Zhang Shen didn’t know much about Lord Zhuang, nor had he studied the petitions submitted to the Office of Transmission in the same detail as Zhu Qingyu. But now, catching a glimpse of the whole through a single part—just from the gatekeeper alone—he could roughly discern what kind of person Lord Zhuang was.
Though he had yet to formally enter the officialdom, as head merchant he had dealt with all sorts of officials. A man like Lord Zhuang—if he hadn’t encountered him today, Zhang Shen would hardly have believed such a person existed in the imperial court. Naturally, it had never occurred to him that he himself could be such a person.
But Zhu Qingyu had said, “There should be someone like you too, right?”
She had asked, “Will there be?”
This was the line she drew for him at the very moment he was about to step into officialdom.
Since she hoped he would be that kind of person, then he would be.
He would become someone both loyal and useful to the emperor, and at the same time, become the person she believed he ought to be.
Zhang Shen smiled and said:
“There will be. But for now, let me first write the gratitude memorial and get past the imperial audience first.”
Last time he faced the emperor, someone had taught him word by word. But from now on, he had to rely on himself.
With Lord Zhuang’s model as a reference, Zhang Shen wrote his gratitude memorial quickly this time. It was delivered to the Office of Transmission early the next morning.
Perhaps the emperor was truly desperate for money. That afternoon, after the morning court session, the Ministry of Personnel sent over his appointment letter, official robe, and seal. Soon after, the emperor even dispatched a eunuch to the Zhang residence to summon Zhang Shen for an audience.
The eunuch was an old acquaintance—the same one who had delivered the previous imperial decree.
With no mischief from Gu Zhao this time, the eunuch was able to avoid the chaos of last time. Calmly and composedly, he read the decree, accepted a gratuity, and sat in the front hall sipping tea, waiting.
While the head steward kept the eunuch company in the front hall, Zhu Qingyu hurriedly accompanied Zhang Shen to change into his official robe.
As they say, fine feathers make fine birds. It was true. When Zhang Shen donned the blue official robe and put on the black gauze hat, he indeed looked the part—a dignified court official.
But just as he was about to leave, this court official pursed his lips and glanced back at Zhu Qingyu, betraying the nervousness in his heart.
Unlike Zhu Qingyu, who was an outsider, Zhang Shen, born and raised in this land, had been raised to revere the Son of Heaven as his sovereign. He held an innate reverence for the emperor, and the last time he entered the palace, he had barely come out with his life. The prospect of meeting the emperor again must have weighed heavily on him.
Zhu Qingyu stepped forward and took his hand:
“Let’s go. I’ll see you off.”
She accompanied him to the palace gate, where she couldn’t enter. So she said:
“Go on. Uncle Lü and I will wait for you outside.”
Worried about her waiting at the palace gate, Zhang Shen urged:
“It’s too cold outside. Don’t wait in the carriage. Go to the Fan Lou on Imperial Street. Rent a private room, order some food and drinks, and wait for me there. After my audience, I’ll come find you at the Fan Lou.”
The capital in winter was indeed bitterly cold. Who knew how long Zhang Shen would have to wait inside? If fortune favored him, he might be summoned soon. Otherwise, if the emperor was busy, he might not even be seen before the palace gates closed for the night—and he might have to come back the next day.
So Zhu Qingyu did just that. She went to the Fan Lou, rented a private room by the window, ordered a pot of tea and some pastries, and began to ponder: once Zhang Shen’s matters here were settled, should she write a letter to the people at the Zhu Family Medicine Clinic, telling them to come to the capital after the New Year and then travel with her to Shu?
After all, this wasn’t the modern world. Traveling such a long distance to Shu alone was unsafe. She needed people she could trust. It would also be a good opportunity for Su Mu and Lin Lan to broaden their horizons and see, firsthand, the different medicinal herbs from north to south, rather than relying solely on books, which could only give them a narrow perspective.
She could also take this chance to finish writing the medical manual she hadn’t yet completed.
But at the Zhu Family Medicine Clinic, Qi Shu was the only able-bodied man—hardly enough. She would need to hire a few more escorts.
As Zhu Qingyu was mulling over where to find reliable escorts, she spotted Gu Zhao riding slowly along Imperial Street on horseback.
This wasn’t even the end of the workday. Which made her wonder—what was wrong with this Lord Gu’s work ethic? Was he skipping out early again?
Even though she saw him, Zhu Qingyu had no intention of greeting him. But Gu Zhao meandered along, peering around as if searching for something. When he reached the Fan Lou and saw the Zhang family carriage, he dismounted and entered the tavern.
Zhu Qingyu thought to herself:
“Surely not. Don’t all blue carriages look the same? How could he recognize theirs? He must just be here for a drink, right?”
But Gu Zhao did recognize it. After asking the owner, he headed straight to his destination, led upstairs by a waiter.
Zhu Qingyu had no idea what Gu Zhao said to the owner, but the waiter knocked on her door, his face full of welcoming smiles:
“Madam, your guest has arrived.”
Zhu Qingyu looked over in confusion. Gu Zhao, ignoring Uncle Lü at the door as if he weren’t there, walked straight in and sat down across from her. He said with a grin:
“Didn’t you say the other day you’d treat me to a drink? Why didn’t you send me an invitation? And you’ve already started drinking without me?”
She had indeed said she would buy him a drink. Zhu Qingyu nodded and instructed Uncle Lü:
“Uncle Lü, please ask the owner to bring some wine and dishes.”
Delighted to make a sale, the waiter’s smile never faded as he guided Uncle Lü downstairs to order food.
Once the two of them had left, before Gu Zhao could say anything, Zhu Qingyu spoke first:
“Lord Gu, I will leave the capital for Shu next spring. This time, may I ask that you allow me to leave?”
Gu Zhao was taken aback:
“So your hometown really is in Shu? You weren’t lying to me after all?”
Then, suddenly struck by a thought, his tone shifted, and a wild glee spread across his face:
“He’s going to Jiangning, and you’re going to Shu? Qingyu, have you two... divorced?! If you’re divorced, then we... can we? I’ll go too. I’ll bring my elders to propose marriage. Can we?”
Zhu Qingyu said bluntly:
“He and I are not divorced. Zhang Shen is my husband. He was before, and he will be in the future. And even if we were divorced, you and I still couldn’t be together. Do you know why, Lord Gu?”
What had been a sudden burst of joy crashed down from the heavens to the earth, met by crushing disappointment and fury.
She had thrown his sincerity to the ground before, more than once—but never quite so unadorned, so stripped of pretense.
At least before, she had said, “Shouming, if our families were equal in status, how could I not be moved?”
But now she said, “Even if we were divorced, Lord Gu, you and I could never be.”
Why? Why? Why?
Though his heart was seething with disappointment and rage, Gu Zhao kept his composure serene as he asked:
“Why? Please, tell me.”
Zhu Qingyu stood up and looked out at the vast sky. Beneath that same sky lay a world completely different from this one—a place she could never return to.
She turned back to Gu Zhao and, with the most sincere tone she had ever used with him, began:
"My Lord Gu, where I come from, if I needed to travel from the capital to Shu, I could set off alone without a single worry. But now, as I plan to make that journey next spring, there are so many things that concern me. You are nothing to me, yet you have the power to stop me at any time. Lord Shen is nothing to me, yet he has the right to keep me under surveillance whenever he wishes. See how many privileges you both have, whenever you want to interfere with my actions, while all I can do is beg for your mercy and ask you to allow me to leave. I'm terribly afraid, My Lord Gu. If you were afraid of someone, could your heart ever be moved?"
