Chapter 8 — Chieu Chieu Leaves Kinh

Three months ago. At first, I planned to flee with my mother on the day of my wedding to Tieu Dat. But I didn't expect her to be so sharp that she discovered something was wrong. While I was making my preparations, Aunt Co was making hers in secret. Aunt Co explained that she had not initially planned to call on Sam Tich, but because my happiness was at stake, she had to ask him for help. So she used a feigned-death escape, like a cicada shedding its shell, and asked Sam Tich to find a substitute body with a similar build. With the court distracted by the spy case, no one would investigate the substitute body closely. The authorities would not examine the substitute body closely enough to tell that it was not hers. Some things turned out differently from what she expected. For example, we had to disappear suddenly, and Lam Uyen tried to frame us. Fortunately, the outcome was exactly what we wanted. That afternoon, as the store was about to close, a slim figure walked into the store. "Shopkeeper, bring me a pot of Long Tinh tea before the rain." "Aunt Co, you are well." I raised my head. Sam Tich retracted his umbrella, trailing damp steam from the rain, with a faint smile at the corner of his mouth. Aunt Co quickly stepped forward to welcome Sam Tich, poured a cup of hot tea and gave it to Sam Tich: "Why are you free to come to Giang Nam?" Sam Tich raised the teacup and gently blew on the hot air: "I have two pieces of news for you. Tieu Dat's case has ended." My fingers stopped on the abacus; I said nothing. "Although he colluded with spies and was himself deceived, the loss of the border map was still a grave offense. The emperor remembered his past victories, so he spared Tieu Dat execution, confiscated his property, and exiled him to Linh Nam, never to return to the capital." "The Marquisate claimed it had no direct involvement, but its failure to uncover the truth ruined its reputation and brought punishment from the court." Sam Tich looked at me: "Lam Uyen was sentenced to lingchi." My expression did not change. I merely nodded calmly: "Thank you." As for Tieu Dat, I no longer care. From the moment he thrust his sword at me, the young man who had promised to marry me beneath a phoenix crown was dead. Sam Tich set down his teacup. His gaze rested on my face, hiding emotions he did not voice: "Although Giang Nam is good, in the end it is still a bit cold and lonely. Miss Song is alone, don't you feel lonely?" His words were very casual, but the meaning beyond the words was not difficult to understand. I put down the abacus, walked to the table and sat down, reaching out to fill his empty tea cup. The clear tea reflected my calm face. "I'm not alone, I still have a mother. Wherever I have a mother, for me, that place won't be cold and lonely." I smiled slightly, looking at my mother next to me. "Even though this shop is small, it's better because the days are peaceful and leisurely, there's no need to worry about people's hearts. My mother and I both think it's very good." She stroked my hair, her eyes filled with tenderness: "That's right, that's right." Sam Tich looked at the tea cup I pushed over and was silent for a moment. He seemed to give up, then laughed and looked at us before lifting the teacup to drink. "That's right. Enough is better than excess. For you and Aunt Co, this is the best thing." He stood up and opened the oil paper umbrella again: "If Aunt Co's tea business flourishes in the future and you want to transport it to another place, Thien Co Pavilion can charge you a little cheaper." "Then I would like to thank you in advance, Lord." Sam Tich turned around and walked into the rain, his dark figure fading into the rain over Jiangnan's waterways. I withdrew my gaze and closed the shop door with my mother. It was dark, so she lit a lamp, took out her books, and took a pen to record the last revenue of the day. Outside, drizzle still fell. After the rain, the sky would brighten again. And tomorrow would be better for my mother and me.