Chapter 4

Qin Xiyi had only meant it as a pretext, never expecting it to become a new fixture of the capital’s scenery.

Every day at dusk, the reserved yet distinguished Scholar Cheng would stand atop the capital’s grandest brothel, watching the crowds bustle below.

He neither drank nor called for company, simply standing there for two hours before leaving a silver ingot and vanishing into the moonlight.

To catch a glimpse of him, young noblewomen would flock to Qingcheng Tower Street as the night lights flickered on. The street would be packed with carriages and people jostling for a chance to see the scholar’s elegant bearing.

Rumors swirled that the one Scholar Cheng loved was no mortal, for no one on earth was worthy of him. They said he gazed at the sky, waiting for his fairy wife to descend to the mortal realm so they could finally be together.

Qin Xiyi initially laughed off these rumors. But after ten days, she couldn’t help herself and snuck off to Qingcheng Tower Street to steal a glance from afar.

Amidst that dazzling den of vice, he stood tall and proud, possessing an air so ethereal it was no wonder people claimed he loved a fairy.

After that one look, Qin Xiyi found she could no longer stay away. Every day at the appointed hour, she would find herself walking to the front of that building.

The man on the balcony, the woman below—this silent exchange of gazes lasted for half a month.

Qin Xiyi felt she had never been so sentimental in her life. She swore she would only watch for a month; after that, even if Cheng Mozhi stood right before her, she wouldn’t see him.

Today marked the end of that month. But since dawn, heavy rain had poured and summer thunder rolled, showing no signs of stopping even as the lanterns were lit.

Qin Xiyi sat in the “Heaven” suite of Qingcheng Tower, clutching a lotus-shaped wine cup as she looked toward the balcony railing outside.

Today, at the appointed hour, it was empty.

Cheng Mozhi hadn’t come. Qin Xiyi had known he wouldn’t be able to. It wasn’t because of the rain, but because he had dared to remonstrate with her father during the morning audience, infuriating the Emperor. He had been ordered to kneel outside the palace for the entire day.

Drenched and exhausted by the downpour, word was he had to be carried home.

When Qin Xiyi heard the news, her heart twisted into a knot. She was furious at his stubborn pedantry, yet so sick with worry that she couldn’t sit still. In the end, she had braved the storm to come to Qingcheng Tower.

She downed one cup of wine after another.

Qin Xiyi was a bit tipsy as she stared at the empty railing and muttered a curse.

“Why are you so dull? What’s the point of advising an emperor like him…?”

The Princess had only uttered one sentence, but her attendants outside the door dropped to their knees in terror. Fortunately, she wasn’t too drunk and swallowed the rest of her words.

“The entire Great Zhao, from top to bottom, is crawling with lice and fleas. It’s rotten to the core…”

Midnight had passed, and her attendants had urged her to return to the manor three times.

Qin Xiyi stood up to close the window herself, preparing to leave, when she heard the host’s shout from outside.

“Master Cheng! Why have you come at this hour? Oh dear, you’re unwell—you shouldn’t be out here in the wind. If anything happens to you, we’ll never hear the end of it…”

That shout hit Qin Xiyi’s heart like a stone dropped into a pond, sending ripples through her soul.

Stumbling, she flung the window open. There stood Cheng Mozhi, soaked to the bone, standing rigidly by the railing. His eyes were lowered, looking right toward her.

Their eyes met. In that moment, the shimmering light in their gazes converged into the very image they had both been yearning for.

In an instant, before she could even think of her usual flirtatious banter, Qin Xiyi reached through the window and yanked him inside.

That night, Scholar Cheng did not leave Qingcheng Tower.