Behind Ji Qingwu stood a towering willow tree.
Its branches drooped to the edge of the pond, swaying behind the woman as the wind stirred them.
Ji Qingwu, dressed in a cyan gown, resembled a small tree herself. Her features were as soft as willows shrouded in mist, yet her posture was straight and tall.
Seeing Mo Lingling’s guilty expression, Ji Qingwu continued, "You’re making such a scene, letting the entire city know you’re pregnant and looking for a father for your child. What is it all for?"
Her thoughts exposed, Mo Lingling flushed with anger and embarrassnt. "It’s for nothing! You’re overthinking things, miss!" With that, she turned and tried to hurry away.
Ji Qingwu didn’t stop her, simply calling out calmly to her retreating back, "You’re trying to force the real father of your child to show himself, aren’t you?"
When she had pulled the other woman by the wrist earlier, she had secretly taken Mo Lingling’s pulse. "But if you keep carrying on like this, you’ll lose the baby before he ever appears."
Mo Lingling’s shoulders trembled, and she froze in place.
Ji Qingwu’s words about the fetus had struck a crack in her composure.
Being this close, Ji Qingwu had long since slled the mugwort on her. Mo Lingling must have known about the signs of an unstable pregnancy and had been using moxibustion early on to protect the fetus.
Mo Lingling said wearily, "But I have no better way. This is all I can do."
Ji Qingwu asked, "Is it that the child’s father is unwilling to take responsibility?"
She had made her pregnancy known throughout the city. Even if the man were blind and deaf, he would have heard about it by now.
"I think he’s... he’s just too busy," Mo Lingling defended in a small voice.
Ji Qingwu looked up at the azure sky and was silent for a long ti. She was at a loss for words.
’I shouldn’t have gotten involved. I should respect each person’s fate.’ Shaking her head, she started to walk away.
This ti, however, Mo Lingling had cald down. She hurried after her, saying, "But he really has been very busy with official duties lately. He’s not ignoring on purpose." ’Of all the excuses I could find for him, this one is the most plausible.’
Ji Qingwu slowed her pace and asked, "Official duties? Is he a court official?"
"I didn’t say that," Mo Lingling said, covering her mouth, afraid she had let sothing slip.
"Then don’t," Ji Qingwu said crisply.
She continued walking, but after a few dozen steps, she stopped.
Staring at the three-way fork in the path ahead, Ji Qingwu didn’t know which way to go. She had been walking so hastily while pulling Mo Lingling along that she hadn’t paid attention to the route.
Mo Lingling looked at the intersection. "I don’t know the way either. I ca with you, so you have to get back to the main gate."
Neither of them rembered the way back and had no idea how to return. They could only wander and hope for the best. But after walking for nearly an hour, making countless turns, a thin sheen of sweat began to form on Ji Qingwu’s forehead.
Eventually, they found themselves on a winding, narrow path leading to a secluded spot. There was no sound of people, only the chirping of birds and the croaking of frogs.
They had been walking for so long without a word, and Mo Lingling couldn’t hold it in any longer.
She called out, "Fifth Miss Ji."
The path was very narrow, with weeds over a ter tall on both sides. Ji Qingwu had to gather her skirts and hold them up as she walked.
Without turning or stopping, she asked, "What is it?"
Mo Lingling bit her lip. She felt that Ji Qingwu was soone she could trust, and so she finally voiced the question that had been weighing on her mind for days.
"If the person you love is soone widely admired, and you know your family backgrounds and statuses don’t match at all, that being together is destined to be difficult, would you still fight for it?"
’It seems the status gap between her and the child’s father is imnse. He must be a high-ranking court official.’
Ji Qingwu pushed aside an overgrown blade of grass and asked, not understanding, "Why must you match?"
Mo Lingling was at a loss for words. "Shouldn’t matters of marriage be between families of equal social standing...?" she whispered.
"Then would you be willing to marry a servant?"
"Of course not!"
Ji Qingwu chuckled softly. "You know to be picky about your food and to choose exquisite and beautiful clothes and jewelry. Why wouldn’t you choose the best when selecting a husband?"
Mo Lingling was stunned for a long ti. With a heart full of sorrow, she said, "The difference between us is like that between the clouds and the mud. No matter how confident I am, I feel I can’t hold my head up high in front of him."
"If you debase yourself, others naturally won’t think highly of you. Did you fall for him because of his fa and status?"
Mo Lingling imdiately denied it. "Absolutely not! I’ve admired him ever since I was in Xianyang. Back then, he was still..." Her voice trailed off as she seed to get lost in her mories.
Ji Qingwu glanced back at her, asking in surprise, "You’re from Xianyang? Why did you co to Lin’an?"
Xianyang was a prosperous and stable place. Mo Lingling didn’t need to travel to take civil service exams like a man, so what was the purpose of her long and arduous journey?
Hearing her question, Mo Lingling simply rolled up her sleeve, revealing a large patch of skin.
Ji Qingwu imdiately took a wary step back.
Mo Lingling glared. "I’m not going to do anything to you. See for yourself."
There was a large brand on her right arm. Ji Qingwu’s eyes widened slightly.
"You’re..."
"I’m the daughter of a convicted official. My father was originally the County Magistrate of Xianyang. He was frad for corruption and murdered in prison."
Mo Lingling spoke calmly, as if telling soone else’s story. "And because of that, I was forced to beco an official prostitute."
’So she was an official’s daughter who had fallen into disgrace.’
Now Ji Qingwu understood the source of that naive streak that surfaced from ti to ti.
Mo Lingling lowered her eyes and said softly, "He said he would help clear my father’s na. I’ve been waiting for him."
"I won’t comnt on your affairs."
Ji Qingwu reached out and gently, tenderly, pulled down the rolled-up sleeve. "But you must take care of your health. Don’t catch a cold."
It had been a long ti since anyone had shown her such genuine concern. Mo Lingling’s eyes began to sting. She forced them wide, trying hard to act as if nothing was wrong.
She changed the subject. "Fifth Miss Ji, you analyze matters of the heart so logically. What kind of man was your husband? The one who died."
Ji Qingwu withdrew her hand.
She turned crisply and continued walking without a word.
*
「Hanshan Temple, Master Liao Ran’s ditation chamber.」
Not long after Ji Qingwu’s departure, a distinguished guest arrived.
The man wore a cloud-white soft silk robe embroidered with orchid and key-fret patterns, embodying the saying: a gentleman should be like an orchid—a gentle breeze in a secluded valley, tranquil and far-reaching.
An elegant set of thin-bodied, official-kiln porcelain teaware was laid out before him.
Master Liao Ran was pouring tea for his guest. The fragrance of tea blended with the scent of burning charcoal, and a green liquid filled the white jade cup.
"This is tea that I personally picked and roasted in Zhangling. Please have a taste, Your Majesty."
Emperor Wu Su raised the teacup, savored its aroma, and took a small sip. "Acceptable," he said.
Master Liao Ran nodded in satisfaction. To receive the word "acceptable" from him was already high praise. His previous teas had all been rated as "inferior" or "substandard."
The two sat opposite each other on either side of an intricately carved Go board, an unfinished ga laid out upon it.
"The last ti I sought an audience with Your Majesty, I was unable to see you. Today, Your Majesty is in a leisurely mood, visiting my humble ditation chamber for a while."
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