Chapter 36: Gentleness: Standing Aside

By the time the banquet dispersed, the moon hung high in the sky. The vermilion palace walls gleamed coldly under the moonlight, resembling blood smeared across them from afar.

“Although the Emperor isn’t close to the Empress, he dotes on the Ning’an Princess greatly. Noble Consort Shen has suffered quite a bit from her in the past.” Yan Yue lifted her gaze to the sprawling palace walls and continued, “That dance tonight pleased Shen Wanrong immensely.”

“After tonight, the Ning’an Princess will see me as a thorn in her side even more.”

Yan Yue raised an eyebrow. “Are you afraid of her?”

“Her father already views me as a thorn in his side, but right now… aren’t I still living quite well?” Yan Yiqing shrugged nonchalantly. “Since we’ve decided to achieve great things, being targeted by the Crown Prince Party is just a matter of time.”

“Just a willful princess—I wasn’t worried about you.” Yan Yue paused, her gaze falling on a shadow in the distance. “But why did Zhao Huaijin suddenly step in earlier?”

By all rights, it would have been good enough if Zhao Huaijin hadn’t kicked her while she was down—but he had done the opposite.

Yan Yiqing’s gaze darkened slightly.

“What are you thinking? Do you suspect he has ulterior motives?” Yan Yue waved her hand in front of Yan Yiqing’s eyes.

Snapping back to attention, Yan Yiqing pursed her lips and said, “I don’t know.”

Seeing her vague response, Yan Yue didn’t press further. Instead, she reminded her solemnly, “Remember, he’s one of the Crown Prince’s people. Be cautious in all dealings with him.”

“Mm.” Yan Yiqing acknowledged.

“It’s getting late; I can only give you these brief instructions.” Spotting Ruyi approaching with a lantern, Yan Yue straightened Yan Yiqing’s collar. “The trap is set. Now we just wait for the prey to take the bait.”

“You be careful too, Big Sister.”

What they schemed was as difficult as ascending to heaven.

Their sole reliance was blood kin.

They couldn’t afford a single misstep, or it would all come crashing down.

Yan Yue patted the back of her hand.

Then she turned and walked alone toward the faint light in the darkness.

Watching Yan Yue’s figure gradually swallowed by the night, Yan Yiqing silently clenched her fist at her side, took a deep breath, and strode toward the carriage from Duke Rui’s Mansion.

Seeing Yan Yiqing approach, Qin An’s expression turned peculiar.

She had heard from the guards about that dance in the hall, and combined with the rumors she knew of her past. If not for Yan Yiqing’s extremely poor attitude toward the Heir Apparent, she actually quite liked this female master.

It was exceedingly difficult for a woman to enter officialdom.

She herself had no background; back then, if not for the Heir Apparent’s appreciation…

Yet Yan Yiqing had carved out her own path, her spear shaking the world. In just five short years, she had restored the former glory of the Youzhou Guard.

“Knock knock.” Turning away, Qin An rapped on the carriage. “Heir Apparent, Young Master Yan is done speaking with Princess Gong Consort.”

A woman’s cool voice replied, “Good.”

Zhao Huairen closed the book in her palm and lifted a corner of the carriage curtain, about to step down. But Yan Yiqing frowned and asked, “Does your horse know the way?”

“Cloud Swallow?”

“I didn’t ask its name. Just answer me—does it know the way or not?”

Guessing her intent from those few words, Zhao Huairen pursed her thin lips and said softly, “Cloud Swallow is a clever horse; of course it knows the way.”

“Then don’t bother. Getting on and off is just wasting my time.”

Zhao Huairen quietly lowered her eyes, a faint, almost imperceptible smile flickering in their depths. She stepped aside to make room for her.

Yan Yiqing leaped onto the carriage.

She sat pressed against the carriage wall, in the farthest diagonal corner from her.

Excellent! She had thought the Heir Apparent would have to ride back on horseback again. A hint of delight appeared at Qin An’s brows as she swiftly untied Cloud Swallow’s reins. “Little Swallow, we can head back to the mansion now~”

The night was finely crushed by the advancing carriage.

The wind and the crackling of candle flames drowned out the breathing of the two inside.

“The Crown Prince and the Princess—did those two… give you any trouble just now?” Staring at the tip of her own shoe, Yan Yiqing’s voice was very soft.

If not for the unnatural quiet of Golden Light Street at that moment,

Zhao Huairen wouldn’t have heard it, and Yan Yiqing lacked the courage to ask again.

Fortunately, the wind was gentle.

Brushing past those grating words, Zhao Huairen said warmly, “It’s fine, no harm done.”

The Crown Prince was no wise ruler. Though Liu Zhaohua admired him, she had never considered his feelings in her actions.

Did they give him trouble?

She already knew the answer in her heart.

“Why did you step in to help me?” Yan Yiqing lifted her gaze to her, lingering on her face for only a brief moment before unnaturally flicking it to the empty carriage wall.

Why help her?

Truth be told, Zhao Huairen wasn’t entirely sure herself.

She knew that even without her intervention, Yan Yiqing could have handled it perfectly. By her usual style, she would have wisely stayed out of it. But tonight… she had involuntarily wanted her to gain more.

“I haven’t tried the qin from the palace musicians before.”

Would the Duke Rui Heir Apparent lack a qin?

Not to mention others, her private stores alone held many fine ones.

What a lame excuse—not even a convincing one. She was clearly trying to make her feel deeply indebted.

“I thought you acted out of righteousness, but it turns out you just coveted that qin.” Yan Yiqing curled her lip and said indifferently, “In that case, the favor I mentioned before doesn’t count.”

“Good.” Zhao Huairen’s gaze softened.

That expression again.

It made her seem like she was the one throwing a tantrum.

Her hands on her knees clenched into fists, and biting the inside of her lip, a nameless fire surged in Yan Yiqing’s heart.

–

The banquet in Purple Chen Hall was like a warning before a storm.

After that night, Yan Yiqing formally joined Prince Gong’s faction.

No longer a “exile” between the two parties, she now enjoyed protection and became a rising star touted by Prince Gong’s faction.

Though still in the Si Nong Temple, her duties shifted from salary distribution to tax collection. Prince Gong held no sway in the Ministry of Revenue, but the Si Nong Temple answered almost entirely to him. With the Crown Prince and Prince Gong at odds, the Si Nong Temple naturally clashed with the Ministry of Revenue.

Only by touching the core of power

And glimpsing a bit did she realize just how hateful these officials truly were.

The Si Nong Temple, tasked with stabilizing prices, ostensibly fulfilled its duties while secretly abusing its power—hoarding grain ahead of manipulated price spikes, then profiting invisibly when prices soared.

Once they’d made enough, they would step in to stabilize prices.

When reporting to the court, it became another great merit.

The Si Nong Temple, self-pillaging like vermin in a rice bin, didn’t gnaw much and couldn’t harm the nation’s foundations, nor draw the higher-ups’ attention. Over the years, it nurtured one fat, corrupt official after another.

If even the supposedly “upright” Si Nong Temple was like this,

The renowned Ministry of Revenue had skimmed countless layers of the people’s fat and blood.

Nourished by the common folk, shielded by soldiers, yet trampling upon them in the end. The two most powerful princes were thus, and the current Emperor was like a fat maggot draped in dragon robes.

While performing her duties, she also gathered evidence of their corruption. In the past half month, her encounters with Zhao Huairen had been limited to the court.

One on the left, one on the right.

Divided like the Chu and Han realms, not even a nod exchanged.

Know thyself and thy enemy to win a hundred battles. Zhao Huaijin held significant weight in the Crown Prince Party; prying intelligence from him would greatly aid her future actions.

With such thoughts in mind,

On her day off, Yan Yiqing rose early.

But oddly, the study was empty when she arrived.

The study’s door wasn’t locked. After a few unanswered knocks, with her forceful push, the door creaked open on its own.

She wasn’t one for rigid propriety.

For her goals, sneaking through windows was nothing new.

In an instant, her wavering resolve firmed. Yan Yiqing glanced inside, confirmed no one was there, and strode in openly.

The furnishings matched her expectations.

A purple sandalwood desk, a few elm bookshelves, and a carved screen.

Near the inner wall stood a soft couch. He must have been holing up there lately.

Scanning the room yielded nothing unusual. Yan Yiqing stepped to the desk, her fingertip just brushing the letter paper—

“How did you just barge in?!”

Eyes wide like copper bells, Zhichun stood like a little guardian beast, hands on hips, glaring furiously at her.

Yan Yiqing arched a brow and ignored her, picking up the letter. “You?”

“It was a slip of the tongue from this servant.” Though unconvinced inwardly, Zhichun corrected herself. “Young Master Yan, this is the Heir Apparent’s study. How could you enter without asking?”

“The door was open.”

The letter held only casual jottings.

Setting it down, Yan Yiqing looked at her innocently.

Her gaze fixed behind Zhichun, who pursed her lips, suppressing her anger. “Fine then. Now, please leave, Young Master Yan.”

A simple-minded young maid.

Her unwitting glance betrayed the study’s secret.

Yan Yiqing turned, her eyes lingering on the elm bookshelf for a few seconds before casually looking away.

Oh, so there’s an inner chamber.

Seeing her stop probing, Zhichun breathed a sigh of relief and urged, “Young Master Yan, please leave quickly. It’s improper; I’m going to lock up.”

Over the years, whether battling on the field or scheming in court, she rarely encountered girls her age as pure and cute as Zhichun.

Recently, this little maid had been somewhat friendly toward her, but in the last few days—she had turned fierce as a rakshasa.

“Zhichun, have I offended you somehow?”

“You’ve harmed the Heir Ap—” Zhichun clamped her hand over her mouth mid-sentence.

It was all her fault! Who asked questions so directly?

“I’ve harmed your Heir Apparent?” Yan Yiqing’s brows furrowed as she pressed, “I haven’t interacted with her lately—how could I have harmed her? What’s happened to her?”

Recalling the Heir Apparent’s instructions and realizing her slip, Zhichun sealed her lips, turning into a clam on the spot.

No matter how Yan Yiqing questioned her, she only repeated dryly, “I’m locking the door.”

“Even if you don’t tell me, I’ll find out myself.” A shadow darkened her inky eyes as Yan Yiqing frowned.

Hmph, figure it out yourself then!

Though she thought it, Zhichun didn’t dare say it aloud. She just said stiffly, “Young Master Yan, this servant really must lock the door now.”

Her gaze subtly swept over the bookshelf.

Curling her fingertips, Yan Yiqing stormed out of the study with a dark expression.