Chapter 23: There's More to It

   

Chapter 23: There's More to It

"It's not like that! That young master Zhou... he might have feelings for the lady, but the lady only saw him as a kindred spirit in poetry, nothing more. She just couldn't bear to see someone with such talent be neglected, so she offered him support." Xier's voice lowered a bit. "Besides, young master Zhou is rather ordinary in appearance... The lady is used to looking at herself in the mirror every day, so how could she have any romantic feelings for such a plain face?"

In other words, when it comes to family background or looks, one of them has to be on par, right?

Perhaps young master Zhou hoped for such a promise, but our lady certainly did not.

The lady only sought a confidant to discuss poetry with, offering her kindness out of goodwill.

Chang Kuo, after listening for a while, finally breathed a sigh of relief and slapped his thigh. "That's more like it! How could a lady from the Chang family care for his grand proposal? Even if he somehow became a top scholar by luck, we still wouldn't care! For someone else, such a promise might hold some appeal, but for our Suining, it's just a hard biscuit—too tough to chew!"

Chang Suining also subtly relaxed. Whether A Li was simply clear-headed or just unaware of certain feelings, it was fortunate that she hadn't given away her heart so easily.

Perhaps it was because she never lacked for food, clothing, or money, that she wouldn't be easily swayed by vague promises about the future.

Their A Li was raised with care, sheltered and nurtured well. Though sensitive, she was pure-hearted and would extend her generosity to others simply because she admired their talent.

And precisely because of this, if this person was indeed involved in what happened to A Li, he would be absolutely unforgivable.

At this point, Xi'er glanced at Chang Sui'an. "After the young lord learned of this, he suspected the lady was being deceived and tried to warn her... but the lady believed young master Zhou was virtuous and didn't really listen."

"Offering kindness is good. Our household isn't short of silver anyway," Chang Kuo looked at Chang Suining and gently reminded her, "But if your kindness is taken advantage of, that's another matter. What do you think, Suining?"

Now that this person had been mentioned, it was only natural for a father to give a bit of advice.

Chang Suining nodded. "That's true. I would appreciate it if Father could have someone investigate this person's background carefully."

Chang Kuo, both surprised and pleased, agreed without hesitation.

"How often does this person usually send letters?" Chang Suining asked Xier. "Was there any correspondence while I was away?"

"Normally, there would be a letter every ten days or so... As for this recent period, I wouldn't know," Xier replied, glancing at Chang Sui'an and Steward Bai.

Since the incident, she hadn't left her room even once—the lady's accident happened right under her nose, so it was only proper for her to be confined.

"There was a letter... about eight or nine days ago. It was slipped in quietly through the back door," Chang Sui'an reluctantly admitted.

"Do you still have it?" Chang Suining asked. "I'd like to see it."

"Your sister is asking you a question!" Seeing his son's hesitation, Chang Kuo almost grabbed the teapot next to him to throw.

Only then did Chang Sui'an say, "Jiantong, go fetch the letter."

Chang Suining then asked Xier, "Do we still have his previous letters?"

Since A Li truly admired his talent, she likely would have kept them—

Xi'er didn't answer immediately, instead looking awkwardly toward Chang Sui'an.

Chang Sui'an's face flushed. "They... they’re all with me. Jiantong, bring them all over."

Jiantong acknowledged and went to fetch them.

"After the incident, I, along with the young lord, suspected Zhou Ding might be involved... So, we secretly examined the last letter he sent to the lady, trying to see if he'd arranged to meet her in secret," Steward Bai explained.

Chang Sui'an, ashamed, added, "Ningning, I was too anxious, which is why I looked through your things..."

Chang Suining made no comment, only asking, "So, the last letter before the Lantern Festival didn't mention any invitation?"

Steward Bai nodded.

Because of this, they dismissed their suspicions.

Though the lady corresponded with this person, there was no inappropriate conduct. Their communication was purely through letters, with no other way of passing messages.

Moreover, since this person sent another letter eight or nine days ago, inviting her again, it didn’t seem like he knew anything had happened to the lady.

Steward Bai shared these thoughts and conclusions aloud.

Chang Kuo, however, seemed deep in thought. "That doesn’t necessarily clear him of suspicion... After Suining fell into the water, she ended up in the hands of villains. When Sui'an hired a boatman to dredge the river without success, people thought we were searching for an object. But if the fall into the water was deliberate, then for the culprit, without a body, they would still feel uneasy..."

Chang Suining nodded. "So, if Zhou Ding is involved, that letter from eight or nine days ago might be both a cover and a test."

—A test to see if A Li was still alive.

Steward Bai pondered and nodded in agreement.

It was indeed possible.

However, since they were focused on finding the lady at the time, they hadn't investigated further. And with news of the lady's whereabouts quickly coming from Lord Yu, they had let go of Zhou Ding as a lead, as he seemed innocent.

But now it seemed that the incident of the lady falling into the water and being captured by kidnappers might be two separate events that just happened to overlap.

Now that the latter had been clarified and the lady clearly remembered falling into the water, it was time to thoroughly investigate the former.

The letters were quickly brought in, filling an entire sandalwood box.

After reading through them, Chang Suining remarked, "These poems and writings are indeed extraordinary."

Chang Sui'an felt a bit deflated—was his sister still so enthralled with Zhou Ding’s talents, even after everything?

"As you said, he's a fraud."

Chang Sui'an and the others were stunned.

"Suining, what do you mean?" Chang Kuo quickly asked.

"At first, I didn’t notice anything..." Chang Suining started, giving a half-truth, "But now, when you compare them all together, you can see that these poems have very different styles, not like they were written by the same person."

Chang Kuo was astonished. "They're all in black and white, how could you tell?"

"Of course," Chang Suining explained. "Just as Father is skilled with a blade and archery, though one may dabble in many martial arts, one's primary focus will always show. And just as a person’s combat style reflects their personality, so does poetry reflect the poet's experiences and character. The flaw lies in that."

Either Zhou Ding was a madman with severe personality disorders, or he was an extraordinary genius.

But such a genius would surely have already gained recognition, like Lord Wei—someone whose brilliance couldn't be hidden. And a person like that wouldn’t lack for patrons.

"So, you mean the poems Zhou Ding sent you were written by someone else?" Chang Sui'an was both shocked and furious. "I can't believe I thought he had some real talent!"

"He probably does have some talent—at least his handwriting is decent," Chang Suining said. "But his eagerness to impress may have gotten the better of him. Knowing that his appeal lay in his talent, he didn’t want to lose that glow. But when he couldn’t consistently produce great works, he either borrowed or hired others to write for him. Once he got away with it, he did it again."

Though A Li loved poetry, she was still young and inexperienced.

But Chang Suining wasn’t the same. Since childhood, she had been surrounded by true scholars, the best of the best.

  

So, to her, these forgeries were obvious.

"I knew it... Taking advantage of the lady’s money—what kind of gentleman is that? A false gentleman like him is certainly up to no good!" Chang Sui'an, both angry and smug at his own foresight, suddenly straightened his posture.

Chang Kuo frowned. "If he's clearly deceiving Suining, then what does that say about his character?"

"Exactly." Chang Suining picked up the last letter A Li had received, dated the day before the Lantern Festival.

She spoke slowly, "And it was this person who invited me to meet him at the Lantern Festival."

There was more to the letter than met the eye.

...

 

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