Tie Ci feared he might fall from emotional excitement, so she wrapped the swing rope around her arm and held him tight, unconsciously using such force that Murong Yi actually had trouble breathing. In compensation, he forcefully sucked on her lips and tongue.
The swing swayed violently as it spun—it could have catapulted an elephant—yet the two embraced tightly and somehow remained standing.
At one point Tie Ci nearly fell, but Murong Yi hooked her up with one hand. Following that lifting momentum, he pressed his lips down, and the impact nearly bruised Tie Ci’s lips.
The swing’s rotation slowed, its swinging circle growing larger and larger until the final revolution nearly encompassed the entire mansion.
The people below could no longer make sense of what they were seeing.
They only saw a tornado-like swing that had caught the Crown Princess and her enchantress within it. They couldn’t see the figures at all. Wan Ji was already anxiously ordering guards to climb onto rooftops for a rescue, but Chi Xue and Dan Shuang, who understood Tie Ci better, stopped him.
Then they heard Tie Ci’s loud laughter and shouting.
This time even Dan Shuang and Chi Xue were startled.
They had followed Tie Ci for many years. The Crown Princess was usually very composed, occasionally mischievous, occasionally cruel, but overall she was steady, calm, dignified, and possessed the profound temperament an heir to the throne should have.
Deep as an abyss with no visible bottom, without ripples on the water’s surface, unmoved by wind.
Chi Xue and Dan Shuang vaguely remembered that in all these years, they had never seen her scream, laugh heartily, or cry loudly.
The more intense emotions that ordinary people could have, they had never seen her display.
Yet her life was far from calm as still water—its intensity far exceeded that of ordinary people.
To still maintain tranquility was only because she understood that tears and laughter were useless before storms, only because she had experienced too many storms, only because she needed to constantly save herself and wouldn’t waste even the slightest bit on any unnecessary emotions.
Dan Shuang remembered that when they were young, their master had said that when crisis came, time was most precious—every tear shed, every scream, added one more danger and reduced one chance of survival.
She remembered this and became a person like ice and frost from then on.
And His Highness remained gentle as before, but lost real joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness.
But being born human, how could one have no emotions? Those true emotions were simply hidden away, hidden so well that no one noticed.
Dan Shuang suddenly realized that His Highness had actually changed since meeting Murong Yi, becoming more vivid. So much so that she had never thought about where His Highness hid all those heavy thoughts, those shadows cast by years of darkness and oppression.
Dan Shuang looked up, hearing Tie Ci’s calls from high above. Only at this moment did she discover that His Highness, like herself, was just a seventeen-year-old girl.
And among all the people around His Highness who received her grace and care, in the end only Murong Yi had reminded her of this fact.
Dan Shuang had never thought much of Murong Yi before, feeling his background was complex, his temperament rebellious, ruthless, and gloomy. With Liaodong opposing Great Qian, he didn’t seem like someone who would willingly submit under Great Qian’s feet. She feared His Highness would be hurt in the future.
In comparison, Rong Pu had good birth, was loyal, and his character and appearance were worthy matches who could give His Highness happiness.
Dan Shuang didn’t understand court politics, factions, and cliques. She only thought that the Crown Princess was already too tired, so it would be best if her emotions were simple and warm.
But at this moment, she suddenly felt that Murong Yi was quite good too.
Because he understood His Highness, comprehended her, cherished her, yet dared to set her free. His love could flow like a gentle stream or blaze passionately, but whichever kind it was, what he gave was what His Highness needed.
Just as their master had said—a soulmate.
A faint smile appeared at the corner of Dan Shuang’s lips.
Everyone in the mansion looked up with smiles on their faces.
At several places neither too far nor too near, people also looked up at that pair in the sky who treated themselves like kites.
One person began coughing as he watched, and someone beside him gently draped a thick cloak over his shoulders.
The coughing person smiled and reached back to grasp the hand that had given him the cloak.
That beautifully contoured hand paused, fingertips hooking his hand.
However, the cloaked person looked up again at the pair in the sky, his thoughts obviously having gone to them, and his hand also loosened.
That beautifully contoured hand stopped in mid-air, paused slightly, then slowly withdrew.
A barely audible sigh seemed to drift on the wind.
Further away, someone stood on high ground, also watching that pair who seemed like immortals.
That pair high in the clouds, that pair of beautiful shadows together, that pair wandering the martial world as companions, that pair worthy of each other in the halls of power.
Truly a pair that looked well-matched and wonderful even just from their silhouettes.
The person on high watched quietly, hands gripping the vermillion-lacquered railing, tightening more and more.
The red nail polish on the fingertips dug deep into the red railing—impossible to tell which was redder, like blood.
…
Everyone in the mansion remained frozen in place, watching those two embrace as they swung in a great circle, soaring through the air, floating and rising. Wherever they passed, the wind swirled up half the garden’s flowers, creating a fragrant rain of five brilliant colors in mid-air.
From her high position, Tie Ci’s vision gradually cleared. She suddenly saw what appeared to be a small shadow struggling to climb the wall near a section of the boundary wall close to the prince’s manor.
That position was right in the path of their swinging trajectory.
Murong Yi saw it too and gave the swing rope a slight adjustment. The swing spun and dove down, and as they passed that section of wall, Tie Ci reached down and scooped up the figure.
A scream that shook the heavens erupted.
It nearly made Tie Ci’s hand tremble.
She pulled the person up onto the swing and laughed: “Seems my shouting earlier wasn’t loud enough.”
The swing finally slowly touched ground. Tie Ci set down the person in her arms and entered a nearby viewing pavilion. The person dressed as a young maid went weak in the knees the moment she touched ground and collapsed to her knees.
Tie Ci found it amusing yet felt somewhat apologetic. She personally stepped forward to help the person up, ordered the curious guards to disperse, and had someone bring tea. When the little maid’s expression finally stabilized somewhat, she looked her up and down and said: “A maid from the prince’s manor?”
The little maid stared straight at her, then glanced at the extraordinarily handsome Murong Yi, tentatively asking: “Crown Princess Your Highness?”
Tie Ci said nothing, so Chi Xue stepped forward: “If you have something to say, say it.”
The little maid glanced at Murong Yi again, but he was cracking sunflower seeds and enjoying the scenery. So the little maid slid into a kneeling position, instantly arriving at Tie Ci’s feet: “Your Highness! This servant is the young lady’s maid. Please save the young lady!”
Tie Ci didn’t move. Chi Xue looked down and said: “Weixuan sent you?”
“Yes.”
“Where is she now?”
“Southwest of Kun Prefecture there’s Zhao Mountain, which has always been where Kun Prefecture’s wealthy and noble go to escape the heat. There are many estates there. The young lady is currently at the estate of the Chang family from Huichuan. However, that estate is publicly claimed not to belong to the Chang family, but to be the villa of Yannan’s Provincial Administration Commissioner Ma Yuntang.”
“Since she’s being guarded, how could you, a mere maid, escape from the villa and come here to report?”
“This servant is not the young lady’s personal maid. This servant was originally a servant at that estate. The Chang family of Huichuan has a good relationship with Commander You. That estate was actually given to Old Master Chang by Commander You, though outsiders don’t know this. This servant belonged to that estate even before Old Master Chang took it over. This time when the young lady was brought there for marriage, there weren’t enough people to serve her, so this servant was assigned to attend her. This servant’s family previously received grace from the old prince and is willing to risk danger to seek rescue for the young lady.”
“You’re young but speak clearly.” Chi Xue nodded. “But since you’ve come to report, why did you climb the wall from the prince’s manor side instead of coming directly here to request an audience?”
“This servant didn’t dare… there are many fierce guards here… and this servant was also afraid of being seen…” the maid said timidly. “But this servant often accompanied estate workers to the prince’s manor to deliver New Year gifts, so I’m familiar with the people and paths of the prince’s manor. I also knew that a section of this mansion’s wall is very close to the prince’s manor’s west courtyard flower wall, so I wanted to try climbing over…”
Tie Ci suddenly smiled: “Actually, you needn’t have risked this trip, because I’ve already received Commander You’s invitation to drink at the young lady’s wedding tomorrow. Since I’m going, if the young lady has suffered wrongs, I’ll naturally save her.”
The little maid hesitated for a while, seeming to want to say something but not saying it, stealing another glance at Murong Yi.
Murong Yi was concentrating on trimming Tie Ci’s nails and hadn’t acknowledged the stranger from beginning to end.
These nails had to be kept properly trimmed at all times—after all, if someday Tie Ci took pity and was willing to roll in bed with him, the sharpness of her nails would directly relate to his degree of injury, wouldn’t it?
He didn’t mind having red plum blossoms on his body, but feared it would affect the visual effect and thereby affect Tie Ci’s interest in him.
After all, the Crown Princess was lustful, wasn’t she?
The little maid looked troubled, but the several people in the pavilion seemed not to notice and chatted among themselves.
Until she gritted her teeth and knelt down again with a thud: “Your Highness, forgive me! This servant still has words unsaid!”
Chi Xue smiled. Tie Ci took a sip of tea without speaking.
Servants follow their masters—this girl was also like Weixuan, not straightforward, thinking too much.
“This servant deliberately wanted to infiltrate here, because the person this servant seeks is not Your Highness… The young lady asked this servant to secretly find Young Master Murong and request that he save her!”
Before Tie Ci could react, Dan Shuang’s eyebrows immediately shot up.
Where did this green tea bitch come from?
If you need rescue, just find His Highness. Avoiding His Highness to find His Highness’s man—she had impure thoughts about Murong Yi before, and now what’s this supposed to mean? Still not giving up?
Tie Ci wasn’t angry and was still waiting for what came next. Though You Weixuan had heavy thoughts and seemed somewhat indecisive this time, she wasn’t an unreasonable person and shouldn’t be so lacking in propriety.
The little maid was clever. Seeing everyone’s expressions, she knew something was wrong and hurriedly explained: “Please don’t misunderstand, Your Highness. The young lady has no other intentions. It’s because the estate is heavily guarded and Commander You is waiting… waiting for you. The young lady didn’t expect you would really plan to go… The young lady said she has another good method to rescue herself while reducing casualties, since those under your command are also elite good sons.”
This made sense, and Dan Shuang’s expression softened somewhat.
But the maid’s expression became even more troubled next. Facing several people’s inquiring gazes, she stammered for a long time before saying: “…Your Highness attends the banquet as usual, keeping Commander You and his people occupied, while separately sending sufficiently strong people to rescue the young lady…”
This wasn’t a bad plan, just somewhat dishonest. Saying it in front of Tie Ci made the little maid blush somewhat. But Tie Ci didn’t mind—after all, she was planning to openly attend the banquet with exactly this intention. It’s just that there were many difficulties involved that required calculating details. Now that there was such a servant intimately familiar with the estate, plus a young lady prepared to act as an inside agent, presumably things could be simpler.
Seeing she had no objections, the little maid relaxed somewhat and began chattering away.
“The young lady said that before and after Your Highness’s visit, the estate’s defenses will certainly be tightest. She suggests Your Highness set a specific time for your visit and put things out in the open—this way, before you actually arrive, the estate’s defenses will actually be somewhat lax…”
“The young lady was previously restrained because she was caught off guard, and with the young master also controlled, she didn’t dare act rashly. But in Kun Prefecture city, she’s not without useful people. This servant has already contacted these people during this trip to the city and will guide and help Your Highness’s people afterward…”
“The estate currently allows no one to enter or exit, and this estate is very peculiar—half of it is underground. It’s said to have been temporarily renovated to guard against Your Highness’s natural abilities. If you want to infiltrate beforehand, the young lady has a method…”
…
“One final question: you’ve said all this, but how can I be certain you’re definitely someone Weixuan sent and not someone You Jun sent to lure us into a trap?”
The little maid pulled out a piece of broken porcelain.
Sweet white porcelain, white as snow, exquisitely thin and delicate, crystalline and translucent, with faint red marks still visible—this was a fragment from the bottom of a broken bowl.
Last time when entering the prince’s manor to contact You Weixuan, sweet white porcelain had been used as an excuse, causing quite a scene.
Except for herself, You Weixuan, and Shi Dianyi who had already secretly left the prince’s manor, no one else knew about this.
This was undoubtedly someone sent by You Weixuan.
Tie Ci watched the little maid’s figure disappear through the back door, then turned to look at Murong Yi. The latter winked at her and smiled: “Don’t look at me like that. I have nothing to feel guilty about.”
Tie Ci said: “I’m thinking that for Weixuan to contact you privately, she must have some extremely great benefit to offer you. Too bad I interfered.”
She said “too bad” but her expression showed no regret whatsoever. Murong Yi pointed at her and laughed: “You can be quite affected too.”
“Is there any greater benefit under heaven than obtaining you?”
Tie Ci said with a smile: “I love hearing those words.”
Murong Yi was still holding her hand. Now he set down the small golden scissors, grasped her fingertips and kissed them once, then said enthusiastically: “To prove my loyalty to you, I have a good method here for rescuing You Weixuan.”