A scene had already formed in Yan Shian’s mind—the one laughing the loudest would definitely be Miss Shi. “Aren’t you afraid your good intentions might backfire?”

“What do you mean, ‘backfire’?” Shi Buyu let out a short laugh. “On a grand scale, going against morality is a bad thing. On a smaller scale, making yourself unhappy is a bad thing. But Fan Can and Miss Dan were already engaged. Their marriage is simply a case of lovers finally getting together—it’s clearly a good thing. As for what comes after… who can say? I can’t even guarantee I’ll still be alive tomorrow, so how can I guarantee they’ll remain the same?”

Lovers finally getting together—yes, that was a good thing.

Yan Shian thought of the sword at Miss Dan’s waist. “She seems to have quite formidable skills.”

“She’s from the Zhou family of Northern Ji. Among her generation, her swordsmanship is the best.”

The Zhou family of Northern Ji? Yan Shian was genuinely surprised. “The Zhou family had a glorious legacy of military achievements. I never expected Miss Dan to be from that lineage.”

“No matter how glorious the ancestors, the family has fallen now.” Shi Buyu didn’t dwell on Dan Niang’s background and returned to the earlier topic. “Fan Can has been living among the underworld circles these past few years. Although there are certain unspoken rules, turf wars and the like still happen often. Miss Dan worried his small frame wouldn’t fare well in such scuffles, so in every place they went, she took the job of guarding the marketplace. With her skills, she naturally earned many people’s respect and made many connections. Those fires during the prison break? She helped me light them.”

“All of them?”

“She wouldn’t expose herself. The tasks were split. She only set the fires. Even if the people involved grew suspicious, they wouldn’t guess it was her. Besides, none of them would dare report it to the authorities. After all, none of them are clean themselves.” Shi Buyu glanced at Yan Shian. “We also have to thank you for being so generous. Since you took all of Fan Can’s goods, their departure from the capital won’t arouse suspicion.”

“My cousin is rich,” Yan Shian joked, then added, “So they’ve already left?”

Shi Buyu nodded. “It’s better for them to lay low for a while. Nothing in this world is foolproof.”

Yan Shian asked curiously, “What if I hadn’t gone with you tonight?”

“Then I would’ve had them bring the goods to the Yan residence tomorrow.”

“Either way, today or tomorrow, I still would’ve had to buy them.”

Shi Buyu shot him a glance. “What else? We’re allies. Your business is my business.”

Does that mean my business counts as yours too?
That line slipped right to the tip of Yan Shian’s tongue, but he swallowed it back down. Perhaps seeing how close Miss Shi was with her friends had affected him, and he nearly forgot they were still just barely acquainted.

“How many friends like Miss Dan do you have?”

Shi Buyu thought for a moment. “There are a few in every place I’ve been.”

But that would mean knowing how many places she had been. That was a bit too deep for a casual conversation. Better to leave it alone.

“Thank you, Miss Shi, for giving me tonight’s experience. If there are any other interesting places, I’d love for you to take me along.”

“I’ve been to many places that aren’t exactly ‘interesting.’”

“But I’m sure I haven’t experienced them.”

That was true. Shi Buyu gave him a look, and the mischievous side of her began to stir again. “Tomorrow night I’m going to the mass grave. Want to come?”

Mass grave?! Yan Ze almost jumped in fright. He cried out, “Young Master, you mustn’t!”

Yan Shian lifted his hand slightly.

Yan Ze dared not say more, though the worry on his face deepened. He could see it clearly—his young master had lived too repressed these past years. Now, having met someone like Miss Shi who didn’t know the meaning of repression, he was being influenced far too much!

“You’re going to the mass grave—does it have something to do with me?”

“Of course. Why else would I go there?” Shi Buyu looked at the increasingly anxious Yan Ze and felt an even stronger urge to lure Yan Shian along. “They think the dead can’t speak, but to me, the words of the dead are more truthful than the living. I want to see who’s been dumping bodies there recently.”

Yan Shian nodded. “I’ll go with you.”

“Young Master!”

Yan Shian shot him a sharp look. Yan Ze immediately fell silent and lowered his head, retreating to his place. His heart screamed only two words: We’re doomed.
How could the young master go to such a dangerous place? If the madam found out, none of them would survive!

Shi Buyu left satisfied—ha! Yan Ze looked like he’d seen a ghost.

Once they were gone, Yan Ze immediately dropped to his knees. “Young Master, you cannot go to a place like that!”

“In your eyes, I am someone to be coddled and protected, unable to touch this or approach that. But to others, I’m just Yan Shian, a man who knows how to read. Even if they despise me, all they’ll do is throw a courtesan at me to ruin my name.” Yan Shian chuckled. “Just a mere scholar—who in the court actually cares about me? All your meticulous caution makes us look like a joke.”

He stood and walked to the doorway, gazing at the night sky. “When the day comes that I must be cautious, you can bring out all your careful planning. Until then, I want to live like a normal person. If Mother finds out, I’ll explain it myself.”

“I wouldn’t dare overstep…”

Yan Shian walked over and helped him up. “To accomplish anything, one must have the courage to risk everything. I don’t need to ride into battle or dodge arrows for survival. I’m already lucky for that. But I can’t just sit idle and wait for the throne to fall into my lap.”

Yan Ze was stunned. When he first came to serve the young master, the boy had only been seven—already speaking with a sense of responsibility, holding himself to the highest standards.

Twelve hours in a day, filled with archery, riding, swordsmanship, studies, homework, and military tactics. Except for sleep, there was no rest. For a while, the young master became obsessed with polo, and his laughter could be heard from far away. But then the madam arrived. She took all the mallets and balls away and strictly forbade him from playing.

At the height of his obsession, he’d promised obedience but still played in secret. Then one day, everyone in his room was dragged out and flogged to death in front of him, one after another, blood soaking the floor. It didn’t stop until he swore never to play again. Four people died that day.

He developed a high fever and was unconscious for four days. When he finally awoke, he no longer smiled.

From then on, whenever he resisted the madam, he used himself as leverage. If she threatened those close to him, he would hurt himself. Later, she stopped targeting others and instead hurt herself to coerce him. That was when he completely gave in—utterly resigned to fate.

But the young man standing before him now… seemed no longer resigned. And that terrified him—terrified of seeing bloodshed between mother and son once again.

“Don’t worry, Uncle Ze. I’m twenty now,” Yan Shian seemed to sense his fear, calling him by that childhood name again. “I won’t do anything self-destructive. But she has to know—I’m not her puppet on a string.”

Yan Ze, stirred by that familiar “Uncle Ze,” was overwhelmed with memories and tears. He choked out, “Young Master, don’t worry. I’ll make sure this doesn’t reach the madam’s ears—for now.”

Yan Shian stepped outside again and looked up.

Tonight, not even the moon dared show itself.