After Li Xun left the banquet hall with the shadow guard, he arrived at a secluded rockery and stone forest. A shadow in the darkness revealed itself and presented a secret letter.

Li Xun opened it, and after reading the contents, his expression changed drastically. He immediately instructed the shadow guard beside him: “Go summon Fan Yuan to come here.”

—

Wen Yu had returned to her residence and rested only briefly when she heard Zhao Bai hurrying into the room, seemingly with urgent matters to report. Her hand touched the pearl curtain separating the inner and outer chambers, creating a series of faint sounds, but then she stopped the motion of parting the curtain, as if hesitating whether it would disturb Wen Yu’s rest.

Wen Yu opened her eyes and asked: “What is it?”

Seeing that she was awake, Zhao Bai parted the curtain and entered, saying: “The Yongzhou Prefecture Guards that you previously commanded this slave to find—there is news.”

The weariness on Wen Yu’s face diminished somewhat.

Shortly after, Tong Que and Cen An were brought over. Both appeared travel-worn, clearly having suffered much hardship along the way.

Upon seeing Wen Yu, Tong Que was already overcome with joy and tears. When she and Cen An half-knelt together to pay their respects to Wen Yu, she continuously raised her hand to wipe away tears.

Having experienced so many things and seeing them again, Wen Yu’s heart was also filled with mixed emotions. She stepped forward to help the two rise: “There’s no need for these empty formalities. After I arrived in Pingzhou, I’ve been having people search for you all along, but unfortunately, there was no news…”

While speaking, she noticed his left arm’s empty sleeve, and her tone faltered: “Guard Cen’s hand…”

Tong Que lowered her head with reddened eyes: “Brother Cen lost this arm protecting me.”

Wen Yu had the two take their seats and asked about what happened after they had led the pursuers away that day. Only then did she learn that when Cen An faced the pursuers’ encirclement and blockade, he had done the same as Xiao Li—abandoned his horse and fled with Tong Que via a small path. However, Tong Que had been struck by an arrow in the leg and couldn’t walk well, so Cen An had to carry her on his back as he ran.

But the situation was urgent at the time, and there was no time to treat Tong Que’s leg wound. When the pursuers caught up to the lone horse and realized they’d been tricked, they turned back to search all along the way. Following the bloodstains on the ground, they quickly caught up to them again. Outnumbered, Cen An lost an arm in order to protect Tong Que.

Tong Que said with considerable self-reproach: “When the pursuers discovered I wasn’t you, they turned back with most of their forces to pursue you and Hero Xiao. Brother Cen and I barely managed to escape with our lives, but our injuries were too severe. We were unable to move to search for you and Hero Xiao, so we could only first find a village to hide and recuperate. After our wounds healed and we set out again, we heard that Pingzhou and Meng Commandery, as well as Xinzhou and Yizhou, had all gone to war, and the southern route had been completely cut off. We could only wait for an opportunity while trying to contact other Zhou Prefecture guards who had escaped with their lives. Who would have expected that this wait would last until Xinzhou and Yizhou were unsealed before we could finally enter Pingzhou.”

Shortly after Wen Yu captured Meng Commandery, Pei Song had abandoned Yizhou. To conceal the news that what he had obtained was only an empty city, Wei Qishan directly sealed off the southern passage from Xinzhou and Yizhou. Tong Que and Cen An, along with many refugees, were thus trapped inside the cities.

Wen Yu said: “You have suffered.”

Tong Que quickly shook her head: “These were all within our humble duties. Failing to safely escort Wengzhu to Pingzhou—we are the ones who feel guilty. Fortunately, Hero Xiao’s righteousness and courage were commendable, protecting you without incident. Otherwise, even if we had died under the blades of Pei Song’s lackeys, we would have had no face to meet Minister Zhou.”

Wen Yu had just been conferred the title of princess today. Tong Que wasn’t yet accustomed to it and still instinctively called her “Wengzhu,” but at this moment, no one cared about this discrepancy in address.

Hearing her mention Xiao Li, Wen Yu’s eyes dimmed slightly, but she had no intention of saying more about it. She only said: “If you two hadn’t led away the pursuers that day, I might not have been able to escape from the lackeys’ hands. The injuries you both sustained were no small matters. Having been hiding all along this way, you presumably haven’t been able to properly recuperate. For now, settle in the main courtyard.”

While saying this, Wen Yu looked toward Zhao Bai: “Later, have the mansion physician check their pulses and prescribe tonics for them.”

Zhao Bai nodded to indicate she had received the order.

“Princess! Scholar Li Yao has urgent matters to report!” Outside the door, a maid’s announcement suddenly rang out.

Wen Yu seemed to furrow her brow slightly, but knowing that her teacher seeking her at this time must be for important matters, she dismissed the maid and said to Zhao Bai: “Take the two of them down to settle in first.”

Zhao Bai received the command and withdrew with Tong Que and Cen An. As they descended the stone steps, they happened to see Li Yao hurrying toward them from the other end of the wooden corridor.

Cen An and Tong Que didn’t know much about Pingzhou’s current situation and didn’t recognize Li Yao, but they could guess that this white-haired and bearded elder must be an important minister under Wen Yu. Regarding political affairs, both were tactful enough not to ask too many questions.

Zhao Bai glanced at Li Yao’s figure, but her brow furrowed imperceptibly.

Cen An suddenly asked: “By the way, I heard that General Xiao has repeatedly accomplished extraordinary feats in Pingzhou. There is a banquet at the mansion today—is he present? After we parted ways with him outside Tongzhou City, we haven’t seen him since. If it’s convenient, we’d like to have a brief reunion with him.”

Having served in the Zhou Mansion for many years, he was quite adept at handling matters. Asking about these side matters was both because he genuinely wanted to see Xiao Li and because he wanted to find a topic to help him, Tong Que, and those Zhou Mansion guards who had fortunately survived to reach Pingzhou integrate into this new place as quickly as possible.

From the moment Zhou Jing’an assigned them to Wen Yu, they had become Wen Yu’s people.

Having risked their lives to protect Wen Yu on the southern journey, although Wen Yu remembered their merits, the situation in Pingzhou was now settled, and Wen Yu was not lacking in people around her.

As long as they had no intention of retiring into seclusion and continued following Wen Yu in the future, they would naturally need to deal with the current Pingzhou Prefecture Guards.

They were all blades in Wen Yu’s hands, but which blade the master could wield most smoothly depended not only on whether the blade’s edge was sharp, but also on whether the blade could fathom the master’s thoughts.

Furthermore, there was the matter of how the blades got along with each other.

No master wished to see the blades in their hands turn on each other. Therefore, whether dealing with superiors or subordinates, there were proper ways to conduct oneself in words and actions.

Zhao Bai was pondering whether Li Yao had come to see Wen Yu about Xiao Li’s resignation and departure. Hearing Cen An’s question, she only answered expressionlessly: “The bandit troubles in the surrounding areas are severe. General Xiao went into the mountains to suppress bandits some days ago and has not yet returned.”

Having witnessed the bandit troubles that arose after the chaos of war broke out, Cen An and Tong Que had no doubts about this answer.

—

When Li Yao entered the study that Wen Yu had set up in the main courtyard, servants had already changed to fresh tea.

Wen Yu personally lifted the pot handle and poured him a cup. Before she could say the words inviting him to sit, Li Yao had already directly clasped his hands in salute and said: “This minister earnestly requests that the princess issue an order to immediately arrest the traitor Pei’s spy, Xiao Li!”

Wen Yu’s wrist lifted slightly, and the clear stream of water from the purple clay pot retracted. She frowned: “What does the teacher mean by this?”

Li Yao placed the letter sent from Mozhou on the low table, his heart burning with urgency: “The Crown Princess sent a letter personally identifying Xiao Li as a spy arranged by Pei Song!”

Wen Heng had been posthumously conferred the title of Crown Prince Cheng Jia. The Crown Princess in Li Yao’s words was naturally Jiang Yichu.

Previously, the correspondence secretly exchanged with Jiang Yichu had always been personally reviewed by Wen Yu. But with her imminent marriage to Southern Chen, if Jiang Yichu had any urgent news, sending it to the royal court for her to review before she issued orders to Pingzhou would undoubtedly delay matters.

Therefore, when transferring political affairs some days ago, Wen Yu had also handed over the authority to handle those secret letters to Li Yao. Li Yao’s side would make emergency decisions first, then urgently dispatch them to Southern Chen for her, and she would make subsequent deployments.

At this moment, hearing Li Yao’s curse, Wen Yu’s eyes narrowed, and she almost instinctively denied: “That’s impossible.”

Li Yao noticed Wen Yu’s defense of Xiao Li, and his expression grew even uglier. He said: “I know this man has rendered merit to the princess and has repeatedly accomplished extraordinary feats, resolving Pingzhou’s difficulties. The princess finds it hard to believe he is a spy, but I still ask the princess to read the letter before speaking.”

Wen Yu heard the oddness in Li Yao’s words and picked up the letter on the table, opening it to examine carefully.

As her eyes swept line by line over the writing on the paper, Wen Yu’s expression remained unchanged, but her gaze grew increasingly dark and somber.

Li Yao said hatefully: “That dog thief Pei has laid out an excellent chess game! First using a hatred for killing his mother, so his infiltration to your side wouldn’t arouse suspicion. Then summoning lackeys to stage a fake pursuit, having him risk his life protecting you to gain your trust. This old minister was also muddled with age. When I saw his military tactics resembled Qin Yi’s, I should have sensed something was wrong! He is Qin Yi’s disciple, lurking by your side to scheme for the three provinces and one commandery in your hands in one fell swoop!”

Wen Yu set down the letter and said: “This letter has many suspicious points. I once received kindness from his mother and stayed at his home for a period of time. I never discovered any dealings between him and Pei Song. On the contrary, it was because he delayed the defection of Yongzhou’s Deputy General Huo Kun to Pei Song that his entire family suffered the calamity of extermination.”

Li Yao demanded sharply: “What if Huo Kun’s attempt to kill him back then was also an act?”

Wen Yu said: “If Huo Kun had controlled Minister Zhou, all of Yongzhou would already have been in Pei Song’s pocket. If Xiao Li were Pei Song’s man, why would Pei Song have those two stage this performance, even letting Huo Kun die in Yongzhou, ultimately causing Minister Zhou to hang himself in surrender?”

Li Yao said: “Pei Song has always been perverse. His abandonment of the petty man Huo Kun was perhaps simply because he looked down upon Huo Kun’s rat-like eagerness to pledge allegiance. Having those two stage an act was most likely to force you to reveal yourself! Zhou Jing’an’s suicide was truly an unexpected variable, exceeding his calculations, which is why after he advanced into Yongzhou, he briefly fell into a stalemate. Princess, do not let past kindness blind you!”

Thinking of how he had sought out Fan Yuan to have him first take control of Xiao Li, only to learn that Xiao Li had suddenly resigned and left two days earlier, his heart grew even more anxious. He shouted: “I ordered Fan Yuan to first go arrest this man, only to learn he had already relinquished his military post and left Pingzhou. If this isn’t fleeing in guilt after catching wind of something, what is it? I heard the princess also knew of this matter. This minister doesn’t know why the princess made no investigation beforehand, but this minister earnestly requests that the princess prioritize the overall situation and immediately issue an order to capture this man! He knows many of Pingzhou’s secrets. If we let him escape back to Pei Song’s side, this will be greatly disadvantageous to Great Liang!”

“He is not a spy.” Wen Yu spoke again, her tone still calm and firm. She explained: “His siblings died in the chaos when Huo Kun seized Yongzhou, and his mother also nearly met with disaster. How could anyone stage an act to this extent? Moreover, if this scheme was to force me to reveal myself, they could simply have arrested me and tortured me severely after they suspected me. Why go to such great lengths? After confirming my identity, there were also many opportunities to take my life. Why would he risk his life to protect me on the southern journey?”

Seeing that Wen Yu remained obstinate, Li Yao felt both anxious and angry. Pointing at the letter sent by Jiang Yichu, he asked: “If he’s not a spy, could it be that the princess feels the Crown Princess’s letter is false? That scoundrel’s initial scheme with the traitor Pei was to gain your trust, then seize an opportunity to coordinate with Pei from within and without to capture Pingzhou in one stroke. Naturally, he could be ruthless enough to stage several self-torture schemes. Princess, do not be deceived by him!”

If the letter could be presented, the secret seal and secret patterns on the envelope had naturally already been verified as correct by subordinates. Even the handwriting on the letter was all too familiar to Wen Yu—it was indeed her sister-in-law’s own writing.

She said: “Teacher, please do not be angry. Just as I had Yan Que’yi pass false information to Pei Song before executing him, I worry this is also Pei Song’s treacherous scheme. The secret seal and handwriting are both correct, but if Pei Song already knows my sister-in-law has been secretly communicating with me and deliberately set up such a trap, and we plunged headlong into it, we would be playing right into Pei Song’s hands.”

Li Yao knew Wen Yu’s temperament. This disciple he had accepted in his twilight years—whether in terms of methods or courage—was satisfactory to him. Yet today, she had repeatedly shown favoritism toward a traitorous general with ironclad evidence against him, and had even suppressed the matter of his resignation and escape.

The suspicion he had previously suppressed now surfaced again at this moment, like a scorching fire burning in his heart, searing his lungs and organs with waves of splitting pain.

He was absolutely determined not to allow the princess he supported to be ruined by such a low and contemptible means of bewitching the sovereign!

Li Yao looked at Wen Yu with a stern expression and shouted: “Simply the fact that he studied under Qin Yi is already ironclad evidence! The princess repeatedly makes excuses for that Xiao scoundrel. This old minister dares to ask—where does the princess place the lives of the subjects and people of the three provinces and one commandery? And what does she regard the great cause of revenge as?”

Wen Yu raised her eyes to look directly at Li Yao, her gaze sharp as lightning: “Teacher, Yu acts this way naturally because Yu has her own considerations. In his later years, Emperor Ming Cheng was muddled and suspicious, wrongly killing how many loyal ministers and fine generals? The foundation of Great Liang also began its step-by-step decline from that time. Now Yu upholds the legacy of her father and brothers, having gone through countless difficulties and obstacles to reach this step. Does the teacher want Yu, based solely on one secret letter, to prefer wrongly killing the loyal rather than letting anyone go? Whether Xiao Li studied under Qin Yi—aside from this one letter and the military tactics he has displayed—cannot be verified from any other source. Whether his mother truly died or is really being held by Pei Song is also unknown. With so many mysteries unsolved, how should Yu brand a meritorious minister with the name of traitor?”

Li Yao stared at Wen Yu without yielding an inch: “If the princess wishes to be a virtuous sovereign, this old minister naturally has nothing to say. But now Xiao Li is suspected of being a spy and has suddenly resigned with his whereabouts unknown. This old minister dares not gamble with Great Liang’s foundation and the lives of hundreds of thousands of subjects!”

Wen Yu’s fingertips turned white from pinching: “I was aware of his resignation. It was not that he heard the wind beforehand and fled. After the posthumous honor ceremony, we still needed to discuss the tripartite alliance with Chen Kingdom and Northern Wei. I suppressed the news to avoid complications.”

Li Yao pressed aggressively: “May I ask why he resigned?”

Wen Yu closed her eyes: “Teacher, this is General Xiao’s private matter.”

These words undoubtedly reinforced the suspicion in Li Yao’s heart. His anger grew even more. After saying the word “good” three times, he directly lifted his robes and, using his cane for support, knelt before Wen Yu, saying: “Even if the matter of Xiao Li being a spy is still debatable, it concerns Great Liang’s foundation and the lives of subjects and people in three provinces and one commandery. This old minister earnestly requests that the princess first dispatch the Qingyun Guards to bring this man back to Pingzhou before making a decision!”

He looked at Wen Yu, his voice aged yet resounding: “If this old minister has wronged this man, after everything is investigated clearly, this old minister is willing to kowtow and apologize to him!”

This was already a form of coercion in disguise.

The Qingyun Guards were the shadow guards now secretly working for Wen Yu.

The wind passing through the hall stirred Wen Yu’s clothes and hair. Looking at the elder kneeling before her, at this moment she suddenly understood the meaning of “it’s lonely at the top.”

The farther she walked on this path, the less she was herself, becoming only that Great Liang princess with not a fraction of room for error.

In that instant, she couldn’t quite tell whether her heart held melancholy or bewilderment. In the end, she only coolly and heavily pronounced a single word: “Granted.”