After Rong Shi finished reading the letter, she casually placed it on the kang table and looked at Ren Yaoqi, saying, “Did Xiao Jingxi ask the Princess Consort of Yanbei to give this to you?”

Ren Yaoqi sensed the displeasure in Rong Shi’s words and was about to say something when Rong Shi already frowned and said, “I had previously thought that although Xiao Jingxi was young, he was steady and trustworthy in his conduct. I didn’t expect that I had overestimated him.”

Hearing the displeasure in Rong Shi’s tone, Ren Yaoqi feared she would blame Xiao Jingxi and quickly said, “Grandmother, please don’t be angry. This matter is my fault, too. Second Young Master Xiao has helped me quite a bit on usual days, and we are fairly familiar with each other, so this time he asked me to deliver the letter. Actually…”

But Rong Shi frowned even deeper and said, “Are you saying you’re very close to him?”

Ren Yaoqi couldn’t help but fall silent. How should she answer this? Saying they weren’t close would be lying, but as an unmarried woman, being close to an unmarried man – these words she couldn’t bring herself to say.

Seeing Ren Yaoqi’s expression, Rong Shi couldn’t help but look thoughtful.

Just as Ren Yaoqi was thinking about how to explain the entanglement between herself and Xiao Jingxi, she heard Rong Shi say indifferently, “Xiao Jingxi has gone missing. What does this have to do with our Prince Xian’s manor? You go back and tell the Princess Consort of Yanbei that we can’t help with anything, and as for the person Xiao Jingxi mentioned in his heart, we don’t know who that is.”

Rong Shi’s response was somewhat beyond Ren Yaoqi’s expectations. She opened her mouth wanting to say something, but in the end could only smile bitterly and reply, “I understand, Grandmother. This time I was thoughtless and caused trouble for you and Grandfather. I’ll be more careful next time.”

Perhaps the agreement terms between Xiao Jingxi and Prince Xian’s manor hadn’t been reached yet, or perhaps Prince Xian’s manor had reconsidered for some reason and now regretted it. But these matters were not something Ren Yaoqi could interfere with. Prince Xian’s manor had their position and considerations – she couldn’t force Prince Xian’s manor to change their mind for her selfish reasons.

Moreover, she knew nothing about the beginning and end of this matter. Even if she wanted to facilitate cooperation between Prince Xian’s manor and Prince Yanbei’s manor, she couldn’t say anything meaningful.

But despite this, Ren Yaoqi still felt somewhat sad. What she worried about was that since Prince Xian’s manor was now unwilling to help Xiao Jingxi, would Xiao Jingxi still be able to return safely?

If Xiao Jingxi couldn’t return, then…

Perhaps she should ask clearly what exactly Xiao Jingxi and Prince Xian’s manor had previously agreed upon, to see if she could think of a way to remedy the situation. After all, if Prince Xian’s side couldn’t possibly help, Prince Yanbei’s manor wasn’t without people either.

Thinking this way, Ren Yaoqi’s mind also settled down, but she didn’t know if Rong Shi would be willing to tell her. If Rong Shi didn’t speak, should she think of some way to persuade her?

Rong Shi observed all the changes in Ren Yaoqi’s expression but didn’t speak, only lowered her head to sip tea, then stared at the rim of the bowl, not knowing what she was thinking about.

Just as Ren Yaoqi had prepared her words and wanted to speak, she heard Li Qian’s voice outside: “Who’s inside?”

Chuchu replied, “Reporting to Master, it’s Fifth Miss Ren who has come and is currently talking with the Old Madam inside.”

Li Qian grunted acknowledgment, then his footsteps grew closer and closer, walking in.

Sure enough, before long, Li Qian appeared at the edge of the curtain.

Ren Yaoqi quickly stood up and bowed: “Grandfather.”

Li Qian nodded: “Yaoqi came, ah. Rong Shi had the kitchen roast all that wild game for her to taste.”

Rong Shi stood up, and after Li Qian sat down on the kang, she sat down with Ren Yaoqi, smiling: “This concubine has already given the orders.”

Li Qian nodded, then saw that letter on the kang table. He looked at Rong Shi and Ren Yaoqi, then reached out to take the letter and opened it steadily to read.

Ren Yaoqi didn’t think much about it, assuming Li Qian would also refuse Xiao Jingxi’s request like Rong Shi, but unexpectedly heard Li Qian say suspiciously, “How is the Xiao family boy only sending a letter now? Weren’t people already sent to him? Haven’t they arrived yet?”

Hearing this, Ren Yaoqi was stunned and looked up at Li Qian in bewilderment: “Grandfather, are you saying you’ve already lent him the people he asked to borrow?”

Li Qian nodded, glanced at Ren Yaoqi, then looked at Rong Shi: “Didn’t she bring this letter? You didn’t tell her?”

Ren Yaoqi also looked at Rong Shi.

Rong Shi’s expression remained unchanged as she smiled: “Oh, this concubine was just about to say when you came in.”

Ren Yaoqi: “…”

Rong Shi glanced at Ren Yaoqi with some meaningful depth: “This concubine was just curious why he would give this letter to the Princess Consort to have the Princess Consort deliver it to Yaoqi.”

Ren Yaoqi felt extremely frustrated. It turned out that after Rong Shi saw the letter, she already knew her trip was wasted, so everything she said afterward was just testing her. But because she was concerned and confused, and because Rong Shi was her close relative so she had no guard up, she failed to see through the deception. Not only did she defend Xiao Jingxi, but she also racked her brains trying to probe for information from Rong Shi. Looking back now, Ren Yaoqi felt she was truly foolish. It had been a long time since Ren Yaoqi had experienced this kind of sense of defeat.

Hearing this, Li Qian also glanced at Ren Yaoqi, then picked up the letter to read it again. This time, as Li Qian read, he also began to frown. Then he turned and asked Ren Yaoqi: “He gave this to the Princess Consort for the Princess Consort to give to you?”

Ren Yaoqi honestly nodded. She now understood that no matter how clever she thought she was, with Rong Shi here, her little bit of cleverness could only be considered small cleverness, and if she wasn’t careful, that little cleverness would mislead her.

Li Qian stroked his beard thoughtfully. Just when Ren Yaoqi thought he would say something, he put down the letter and said: “Rong Shi, I’ve been thinking all morning – let’s also kill and steam that wild goose that’s been domesticated for so long.”

Ren Yaoqi: “…”

Rong Shi good-naturedly replied: “Today we already have a angelica chicken soup. Let’s have Yihong keep raising the wild goose for now.”

Wild goose and domestic chicken… was there some inevitable connection?

Li Qian thought for a moment and nodded steadily: “Mm, they’re both poultry, so let’s leave it for now.”

Ren Yaoqi couldn’t help but feel exasperated.

“You two chat. I’ll take a casual walk in the courtyard – I just had quite a few pastries and need to digest.” Li Qian patted his robes and stood up.

Rong Shi and Ren Yaoqi quickly stood up and saw him out.

After Li Qian left, Ren Yaoqi and Rong Shi sat down again. Only then did Rong Shi say: “Is there anything else you want to ask?”

By convention, Ren Yaoqi should blush with embarrassment, then say she didn’t want to know anything and distance herself cleanly from the relationship. However, Ren Yaoqi nodded openly and generously: “Yes, Grandmother. I want to ask if there was some agreement between Prince Xian’s manor and Second Young Master Xiao. Of course, if it’s inconvenient to say, you can pretend I never asked.”

Rong Shi couldn’t help but glance at Ren Yaoqi, then smiled: “Since he, an outsider, can trust you, what can’t we, as close relatives, say? You mentioned earlier that Xiao Jingxi went missing in Jinzhou? The Hezhong area, where Jinzhou is located, was the final retreat route that Noble Consort Wan left for us in the past.”

“In the past?” Ren Yaoqi frowned.

What period was “the past”? Was it no longer a retreat route now?

Rong Shi sighed: “Yes, the final retreat route Noble Consort Wan left for us wasn’t Yanbei, but in Hezhong. She instructed us that when Yanbei and the court truly turn against each other and start fighting with no time for other concerns, we could return to Hezhong Prefecture. Your grandfather still holds an imperial edict from the late emperor – an edict conferring him as King of Hezhong, and the date on the edict is after the previous dethronement edict.”

“The snipe and clam fight while the fisherman profits?” Ren Yaoqi said in surprise.

She had always found it somewhat strange – during Noble Consort Wan and Empress Dowager Yan’s decades of struggle, the two could be considered evenly matched, and for a long period, Noble Consort Wan even had the upper hand. Why did Noble Consort Wan end up suffering a complete defeat like a landslide, with all her power completely dismantled, and afterward not only unable to protect her son but even losing her own life?

Looking at it now, Noble Consort Wan’s side back then wasn’t in as disadvantageous a situation as she had thought, and the power she had cultivated in the Hezhong area hadn’t scattered like monkeys when the tree falls, as the outside world believed.

By bringing Prince Xian under Prince Yanbei’s nose, Prince Xian’s life was protected by Prince Yanbei’s manor, while the Hezhong forces also escaped the court’s attention and continued developing and consolidating in secret.

At this moment, she had to admire Noble Consort Wan – her strategies, methods, and understanding of human nature were all perfect, and she had calculated even post-mortem affairs so far ahead.

Rong Shi sighed again: “Originally, that was correct, but unexpectedly, before the fisherman could profit, one of the snipe and clam actively came looking for us.”

Ren Yaoqi immediately thought of Xiao Jingxi’s previous visit: “You mean Second Young Master Xiao?”

Rong Shi nodded and sighed: “The younger generation is truly formidable!”

But Ren Yaoqi was thinking that in her previous life, before her death, the conflict between Yanbei and the court had already become clear, and the north-south situation had become unprecedentedly tense. However, she still hadn’t lived to see the day when Prince Xian would take the late emperor’s edict to Hezhong to become king. It might have been that the timing wasn’t right, or it might have been that Xiao Jingxi’s intervention caused some change in the situation.

“He discovered the retreat route Noble Consort Wan left for you in Hezhong, so he used this to threaten you into serving him?” Ren Yaoqi didn’t want to think badly of Xiao Jingxi, but when it came to court struggles and political battles, there was no way to judge a person by good or bad – everyone could only persist and rely on their position.

Rong Shi shook her head: “No, he only proposed mutual benefit.”

Seeing Ren Yaoqi looking at her, Rong Shi smiled and reached out to smooth the hair at Ren Yaoqi’s forehead: “It’s an alliance – Prince Xian’s manor allying with Prince Yanbei’s manor. We lend out Hezhong’s forces when he has need, and he guarantees our safety in Yanbei, and when the day comes for us to return to Hezhong, Prince Yanbei’s manor won’t obstruct us and will acknowledge the late emperor’s royal conferment edict.”

So that’s how it was!

Ren Yaoqi thought to herself that her previous guess about an agreement between Xiao Jingxi and Prince Xian’s manor wasn’t wrong – she just hadn’t imagined this chess game would be so grand.

Seeing Ren Yaoqi bow her head in silence, Rong Shi sighed: “Back then, we wronged your mother.”