Fragrance

"Master, this is the madam of our Wuding Marquis Residence."

A stewardess from the Lu family knocked at the temple gate. The Master who received pilgrims opened it and exchanged greetings. "Amitabha. Please follow me inside," he said. He led them into the temple and settled them in a side room.

It was still early, and Lin Yunyi wanted to take Lu Chang'gong out to play.

Lin Yunwan also wanted to stroll with Madam Lin and share some private talk between mother and daughter.

The maidservants from the Wuding Marquis Residence all followed them.

Lin Yunwan said mildly, "Keep your distance, all of you."

"Yes."

The six or seven maidservants all fell back, but they did not dare take their eyes off Lin Yunwan.

Though she was the mistress of the Marquis's Residence and, unlike an unmarried young lady, had the right to go out and offer incense on her own, she was still a young married woman. The stewardesses of the Marquis's Residence were responsible for keeping an eye on her to prevent any mishap.

"I heard you tell Lady Guo just now that you wanted to learn to blend incense. Why the sudden interest?"

Lin Yunwan briefly explained her thinking.

"The shops I own are all far outside the capital, beyond my own eyes, and they send in only so much silver each year. I might as well sell them and do some business in incense here in the capital."

Madam Lin frowned. "Are you short of silver?"

"No, Mother, don't read too much into it."

When she married, her family had feared she would be made to suffer in the Lu family, so they had given her most of their shops, land, and silver as her dowry. The Lin Family had never been particularly well-off, and her mother and younger brother had lived on a very tight budget these past few years. She certainly could not let her mother support her any further.

Madam Lin said, "If you aren't short of silver, why put yourself to all that trouble? Once you sell the shops, the people managing them might not come with you. Then you'll have to find new people, and there will be plenty to worry about. Don't you have enough to worry about at the Marquis's Residence? Why make more trouble for yourself?"

Seeing that Lin Yunwan seemed to have made up her mind, she could only say, "If there's anything you need your brother and me to help with, just come home and tell us."

"Don't worry, Mother. I'm sure I'll have to trouble you and my brother."

"We're family. There's no need to be so polite... you silly girl."

A waft of fragrance suddenly reached them. Perhaps because they had just been talking about blending incense, Madam Lin grew curious. "What incense is that? It smells lovely."

Lin Yunwan sniffed. "There's more than one scent... three of them."

"You're mistaken, Madam. There are four."

A young man came toward them around the corner of the Buddha hall. His voice sounded gentle and pleasant, but his eyes were like a bottomless abyss, threatening to draw a person in!

They were too deep and unfathomable.

Lin Yunwan was instantly on high alert.

Qi Lingheng drew near and gave Lin Yunwan a faint smile. Though his manner was courteous and proper, there was still a trace of distance in his gaze. After all, they were not well acquainted.

Lin Yunwan took her mother's arm and stepped aside to let him pass.

Now that he was close, the fragrance about him became clear all at once. There were indeed four scents, but three came from the little gilded incense ball at his waist. The last, which she had failed to detect, drifted faintly from his body, as though he had been born with it.

The fragrance was even like the man himself: his clothes were understated, yet somehow he gave the impression of indescribable nobility.

What scent is it, exactly?

Lin Yunwan wondered to herself.

Qi Lingheng was in no hurry to leave. Instead, he spoke to Lin Yunwan. "Forgive me for asking, Madam, but have you guessed what the fourth scent is?"

Lin Yunwan looked at him and shook her head, quite certain. "It's a scent I've never smelled before. I can't guess what it is."

Perhaps it was because the man before them appeared to be of high status, and even the young attendant at his side was dressed in fine clothes.

Though the maidservants from the Wuding Marquis Residence saw their madam talking to a strange man, they did not dare rush forward and interrupt.

Qi Lingheng smiled faintly. "You are perceptive, Madam."

He gave a slight nod and left without saying what the scent was.

Madam Lin said, "What a strange man."

But Lin Yunwan was pondering what the scent on him could be.

Lady Guo had blended hundreds, if not a thousand, varieties of incense, and Lin Yunwan had smelled more than she could count since childhood. She would not claim to know the name of every fragrance, but once she had smelled a distinctive scent, she found it hard to forget.

Yet she had been unable to identify the scent on that man at all.

Stranger still, she kept feeling that the man looked familiar, as though she had seen him somewhere before, but she could not remember where.

"Mother, we're at the Main Buddha Hall. Let's go pay our respects. Watch the steps."

Madam Lin lifted her foot and said, "Help me carry the incense."

Mother and daughter offered incense to the Bodhisattva and drew fortune sticks before the Buddha.

Lin Yunwan also bowed sincerely to the Bodhisattva... Heaven must have taken pity on her to let her live again.

"This humble believer will not disappoint the Bodhisattva's care."

She murmured softly before the Buddha, then suddenly found herself wondering again—what scent was it?

Never mind. That scent smelled rare, and even if I knew what it was, it would probably be hard to blend.

Qi Lingheng left the Buddha hall with a complicated expression. He was not angry; he simply felt that things had turned out differently than expected.

She had not recognized him.

He had even spoken to her of his own accord.

He shook his head to himself and thought no more of it. After all, many years had passed, and they had both been young when they met. It was only natural that she did not remember.

"Whose children are those?"

Qi Lingheng saw two older children not far away, both boys, and asked the Novice Monk beside him, "Women have come to offer incense today. Why were male visitors allowed in?"

The novice answered nervously, "They came with one of the female pilgrims. They are her younger brother and her son."

"Her son?" Both children looked quite grown.

Qi Lingheng's dark brows drew together, though he seemed to ask casually, "That madam looks very young. How could she have a son that old?"

The novice shook his head. "I... I don't know."

Qi Lingheng did not press the novice and continued toward the gate.

A Fu, the eunuch at his side, gave the novice a few coins as an offering and said, "Thank you for your trouble, Master."

The novice accepted them with both hands and offered a blessing.

After returning to Prince Heng's Residence, Qi Lingheng made no particular effort to inquire about Lin Yunwan.

It was A Fu who knew what to do. He found out the facts and came to report, "Prince, that child was adopted by the Heir of the Marquis of Wuding's Wife. I hear she adopted two children. This one should be the elder, nearly nine years old."

Qi Lingheng did not seem to care very much. He merely said, "I see."

A Fu muttered, "Why adopt children when everything's fine? The Heir's Wife is still young. She should still be able to have her own..."

Qi Lingheng looked at him and smiled. "Since you're so concerned, why don't I send you to serve at the Wuding Marquis Residence?"

A Fu hurriedly waved his hands, saying he would not go, and quickly withdrew to hide. His prince was not frightening when he was expressionless; it was when he smiled that he was frightening! Even after getting away, A Fu was still shaken.

Qi Lingheng slowly let his smile fade.

After parting from Madam Lin, Lin Yunwan returned to the Wuding Marquis Residence. She had just reached the inner gate when Old Madam Lu sent someone over, who said, "She asks you to come over." The messenger also told her, "Young Master Qing is there too."

What does he want now?

Lin Yunwan went over with an impassive expression.