Chapter 7: Caught in the Act

On the third day, Ning Zhaorou once again stayed hidden inside her tent, not stepping out even once.

When Yin Mingyu heard this, he nearly laughed. He had always been good at reading people, and he could tell Ning Zhaorou was the timid sort. That day she kicked him—perhaps she had simply been pushed too far.

“What did Consort Liang send her?” he asked casually, flipping open a book.

Zhou Lu promptly replied, “Just some hair ornaments… and a bottle of medicine.”

“Injured?” His Majesty’s hand stilled on the page, the aged parchment filled with dense characters.

Zhou Lu’s heart skipped a beat. After serving the emperor for so many years, he had grown rather skilled at guessing His Majesty’s thoughts. For him to ask such a question… could it be that he had taken a special interest in that Ning girl?

“Replying to Your Majesty,” Zhou Lu began carefully, “yesterday the Second Princess flung a few feathered arrows at her. They were just for a pitch-pot game, but they’re quite heavy. A few hit the young lady, and it must’ve hurt.”

Hurt?

Yin Mingyu gently shook his head and reached for his teacup, still looking indifferent.

Zhou Lu added, “But no sooner had Consort Liang’s attendants left, than the eldest Miss of the Ning family arrived. When she left, she seemed to have taken a few things with her.”

Naturally, those “things” could only have been the gifts Consort Liang had just bestowed on Ning Zhaorou.

As soon as Yin Mingyu heard that last sentence, his gaze drifted sideways, and he suddenly barked out, “Get out.”

“Yes, yes, this servant will leave immediately!” Zhou Lu replied hastily and slipped out.

From the moment Yin Mingyu discovered who the girl from that night was, he had already ordered an investigation into her background. She was the third daughter of the Ning family, whose birth mother had died not long after she was born. Three years later, the marquis married a concubine and raised her to the position of wife. From that moment on, the title of “legitimate daughter” no longer belonged to Ning Zhaorou alone.

Outsiders only knew the eldest daughter of the Ning family to be graceful and well-mannered, and when they mentioned the third daughter, they simply called her dull. That was just the image they showed to the public—who knew what dark and dirty things went on inside the household that couldn’t be found in any official records?

She really did seem pitiful. Even when she was bullied, she didn’t dare fight back. She hadn’t even defended herself in front of him in court.

And she had said she was in love with Chu Changfeng. Very well—if she truly wanted the Chu family, then he might as well go along with it and give her what she wanted.

Yin Mingyu closed the book and, for once, decided to play the role of a benevolent man.

—

The third day arrived—the agreed-upon time for Ning Zhaorou to meet Chu Changfeng.

“Shuangwu, take another look at me. Do I look alright?” Ning Zhaorou had taken special care with her appearance. She wore a honey-colored brocade skirt with wide silver trim, her hair adorned with a jade-and-pearl hairpin. Silver earrings hung from her ears, and a delicate floral design was painted at the center of her forehead. She stood before Shuangwu, awaiting final inspection.

Shuangwu couldn’t hide her admiration and offered comforting praise to soothe her anxiety. “You look perfect, miss. I’ve never seen anyone more beautiful than you.”

Still, Ning Zhaorou was nervous—so nervous she paced in place. She asked again, “What if he doesn’t agree?”

She had only seen Chu Changfeng a handful of times, and they’d barely exchanged any words. Now, by summoning him out like this twice, she’d already acted incredibly bold. But if they met and it turned out he had no such feelings for her… what then?

Shuangwu looked at her gently and whispered, “If he won’t agree, then we’ll think of something else. What matters now is letting His Majesty believe that you and the young general from the Chu family are in love. Once this blows over and the emperor forgets, we can always find someone more suitable.”

Her words were simple—just meant to calm her mistress down. But really, where would they find someone else suitable? Once they returned to the marquis’s manor, the lady of the house would waste no time thinking of ways to marry her off. By then, it would be too late to change anything.

Still, her words brought Ning Zhaorou a bit of comfort. She looked up and asked softly, “Do you think His Majesty will really forget?”

Shuangwu froze.

How was she supposed to answer that?

She didn’t know what the emperor was truly thinking either.

“It’s alright, miss. We’ll take it one step at a time.”

That day, it seemed the ministers who went hunting had brought back a good haul. His Majesty ordered a feast to be prepared ahead of the main camp—drinks, roasted meat, and rewards to be handed out for merit.

As Ning Zhaorou stepped outside, she saw palace attendants hurrying about, all busy preparing for the evening banquet.

That meant, even more so, that no one would be going up the back mountain.

She arrived earlier than Chu Changfeng, afraid of being spotted, and even had Shuangwu stand guard to watch for any passersby.

The whole scene made her look just like a guilty little thief.

This sneaky appearance did not escape Yin Mingyu’s sharp gaze.

“…Why is Miss Ning here all alone?” Zhou Lu followed the emperor’s line of sight and also noticed Ning Zhaorou standing in the distance behind a thicket. A thought flashed in his mind—could it be that Miss Ning somehow learned where His Majesty would be today and came here on purpose?

Yin Mingyu had spent the day hunting on horseback as well. His mount was an exceptional steed, but after being kept in the capital for so long, it rarely had the chance to run free. Now that they were in the woods, he had brought the horse down for a drink and hadn’t expected to run into Ning Zhaorou.

Though the distance between them wasn’t far, a cluster of shrubs blocked the view. He hadn’t planned to approach her. He handed his reins to the eunuch behind him and was about to leave when, suddenly, a man’s voice sounded beside his ear.

“Second Miss Ning.”

Chu Changfeng had arrived quickly, only to find that Ning Zhaorou had gotten there even earlier. Afraid she had been waiting too long, he called out to her a bit hastily.

Zhou Lu’s expression shifted instantly. He didn’t even dare look at His Majesty’s face and quietly stepped back a few paces with the others.

Yin Mingyu had originally intended to let Ning Zhaorou have her way, and now that he saw it was Chu Changfeng who had come, he wasn’t all that surprised.

Ning Zhaorou stood before Chu Changfeng, keeping several steps between them, her head bowed. Her first words made Chu Changfeng freeze in place.

“Young General… will you marry me?”

Behind the thicket, Yin Mingyu frowned deeply. Though he knew the girl had grown up in a household without her mother’s guidance on rules and propriety… still, this was—

Seeing that Chu Changfeng didn’t answer right away, Ning Zhaorou looked both embarrassed and disheartened. She lowered her voice and explained, “I… I truly am in a difficult position. My stepmother, Madam Wu, wants to marry me off to some far-flung place, thousands of miles from the capital. I don’t want that. So I came to Mount E’jing, using the emperor’s autumn hunt as an excuse… hoping to find a way out.”

And Chu Changfeng—that was the way out she had chosen.

Chu Changfeng had never encountered such a forward girl before. He instinctively took a couple steps back and cupped his fists, stammering, “But… but we’ve only met a handful of times. We’ve barely spoken. How can—how can it be like this?”

Though he came from a family of generals, he was still a thoughtful and perceptive man. As soon as he heard what she said, he felt it was terribly inappropriate.

Leaving aside how rushed and careless such a proposal was, he didn’t even have any particular feelings for her—certainly not the kind that would lead to marriage.

At least, not yet.

Ning Zhaorou grew even more anxious. She looked up at him and asked, “If… if that really won’t do, then could you help me? Pretend… pretend that we…”

Behind the trees, Yin Mingyu could hear every word loud and clear—and his expression turned cold. So when she’d said she and Chu Changfeng were in love, she had been lying through her teeth?

He had originally intended to let Ning Zhaorou off the hook.

But now it seemed… this girl truly lacked discipline. She dared lie even in front of the emperor, and now she wanted Chu Changfeng to help her keep up the act?

That kick that night—she must have planned it long beforehand.

Forget it.

She doesn’t deserve to be let off.