Explosions of firecrackers echoed, and lanterns resembled dragons in a dazzling display. According to the custom of the Wu Dynasty, the city would begin lighting lanterns on the thirteenth day of the first lunar month and continue until the seventeenth, a total of five days. The city was filled with dragon and lion dances, with revelry continuing day and night. Naturally, the fifteenth day, the Lantern Festival, was the most vibrant. The snow had not yet melted, and various lantern shows and poetry gatherings had already commenced, surpassing even the Mid-Autumn Festival in scale.

The atmosphere on this particular evening was less competitive than the poetry contests of the Mid-Autumn Festival, with more of the festive spirit lingering from the Lunar New Year. If, on the Mid-Autumn Festival, people were more inclined to appreciate the scholarly aura of literary talents and enjoy the spectacle of idol competitions, on the Lantern Festival night, they focused more on celebrating with family and friends, eating yuanxiao (sweet dumplings), solving lantern riddles, and strolling through the night market. Only then would they pay attention to the literary figures in the misty pavilions and towers.

The reasons for this shift were complex. Heavy snow blocked roads, reducing the number of traveling merchants and pedestrians, and some students studying abroad had returned to their hometowns before the New Year… Various gatherings related to poetry still occurred, but they were not as distinct as during the Mid-Autumn Festival. The Puyuan Poetry Society and the Zhishui Poetry Society did not hold formal events on the Lantern Festival. This night usually featured performances by students from the Lichuan Academy, which was essentially the official school of Jiangning. If not for the influence of the Zhishui Poetry Society hosted by the Pan Mansion during the Mid-Autumn Festival, the quality of their students would have been the highest.

Of course, even though many formal poetry gatherings were not held, literary talents still had plenty of banquets to attend, exchanging their New Year's masterpieces. Some Lichuan students would also disperse to participate in these banquets, vying for attention with their poems alongside their classmates. Overall, this night was primarily filled with the festive atmosphere that had lingered since the Lunar New Year.

As night deepened, the city was abuzz with activity. When the clock struck Hai Shi (9 PM), Ning Yi was enjoying tangyuan (glutinous rice balls) with Xiao Chan at a snack stall near Zhuque Avenue. The lanterns with various riddles illuminated the entire street market, making it seem like daytime.

In the evening, Ning Yi and Su Tan'er had accompanied Su Boyong to a banquet at the home of a long-time family friend of the Su family. After fulfilling the basic formalities, Su Tan'er excused herself and Ning Yi, saying that the young couple wanted to take a stroll along Zhuque Avenue. In reality, this was not the only reason.

Several shop managers under Su Tan'er were discussing business at the Mingxiu Pavilion nearby that night. Su Tan'er was concerned about the outcome, so after a brief stroll, she found a table in a small teahouse across from the Mingxiu Pavilion, listening to the opera while waiting for the results. Ning Yi listened to the opera with her for a while. When a young manager named Xi Junyu came to report the preliminary results, he got up and prepared to take a walk around the area.

"I'll stroll around Zhuque Avenue and see if there's anything good to eat, trying a little of everything."

"Remember to bring some back for me."

Su Tan'er smiled sweetly as she said this. Xiao Chan followed him. As they went downstairs, he glanced back to see Su Tan'er already adopting a calm and composed demeanor, talking to the young manager. Ning Yi had met this Manager Xi a few times before, as Su Tan'er had taken him to various shops of the Su family before and after the New Year. He was ambitious and capable, but his sharp edges were too visible, lacking subtlety. Nevertheless, he was quite remarkable. This reminded Ning Yi of his own youth, when he had met many such young people, friends and rivals alike. In the end, the person who surprised him the most was Tang Mingyuan, who had always been indecisive and followed behind him. This thought was somewhat ironic.

Soon after, he and Xiao Chan were near Zhuque Avenue, sampling their way along a route of snack stalls. There was still unmelted snow on both sides of the road, and a breeze blew from the Qinhuai River, but it was not cold. The entire street was filled with a lively atmosphere, dragon and lion dances, lantern shows, and the rising heat from the stoves of various vendors. Xiao Chan could not eat much, so she bought a small lantern and carried it in her hand. The lantern had a picture of a cat, but with a "king" character painted on its forehead, it could be considered a tiger for the time being.

"Master, Master, how do you solve the lantern riddle for candied coptis?"

"Could it be 'sharing joys and sorrows'?"

"Master, Master, what is 'yellow silk young woman, grandson mortar'?"

"Ah, this is difficult if you don't know it. It was Cao Cao's question to Yang Xiu. The answer is 'wonderful words'."

"Master, there's a really difficult one here, 'one form one body, four branches eight heads. One eight five eight, flying spring flowing upwards…' What is it…?"

"…How would I know."

"Did you guess the first two correctly? Did you ask?"

"If Master said it, then it's right."

"…Come and eat tangyuan… After eating tangyuan, I'll tell you it's the character for 'well'."

"Oh, it's the character for 'well'."

It was impossible to get angry at Xiao Chan. After eating a few tangyuan, they moved on to the next stall. Xiao Chan's favorite was the spiced broad beans at this stall. She bought half a porcelain cup and slowly ate them, her little lantern swaying. After a while, she said out of the blue, "Miss is actually very tired."

"Hmm?"

"Just now… just now Miss was in the teahouse, and Master was preparing to leave. Master actually knows a lot of things, right?"

Her small face was somewhat serious. Ning Yi thought for a moment and nodded with a smile. "If the negotiation over there doesn't go well, your Miss will still have to make the final decision. It's not really useful for me to be there. Sometimes, it's even counterproductive."

"As expected, Master knows everything…" Xiao Chan nodded, looked at Ning Yi a few times, and hesitated to speak, but finally said, "Why doesn't Master help Miss?"

"Your Miss is very capable. There's no need to worry."

Xiao Chan thought for a moment, then smiled again. "Miss has been very happy lately."

"Hmm?"

"Because of Master. Miss rarely talks to people so much… Well, she does talk, but she doesn't talk about business and still be so happy. And there's Master telling stories, playing chess… So Xiao Chan thinks that if Master is willing to help Miss, Miss will definitely be even happier. Master also knows that Miss… Miss is, after all, a girl just like Xiao Chan. When she goes out to do business, people always gossip. Miss doesn't say it, but she must have a lot of worries in her heart…"

Xiao Chan was sincerely thinking of Su Tan'er and mustered a lot of courage to say this. She was also afraid that she might be overstepping her bounds as a maid and making Ning Yi unhappy, so she glanced at Ning Yi with a troubled expression. The reaction she got was Ning Yi reaching out and "mushing" her entire face into a pancake.

"How old were you when you entered the Su Mansion, Chan'er?"

"Shishui." Chan'er hesitated for a moment before mumbling and gesturing. When Ning Yi released her face and turned to walk forward, she trotted to catch up and added, "Chan'er was sold in at four years old."

"Four years old, so young…"

"Juan'er too, Sister Xing'er is one year older than us, she was five years old at the time. Miss was eight years old then." Xiao Chan did not avoid this topic, but smiled sweetly. "Actually, at that time, we were really too young, and the slave traders didn't want us. But it just so happened that the Su Mansion needed a few little girls, so Xiao Chan was chosen. The family originally wanted to sell my older brother."

"I don't usually hear you mention your family."

"Xiao Chan was sold to the Su Mansion, so she's a person of the Su Mansion. How can I mention them all the time?" Xiao Chan lowered her head and thought for a moment. "Actually, Xiao Chan doesn't remember much about her childhood, just hunger. I heard that there was originally a younger brother, but he starved to death soon after he was born. The family originally wanted to sell my older brother, because he could always do something. Later, they sold Xiao Chan, sold for twenty-five years, and the family got thirty-five taels of silver. Actually, being a concubine maid with Miss is a blessed thing, and it doesn't matter how many years. Now Xiao Chan sends ten taels of silver home every year. My older brother got married last year and even wrote a letter to Xiao Chan, saying that he married the most beautiful girl in the neighboring village, but the handwriting is ugly… Well, Xiao Chan went back once the year before last, and I can go home to see my sister-in-law in March this year…"

Many things were commonplace in today's society. Xiao Chan didn't seem too sad when she talked about it, and she became happy later. Then she pursed her lips somewhat guiltily, "Master…"

Ning Yi smiled, "So Tan'er is like your older sister, right?"

"Yes." The little girl nodded quickly, then shook her head. "Xiao Chan is just a maid, I wouldn't dare to think that."

"But she often talks to you about business matters, and she often talks to those managers. Even if I help her, why would one more person make a difference?"

"But, but… Master is just different…"

"Heh, don't overthink it. The reason why your Miss can talk to me about those things is because I don't understand and I don't do business. If I can really help, then it will indeed become about doing business." Although he always acted simple in front of Su Tan'er, Xiao Chan was not stupid. On the contrary, she was very clever. Ning Yi did not mind her slight schemes for Su Tan'er's sake, as it was human nature. At this time, the two of them were walking forward through the crowd. Ning Yi smiled, "Your Miss is much more capable than you think. If she's not that capable, then it's useless whether I help her or not. She'd better stop early. Although I'm also happy that you think I'm capable, but don't… uh…"

Ning Yi's voice stopped, and Xiao Chan's voice came from behind, "Master is very capable." Under the bright lantern light, Ning Yi frowned slightly, looking at his left hand in confusion. There was a touch of bright red color on the outside of his thumb, sticky and not yet dry. This was… blood.

Where did it come from…

Confused, he looked back. The streets were brightly lit, with people coming and going. All kinds of noisy sounds were endless. At the end of Zhuque Avenue, a yellow dragon was dancing with the sounds of gongs and drums, clang, clang, clang, clang. Amid the bustling Lantern Festival scene, several yamen runners were mixed in, seemingly searching for something.

The next moment, a flash of blood suddenly bloomed…