Chapter 30: Tears Fell Pitter-Patter

Jiang Nian had been unconscious for a long time. When she opened her eyes again, her vision had not yet focused before she heard Madam Jiang sobbing.

"It is all my fault! How could I have so easily trusted Qingwan! Boo-hoo, Niannian, it is Mother who has brought this upon you!"

"Mother..." Jiang Nian’s voice was hoarse.

Madam Jiang was both overjoyed and startled. "Niannian, you’re awake! You’ve finally woken up, you scared me to death!"

"Do not blame yourself, Mother. Someone forged Cousin’s handwriting; even I failed to discern it..." Seeing Madam Jiang sobbing uncontrollably, Jiang Nian said softly, "Mother, that person was not Cousin at all. To avoid further complications, please do not mention this to the maternal family."

"Yes, yes, yes, I will do as you say!"

"I wish to speak with Jiuru for a while."

Pei Jiuru, standing to the side, immediately helped Madam Jiang up. "Mother-in-law, you have been worried all day; please go and rest first."

"Jiuru..."

"Rest assured, Mother-in-law. I will keep watch by Niannian’s side."

Madam Jiang nodded through her tears and turned to leave the bedroom.

Jiang Nian struggled to sit up. Pei Jiuru handed her a cup of water. After moistening her throat, she asked, "How is Lüla?"

"She is uninjured, only frightened." She had asked about Lüla first—the bond between mistress and maid was indeed deep.

Pei Jiuru added to himself that Lüla had been quite terrified; she had returned to the manor yesterday crying and crawling to report the incident. Although Jiang Nian had been found, Lüla had not stopped weeping, her eyes swollen until they were mere slits.

Jiang Nian finally let out a sigh of relief. "As long as she is fine. What time is it now?"

"You collapsed in the alley yesterday. It has been a day and a night. We are two quarters away from the hour of the Dragon (7:00 AM)."

"Tell me about what happened yesterday."

Pei Jiuru knew that he had failed to find Jiang Nian in time yesterday; it was merely a coincidence that he had encountered her after she had escaped on her own. He understood that Jiang Nian was asking now not to cast blame.

However, some things were not appropriate for him to say. "I will go call Lüla."

"No need. She is shaken; let her recover as well. You need not be reserved; just speak plainly."

Pei Jiuru nodded. "Yesterday, when Lüla returned to report that you had been deceived and drugged as soon as you reached Sun-Moon Lake, Madam Jiang was distraught and came to the study to find me."

"I am sorry for interrupting your studies."

"I did not think of it that way." He could distinguish what was truly important. "Upon learning of the matter, I intended to report it to the magistrate's office, but..."

Jiang Nian felt a sense of numbness. She knew her mother loved her, but it was hard not to resent her mother’s pedantry. It was not Madam Jiang’s fault, but the fault of the era.

"But my mother would not allow me to report it, fearing that if the news spread, it would damage my reputation. Even though I am already married, reputation remains paramount."

"I brought people to search near the Lakeside Pavilion, but asked many people without finding any news of you. The old boatman Lüla mentioned could not be found either."

Jiang Nian believed Pei Jiuru was not a man to speak without purpose, so she listened attentively.

"The perpetrators chose Sun-Moon Lake not by coincidence, so I suspected the mastermind's hideout might be nearby. I wanted to look for estates with their gates tightly barred... but without reporting to the authorities, I lacked the warrant to search private residences, which made things difficult..."

Pei Jiuru felt conflicted. Fortunately, Jiang Nian had been resourceful enough to save herself.

"It was hard on you..."

"I arrived too late." Pei Jiuru’s expression was dark and unreadable. A growing, intense desire burned within him.

"Not late at all. It is thanks to you that you found me, otherwise I might have been dragged back... When I received the letter, I had a premonition that I shouldn't have taken the bait so easily. I was too arrogant." Jiang Nian felt deep regret.

As her emotions stirred, a wave of pain struck, and she remembered the wound on her chest. "My injury?"

"The physician said it is a blessing that it is only a surface wound. It bled, but did not damage your heart or lungs. However, the shock of the cold water has caused it to fester slightly, so you must rest well."

"I see. Could you trouble yourself to bring me a mirror?"

Pei Jiuru complied without hesitation. He brought the mirror to Jiang Nian, and seeing her awkward posture, he held it up for her.

Jiang Nian twisted and turned, brushing her hair left and right.

A moment later, she began to shed tears, sobbing harder the more she looked at the mirror.

"Jiang Nian, you..." Pei Jiuru did not know what had happened and, in a panic, set the mirror aside. She had been so composed when she was in such a wretched state yesterday, and had ignored her injuries—why was she crying now?

"Jiang Nian..." Pei Jiuru looked up and saw a large, bald patch on her scalp. "Hair can grow back; there is no need to be so sad."

Hearing this, Jiang Nian cried even louder. "Damn Meng Yingying! I will not rest until I have settled this with her!"

Pei Jiuru had not expected Jiang Nian to value her hair so much. It was merely a few strands, and it wasn't as if they wouldn't grow back; was it worth all this? Her experiences yesterday, the wounds on her body—weren't those more worthy of tears?

Thinking this, Pei Jiuru handed a handkerchief to the girl whose nose was red from crying, soothing her, "I will have someone find a good remedy for hair growth; it will grow back in no time."

"No! This cannot be told to anyone!"

"..."

Jiang Nian grieved for a long time before her sobbing eventually ceased. "Is there anyone looking for me outside the manor?"

Pei Jiuru replied truthfully, "There is a maid who claims that Miss Meng had arranged to exchange letters with you. She has been waiting for a day and a night."

He had not allowed her into the manor; the entire household was in a state of alarm, and he dared not let anyone in.

"I will write the letter immediately!" Jiang Nian threw off the blanket, and the thought of her bald patch only made her more eager to write to Meng Yingying!

"Do not move; I will get the paper and brush."

Pei Jiuru brought the supplies to the bed and stacked a few books for her to use as a desk. For a scholar, writing on a bed was against etiquette, but Jiang Nian disregarded his opinion and began to write with intense focus.

She would not deceive Meng Yingying. The best way to keep Meng Yingying from pestering her was to keep her too busy to come looking. Therefore, what she wrote would surely allow Meng Yingying to follow the clues to find the truth.

But she could not swallow this insult. Even a clay figurine has a temper, let alone someone like her, who was never one to suffer a loss in silence.

She wrote everything with a mix of truth and lies—three parts true, seven parts false. She intentionally created a fog of difficulties for Meng Yingying, ensuring that if she wanted the truth, she would have to suffer greatly to find it!

"I am finished. Have Lüla deliver this personally to that maid. Wait, have Lüla ask if the person who fainted at the back door had a round face or a square face first. If they say a long face, then give her the letter!"

"Understood." Pei Jiuru sensed something unusual, but he followed their agreement: if Jiang Nian did not volunteer information, he would not ask.

"I am fine now, I just need to heal. You should return to your study to review your books."

Pei Jiuru stood up. "I will give the letter to Lüla."

"Good."

"Jiang Nian, the imperial examination next spring is very important to me, but I am not one to ignore the world outside. You do not need to urge me further."

"Oh." Jiang Nian nodded. "You are thoughtful, as always. My mother is still in the manor; you must prioritize me first."

"..."