Shi Buyu had only meant to tease Yan Ze a little; whether Yan Shian really wanted to eat wasn’t that important.

Her goal achieved, she put it aside and entered the study to get down to business.

“Have your people in Sitong City sent back any word?”

“They’ll be a bit slower than the dispatch riders, but it should be soon,” Yan Shian replied as he placed the items on a shelf in the corner of the study. He then walked behind the desk and sat down, looking thoughtfully at Shi Buyu. “Is there something suspicious?”

“I’m wondering whether Sitong City was lost… or handed over.”

“I’m more inclined to believe it was lost,” Yan Shian said. “After the disappearance of Marquis Zhongyong, Eunuch Chen, the overseer, temporarily took command. The court quickly dispatched General Duan Qi of the Tiger Might Army to lead the defense. This is his first time stationed on the frontier. Given his capabilities, I doubt he could hold the city.”

Duan Qi—Shi Buyu knew who he was. In the White-Bearded One’s words: full of tricks, but good for nothing else.

“The Prime Minister’s granddaughter married into the Duan family.”

Political marriage?

Shi Buyu looked up at that. “Now that Danba’s morale is surging, that post is hardly a desirable one. Losing one city and you can blame Marquis Zhongyong. Losing two, maybe you can still shield the blame. But if he keeps losing ground, the commander’s name will be mud—unless…”

Unless the Prime Minister had a compelling reason to send one of his own.

Shi Buyu tapped her finger on the hidden table, thinking aloud: “If the Prime Minister is the emperor’s blade, then he should have thrown this hot potato to the Grand Tutor. Killing off the Grand Tutor’s men would serve his interests better. Sending his own people, knowing it’s dangerous, essentially dooms them to uselessness…”

Yan Shian’s eyes lit up. “There’s something the emperor wants there!”

Shi Buyu nodded lightly, face thoughtful. “For some reason, I still feel like there’s a missing piece in all this.”

“I’ll have someone keep a close watch.”

Shi Buyu stood up. She needed to go back and think this through carefully.

After seeing her out, Yan Shian walked over to the pile of food. As expected, the wax paper wrappers bore several small pinholes.

Yan Ze lowered his head, bracing for a scolding. Whatever the young master said, he’d take it. He’d just have to check more thoroughly next time.

But after waiting a while, all he heard was chewing. Not a single word of reprimand. Sneaking a glance, he saw the young master struggling to open the second wrapper. He hurried over to help.

After sampling each item, Yan Shian remarked, “The flavor isn’t as refined as what we have at home, but it has its own charm.”

Yan Ze quickly admitted fault. “I was being overly suspicious.”

“Not just you,” Yan Shian said, wiping his mouth and returning to his desk. “Even I have gotten used to your cautious ways.”

Yan Ze peeked again—still no scolding. Relieved, he went off to prepare tea.

Yan Shian’s lips curled faintly. Wan Xia cared for Miss Shi more than any of his subordinates did for him. For her to keep Miss Shi safe all these years without even a scratch showed her skill. With someone that cautious, any food allowed near Miss Shi must’ve passed strict scrutiny. No cheap tricks would get past her.

And really, it wasn’t such a bad thing.

Thinking of the dried meat he’d eaten at the mass grave, his appetite stirred.

---

Back in her own study, Shi Buyu unrolled a map she had drawn during her spare time. Xinfu Town had been lost. Sitong City had also fallen. The remnants of the defeated army were now retreating to Pingyang City.

“Fresh fruit tea, miss. Best while it’s hot.”

Shi Buyu didn’t look up. Her finger traced a line from Pingyang City to Baokou City, and finally stopped at Fuyuan City. Fuyuan was the administrative seat of Fuyuan Prefecture and the headquarters of the Pingyao military governor. If they made it there, the collapse might be halted.

“We’ll still lose two more cities,” she said, taking the tea from A’Gu and sipping it.

Wan Xia stepped closer and studied the map. “If I’m not mistaken, the military governor of Pingyao is He Qiliang. He commands over fifty thousand Zhiwei troops. Combined with the retreating soldiers, they should be able to hold out for a while at Fuyuan.”

“You know him?”

“Not well. I’ve met him.” Wan Xia smiled. “Miss has never asked me about my past. Are you curious now?”

“No,” Shi Buyu said, settling into the armchair and crossing her legs. “If your past was a happy one, you wouldn’t have stayed by my side all these years. You wouldn’t have lost your child. You wouldn’t avoid even going home when we’re at your doorstep. I don’t want to know that your life used to be hard.”

Wan Xia smiled, accepting her mistress’s unusually thoughtful words. Those old matters were long behind her and hardly worth bringing up again.

The next day, news came from Yan Shian’s men.

“There was a power struggle between the overseer and the city commander. They didn’t work well together. Eunuch Chen thought our troops were equal to the enemy’s and wanted to open the gates to fight. Duan Qi believed they should hunker down and defend. Neither would cooperate. Their combined strength was greatly weakened. In the end, they lost the city,” Yan Shian said with a mocking smile. “You won’t believe this, but after the defeat, Duan Qi was the first to flee, while Eunuch Chen stayed behind to cover the retreat. Honestly, I don’t even know which one of them is the real man!”

“Manhood isn’t about appearance,” Shi Buyu said with a laugh. “It’s about backbone, courage, and responsibility. Clearly, Eunuch Chen is more of a man than Duan Qi.”

Yan Shian looked at her. “You don’t hate him? There’s no doubt he had a hand in what happened to Marquis Zhongyong.”

“That’s a separate matter,” Shi Buyu said, brows drawn together in thought. “Keep an eye on Duan Qi. If he has other motives, especially those involving Marquis Zhongyong, he may very well head to Xinfu Town.”

Yan Shian nodded. “He brought back more news. I’ll have him tell you.”

More news could only mean something related to Marquis Zhongyong.

As expected, the man knelt and began reporting:
“After arriving in Sitong City, we quietly investigated. We learned that the Marquis suddenly left the city with troops. No one knew the exact details. About two hours later, Master Shi Zheng also left with men and never returned. The next day, rumors spread that the Marquis had defected to Danba. No one believed it at first—everyone knows his loyalty. But soon after, word spread that none of the Shi family’s men in the army could be found. That became the strongest evidence of betrayal. On that same day, Danba suddenly opened its gates, boldly came to the border, and claimed the Marquis had surrendered. They named him ‘Protector Duke of Danba.’ The Marquis even appeared and tried to persuade Dazhou’s generals to surrender. Those who heard him swear it was his voice. Morale collapsed. The city soon fell.”

“Anything else?” she asked.

“That’s all we’ve uncovered so far. We tried to sneak into the area where the Marquis disappeared, but the defenses there are very tight.”

“The more guarded it is, the more suspicious.” Shi Buyu looked thoughtful. “If we only count direct blood relatives, there are eleven Shi family members under Marquis Zhongyong’s command. Whether Shi Lie or Shi Zheng, as elders, they would never take all the younger generation out of the city. Experience is fine, but they wouldn’t risk their lives. Investigate from that angle.”

The man glanced at his master, who gave a subtle nod. He quickly agreed and left.