Chapter 4 Arranged Marriage by Prenatal Promise

Chapter 4: Engaged Since Childhood

"Taking innocent lives—those scoundrels deserve to die a miserable death!"

Cong Shuang slammed the table in fury. She had always assumed that when Qin Jiao occasionally left home for a few days, it was for urgent business and he simply hadn't had time to tell her. She never imagined he had been hunted down and almost died.

"Luckily, young master, you met a kind person. We must thank him properly!"

Qin Jiao forced a faint smile, his gaze wandering aimlessly to the celadon teacup on the table. "We can talk about thanks later. What I can't figure out is, now that I'm far away in the border city of Nanzhou, who could I possibly be a threat to?"

As Qin Jiao finished speaking, Cong Shuang's fingers flew rapidly. "No need to guess—it must be that poisonous woman, Madam Yu, who did this! That black-hearted snake! Your mother has only been gone a month, and she sent you to Nanzhou under the pretense of helping you recuperate. No money, no attendants. Recuperate? She clearly wants you to wither and die here!"

Cong Shuang's hands moved so fast that Qin Jiao could barely keep up. "Wretch! She probably planned to keep you in Nanzhou forever. But then Prime Minister Lin said he wanted to see you. She panicked and decided to kill you to pave the way for her own children!"

"But Prime Minister Lin only said he wanted to see me—he didn't mention marriage. Yu Shuhan shouldn't be so reckless, right?" Qin Jiao frowned and murmured.

Yu Shuhan was the mistress of the Vice Minister of Rites' residence in the capital and also Qin Jiao's maternal aunt.

"What wouldn't that venomous Yu Shuhan do?" Cong Shuang's eyes blazed with anger.

Qin Jiao rubbed his temples wearily. "Thinking too much about this won't help. For now, we just need to be extra careful. We'll test the waters when we get back to the capital."

"Mm." Cong Shuang nodded in agreement.

Qin Jiao thought about returning to the capital, while Cong Shuang watched him. The room fell into silence.

But when Cong Shuang reached for the teacup for the third time, her gaze hesitant and wavering as she looked at Qin Jiao, he couldn't help but ask, "Sister, if you have something to say, just say it. Aren't you uncomfortable keeping it to yourself?"

Cong Shuang's name was elegant—"Cong" suggesting gentleness, "Shuang" fragility. But her personality was like a firecracker, quick to ignite, and she could never hide her thoughts.

Seeing that Qin Jiao had seen through her, Cong Shuang didn't beat around the bush. She asked directly, "The Yugu tea from Nanzhou City is excellent. Should we bring some for Prime Minister Lin when we return? You two are about to get married, but it's been a long time since you've seen each other, so you're bound to be a bit distant. Maybe giving a gift could ease things..."

"Stop!" Qin Jiao directly grabbed Cong Shuang's hand, cutting off her words.

"The engagement between Prime Minister Lin and me hasn't been mentioned since my mother passed away. His wanting to see me now doesn't necessarily mean it's about marriage. So instead of buying Yugu tea for him, why not buy you some rouge and clothes?"

"But..."

"No buts. I'm really tired, sister. Let me rest. Sister, sister..."

Using his "tired and cute act," Qin Jiao managed to make Cong Shuang relent. She helplessly patted Qin Jiao's head before getting up to fetch water.

After Cong Shuang left, Qin Jiao slumped weakly into the chair.

Three years in Nanzhou had somewhat mellowed Cong Shuang's fiery nature.

Qin Jiao knew that the reason she brought up giving a gift to Lin Wen was that Lin Wen now held a prominent position, and the Lin family was no longer just a noble and refined family. Cong Shuang hoped that Qin Jiao could find a patron.

But was this marriage truly "reliable"?

Qin Jiao and Lin Wen were betrothed before birth.

Qin Jiao's biological mother, Xiao Ning Shi, and Lin Wen's mother, He Shi, were close friends. When Xiao Ning Shi was pregnant, He Shi visited and suggested that the child in Xiao Ning Shi's womb be engaged to her eldest son, Lin Wen, to unite their families.

Xiao Ning Shi had met Lin Wen and knew he was a good child, so she agreed to the engagement. At that time, Qin Jiao was not yet born, and Lin Wen was eight.

Later, when Xiao Ning Shi gave birth to Qin Jiao, her health suffered. He Shi often came to visit, but Lin Wen rarely did. All in all, Qin Jiao had only seen Lin Wen a few times, and each encounter was brief and distant. Lin Wen was always cold, polite, and aloof toward him.

After Xiao Ning Shi passed away and the Lin family helped the new emperor ascend the throne, Lin Wen became the powerful Prime Minister, dominating the court. Qin Jiao had even less contact with him.

Just when Qin Jiao had nearly forgotten about the engagement, a letter arrived from the Vice Minister's residence in the capital, telling him to return because Prime Minister Lin wanted to see him.

Why Lin Wen wanted to see him, Qin Jiao didn't really care. Between the two of them, it would either end in marriage or breaking off the engagement.

Whatever happens, let it happen naturally.

"I'm about to return to the capital. I wonder what the situation will be like when I return..."

In the end, Qin Jiao fell asleep before Cong Shuang could return with water to wash up. The young man's brows were slightly furrowed, and the red scars on his face became hazy under the flickering candlelight.

The Milky Way shifted overhead, and the curtain of night hung low.

The silence of the night was as thick as ink, covering all sounds, and silently driving away memories of the past...

————

In late autumn, when the cotton roses were in full bloom, Nanzhou City celebrated its annual Furong Winter Festival.

In Nanzhou, the Furong Winter Festival was as lively as the New Year in the capital. On this day, the city was brightly lit all night, with various thrilling acrobatics during the day and lantern shows and fireworks at night.

But this year's Furong Winter Festival wasn't as bustling as in previous years. Amid the crowd, a man and a woman walked slowly.

The man wore a dark blue round-collared robe patterned with brocade flowers, with a carved celadon jade pendant of a deer and crane at his waist. He stood tall and handsome like a bamboo stalk.

The woman beside him was equally striking. She wore a lilac gauze skirt with scattered floral patterns that accentuated her slender figure, and a lifelike cotton rose hairpin adorned her hair, cutting through the early winter chill.

The gentleman was refined, the lady lovely. Walking together, they drew the attention of many passersby.

"Here."

Cong Shuang stopped at a flower stall and bought two cotton roses still bearing dew. She kept one for herself and handed the other to Qin Jiao.

Qin Jiao took the flower. "Thank you, sister."

Every year during the Furong Winter Festival, the people of Nanzhou would carry a cotton rose in hand as they walked the streets. If an unmarried man or woman encountered someone they liked, they could give the flower to that person.

"This year's Furong Winter Festival is so bleak. The jujube cake seller didn't come, and only one acrobatic troupe came."

When Cong Shuang and Qin Jiao spent their first Furong Winter Festival in Nanzhou, it was truly lively. The streets were filled with all kinds of food, drink, and entertainment, including Western Region merchants selling wine.

"Two murders have happened in a row in Nanzhou City, and everyone is scared. Until the murderer is caught, Nanzhou won't return to its former peace," Qin Jiao said softly.

Seven days ago, an old woman washing clothes by the river spotted a rose-colored garment floating on the water. Being poor, she thought she could retrieve it to see if it was wearable. But when she carefully fished it out with a bamboo pole, she realized it wasn't a garment floating in the river—it was a woman's corpse.

Actually, a corpse wasn't that unusual. The river encircling Nanzhou always saw a dozen or so drowning victims each year. But the condition of that particular corpse was too horrific.

According to reports, the old woman who first discovered it fainted from shock. When revived, she screamed wildly, waved her arms frantically and stamped her feet, and coughed up blood, nearly losing half her life.

After the first murder came the second. The second victim's death was said to be even more gruesome than the first.

Nanzhou, though a border city, had always been peaceful, with no such tragedies occurring. Since the authorities had yet to catch the murderer, the entire city was gripped by fear.

----------------------------------------