Chapter 12

"Clever..." Was that praise or mockery?

But before she could dwell on it, Fu Tingjun's mind went blank at his word "adultery." It took her a long moment to recover.

"What did you say?" Her legs gave way, and she collapsed into the grand master's chair behind her.

It's out... it's out... paper can never wrap fire in the end... now everyone knows... the Fu family has only a few people, and sooner or later they'll guess she's involved... how will she face anyone then!

What to do?

What should she do now?

Fu Tingjun's hands and feet turned cold.

How did this happen?

What about the elders in the family?

The longer such matters drag on, the more likely trouble arises—she knew this truth, so how could the elders not? How could they let it drag on without a decision?

She was a daughter of the Fifth Branch, confined at Biyun Nunnery, yet guarded by Eldest Aunt's people... Bi Bo's Wife, her mother's trusted confidante, had vanished without a trace, and no one among the entire household had noticed... Eldest Uncle had served as a county magistrate, handling countless cases and investigating countless injustices—how could he not manage to get a grip on Zuo Junjie, letting rumors spread instead? Didn't he know how devastating this was to the Fu family?

The more Fu Tingjun thought, the more alarmed she became; the more she thought, the more chilled she felt. Some thoughts she had never wanted to entertain, thoughts she had always avoided, surfaced again.

The man across from her was speaking, his lips moving, but she heard nothing.

He rapped on the tea table, drumming loudly, startling her back to awareness.

She stared at him blankly.

"I've also learned something else," he said, his brow cold and eyes stern. "The Yu family of Fengle Ward in Nanjing will send someone next month to finalize the wedding date. The Fu family is busy sweeping the courtyards and arranging the furnishings for this..."

The Yu family was coming to settle the wedding date!

Fu Tingjun felt a chill run through her entire body. If they learned of her dispute with Zuo Junjie, they would certainly call off the engagement.

Then she would be ruined, beyond redemption—even jumping into the Yellow River couldn't wash her clean...

"There was a prior promise between us. You helped me find the location of the granary, and I was to deliver a letter to your mother on your behalf." His face was grim, his expression severe. "Since you've kept your word, I am not one to break mine." His dark eyes gleamed sharply, like a blade grazing one's ear, sending a chill down the spine. "I think there are some matters Ninth Miss ought to explain to me. Otherwise, if my letter goes undelivered, wouldn't I be a man without honor!"

How could she explain?

Say she had been falsely accused of an illicit affair?

Would he believe her?

Nanny Chen had even said things like "Flies don't land on unbroken eggs"... If she spoke up, wouldn't she be inviting humiliation?

Fu Tingjun's face flushed crimson, her throat felt blocked as if something were stuck in it.

He said nothing, just sat there quietly watching her.

The air slowly congealed, pressing down on Fu Tingjun until she could barely breathe.

"If you want me to deliver a letter to your father, I have plenty of ways," he spoke, breaking the deadlock. "But with the distinction between men and women, and given these unclear circumstances, delivering a letter to your mother is something I fear I cannot manage. You might as well choose another task for me to help you with..."

Without him, she couldn't take a single step.

Seeing him about to back out, Fu Tingjun grew anxious.

"No!" Her voice was shriller than ever before. "I'll tell you... I'll tell you..."

Her eyes moistened involuntarily.

She lowered her head, not wanting to let her tears fall, nor wanting to see the contempt in his eyes.

"My eldest cousin's wife's younger brother grew up in our household..." Her voice came like a sluggish river, slow and lifeless.

He listened without a word. When she finished, he was silent for a moment, then said, "You suspect your Eldest Uncle?" His tone was flat, no different from usual, as casual as if he were asking whether she'd eaten.

Fu Tingjun looked up, startled, staring at him.

He frowned. "What good would your misfortune do him? What good would it do the Fu family? In my view, it's that Zuo Junjie who's the real problem..."

He—he not only didn't suspect her, he was helping her analyze...

She stared at him woodenly, not knowing what to say.

But he said, "Can you paint?"

She nodded dazedly.

"Good. Then paint me a layout of the Fu estate," he said, "so I don't get lost when I go."

Was he going to enter the household to gather information?

Fu Tingjun hurriedly brought out brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, gathered her thoughts, and focused intently on drawing a layout.

He pointed at various places in the drawing and asked, "Is this where your grandmother lives? Is this where your Eldest Uncle resides..."

She nodded at each.

He rose to his feet. "I'll return in the middle of the night!"

Fu Tingjun wanted to reach for his sleeve, but her hand went out, then withdrew, feeling it improper. She reminded him, "The layout!"

"I've already memorized it." He said it lightly, then leaped up onto the beam.

"Warrior!" Fu Tingjun called up to him.

He looked down at her.

She took a deep breath. "I—I was wrongly accused!"

He nodded, then vaulted onto the rooftop.

The panes of mingwa were laid one by one, blocking out the sunlight and dimming the room, blurring her figure.

Whether it was panic over the unexpected turn of events or anger at the exaggerated rumors, whether it was the grievance of being wronged or gratitude toward that person who had not uttered a single word, her tears could no longer be held back. She threw herself onto the bed and wept silently.

Nanny Chen knocked on the outer door: "Ninth Miss, Ninth Miss..."

She wanted to see no one, to pay heed to no one.

"I heard a scream... and something being said..." That was Nanny Fan's voice, sounding uneasy and hesitant.

"Break the door down!" Nanny Chen ordered after a long silence. "Nothing must happen!"

The others acknowledged and began thumping against the door.

Fu Tingjun lay there without moving.

With a loud bang, the door panel fell to the ground.

Nanny Chen saw her lying on the bed and rushed over.

"Get out!" Fu Tingjun still lay there without moving, spitting out two words heavily.

Nanny Chen was taken aback, but her brow relaxed. She made a gesture to Nanny Fan and the others and quietly withdrew, leaving two people behind to help repair the door.

...

There were still many things to attend to in the coming days; she had to conserve her strength.

Fu Tingjun admonished herself and slept for a full afternoon.

After the evening meal, she went to see Hanyan, then returned to her room, waiting for him while reading Miscellaneous Matters .

But she could not read a single word.

Who exactly was he?

Why, upon hearing that Zuo Junjie had produced such evidence, had he still not questioned her?

Was it because he felt it had nothing to do with him and thus turned a deaf ear? Or did he believe she was truly wronged?

He had still helped deliver a letter to her mother—surely that meant he trusted her a bit more?

Perhaps he was merely fulfilling a promise?

As her thoughts churned, a small pebble fell from the roof.

She quickly put down her book and blew out the lamp.

There was a stir outside—Nanny Chen and the others also settled down for the night.

In the darkness, she retrieved a few plain vegetable buns and a bowl of white rice porridge from the bed frame: "Have you eaten, brave sir? I saved these from my evening meal... Please make do with them!"

He did not stand on ceremony and sat in the armchair to eat.

Fu Tingjun poured a cup of tea and sat down across from him.

The two talked.

"...When I reached your mother's residence, it was already the second watch, so I did not disturb her." His voice was low and flat, yet it put her at ease. "In the rear annex of your eldest uncle's courtyard, there lives a young man of about twenty-five or twenty-six, tall in stature and handsome in appearance, though his nose is a bit prominent and his lips somewhat thin, giving him a rather aloof look..."

"That would be Zuo Junjie!" Fu Tingjun also lowered her voice.

"Zuo Junjie seems to be under confinement as well," he said. "Two burly men guard the door, and the windows of the annex have been sealed with wooden planks."

"I never expected my eldest uncle to confine him at home..." Fu Tingjun's feelings were complicated.

So she had been wrong to suspect her eldest uncle all along... Yet why had things still come to such an irredeemable pass?

A strange expression crossed her face.

Two people locked in opposition—one inside the city, one outside—had met the same fate.

"I questioned several servants of the Fu household about your family's affairs. No one had heard of anything unusual about your mother. One servant even said that two days ago, he saw your mother and your third aunt standing under your grandmother's eaves, talking."

"When I asked about the rumors in the city, they all became agitated, saying someone was trying to frame the Fu family. They insisted the Fu household maintained an upright reputation—no man past childhood enters the inner quarters, and any serving woman leaving the inner quarters must go in pairs. As for talk of adultery, it was all baseless."

"As for the farm where your people are being held, I went there as well. The neighbors and the farmhands alike are all convinced they have the plague. Apparently, someone even caught the illness from them and has been bedridden to this day." He mused, "I suspect these rumors did not originate from within your household."

She had never imagined that in a single afternoon, he had uncovered so much.

Fu Tingjun stared at him in astonishment.

"You're saying my mother is fine?"

"At least that's what I've learned!" he said steadily.

If only that were so!

Fu Tingjun breathed a sigh of relief, then after a moment said, "You suspect someone is trying to frame the Fu family?"

"Hard to say!" he pondered. "In this world, people bustle and scramble for fame, hustle and toil for profit. There must be a reason... If only we could question the elders of your family!"

Fu Tingjun understood his meaning and recalled: "Our family has lived in Huayin for generations, always kind to others—distributing porridge, repairing roads, never shirking. Our relations with in-laws have been warm and cordial, and I've never heard of any quarrel with another family..." Then, thinking of Zuo Junjie, she added, "Could it be him?"

"That's what I've never been able to figure out." He furrowed his brow. "Since he wants to marry you, he shouldn't stir up such a fuss. Otherwise, even if the marriage comes to pass, it would be a laughingstock that would make him hold his head down for the rest of his life. Besides, he's a scholar—he should understand propriety better than most. You're already betrothed to the Yu family; how could the engagement be broken off without good reason? He can't possibly think that with one big scene, both families would quietly dissolve the marriage, can he? Moreover, the ancestors of the Yu family were generous and kind, leaving behind many good deeds and connections. He's toiled away for ten years at his studies, isn't it all for the sake of passing the imperial examinations and entering the court as a minister? What good would it do him to offend the Yu family? The eleventh and twelfth young ladies of the Fu family, two years younger than you, are both legitimate daughters, still unbetrothed, with generous dowries. Why would he set his sights on you alone?"

As he spoke, he cast a casual glance at Fu Tingjun.

The light from the red lanterns under the eaves shone upon the window, filtering through in a hazy glow. Her hair was black as ink, her skin fairer than snow. On her oval face, a pair of apricot eyes shimmered like rippling waves, radiant and full of life—she was three parts more beautiful than the peony, three parts more delicate than the crabapple blossom.

His heart stirred.

Could Zuo Junjie have been drawn to her beauty?

She stared back at him with wide eyes, which only made her lovely gaze seem clearer and more brilliant, dazzling and captivating.