Chapter 53 Mother-of-Pearl Incense (Sixteen) You are the Empress of General Quan Daoyong...

After selecting a few pieces of jewelry, which would cost twenty taels of silver, they arranged with the shopkeeper to have the invoice delivered to their home that evening for settlement. The two then left the shop. Just then, the rain stopped, and a ray of sunlight shone through the clouds. Seeing that Yu Qi's complexion was still not good, Jiu Li circled around him, jokingly insisting that he was distressed about spending the twenty taels of silver.

The ground was covered in puddles. Yu Qi couldn't stand seeing her jumping around with her shoes and socks wet, so he grabbed her and said, "Walk properly! Who will take care of you if you need to see a doctor?"

"Oh." Jiuli put her hands behind her back, an awkwardness flashing across her face, then she bit back her smile, frequently glancing at his expression.

After a while, Yu Qi said coldly, "Since I've already bought you hairpins and rings, you don't need to wear the one on your head. The marriage with the Qi family can't go through, so it's not right to accept their things for no reason. Return it to them tomorrow."

Jiuli immediately pulled the hairpin off her head. "How did you know that Xu Bai gave it to you?"

"Who else but him would give you a hairpin so promptly? You threw it away, and he gave it to you right after, as if he was afraid you'd be without jewelry. Little does he know, you don't even like wearing these things." He glanced at the hairpin and sneered, "And you, you wore it today, so you've got a bonus, haven't you?"

At first, Jiu Li thought he was referring to the things she had just bought, but in the blink of an eye she realized he was talking about the painting she had seen at the Qi family's house. This Du Zhong, who deserved to be beheaded, would tell her anything!

"You know everything?" She grabbed his wrists with both hands, pulling him to a stop. "Then just tell me, is the person in that painting really my mother?"

He pulled his wrist away. "I didn't even see the painting, how would I know?"

Jiuli thought he was going to avoid the topic again, but to her surprise, he walked away and slowly began to speak, “Your mother’s surname was Quan, and her name was Quan Shanheng. She was the only daughter of the once famous General Quan Daoyong. When General Quan Daoyong died in battle, your mother was only fourteen years old. The late emperor and General Daoyong were a wise and virtuous ruler and a very harmonious minister. So he couldn’t bear to see her without any relatives to rely on, so he ordered her to enter the palace as a lady-in-waiting and specially allowed her to proofread books in the imperial study. Therefore, at that time, people who entered and left the palace respectfully called her ‘Aunt Quan’.”

Jiulimu stared wide-eyed, nearly dropping his jaw in astonishment. "You mean, General Quan Daoyong, who once commanded respect in the Oirat Mongols, is my maternal grandfather?!"

Yu Qi glanced at her sideways and said disdainfully, "If it weren't for the blood of a military officer flowing in your veins, how could a young lady be so wild and unruly?"

"I'm just a little lively, how is that considered wild?" She rolled her eyes and hurriedly ran to catch up. "Then where is my mother right now?"

"She is dead."

Jiuli wasn't too surprised. If her mother hadn't died, how could she have been taken home by Yu Qi? A female official who could enter and leave the palace and was protected by the late emperor, it couldn't be that he gave her away just because he couldn't support a daughter.

"Then how did my mother die?"

Yu Qi fell silent. Even he didn't know. He only remembered that he rushed back to the mansion that night and saw a raging fire. He had rescued two-year-old Jiu Li from the flames. However, he also knew that the fire was no ordinary one, but he couldn't tell Jiu Li, lest she investigate and cause endless trouble.

He could only tell her, "It was an accident. The servants dozed off and didn't watch the candles properly. By the time they discovered the fire, it was too late for anyone to escape." Jiu Li was skeptical, but if he was lying, it meant he didn't want to tell her the truth, and she wouldn't get anything out of him by asking. So she changed the subject, "Do you know who my father is?"

"I don't know. I've told you before, I've never met your father."

That was the truth. Ever since he met Quan Shanheng, she had a daughter who was a little over two years old. Although no one in the entire household said that the little girl was the young lady's daughter, he could guess. She was probably an illegitimate child, otherwise they wouldn't have been so secretive about it and hadn't even given her a name.

Jiuli's face fell. "Then I have no other relatives?"

He glanced down at him. "Who in the Yu family isn't your relative?"

Yes, she'd been by his side since she could remember; the Yu family was everything to her. She laughed again, tilting her eyes to look at him, "So how did you and my mother meet?"

That's another story, he didn't want to bring it up, and deliberately gave a cold look. "You've asked enough questions today, and I've said enough. Remember, don't tell these things to anyone else, not even the old lady."

Jiuli could only agree with an "Oh".

As they entered the shop, Xiuzhi came out to call them for dinner. Taking advantage of the rain, they closed the door and went to the back. After dinner, the jewelry was delivered to their home. Yu Qi paid the money, and it was getting late. Jiuli saw him go into Du Zhong's room again, and she didn't know what he was saying to Du Zhong inside. Water dripped from the eaves, and she couldn't hear anything. She could only go to her dressing table and happily examine her jewelry. Although she didn't like wearing it, she couldn't be without it. She couldn't be without any of the jewelry that other girls had, and she had to have more than them to feel that Yu Qi doted on her.

When she woke up early, the sky was clear and blue, but it wasn't very hot because of the rain that had fallen all day yesterday. After lunch, Jiuli and Duzhong were about to go out. When they got to the shop, Yuqi bumped into them and asked where they were going. She quickly smiled and said, "I asked Shen Zhi yesterday, but he was only half-hearted and didn't tell the whole truth. He's very suspicious, so I want to go to the Shen family again today."

Yu Qi already knew everything about their interrogation of Shen Zhi yesterday, and he tied his hands behind his back, saying, "He didn't tell the truth yesterday, so why is he telling the truth today?"

Du Zhong walked to the left and said, "It was raining yesterday, so I didn't check his garden. Today I'm going to take a good look at his garden. If Tang Chengguan died in the Shen family, I'm afraid he might have left some traces."

Yu Qi nodded, then turned his gaze to the right and saw that Jiu Li was wearing a peacock blue fan-shaped hairpin inlaid with shells, which he had bought yesterday. His expression improved slightly. "Is Qi Xubai going too?"

She smiled, biting her lower lip. "We agreed to meet on the street near the Shen family's house yesterday. Didn't you tell me to return the hairpin to him? I have it with me. I'll give it to him when I see him."

After she finished speaking, she waited a while. Seeing that he didn't say anything, she knew that he had tacitly agreed, so she pulled Du Zhong and hurriedly left the shop.

Not long after they left, Du Zhong suddenly pulled out a few taels of loose silver and gave them to her, saying he wanted her to buy him a decent bracelet as well. His family had been poor when he was young, and although he wasn't short of money at the Yu family, he was always frugal and never spent money recklessly, saving his monthly allowance. So Jiu Li looked at the two or three silver ingots with a surprised expression, "Why are you buying a bracelet? You don't mean you're going to wear it, do you?"

Du Zhong chuckled, "Don't ask, just buy it for me."

Why don't you buy it yourself?

"I don't know how to choose; I don't know what styles women like."

Jiuli glared at him and laughed, "So it's meant to be given to a woman. Who is it for? I won't pick one for you unless you tell me clearly."

Since he knew he wouldn't escape her notice sooner or later, Du Zhong scratched his face and said casually, "Give it to Aunt Guo. She took good care of me during the two days I was injured. Shouldn't I thank her?"

Could he really have feelings for Aunt Guo? Aunt Guo is over ten years older than him!

She took the silver and looked him over meaningfully. “You can thank me now, but to be so generous all of a few taels of silver for a thank-you gift is a bit unlike your usual self.”

Du Zhong rolled his eyes and laughed heartily, "Four or five taels of silver is nothing. My master gave me twenty taels last night."

Why would your uncle give you money for no reason?

“He said he bought you jewelry, but I don’t wear jewelry, so he gave me cash and told me to buy whatever I liked.”

It turns out that Yu Qi went to his room last night to get him some silver, probably for the new jewelry she had bought, fearing that Du Zhong would feel that he, as an elder, was showing favoritism. Well, the two of them spent forty taels of silver from the family in one day. An ordinary family would only spend forty or fifty taels of silver a year. I wonder how many patients Yu Qi would have to see and how many days' worth of medicine he would have to sell to earn that back.

She suddenly felt a pang of self-reflection, thinking, "We two are really only good at spending and not at earning. What's the difference between us and parasites?"

"Hey, don't say that. I often help my master out, and I do make money." Du Zhong brought his handsome face closer.

Jiuli casually slapped him across the face and rolled her eyes at him.

As they walked to the restaurant where they had eaten the day before, Xu Baixian was already there. He ordered a pot of tea and sat by the window, gazing sideways out the window. He wore a moon-colored robe, and the small mole between his eyebrows was particularly noticeable in the sunlight. Jiu Li had originally intended to return the hairpin to him, but upon seeing him now, she suddenly felt less inclined to do so, thinking that even if the marriage didn't happen in the future, it would still be a memento.

She gently tapped the table twice, and he turned his gaze, then invited them both to sit down and have a cup of tea. Jiuli gracefully sat down, her eyes crinkling with a smile, "How long have you been here?"

"I just arrived too." He picked up the teapot and shook it. "This is tea I brought myself. I just had the waiter brew it. Please have a taste. Did the rain yesterday affect Brother Du Zhong's injury?"

Du Zhongzhi said he was fine, casually lifted one leg off the bench and placed it on the bench, then grabbed some melon seeds to crack. Xu Bai saw that he looked even happier and more energetic than usual, so he nodded, "I think you're alright too. You look even better than yesterday."

Jiuli idly peeled melon seeds and said, "Having received twenty taels of silver, I'm naturally in high spirits."

"What, did the Du Zhong brothers make money?"

"It's good that he can make money; it was given to him by his uncle."

"Mr. Yu? You and your siblings have your own monthly allowance, so why do you need to give Du Zhong and his brother an additional twenty taels?"

Du Zhong blurted out, "You don't need to feel sorry for her. It wasn't just for me. Yesterday, my master spent twenty taels to buy her jewelry, so naturally he gave me twenty taels of silver as well."

Xu Bai's face stiffened slightly, then he smiled and glanced at Jiu Li, "So that's how it is. No wonder I haven't seen you wearing that hairpin."

Feeling somewhat embarrassed, Jiu Li changed the subject, called over a waiter to settle the accounts, and urged them to head towards the Shen family's gate.

Shen Zhi was about to leave when he unexpectedly ran into them at the door. His face showed a hint of panic, and he hurriedly bowed to Xu Bai.

Xu Bai smiled and looked at him from under the stone steps. “Master Shen, your words are polite, but I see that you don’t seem to welcome us very much. We only came yesterday and saw that the scenery in your garden was wonderful, but unfortunately it rained and we were unable to see it in detail. So we have come to bother you again today. If Master Shen finds it troublesome, you can just ask a servant to show us around.”

"How dare I?" Shen Zhi said helplessly, then turned around and led them inside.

Xu Bai then said, "Are we perhaps delaying Lord Shen's important business?"

He smiled and said, "It's nothing important. It rained yesterday, but the sun is shining today. It's a good time to plant flowers and grass, so I called some gardeners to come to my house to plant flowers and grass. I'm afraid of the noise, so I want to go out and hide for a while."

"Then we have come at just the right time. Master Shen must have acquired many rare and exotic plants."

"Not at all," Shen Zhi forced a smile.

Wandering slowly along the path, Jiu Li indeed saw several gardeners with their trousers rolled up, turning over the soil and planting flowers. "That's good," Jiu Li thought. "They don't need to search for clues themselves. We can just keep an eye on these gardeners and see if they find anything." If Tang Chengguan died here, he wouldn't have foolishly waited to be drowned; there must have been a fierce struggle before his death. If he tore something off his body, that would be evidence.

Seeing the three of them looking around aimlessly, Shen Zhi felt guilty. After wandering around for a while, he suddenly couldn't help but bow to Xu Bai and said, "Lord Qi, let me be frank. Although I said a few false things yesterday, Tang Chengguan's death really has nothing to do with me!"

The three were secretly surprised, not expecting him to suddenly confess.

Jiuli suppressed her surprise and asked with a smile, "Why do you say that, Master Shen? We didn't say that you were related to Tang Chengguan's death. Besides, we came yesterday to ask about Lu Yan'er."

Shen Zhi looked anxious and worried. "Miss, please stop playing games with me. I know you didn't come to ask me about that man surnamed Tang for no reason yesterday. You must have suspected me. I'll just tell you the truth. A couple of days ago, I heard that the yamen was investigating a murder case. The deceased was a thief named Tang Chengguan. I was shocked when I remembered that he was the vendor I met at the Lu family's house the other day. I had a few words with him and was afraid you would think I killed him in revenge, so I didn't dare to tell you the truth."

Du Zhong laughed, "Since you haven't done anything wrong, what are you afraid of?"

He glanced at Xu Bai with a wry smile. "Isn't this the usual way the yamen handles cases? All these wrongful deaths are either revenge killings or crimes of passion. I'm just unlucky; I happened to have a few words with this guy surnamed Tang that day. Wouldn't the yamen just ask me about a revenge killing? But you three, think about it carefully. What kind of person am I, Shen Zhi? Is it worth ruining my future by getting angry with a thief? Even if I'm still angry, I'll just give him a good beating. Isn't that right? Besides, as for Yan'er, there's even less reason for me to kill her. I love her more than I can bear!"

Jiuli smiled disdainfully, "Not necessarily, Master Shen. Since you say you love her, why don't you care about her funeral arrangements?"

He muttered helplessly, "I love the living, since they're all dead—"

Jiuli didn't hear what was said below, but she scoffed inwardly. No wonder Lu Yan'er didn't marry him. He talked a good game, but when it came to actually using him, he ignored her. Even when he bought someone a piece of jewelry, he hesitated to decide whether it was worth it.

She deliberately grinned and gave him a big laugh, "Sir Shen, you really are a businessman!"

As they strolled along, they came to the pond, where two gardeners were planting lotus flowers. The newly purchased lotus flowers were in several large buckets, which were placed on the bank. Jiu Li was attracted by the flowers and moved closer to look. She saw that the pink, white, and yellow lotus flowers in the buckets were blooming beautifully, and some lovely lotus pods had formed. She picked up a broken lotus pod, and suddenly a thought flashed through her mind. She remembered the lotus flower pastry that Old Han had made when she ate at the Lu family's house that day.

Lotus flower pastries are complicated to make. She even said to Lao Han politely, "Just make a couple of simple dishes to eat. Why bother making such complicated pastries?"

Old Han replied, "Anyway, we have so many lotus seeds that we can't finish them all."

Who would send Lu Yan'er so many lotus seeds? It couldn't have been someone selling vegetables.

Feeling something was amiss, she took the lotus pods and went over to Shen Zhi, asking, "Master Shen, where did you purchase these lotus flowers?"

Shen Zhi said, "There is a flower merchant surnamed Liang who specializes in cultivating lotus flowers. All the lotus flowers in my family are bought from him."

Thankfully, she asked that question. Hearing the surname Liang seemed familiar, and she suddenly remembered that there was someone with the surname Liang on the list her aunt had mentioned! But damn it, she couldn't remember the full name! So she quickly asked, "What's your name, Liang?"

"His name is Liang Zuyue," Shen Zhi said with a smile. "Does your family also want to grow some lotus flowers?"

Jiuli chuckled, then whispered a few words to Xubai. Xubai then bowed to Shen Zhi and took his leave. The three of them left the Shen family.

Just as he reached the street, a yamen runner came running from afar, reporting to Xu Bai that Miss Tang had brought the coffin to the yamen to collect Lu Yan'er's body and all her belongings. However, Zhang Da was not in the yamen, and the minor officials dared not make the decision to issue the document, all waiting for Xu Bai to return to the yamen to issue it personally.

Xu Bai frowned slightly. "Where is Lord Wang?"

The bailiff said, "Lord Wang has gone to the Censorate to report back."

It seems the Censorate has recently found some evidence in their investigation of Wang Shanfeng, which has naturally flustered him. He's been absent from his duties at the yamen for several days, busy currying favor with Prince Zhao. Xu Bai sneered inwardly, and had no choice but to temporarily bid farewell to Jiu Li and Du Zhong, then follow the yamen runners back to the yamen.

Jiuli hurriedly led Du Zhong this way, and Du Zhong asked anxiously, "Where are we going?"

“The Lu family in the song.”

The two wandered around to the Lu family courtyard. It was Du Zhong's first time there. He sat in the main room and looked around. It turned out that the style of the brothels in Nanjing was similar to that of the brothels in Suzhou. Regardless of whether they were literate or not, they all liked to hang some calligraphy and paintings to appear refined.

Hearing him mutter, Jiu Li retorted, "You've been to places like this in Suzhou?"

Du Zhong smiled and said, "I also went there with my master."

Her eyes widened immediately. "Your uncle went too? What was he doing there?"

"Someone in the brothel is sick too!"

Why would Yu Qi go to a place like this if he had nothing to do? He must be there to treat someone's illness. She told herself this to herself a couple of times, feeling relieved, and a smile returned to her lips.

A while later, the maid brought in tea. Jiuli asked about Old Han, and the maid was a little embarrassed. "These past two days, I've been living in fear with him in this courtyard. He seemed to sense it and said he would go home first and come back when Miss Tang is handling the funeral arrangements. To be honest, Old Han is a very honest man. Miss, have you found out the truth? Did he really kill our young lady?"

"I don't know yet." Jiuli shook her head. "I remember you said last time that your girl has a guest named Liang Zuyue, who doesn't come very often, right?"

"Yes, didn't the girl write it all down on that form?"

"I didn't ask in enough detail last time," she said with an apologetic smile. "What kind of business does Liang Zuyue do?"

The maid sat down in a chair at the lower end of the table. "It seems he grows and sells flowers. All the lotus seeds in our kitchen are from him, given to the young lady. I heard he even leased a pond in the village to grow lotus flowers. Why don't you ask him, young lady?"

"It's nothing, you have to ask anyway. So, are he and your girl doing well?"

The maid smiled, brushing her skirt aside. "Whether it's good or bad, it's all the same. Our young lady is in this business, and she seems to get along well with everyone. However, compared to Liang Zuyue, she's a little more distant. He doesn't come here often on his own, and when he does, it's only to thank our young lady for patronizing her business."

Du Zhong chuckled and chimed in, "That's strange. He's been patronizing your business, so you should be thanking him. Why are you saying he's thanking you?"

“Hey, outsiders have no idea. He takes care of our girl because our girl often takes care of him too. He sells flowers and plants. Our girl’s regular customers are all people with big houses. Naturally, they need to plant some flowers and trees. Whenever there is such a business, our girl recommends him to those people.”

Jiuli was surprised, "They were all the same customers who came to take care of you girls. And Liang Zuyue is making money off those customers. Aren't they jealous and angry?"

The maid covered her mouth and laughed, "The young lady wouldn't tell them directly that Liang Zuyue is also her customer; she only says she knows him. Our young lady will mediate, and besides, the young lady is in business, so the customers are generally understanding. For example, last time when Master Shen came to set up a table, Liang Zuyue also set up a table upstairs, but Master Shen didn't even know. They didn't bother each other, so why would he be jealous?"

Jiuli's mind suddenly cleared. "You mean the tenth day?"

She nodded. "Yes, it was the day that guy surnamed Tang came to sell things."

So, Liang Zuyue must have seen Tang Chengguan that day. Jiuli hurriedly asked, "Did he speak to that man surnamed Tang?"

The maid thought for a moment and shook her head. "No, he stayed upstairs the whole time while the young lady was shopping. He only left after the man surnamed Tang left."

Jiuli became even more alert, "How long has that guy surnamed Tang been gone?"

“Let me think—when the young lady bought the things and followed Master Shen into the main room, she instructed Old Han to send wine and dishes upstairs. I carried the wine up. After I went up and served for a while, Liang Zuyue said he had some urgent business to attend to and told his three friends to stay and eat and drink. After he finished speaking, he toasted them all and left without saying a word to our young lady.”

Even Du Zhong found it strange. He and Jiu Li looked at each other for a while, and then asked, "What else do you know about this Liang Zuyue?"

"He runs a flower and plant business. He can't compare to Master Shen and his family, but he's still much better off than most people. He has two households of servants and several houses, but he has no children or wife."

"He's not married yet?"

The aunt shook her head. "It's not that he didn't remarry, it's that his wife died. It seems like it's been three or four years since she died. He's a sentimental man; even though his wife has been dead for three or four years, he hasn't said anything about remarrying. By the way, I heard that he used to be a very skilled carpenter, but he was so heartbroken by his wife's death that he couldn't concentrate on his craftsmanship anymore, so he switched to gardening."

Jiuli jumped up abruptly, making the chair beneath him creak, which was quite abrupt. "You said he used to be a carpenter? What kind of carpenter? Did he know how to make screws?"

The maid was slightly surprised and stared at the two of them with her mouth agape. "He was originally a conch chef from Yangzhou."

That's it! Jiu Li's heart skipped a beat. He had said long ago that both cases were related to that mother-of-pearl box!

She laughed and turned around twice in the small hall. "Where does Liang Zuyue live?"

Near Shili Bridge.

Jiuli and Duzhong then hurriedly took their leave and headed straight for Shili Bridge.

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Author's note: Thank you for reading.