The night fell.
Candlelight flickered in the study. Zhan Feiyu paused, the ink from her brush dripping onto the paper, instantly creating a blot.
"Miss?" He Nuan, who had been doing needlework, put down the fabric and stood up. The brazier was still warm, and her mistress had only recently had some water.
Placing the brush on the stand, Zhan Feiyu, unconcerned about the half-finished essay, asked urgently, "Did something happen tonight, that's why Eldest Brother left in such a hurry?"
"This servant knows nothing of Seventh Master's affairs." He Nuan was not lying. After she and He Sheng began following Zhan Feiyu, He Nuan knew nothing of the Forbidden Dragon Guard's matters.
He Sheng only had contact with the Forbidden Dragon Guard to protect Zhan Feiyu, but He Sheng also knew nothing of the Forbidden Dragon Guard's internal affairs.
"A'nuan, I need to go to the Fu family." Zhan Feiyu recalled the scene in Plum Valley earlier that day. What if Gui Cao wasn't targeting Qiu Jinyu?
Fu family's daughter's matter? He Nuan glanced at the window. Even through the thick paper, she could feel the chill outside, especially after nightfall when it was freezing. It was too cold to go out at this hour.
But since Zhan Feiyu had decided, He Nuan, as her attendant, could not stop her despite her worries. She quickly opened the cabinet and took out the warmest fox fur coat. "This servant will fetch a hand warmer. Miss, please change into your deerskin boots first."
The Fu family was the wealthiest in Xiangwu County. Otherwise, Zhou Shuyao's previous invitation would not have been sent to the Fu family's daughter. But even with their wealth, to an official family like the Zhou family, the Fu family was still considered unpresentable merchants.
After nightfall, the Fu family mansion was quiet. Only the lanterns hanging under the corridors swayed slightly in the wind, casting a dim, yellowish light. The night watchwomen and servants were all drowsy.
"Miss, are you cold?" He Nuan asked softly.
Zhan Feiyu was dressed warmly and holding a hand warmer, but the cold wind that occasionally blew still made her shiver, feeling as if all her body heat was being dispersed. "I'm fine. Let's go."
He Nuan embraced Zhan Feiyu, and with a light touch of her toes, she leaped over the tall surrounding wall, landing in the shadows. Then, she quickly moved towards the backyard.
The Fu family's daughter lived in a main house with five bays facing the front, with side rooms on both sides and small gardens in front and back. Even though there was little scenery in winter, the strangely shaped rocks piled in the gardens indicated that the courtyard was expensively built.
As soon as He Nuan brought Zhan Feiyu over the wall and onto the ground, two gazes fixed on them from the darkness.
Even though the other party had concealed their killing intent, the well-trained He Nuan immediately detected it. However, as the other party had also concealed their aura, He Nuan couldn't pinpoint their location.
He Nuan did not speak. Her right hand gripped her long sword, and she took a slight step forward to shield Zhan Feiyu's figure. If they were from the Forbidden Dragon Guard, it would be fine. But if the lurking presence was an enemy?
At this moment, He Nuan suddenly regretted bringing Zhan Feiyu out into danger.
"Eldest Brother." Seeing the figure approaching from the moon gate, even in the darkness, Zhan Feiyu recognized it as Yin Wuyan.
He Nuan looked up. The person walked out of the darkness. In the dim light of the lantern, it was indeed their Seventh Master. Her anxious heart finally relaxed.
Dressed in a black brocade robe, Yin Wuyan's steps seemed unhurried, but in the blink of an eye, he was in front of Zhan Feiyu. "Nonsense!"
Ignoring the oppressive chill radiating from Yin Wuyan, Zhan Feiyu stepped out from behind He Nuan, but she forgot that the snow on the ground was frozen. As she slipped, her surprised expression instantly turned to panic.
A long arm reached out and caught the little girl who had slipped and was falling. Yin Wuyan's face remained stern. "Why are you out in such cold weather?"
Wrapped up like a bear, Zhan Feiyu hugged Yin Wuyan's arm and tilted her head up, grinning. "I calculated and felt something would happen tonight, so I asked A'nuan to bring me here to see."
If she hadn't encountered Yin Wuyan, Zhan Feiyu would have planned to sneak around the Fu family for the night and return undetected. But now that she saw him, Zhan Feiyu knew her guess was correct.
He might be indifferent to anyone else, but the little girl smiling sweetly before him made Yin Wuyan unable to maintain his stern expression. His cold phoenix eyes held only doting and indulgence.
He squeezed Zhan Feiyu's hand. It was warm. The coldness on Yin Wuyan's stern face dissipated a little. "Follow me."
A moment later.
"Is this a young lady's boudoir?" Zhan Feiyu looked around curiously, as if she were a lecherous visitor from somewhere else.
Yin Wuyan was amused by her demeanor. "I have a vacant residence in the capital. You can have it decorated however you like."
Zhan Feiyu's courtyard in Shangsi County was not large. Perhaps due to habits from her past life, her room was decorated simply. Besides various furniture, He Nuan had only placed a few decorative items, not exactly elegant.
The Fu family was not short of money, so the Fu family's daughter's boudoir was filled with furnishings. The outer room was a small hall for receiving guests, with a bookshelf against the wall. The desk was equipped with the four treasures of calligraphy, and several scroll paintings were placed in an open-mouthed vase nearby. A seasonal "Nine-Nine Cold-Dispelling Chart" hung on the wall.
Screens, beaded curtains, gauze curtains... all were in a style favored by young ladies.
As they got closer, a faint scent of plum blossoms emanated from the incense burner, but it could not mask the smell of blood from the inner room. Zhan Feiyu paused. "Eldest Brother, has the Fu family's daughter...?"
The Fu family's courtyard and its surroundings were staffed with members of the Forbidden Dragon Guard. Yin Wuyan saw no need to lower his voice. "Zhou Shuyao is staying overnight at the Fu family's residence tonight."
Regardless of how the Fu family's daughter would be dealt with later, for now, to stabilize the situation and prevent an uproar from the Fu family, Yang Xu was inconvenient. However, as Zhou Shuyao, the cousin, it was reasonable to stay and accompany the Fu family's daughter who had been frightened during the day.
For the Fu family, even if Yang Xu and the Fu family's daughter fell into the water at the same time, it was considered "physical contact." However, the Fu family also worried that the Yang family might not acknowledge it. After all, Yang Xu was implicated by the Fu family's daughter; otherwise, he wouldn't have fallen into the water.
Moreover, after falling into the water, Yang Xu had embraced the Fu family's daughter to save her. An eight-year-old child, not even fully developed, and the Fu family was using this to force a marriage. If the Yang family was determined not to acknowledge it, the Fu family would have no recourse.
Even if the matter caused a great stir, outsiders would still believe that the Fu family was ungrateful and was trying to climb the social ladder.
Fortunately, Zhou Shuyao's gesture of goodwill had reassured the Fu family. Thus, the entire Fu family treated Zhou Shuyao as if she were an ancestor. If they could befriend Zhou Shuyao, with her mediating, the marriage might actually happen.
Entering the inner room, Zhan Feiyu saw the overturned chairs, the shattered cups, and the bedroom, which looked as if it had been through a fierce battle. Her gaze fell on Zhou Shuyao, lying on the ground, her life or death unknown. There was blood on her forehead.
Zhan Feiyu glanced again at the Fu family's daughter, half-lying on the bed, and was startled. Her voice grew a little cold. "Are they dead?"
The two young ladies were to have a heart-to-heart talk. After seeing them settled, the maids and servants left. It was likely they were drugged afterward. Therefore, even though Zhou Shuyao and the Fu family's daughter had a fierce struggle in the bedroom, no maids or servants came.
"The Fu family's daughter is dead. There are finger marks on her neck, and Zhou Shuyao's fingernail is broken, and her face is scratched..." Yin Wuyan stopped Zhan Feiyu from going closer and briefly described the condition of the two.
Although Zhou Shuyao was a lady of the boudoir, she was three years older than the Fu family's daughter and had considerably more strength. She had also learned archery and horse riding, so her arm strength was greater than that of ordinary girls.
The Fu family's daughter, on the other hand, was pampered and raised by the Fu family. The merchant family tried to educate their daughters in the style of scholarly families, but only learned the superficial aspects. They only taught the Fu family's daughter to be gentle and demure, teaching her to read and write. Rough activities like horse riding and archery were naturally excluded.
Therefore, when the two clashed, the Fu family's daughter had almost no power to resist and was choked to death by the frenzied Zhou Shuyao. However, Zhou Shuyao's forehead was also broken by a teapot, which was the source of the smell of blood.
"A'nuan told me that if Gui Cao is consumed in excess, it has properties similar to five-stone powder," Zhan Feiyu murmured, looking again at the Fu family's daughter half-lying on the bed. Although she had schemed against Yang Xu, she did not deserve to die.
After a moment of silence, Zhan Feiyu began to consider the purpose of the mastermind. The Fu family's daughter was dead. Was the intention to frame Yang Xu for murder?
In the messy crime scene, Zhou Shuyao was the perpetrator. In terms of blood relation, she was Yang Xu's cousin. Therefore, the mastermind could easily claim that Yang Xu had instructed Zhou Shuyao to kill the Fu family's daughter.
"You've seen what you needed to see. Let's go back," Yin Wuyan said. There was still a lingering scent of Gui Cao in the room. By tomorrow, the smell would have mostly dissipated.
And with three to four hours remaining until dawn, the Gui Cao in Zhou Shuyao and the others' bodies would also disappear. The coroner in Xiangwu County would definitely not be able to detect it. Moreover, since the deceased were unmarried young ladies, the coroner would not be allowed to conduct a thorough autopsy.
Zhan Feiyu nodded and turned to leave. After a few steps, she looked back again. Who would have thought that the person she saw alive during the day would be separated by death at night?
When Zhan Feiyu returned to the Qiu residence, she washed up and lay in her warm bed. It was already close to midnight.
He Nuan tucked in the quilt and looked at Zhan Feiyu, who had closed her eyes and was preparing to sleep. She couldn't help but ask, "Miss, do you think Seventh Master stood by and did nothing?"
From beginning to end, the Forbidden Dragon Guard had been lurking in the shadows. Whether it was Zhou Shuyao and the Fu family's daughter going mad from consuming too much Gui Cao and fighting, or Zhou Shuyao eventually choking the Fu family's daughter to death, the Forbidden Dragon Guard had observed but had not intervened, otherwise the Fu family's daughter would not have died.
In the darkness, Zhan Feiyu shook her head. "The Forbidden Dragon Guard obeys the Emperor's orders, acting as the Emperor's sharp blade. If a weapon develops emotions, then it is no longer necessary."
Outsiders all considered the Commander of the Forbidden Dragon Guard to be cold-blooded and heartless, a bloodthirsty executioner, but they never considered that if Yin Wuyan had emotions, would the Emperor still dare to trust him with the Forbidden Dragon Guard?
He Nuan was startled, not expecting Zhan Feiyu to see through it so clearly.
After returning from the Fu family at night, He Nuan saw that Zhan Feiyu was silent and thought she had some reservations, which was why she dared to ask.
...
Perhaps it was due to thinking about matters at night, not sleeping well, and going out in the middle of the night, Zhan Feiyu woke up early in the morning to find her nose blocked and her throat so dry she couldn't speak.
"You've caught a cold." He Nuan knew it was from catching a chill last night after taking her pulse. She couldn't help but blame herself for letting Zhan Feiyu go out in the middle of the night.
Experiencing a hoarse voice like a drake, Zhan Feiyu said indifferently, "I was the one who wanted to go out. It's nothing. A few doses of medicine will fix it."
"Miss, lie down. I'll go get the medicine." Pushing Zhan Feiyu back into the quilt, He Nuan worriedly pulled the quilt up to Zhan Feiyu's chin. "I'll call someone else to serve you."
"No need. I'll be fine after a nap. I can't sleep with outsiders around." Zhan Feiyu shook her head, her mind feeling muddled and uncomfortable. "A'nuan, go and ask Mr. Qiu for leave."
Seeing Zhan Feiyu close her eyes and go back to sleep, He Nuan quietly withdrew from the bedroom, not letting any maids in, but having someone guard the door.
The Qiu residence had common medicines stored in the storeroom, so He Nuan didn't need to go to the pharmacy to get medicine. She was currently brewing the medicine in the kitchen.
In the bedroom, Zhan Feiyu could only sleep for a short while before she couldn't sleep anymore. Thinking of the Fu family's daughter's death, her mind became a mess again, but she still couldn't figure anything out.
After a long while, Qiu Zongxi, who had received the news, came to visit her. At his age, he could be Zhan Feiyu's grandfather, so there was no need to avoid suspicion.
Looking at the little girl wrapped in the quilt, looking listless and without her usual radiance, Qiu Zongxi said sternly, "You went out in the middle of the night, who else would get cold if not you?"
"How was I supposed to know it would be so cold outside?" Zhan Feiyu huffed twice to defend herself.
Winter in Nanxuan Prefecture was also cold, and the river would freeze, but the coldest it got was only minus one or two degrees Celsius. However, the temperature in Xiangwu County, Zhan Feiyu estimated, was at least minus eleven or twelve degrees Celsius in the middle of the night. Going out for a trip in the middle of the night like this would make her sick.
"Grandpa Qiu, is it also this cold in the capital?" Zhan Feiyu's scalp tingled. She still had to go to the capital for the imperial examinations in the future. The weather in January and February... wouldn't she freeze to death in the examination cubicle?
Moreover, her teacher was in the capital. Thinking that she might live in the capital for a long time, Zhan Feiyu suddenly felt like retreating. She really wanted to go south, where the seasons were like spring, and even in winter, a padded jacket would suffice.
Having traveled through various prefectures and counties of the Great Qing Dynasty, Qiu Zongxi had naturally been to the capital. Looking at the little girl with a distressed face and cowering, he couldn't help but stroke his beard and laugh, his mood very pleasant.
"Perhaps not as cold as Longyou Circuit, but in winter, the capital is windy. Ask Gu Qingzhou, and he'll tell you. Walking outside feels like being scraped by a steel knife."
Zhan Feiyu shrank further into the quilt. Looking at the schadenfreude of the old Mr. Qiu, she stubbornly retorted, "It will be at least six or seven years before I take the imperial examinations, maybe even ten years. Teacher will have retired by then, and I'll settle in the south with Teacher where the seasons are like spring!"
She couldn't forget Gu Qingzhou in every sentence. Qiu Zongxi refused to admit he was jealous. He put on a wrinkled old face and said irritably, "You've read history books extensively. Do you think Gu Qingzhou can escape unscathed?"
This was not Qiu Zongxi speaking alarmingly. Currently, the Emperor and Scholar Gu were in harmony as ruler and minister, but what about years later? Who could guarantee that the Emperor would still trust Scholar Gu so much?
Moreover, there was a major issue in between: the establishment of the Crown Prince. If the future new emperor was wary of Scholar Gu, let alone escaping unscathed, he might even be burdened with various infamy and crimes and end up in prison.
Qiu Zongxi's words were blunt and harsh, but Zhan Feiyu knew he was only worried about her teacher's future. She couldn't help but say, "Teacher will definitely prepare his own escape route. Besides, General Yang and I have reached an agreement. With Yang Xu as my backer in the future, even if the new emperor ascends the throne, he wouldn't dare to make things difficult for us, teacher and disciple."
At most, they, teacher and disciple, would give up all their power and stay away from the court. The new emperor would not go all out to exterminate them. And with her teacher's status among scholars, as long as the new emperor was not a foolish ruler, he would probably not dare to target her teacher.
What Zhan Feiyu worried about most was Gu Qingzhou. Her teacher was a Grand Scholar of the first rank, with an excellent reputation both inside and outside the court, and he hailed from the Gu clan of Nanling. These were all her teacher's life-saving talismans.
But Eldest Brother bore a bad reputation, with everyone wanting him dead. Once the new emperor ascended the throne, Zhan Feiyu dared not even imagine Yin Wuyan's fate.