Mijing asked, “Why do you think the King would kick me out?”

Song Shuo replied, “Because he doesn’t like you. I noticed that on my first day here.”

Mijing said, “And did you notice why he doesn’t like me?”

Song Shuo rolled his eyes. “Do you even need to ask? Because Xiao Rong admires you a lot. You threaten the King’s status in Xiao Rong’s heart, so of course he doesn’t like you.”

Mijing quietly looked at Song Shuo. Song Shuo tilted his head, confused when Mijing didn’t praise him. “What, was I wrong?” he asked.

Mijing thought: Right. Very right.

So here’s the problem—since you could already see so clearly, even more quickly than me, someone who had been in the palace longer, why didn’t you continue analyzing it?

Some people, because they weren’t sharp enough, tossed and turned for three days before confirming their suspicions. Yet someone as sharp as you just didn’t think in that direction at all.

Heh… So what if you’re a genius? You’re still a fool when it comes to dealing with people.

With that thought, Mijing quietly stood up and left. Song Shuo, stunned, watched him leave without another word and didn’t recover for quite some time.

…Wait, you’re just leaving?

I just gave you a warning! Aren’t you going to say anything?!

＊

On the tenth day of the seventh month, the Northern King and his party returned to Yanmen Country. The once-busy streets were much quieter. With a great battle approaching, even common folk were preparing for war.

These were the families of the soldiers left to guard the place. Once the war ended, some of them would move to Chenliu.

Yuan Baifu and Wang Xinyong, having received word ahead of time, waited half a day outside the city gate. When they finally saw the army approaching, the two of them immediately dismounted to pay their respects.

“Your humble servants greet Your Highness!”

After they shouted in unison, Yuan Baifu was the first to rise, flashing a smile at Qu Yunmie. Wang Xinyong, less bold, knelt a while longer. When he realized the prince truly had no intention of telling him to get up, he could only rise bitterly on his own.

Jian Qiao: “…”

He couldn’t look at Yuan Baifu the same way anymore.

He had already grown much colder toward Gongsun Yuan along the journey. Gongsun Yuan was puzzled, but didn’t overthink it, assuming Jian Qiao had something wrong with him. Yuan Baifu was different—he was the most observant of them all. He always noticed things others missed.

Because of that, he often appeared indecisive. The King had even scolded him for it before, saying someone in his position shouldn’t be so soft-hearted.

Yet only Qu Yunmie had a problem with Yuan Baifu’s kindness. The soldiers beneath him liked it very much. No matter which general flew into a rage and wanted to kill someone, as long as they reached General Yuan, most of them would be spared.

Jian Qiao couldn’t help but look at Yuan Baifu.

He hadn’t realized it before, but Xiao Rong never mentioned Yuan Baifu by name—only said Wang Xinyong could be trusted. Normally, people should group Yuan Baifu and Gongsun Yuan together, but Jian Qiao instinctively felt Yuan Baifu was more threatening.

Sometimes intuition was just that. Other times, it was your brain processing what you couldn’t consciously analyze—subconscious pattern recognition. Your instincts for gain and survival prompted actions that seemed intuitive, but upon reflection, had clear reasons.

After exchanging greetings with Qu Yunmie, Yuan Baifu smiled at Jian Qiao and Gongsun Yuan, even inquiring after Jian Qiao’s wife and brother-in-law.

Jian Qiao didn’t know what came over him. On impulse, he replied, “Zhang Biezhi didn’t come this time. He volunteered to protect Mister Xiao. Zhang Biezhi really admires Mister Xiao—he doesn’t cause trouble anymore.”

Yuan Baifu froze for a second, then nodded. “Then you should be at ease.”

Jian Qiao: “…”

He had only said that out of frustration, wanting to jab at Yuan Baifu—to tell him he wasn’t the only one good at winning hearts. Even someone as unruly as Zhang Biezhi had become obedient under Xiao Rong. Yuan Baifu was nothing compared to him.

That was just his own wishful thinking. Yuan Baifu didn’t understand what he meant at all. Realizing this only made Jian Qiao more annoyed.

Luckily, he calmed down soon after. Aside from that one outburst when he first saw Yuan Baifu, he behaved normally. Once he remembered the important matters at hand, he stopped paying attention to Yuan Baifu.

Qu Yunmie hadn’t noticed anything strange from start to finish. He strode into the palace, where he had lived for two years, only to find it now strangely unfamiliar.

He paused, then headed to his bedchamber.

Yuan Baifu walked beside him and said, “It’s been cleaned early this morning. You were only gone for a little over two months, but the dust still piled up.”

Qu Yunmie replied, “We’re only staying for five days. I already said there was no need to clean. We could’ve just camped with the army.”

Then he paused, recalling Yuan Baifu’s earlier words, ‘A house left empty deteriorates quickly. It’s only been a couple months. Leave it a few more, and the weeds will be everywhere.’

Yuan Baifu laughed. “Your Highness even knows things like this.”

Qu Yunmie also laughed. “Xiao Rong told me. He’s been busy repairing old buildings in Chenliu. Fix one side, and the other breaks down. Wooden ones hold up better. Thatched roofs fall apart the fastest. In the end, he had no choice but to sell them all off—which turned out to be quite a lucrative decision.”

Yuan Baifu looked at Qu Yunmie. The latter noticed and frowned. “What?”

After a moment’s thought, Yuan Baifu said, “Your Highness seems different from before.”

Anyone who spent enough time with Qu Yunmie could feel the change, especially someone like Yuan Baifu who had been away for several months. Qu Yunmie paused at the words, then gave a quiet smile.

“You should say I’ve improved. I know I used to be a bastard—neither compassionate to the people nor kind to my subordinates. After going to Chenliu and starting over, I finally saw how lacking I was.”

He pressed his lips together and looked earnestly at Yuan Baifu. “After we defeat the Xianbei, I plan to station Gongsun Yuan here permanently. You and Wang Xinyong will return to Chenliu with me. I want you to see how prosperous it is now. After some rest, I’ll put you in charge of the garrisons in Chenliu and Yuzhou. As for Wang Xinyong… I’ll send him to Xuzhou. Ten years ago, he guarded the other side of the Han River. Ten years later, he’ll still be guarding it. Haha, I suppose that’s a kind of homecoming.”

Chenliu was the royal capital. Yuzhou was the area surrounding it.

These two places, north of the Han River, were the new core of Qu Yunmie’s power.

If Wang Xinyong heard this, he would probably go mad with joy. Yet when Yuan Baifu heard the plan, he instinctively lowered his eyes.

Guarding Chenliu sounded important—but only if the Northern King didn’t know how to lead armies.

Wherever Qu Yunmie was, even with an army of a hundred thousand under someone else’s name, it didn’t matter. Those soldiers still belonged to him. Even Yuan Baifu himself belonged to him.

Though he thought this way, Yuan Baifu still smiled and thanked Qu Yunmie for the opportunity.

As expected, Qu Yunmie didn’t notice anything strange. He told Yuan Baifu to call the others—they needed to start discussing when to go to war.

＊

At the same time, in an unremarkable house in Xiakou—

Xiakou was a city with little presence. It lay beside the Yangtze River, north of the major city Jiangxia, west of the strategic Jingzhou, and east of the wealthy Lujiang and Wuchang. Sandwiched between giants, Xiakou was always a transit point, never a destination.

From another perspective, its location made it incredibly convenient—close to everywhere and right by the river, perfect for water transport.

In that unremarkable home, someone recognized that potential, but he lay sick in bed, gazing at the overcast sky outside and sighing.

Xizhu…

His Xizhu…

His beautiful, ruthless Xizhu…

He had bought her eight years ago. He gave her good food, nice clothes, everything. He had held himself back from touching her, waiting for her to fulfill her mission—to prove her worth as an assassin. He had planned to take her as a concubine the moment she succeeded.

Who would’ve thought… she would die so soon! That damn Yang Zangyi even blamed her, and said it was her fault for exposing herself right away. Nonsense! Xizhu was the most skilled assassin he had ever bought—what man wouldn’t fall for her?

It was too late to say anything now. Xizhu was dead, and Yang Zangyi had even turned on him, trying to kill him instead. The thought made him grind his teeth. He wanted to blame Yang Zangyi—his assassin was killed and still failed the mission!

It was ridiculous.

Yang Zangyi clearly hired Xizhu to kill Sun Renluan—why did the target suddenly switch to Xiao Rong halfway through? Was Yang Zangyi overestimating Xiao Rong? Or underestimating Xizhu?

…Definitely the latter!!

Damn, it hurt even more—his poor Xizhu—

This was how he had spent the past few days, howling in grief. Lately he had stopped howling aloud, so people outside assumed he was calm. Someone rushed in to report: “Master, the scouts from Yanmen Country report that the Northern King has arrived.”

At once, he sat upright—no trace of the grieving widower anymore. “Any word from Shengle?”

“None.”

“From Chenliu?”

“Also none.”

He grew furious. “No news at all! I—”

Mid-sentence, he got out of bed irritably, “Forget it. What’s the point of yelling at you? Didn’t a scholar come to join us a few days ago—what was his name?”

“Zhou Liang, Master. You said to leave him waiting.”

The master sneered. “No need to wait anymore! We’ve got nothing from anywhere—I can’t sit still! Didn’t that guy have a grudge against Xiao Rong? Good! I’ve got one too. Dare to get my Xizhu killed… it’ll be one life for another!”

He spoke righteously, but the man across from him looked hesitant.

“What’s that look for?”

“Er… I was just thinking… if Madam Xilan finds out about this…”

The Master: “…”

“Then don’t tell her! Hurry and get me some clothes—it’s getting colder by the day!”

 

Edited by: Antiope

 

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