The Great Xiangguo Temple was located in the eastern part of the inner city. It was a bustling place of worship, with markets and temple fairs open five times a month for people from all walks of life to trade [1].
Even before reaching the main gate of the temple, just stepping onto East Street, the roadside shops were already crowded with people. Zhi darted about happily like a fish in water, running here and there.
Ying Xiaoman asked around, "Where is Yuqing Tower?"
Yuqing Tower used to be quite famous, so everyone knew where it was. But when passersby were stopped early in the morning by a young woman asking about Yuqing Tower, they answered with slightly odd expressions: "Go north along the middle section of East Street. It's too early, the restaurant isn't open yet."
At the entrance of the restaurant, welcoming arches [2] made of red and green silk were wrapped with many fresh flower branches. Lanterns hung high along the corridor leading inwards from the arches, hinting at the liveliness of the night before.
Ying Xiaoman stood under the welcoming arch and called out for a while. Finally, a waiter poked his head out from behind the tightly closed wooden doors, yawning sleepily. "What is it? So early in the morning..."
"I need to see your manager on some business."
The waiter walked along the wooden corridor to the welcoming arch, looking up and down at the simply dressed young woman in a bamboo hat, leading a little girl.
The hat covered most of the young woman's face, but still revealed rosy lips, a delicate nose bridge, porcelain-white skin, and a small section of a beautifully shaped jawline.
The waiter's expression softened considerably.
"Are you here to sing or sell food and drinks? Want to do business in our restaurant? What unique selling points do you have? Our Yuqing Tower is one of the top restaurants on East Street. If you don't have anything special, you'll have to wait in line!"
"I'm not selling anything. My father used to be good friends with your manager when he was in the capital. He asked me to come find your manager and give him a message."
Ying Xiaoman said seriously, "—An old friend has come to return fifty taels of silver."
She waved the snow-white silver ingot she had melted down the night before in front of the waiter's eyes.
The waiter was unsure what to make of this and looked at her suspiciously. "Wait here." He closed the door and went to relay the message.
He was gone for quite a while.
Ying Xiaoman and Zhi, a young woman in her teens leading a little girl, stood out conspicuously under the red and green flower-adorned welcoming arch of Yuqing Tower early in the morning. Passersby couldn't help but turn and give them strange looks.
The sugar figurine in Zhi's mouth no longer tasted sweet. She muttered softly, "Sister, so many people are looking at us. Why?"
Ying Xiaoman was also feeling uncertain.
She had been in the capital for over half a year now. From time to time, she would overhear neighboring women gossiping that some restaurants in the capital were legitimate businesses selling alcohol, while many others were not so legitimate. At night, those less reputable establishments would gather many courtesans to solicit business, with red lanterns and wine flowing...
Could it be that this Yuqing Tower, run by her father's old friend, was... one of those disreputable establishments?
The sound of horse hooves approached from afar, and seven or eight riders trotted lightly down the busy street. Ying Xiaoman paid no attention, pulling Zhi a few steps into the welcoming arch to avoid the horses on the street.
As the riders reached Yuqing Tower, they gradually slowed down and stopped by the roadside.
The lead horse ambled closer, and the rider in a vermilion robe gripped the reins, turning half a circle in place before the welcoming arch. He bent down deeply from the saddle to peer at the young woman's face under the bamboo hat.
Ying Xiaoman suddenly found herself face to face with Yan Erlang.
"I thought it looked like you from afar." Yan Erlang dismounted with satisfaction and greeted her familiarly.
"I heard your home was hit by disaster, so I sent some people with goods and also spoke to the officials at Shuntian Prefecture. How is the temporary accommodation for your family? Did you like the twelve kinds of pastries I sent? I was afraid sending too much money might attract robbers, so I only sent ten strings of cash. Is that enough for your expenses these past couple of days?"
"..."
Ying Xiaoman held Zhi's hand and took half a step back, pulling her bamboo hat lower.
She finally realized who had sent those people who left things at her tent and left without a word.
"I didn't accept the goods," she said resentfully. She clearly remembered how Yan Erlang had turned on her in the street last time and didn't want to take advantage of him.
"My family doesn't lack anything, so I distributed the goods to the neighbors."
Yan Erlang didn't seem to mind much.
"In any case, I sent them, so that counts as my goodwill. Whether you accept them or not is up to you."
He tossed the reins to his attendant and walked into the welcoming arch, ignoring the young woman's defensive posture.
"I had originally planned to visit you in person, but because of the arson in Seven Scholars Lane, officials in the imperial city were alerted, and early the next morning I was urgently summoned to the palace. Since I hold the position of Detailed Discussant in the Court of Judicial Review, that day I received orders from the Emperor to work with colleagues from the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Punishments to investigate the case together. Ah, I've been run off my feet!"
"To be honest, I didn't sleep all night and was only released from the palace duty room at dawn. I was planning to have a couple of drinks of Yuqing Tower's Jade Tower Spring to relieve my fatigue before heading back to the duty room. I didn't expect to run into you, Xiaoman, outside the restaurant so early in the morning. This is really—"
Yan Erlang swallowed the frivolous phrase "a fated meeting across a thousand miles" that had almost slipped out, and replaced it with three words: "—quite a coincidence."
Ying Xiaoman pushed her bamboo hat up three inches and examined Yan Erlang's bloodshot eyes.
His words sounded quite serious, but coming from the mouth of this playboy, she still didn't quite believe them.
Of course, Yan Erlang could see her disbelief, the clear eyes before him shining with doubt. But even a wary little white rabbit was still a little rabbit, somehow coaxed to stand under a restaurant's welcoming arch early in the morning, still looking quite gullible.
He felt a twinge in his heart, along with a surge of heat.
He loosened his collar and pulled out a folding fan from his sleeve, opening it to fan himself as he looked around.
"Yuqing Tower is not a place for young women your age to visit."
Yan Erlang stood under the restaurant's welcoming arch, raising his hand to block her way, smiling meaningfully: "Did you come to burn incense at the Great Xiangguo Temple with your little maid and lose your way? The temple gate isn't on this side, go back and head south for six hundred paces. Shall I escort you there?"
Ying Xiaoman glanced at him quickly, then looked around warily. Yan Erlang was a well-known playboy in the capital, and judging by his tone, Yuqing Tower was indeed a disreputable establishment!
She definitely wouldn't accept his offer to escort her.
As she was hesitating whether to wait for the restaurant manager elsewhere, leading Zhi by the hand, there was a creaking sound from the tightly closed wooden doors at the end of the long corridor connected to the welcoming arch, and someone stepped out.
"Is this young lady the daughter of an old friend?" The newcomer spoke in authentic capital accent. He was a middle-aged man with a kindly appearance, wearing a lake-green silk robe embroidered with flowers, looking every bit like a seasoned businessman.
Ying Xiaoman's heart leapt with joy, and she immediately left Yan Erlang behind, quickly walking a few steps through the welcoming arch into the restaurant corridor: "Yes, that's right. My father instructed me to come. Are you the manager of Yuqing Tower?"
The man smiled amiably, "My humble surname is Fang, and I am indeed the manager of this establishment. This young lady's father—"
"My father's surname is Ying."
Shopkeeper Fang paused, stopping in his tracks, narrowing his eyes to look her up and down.
Ying Xiaoman noticed this and pondered for a moment before adding, "Wait, my father's surname might also be Zhuang."
Shopkeeper Fang paused again, as if suddenly understanding something, and his face once more broke into a smile.
"This old man doesn't know any old friend surnamed Ying. But I do know an old friend surnamed Zhuang. May I ask your father's full name...?"
Ying Xiaoman's heart surged with shock. So her father's surname really was Zhuang?!
She was already sixteen. All these years, her father had been using an alias in their hometown!
But Ying Xiaoman was no longer the naive country girl who had just arrived in the capital. The Ying Xiaoman standing in Yuqing Tower now was worldly-wise and composed.
She racked her brains.
Regarding her father surnamed Zhuang, her only impression came from a few lines of official documents mentioned by Seven... no, by Yan Rongshi:
[Zhuang Jiu, not yet twenty years old, of towering strength. Refused orders and left, whereabouts unknown]
"My father is Zhuang Jiu."
Upon hearing the name "Zhuang Jiu," Shopkeeper Fang's smile instantly became more genuine. "Indeed, the daughter of an old friend."
He approached again, much more warmly this time. Shopkeeper Fang made a welcoming gesture and changed his form of address:
"Please come in, Miss Zhuang. Your father and I were indeed old friends in the capital for many years. After all this time, I never expected your father would still remember me and send you to find me. I'm deeply touched. Come, let's go inside and talk in detail..."
Ying Xiaoman also smiled. Just as she was about to walk inside with Shopkeeper Fang, an ivory fan suddenly extended from the side, opening with a swoosh in the breeze and waving gently.
"Not so fast. Why must a respectable young lady in the prime of her life be taken into a tavern instead of talking outside? Shopkeeper Fang, your actions seem rather suspicious."
Yan Erlang stepped out from behind a pillar, revealing himself.
"Since I've witnessed this in person, I might as well come along as a chaperone. After all, Miss Ying and I are acquainted."
Yan Erlang was a regular at all the famous taverns in the capital, so Shopkeeper Fang certainly recognized him. He immediately turned with a forced smile:
"Oh, it's Young Lord Yan. There's no need to worry, it's nothing serious! This young lady's father was an old friend of mine. She's just returning some old belongings."
"I had intended to invite the young lady inside for some refreshments and to chat about her father... But since Young Lord Yan is concerned, I suppose my tavern isn't quite suitable for a young lady to enter alone. We can talk another day. For now, the young lady can simply return the old items she brought."
After this flowery speech, Shopkeeper Fang smiled and held out his hand to Ying Xiaoman.
Ying Xiaoman: ...?
Her eyes widened in disbelief.
The brief excitement of meeting her father's old acquaintance instantly deflated.
This friend of her adoptive father in the capital had truly been immersed in business for too long. Merchants value profit over friendship, and he seemed to have forgotten the meaning of "integrity."
Her father had cherished this friendship for twenty years, repeatedly instructing her on his deathbed to seek out this tavern owner after getting revenge. She was to return fifty taels of silver, inform him of the successful vengeance, and ask for help leaving the capital.
But this Shopkeeper Fang, at the slightest interruption from Yan Erlang, immediately changed his tune. He didn't mention the promise to help her leave the capital, didn't even ask about her father's situation, and simply held out his hand for the money.
That morning, before she left, her mother had warned her: "There are many unscrupulous people in the capital. Your father's friendship with this man is decades old. You may encounter someone untrustworthy. If something seems off, don't engage further – just leave."
Now, things indeed seemed off.
Her slender fingers, hidden in her sleeve, gradually clenched. Suppressing her disappointment, she said, "I'm not in a hurry. If the tavern is inconvenient, we can talk at a nearby teahouse."
Shopkeeper Fang glanced at Yan Erlang's amused expression and the numerous servants waiting by the roadside. His smile now held a hint of wariness:
"The young lady jests. How could I easily leave the tavern? And where are these old items you've brought? You've been talking about 'returning fifty taels of silver from an old friend,' but I haven't seen anything. Haha, surely you're not making a fool of me?"
Ying Xiaoman: "..." So in the end, you really only care about the money?!
Her disappointment turned to anger. The slender fingers hidden in her sleeve clenched tighter, gripping the silver ingots in her palm.
Shopkeeper Fang maintained his smile, but didn't move an inch. His hand remained outstretched, waiting to inspect the "old items."
Ying Xiaoman's chest heaved several times as her anger flared. The warm, heavy silver ingots weighing over thirty taels that she had been gripping in her palm were suddenly thrown straight at him. She turned and left.
No wonder her father had been deceived back then.
No wonder the fifty taels of pure silver ingots, cherished and hidden for many years, had been secretly tampered with – an iron lump hidden inside, imperceptibly removing ten taels of silver.
With her father's straightforward nature, he must have been frequently deceived when he mistakenly befriended such profit-driven people in the capital!
She picked up Zhi and walked away, her anger making her steps quicker. In the blink of an eye, she was out of the tavern's ornate entrance.
Ying Xiaoman's abrupt action of throwing the silver ingots and leaving caught everyone off guard. Not only was Shopkeeper Fang left standing there clutching the silver, but even Yan Erlang was momentarily stunned.
Shopkeeper Fang remained in place, examining the silver ingots' quality and weighing them repeatedly, his brow furrowing instantly.
Many footsteps pursued them out of the ornate entrance.
Yan Erlang mounted his horse and, holding the reins, trotted leisurely down the street. His steed took small steps, keeping pace alongside the rapidly walking Ying Xiaoman.
"So it seems Xiaoman doesn't only lose her temper with me. Seeing it happen to others is quite refreshing."
"Go drink your wine!" Ying Xiaoman, still fuming, hurried towards the Great Xiangguo Temple while carrying Zhi. "Stop following me!"
Yan Erlang clicked his tongue. "The shopkeeper who angered you is back there, yet you're directing your temper at me again."
"It's not good to misdirect your anger. Think about it – if I hadn't intervened, wouldn't you have followed that ill-intentioned shopkeeper inside? You're just a young lady, unaware of the tricks these taverns in the capital employ. Yuqing Tower doesn't just deal in honest wine business. Once the doors to the second and third-floor rooms are closed..."
"Yan Xiangyi." A leisurely voice suddenly called out from under a long eave by the street, addressing Yan Erlang by his official title.
Ying Xiaoman didn't immediately register the meaning of these three words, but the voice sounded familiar. She stopped in her tracks. Yan Erlang, hearing his official title called out in the street, instinctively reined in his horse. Four eyes simultaneously turned to look at the roadside.
From under the awning of a street-side shop, a tall figure strolled out unhurriedly.
Despite the hot weather, the newcomer wore an elegant, light-colored robe embroidered with silver pine and bamboo motifs. He exuded a refined yet noble air, with slightly upturned phoenix eyes that seemed both smiling and not, as they swept over Yan Erlang on his horse.
"Just last night I heard that Yan Xiangyi was busy with official duties, burning the midnight oil reviewing case files in his office. I thought that with age, you might have changed your ways, no longer the same impulsive youth... Yet this morning on the street, I see you harassing a respectable young lady. How should I admonish you?"
Yan Erlang loosened his collar on horseback, letting out a lazy snort.
"Enough, Qilang. You and I are the same age. You just had better luck entering the court, with an official rank a few grades higher than mine. Don't put on airs and lecture me like an elder brother or father. I can't stand it."
Yan Rongshi smiled, brushing off some dust that had been kicked up onto his robe by the horse.
"Being your elder brother or father wouldn't be a good thing, don't assume everyone would be glad to do it. Yan Xiangyi, you've received an imperial order to assist the Ministry of Justice in reviewing cases. Shouldn't you be in your office in the imperial city working for the court? Why are you galloping after a young lady on East Main Street of the inner city? This official has doubts about Yan Xiangyi's ability to perform his duties. Care to explain?"
Yan Erlang cursed inwardly.
Of course, he should have been in his office. The reason he was on East Main Street of the inner city was that he had greeted his familiar guard colleagues at the gate and slipped out for a drink.
The repeated calls of "Yan Xiangyi" in the street filled him with irritation.
While the position of Xiangyi in the Court of Judicial Review was indeed trusted by the Emperor and responsible for overseeing the daily affairs of the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Punishment, with low rank but great authority... it was still only a sixth-rank position.
Such a trivial official title meant he still had to bow to the fourth-rank Assistant Minister standing before him when they met in the palace. How could it compare to his former grand title of Deputy Commander of the Imperial Guard?
"Stop calling me Yan Xiangyi with every breath. What about you?" Yan Erlang looked up at the sun. "Early in the morning, why isn't Assistant Minister Yan sitting in court at the Ministry of Justice? What brings you to the east of the city?"
"I took half a day off to offer incense at the Great Xiangguo Temple," Yan Rongshi answered candidly. His actions were even more forthright as he stepped forward and took Zhi from Ying Xiaoman's arms, greeting her warmly, "What a coincidence."
"Qilang!" Zhi immediately broke into a smile, affectionately wrapping her arms around the gentleman's shoulders.
"Let's go," Yan Rongshi said, patting the top of Zhi's hair bun. He very naturally took the hand of the dazed young lady by the roadside and walked south along the street.
"We've gone off course. The main entrance of the Great Xiangguo Temple is about five hundred paces south."
Ying Xiaoman: "..."
Yan Qilang? Yan Rongshi? The dog official? How should she address him to his face?
Should she ignore him, or continue to ignore him... but damn it, he's holding Zhi!
Amidst her tangled thoughts, the hand holding hers gave an encouraging squeeze.
The gentleman's palm was warm and strong. He had extended his left hand, and there was a faint scar on the back of it, healed over with a scab.
She lowered her eyes to look at their clasped hands, seeing it clearly at a glance. The scar was not small, a new injury from the beginning of spring this year. It was the familiar Qilang.
The streets near the Great Xiangguo Temple were among the busiest and most prosperous in the capital. The street was packed with people shoulder to shoulder. The three figures – two adults and one child – blended into the endless flow of people, pushed forward by the crowd for several hundred paces.
The open main gate of the Great Xiangguo Temple was just ahead.
Yan Rongshi stopped at a roadside stall and bought two colorful pinwheels, handing them out one by one: "It's crowded with people offering incense in the temple. The pinwheels are eye-catching. Each of you take one to avoid getting separated. Here."
Zhi cheered as she accepted the pinwheel, while Ying Xiaoman held hers in confusion.
The colorful pinwheel firmly shielded her face, with one bright, round eye secretly peeking out from behind it towards the side.
The young man walking beside her was also looking at her.
Their gazes met midair, and in the sunlight, a pair of deep amber eyes overflowed with obvious mirth, while the other pair of round, dark eyes darted away like lightning.
After a moment, she thought it wasn't right, as if she was the one feeling guilty. Why should she feel guilty when she had done nothing wrong?
Her black eyes quickly turned back again.
The spinning pinwheel still covered her face completely. Ying Xiaoman glared at the person beside her through the pinwheel, her cheeks puffed out in annoyance.
Yan Rongshi smiled at her. His eyebrows and eyes relaxed, his alluring peach blossom eyes brimming with affection and laughter, seeming about to speak but holding back. It was as if he was brazenly flirting with the young lady through his gaze in broad daylight.
He let Zhi go ahead to dismount, then held the hand of the still-miffed young lady. The rainbow-colored pinwheel spun around in front of them as they walked side by side into the Great Xiangguo Temple.
Several shadowy figures following them stopped outside the Great Xiangguo Temple.
"We can't follow any further."
"The young man entering the temple with the lady doesn't seem ordinary. There are more than ten skilled guards around them, and a squad of official soldiers trailing far behind. Just now, one of the guards stopped and looked back. I'm not sure if they've discovered us."
"Leave two people to wait outside the door. The rest should go back first and inform Mr. Fang."