Chapter 19: Rowing

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After confirming with Qian Da that the carriage would be repaired within half an hour, Lin Yun felt at ease and instructed the servant to wait at the spot for the carriage, then took a ride with Lu Xuanhe.

Not quite used to being alone in a confined space with a woman, especially since Lu Xuanhe and Lin Yun were not yet well acquainted and she didn't know what topics were appropriate, Lu Xuanhe awkwardly tried to make conversation.

“Cousin, did your carriage break down?” he asked.

Lin Yun looked up in puzzlement. Wasn’t that obvious? If she remembered correctly, this half-cousin was the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Justice; would it be so hard for him to tell if the carriage was broken? What nonsense was he saying?

Still, eager to glean any updates about Lord Pei’s case from him, she played along and added, “Yes, Qian Da said a spoke broke.”

Lu Xuanhe’s expression remained calm, pretending he hadn’t just said something foolish, and swiftly changed the subject. “Cousin, what brings you to the countryside? Where are you returning from?”

Lin Yun then explained the Nine-Grain Method, how she hoped to persuade the villagers of Wu Family Village to use it so they could plant an extra crop of wheat.

After speaking, she suddenly asked, “Cousin Lu, do you have land?”

Lu Xuanhe nodded. “I have a modest holding.”

Lin Yun knew ‘modest’ was just a humble way of putting it. Her eyes brightened as she straightforwardly asked, “Could Cousin Lu try the Nine-Grain Method on your fields? There’s no successful case this year yet, and the villagers don’t believe it. Even if I can’t persuade them now, I want to plant more wheat myself. Once it yields results, everyone will believe next year.”

Lin Qitang was her elder cousin, but as a family member, some might suspect her praise was biased. Although Lu Xuanhe was also a relative, his status as Deputy Minister lent credibility.

Before Lu Xuanhe could answer, Lin Yun added more weight to her request: “I’ve already persuaded my elder cousin; she agreed to use my method on all her fields.”

Lin Yun could tell Lu Xuanhe cared deeply about Lin Qitang and would probably agree without hesitation.

Sure enough, Lu Xuanhe readily replied, “Qitang is a sharp businesswoman who rarely makes losing deals. Since she agreed, I’ll also borrow your good method to increase the harvest from a few more fields.”

Seeing Lu Xuanhe so straightforward was enviable to Lin Yun. Though Lin Qitang had suffered the tragic loss of her parents, they were respected heroes, and Cousin Lu truly cared for her.

In contrast, the original self, despite having both parents, lived a harder life: the couple was rarely seen, and when they were, it was distressing.

After setting the agreement to have the Lu family’s estate manager come learn her method, Lin Yun began to “show concern” for Lu Xuanhe. “Cousin, isn’t the Ministry of Justice on duty today? How do you have time to come to Lin Garden?”

“Yesterday, I heard Qitang was ill, so I came to see her. The major cases at the Ministry of Justice just concluded, and my superior readily granted leave.”

Whether the leave was voluntary or forced, the outcome was the same.

“I also visited my elder cousin this morning. You needn’t worry too much; she’s much better. She’ll surely be happy to know you came.”

Happy?

Lu Xuanhe couldn’t imagine Lin Qitang showing much joy; she was always rather indifferent to everyone.

Though he had come all the way to Lin Garden, he had already anticipated they’d sit stiffly exchanging pleasantries, Qitang would say she was recovering, he’d say “take care,” and then fall into silence.

After the polite exchange, Lin Yun finally asked what she really cared about: “The case is settled? Cousin, you said the vicious criminal was caught?”

Lu Xuanhe nodded. “The case is closed; the criminal was executed. You needn’t worry anymore.”

But how could she not worry? She was terrified now.

That the criminal was executed and the case closed so quickly meant something:

It likely hadn’t been thoroughly investigated, just concluded as a simple case of a murderous thief; the culprit was swiftly executed, unable to reveal any mastermind behind the scenes.

Lin Yun felt she must guard the letter in her sleeve tightly. Only when she became someone not easily killed, or found someone truly on Lord Pei’s side, could she reveal it.

Lord Pei was a fourth-rank official; his death was full of holes, yet the case was closed without further investigation, showing how powerful the mastermind behind it was. If she, just a small fry, dared to send the letter recklessly, she’d be courting death.

Lu Xuanhe noticed Lin Yun’s pale complexion but didn’t think much of it—women were often timid, perhaps frightened by hearing about a death.

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Lu Xuanhe kindly stopped discussing Ministry of Justice matters and instead talked about the customs of the imperial city. While chatting about New Year celebrations, he suddenly asked, “Cousin, what happened to your hand?”

“It’s nothing serious; I just hurt it when the carriage jolted.” Though not very painful, the soreness made her keep rubbing her wrist.

Seeing it wasn’t serious, Lu Xuanhe resumed the conversation. Just as he was describing the palace delicacies of steamed milkfish and fried silverfish in the twelfth lunar month, Lin Yun’s hand suddenly grasped her wrist, three fingers pressing on the ulnar bone prominence, giving a quick twist. There was a crisp snap as the bone reset.

Lu Xuanhe quickly withdrew his hand and sat up straight. “Don’t blame me, cousin. I feared if I told you earlier, you’d worry. It’s better to act swiftly.”

Lin Yun rotated her wrist and found the pain gone. Surprised, she said, “No blame at all, thank you. But Cousin, you can do bone setting?”

Lu Xuanhe shook his head. “Not exactly bone setting. Years of martial arts training mean I’ve had my share of bumps and bruises. Practice makes perfect.”

He shouldn’t have touched his cousin like that, but in a grand household, doctors often avoided contact with women, offering only medicines or poultices. If her wrist wasn’t reset, though not a major issue, it would have hurt for seven or eight days.

Lu Xuanhe glanced at Lin Yun’s expression. She seemed unbothered by the contact, so he breathed a sigh of relief.

Arriving at Lin Garden, Lin Yun disembarked and parted ways with Lu Xuanhe. She found that even without asking for news, spending time with this cousin was quite pleasant.

Among men, Lu Xuanhe was rare in making Lin Yun feel comfortable and at ease.

Her previous social circle had been small; most male acquaintances were senior or junior disciples, and outside necessary lab communication, they were hard to connect with.

They were sometimes stubborn, insisting on flawed experimental methods; sometimes fragile, posting melancholy notes late at night.

Lu Xuanhe was neither arrogant nor meddlesome, didn’t pry into privacy, was helpful and well-mannered. Compared to others, Lin Yun found him outstanding—and rightly so.

Approaching Wu Ferry, Lin Yun finally pushed aside worries about delivering the letter and stopped thinking about her cousin, focusing entirely on the snowflake nougat. Shi Er had surely prepared it well; Lin Yun deserved to reward herself for recent hardships.

She decided to let Shi Er forgive her for bumping her head and twisting her wrist today by allowing herself a few extra pieces.

***

The next morning, Lin Yun woke feeling some tooth sensitivity. Thinking of the limited dental care in ancient times, she regretted eating so many sweets yesterday.

Reflecting on the past two days, she’d only walked a bit and already felt breathless. Her physical condition was still lacking, which wouldn’t do for farm work.

If nothing unexpected happened, she’d likely spend her life in the Great Zhou. Resolute, Lin Yun decided to start morning exercises.

Looking for a clear spot to practice, she spotted Qian Da squatting nearby. Approaching, she realized he was practicing horse stance.

His forehead was drenched in sweat, though how long he’d been holding it was unclear. Still, he had good physical fitness, holding the stance steadily without trembling.

Lin Yun interrupted, “Qian Da, are you exercising?”

He nodded slowly. “Practicing martial arts. I asked the guards; they said we need to start with horse stance.”

Though Lin Yun didn’t understand martial arts fully, she knew just holding horse stance wasn’t enough.

Her communication with Qian Da was simple and direct: “You really want to learn martial arts?”

“Yes, very interested.”

Qian Da’s desire stemmed from a sense of crisis. The second miss had asked him to discreetly inquire about Lord Pei, only to learn of his death. Qian Da didn’t analyze the complexities but sensed the second miss might face danger.

Lin Yun patted Qian Da’s shoulder, admiring his muscles. “You look like a promising martial artist. Since you want to learn, I’ll find you a proper master. We’ll train seriously.”

This was one of the few privileges her Lin second miss identity afforded her. Though many things were beyond her reach, she could accomplish what many in this era could not.

She had suffered much to bear this identity and planned to make full use of it.

On the open ground, Lin Yun performed two sets of calisthenics. Having forgotten the exact moves, she improvised freely.

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Qian Da nearly thought the second miss had a sudden spasm but noticed her complexion was normal and realized she was exercising.

After startling Qian Da, Lin Yun found calisthenics dull. Looking around, she spotted the boatman docking the boat ashore.

Half an hour later, Lin Yun stood on the boat, gripping the oar, struggling to row backward.

She attributed her poor calisthenics performance to not wearing sportswear. Now, changing location, the experience was better.

Others exercised at home with rowing machines; she could row a real boat anytime in Lin Garden—how elegant.

Lu Xuanhe, who had stayed overnight at Lin Garden and was out for a morning stroll, noticed a boat spinning in place on the water. Looking more closely, he saw his second cousin rolling up her sleeves, energetically rowing.

He chuckled softly. The second cousin truly was an extraordinary person.

As Lin Yun rowed, she began chatting with the boatman.

The boatman was old, beard white. The first time she rode with him, he said he had been rowing here since Lin Garden was built, and one could tell he knew much.

“Why does the old madam like living here? It’s quite cold in winter.”

In summer, the water helped keep cool, but living here in winter—Lin Yun always slept under two quilts and suspected the old madam and Lin Qitang’s illnesses might be due to freezing here through the winter.

The boatman, now out of work and frowning at the young lady’s antics, replied with well-known facts: “This garden was built by the late Marquis of Ningyuan for the old madam. After he died in battle, the old madam was heartbroken and seriously ill, almost dying. Little Miss Qitang, still an infant, was brought to her. Thinking the eldest miss was young and needed care, the old madam pulled herself together.”

According to the boatman, the old madam, burdened by sorrow, lived here permanently, surrounded by things that reminded her of the late marquis. Except for major festivals, she rarely returned to the Ningyuan Mansion.

Lin Yun sighed again. Someone who had repeatedly shut her out and might continue to do so still had such a heartfelt love for her younger relatives—just not directed at her.

***

At the entrance of the Wen Yuan Pavilion, Xie Jun was about to enter for duty when someone called out to him.

It was Xu Zhengqing, as expected.

Xu came to ask Xie Jun to accompany him on an errand.

Most officials at the Supervisory Court believed the Ministry of Justice was handling the matter unfairly and wanted to investigate.

The murderer who killed Pei Hejing had evaded the guards, escaped the inner city, and hid in Wanping for seven or eight days before capture. Surely someone helped him. Xu intended to question the Wanping County magistrate who caught the criminal.

Though this was naturally the jurisdiction of the commissioner in charge, the victim being a Supervisory Court official complicated matters with personal grudges.

Despite the grudges, there was still a pursuit of justice.

Xu hoped to find someone with status, who was approachable and fair, to join him.

After considering, he chose Xie Jun.

Xie Jun refused on principle. “This isn’t proper. Inspecting the county office is your commissioner’s duty. Why should I meddle?”

Xu lowered his voice, pleading, “Deputy Minister Xie, I have nowhere else to turn. I know you still have Lord Pei’s memorial. You can’t just ignore this.”

After some back-and-forth and appeals to reason, Xie Jun reluctantly agreed.

He followed Xu into a carriage. He never made pointless trips; this outing should accomplish two tasks.