In the blink of an eye, it was already mid-July. At dawn, the rising sun climbed in the east, spilling golden light over Skywater Bridge.
In the grand residence deep within Pei Family Alley, the maids who had risen early finished their chores and gathered in the covered gallery, chattering away:
"It's absolutely true. I heard Chief Escort Chen say it himself. Young Master Ye went to Junshan Terrace in Zezhou and split half that enormous lake in two with one slash. That old Blade Overlord went flying more than three li..."
"Three li?"
"Of course! After the fight, Young Master Ye rode the wind away, holding a beauty who could topple cities and kingdoms..."
"Who was he holding? Surely not Third Madam?"
"Xiuhe said it wasn't her. Third Madam's so reserved, the sun would have to rise in the west before she'd let Young Master Ye hold her in front of everyone..."
The overlapping chatter drifted into the elegant West Residence. Zhe Yunli, who normally practiced her fist techniques beside the lake every day without fail, was absent for once.
The doors and windows of the young lady's bedchamber in the West Residence were all shut.
A table stood in the outer room, covered with a soft blanket, with white-jade mahjong tiles arranged neatly upon it. Copied assignments and writing materials sat on a small desk.
A beaded curtain separated the inner room. A pale blue jacket and skirt hung over the screen, while a saber just over three feet long rested on the dressing table beside rouge, powder, a hairpin box, Niao Niao's wooden donkey, a little jade turtle, and other trinkets.
On the embroidered bed, Zhe Yunli lay spread-eagled against her pillow in white nightclothes. Her loose collar revealed a patch of fair skin, and her