Left with no other recourse before her departure for the farm, Seraphina reached out to Julian. Her voice was a frayed thread of sobs as she poured out her woes.

"Julian, please... I never breathed a word of slander against Cousin Adrian," she wailed, each syllable thick with practiced victimhood. "He must misunderstand me. Or perhaps... perhaps Evelyn has been whispering poison in his ear."

Julian had heard rumors of his cousin’s reassignment to the grassroots level, but the news that Adrian was stationed alongside the Dominic brothers—and that Evelyn was there as well—hit him like a physical blow. It made sense for Evelyn to seek refuge with her brother, but for her to sabotage Seraphina? And for a man as sharp as Adrian to actually believe her?

Driven by a mix of concern and indignation, Julian managed to wheedle the farm’s contact number from his grandfather.

"Cousin Adrian? It’s Julian!"

On the other end of the line, Adrian’s brow furrowed. His voice was a sheet of ice. "What is it?"

Julian’s throat tightened instinctively. "I... I heard from Grandfather that you’ve gone to the countryside. How is it out there? Is everything alright? It must be such a change for you."

"I’m busy," Adrian replied, his tone flat and dismissive. "Do not call this line unless it is urgent. If you have problems, take them to your father."

"Wait! Cousin—Adrian!"

The line went dead. Seconds later, the phone rang again. This time, Julian didn’t dare waste a breath on pleasantries. "Cousin, wait! I have something important to discuss!"

"Speak."

"The business with the Dominics and Seraphina... surely there’s been a misunderstanding?"

"There is no misunderstanding."

"But Evelyn must have said something! What happened between Seraphina and me, it’s all just a—"

"If you feel they’ve been wronged," Adrian interrupted, his patience snapping, "it only proves you’re cut from the same cloth. I’d be more than happy to arrange a spot for you alongside them. A little 'reformation' might do you good."

Julian choked on his next word. He fell silent, terrified. A month isn't that long, he told himself. I can wait a month.

"Cousin... has Evelyn been a burden to you? I apologize on her behalf."

The air on the line seemed to grow heavy. "Julian," Adrian said darkly, "perhaps you should come to the country."

"What?" Julian stammered, caught off guard.

Adrian leaned back in his chair, a cold smile touching his lips. "You seem to have an abundance of free time. Why not put it to use with some manual labor?"

"No, Cousin! I’m not idle, I’m quite busy, I—"

"It’s settled. I’ll notify your father."

The dial tone buzzed in Julian’s ear. He had called to plead for mercy and ended up sentencing himself. He didn't know that by nightfall, his father, Arthur, had already been summoned to the ancestral estate.

Over a game of chess, the family patriarch, Alastair, moved a pawn with deliberate grace. "Adrian makes a fair point. Julian is flighty. He lacks the gravity a man of his station requires."

Arthur, who had only one son, looked pained. "The farm, Father? It’s a harsh life."

"Adrian is in Qingping County, isn't he?" Alastair countered. "With him there, what are you afraid of?"

Arthur wavered. The kidnapping years ago had soured the bond between him and Adrian, leaving their relationship professional at best. But Adrian was a rising star with a limitless future; if this move could bridge the gap between their sons, perhaps it was worth the cost.

"Let me consider it, Father."

"Julian has had it too easy," Alastair said, his eyes sharp. "You cannot shield him forever. A man must taste the bitterness of the earth before he can appreciate the sweetness of success." He was thinking of the recent broken engagement—Julian’s clumsiness in handling the fallout had been the final straw. Arthur finally nodded. The trap was set.

At the farm, Seraphina’s "heart condition" spared her from the heaviest labor, leaving her with the glamourless task of gathering fodder and slop-feeding the pigs. For a girl who had never seen a live hog, let alone touched one, it was a descent into hell.

Within days, she looked like a wilted lily, the light extinguished from her eyes. She spent her hours staring at the horizon, praying for Julian to appear like a prince and whisk her away from the stench and the filth.

Her prayers were, in a sense, answered. Julian was already on a train, watching the world blur past the window. His initial resistance had given way to a strange, spiteful anticipation. He began to imagine the look of shock on Evelyn’s face when he arrived.

As for Seraphina? She had slipped from his mind entirely.

Dominic, seasoned by years of labor, adapted quickly. But Caleb was not so fortunate. Cast from heaven straight into the dirt, he found himself working from sunrise to sunset—more physical labor in a week than he had performed in his entire life.

Desperate, Caleb borrowed five dollars from Seraphina to make a phone call. He reached his father at the textile mill, his voice breaking into heaving sobs as he decried Evelyn’s cruelty and described their misery.

"Dad, you have to get me out! I’m dying here..."

Ward gripped the receiver, his heart aching, but his hands were tied. It would take at least six months to arrange a transfer, and even then, it required a clean record and a guaranteed job—things that were currently out of reach.

"Hold on, son," Ward urged. "I’ll talk to your uncle. We’ll find a way."

When he hung up, Ward’s face was a mask of fury. His sons were suffering because of that ungrateful girl. Let her rot in the mountains, he thought. Let’s see how long she lasts.

Back at the village, Evelyn received three identical telegrams from the city. She read them with a dry, detached amusement.

Take care of Dominic and Caleb, or do not come home.

Look after the three of them, or you are no longer a Ward.

Apologize and bring food to the farm immediately.

Evelyn didn't blink. She crumpled the papers and tossed them into the stove, watching the flames lick the ink until they turned to ash.

The village was buzzing today; electricians were stringing phone lines into Red Wolf Valley. It was a spectacle that drew crowds of gawking children and gossiping elders. But Evelyn had other priorities. If she was going to rely on Adrian’s protection, she had to play her part well.

Besides, she had his money and his vouchers. It gave her a perfect excuse to prepare a proper meal and deliver it to him. She had heard from Barrett that the county had approved Adrian’s proposal for the town’s first ginseng farm. The man was working himself to the bone, likely forgetting to eat entirely.

As Adrian emerged from his meeting, barking orders to his subordinates, he prepared to head out to Mulong Lake to survey the site.

"Mayor Adrian," Barrett whispered, stepping forward with a knowing grin. "Evelyn is here. She’s been waiting for you."