The two of them recognized my voice instantly, their four eyes lighting up in unison. "Sister Azhi!" "Sister Su!"
No sooner had they shouted than they turned their spears on each other, glaring. Before Nie Xiaoyan could lodge a complaint, Gu Shuguan beat her to it. Clutching his red, swollen ear, he looked at me with mock tears in his eyes. "Sister, this little sister of yours is far too overbearing and ruthless. It’s not like I wasn't going to give the letter back after reading it!"
"Are her letters something just anyone can touch?" Nie Xiaoyan was so angry she looked ready to cry as well.
I hurried to coax one and then the other. "It’s my fault, my fault. I should have sent word to Ah Guan sooner. And Xiaoyan, don't be upset anymore. He really is a good friend of mine. You didn't know before, so you aren't to blame, but now that you do, try to be a bit kinder to him. No more harsh words!"
Xiaoyan stiffly gave Gu Shuguan a bow, forcing out a "my apologies," before throwing herself into my arms with teary eyes, refusing to let go. I pushed her away with an awkward, forced laugh, taking a subtle step back. She stared fixedly at my face, frowning. "What kind of person did you marry? To think they’d let you suffer with a face like this... Sister Azhi was originally so beautiful!"
Gu Shuguan’s hand, which had been rubbing his ear, froze. His eyes widened. "Sister Su, whose wife did you become?"
My head was beginning to throb. Just as I was caught between laughter and tears, Nie Xueqing walked over at the perfect moment, smiling as she defused the situation. "Look at this jealous scene—how lively! You three should head south and stand right in the middle of the performance ring. I’ll collect the tips; we’d make more than we do selling horses!"
Perhaps these words struck a chord with Nie Xiaoyan’s secret thoughts; her face flushed, she stomped her foot, and ran off into the depths of the tents. Gu Shuguan, however, had no further reaction. He grinned and began prying into my business with pure, gossipy curiosity. I gave him a brief explanation and introduced him to Sister Qing. The two of them—the bandit meeting the master thief—didn't look down on one another at all. After exchanging a few jokes, Gu Shuguan took his leave. "Knowing you’re well is enough to set my mind at ease. Leave me an address; I’ll find a fine gift to bring you tomorrow. Sister Su will always be my Sister Su, right?"
I was strangely moved and nodded vigorously, giving him a playful punch on the shoulder. "Come visit the house! I’ll hide a few treasures and see if I can challenge the Great Thief Gu’s signature skills, shall we?"
Gu Shuguan let out a great laugh toward the sky, but then he suddenly realized that my "cheap husband" was the very government dog who had first captured him. His laughter cut off abruptly. Shrinking his neck, he said, "You’d better not, old friend... I, Old Gu, still want to live a few more years..."
The divine thief came and went like a shadow. Nie Xueqing watched him vanish before turning to look at me with a smile. We shared a high-five, and I laughed. "If not for Qingming, how would I have had the privilege of Sister Qing’s kindness for three years? Won't Sister Qing give me a chance to show some filial respect?"
"He is him, and we are us," Nie Xueqing shook her head. "I, Nie Xueqing, make friends for no other reason than the person themselves."
"I understand, of course!" I said. "It’s just been years since we last met, and I’ve missed you all. During the New Year season, staying at an inn is a massive expense. It would be better to stay with me; we could even spar a bit. Sister Qing needs to test my martial arts to see if I’ve made any progress, don't you?"
Nie Xueqing gave a hearty laugh. "Fine, I’ll see to the arrangements."
We spoke further about their journey south. Although rare and exotic beasts could be seen everywhere in the capital—those with wings being more common than those without—the common folk and the military still relied on vast numbers of ordinary oxen, donkeys, mules, and horses. Due to news of the war, the demand for these animals had surged. The imperial court had opened public bidding for horses, but the competition was not something the Nie family’s level of strength could hope for; those contracts had long been snatched up by merchant guilds with powerful backing, which in turn caused the price of civilian horses to skyrocket. Of course, I knew that the Nie family’s arduous trip from the northern border used the horse trade only as a front... the real profit lay elsewhere.
Nie Xueqing said, "Everyone’s gone mad. On the short road south into the capital, we encountered seven or eight attempts to intercept our cargo. A few of our brothers were wounded. The way is flooded with refugees, inspections are strict, customs taxes have increased, and every layer of officialdom is scraping for a cut. These are not signs of a peaceful era."
I was shocked to hear that refugees had flooded into Ningshuo City, the provincial capital of Qingzhou. Nie Xueqing frowned. "I don't know where these starving people came from. Their accents aren't from Qing or Han, and they’re even further from the dialect of Yanzhou. It’s truly bizarre." Those had to be the residents of the Northlands who had crossed through the breaches in the Three Mountains Boundary Formation... Was the Wujing Sect not sending more people to repair the array? How could this be happening?
I lowered my head in worried thought. Seeing that the thief had finally left, Nie Xiaoyan ran out and smilingly shook my arm. "Let’s not stay on West Street; it’s stinky. Sister Azhi is familiar with the capital, won't you take me to see other places?"
How could I not understand this girl’s feelings for me? Just as I was about to refuse on the grounds of having other business today, Sister Qing grabbed the hand she had plastered onto me and ruthlessly exposed her. "Stop acting cute. You’ve been here for nearly ten days; is there anywhere you haven't already run off to?"
"That... that’s different!" Xiaoyan insisted, her face red.
In the three years since I’d seen her, she had grown into a young woman, now two inches taller than me. She had a pair of phoenix eyes that slanted upward at the corners but were generally round in shape, shimmering with expectant light. I smiled faintly. "There isn't enough time to go elsewhere today. Let’s just wander nearby. Sister Qing, will you join us?"
With a guardian present, every time Xiaoyan tried to press closer to me, Nie Xueqing would stop her with a glare, making her lose her nerve. My own attitude of polite avoidance was also written clearly. We first went to East Street to find Muyu and the others. With the maids of "the person I married" present, Xiaoyan was even less daring with her hands and feet, and she indeed became more reserved. Muyu politely bought her some snowflake crisps and even specifically purchased a "Fruit General" made of sugar dough. Seeing this, Xiaoyan felt she was being treated like a child and pouted slightly, yet she still obediently took it in her hand, twirling it listlessly.
Sister Qing and I walked ahead, continuing our previous conversation, mostly about business. We strolled and stopped along the way until we reached North Street. First, we went to the Yin Family Bookstore’s stall to chat and joke with Yin Shuhong and Wen Gan. Upon meeting a remarkable woman like Nie Xueqing, Yin Shuhong practically abandoned me, her new favorite. She kept urging Nie Xueqing to stay at my house so she could come and play with both of us—killing two birds with one stone.
Wen Gan watched with a smile, but seeing our group about to continue toward the end of the street, she hesitated. Finally, she smiled and said, "Xiang and the others are also at the end of the street. There is also a sister who is rarely at home; Zhenzhen has truly never met her. If you encounter her and the conversation feels awkward, please do not take offense." Her words were full of hidden meaning, showing her consideration for me. I was both grateful and deeply shaken: Had Wen Qi actually come to the capital as well?
I thanked her solemnly and walked forward with slow steps.
They were a group of three. Wen Qi walked behind Wen Xiang and Wen Wan, her head slightly lowered as she smiled, occasionally pointing at something on a stall and asking questions with earnest interest. That was a face that, other than my own, I felt the most resonance and identification with. I had once spent every day before a mirror painting and refining it, hoping it would help me win the affection of the one I loved, to the point where I had forgotten my own original appearance. Now, that bright and carefree smile truly seemed exactly like the version of myself when I first entered the capital—exactly like the "her" I had portrayed.
When Wen Xiang and Wen Wan saw me, their expressions inevitably stiffened for a moment before they greeted me with their usual smiles. Wen Qi asked curiously, "And this is?"
She tilted her head slightly, blinking her bright, crystalline eyes at me. She was so innocent and endearing. An untimely thought couldn't help but pop into my mind: *Six years ago in the capital, was this the version of me that Wei Qingming mostly saw?*
Perhaps because my experience was so unique, I felt as if a statue of myself was standing before me. It was hard to say if I was imitating her or if she was imitating me; it was incredibly unsettling.
"Qingming’s..." Wen Wan could only say vaguely, but Wen Xiang took over. "A-Qi, you should call her 'Cousin-in-law'."
The smile on Wen Qi’s face instantly shattered. Her eyes were immediately flooded with shock and an indescribable pain. I knew that the memories my Master had given her of me contained nothing of the excessive intimacy I shared with Wei Qingming. After returning to the capital, everyone had naturally kept their mouths shut. She had been kept in the dark all along...
My heart was a tangle of complex emotions, yet I quickly smiled and said, "I wouldn't dare. By age, I am a few years younger; it is I who should call you 'Sister'." As I spoke, I performed a formal and solemn bow.
"Your name is... Su Zhenzhen..." She lowered her head and murmured my name as if talking to herself.
Nie Xueqing was incredibly sharp; she had long anticipated that the situation would be complicated and unsuitable for her to involve herself in, so she pulled Nie Xiaoyan away to wait at a distance. Muyu was even more perceptive and helped me play the scene to its conclusion. She stepped forward to pay her respects to her "former masters" before saying respectfully to me, "It is getting late, and there will be guests arriving this evening. Madam, please let us return."
I was about to take the opportunity to leave when a burst of cheers and exclamations erupted nearby. People were shouting, "It was Minister Zhang’s daughter who got the lute!" Others discussed, "Sigh, I wanted it too..." "That’s the 'Jiuxiao Huanpei.' With the few coins in your pocket, you couldn't even afford a single tuning peg!" "Just thinking about it doesn't cost anything!"
Zhang Zhuyi stood quietly amidst all the bustle, dressed in emerald green with a pure white fox-fur cloak. Her posture was elegant and upright, truly like a green bamboo dusted with snow. She wore a veil that concealed her jade-like face and fragrant cheeks, but the pair of beautiful eyes she revealed were entirely cold. She paid no heed to the people or events around her, simply waiting for the lute seller to carefully pack this famous instrument of the High Tang. Four or five burly servants stood guard, flanked by two beautiful maidservants who helped the seller wrap the lute. The man couldn't help but look a bit cramped, half-fearful and half-impatient, waving his hands in refusal. "No need, no need. I can manage alone."
The previous scene had left Wen Xiang somewhat embarrassed, but she poured all her heartache and comfort into Wen Qi, silently taking her hand. I lowered my eyes and smiled, saying, "The Jiuxiao Huanpei is a legendary lute of the ages. If you sisters are interested, you might as well go and have a look. I shall not accompany you."
They led Wen Qi away, and I turned silently to walk toward Nie Xueqing and the others. Muyu caught up to me and gave my shoulder a gentle, considerate pat. I smiled and shook my head to show I was fine. Seeing that I had been in high spirits but turned melancholy after seeing that person’s sisters and relatives, Nie Xiaoyan was so angry she almost wanted to pick a fight with Wen Xiang’s group right there on the street. Only after Nie Xueqing barked a sharp reprimand did she turn back, panting, and called out "Sister Azhi" with a soft, pained voice.
I pulled myself together and resumed my normal demeanor, chatting and laughing as I prepared to see the two of them back to West Street. Nie Xueqing waved me off. "No need to see us back. Go tend to your business." She pulled the reluctant Xiaoyan away.
Muyu and I, along with the other two, began walking back slowly, only to encounter Yindeng on North Street, whom I hadn't seen in a long time. I joked with a smile, "Let this hermit cast a divination for you. Sister must have come to see that Jiuxiao Huanpei."
Before Yindeng could speak, her maid Biyao laughed. "Exactly! We can only lament that someone else got it!"
"I never intended to buy it anyway; I just wanted to catch a glimpse," Yindeng shook her head with a shallow smile. "The Jiuxiao Huanpei has a pure and upright tone, the instrument of a gentleman. In my place of worldly dust, it would only be wasted and defiled."
The Jiuxiao Huanpei was a renowned Tang Dynasty relic. Legend had it that the coronation ceremony of Emperor Xuanzong’s son was accompanied by music from this very lute. It was crafted by the master artisan Lei Wei and bore inscriptions by famous masters like Su Shi and Huang Tingjian. I had long heard rumors that a destitute man claiming to be the descendant of a famous collector had set up a stall in Xianglan this year, bringing out over a dozen ancient lutes from the Tang and Song dynasties to sell, with the Jiuxiao Huanpei at the head of the collection. I had dismissed it as a joke. Who at the North Street stalls didn't invent a pedigree for themselves? How could divine treasures of this caliber be found just anywhere? But since both Zhang Zhuyi and Yindeng had come for it today, if both of them appraised it as genuine, it likely was.
I couldn't help but feel a stir of interest. I wondered if the man had finished selling his lutes. If any were left, I could ask Yindeng for help another day to pick one out for Lord Wei that was worthy of her. To welcome her home with such a gift—wouldn't that be wonderful?
"Sister needn't say such things. A lute also needs a soulmate. Miss Zhang’s skill only won her the top spot within the ladies' chambers of a single city, but Sister is the champion of the entire nation. A famous lute would only truly shine in Sister’s hands," I said with a smile. "However, the sound of the Jiuxiao Huanpei is too 'upright'—like a master lecturing or officials attending court. It doesn't quite suit Sister’s elegant and charming air." It was, however, a perfect match for a rigid and conventional person like Zhang Zhuyi...
Yindeng was delighted, letting out a peal of silver laughter as she affectionately pinched my cheek. "Zhenzhen, that mouth of yours is both sharp and sweet; it truly makes one love you to death! Hearing you talk like that, who could guess that such an elegant beauty doesn't know how to play an instrument at all?"
I stuck out my tongue. Wasn't this the result of spending too much time with Lord Wei? "He who touches vermilion becomes red"—my ability to act like an expert had certainly improved...
***
**Glossary**
Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation
--- | --- | ---
九霄环佩 | Jiuxiao Huanpei | "Jade Pendants of the Nine Heavens," a legendary Tang Dynasty guqin (lute).
吞天黑燕 | Swallow of the Black Skies | Gu Shuguan's nickname/title as a thief.
文绮 | Wen Qi | The woman Su Zhenzhen was originally modeled after; Wei Qingming's cousin/childhood connection.
张竹猗 | Zhang Zhuyi | Daughter of Minister Zhang; a rival figure.
银灯 | Yindeng | "Silver Lamp," a famous courtesan/performer and friend of Su Zhenzhen.
雷威 | Lei Wei | A famous Tang Dynasty guqin maker.
果食将军 | Fruit General | A traditional decorative pastry or sugar figure.
表嫂 | Cousin-in-law | The term Wen Qi is told to use for Su Zhenzhen.
