After the summer solstice, the city of Hezhou gets hotter very quickly.
Gu Fangfei changed into a new silk jumpsuit, looking smart and pretty. It was her first time as a guest at Jinyan Tang.
Xu Hang was drawing a map of the distribution of new military warehouses and sewer channels in Hezhou for Duan Yelin. He stopped drawing when he saw Gu Fangfei coming.
“This is the most fashionable men’s clothing this summer. I noticed that you never wear this kind of clothes, you must not have any. So I’m giving you one. It will always be useful.” Gu Fangfei handed over the gift.
However, Xu Hang noticed that Gu Fangfei brought two gift boxes, so he asked, “It seems that you will be visiting another place later?”
At this point, Gu Fangfei blushed for a rare moment: “Yes, well… I want to go see Yuan Ye.”
Yuan Ye? They actually called each other by their names. With a face as beautiful as a summer flower, Xu Hang understood: “I didn’t expect that you guys…”
“No, no, Mr. Xu, don’t say such things—we’re just friends…” Gu Fangfei waved her hands, growing increasingly flustered. Normally a composed and rational lady, her shy reaction revealed that she was truly touched.
Xu Hang smiled softly: “The pen in your shirt pocket seems to be Yuan Ye’s favorite one?”
Gu Fangfei quickly covered it with her hand, trying to cover up her mistake.
Xu Hang added, “He’s a great person, and so are you. If everything goes smoothly and you two end up together, it would be a wonderful thing.”
Gu Fangfei simply did not feel shy: “Then I will accept your good words.”
While talking, Chan Yi lit some sandalwood. It had rained heavily a few days ago, and she wanted to get rid of the moisture.
When Gu Fangfei smelled the sandalwood, her nostrils twitched, and she felt it was very familiar: “This fragrance seems to be from Faxi Temple.”
“As expected of someone who specializes in cosmetics, this was given to me by Master Changling.” Xu Hang replied.
“Master Changling…” Maybe it was Xu Hang’s illusion, but when he said these four words, Gu Fangfei’s eyes became distracted for a moment, and her lips trembled slightly, as if she wanted to say something but stopped herself.
He sent Chan Yi away and asked tentatively, “Do you also know Master Changling?”
Gu Fangfei had just visited Faxi Temple to burn incense the day before. Now, faced with Xu Hang’s question, she hesitated, unsure whether to speak or not. After an internal struggle, she finally said, “Actually, I think I might have seen something I shouldn’t have yesterday…”
“Shh…” Xu Hang stopped her and closed the door. “Now you can talk without worry.”
“Do you know Kuromiya Keiko? She is the woman whose original surname was Aisin-Gioro and who later colluded with the Japanese.”
“I know.” Xu Hang not only knew, and there were also a lot of things that happened.
Gu Fangfei’s expression was very serious. “I have seen her face in the newspapers, and my father has also said a lot about her. Yesterday I went to the temple, and… I passed by Master Changling’s meditation room, and I actually saw that she, she, she was hugging Master Changling!”
Xu Hang’s expression suddenly became as shocked as Gu Fangfei’s. Gu Fangfei took a deep breath and continued, “I was really scared at the time! But when I looked carefully, I found that Master Changling was as still as a mountain. She hugged him for a while and said something. I couldn’t hear it clearly from a distance. Then I saw her let go reluctantly. I was afraid of being discovered, so I ran away quickly.”
She felt like she was dreaming when she said this.
“She likes Chang Ling.” Xu Hang concluded bluntly.
Gu Fangfei was not as bold as Xu Hang to say such things, so she could only shake her head without comment and then nod.
If it is true, this is a shocking event. In the pure land of Buddhism, no matter what is right or wrong, as long as it is related to worldly affairs, people will criticize it.
Just like Princess Gaoyang and Bian Ji of the Tang Dynasty, who ultimately faced execution by beheading, it is evident that even in an era of relatively open customs, such matters remained unacceptable to society.
“I think this is probably just her wishful thinking. Chang Ling has been pure since birth, and now that he is practicing Buddhism, he has no worldly attachments,” Xu Hang defended Chang Ling. “It’s really not appropriate to discuss this with others. We’re all outsiders and don’t know the full details, so it’s best not to gossip about it.”
Gu Fangfei understood Xu Hang’s meaning very well: “I understand. After we leave this door, no one else will know about this.”
Gu Fangfei’s gift was so well-chosen that it prompted Yuan Sen, the Military Control Commissioner, to publicly admit his failure in supervising the fundraising efforts in Hezhou. To make amends, he decided to host a banquet at his residence as a gesture of apology.
Interestingly, he did not send an invitation to Duan Yelin but instead sent one to Xu Hang.
If someone shows you kindness without any reason, he is either a traitor or a thief.
Xu Hang immediately guessed that the Military Control Commissioner must have found out about his relationship with Duan Yelin. This trip might be a Hongmen Banquet[mfn]The phrase can be used figuratively to describe a banquet set up to murder a guest.[/mfn] or a bribery banquet. In short, the real purpose was not to feast on the banquet.
He might as well change his clothes and go check it out. It’s better to face it head-on than to be on guard from behind.
The modest banquet at the Military Control Commissioner’s residence was nothing extravagant. With only 20 to 30 guests and three or four tables arranged, the gathering remained fairly low-key. Yuan Ye was also summoned back by his father and stood at the entrance to welcome the guests.
From a distance, he spotted Xu Hang but was taken aback—he had never seen him in a suit before. After staring for a moment in surprise, he quickly ran forward and exclaimed, “Xu Hang? Is that really you? Haha, I almost didn’t recognize you! Hmm… You look great in this outfit, like someone who just returned from studying abroad.”
Xu Hang responded, “I have to thank you for this.”
“Thank me?”
“Yes, thank you for finding Miss Gu, who has a unique vision.” Xu Hang deliberately teased back with words.
Yuan Ye couldn’t resist and coughed twice, then changed the subject: “Aiya… cough, cough, cough! Come, come, come, sit inside, sit inside.”
When he entered the house, he saw an old man who looked like a housekeeper arranging the hall. Xu Hang stopped and stared for a while. Yuan Ye came up and asked, “What’s wrong?”
“This person… looks familiar.” Xu Hang pointed.
Yuan Ye took a closer look and said, “Lao Yang, our housekeeper, came with my father this time. Oh, now I remember that Lao Yang was also from Shucheng. Maybe you have met him before! You can chat after the banquet is over.”
His words revealed too much information, and Xu Hang was unable to accept it all at once, and it took him a while to react.
“Your… your family?”
“Yes.”
Xu Hang’s face turned as pale as a painted wall, and the color of his lips faded. He said in a trembling voice, “You are… the Military Control Commissioner’s son?”
“Hey, so you didn’t know?” Yuan Ye looked even more innocent. Seeing Xu Hang’s bad expression, he asked with concern, “Are you alright?”
Xu Hang lowered his head and sorted out his expression. It took him a while to raise his head, but he was much stiffer than before: “I’m fine… I just didn’t expect that I would make friends with the Military Control Commissioner’s son.”
Yuan Ye wasn’t sure if it was just his imagination, but Xu Hang’s words carried a certain irony that made people feel uneasy.
Just as Xu Hang walked sideways into the house, Lao Yang happened to turn around and caught a glimpse of Xu Hang’s passing figure. He was stunned for a moment and only came to his senses when the servant who was carrying a ladder behind him bumped into him.
“Aiyo, Uncle Yang, are you sleeping here with your eyes open?!”
“You are not good at your job, but very good at talking! Get out of here!” Lao Yang scolded a few times, and when he wanted to look at the person again, he could no longer see him.
He scratched his head and thought, maybe he had made a mistake.
