Given the current situation, Wan Xiuzi had every reason to believe that with one trembling hand or moment of excitement, this woman could end his life. Seeing those acolytes below frozen like fools, not moving, and with the sharp pain at his throat making him feel the threat of life slipping away, for a moment his face became ferocious as he shouted with outward severity masking inner weakness: “Release him! What are you standing there for? Release him!”

Though his words were shouted, he dared not move carelessly.

The flowing blood had already stained a large area of his collar crimson.

The acolytes below glanced at Xie Wei, but in the end reluctantly retreated backward, unwilling though they were.

Xie Wei’s hand hanging at his side was still bleeding.

Yet he paid no attention to it at all, only looking up at her standing on high. The gentleness of her former girlhood had faded, replaced by an emerging sharpness. This vaguely reminded him of when she’d been pushed to desperation and smashed his qin years ago. Thus the corners of his lips slowly curved upward—he actually smiled.

Covered in blood, yet his features gentle.

Quite a few people had attacked from outside, surrounding them from all four directions. The Heavenly Doctrine branch members had almost no chance of escape. Very quickly, a crushing advantage formed, bringing the situation under control.

Jiang Xuening saw Yan Lin and Lu Xian walk in from outside the door.

Soon came a wave of clamorous voices.

Jian Shu’s anxious face flashed past among the crowd. Several people immediately went up to check on Xie Wei’s condition. Yet he was still looking at Jiang Xuening while calmly issuing commands to those beside him.

However, when his words finished, his body swayed almost imperceptibly.

Without any warning, his entire person collapsed!

In that instant, it was like a jade mountain crumbling.

Various voices sharply entered Jiang Xuening’s ears, but they only mixed together meaninglessly, forming a chaotic buzzing in her mind. Conversely, this made the scene before her eyes fill with a contradictory silence.

The entire world seemed to collapse along with him.

The surroundings quieted for a moment, immediately followed by great chaos.

People surged like tidal waters into channels, surrounding Xie Wei.

Yet she was like a stone on the shore, unmoving. Her line of sight was mostly blocked—she could no longer see him.

The blade Jiang Xuening’s fingers gripped tightly still hadn’t loosened one bit. She hadn’t released Wan Xiuzi either, her entire person unmoving. Not until people below frantically helped Xie Wei away, and others quickly came up to take Wan Xiuzi from her hands and escort him down.

She raised her head and saw a pair of worried eyes.

Yan Lin stood before her, his tall and upright figure illuminated by firelight. He only gazed at her with a particularly silent look, his eyes containing countless turnings. After a very long time, he slowly said: “Ningning, loving someone like our teacher will be very tiring.”

Yet Jiang Xuening only looked at that small pool of blood on the ground.

She seemed as if she hadn’t heard.

Like someone in a dream, she only thought: I know that too. But such a person—how can I forget him, and how dare I forget him…

“Ningning…”

Shen Zhiyi had originally come to play chess with her. Watching her play, she suddenly stared fixedly at one chess piece, appearing absent-minded. Worry appeared in her eyes as she gently called out to her.

Only then did Jiang Xuening come back to herself.

Shen Zhiyi had arrived at Runing Prefecture two days after the incident.

She had originally wanted to come together with Yan Lin and the others, but with troops garrisoned at Huangzhou, how would they be willing to let a royal princess know? Thus they politely declined, only having people prepare her carriage, departing many days later.

She arrived only after matters were settled.

Shen Zhiyi had also heard about the dangerous ordeal Jiang Xuening and Xie Wei had experienced.

However, she was no longer the naive princess of years past after all.

This person Xie Wei seemed bright as wind and clear as moon on the surface, but cut open inside revealed a filthy black heart. She only worried that this person was like a deep abyss, dragging Jiang Xuening downward into a fall.

If it were the usual circumstances, Jiang Xuening would probably have noticed Shen Zhiyi’s hesitant expression. However, these past two days she hadn’t been particularly attentive even to her own affairs, so she overlooked some very obvious details without noticing.

Now she even smiled and asked: “Is it my turn?”

Shen Zhiyi looked at her for a long while. In her heart were countless things she wanted to say to her, even that matter she had hesitated over for so long. However, at this moment she ultimately couldn’t speak, only suppressing the complexity in her eyes, smiling as she said: “It’s your turn.”

Jiang Xuening then played several moves carelessly.

In the end, it was still Shen Zhiyi who won.

With her muddled way of playing, even if Shen Zhiyi wanted to let her win, she really couldn’t produce that result. In the end, knowing she had no real intention of playing chess now, after chatting with her for a while, she told her to rest well and left on her own.

Jiang Xuening sat in the room but didn’t go to sleep.

That sudden attack two days ago had naturally annihilated this Heavenly Doctrine branch. All the bandit leaders, including Wan Xiuzi and Lu Tai, were entirely captured and imprisoned in the dungeon.

Xie Ju’an’s injuries weren’t light.

Zhou Qihuang and several other physicians had been busy and anxious for quite a while.

However, Jiang Xuening surprisingly hadn’t gone to see him.

She seemed to want to spend some time thoroughly sorting herself out.

Or perhaps, she was simply afraid.

Not until this moment did she lower her eyes and ask the maidservant serving beside her: “How is Mister Xie’s condition?”

The maidservant was originally from the General’s manor serving there.

Her position was lowly, so she didn’t dare inquire carelessly. She only said: “The physicians worked for half the night the day before. Later when he woke, it seemed there was nothing wrong. I heard it’s only external injuries—just needs rest and recuperation.”

External injuries.

Just one hand indeed could only be considered “external injuries.”

After hearing this, Jiang Xuening really couldn’t say how many emotions converged together in her heart. Simply not bothering to distinguish them, she rose and walked out.

It was afternoon at this time.

Outside the window came pleasant oriole calls.

Green trees provided shade, the sunshine bright and beautiful.

The place where Xie Ju’an resided was still a secluded courtyard.

Outside, on that platform piled with stones, the fresh bloodstains had just dried. She didn’t glance at them even once, directly passing through the edge of the courtyard. Then she saw the tightly closed door beside a worry-free flower tree.

Dao Qin was still in the capital, not yet returned.

Now serving at Xie Wei’s side were only Jian Shu and Xiao Bao, who had just been rescued from the Heavenly Doctrine.

When the two saw her, their expressions differed.

Xiao Bao showed both shame and guilt.

In Jian Shu’s eyes flashed a trace of dejection, yet upon seeing Jiang Xuening, he ultimately harbored some hope after all.

From within the room came vaguely trembling qin notes.

However, they lacked the former fluency.

Even the tones were slightly off, containing a kind of stiff, halting quality.

Jiang Xuening’s heart suddenly seized with pain. She nearly couldn’t speak. Standing quietly for a long while, she heard no more qin sounds arise from that room.

Jian Shu said in a low voice: “The gentleman doesn’t wish to see anyone.”

Jiang Xuening stood outside the room door, only saying toward the inside: “Sir, I want to come in.”

Inside, there was no answer for a long time.

She then forcefully suppressed the turmoil in her heart, hung a smile on her face, and treating his silence as tacit permission, reached out and pushed open the tightly closed door.

Inside the room pervaded the clear, bitter scent of medicine.

Xie Wei wore a simple white shirt, sitting cross-legged on the arhat bed beneath the window. Atop it was placed a small table, upon which rested a qin. The wounds on his body had long since been treated. His left hand had been medicated and wrapped in snow-white silk cloth. On the exposed slender fingers, faint scars could still be seen.

That sickly pallor on his face made one recall the first time seeing him.

Only back then…

Jiang Xuening’s eyes stung. She quietly walked to his side, sitting on the footstool beside the arhat bed. Yet she smiled as she gazed at him: “You did it on purpose, didn’t you?”

Xie Wei looked at her without answering.

She pulled his hand over to examine it. For that instant, tears nearly rolled from her eyes, but she forcefully held them back, teasing him with some acerbity: “Everyone says you plan without oversight, but sometimes you’re clearly not clever at all—terribly stupid. When I saved you back then, it wasn’t out of any kindness. I just didn’t want you dying beside me—I was afraid.”

How could Xie Wei not see through her forced composure?

But he didn’t expose it.

He only lowered his eyes and also took her hand. On that slender left wrist, a fine scar had yet to fade. His warm fingertip gently pressed upon it, still able to feel some traces.

He calmly comforted her: “I was also afraid.”

It was hard to imagine such words coming from Xie Wei’s mouth.

He killed decisively—where would he fear a dead person?

Jiang Xuening looked at him, feeling distressed in her heart, slowly saying: “I’m not worth it.”

Xie Wei gave a light laugh: “It’s merely that I can’t play the proper tones for a while. Originally, it was just an obsession I couldn’t let go. Now that I’ve released it, that’s also good.”

As a child, he had been worst at learning the qin.

Yet by nature he was strong-willed. His mother also said that in this world there was fundamentally nothing one couldn’t excel at—what was feared was a determined heart. Willing to learn, willing to practice—over time, one could always become remarkably outstanding. Heaven didn’t generously bestow talent upon people; it was what people bestowed upon themselves. So for over twenty years, day after day, he never abandoned it. In the end, he barely became a talented qin player.

Throughout his life, he refused to accept one word: “defeat.”

Learning the qin was merely one part of this.

Yet Jiang Xuening nearly shed tears at his light and breezy statement. Her emotions surged as if on clouds, turning over and over, drifting across the sky.

But she didn’t dare ask if he could still play.

After a long while, she only said in a low voice: “Xie Ju’an, from now on I’ll play for you to hear. Is that acceptable?”

Xie Wei’s finger brushed across her cheek, laughing at her with half-disgust: “You play so terribly, don’t even know a few pieces…”

Jiang Xuening gazed at him.

Then she slowly straightened up, raised her face, gently leaned forward, and placed a feather-light kiss upon his thin lips. Yet in her eyes, water vapor formed a layer of moist brightness as she said: “Then you’ll teach me from now on.”

A famous teacher produces outstanding disciples.

If he taught well, she would surely learn.

And if she couldn’t learn, then it would definitely all be his fault.