A colossal lie

Even though she knew that Danqing had originally been assigned to Qingmo Courtyard by the Cui family, and that Gu Fei had kept her all this time, on this day—the very day she returned to her ancestral family—the first thing she did was push Gu Fei into the spotlight, even attempting to use Cui’s people to discipline her own. One had to admit, her intentions ran deep.

Cui said nothing. She simply stared at Gu Fei. The corners of her mouth, which always held an upturned, genial smile, gradually stiffened and fell, lending her a rather less amiable air.

The entire hall fell so silent that one could hear a pin drop. Several of the visiting ladies immediately looked at Gu Fei with changed expressions.

“But today is Fei’s grand day,” Gu Fei said, catching Cui’s inaction. She gave a light laugh and continued, “Aunt has always been kind and gentle. To be so considerate of Fei—Fei is truly moved.”

At the end of her words, she turned her head, her expression turning icy in an instant. “You wretched maid, get yourself out of here. Spare us the eyesore.”

Danqing, as if released from a heavy sentence, was already drenched in cold sweat down her back in those few moments. “Yes, yes, this servant knows her error…”

So saying, she backed away quickly and fled the hall.

Cui’s gaze lingered deeply on Danqing’s departing figure. She once again curled her lips into a smile, this time with a hint of indulgent reproach: “You little thing, with so many people present and still you make no effort to restrain yourself. It seems I’ll have to keep you tied to my side from now on.”

She spoke with warmth and laughter, so that anyone hearing would take it as nothing more than an elder’s teasing of the younger generation.

Yet Gu Fei could hear the threat woven through her words, though she paid it little mind.

The other ladies joined in with laughter and praise, offering polite comments on Gu Fei’s gentleness and virtue. The atmosphere, so deliberately cultivated, for the moment seemed perfectly harmonious.

As she listened to their words, Gu Fei quietly observed the various matrons gathered in the flower hall.

Her gaze first settled on Madam Duanmu, seated in the place of honor on the left. Ten years had left little mark upon her; she had only grown more stately and dignified. Her elegant yuanbao bun was adorned with golden hairpins and jade ornaments, her lake-green silk dress scattered with gold-flowered patterns. The corners of her eyes turned up slightly, so that she seemed always to be smiling as she looked at others.

Perhaps sensing Gu Fei’s gaze, Madam Duanmu turned, nodded coolly at her, and then resumed her conversation with Gu Wanting, who stood beside her.

Gu Fei traced her delicate, rosy nails, a smile playing on her lips but not touching her eyes.

Madam Duanmu came from a family of merchants—a lineage that, in her memory, had always prized profit above all, much like Mo Yan. It was no wonder the two had become husband and wife; as the saying goes, birds of a feather flock together.

At that moment, a maid entered, glanced around, and, upon spotting Gu Fei, hurried to her side and whispered a few words into her ear.

Gu Fei’s brows knit slightly. Without hesitation, she addressed Cui in the seat of honor: “Aunt, I’ve been home for several days but haven’t yet had the chance to meet the young ladies of Yizhou. I’d like to take a stroll in the gardens.”

Cui’s mind turned quickly. Though she seemed busy entertaining her guests and appeared not to have noticed Gu Fei, from the moment Gu Fei had entered, Cui had watched her from the corner of her eye. She had also clearly seen the maid just now. She replied, “Go ahead, but be sure not to lose track of the hour.”

Gu Fei nodded and, paying no further heed to Cui’s reaction, exchanged a glance with Nanny Ku. With a somewhat grave expression, she left the flower hall.

But the two were nowhere near simply taking a stroll. Nanny Ku pushed the wheelchair quickly, darting left and right through the corridors, easily shaking off the servants Cui had sent to keep watch. They sought out a remote, deserted courtyard, and, seeing no one about, Nanny Ku opened a dusty woodshed.

Inside stood a man with his hands clasped behind his back. He wore a honey-colored robe, his hair neatly tied, his whole bearing crisp and decisive.

As soon as Gu Fei entered, Nanny Ku closed the door and slipped outside to keep watch.

Gu Fei’s dark, almond-shaped eyes deepened. She wheeled herself to the center of the room and spoke: “Uncle Five, you summoned me here in such haste—what is it you wish to say?”

The man spun around abruptly. He was none other than Master Mo Cheng, the fifth master of the Mo family, fair-faced and scholarly with a neat mustache.

His face was contorted with barely concealed anger. Staring at Gu Fei, he demanded, “Mo Fei, you lied to me!”

Gu Fei remained unmoved, tilting her eyes toward Mo Cheng with a faint smile. “Please, Uncle Five, don’t get it wrong. I am now surnamed Gu.”

Mo Cheng cared nothing for such distinctions. He, too, had been invited to the ceremony today. When he’d first seen the invitation, he had wondered at the striking similarity between the names “Gu Fei” and “Mo Fei.” But upon arriving at the Gu household and hearing people speak, he realized at once—this Mo Fei was indeed Gu Fei.

“I don’t care what you’re called. Just tell me the truth—do you have any connection to the Mo family in the capital or not? Was your previous promise to join the Mo family of the capital merely a trick?” Mo Cheng’s fury was unbridled. He believed he had always treated Mo Fei well, and now felt keenly the sting of betrayal and manipulation, along with a faint sorrow.

Gu Fei shook her head, her hand tracing the arc of the wheelchair’s armrest as she spoke with downcast eyes, “I would not dare deceive you, Uncle Five. Even though everyone in the Mo family has wronged me, there are yet two people who have shown me kindness. You, of course, are one of them.”

The other, of course, referred to Mo Yuhua.

“These ten years, I have lived in the Mo household in the capital. The old lady of the family even told me that one day, I would become a master ink-maker and the pillar of the family. If you wish, Uncle Five, I can indeed help you return to the capital, but it will require time.” Gu Fei’s voice was low and unhurried, steady and reassuring.

As expected, Mo Cheng’s anger cooled somewhat, though he still watched Gu Fei unblinkingly, as if trying to discern whether she spoke truth or falsehood.

Gu Fei let out a bitter laugh. “You’ve seen my legs, Uncle Five. The truth is, certain legitimate heirs of the Mo family in the capital could not tolerate me. Carelessness nearly cost me my life. I returned to Yizhou and took refuge with the Gu family, waiting for a chance to return and seek justice.”

Mo Cheng’s gaze fell to Gu Fei’s legs. He knew well the events that had led to the discovery of her extraordinary talent for ink-making, and more than anyone, he understood how such genius would provoke envy.

She watched his expression shift and finally allowed herself a faint sigh of relief.

Gu Fei knew that to weave one lie was to require countless more to cover it; but to offer a single truth was to make it all but impossible to doubt. Thus, everything she told Mo Cheng was fact—though only half the truth.

After a long pause, Mo Cheng finally spoke. “Then answer me this: is it true that the Mo family in the capital now seeks to stockpile large quantities of Yizhou ink? Why should they have such a need, and why have they not simply sent people here directly?”

She had anticipated this question. The other day, to lure Mo Cheng in, she had first sown discord between him and Mo Yan, then dangled the promise of entering the Mo family in the capital. The bait itself was a grand deception she had devised: that the Mo family in the capital was quietly preparing to amass a great stock of Yizhou ink pellets and other specialty inks.

Thus, Mo Cheng had quickly begun to act restlessly—because here was a chance to catch the eye of the family in the capital, and, more than that, a chance to distinguish himself.