Bai Jinxiu didn’t chat further with the Grand Princess. After performing her courtesies, she brought Cuibi and hurried to Qinghui Courtyard.

Lifting the curtain and entering, she saw her elder sister sitting by the small table next to the window-side soft couch, drinking a cheese drink. She looked nothing like the dying person Bai Jinxiu had imagined.

On the small table sat a bright lamp covered with an eight-treasure glass shade, with an ancient book placed beside it. Elder sister’s ink-black long hair was casually pinned up with a wooden hairpin, without a trace of pearls or jade ornaments. Her expression was peaceful as she used a small silver spoon to scoop cheese drink into her mouth, showing none of the weak, barely breathing appearance of someone gravely injured and beyond treatment. Only then did Bai Jinxiu’s heart settle.

“Elder sister…” After performing her courtesies, Bai Jinxiu walked to Bai Qingyan’s side, helped adjust the fine wool blanket covering her legs, and sat down beside Bai Qingyan. She pulled out a silk handkerchief and handed it to Bai Qingyan, who had finished her cheese drink. “Elder sister, you scared me to death!”

“Didn’t I have someone tell you not to worry?” Bai Qingyan smiled as she accepted the handkerchief and wiped the corners of her mouth, looking at Bai Jinxiu. “How could you leave Wang Ge’er and come back again!”

“If I hadn’t come back, I wouldn’t have known Fourth Sister was so capable, investigating the matter so quickly.” Bai Jinxiu was referring to the northern frontier military provisions affair.

Chun Tao entered carrying hot tea, served tea to Bai Jinxiu, then withdrew so as not to interfere with the sisters’ conversation: “Second Miss, please have tea!”

Bai Jinxiu nodded to Chun Tao, accepted the teacup, and said with lowered eyes: “Elder sister, there’s another piece of news. Liu Ruofu… committed suicide in prison. Prince Liang and Liu Ruofu were imprisoned together. We don’t know what he said to Liu Ruofu, but according to the jailers… Liu Ruofu wept bitterly and then died by striking her head against the wall. When Magistrate Lu Jin arrived afterward, Prince Liang was still crying and begging to see His Majesty, claiming… that before Liu Ruofu died, she confessed that Prince Xian’s rescue of the Emperor was actually to help him ascend the throne, and once Liu Ruofu gave birth to an imperial heir, they would kill him and replace him.”

Hearing this, Bai Jinxiu felt very uncomfortable and pitied Liu Ruofu greatly…

No matter what, since Liu Ruofu was already to marry Prince Liang, as a man, Prince Liang should have protected his wife. But not only did he fail to do so, he even kicked her when she was down after her death, eager to exonerate himself. This was truly too cold-hearted and despicable.

“After the Wude Gate incident, Prince Liang probably won’t die while the Emperor is still alive, but once the Crown Prince ascends the throne… his first act will likely be to take Prince Liang’s life. There’s no need to rush, don’t dirty your own hands.” Bai Qingyan said.

Prince Liang’s methods were becoming increasingly base, but in Bai Qingyan’s view, after the Wude Gate incident, the possibility of Prince Liang making a comeback was extremely small.

Bai Qingyan never dirtied her blade for unworthy people.

Especially now that Prince Liang was alive, he would try to regain the Emperor’s trust, and the Crown Prince would maintain some vigilance against Prince Liang. When those two entangle with each other, others wouldn’t notice the Bai family’s subtle movements.

Therefore, even though she now despised Prince Liang, she still needed Prince Liang to struggle with the Crown Prince in this capital city.

“Elder sister, after coughing up blood this time, will the return to Shuoyang be delayed?” Bai Jinxiu privately hoped Bai Qingyan could stay a bit longer.

Bai Qingyan shook her head: “We should still return to Shuoyang early. I haven’t been back to Shuoyang for a long time, and there are many important matters I can’t leave unattended. Besides, it’s ultimately inconvenient to act in the capital, not to mention the Crown Prince just arranged many hidden guards around the Bai residence as an apology to the Crown Princess, making our actions even more restricted.”

Bai Jinxiu nodded and didn’t insist on Bai Qingyan staying.

“On the day we return to Shuoyang, don’t come to see us off. We sisters have a long future ahead… taking good care of Wang Ge’er is the important matter.” Bai Qingyan instructed Bai Jinxiu. “Moreover, if you come to see us off, Fourth Sister and I… will inevitably feel sad.”

Bai Jinxiu hesitated for a moment before responding: “Alright, I’ll listen to elder sister.”

The next morning, Bai Qingyan woke to the sound of birdsong. She lifted her hand to part the bed curtains and looked toward the window lattice. The faint morning light filtered through the tree shadows, and dappled golden light scattered on the window, swaying with the wind. She vaguely saw a birdcage hanging in the corridor, with two birds inside chirping and fluttering their wings.

“Chun Tao…”

Hearing Bai Qingyan call her, Chun Tao responded and brought a group of maids carrying washing utensils, filing into the main room.

Chun Tao parted the heavy curtains hanging from the sandalwood beam and entered, then lifted and hooked the two layers of brocade curtains embroidered with oleander and butterflies onto the gold-plated copper hooks. She raised the bed curtains and bent down to help Bai Qingyan rise, her eyes carrying gentle amusement: “Miss has awakened!”

The maids who filed in bent their waists, presenting honeyed water for rinsing the mouth and salt for cleaning teeth…

Bai Qingyan sat on the bedside with a weak appearance, being attended to by Chun Tao for mouth rinsing.

After she covered her mouth and spat out the rinse water, she heard the clear chirping of birds outside again. She accepted a handkerchief to wipe the corners of her mouth and looked toward the window: “How did two birds appear under the corridor?”

Chun Tao placed a hot towel in the copper basin filled with hot water, wrung it dry, and handed it to Bai Qingyan: “Those were sent by Master Xiao, saying they were to amuse First Miss. Fourth Miss heard that these two birds had clear and pleasant calls, so she had them hung under Qinghui Courtyard’s corridor. However, this servant thinks those two birds are nothing special – their feathers aren’t bright, they can’t speak human words, they just have clearer voices. If First Miss doesn’t like them, this servant will have them removed.”

Hearing they were sent by Xiao Rongyan, the corners of Bai Qingyan’s mouth curved slightly: “Bring them in for me to see later!”

“Yes!”

After Bai Qingyan finished her morning meal, supported by Chun Tao, she walked around the room briefly, then sat on the window-side soft couch to drink bitter medicine. Just after rinsing her mouth, Chun Tao had someone bring in the two birds that had been hanging in the corridor.

Bai Qingyan wiped her mouth with a handkerchief and had Chun Tao place the two birds with unremarkable feather colors on the small table in front of her. As she examined them carefully, she noticed that one small bird’s legs were of uneven thickness. She sent Chun Tao away to prepare tea, put some bird food in her hand, opened the birdcage, and attracted the bird to her palm. Upon careful touch… There was indeed something wrapped around the bird’s leg.

Bai Qingyan removed the extremely narrow yellow silk strip, put the bird back in the cage, and unfolded it…

There were only two characters on it: “Missing you.”

The corners of Bai Qingyan’s mouth couldn’t help but curve upward, her heart feeling as sweet as if she had eaten honey.

Hearing Chun Tao entering, Bai Qingyan hid the silk strip in her sleeve and looked at the birds chirping in the cage, saying to Chun Tao, “Release these two birds!”

“Doesn’t First Miss like them?” Chun Tao placed the teacup in front of Bai Qingyan and picked up the birdcage.

“It’s not that I don’t like them. They should be unrestrained by nature. Why confine them in a cage?”

Chun Tao responded and carried the birdcage to the courtyard and opened it. Those two birds with clear and pleasant calls immediately flew out.

The autumn sky was high and clear, cloudless for miles. Those two birds fluttered their wings and disappeared into the sky above Qinghui Courtyard.