The tea gathering in the inner courtyard had not yet dispersed; Lord Song had come specifically for Fang Zesheng, and they could not leave him waiting in the hall forever.
Fu Jingxuan slid the fan rib away from his brow, his lips still lingering where the jade had brushed. Seeing him staring blankly with wide eyes, Fu Jingxuan flicked the fan in front of his face.
Fang Zesheng’s eyelashes fluttered, and just as he was about to speak, Fu Jingxuan had already moved behind the wheelchair to push him further into the inner courtyard. “You don’t need to worry about this matter.”
“You can act as if I said it or as if I didn’t.”
“If you truly believe this heart of mine is unworthy of you, I can even grant your wish and replace it with another.”
Fang Zesheng’s mind was already a tangled mess, but upon hearing this, he immediately knit his brows in a frown.
It was past the middle of Senshi[mfn]Around 4:00 PM.[/mfn].
Lord Song set his teacup down, preparing to leave; he had a dinner engagement that evening and would return to the capital after a brief rest. Knowing he could not be sure when they would meet again, his heart swelled with reluctance. He spoke a few words with Fang Zesheng and then glanced at Fu Jingxuan, who had pushed him back. Fu Jingxuan’s playful childhood antics had left a lasting impression on many, and Lord Song remembered him clearly. Watching him excel so brilliantly at the Tea Tasting Convention, Lord Song couldn’t help but pat his shoulder and say, “The younger generation is truly something to be reckoned with.”
Wang Xiuhe stood to the side, watching with a smile while Cui’er clutched her handkerchief with both hands, unable to contain herself. “Madam, what on earth is going on? We busied ourselves all through the Tea Tasting Convention, yet it seems we’ve only ended up sewing a fine robe for Fang Zesheng to wear?”
Wang Xiuhe said softly, “It doesn’t matter. Since the robe is already made, let him wear it for a while.”
Cui’er was bewildered. “And then there is that Fu Jingxuan as well, whose side is he actually on? Hadn’t he grown distant from Fang Zesheng? Why are they huddled together again now?”
Wang Xiuhe said, “I’m afraid they were never truly distant. That earlier display was just a performance for your sake.”
“A performance for me?”
“If they hadn’t put it on for you, how else would I have known?”
Cui’er asked, “Does Madam mean they knew all along that I was helping you spy on them?”
Wang Xiuhe shot her a glance. “Stupid as a pig. Did you really think you were hiding well with something so obvious?”
Realizing it belatedly, Cui’er hurriedly said, “But during those days, I never sensed anything amiss from the Head Merchant at all…”
“Why limit it to just those days?” Wang Xiuhe curled her lips into a cold, superficial smile. “I fear he began setting up this trap as early as eight years ago. You and I are nothing more than live fish being slowly boiled alive by him in lukewarm water.”
“Eight years ago?”
Wasn’t that exactly when the disaster first struck the Fang family?
Cui’er felt a sudden chill run down her spine. “Then was Fu Jingxuan marrying into the Fang family also part of their conspiracy?”
Wang Xiuhe said, “Fu Jingxuan was probably an unexpected factor, but he must have been scheming that cup of tea at the Tea Tasting Convention for a long time.”
“Then… given the current situation, what should we do?”
Wang Xiuhe fell silent. She looked at the Tao family members standing beside Lord Song, then shifted her gaze to the mahogany chair where Hu Ruosong had just been sitting.
Now that Fang Zesheng had laid his cards on the table with her, he personally handed over the business of those hundred thousand piculs to her right in front of Lord Song. If she failed to fulfill this contract, she would undoubtedly become a laughingstock in the tea trade; whether she could still hold her place in the Tea Merchants’s Guild would be the least of her worries; since it involved imperial business, even her life could be on the line. Fang Zesheng had intentionally offered the Fang family’s tea-whisking techniques to help her win, deliberately elevating her position and forcing her to shoulder this responsibility before the crowd. He surely had a hidden move prepared to sabotage that batch of tea. Having spent so much effort to reach this point, she naturally wouldn’t let him succeed easily. However, although she currently held the reins of power in the Fang family, she had no allies in the tea market. The younger generations of the Tao and Hu families were both close to Fu Jingxuan and might be conspiring with him; she had to remain wary. As for Fu Shangyi, though he disliked his son, blood was thicker than water after all, and he would not be willing to take her side.
At present, there was only one person she could still rely on and trust in this tea market.
“Ruyan!”
Lord Song gave a few final instructions to the group and was the first to walk out of the flower hall. Liu Ruyan saw Wang Xiuhe walking toward her while following behind Fu Shangyi. She paused to wait for her and asked, “Sister Xiu, what do you need me for?”
Wang Xiuhe said, “May I sit beside you at today’s dinner?”
Liu Ruyan said, “That would be wonderful. You must have a few drinks with me after the meal as well; you have no idea how troubled I have been these past two days. I really must vent my grievances to you.”
Lord Song came and went into haste. After finishing two cups of the white froth he had long been craving, he led his attendants to Yunhe Tower. Hindered by his legs, Fang Zesheng did not go with them. After seeing Lord Song to the entrance, he turned his head only to find that the person pushing him had changed to the mute uncle.
He originally wanted to ask, where did Fu Jingxuan go?
After reflecting for a long while, he swallowed those words back down and signaled the mute uncle to take him back to the study.
The sun sank behind the western mountains; the crimson glow spilling over the peaks like rouge melting into water, blending into a vibrant, flowing scroll.
Cooking smoke drifted from the inner courtyard’s kitchen. The mute uncle left the study, prepared two bowls of fragrant white porridge along with two small side dishes, and carried them to the round table where Fang Zesheng usually dined.
This table faced the doorway. Fang Zesheng sat in his wheelchair and waited for a while until a thin layer of skin formed over the porridge, yet the round stool opposite him remained empty.
Seeing that he had not touched his chopsticks for a long time, the mute uncle took the initiative to pick them up and hand them to him. Unexpectedly, he not only refused to take them but also stealthily lifted his eyes to glance outside the door.
The mute uncle smiled knowingly, instantly understanding his meaning. Just as he was about to set the chopsticks back on the table, a brisk sound of footsteps came from outside the door. He originally intended to gesture that the Second Master had arrived, but unexpectedly, Fang Zesheng broke from his usual composure; he snatched the chopsticks from his hand, leaned over, and poked at the wrinkled surface of the porridge and stirred it twice.
With this stir, it became impossible to tell that the bowl of porridge had actually been sitting for a long time.
A single grain of rice clung to his chopsticks; by placing it in his mouth, he gave the impression that he was in the midst of eating.
When Fu Jingxuan entered the room, Fang Zesheng was picking up a side dish. He gave him a flat, indifferent glance and was just about to withdraw his gaze nonchalantly when he noticed that after being out of sight for half the day, that person had reappeared in a change of clothes. He immediately frowned. “Are you going out?”
Fu Jingxuan was wearing a cross-collared robe of cyan and white color, embroidered with circular floral patterns of butterflies with overlapping antennae. Every movement and smile exuded an air of romantic elegance. “Tao Xianzhi is leaving tomorrow; I’m going over to see him off.”
Fang Zesheng nodded, intending to say no more; until he heard Fu Jingxuan add, “Coincidentally, I heard a new Southern brothel has opened in the East Market. I want to go see if I can try my luck and find someone new to my liking.”
Having finished speaking, he turned to leave but he didn’t expect his trailing left hand to be suddenly seized.
The Second Master Fu gave a soft, puzzled hum and said with a smile, “What is the meaning of this, Head Merchant?”
Fang Zesheng did not look at him. He turned his head to the side and said with downcast eyes, “Don’t go.”
Fu Jingxuan asked, “Why? If the Head Merchant won’t accept my heart, are you also forbidding me from seeking someone else’s?”
Fang Zesheng knew the sharpness of his words. He stayed silent, applying just enough force to draw the Second Master back half a step, and murmured, “Don’t go.”
