Chapter 10: Not to Blame

After Xi Mingzhong returned to the capital, Emperor Jiahe sent him to inspect the military camps in the suburbs of the capital.

Li Wu had deliberately left the city, choosing this spot to wait like a hunter, also for the convenience of contacting Xi Mingzhong.

It was not difficult for her to deal with those men.

But to capture them alive and interrogate each one carefully—that was not something she could accomplish alone.

However, she had with her a modified signaling arrow that she could carry at all times.

Xi Mingzhong knew of it. If he was indeed stationed in the suburban camp, once he received her distress signal, he would naturally bring men quickly to support her.

Li Wu smiled and took a few steps in Xi Mingzhong’s direction.

Xi Mingzhong rode forward, stopped in front of her, and seeing she was unharmed, his gaze swept past her to He Zhiyu, who stood behind her, then to the unconscious figures lying inside the pavilion.

“Ah Wu, what happened?”

Swinging down from his horse, Xi Mingzhong frowned and asked.

“Someone tried to bully me. I’ll explain the rest in detail once we return.”

Li Wu spoke warmly to Xi Mingzhong. “But those men must be brought back for interrogation.”

She was clearly referring to the ones in the pavilion.

Xi Mingzhong understood and nodded, while the silent He Zhiyu walked into the pavilion alone.

Watching He Zhiyu squat down to examine the men lying on the ground, Xi Mingzhong glanced at Li Wu, his eyes questioning her. Li Wu turned her head slightly, lips curving, then faced Xi Mingzhong again and spoke softly: “Interrogation isn’t my specialty. You’ll have to help me with that.”

Sensing the hidden meaning in her words, Xi Mingzhong didn’t answer immediately.

Li Wu smiled, asking again: “You can’t?”

Xi Mingzhong arched a brow at her.

“I can.”

Inside the pavilion, He Zhiyu heard Xi Mingzhong’s reply. His movements paused slightly before he resumed searching the unconscious men for clues and evidence.

Meanwhile, Li Wu had already turned her smiling gaze toward him, watching his every action.

Soon, after He Zhiyu finished examining those knocked unconscious by Li Wu, Xi Mingzhong’s men arrived.

Before long, under Xi Mingzhong’s orders, the captives were taken away.

He Zhiyu stepped out of the pavilion.

Xi Mingzhong’s men also brought over Li Wu’s chestnut horse.

Mounting again, Li Wu steadied herself in the saddle, then took the half-finished bundle of candied hawthorns and the bunch of hibiscus flowers, carefully placing them in order before tightening the reins. Xi Mingzhong also remounted. He glanced at He Zhiyu, intending to speak, but Li Wu cut him off.

“Lord He.”

At this moment, Li Wu wore no veil. He Zhiyu could see clearly the faint smile on her lips.

She lowered her head slightly, gazing down at him from her higher seat on horseback.

He Zhiyu looked into her eyes and heard her say:

“Even if you wish to send me away in marriage, I will not blame you.”

Before he could think too deeply about her words, Li Wu had already let out a spirited cry and spurred her horse forward.

Xi Mingzhong bade farewell to He Zhiyu and quickly chased after her.

He Zhiyu did not pursue.

He only followed from afar, riding behind Li Wu and Xi Mingzhong all the way back to the city.

---

Back at the Princess’s residence, Li Wu led Xi Mingzhong to the flower hall of Yueyi Pavilion.

Qingzhi, who had already sent Li Wan home ahead, came to greet them.

Li Wu handed over the hibiscus flowers as she asked about Wanwan.

Qingzhi accepted them and replied: “Miss just fell asleep.”

Li Wu nodded.

Qingzhi’s curious gaze drifted toward the oil-paper bundle in Li Wu’s hand, faintly recognizing the candied hawthorns inside. At that moment, Li Wu instructed: “Take the flowers to my chamber and place them as an offering.”

“Yes, Princess.”

Qingzhi withdrew her gaze and her curiosity, then stepped out to order tea.

Although the candied hawthorns were tightly wrapped, the remaining five skewers had begun to melt.

Li Wu didn’t mind. She continued eating one skewer after another.

Xi Mingzhong found it amusing. “Are they really that good?”

“Mhm, delicious,” Li Wu replied with a smile. “But these were bought for me by He Zhiyu. If you want to eat, you’ll have to buy your own.”

Xi Mingzhong could only smile helplessly.

Li Wu ate slowly, savoring every hawthorn until nothing was wasted.

Soon, Qingzhi returned with maids, serving hot tea and pastries.

When the hall was quiet and undisturbed, Xi Mingzhong finally asked what had happened.

Li Wu swallowed the hawthorn in her mouth before answering: “He Zhiyu and I rode out together. When we stopped on the street to buy candied hawthorns, we happened to meet Lü Xueying. Even though I wore a veil, she recognized me.”

Xi Mingzhong then understood why He Zhiyu had been there when he arrived to find her.

Li Wu continued: “Lü Xueying recognized me but didn’t expose me.”

Xi Mingzhong thought for a moment. “She knew you well. Recognizing you wouldn’t be difficult. If you deliberately wanted her to recognize you, all the more so.”

Then he asked, “So you were testing her?”

“Yes and no.” Li Wu smiled, twirling the bamboo skewer between her fingers. “Lü Xueying and I have old grudges. For her to recognize me but keep silent means she likely harbors other intentions. So I tossed out some bait—and sure enough, a fish bit. It was less a test than a means of using her.”

Of course, whether or not Lü Xueying was truly involved was still uncertain.

But for her, the important thing was that a fish had taken the bait. Whether big or small, it was worthwhile.

Xi Mingzhong asked after some thought: “What are you planning?”

Li Wu’s lips curled with a mischievous smile. “For the princess destined to marry the Tatars to suffer an assassination attempt—isn’t that a serious matter?”

“I hope Lü Xueying is behind it. Then, once evidence is found, we would have legitimate grounds to investigate the Lü family. But that won’t be easy. I examined those men. They looked like jianghu vagabonds dressed up as local thugs. Trying to extract proof from them may be futile.”

Xi Mingzhong’s expression darkened slightly at her words.

Three years ago, the eldest prince had suddenly been implicated in a treason case, accused of being its mastermind.

The official who handled the case had been Minister Lü.

At that time, Xi Mingzhong had been stationed at the frontier, and only knew that the late emperor had accepted evidence of the eldest prince’s treason.

The eldest prince had been executed by imperial decree, leaving no room for appeal. Even many ministers who pleaded for him were punished.

That same year, the eldest prince perished, the late emperor passed away, and the new emperor ascended the throne.

One major upheaval followed another.

Years had gone by.

Some matters, though never forgotten, were no longer mentioned. The truth was buried deeper and deeper.

“It won’t be easy,” Xi Mingzhong murmured.

Li Wu set down her bamboo skewer and carefully wiped the sticky sugar from her fingers with a handkerchief. “In any case, it’s true that I nearly lost my life today. Those men still must be interrogated.”

Thinking about how she treated He Zhiyu, Xi Mingzhong said thoughtfully: “If Lord He can be trusted, as the Deputy Minister of Justice, he naturally has various methods of interrogation.”

“He can be trusted,” Li Wu answered with a faint smile. “But I don’t wish to drag him into this.”

“Tomorrow, when I enter the palace, I will tell my imperial brother that it was you who saved me,” she told Xi Mingzhong.

“And Lord He?” Xi Mingzhong asked.

Li Wu’s tone was casual: “How would I know about Lord He?”

She gave a little hum, then added, “We’ll have to bring him in later to ask and clarify.”

---

Meanwhile, He Zhiyu returned dejectedly to the Marquis of Xuanping’s estate.

At the gate, he dismounted, handed his horse to a servant, and went straight to his own courtyard.

As he crossed the courtyard, a voice suddenly called, “Elder Brother.”

He Zhiyu’s steps faltered slightly. Waiting for him all along, He Yueqing stepped out from behind the moon gate.

She stopped a few paces away from him.

He Zhiyu’s gaze was cold and distant as he looked at this estranged sister. “What is it?”

At the teahouse earlier, He Yueqing had seen He Zhiyu riding with a young lady, flaunting themselves openly. She had thought he would be in high spirits today. But now, observing his displeased expression, she frowned, puzzled.

She didn’t ask more, nor did she care why his mood was sour.

Steeling herself, He Yueqing said, “I saw you. You were riding with a young lady, parading openly, weren’t you?”

At her words, He Zhiyu raised his eyes to hers.

The shadow in his gaze revealed his irritation, making her uneasy.

But she wasn’t afraid of him.

After all, the one who had ruined their father’s career and their parents’ marriage was He Zhiyu. The one who should feel guilty was also He Zhiyu.

“You don’t have to look at me like that.”

She sneered, glancing at him. “Plenty of people saw you. If you dare do it, why fear others speaking?”

“I came to warn you. Princess Pingyang must surely be watching you too. If you flaunt yourself with another woman in public, how many rumors will spread? When this reaches her ears and she’s angered, can you bear the consequences? If this implicates our Marquisate, can you bear that responsibility?”

“What wrong did we do? Why must we suffer because of your actions? You can’t be so selfish. Best rein yourself in.”

She received no reply from He Zhiyu.

Frowning tightly, her anger flared. She refused to waste more words, turned, and left in irritation.

From her words, He Zhiyu realized she did not know that the young lady she spoke of was Princess Pingyang herself.

He recalled the later events.

Back at the estate, He Zhiyu secluded himself in his study.

That earlier quarrel with He Xian had already faded from his mind—or rather, he had never considered it important.

He had never cared for the affection of the He family.

Whether from He Xian, He Yueqing, or any other member, it was all the same.

Not long after, the door of his study was knocked upon.

It was his servant Dangui, who reported: “My lord, the Princess has sent someone to summon you to her residence.”

The ink-dipped brush in He Zhiyu’s hand paused, leaving a heavy blot on the paper.

He regained his composure, loosening his fingers from the brush before setting it down.

“What matter?” he asked, striding to the door.

Dangui repeated: “My lord, Princess Pingyang has sent someone, requesting your presence at her estate.”

The maid Qingzhi, sent by Li Wu, bowed and said: “Lord He, Her Highness wishes to see you. The palanquin is waiting outside the gates.”

He Zhiyu glanced at Qingzhi, controlled his emotions, and nodded lightly. “Very well. Let’s go.”

Moments later, he left the Marquis’s estate, boarding the palanquin that carried him to the Princess’s residence.

Just as he stepped down from the palanquin, another rider arrived at full speed.

The man nearly leapt from his horse, throwing aside his whip as he stormed into the residence.

He Zhiyu looked over.

When the man turned, he saw his face clearly—it was Ling Yue.

Ling Yue looked back at He Zhiyu with suspicion, faint wariness in his eyes.

“Lord He? Why are you here at the Princess’s estate?”