Chapter 15 The Assassins
On New Year’s Eve, after the family dinner, I sat on the swing in the courtyard, lost in thought.
Thinking back on this year, I suddenly felt everything was somewhat unreal.
Pei Zhao appeared behind me at some point.
He reached out and gently pushed the swing for me.
The last time I spent New Year with him was when I was eleven.
Father had bought me firecrackers. Early that morning, I lit one and secretly threw it into Pei Zhao’s room.
He ran out in nothing but his underclothes, face flushed with anger, yet completely helpless against me.
Recalling that, I looked up at Pei Zhao.
I asked, “Do you dislike Chang'an?”
“Why do you ask?”
“You weren’t happy the year you lived here as a child, were you?”
“Living under someone else’s roof must have been frightening.”
“I thought you probably hated Chang'an.”
He answered seriously, “It’s not exactly hate, nor exactly like.”
Not exactly hate, nor exactly like.
He probably felt the same way about me.
……
We stayed in Chang'an for over half a month.
When we finally set off back to Jinling by water route, we were only one ferry stop away when we encountered bandits.
I thought they were after money.
But it looked like they were after our lives.
Pei Zhao knew some martial arts. He was gravely injured in the fight.
We barely managed to escape and took shelter in a kind family’s home.
That night, Pei Zhao developed a high fever.
Even feeding him medicine was difficult.
I suspected these assassins had been sent by Madam Pei.
She would stop at nothing to kill Pei Zhao so her own son could inherit the family fortune alone.
I had no other choice.
With nowhere left to turn, I wrote a letter to Su Yunqing for help.
Her elder brother had returned to take up an official post in Jinling and had become the governor of the city.
He was known for being upright and incorruptible.
I spread the matter of Miss Zhao again.
Back then, they had colluded between officials and merchants, exchanging money to cover up the case of four lives.
Now that it was brought up again, many commoners cried out for justice on their behalf.
The official who had handled the case was now surrounded by controversy and could barely protect himself.
Madam Pei grew so anxious that she sent people after me again.
As she wished.
I deliberately exposed my whereabouts to lure the assassins out.
The constables sent by Lord Su were hiding in the shadows and captured them all at once.
These two cases were enough to flip the entire Pei family upside down.
The rest no longer needed my involvement.
Pei Zhao’s fever finally subsided.
The wound on his back was terrifying, a long, ugly gash.
Seven days had passed, and he still hadn’t woken up.
Su Yunqing called another physician.
The physician said, “The wound was infected before. It’s already a miracle he survived this long. Whether he wakes up or not now depends on fate.”
I cried again.
This time, he wouldn’t be there to comfort me.
He lay on the bed, looking so weak…
Su Yunqing took my hand. “Don’t worry. When the betrothal was arranged, the fortune teller said Suizhi has deep blessings. He will definitely be fine.”
She meant to comfort me, but the moment the words left her mouth, Su Yunqing’s expression changed slightly.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bring that up.”
I shook my head. “How could I blame you?”
I had only met Su Yunqing three times in total, yet I felt an unusual sense of closeness with her.
A woman like her, no one could possibly dislike.