“Open it.”

After a moment of silence, someone spoke from behind the door, the voice low and deep.

Although Jiafu had already guessed who might be inside, at this moment, in this place, when she truly heard that familiar voice coming from behind the door, she was still greatly surprised.

It was near the end of the year, and court affairs were in disarray, with external matters even more complicated. Starting half a month ago, while the entire Pei family was immersed in mourning for the Elderly Madam, various tributary states such as Goryeo, Annam, Champa, Ryukyu, and others had sent either their princes or envoys, arriving one after another in the capital to offer New Year greetings. Additionally, emissaries from Mongolia and Tibet had also been dispatched. The Court of State Ceremonials was busy with receptions, while the Ministry of Rites arranged daily audiences and banquets. The Emperor’s daily level of busyness was easy to imagine.

But at this moment, the voice coming from behind the door, which she heard clearly, was indeed as she had suspected—Emperor Xiao Lie.

Pei You’an’s level of surprise exceeded even hers.

The moment he heard that voice, his sword-wielding hand suddenly froze.

As those words fell, accompanied by the slight “creak” of the door hinge turning, the double doors opposite them slowly opened. The eunuch Li Yuangui stood at the threshold and said softly, “Official Pei, His Majesty the Emperor is here. You must not be disrespectful.”

Pei You’an’s gaze passed over Li Yuangui’s head and fell upon the figure standing in the center of the snowy courtyard behind him.

That person wore a cloak, covered from head to toe, completely concealed by darkness. At first, he stood motionless, like a statue. Slowly, he raised his arms and removed the hood, revealing the face of a middle-aged man.

It was a lean face, which in the snowy light took on a faint bluish-white hue, while his eyebrows appeared even more raven-black, his gaze slightly flickering in the night.

Pei You’an immediately sheathed his sword and knelt before the door: “Your subject kowtows to Your Majesty. I was unaware Your Majesty was here and have greatly offended you. Please punish me!”

Jiafu also followed Pei You’an’s lead and knelt in the snow.

Li Yuangui had already stepped aside to make way.

Xiao Lie said, “Those who do not know cannot be blamed. Both of you, rise.”

Pei You’an thanked him and rose with Jiafu. For a moment, the two people inside the door and the two outside all fell silent across the threshold. The atmosphere suddenly became strange. After a moment, Pei You’an suddenly said, “Your subject was here during the day to deal with a withered tree in the Genbentang Hall, to prevent it from falling and damaging the ancestral memorial tablets enshrined inside. As it grew late and inconvenient to descend the mountain, I stayed overnight at the temple with my wife. Unable to sleep just now, I brought my wife to pay respects to my aunt. I did not expect to disturb Your Majesty. That Your Majesty does not blame us is truly my great fortune.”

His tone was full of respect as he explained to the Emperor why he had brought his wife here at this time. When he finished, his gaze turned toward the Emperor.

This courtyard was where Pei Wenjing had spent her final days during her serious illness. Since the reign of Prince Shun’an, it had gradually been abandoned, becoming almost a private property of the Pei family. Except for times of memorial services when the Pei family came to pay respects, it rarely saw outsiders throughout the year.

Tonight, it was perfectly natural for Pei You’an to bring his wife to mourn his aunt, but for the current Emperor to appear here in the middle of the night, and in such secrecy—

The implication in Pei You’an’s words was unmistakable.

The Emperor remained silent.

The atmosphere became strange once again. For Jiafu, who secretly knew the inside story, she could even faintly sense a trace of embarrassment emanating from the Emperor.

Jiafu glanced secretly at the figure trapped in the doorway, hesitated slightly, then bowed toward the door, breaking the silence, and said softly, “Your subject’s wife will not intrude and will take her leave first…”

The Emperor coughed slightly, and Li Yuangui beside him spoke up, saying, “The Elderly Madam Pei once took great care of His Majesty, and now that she has passed away, His Majesty is deeply grieved. Some days ago, he intended to come to pay his private respects, but due to daily affairs being countless, he could not find even a moment’s leisure, and only tonight was he able to leave the palace. When he arrived at the temple just now, he also thought of his innocent friendship with Official Pei’s aunt during his childhood, and feeling moved, came here to pay his respects.”

Jiafu glanced secretly at Pei You’an.

His expression remained unchanged, and she couldn’t tell what he was thinking at the moment. He merely lowered his eyes slightly and respectfully said, “Your subject has disturbed Your Majesty. If there is nothing else, your subject will take his leave.”

He bowed to the Emperor, taking Jiafu with him as they retreated seven or eight steps before turning to leave.

Jiafu walked alongside Pei You’an, not daring to look back, but feeling that Xiao Lie’s gaze seemed to remain fixed on their backs.

“You’an, stay behind. I have more to say!”

After they had gone dozens of steps and were about to turn down the corridor, the Emperor’s voice suddenly came from behind them again.

Pei You’an stopped and slowly turned around.

Li Yuangui had already hurried out and approached the two of them, saying to Jiafu, “His Majesty has something to discuss with Official Pei. May I request the lady to wait here? This servant will accompany you.”

His tone was extremely respectful.

Jiafu quickly replied, “Public Gong is too kind. I’ll wait here.”

Although Li Yuangui was a eunuch, Pei You’an knew that in his younger years, he had been skilled with bow and horse. He glanced at the shadowy figure standing inside the courtyard gate ahead, pondered briefly, said “Thank you for your trouble” to Li Yuangui, then turned and walked forward.

In the desolate garden covered in cold snow, heaven and earth seemed frozen. The Emperor stood with his hands behind his back in the center of the snowy ground, his expression rigid.

Pei You’an knelt again before the figure ahead and kowtowed: “What instructions does Your Majesty have?”

Xiao Lie seemed to come back to his senses.

“Come with me,” he said, turning to walk through the snow, pushing open the door, and entering.

Pei You’an watched the back of the figure ahead, rose from the ground, and followed him inside, closing the door.

Inside the room, doors and windows were tightly shut, the light dim, the air unusually cold. A faint smell of dust and decay filled his nostrils.

Pei You’an stood by the door, watching as the Emperor slowly walked to a side table, raised his hand, and ran his fingers across its surface, as if lost in some thought.

He did not speak again, just quietly watched.

“You’an, you’ve been away on missions for me, and upon returning to the capital faced a family death. There is one matter you may not yet know,” the Emperor finally spoke, his tone flat. “I have decided to bring the princesses of Goryeo and Annam into the palace, and following the Ministry of Rites’ recommendation, will select palace ladies in the spring to fill the imperial harem.”

Goryeo and Annam, in addition to paying tribute, had brought princesses with their delegations, expressing their wish to offer marriage ties to the Great Wei Emperor. Other delegations had also contributed varying numbers of beauties. The Ministry of Rites had submitted a proposal stating that His Majesty’s harem currently had only one occupant, and times had changed. According to protocol, the imperial harem should be filled to support the Emperor.

“The Book of Rites states that the Son of Heaven should establish six palaces. This concerns the dignity of the nation. Your Majesty is wise,” Pei You’an respectfully said.

The Emperor was silent for a moment, then continued, “Li Yuangui just now concealed something for me. I thought, since we’ve met here, it must be heaven’s will, so there’s no harm in telling you. My coming here tonight was originally just to pay respects to your aunt, but I didn’t expect to encounter you and your wife here.”

He slowly paced to the window, stood with his back to Pei You’an, and gazed out for a moment.

“I and your aunt were childhood sweethearts, but heaven was against us, and we were forced to marry others. She was of noble character, but heaven envied her beauty, and at the prime of her life, she unfortunately died here…”

“You’an, if I tell you that your aunt’s death back then was entirely because of me, that it was my fault, would you hate me?”

The Emperor’s emotions seemed suddenly difficult to control, his voice trembling slightly as he abruptly turned around.

Pei You’an’s figure froze, but quickly, as if he had recovered, he hesitated for a moment before cautiously saying, “Your Majesty’s words are too heavy. Even if it were as Your Majesty says, surely it was unintentional at the time. If my aunt’s spirit in heaven has forgiven past events, how would You’an dare to judge right and wrong?”

The Emperor looked at Pei You’an for a long time. His emotions finally seemed to settle, and he nodded, speaking again in a much calmer voice.

The Emperor said, “Tonight, at this moment, I view you as a nephew, not as emperor and subject, which is why I mentioned some old matters to you. I won’t conceal from you that because of your aunt’s death, for all these years, at every moment, my heart has felt as if pierced by needles. Even until death, I will find it hard to forgive myself. Your kind words have given me some comfort. In the Jingxiang matter, you stopped conflict and promoted benevolence, showing remarkable insight, handling it extremely well, and stabilizing the situation for me. Now that the Elderly Madam has unfortunately passed away, I know you must be overwhelmed with grief. All these years, you have traveled east and west for me without a moment’s peace. I will send the person you recommended in your memorial to serve as the county magistrate, to govern and pacify the people in your place. You should rest and recuperate well. After some time, I will assess the situation and use your talents again. How does that sound?”

Pei You’an respectfully said, “Your subject obeys the imperial decree.”

The Emperor continued, “You’an, remember this: from now on, no matter what you encounter, I hope you will not conceal anything from me. Feel free to speak up, and if I can grant it, I will certainly grant everything.”

Pei You’an thanked him again.

The Emperor gazed at him in the dim, snowy light, his eyes extremely gentle. After a moment of silence, he said, “Very well, I have nothing more here. In this cold weather, take your wife back and rest early…”

Just at that moment, from outside suddenly came a faint shout: “Who goes there?” The voice seemed to be Li Yuangui’s.

“Your Majesty, stay here. Your subject will go see!”

Pei You’an opened the door and rushed outside, seeing in the moonlight a black figure like a night owl fleeing swiftly across the snow.

Li Yuangui had already drawn the waist knife he carried, protecting Jiafu, and quickly let out a sharp whistle, urgently calling for the guards who had been left at the mountain gate to come to protect the Emperor. Turning his head to see Pei You’an running out, he pointed at a large tree dozens of steps away and said, “Official Pei! This assassin was hiding in the tree just now!”

The guards quickly arrived. Pei You’an ordered them to escort Jiafu inside to protect the Emperor, while he himself drew his sword and, following the two footprints left in the snow, hurried in pursuit.