The dormitories of the Imperial Academy’s Guangwen Hall were surrounded completely by layers upon layers of students, making it impenetrable.

After hearing the devastating news at the inn, I was stunned for a full half incense stick’s worth of time. Without even changing into my Imperial Academy student robes, I rode straight to the Imperial Academy in the plain men’s clothing I was wearing.

A’Zuo said that according to what was heard, Lu Lingjun had skipped classes for an entire day. Everyone assumed he had gone out looking for Bai Yujing again, but unexpectedly when they searched for him, they found him lying motionless in his own room, and upon closer inspection, he had already stopped breathing.

I couldn’t believe Lu Lingjun would die.

Not until I pushed through the dense crowd and saw Li, Du, and Su standing quietly by Lu Lingjun’s bed did I suddenly feel as if the air had been frozen solid, making my chest feel suffocatingly tight.

Perhaps hearing movement, Li Wen and Du Fei turned around, staring at me in astonishment. Their eye sockets were red, clearly having already cried, while Su Qiao leaned over the bed, apparently not noticing I had entered the room, only gripping Lu Lingjun’s hand and weeping softly.

I still didn’t dare believe this fact, tremblingly casting a seeking glance toward Li and Du for confirmation.

They shook their heads, wanting to speak but stopping themselves.

Then, I saw Lu Lingjun.

He lay quietly on the bed, completely motionless, his expression so peaceful it was as if he were merely sleeping… no, even when he slept he was never this serene and comfortable. No matter what, I still refused to believe he was dead.

That Lu Lingjun who spoke so boldly at our first meeting in the teahouse, saying he wanted to be my male consort; that Lu Lingjun who brazenly ran into the Princess’s mansion to rescue me; that Lu Lingjun who would search the river for me for days.

How could he die.

I looked down at my own fingers, trembling so badly I couldn’t even clench my fists. I reached out to touch his face—it was unbelievably cold. I checked his nostrils, waiting for a long time, but couldn’t feel even the slightest breath. After a long while, I saw my own tears fall into my palm, speechless.

When Su Qiao looked up and glimpsed me, he said in surprise: “Brother Bai—”

I choked: “How did he die?”

Su Qiao reacted for a moment before saying: “We… we don’t know either…”

Someone like Lu Lingjun… how could he be easily killed. His martial arts were in no way inferior to Song Langsheng’s, and Song Langsheng was the capital’s foremost young master who had once matched the martial arts champion.

I shifted my gaze back to him.

There wasn’t a single wound on his body, his robes were neat and unwrinkled, showing no signs of having fought with anyone.

Even if A’Zuo and A’You joined forces to poison him, given Lu Lingjun’s alertness, it would be difficult to achieve this extent.

No matter how one thought about wanting to kill Lu Lingjun, this was simply an impossible task to complete…

Just as I was about to throw myself on him and wail loudly, the person on the bed suddenly opened his eyes, staring at me. Before I could recover from my stunned state, he sat up first and embraced me: “Brother Bai—you’ve returned—”

Yes.

So that’s how things were.

Crystal clear.

The chaotic process that followed can be temporarily omitted. If you readers still have any unclear points, they can be summed up in one phrase by what Lu Lingjun said to me after he dismissed everyone else, leaving only me alone in the room.

“Brother Bai, I knew that if you heard something had happened to me, you would definitely appear.”

“…”

“You truly didn’t disappoint my expectations…”

“You went through all this trouble just to lure me out? And then what?”

“Then, I can be at peace.”

“…”

I suppressed the urge to split him in half with a sword, calmed my mind, and let him pour a pot of tea while listening to him speak.

“I knew… that corpse fished up from the riverbank wasn’t you… but I was afraid I had guessed wrong…”

I was startled and looked at him: “Ah? But that was a female corpse, wasn’t it?”

Lu Lingjun said matter-of-factly: “If it were a male corpse, why would I worry it was you?”

Suddenly we fell into complete silence.

I opened my mouth, and after a long while said: “So… you knew from the beginning that I was… a woman disguised as a man?”

Lu Lingjun hesitantly nodded: “Ah, mm.”

I said: “Since when?”

Lu Lingjun said: “Can I not answer?”

I said: “No.”

“From first sight.” Lu Lingjun pointed at his throat, saying awkwardly: “At that time the collar you wore wasn’t high enough, so… you had no Adam’s apple.”

I: “…”

“And your skin is really too delicate… men wouldn’t bother growing up to look like that…”

I laughed, a twitching laugh, “So… were you playing with me this whole time?”

Lu Lingjun retorted: “Wasn’t Brother Bai doing the same? Saying you were a male consort and that you were being persecuted by the princess… wasn’t all that to go along with you? Wasn’t that quite fun?”

I could no longer bear it and didn’t need to endure anymore. I simply slammed the table hard: “At that time, weren’t you the one shouting at me ‘So you’re the princess’s male consort…’! And since you already saw I was a woman, running to the mansion to carry me off and calling me sworn brother for no reason—was that very interesting?”

Lu Lingjun was frightened by my imposing manner and shrank his neck, lowering his head: “I… just thought… it was quite interesting… you’re not angry, are you?”

“…”

I rubbed my brow: “Angry? Brother Lu, you’re still optimistic and cheerful… Do you know that just the fake death to trick me into coming is already… forget it, forget it, I don’t want to hear you explain so much right now… I’ll just ask you three questions first, and you’re not allowed to deceive me anymore!”

Lu Lingjun nodded repeatedly: “Even three hundred would be fine.”

“First, do you know who I am now?”

Lu Lingjun hesitated: “…I know.”

Very good. I’ll note this account of his.

“Second, why did you think the female corpse on the riverbank wasn’t me?”

Lu Lingjun raised his eyes and looked at me sincerely: “Because my heartbeat told me she wasn’t you.”

“Stop, don’t spit out such theatrical words for no reason.”

“Alright…” Lu Lingjun said aggrievedly: “Because that female corpse wore Imperial Academy robes tied in the proper external knot style, but when you usually dress, whether from laziness or extreme laziness, you just tie things casually twice… so I thought… it definitely couldn’t be you.”

I see.

I pondered for a moment and said: “Third, how did you fake death so convincingly? What was your real purpose in feigning death?”

Lu Lingjun said blankly: “That should be two questions, right?”

I menacingly raised my teacup.

Lu Lingjun said without confidence: “The method of feigning death… isn’t very difficult… there’s pre-prepared fake death medicine plus using internal breath to temporarily slow breathing, and then clamping a stone ball under the armpit… Though there are still some traces, people in states of extreme shock and grief find it hard to notice… As for the purpose… didn’t I say it was to ensure you were safe and sound?”

I said: “Since you were certain that corpse wasn’t me, there was no necessity to lure me out. Feigning death causes such a huge commotion—have you considered how the Imperial Academy will deal with you? Lu Lingjun, although usually nine out of ten sentences we say are unreliable, I still hope when I’m speaking seriously with you, you’ll use relatively logical answers to convince me.”

Lu Lingjun pursed his lips and muttered: “Fine, fine, fine. I’ll tell you.”

“Mm. You must swear that everything you say next is true, otherwise I won’t believe it.”

“…What oath should I swear?”

“If there are any false words, in this lifetime you won’t be able to marry a wife, take a concubine, or touch a woman.”

“…That’s too harsh, can we change it?”

“No.”

“…”

After he swore the oath following my example, he finally got to the point: “Actually, it’s because I’m blessed with great fortune—just a little bit off, and I might not have needed to fake death.”

“?”

“Someone wanted to poison me.”

Second Update

I stopped rotating the teacup lid in my hand and looked at him. Lu Lingjun’s expression finally lost its cynical air. He curved the corner of his mouth and pointed at his chest: “Here, I received two poisoned needles…” He pulled out a book from the cabinet and placed it on the table. I could see there was still a needle tip embedded in the book’s cover. “That day, because I had a book in my chest, I escaped disaster. Later when I removed the needle and inquired, I learned it was coated with deadly poison. If the poison had seeped into the heart meridian, I would have died silently, and my death would have resembled the way I faked death…”

I frowned: “You faked death to draw out the real culprit?”

Lu Lingjun nodded matter-of-factly: “Same as you.”

I set down the teacup and stared at him somewhat surprised. Previously when we both pretended not to know each other’s identity that was one thing, but now that layer of gauze had long been lifted—it was clear I am the current Princess Regent. Even Song Langsheng speaks to me according to protocol, addressing me as Princess, yet he still calls me “you” so casually, truly showing no formality at all.

Seeing me looking at him, Lu Lingjun asked: “What is it?”

I shook my head: “Then later, why didn’t you continue the act?”

Lu Lingjun said seriously: “Because you came.”

“What does my coming have to do with whether you continue acting or not?”

Lu Lingjun propped his chin on his fist: “Because… you would be sad.”

I snorted and drooped my eyelids: “Hey.”

“Didn’t you cry?”

“That’s human nature.” I was at a loss for words. “I told you to be more reliable when discussing serious matters…”

“I wasn’t fooling around with you.” Lu Lingjun smiled: “Aren’t you also feigning death? Upon hearing terrible news about me, didn’t you also rush over regardless of everything?”

I rubbed my eyebrows: “You have some nerve to say that…”

“So, plans that seem thorough and mysterious with hidden depths often get disrupted by small incidents. In the end, those involved can only wait for fate to decide, while those clever bystanders always smugly think these accidents were also part of the strategy. In the end, being too clever leads to being outsmarted by cleverness.”

I was startled. Was Lu Lingjun hinting at something with these words?

Lu Lingjun said proudly: “Doesn’t it have a bit of Zen meaning?”

I said: “I’m wondering exactly how you managed to shift the topic from feigning death to life philosophy.”

…

The development of events became increasingly unpredictable. Lu Lingjun had caused such a huge incident, and Wei Qingheng was busy mediating the sunken ship affair, so now the Imperial Academy was essentially under Nie Ran’s supervision. Nie Ran… wouldn’t care about saving face and would definitely give Lu Lingjun a proper punishment to make an example of him.

Lu Lingjun clearly realized this himself. After a brief explanation, he hurriedly left. As soon as he was gone, A’Zuo leaped down from some shadow on the roof beam and knelt on one knee before me: “This subordinate failed in his duties. Please punish me, Princess.”

I said: “Chief Tao said your analytical abilities are rarely matched, yet now you can’t even distinguish whether Lu Lingjun is truly dead or faking death. Tao Yuan wouldn’t be using defective goods from the Bright Mirror Bureau to fool me, would he?”

A’Zuo looked up in panic: “This subordinate did check Lu Lingjun’s pulse at the time…”

“You checked his pulse? With so many people surrounding him, how did you get close to him?”

A’Zuo said: “At that time, a student suddenly ran out of his room, crying out loudly in shock. This subordinate took advantage of that moment to enter the room. After confirming, I immediately returned to inform the Princess…”

I raised my sleeve: “Wait.”

This meant that from when A’Zuo discovered Lu Lingjun’s “corpse” to when we rushed over after hearing the news, at least an hour had passed. Though this wasn’t long, as the Acting Director temporarily in charge of the entire Academy, Nie Ran should have arrived at the scene immediately, both emotionally and logically, especially someone as cautious and methodical as Nie Ran.

Unless… he knew Lu Lingjun was feigning death—

March 15th Update Divider

A’Zuo looked at me questioningly: “Is there something improper?”

I shook my head and remained speechless for a long while, only saying: “It’s not your concern. Continue hiding.”

A’Zuo: “…”

The punishment Lu Lingjun received was much more severe than I had imagined.

A full one hundred strokes of the cane.

One hundred strokes could very likely beat someone to death, and even if one survived it would mean lifelong disability. If I hadn’t known Lu Lingjun’s internal strength was formidable, I might have had to use my princess status to save his life.

The students of Guangwen Hall knelt outside the building pleading for mercy. Nie Ran ignored them all.

Heaven very fittingly began pouring rain. The Imperial Academy students uniformly knelt outside the building pleading for mercy—the entire scene was quite moving.

Yet I couldn’t feel moved at all.

It was precisely someone among this group who wanted Lu Lingjun dead.

I strolled around with my umbrella and returned. Along the way, I tried to close my eyes and run through everything in my mind—from the sunken boat to the burned ship to the assassins to the court to the Imperial Academy—but I couldn’t connect the dots no matter what.

I knew all these events must be related somehow, that there were clues I hadn’t noticed that were key to revealing the truth. But the more anxious I became, the more confused my thoughts became. In my frustration, I randomly broke a branch from nearby and wildly waved it about, sweeping leaves down in rustling cascades.

Just then, I heard footsteps approaching from behind. Turning around, I saw Nie Ran also holding an umbrella, dressed in a light blue robe as elegantly as always, with a smile playing at the corners of his mouth that I couldn’t understand at all.

Just as I was confused about his purpose in appearing before me at this time.

He smiled lightly: “I never would have thought you’d appear at the Imperial Academy at a time like this.”

I said: “There are many things Director Nie can’t think of that I can do.”

Nie Ran smiled without refuting this: “I know.”

How much did he actually know?

Just like how much Lu Lingjun knew—I had no idea.

It seemed like being trapped in a cycle where people around me were always playing riddles with me, always enjoying watching my puzzled inquiries and questioning.

Thinking of this, I suddenly didn’t want to know anything anymore—about conspiracies, about the past.

I said: “Director Nie, may I ask you a question?”

He looked at me, his eyes like a still ancient well.

“Will we become enemies?”

Nie Ran was slightly startled, unexpectedly neither confirming nor denying, which seemed more like acquiescence.

I took a deep breath: “Honestly speaking, I consider myself a good person. Though worldly matters can’t be summed up in one phrase, at least I still know what I’m doing. If you oppose me, is it due to your position, or because you’re an evil person?”

Nie Ran was clearly shocked by the term “evil person” and couldn’t help laughing: “Nowadays I don’t know where besides opera scripts one can still find people using such terms to evaluate those within the court.”

I didn’t follow his deflection: “You don’t need to avoid the subject.”

Nie Ran raised his eyebrows at me and stood for a long time without saying a word.

I waited, suddenly feeling my action was indeed childish, so I smiled and shrugged, not expecting Nie Ran to finally speak: “Perhaps in your view, I’m not exactly a good person.”

I turned to look at him. The corner of Nie Ran’s mouth lifted slightly.

I couldn’t help thinking of Xu Fang. When Xu Fang smiled, both corners of his mouth would lift simultaneously, and when truly happy he would laugh heartily with parted lips. However, Nie Ran always preferred to curve only his right lip, as if striking a certain pose.

Memory really could change a person.

I couldn’t help sighing several times in my heart. Sometimes the more one knows about a person, the more estranged one feels. How different from Song Langsheng—every time I recalled something about our past, I feared remembering more, afraid that knowing too much would only lead to the same situation repeating itself.

Seeing I hadn’t responded, Nie Ran was about to say something more when I cut off his words: “Since we’ve reached this point, I have nothing left to worry about.”

Nie Ran cast me a puzzled look.

I narrowed my eyes slightly: “If Director Nie wants to exploit that tiny bit of our past to gain some advantage from me, then let me offer advice—who’s fooling whom remains to be seen.”

I looked at him: “You clearly know what happened between us at Chen Family Village, yet you always act as if you’re unwilling to know or remember. Do you know, Director Nie? This is unreasonable. Even the most heartless, boring, uninteresting person wouldn’t be uninterested in themselves, let alone someone like you who must understand everything to plan each step—a true ‘court’ person. I’m afraid… anything that could be asked or known about mine and Xu Fang’s messy past, you already know it all.”

Nie Ran’s gaze instantly became sharp as a hook due to these words.

“So I’ve been wondering, what exactly do you want to do? What is your purpose? If I were you, what would I do?” I tilted my head and spread my hands: “I can’t guess, so I could only send someone back to Chen Family Village to look for clues… Guess what coincidence—after I was swept away by the river water when ambushed in the forest, villagers saw Xu Fang return.”

Nie Ran’s guarded expression flickered slightly.

“The one who returned was you.” I pointed at him: “I even suspected for a time whether this person called Xu Fang was just you, Nie Ran, in disguise—whether the past tenderness was all just a setup for the future…”

Having reached this point, Nie Ran’s expression showed a few traces of interest: “So, was it, or wasn’t it?”

I lowered my sleeve and took a deep breath: “He is him, you are you.”

Nie Ran asked: “How can you tell?”

I heard my own voice saying: “If someday you can recover some memories belonging to Xu Fang, perhaps you’ll know my ‘how can you tell.’ But…” I said: “I’d rather that day never comes.”

Having said this, seeing students approaching in the distance, I bowed to Nie Ran according to student-teacher protocol, intending to leave. After taking two steps, I heard him say lightly behind me: “Even if Xu Fang returned, you’re no longer the He Feng of those days.”

Hearing that last name, my heart suddenly jumped. I was stunned for a long while, and when I turned back, Nie Ran had already gone far away, leaving behind a back as desolate as autumn plane trees.

The moment I returned to my room and closed the door, A’Zuo jumped down from the roof beam with a solemn expression: “Princess, something major has happened at court.”

I hadn’t yet recovered from my distraction when A’You also bounced in through the window: “Princess, something has also happened at the mansion.”

It seemed these two had taken advantage of my brief outing to gather information from various places.

I gestured for them to stand and speak: “A’You, speak first. What happened at the mansion?”

A’You said: “The Princess’s mansion has been sealed and searched by the capital magistrate’s office. All people in the mansion have been detained, and outsiders are not permitted to enter.”

It must be that the Prince Consort had already identified the corpse by the river as ‘this princess.’ The Princess Regent being assassinated would naturally require investigation starting from her residence. Though this case was being handled by Shen Rong, given its importance, the Ministry of Justice, Court of Judicial Review, and Censorate likely couldn’t stand aside…

I nodded slightly and asked A’Zuo: “Is what you said about court troubles also due to this reason?”

A’Zuo nodded and said gravely: “The court chaos is too complex to explain clearly at the moment. I only know two things: first, upon hearing of the Princess’s ‘misfortune’ in court, the Crown Prince fainted on the spot and remains unconscious. Court affairs large and small are temporarily being handled by the two Chief Ministers of the Cabinet. Second, someone claimed to have seen Prince Consort Song Langsheng acting suspiciously near the riverbank before the Princess was ‘murdered.’ With suspicion difficult to clear, his position at the Court of Judicial Review has been temporarily revoked, and he’s confined to the Princess’s mansion, not permitted to leave.”

My heart sank. Song Langsheng had secretly left the capital to investigate the case earlier, then secretly returned until encountering the sunken boat and rescuing me. All these circumstances were inherently difficult to explain, so the current situation was inevitable.

A’Zuo asked: “Should the Princess immediately reveal herself to the court to help the Crown Prince and rescue the Prince Consort before making other plans?”

I sat and thought for a while, then stood and paced back and forth. After a moment I stopped and finally shook my head.

A’Zuo and A’You looked at me puzzledly.

Since someone wanted me dead and kept avoiding them wouldn’t work, the only option was to face the enemy head-on.

I said: “It’s time to steel my heart and clean up this chaotic situation.”