In Yanqing Lane, within the Qin royal residence, although the Qin nation was somewhat better off than the Ming Qi, it couldn’t compare to Great Liang’s extravagance in purchasing all the houses on an entire street. Near the entrance of the street, there was a deliberate distance kept from Prince Rui’s mansion.

Princess Ming’an sat in her room with an array of exquisite pastries and flower teas before her, yet she had no mood to enjoy them, her brows furrowed with irritation. Today, several maids had been scolded by Princess Ming’an without reason, and no one knew what had triggered the Princess’s anger.

“Is there still no news from Xie Changwu?” Princess Ming’an asked her subordinate.

The person shook their head.

With a loud “bang,” Princess Ming’an violently smashed the cup in front of her onto the floor and shouted in anger, “Useless!”

The people around her had grown accustomed to Princess Ming’an’s arrogant temperament and dared not make a sound. Princess Ming’an, feeling extremely annoyed, simply got up and left the room, heading toward the courtyard.

Xie Changwu and Xie Changchao, who knew how they were supposed to handle matters? That day, they had successfully abducted Shen Miao from the Shen family but delayed taking action. In the end, Shen Miao had returned to the Shen residence unharmed. When Princess Ming’an learned that Shen Miao had returned safely, she was furious. She immediately sent someone to convey a message to the Xie brothers, intending to vent her anger on them for failing to complete their task. However, Xie Changwu wrote back saying they had future arrangements. Princess Ming’an, while needing to be cautious of Huangfu Hao discovering this matter, was also under house arrest. Despite her unwillingness, she could only stay in the residence and wait for news from Xie Changwu.

As a result, she had been waiting for many days, and finally, unable to contain her impatience, she became truly angry. She planned to make the Xie brothers suffer the consequences, for in this world, no one who had bungled a task she assigned could live well.

Just as she was about to summon someone to find the Xie brothers, she saw a servant running over from the other side. Seeing that there was no one around, the servant secretly handed Princess Ming’an a letter, saying, “Your Highness, this is from the Xie family’s second young master.”

Princess Ming’an was startled, not understanding why Xie Changwu would still dare to send a letter on his initiative. She quickly opened it to read, and after skimming through it, the irritation on her face vanished completely. She tore the letter into pieces so that its original form couldn’t be discerned, and suddenly, in a much better mood, she said to the maid beside her, “Come, accompany me in choosing a brilliant outfit, and take out all the jewelry from the box. I want to select them carefully.”

The maids were all somewhat confused. Now that Princess Ming’an was confined to the residence, even if she dressed like a celestial fairy, who would see her? And why… why did she need to dress up?

Although they were confused, no one dared to provoke Princess Ming’an, so they could only comply and go in to help the Princess with her makeup and dress.

This day passed exceptionally quickly, as if time flowed like water. By nightfall, the winter days were already dark early. Moreover, snow had begun to fall from the sky, not light snow but large flakes falling like goose feathers. The cold winter wind cut to the bone, and even the night watchmen only hurriedly passed by. The entire capital of Dinjing was silent.

At the hour of Zi (11 pm to 1 am), Wanli Lake was completely quiet.

The wine houses and pleasure houses might still be lit up through the night with drinking and merriment, but on the streets and outside the restaurants, there was not a soul to be seen. Even the windows of the brothels were tightly closed—at such a late hour, the wind was like knives, painful when it hit one’s face. The ladies were also afraid of the outside wind blowing in, freezing their warmed fine wine into ice, wasting the precious brew.

In Wanli Lake, those boat houses that were usually active had all stopped. In winter, the lake surface froze, and they couldn’t move at all. The boat houses were frozen in the middle of the icy water, looking particularly desolate.

But today, there was a person in one of the boat houses frozen in the middle of the water.

Xie Changwu sat inside the boat house, nervously rubbing his hands. Perhaps it was the guilt of wrongdoing, or perhaps it was because Xie Changchao’s warning that Shen Xin’s people were still secretly investigating made him feel anxious, but he hadn’t even brought a hand warmer, let alone lit a stove for warmth. He was already dressed very heavily, but near the water, it was naturally colder, and the boat house had been uninhabited for days, making the cold wind even more piercing.

Xie Changwu looked outside the boat house, but not seeing anyone, he grew anxious.

In his letter, Xie Changchao had arranged to meet at midnight in the boat house on Wanli Lake, saying that the capital was being searched everywhere with Shen Xin’s spies all around, making outside areas unsafe. Wanli Lake, however, was deserted in winter with no visitors, making it safe as no one would see them. At that time, they would bring a few people and let Princess Ming’an witness Shen Miao being humiliated, which would surely please the Princess. And with the strong winds on the lake surface and the nearest tavern having its windows tightly shut, no one would notice any commotion on this side. With perfect timing, location, and personnel, it would be foolproof.

Xie Changwu was somewhat reluctant, but as Xie Changchao had already arranged everything, he could only accept it. However, seeing that it was almost the hour of Zi with no one arriving, he couldn’t help feeling anxious.

Just as he was thinking this, he heard a slight movement outside. Xie Changwu’s heart skipped a beat, and then with some joy, he lifted the window on the boat and indeed saw a vague figure in the distance approaching, carrying someone on their back. Xie Changwu thought it must be Xie Changchao carrying Shen Miao, so he relaxed and went to the bow of the boat to meet them.

As the person came closer, Xie Changwu sensed something was wrong. Xie Changchao wasn’t as tall as this person, and their build was different. Feeling uneasy, he was about to retreat when the other person lit a fire stick, and a familiar voice said, “Xie Changwu, what are you doing!”

Xie Changwu looked in astonishment and saw that the person was a guard-like figure, with Princess Ming’an on his back.

Princess Ming’an was extremely displeased.

In the letter Xie Changwu had sent her, they were to meet at Wanli Lake at the midnight hour of Zi. Qin had four seasons like spring, and she was unaccustomed to the severe cold of Ming Qi’s winter. Now she was shivering from the cold. Afraid of being discovered by Huangfu Hao, Princess Ming’an could only sneak out at night with a few of her guards. Unfortunately, Xie Changwu had chosen the boat house as their meeting place, so she had to be carried over by a guard, with the others remaining outside. Princess Ming’an was extremely delicate, and if it weren’t for wanting to witness Shen Miao’s misery firsthand today, she would never have forced herself to come. Seeing Xie Changwu, she vented her frustration.

Xie Changwu asked, “How did Your Highness get here?”

“Xie Changwu, have you gone mad?” Princess Ming’an raged. “Wasn’t it you who called me here to enjoy Shen Miao’s humiliation? Why are you talking nonsense now?”

Xie Changwu was confused. Although Xie Changchao’s letter mentioned bringing Princess Ming’an along to watch and appease her anger, Xie Changwu had been more cautious. He feared that if something went wrong and Princess Ming’an got involved, it would ruin everything. Besides, if they failed to humiliate Shen Miao as planned, wouldn’t Princess Ming’an be even angrier? Therefore, Xie Changwu had not invited Princess Ming’an at all.

But now Princess Ming’an appeared here, claiming it was Xie Changwu who had invited her. Xie Changwu felt an unexplained heavy sense of unease.

Seeing Xie Changwu’s confused face, Princess Ming’an became even more displeased and said, “Xie Changwu, are you playing games with me?”

“I wouldn’t dare,” Xie Changwu broke into a cold sweat and said, “But I truly never wrote a letter to Your Highness.”

Hearing this, Princess Ming’an angrily said, “If you didn’t write me a letter, then explain why you’re here right now? As the letter said, tonight you plan to give Shen Miao an unforgettable painful experience, so why didn’t you tell me?”

Xie Changwu was at a loss for words, but inwardly he was shocked. That letter had detailed everything he had planned to do, even though only he and Xie Changchao knew about it. If the letter was from Xie Changchao to Princess Ming’an, why would Xie Changchao do such a thing? He could only say, “I did have such intentions, but currently Shen Miao is with my younger brother. I’m still waiting for him to arrive.”

“Xie Changchao?” Princess Ming’an frowned. “You brothers aren’t together?”

Xie Changwu dared not reveal that Xie Changchao had been missing for days and could only vaguely reply, “To avoid suspicion, my third brother and I are operating separately.”

Princess Ming’an didn’t suspect anything and, after thinking for a moment, asked, “Is what you said true, that Shen Miao’s return to the Shen residence was just a trick by Shen Xin and Princess Rongxin?”

Xie Changwu’s heart skipped a beat, and he replied, “That’s right.” Xie Changwu had some doubts himself, as this information was only one-sided from Xie Changchao. But now he could only choose to believe Xie Changchao. Xie Changwu hadn’t suspected that the letter on his table was false, because in the entire world, apart from Xie Changwu himself, no one could imitate Xie Changchao’s handwriting. Moreover, the secret code between the two brothers couldn’t possibly be known by others.

Princess Ming’an rubbed her hands, apparently extremely cold, and commanded Xie Changwu, “When exactly is Xie Changchao coming?”

Xie Changwu was suffering inwardly but said, “My third brother said he would come at the hour of Zi.”

“What time is it now?” Princess Ming’an asked her guard, who answered, “Almost the hour of Zi.”

Outside, the snow and wind howled, seeming able to penetrate to one’s very heart. For some reason, Xie Changwu suddenly felt increasingly uneasy. Looking at the pitch-black night sky, his heart beat extremely fast, as if instinctively sensing danger and wanting to escape. He tentatively looked at Princess Ming’an and asked, “Perhaps Your Highness should return first. If there’s any news, I will inform Your Highness tomorrow.”

“Do you think I’m here for fun?” Princess Ming’an flew into a rage. “I’ve personally come all this way, and now you’re telling me to go back. Xie Changwu, I can have your head at any moment!”

With Princess Ming’an being so domineering and fierce, Xie Changwu could only give a bitter smile and say nothing more. Then he heard what seemed to be footsteps outside. Princess Ming’an’s face lit up with joy, and she exclaimed, “They’re here!”

The two went to the bow to look and saw a group of black-clad men suddenly appear on the frozen lake surface. These men were all wrapped from head to toe, only exposing their eyes, making it impossible to discern their appearance. Princess Ming’an’s expression softened slightly, and she said, “At least they’re being discreet.” Then, scanning the dozens of men, she frowned, “Where’s Shen Miao?”

All these black-clad men had male physiques, with no sign of Shen Miao. Princess Ming’an turned back to Xie Changwu with displeasure, “What is Xie Changchao doing?”

When Xie Changwu saw these dozen or so black-clad men, he instinctively felt a chill down his spine. These men all looked far from benevolent, and what’s more, Xie Changwu didn’t see Xie Changchao among them at all.

Xie Changwu wanted to flee, but in this icy and snowy weather, Wanli Lake’s surface was frozen, and one would slip on the ice. Moreover, the lake was quite large with no shelter, making escape nearly impossible. Seeing Princess Ming’an’s displeasure, Xie Changwu mustered his courage and shouted, “Who are you people?”

None of the black-clad men spoke; they only continued walking closer toward them. Princess Ming’an finally realized something was wrong and asked Xie Changwu, “They aren’t Xie Changchao’s men?”

Xie Changwu was panicking and didn’t know how to answer Princess Ming’an’s question, so he could only say, “I don’t see my third brother!”

Princess Ming’an said, “How dare you! Kneel before me!”

But those men seemed deaf, continuing to approach. Princess Ming’an’s guard drew his sword and charged into the group of black-clad men to protect the Princess. Princess Ming’an finally understood – these black-clad men meant harm. She suddenly thought of something and looked toward the outside of the lake, asking, “Where are my guards? Where did they go?”

When Princess Ming’an was carried in, she didn’t want others to hear her conversation with the Xie brothers, so she only brought one person. But the others hadn’t left; they were just some distance from the boat house. With such a commotion, they should have heard and come to her rescue by now. Why was there no sound of them at all?

Xie Changwu was just as panicked as Princess Ming’an. He had not come alone today either, having placed some subordinates in the other two boat houses as a precaution against unexpected events. But why was there no movement from them now? Where were they?

Princess Ming’an’s only guard was quickly tossed aside by the black-clad men, and in the weak light of the fire stick, blood gushed from his throat – a single fatal cut.

The lake wind from Wanli Lake carried snow and hit their faces like knives, but despite this, both Princess Ming’an and Xie Changwu had large beads of cold sweat on their foreheads.

“Who are you?” Princess Ming’an suppressed her fear and said, “I am a princess of Great Qin. Leave now, and I will overlook this and spare your dog’s lives. If you don’t leave, don’t blame my Crown Prince brother for punishing you later!”

Xie Changwu didn’t know whether to be more afraid or to curse Princess Ming’an for being a fool, as she had just revealed her identity. But on second thought, today’s events were clearly a trap, and the other side probably already knew Princess Ming’an’s identity, or else how could she have received that letter?

But what could they do now? Xie Changwu thought they couldn’t possibly shout for help. Whether anyone would hear them aside, if they were discovered, he, a Ming Qi official with the Qin princess in the middle of the night at Wanli Lake, couldn’t explain himself no matter how many mouths he had.

Caught in this dilemma, Xie Changwu became calm. Looking at the opponents, he sneered, “Plotting against a country’s princess is a serious crime. If you’re not afraid of death, go ahead and try. See how it feels to be hunted to the ends of the earth, living in fear like a stray dog.”

With Xie Changwu speaking up, Princess Ming’an felt slightly reassured. Although she was also afraid, she relied on her status as a princess to protect her. She said, “That’s right. With my status, you people can’t touch me. If you dare to harm me today, the Qin royal family will surely grind your bones to dust!”

“Is that so?” A male voice suddenly rang out from among the black-clad men.

That voice was deep with a hint of hoarseness, yet as mellow as well-heated wine in winter, extremely pleasant to the ear. Princess Ming’an and Xie Changwu looked over and saw one of the black-clad men step forward.

Since they were all dressed in black, they hadn’t seen before. Now they noticed this black-clad man was somewhat different from the others. In the dim light of the fire stick, this person was taller and more upright. Even in the same attire as these black-clad men, he couldn’t conceal the nobility in his bones, as if one could distinguish him from others at a glance.

“Who are you?” Princess Ming’an demanded angrily. “Don’t you know who I am? I am a princess of Great Qin. At my command, I can have all of your heads!”

Hearing this, the black-clad man paused, then laughed softly. Even though his face was covered by cloth and couldn’t be seen, his laughter was joyous. But Xie Changwu and Princess Ming’an seemed to see the mockery on his face through the cloth.

Princess Ming’an’s face flushed red. She had never been so disregarded before. But deep down, she was also puzzled, feeling that this person’s voice was familiar, as if she had heard it somewhere before but couldn’t quite place it. She asked, “What are you laughing at?”

“Laughing at your presumption.”

“You!” Princess Ming’an was furious.

“A mere Qin princess, what do you amount to?” The man’s voice was pleasing, but his words were malicious. “When dead, you’re just a pile of white bones like anyone else.”

“How dare you!” Princess Ming’an shouted.

“I do dare, what can you do about it?” the man replied unhurriedly.

‘I’? Princess Ming’an was stunned. In a flash, she suddenly thought of another person who also had such an enchanting voice. She looked up, unable to see the face behind the cloth, but the pair of eyes exposed were as intoxicating as peach blossom wine, seemingly filled with affectionate smiles. But looking carefully, they were full of coldness.

“You are… Prince Rui!” Princess Ming’an exclaimed.

Prince Rui? Xie Changwu suddenly looked at the black-clad man. He also felt this black-clad man gave him a familiar feeling, as if he had seen him somewhere before, but he had never imagined it would be Great Liang’s Prince Rui.

The black-clad man neither confirmed nor denied, which in their eyes was as good as admission. Xie Changwu hesitated for a moment and asked, “What brings Prince Rui here?”

Even if Xie Changwu racked his brains, he couldn’t figure out why Prince Rui would appear here. After all, Prince Rui had no connection to him whatsoever, and he didn’t seem to have any dealings with Princess Ming’an either. So why was he here? And what did he want to do?

Since recognizing the man before her as Prince Rui, Princess Ming’an’s earlier fear had completely disappeared, replaced by tenderness in her eyes as she softly asked, “What brings Prince Rui here so late at night?”

Xie Changwu thought Princess Ming’an was truly stupid. Since the other side had already killed the guards they had brought, he was not here for a friendly visit. Moreover, this Prince Rui gave off an extremely dangerous feeling, making Xie Changwu tremble inwardly.

Prince Rui ignored Princess Ming’an and looked at Xie Changwu instead, saying, “You seem to have something to ask me?”

Xie Changwu forced a smile and asked, “May I ask, Your Highness, have you seen my third brother?”

The letter bore Xie Changchao’s handwriting, but the person who came was Prince Rui. Could it be that Xie Changchao had fallen into Prince Rui’s hands? What grudge did Xie Changchao have with Prince Rui?

The black-clad man smiled. “I have.”

Xie Changwu’s eyes widened. “He…”

“I killed him.”

At these words, both Princess Ming’an and Xie Changwu were stunned, involuntarily shuddering.

After a long pause, Xie Changwu finally asked, “Why did Prince Rui kill my third brother?”

“He offended someone he shouldn’t have.”

Offended someone he shouldn’t have? Xie Changwu was puzzled. Who could it be? Could it be Shen Miao? Shen Miao was the only person Xie Changchao had offended recently. But why would Prince Rui stand up for Shen Miao? What private connection did Prince Rui have with the Shen family? Xie Changwu felt as if he had glimpsed the tip of an iceberg of some astounding secret, but without seeing the whole picture, his mind was in a tangle.

“What is Prince Rui’s purpose in coming here?” Princess Ming’an, finally sobered by the news of Xie Changchao’s death, seemed to finally sense the danger lurking beneath the night. She tentatively spoke, her heart beginning to pound violently.

The man’s voice was as gentle as the wind, yet like ice and snow falling from the sky onto Wanli Lake – beautiful to look at but chilling. He said, “Such a beautiful scene, wouldn’t it make a fine burial ground?”

Xie Changwu said, “Why are you doing this? I have no grievance with you. Can’t you let us go?”

Knowing that the other party intended to kill them, yet having no escape route, Xie Changwu finally could not suppress the fear in his heart and cried out.

“No grievance?” The other seemed to have heard a joke and said, “You’re too forgetful.”

“Xie Changwu, after all these years, you’re just as clueless as your stupid brother.” He said.

Xie Changwu felt these words were somewhat familiar. Then, he watched as the black-clad man slowly pulled down the cloth covering his face.

Even in the extremely dim light of the fire stick, this person’s radiance could not be concealed. Long eyebrows extending to his temples, a high bridge of his nose, thin lips with a mocking smile as usual, and a pair of peach blossom eyes that seemed to look across a long period – clearly with a gentle smile, yet carrying a faint contempt.

That was Xie Changwu’s lifelong nightmare.

“Xie Jingxing!”

Princess Ming’an, who had been entranced by this man’s captivating appearance, thinking that Prince Rui’s face beneath the mask was indeed as astonishing as rumored, was interrupted in her thoughts by Xie Changwu’s exclamation.

Xie Jingxing? Wasn’t that the Marquis of Lin’an’s eldest son, who died on the battlefield two years ago, causing people to sigh with regret?

“I’m touched that you still remember me.” Xie Jingxing smiled slightly, but that originally handsome smile looked particularly terrifying to Xie Changwu. He turned to run away, an instinctive response born from his bones, like the unconscious reaction of prey encountering danger, his mind not even considering whether this was possible.

His body was restrained, his mouth covered, unable to move at all. Princess Ming’an suffered the same fate.

The boat house in the middle of Wanli Lake, at the midnight hour of Zi, with not a soul on the street, even the distant taverns lit with lanterns had their sounds of music and dance drowning out this subtle commotion. It was like dropping a pebble into a pond – not even a splash was raised before it slowly sank.

Xie Changwu and Princess Ming’an were held down by the black-clad men, watching helplessly as the leader turned and walked out of the boat house.

Even on the ice, he walked with a flourishing air, and his voice crossed Wanli Lake’s vast snowfall, as chilling as winter ice to the heart.

“The game is over.”

…

Shen Miao awoke from her dream with a start.

For some reason, she had slept rather restlessly tonight, and now she was wide awake. Outside, there wasn’t the slightest sound – it was the deep of night, the best time for sleep.

She rubbed her forehead, feeling a slight headache, but she could not fall back asleep no matter what. The stove in the room was burning vigorously, yet she felt a constriction in her chest. After some thought, she simply took an outer garment from beside her, casually draping it around herself, and walked to the window to open it, wanting to dispel the stuffiness in her heart.

When the window was opened, the shadow of the large tree outside swayed, and it was still snowing heavily, with large flakes falling down. Some blew into the room, and Shen Miao extended a hand, watching the snowflakes gradually melt in her palm.

For some unknown reason, she felt a sense of loneliness.

On such a night, unable to sleep, alone in her robes, watching the snow, it was somewhat affected. But her mind involuntarily drifted to some events from her previous life, such as Wanyu, such as Fu Ming, and she felt the old wounds hidden in her heart, deliberately covered, beginning to ache faintly.

A small flower fell from the sky, landing right in Shen Miao’s outstretched palm. Shen Miao was startled and, by the light of the lantern hanging from the tree, saw clearly that it was not a snowflake but a crimson crabapple blossom.

This season, how could there be crabapple blossoms? And this tree didn’t grow them!

Shen Miao instinctively looked up and saw among the swaying tree shadows a person lying there, hands behind his head, as carefree as a youth. Seeing her look up, he slightly lowered his head, looking down at Shen Miao from above. With handsome features, he smiled with a playful irreverence and raised an eyebrow, asking, “What are you daydreaming about?”

Shen Miao asked, “What are you doing here?”

Xie Jingxing, perfectly fine, sleeping in someone else’s courtyard tree – Great Liang’s Prince Rui’s hobby seemed unusually peculiar.

“Couldn’t sleep,” the man sighed, then suddenly leaped down from the tree, landing in front of Shen Miao, separated by the window – one outside, one inside. He nodded toward Shen Miao’s palm and said, “I plucked a flower to bring to you, but was afraid you were asleep, so I waited in the tree for you to wake up.”

Nonsense. Shen Miao rolled her eyes at him, but noticed that although this man was smiling, today he didn’t seem as spirited as usual.

Something stirred in her heart, and for some unknown reason, Shen Miao blurted out, “Come in. There are some leftover pastries.”