Chapter 7

Separated by just a wall, a door apart

Bai She reacted indifferently, and the woman holding Chen Shi Mei was stunned. Xiao Xiang Er shouted, “Don’t harm the innocent! We really don’t know him.”

The woman’s eyes shifted slightly, as if contemplating. Chen Shi Mei noticed blood on her arm and the trembling of the arm that held her, then glanced at her again.

The woman, noticing Shi Mei's gaze, glared back fiercely, “What are you looking at? Want me to gouge your eyes out?”

Xiao Xiang Er was terrified. How could this woman be so fierce!

The woman yelled at Bai She, “Bai She, you treacherous villain! My brother should never have trusted you!”

Bai She was momentarily taken aback and looked at her, “What do you mean?”

“My brother explained everything to you yesterday. You already returned the Jade Buddha to us, so why snatch it back again?”

Bai She remained expressionless, seeming somewhat perplexed.

Shimei felt the woman's entire weight pressing down on her shoulder as if she could barely hold herself up.

“You go back on your word, ambushing us, stealing back the Jade Buddha... My brother was killed, and today I’ll take your woman’s life!” The woman’s rage escalated, raising her knife to strike Shimei.

Shimei closed her eyes, bracing for impact, only to feel a sudden heaviness and hear a clanging sound. The woman’s sword had dropped.

Opening her eyes, Shimei saw the woman slumped over her shoulder, unconscious…

Shimei recalled Bai She’s remote slap from the previous night, wondering if it was the same skill used now.

“Shimei.” Xiaohong jumped down from the carriage, helping the woman with Xiao Xi, noticing her severe injuries, bloodied all over, even staining Shimei’s white dress.

Shimei looked towards Bai She, who was staring blankly at the injured woman.

The commotion had attracted bystanders. Xiao Xi suggested, “Miss, we need to find a doctor for her, or she might die.”

Without a word from Shimei, Bai She approached on horseback, asking, “What’s her name?”

Xiao Xi frowned slightly, “Don’t be disrespectful to my mistress.”

Shimei stopped him, and Xiaohong blurted, “Bai Sir, my mistress is Chen…”

“Chen Shimei,” Shimei interjected, fearing Xiaohong might reveal her old name, which she no longer wished to use.

Xiaohong, catching on to Shimei’s reluctance to reveal her true identity, nodded along, “My mistress wanted to thank you for saving us last night.”

Bai She showed little reaction, glancing at the injured woman before saying, “Follow me.” He then led the way on horseback.

Xiao Xi looked back at Chen Shimei, who nodded, signaling to follow. Together with Xiaohong, they carefully assisted the injured woman into the carriage.

……

Inside the Fourth Prince's Mansion.

These past few days, Qin Xianglian hardly stepped out. The mansion felt eerily empty with two fewer people around, despite their usual lack of favor. Ming Fu was confined to the courtyard, forbidden to leave, leaving only Luan Jingyi by his side. Luan Jingyi, a clever woman, kept to herself, practicing calligraphy and painting, approaching the prince only when summoned.

“Your Highness.”

At that moment, a guard entered and bowed to Qin Xianglian.

“Have you found that man in white?” Qin Xianglian inquired.

Since witnessing Bai She effortlessly combat those gangsters, Qin Xianglian had developed a strong admiration for him. He thought Bai She, with his extraordinary skills and looks, would be an asset if recruited. But in his haste to follow Chen Shimei that night, he missed the opportunity to connect. The next day, he had sent people to search for Bai She, intending to enlist him.

“Uh… Yes, we found him,” the subordinate nodded, but his expression was uneasy.

“What is it?” Qin Xianglian pressed.

“He was seen with the lady,” the guard replied.

Qin Xianglian paused, sitting back with furrowed brows and a troubled expression. He recalled how Bai She had blocked his path that night, causing him to lose track of Chen Shimei. Now they were together again?

Qin Xianglian struggled with the realization that while a separation was one thing, Chen Shimei being with another man was entirely different. To think that he, the Fourth Prince, was cuckolded by his wife – if this got out, how would he hold his head high in the imperial city?

“What are they doing together?” Qin Xianglian asked.

“Well, it seems they got involved in a conflict from yesterday, but…”

“What else?” Qin Xianglian prodded.

“Well…” the subordinate lowered his voice, “they say the lady is that man in white’s woman.”

A loud slap resounded.

Qin Xianglian, in a fit of rage, slammed his hand on the table. The teacups jumped high, and one corner of the table collapsed with a crash.

“Nonsense!” Qin Xianglian clenched his teeth in anger. He had never been so humiliated in his life. He thought Chen Shimei was devoted to him, but she had been with another man all along! How disgraceful.

“Who is this man in white?” Qin Xianglian tried to control his anger and asked.

“They refer to him as Bai She,” the guard answered, “In the Jianghu world, there’s only one known as Bai She with such skills.”

“Ghost Blade Bai She?” Qin Xianglian scoffed, “I've heard of him. He's quite notorious.”

“Bai She is the master of Ghost Blade Villa, one of the top martial artists in Jianghu. Ghost Blade Villa recently moved into the imperial city, with influence spreading across the central martial arts community. Quite formidable.”

“A significant backing indeed,” Qin Xianglian sneered, “Where is Chen Shimei now?”

“The lady…”

“Stop calling her that,” Qin Xianglian frowned, “She's just a princess now, no longer anything to me, Qin Xianglian. Do you want your mistress to be with another man?”

“Of course not,” the guard quickly bowed, “She seems to have gone to the Perfume Residence.”

“It's already built?” Qin Xianglian asked, “That’s fast… The Empress Dowager indeed favors her. I thought she’d be married off to some noble soon, but she’s with a Jianghu man now.”

“However… I think the princess didn’t seem to recognize Bai She,” the guard hesitantly added, recalling how Bai She had asked for her name.

“Oh?” Qin Xianglian paused, then thought, “That makes sense. Chen Shimei always stayed in the Perfume Residence, only leaving to visit the palace. She seemed genuinely jealous for me, so it’s unlikely she knew other men.”

Mulling over this, Qin Xianglian suddenly asked, "Don’t you think Chen Shimei seems different than before?"

The guard nodded after hearing this, "Prince, to be frank, several of us have noticed. She seems like a completely different person."

“Oh?” Qin Xianglian stood up and paced slowly around the room. “How so?”

“The princess's appearance remains the same, but she seems much younger,” the subordinate explained. “She’s more refined in her dressing, and her temperament has drastically changed. She used to be quick-tempered, now she carries herself with an air of dignity and composure, almost like a different person.”

Qin Xianglian, pondering over this, stroked his chin and asked, “Is the ruin of her original perfume shop still there?”

“Yes,” the guard nodded. “It hasn't been cleared.”

“Dig it up!” Qin Xianglian ordered. “Let’s see what’s beneath it.”

“Yes, sir!”

The guard went down and ordered the workers to excavate the ruins. They found the entire shop burnt to ashes, charred and blackened.

Observing the scene, Qin Xianglian noted the blackened debris and realized it was impossible for Chen Shimei to have crawled out unscathed... the more he thought about it, the stranger it seemed.

“Your Highness?”

Looking at the ruins, Qin Xianglian suddenly smiled, nodded to the guard, and instructed, “Clear away these ruins and build a new perfume shop here.”

The guard, though surprised, didn’t dare to ask more and immediately set the orders in motion.

Qin Xianglian returned to the back garden and saw Luan Jingyi painting.

“Your Highness.”

Observing Luan Jingyi willingly snuggle up to him, Qin Xianglian wrapped an arm around her, tenderly stroking her hair. He gazed down at her pretty face, feeling pleased, yet he couldn't help but compare her to Chen Shimei. Chen was indeed more beautiful than both Luan Jingyi and Ming Fu, her appearance marred only by her former unpleasant demeanor. Qin had secretly enjoyed watching her grow increasingly unattractive day by day.

"Shall we go out for a stroll?" Qin Xianglian asked.

Luan Jingyi nodded, "Where would you like to go, Prince?"

“Just a casual walk, we’ll decide as we go,” Qin Xianglian replied, taking her hand and leading her out. They boarded the carriage and left the prince’s estate.

……

Xiao Xi, driving the carriage, followed Bai She's horse to a large mansion, which, coincidentally, was right across from Chen Shimei's newly built perfume house.

Surprised, Xiao Xi remembered that this land was bought by a wealthy man half a year ago and turned into a grand estate. The owner, surnamed Bai, had placed a plaque at the entrance with no inscription but two eerily lifelike ghost carvings, which he initially found ominous. However, he later learned from the construction workers that these were protective charms, and such fine craftsmanship was rare, indicating the site was auspicious.

It was unexpected to find Bai She living here, but his demeanor left no doubt he was the master of the house.

Bai She dismounted.

The doorkeeper came out to take his horse, greeting, “Master.”

Bai She nodded, “Call for a doctor.”

“Right away!” The doorkeeper hurried off, quickly returning with an old physician carrying a medicine chest.

Inside the carriage, Chen Shimei and Xiao Xi were tending to the delirious woman, who was muttering incoherently about her brother and cursing Bai She.

Upon arrival, they were both astonished to discover their neighbor was none other than Bai She.

Bai She glanced at Xiao Xi and instructed, “Bring her inside,” before heading into the house.

Chen Shimei looked apologetically at Xiao Xi.

Xiao Xi sighed, resigned to following Chen Shimei's lead, and without complaint, he carefully lifted the woman and followed Bai She into the house.

Chen Shimei and Xiao Xi also entered, admiring the tastefully elegant pavilions and terraces of the mansion, which, while not overly luxurious, were quite refined.

“Meizi Sister, shall we lay these white stones in our courtyard too?” Xiao Xi inquired, turning to Bai She, “Bai Sir, where did you source these white stones?”

Bai She shook his head, indicating his ignorance on the matter, and upon entering the house, he summoned the steward, directing Xiao Xi to inquire with him.

Coincidentally, Bai's mansion had just been completed, with its furnishings freshly installed. The elderly steward provided Xiao Xi with a detailed list.

As the physician attended to the injured woman, Chen Shimei and Bai She stood side by side beside the bed in a somewhat awkward silence.

Chen Shimei glanced at Bai She, who seemed lost in thought.

“My residence is right across from yours,” Chen Shimei spoke up.

Bai She looked surprised, turning to her, “Are you the renowned Perfume Empress?”

Chen Shimei blushed, distancing herself from the title. Though she had recently studied some of Chen Shimei's works, she felt her understanding was superficial compared to her predecessor.

“Is it true?” Bai She pressed further.

Feeling embarrassed, Chen Shimei nodded reluctantly.

Bai She immediately went to a desk, retrieved a paper from a box, and approached Chen Shimei, “Please, have a look at this.”

Chen Shimei unfolded the paper to find several names of fragrances listed: musk, xiang fu zi, agarwood, greenwood fragrance, and clove.

“They're all fragrances,” Chen Shimei looked up at Bai She, noticing he was slightly taller than Qin Xianglian.

Bai She inquired, "What kind of fragrance can these ingredients create?"

"There are many possibilities," replied Chen Shimei, drawing on her recent study of Chen Shimei's perfume recipes and notes. "Are these the only ingredients?"

"Just these," he confirmed.

After some thought, Chen Shimei suggested, "They could be combined to make a cooling and qi-regulating fragrance pill, a soothing incense, or even a fumigating fragrance, depending on the proportions of each ingredient."

Bai She frowned upon hearing this.

Holding the paper, Chen Shimei advised, "It would help if you could provide more details; otherwise, I don’t have much to start with."

Bai She looked at her and said, "A friend of mine died. At the time of his death, he only had a sachet containing these fragrances on him." He then produced a pink sachet from the box for Chen Shimei to examine.

"Before he died, he was meeting someone. I don’t know who, but the sachet wasn’t his. I want to know if we can use it to find the person who harmed him," Bai She finished, looking at Chen Shimei, "I’ve heard you might have a way."

Chen Shimei looked up at Bai She, not responding immediately.

“What’s wrong?” Bai She asked, seeing her complex expression.

"Nothing," she laughed softly, muttering under her breath, "You spoke quite a lot this time."

Bai She appeared momentarily disconcerted, a flicker of embarrassment crossing his eyes.

Recollecting, Chen Shimei, looking at the woman on the bed, asked Bai She, "She just said..."

"I didn’t kill them," Bai She interjected. "If I promised to let them go, I wouldn’t go back on my word."

Chen Shimei nodded, reassured, and looked down at the list again, asking, "Is this urgent?"

Bai She nodded affirmatively, "Yes, it is."

Chen Shimei found Bai She rather interesting for his straightforwardness, never beating around the bush.

"My Fragrance Mansion will take a few more days to be ready for living..."

"You can stay here," Bai She offered, instructing the butler, "Prepare a guest room for Miss Chen. Whatever she needs, make sure she has it, and attend to her well."

"Yes," the butler left to make arrangements.

"Uh, it's not that..." Chen Shimei was somewhat flustered, but Bai She inquired, "Do you need anything else?"

Chen Shimei felt a bit deflated, glancing at Xiangyi and Xiaosi beside her.

Unconcerned with such matters, Xiaosi stood by the door waiting, while Xiangyi asked Bai She, "If we solve the mystery of this sachet for you, what reward will we get?"

"Hey," Chen Shimei quickly interjected, feeling it was somewhat impolite, especially since Bai She had just saved them the night before. Helping was the right thing to do.

Yet, Bai She asked, "What do you want?"

Ignoring Chen Shimei's restraint, Xiangyi said, "Our Miss has offended many and has been bullied. We're going to live across the street; could you ensure our safety and protect us from being bullied?"

Initially, Chen Shimei tried to stop Xiangyi, but after hearing her out, she let go.

Bai She nodded, succinctly replying, "Possible."

Xiangyi clapped her hands joyfully, "Bai She is so straightforward."

Bai She then inquired of Chen Shimei, "How much time do you think you'll need?"

Chen Shimei was initially unsure where to begin, but then a sudden inspiration struck. She recalled something from Chen Shimei's fragrance compendium... these fragrances, when combined in certain proportions, had a very special effect.