QYT - 12

“The eldest young mistress, the second young master, and the second cousin have all gone to the Buddhist temple and won’t return until after they’ve had their vegetarian meal. The master will be staying at the yamen tonight. Does the eldest cousin want supper? This servant will have it prepared.”

When Qing Wei returned to the Gao residence and found Cui Zhiyue absent, she asked a servant, and the old maid said this.

Qing Wei simply said she had already eaten.

She had encountered Jiang Cizhou at the cliff and was delayed for a while. By the time she returned to her room, dusk had already fallen. She lit a lamp and took out the contents of the wooden box: besides the blueprints of Xijintai, there was also a brocade pouch.

There were a total of five blueprints of Xijintai. Besides the first initial blueprint, the latter four were all revised versions. However, Xue Changxing had said that Xijintai was only renovated three times. So, what was the peculiarity of the extra blueprint?

Qing Wei’s gaze fell on the brocade pouch.

She intuitively felt that the clue should be inside the brocade pouch. However, when she took out its contents, it turned out to be a jade hairpin for women. The jade was translucent, and the end of the hairpin was carved with a pair of flying swallows. It wasn’t particularly valuable, but it was of medium to high quality.

What could a jade hairpin have to do with a Xijintai?

Qing Wei was completely baffled.

It was only because Xue Changxing left in such a hurry that he couldn’t leave her any other clues. She had wanted to ask Meiniang, the madam of Shifang Pavilion, but Shifang Pavilion had been sealed, and Meiniang and all the courtesans from the pavilion had been taken to the Black Eagle Division’s copper vault.

Not to mention that the Black Eagle Division was currently like an impenetrable iron barrel, its yamen was on the outskirts of the forbidden palace. Even if Qing Wei was exceptionally capable, she could at most gather some information outside the yamen.

Qing Wei felt a little regretful. Yesterday, when Cao Kunda asked her to marry into the Jiang family, she shouldn’t have refused so rashly. Even if she had temporarily agreed and then feigned compliance, she could have temporarily leveraged Cao Kunda’s power to see Meiniang, who was trapped in the copper vault.

Just as Qing Wei was at her wit’s end, she suddenly heard Madam Luo’s voice from the outer courtyard.

“Send someone to look for her. She just went to buy some candy, and it’s been a whole day already. She’s still not back. Don’t tell me she ran into trouble.”

“Yes.”

It must be that Madam Luo, Cui Zhiyue, and the others had returned.

Cui Zhiyue had come to look for her that morning, seeming to have something important to discuss. Qing Wei put the hairpin and blueprints back into the wooden box, carefully hid it, and pushed open her door, just in time to see Cui Zhiyue walking quickly through the courtyard with her head down.

“Zhiyue.” Qing Wei called out to her, “What did you want to see me about earlier?”

Cui Zhiyue glanced at her, then looked away and shook her head: “Nothing... It’s already fine.”

This small courtyard was originally for the two sisters to live in. During the first few days when Cui Zhiyue arrived at the Gao family, she was very uneasy. Madam Luo felt sorry for her and allowed her to live with her.

Qing Wei saw Cui Zhiyue walking towards the east room of the small courtyard and couldn’t help but ask, “Are you moving back in?”

Cui Zhiyue glanced at her again, giving a quick smile: “Someone who’s about to get married... it’s really, really not good to keep staying in Auntie’s courtyard.”

Qing Wei noticed her unusual expression and immediately sensed something was wrong. A few days ago, she had said she would stay at the Gao family no matter what. How had she suddenly accepted her fate now?

She stepped down the stairs: “Have you decided you want to marry into the Jiang family?”

Cui Zhiyue wrung her handkerchief tightly: “What else can I do? A marriage is a major affair, determined by parents’ orders and matchmakers’ words. It’s not up to what I want.”

As she spoke, she turned and quickly walked towards her room, saying, “Sister, I’m tired and want to rest.”

Qing Wei watched her retreating figure and suddenly remembered that the household seemed to be looking for someone earlier. Connecting that with Cui Zhiyue’s unusual behavior, she took a few steps forward, propped the door open, and pushed it open without further ado: “How exactly did you come to this decision?”

Cui Zhiyue tried to close the door a few times, but couldn’t, so she let Qing Wei enter the room.

She lit the lamp and sat directly in front of her dressing table, taking off her earrings in front of the bronze mirror: “I... I already asked cousin, and he dodged my questions and prevaricated, so he must not be able to make the decision and can’t keep me in the Gao residence. Besides marrying, I have no other path left to take.”

Qing Wei looked around. This room was larger than the one she was staying in. There was a screen separating the inside and outside, and looking through the screen, a curtain seemed to hang in front of the bed.

The sky wasn’t dark yet, and no one was asleep. Why was a curtain drawn?

Qing Wei’s gaze then fell on Cui Zhiyue’s hand; the back of her hand had three or four intertwining purple-blue marks.

She walked over and gripped Cui Zhiyue’s wrist: “What happened to your hand?”

Cui Zhiyue instantly pulled her hand away: “I fell, fell in the Buddhist hall.”

“This is a fall injury?” Qing Wei stared at her.

Cui Zhiyue felt as if Qing Wei’s gaze was burning through her. She suddenly stood up, her voice also rising by three degrees: “Sister, you, you go back. I want to rest!”

Qing Wei ignored her. She walked around the screen in a few steps, pulled aside the curtain, and pointed at the person inside, saying, “Is this the result of your inquiry with Gao Ziyu?”

The person hidden behind the curtain by Cui Zhiyue was none other than Xishuang.

Her mouth was gagged with a silk handkerchief, her hands and feet were bound with ropes, her forehead was covered in fine sweat, her face was pale, and she seemed to have been unconscious for a long time.

Qing Wei quickly removed the silk handkerchief from Xishuang’s mouth, and with two fingers, checked her neck. Thankfully, her pulse was still there; she should be fine.

A murmur came from behind her: “Sister, are you going to help her?”

Qing Wei said nothing, about to untie Xishuang, when Cui Zhiyue’s voice suddenly sharpened:

“Sister!”

Cui Zhiyue was holding a pair of scissors at some point. She raised her hand and pressed it against her own neck: “Does Sister know that Father’s conviction was entirely due to the Jiang family patriarch’s instigation? I didn’t know this before, and I could still swallow my grievances. But if I am forced to marry the son of my enemy and become the wife of my enemy, I, I would rather die than comply!”

Upon hearing this, Qing Wei’s expression remained calm.

She released Xishuang and walked towards Cui Zhiyue. With each step she took, Cui Zhiyue was forced to retreat a step. Until she could retreat no further and bumped into the dressing table behind her.

With a crash, the dressing table fell to the ground, its hairpins and ornaments scattering everywhere. In that moment of distraction, Cui Zhiyue barely saw Qing Wei’s movements, only feeling a numbness in her arm as the scissors slipped from her grasp, caught by Qing Wei in mid-air.

Qing Wei put the scissors into a cabinet, locked it, and returned to the bed.

“Sister...” After a long while, Cui Zhiyue called out.

Seeing Qing Wei didn’t answer, she pleaded again, “Sister, don’t help her...”

Qing Wei ignored her and helped Xishuang untie the ropes on her body.

Seeing this, Cui Zhiyue suddenly rushed over. She grasped Qing Wei’s wrists with both hands, tears streaming down her face: “Sister, I’m your sister! I have no other way now—”

“What way?” Qing Wei said, “Do you think your aunt can’t keep you, or that Gao Ziyu can’t make up his mind to marry you, all because of this maid?”

“No, no... Sister, listen to me. Father was convicted. Uncle, Uncle is worried that I’ll implicate the Gao family and won’t take me in. I know all this. But...” Cui Zhiyue stammered, swallowing, “But that Jiang Cizhou, he hasn’t even seen me. I can let Xishuang marry in my place. As long as the ceremony is performed, and the vows to Heaven and Earth are exchanged, it will be a done deal. This marriage will be considered complete. Then I can stay in the Gao family, I can stop being Cui Zhiyue, change my name, and once the storm passes, I can marry cousin.”

Qing Wei found it utterly illogical: “If you do such a self-serving thing that harms others, how will Gao Ziyu view you? On what grounds do you think he would still be willing to marry you?”

“There are still five days until your wedding. You’ve hidden such a large person in your room. How do you think no one in the Gao residence will find out?”

“You’re trying to pull a fast one and have Xishuang marry in your place, but you and she are so different. How do you think Jiang Cizhou won’t notice something amiss? Once he does, it will ruin the relationship between the Gao family and the Jiang family. The master of the Gao family was already unwilling to take you in. If this comes to light, how do you think he will treat you? Have you considered that?!”

Cui Zhiyue was so startled by Qing Wei’s barrage of questions that she fell to the floor.

However, she had no retreat left.

She wiped away her tears and quickly got up, “I was inconsiderate, but Sister... you must have a way to help me, right? You’re so capable, please help me, okay? Then... then we can just say that Xishuang sought power and wealth and willingly married into the Jiang family in my place.”

Qing Wei found her words increasingly preposterous. She helped Xishuang untie the ropes on her feet, intending to wake her up.

Seeing that Qing Wei was determined not to help her, Cui Zhiyue steeled herself and said, “Sister, actually... you’re the robber the Black Eagle Division is looking for, aren’t you?”

Qing Wei’s movements paused.

“That day in court, you argued that you returned from the market at noon. But that’s not true; it was already late at night when you found me.”

“The night before last, I went to your room to look for you, but you weren’t there. This morning, I went to the temple and happened to hear that the night before last, the prisoner who was robbed had exposed his whereabouts in Liushui Alley.”

“Also, after that prisoner exposed his whereabouts, he left the city overnight. Last night, you also didn’t return all night. You helped him escape the city, didn’t you?”

Upon hearing this, Qing Wei turned around and looked at Cui Zhiyue.

So, the person who had been in her room these past few days, disturbing the ash spread in front of the door, was her.

“You deliberately investigated my whereabouts?”

Cui Zhiyue’s tears continued to flow. She looked at Qing Wei, shook her head, and her voice choked: “I, I found out by accident when I was trying to find Sister.”

Confirming it was Cui Zhiyue, Qing Wei felt a sense of relief instead.

Her voice was as calm as ever: “You just determined I’m a robber based on my absence for a few days? Then, in the capital city, with so many people coming and going, how many were not at home last night? Are they all robbers?”

“No, no... I didn’t mean that...” Cui Zhiyue seemed to have angered Qing Wei and instantly became flustered.

“The prisoner held in the dark prison in the south of the city was a craftsman from Xijintai back then, a comrade of my father, and an old acquaintance of my master. I came to the capital to find my master, and when I learned that the prisoner had escaped, I went to inquire about it. Is that also cause for suspicion?”

Cui Zhiyue hurriedly explained: “Sister, I truly don’t suspect you. Even if... even if you are truly the robber, it was you who covered for me in court that day. How could I possibly put you in a difficult position? Moreover, that dark prison in the south of the city is heavily guarded; how could you, a single woman, rescue a prisoner? I was simply at my wit’s end and hoped that Sister could help me...”

Qing Wei looked at Cui Zhiyue: “You want Xishuang to marry in your place. Have you ever considered how you, a person with no strength to tie a chicken, could easily tie up a maid’s hands and feet and bind her in your room?”

Cui Zhiyue stared blankly at Qing Wei.

“Because she’s already pregnant, and her body is too weak,” Qing Wei said. “And she’s carrying Gao Ziyu’s child in her womb. Tying her up like this is a minor matter if it only hurts her, but what if it harms the child in her womb?”

Cui Zhiyue was utterly terrified.

She hadn’t lied to Qing Wei; she truly was at her wit’s end to do such a thing. She hadn’t known Xishuang was pregnant before.

Qing Wei pinched Xishuang’s philtrum, and without looking back, ordered, “Fetch a bowl of water.”

Cui Zhiyue nodded dully, stumbled to her feet, and poured a bowl of water at the table. Her hand trembled constantly, and by the time she brought the water to Qing Wei, half of it had already spilled.

Qing Wei helped Xishuang up and fed her the water little by little, then set the bowl aside.

After a moment, Xishuang gradually regained consciousness.

Her first instinct was to touch her abdomen. She slowly opened her eyes and, seeing Qing Wei and Cui Zhiyue, was overcome with fright. She quickly shrank back to the foot of the bed and opened her mouth to cry out.

Before she could utter a sound, Qing Wei quickly covered her mouth and said coldly, “I know perfectly well what my sister is capable of. The fact that she could tie you up here means you must have provoked her in her room today, perhaps by flaunting that Gao Ziyu had taken you as a concubine, infuriating her, and forcing her to marry into the Jiang family. Otherwise, she would never have resorted to this desperate measure. I can see what your intentions are, and I advise you, walls have ears. How you feign weakness to Gao Ziyu in the abandoned courtyard, acting one way in front of people and another behind their backs, if you want no one to know, you must not do it. You are a maidservant, daring to threaten the young mistress. Even if Gao Ziyu protects you, if this reaches the eldest young mistress’s ears, and she loves Zhiyue so much, will you have an easy time of it afterwards? If you don’t think for yourself, you should at least think for the child in your womb. I can let you go now, but once you leave, you should carefully consider what you ought to do.”

Xishuang’s eyes widened, staring at Qing Wei in terror.

After a moment, she seemed to understand Qing Wei’s meaning. Her eyes gradually calmed, revealing a look of sorrow.

Qing Wei asked, “Understood?”

Xishuang nodded.

Qing Wei released her hand. Xishuang cried tears, but she was also sensible and knew her place: “Eldest young mistress’s lesson is right. Today’s matter, Xishuang was in the wrong first. I hope both young mistresses will be magnanimous. After Xishuang leaves, I will... I will certainly keep my mouth shut.”

“Go,” Qing Wei said concisely. “Go find a doctor to check your body.”

“Yes...” Xishuang’s voice was like a mosquito’s buzz. “Thank you, eldest young mistress.” She caressed her lower abdomen, bowed her head, and hurried away.

Cui Zhiyue watched Xishuang’s retreating figure, her eyes ashen.

Qing Wei glanced at her and said, “Come here. Let me ask you, how did you know that Uncle was convicted because the Jiang family made the accusation?”

Logically speaking, neither Madam Luo nor Gao Ziyu would have mentioned this to Cui Zhiyue. Where did she get the information?

Cui Zhiyue sobbed, “It was Xishuang... Today, she was in a hurry and let it slip.”

So that’s how it was.

Qing Wei fell silent.

Previously, she had wanted to leave the capital for two reasons: firstly, because the ash in front of her door was scattered, worrying her that someone might have uncovered her whereabouts; secondly, because she had offended Cao Kunda by refusing to marry into the Jiang family, and feared Cao Kunda might harbor resentment and send someone to harm her.

But now, the situation was different.

The person who came to her room to look for her was Cui Zhiyue; she didn’t need to worry about her whereabouts being exposed.

The twin swallow jade hairpin Xue Changxing left her was shrouded in mystery. To understand its intricacies, she had to meet Meiniang in the Black Eagle Division’s copper vault.

And Jiang Cizhou, wasn’t he currently the Marshal of the Black Eagle Division?

Cao Kunda wanted her to marry into the Jiang family, hoping she could use the opportunity to get close to Jiang Cizhou. If she succeeded, she would not only have a chance to see Meiniang but also regain Cao Kunda’s trust. In the future, to investigate the truth of Xijintai, she would largely need Cao Kunda’s assistance.

This was a win-win-win situation, an opportunity not to be missed, never to return.

Qing Wei asked Cui Zhiyue, “Do you truly not want to marry into the Jiang family?”

“Truly not,” Cui Zhiyue said decisively. “The Jiang family harmed Father. I will absolutely not be the wife of an enemy!”

“Good,” Qing Wei said. “I’ll take your place.”

“Sister will take my place?” Cui Zhiyue was stunned, as if in disbelief. “Sister means you’re willing to marry into the Jiang family in my stead?”

Qing Wei nodded.

Either way, once she married, as long as she could delay for the first few days and obtain new clues, with the vast world before her, could she truly be trapped in the Jiang residence forever?

“I am Cui Yuanyi’s daughter. The main reason Gao Yucang is unwilling to keep you is also because of my father. Furthermore, the letter from the Jiang family only said they wanted to marry a daughter of the Cui clan, not specifically Cui Zhiyue. If I take your place, it will also be understandable to your aunt.”

She repeated, “It’s decided then. I will marry into the Jiang family in your place.”