden.
Noticing that he seemed to not be reacting, Tang Fan added, “If she comes with us at night, we can deceive others better.”
Reluctantly, Lu Lingxi accepted that reasoning, looking at Sui Zhou and the idiot Tie Zhu who were standing close behind Lady Qiao. “Then they don’t need to go, right?”
Tie Zhu’s voice was like a great bell, rattling Lu Lingxi’s eardrums into buzzing as he stood beside him. “Young Lord, you can’t leave me here! I’m big and strong! I can do any work!”
The maid Xiao Zhou gripped the hem of her clothes, saying shyly, “Miss said that I will later be the Young Lord’s bedmaid, so wherever the Young Lord says I will go, I will.”
Lu Lingxi: “…”
Tang Fan quickly bowed his head to drink his tea, which was actually to conceal that his mouth had started twitching again.
Everyone ate and rested for a bit. After night descended, they left the posthouse in preparation to go out of the city.
As expected, homes were emptied of people, a stretch of white light shining in the distant night sky. Evidently, people were setting off fireworks outside the city, loud noises faintly heard. All along the route, there were many passersby like them, supporting their children and elders in heading out of the city.
By contrast, Tang Fan’s group was all young people, but they still blended completely into the crowd, not conspicuous at all. The only difference was that while everyone else was going to view lanterns, they were going grave-digging.
The Lin ancestral gravesite was not far from here, the carriage driving out for under half a shichen before it got there. The surroundings were quiet all around. A small town was nearby, where the Lin home family was, but most of its people had gone out to lantern-view today. Those remaining were the old, infirm, or wives and children; even if they heard any commotion, they would not rush out to see.
Xi Ming’s group had long pinpointed Lin Zhen’s burial plot, straight-up walking to the grave, taking out the shovel and other tools from the carriage, and starting to dig.
Lady Qiao, seated in the carriage, poked her head out at this time, but there was no surprise or fear on her face, as if she saw everything they were doing as ordinary.
Were Lu Lingxi stupid, he would still be able to tell that something was unusual about Tang Fan’s cousin right now — and he wasn’t stupid in the least. Tang Fan had dared to tell his suddenly-appearing, previously-undiscussed cousin that he had just met about something so important, then had brought her to a place like this, so the two must have long known each, their relationship not at all shallow.
Thinking so, Lu Lingxi felt some mix of emotions on the inside. Still, as a subordinate, he didn’t hold up his work; everyone here, sans Tang Fan and Lady Qiao, was of prominent martial arts, making excavation overkill for them. After not long, the corner of a coffin was revealed.
Everyone sped up their motions, one after the other. The full appearance of the coffin was soon exposed. They hefted it up together, then used their tools to pry off the rivets on top of it, lifting away its lid.
There was no need for Tang Fan to do an autopsy. Upon seeing the corpse beneath, everyone was greatly astounded.
Lady Qiao, who had gotten off the carriage, couldn’t help but softly gasp
