Chapter 22
Chapter 22
The night stretched on, heavy snow swirling wildly between them like a white curtain that divided two separate worlds.
Four attendants flanked Shen Si, glass lanterns in hand. Their bright light spilled across his black fox-fur cloak, and his tall, elegant figure carried an air that made everyone else feel painfully inferior.
Behind her lay a scene of panicked chaos and utter disarray. Before her was the cold, desolate stillness he had brought with him.
Summoning her courage, she walked toward him, gazing at him through her white veil, hoping only for the chance to say a single word.
The attendants beside Shen Si immediately moved to drive her away, but he gave a slight lift of his hand, and they retreated behind him.
He stopped and watched as Ji Hanyi approached. A fierce wind tore through the alley, battering her slender yet shapely figure and sending her skirts billowing.
The wind stirred the white gauze at her fingertips, brushing it against her snow-pale skin. Beneath one corner of the veil, the tip of her nose had reddened from the cold. Her black-and-white almond eyes, faintly alluring, looked urgently toward him, brimming with hope and unease.
Her petite body was wrapped in a red cloak flecked with gold. When she raised one delicate hand, a sliver of luminous white wrist showed beneath her sleeve.
His gaze swept over her face only once. Just as she was about to reach him, he turned and headed for the gate.
Shen Si had no intention of stopping for Ji Hanyi. This woman had no business appearing before him again and again.
Realizing that their lord did not wish to see her, his attendants hurriedly blocked Ji Hanyi’s path, preventing her from taking another step.
With the tall guards barring her way, Ji Hanyi could only watch as his slender figure disappeared behind the vermilion gate. Her eyes stung.
Only after the gate had closed did the guard in front of her finally leave.
Shen Si walked onward with an aloof expression. A gatekeeper followed beside him and cautiously held out a jade pendant. “Marquis, the woman outside asked me to give this to you.”
Shen Si lowered his gaze. The moment he saw the jade pendant in the servant’s hand, his steps faltered slightly.
The gatekeeper had not expected the Marquis to stop. Watching Shen Si’s expression carefully, he hastened to add, “She said she won’t leave unless she sees the Marquis tonight.”
“Shall I have someone drive her away?”
Shen Si reached out and took the jade pendant into his palm. His thumb brushed over every inch of it. It seemed steeped in the warm, cloyingly sweet fragrance that clung to her, spreading through the snowstorm like a haze.
Cold snowflakes landed one after another in his palm, melting against his fingertips.
The muted glow of the glass lanterns pooled across the damp ground. Shen Si stood there for a moment without saying a word, then resumed walking.
The servant had no idea what that meant. The Marquis had neither agreed to see her nor ordered her driven away.
So what was he supposed to do?
The Marquis’s thoughts had always been exceedingly difficult to fathom. The servant turned to Wen’an, who was following behind them.
Wen’an made a gesture telling him to leave the matter alone for now. If anything needed to be done, the Marquis would naturally give the order.
Wen’an had seen the woman clearly while following behind the Marquis. Wasn’t she the woman from the other day — the one the Marquis had watched from above for so long?
For some reason, he felt that she must be different from the others.
He had only served beside the Marquis for a little over three years, but when had the Marquis ever spared more than a moment’s attention for any woman?
If any other woman had appeared tonight, she would have been driven away long ago. She certainly would not have been allowed to wait outside.
Shen Si returned to his study. The underfloor heating had long since warmed the room, and official documents were piled across the desk. He waved everyone out and sat alone behind it.
Yet the soft rustle of snow outside the window sounded unbearably loud to him. He walked over and pushed the window open. Heavy snow swept inside, carrying a bone-piercing chill.
A sudden irritation rose within him.
He despised the emotions stirring in his heart at that moment.
It was just like the wind and snow outside. No matter how fiercely he resisted, it still found its way through every crack.
He summoned Wen’an from outside, and Wen’an hurried in.
Seated behind the desk, Shen Si asked with feigned nonchalance, “Has she left?”
Wen’an froze for a moment before realizing whom he meant. He quickly replied, “She probably hasn’t left yet.”
Shen Si raised his eyes and glanced at him. A long silence followed. Then, looking at the jade pendant on the desk, he said mildly, “Have her come see me.”
When Wen’an reached the front gate, the woman was indeed still there.
She was standing outside in such bitter cold.
He tried to discern her identity, but her carriage was entirely unremarkable and bore no insignia. She did not appear to come from a prominent clan.
The woman standing in the snow was petite, wrapped in a silver fox-fur cloak and wearing a veiled hat. Her face was hidden, so he could not even tell whether she was pretty or plain. He truly could not see what was so special about her.
Nevertheless, Wen’an remained unfailingly courteous as he invited Ji Hanyi to enter through the side gate.
After all, it was late at night, and she was a woman. They had to protect the Marquis’s reputation.
The people at the front gate would not dare gossip, but what if someone happened to see her?
Ji Hanyi’s fingertips clutched the white gauze of her hat, afraid that her face might be exposed. This arrangement was exactly what she wanted.
She had no intention of claiming some connection with Shen Si and setting tongues wagging.
She had once planned to keep that jade pendant hidden for the rest of her life, yet in the end, she had still used it to ask for his help.
The two of them now inhabited entirely different worlds. He had probably forgotten her long ago. She was already grateful that he was willing to see her at all.
Shen Si’s study was exceptionally quiet. Ji Hanyi was not unfamiliar with this place. Though she had not set foot here in years, returning still evoked a faint sense of familiarity.
No servants remained in the study. She was shown into the outer room to wait and sat down somewhat uneasily.
Her hands, reddened from the cold, clasped the steaming teacup tightly. All the while, she wondered anxiously how she should broach her request to Shen Si.
He likely had no time to listen to her exchange polite pleasantries about the past. Besides, he had probably forgotten it all long ago.
Perhaps she should simply make her request outright.
Before coming here, all she had thought about was how she could meet him. Yet now that she was about to do so, nerves had tangled her thoughts into a hopeless mess. She had no idea where to begin, and even the thought of speaking made her tense.
Yes, she was still somewhat afraid of him.
Of his coldness.
Her thoughts were interrupted by someone emerging from the inner room with a message. When he told her that Shen Si would see her, her fingers curled tight before she finally walked inside.
Shen Si silently watched the figure cast upon the screen.
The screen was translucent enough for him to see her every movement clearly. He also heard her cough softly several times.
He saw her pause just before stepping past the screen, then continue forward.
He withdrew his gaze and waited for her to enter his domain.
Without betraying a thing, he observed her.
When Ji Hanyi entered, Shen Si was the only person in the room, seated behind the desk with a brush in hand. His silver silk robes made him appear noble, remote, and cold.
He did not spare her a glance, as though he had carved out only a moment to see her amid his endless affairs.
Perhaps that truly was the case. He had always seemed like a wintry moon suspended high in the heavens, aloof from mortal concerns and indifferent to the joys and sorrows of those around him.
With her fingertips, she lifted the white gauze of her hat and draped it over the brim. She stopped where she was, lowered her eyes, and spoke with meek, cautious deference.
“My cousin has been taken to the Northern Pacification Office. I don’t know whether he is alive or dead.
“His performance at the Imperial Academy has always been outstanding. If he passes his assessment next year, he will be granted an official post. This incident was Cousin Xun’s fault, but I beg Lord Shen to help him this once.”
With that, Ji Hanyi sank to her knees and bowed her head. In a low voice, she added, “Tonight, I return the jade pendant to Lord Shen. From this day forward, I will never trouble you again.”