Early morning, before the roosters crowed, Chen Ji opened his eyes and was surprised to see five small silver ingots placed beside his pillow.

It was the payment Yun Yang had promised, but Chen Ji didn’t know how the person had infiltrated the medical clinic, nor did he know when they had done so. It was as if the five silver ingots had appeared out of thin air.

This was not only Yun Yang’s payment but also a form of warning from them.

Chen Ji silently got up and put on the new clothes that Xi Bing had sent. When he unfolded them, he found it was a dark blue, stand-collared, wide-lapelled long robe. The two buttons on the stand collar were made of silver, making it several grades better than the clothes he had worn before.

This set of clothes must have cost several taels of silver, he thought.

Unfortunately, Xi Bing had only sent the robe, an inner garment, and trousers. There were no boots or a belt. So, after Chen Ji put on the stand-collared robe, he was still wearing his old worn cloth shoes and a wide hemp belt around his waist.

Chen Ji chuckled. He looked somewhat mismatched.

Never mind, he thought. What did a poor apprentice have to be particular about? He could buy the rest once he earned some money.

When the roosters finally crowed, Chen Ji stepped out. Just then, the grain and oil shop across the street was taking down its doorboards.

“Good morning, proprietress,” Chen Ji greeted with a smile as he entered the grain shop.

“Oh, young Doctor Chen, what can I get for you?” The proprietress was busy preparing to open for business, but seeing him enter so early, she immediately put down what she was doing.

“How much is a catty of millet?” Chen Ji asked.

“It’s eight wen for others, but for you, Doctor Chen, it’s six wen,” the proprietress said with a smile.

“And a catty of rice?”

“Nine wen. I’m afraid that one can’t be discounted. My apologies.”

Doctors were scarce in those days, and their social status was relatively high. Chen Ji’s master was an official Imperial Physician of the seventh rank from the imperial court, so the neighbors were quite courteous to Chen Ji.

“Then I’ll have five catties of millet, five catties of rice… and a pot of sesame oil. Oh, and a string of cured meat!” Chen Ji said.

The proprietress beamed. “Alright, that’ll be 195 wen in total, but I’ll charge you 190.”

Chen Ji exchanged the one-tael silver ingot for several strings of copper coins, which he left at the grain and oil shop to pick up later that evening. He then left, carrying packages of various sizes.

The packages were tied with straw ropes, which bit into his hands, making them ache slightly. But he was in good spirits.

He bought the items to take home during his day off. Chen Ji mused that, judging by his own living situation, his family’s conditions were probably not very good either.

According to the information his master had previously revealed, his father was probably working on the river embankment.

Under such circumstances, his family had still helped him present a discipleship gift to his master and seek a good future. It must have taken the combined effort of the entire family.

This touched Chen Ji. He even felt a certain curiosity about his family in this world.

The Chen family lived in Cuiyun Lane. He asked a shop owner on the street for directions and walked north towards Luocheng.

Luocheng was livelier in the morning. He saw people driving oxcarts past, with several sacks piled on them. He wondered what they contained; it looked like they were heading to a market.

Trade caravans also entered the city gate from the north. Their wagons were stacked with stretched furs. As winter approached, these were the most sought-after goods among the nobility.

It was said that the most famous pleasure quarter in the East Market was called Red Cloak Lane. Its top courtesans usually did not entertain guests, but if a wealthy merchant offered a white mink fur, they were sure to receive her favor.

Along the roadside, mischievous children chased each other, playing, chanting nursery rhymes, and holding small homemade windmills.

Women were washing clothes by the small river that flowed through the city, chatting and joking, and occasionally bursting into laughter.

Chen Ji arrived at Cuiyun Lane. He asked a stall owner, “Excuse me, sir, could you tell me which house belongs to the Chen family from Guandong?”

The old man glanced at him. “Isn’t that Chen Ji? You have to ask where your own home is?”

Chen Ji was speechless.

So, they were acquaintances.

He hesitated for a long time, not daring to ask further. He simply walked into the lane, carrying his belongings.

Just then, he heard a commotion ahead: “Steward, Steward, where should this lantern be hung?”

A man’s harsh voice impatiently replied, “Do I have to teach you everything? Hang it on the eaves above the stone lions, there’s a hook there! Hurry up, hurry up! The two young masters will be back soon. Dawdle any longer and you’ll be sorry!”

Chen Ji saw the house decorated with lanterns and colorful streamers. He didn’t know what joyous occasion it was. But the more he looked, the more something felt wrong. Then he saw the plaque above the entrance read… “Chen Manor.”

Could there be two Chen Manors in Cuiyun Lane?

The entrance of this house was bright and grand. While the vermilion main gate and stone lions weren’t exceptionally imposing, they certainly didn’t belong to an ordinary family.

“…This can’t be my house, can it?” Chen Ji muttered.

“Chen Ji?” The steward with a handlebar mustache looked over and asked, puzzled, “Why are you back?”

Chen Ji hesitated for a second. “It’s my day off today.”

The steward said, “Perfect. You’re taller. Come here and get on the ladder to hang the lantern.”

“Oh.”

Chen Ji placed the packages he was carrying on the ground beside him and climbed the ladder to hang the lantern.

The steward stood nearby, directing other maids. “Come on, come on, get a basin of water and sprinkle it in front of the gate, so it won’t kick up dust when the two young masters return. You clumsy fools! You’re servants of the Luocheng Vice-Prefect, for goodness sake! People will laugh at you for not knowing proper etiquette!”

As he spoke, the steward noticed the packages on the ground. “Who put these here? Get them out of the way, quickly!”

Chen Ji calmly descended from the ladder. “Steward, I…”

The steward suddenly realized. “Ah, you’re here for your schooling allowance, aren’t you? The master mentioned it a while ago. But with everything I’ve been busy with, it completely slipped my mind, which is why I haven’t sent it to you yet.”

He instructed someone to bring a string of copper coins from the account room, about three hundred of them. “Be frugal with it. Times are tough, and it’s not easy for our Chen family either.”

Up until this moment, Chen Ji still didn’t understand what his exact status was within this Chen Manor.

The sound of horse hooves drifted from afar, along with a lively buzz of conversation from outside Cuiyun Lane: “The Chen family’s eldest and second young masters are back! They’ve been at Donglin Academy for three years; I hardly recognize them now.”

“The eldest and second young masters have grown even more handsome.”

Chen Ji looked and saw two young men riding white horses into the lane. They were dressed in green brocade robes, with subtle and elegant patterns embroidered on them. The embroidery alone indicated their high cost.

The two young men wore cloud-patterned boots, each with a piece of green jade dangling from their belts, and pearl and jade pendants hanging from their collars. They appeared to be no more than eighteen or nineteen years old and possessed exceptional poise.

The steward stepped forward and, smiling, took the reins. “Having returned from your studies at Donglin Academy, young masters, you are sure to astound everyone in this year’s imperial examination!”

The two young masters dismounted, handed their riding whips to the maids, and said with a smile, “Steward, you’ve certainly gained some white hairs these past few years. It seems you’ve worked hard for the manor.”

“Not at all, it’s just my duty… The master was supervising water conservancy work on the embankment, but when he heard you were returning a few days ago, he rushed back specifically to wait for you. Go quickly and pay your respects to him!”

Amidst the clamor, everyone followed the two young masters into the manor. As they passed Chen Ji, they didn’t even spare him a glance.

It wasn’t an act. They genuinely seemed not to recognize who Chen Ji was. Or perhaps, whether they recognized him or not simply wasn’t important.

The once bustling entrance of the Chen Manor had grown quiet. Chen Ji stood silently at the gate, as if the world had forgotten him.

Chen Ji pondered carefully. His master must have known about his family’s circumstances, but his master had indeed never mentioned that his family couldn’t afford the tuition because they were poor, nor had he ever specified what his father did on the river embankment.

The reason his master had been so angry back then was because he knew Chen Ji’s family clearly had money, yet they had delayed paying the tuition.

The Luocheng Vice-Prefect, like Liu Mingxian, was a fifth-rank official.

Chen Ji looked at the “Chen Manor” plaque above the gate. In the end, he did not step through the vermilion gate. The young man simply bent down and placed the string of three hundred copper coins by the entrance. Then, picking up the packages he had brought, he turned and left.

The old man at the lane’s entrance watched his retreating figure and sighed with emotion: “A legitimate son with a mother, and a concubine’s son without one… it’s a world of difference.”

Chen Ji returned to Anxi Street. He retrieved his copper coins from the grain and oil shop. The proprietress looked surprised: “Young Doctor Chen, why have you brought everything back as it was? We don’t accept returns here.”

He smiled. “I’m not returning them. I’m taking them back to honor my master.”

When he returned to the clinic, Old Man Yao glanced up at him. “Didn’t I tell you to take a day off? You’re back so soon?”

Chen Ji counted out five hundred and sixty copper coins. “Master, this is the money my family gave me. It’s to make up for the tuition and medicine fees I owe you. And these packages in my hand are also from my family, entrusted to me for you.”

Old Man Yao pursed his lips. “Your family has finally learned some sense. I didn’t expect that supervising an embankment project could also make your father come to his senses.”

Chen Ji: “…Were you demoted to Luocheng because your tongue was too sharp?”

That night, Chen Ji sat in the main hall of the clinic, quietly copying notes on the pathology of febrile diseases. When he looked back, Wuyun was already perched on the counter behind him, with a small blue cloth bundle clutched in its mouth.

“Are you planning to run away from home?”

“What are you thinking?” Wuyun asked after a few seconds of hesitation. “Could you take me to Qingping Lane?”

“It’s already very late, and I’m afraid of the dark.”

“Do you think I believe that?”

Chen Ji sighed. “Alright, I’ll take you. But why do you want to go to Qingping Lane?”

“I don’t want to say right now!”

Where was Qingping Lane? This was a serious question.

Chen Ji thought for a moment and said, “Um… I’ll take you tomorrow night. It’s not very convenient tonight.”

“Why not tonight?!”

“I don’t know where Qingping Lane is…” Chen Ji said. “Don’t look at me like that. Although I can’t explain why, I really don’t know where Qingping Lane is.”

Wuyun thought for a moment. “I know.”

A night watchman passed by outside the door. He tapped his clapper and shouted, “Dry weather, be careful with fire.”

It was already the *yin* hour, 3 AM.

Luocheng was no longer bustling and prosperous as it was during the day.

Chen Ji quietly closed the clinic’s door panels and followed Wuyun into the night.

He tied the small blue cloth bundle onto Wuyun’s back. It looked quite adorable, and it also helped him not lose sight of Wuyun in the dark… Wuyun was simply too dark.

Along the way, Wuyun seemed to be navigating by memory, sniffing here and sniffing there.

The man and cat walked, stopped, and walked again, for a full hour, getting lost several times along the way.

Chen Ji didn’t rush it. He could tell that going to Qingping Lane tonight was extremely important to Wuyun.

He had enough patience.

Finally, Wuyun stopped in a small alley. It stared blankly at a tightly closed door.

“Is this it?” Chen Ji asked.

“It is.”

“Shall I knock?”

“No!”

Wuyun let out two meows towards the door, calling out for something.

But its calls, apart from attracting two stray cats, brought no other response.

“I’m going to climb over and take a look. Wait for me here.” With a slight push off the wall, Wuyun leaped into the courtyard. Its speed was so great it left afterimages, remarkably nimble.

Chen Ji leaned against the alley wall, waiting patiently. Before long, Wuyun unexpectedly returned. Its mood was noticeably lower. “Let’s go,” it said.

“Are you done?”

“Mm.”

“What was it?”

Wuyun stopped, looked back at the door, and said, “I miss my mom.”

Chen Ji was silent. Even cats missed their mothers.

Wuyun said dreamily, “She might not even miss me, but I just wanted to come and see… Besides, aren’t I going to embark on adventures with you in the future? I had to bring you so she could see you.”

Chen Ji asked, “Is she not home?”

Wuyun’s voice grew softer. “She was probably sold too. Her cage and food bowl are gone.”

“Shall I help you look for her?”

“No, it’s alright. That’s a cat’s fate.”

“What’s in the small bundle you brought?”

“I secretly kept some dried fish to bring to her.”

Chen Ji stood in silence in the darkness of the alley. He bent down, scooped Wuyun into his arms, and walked back towards the clinic.

Wuyun didn’t struggle. It simply curled into a small ball, covering its head with its fluffy tail.

Footsteps pattered on the bluestone slabs. The young man’s silhouette was thin but tall and straight.

“Chen Ji, what kind of person is your mother?”

“She… she’s a very gentle person,” Chen Ji didn’t want to say more. It was as if memories were warm currents like breath; once spoken, they would simply dissipate.

He carried Wuyun as he walked along Luocheng’s long streets. Wuyun, only a few months old, was tiny; when it curled up, it was only about the size of two palms.

Chen Ji suddenly felt a strong desire to live well.

“Wuyun?”

“Hm?”

“Let’s rely on each other.”