Qingshan and Zhai Zhi still stood in place, waiting for instructions from their master.

Shi Buyu walked over and memorized their appearances and distinguishing features. “You two have been following my cousin for many years?”

“Yes.”

“I only have one rule here: unless summoned, don’t enter the main house. Aside from that, you may continue with your original routines.”

The two responded in unison, heads lowered, neither arrogant nor submissive. It was obvious they had been well-trained.

After signaling for them to withdraw, Wan Xia carried the trunk into the house, opened it, picked up the topmost garment, and held it up against the girl while teasing, “You can relax, miss. This isn’t the same style as the one you wore today.”

“It looks pretty similar to what I used to wear.” Shi Buyu squatted in front of the trunk, taking out each piece to inspect. The colors differed, and the details had changed, but overall, they resembled her previous wardrobe more closely.

For convenience while traveling, she often wore round-collared robes. The Dayou court was open-minded—there was no need to disguise herself as a man. Women in men’s attire weren’t uncommon, and no one would mistake her for an actual man.

“In the future, I want to hire my own seamstresses. I’ll have them make whatever I want to wear.”

Wan Xia indulged her endlessly. “Of course. Hire more—only those with first-class skills will do.”

Shi Buyu lay atop the trunk. She felt tempted to change into the familiar styles again, but thinking it was a rare occasion to wear something so beautiful, she decided to let it be. Since she was already dressed, she might as well look good for a day—no need to exert herself again tomorrow.

Living under the same roof, the two didn’t find it inconvenient. Shi Buyu never left the courtyard. If Yan Shian didn’t stop by after returning home each day, they wouldn’t even see each other. Every time he came, she seemed deep in thought and disinclined to talk. He assumed she was planning something important and didn’t stay long for fear of disturbing her.

Five days passed quickly, and the tense atmosphere in the capital finally began to ease.

After resting at home for five days and letting all the laziness seep out of her bones, Shi Buyu was finally ready to think about serious matters.

She sorted through the web of officials in the capital. Coincidentally, Yan Shian returned early that day. Upon seeing him, she asked, “In the past few days, who has been the most zealous in hunting down the Shi family? Can you find that out?”

“That’s not hard.” Yan Shian instructed Yan Ze to make the arrangements, then asked, “Have you figured out who’s really behind this?”

“No,” Shi Buyu replied straightforwardly. “But the capital’s lockdown can’t continue forever. Only when they make a move can I grab hold of their tail.”

Yan Shian nodded thoughtfully. Whoever was behind this would be keeping themselves well hidden. Only when the grip on the capital loosened would they act. With the people from the Marquis Zhongyong’s household on the run, they were surely anxious.

The list was delivered personally by Yan Shian. It was more detailed than Shi Buyu had expected—listing who had been deployed, who had left the city, who had stayed behind, and who had been most active.

Shi Buyu was starting to appreciate the benefits of teaming up with Yan Shian. She’d always been the strategist, but this was the first time someone executed a plan so thoroughly to her satisfaction.

After reviewing everyone’s background, her finger paused on the name “Cheng Jing.”

“Look into this man.”

Yan Shian leaned in for a glance. “You think something’s off about him?”

“He could’ve been ordered to participate in the search, but he shouldn’t be among the most enthusiastic. The others have clear affiliations—either the Prime Minister’s or the Grand Tutor’s men. But Cheng Jing? He’s on decent terms with the Shi family.”

“Could it be he just wanted to get ahead of the others and tip someone off to keep the Shi family from falling into the wrong hands?”

Shi Buyu shook her head. “He’s not that close to the Shi family.”

Ruling out that possibility meant only one thing—he was after the credit. Yan Shian asked, “You suspected him from the start?”

“No. I just wanted to see who the most aggressive pursuers were and maybe stir things up so the Prime Minister and Grand Tutor would clash. But this—this was an unexpected bonus.” Shi Buyu flicked the name with her finger. “Time to start pulling at some tails.”

Yan Shian was stirred. “Even if the tracks have been wiped clean, you can still find something?”

“If you were my enemy, I could,” Shi Buyu replied bluntly, then reassured him, “Relax. Only Whitebeard could catch my tail.”

Yan Shian frowned slightly. He was used to being in control, but clearly, this wasn’t something within his control.

“You need to learn to trust me a little.” Shi Buyu folded the paper and placed it on the tea table. “If I were useless to you, why bother making a deal with me? Since you did, you must believe I bring value.”

“It’s not that I don’t trust you,” Yan Shian said as he picked up the folded paper and pressed along the crease again. “I just… don’t know how. I’ve never given trust like that before.”

“It’s simple. Just believe what I say.”

That wasn’t simple at all—for him.

Yan Shian looked at the woman who said it so casually. “Do all your close acquaintances trust you like that?”

“Of course. Otherwise, how would we be close?”

“That Wu Fei—did he know what he was getting into? That he was sending someone away under those circumstances?”

Shi Buyu nodded as if it were only natural. “He knew.”

Yan Shian genuinely couldn’t understand. “If the plan failed, it could have meant extermination of the entire clan. And they were still willing? Besides, you told them the truth—weren’t you afraid they’d betray you?”

“You think just anyone can be one of my close associates?”

“What about me?” Yan Shian couldn’t help but ask. “Am I a close associate?”

Shi Buyu looked at him like he was being ridiculous. “We’ve only known each other a few days. How are we ‘close’?”

“…” Yan Shian regretted asking. He really should’ve kept his mouth shut.

“Close associates may fall out with each other, but our relationship? If we fall out, it’s like the ship sinking—we’d both die. Isn’t that more solid than any kind of relationship?” Shi Buyu frowned. “Is your brain broken? Did I overestimate you?”

“I just… wanted to learn from your close associates how to trust someone,” Yan Shian replied quickly, defending his mental clarity. “If your close associates can trust you, then so can I. I’ll learn to believe what you say from now on.”

Shi Buyu’s tightly furrowed brow relaxed a little. “In the future, we’ll definitely have differing opinions. You can question me, but don’t doubt me.”

“I’ll remember that.”

Shi Buyu gave him a look, her brows still not fully smoothed. This was the first time someone didn’t trust her. But trust—trust couldn’t be forced.

The thought of him not trusting her made Shi Buyu unwilling to continue the conversation. She cut it off directly. “I’m going to rest.”

Yan Shian looked at the slanting rays of the sunset outside. He knew she was upset because of his lack of trust. But how could he give something he’d never learned to give? No one had ever taught him how to trust someone.

He gave himself an excuse: “I’ll have someone look into Cheng Jing.”

Shi Buyu got up and left.