The banquet at the Drunken Spring Pavilion ended unhappily, and Qiu Xinran inexplicably had one year’s salary confiscated. In the end, Yuan Zhou went downstairs to collect the person from the broker. She lagged behind a step, standing at the second-floor stairway to see the group off downstairs.

Xia Xiuyan was the last to go down. When only the two of them remained in the second-floor corridor, he stopped and looked at her with cold eyes, dropping a line: “If you can’t learn to disguise your expressions and continue as you did today, I advise you to return to the mountains as soon as possible.”

After speaking, he turned and left. Qiu Xinran stood in place with cupped hands. Hearing this, she lightly bit her lip, listening to his footsteps descending all the way down and disappearing into the bustling main hall.

Not long after returning that day, Bai Jingming suddenly called her before him to instruct, “The Bureau recently admitted a batch of astronomy students. From now on, you’ll go help there. Someone will replace you as the academy attendant.”

Qiu Xinran asked curiously, “Has something happened?”

Bai Jingming hesitated unusually before asking, “Have you recently offended Heir Xia?”

Qiu Xinran froze. Seeing this, Bai Jingming understood in his heart and sighed, “For this period, you should temporarily lie low.”

Qiu Xinran emerged from Bai Jingming’s study completely baffled. Only after inquiring with Yuan Zhou did she understand the reason. The events at the Drunken Spring Pavilion that day had somehow still reached His Majesty’s ears. After Minister Wu returned from the palace that day, he turned around and used family law in his household. Wu Peng received twenty lashes from his father and lay in bed for half a month, then was confined to the house for a month in self-reflection.

As this matter spread around, there were many versions. The most credible one was that she and Wu Peng had a big fight at the wine house, and Wu Peng accidentally broke Princess Mingyang’s jade pendant, thoroughly offending Xia Xiuyan. Now that Wu Peng had been punished and she no longer appeared at the academy, it could be said to confirm this rumor.

Qiu Xinran found this somewhat amusing in her heart, but recalling the words Xia Xiuyan had dropped at the wine house that day, she couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. She didn’t know how much truth was in what he said that day. If that jade pendant truly was Princess Mingyang’s relic, now broken into two pieces, she indeed could not escape blame. Perhaps Xia Xiuyan truly resented her in his heart. Whenever she thought of this, she couldn’t help but feel somewhat melancholy.

The only thing worth being happy about was that Yuan Zhou brought back news of Xiao Mei, saying she had already left Chang’an with Yu Yin. Coincidentally, during this period Wu Peng was confined to his home, so at least there was no need to worry about him turning around to deliberately seek revenge.

Time flew by in a flash. By spring, it was already her third year in Chang’an. Days passed like flowing water. Looking back on the scene when she entered the palace in spring felt like only yesterday, yet these short two years of experiences had already surpassed her thirteen years of quiet cultivation in the mountains.

When summer arrived, the palace held a Qixi Festival banquet for skill competitions, set up in the Imperial Garden.

The moonlight was quite good that night. Bai Jingming brought Yuan Zhou into the palace to attend the banquet. Today there was a street parade in the city. Those who were married rushed home when the time came, while those unmarried called on friends to arrange drinking at the Drunken Spring Pavilion. In the entire vast Bureau of Astronomy, no one was willing to enter the palace for duty on Qixi. When the managing registrar came looking, Qiu Xinran resignedly accepted this assignment, treating it as repaying the debt for her half-month leave earlier.

The Observatory was not far from the Imperial Garden. Sitting on top, one could still hear the music drifting from afar. Tonight the moon was bright and stars were sparse—one could barely make out the Cowherd and Weaver Girl stars. Qiu Xinran sat at the table with nothing much worth recording, listlessly watching the water clock on the side reach nearly the third watch of the ninth hour. She couldn’t help but yawn long and loud, preparing to leave early.

The Imperial Garden had many hidden paths. If one wasn’t a palace servant who regularly walked in the palace, few outsiders could find their way clearly. Qiu Xinran descended from the Observatory, planning to leave through the north gate along the Imperial Garden’s small paths. Walking along the corridor with railings by the lake, she suddenly heard stumbling footsteps. Looking up, she saw someone suddenly rush out from a crescent moon gate to the side. Caught off guard, that person collided right into her.

The two collided into each other and both fell to the ground. Qiu Xinran grimaced in pain. Rubbing her arm as she got up, she discovered the person sitting opposite was actually Li Hanru.

“Seventh Princess?” She was greatly shocked and stepped forward to extend a hand to help her sit up. “Are you alright?”

Li Hanru had probably been about to curse loudly, but seeing it was her, ultimately forced herself to hold back. “I’m fine.” Her expression was panicked. Qiu Xinran couldn’t help but ask, “What happened to you?”

Li Hanru opened her mouth. Her brows were tightly knitted, appearing deeply troubled. After hesitating a moment, she tightly gripped Qiu Xinran’s hand and asked, “Have you seen Gao Yang?”

Qiu Xinran was completely baffled. “Why are you looking for him?”

“I’m looking for him for an urgent matter.” Li Hanru bit her lip, her expression quite ugly. Qiu Xinran couldn’t help but glance in the direction she had come from, vaguely remembering that should be the direction of the Plain Plantain Palace. The Plain Plantain Palace was at the northernmost part of the imperial palace—a side hall that few people visited. The Imperial Garden was currently lively, so why would Li Hanru emerge from there?

“I encountered Xia Xiuyan at the Plain Plantain Palace.” Noticing her gaze, Li Hanru suddenly blurted out this sentence. Qiu Xinran froze, then heard her say, “He drank quite a lot of wine tonight and was resting in the side hall. I just went over and he seemed somewhat uncomfortable, so I was about to go find someone.”

Qiu Xinran grasped the key point. “In the middle of the banquet, you were alone, without bringing a maidservant, went to the Plain Plantain Palace and encountered Heir Xia?”

Li Hanru’s face turned slightly red as she blurted out, “I… I didn’t originally go to see him! I don’t know why I just happened to encounter him drunk and resting in the side hall.” As soon as the words left her mouth, she began to regret them, showing a trace of annoyance. “In any case, I need to go find Gao Yang now.”

Qiu Xinran kindly reminded, “If Heir Xia has some discomfort, there’s no need to specifically find Gao Yang. Just ask palace servants to summon an imperial physician.”

“But he asked me to find Gao Yang,” Li Hanru said impatiently.

Qiu Xinran couldn’t help but ask, “What exactly is wrong with Heir Xia?”

“He… he’s vomiting and having diarrhea, his face is pale, and his whole body has no strength.”

These symptoms weren’t particularly special. But given past precedents, Qiu Xinran’s first reaction was to suspect he had been poisoned. But thinking carefully, who would dare poison someone at a palace banquet? Moreover, since he didn’t have Li Hanru immediately go find an imperial physician, clearly there shouldn’t be any life-threatening danger. Perhaps he truly had drunk too much?

“In that case, let me help you search together,” Qiu Xinran said hesitantly.

Hearing this, Li Hanru paused. She seemed to think of something, looked Qiu Xinran up and down, then suddenly said, “That’s not necessary. I’ll go outside to find help. You go over first to help check on him, lest something truly happen to him.”

Qiu Xinran instinctively felt this wasn’t quite right. However, Li Hanru didn’t wait for her objection and had already lifted her skirts and run toward the front in a flash.

Qiu Xinran stood in place, momentarily caught in a difficult position. She looked at the pitch-black path behind the crescent moon gate and sighed inwardly.

Turning left from the corridor and walking a few steps was the Plain Plantain Palace. Drawing near, she discovered the hall doors were closed, and inside was pitch black without a trace of light. Qiu Xinran stopped at the entrance and hesitated for a while before carefully pushing open the door.

With a “creak,” moonlight from outside leaked through the door crack in a sliver.

She tiptoed and peered inside. The room was pitch black—one couldn’t see one’s hand in front of one’s face. This room didn’t look at all like someone was inside. Qiu Xinran’s heart felt somewhat apprehensive. She timidly withdrew her hand again, hesitating whether she should wait for people to come before going in.

Could he have died inside?

This thought suddenly popped up and startled her.

Not likely, not likely. Qiu Xinran comforted herself—disasters linger for a thousand years, and Xia Xiuyan looked at least like a thousand-year disaster.

Just as she was thinking this, suddenly there came a sound of a vase falling inside, as if someone had accidentally knocked it over. With a “bang,” the porcelain shattered all over the floor, scaring her so much she nearly jumped.

Looks like he’s still alive.

Qiu Xinran felt relieved and boldly pushed open the door to grope her way inside in the dark. Borrowing the moonlight leaking in, she first reached out to touch the fire striker on the table surface, about to light the candle stand in the dark. Suddenly her shoulder hurt. Someone clamped down on her right shoulder with one hand and forcefully pulled, pressing her against a wooden cabinet to the side. Their entire body firmly suppressed her movements while the other hand gripped her throat, the force so great it seemed they wanted to strangle her to death.

“Mm—” Qiu Xinran’s head knocked against the cabinet door with a “thud,” hurting so much that tears welled up in her eyes. Immediately after, she heard the man gripping her throat ask in a suppressed low gasp, “Who sent you?”

This voice was somewhat familiar. Qiu Xinran struggled to open her eyes wide, finally managing to suppress the tears in her eyes. “Heir…”

As soon as her words fell, the hand gripping her loosened its force. He asked in surprise, “It’s you?” The other party fell eerily silent for a moment, then released the hand gripping her throat. “How did you come here?”

Qiu Xinran immediately began coughing violently, touching her throat as she explained, “I encountered the Seventh Princess outside. She said you were unwell after drinking and she went to find help, telling me to come check on you.”

Hearing that Li Hanru had sent her over, the person pressed against her in the darkness seemed to curse quietly. Qiu Xinran touched her throat and comforted, “She should return soon.”

“She won’t come back,” Xia Xiuyan’s voice was as cold as ice shards.

“How do you know?”

The other party made no sound. Qiu Xinran finally sensed something abnormal. The two were blocked in front of the cabinet. Even through their robes, she could feel his abnormally high body temperature and his slightly suppressed breathing sounds in the darkness.

“What’s wrong with you?” The two were too close. Qiu Xinran raised her hand to push him away slightly, wanting to see his appearance clearly. Who knew that as soon as she raised her hand, he grabbed it. His palm was like it held fire. The moment it touched the skin of her wrist, he immediately flung it away as if electrocuted. Xia Xiuyan swayed, as if unable to stand, and propped himself against the cabinet door.

“Help me over there.” In the darkness, the man lowered his voice to command. He draped one hand over Qiu Xinran’s shoulder, pressing most of his body weight onto her. Qiu Xinran frantically supported his waist, stumbling and gritting her teeth as she dragged him to the bedside. When setting him down, she was instead pulled down with him onto the bed.

Xia Xiuyan gave a muffled groan. Qiu Xinran bounced up like a rabbit and immediately admitted fault. “I didn’t mean to.”

The person on the bed didn’t respond. Qiu Xinran again carefully groped her way in the dark to the table. This time she finally successfully lit the candle stand. She closed the door to the room and returned. Before she could ask anything, she was first startled by his appearance.

Xia Xiuyan’s current appearance could be said to be vastly different from the pale face and weak body Li Hanru had described earlier. His temple hair was disheveled, a few strands of hair hanging before his eyes. His normally pale complexion showed a suspicious faint flush, his lip color like blood, and a layer of fine sweat beaded on his forehead. Those eyes that were usually ice-cold also seemed washed by spring water, the corners slightly reddened. He propped himself up with one hand, sitting up. Beads of sweat on his face ran down along his cheek, following his Adam’s apple and disappearing into his opened collar.

Noticing her gaze, Xia Xiuyan looked up at her and said in a hoarse, cold voice, “Where are you looking?”

Qiu Xinran immediately observed her nose with her eyes and her heart with her nose. “Did the Heir mistakenly ingest something?”

“Pear Fusion Incense.”

Hearing he had been affected by Pear Fusion Incense, Qiu Xinran’s scalp immediately went numb and she instinctively stepped back a small step. There were many unsavory things in the rear palace, and Pear Fusion Incense could be counted as one of them. This drug placed in wine had aphrodisiac effects. After use, the body would have a faint pear blossom fragrance. Unfortunately, this drug also had a side effect—it easily triggered a person’s vicious nature. In the previous dynasty, a concubine had used it to curry favor, only to be found dead on the dragon bed the next morning. After that, this drug gradually disappeared from the palace.

Why would someone drug Xia Xiuyan with this kind of substance?

Qiu Xinran frowned and pondered for a while. Suddenly she saw Xia Xiuyan half-leaning against the wall, raising his hand toward her and coldly ordering, “Help me up.”

She hesitated a moment but still steeled herself to step forward and support his hand. Who knew that the moment she touched him, he pulled hard, instead yanking her over. Qiu Xinran gave a short startled cry. When she came to her senses, she was pressed tightly against the wall, trapped by him in the interior of the bed.