Back then, a single Yan Qin had already thrown the Shi Family into chaos. If another one were to appear, life in the Shi Mansion would truly become unbearable for everyone.

Old Madam Shi had initially held a favorable view toward Yin Minghui’s marriage into the Shi Family. But after this uproar, she now desperately wanted this Miss Yin to hurry back to the Qian Family.

After Old Madam Shi left, Shi Ting took Yan Qin’s hand. “Let’s go as well.”

“Wait a moment.” Yin Minghui called out relentlessly. “Seventh Young Master, are you really just going to walk away like this?”

Shi Ting raised an eyebrow. “Miss Yin, I believe you’ve made a mistake. It was my Second Brother who had been corresponding with you by letter all this time. The Commander himself just admitted it. I don’t understand why you keep clinging to me.”

“But…” Yin Minghui repeated that word for quite some time, yet could produce nothing further. She couldn’t very well say: you took me to watch the sunset, you loosened the soil around the plum trees with me, could she?

He had already said that watching the sunset was merely fulfilling the duties of a host. As for loosening the soil around the plum trees — Shi Ting had simply been there already; she was the one who had heard the news and rushed over.

When she thought about it carefully, there was not even the slightest intimacy between herself and Shi Ting — not even a touch. The only thing that had made her feel he harbored feelings for her were those thousand paper cranes. But now it had been proven that those cranes had not been folded by Shi Ting at all, but by this Shi Guang, who had absolutely nothing to do with her.

Seeing that Yin Minghui had opened her mouth yet could say nothing, Shi Ting gave a cold laugh. “Miss Yin had better think things through before speaking.”

With that, he took Yan Qin’s hand and left the main hall.

Yin Minghui’s face flushed crimson with fury, but she held herself back due to the presence of Er Yitai and San Yitai.

“Miss Yin, if you and Second Young Master truly have feelings for one another, then have your aunt arrange the match. As it happens, Second Young Master’s chambers lack a proper mistress. Besides,” Luo Huaimeng said calmly, “when one thinks about it, Second Young Master is not only a promising young talent but also unattached. It would make sense for Miss Yin to set her sights on Second Young Master — why would she look at Xingzhi? Is there anyone in Shun Cheng who doesn’t know that Xingzhi and Yan Qin are a devoted couple, their bond so close it lets no air through? Countless people have tried to wedge themselves between them, and every single one has failed.”

Luo Huaimeng gave a faint smile. “I would imagine that a young woman of Miss Yin’s background and talent would not be willing to enter a household as a concubine. That would hardly be good for one’s reputation, and I doubt even the Qian Madam and Master Qian would agree to it.”

“I…” Yin Minghui was left speechless by Luo Huaimeng’s words.

“The Old Madam has said that young people should make their own decisions in these matters — we elders won’t trouble ourselves over it.” Luo Huaimeng glanced toward Du Linghua, who had been watching the spectacle from the side. “San Yitai, shall we go?”

San Yitai had been watching the entertainment for a while, and now found it dull. “If Miss Yin truly can marry into the Shi Family, then I offer my congratulations in advance.”

Very quickly, everyone departed — even Shi Guang rose to leave.

It seemed as though today’s affair would simply be swept aside.

“Wait.” Yin Minghui called out to Shi Guang. “You’re just going to leave like that?”

“What should I stay here for — to be mocked, or to be pressured into marriage by Miss Yin?”

Yin Minghui said angrily, “Why did you write those words? Why did you fold those thousand paper cranes?”

“If I told you that we were both manipulated, would you believe me?” Shi Guang tapped his temple. “Think about it carefully.”

Yin Minghui, however foolish she might be, understood at this point. “You mean — Shi Ting plotted against us?”

Shi Guang gave a cold laugh. He had no desire to waste any more words on Yin Minghui. Whether or not she could figure it out had nothing to do with him. Nor could he say Yin Minghui was foolish — he himself had also been caught in the trap.

Thinking this, he couldn’t help but quicken his steps. He didn’t want to remain here even another minute.

Compared to Shi Guang’s sorry state, Shi Ting and Yan Qin were far more at ease.

The two of them strolled leisurely along the garden path, and though only the evergreen pines and cypresses remained, the Shi Family’s grounds did not feel desolate.

Yan Qin gently kicked a small pebble on the path, watching it roll far ahead before coming to rest in a patch of withered grass at the side.

To her, Yin Minghui was just like that pebble — something that had once blocked the path she needed to walk, but was no longer a threat.

Yin Minghui had perhaps only wanted to marry Shi Ting, with no other malicious intentions. But Yin Minghui had been a chess piece arranged by Qian Lan, and that piece could not be left in play.

If Yin Minghui were allowed to continue as she had been, Qian Lan only needed to whisper in the Commander’s and the Old Madam’s ears, and Yin Minghui could easily be married into Shaolan Courtyard. Once she was in, she would throw the courtyard into chaos, drive husband and wife apart. And if Shi Ting defied the Commander’s orders by firmly refusing to marry Yin Minghui, it would drive a wedge between Shi Ting and the Commander.

Although Yan Qin had used Shi Guang’s feelings for her this time, she felt no guilt. Because Qian Lan and Shi Guang were essentially one and the same — they were ruthless, so she could not be blamed for being fierce in return.

The law of the jungle. The contest for advantage. One careless move and all previous efforts would be undone, with no way to turn back.

She had no regrets.

“Qingqing, you’ve been put through hardship this time.” Shi Ting stood shoulder to shoulder with her, his gaze soft and tender as he looked at her. “I know you don’t like Shi Guang.”

Yan Qin smiled and shook her head. “This plan was my idea. I don’t feel put upon at all. You’re making a mountain out of a molehill. My only worry was that Shi Guang wouldn’t take the bait.”

When she had folded that paper crane, she had not been one hundred percent certain she could draw Shi Guang into the trap. If Shi Guang had not gone to retrieve the one she had placed in the stream — had not folded paper cranes and placed them in the water himself — all her plans would have come to nothing, and she would have had to find another path.

But Shi Guang had not “disappointed” her. After so long without a woman to warm his bed, he had at last been unable to bear the loneliness. He had at last come to believe that she and Shi Ting had grown distant. He had at last placed those paper cranes into the water — and so their subsequent plans had been able to proceed smoothly.

Shi Guang perhaps truly did like her, but such liking was mostly driven by his pride — because what one cannot have is always the most desirable.

“Now, Yin Minghui has become a useless piece. Both the Commander and the Old Madam have a poor impression of her. There is no way Qian Lan can continue using her to stir up trouble at this point.” Yan Qin let out a breath of relief. “I hope Qian Lan knows when to retreat this time and won’t resort to such vile tactics again.”

“She won’t retreat.” Shi Ting knew people like Qian Lan well. “If this plan has failed, she will devise another.”

“There’s still been no news from Lu Shi’s side. To expose her, we must know her true identity. Otherwise, letting her sow discord in front of the Commander will always be a ticking time bomb, keeping us from a single night of peace.”

Shi Ting said, “Shi Guang should be on guard now. He always assumed we didn’t know about his connection with Qian Lan. Now that he knows we do, he won’t simply sit and wait for death.”

The blow Shi Guang received this time was truly no small matter. He had always considered himself clever, and had not expected to be so thoroughly outmaneuvered.

Several days later, in the early hours of the morning, a shop along a certain alley — the surrounding shops had long since closed for the night, with no street lamps, the pale moonlight reflected on the cobblestone street.

A hurrying silhouette walked through the early morning streets under the moonlight. When the figure stopped before a shop entrance, it stepped forward and knocked three times on the door. After the door opened from the inside, the figure slipped in.

A kerosene lamp was lit inside the shop, its glow illuminating two faces.

The figure who had just entered removed the hood pulled down over its head, revealing a face as fine as jade.

“No one noticed you?”

“He’s asleep. He took medicine. He won’t wake before dawn.” This face was very beautiful, yet the eyes held no warmth — in fact, they were somewhat cold.

She sat down in a chair and reached out to feel the teapot on the table.

“I came through the back gate. No one was watching me.” The speaker was Qian Lan. She wore a heavy black cloak with a hood and had half her face covered with a black veil.

“This time we were truly careless.” Shi Guang frowned. “We were outmaneuvered.”

“You’re right. That Yan Qin is indeed no easy opponent. As long as she is there, Shi Xingzhi’s back yard is as solid as a fortress. Unless he makes mistakes, it won’t be easy to shake his standing in the Commander’s trust.”

Shi Guang lowered his eyelids. The kerosene lamp cast a deep ring of shadow beneath his eyes.

“You underestimated her.”

Qian Lan poured herself a cup of tea. “They should now know that there is a connection between the two of us.”

“My Seventh Brother is the kind of person who reads people and situations with precision, his mind as fine as a needle. I had thought that as long as we had no contact between us, he wouldn’t connect anything back to me. But in fact, the more deliberately one avoids something, the more suspicious it looks.”

“Do you think they know how much?” Qian Lan’s eyes sharpened as she heard this. “Could it be…”

Shi Guang shook his head. “No. If they knew your true origins, they wouldn’t have kept sitting on their hands. The fact that they haven’t acted means they haven’t yet found any solid evidence against you. Rest assured — other than me, everyone who knows your background has already been silenced. Not even the slightest detail will leak.”

Hearing this, Qian Lan’s heart finally settled.

“He’s growing more and more reliant on you now.” Shi Guang picked up his own teacup. “How much longer?”

“Three months.” Qian Lan held up three fingers. “Three months, and the great deed will be accomplished.”

Shi Guang nodded. “Be especially careful in your actions. Don’t give anything away.”

“Do you still not trust how I operate?” Qian Lan gave a cold laugh. “This time I underestimated my opponents, which is what gave them the chance to bite back.”

She raised her eyes to look at Shi Guang, a trace of mockery in her gaze. “If it weren’t for the fact that you’ve never been able to let go of that Yan Qin, how could you have fallen into the trap?”

Shi Guang looked at her with some displeasure. “Remember your place, and don’t speak presumptuously about my affairs.”

“What place am I? Are we not in the same boat?” Qian Lan’s smile grew colder still. “Even though we each seek our own ends, don’t forget — I am your last trump card. Without me, you would be utterly ruined. Forget the Commander’s seat; even the Young Commander’s seat would never fall to you.”

Shi Guang stared at her coldly, but after only a moment, he looked away. “What happened between me and Yan Qin is something you don’t understand.”

“All I know is that because of her, you nearly ruined everything.” Qian Lan took a sip of tea. “Yan Qin — that woman must be eliminated.”