Nanyi entered Zheyue Pavilion alone with worry weighing heavily on her heart.

As soon as she pushed the door open, warm air greeted her face.

The finest silver charcoal burned quietly in the basin, with not a wisp of smoke or spark visible, yet the room was thoroughly warmed. The small pavilion was elegant and cozy, with every decoration perfectly placed, exuding the restraint and dignity of a great household.

This would be the place where she would live in the future.

She couldn’t feel happy about it, always feeling that this was like a warm, exquisite cage.

She shouldn’t have been drawn into the treacherous undercurrents of Wangxue Manor, but this wasn’t something she could control by her willingness or unwillingness—she was merely a chess piece of Xie Queshan’s.

She couldn’t fathom any of Xie Queshan’s actions. He clearly tormented her like a plaything, yet when she examined the results carefully, they were all instances where he had intentionally or unintentionally pushed her toward good outcomes. But if one said he was helping her, he constantly placed her in embarrassing situations.

There was also the “Yan” that Xie Sui’an had mentioned, which was another cloud of doubt in Nanyi’s heart. What exactly was Xie Queshan’s position?

No, she had to find him and ask for clarity. But for an uncle and sister-in-law to meet privately in the great mansion at night… The improper thought flashed through her mind but was quickly suppressed by Nanyi herself. After all, they had already had many solitary encounters when no one else knew about it, so this one time wouldn’t make a difference.

…

Xie Queshan lived in Jingfeng Residence, which from its position was actually diagonally in front of Zheyue Pavilion, separated by an archery path. Originally there had been a small door opening onto the archery path, but that door had been sealed shut with wooden boards.

To reach Jingfeng Residence, one had to go around most of Wangxue Manor. Nanyi didn’t want to attract attention, so her skills in flying over eaves and walls from her thieving days came in handy.

When Nanyi jumped through the window into Jingfeng Residence, the room was dark and lightless, only filled with a rich herbal scent. She thought Xie Queshan wasn’t there. Looking around, she discovered that Xie Queshan was sitting in the study, with only a small candlelight lit beside the desk, half his body immersed in shadow.

He seemed to very much like sitting in dark places, and that lonely expression appeared on his face again. Today he had become the head of the Xie family and given Concubine Lu quite a show of authority, so at this moment he should have been proud. But his reaction wasn’t like that of a villain who had succeeded, but rather like an abandoned child.

Hearing the commotion, Xie Queshan raised his eyes to look at Nanyi, not at all surprised.

Instead, Nanyi found it strange: “You knew I would come?”

Xie Queshan smiled lightly, neither confirming nor denying.

Nanyi didn’t want to engage in false pleasantries with him anymore, getting straight to the point: “What exactly do you want to do?”

“You have already gained Xie Sui’an’s trust. In the future, whatever she says to you, whatever she does, come and report it all to me.”

Nanyi was so shocked she stepped back, some doubts suddenly becoming clear in her mind.

From beginning to end, she had been Xie Queshan’s chess piece. In the ancestral hall, he had guided her, pointing out a path to survival for her, but actually he was using her to help Prince Ling’an enter the city. Only when Prince Ling’an entered the city could they block the exits and entrances, completing the trap of catching a turtle in a jar. He knew that Xie Sui’an and Xie Zhu were both members of the Bingzhu Bureau. Capturing that old fox and leaving behind a simple-minded little white rabbit, afterward Xie Sui’an would come to discuss everything with “Yan” in her mind, which was Nanyi.

And Xie Queshan in all this had merely grasped Nanyi’s desire to live, using a few words worth four taels to move a thousand pounds, making her unconsciously become an important part of the plan.

Ultimately, all information from the Bingzhu Bureau would flow to Nanyi, then from Nanyi to Xie Queshan.

But how could she betray Xie Sui’an? Moreover, betraying Xie Sui’an meant betraying Prince Ling’an. The new emperor’s safety had been exchanged for with the lives of Pang Yu and Xie Hengzai, as well as countless others she hadn’t seen. She didn’t want to be that spy.

Seeing Nanyi’s silence, Xie Queshan only smiled lightly, not at all anxious.

“It’s alright, I’ve always disliked forcing and threatening others. Think it over slowly, and answer me when you’ve decided.”

At this time, He Ping’s announcement came from outside.

“Young Master, General Gusha has arrived.”

“Ask him to wait a moment.”

Hearing the name Gusha, Nanyi fearfully gripped her sleeves—at this moment her face had nothing to conceal it, and if she were recognized by Gusha… Xie Queshan wasn’t someone who wouldn’t threaten people! He simply didn’t like getting blood on his hands and was too lazy to wield the knife himself.

Nanyi’s fear of Gusha and Xie Queshan was different. Gusha was white blade in, red blade out—crude and brutal. But Xie Queshan was a dull knife wearing people down. At least he wouldn’t kill you immediately, and you’d have the illusion that perhaps you could escape at some point.

Xie Queshan nonchalantly picked up the candle stub beside the desk and lit the candles in the room one by one. In an instant, the room was brightly lit with candles, no shadow remaining anywhere. When he raised his head again, Nanyi’s figure was nowhere to be seen in the room, only a window that was slightly ajar.

She ran so fast, like a soundless cat.

Xie Queshan walked to the window. Outside the window, not half a figure could be seen.

“Running away won’t work every time.” He spoke in a low voice as if talking to himself, casually closing the window.

Nanyi was hiding just outside the window at the corner of the wall, taking in every word.

—Whether it worked or not, escaping once was still escaping once.

Nanyi crouched and pressed against the base of the wall as she moved outward. Hearing footsteps from within the wall, a door opening and closing, it should be Gusha entering the room. She dared not move again, afraid that even the slightest sound would alert Gusha.

In the deep night, all was silent. Nanyi didn’t want to listen at all, but the sounds from within the wall still reached her ears.

“Xie Zhu’s bones are quite hard. He insists he’s not a member of the Bingzhu Bureau and doesn’t know where Prince Ling’an is hiding. If we use severe torture, it will inevitably look somewhat unseemly. After all, he’s still your third uncle. I came to ask your opinion.”

“My third uncle is loyal and righteous. It won’t be easy to get information from his mouth. Why not let him become bait to lure out accomplices from the Bingzhu Bureau and catch them all in one net.”

Nanyi’s eyelid twitched as she immediately thought of Xie Sui’an—what if the person who fell into the trap was Xie Sui’an?

Unconsciously, Nanyi moved her body closer to the window so she could hear more clearly.

In the room, Gusha pondered for a moment and agreed with Xie Queshan’s plan: “Alright, we’ll do as you say.”

After speaking, he took out a roll of sheepskin paper from his chest and placed it on the low table. “I’ve rearranged the city defense garrison in Li Du Mansion, placing our soldiers at various posts. This defense map is confidential—there are only two copies. One for the Young Master to keep, another stored in the military.”

“Good.”

Xie Queshan was concise, putting the defense map into a drawer. Raising his head to look at Gusha again, he already showed signs of wanting to dismiss his guest.

Seeing that Gusha had no intention of leaving, he raised his eyebrows: “Is there something else?”

Gusha hesitated, then still asked: “…I heard you put that widow who just entered the Xie family in charge of the Xie family’s inner courtyard. Why is this?”

Actually hearing them discussing herself, Nanyi immediately became nervous, wanting to press her ear even closer. Her foot shifted slightly back, actually producing a scraping sound.

Nanyi’s movement froze, cold sweat breaking out on her back.

Meow—a weak cat’s cry reached the room. Gusha, who had been on high alert, relaxed, and Xie Queshan also smiled almost imperceptibly.

His voice carried not half a trace of emotion: “The order of the Xie family, I want to overturn it from inside to outside. The more someone is an outsider who understands nothing, the more they can destroy them.”

Each word fell clearly into Nanyi’s ears, making all the hair on her body stand like soldiers in formation.

Every time she felt a trace of empathy for Xie Queshan, he would use reality to slap her mercilessly.

No wonder he wanted to elevate someone of her low status to such a high position. It turned out he wanted to turn human relationships and social order upside down, he wanted to challenge centuries-old propriety and teachings, using this to take revenge on the Xie family.

Xie Sui’an hadn’t been wrong at all—he was a madman.