Chapter 4

Zheng Qingxu’s forty lashes had been formidable.

I had felt no pain that day, but the sound of tearing cloth told me my back had been flayed open.

I had no choice but to scream a few times and pretend to faint from the pain.

Zheng Qingxu had been too anxious then to notice a flaw in my performance.

Had he sensed something wrong today?

My thoughts wandered as several household guards dragged me by the arms to Bright Mirror Hall in the west garden.

Bright Mirror Hall was forbidden ground in the Zheng residence. Only Zheng Qingxu ever went in or out.

The servants said he kept countless antiques and treasures there, the wealth he had saved over many years.

I was tossed lightly inside, raising a layer of dust from the floor.

The room was dim. A bright mirror hung high at the front; inside, the doors, windows, four walls, and ceiling were all plastered thickly with talismans, giving the place a sinister chill.

Zheng Qingxu sat alone in a broad wooden armchair, his five gaunt fingers clutching its arm. His haggard, venomous face was hidden in the shadows.

I moved with difficulty and prostrated myself in fearful respect. “Your servant greets you, my lord…”

As I bent, fresh blood seeped through the newly wrapped bandages on my back.

Zheng Qingxu stared at the stain for a long time before speaking hoarsely. “Tell me again what happened the night Xi drowned. From beginning to end. Leave out no detail.”

I hastily agreed. Following the account I had prepared long ago, I began with fetching her from the woodshed and ended with my return the next morning.

“…It was all my own doing. Please, my lord, don’t punish the mistress.”

By the end, my voice was thick with tears.

Zheng Qingxu sighed deeply and pushed himself slowly up from his chair. “You came with Xianghe from her family as her maid. Eight years in this house, isn’t it? Do you know how I made my fortune?”

I answered ingratiatingly, “My lord, everyone in the household knows you made your fortune in medicine. Every apothecary in Jiangling Prefecture depends on your goodwill.”

Sure enough, he gave a few laughs.

“Yes. Medicinal herbs are a fine thing. Profitable, and easy to adulterate. They’ve earned the Zheng family bucket after bucket of gold.”

Swaying on his feet, he lifted a heavy object from the table and stumbled toward me.

“But it wasn’t medicine that first made me rich. It was a piece of priceless blood jade.”

The object landed. Its thick wooden base struck the brick floor, jolting the sharp blade shut with a harsh metallic clang.

The timid expression vanished from my face.

It was a medicine chopper.

The base was old ironwood. Blood still marked its fine grain, layer upon layer.

“Chuntang.”

Zheng Qingxu’s voice suddenly sounded beside my ear.

I turned my head and met his murderous eyes.

“Would you like to see what blood jade looks like?”