Chapter 34

This day, Shiyu was waiting for Xu Duanyi at the screen wall.

Upon seeing the carriage from a distance, she quickly walked towards it.

Xu Duanyi didn’t initially know she was outside.

It was only when Bixi lifted the curtain and went outside that she saw Shiyu approaching from not far away. Surprised, Bixi called out, “Shiyu?”

Before she could answer, Bixi asked again in confusion, “What are you doing here?”

By this time, it had already gotten dark.

“What’s going on?”

Xu Duanyi, still sitting inside the carriage, hadn’t gotten off yet, heard this and looked outside. She saw her personal maid walking toward her and felt surprised.

When Shiyu arrived, she asked, “Why are you waiting here?”

Before Shiyu could answer, Xu Duanyi subconsciously asked, “Is something wrong?”

She knew her personal maid well. If nothing major had happened, she would never have waited outside like this.

After saying that, Xu Duanyi seemed to suddenly realize something. Her expression subtly changed, and she quickly looked at Shiyu again.

When she saw her face as she approached, which was visibly poor in condition, Xu Duanyi knew something serious had happened.

She had only recently instructed Shiyu on one thing.

Her heartbeat suddenly quickened, faster than the drumbeats on a battlefield.

“Master…”

Shiyu came over and was about to speak.

But Xu Duanyi, reacting quickly, stopped her before she could say anything, “We’ll talk later.”

There were still other people around. Besides the servants waiting by the screen wall, the coachman was nearby too.

Xu Duanyi didn’t know whether it was exactly what she had feared, but regardless, she didn’t want anyone else to overhear.

Shiyu nodded in agreement, not speaking further.

Bixi was smart enough to deduce something was wrong. Even though she hadn’t guessed everything, she could tell. She didn’t dare speak further and helped Shiyu assist Xu Duanyi down from the carriage.

Xu Duanyi didn’t speak. She let the two maids help her get off the carriage.

However, she was so distracted that she almost tripped and didn’t even notice it.

“Master, be careful!”

Bixi noticed Xu Duanyi nearly stepping wrong and quickly changed her expression, alerting her.

Shiyu grabbed Xu Duanyi’s arm tightly.

Once Xu Duanyi was stable on the ground, Shiyu, with a worried face, asked, “Master, are you alright?”

Xu Duanyi shook her head and replied, “I’m fine.”

But in her heart, she knew how restless she was, and how fast her heart was beating.

“Let’s go back.”

Xu Duanyi forced herself to say this, not refusing the help of Bixi and Shiyu. The three of them left with the greetings of the servants of the Wang Mansion.

After leaving the screen wall, when they entered the small path leading to the Linfeng Pavilion, Xu Duanyi asked Shiyu to explain the situation.

Shiyu didn’t hide anything and spoke in a low voice, telling Xu Duanyi everything that happened today.

“After you left the Wang Mansion today, Xuefu suddenly said her stomach hurt.”

“Xuefu?”

Xu Duanyi repeated the name.

After thinking for a while, she asked, “The one with a mole by her lip?”

Shiyu nodded, “Yes, that one!”

Xu Duanyi didn’t speak further and motioned for Shiyu to continue.

Shiyu, replying with “Yes,” continued to speak: “At first, I didn’t think much of it. I thought it was just one of those days for a young woman, and since there was nothing serious, I let her rest.”

“But who would have thought, when I went to bring her some brown sugar water and found her gone?”

Shiyu was still angry about this.

Xuefu had lied, and Shiyu had thought she was really sick, so she had gone to prepare the brown sugar water. It felt like her good intentions were wasted!

How could Shiyu not be angry?

The most frustrating part was that Xuefu was already serving the master but still had ulterior motives. She didn’t even think about how this would cause trouble for Xu Duanyi!

“What happened next?” Xu Duanyi asked.

Shiyu suppressed her anger and continued to speak in a low voice, “You had instructed me to keep an eye on the servants, especially to avoid the South An Prince’s study.”

“So, when I found Xuefu was missing, I went directly to look for her in the South An Prince’s study. Guess what happened?”

Before Xu Duanyi could respond, Shiyu continued, “I actually found her halfway there!”

“If I had been a little later, she might have sneaked into the South An Prince’s study.”

At first, Shiyu thought she might have been overthinking it. Maybe Xuefu had gone somewhere else.

But when she found Xuefu lurking near the South An Prince’s study, trying to sneak in, Shiyu became furious.

She had refrained from taking action because of Xu Duanyi’s instructions and instead quietly took Xuefu back to the Linfeng Pavilion and detained her secretly.

“When you found her, did anyone else notice?” Xu Duanyi asked.

She could clearly hear her own heartbeat as she spoke.

Even the pulse in her wrist was racing, and her throat had become dry.

After stepping into the small path, she no longer let the two support her. At this moment, in order to control her emotions, Xu Duanyi tightly gripped her left arm with her right hand.

She couldn’t bear to imagine how she would explain this to Xie Qingya if his people discovered what had happened.

Fortunately, the next thing Shiyu said eased Xu Duanyi’s worries slightly.

“No!”

“That girl is fairly clever. She avoided people the whole way, and I checked around afterward, but didn’t find anyone else.”

The pulse in Xu Duanyi’s wrist finally slowed a bit.

Her heartbeat also became much calmer. Although it was still rapid, the suffocating feeling of it almost leaping out of her throat finally eased a little.

Xu Duanyi let out a breath of relief and asked Shiyu, “Where is she?”

Shiyu replied, “To avoid being discovered and arousing suspicion, she’s being kept in your room. Right now, Shiyu is watching over her.”

Xu Duanyi didn’t speak further.

The three of them silently made their way back to Linfeng Pavilion.

The servants in the yard today weren’t many. Shiyu had sent most of them off on other tasks, leaving only a few. When they saw Xu Duanyi returning, they greeted her from a distance.

Xu Duanyi nodded in return, her expression as gentle as ever.

However, a closer look would reveal her lips pressed tightly together, and there was a hint of coldness in her eyes.

Once inside, Shiyu was in the room with Xuefu. Hearing the noise, she quickly lifted the curtain and came out.

Upon seeing Xu Duanyi return, her expression slightly stiffened. She hurriedly knelt and greeted, “Your Highness.”

“Where is she?”

Xu Duanyi asked her, her eyes already fixed on the curtain that separated the inner room.

Shiyu replied, “She’s inside.”

Xu Duanyi didn’t speak further but exchanged a glance with Shiyu.

Shiyu immediately understood, leading Xuefu out to the outside to prevent anyone with ill intent from noticing.

Afterward, Xu Duanyi led Bixi inside.

Xuefu had been waiting in the room.

Since being caught by Shiyu in the afternoon, she had been brought back to her mistress’s room and hadn’t been allowed to leave all day.

But they hadn’t done anything to her. They just told her to stay quietly.

This made Xuefu feel extremely uneasy.

Hearing the noise outside and realizing that the princess had returned, she didn’t dare sit anymore, standing nervously. As soon as she saw Xu Duanyi enter, she quickly lowered her head and greeted, “Your Highness.”

She instinctively used the old title.

Having not eaten much all day, Xuefu felt dry in her mouth. Add to that an unknown fear, her voice came out even more hoarse.

Xu Duanyi didn’t respond to Xuefu but said to Bixi, “Pour her a cup of tea.”

Afterward, she went to wash her hands by the basin.

She had been hurried when she came, but now there was no sign of urgency.

Xuefu, not knowing what she would face or why she was brought here, dared not drink the tea. She quickly said, “No, no need…”

But Bixi didn’t listen to her.

She poured the tea and handed it to Xuefu.

Xuefu hesitated, unsure whether to drink it or not, but couldn’t help but glance at the princess’s figure not far away. In the end, she braced herself and drank.

She was really thirsty.

She had been reluctant at first, but once the dry lips touched the cup, she couldn’t hold back anymore. It was like a fish returning to water after being deprived for too long. She hurriedly held the cup, tilted her head, and drank deeply.

“Xuefu.”

After Xu Duanyi finished washing her hands, she wiped them with a handkerchief and walked over.

“Cough, cough.”

While Xuefu was drinking, she suddenly heard that voice. She became so nervous that she couldn’t help but cough.

After coughing twice, she quickly lowered her head and answered, “I… I’m here.”

Xu Duanyi looked at her and asked in a concerned tone, “Are you alright?”

Xuefu, of course, didn’t dare say there was anything wrong. Holding the empty cup, she anxiously stood there and replied, “I… I’m fine.”

Xu Duanyi didn’t ask further.

She sat down on a chair inside, took the tea that Bixi had just brewed, sipped it lightly, and then continued in a calm voice, “Do you know what you did wrong?”

Xuefu hesitated.

In fact, she wasn’t sure what she had done wrong.

After being caught by Shiyu, she had asked, but neither Shiyu nor Xiuyu had said anything. They only told her to stay quietly.

There was doubt in her heart, and unsure if it was as she had guessed, she didn’t dare answer rashly.

She feared she might reveal a secret that shouldn’t be spoken.

After struggling for a while, Xuefu finally lowered her head and softly said, “I shouldn’t have lied to Sister Shiyu just to avoid work.”

Behind her, Bixi scolded her in a low voice, “Foolish! After all this, you still dare to deceive your mistress!”

Xuefu trembled at the scolding.

Before her brain could process the words, her knees gave way, and she collapsed to the ground.

“Your Highness, I… I…” Her face turned pale, and she didn’t know what to say.

Xu Duanyi looked at her and suddenly sighed.

“Why did your aunt send you?” Xu Duanyi spoke while putting down her tea cup. She didn’t say anything else.

But that short sentence was enough to shock Xuefu.

The person who had been keeping her head down now looked up in astonishment. “Your Highness, you…”

Xu Duanyi looked at her and answered the question she was about to ask: “Did you really think I didn’t know anything?”

At first, Xuefu did think so.

When she left the palace, Aunt Danfeng had taken her to meet the Empress Dowager. The Empress Dowager had specifically told her not to let the princess know and warned her not to involve the princess. Unexpectedly…

She still felt confused, not understanding why things had turned out this way.

Her mind was foggy.

But looking at the Grand Princess, it was obvious she wasn’t unaware.

After biting her lip, Xuefu faced the Grand Princess and knelt down.

Her forehead touched the ground, and the chilling cold seeped into her brain. Xuefu shuddered all over, feeling a deep chill.

But she didn’t dare to rise. She endured the cold, kneeling there.

“Your servant didn’t mean to hide anything from you. I didn’t know that Your Highness already knew. It was because Her Majesty the Empress didn’t want to involve you, so I…”

“Do you think that by doing this, it won’t involve me?”

Xu Duanyi interrupted her words.

Before Xuefu could speak, Xu Duanyi asked again, “Were you planning to go to Xie Qingya’s study today?”

By now, Xuefu naturally didn’t dare hide anything. After hesitating, she nodded lightly and answered, “Yes.”

Since the last time she sent the Xie family lady to the Southern Prince’s study, Xuefu had gradually become concerned. She thought that the study was always a key place, and if the Southern Prince truly had a problem, it would surely show in his study.

But she didn’t expect that before she even reached the study, she was caught by Shiyu.

Xuefu still didn’t understand.

Since the Princess knew what she was planning, why stop her?

She hesitated and asked, “I inquired beforehand, and the study was empty. That’s why I thought I could quietly investigate…”

She didn’t know what she had done wrong.

Xu Duanyi didn’t speak but instead looked at Bixi.

Bixi immediately understood and continued, “If the Southern Prince really had a problem, do you think his study would be empty?”

“Moreover, do you know what kind of place the study is? Even if there’s nothing wrong, there’s no way it would be completely empty.”

“You rushed over without thinking. If Shiyu hadn’t appeared in time and taken you away, you would have walked straight into their trap!”

“At that time, what would you have done to the Princess? And to Her Majesty?”

This was something Xuefu hadn’t thought of.

She was so eager to handle the matter, always thinking that she couldn’t find the right opportunity. She thought that if she went to the study, maybe she could find something, but didn’t expect…

Xuefu was truly frightened now.

Her face turned pale, and her body trembled like a leaf caught in an autumn wind.

“Your Highness, Your Highness! I was wrong!”

Xuefu raised her tear-streaked face and cried in a sobbing voice, “It was my carelessness. I almost ruined the task! I deserve to die a thousand times!”

She was panicking, not knowing how she would be punished.

Xu Duanyi looked at her and suddenly sighed, “Get up.”

Xuefu didn’t dare.

In the end, it was Bixi who helped her up.

“This matter, besides you, who else knows about it?” Xu Duanyi asked.

At this moment, Xuefu was in a daze and answered whatever Xu Duanyi asked.

She shook her head and choked as she replied, “Only I know about this. Aunt Danfeng only brought me to see Her Majesty the Empress, but whether the Empress has asked anyone else, I don’t know.”

Xu Duanyi looked at Xuefu’s face, trying to determine if she was lying or telling the truth.

After a moment, Xu Duanyi withdrew her gaze.

Xuefu was telling the truth.

But that didn’t completely reassure Xu Duanyi.

Even though it was true, it didn’t guarantee that no one else knew, apart from her.

What made Xu Duanyi sigh with relief was that, if there were others, they probably didn’t know what tasks the others had received.

This made it easier for her to act without causing unnecessary suspicion.

It was a small bit of luck in the midst of misfortune.

Not wanting Xuefu to discover what she was thinking, Xu Duanyi looked at her and continued asking for the key information, “What did your aunt tell you that day?”

At this point, Xuefu was completely lost and instinctively answered Xu Duanyi’s questions.

When she heard the question, she reflexively answered, “Her Majesty the Empress just told me to go into the Prince’s residence and carefully investigate the Southern Prince, to see if he is really as he appears outwardly. If there’s anything unusual, I should find a way to send a message to Aunt Danfeng.”

“Send a message?”

Xu Duanyi deliberately asked, “How?”

Xuefu trusted her deeply and didn’t hide anything, responding, “There’s a rouge shop in the east of the city. It’s actually a joint venture between rich ladies and officials from the palace. Usually, any messages or business are sent there.”

Xu Duanyi glanced at Bixi, who nodded. She then asked Xuefu, “Is it the Jinji Zhai?”

Xuefu nodded in confirmation, “Yes, that’s it.”

Having a clue, Xu Duanyi decided to hold off on any further actions for now. She looked at Xuefu and said, “I know you’re eager to perform well, but today you acted recklessly. If Shiyu hadn’t appeared in time and taken you away, do you know what you would have faced?”

After hearing Bixi’s previous words, Xuefu was already panicked. She could only stammer, “It was my recklessness…”

“Whether the Southern Prince is guilty or not, you acted rashly. If someone had discovered you, it would have been a death sentence.”

“Not only would you have lost your life, but you would have also caused me to lose the Southern Prince’s trust and affect my aunt’s big plan.”

Every word Xu Duanyi spoke made Xuefu’s face grow paler.

“That’s why I asked you, do you know your mistake?”

With a “thud,” Xuefu knelt again, crying and saying to Xu Duanyi, “It was my rashness, Your Highness! I know I was wrong!”

This time, Xu Duanyi didn’t let her get up immediately.

Instead, she continued to scrutinize Xuefu with a probing look.

Xuefu’s face grew increasingly pale under her gaze, and she unconsciously held her breath.

Not sure how long had passed, Xu Duanyi suddenly sighed lightly and said, “Forget it.”

“After all, you were doing this for your aunt.”

“Get up first.”

Bixi helped Xuefu back on her feet again.

At this moment, Xuefu felt weak in her limbs, and if Bixi had not supported her, she might have fallen again.

“Your appearance now is not suitable for showing in front of others. Starting tomorrow, you will go and manage my warehouse. Do not come into contact with others for now to avoid being noticed.”

“As for the Prince of Nan’an, I will keep an eye on him.”

Xuefu eagerly agreed, unable to wait any longer.

She was deeply grateful to the Princess.

If this were known to Aunt Danfeng or the Empress Dowager, Xuefu feared she might be skinned alive.

She was lucky it was the Princess.

Xuefu almost knelt down to thank her.

Xu Duanyi stopped her, only asking one question: “Is there anything else you need to tell me?”

Before Xuefu could reply, Xu Duanyi continued, “You know your aunt’s temperament. If she finds out you made such a mistake as soon as you arrived, she might even drag your family into it… I can protect you in the palace, but once your aunt finds out, I won’t be able to protect you anymore.”

Xuefu’s expression changed again.

She quickly wracked her brain, finally shaking her pale face and answering, “What I know is all I’ve told you. Aunt Danfeng said that to avoid being discovered, she would not let me go to Jinji Zhai unless something went wrong.”

As she finished speaking, Snowfu noticed the Princess was still looking at her, as if examining her words.

She grew anxious, fearing she might not be trusted, and hastily added, “Your Highness, I truly would not deceive you!”

“Alright, I believe you.”

Xu Duanyi finally relaxed.

“Pack up today and go to the warehouse early tomorrow.”

The warehouse Xu Duanyi mentioned was a place where she kept her dowry, and she usually stayed there to avoid suspicion about Xuefu’s unusual behavior.

Xuefu naturally did not dare to object.

Xu Duanyi instructed Bixi to see her off.

Once Xuefu was gone, Xu Duanyi suddenly leaned on the desk, feeling faint and cold after learning about the matter. Her temples throbbed painfully.

Xu Duanyi pressed on the spot, her mind in a mess.

Although she had suspected her aunt didn’t trust Xie Qingya and would send people into the palace to investigate, seeing it unfold like this still left Xu Duanyi unsettled.

She didn’t know if there were others besides Xuefu involved; she didn’t know how much she had saved by doing this…

And she didn’t know if Xie Qingya had found out.

If he had, how should she face him in the future?

And her aunt…

If her aunt knew of her actions, what would she think?

She loved her so much.

If she knew what Xu Duanyi had done, she would surely be terribly disappointed in her.

The peaceful days were still so fresh, yet Xu Duanyi felt exhausted once again.

Caught between two sides, she felt helpless.

Although she had expected this scene, it still hurt her deeply.

She suddenly collapsed onto the desk, burying her face in her arms. The usually calm and composed Xu Duanyi seemed to revert to her younger self, wanting only to escape when faced with problems.

Suddenly, a hand gently pressed on her shoulder.

Xu Duanyi knew it was Bixi.

She didn’t lift her head, continuing to escape in this way.

Bixi spoke softly to comfort her: “Don’t worry, only a few of us know about this. The Empress Dowager and Prince Nan’an don’t know.”

This wasn’t the best form of consolation.

But at this moment, it was the only thing left to say.

Yet Xu Duanyi remained Xu Duanyi.

She could be tired, sad, and helpless, but after all those emotions, she would still pull herself together.

No matter what.

For now, the situation was still under control.

“Let Shiyu continue watching the people in the yard. You go back and find a capable guard to keep an eye on Jinji Zhai.”

“Remember to make a list of people sent by my aunt and have him focus on them.”

Bixi nodded in agreement.

Just as she was about to leave to give the orders, Xu Duanyi suddenly grabbed her sleeve.

Bixi turned around.

She saw a face that was completely different from usual.

Her most admired master, with her head tilted back, her usually gentle and beautiful face now showing signs of nervousness and fear. She held onto Bixi’s sleeve and asked, “He… really doesn’t know?”

Seeing her master so vulnerable, almost like a child, Bixi’s nose suddenly tingled, and tears almost fell.

But she held them back, forcing a smile to reassure her, “You have to trust Shiyu, she’s very capable.”

Xu Duanyi thought for a moment and felt slightly reassured.

“Go ahead.”

She spoke and let go of her hand.

Bixi left, to avoid shedding tears later that night.

—-

But that night.

Xie Qingya found out.