A Figure on Jade Steps in the Wind and Snow 13

Chapter 13: Deliberate

Just as she was trying to draw a clear line, speaking in a grand and deliberately distant manner, she unexpectedly ran into the person in question not long after.

It was as if she had just made a harsh statement one second, only to meet them on a narrow path the next.

As the saying goes, “enemies often cross paths”… but they weren’t exactly enemies.

Shen Zhishu narrowed her eyes almost imperceptibly.

She didn’t respond to the “flirting” comment, but instead gave a polite bow and said, “May the Eldest Princess be well. What brings you here?”

“I have an appointment with someone. And you, Your Excellency?”

“This subordinate… also has an appointment with someone.”

Shen Zhishu felt a little guilty saying this, as the Seventh Imperial Princess had only invited Xie Jin and not her.

The Eldest Princess looked her up and down twice with a half-smile and asked in a faint voice, “May I ask who Your Excellency has an appointment with?”

Shen Zhishu said without thinking, “General Xie, on a whim, invited me over for after-dinner tea.”

“Oh? Your Excellency’s friend is also here?”

“…Indeed.”

“Where is she?”

“She…” Shen Zhishu was about to make up a few more things when her peripheral vision caught the manager swaying down the stairs. She pointed towards the stairs, “She went up first.”

“I see,” the Eldest Princess said. “Then when will Your Excellency also go upstairs to join your friend?”

…Ever since Xie Jin had changed “wife” to “friend” at the dinner table, the Eldest Princess seemed to love using this word to refer to the two of them.

If it was teasing, her expressionless face really didn’t look like it. But if it was a serious address…

After asking this question, the Eldest Princess took a few steps forward and came face to face with the manager.

A flower bloomed on the manager’s face, and she said in a chorus, “The Seventh Highness and General Xie are already waiting upstairs. Your Highness, please follow me.”

After speaking, she turned to Shen Zhishu and said respectfully, “General, please follow me as well. The Seventh Highness would also like to have a chat with you.”

The Eldest Princess gracefully passed by Shen Zhishu, and the clear, cold scent of cedar drifted over with her faint voice, “It seems Your Excellency will not be able to have after-dinner tea alone with your friend.”

Shen Zhishu: …

So she knew Xie Jin was coming, but she didn’t expose her lies and even pretended to ask a bunch of questions…

The Eldest Princess was clearly doing it on purpose!

**

It was late, and lamps were lit both inside and outside the room. An attendant served tea and then tactfully withdrew from the private room, leaving only Xie Jin and the Seventh Imperial Princess sitting inside.

The two hadn’t seen each other in a long time and were both a little reserved.

The last time Xie Jin had seen the Seventh Imperial Princess was four years ago, when the Seventh Imperial Princess was only eight years old. The Seventh Imperial Princess had brought people to burn paper at the grave of the Pure Consort’s younger sister, who was Xie Jin’s late wife, and happened to run into Xie Jin.

Xie Jin had been fighting in wars for many years and had rushed back to the capital for her late wife’s death anniversary. She had thought that due to the continuous plum rains a while ago, the grave would have been soaked and in a dilapidated state, but she didn’t expect her late wife’s grave to have been newly repaired, with flowers neatly arranged in front of it.

At that time, the Seventh Imperial Princess’s voice was still very childish, “My mother consort said that Aunt-General can fight at ease outside. There’s no need to worry about here, she will have someone take good care of it.”

Xie Jin’s eyes must have been irritated by the wind, and they became moist, “Please thank the Pure Consort on my behalf.”

There were very few people in this world who still remembered her late wife. The Pure Consort was one, and the Seventh Imperial Princess was another.

Xie Jin suddenly came back to her senses, took a sip of tea, and made small talk, “May Your Highness be well. How have you been recently?”

“Thank you for your concern, Aunt-General, everything is well,” the Seventh Imperial Princess said with the maturity of an old person. “I went to my little aunt’s grave the other day and had someone clear the weeds. Aunt-General, please rest assured.”

“Thank you, Your Highness,” Xie Jin cupped her hands and asked again, “Your Highness, did you ask for me this time because there’s a lead on the matter of General Shen’s assassination?”

“That’s right,” the Seventh Imperial Princess gestured with her chin towards the entrance of the private room. “I also invited my little aunt. It should be about time for her to arrive.”

As soon as her voice fell, the Eldest Princess and Shen Zhishu appeared at the entrance together, separated by a not-so-insignificant distance, as if they were not very familiar with each other.

This made Xie Jin raise an eyebrow.

As soon as the Seventh Imperial Princess saw the Eldest Princess, her eyes lit up, and her old-fashioned demeanor immediately disappeared. She shot up, pulled out the chair beside her, and said cheerfully, “Little Aunt, come quickly, sit here.”

The Eldest Princess then didn’t spare Shen Zhishu behind her a glance and gracefully walked towards the Seventh Imperial Princess, saying in a faint voice, “You’re twelve now, you should be more composed.”

“Why are you like my mother consort, you’ve also learned to nag me,” the Seventh Imperial Princess pouted. “A month ago, the academy tutor probably told my mother consort that I was mischievous and active. Since then, my mother consort has been nagging me in my ear from time to time. Why are you starting now, Little Aunt? Did the tutor also tell you? Forget it, let’s get to the point. General Shen, please sit.”

The Seventh Imperial Princess chattered on, and Shen Zhishu only heard the last five words clearly. She turned to look at Xie Jin, hoping that the Seventh Imperial Princess’s aunt-general could interpret for her, but found that Xie Jin’s expression was even more bewildered than a newborn baby’s. After meeting her gaze, she scratched her head and said in a low voice, “What did she say?”

Shen Zhishu: …

Shen Zhishu then understood that Xie Jin probably didn’t even hear the last sentence clearly.

She said thank you and returned to her seat, listening to the Seventh Imperial Princess continue to chatter:

“The matter is like this, I don’t really understand the specifics myself. I’m just conveying my mother consort’s meaning. My mother consort told me to find my little aunt if I have any problems, so I brought my little aunt along as well. Speaking of which, I haven’t seen my little aunt in five days. I was thinking of leaving the palace to see my little aunt yesterday, but my mother consort wouldn’t allow it. She insisted that I memorize the articles taught these past few days until I’m completely fluent before she would let me out. If it weren’t for the lead on General Shen’s assassination, I would have only half-memorized that article and wouldn’t have been able to leave the palace.”

Shen Zhishu: …

Bad news, she still didn’t hear a single word clearly.

Good news, this whole speech seemed to be nonsense, because she heard at least a dozen “Little Aunt.”

Combined with the Seventh Imperial Princess’s aggrieved tone as she spoke, it should be a child’s tantrum.

The Eldest Princess then replied with a faint “Mm,” which seemed a little thin compared to the Seventh Imperial Princess’s long speech—making Shen Zhishu suspect that she didn’t understand either—but the Seventh Imperial Princess was visibly happier and started chattering again:

“Little Aunt, do you know which article I’m reading? I’m reading the ‘Record of the Way.’ I’ve memorized half of it. Do you want to hear it, Little Aunt?”

This time, Shen Zhishu heard clearly.

She was already prepared to wait another half an hour before getting to the point, but she saw the Eldest Princess straighten the Seventh Imperial Princess’s collar and then say calmly, “I don’t.”

Shen Zhishu: ? So direct?

The Seventh Imperial Princess, however, was not discouraged, “Are you sure you don’t want to hear it, Little Aunt? I recited the first half very smoothly, and all the court eunuchs praised me.”

The Eldest Princess: “I don’t.”

The Seventh Imperial Princess pouted and muttered, “Alright”:

“It’s alright, although my little aunt rejected me, she is still my favorite little aunt. I’ll start conveying my mother consort’s meaning now.”

“My mother consort said that Sister Qiuyan was originally in her palace, but was later taken away by the Second Sister. The next time she saw her was in the Hall of Diligent Governance. Several months passed in between. She was either given to our mother-empress by the Second Sister, or she passed through someone else’s hands in the middle. She asked me to ask my little aunt if she knows anything about it.”

“Qiuyan?” The Eldest Princess thought for a moment and shook her head. “The Second Sister never mentioned it to me, and I haven’t seen any unfamiliar attendants around her.”

When the Eldest Princess spoke, her tone was calm and unhurried, making it difficult to tell whether she was thinking or being a little careless.

…It’s quite amazing, Shen Zhishu thought.

No matter what this person said or did, she always had this cool and detached demeanor, except…

Stop.

She pulled back her wandering thoughts and coughed into her fist, as if to cover up something.

The cough brought a “What’s wrong, General?” from the Eldest Princess.

Shen Zhishu: …

She thought to herself, I can’t possibly say that I accidentally thought of your situation on the bed that day, so she said vaguely, “It’s nothing.”

The Eldest Princess glanced at her, didn’t reply, and her fingertips on the table tapped twice on the tabletop. She then turned to the Seventh Imperial Princess, “Why are you looking for an attendant’s tracks?”

The Seventh Imperial Princess was astonished, “She assassinated General Shen, didn’t you know, Little Aunt?”

“Why would I know? No one told me.”

The Seventh Imperial Princess suddenly realized, “Right! I didn’t tell you, Little Aunt. Speaking of which, the matter of General Shen’s assassination was kept very quiet. When we received the message from my aunt-general, we were quite surprised! We were even more surprised when we found out that the assassin was Qiuyan.”

Shen Zhishu lowered her head to drink her tea, feeling three pairs of eyes converge on her, mixed with “Say something,” “The General is not having an easy time,” and…

The Eldest Princess’s gaze was light, and Shen Zhishu couldn’t figure out what it meant.

She raised her teacup, thinking that she should probably express some thoughts at this moment. Just as she was about to speak, she suddenly heard the Eldest Princess ask in a flat tone:

“Was Your Excellency assassinated during the day on the day you returned to the capital?”

“Indeed,” Shen Zhishu said.

“Your Excellency never mentioned it to me.”

Shen Zhishu still didn’t know what the Eldest Princess meant by this.

If it was curiosity, the Eldest Princess really didn’t seem like the type to care about these things; if it was to blame her for not telling her… that was even more impossible.

Perhaps it was a polite inquiry, she thought.

So she said, “It’s not a big deal, there’s no need to bother Your Highness with it, so I didn’t mention it.”

The Eldest Princess nodded slightly, took a sip of her teacup, and suddenly spoke again:

“If Your Excellency has any problems in the future, there’s no need to hide them. We are all family.”

…Family?

They had only met a few times, spoken no more than a few dozen rounds of conversation, and they were already family?

Shen Zhishu didn’t understand and asked in astonishment, “When did this subordinate become family with Your Highness?”

She was already prepared to hear some polite words like “as close as family,” but she didn’t expect that a moment later, the Eldest Princess’s indifferent voice would come lightly:

“General Xie is Little Seven’s aunt-general. As the General’s… friend, you are naturally considered family with me.”

Shen Zhishu: …

Impeccable logic.

It’s all Xie Jin’s fault!