The white moonlight played games with Lu Yan’s shadow, stretching it out of proportion. The candles in Chunxi Hall might have been blown out, but the lights hanging out throughout the sinuous corridors were still as bright as day, leading him slowly into Shen Zhen’s silent apartments. The curtains had fallen all around her bed, concealing her silhouette. Her smooth breathing signalled that she had indeed fallen asleep.
Lu Yan observed her back for a long while. He couldn’t help but wonder what it was in that sixteen-year old girl that made him betray his own principles over and over again. What is it that had made him fall in love with her in the past life … and present, too, it seemed …
Such a silent admission made Lu Yan want to break something. But rather than hurling the small cup his fingers reached for, he poured himself two glasses of cold water that he drowned in one irate movement. And yet … And yet, the chill could not quench the fire that raged in his chest. All his recent actions flashed before his eyes. Whether it had been testing her with Fu Man’s fragrance or desperately trying to gage her reaction to his ambiguous words of that day, those were not what he would have done in the past.
It was not what he should ever do. Furrowing his brows, Lu Yan’s face darkened in rage, in loss, in disbelief.
He could not vouch for his temper. He had never been able to truly rely on it. Had it not been for his general indifference to virtually everything and a sort of rigid understanding of rules and laws, he might have committed murder in an instant of uncontrollable rage. It came from the fact that he had been regarded, since the day of his birth, as the highest level of perfection anyone could attain. Had he demanded the moon, no one, not his father, not his mother, would have dared offer him the stars. His only memory of anything alike frustration he might ever have experienced would have to do with the Imperial Examination. In fact, had it not been for his obtaining nothing but the fourth place at the Examination, he would have become tyrannical, to say the least. Nothing had ever resisted him. Almost nothing had ever dared frustrate his desires. Until the Third Miss of the Shen family had crossed his path. And what humiliated him the most, what left a fiery brand on his dignity and self-esteem was the fact that he could not keep away from her.
Not only that, Lu Yan even felt that he could not sway her in any way. He could not afford the consequences of his own actions where she was concerned. At the smallest harshness on his part, she would cry, shredding his heart to pieces. But worse than that … she would shut him out from a world of fine paintings, slow attacks of a shrewd qi strategy, soft hands caressing his spine in throes of passion and spontaneous smiles in rare moments of true happiness.
The truth was that he could make her bow, that he could break her and bring her to heel as he wished. He had done it once already. The way that had made her wish to leave him could be used to force her to say. Lu Yan was the terror of the most hardened criminals that rotted in the Supreme Court’s prisons. From coercion to inducements, everything was at his disposition as means. As long as he was as ruthless as he had been when he had demanded her body, he could make Shen Zhen but a beautiful songbird in a cage, unable to ever leave his side, whether he married another woman or not.
And yet, he could not bring himself to use the means that he had never shied away from before. Besides, it would lead to her crying herself to sleep. He would be the one left suffering an excruciating heartache while she would wipe her tears away and enjoy a long night’s sleep.
How stupid he had been, so stupid. Lu Yan had always believed himself to be a fine strategist, had always believed that what set Shen Zhen apart from the multitude of women that threw themselves at him was the fact that her hysterics could bring him physical suffering. The result?! In his previous life, he had had no heartache to bind him to Shen Zhen. He had been bound nonetheless, leading to his death at the age of twenty-seven while she had gone off to marry another man. Wonderful! Magnificent!
Lu Yan took a step towards the bed, unlocked his belt and let his outer robes fall to the ground and slowly squeezed himself into the bed, like a dog begging for a spot by his master’s side. Ever since Shen Zhen had become Lu Yan’s mistress, she had gained a privileged insight into his desires and wants. He was an instrument whose melodies she had learned to recognize. She knew the meaning of every batting of his eyelashes, every quiver at the corner of his lips. Just by the way he was turning over in the bed, she knew that this lunatic’s temper was flaring up again. She was also aware that she better put a stop to his eccentricities before they kept the both of them up until the morning. Shen Zhen turned around, meeting his face to face. She grabbed onto the bedding and threw it over Lu Yan’s shoulder.
“Your Lordship, the night is cold”, she purred delicately.
Five words. Five simple words that acted like an unguent to Lu Yan’s wounded pride. It felt very much like a warm stream flowing through his chest. However, he did not let her see a change in his demeanour, simply giving a growl of ascent. As the wind had been cold and he had stood for a significant amount of time under it, Lu Yan’s throat felt itchy and he started coughing involuntarily, losing the little dignity he had regained under Shen Zhen’s delicate care.
Shen Zhen, feeling the tremor reverberating from his chest into hers, jumped to her feet, swiftly gliding them into her slippers and running to bring Lu Yan a glass of water.
“Your Lordship must be exhausted.”
It would have been wrong to think that Shen Zhen did not value some parts of Lu Yan. She could not bear his horrific temper. However, she did admire his sense of duty. She knew that whenever he had business to take care of, he did so at the expense of his rest and health. He went to sleep too late, if he ate, he ate little. He seemed to completely forget the fact that he was a man of flesh and blood, not made of forged iron. Lu Yan sat up, reaching out for the cup Shen Zhen was presenting to him. After a few sips, he could not help but to express something very akin to regret.
“I have woken you up.”
His tone was cold, chilling, really. Yet, there was something very awkward in it. Something very like … affection …
Not that Shen Zhen picked up on it. Truth being said, she cared little for sleep. She spent her time in Chunxi Hall, never leaving the residence. Since she had very little to do, she spent her afternoons napping.
“Your Lordship should not worry for me, his body is much more important”, she sincerely whispered into the night, believing every word she spoke.
If criminals were left to run rampant, how could anyone in the empire feel at ease?!
Lu Yan would have wanted to interpret her words as a show of her unwavering attachment to him. But her eyes did not permit him such delusions. He saw the moonlight reflecting in the midst of them as if they were a lake filled with stars. Such clear eyes to remind him that it was all one-sided. Joy and anger were for him to experience alone. Flicking her chin with a careless finger, he could but sigh, defeated.
“Go to sleep.”
The two lay back down together. Lu Yan snaked an arm around her waist as he liked to do, squeezing a bit tighter, pulling her into him a bit harder … as if he feared she would choose that very night to disappear into darkness, leaving him behind.
Time was fleeting. Before they had the time to turn around, it was already the Lantern Festival. When it came to grandeur, Yangzhou could not but lose in grandeur to Chang’an. Yet, it would have been unfair not to sigh at the beauty of the lights that blazed through the city. Going from the South Gate to the Bridge of Ten Thousand Years, Yangzhou came alive under the gleam of millions of blessing lanterns. The Twenty-Four Bridges, for its part, had put on its most magnificent dress. The bridges had been connected by thick hemp ropes on which multicolored flags and ribbons had been tied. And next to each other ribbon or flag, whether red, pink, blue or green, there would be a lantern of the same color hanging. The lights of all these lanterns blended into a shocking scene right out of the Nine Heavens.
That day, Zhao Chong had decided to hold a banquet in his residence, inviting Lu Yan and Fu Man to attend. When two carriages rolled up to Luyuan’s gate, Retainer Liu took a long, calculating look, whispering to Fu Man:
“Miss, where would Steward Yang be? I do not see him.”
Said Steward Yang was obviously Yang Zong.
Fu Man sighed heartbreakingly, her tender lips trembling.
“Does Nanny not know the Husband? He is worried about Concubine Qin, so he is leaving Steward Zhang behind to care for her.”
Retainer Liu could not help but laugh at this small exhibit of aggrieved jealousy.
“Oh, my little lady, don’t be sulking! Don’t you wrong the Master. He obviously has a great affection for you. Otherwise, he would not have sent such expensive and elegant gifts to you on New Year’s Eve. I did not hear of Concubine Qin being so spoiled.”
As soon as the words were spoken, Fu Man turned her eyes away, choking on her words.
“Nanny, do not mention New Year’s Eve. I cannot help remember that Husband took Concubine Qin out of the residence to enjoy a night out.”
Retainer Liu hit her forehead in realization, but hurriedly tried to placate her mistress.
“He accompanied that one during New Year’s Eve, very well. But he is taking the little lady out during the Lantern Festival. Is it not a good compensation? Won’t the little lady listen to this old servant?”
“Just speak, Nanny. After all, you are the closest person to me”, Fu Man sobbed, wiping inexistent tears at the corner of her eyes.
“This sort of man likes women who know measure. A little bit of jealousy gives flavor to love. However, if you were to regularly fight with that Concubine Qin, you would only end up disgusting the Master. A man as successful and handsome as Master Wei is bound to bring back more and more women as time goes on. The little lady must get used to that fact and quell her anger.”
Fu Man nodded, more aggrieved than ever in appearance.
“Nanny’s teachings are appreciated.”
Her tone was full of ill-will, making Retainer Liu shake her head in helplessness.
There was a reason why people from the Western Regions were popular entertainers at the court. They danced to perfection and acted even better. Fu Man was no exception. She coated Retainer Liu’s eyes in s*** by intercepting Lu Yan whenever he wanted to step foot in Chunxi Hall, by crying to him heart-wrenchingly so Retainer Liu could have a good hard look. She even went as far as taking over the housekeeping role, painting that Concubine Qin into a corner. She kicked up all the dusts that could be kicked up, transforming Luyuan into what should have been a living hell for Concubine Qin. In Retainer Liu’s eyes, her little lady was motivated to the utmost. Were it not for such obvious enthusiasm, Retainer Liu would not have spoken, trying to reign in Fu Man and give her all the chances of remaining a grand favorite.
As the carriage stopped in front of the Governor Mansion, Lu Yan offered Fu Man his hand to alight
Chunxi Hall.
Yang Zong walked into Shen Zhen’s apartments in wide strides, stopping in front of her, bowing briskly and giving out Lu Yan’s orders.
“The Young Master asked me to take Miss Shen and leave immediately. He shall meet us outside the city.”
Shen Zhen swallowed in nervousness and surprise. Why would Lu Yan be sending Shen Zhen away first? And in such a rush? Could it be that there was danger lurking in the shadows ..? Fear gripping her, Shen Zhen cleared her throat, trying to steady her voice.
“Does Sergeant Yang know whether there is danger to be feared?”
What could Yang Zong answer? That there was no danger?! He would be lying. Zhao Chong was a suspicious old dog. Ever since Nie Yuan and Pang Shu’s disappearance, he had become extremely sensitive to the smallest movement around him, going as far as to double the number of guards around his residence. He was as charming and welcoming to all his acquaintances, making it all the more difficult to gage who he was specifically guarding against and whether Lu Yan in particular had excited his suspicion.
Zhao Chong was still protected by the power attached to his position, anointed by the Imperial Court. Although the Emperor did not like his governors to recruit too many soldiers and buy too many horses, the number of them that was at Zhao Chong’s disposition was not be underestimated. He had his own guards to boot. There was nothing about Lu Yan that could face Zhao Chong head on, if ever the governor decided to attack them.
“The reinforcements sent by the Emperor are waiting on the outskirts of the city at this moment, in Jiancheng. As long as we reach them, we will have nothing to fear.”
Yang Zong was obviously not willing to say more. Shen Zhen had asked a clear question. He refused her a clear answer. Jiancheng was far from Yangzhou. For what Shen Zhen knew, a mountain had to be climbed and a river crossed to reach it. However, she was a reasonable woman and did not want to delay them an instant longer. She simply got Tangyue and followed Yang Zong silently, leaving Luyuan and Yangzhong behind without batting an eye.
They were led to the West, taking a road different from the one they had borrowed when coming to Yangzhou. As soon as they left the gates, Shen Zhen saw a large number of refugees who were dragging their hungry families to the city. Most were women and children, starved and skeletal, threatening to faint at every step. It was no wonder the Court wanted to eradicate corruption and viciously advocated for cleanliness and transparency, especially where labor and taxes were concerned. Otherwise, social unrest and revolution was bound to be born from so much suffering.
Travelling a whole day and a whole night, they finally reached the top of the mountain. Shen Zhen stood immobile, her eyes looking for Yangzhou in the distance.
“Sergeant Yang, is His Lordship planning to leave by the waterway?”
As soon as she spoke those words, two muffled explosions could be heard from affair and a thick black tongue of smoke rose from the river by Yangzhou. Two boats on the river had gone up I flames …
