A quiet voice came from Yan Sui: “I became afraid after losing Mother Consort, but why was Mother Consort afraid?”
Qin Wan frowned at these words and glanced at the Empress Dowager, who appeared to be sleeping. She asked with surprise, “Why would Consort Jin be afraid?”
Her tone was natural enough that Yan Sui, young as he was, couldn’t detect anything unusual.
His clear black eyes gazed at the distant mountains without a ripple of emotion. Qin Wan found it hard to imagine how a mere four-year-old child could have such an expression. Yan Sui seemed incapable of sadness, pondering for a moment before saying, “Mother Consort was indeed very afraid at that time. I could tell.”
What did Yan Sui mean by this?
Was he referring to Consort Jin being afraid at the time of her death? Did she die with a frightened expression? Or had she already been afraid before the incident? As a consort of the inner palace who had been greatly favored in recent years, what person or matter could have frightened her?
“What was she afraid of?”
Qin Wan asked again, but Yan Sui just shook his small head and pressed his lips together in silence.
Qin Wan wanted to ask more but feared waking the Empress Dowager. Seeing Yan Sui’s expression, she felt reluctant to press further and could only say, “Perhaps Your Highness is overthinking it. Consort Jin was an adult and wouldn’t have been afraid. Your Highness should be like Consort Jin.”
Yan Sui continued staring outside, his expression showing a cold stubbornness. Clearly, Qin Wan’s attempt at comfort had no effect. Seeing this, Qin Wan grew increasingly puzzled.
Yan Sui’s expression indicated that Consort Jin had indeed been very afraid before, but why?
Yan Sui was only a four-year-old child; she couldn’t probe too deeply.
Sighing inwardly, Qin Wan remained silent for the moment.
Yan Sui leaned against the window, staring outside until darkness fell.
Although it was early spring, the lingering cold was still piercing. The Empress Dowager’s carriage was furnished with fine carpets and light blankets, with a small brazier in one corner—the epitome of comfort. Qin Wan leaned against the carriage wall, lost in thought for a long while until they reached Phoenix Cry Slope when the Empress Dowager finally stirred as the carriage stopped.
Tonight, everyone would rest at Phoenix Cry Slope. The advance guard had already set up the main camp, though it wasn’t as well-equipped as the Mighty Mountain camp would be. Apart from the principal figures each having their tent, other people shared tents by family, with women resting inside and officials outside. Consort Wan, for instance, shared a tent with the Eighth Prince. The envoys from Western Liang and Northern Wei each had individual tents. Thus, everyone gathered together a day early.
By the time the Empress Dowager was settled, night had fallen completely. The camp was situated in a windbreak, so it wasn’t particularly cold, but the limited conditions still made the noble occupants uncomfortable. The evening meal sent to the Empress Dowager didn’t suit her taste, and combined with the fatigue of travel, she ate very little. There were two main beds in this wartime setup—Yan Sui shared one with the Empress Dowager while Qin Wan had one to herself.
Seeing it was getting late and they needed to set out early tomorrow morning, Qin Wan first gave the Empress Dowager a shoulder massage, then had hot water prepared, planning to soak the Empress Dowager’s feet with prepared medicinal packets. While Matron Chen attended to general matters, Qin Wan personally arranged the medicines. Since their traveling belongings hadn’t been unpacked, Qin Wan went with Bai Ying to retrieve the medicine packets from the Empress Dowager’s carriage.
However, upon stepping outside, Qin Wan’s footsteps faltered.
The camp’s tents were scattered like stars, with Imperial Guards stationed at the outermost perimeter. Between the tents, patrol guards carried torches as they made their rounds. In their firelight, Qin Wan saw a graceful figure.
Tuoba Wu, accompanied by two maids, was peering into each tent as if searching for someone.
Being unfamiliar with the place and unable to state her purpose openly at this hour, no one knew what she was trying to do.
This much, however, Qin Wan knew. Pursing her lips, she didn’t linger but turned to get the medicine.
Bai Ying frowned and asked, “That’s the Northern Wei Princess. What is she looking for?”
“She’s looking for the Young Master.”
Qin Wan’s tone was cool. Bai Ying detected something amiss. Two days ago, Yan Chi had sent a message to the Marquis’s mansion. When Qin Wan read it, her expression had soured, though it didn’t seem to be anything too serious. Afterward, it was dropped as the household was busy preparing for the spring hunt expedition. Both she and Fu Ling were occupied, so Qin Wan didn’t meet with Yan Chi.
Bai Ying thought for a moment and couldn’t help asking, “Miss, has something happened?”
Qin Wan let out a small huff internally. “Your former master had an encounter with this Princess, and she developed lovesickness for him…”
Bai Ying gasped. No wonder—
Meanwhile, Qin Wan was internally fuming. After hearing Yan Chi’s account, though she felt something was off, she had believed him completely. But who knew that when Yan Chi later sent a message to the mansion, he would say that while he couldn’t remember meeting Tuoba Wu, his investigation revealed that she rarely stayed in the palace, preferring to wander outside. She had been to southeastern Northern Wei, which bordered the frontier where enemies had invaded—the same area where the Shuo Xi Army had once aided Northern Wei.
At this point, Tuoba Wu’s claim of having met Yan Chi couldn’t be false.
Yet Yan Chi claimed not to know—though whether this was genuine ignorance or feigned remained unclear.
Seeing Qin Wan’s cold expression, Bai Ying said, “Young Master’s tent is at the outermost edge, next to the Imperial Guards. Although Young Master isn’t in charge of camp security this time, Imperial Guard Commander Lin Zhang specifically sought his advice, so Young Master simply chose to stay near the Imperial Guards.”
Qin Wan had no desire to hear any of this right now, merely nodding without responding.
Now that they had left Linan City with the main camp, she couldn’t intervene in this matter. As for Yan Chi, he surely had his ways of resolving this situation, though thinking about it still left her feeling upset.
If she had known earlier, she wouldn’t have spoken so well of him before the Empress Dowager!
Before, when she didn’t know these feelings, she would read about women in romance novels pining over their beloved’s slight thoughts, and she had considered them too delicate and affected. But now that she experienced it herself, she finally understood. Even with her temperament, praised by her father as calm and rational, she found herself growing jealous and frustrated. She increasingly realized that her possessiveness toward Yan Chi was stronger than she had imagined.
The night air was cool. When Qin Wan returned to the Empress Dowager’s tent, Tuoba Wu was nowhere to be seen. She must have searched unsuccessfully and gone elsewhere. Though this was just a temporary camp, it was already quite vast. Even she didn’t know where Yan Chi was, let alone whether Tuoba Wu would find her way there.
And even if she couldn’t find him now, they would surely meet at Mighty Mountain.
…
…
Meanwhile, Tuoba Wu was indeed searching tent by tent.
As a Northern Wei Princess, she faced many restrictions in Great Zhou, and with her rule-abiding Crown Prince brother, she had even less freedom to find Yan Chi quickly. So she could only pretend to be taking a casual stroll while searching for him. She had thought she would see Yan Chi as soon as they reached Linan City, but almost ten days had passed without a glimpse of him.
Seeing Tuoba Wu walking increasingly outward, her maid softly said, “Princess, we cannot go further out. The male officials of Great Zhou are out there, which would be inappropriate for us. If the Crown Prince learns of this, he definitely won’t spare us servants.”
When Tuoba Wu caused trouble, Tuoba Hong naturally could only verbally reprimand her, with actual punishment falling on these serving maids. Tuoba Wu understood this principle, but she truly couldn’t wait any longer.
Indeed, the servant said, “Princess, we’ll reach the spring hunt location in just one day. Then, you’ll surely be able to meet the person you wish to see. Princess, please return for now…”
Tuoba Wu refused to give up. “He’s a royal family’s Young Master, he can’t be staying outside. I must find him.”
The two maids exchanged glances, both showing concern.
“Princess, it’s already late. It’s not proper for us to wander around here. Let’s return first, lest the Crown Prince finds out—”
“Even if you see the Young Master, you might not recognize him, Princess.”
Tuoba Wu frowned. “How could I not recognize him? His bearing is unique in all the world.”
“Princess, please lower your voice.” The two maids nervously glanced around, fearing others might hear Tuoba Wu.
Tuoba Wu’s lips were tightly pressed together. She wanted to continue outward, but seeing that all the passersby ahead were men, she finally retreated. By now, she had strayed far from her tent and wasn’t sure which tent she stood before. She could only walk back based on rough memory. However, after walking for a while, Tuoba Wu saw Liu Yun’s guards.
Tuoba Wu frowned as she noticed Liu Yun had just returned to his tent with his guards from the direction of the camp’s center. It was so late, and there were no scheduled audiences with the Emperor for the envoys tonight—where had Liu Yun been?
Suspicious, Tuoba Wu gestured for her maids to wait where they were, then approached Liu Yun’s tent.
The two maids looked anxious, but being untrained in martial arts, they dared not approach for fear of revealing themselves.
Tuoba Wu held her breath, stepping very lightly. Outside the tent, she could indeed hear faint voices from within. Liu Yun spoke somewhat exasperatedly, “The Fifth Princess is the Crown Prince’s sister. If the Crown Prince could put in a good word, the Empress would surely agree. But this Great Zhou’s Crown Prince is too difficult to deal with!”
“Your Highness, what should we do now? If you can’t marry Great Zhou’s princess, Your Highness might lose the chance to supplant the First Prince upon returning. Perhaps we should try to win over the Fifth Princess? The little fox we sent last time already won the Fifth Princess’s favor. If we continue to cater to her preferences, the Fifth Princess will surely grow to like Your Highness more. The Fifth Princess is beloved by Great Zhou’s Emperor and Empress—if she expresses her liking for Your Highness, the Empress and Emperor won’t object.”
Hearing this, Liu Yun gave a cold laugh. “That Fifth Princess may seem naive, but she’s not brainless. She accepted the little fox but sent all our subsequent gifts to the Empress. All we can send now are jewelry and ornaments—what, should we send a second little fox?”
The strategist accompanying Liu Yun sighed. “Young girls love little pets. Not only do we not have a second fox, but it wouldn’t be appropriate to try the same thing twice. Let me try to learn more about the Fifth Princess’s preferences.”
Liu Yun made a sound of agreement, then his voice suddenly turned cold. “The Northern Wei Crown Prince’s visit this time seems determined to succeed. If necessary, we’ll have to use other methods.”
“What methods does Your Highness have in mind?”
Liu Yun laughed. “We’re going hunting, after all. During a hunt, it’s quite possible for accidents to happen and injuries to occur…”
The strategist realized something. “Your Highness means to—”
“Shh, we’ll plan this carefully.”
“Yes, I understand—”
Rustling sounds came from within the tent as Liu Yun seemed to be preparing for bed. Having heard this much, Tuoba Wu’s brows furrowed deeply. This Liu Yun intended to harm her brother!
Tuoba Wu retreated with light steps. Seeing her two maids, she quickly walked back toward where they came from. “I must find Brother Crown Prince—”
The two maids, not knowing what Tuoba Wu had heard, dared not speak. They walked in another direction for a while before finally reaching Tuoba Hong’s tent. The guards, seeing Tuoba Wu enter, naturally dared not stop her. Tuoba Wu directly lifted the tent flap and entered. Late as it was, Tuoba Hong had barely touched the food on his table, still reading through documents. Seeing this, Tuoba Wu’s heart softened slightly. “Brother Crown Prince—”
Tuoba Hong looked up, first observing Tuoba Wu’s expression, then lowering his gaze to see the mud on her shoes. He frowned. “You went looking for the Young Master again?”
Tuoba Wu pressed her lips together, not expecting Tuoba Hong to see through her so quickly!
Tuoba Wu walked forward, taking the document from Tuoba Hong’s hands and pushing the food closer to him. “It’s so late, Brother Crown Prince should eat. I was just curious about the camp and took a walk around.”
How could Tuoba Hong believe this? He sighed. “Don’t act recklessly.”
Tuoba Wu huffed. “I know, Brother Crown Prince’s marriage to Great Zhou’s princess is an important matter.”
Tuoba Hong started to speak but stopped. “It’s not like that. Great Zhou values propriety highly. Even if you have intentions, you should wait for the proper time. These past days, that Young Master hasn’t entered the palace, and I don’t know why…”
“I am Northern Wei’s princess—am I not worthy of a mere Young Master?”
Tuoba Wu’s tone was proud. Tuoba Hong shook his head and said no more, only lowering his head to eat. Tuoba Wu, remembering her main purpose, immediately leaned forward and said, “Brother Crown Prince, I just passed by Liu Yun’s tent and heard him say he also wants to marry the Fifth Princess. He said if he can’t compete with you, he’ll use other methods. Brother Crown Prince, he plans to harm you during the spring hunt!”
Tuoba Hong immediately looked up, meeting Tuoba Wu’s gaze for several moments, knowing she wasn’t lying.
Narrowing his eyes, Tuoba Hong gave a cold laugh. “Liu Yun… Western Liang people always like to use such underhanded methods…”
Tuoba Wu said angrily, “Brother, his tone wasn’t joking. You must be careful of him! Especially after we reach Mighty Mountain—during the hunt, during the martial displays, you can’t be careless at any moment.”
Tuoba Hong’s eyes softened slightly. “Don’t worry, I understand.”