The moving carriage suddenly came to a halt. I opened my eyes groalily; the light filtering through the curtain had already turned a hazy gray. It seemed the sun had already set.
Turning my head, I saw the little maid, Yingxue, waking up as well, sitting up with sleep-crusted eyes. Across from us, Fu Sao had already pulled back the carriage door and was leaning out to look.
"What’s happening?" I asked, puzzled.
Yingxue shook her head. Fu Sao, however, slipped out and jumped down from the carriage.
Curious, I poked my head out. In front of the carriage, people seemed to be chattering. One of the voices was a child's, and it sounded familiar. Just as I was racking my brain to remember where I’d heard it, Fu Sao returned. Her expression bore a rare gravity.
"We cannot go further," she said, choosing her words carefully. "We’ll take the side path into the mountains. We’ll wait out the night before circling back to the official road."
Her demeanor made my heart tighten. I couldn't help but ask, "Why?"
Fu Sao frowned. "That child you released at noon came to bring word. He says there are bandits on the road ahead."
Those two little rascals? A spark of anger flared in my chest. "They already tricked us once. Maybe they think we’re easy marks and are trying to scam us again!"
Before Fu Sao could speak, a small dark shadow squeezed over, sounding frantic. "It’s true! Da Hei and I saw them with our own eyes. We only slipped back because we saw them, and then we happened to run into you again. I..."
It was indeed the little rascal who had tricked me!
Fu Sao grabbed my hand, her voice dropping to a low murmur. "Miss, this is no time for a temper. Baofu has already gone ahead to scout the path. Just wait."
I was speechless with surprise. Straining my ears, I heard nothing but the whistling of the night wind through the valley and the occasional cry of a nocturnal bird. I hadn't noticed it before, but this truly was a "dark night of high winds"—the perfect setting for murder and arson.
After an unknown amount of time, a dark figure appeared before us like a wisp of smoke. I couldn't see his expression in the dark, but when he spoke, his tone was heavy with caution. "Men are lying in ambush. Their skills are ordinary, but they have numbers. If we try to force our way through, I fear these two girls might get hurt."
Fu Sao turned to Xiao Hei. "Do you know of a place nearby where we can take shelter?"
Xiao Hei and Da Hei whispered to each other for a moment before Da Hei spoke up. "There’s a cliff cave about half a mile from here if we take the side path."
Baofu was decisive. "Lead the way."
Perhaps because they had finally earned our trust, Da Hei and Xiao Hei seemed a bit excited. They happily led the way. Inside the carriage, Yingxue and I remained silent. Yingxue was likely frightened; her icy little hand gripped the hem of my clothes tightly. I patted her hand, but my mind was elsewhere: *Is public safety really this bad in this era?*
We traveled through the darkness for an unknown distance until Xiao Hei’s voice called out from ahead, "We’re here!"
Fu Sao wouldn't let us off the carriage yet. Yingxue and I heard rustling sounds outside. Peering through the window curtains, everything was pitch black except for a sliver of light above us. We must have been at the base of a cliff. The others seemed to be lighting torches, and I could vaguely make out a cave entrance.
"Miss... will there be...?" Yingxue asked timidly.
I reached out and pinched her soft, tender cheek, unable to suppress a smile. "We’re not far from the official road; there won't be any wild beasts. Those animals are smart; they wouldn't deliver themselves to our door just to be roasted for dinner."
Yingxue was still shivering until Fu Sao returned to carry us off the carriage.
It was indeed a cave. By the time we entered, a roaring fire had been built. Baofu, Da Hei, and Xiao Hei were huddled around the flames, speaking in low voices. Near the fire, a thick layer of dry branches and grass had been piled up, covered simply with the thin blankets from the carriage. Needless to say, this was the bed for Yingxue and me.
Seeing us enter, both Da Hei and Xiao Hei looked up. Xiao Hei gave an awkward smile. Under the firelight, I studied the two boys; they both had clean, handsome features, though their clothes were tattered and old.
"Do you have no home?" I asked curiously, a question I’d wanted to ask since noon.
Both boys shook their heads. Da Hei poked at the fire with a stick and said flatly, "Two years ago, the Qing River flooded. Six towns downstream were submerged. That’s when my parents died. Our land was gone, too. Xiao Hei’s family was much the same. We originally escaped with a younger sister, but we got separated in the chaos. We haven't found her since."
Baofu let out a deep sigh.
"How old are you two?" I asked again, a new thought forming in my mind.
Da Hei lifted his bright black eyes to steal a quick glance at me. Sensing no ill intent, he answered readily, "I’m nine. Xiao Hei is seven."
Seven? That surprised me a little. Though the boy was thin, he wasn't much shorter than I was.
I thought for a moment. "Come with us."
Both boys froze. Baofu and Fu Sao exchanged a look; Baofu’s eyes held a look of amused surprise, while Fu Sao was beaming as if she’d discovered something delightful. I didn't even need to look at Yingxue to know she was probably on the verge of crying from being moved.
"Our family isn't wealthy, but we can afford to feed two more mouths," I reasoned. If these two kids kept drifting for another few years, they’d likely turn into real-life hoodlums.
"But..." Xiao Hei glanced hesitantly at Da Hei, then looked me bravely in the eye. "I still have to find my sister."
His eyes were so clear and bright that my nose suddenly felt a bit prickly. "You have to live a better life first. Otherwise, even if you find her, are you going to take her along to scam people?"
Xiao Hei’s face flushed red, and his head dropped heavily.
Da Hei asked hesitantly, "What if we aren't happy and want to leave?"
I couldn't help but laugh. "Then you leave. It’s not like you’re selling yourselves into debt bondage to my family."
Da Hei and Xiao Hei exchanged a look, and then Da Hei gave a firm nod. "Fine. We’ll go with you. Whether we’re farmhands or odd-job men, it’s better than wasting away here." He grinned. "Besides, we’ve never been to Zhongjing anyway."
Baofu smiled as well. "Once we reach Master Ji’s manor in Zhongjing, you must behave yourselves. No more of this naughtiness."
Seeing that neither of them opposed my decision, I felt quite happy. For the first time since arriving in this world, I felt a small sense of authority, as if I were the head of a household.
With Da Hei and Xiao Hei for company, the journey became much livelier. Even Yingxue seemed to brighten up considerably.
One afternoon in late September, after our carriage passed through a stretch of newly harvested farmland, we finally saw the towering gates of Zhongjing in the distance.
Those of us who had never seen the capital were naturally a mess of excitement. Even Baofu and Fu Sao, who had been away for ten years, had reddened eyes. Even the two horses pulling the carriage seemed to sense our urgency and ran with extra vigor.
The high city walls, the magnificent sweeping eaves, and the guards in their bright armor all filled me with a sense of awe for this long-famed metropolis. I remembered when my dad first took me to Beijing as a child; my heart had pounded with the same excitement.
The streets of Zhongjing were wide, paved with clean, smooth stone slabs. Shops lined both sides, and the crowds were bustling, shoulder to shoulder. I even saw several types of street performances I’d once seen at ancient culture festivals, which kept me excited for quite a while.
Just as my eyes were becoming overwhelmed, the carriage stopped. Looking out from the rolled-up window, I saw we were parked before the main gate of a grand estate. The large residence, looking neither too new nor too old, possessed the aura of a powerful family. It had white walls, red tiles, and vermilion gates. On the lintel hung a brand-new plaque with two characters written in a formal hand: "Ji Manor."
It hit me instantly: Ji Wuchao’s home was here!
As Fu Sao led me through the main gate, several servants came forward with reddened eyes to pay their respects to the "Third Miss."
Along the way, I had learned the sequence of events from Fu Sao. Master Ji’s family had encountered bandits on the road to the capital. The maid named Xiao Huan had protected Ji Wuchao as they fled, resulting in them being separated from the family. Baofu and his wife had been specifically left behind by Master Ji to search for her. To be honest, this surprised me; Master Ji seemed to value this daughter born of a concubine quite highly. Didn't people in ancient times usually favor sons over daughters?
Once inside the courtyard, my eyes were truly kept busy. I imagine this was how Granny Liu felt when she entered the Grand View Garden. The courtyard was spacious, planted with many tall trees with fan-shaped leaves, interspersed with small bridges and flowing water—a very tranquil scene. After passing through the "Hall of Mental Stillness," we reached the rear courtyard, where the style changed. The tall trees were replaced by one flowerbed after another, showing a more delicate and soft charm.
Though it was late autumn, the garden was still a riot of color. Several rockeries were exquisitely arranged, and there was even a swing by the pond...
Fu Sao gave my hand a firm tug.
I turned around and saw a group of women in vibrant greens and reds approaching from a distance, their eyes shining with excitement. I didn't need to guess to know these were the female members of the Ji household. The question was... which one was Wuchao’s mother?
When a pair of trembling arms pulled me forcefully into a hug, and I heard the sobbing from above my head, I breathed a sigh of relief. No need to guess anymore; this had to be her.
In truth, I was a woman in my twenties; being held like this by someone not much older than myself was somewhat uncomfortable. But she was crying so bitterly that I couldn't help but think of my own mother—the mother I had almost no memory of. Suddenly, I wondered if the heavens thought my death was too pitiful and were compensating me by letting me experience a mother’s love again in the body of a child.
At that thought, my own eyes grew red.
When the arms holding me loosened, I finally saw Wuchao’s mother, Lady Mei. She was a delicate woman with beautiful features and large, moving eyes like autumn ripples.
She gently stroked my cheek, saying only, "Mother was no good; I let you suffer," before her tears began to fall again. Watching her cry, my own tears fell uncontrollably. With just that one sentence, I liked her instantly. I reached up and hugged her neck, smelling the faint, sweet fragrance on her skin, feeling a sudden warmth in my heart.
After holding me for a while, she gently pushed me back and said softly, "Chao’er, you haven't kowtowed to your First Mother yet..."
A figure in light-colored robes crouched down before me. This was a young woman a few years older than Lady Mei, with thick brows and large eyes, looking quite kind. She took my hand, looked me up and down, and said with a smile, "It’s good that you’re back safe. This child is surely destined for good fortune."
In the period dramas I’d watched, the first wife usually bullied the concubines, but they seemed perfectly harmonious. It was something I wasn't quite used to.
A refined young girl squeezed in beside Lady Zhang, and my hand was transferred from the mother to the daughter. This was naturally Lady Zhang’s daughter, Wuchao’s second sister, Ji Wuxiu. One look told me she was a standard lady of a great house; even her smile was reserved and elegant. "Your room has been readied. Every day, I’ve been picking bunches of your favorite Purple Ying flowers to put in your room..." After saying this, her eyes actually turned red.
A beautiful young girl crying really did have the aesthetic of "pear blossoms in the rain." I couldn't help but reach out to wipe away her tears. Before I could pull my hand back, someone else squeezed in. This was a boy, taller than both Wuxiu and me, with handsome features—a teenage heartthrob in the making. As soon as he got close, he reached out and pinched my nose. "You’re finally back. Without you, no one would climb the roofs with me. It’s been so boring..."
Lady Zhang interrupted him, her face stern as she began to scold, "You were always leading your sister into mischief, and now that she’s just returned..."
The young handsome brother—Wuchao’s eldest brother, Ji Minzhi—pursed his lips impatiently, but in the moment he turned his head, he gave me a mysterious wink.
My eyes searched through the crowd until I finally found him... a four-year-old boy as pretty as if he were carved from jade: Wuchao’s biological younger brother, Ji Minyan. Little Minyan was a bit shy, hiding behind a maid’s legs to watch me. Children don't have long memories; had he already forgotten Wuchao?
I walked up to him and couldn't resist pinching his little cheek—it was so smooth and tender—and then I leaned in to give him a kiss.
The little fellow held my face in his hands and asked slowly, "Third Sister, have you finished playing? Did you finally remember to come home?"
Someone must have lied to him, saying his sister had gone out to play. I kissed him again; small children really were adorable. I said, "I’ve finished playing. I’m never leaving again."
Looking at the warm, affectionate eyes around me, I suddenly felt a pang of pity for the original Wuchao. Such a happy, large family...
"Father is back from court!" Minzhi suddenly shouted from behind.
I turned and saw a man in purple robes walking hurriedly toward us from behind the rockery. He wasn't very tall, but his shoulders were broad, and his posture was upright. His long face looked haggard, his thick, heroic brows were furrowed, and his usually spirited eyes were bloodshot, as if he hadn't slept well in a long time.
He reached me in a few strides, grabbed my arms to look me over, and then pulled me into his embrace with a sigh of relief, whispering, "Thank God. Thank God."
My heart suddenly felt a sharp pang, and tears slid down my face unconsciously.
*Ji Wuchao, I’m sorry. I’ve taken the happiness that belonged to you. But I promise, I will treat your family well. Because now, they are my family too...*
***
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