An Jiu arrived at the government office gate and saw several carriages parked there.
A middle-aged woman stepped down from the center carriage and walked toward her.
"This servant Ling Xi greets Fourteen Lady." The woman bowed slightly.
Ling Xi had always been Old Madam's right-hand woman. Seeing her now, An Jiu couldn't help but recall the disaster at Plum Blossom Village. Memories flooded in—the faces of many from the Mei family suddenly surfaced in her mind, leaving her momentarily dazed.
"Fourteen Lady?" Ling Xi called softly.
"Our Old Madam Mei is dead," An Jiu said flatly.
Ling Xi's expression darkened. "Fourteen Lady jokes. Old Madam was severely injured, but once she recovered, she came to the capital to search for the rest of the Mei family. Hearing they had moved here, she followed."
An Jiu sneered. "Isn't Second Madam still recuperating in the capital?"
"Second Madam has never favored our Old Madam. How could she tolerate her?" Ling Xi, frustrated by being questioned at the gate, lost her temper. "With such an attitude, does Fourteen Lady mean to deny her own grandmother?"
"You refuse to tell the truth, yet won’t allow questions? It’s been nearly two years since the incident at Plum Blossom Village. What illness requires hiding and recuperating for two years?" An Jiu glanced at the carriage again. "The carriage is clean and tidy, with only slight wear on the wheels. And you claim you traveled all the way from Bianjing? Go find whoever you want. Sixth Uncle told me Old Madam is already dead."
"Ling Xi, let’s go." Old Madam's voice came from inside the carriage.
Ling Xi gritted her teeth, shot An Jiu a fierce glare, then turned and hurried back to the carriage.
The old gatekeeper watched the carriage leave and whispered, "If the young lady didn’t want to acknowledge them, why come out personally to say so?"
"If I didn’t come out to see for myself, how would I know if it was true or not?"
Fake or not, she wouldn’t acknowledge them either way. An Jiu couldn’t understand why this Old Madam had suddenly reappeared.
If she couldn’t figure it out, she might as well ask Chu Dingjiang.
An Jiu dashed to the courtyard gate but suddenly remembered calling him "husband" earlier. She halted abruptly, her cheeks flushing.
After hesitating for a moment, she strode inside.
"Back?" Chu Dingjiang looked at her with an amused smile.
An Jiu pursed her lips. "Let’s talk business."
Chu Dingjiang nodded.
"That missing Old Madam from the Mei family suddenly showed up. I feel like she’s up to no good. What do you think they’re scheming?" An Jiu asked.
"Old Madam was someone the late emperor sent to the Mei family, but she also served Yelü Quancang," Chu Dingjiang mused. "With the late emperor dead, if they’re plotting anything, it’s likely on Yelü Quancang’s orders."
"Their spying is a complete failure—you know everything." An Jiu chuckled and sat beside him. "What does Yelü Quancang want?"
"Do you know who was in charge of them?" Chu Dingjiang diverted the topic with a smile.
An Jiu mentally ran through everyone she knew. "Gu Jinghong."
"Mm."
"Did Gu Jinghong convince them to serve the Liao?" An Jiu scooted closer to him. "How do you know all this?"
Chu Dingjiang leaned in and pressed a light kiss to her forehead. "Your husband knows many things. I’ll tell you more slowly in the future."
Tell you more slowly in the future…
An Jiu’s heart burned. She mumbled incoherently, unsure whether to agree or not.
"Look at this first." Chu Dingjiang handed her a ledger.
An Jiu took it skeptically and glanced through it. Many entries were circled in vermilion. "Why are you showing me this?"
"Betrothal gifts," Chu Dingjiang said.The ledger contained records of Chu Dingjiang's various properties. An Jiu flipped through a few pages, noticing that most were circled with a Vermilion Brush. "You have so much money!" she exclaimed.
Chu Dingjiang replied, "Half of it was earned by Zhu Pianxian. The remaining uncircled portions are her commission."
He gazed at her face, his eyes gentle. "I should have gone to Mei Shi to propose, but considering you might not acknowledge them, I decided against it. Perhaps we should wait until Aunt Mei returns to discuss our marriage. What do you think?"
Though An Jiu had called him "husband," it was, after all, just two words. The idea of suddenly getting married still felt a bit overwhelming. Chu Dingjiang's suggestion to wait for Mei Yanran's return suited her perfectly, so she nodded quickly.
Chu Dingjiang had anticipated this response and wasn’t disappointed. He had ample patience to wait.
"If you give all this to me, what will you have left?" An Jiu reached the end of the ledger and realized Chu Dingjiang seemed to have kept nothing for himself.
"A Jiu, I’m entrusting the rest of my life to you," Chu Dingjiang said, half-jokingly, as he took her hand. "What does it matter whether I keep any of this?"
Chu Dingjiang had never cared much for wealth. He was highly adaptable—living comfortably when conditions allowed and simply enduring when they didn’t.
"I don’t want it. I don’t understand business," An Jiu tossed the ledger aside.
"It’s just a matter of whose name is written on it. I’m not skilled at managing these things either. If you want to rebuild a formidable army, the meager rations from the court won’t suffice. You’ll need funds in the future." Chu Dingjiang picked up the ledger, then sighed. "Let’s discuss it after Aunt Mei returns."
An Jiu’s expression turned odd.
Chu Dingjiang frowned. "Speak your mind."
"It just feels... a bit like you’re pretending to be young by calling her 'Aunt Mei,'" An Jiu said.
"Do I look that old?" Chu Dingjiang had checked the mirror—his appearance was rough, but at most, he looked thirty.
"I didn’t say you look old!" An Jiu ruffled his beard, inspecting him before concluding, "You’re just actually old."
"Fine. As long as you don’t mind," Chu Dingjiang gave up resisting.
An Jiu shook her head and returned to the earlier topic. "You still haven’t told me what Yelü Quancang is really after."
"I don’t know. There are too many possibilities," Chu Dingjiang mused. "He might be preparing to attack the Song Dynasty, or he might have learned of Wei Yuzhi’s betrayal and sent someone to silence him. As the Liao Emperor, he has many ambitions... Let me observe further before I tell you."
Outside, the midday sun was blinding. Chu Dingjiang narrowed his eyes, veiling their deep, abyss-like gleam.
West Street.
Old Madam and her entourage arrived at the Mei family’s temporary residence. Mei Tingzhu, returning from the tavern, paused when she spotted the carriages at the gate and Ling Xi standing beside one.
After a moment, she quickened her steps. "Aunt Ling Xi?"
Ling Xi turned and, seeing Mei Tingzhu, hurried over. "Fourth Miss, you’ve grown into such a lady now."
Mei Tingzhu smiled faintly but didn’t respond to the remark. Instead, she glanced at the carriage. "Aunt Ling Xi, who is this?"
"It’s Old Madam," Ling Xi sighed. "It’s a long story..."
Mei Tingzhu straightened her robes without pressing for details. "Since it’s Old Madam, I should go and pay my respects."
"Fourth Miss is as courteous as ever," Ling Xi smiled and led her forward.Mei Tingzhu approached the carriage and slightly crouched, "Old Madam."
The Old Madam lifted the curtain and glanced at Ling Xi, "Hurry and help Fourth Lady up!"
As Ling Xi reached out to assist, Mei Tingzhu had already straightened up on her own, "The gate isn't a proper place for conversation. It's just that our household gate is small and cannot accommodate carriages. I must trouble Old Madam to alight here." (To be continued...)
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