Lin Jinlou retrieved writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone from the monk's quarters, wrote a letter of divorce, and handed it to Zhao Xuede. Zhao Gang rubbed his hands together and asked, "Although this is a mutual separation, it will still harm our reputation. What do you think..."
Lin Jinlou said indifferently, "Not a single negative word about the Zhao family will pass our lips. Say whatever you wish, with one condition—do not tarnish the Lin family's reputation."
Zhao Xuede breathed a sigh of relief. Lin Jinlou's words meant he would conceal Zhao Yuechan's affair. He glanced at Hao Qing and asked, "How should this man be dealt with?"
Lin Jinlou smiled mockingly, "Let the Zhao family handle it." With that, he turned and walked out without looking back.
Zhao Xuede felt a sting in his heart from Lin Jinlou's smile. He glared fiercely at Zhao Yuechan and said, "Hurry up and put your clothes on!" His expression venomous, he turned his gaze to Hao Qing. Hao Qing trembled all over, pleading in a shaky voice, "Spare me, master! Spare me!"
Zhao Gang stepped forward, stuffed a bundle of clothes into Hao Qing's mouth, leaned close to Zhao Xuede's ear, and whispered, "Later, we'll stuff him into a sack, tie stones to it, and throw him into the river. No one will ever know."
Zhao Xuede gave an almost imperceptible nod and said, "Make sure it's done cleanly and efficiently."
Zhao Gang accepted the order and immediately found a sack to bundle Hao Qing into. Let us leave this aside for now.
Meanwhile, Lin Jinlou walked out and summoned his trusted personal soldier Hu Lai. In a low voice, he asked, "Where are they now?"
Hu Lai lowered his voice and replied, "We just received word—they've already left Jiangsu and are about to enter Anhui."
Lin Jinlou nodded and let out a long sigh. When Zhao Xuede had first approached him to discuss capturing the Crown Prince, Lin Jinlou had thought it was a joke. But after investigating carefully, he was shocked to discover that the Crown Prince was indeed in Jinling City, having shaved his head to become a monk who wandered with a begging bowl. Lin Jinlou had met the Crown Prince in the palace as a child and remembered a blood-red mole above his right eyebrow. Seeing him now, it was unmistakably the same person. He found himself in a dilemma: the Eighth Prince had firmly secured the throne and was steadily consolidating power, making it unlikely that the Crown Prince could stage a comeback. Betting on the Crown Prince seemed unwise. Yet, the Crown Prince had once treated the Lin family generously, and one must not be ungrateful—as the saying goes, "The Deposed King showed us kindness, yet the Present Emperor's will is hard to defy."
Being a decisive man, Lin Jinlou saw that the Crown Prince had written the eight characters "The rivers and mountains remain, but all turns to dust in old age" and understood that the Crown Prince had no intention of reclaiming the throne. He thus gifted him gold, silver, and valuables, ordering his trusted aides to pack and escort the Crown Prince's party out of the city to settle beyond the frontier.
Turning back, he began to plan. In recent days, he had deliberately left early and returned late, avoiding home, while secretly having people keep watch. They uncovered numerous scandals involving Zhao Yuechan. He had originally intended to catch her in the act and end it cleanly with a single stroke, but doing so would risk damaging the broader situation and harming the relationship between the Lin and Zhao families. Now, with this pretext, Lin Jinlou set a trap to lure the Zhao father and son, confronting them directly to settle the matter. Later, he would have Lin Zhaoxiang write to Zhao Yuechan's grandfather, Zhao Jin, to explain, ensuring that only Zhao Xuede's branch was offended, while preserving ties with the other Zhao families.
Now that the bothersome leech he so despised was finally shaken off, Lin Jinlou felt immensely relieved and found everything pleasing to the eye. He put on a show of ordering his subordinates to search the Sweet Dew Monastery.Xianglan had been standing in the wind for a long time, feeling her hands and feet numb from the cold. When she saw Lin Jinlou suddenly emerge from the house and begin a thorough search, she thought in astonishment, "Could it be that Lin Jinlou isn't here to catch adulterers? Are there really rebels in this temple?" But gazing into the distance, she noticed Lin Jinlou looked completely at ease, not at all like someone preparing to capture rebels with grave seriousness. This made her suspicious again. Afraid he might spot her, she quietly hid behind a cluster of plum trees.
Just then, a soldier with thick eyebrows and large eyes, dressed in fine attire, approached and asked, "Who are you? What are you doing here?"
Xianglan quickly made a curtsy and said, "I am a pilgrim who came to the temple to burn incense. I was originally having tea in the guest hall, but when I saw the plum blossoms blooming beautifully in the monks' courtyard, I came over to take a look. Suddenly, the officials arrived and guarded the doors, not allowing anyone to leave, so I had no choice but to stay here."
The one questioning her was Hu Lai. He looked her up and down and saw that the woman before him wore a blue satin cloak trimmed with fur and spoke with refined courtesy. Although her hood covered half her face, making it impossible to see her features clearly, it was evident she came from a wealthy family—perhaps even a young lady. He waved his hand and said, "Go on out. This place is for monks. A young lady like you should come here less often in the future."
Xianglan was only too glad to comply. She made another curtsy and was about to leave when she heard someone behind her say, "Wait!"
Xianglan froze—it was Lin Jinlou's voice!
Xianglan dared not "wait"; instead, she quickened her pace. But then a shadow fell over her as Lin Jinlou strode forward and blocked her path. His tall frame cast her into shadow.
Xianglan was terrified, her legs going weak and her body trembling slightly. She kept her head bowed low. A hand appeared before her, holding an orchid-patterned palace tassel with a five-colored Ruyi scented sachet attached. Lin Jinlou asked lazily, "Is this yours?"
Xianglan looked and saw it was indeed the item she had tied to her skirt. The ribbon must have loosened, and the scented sachet had fallen to the ground. Xianglan lowered her voice and mumbled, "Thank you, sir." She reached out to take it.
Lin Jinlou had originally intended to return the scented sachet to her, but he noticed that although the girl's face was hidden by her hood, when she lifted her head slightly, he could glimpse a delicate chin and a small, crimson mouth. That mouth looked familiar to him. In a fleeting moment, he recalled that the maid named Xianglan had just such a mouth—soft and pink, tempting one to kiss it.
Lin Jinlou suddenly frowned and asked, "What's your name?" He reached out to remove Xianglan's hood. Just then, the door to the monks' quarters opened, and Zhao Xuede stepped out, saying, "General Lin, have you found any rebels?" Having already given Zhao Yuechan the divorce letter, Zhao Xuede, thick-skinned as he was, could no longer bring himself to call Lin Jinlou "son-in-law" and instead addressed him as "General Lin." But his heart was bitter—what a splendid marriage it had been! Lin Jinlou, so young, had already been appointed a fourth-rank general with boundless prospects. Zhao Yuechan, that wretched girl, had been a fourth-rank lady by marriage, and he would have been the father-in-law of a fourth-rank general. How hateful that he had missed such fortune!
Seeing Lin Jinlou talking to a woman, his arm raised as if about to touch her, Zhao Xuede grew even more displeased and said sternly, "General Lin, I urge you to focus on the important matter at hand."
Xianglan's heart pounded wildly. Seizing the opportunity, she took half a step back and bowed her head even lower.Lin Jinlou was thoroughly impatient, thinking to himself, "There's no damn rebel in this temple—they just lured you here to see how your daughter is sneaking around with a thief." But he still had to give Zhao Xuede some face, so he withdrew his hand and said expressionlessly, "Rest assured, Lord Zhao, this place is surrounded tight as an iron barrel. Even if the rebel had wings, he couldn't escape."
Zhao Gang said, "We beg General Lin to take charge of the situation. May we speak in private?" He stepped forward and grabbed Lin Jinlou's arm, saying someone had found a scroll of calligraphy and painting that might be the rebel's work. Before leaving, Lin Jinlou shot Xianglan a glance and ordered, "Wait right here!" Before the words faded, he was dragged away by Zhao Gang, who addressed him like a brother.
Xianglan breathed a slight sigh of relief. Peeking to confirm Lin Jinlou had gone far enough, she hitched up her skirts and broke into a run. Emerging from the monastery courtyard, she saw Granny Wang still waiting anxiously in the guest hall. The old woman was overjoyed at the sight of Xianglan, as if a phoenix had descended from heaven, and rushed forward saying, "My dear girl, where have you been?"
Xianglan grabbed Granny Wang's arm and said, "There are soldiers inside saying they're capturing rebels. Who knows if blades and spears have eyes? We'd better leave quickly."
Granny Wang had already noticed the soldiers. Now hearing "capturing rebels" and "blades and spears are merciless," she panicked and hurried out with Xianglan in haste. Outside the temple gate, they saw Old Man Wang sitting on the carriage shaft with his hands tucked in his sleeves. Xianglan and Granny Wang climbed aboard and immediately ordered to return to the Song residence.
After the carriage had traveled some distance, Xianglan dared to secretly lift the curtain and look outside. Seeing everything quiet around them, she realized no one was pursuing them and finally relaxed, slumping weakly against the carriage wall. Only then did she notice her cold sweat had soaked through her undergarments, with fine beads of perspiration covering her forehead. Xianglan took out a handkerchief to wipe it, and looking down, noticed her skirt sash was empty. She felt some regret over losing her palace tassel and scented sachet, but then thought losing those external possessions was still better than being captured by Lin Jinlou, which brought her some comfort.
When they entered Jinling City, Xianglan looked back again and, seeing no soldiers in pursuit, finally set her mind at ease. Returning to the Song household, she simply closed the doors and devoted herself entirely to preparing for the New Year.
Meanwhile, Lin Jinlou, entangled by Zhao Gang for what felt like ages, grew extremely impatient but had no choice but to listen attentively. When he finally emerged, he discovered the spot beneath the plum tree in the courtyard was completely empty. Furious, Lin Jinlou summoned the nearby soldiers and demanded, "Where is she? The person who was standing under the tree?"
The soldier looked bewildered, not understanding whom Lin Jinlou meant. Hur Lai, hearing Lin Jinlou's angry shout, hurried over and said, "That young lady has already left."
Lin Jinlou's face instantly darkened, but with various matters demanding his attention, he could only set the affair aside for the time being.
They combed the entire Ganlu Temple but naturally found no trace of any rebel. However, in one room they discovered a landscape painting—just a few sparse brushstrokes—with the inscription "The rivers and mountains remain unchanged, all turns to emptiness in old age" in the blank space, stamped below with the imperial seal, seemingly the Crown Prince's work. Zhao Xuede treated it as a priceless treasure, instantly energizing him as if injected with chicken blood. He assembled all the temple monks for questioning and learned that the artist was a wandering monk who had stayed there half a month earlier and had long since departed to parts unknown.Zhao Xuede immediately dispatched the letter to his grandfather via express courier and planned to conduct a thorough search throughout Jinling City. Lin Jinlou sneered inwardly—the Crown Prince had long been sent to another province under his arrangement. In a few days, they would cross from Anhui into Henan, heading northwest toward the frontier. Once their trail vanished, they would be nearly impossible to track. Even if Zhao Xuede turned Jinling upside down, he would find nothing.
After a hectic day, Lin Jinlou returned home around mid-afternoon. With Zhao Yuechan absent, Yingge seized the opportunity to attend to him, presenting a goji berry soup she had prepared herself. Noticing his hunger, she instructed the kitchen to reheat some food. Lin Jinlou ate hastily and prepared to change clothes, intending to inform his elders about divorcing Zhao Yuechan. As Yingge helped him undress, his cloak slipped off with a soft thud, and the scented sachet tied with an orchid-patterned palace tassel rolled out from his sleeve onto the floor.
Yingge hurried to pick it up, but Lin Jinlou frowned, snatched the sachet, and strode out to summon Shuangxi and Jixiang from the corridor. He commanded sharply, "Investigate immediately: which trafficker bought the maid formerly named Xianglan, and where she is now? You must find her within three days!"
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