Until they returned to the Cheng Residence, Shao Shang remained silent, leaning against the carriage wall in a daze.
Cheng Yang, concerned, asked, “Did any of the young ladies at the banquet say something to bully you again?” She had spent the day befriending a few like-minded companions, chatting happily in a corner and hadn’t noticed anyone else.
Shao Shang scoffed, “As if they’d dare?!”
Madam Xiao also noticed her daughter’s low spirits and asked, “Did any of the Lou Family elders give you a hard time?” Madam Lou (eldest) had clearly been persuaded by her husband, and today none of the women in the family had behaved improperly. But in such a large family, there were bound to be a few troublemakers.
Shao Shang lifted her chin proudly. “Who would? I’d make sure A Yao never acknowledges them as elders again!”
Unable to get an answer, Madam Xiao had no choice but to let her daughter return to her room. At dinner, she still seemed listless, barely eating before dragging herself back to her quarters. That night, a clear and melancholic flute melody suddenly drifted through the courtyards of the Cheng Residence—soft and sorrowful, as if weeping and lamenting. The tune wasn’t exactly mournful, but rather carried a sense of confusion and melancholy, like someone lost and unsure of the way home.
Madam Xiao couldn’t sleep. She lay awake listening for a long time before suddenly sitting up to push aside the bed curtains and leave, only to be stopped by her husband’s hand from behind.
Cheng Shi, eyes still closed, said, “I advise you not to go.”
Madam Xiao frowned. “I’ve felt something was off since we left the Lou Family today. No, I must go and ask her.”
Without even opening his eyes, Cheng Shi replied, “And if you ask, do you think Niao Niao will tell you?”
Madam Xiao hesitated, then said, “Then I’ll ask her maids.”
“Don’t do that either. With Niao Niao’s sharp mind, she’ll know the moment you ask. Do you think she’d be happy about you interrogating her servants?” Cheng Shi shifted his sleeping position. “You two have only just started getting along better lately—don’t stir up trouble again.”
“Aren’t you worried she’s troubled by something?”
“Only fools and ignorant children go through life without a care. Niao Niao is about to be married—can’t she have her own sorrows and worries?”
“It’s ‘sorrows of spring and autumn,’ not ‘sorrows of east and west.’”
“Fine, whatever sorrows—just as long as she doesn’t harm her health. Ah, Father left too soon. Niao Niao hasn’t been playing the flute for long, yet she’s already so skilled. It tugs at the heartstrings. If Father were still here, we could’ve kept Niao Niao in the Capital City without worry. Who knows, he might’ve even trained her into a renowned master!”
Madam Xiao fell silent. After a while, she said, “Can you really sleep while she keeps playing like this?”
“Why not? Back then, whenever Father was upset, he’d play sorrowful tunes in the middle of the night—sometimes the flute, sometimes the qin, and sometimes even drums and cymbals. Didn’t we siblings all sleep just fine? Come on, lie back down.”
Madam Xiao sat at the edge of the bed for a long time before thinking to herself: Her late father-in-law really hadn’t had it easy.
Fortunately, Shao Shang, having lived communally for years, hadn’t completely abandoned basic courtesy. After finishing the piece, she extinguished the lamp and went to sleep. By the next morning, she was bright-eyed and energetic again, showing no trace of her previous melancholy.
Lou Yao had originally planned to visit the Cheng Residence every day, but even Lou Taipu, with his famously good temper, couldn’t take it anymore. He dragged his nephew by the ear and locked him in the study to study, only allowing him to visit the Cheng Family once every five or six days—who hadn’t been a son-in-law before? There had to be limits to currying favor with one’s in-laws. It was as if he’d never married in his past life, utterly embarrassing the Lou Family. Even those waiting outside the North Palace gate, seeking official recommendations, carried themselves with more dignity than his nephew!Then, Shao Shang made a miraculous discovery: ever since Lou Yao couldn’t visit daily, all her brothers had become much more agreeable and amiable.
“Do you all dislike A Yao?” Shao Shang couldn’t figure it out, so she quietly asked her twin brother.
Cheng Shao Gong replied, “We don’t dislike Young Master Lou—we dislike you. Every time you see him, you grin like Er Wang next door who just got a chicken leg.” Er Wang was a yellow dog.
Naturally, this conversation ended with Shao Shang flying into a rage, dumping an entire box of board game pieces on Cheng Shao Gong’s head, and refusing to let her brothers accompany her outings anymore.
Madam Xiao had just praised Shao Shang in front of her sons when Cheng Shao Gong, sporting a bruise on his temple, began sowing discord: “Mother, Niao Niao is afraid managing household affairs will interfere with her personal errands. She’s been going out a lot these days and won’t let us accompany her!” Previously, it was always her brothers who escorted their younger sister out.
To everyone’s surprise, Madam Xiao wasn’t the least bit angry and even remarked leisurely, “Niao Niao has maids and servants with her. What could go wrong? It’s not like she’ll bring home another son-in-law.”
Cheng Song’s lips twitched. Exchanging a glance with his eldest brother Cheng Yong, both lowered their heads and said nothing—because they had once seen Yuan Shen escort their younger sister home, parting only at the alley’s entrance.
Later, the brothers privately questioned Shao Shang, only for her to respond with utter forthrightness: “We only ran into each other twice, no third time. We were just discussing Uncle and Aunt’s matters.”
Yuan Shen was still Yuan Shen, his methods unchanged. He had people watch the Cheng Residence gate, and whenever Cheng Shaoshang’s ostentatious gold-red small cart emerged, his servants would follow and report back to him. A meeting between a talented scholar and a beauty should have been delightful—if only the locations hadn’t been so bizarre.
The first time he intercepted the girl was at a blacksmith’s shop in a city corner. Facing the blazing furnace, both scholar and beauty were roasted until their cheeks burned and hair curled, resembling a pair of soot-covered charcoal-making elders.
Their second meeting took place at a mill not far outside the city. Amid the fluttering husks and fine flour in the air, both were dusted head to toe in powdery white and yellow, looking ready to take over the mill if they changed clothes.
“Couldn’t you have picked a bookstore or jewelry shop? Even a flower shop or cosmetics store would’ve been better,” Yuan Shen remarked, riding alongside the light carriage on their way back to the Cheng Residence, thoroughly exasperated.
“Did I invite you?” Shao Shang had little patience for anyone disrupting her research. “If you have something to say, out with it! Last time, you mentioned Master Huangfu had settled in the mountains. So? Want me to deliver another letter? Not happening!”
“You didn’t listen to a word I said!”
Shao Shang rolled her eyes. “That’s because you fled the furnace in less than half a moment.” During that encounter, including their brief exchange outside the blacksmith’s, they hadn’t even managed ten sentences before the smoke nearly made Yuan Shen cough up a lung.
Yuan Shen was depressed. He’d never set foot in a blacksmith’s shop before—he’d practically been roasted alive, gasping for air.
“I’m not asking you to deliver a letter. Master just wants to know Madam Sang is doing well. If there’s anything he can help with—things Madam Sang or your uncle might hesitate to mention—you can quietly tell me. Master Huangfu will assist if possible… Why are you looking at me like that? No ulterior motives—he just wants peace of mind.”Shao Shang smiled and said, "That's more like it. Aunt's contributions to the Huangfu family back then were far from trivial. As long as Teacher understands, then I'll accept on Aunt's behalf." Such a beneficial offer was naturally worth accepting.
"And one more thing..." Yuan Shen looked gloomy. "I'm also going to be meeting potential marriage candidates."
Shao Shang burst into laughter. "That's a serious matter. The elders always say the more you pick and choose, the fewer good options remain. Better to cut the knot quickly. When the time comes, A Yao and I will visit to congratulate you!"
Yuan Shen grew irritated, his jade-like cheeks flushing slightly. He said resentfully, "No one's 'quick cut' is as hasty as yours—agreeing the moment a proposal is made. Had I known, had I known..." With that, he clamped his legs against his horse's flank, sharply turned the steed around, and galloped away, leaving only the sound of hoofbeats echoing at the alley's entrance.
Shao Shang rubbed her nose, pretending not to have understood anything, and cheerfully returned home.
Several days later, during the most radiant days of spring, a scholar from the Imperial Academy suddenly presented the Emperor with several ancient bamboo slips bearing cryptic words that seemed to imply, "An omen lies in the east; the one who responds shall be most divine."
The Emperor took this very seriously. After convening with a few trusted ministers, they concluded that the character for "omen" had a "mountain" radical at its top—likely referring to Mount Tu Gao east of the Capital City. A sacrificial offering to the mountain's spirits was deemed necessary.
Originally, the Emperor was supposed to lead a grand hunting expedition, but in his benevolence, he declared that spring was a time for all living things to thrive and excessive slaughter was inappropriate. Thus, the hunt was replaced with a ceremonial offering of grains and seeds to the mountain spirits. The scholars naturally flocked to praise the Emperor's wisdom and compassion, extolling how grains were holier than hunted prey.
With this settled, the Emperor set out for Mount Tu Gao with his consorts, the scant imperial relatives, and a host of officials—Old Man Cheng among them. Though framed as a sacrificial rite, to Shao Shang, it seemed more like a grand spring picnic, as selected officials were allowed to bring their families.
The Cheng family was small. Excluding Cheng Mu and Cheng Xiaozhu, who couldn't attend, the group consisted of the couple, their three sons, Cheng Yang, and Shao Shang. After meeting the Wan family's convoy at the city gates, they traveled for most of the day before finally arriving at Mount Tu Gao.
They weren't late. By then, the mountain's base was already teeming with people and horses. In the distance, centered around the most eye-catching vermilion tent with black borders and a golden top, private tents of various colors sprawled outward for miles.
For instance, Yuhou's family had over a dozen tents, all uniformly indigo brocade adorned with pale ivory-carved family crests, exuding nobility and dignity. General Wu, less concerned with details, had a chaotic cluster of multicolored tents. Meanwhile, General Han, who fancied himself refined, had over a dozen tents made entirely of green bamboo and cloth, creating a cool, verdant vista.
Then there were those who loved novelty, like Marquis Xuan, the Empress's younger brother, who had decorated his tent to resemble a thatched hut—only for observers to realize it was covered in bundles of gold and silver silk. This drew both envy and laughter, along with a furious scolding from the Empress, forcing Marquis Xuan to dismantle it overnight and erect an ordinary tent instead.The Wan and Cheng families, as usual, set up their tents together, chatting and dining merrily. Unfortunately, due to the superstitious rituals scheduled early the next morning, they couldn’t indulge in wine or meat that night, settling instead for vegetable cakes and fish soup made from freshly caught fish and shrimp from the mountain stream. Shao Shang couldn’t help but feel that this sacrificial ceremony seemed more about formality than substance.
Before dawn, Wan Songbai and Cheng Shi, dressed in their official robes, hurried to the imperial tent. The rest of the family remained behind, kneeling and bowing to the loud beats of gongs and drums, offering prayers for the entire morning before the ceremony concluded.
Perhaps due to anemia, Shao Shang rested in the tent with a dizzy head. When she emerged, everything had changed—
Wan Qiqi and Cheng Song had gone to participate in the archery and horse racing competition with prizes set by Old Marquis Ban. Cheng Yong had intended to discuss essays with a few classmates but was dragged away by the Yin siblings, who arrived early. Cheng Shao Gong had planned to stay in the tent and read, but before unrolling the scroll, he habitually cast a divination, which revealed the precise omen: "It is unfavorable to remain here before the first hour of Shen." Scratching his nose, he had no choice but to wander off.
Madam Xiao and Madam Wan sat chatting about household matters, with Cheng Yang dutifully keeping them company as usual. Seeing Shao Shang emerge, Cheng Yang informed her that Lou Yao had come looking for her earlier but, finding her resting, had left without disturbing her—only to be pulled away by Second Brother Cheng.
After some thought, Shao Shang decided not to waste such beautiful spring scenery. She donned her veil hat, mounted her beloved spotted pony, and set off leisurely without a destination. Along the way, she encountered giggling young maidens, groups of scholars, and even startled a few clandestine couples. Passing a cluster of flowering trees, she plucked a few branches and wove them into a floral crown for her pony’s head. The silly, adorable sight as the pony shook its head amused Shao Shang greatly.
Having disliked crowded places since childhood, she naturally rode away from Mount Tu Gao toward the surrounding hills. Yet before long, she spotted Yuan Shen and a group of scholarly-looking young men by a stream, drinking wine and reciting poetry in a pavilion. Fortunately, her veil hat concealed her identity, so she quickly patted her pony’s neck and turned away.
As she rode, she pondered why she kept running into people—it was because she always gravitated toward water. If she wanted to avoid familiar faces, perhaps she should think differently and go the opposite way. For example... Shao Shang looked up and saw a small wooden pagoda-style tower atop a nearby hill.
A thought struck her. She had been curious about the grand spectacle of the imperial encampment and the gathering of nobles, but her father’s rank wasn’t high enough to get close. A bird’s-eye view from above might be better.
With her mind made up, Shao Shang urged her pony toward the pagoda. When they were still several dozen yards away, the path became rugged and strewn with loose stones. Concerned for her young pony’s tender hooves, she tied it to a tree in the woods and hiked up the hill, lifting her skirts as she went.
The hill, small from afar, proved quite taxing to climb. Panting, Shao Shang finally reached the pagoda, where the words "Yan Hui" were carved above the door. She pushed it open, calling out, "Is anyone here?" After shouting a dozen times with no response, she realized the pagoda was empty. Closing the door behind her, she cautiously stepped inside.This was a newly built pagoda funded by nearby villagers to enshrine a recently popular religious idol. Though the interior carvings weren't particularly refined or exquisite, the wooden structure was sturdy and fresh, the tung oil varnish gleaming brightly, and the entire place spotlessly clean. Shao Shang climbed floor by floor until she reached the very top after ascending seven stories.
Panting heavily with her hand on her rapidly rising chest, Shao Shang examined the somewhat familiar small stone idol enshrined at the summit and couldn't help but laugh—this was more like it! Though currently the statue still retained some primitive ferocity, after hundreds or thousands of years of evolution, it would surely become gentle-faced and benevolent!
She initially intended to push open a window for a better view, but upon looking up, she discovered a skylight opened in the roof.
Before becoming a juvenile delinquent-in-training, she'd first been a tomboy, with tree-climbing and wall-scaling skills that could rank top three in her entire town. Tying up her skirt hem, she deftly scaled up using the railings and side pillars—her slender yet well-trained body proving remarkably agile.
Emerging through the skylight onto the roof, warm spring sunlight bathed her entire being. Taking a deep, contented breath, Shao Shang felt thoroughly invigorated. Looking out, she saw the miniature ant-like figures of people and horses along with tents at the foot of Mount Tu Gao, shimmering like a kaleidoscope's dazzling colors under the brilliant sun.
The sensation proved utterly intoxicating. Stretching out flat on the gently sloping roof, she covered her face with her sleeve, savoring this rare moment of tranquility and warm sunbathing. Unexpectedly, she drifted into a light sleep, awakening to find the sun already dipping westward.
Slapping her forehead with an "Aiyo!", she recalled Madam Xiao's instructions—the Emperor was hosting a banquet for officials tonight, while the Empress would entertain their families. She absolutely had to return before 6:30 PM. Missing the seating arrangements might seem minor at a large gathering, but if noticed and reported by malicious observers, the consequences could be troublesome.
Without a watch, Shao Shang had no idea of the exact time. Quickly propping open the skylight, she slid down her original route. Before leaving the seventh floor, she bowed respectfully to the stone idol. Just as she reached the sixth floor, she faintly heard voices from a side chamber.
—The pagoda followed the common hexagonal structure. While the seventh floor was a small attic housing the idol, the six lower floors shared identical size and layout. Each hexagonal level allocated a small portion for staircases, with the remaining space divided equally between side chambers and open platforms leading to balcony railings.
Still somewhat dazed and unclear about the situation, Shao Shang leaned against the staircase railing to listen closer. Two indistinct voices conversed inside:
"...The Crown Prince acted swiftly this time, having someone interpret that prophecy within two hours to avert disaster..."
"...If only...would be better...such temperament unfit for the Crown Prince position...deposing the heir apparent is inevitable...!"
Cold sweat drenched Shao Shang's back. A fear unlike any before gripped her—like an icy iron weight lodged in her chest, heavy and radiating chill. Frozen for an immeasurable moment, she suppressed her screaming instinct to flee and began retreating slowly backward, hoping to hide again on the seventh floor.
Just as she neared the windowsill, a strong, pale hand reached down from above. Shao Shang nearly screamed but clamped both hands over her mouth, stifling all sound—looking up, she saw a strikingly familiar, handsome face!Ling Buyi was half-climbing on the beam when he spotted Shao Shang below, appearing equally startled before suddenly breaking into a smile. His beauty was already extraordinary, but this unrestrained grin outshone even the vibrant spring scenery across the mountains.
Shao Shang was so dazzled that she momentarily forgot her fear, staring blankly before returning a dazed smile of her own.
Just then, the commotion outside finally drew attention from within the chamber. A deep voice demanded, "Who's there?" followed by the sound of someone preparing to push open the door and investigate.
Panic seized Shao Shang again, her heart leaping into her throat. After a brief moment of consideration, Ling Buyi swiftly leaped down, grabbed Shao Shang's hand, and vaulted with her straight out of the pagoda!
This time Shao Shang nearly screamed bloody murder—though terror rendered her completely voiceless. Her mind shrieked hysterically: This is the sixth floor! The sixth floor! What kind of wuxia fantasy are you living in? Where's your safety wire for high-altitude stunts?!
Author's note: High probability of another update tomorrow, same posting time.
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