The person knocking did not use much force, but the sound echoing through the silent night still startled the preoccupied Qin Jiuye.
She looked up toward the door. As she set down the teapot, she nearly knocked over the oil lamp by her elbow. The heated bronze lamp wobbled; fortunately, the oil was almost gone, so nothing spilled on her. After a moment’s thought, she quickly used the lamp’s flame to burn the paper she had just written on. She then carefully blew out the light and tiptoed toward the door.
Through a crack no wider than half a finger, she could just barely make out the dark silhouette of the courtyard, but nothing else was discernible.
After waiting a moment longer, she finally asked in a low voice, “Who is it?”
Even though she was within the walls of the Protector’s Manor, it was so late that she truly did not wish to open the door. However, she was the one who had requested to stay the night. If someone had urgent business and she deliberately ignored them, it might seem slighting. She had extinguished the light and waited a long while before asking; if the person outside had no urgent matter, they should have already left.
To her surprise, a familiar voice spoke from outside the door in the next instant.
“It is I.”
It was Qiu Ling.
She had just been thinking of him, and now the man himself had appeared uninvited.
Qin Jiuye’s heart began to thud. She turned back once more to ensure the ashes of the paper had burned away completely before slowly opening the door.
Outside, Qiu Ling stood on the veranda with his hands behind his back. When he saw her, his gaze immediately shifted away, fixing instead on a floor tile three inches from her feet.
“Miss Qin, I apologize for the intrusion.”
A late-night meeting between a man and a woman was a scene that naturally invited certain imaginings, but Qin Jiuye’s heart was heavy from her previous ruminations. Any unrealistic fantasies that flickered into her mind shattered the moment they formed.
Qin Jiuye cupped her hands in a polite salute and said briefly, “Greetings, Protector.”
Having spoken, she remained where she was, waiting for him to explain the reason for his midnight visit. But Qiu Ling fell silent.
The two of them stood there staring at each other for a long time until Qin Jiuye finally lost her patience and took the initiative to ask.
“Does the Protector have some urgent matter to attend to at this late hour?”
The man seemed to have been waiting for her to ask before he was willing to speak. He cleared his throat and said, “It is so late. Is Miss Qin not yet asleep?”
Qin Jiuye was taken aback, and a wave of internal grumbling followed.
She had gotten up to open the door; of course she wasn't asleep. She didn't know if he was truly just making conversation because he didn't know what to say, or if he was testing her. She could only lower her head and murmur vaguely.
“I slept well yesterday, so I can manage to stay up tonight.”
She still did not dare look up, fearing that his sharp eyes would see through her.
In truth, Qiu Ling was indeed watching her.
Those eyes of his had observed countless individuals with ill intent trying to hide their crimes. He never missed a detail or a single clue; he had the confidence to ensure no one could hide from him. Yet for some reason, tonight his eyes kept noticing things that had nothing to do with crime.
She had returned to her usual cautious, alert, and shrewd self—completely different from the fierce, vengeful woman in the dungeon, and different again from the person who had stood her ground alone at the Commandery Governor’s office. She seemed to have many faces, yet she also seemed stubbornly unchanged.
He saw her scratch her hair in slight frustration at his silence. Her simple daytime bun had long since come undone, and she had braided her hair into a single plait that hung over her shoulder. Because she had been so focused while leaning over the records, the end of her braid had been singed by the oil lamp. She didn't seem to care much, habitually twining it around her ink-stained fingers.
*Snap.* The charred hair broke off between her fingertips. Qin Jiuye pulled her hand back in embarrassment.
Qiu Ling knew he could not remain silent any longer. He opened his mouth and said slowly, “Actually, I wanted to ask...”
Actually, he wanted to ask: Was the oil lamp bright enough? Was there enough tea? Were the table and chair comfortable? Did she need an extra cloak for the night? She had been busy all day with Lu Zican; given her exhaustion, should she not rest early?
But by the time the words left his mouth, they had somehow become unrecognizable.
“...How are the medical records and documents Lu Zican gave you coming along?”
Qin Jiuye’s fingers were no longer embarrassed; they froze in place. It took a moment for them to find their positions again, curling back into her palm.
*How are they coming along?* Was this a test or a performance review? She had already volunteered to burn the midnight oil and work overtime, yet he still thought it wasn't enough?
Qin Jiuye, who always prided herself on being a "model worker," was somewhat stunned.
But she was not one to admit defeat easily. Steeling her emotions, she responded in a low voice, “What other records does the Protector have? Bring them all. As long as they are related to He Yuanzhou’s condition, I will finish them tonight.”
This time, it was Qiu Ling’s turn to freeze.
Had he said the wrong thing?
What he meant was: Lu Zican, that blockhead who only knows how to follow orders, had dumped several years’ worth of the Su family’s miscellaneous prescriptions and records on her. How could she finish them in one night?
What he meant was: If you can’t finish them, go to rest.
What he meant was: He didn't want her to work too hard...
Countless explanations tangled on the tip of his tongue, but Qiu Ling could not utter a single word.
In the next moment, he saw the look in Qin Jiuye’s eyes as she watched him, and those words vanished.
It was a gaze that showed endurance, illuminated by the light of a wisdom born from surviving in the cracks of society. It was unlike the gaze of any noble lady he had ever met.
That look reminded him of the wild ducks he had occasionally glimpsed on alpine lakes while marching through the mountains. Those ducks were busy filling their bellies on the mist-shrouded water, their feet paddling incessantly with great diligence. When they occasionally dove into the lake and resurfaced, they looked a bit silly, yet possessed a hint of shrewdness. The moment anyone approached, they would flap their wings and vanish into the deep mountain mists.
Since she was such a woman, how could cheap, polite pleasantries be worthy of her?
At this thought, he straightened his posture, cupped his hands, and said solemnly, “In that case, I shall trouble Miss Qin.”
Qin Jiuye breathed a secret sigh of relief. She thought to herself that while this Lord Duanyu was strict, his mind wasn't hard to read. She returned the salute with more ease.
“It is all part of my duty. The Protector need not be so formal.”
Qiu Ling nodded. He stood there for a moment longer, certain there was nothing left to say. He gave a brief farewell and turned to leave.
But just as he had walked three paces away, the woman’s voice rang out behind him.
“Wait.”
The man paused and turned back. Qin Jiuye’s heart began to race.
Now, in the dead of night with no one else around, it was a rare opportunity for her. A perfect chance to test him.
In truth, given their respective positions, he had the capital to test her, but she did not have the same for him. Yet for some reason, after burning that paper filled with names that had troubled her mind, she desperately wanted to confirm one thing.
Qiu Ling stood three paces away, looking back at her with inquiry in his eyes.
Qin Jiuye quickly adjusted her emotions and spoke carefully.
“While perusing He Yuanzhou’s past records just now, I noticed that many terms used in one of the physician’s draft prescriptions seemed to be from the Ganyu dialect. I wonder if He Yuanzhou ever left Jiugao a year ago?”
Qiu Ling paused, seemingly recalling the details of the investigation, before replying seriously.
“Based on what I have gathered so far, He Yuanzhou was very ill at the time. He rarely left his room, let alone the manor or the city. That physician was likely one of the group invited to the manor last year; he would have left the manor immediately after leaving his records and drafts. The Ganyu dialect is indeed somewhat obscure. If there is anything you do not understand, you can go directly to Zican for help. He knows many people and can find someone to explain it all clearly for you.”
Ganyu was north of Jiugao. While not exactly at the ends of the earth, it was at least a two-day journey, and the mountain roads made travel difficult.
She knew, of course, that given He Yuanzhou’s state at the time, it was impossible for him to have traveled alone to such a remote place for treatment; the physician must have been brought to the manor.
However, her purpose in bringing this up was not to confirm something she had already concluded.
Pursing her lips, she responded in as natural a tone as possible.
“I see. There is no need to trouble anyone. As the Protector may not know, the master who taught me medicine was from Ganyu. Before moving to Dingweng Village, I lived in the Quexing Mountain area for many years while learning the craft and gathering herbs. So, I understand most of the dialect from there.”
Having said this, she immediately looked up to watch his expression.
But the young Protector’s cold, stern face remained as still as a pond. Hearing her words, he only gave a faint nod.
“I see. That does save a lot of trouble then.”
Qin Jiuye stared at him for a moment longer. Certain there were no other traces to be found, she looked away. When she spoke again, she carefully suppressed the disappointment in her heart.
“I will look over them more carefully then. There is nothing else. The Protector should rest early.”
After speaking, she lowered her head and said no more.
A moment later, hearing his footsteps completely vanish into the night, Qin Jiuye finally looked up.
A thin layer of moonlight lay over the courtyard—a rare sight in Jiugao during the rainy early summer. But the courtyard was barren, without even a single beautiful flower or plant; even the softest moonlight had nowhere to settle.
She stood there for a while longer before slowly retreating into the room and closing the door.
The Quexing Mountain area lay north of Jiugao and south of Ganyu. It was a necessary pass for anyone traveling north from Jiugao toward Qingzhong Mountain. It was the place where she had studied medicine under her master, and also the place where she had first met him.
And just now, she had suddenly developed a doubt about it all: Had those images stored in her mind truly happened?
*Face to face, yet unrecognized; a thousand miles apart, yet sharing the same wind.*
If one has the heart for it, one can remember things from a thousand miles away or a hundred years past. So perhaps it wasn't that her memory was flawed, but rather that for others, some memories were simply not as important as she imagined.
Qin Jiuye sat back down at the small, cramped table. Staring at the half-dried ink in the stone inkslab, a trace of melancholy from long reflection appeared on her face.
Aside from the initial joy of their reunion, her subsequent interactions with Qiu Ling could be described as unpleasant. She understood that her small, private spark of affection had long since been worn away. Her
