Chapter 6 – Sister, Avert Your Eyes

Granny Zhao pinched her nose in disgust as she surveyed the room they’d be sleeping in tonight.

A faint musty smell lingered in the air.

The weather was damp, and with no sunlight, the room had remained unoccupied for years. It was no surprise that it had developed a moldy odor.

Just then, a young maid walked into the room and reported softly, “Granny, the village chief said there’s a waterfall by the mountain. The young miss took the young master up there to see it.”

Granny Zhao frowned. So troublesome. In this freezing weather, they had to go mountain climbing to see a waterfall? She certainly knew how to enjoy herself.

“Send two guards to protect them. And have someone boil hot water for me—I need a bath. These old bones are about to fall apart.”

The maid quickly acknowledged the order and hurried off to relay her instructions.

*

Tang Chaoyang glanced at the two guards following them.

She gave them a quick once-over, then withdrew her gaze.

One guard was missing his left hand. The other had lost his left eye.

They were likely soldiers who had retired from the battlefield.

Most of the Su family’s guards were veterans—men without families or children.

“What are your names?” Tang Chaoyang asked.

“I’m Ma Jiang, and this is my elder brother, Ma Ge,” the one-eyed man replied.

Ma Jiang had a sturdy build and looked powerful. In the bitter cold, he wore only a thin guard uniform.

His elder brother Ma Ge was slightly leaner, his gaze steady and reserved.

“How did you lose your hand?” Tang Chaoyang asked, closely watching Ma Ge’s expression.

Ma Ge remained calm—no sadness, no bitterness, no irritation.

“It was cut off by a barbarian.”

“When the weather changes, does your injured limb ache or feel uncomfortable?” Tang Chaoyang asked evenly.

“Yes.” It wasn’t a surprising question—any doctor would know about such symptoms.

Ma Ge just didn’t understand why this young miss was asking.

“When we return to the capital, I’ll write you a prescription. Whether you use it or not is up to you.”

Tang Chaoyang walked ahead, holding Fei An’an’s hand.

The Ma brothers exchanged glances. They couldn’t quite make sense of this young lady.

Wasn’t she rumored to be arrogant and spoiled? A beauty without brains?

When did she learn medicine?

Tang Chaoyang wasn’t worried that people would suspect her of witchcraft for showing medical knowledge now.

She had always enjoyed hiding behind medical books from a young age—her way of redeeming herself, since she was terrible at playing the zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting.

“An’an, if you get tired, tell Mommy, okay?”

“Okay.”

They walked to the foot of the mountain and began to climb. After about fifteen minutes, they reached the waterfall.

Fei An’an, seeing a waterfall for the first time, widened his eyes in awe. “Wow!”

Water thundered down from above with tremendous force.

Tang Chaoyang looked down at her son’s delighted face, her heart softening. “An’an, stay here and watch the waterfall. Mommy is going to look around for medicinal herbs.”

Fei An’an quickly tore his gaze from the waterfall and tugged at her sleeve. “I’ll go with you!”

Tang Chaoyang smiled and stroked his head. “No need. You enjoy the waterfall.”

She turned to the Ma brothers. “Please take care of An’an. No need to follow me.”

“Yes, Miss,” Ma Jiang replied.

Seeing how obedient they were—no questions, no insistence on trailing her—Tang Chaoyang was quite satisfied and smiled faintly.

She borrowed Ma Jiang’s sword and used it to part the grass as she carefully searched for wild ginseng.

“Brother,” Ma Ge said quietly, “we’re not following the young miss. If something happens to her, we’ll be punished.”

“There shouldn’t be any danger here,” Ma Jiang said as he scanned the surroundings. “Besides, it’s obvious she doesn’t want us to follow.”

Tang Chaoyang couldn’t hear their conversation. Her mind was focused on what that drunkard had told her in her past life.

The wild ginseng was hidden somewhere near the waterfall.

**

At that moment, a tall young man was just about to put on his robe when he heard footsteps approaching.

He raised a hand slightly, signaling the hidden shadow guards in the trees not to act.

Tang Chaoyang hadn’t expected to run into someone here.

Especially not a half-dressed young man.

The man saw her and said lazily, with a teasing edge, “Sister, haven’t you heard? You shouldn’t ogle what you shouldn’t see.”

Tang Chaoyang didn’t react right away.

The man radiated the vitality of youth.

She replied calmly, “You’re the one indecently dressed in broad daylight.”

She had practiced medicine for twenty years in her past life—there wasn’t a body she hadn’t seen. To her, his physique was just another male form.

The young man was momentarily stunned, then burst into laughter.

He casually continued dressing, his movements elegant and unhurried.

“My mistake. I didn’t expect to encounter anyone here,” he said playfully, his gaze curious as he studied her. “What are you looking for?”

The woman before him wore plain clothes and had her hair styled like a married woman. She wore no makeup, yet her features were striking.

In Jin Country, married women typically styled their hair in a specific manner.

“Medicinal herbs.”

Tang Chaoyang was already on high alert and answered casually.

This man seemed a little dangerous.

She turned to walk in another direction, but out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a hint of pale yellow peeking out from a crevice beneath a large boulder.

Her heart stirred. That might be the ginseng she was searching for. She feigned indifference and walked away in the opposite direction.

With someone still nearby, she couldn’t inspect it yet.

She would wait until later.

Once the woman was out of sight, the young man—none other than the new emperor, Ling Gurong—said lightly, “Go investigate that woman. Find out whether her presence here was coincidence or conspiracy.”

One of the hidden shadow guards obeyed and disappeared into the woods.

**

The carriage passed inspection at the city gate and finally entered the capital.

Inside the carriage, Tang Chaoyang held the box containing the wild ginseng as if it were a treasure.

With it, her grandparents now had an added layer of protection.

They were both elderly, after all.

Fei An’an lifted the curtain and excitedly gazed out at the bustling streets.

“Mommy, we’re back!”

The child was thrilled.

They were finally in the capital again.

Tang Chaoyang saw her son staring longingly at the candied hawthorn skewers held by a street vendor. She smiled and called out to the driver to stop.

“An’an, Mommy wants some candied hawthorn. Do you want one?”

Fei An’an nodded vigorously. “Yes! But…” The clever little boy whispered, “Mommy, we don’t have any money.”

Tang Chaoyang’s heart twisted slightly. “Just two copper coins—Mommy has that.”

She planned to retrieve her dowry from the Prime Minister’s residence in a couple of days. It wasn’t much, but enough to get them through the tough times for now.

Mother and son got out of the carriage and walked over to the vendor.

Tang Chaoyang only bought one skewer for Fei An’an.

“Mommy, you eat first.” Fei An’an lifted the skewer high on tiptoe.

Tang Chaoyang bent down and took a bite, giving him a thumbs-up and smiling. “Delicious.”

Fei An’an eagerly took a bite himself.

Suddenly, his gaze froze on a familiar figure up ahead.

He had spotted his father.

And beside his father was a woman.

His eyes widened, and unease crept across his little face.

Tang Chaoyang caught the subtle hum of distress from her son and quickly noticed the shift in his mood.

She turned in the direction of his gaze.

Just in time to see a scene unfold nearby.

Fei Yan was carefully placing an ornate hairpin into a woman’s hair.

The woman tilted her head up, her eyes brimming with tender affection.