Only then did Changning trot forward to accept the candies from Madam Wang’s hand. Her hands were small, unable to hold so many, so Madam Wang kindly helped stuff most of them into the pockets of her jacket.

Changning said crisply, “Thank you, Madam.”

Madam Wang and Old Madam Wang exchanged a delighted glance and burst out laughing. Unable to resist, Madam Wang pinched the little girl’s soft, rosy cheek. “Such a tiny thing, and already so polite!”

Madam Wang smiled at Fan Changyu. “Isn’t it because her sister taught her well?”

Fan Changyu blushed and smiled shyly. “You overpraise me.”

She wasn’t skilled at small talk, and her words were always straightforward and honest. Yet this very sincerity made both Madam Wang and the old madam fond of her. Even the few sentences she replied with were enough to send them into hearty laughter — leaving Fan Changyu herself bewildered as to what they found so amusing.

Madam Wang tried to persuade the sisters to stay for dinner and spend the night, but Fan Changyu declined politely, saying that Xie Zheng was still waiting for her at the bookshop.

When they were taking their leave, Head Constable Wang personally saw them to the door. “Your parents’ case has officially been transferred to the prefectural office. Now that it’s been filed and closed, there’s no need to worry. I was concerned your parents might have made enemies in the past — but since those mountain bandits were only searching for the treasure map, and the map is no longer in your family’s hands, you’ve nothing to fear. Stay in town with peace of mind. If you run into trouble, come find me.”

Fan Changyu thanked him and asked, “Do you happen to know which official at the prefecture is reviewing the case?”

As Head Constable Wang was only a minor officer in Qingping County, he really didn’t know. He shook his head and asked curiously, “Why do you want to know?”

Fan Changyu feared her parents’ deaths might indeed involve powerful figures behind the scenes, just as Yan Zheng had said, and she didn’t want to get the constable into trouble. “It’s nothing,” she said. “I was just curious.”

She wanted to uncover the true cause of her parents’ deaths. The best way would be to start with the official who had reviewed their case.

That night, one of the soldiers had taken back a living captive. If she could find out what that person had confessed to, she might be able to unravel the mystery of her parents’ deaths.

When Yan Zheng had asked her what she would do if the court lied, she had already considered secretly approaching the official who handled the case.

In plays and storybooks, weren’t such things often written? The hero catching a corrupt official’s weakness, sneaking into his mansion on a dark, windy night, cornering him while he was alone — then negotiating, either in exchange for money or for the information they wanted.

If she could just learn who that official was, she would have plenty of time to investigate his misdeeds in secret.

Fan Changyu and Changning had nearly reached the front gate when Madam Wang hurried after them, holding two red envelopes. “Take these New Year envelopes!”

One of them wasn’t even folded properly — clearly prepared at the last moment.

Unable to refuse, Fan Changyu let Madam Wang tuck them into her arms.

Once they stepped out of the Wang residence, Changning immediately opened hers. She poured out what was inside and showed it to Fan Changyu in delight. “Sister, it’s silver ingots!”

The red envelope Fan Changyu received also contained two small silver ingots.

Holding the first New Year’s envelope she’d received since her parents’ deaths, Fan Changyu turned to glance back at the Wang residence. Gratitude, warmth, and melancholy all welled together in her heart.

Changning handed her silver ingots to Fan Changyu. “Sister, you keep them.”

Her pockets and little embroidered pouch were already stuffed full of the candies Madam Wang had given her, leaving no room for anything else.

Fan Changyu took them and said, “Then Sister will hold onto them for now. Once we’re home, I’ll put them in your little box.”

Changning had a small box specifically for saving her New Year’s money. Two months ago, she had given it up to help pay for their parents’ funeral expenses. Only recently had she started filling it again.

Hearing this, Changning nodded happily. “Mm!”

This street had few open shops, and even fewer traveling vendors. Only some children were playing about.

The news of the forced grain levy had likely already reached Qingping County. In the teahouses and taverns, whenever people discussed the current Chongzhou campaign, the conversation inevitably drifted to the Battle of Jinzhou sixteen years ago.

The children, having heard the adults talk so often, had worked it into their own games. When they played “catch the bad man,” “Meng Shuyuan” had once again become the villain everyone was chasing.

In this kind of game, the leader among the children would usually play the great hero, while the one who was often bullied or left out became the one playing Meng Shuyuan.

Once caught, that child would be shoved and mocked by the leader and the others.

Hearing the children shouting as they chased after the one playing Meng Shuyuan, Changning lifted her head and said to Fan Changyu, “Meng Shuyuan is a great traitor.”

Fan Changyu’s hand tightened slightly around her sister’s. “Changning, you’re not allowed to play that kind of game, all right?”

“Why not?” Changning asked.

Fan Changyu explained patiently, “Those children are just using that game as an excuse to bully the one playing Meng Shuyuan. You mustn’t learn from them.”

Only then did Changning nod.

Fan Changyu smoothed the soft, fine hair on her sister’s forehead. “Father and Mother never liked seeing children play like that, either.”

Changning immediately said, “Ning-niang won’t be like them!”

Fan Changyu smiled and rubbed her round little head, but her thoughts drifted away.

She had been sturdy since childhood, known among the neighborhood children for her strength — even boys two or three years older had gone home crying to their parents after losing to her.

Her parents had always reasoned with fairness. If she did wrong, they punished her; but if she was in the right, they defended her and argued on her behalf.

Only once had things been different. She had joined other children in playing the “catch the bad man” game. One of the children playing Meng Shuyuan had been shoved by another who didn’t know his own strength, fell, and cut his forehead. The injured child’s parents went door to door demanding justice.

Fan Changyu hadn’t pushed anyone, nor had she joined in bullying the boy playing Meng Shuyuan.

But when her mother heard she had participated in that game, she suddenly burst into tears, and her father grew angry and made her kneel in the courtyard for an entire afternoon.

Fan Changyu reflected for a long time afterward. She thought her parents must have disliked seeing her join in such shows of strength against the weak.

That night, when she returned to her room, her mother’s eyes were still swollen. She had made Fan Changyu promise never to play the “beat the great traitor Meng Shuyuan” game again.

Ever since, Fan Changyu had carried guilt in her heart. She had never seen her mother cry so bitterly — she must have deeply disappointed her that day.

So when she heard her sister repeating that Meng Shuyuan was a traitor, she worried that Changning might follow the other children’s example, and thus warned her early.

By coincidence, as they left Head Constable Wang’s house, Fan Changyu — unfamiliar with the county’s streets — asked for directions to the bookstore, took a wrong turn, and ended up making a long detour. Passing by the Yixiang Tower restaurant, she unexpectedly ran into Yu Qianqian.

Yu Qianqian was dressed in a white fur-trimmed winter robe, the front and cuffs embroidered in gold thread with intricate patterns. Her neatly cut bangs framed a face as pale and flawless as carved jade, making her look no different from a young maiden yet to marry.

She seemed about to board her carriage, surrounded by a few attendants and shop stewards bowing and listening to her instructions.

As soon as she finished giving orders and looked up, she spotted Fan Changyu approaching with a doll-like little girl at her side. Her brows lifted in delight. “I was just about to go back to town to find you — didn’t expect to meet you right here at my door!”

Fan Changyu smiled, greeted her with a cheerful “Happy New Year,” and asked, “Does the shopkeeper need me for something?”

Yu Qianqian said, “Tomorrow I’ve got a big business deal coming up — and I can’t do it without your help!”

· ─ ·✶· ─ · ·

The largest bookstore in the county was open for business even on New Year’s Day.

When Xie Zheng stepped inside, the shopkeeper was fiddling with his abacus and asked, “Young master, what would you like to buy?”

Xie Zheng’s fingertips lowered a jade ring strung with a cord.

The shopkeeper, upon seeing the ring, instantly changed demeanor—his expression turned respectful, and he bowed slightly, gesturing politely. “Would the young master please come upstairs for a word.”

The shopkeeper led Xie Zheng to a quiet room on the upper floor of the bookstore. Upon the yellow pearwood desk by the window stood a slender-necked white porcelain vase, holding a single branch of red plum that was just about to bloom. Against the carved wooden lattice window and the faint snow outside, the scene possessed a tranquil elegance.

“Honored guest, please wait here a moment. I will summon the proprietor at once.”

The shopkeeper withdrew just as a servant entered with tea.

Wei Yan had been a master of the tea ceremony, and after sixteen years of being raised under him, Xie Zheng naturally understood its subtleties.

The tea that was served—its fragrance alone—was on par with the tribute teas sent to the palace.

Lowering his gaze toward the red plum in the porcelain vase, Xie Zheng lightly tapped the lid of his teacup twice with long, slender fingers.

Before long, Zhao Xun pushed the door open. His elegantly charming face wore a polished, practiced smile. “I did not know the Marquis was visiting—please forgive me for not welcoming you sooner.”

“Master Zhao is too polite.”

Seated in the grand master’s chair, Xie Zheng’s posture was unhurried, yet his composure carried the faint pressure of one who dominated the room.

Zhao Xun said, “The matters the Marquis instructed me to handle—I have already sent men to carry them out in secret. The Marquis may rest assured; even if the soldiers investigate, they will find nothing.”

Xie Zheng lifted his gaze. “There is one more matter for your people to handle.”

“What matter?”

“The incident in Jizhou, where Wei Xuan allowed the soldiers to seize the people’s grain—see that it is immediately reported to He Jingyuan. At the same time, in the capital, make certain that the deaths of innocent civilians during the forced grain levy are turned into an uproar—use it to denounce the Wei faction.”

The louder the public outcry, the more effective the officials’ impeachment at court would be.

At the mention of striking against the Wei faction, Zhao Xun immediately bowed. “I will see to it at once.”

But as he lifted his head, he saw a faint, almost mocking smile at the corner of Xie Zheng’s lips.

Zhao Xun hesitated for a moment before asking, “Why does the Marquis look at me like that?”

Xie Zheng lifted his teacup and took a slow sip. “Qingcheng Snow Buds—one bud and one leaf only, harvested and presented to the imperial family. I hadn’t expected to drink such fine tea in a remote place like Qingping County.”

Zhao Xun smiled. “I am merely a merchant, Marquis. I spent quite a bit of silver to acquire such a treasure. Knowing you would come, how could I not bring out the best to honor you?”

Xie Zheng’s lips pressed downward. “Ordinary merchants could never purchase two hundred thousand shi of rice so discreetly without alerting the local authorities. Your family’s wealth runs deep. If revenge against Wei Xuan were truly your aim, you could still rely on Grand Preceptor Li’s faction in court. For you to go through such lengths to find me—rather than seeking my hand for vengeance, it seems you have your eye on something else: my influence among the hundred thousand soldiers once stationed in Huizhou.”

His phoenix eyes locked onto the man before him—predator against scavenger, wolf staring down hyena. “What you covet is my command of the army. Since we are to cooperate, I have no fondness for allies who hide behind half-truths.”

Zhao Xun was silent for a few breaths. Then, suddenly, he laughed aloud. The submissive mask vanished, and he sat down across from Xie Zheng with composure. “Truly, nothing escapes the Marquis’s discerning eye.”