In the most luxurious and elegant bedchamber of Pei Manor, a room furnished with all manner of jade artifacts—
Upon waking, the first thing Pei Lianyi saw was the hand warmer, crudely patched together with iron nails.
The Ghost-Faced Man had deliberately placed it right beside his pillow.
This broken thing now seemed to have transformed into a laughing, mocking face, sneering at how weak he had been the night before, at how tightly he had clung to the man for support, at how… he had developed improper feelings for Huo Jingzhao.
Pei Lianyi was mortified, his face flushed crimson. He had just moved to throw the hand warmer away when he noticed the edges of the nails were covered with many new strips of adhesive tape.
The soft tape insulated the nails, ensuring he wouldn’t cut his hand.
It was as if that madman had anticipated he would try to throw it away.
“What’s going on…” Pei Lianyi set the hand warmer down. His right hand slowly traced over his stomach. A sense of ease and lightness he had never felt before washed over his body, leaving him both bewildered and confused.
Last night, upon hearing the Ghost-Faced Man say he had ingested poison, he had prepared himself to be controlled by the other party. He never imagined he would wake up safe and sound.
Pei Lianyi looked up into the bronze mirror and instantly froze.
The person in the mirror was still dignified and noble, with refined, mature features. His eyes, bright and clear, seemed cut from autumn water. At first glance, he looked no different from before, but upon closer inspection, there was a nourished rosiness and a vibrant surge of energy.
In Pei Lianyi’s memory, he had only seen himself look this way when he was pregnant with Pei Ziying.
“Just what… is your goal?” His hand clutched the bedclothes tightly, his face an unreadable mix of infatuation and resentment.
“Master, the maids are here to assist with your morning wash…”
Hearing the maids’ voices outside the door, a hurried “No need, leave us” almost burst from Pei Lianyi’s lips. Regaining his composure, he realized he was overreacting and suppressed his voice to say:
“Bring me a set of white clothes for the memorial ceremony, and tell Cao Xian to come here.”
“…Yes.”
By the time Cao Xian arrived, Pei Lianyi had already changed. Dressed in pristine white, a calla lily crafted from silk thread was pinned beside his left ear, making him appear solemn and self-possessed.
“Family Head, what are you doing…?” the old Steward asked in surprise, seeing the mourning flower in his hair.
Pei Lianyi stood. He walked to his desk, opened a drawer, and took out a few sticks of incense. He glanced flatly at Cao Xian. “Cao Xian, I can understand others forgetting, but how could you also forget?”
Without waiting for Cao Xian to ask, he added, “Today is the death anniversary of Ziying’s mother, your daughter.”
Cao Xian’s eyes widened slightly. A flicker of emotion crossed his aged face, followed by a smile. “I am grateful the Family Head remembers. Ah, I truly am old and senile…!”
“Prepare some fresh offerings. Follow me to the Ancestral Hall to pay respects.” Pei Lianyi gave the order in a deep voice and walked out of the bedchamber.
“Ah… yes!” Cao Xian quickly nodded and followed after him.
Carrying platters of fresh, dewy fruits and meats, the master and servant walked one after the other out of the Main Courtyard and onto the long corridor leading to the Ancestral Hall in the rear compound.
To ensure secrecy and avoid disturbance, Pei Lianyi had dismissed all the Servants. Now, as they walked, besides their own footsteps, they could almost hear the rustle of the breeze.
It was precisely because it was so quiet that the coquettish voice drifting to their ears was exceptionally clear.
“Jingzhao, after lunch, take me out to play. I heard my family’s horse stable got a new batch of Ferghana Horses. They’re so magnificent! I want to practice too…”
Beyond the archway to the Side Courtyard, Pei Ziying was clinging to the arm of the man in black, his face a bashful shade of red.
“You teach me, teach me please…!”
Every time he faced this face resembling Pei Lianyi’s, a restless heat surged within Huo Jingzhao. He was about to find an excuse to leave when he inadvertently glimpsed the pristine white figure on the long corridor.
The sky was overcast, the breeze refreshing, and the manor was reasonably cool. But seeing Pei Lianyi dressed in white mourning clothes, a small white flower in his hair, the fire that had been simmering within Huo Jingzhao since the previous night erupted. It surged through his blood, nearly overwhelming his reason.
Swallowing the heat that swelled his chest, he said hoarsely, “The Little Young Master is so fond of playing. Didn’t you get enough last night?”
Hearing this, Pei Lianyi, who was about to cross the corridor, stopped in his tracks.
Sensing that gaze land on him, Huo Jingzhao smirked inwardly. Before Pei Ziying could react, he reached out and flicked his nose.
“Ah!” Caught off guard by the sudden gesture, the young and youthful Pei Ziying let out a cry, then covered his nose and complained, “Jingzhao, why did you flick my nose? So annoying…”
Though his words spoke of annoyance, he was ecstatic over the man’s affectionate gesture.
“That’s your punishment for not sleeping well last night.” Huo Jingzhao drawled.
“Mmm…”
Seeing this, Pei Lianyi dug his fingertips into his palm. The memory of hopping across floor tiles with Huo Jingzhao flashed through his mind, and a bitter smile tugged at the corner of his lips.
“Family Head?” Seeing him halt, Cao Xian was puzzled.
Pei Lianyi turned away, refusing to look further, and simply said, “Go and summon Ziying here.”
“Yes…”
Cao Xian immediately stepped forward, interrupting the two close men. “Little Young Master, the Master is calling for you.”
“Father!” Pei Ziying’s eyes lit up. He winked at Huo Jingzhao and then followed Cao Xian to stand before Pei Lianyi.
“Father looks so beautiful today…” marveling at his father’s fine figure, which even simple white mourning clothes couldn’t conceal, he exclaimed.
Forcing himself to ignore the other pair of burning eyes on him, Pei Lianyi put on a stern face. “Nonsense.”
“Do you know what day it is?”
“Today?” Perplexed by his father’s stern question, Pei Ziying was just feeling bewildered when he saw the offerings in Cao Xian’s hands and let out an “Ah.”
“It’s Aunt Cao’s death anniversary!” he answered.
Pei Lianyi’s brow relaxed slightly. “As long as you know. You’re coming too.”
“Yes.” Pei Ziying could only wave at the man by the archway, signaling him to wait.
“Master Pei…” Huo Jingzhao couldn’t help but step closer, but his view was blocked by the stout Cao Xian.
“Young Master Huo, the Master and the Little Young Master have private matters to discuss. Please wait here.”
“Very well, I understand.”
Though his heart itched unbearably, Huo Jingzhao only offered a shallow smile on the surface and stepped back a few paces.
The lad still knows his manners…! Seeing his spring-breeze smile, Cao Xian nodded in satisfaction and turned to leave.
Upon arriving at the desolate rear courtyard, unlike the somber-faced Pei Lianyi, Pei Ziying showed no particular expression.
Ever since he could remember and walk, his father would pick a fine, sunny day each year to bring him here. They would first pay respects to the ancestors, then offer incense to his “mother,” and afterwards go back to eat good food.
Pei Ziying had never been afraid of this place.
The door was pushed open. Looking at the memorial tablet set on a corner of the table, bearing the inscription “Spirit Tablet of the Late Madame Pei, Maiden Name Cao Wanqing,” he felt a moment of daze.
Before he was four, he thought he had no mother. Later, hearing the servants say his mother died of illness, he cried and asked his father, Who is Mother?
It was raining that day. Pei Lianyi’s silhouette was hazy in the rain. He only told him to grow up well, that he would understand everything once he was older.
When he was six or seven, Pei Lianyi brought him to the Ancestral Hall, pointed at the characters on the tablet, and said, This is your mother in name.
Young Pei Ziying didn’t understand what “mother in name” meant, and he had no feelings for her, so he refused to acknowledge her.
Later, after Pei Lianyi told him “she” was a good person who had even held him, Pei Ziying started calling “her” Aunt.
“Kneel.” Seeing him dazed, Pei Lianyi lit the incense in his hand.
“Today isn’t just about offering incense. You must also properly reflect before the ancestors on the shame you brought upon Pei Manor by running away from the wedding.”
Faced with his father’s stern tone, Pei Ziying could only obediently kneel on the ground, kowtowing towards the dense array of memorial tablets.
After the kowtows, he knelt for a while. Seeing that Pei Lianyi still showed no sign of letting him go, he swayed his body and whined, “Father, I promised Jingzhao we’d go on a date…”
Kneeling on the bright yellow prayer mat, Pei Lianyi kept his eyes closed and said nothing.
Desperate, Pei Ziying cast a pleading look at Cao Xian.
Cao Xian smiled slightly and persuaded, “Family Head, if the Little Young Master doesn’t go out soon, Young Master Huo will be waiting with desperate eyes.”
Pei Lianyi’s entire body stiffened abruptly. His long, slender eyelashes trembled, and his face turned somewhat grim.
Lowering his head to stare at the floor, he clutched the hem of his garment tightly, struggling for a long time. It was only when his neck began to ache that he hoarsely granted his son permission:
“Go.”
“Father is the best!” Seeing the white flower tassels swaying by his father’s ear, Pei Ziying was overjoyed. He stood up and ran off.
Cao Xian also laughed and called out, “Little Young Master, watch your step!”
Watching his son fly out like a little bird, Pei Lianyi’s shoulders slackened on the prayer mat. His eyes dimmed, and the color drained completely from his face.
“Ah, it’s been so long since I’ve seen the Little Young Master this happy.” Cao Xian, not noticing anything amiss, shook his head and sighed. “If only Wanqing had the fortune to see this…”
Hearing the sadness in his words, Pei Lianyi stood up. “Wanqing suffered too much bitterness and pain in life. Death was a release for her. You needn’t grieve so deeply.”
Cao Xian’s eyes glistened with tears. He bowed. “Thank you, Family Head… This old Servant truly thanks the Family Head!”
The Cao family had served Pei Manor for generations. Cao Xian once had a daughter named Wanqing.
Cao Wanqing was born with a severe illness, her limbs festering and weak. She could only spend her days in bed.
To treat his daughter, Cao Xian and his wife exhausted their family’s savings, incurring massive debts that could have cost them their lives. They were nearly thrown into the sea by debt collectors.
Pei Lianyi had been cared for by Cao Xian since childhood, spending more time with him than with his own parents. Unwilling to see those close to him die tragically, he brought Cao Wanqing into the manor and spent silver to cover her medical care and living expenses.
After Cao Wanqing died of her illness, fearing that enemies might target Cao Xian, dig up her bones for revenge, Pei Lianyi, overriding all objections, buried her in the Pei clan’s tomb.
For this act, according to ancestral rules, Pei Lianyi knelt for three days and three nights in the cold, terrifying Ancestral Hall, nearly costing him half his life.
He gave all his loyalty and affection to others, yet was ruthless towards himself, willingly shackling himself to outdated traditions and conventions.
“As for the bitterness in your heart, Family Head, yours is the greatest…” Cao Xian arranged the offerings, sighing heavily as he faced the timeworn Ancestral Hall.
Pei Lianyi shook his head. “It’s all in the past.”
“Yes, yes, all in the past! The past…” Cao Xian wiped his tears and hastily agreed. “As long as the Little Young Master and Young Master Huo are well, that’s what matters.”
“Yes, you’re right.” In the dim Ancestral Hall, the corners of Pei Lianyi’s eyes were slightly damp, his bitter smile failing to reach his eyes.
Pei Ziying ran back to the small courtyard. Seeing that the man hadn’t moved a single step, he smiled knowingly and quickly rushed over. “Jingzhao, sorry to keep you waiting!”
Huo Jingzhao’s eyes, however, were scanning behind him. “Where is Master Pei?”
Pei Ziying pulled him along, saying, “My father? Every time he goes to the Ancestral Hall, he has so much to say to all those ancestors and my mother in name. He won’t be out for a while.”
“Mother in name?” Huo Jingzhao raised an eyebrow at this.
“Yes.” Pei Ziying pouted. “Father was dressed so beautifully and formally today just to mourn her. Father said she was a good person…”
“So that’s how it is.” The smile on Huo Jingzhao’s handsome face quickly faded, his eyes spreading with gloom and madness.
In the past, when he heard tales of the deep love between Master Pei and his wife, he had thought it was just a rumor Pei Lianyi spread to cover up secrets. He never imagined the woman truly existed.
This wretch, seducing people even in death…
Imagining Pei Lianyi sitting quietly in the Ancestral Hall, Huo Jingzhao’s Adam’s apple bobbed continuously.
“Does Master Pei like going to the Ancestral Hall that much?” he asked again.
“Mmm, I heard Steward Cao say that sometimes Father even goes there at night…”
Mid-sentence, Pei Ziying blushed and stamped his foot. “Aiya, Jingzhao, why do you keep bringing up Father? I’m getting jealous!”
Huo Jingzhao jolted back to reality. Looking at the face so similar to Pei Lianyi’s, yet bearing a different, petulant charm, he smiled warmly. “Alright, let’s go horseback riding.”
“Mm-hmm.”
The two thus merrily left the manor.
The summer sun blazed fiercely. The afternoon sunlight poured into the courtyard, covering the pond full of lotus flowers in a golden shimmer.
Pei Lianyi had no mind to appreciate the flowers. Pei Ziying and Huo Jingzhao had been out for half the day, and he had been distracted for half the day.
After lunch in his bedchamber, finding he couldn’t even focus on the account books, he took out a celadon Weiqi set someone had gifted him and began fiddling with it.
Playing absentmindedly, his hand bumped into the hand warmer on the table. Pei Lianyi’s thoughts again turned to that enigmatic, frenzied man.
When would he suddenly appear again?
His chest was broad, yet just as hard as Huo Jingzhao’s. His hands were large and thick, seemingly forceful, but his movements when rubbing his stomach had been somewhat clumsy.
Truly insane! Why am I thinking about him?! Pei Lianyi pinched a game piece, ashamed of his own thoughts.
It’d be best if he disappeared completely and died! Biting his teeth, he suppressed the sudden flutter rising in his heart, thinking resentfully.
“Master, you must come to the main hall quickly…” Just then, Cao Xian hurried over from outside the courtyard, urgently saying, “The Little Young Master and Young Master Huo have returned covered in injuries!”
“What did you say?” Pei Lianyi stood up in astonishment.
Cao Xian swallowed and quickly explained, “It’s like this: The Little Young Master went to our family’s stables to ride and happened to run into Young Master Leng Huan. Leng Huan keeps a mule as a pet, and he said the Little Young Master…”
Pei Lianyi couldn’t listen any further and cut him off:
“Ziying, are Ziying’s injuries serious?”
“The Little Young Master is fine, but Young Master Huo…”
“Enough, I’ll go see for myself.” Unable to wait for Cao Xian to finish, Pei Lianyi quickly left the bedchamber.
“Ah, Family Head, wait for this old Servant!”
He was deeply worried, yet couldn’t help a secret joy over the abrupt end of their date. But as he entered the vast main hall, the two injured people Cao Xian had mentioned were laughing heartily, discussing some amusing matter.
Seeing Pei Ziying frolicking beside Huo Jingzhao, Pei Lianyi forcefully swallowed the agony in his heart and walked over with a stern face.
“Father!” Pei Ziying called out immediately.
“Cao Xian said you were injured. How is it? Where are you hurt?” Pei Lianyi pulled him closer for a detailed look, then frowned. “You haven’t even been out for two hours…”
“Wow, Father remembers the time so precisely.” Pei Ziying said with a grin.
Pei Lianyi’s heart tightened. He instinctively glanced at the seated man.
To his surprise, Huo Jingzhao was also looking at him.
The man sat upright, one hand propping his chin on the table, the other resting on his leg. His black robes, however, were slightly disheveled at the front, strands of hair falling over his forehead. His handsome, charming face bore faint scrapes.
His gaze was deep, an unfathomable black, as if trying to pull Pei Lianyi in.
Pei Lianyi pressed his lips together, suddenly feeling a dryness between them.
“I’m fine. Jingzhao got a bit hurt, but Leng Huan fell into horse manure, haha…” Pei Ziying answered his father, jumping topics. He then asked Huo Jingzhao, “Does it still hurt?”
Huo Jingzhao looked between father and son without revealing anything. “No, it doesn’t hurt anymore.”
“Just a little hungry,” he added apologetically.
Without a second word, Pei Ziying hurriedly ordered the servants to bring out snacks.
“Father, please sit down too.”
Seeing how busy Pei Ziying was around Huo Jingzhao, their intimate manner, Pei Lianyi, who was separated from the man by only a table, silently lowered his gaze.
He stood for a moment, then abruptly sat down and used his silver chopsticks to place a piece of pastry onto Huo Jingzhao’s plate.
“This is a flavor you like. Try it and see how it tastes.”
On the plate lay a water caltrop cake, its delicate fragrance wafting. Made from purple-red water caltrops ground into a paste and used as filling, its edges were white and sweet, like a captivating beauty’s face luring one deeper.
