Yelu Qianqian’s private quarters sat directly across from Yelu Chenyi’s Changle Palace, separated by a massive natural fountain pool.

As Ziqing followed the palace maid leading the way, she studied Changle Palace from a distance.

Yanzi had been the guardian of the isolated island’s ruins, and more than that, Yelu Chenyi’s subordinate — if the bloodstained zither hadn’t changed hands, it should still be hidden somewhere within Changle Palace.

They soon reached Yelu Qianqian’s chambers, and the moment Ziqing stepped through the door, the room was thick with the smell of medicine — countless bowls and cups of herbal decoctions, large and small, lined up in front of Yelu Qianqian.

The instant Yelu Qianqian spotted Ziqing, she rose at once and pulled her down to sit, calling out to a maid nearby, “Go fetch the imperial physician, quickly!”

“What for?” Ziqing frowned, eyeing the table full of medicine with a furrowed brow. Was all this really necessary?

“Just wait, my personal physician is a miracle worker! Let him take a look at you in a moment — your constitution is far too weak, you absolutely must recuperate properly!”

Yelu Qianqian spoke with the air of a fussing elder, entirely earnest.

Ziqing wasn’t really paying attention to what she was saying, her gaze drifting with some hesitation.

Though Yelu Qianqian’s eyes were still red-rimmed, it was clear her spirits had recovered considerably.

Was it too much, bringing up Yelu Chenyi again at a time like this?

Ziqing hesitated — but the bloodstained zither was far too important. If it were truly lost, the trouble that would cause wouldn’t be small at all.

Soon, the physician arrived — a white-haired old doctor. Before Yelu Qianqian could even say a word, he took one look at Ziqing’s complexion and immediately frowned deeply.

“This young lady’s color…” He didn’t finish the thought. Yelu Qianqian immediately pulled Ziqing’s hand forward. “Take a look, quickly!”

Ziqing pulled her hand back at once, refusing. “Already had it checked. I’m recuperating already.”

Even though this old physician specialized in poisons, Ziqing had to remain cautious — too many people had designs on her already. She couldn’t afford to invite any more trouble for herself.

Every additional person who learned of her constitution meant one more layer of danger.

Before, she hadn’t considered it so carefully — but the argument between Jun Beiyue and Xuanyuan Lige had served as a stark reminder.

“Really?” Yelu Qianqian looked puzzled, trying to recall — she couldn’t remember seeing any doctor along their journey from the northern steppe.

The old physician, ever discreet, seeing the princess say nothing further, withdrew quietly to the side.

“Qianqian, there’s something…” Ziqing paused for a moment, then leaned in close to Yelu Qianqian’s ear, whispering, “The bloodstained zither matters a great deal to me.”

Brief and to the point — deceiving Yelu Qianqian would have been easy enough, but she didn’t want to.

Yelu Qianqian blinked, slightly stunned, though her reaction was far more subdued than before. She simply nodded and immediately waved everyone else out of the room.

“I can’t get in there myself — that place was personally sealed by my father. You need his written authorization to enter,” Yelu Qianqian answered honestly, a faint trace of sorrow in her eyes, though she was clearly trying hard to hide it.

“Qianqian, I’m sorry, but I must find that zither. It isn’t your brother’s belonging,” Ziqing said flatly.

Yelu Qianqian glanced at her, pursing her lips in thought for a long moment before finally murmuring, “Fine. I’ll take you in through the back way, but we can’t stay long.”

Ziqing felt a flicker of relief — having Yelu Qianqian lead the way was far more convenient than sneaking in on her own.

“Thank you!” Ziqing said earnestly — those two words carried more weight than a thousand others.

“No need to thank me!” Yelu Qianqian laughed, but after a long pause, added, “Thank Situ Haonan instead.”

For all her apparent foolishness, she actually thought about a great many things — and the more she thought, the more she understood.

She truly held no grudge against anyone over her brother’s death, but as for becoming Han Ziqing’s true confidante, her sworn friend with whom she could share everything — perhaps she’d already given up hope of that.

In her saddest moments, she was hardest on herself, always telling herself — let it be because of Haonan, let everything be because of Haonan.

For the sake of the man who was willing to kneel before her father, willing to marry into the Xijing royal house, willing to become her consort — Situ Haonan.

She and Haonan would have to take their fallen brother’s place, devoting themselves to their father, determined to make Xijing strong again. Even if they couldn’t achieve it themselves, their future children would have to carry that goal forward.

Thank Situ Haonan?

Hearing this, a flicker of complicated emotion crossed Ziqing’s eyes, as if she sensed something — but she didn’t dwell on it. She had no spare thoughts to consider matters so distant right now.

She smiled faintly, offering no answer.

Yelu Qianqian, well-versed in the palace’s layout, quickly led Ziqing to the rear courtyard of Changle Palace.

This palace hall was fully twice the size of Yelu Qianqian’s own quarters — counting carefully, it held at least a dozen rooms.

Ziqing didn’t ask; instead, Yelu Qianqian volunteered the information herself.

“We don’t have much time — let’s head to the storeroom. All my brother’s treasures are kept there!”

Ziqing nodded and followed along.

But soon she discovered that even Changle Palace’s storeroom alone was twice the size of Yelu Qianqian’s entire chamber.

Though vast, the storeroom was meticulously organized, everything arranged in perfect order, nearly all of it visible at a glance.

“My brother loved cleanliness above all else. He treasured these things dearly — never much of a talker, never one for socializing, he’d just hide away in here day after day, entertaining himself.”

As she spoke, Yelu Qianqian led Ziqing deeper into the inner chamber.

People who didn’t talk much fell into two categories — one type was excessively self-conscious, quiet by nature, simple and introverted; the other was excessively arrogant, disdaining to converse with others at all.

In Ziqing’s impression, Yelu Chenyi had been unmistakably the latter type. But in Yelu Qianqian’s memory, though her brother had his flaws, she’d never quite dismissed him entirely, either.

Naturally, Ziqing said nothing of this, remaining silent throughout.

As they walked deeper, they passed rows of weapons, until finally, at the very back, they came upon a massive wall of cabinets — countless drawers, resembling something from an apothecary’s hall.

“Doesn’t look like it’s here,” Yelu Qianqian said doubtfully. Something as large as a zither couldn’t possibly be hidden inside a drawer.

“May I look?” Ziqing asked. Without opening them, how could she be certain there was no hidden mechanism inside?

Yelu Qianqian shrugged, indicating it was fine.

Ziqing set to work. But the moment she opened the very first drawer, she froze in shock.

Hidden inside the drawer were medicinal poisons!

Seeing Ziqing’s expression shift slightly, Yelu Qianqian hurried over. “What is it?”

How would Yelu Qianqian have recognized these herbs as medicinal poisons — substances far more dangerous than ordinary toxins?

Even Ziqing herself wasn’t entirely familiar with these particular varieties of medicinal poison, but she could say with certainty — this was, unmistakably, medicinal poison.

She opened drawer after drawer, one by one, and discovered, to her astonishment, that all ninety-nine drawers contained ninety-nine different species of medicinal-poison herbs.

Ziqing’s first thought immediately went to Yanzi. If they needed these medicinal poisons, it could only be because of her — because of her immunity to all poisons.

Otherwise, ordinary poisons would have sufficed for dealing with anyone else!

Medicinal poisons were extraordinarily rare, after all — under normal circumstances, only Nanzhao possessed them.

“What are all these herbs for?” Yelu Qianqian asked, puzzled. Though she’d heard something of Ziqing’s situation from Situ Haonan, she hadn’t immediately connected the dots this far.

“I don’t know either,” Ziqing said, unwilling to explain further, casually closing the drawer. But just as she did, something strange happened.