Chapter 6 Encountering an Enemy

Qiu Heng is very sensitive to smells; she can smell the alcohol before she can even see the person clearly.

The old lady's face darkened slightly: "Third son, what's wrong with you so early in the morning?"

Master Qiu ignored the old lady's words, staring intently at Qiu Heng, tears streaming down his face: "Heng'er—"

Qiu Heng glanced at the old lady.

The old lady said sternly, "You haven't met your father yet."

Qiu Heng bowed and greeted, "Father."

Master Qiu strode over, his hands trembling as he grabbed Qiu Heng's arm, bursting into tears: "Heng'er, Father is so sorry—"

Qiu Heng's body was tense, and she didn't know what expression to make for a moment.

There were three male elders who had the most profound influence on her. Her adoptive father was a simple and quiet man, and he was her true father in her heart; her husband had a heart for the world, and she admired and respected him; and Uncle Fu taught her martial arts, and he was strict but loving.

This is the first time I've ever seen a biological father wail so loudly in front of his younger siblings.

The composed young girl, the unkempt middle-aged man wailing, and the old lady who had always looked down on her granddaughter who had just returned—all of this made her feel inexplicably ashamed. She shouted, "Enough! Aren't you afraid your daughter will laugh at you!"

The crying stopped abruptly. Master Qiu withdrew his hand, staring intently at Qiu Heng: "Heng'er, are you eating and sleeping well? I had something to do yesterday and couldn't visit you..."

The old lady's lips twitched violently: "Now that you've seen her, go about your business. We'll have plenty of time to talk later. I'm taking Heng'er out for a bit later."

"Where is Mother taking Heng'er?"

The old lady glanced at Qiu Heng and said, "Heng'er was able to be found thanks to the Lady of Changchun Marquis. We should definitely go and express our gratitude."

"I should thank you, I should thank you." Master Qiu nodded repeatedly, his eyes still fixed on Qiu Heng. "Heng'er, I will come to see you again when you come back from your trip with your grandmother."

"Thank you for your concern, Father."

On the way to the Changchun Marquis's residence, the old lady instructed: "When you see the Changchun Marquis's wife, answer whatever she asks. Don't say anything more, but don't stay silent either."

Qiu Heng thought to herself that the Lady of Changchun Marquis was the woman she had met when she went to see Brother Bai.

When they met, their guesses were confirmed.

Lady Changchun looked at Qiuheng with a gentle smile: "It's good that you can go home. It was just a small favor. You don't need to worry about it, Madam."

"The lady's small act of kindness is a life-saving grace for this girl."

Even after leaving the Changchun Marquis's residence, the Changchun Marquis's wife did not mention the nephew, and Qiu Heng did not ask either.

Inside the carriage, the old lady tentatively asked, "The Lady of Changchun said she met you when she went to see her nephew. Do you know her nephew?"

"Who is the nephew of the Lady of Changchun?"

"The nephew of the Lady of Changchun Marquis—" the old lady paused, "is Lingyun, the heir of the Prince of Kang."

The only record about the Prince of Kang's heir, as Qiu Heng pondered the books she had read, was that he was physically weak.

Could Ling Yun, the heir of Prince Kang, be the Brother Bai she knows?

The image of the young man appeared in Qiu Heng's mind.

Four years ago, she and Yunxiang encountered two lost boys, a master and a servant, in the mountains. The master was Brother Bai. They took the two boys back to the Taoist temple and have maintained contact with them ever since.

Not long ago, Brother Bai said goodbye to her and Yunxiang, saying that he had recovered and was going home, as his home was in Beijing.

As Qiu Heng pondered these thoughts, she said, "My granddaughter has always lived in a mountain village and doesn't know any princes or noblemen."

The old lady was not surprised by the answer and thought to herself that she had overthought things.

How could a country girl possibly know the heir of a prince? It was already an incredible stroke of luck for the Lady of Changchun to meet him.

But for the Yongqing Marquis's family, it was a headache. They couldn't hide such a grown person; if he couldn't be presented in public in the future, it would be a disgrace to the Qiu family.

"Wait until we get back—" The carriage jolted violently, and the old lady was thrown to one side.

The carriage overturned by the roadside. When Qiu Heng helped the old lady out, she was still in a daze.

The old lady's maids and servants who had accompanied her rushed over, and even more attendants blocked those who rode by on horseback.

"Is this how you ride horses? My carriage overturned trying to avoid you!"

The young man in brocade robes, sitting calmly on his horse, raised an eyebrow indifferently upon hearing this.

The servant following behind him said arrogantly, "You're the ones who wanted to hide, it's not like our young master bumped into your carriage. Are you trying to extort money by blocking our way? Do you know who our young master is?"

Sensing that the young man riding a horse was no ordinary person, the attendants of the Yongqing Marquis's mansion looked at the old lady.

The old lady had just recovered from her dizziness and looked at the young man in brocade robes with a stern face: "May I ask which family you come from, young master?"

The servant raised his chin: "Our young master is the son of the Commander of Handu!"

Although there were many powerful and influential people in the capital, only a few stood out. The old lady immediately realized, "So it's the son of Commander Han—"

Suddenly, she felt a sharp pain in her arm, and the hand that had been supporting her arm tightened its grip.

The old lady glanced at Qiu Heng out of the corner of her eye, only to see her staring intently at the young man in brocade robes, tears welling up in her eyes.

The old lady felt a lump in her throat: She was frightened to tears already? She really is no good!

At this moment, Qiu Heng had only one thought in her mind: it was him, the one who killed her father.

A surge of murderous intent welled up, but it was suppressed in the blink of an eye, leaving only tears.

Having witnessed the Xia people being treated like dirt for ten years, she had long since learned to control her emotions in order to survive and return home.

Since returning, she has often been plagued by nightmares after falling asleep, dreaming of corpses strewn everywhere, where humans are treated worse than dogs. When she wakes up, she is still able to calmly go about her business.

What's more terrifying than a nightmare is that it's not a dream; it's the reality that will happen after the Great Xia Dynasty falls into the hands of a foreign race.

Han Wu, the Commander-in-Chief of the Palace Guard, was one of the five traitors she was entrusted with eliminating. Allowing her to have some personal motives, she began with this very traitor.

The young man in brocade robes fixed his gaze on the tearful girl's face, and suddenly became interested in the old lady's background: "You are—"

The servant was secretly surprised: In the past, after revealing his identity as the young master, those people dared not stop him anymore, and the young master would simply ride away. Today was quite unusual.

By this time, the old lady regretted stopping him, but she had no choice but to introduce herself: "I am the wife of the Marquis of Yongqing. Young Master Han must have something to attend to, so I won't take up any more of your time."

"So it's Madam Bo." The young man in brocade robes lost interest immediately, gave a perfunctory bow, and said, "Farewell."

Although the young lady is beautiful, it's a pity that she comes from a noble family. It wouldn't be worth the effort to bring her into the household.

The old lady boarded the carriage amidst countless onlookers and scolded, "It was fine when you were in the countryside, but now that you're in the Earl's mansion, you should act like a noble lady. Staring at strange men and crying over the smallest things makes you a laughingstock."

Qiu Heng deftly changed the subject: "My granddaughter is just curious as to why that young master Han is so arrogant."

The old lady was amused by this naive remark: "Do you know that his father has commanded the imperial guards for twenty years and is highly regarded by the emperor? A word spoken by such a close advisor to the emperor is like a mountain pressing down on others."

Qiu Heng looked enlightened: "No wonder."

Having commanded the imperial guards for twenty years, he abused his power for personal gain, neglected training, and was utterly defeated by the Qi army's siege, leading to the fall of the capital and the suffering of countless Xia people.

Before the hanging flower gate, Master Qiu waited expectantly. As soon as he saw the carriage arrive, he quickly went to greet it: "Mother is back."

The old lady raised her eyebrows in surprise.

The third brother didn't drink any alcohol today.

After accompanying the old lady back to Qiansong Hall, when Qiu Heng took her leave, Third Master Qiu stood up and said, "I'll escort Heng'er back to her room."

"Go ahead." The old lady suppressed her pent-up reprimands for Qiu Heng.

When the father and daughter were alone, Master Qiu became awkward and put the bag he was carrying on the table: "Buy whatever Heng'er likes. If you run out of money, just tell your father."

After Master Qiu left, Qiu Heng opened the bag, which was full of loose silver.

Fangzhou lifted it with one hand and blurted out, "Seven pounds and four ounces."

Seven catties and four ounces of loose silver—did they empty their wallets to buy wine?

As Qiu Heng thought this, she finally felt a little more real about her new identity, which was as ephemeral as a dream.

In Qiansong Hall, the old lady complained to the returning Yongqing Earl: "I always said that Sixth Girl is lucky. Today, on the way back from the Changchun Marquis's residence, the carriage overturned..."

"That Han Yanei is famous for his love of riding fast horses. Countless people have suffered because of him. It's not surprising that he encountered him."

"The Earl is quite magnanimous towards Sixth Sister."

Uncle Yongqing smiled and took a sip of tea.

Why not be magnanimous when you suddenly have a beautiful granddaughter in the prime of her life?

As the couple were talking, a servant came to report: "Sir, Lord Xue from the Imperial City Guard has come to visit."

The Earl of Yongqing's expression suddenly changed, and he hurriedly went to the front hall.

The man in the hall was drinking tea—no, it should be said that he was a young man.

The young man in scarlet robes moved casually, as if he were at home. His expression was also relaxed; upon hearing footsteps, he glanced lightly at the Earl of Yongqing who was hurrying in, without revealing the slightest bit of sharpness.

Uncle Yongqing, however, remained tense and inquired about the purpose of the visit in a tactful manner.

The young man smiled and didn't keep him in suspense: "I heard that you found your granddaughter who had been missing for many years. I would like to meet her."

I bow deeply to thank my old and new friends who have collected, voted, and tipped.

(End of this chapter)