At a grand Buddhist ceremony like today, all the halls were closed to visitors, except for the main hall, where common folk are permitted to gather, burn incense, and pay homage to the Buddha. Those who entered the rear hall were all there for the Zen tea gathering and must, at this moment, be seated in the main hall, meditating in quiet contemplation.
There were few children like Chen Dan-niang—lively and drawn to crowds yet averse to restrictions—but not none. After all, nothing in this world is ever absolute.
Cheng Jiao-niang withdrew her gaze and continued looking at the image of Guanyin on the wall.
Chen Dan-niang and the others paid no heed. Naturally, they were not the only ones strolling through the temple. Seeing that there were ladies present in the hall, those who understood decorum and propriety instinctively kept their distance.
However, the maids couldn’t help but steal a few glances at the young man.
He was dressed in moon-white robes, adorned with nothing but a simple jade pendant. His frame was tall and slender, his complexion as fair as white jade, and his smile radiant and unclouded.
Standing there, he resembled a flawless jade statue—so dazzling that it was impossible to look away.
No one knew whose son he was.
The young man lifted his foot and stepped forward. The maids averted their gazes out of propriety, yet instead of moving away, the sound of his footsteps drew closer.
“Hey.” A clear, bright voice called out.
Everyone instinctively turned toward the sound.
They saw the young man smiling—not at them, but at Cheng Jiao-niang in particular.
How bold!
So, he wasn’t someone who observed etiquette and propriety. The maids and Chen Dan-niang’s servants quickly stepped forward to block his way.
Cheng Jiao-niang withdrew her gaze from the wall and looked over again at the sound.
Her expression was as composed as ever—whether facing a pack of wolves or standing before people, she remained the same.
She was younger than him, a sheltered young lady of the boudoir, yet how had she cultivated such an unshakable calm, an unflinching poise in the face of surprise?
He wondered—what would she look like when startled? Or… could she even be startled at all?
Look at her now—he was staring at her so intently, yet her expression didn’t change in the slightest.
Her eyes were large, yet when she looked at people, it never felt like she was staring them down…
No matter how skilled one was at masking their emotions, the eyes always betrayed a flicker of surprise. But hers never did. Not even that time when he suddenly lifted her hood—she had simply remained still, unmoving.
Was this how she always reacted to strangers?
Then again, perhaps… he wasn’t really a stranger anymore.
The smile at the corner of the young man’s lips spread uncontrollably.
“Hey, so you’re here too,” he said.
His words were abrupt and without context, leaving the maids momentarily stunned. Were the idle young men of the capital all using such casual greetings these days?
Cheng Jiao-niang looked at him and gave a slight nod as a gesture of acknowledgment.
“Yes,” she replied.
Could it be that they knew each other?
The maid was surprised. She glanced at Cheng Jiao-niang, then at the young noble before her. Looking closer, he did seem somewhat familiar… as if she had seen him somewhere before.
“Lady Cheng,” Chen Dan-niang turned around, glancing first at the Duke of Jin’an, then at Cheng Jiao-niang. “Do you know him?”
Children never hid their words—if they wanted to know something, they asked directly.
“We’ve met once,” Cheng Jiao-niang replied.
She still remembered him!
The smile on the Duke of Jin’an’s face grew even brighter.
“So your surname is Cheng,” he said, a hint of realization in his tone. “Oh, so that residence really is yours.”
Once again, his words were abrupt and lacking context.
“Yes, that Chen family residence is mine now,” Cheng Jiao-niang replied.
The Duke of Jin’an looked at her and smiled.
“I saw you go in, but when I asked, they said it wasn’t the Chen family’s anymore,” he said. “Scared me for a moment—I thought I had the wrong person.”
The maids were utterly confused, standing there in a daze, yet the two of them clearly understood each other perfectly.
One of the maids stared blankly for a moment before suddenly exclaiming, “Oh! Oh, it’s you, it’s you!” She finally recognized him, her voice slipping into excitement as she pointed at him.
The Duke of Jin’an smiled slightly and raised a finger to his lips in a quieting gesture.
So they really did know each other. Chen Dan-niang’s maids let out a small sigh of relief.
Still, a lone man and an unmarried woman—exchanging a few words as a greeting was fine, but it was best not to linger in conversation.
Just as the maid was considering how to intervene, Cheng Jiao-niang had already taken Chen Dan-niang’s hand and started walking away.
“Hey, where are you going?” the Duke of Jin’an quickly asked.
“Leaving,” replied Cheng Jiao-niang, turning her head to look at him.
“Why leave so soon?” the Duke of Jin’an asked with a smile.
“I’ve finished seeing it,” said Cheng Jiao-niang.
The Duke of Jin’an was stunned for a moment, then laughed again.
That’s right—having seen the Great Compassion Hall, of course it was time to go.
Cheng Jiao-niang took Chen Dan-niang’s hand as they stepped out of the Great Compassion Hall.
“Let’s go see the Spirit Pagoda!” Chen Dan-niang called out, quickening her steps in excitement.
The maids hurried after them, and of course, the Duke of Jin’an followed close behind.
“Young Master,” the maid stopped and turned around, frowning sternly. “Stop following us.”
The Duke of Jin’an smiled faintly.
“I’m not following you,” he said. “I’m going to see the Spirit Pagoda.”
The maid glared.
“Then go after we’re done,” she retorted.
The Duke of Jin’an nodded with a smile.
“Very well,” he agreed without hesitation.
This man is the worst kind of rogue—he once dared to lift Miss’s veil in public! How can his words be trusted?
“Your mistress is getting farther away,” the Duke of Jin’an remarked cheerfully, pointing ahead with a grin.
The maid quickly glanced back and indeed saw Cheng Jiao-niang and the others already walking ahead.
Ever since she had begun serving her mistress—no, ever since she had followed the old master—she had always carried herself with ease and composure, handling everything with confidence. Yet, in front of this scoundrel, she somehow lost her usual poise.
She shot the Duke of Jin’an another glare before hurrying to catch up.
“That maid is truly bold,” the eunuch remarked.
“Those who have faced a pack of wolves naturally have no small amount of courage,” the Duke of Jin’an replied with a laugh, then added, “As the master is, so is the servant.”
In short, all of this was thanks to that lady.
The eunuch couldn’t help but laugh inwardly.
“Yes, no wonder people are always praising me,” he said with a grin.
The Duke of Jin’an burst into laughter.
Watching the departing mistress and maid, the eunuch clasped his hands together.
“Your Highness, has it truly come to pass?” he asked.
It has truly come to pass!
The Duke of Jin’an gave a firm nod.
“It has truly come to pass,” he said.
It has truly come to pass!
He had found her—he had found her! And so easily at that! After all the twists and turns, the longing to see her yet being unable, the searching without a trace—who would have thought that, upon lifting his head, she would simply appear before him like this?
The Duke of Jin’an strode forward in long steps to follow.
Chen Dan-niang had already circled the pagoda several times, while the maid beside her kept murmuring instructions on how to make a proper wish, while also reminding her not to make frivolous ones.
“Can I pray for blessings for Father, Mother, and Grandfather?” Chen Dan-niang asked.
“That’s perfectly fine, perfectly fine,” the maid replied with a smile.
“Lady Cheng, come and make a wish too!” Chen Dan-niang called out, waving her over.
Standing nearby while observing the stone pagoda, Cheng Jiao-niang smiled faintly and shook her head.
“Lady Cheng is a disciple of True Master Li—she wouldn’t pray or make wishes before the Buddha,” the maid whispered to Chen Dan-niang.
A disciple of the Daoist Patriarch would never bow in worship before a Buddhist shrine.
Cheng Jiao-niang merely smiled without responding and continued gazing up at the stone pagoda. The seven-tiered tower was adorned with bronze bells that chimed crisply in the spring breeze.
Her maid neither circled the pagoda nor joined her mistress in admiring it. Instead, she anxiously glanced backward—only to see that rogue leisurely sauntering their way.
“When this pagoda was first built, it leaned slightly to the northwest,” the Duke of Jin’an interjected with a smile, overhearing their conversation.
“…At the time, someone questioned it, but the chief craftsman claimed it would straighten itself after a hundred years,” the maid hurriedly added, cutting in as she tugged Cheng Jiao-niang’s arm to steer her a few steps away.
“…Next year will mark the full century. Look—it’s already nearly upright now,” the Duke of Jin’an continued, raising his voice as he followed after them, undeterred.
“We’re not blind—we can see for ourselves,” the maid snapped, turning back with an angry glare.
Cheng Jiao-niang also glanced over. The Duke of Jin’an grinned playfully at her, but she averted her gaze and returned to studying the pagoda.
The maid relaxed slightly and shot him a look that said, Who cares what you think?
Yet the Duke of Jin’an remained cheerfully undeterred.
“Right?” he called out, raising his voice.
This time, Cheng Jiao-niang turned her eyes back to him.
“Yes,” she replied.
The Duke of Jin’an gazed at her, his smile deepening.
