When Jiang Xuening heard him say “go back” using “we,” her eyes carried a hint of mischief, and she deliberately asked him, “Go back where?”

Xie Wei’s lips pressed into a tight line as he looked at her without speaking.

Jiang Xuening couldn’t help but suppress a laugh.

After quite a while, his ear tips turned slightly red, yet his face remained utterly calm as he solemnly uttered two words: “Learn the qin.”

She nearly collapsed with laughter.

Xie Wei had no way to deal with her, so he simply held the umbrella with one hand and encircled her with the other, bringing her away from the side hall of Kunning Palace.

Zheng Bao came looking for him with a list in hand.

Before he could open his mouth, Xie Wei had already swept him a glance and directly blocked his words, saying flatly, “If it’s not a matter of life and death, come ask tomorrow.”

Zheng Bao was immediately speechless.

He didn’t dare say another word, and could only watch helplessly as Xie Wei led the person away.

Jiang Xuening stepped down the steps that had already been covered with a thin layer of snow, laughing, “You’re being too domineering. If things aren’t arranged properly today, they’ll still need to set things up tomorrow. Delays won’t be good.”

Xie Wei said, “Do you have an objection?”

Jiang Xuening quickly shook her head, speaking with false meekness, “How would this humble one dare? Whatever you say goes.”

Xie Wei didn’t respond to her words.

When the two emerged from the Kunning Palace gates, perhaps because of the coming and going of people today, moving things in and out, with no one attending to various trivial matters within the palace, a cat with snow-white fur was leisurely walking along beneath the vermillion palace walls. Because its coloring was so similar to the snow, it was quite difficult to spot at first glance.

When Jiang Xuening caught sight of it, she nearly stepped on its tail.

But in that instant, what flashed through her mind was actually the Xie Wei beside her. Her hand reached out, almost instinctively grabbing Xie Wei to pull him behind her.

Unexpectedly, Xie Wei showed no particular reaction, only lowering his eyes to glance at it.

Seeing it blocking the path without moving, he bent down to grasp the small cat by the scruff of its neck, lifted it lightly, then placed it by the side of the path.

Jiang Xuening froze.

For a moment she felt an indescribable sense of confusion, yet vaguely seemed to guess at something.

She stared at him in a daze.

But Xie Wei only said “let’s go” and pulled her hand forward.

The Forbidden City was covered in snow, the palace walls towering majestically.

Jiang Xuening’s heart stirred, and a faint smile bloomed at the corners of her lips as she asked him, “Not afraid of cats anymore?”

Xie Wei said, “How could cats be as frightening as people?”

Jiang Xuening fell silent for a moment, then saw the white snow continuously drifting down from the gradually lowering evening sky, and asked, “What about snow?”

Xie Wei said, “It will always melt.”

In that moment, it truly seemed as if the snow falling from the sky had shed its desolate chill, instead revealing a light and gentle warmth.

Daoqin was driving the carriage, waiting outside the palace gates.

When the two came out, they lifted the curtain and entered.

Then they proceeded all the way toward Xie Wei’s residence.

Bored during the journey, Jiang Xuening couldn’t help but secretly probe him for information about the Cabinet: “Regarding the women’s academy, what are those old pedants saying now?”

This little trickster was always trying to extract information from him.

She really had gotten smooth at using the back door.

Xie Wei closed his eyes, smiling as he said, “There’s no word.”

Jiang Xuening thought he meant he wouldn’t tell her. Her eyes rolled and she leaned closer, her voice softening, “I know that nowadays the court affairs are all deliberated in the Cabinet, and matters that haven’t been decided aren’t spread outside. It’s indeed inconvenient for you to always tell me about the internal situation. But it wouldn’t hurt to reveal just a little bit, just a tiny bit!”

As she spoke, she even pinched her little finger.

What she showed was a particularly, particularly small portion.

Xie Wei felt his ears go soft from that tone of voice. He glanced at her sideways, then pressed down on the palm she had placed on his left arm to prevent her from doing anything else, sighing as he said, “‘No word’ means they have objections in their hearts but don’t dare oppose it—not that I’m not telling you.”

Jiang Xuening understood: “Oh.”

She thought to withdraw her hand, but her eyes rolled, and she suddenly remembered the matter of the academy. Not only did she not withdraw her hand, she leaned even closer: “So what do you think about converting the former Fengchen Hall, Yangzhi Studio, that whole area near Kunning Palace into the first women’s academy, enrolling noble ladies from the capital first, with others following the trend? Then promoting it to other places in the capital and other prefectures—how does that sound?”

Xie Wei thought to himself that she felt he still had use value.

Actually, he had no interest whatsoever in things like women’s academies or civil examinations, but if he were to say the word “whatever” right now, with her bright eyes looking at him, he couldn’t bring himself to say it no matter what.

So after thinking, he said, “It’s good.”

Jiang Xuening pushed her luck: “And then?”

Xie Wei considered for a moment. Seeing her appearance of genuinely seeking advice, he ultimately couldn’t brush her off and patiently taught her: “The method is not wrong. However, hawks and falcons have keen eyes so they can see prey below even when flying high in the sky; farmers diligently water their crops and remove pests so they can harvest thousands of bushels in autumn; scholars throughout the realm endure ten years of cold window study so they can become famous throughout the world in one stroke, be enfeoffed as marquis or made minister to serve in the court. People in this world mostly don’t rise early without profit. To promote women’s education, how to build academies and recruit students are all external techniques. If I don’t move yet people flock to it like swarms—that is the internal way. The Grand Princess wants to promote women’s education as an idea; bringing it up is easy, but have you considered what use the learning serves?”

I don’t move, yet people flock to it like swarms.

Jiang Xuening’s heart trembled.

She blinked, and suddenly several flashes of inspiration burst through her mind. She vaguely grasped something, suddenly feeling as if enlightenment had struck.

Xie Wei knew she wasn’t entirely stupid and could understand these matters with just a hint, so he continued: “Moreover, in planning affairs, one cannot always plan for the grand. The greater the matter, the more it should be built from small things. Whatever can be accomplished in one stroke is often a bad thing. Opening women’s academies—do you want students to learn enough to take civil examinations, or is it better to start with literacy?”

Jiang Xuening frowned in thought.

Xie Wei guided her progressively, bit by bit: “Throughout the realm there are several great academies like White Deer and Yuelu. Students travel thousands of miles to study there. Do you know why?”

Jiang Xuening said, “Because the academy teachers are more learned.”

Xie Wei smiled: “Correct.”

Jiang Xuening let out a soft “ah”: “So how many academies can be opened and what they become depends not on how many students can come, but on how many teachers can teach and are willing to teach!”

Seeing that she had grasped the key point, the smile at Xie Wei’s lips deepened. He calmly closed his eyes again, leaned back against his seat, and said, “Planning is easy, accomplishing is difficult. Biting off more than you can chew—think it through before acting, don’t let people laugh at you.”

Planning is easy, accomplishing is difficult.

In her previous life, Jiang Xuening had always thought this person was a heaven-sent prodigy who found everything easy, as if even something as monumental as rebellion came effortlessly to him. Yet where in this world were things truly easy?

Behind all apparent effortlessness lay unknown painstaking effort…

She gazed at him intently, ultimately admiring and yielding to this person a bit more.

However…

In certain matters, he truly was clueless.

Jiang Xuening figured that the Cabinet was currently the gathering place for all kinds of information from throughout the realm. Her matter of taking charge of Kunning Palace should not be small news—how could this person manage to hold back from asking about it?

When they returned to Xie Manor, her mind was full of ideas about the women’s academy.

Xie Wei asked her, “What would you like to eat?”

She answered casually, “A bowl of wontons?”

Xie Wei then placed her in the Bidu Hall, where there were brushes and ink. He left her alone to lean over the desk and quickly write down something, while he himself went to the kitchen.

Over these two months, Jiang Xuening had long become familiar with his residence, treating it like her own home. With the heated floors burning and carpets spread everywhere, as soon as she entered the room she kicked off her shoes and sat cross-legged on the grand armchair where Xie Wei usually sat. She spread out paper, lifted her brush, and recorded the guidance and ideas she’d received in the carriage.

Without noticing, two quarters of an hour passed.

After writing for a while, her train of thought got stuck. She sat for half a moment, then couldn’t help but get up and pace back and forth, thinking things through.

Behind her was a row of display shelves, and on the other side was a wall of books. There were several boxes embedded in the wall, with copper rings shaped like auspicious clouds and bamboo branches on the drawer handles.

She hadn’t noticed before, but when she looked up by chance, she actually saw a thin black silk cord hanging from one corner.

Jiang Xuening’s steps halted.

She wound her fingers around this silk cord. At first she thought it had just caught on something carelessly, but unexpectedly it was connected to something inside the box. So she hooked that copper ring and pulled the box halfway out.

Then she could see clearly that the silk cord was tied to a seal.

Inside was also placed a thin-bladed short knife that looked familiar.

Underneath were pressed several pages of paper. The handwriting was crooked and clumsy, so poor it looked like dog scratches, making her—the former owner—unable to help but blush.

Jiang Xuening bit her lip lightly and wanted to take them out.

Unexpectedly, a hand reached over in time and, just before she could grasp them, pressed the pulled-out box back in. It fit seamlessly, and one could no longer see what was inside.

Jiang Xuening froze, immediately turning around.

Sure enough, at some point Xie Wei had returned. His other hand held a bowl of wontons. He now stood behind her, half a head taller, his face stiff as he looked at her: “Who told you to rummage around?”

Jiang Xuening didn’t feel guilty at all.

She even lifted her sharp, delicate chin slightly, letting out a soft hum, looking at him like a little fox that had stolen a chicken: “What, can’t I look?”

Xie Wei set down the bowl of wontons.

This person had always been the type who, given three parts of color, could open dye shops throughout the entire capital. She deliberately didn’t let him off and leaned closer to pursue the question: “Why do I feel that answer sheet inside looks so familiar? Who was so rebellious as to publicly declare they wanted to make eighteen different preparations of Confucius? Such an answer sheet, really, the person should be arrested and severely scolded…”

Xie Wei’s lips pressed into a straight line as he stared at her.

Jiang Xuening pressed her face against his shoulder: “Teacher Xie, what were you thinking?”

Back then, when she served as a study companion in Fengchen Hall, she was scolded by him every day and constantly found fault with. When others had finished their lessons, she would still be dragged to the side hall to practice the qin. Moreover, in front of others he was a sage who made people feel as if bathed in spring wind, but behind people’s backs he always had a kind of severity toward her that made her afraid.

And then there was that selection examination…

This person had kept her behind to say a few words and nearly made her cry from fear.

But that answer sheet…

Xie Wei didn’t respond, only turning his head: “Are you hungry or not?”

Jiang Xuening shook her head.

She wasn’t hungry at all right now. It was rare to catch Xie Ju’an by his weak spot, and her eyes were full of excitement. She had no idea that all things required “moderation,” and still pursued the question incessantly: “I remember, you made peach slice cakes for me, I gave a few pieces to Zhou Baoying, and you got angry later…”

The rest of her words were drowned out.

Xie Wei’s arm suddenly tightened around her slender waist. His frozen features carried a kind of composure that remained calm even when his shortcomings were exposed, and then he sealed her lips.

She tried to speak, her voice broken and fragmented.

After a long while she was released, feeling dizzy and disoriented.

Xie Wei sat in the grand armchair at the desk, then held her sitting on his lap, good-naturedly smiling as he asked, “What do you want to know? I’ll tell you everything.”

Looking at him, Jiang Xuening’s heart suddenly felt a bit timid.

He was tall with long legs. When he held her sitting on his lap, her feet in only stockings barely touched the ground. This made her increasingly flustered and she immediately backed down, switching to an aggrieved tone: “I don’t want to know. I don’t want to know anything.”

Xie Wei knew she was like a turtle, withdrawing into her shell. His hand held her waist as he pinched the soft flesh at her side, the smile on his face not diminishing in the slightest: “Weren’t you very curious just now? Teacher will teach you bit by bit.”

Jiang Xuening was caught off guard and immediately let out a whimper.

Her voice was already soft and delicate. Coming like this, it carried a slight gasp, and her eyes became even more misty with moisture as she looked at him pitifully: “I was wrong.”

They weren’t yet married, and later in the evening he would still need to send her back to her residence.

Xie Wei ultimately didn’t do anything excessive to her.

He just quietly held her for a moment, and what he’d heard in the Cabinet that afternoon gradually surfaced.

Jiang Xuening asked him, “Don’t you have anything you want to ask me?”

Xie Wei gazed at her.

This feeling ultimately made him uncomfortable, but seeing her eyes carrying several parts expectation as she looked at him, after a long while, he finally spoke: “Taking charge of Kunning Palace—what’s that about?”

In that instant, a smile bloomed in Jiang Xuening’s eyes.

She reached out to embrace his neck.

Then she told him honestly, one by one: “Didn’t Lu Xian come up with an idea for the court?”

The Shen imperial clan now found themselves in an awkward position.

Left there, they couldn’t very well be ignored.

But supporting people required money. Could they still be like before, treating the national treasury as their family’s, taking whatever they pleased?

The Cabinet ministers naturally wouldn’t agree.

Lu Xian returned to the court and became Vice Minister of Revenue. As a new official making his mark, his first fire was directed at the imperial clan. He proposed: The money in Shen Lang’s private treasury would belong to the imperial clan, and the court would let bygones be bygones; but the national treasury’s money would no longer be permitted to be touched by the imperial clan. From now on, each year the national treasury would only allocate according to set precedent, and only after review by the Cabinet would a sum be given to the imperial clan. With just these two portions of money, the imperial clan could spend as they wished. Even if they spent it all in one year, the court wouldn’t interfere, but they couldn’t ask the court for even one more coin.

The imperial clan was now under Shen Zhiyi’s control.

The national treasury was depleted, so the allocated money wasn’t much. But Shen Lang’s private treasury had been inherited from the private treasuries of emperors throughout successive dynasties. Even though much had been squandered, what remained was still considerable.

However, if used without restraint, eventually even mountains would be consumed.

To make it last, there had to be lasting methods.

So Shen Zhiyi saw further than others. She forcefully suppressed much dissatisfied voices within the Shen clan and directly handed such a large sum of money over to Jiang Xuening, letting her do whatever business she wanted. After making profits, Shen Zhiyi would take twenty percent as commission.

She had quite a few enterprises short on capital.

And such a large sum of money—what great power would it mobilize? It was absolutely a sure profit with no loss. Jiang Xuening had no reason to refuse.

She counted on her fingers for Xie Wei: “You see, to serve as the chief accountant and steward for the imperial clan, to promote women’s education—so many matters to coordinate, coming and going are all people. The Ministry of Internal Affairs is such a small place, how could it fit? It’s not as spacious as Kunning Palace.”

Xie Wei still felt that Shen Zhiyi was causing him trouble.

He didn’t speak.

Seeing his expression, Jiang Xuening knew he was holding in frustration and unhappiness. So she suddenly remembered the previous life’s Shen Zhiyi, who had been so angry her eyes turned red when Jiang Xuening disguised herself as a man. Her eyelids trembled slightly as she said softly to Xie Wei, “She just wants to be good to me in her own way.”

That day she had returned from organizing accounts at the Ministry of Internal Affairs and passed by Kunning Palace.

Many palace servants were moving things in and out.

She asked: What’s happening here?

A palace maid nearby told her: The sage emperor had passed away. Kunning Palace had been where empresses lived throughout successive dynasties. In the future, who knew who would become emperor? Living there now was neither proper nor justified. According to ancestral rites, Empress Zheng naturally had to move out. From now on, this palace chamber would be left vacant.

Evening time, the setting sun’s lingering glow.

The vermillion palace walls reflected the golden glazed tiles. Inside that familiar great gate of Kunning Palace, it seemed as if there flowed several parts of things having changed with people gone, of dynasty alterations and mottling. All at once it made her remember her previous life.

Scheming with all her heart to take charge of Kunning…

But what was the final result?

Taking charge became burial. It was a palace but also a tomb.

That day, she had stood outside looking for quite a while before leaving with a smile.

Who would have thought that the next day Shen Zhiyi sent someone.

It was Zheng Bao.

His master Wang Xinyi had been assassinated two months ago by Embroidered Uniform Guard operatives for trying to secretly flee the capital, so now all major and minor palace affairs were handled by him.

With a handsome face and clear features, he still looked as before.

Seeing Jiang Xuening, he smiled slightly and said, “Now that Kunning Palace has been vacated, the place is spacious and bright, more suitable for deliberations than that cramped place in the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Moreover, it’s second only to Qianqing Palace, barely considered at the center of the imperial palace, convenient for going anywhere. The Grand Princess said to please move from that small place Yangzhi Studio and take charge of Kunning, to save you from daily exhaustion.”

Jiang Xuening was dumbstruck.

She knew what Kunning Palace meant and refused on the spot.

However…

Her delicate nose wrinkled slightly. Thinking of those old pedants made Jiang Xuening angry: “I was sensible enough not to agree, but they still berated me. Am I the type to take such treatment? I rolled up my bedding and moved in the very next day. Fight with me!”

Think about who she was in her previous life!

No matter who became emperor, she had to be empress.

Now Shen Zhiyi had merely given her one Kunning Palace, and these old men kept chattering endlessly every day. Two lifetimes later, the annoying people were still just as annoying!

Xie Wei was finally amused by her vivid expression.

When the corners of his lips curved up, even his brows became clear and moist.

Seeing this, Jiang Xuening became dazzled and entranced. Suddenly possessed by some impulse, she leaned up to kiss him. Her moist, dewy lips, carrying a sweet, fresh breath, pressed against his lips, tracing that thin, slightly angular lip shape. After hesitating a moment, her pointed little tongue quietly emerged and slipped toward his mouth.

Her heartbeat suddenly quickened.

She rarely took such initiative. Before she’d done much, her cheeks had already been stained with a peach-blossom-like blush. The more bashful and hesitant she was, the more it made one’s heart pound like drumbeats.

Xie Wei’s eyes locked on her, his voice hoarse: “Are you determined to court death?”

Jiang Xuening immediately regretted it.

She had only thought that since this person rarely voiced any dissatisfaction in such a good-natured way, she should give him some reward. But she didn’t want to be kept here by him until midnight. So her body moved and she tried to run.

But she was already on Xie Wei’s lap—where could she run to?

It was already too late.

He easily held her fast.

Without even shifting locations one bit.

His hands roamed and touched, gathering and pinching, leading her to lose control of herself, drenched and overflowing. The snow-white feet in stockings that couldn’t quite touch the ground swayed with the stockings hanging loose, the toes with neatly trimmed round nails straightening as if unable to endure.

Then he pressed in and advanced slowly.

She had nowhere to seek help, her mouth opening like a drowning fish. When he reached deep to the very end, a sensation gradually rose up, making even her scalp tingle, tears streaming down.

Jiang Xuening cried out mournfully: “Have mercy, I’m dying.”

Xie Wei smiled: “Dying of pleasure?”

Jiang Xuening’s face instantly flushed red along with her jade-like earlobes. As passion intensified, she struggled and tried to escape tooth and nail. However, as soon as her toes touched the ground she felt weak and nearly fell. Fortunately she reached out to brace herself against the desk in front.

Now it was even better—like a fish placed in a pot.

Pressed against the edge and fried for a while, she became docile, without strength.

Fortunately Xie Wei was behind, supporting her waist.

Her snowy peaks trembled, her delicate face dewy.

When exhausted, she pounded the desk in shame and indignation: “How can you be so wicked!”

Xie Wei scooped her up for a deep kiss.

In his smiling eyes, utterly serious: “I can always be three parts more wicked than you imagine.”

Clearly not good words, yet Jiang Xuening was completely defeated by the seriousness in this person’s eyes, routed utterly.

After embracing him for a while, she asked: “Why hide even the blade in the box?”

Would he not use it in the future?

Or did he no longer need to guard against any accidents?

Xie Wei’s Adam’s apple moved up and down. After a long silence, gazing at her moist lashes, he ultimately didn’t answer. He only used his slightly warm lips to plant a light kiss at the corner of her eye.

All blades in this world are ultimately for killing.

Many blades are used to kill others, but not all blades are used to kill others.

He pressed extremely close to her, with an almost bewitching tenderness, his voice low and hoarse as if making a vow: “Jiang Xuening, I am yours.”