Qin Shuying naturally agreed, accompanying Lianpin for a stroll in the garden and dining with her before Lianpin released her.

Before leaving, Lianpin had someone bring a scripture book, saying: “I have a scripture here, personally copied by a disciple of Master Yunzhen. It’s truly rare. Wait a moment—I’ll have someone fetch it. Take it with you when you leave the palace for Old Ancestor.”

Qin Shuying accepted the book, then took leave of Lianpin and headed toward Huanyun Hall.

By now, evening was approaching. The twilight was heavy, the rosy clouds had withdrawn, the sun had set, and the entire sky had darkened.

Qing Yuan led Qin Shuying, and after walking for quite a while, Qin Shuying stopped: “Sister Qing Yuan, this path doesn’t seem to be the same one we took coming here.”

Qing Yuan’s steps halted: “Seventh Miss Qin, though this isn’t the previous path, it’s shorter. Seeing the late hour—it would take another quarter-hour to return—I chose this shortcut. Her Highness always writes after dinner. If you arrive late, it might not be good.”

“Is that so?”

Qin Shuying looked at her. Though still smiling, her smile now carried a trace of coldness.

Qing Yuan said: “Of course! This slave has been in the palace seven years and knows these paths extremely well. However, we’ll need to pass through an abandoned palace gate where few people go. Don’t be afraid, Seventh Miss Qin.”

Qin Shuying continued looking at her with a slight smile. Qing Yuan found this Seventh Miss Qin’s smile inexplicably strange. She pointed to a corner of flying eaves barely visible behind lush trees: “Seventh Miss Qin, look—that’s Huanyun Hall. We just need to go around this way, and we’ll arrive quickly.”

Qin Shuying looked out and saw, through the heavy evening mist, red tiles and flying eaves—indeed resembling Huanyun Hall.

Only then did she relax: “Very well, let’s hurry back.”

Qing Yuan breathed a sigh of relief and stepped forward again. Qin Shuying followed behind, her pace still unhurried. Qing Yuan had to stop several times to wait for her.

Soon, they indeed passed a palace with tightly locked gates.

Not a single person was visible. In the dim night, the majestic palace seemed like a huge beast, raising some chill.

After passing the palace, the tree canopy overhead suddenly grew dense, the sky darker still. The low trees and shrubs standing in the forest looked, at first glance, like wild beasts or people standing there.

Qing Yuan couldn’t help but shudder, with some apology: “Seventh Miss Qin, I’m sorry. This path I chose really isn’t good—let’s hurry.”

Qin Shuying said nothing, only quickened her pace, obviously also quite frightened.

The two quickly passed through the grove. Qing Yuan sighed with relief, as did Qin Shuying.

Now they had reached the Hu River.

Qin Shuying had seen it multiple times during her two palace visits, as the Hu River flowed through many parts of the palace. Where it passed, sometimes the water surface was wide, forming lakes. Sometimes narrow, forming long water ribbons.

Where they walked now was relatively wide, forming a lake of twenty to thirty acres. They walked along the riverbank. After walking briefly, Qing Yuan said joyfully: “Seventh Miss Qin, there are people talking ahead!”

Indeed, Qin Shuying intermittently heard men’s voices, faintly catching laughter and flickering lights.

The sky had now completely darkened. They didn’t even have a lantern, relying only on dim palace lamps along the way. Since this area was rather remote with few visitors, many palace lamps weren’t lit, leaving frightening dark patches.

No wonder Qing Yuan was so pleased.

“May I ask which eunuch that is ahead?” Qing Yuan raised her voice and quickened her pace.

Ahead fell silent for a moment. No one answered, but conversation and laughter continued.

Qing Yuan said somewhat awkwardly: “Could it not be eunuchs?”

Qin Shuying’s expression was unclear in the darkness as she responded vaguely. Qing Yuan assumed Qin Shuying was afraid, stopped talking, and walked urgently.

Soon, the men’s laughter grew closer. The two women could dimly make out the figures—about ten or so people.

Qing Yuan whispered: “They seem to be princes.”

Being so, they dared not be too presumptuous and would need to approach closely before paying respects.

Just then, suddenly, the men became agitated. The two women also stopped, trying to discern people by weak palace lamps.

Where Qin Shuying and her companion stood was too dark, while the other side had many noisy people who apparently didn’t notice them at all.

Somehow, suddenly, someone rushed over from the men’s side, waving hands, shouting, jumping, laughing, and singing. Before Qin Shuying and Qing Yuan could react to what was happening, that person lunged toward them.

Qin Shuying and Qing Yuan stood beneath dense leaves in an already narrow space. Forced to dodge left and right by the man, in a moment of inattention, with a “splash,” the panicked Qing Yuan, having nowhere to hide, pulled Qin Shuying into the lake.

In the water, Qing Yuan became even more frantic, stepping on Qin Shuying while climbing upward. Qin Shuying could also swim and struggled to save herself, inevitably pulling Qing Yuan back into the water.

Though this was the shore where water was only waist-deep, because of their mutual pulling and dragging, they couldn’t stand up or get a chance to speak.

Just as Qin Shuying opened her mouth, before she could cry out, that man also fell into the water. Somehow, he actually dragged Qin Shuying deeper into the water.

Qin Shuying was choked terribly and instantly understood Concubine Kang and Princess Fu’an’s plan.

The men on shore were stunned, then several went to pull the man, laughing carelessly, not taking it seriously, calling: “Zhang Qian, aren’t you too happy? So drunk you’re jumping into lakes?”

Everyone busily pulled the man. The man used Qin Shuying’s body as leverage to climb ashore while everyone laughed carelessly, no one discovering there were actually two women in the water.

Though the man only pressed Qin Shuying underwater a few times, his strength was great, and with Qing Yuan constantly pulling at her, Qin Shuying had no power to resist.

In another moment, Qin Shuying would likely drown!

At this critical moment, suddenly, a hand extended from the crowd to help the man called Zhang Qian. But somehow the hand’s owner stumbled, knocking the soaking Zhang Qian back into the water.

The hand’s owner tried to pull Zhang Qian but couldn’t stop himself, dragging two other men along as they crashed with Zhang Qian into the water.

As four men fell into the water, Qin Shuying suddenly felt her body lighten considerably—someone had grasped Qing Yuan’s neck!

Qin Shuying understood immediately, surfaced quickly, and shouted loudly: “Help!”

The men were astonished, looking at each other—though they could see nothing.

“How are there women in the water?”

“What’s happening?”

“Quick, save them!”

Chaos and clamor everywhere.

In this confusion, before Qin Shuying’s mind could settle, a large hand grasped hers. Though wet and somewhat cool, that hand made Qin Shuying instantly feel at peace.

“It’s me!”

The hand’s owner whispered softly in her ear.