Epilogue

There is a kind of obsession that can penetrate to the marrow.

The year is 2006.

Above is paradise, below are Suzhou and Hangzhou.

Huo Shui was born and raised in Suzhou. People say that the land south of the Yangtze breeds beauties, but Huo Shui is the kind you could toss into a crowd and never pick out. She was named Huo Shui because her family name is Huo, she was born in the watery regions of Jiangnan, and her father simply called her—Huo Shui.

Her university life ended quietly, and then Huo Shui entered the Suzhou Museum, assigned as a newcomer to the "Excellence Office." The so-called Excellence Office mainly handled the museum's "Best and Worst Evaluation" tasks: providing quality service to visitors, handling complaints, and maintaining cleanliness...

If "Above is paradise, below are Suzhou and Hangzhou," then at this moment, Huo Shui felt quite honored to be mopping the floors in paradise.

"Hey, the new gallery opens today. I heard Tao Zhu will be coming!" Xiao Wu, another newcomer, gossiped excitedly.

"Tao Zhu?" Huo Shui looked up in confusion. "What a strange name."

"Oh my, you don’t know him?" Xiao Wu stared, incredulous.

"Uh? I know Tao Zhugong..." Huo Shui laughed, "The richest man of the Spring and Autumn period, the ancestor of merchants."

"If we're talking about wealth, this Tao Zhu is no less than Tao Zhugong." Xiao Wu rolled her eyes, then swooned, "I heard he’s incredibly handsome too..."

"Really?"

"Of course. If he didn’t know the curator, he wouldn’t even come."

"Haha, you sound like you’re best friends with him."

"Pfft, maybe I was Xi Shi in my past life." Xiao Wu cupped her face, smiling dreamily, "Then he’d be Fan Li, my Tao Zhugong..."

"There’s still King Wu standing between you two," Huo Shui teased, dousing her dreams.

"Oh dear... beauty is doomed to a short life..." Xiao Wu used her rag as a handkerchief and struck a mournful pose.

Huo Shui hugged her mop, shaking with laughter.

Just as she put the mop and rag back, Xiao Wu tugged Huo Shui’s sleeve, whispering, "Hey hey, Sakura’s bringing them over."

"From here, you enter the main western exhibition area and secondary eastern section of the new gallery, totaling 3,600 square meters, with thirty-two uniquely designed halls displaying artifacts ranging from ancient times to the Ming, Qing, and modern eras. Most are masterpieces and fine works from various dynasties," explained Sakura, the guide, leading a group inside.

"That girl isn’t nervous at all," Xiao Wu muttered, a bit sour.

"If she were Xi Shi in her past life, I might actually believe it," Huo Shui pinched Xiao Wu’s waist, egging her on.

Xiao Wu twisted back, unwilling: "Hmph, she’s more like Daji!"

"In the exhibition areas, there are four permanent displays with local Suzhou flavor: ‘Treasures of Wu,’ ‘National Treasures of Wu Tower,’ ‘Elegance of Wu Zhong,’ and ‘Wu School Painting and Calligraphy,’" Sakura continued, smiling, oblivious to being the subject of gossip.

"Sister..." a childish little voice called out.

As Huo Shui gossiped, she felt her skirt tugged. She looked down and saw a tiny child, gazing up at her, eyes blinking.

"Um, little one, where’s your mom?" Huo Shui crouched, her smile gentle.

The little one grinned a toothless smile, chubby finger pointing toward the dense crowd.

Huo Shui picked her up, then said to Xiao Wu, "I’ll help her find her mom. Will you be okay on your own?"

Xiao Wu waved her hand, "Go, go."

Huo Shui squeezed into the crowd with the child, searching in vain for her mother.

"This two-thousand-year-old he, belonging to King Fuchai of Wu, is a rare artifact borrowed from the Shanghai Museum for the new gallery opening," Sakura explained, gesturing to a Spring and Autumn artifact. "King Fuchai was the ruler of Wu at the end of the Spring and Autumn period, reigning for twenty-two years before his kingdom was destroyed by King Goujian of Yue. Only about twenty of his relics have been found, mostly weapons like halberds and swords. This bronze he is the only wine vessel left by King Fuchai, and it was made for a woman."

Huo Shui’s gaze was drawn to it.

"It stands about 27.8 cm tall, with an 11.7 cm mouth diameter and 24.9 cm belly diameter, its form simple and elegant—a masterpiece of late Spring and Autumn bronze ware," Sakura explained in detail. "Take a closer look: the inscription on the shoulder is still clear, reading ‘King Wu Fuchai cast this vessel in Wu gold for a woman, good fortune.’"

Huo Shui stretched her neck to see...

Suddenly, there was a bang. Everyone jumped, even Sakura paused before quickly recovering.

"Sister, it hurts..." The little one’s chubby hand gently rubbed the red mark on Huo Shui’s forehead, where she’d bumped against the glass case.

Under all those eyes, Huo Shui blushed. She’d forgotten the artifact was shielded by a protective glass.

"Ahem... ‘King Wu Fuchai’ is King Fuchai of Wu, ‘Wu gold’ refers to the finest, most precious metal. The inscription means King Fuchai used rare bronze gifted by nobles to forge this he for a woman," Sakura quickly smoothed things over. "The question everyone asks is, who was this woman? Archaeology shows bronze ware in the Spring and Autumn period was exclusive to aristocrats. If King Fuchai made one for a woman, she’d likely be his mother, wife, or daughter, all of whom would have names or titles inscribed. In all excavated bronze ware, this is the rule. But this he has no name for the woman, so her identity remains a mystery..."

"It must be Xi Shi," a visitor interjected.

"The name ‘Xi Shi’ appears in pre-Qin texts, so it existed before the Wu-Yue wars in the Spring and Autumn period. Perhaps ‘Xi Shi’ was simply a term for a beauty, not a specific person, like ‘Luo Fu’ in the Music Bureau Poetry Collection," Sakura smiled. "So we can surmise that during the Wu-Yue wars, there was a woman whose beauty earned her the name Xi Shi, though it wasn’t her real name."

Through the glass, Huo Shui stared dazedly at the inscription, the characters clearly visible.

"Sister..." the little one squirmed. "I need to pee..."

Huo Shui was still lost in thought.

"I... need to pee..." The little one’s lips quivered, about to cry.

"Huh?" Huo Shui snapped back.

"Sister..." Suddenly, the little one smiled in relief.

"Mm?" Huo Shui looked down at the pink-faced child in her arms.

"I’m done," the little one hummed.

Huo Shui felt water dripping from her skirt...

In front of everyone... no one would think it was her, would they...

"Mommy..." The little one squirmed, waving her hand happily.

"An An!" A curly-haired woman rushed over, taking the child from Huo Shui’s arms.

Suddenly empty-handed, the culprit made a clean escape, lying on her mother’s shoulder and waving at Huo Shui, "Bye-bye."

Huo Shui was left alone, slowly petrifying... her wet skirt still dripping...

A gust of wind, cold as ice.

Her face... darkened.

"Are you alright?" A gentle voice came from nearby.

It was like a breeze brushing past her ear.

Huo Shui turned, stunned, to see a man in a white shirt.

Before she could respond, he had already wrapped his jacket around her waist.

"Thank you!" Huo Shui blushed, rushing to speak.

"What’s your name?" He looked at her, extending his hand.

His hand was long, fair, and well-proportioned—beautiful.

"Huo Shui. And you?" She reached out and shook his warm, dry hand.

Disaster? Huo Shui?

"Tao Zhu," he smiled.

"Ah? You’re that wealthy man?" Huo Shui blinked, then covered her mouth in surprise.

The man laughed suddenly, "Yes, I am that wealthy man."

In the display case, the he of King Fuchai of Wu sat in silence under curious gazes.

It had existed for over two thousand years and would continue to exist.

A story is just a story—it is not history.

In history, King Fuchai of Wu was merely a foolish ruler who could not distinguish loyalty from treachery, who killed loyal ministers, and paid with the loss of his kingdom.