To attract the desire of the master of the house on someone else’s territory, while being guarded against by the mistress of that same house—what kind of outcome could that possibly lead to?
And unfortunately, this particular master and mistress were both people one couldn’t afford to offend.
Ever since the qin contest, Chu Feiyan hadn’t had a single moment of peace. The King of Nanzhao invited her to tea, to a game of chess, to play the qin together every few days—he’d even just now said he wanted to learn qin from her!
And Consort Qin didn’t just come looking for trouble every few days—she managed to find some new fault with her practically every single day, forcing her to tread carefully at every turn!
The moment Chu Feiyan left the King of Nanzhao’s cabin, she strode straight to her own room, and the instant she stepped through the door, she slammed her fist down hard on the tea table—shattering it instantly!
“That old fossil, disgusting! A toad lusting after swan meat, and he doesn’t even bother taking a look at himself in the mirror first! What nerve!”
“That vixen—if it weren’t for the fact that I’m on foreign soil, I’d tear the skin right off her, that fox spirit! What did I ever do to provoke her!”
…
Chu Feiyan’s fury poured out in a torrent, cursing the King of Nanzhao and Consort Qin in turns, cursing their ancestors down eighteen generations more than once, and the poor tea table was smashed to pieces in the process.
She finally sat down heavily, panting for breath!
Then, as if suddenly possessed, she gave a savage kick at the empty chair in front of her, shouting furiously, “Han Ziqing! You wretch!”
It was all Han Ziqing’s doing—this so-called qin contest had been an entire trap Han Ziqing had set for her!
She hadn’t even had time to savor the joy of victory before that pinch from Consort Qin had jolted her back to reality with brutal clarity!
What a woman, Han Ziqing, to land her in such enormous trouble!
“Just you wait!” Chu Feiyan shouted furiously once more, but for now she couldn’t even protect herself, let alone spare a thought to deal with Han Ziqing—she hadn’t even seen Han Ziqing in several days.
Just as Chu Feiyan’s fury reached its peak, an announcement suddenly came from outside: “Consort Qin has arrived!”
It was always like this—the moment she returned from the King of Nanzhao’s cabin, Consort Qin would follow right on her heels. At this point, Chu Feiyan finally felt a genuine urge to return to Western Chu, yet she couldn’t bring herself to swallow her pride and do it.
To go back now, not to mention the disgrace it would bring on Western Chu, would leave her with no way to explain herself back home either! And besides, she had no legitimate reason to leave!
Though the King of Nanzhao’s affection for her was obvious, he had never said anything explicit to her, nor had he ever made any move in front of others—she didn’t even have the chance to refuse him!
And Consort Qin, who on the surface had long since called her “sister,” always came under the pretext of learning the qin, only to make things difficult for her, leaving her with no grounds to complain at all!
Just as Chu Feiyan seethed with anger, a knock came at the door. “Princess Imperial, Consort Qin is waiting outside, please hurry.”
Chu Feiyan’s phoenix eyes flared with fury, cursing inwardly, “I’m not your servant girl, to come running whenever summoned!”
Yet no matter how imperious she might normally be, living under someone else’s roof, she had no choice but to bow her head. She composed herself, forcing a smile onto her face, and went out to greet her guest…
After the qin contest, no one was more at leisure than Ziqing. Before, the King of Nanzhao would occasionally summon her to ask after Jun Beiyue’s condition—but now, even seeing him at all had become difficult.
Ziqing enjoyed the quiet. With nothing else to do, she was studying the map hidden within the secret letter that Lord Situ had given her—the Poison Den was very close to the poison river’s source, Mingjing Lake. If one moved quickly, a round trip could be made within a single day.
“Guxi, Shiliang, your operation is cancelled,” Ziqing said quietly.
Guxi and Shiliang, still busy with their respective servants’ chores nearby, didn’t even glance at Ziqing, nor did they ask why, simply responding flatly, “Yes.”
This was Ziqing’s caution. Although Chu Feiyan currently had no time to spare for such things, she still had to guard against those watching her—there was still Xuanyuan Zhaoxi, and even Xuanyuan Lige himself!
“You want me to go?” Situ Haonan asked in a low voice.
“No, I’ll go myself,” Ziqing said flatly.
“Are you insane, do you have any idea how serious it would be if they couldn’t find you? Before entering Nanzhao, there was an agreement—your range of movement is restricted!” Situ Haonan said seriously.
Han Ziqing’s status was different from the others—if anything happened to her, it would represent all of Da Zhou. A disappearance was nothing like Yelu Qianqian’s open defiance; if an envoy went missing, it would undoubtedly be seen as having some ulterior motive, and that motive would inevitably be linked to national security concerns!
Nanzhao, being such a closed-off nation, took matters like this especially seriously—by that point, even Jun Beiyue’s reputation wouldn’t be enough to smooth things over!
“There’ll be a banquet after the water-splashing festival. One night’s time is more than enough for a round trip,” Ziqing said flatly.
“You don’t know how long it takes to cure the poison!” Situ Haonan immediately reminded her.
“Even if my poison flares up, it won’t cause anything serious, will it? I want to find out exactly how this poison can be cured, and what secret lies within my own body,” Ziqing said seriously.
“Let me go in your place!” Situ Haonan said, equally serious.
“Do you carry the Enchantment Fragrance in your body?” Ziqing asked flatly in return, a single question that immediately silenced Situ Haonan. Indeed, given how tight the time and circumstances were, it would be best if Ziqing could make the trip herself.
Just then, Ziqing suddenly turned her head to look at him, the corner of her soft mouth curving up, revealing a sweet, harmless smile, her clear eyes as pure and bright as a mountain lake, looking directly into his own!
Situ Haonan froze at once, his heart involuntarily pounding faster and faster—what he could least withstand was this woman’s eyes, and her smile!
Situ Haonan’s mind went utterly blank.
“I have a task for you—that night, get everyone thoroughly drunk!” Ziqing said with a smile, then rose to leave. But just as she turned around, she spotted Yelu Qianqian staring at the two of them from far off.
Ziqing paused briefly, but paid it no mind, turning to walk away.
“Wait a moment!” Yelu Qianqian suddenly shouted. Ziqing stopped abruptly, while Situ Haonan finally snapped back to his senses—and the moment he saw Yelu Qianqian, without a word, he turned and ran.
“Situ Haonan, if you dare take one more step, this princess will tell everyone about the time you saw this princess bathing!”
At these words, Situ Haonan finally stopped in his tracks, while Ziqing couldn’t help but glance around, relieved to see no one else nearby.
“What are you two doing, have you no shame? This young master still has some dignity!” Situ Haonan said, displeased, hurrying back.
“If you keep avoiding me, the moment I get back I’ll tell my father, and have him go find your father!” Yelu Qianqian said, choking up.
Situ Haonan was immediately alarmed, clasping his hands together and bowing to her at once. “My dear ancestor, Your Highness, I beg you, please don’t, just let this one go, will you? At worst, I’ll let you catch me again sometime—I’ve said it many times, I truly didn’t mean it!”
“If you just answer one question honestly, I won’t pursue this matter any further!” Yelu Qianqian said seriously.
“Fine, fine, I’ll answer ten questions if you like, just ask already!” Situ Haonan finally breathed a sigh of relief.
“Not ten—I’ll only ask one. Answer me truthfully, and once I know, I’ll stop pestering you every day!” Yelu Qianqian said.
“Go ahead, ask,” Situ Haonan said, waving his hand helplessly.
Yelu Qianqian took a deep breath and asked loudly, “Do you have feelings for Han Ziqing?”