Chapter 1

In the year 1644, Li Zicheng entered Beijing, and Emperor Chongzhen hanged himself on Coal Hill. Wu Sangui led the Qing troops through the pass, and Dorgon advanced into Central China.

The Ming Dynasty, which had lasted for 276 years, thus disintegrated. The Eight Banners swept through the regions north of the Yellow River, while Li Zicheng's Daxun Army retreated step by step, confined to Shaanxi. The Southern Ming Hongguang court, however, continued to seek temporary peace, immersed in the illusion of negotiating with the Manchus...

Hubei and Hunan were a single province at the time, known as Huguang. Except for the northern areas like Xiangyang, which were occupied by Li Zicheng's Daxun Army, most of the other regions were under the control of the Southern Ming. Due to the geographical barriers and long distances, the people of Huguang were slow to learn of the dramatic changes in the northern provinces. The villagers continued their peaceful lives, with weddings and funerals, red and white events, as if everything were still peaceful.

Chongyang County, Wuchang Prefecture, Huguang, was located at the southernmost tip of what is now Hubei Province, at the intersection of Hunan, Hubei, and Jiangxi. For hundreds of years, it had been a land of outstanding people and flourishing culture, producing many scholars and poets, with the Wang family of Dalu Hengshi being the most prominent.

During the Ming Dynasty, the Wang family was known for its tradition of farming and reading. In the Zhengde period, four members of the Wang family, including Wang Wensheng and Wang Zongyi, passed the imperial examinations, a feat that was widely praised. During the Wanli period, Wang Zongyi even served as the Minister of Personnel in Nanjing, a position of great importance, making the family extremely prominent.

By the end of the Ming Dynasty, the Wang family had grown into a large clan, with several branches all prosperous and wealthy. The collateral branches also produced many talented individuals, earning them a good reputation among the gentry of Hunan and Hubei.

A few days ago, the Wang family had just held a wedding for the fourth young master, Wang Kefan. Unfortunately, on the wedding day, Wang Kefan fell seriously ill after drinking too much and had been unconscious for several days, turning the wedding into a bit of a farce.

It was said that the bride was a beautiful and charming lady from another place. She was left alone in the bridal chamber, which drew many sighs and laments from the well-meaning people.

"Rooster! Rooster!"

The rooster's crow announced a new morning in Hengshi. In a narrow bed in the hall, a young girl of about thirteen or fourteen was sound asleep. The rooster's crow disturbed her dream, and she turned over, pulling the quilt over her head and falling back into a deep sleep. Her bare feet, however, stuck out from under the quilt, the pink cuffs of her trousers falling to her knees, revealing her white, slender calves and the bright red nail polish on her toes.

In the dim light, a figure quietly got dressed, carefully stepping past the girl's bed and quietly leaving the room. The room fell silent again.

After an indeterminate amount of time, hurried footsteps approached, and someone pushed the door open and came to the bed, gently patting the girl's head.

"Xicui, still sleeping? The fourth young master has been out for quite a while!" It was a gentle woman's voice.

"Mmm—, let me sleep a bit more. It's just the first rooster call, it's still early..." Xicui mumbled, half-asleep, but suddenly sat up, wide-eyed and alarmed. "What? The fourth young master is out?!"

"Yes, it's quite cool this morning. The fourth young master is still recovering from his illness. If he catches a cold, it would be terrible..." The woman's Mandarin had a strong Jiangxi accent, making her speech sweet and clear.

Before she could finish, Xicui jumped out of bed, ran to the wardrobe barefoot, and started rummaging through it frantically. "Oh no! Oh no! The fourth young master has only been awake for a couple of days. Who knows where he's gone? I need to bring him a thick coat. If the old lady finds out, I'll get a good scolding!"

The wardrobe shook violently, as if it might fall apart. The woman by the bed was taken aback, but Xicui suddenly straightened up, holding a robe, her face bright with relief. "Found it! Now to find the fourth young master!" She turned and finally saw the woman by the bed, and the fully awake Xicui was momentarily stunned. "Oh... Fourth Young Lady, why are you here so early?"

The woman called Fourth Young Lady was none other than the new bride of the Wang family, Fu Shihua, who had recently been the subject of much gossip among the aunts and uncles. She had been taking care of her unconscious husband and had become quite familiar with the maid Xicui. At that moment, however, she looked away, her face slightly flushed.

"Just now... I heard that the fourth young master was running in the street, his shirt untucked, his hair disheveled, and he was panting and sweating profusely. He looked very strange..." Fu Shihua, with her high bun, was dressed as a married woman, but she and Wang Kefan had not yet consummated their marriage, and they had hardly spoken. She felt a sudden shyness in front of Xicui.

Xicui, on the other hand, was wide-eyed and incredulous, unable to imagine what the fourth young master looked like.

In her mind, the fourth young master was a scholar in the county school, a proper literatus. How could he be running in the street in a short shirt, without even a hat or a headband? It was simply a disgrace to his status! Moreover, according to Fourth Young Lady, the fourth young master was "panting and sweating profusely," which meant he must have been running very hard. What if he fell ill again?

Why was the fourth young master running?

"Oh!" Xicui was alarmed again, her young face serious. "The fourth young master's illness isn't fully recovered. If he's running out so early, something must have happened... Yes, it must be something very serious!"

"What could have happened?" Xicui's alarm startled Fu Shihua, but she was more composed. She frowned and thought for a moment. "Yesterday afternoon, the steward from the main house came to see the fourth young master. At the time, the fourth young master was napping, and I didn't let him in. Perhaps... it has something to do with this?"

The head of the Wang clan came from the main house, while Wang Kefan's branch was a minor one. However, Wang Kefan's father, Wang Rui, had passed the imperial examination in the second class in 1637, giving him a unique status in the family.

"The main house came to see the fourth young master?" Xicui's eyes darted around, and she blurted out, "It must be news from the master!"

Wang Rui was serving as a judge in Datong, Shanxi, and had been out of contact for several months. If it weren't for the marriage arrangements made two years ago, Wang Kefan and Fu Shihua would not have been able to marry.

Wang Rui had gone to Datong alone to take up his post, leaving his wife and two sons in Chongyang. Previously, he would send a letter home every month or so, but after Li Zicheng's troops entered Shanxi in January, all communication was cut off.

Fu Shihua shook her head. "No, if it were news from the master, it should have been told to the mistress first. Why would it disturb the fourth young master's recovery? Besides, if the fourth young master knew about the master, he should have reported it to the mistress first, not run out on his own."

"Hmm... That makes sense." Xicui readily agreed, pushing the thinking to Fu Shihua. "So, Fourth Young Lady, why do you think the fourth young master is running?"

"I can't guess," Fu Shihua thought for a moment and then shook her head in defeat. She and Wang Kefan were nominally husband and wife but were as unfamiliar as strangers, and this incident was too strange to understand.

"Never mind, let me get a couple more clothes, and we'll go find the fourth young master together. We can ask him in person!" Without waiting for Fu Shihua's response, Xicui turned and went into the inner room. As the curtain swayed, her scream echoed through the room.

"Fourth Young Lady, come quick, come and see!"

Fu Shihua, thinking something had happened, hurriedly lifted the curtain and came to the bed. Following Xicui's gaze, her eyes were drawn to a neatly folded quilt at the head of the bed, and she was speechless.

She had never seen a quilt folded so neatly, square and precise, with edges as sharp as if cut by a knife, like a large block of tofu!