Ding Yi and Huang Qi both moved simultaneously.

The two drew their swords and rushed to Zhu Qing’s side, surrounding the Crown Prince completely.

Xie Zhifei recovered from that instant of stiffness, leaped up, and kicked the chair where Pei Xiao sat.

The chair leg cracked and broke. Pei Xiao fell to the ground with a cry.

Xie Zhifei lunged over, grabbed him, and rolled along the ground, rolling into the corner by the wall.

None of them noticed that the arrow-struck Yan Xi looked down at his chest, his lips trembling. He called out “It hurts,” then pitched forward headfirst.

At this moment, Shen Chong came running in. His gaze swept the scene. Seeing only Yan Xi lying in a pool of blood, he shouted: “Protect the Crown Prince well. I’ll pursue the assassin.”

“I’m going too.”

Li Buyan pulled Yan Sanhe up, pushed her toward Xie Zhifei, and followed out.

Xie Zhifei leaped up from the ground, pulled Yan Sanhe into the corner, stood before her, his broad back shielding her completely.

Inside the room, instant deathly silence fell.

No one dared move rashly.

Xie Zhifei’s gaze quickly swept past Yan Xi and landed behind Zhu Qing and the others. His heart suddenly convulsed violently several times.

If that arrow hadn’t been aimed at Yan Xi, but at Zhao Yishi instead…

What would the consequences have been?

“That arrow wasn’t aimed at the Crown Prince.”

Yan Sanhe emerged from behind Xie Zhifei. Though her voice sounded calm, her face was exceptionally pale.

She had been closest and clearly saw the arrow heading straight for Yan Xi.

“The person truly wanted to kill Yan Xi.”

Xie Zhifei immediately walked before Yan Xi and bent down, extending two fingers. “No breath.”

Hearing no breath, Pei Xiao became anxious: “Quickly, check his pulse.”

Xie Zhifei checked and shook his head.

“He’s really dead? Ay ya, he hadn’t finished speaking yet!”

Pei Xiao climbed up from the ground and looked outside several times, somewhat worried: “Huang Qi, go outside and check on… the situation.”

He’d originally wanted to say “check on Li Buyan,” but remembering Huairen was present, he immediately changed his words.

Huang Qi had just stepped one foot over the threshold when Li Buyan came sprinting back. He quickly retracted his foot.

Li Buyan sheathed her soft sword, panting: “Didn’t find anyone. Shen Chong told me to return and report first. He’ll look around the area more. He also said to ask Your Highness to return to the city immediately.”

Deep into the night, in the wilderness—even if it wasn’t aimed at the Crown Prince, the Crown Prince’s safety was still the highest priority. They couldn’t risk the slightest danger.

Xie Zhifei made an immediate decision: “Return to the city at once. Zhu Qing, you bring Yan Xi’s corpse back.”

“Yes!”

“Wait.”

Li Buyan squatted before Yan Xi, grabbed his body, and lifted it up to examine carefully.

An arrow through the heart?

Excellent archery!

No wonder he died so thoroughly.

Zhu Qing urged: “Miss Li, bring him back to examine in detail. This place isn’t safe.”

Li Buyan released her hand: “Alright.”

At this moment, Zhao Yishi rose and walked before Yan Sanhe, his gaze dark: “Miss Yan, first come to my Crown Prince’s residence…”

“I’m returning to the estate.”

Yan Sanhe turned and walked out, throwing back another sentence: “I need a quiet place to think through this matter properly.”

The matter was extremely suspicious.

That arrow came neither early nor late, arriving precisely when Yan Xi was about to say why he lied.

Why?

…

When the carriage entered through the western city gate, daylight had already brightened.

Upon entering the gate, the group split into two routes—

Xie Zhifei and his three servants escorted the Crown Prince back to Duanmu Palace.

Yan Sanhe and Pei Xiao returned to the estate.

Returning to the estate, Yan Sanhe immediately burrowed into the study, closing the door behind her.

Pei Xiao and the others didn’t dare disturb her. After a simple wash, they gathered in the small flower hall to eat breakfast.

How could they possibly eat?

That cold arrow had flown in before everyone’s eyes, evading Shen Chong and the Crown Prince’s two other guards. What expert was this?

After finishing breakfast, the study door remained tightly shut.

Pei Xiao feared something had happened to Yan Sanhe and didn’t dare leave, so he pushed two long benches together and curled up on them to doze briefly.

Li Buyan sat on the threshold, sighing while pinching her chin in regret.

Had she known it would end this way, she should have had Lu Da secretly follow. With him there, perhaps Yan Xi wouldn’t have needed to die.

On second thought, even Shen Chong hadn’t caught up with that person—Lu Da following might not have been any use either.

Huang Qi’s mind was completely blank. Just when everything was about to come to light, how did things take another turn?

Just then, Xie Zhifei and his three servants returned, dust-covered and weary.

All three faces showed the fatigue of a sleepless night.

Xie Zhifei’s gaze swept the area: “Where’s Yan Sanhe?”

Li Buyan pointed at the study.

“Where’s Mingting?”

Huang Qi pointed at the main hall. “Third Master, have you eaten breakfast yet?”

Eaten?

From that night until now, he hadn’t even had time to catch his breath.

Xie Zhifei turned to Zhu Qing and Ding Yi: “Go, change clothes first, then eat.”

“Yes.”

Xie Zhifei left the courtyard. Seeing Lu Da in the distance holding large shears, unhurriedly pruning dead branches, a bitter smile floated to his eyes.

No wonder he could be a shadow guard—this steady temperament was simply remarkable.

…

Perhaps influenced by Lu Da, or perhaps because things had already reached this point and being anxious was useless, Xie Zhifei’s appetite was quite good as he consumed two bowls of porridge.

After returning to his room and changing clothes, drowsiness struck. Thinking there was still no movement from Yan Sanhe’s end, he collapsed on the bed, planning to catch up on sleep.

Body exhausted, heart exhausted—the moment his body lay down, his eyelids grew heavy. Before long he was asleep.

He didn’t know how much time passed when he groggily awoke to find everything before him pitch black.

Where was this?

Xie Zhifei looked around and discovered what seemed to be a point of light in the distance. Without thinking, he followed that point of light.

Walking and walking, that light suddenly grew larger, then larger still. Some invisible force seemed to pull him, wanting him to walk into that light.

Finally reaching the light, he cautiously poked his head out.

Suddenly, a small courtyard appeared before him. Xie Zhifei hazily thought—why does this courtyard seem so familiar?

His gaze swept past a crabapple tree, and he suddenly understood.

This was his former residence, Haitang Courtyard.

But where was Father?

Mother?

Little sister?

Xie Zhifei searched room by room but found nothing, as if the vast Haitang Courtyard contained only him.

As if in this vast heaven and earth, only he remained.

Just then, something flew urgently toward him from behind.

Xie Zhifei was about to turn around when he heard a thwack sound. His heart suddenly felt piercing pain, and blood abruptly sprayed from his mouth.

He looked down to discover an arrow had lodged in his chest.

Who wants to kill me?

Grief welled up in Xie Zhifei’s heart. He suddenly opened his eyes, stunned for a long while before realizing this was just his dream.

“Master?”

“Third Master?”

Zhu Qing and Ding Yi surrounded him, their expressions changing simultaneously—Third Master’s face was covered in tears.

Xie Zhifei’s throat spasmed. After a long time, he finally recovered his voice.

“I just had a dream. In the dream, someone shot an arrow at me from behind.”

—