Overthinking Only Breeds Confusion
Wang Qiuzhou led the two back to the large estate where Xiao Rongyan was staying. He ordered bathwater brought in, then told the two of them to wash up and change into fresh clothes before settling into a chair with a leisurely cup of tea, quietly working out in his mind why his master had chosen to buy these two.
Before long, the younger boy finished his bath and came out dressed. Wang Qiuzhou, who had seen more people than he could count, started visibly at the sight of him.
His frame was tall and straight beneath a well-fitted dark robe, and his features were handsome to the point of distinction. Above all, those two eyes hid a piercing keenness behind their sharpness. He looked like the son of a family of no small standing even among the great noble houses.
How had such a person fallen into the hands of a slave trader?
Lost in thought, Wang Qiuzhou suddenly realized what remarkable eyes his master had. The boy had been sitting in that cage, half-dead and utterly wrecked in appearance—yet somehow his master had seen that this boy was extraordinary.
Perhaps it was the boy's air of nobility, or perhaps simply that the years spent as a slave had been too long for such a bearing to fade, but Wang Qiuzhou found himself speaking to the boy in an unexpectedly courteous tone, inviting him to come along and pay his respects to their master.
The boy gave a light nod. He was neither servile nor arrogant—his manner was calm and measured, and his voice remarkably gentle.
"Please, lead the way."
To be so distinguished at such a young age. Wang Qiuzhou became certain the boy was a young gentleman raised with the strictest education in some noble house, and treated him with even greater deference and respect.
After ushering the boy to Xiao Rongyan's study, Wang Qiuzhou withdrew.
Xiao Rongyan sat before the brazier, a Go stone in one hand and a book in the other, studying the board. He did not spare the boy so much as a glance.
The boy, for his part, showed no impatience. He stood quietly by the doorway and began openly looking Xiao Rongyan over, the proud poise of a young master of a great house plain to see.
This boy was none other than Bai Qingjue—the seventh son of the Bai family of the Duke of Zhenguo's estate, the elder brother of the youngest male sibling of the family.
Water boiled over from the kettle on the brazier and spilled out, hissing.
Only then did Xiao Rongyan set his book on the table and, using a cloth, lift the teapot to pour two cups of tea.
"Do you play Go?"
"A little."
Bai Qingjue's answer was light yet composed.
Every son of the Bai family was an exceptional talent. However ragged his clothing, nothing could hide the proud dignity engraved in his very bones.
Xiao Rongyan lifted his head, looked toward where the boy stood, then raised a hand to gesture at the seat across from him, a smile on his face.
"Sit."
Bai Qingjue declined nothing. He swept back the hem of his robe and settled into the seat opposite Xiao Rongyan with effortless grace.
Xiao Rongyan poured him a cup of tea, his gaze lowered to the Go board—and only then caught the faint scent of blood drifting from the boy. He was wounded. Yet Xiao Rongyan had noticed nothing of it moments ago.
"Are you a man of Great Jin, young master?" Xiao Rongyan asked with a smile.
Bai Qingjue's gaze lifted from the board to that calm, unreadable face, and he nodded before answering truthfully.
"I am."
"A son of one of the great houses?"
Xiao Rongyan asked again.
"I set out with my father on campaign, and quite unexpectedly the great army of Jin met with defeat... Fortunately, the slave trader saved my life."
Bai Qingjue answered without hesitation—but had no intention whatsoever of offering his true name.
Xiao Rongyan nodded and set the kettle back atop the brazier, then began studying the boy's face in careful detail.
"I am merely Xiao Rongyan, a merchant of the Great Wei. A few days ago I arrived at Wanping City alongside the Crown Prince of Jin, who set out for the Southern Border with his fifty thousand relief troops."
"The Crown Prince?"
Bai Qingjue looked up, a puzzled light in his eyes.
"Until quite recently, he was the reigning Emperor."
Xiao Rongyan explained at length.
Between being wounded and being rescued, Bai Qingjue would have had no way of hearing news from Jin—so he would not yet know that the Emperor had already been succeeded by the Crown Prince.
Xiao Rongyan lowered his head slightly, gazing at Bai Qingjue's eyes—so strikingly like Bai Jingyan's—and continued speaking.
"Then you won't know this either. Prince Xin, who forced the King of Zhenguo onto the battlefield with the Gold Token of Command, has already been stripped down to commoner status."
Bai Qingjue regarded Xiao Rongyan with quiet, still eyes. He was a man of graceful, cultivated bearing.
"The Duke of Zhenguo has been posthumously elevated to King of Zhenguo, and Prince Xin slandered him, claiming the man had stubbornly dragged his army to war against orders. But against all expectation, one of the Bai family's loyal retainers returned bearing the army's campaign records. Madam Bai struck the Dengwen Drum with those records in hand, and the hearts of the people rose up so powerfully that even the Emperor of Jin was compelled to grant the Bai family a proper burial ground."
At the mention of his eldest sister, the light in Bai Qingjue's eyes deepened further. He forced down the surging tide of emotion, steadying himself so that none of it showed on his face.
His frail eldest sister had struck the Dengwen Drum?
That would be exactly like her. How is she faring now?
Xiao Rongyan watched Bai Qingjue, who played at indifference while toying with his teacup, with keen interest—and silently marveled.
The sons and daughters of the Bai family are extraordinary, every last one of them. He looks no more than sixteen, yet he holds his expression as unshakable as Mount Tai. A man with depths like this will never disgrace the name he carries.
"Speaking of Madam Bai—that woman is truly a heroine among women."
Xiao Rongyan went on at his leisure.
"Madam Bai set out on campaign with the Crown Prince, and the entire way there and back she marched on foot with the whole army, weighted down with sandbags. And she recovered the strength to draw the Sun-Shooting Bow again! At the Battle of Wengshan, she drove over a hundred thousand Xiliang troops—more than half the arrogant army of Jin—into Wengshan Canyon and annihilated every last one of them. Did you see the flames in the sky toward Wengshan, young master? The corpses of the Xiliang army were burning there."
Bai Qingjue clenched his jaw without meaning to. His mind and body reeled, and for a moment hot blood surged up into his head.
Why did she come to the Southern Border? And weighted with sandbags the entire journey, marching on foot?
He gripped the fabric of his robe. Had that emperor, that creature worse than a cur, threatened her?
No. His sister would never do something she did not wish to do, no matter how a dog of an emperor threatened her.
Bai Qingjue's thoughts tangled until his breathing roughened, and his emotions finally broke through. His fists clenched atop his knees, then slowly, deliberately loosened again. He settled his feelings back into stillness.
He did not yet know whether this news was true. To worry over it too much would only bring confusion.
Looking at Xiao Rongyan's refined, handsome face wreathed in its faint smile, Bai Qingjue thought to himself that he could not quite believe this man—so steeped in learning and scholarly elegance—was a merchant reeking of money. He did not fully trust Xiao Rongyan's claimed identity either.
Xiao Rongyan set down his teacup.
"I nearly forgot to ask. Why did you save that woman today, young master? Do you know her?"
"I don't know her. But we are both people of Jin, and I could not simply watch her be humiliated."
Bai Qingjue looked at Xiao Rongyan with deep, unreadable eyes.
"You bought me, sir. What is your reason?"
"I am a man of trade. It benefits me to stay close to the great houses of Jin. Your bearing was exceptional, and you seemed to possess martial skill as well, so I judged you the son of a noble house. I wished to form a connection with you—that is why I brought you here."
Xiao Rongyan's word choice was exceedingly humble. Brought, not bought.
"Might you tell me which house you belong to, young master? I would send men to escort you safely back to Jin. Of course, if you'd rather not reveal your family, I won't press you. Only—if fate brings us together again someday, I hope you'll think nothing of my merchant origins and share a cup of wine with me."
Xiao Rongyan said nothing of any other family—only of his grandfather and the Duke of Zhenguo's estate. And of his eldest sister too. He suspects, Bai Qingjue thought, that I am a child of the Bai family—at least to some degree.
How could a man as clever as Bai Qingjue fail to read Xiao Rongyan's intent?
Bai Qingjue raised his teacup high and spoke.
"I owe you my life, sir, so the debt is mine alone to repay. Dragging my family into it would hardly be fitting. I ask for your gracious understanding."
Unless Xiao Rongyan named his identity outright, he had no obligation to reveal it. But the people of the Bai family always repaid their debts, and that was why Bai Qingjue had not fled the slave trader who owned him—why he had left himself at the man's mercy, to be sold as he pleased.
His plan, had he been sold off, was to repay the debt and go—so long as no vile work was demanded of him.
Then, against all expectation, he had been purchased by Xiao Rongyan—the famed merchant of Wei. Xiao Rongyan was a man of considerable renown, and Bai Qingjue had at least heard the name.
Of course, he couldn't know whether the man before him was truly that Xiao Rongyan. Still, this man had paid money to save him, so the debt had to be honored. But the Bai family must never be drawn into it.
Born into a great house, protecting his family's interests and dignity was a duty more important than life itself for every son and daughter of the Bai clan, Bai Qingjue included. That was why not one of them ever allowed their family to repay a debt they had incurred.
Xiao Rongyan merely smiled as though surprised, and did not accept the cup Bai Qingjue raised.
"Then how do you intend to repay me?"
Bai Qingjue's voice was firm.
"Ten times the price you paid for me. And three more favors besides. When those three things are done, I will leave."
The Bai family had its own code of honor: debts of gratitude must always be repaid. Xiao Rongyan had already learned that from Bai Jingyan.
So it was not his place to force the matter. He raised his hand, accepted the cup Bai Qingjue offered as his answer, and asked with a smile.
"Then what shall I call you, young master?"
"Call me Wang Qijue."
Bai Qingjue replied.
Seventh son of the Bai family, son of a mother of the Wang clan—so he had chosen the name Wang Qijue. Once his debt to Xiao Rongyan was paid, this name would have nothing more to do with him.
"Very well. Young Master Qijue, from today you are my personal guard. When the three favors are done and the silver is repaid, you may leave."
Saying this, Xiao Rongyan drained his cup, then called for someone to see Bai Qingjue to a place where he could rest.
Given how tangled the situation in Jin had become, not returning at once might well be the wiser choice. If the Crown Prince of Jin or the Emperor himself ever learned of it, the surviving members of the Bai family would be in danger.
He would have to send word to Bai Jingyan, and put her mind at ease.
After Bai Qingjue withdrew, Xiao Rongyan summoned Wang Qiuzhou and told him to arrange a physician for the boy.
Wang Qiuzhou, sensing that his master took this young gentleman seriously, answered, then added,
"Master, the young master says he left markers along the road as he followed me. I didn't notice them, but our hidden guards did."
Xiao Rongyan arched a brow, then nodded and said he understood.
"Master, shall we have the markers removed?"
Wang Qiuzhou asked.
"No. Leave them be."
Xiao Rongyan answered.
For some reason, the boy hadn't seemed particularly eager to rush home. He could not yet gauge the situation in Jin, so he would not return recklessly. And by leaving markers, the Bai family would come searching for him. Clever and composed to the last—he truly was a remarkable one.
A boy of about sixteen. He couldn't be certain which son of the Bai family he was, but that he was a child of the Bai clan was beyond doubt. How delighted Bai Jingyan would be when she found out.
Xiao Rongyan placed a single stone on the Go board, a faint smile touching the corners of his mouth.
He poured the remaining stones back into the bowl, rose, and spread a sheet of letter paper across the table. Taking up the brush in his left hand, he wrote slowly and carefully. Once the ink had dried, he sealed the letter in an envelope, summoned the guard who had delivered his messages to Bai Jingyan before, and ordered him to send it to her at once.