Chapter 28.2

Our Discord Server: https://discord.gg/PazjBDkTmW

Fan Changyu felt like she was starting to sound a little too sentimental. She scratched her head and said, “Honestly, I was just talking. I didn’t really feel all that upset. At the end of the day, I still have to live my own life. He passed the exams and rose to success—that’s his business. What’s it got to do with me? As for those people who suck up to power and take a jab at me while they’re at it… saying a few nasty things won’t actually get them anything from the Song family. All they’ve got is loose tongues.”

Xie Zheng gave her a strange look. “Why would I try to cheer you up? Being a juren really isn’t anything special.”

Fan Changyu choked. “And what, you think you’re some high official?”

Xie Zheng went silent.

She found it hard not to laugh. Remembering that he could read and write, and even compose shiwen essays, she started thinking seriously on his behalf. “You seem pretty clever to me, and your handwriting’s nice too. But with all these injuries that keep flaring up, and the doctor saying you might be left with permanent damage… Escort work is dangerous. Why not give studying for the exams a try? You never know—you might pass the provincial exam and become a juren yourself. Maybe even end up with a proper official post someday.”

Xie Zheng: “…I’ve no interest in the civil service.”

Fan Changyu sighed. “That really is a shame.”

Then, half-jokingly, she added, “But hey, if you ever do become an official, and your rank ends up higher than that Song fellow’s, I’ll be counting on you to give him a hard time on my behalf!”

Xie Zheng’s brow lifted ever so slightly. “Alright,” he said.

That bit of banter had completely swept away the earlier gloom.

Fan Changyu suddenly remembered the chicken soup she had simmering. “I’ve got soup stewing in the clay pot—it should be ready by now. I’ll go ladle some up for you.”

As she stood, she noticed the little packet of candies by his bedside had deflated. Her heart ached a little. “I’ll find you some pebbles instead. Don’t go throwing candy next time you need to hit someone—this stuff’s expensive! What a waste!”

After she headed downstairs, Xie Zheng stared at the few paper-wrapped candy packets, his brow furrowing.

He’d never liked sweets. His daily life, from meals to travel, had always been managed by his personal guards. He genuinely had no idea how much candies cost.

She was always short on money, yet she’d still bought him candy. Just because she thought he didn’t like bitter medicine?

Xie Zheng slowly closed his eyes, his thoughts tangled in a way he couldn’t quite explain.

***

Two days later, Zheng Wenchang arrived in the small town of Lin’an once again, this time leading another group of soldiers.

When Fan Changyu heard the news, she went to the entrance of her home to greet them.

Zheng Wenchang, still astride his horse, said, “The recent murders in town have been investigated. It’s confirmed—they were the work of mountain bandits.”

Fan Changyu’s heart skipped a beat at his words. She said, “But my home was broken into twice…”

Zheng Wenchang cut her off. “Your home was attacked twice because of a caravan your father escorted years ago. Rumor has it he was transporting a treasure map belonging to the royal family of the former dynasty. Over a decade ago, the entire escort team was slaughtered by those trying to seize the map. Your father barely escaped with his life and only then returned home to live in peace all these years.

“With the recent unrest in Chongzhou, talk of that map has resurfaced. Some mountain bandits tracked down your father’s past whereabouts—and that’s why they’ve been coming to your home, again and again, searching for the treasure map.”

That explanation did make sense of the strange events in Lin’an these past days. Fan Changyu asked, “Were my parents killed by those same bandits?”

Zheng Wenchang frowned and looked away from her. “Naturally.”

Learning the true reason behind her parents’ deaths weighed heavily on Fan Changyu’s heart. Thinking back, perhaps her father had taught her martial arts and yet always forbade her from using them in public precisely because he feared bringing danger upon them.

She said, “My parents never once mentioned anything about a treasure map. Is it possible there’s been some kind of mistake?”

Zheng Wenchang replied, “Of course the rumor about the map being in your father’s possession was false. Just days ago, rebel forces in Chongzhou claimed they’ve already acquired the treasure map. The bandits won’t be coming to this town anymore. You can rest completely easy now.”

As he spoke, Zheng Wenchang made a gesture, and a soldier stepped forward holding a tray piled with silver. His gaze toward Fan Changyu held a subtle, almost imperceptible nuance. “Governor He of Jizhou, deeply moved by the plight of the people, has especially ordered this official to deliver fifty taels as a condolence payment.”

Fan Changyu offered her thanks with genuine sincerity.

The neighbors praised loudly, “Lord He truly is a just official—the clear-sky magistrate of Jizhou! Everyone who suffered from those bandits, everyone who lost family, the government gave them all relief money!”

Someone asked, “But I heard most households only got twenty-five taels. Why did the Fan family get fifty?”

Another responded immediately, “Those families only lost one person. Both Fan Er and his wife were killed—their household naturally received more silver.”

***

The case was officially closed, and the government’s seal was removed from the Fan family’s front door.

Fan Changyu thoroughly cleaned every corner of the house—especially the courtyard and rooms where blood had been spilled. She didn’t just rinse everything with water several times, she also boiled pomelo leaves and sprinkled the fragrant water throughout the home, an old custom said to ward off evil.

Only after everything was tidied did she bring Changning and Xie Zheng back from the neighbor’s house.

She lit a stick of incense and placed it before her parents’ memorial tablets, a trace of sting in her eyes. “Father, Mother… you can rest now.”

Only Xie Zheng remained frowning.

He had long known that the attackers were Wei family death warriors—not the so-called mountain bandits Zheng Wenchang spoke of. And what they were after certainly wasn’t some ridiculous treasure map.

Still, the authorities had gone to the trouble of fabricating a plausible lie to close the case and even distributed silver to the families caught up in the chaos. That level of effort was no small thing.

Xie Zheng couldn’t make sense of it.

If He Jingyuan had truly wanted to help Wei Yan retrieve that letter, he should’ve sent soldiers to seal off the Fan household and search it thoroughly. But instead, he had returned the house to Fan Changyu, then went to great lengths to smooth over the incidents—almost as if he didn’t want to disrupt her life, as if he wanted her to remain here in this town.

What exactly was He Jingyuan after?

Or… was it that the letter the Wei family death guards had been searching for had long since vanished from the Fan residence?

Xie Zheng turned his gaze toward the two memorial tablets on the altar.

He Jingyuan likely knew the true identities of this husband and wife. And as for the letter’s secret—perhaps he knew that, too.

===
Translator’s Note:

Juren (举人):
A title given to those who passed the provincial-level imperial exam. It carried prestige, official stipends, and the possibility of entering government service.

Xiucai (秀才):
The lowest rank in the imperial examination system, earned by passing the county-level exam. It gave social recognition but no official position.

Shiwen (时文):
A highly structured essay style required for the imperial exams, based on Confucian texts. Mastery of shiwen was essential for scholarly advancement.

“Kill the chicken to scare the monkey” (杀鸡儆猴):
A proverb meaning to punish one person as a warning to others.

Pomelo leaf water:
A traditional folk remedy used to cleanse homes after misfortune. It’s believed to dispel bad luck and ward off evil.