Chapter 84

Fu Tingjun was greatly alarmed and shot to her feet. "What did you say?"

Her voice was high and shrill, startling Zheng San. "They say Commander Lu has gone missing!"

"Who told you this?" Fu Tingjun's lips trembled as she paced restlessly about the room. "That's nothing but hearsay from the streets—how can such talk be trusted! Military matters are confidential, and Commander Lu is a third-rank official. If he had truly gone missing, how could the Commander-in-Chief's office show no sign of activity at all..."

Zheng San looked at her in silence.

Fu Tingjun's tears welled up.

She lowered her head. "Go and call Sanniang in." Her voice was low, tinged with a hint of despondency.

Zheng San sighed inwardly and went to summon his wife.

With Zheng Sanniang's help, Fu Tingjun tidied herself up anew, changed her clothes, and went next door to Mo Yi's residence.

Madam Lu was surprised to see her and invited her into the hall. "What brings Miss Fu to sit with me today?" A trace of mockery slipped into her words.

Fu Tingjun was in no mood to quibble with her and came straight to the point, relaying to Madam Lu the rumor Zheng San had heard: "...I don't know whether it's true or false. I wished to ask Concubine Lu for confirmation."

Madam Lu was clearly hearing this for the first time.

Her expression changed drastically, and she called out loudly for "Nanny Lu."

A woman in her thirties entered.

Madam Lu immediately said, "Go quickly and tell Steward Lu to return to Zhuanglang Guard and see how my brother is faring!"

Without a word, the woman respectfully acknowledged the order, bent her knees in a curtsey, and withdrew.

Madam Lu let out a long breath.

She seemed to trust this Steward Lu greatly, and her expression gradually relaxed. After a moment's thought, she said, "Is Miss Fu worried about Banner-bearer Zhao? Rest assured—once Steward Lu returns, we'll know everything clearly."

Fu Tingjun nodded, sat with Madam Lu for a while, then rose to take her leave.

Madam Lu, now weighed down by the news herself, exchanged a few pleasantries and saw Fu Tingjun to the door.

Accompanied by Zheng San and his wife, Fu Tingjun went to see Madam Wang.

Madam Wang resided at the Commander-in-Chief's yamen. The gate guards did not recognize Zhao Ling at all, let alone Zheng San, and Fu Tingjun dared not claim to be a relative of Madam Wang, so she could not get in at all. It was only when Zheng San invoked Wei Shi's name that the guards summoned Wei Shi out, and with Wei Shi accompanying them, they were allowed inside.

Although Wei Shi had kept watch at Fu Tingjun's door for several days, he did not recognize her. He glanced at her curiously, and seeing that her head was covered with an indigo-blue scarf, revealing only a gracefully rounded chin as fine and white as mutton-fat jade, his heart pounded wildly. He dared not look again, keeping his eyes lowered as he walked along, chatting with Zheng San. "What business do you have with Madam Wang? If you'd come half an hour later, you wouldn't have found me—I've been ordered by the lady to depart immediately for Xining Guard..."

Fu Tingjun's heart tightened at this, and she quickly said, "Sir Wei, this humble woman has a question to ask." Without waiting for his reply, she continued, "Is Sir Wei going to Xining Guard to inquire after Assistant Commander Wang's whereabouts?"

Wei Shi was slightly taken aback.

That voice—it was truly lovely.

Like the clash of spring water against mountain rocks, like the soft chime of a jade qing in a hall—clear and pleasing to the ear.

"Yes, yes!" he said hastily. "The lady has sent me to Xining Guard to inquire after our master's whereabouts..."

In other words, the rumor might not be groundless after all?

Fu Tingjun fell silent.

Wei Shi muttered quietly to himself: "The intelligence dispatch came last night. Counting the days, Commander Lu has been missing for five or six days now, and our master has no confirmed news either... The lady didn't sleep a wink last night. At dawn today she went to Deputy General Liu's place, and Deputy General Liu has already confirmed it, but he told our lady not to spread it around, lest it disturb the people."

A chill ran through Fu Tingjun's heart. When she met Madam Wang, before she could even speak, Madam Wang took her hand: "Don't worry. I'm sending Wei Shi to Xining Guard right away. He used to serve by the Assistant Commander's side and has been through many battles. The Marquis of Yingchuan is stationed at Menyuan, and his personal guards all know Wei Shi. Wei Shi will have news for us soon." Her expression was calm and her tone composed, and Fu Tingjun's anxious heart gradually settled.

Madam Wang invited her to stay for the midday meal: "...If not for this matter, you wouldn't have come to my door." She smiled and took Fu Tingjun's arm, leading her into the inner chambers, then called for her personal nanny: "Go, bring the two young ladies here to pay their respects to Miss Fu."

This was the courtesy of close family friends.

Fu Tingjun had no such preparation and repeatedly demurred, saying "I dare not." When she met Madam Wang's two daughters, having nothing prepared, she gave the pair of lotus-patterned silver hairpins from her own hair to the eldest Miss Wang, aged ten, and the second Miss Wang, aged seven.

Both young ladies were excellently raised and thanked Fu Tingjun with poise and grace.

Madam Wang then said modestly, "They've been spoiled by me and know no proper manners. I hope Miss Fu won't laugh at them."

The eldest Miss Wang, being older, merely smiled reservedly at her mother's words, but the second Miss Wang puffed out her cheeks in slight defiance.

Fu Tingjun couldn't help but smile, and her mood immediately lifted.

Madam Wang chatted with her about household matters while the two young ladies sat properly, quiet and well-behaved. When it came time to eat, the serving women brought out a dish of shredded dried pork.

Fu Tingjun looked at Madam Wang in surprise.

Madam Wang explained with a smile: "My father is the Commander of Fuzhou Guard."

Fu Tingjun was visibly moved.

Fuzhou was near the sea, where Japanese pirates ran rampant. The Fujian Regional Military Commission often went out to sea to suppress these bandits, and the spoils were typically divided with one-tenth going to the government and nine-tenths kept privately. Even ordinary banner soldiers and banner-bearers amassed considerable wealth, let alone a Guard Commander. Yet Madam Wang had followed Assistant Commander Wang to Zhangye.

"How did you come to marry into Shandan Guard?" She remembered that Wang Yi, the Assistant Commander of Zhuanglang Guard, was from Shandan Guard. The two were practically from opposite ends of the earth, and she couldn't help but ask.

A flicker of melancholy passed through Madam Wang's eyes, but she quickly suppressed it and smiled: "The Assistant Commander was a military jinshi in the twenty-sixth year of the Xiping reign, and served as a clerk in Fuzhou Guard. My father saw that he was of upright character and betrothed me to him. My father-in-law had already passed away, and my mother-in-law had no one to care for her, so the Assistant Commander transferred to the Gansu Regional Commander's office. Later, when my mother-in-law passed away from illness, the Assistant Commander was alone here, and I couldn't bear it, so I followed him over."

She hadn't expected Assistant Commander Wang to be a military jinshi!

Fu Tingjun was somewhat surprised. Noting Madam Wang's expression, she sensed there might be some hidden circumstances and silently scolded herself for speaking carelessly. She picked up a piece of shredded meat with her chopsticks and said with a smile: "This is only the second time I've had shredded dried pork. The first time was when I accompanied my grandmother to Nanjing..." She went on to share some of her experiences there.

Madam Wang and the two young ladies listened with great interest, and the meal passed in warm harmony. When Fu Tingjun took her leave, the two Miss Wangs reluctantly escorted her to the door. The second young lady even tugged at her sleeve and asked: "Sister Fu, when will you come visit us again?" Her reluctance was evident.

Madam Wang's eyes reddened slightly at the sight.

Zhangye was mostly home to stationed soldiers, and the wives of lower-ranking officials were usually of humble origins. She feared her daughters would pick up vulgar habits from the streets and was reluctant to associate with them. As for higher-ranking officials, most were attended by concubines, so she was even less inclined to interact with them. In the end, there were only a few families she could visit, and none of them had daughters of suitable age.

Fu Tingjun also liked the two sisters very much. Seeing Madam Wang's reaction, she felt that Madam Wang would not hinder their friendship, so she smiled and said: "If you have time, you're welcome to visit me as well!"

The second Miss Wang looked at her mother with a pitiful expression.

Madam Wang smiled and stroked her daughter's face, then said to Fu Tingjun: "Then we'll have to trouble Miss Fu with a visit sometime."

"Welcome, welcome," Fu Tingjun laughed. "I couldn't ask for more."

Madam Wang personally escorted her to the front of the Regional Commander's residence.

On the way, Fu Tingjun asked Zheng Sanniang, who had been arranged to dine with the Wang family's servants: "Does Assistant Commander Wang's family only have these two daughters?"

If there were concubine-born daughters, the principal wife wouldn't like them and wouldn't have them receive guests.

Zheng Sanniang nodded: "The Wang family only has these two young ladies." She thought for a moment, then added: "Assistant Commander Wang also only has Madam Wang by his side." She continued: "I heard that Assistant Commander Wang has been in Zhangye for ten years now. In the first few years when Madam Wang wasn't here, he only had young servants attending him."

Fu Tingjun nodded inwardly, feeling that the Wang couple were worthy of friendship.

When she entered the alley in the back street, she saw two exquisite carriages parked in front of Concubine Lu's residence. Four or five serving women and coachmen stood together at Concubine Lu's door chatting. When they saw someone approaching, they glanced over curiously. Two of the serving women widened their eyes and scurried into Concubine Lu's courtyard.

Fu Tingjun was puzzled, vaguely feeling that this had something to do with her.

By the time she reached the door, a burst of hearty laughter came from Concubine Lu's courtyard.

"Miss Fu, we were just talking about you," said a woman in her late twenties, dressed in a bright red brocade jacket embroidered with peonies, as she walked out with a smile, accompanied by Concubine Lu. "Who would have thought we'd run into you here!" She looked at Fu Tingjun with a beaming smile, a gleaming gold phoenix hairpin shining in her jet-black hair. "My maiden name is Feng. Thanks to Banner-bearer Zhao's kindness, I was quite pleased with those four gold-inlaid wine cups decorated with magpies on plum branches."

Fu Tingjun smiled and performed a curtsy to Madam Feng, but inwardly she was shocked.

She hadn't expected that the serving woman would rush into Concubine Lu's door, and Madam Feng would come right after to intercept her. Nor had she expected Madam Feng to be wearing a bright red jacket and gold phoenix hairpin—attire reserved for a principal wife. Madam Feng's arrogance was plain to see.

"Thank you for your kind words," she said, deliberately omitting any form of address to avoid making an enemy through words. "I'm glad you like them." She then exchanged greetings with Concubine Lu.

Concubine Lu seemed still preoccupied with the news Fu Tingjun had brought her that morning, appearing somewhat unsettled.

"I've just been to see Madam Wang, and I'm covered in dust," Fu Tingjun said with a smile. "I won't disturb the two of you any longer. When I have some free time, I'll come visit you both." She decided to mention Madam Wang to put some pressure on this Madam Feng.

Both Madam Feng and Madam Lu's expressions shifted slightly.

Madam Lu glanced at Madam Feng.

Madam Feng paused for a moment, then raised her brows with a smile. "Miss Fu went to see Madam Wang—was it to inquire about Banner-bearer Zhao's news? Speaking of which, I've also heard a thing or two from my husband..." She looked at Fu Tingjun thoughtfully. "Why don't you come sit in Concubine Lu's quarters, Miss Fu? I'll tell you everything I know without holding back."

Fu Tingjun grew even more suspicious.

What exactly was this Madam Feng trying to do?

In a flash of insight, she suddenly thought of Feng Dahu... Could it be?

She looked toward Madam Lu.

Madam Lu smiled back at her, but there was a hint of awkwardness in her smile.

Fu Tingjun became even more certain of her conjecture.

Some things could be avoided for a time, but not forever. Rather than let people keep thinking about it, constantly worrying and staying on guard, it was better to settle it once and for all.

She smiled slightly. "I'm covered in dust. Madam Feng, let me change my clothes first, and I'll be right over."

This Madam Feng didn't deserve her courtesy.