TN: “Ba Zi” (八字) literally means “eight characters” and refers to the four pillars of destiny in Chinese astrology: year, month, day, and hour of birth. Each pillar consists of a Heavenly Stem and an Earthly Branch, making eight characters total.
Qin Muyue, realizing she had been rash again, looked toward Rong Jiu and Hongling with a self-deprecating smile. She then bowed to Rong Jiu and said, “This subordinate spoke rashly. I beg Your Highness’s forgiveness.”
Rong Jiu glanced indifferently at Qin Muyue, his lips curving into a slight smile. “Since it was just a misunderstanding, let’s forget about it.”
“Thank you, Your Highness.” Qin Muyue’s lips twitched as she was about to leave, but Rong Jiu stopped her.
“This Crown Prince didn’t bring many attendants on this journey, and none of them knew the way to the imperial city. Perhaps Deputy General Qin could guide us?” Rong Jiu said calmly.
Qin Muyue froze. Attendants?
“It’s like this, this subordinate has some matters to handle at the border. Perhaps I could assign some highly skilled fighters to escort Your Highness to the imperial city?” Qin Muyue silently cursed her bad luck at being entangled by this Rong Jiu.
“Deputy General Qin will also be returning to the palace to attend West Yuan’s grand banquet, correct? It wouldn’t hurt for us to stay here a few more days until Deputy General Qin has dealt with the border matters. Then she can take us to the imperial city together. Consider it making amends,” Hongling said leisurely, her face full of smiles.
Qin Muyue slightly clenched her fingers. Making amends indeed! Was this Rong Jiu truly unfamiliar with the route, or was he helping Mu Yunjin get revenge?
But at the moment, she couldn’t refute at all and could only reluctantly agree to this matter before leaving the guest house.
…
…
After Qin Muyue left, Hongling walked to Rong Jiu’s side and looked at her master, whose eyes showed some dejection. “No wonder Your Highness encountered Qin Muyue chasing and trying to kill Miss Mu that day. It was all because of a man.”
Zhang Bo also cast a sidelong glance at Hongling, his expression unpleasant. “This Miss Mu’s martial skills are not low. I originally thought she was some martial arts practitioner from the jianghu, never imagining she would be the pampered Prince Ning’s wife.”
“Yes, it is quite incredible,” Hongling sighed.
Rong Jiu was still thinking about the scene of Mu Yunjin being carried away by Chu Li. Hearing Hongling and Zhang Bo’s exchange, he gave them both a sidelong glance.
The two of them, catching Rong Jiu’s eye, immediately dispersed.
……
Mu Yunjin was carried by Chu Li to a side room in the residence. After carefully laying her flat on the bed, he stood by the bedside and reached out to undo her sash.
“Hey, what are you doing?” Mu Yunjin was startled and grabbed his wrist, staring at him with a warning look.
Chu Li pushed her hand away and untied her sash, his brows furrowing. “Checking your wounds.”
“I…” Mu Yunjin still hesitated, her lips twitching. “I’m already much better, no need to make such a fuss.”
Chu Li gave her a cool look.
“Fine, go ahead and look.” Mu Yunjin released her hands and pressed her lips together, allowing Chu Li to untie her sash until she was only wearing her undershirt before him.
When Chu Li saw that Mu Yunjin’s once smooth, fair skin was now covered with purple bruises and scabs, his frown deepened. His gaze slowly fell to her lower abdomen, and he reached out to lightly touch her ribs.
“Hiss—” Mu Yunjin sucked in a breath as the cold sensation touched her skin.
Chu Li stroked her ribs, his expression gradually darkening. He refastened her clothes and pressed his lips together. “What happened after this prince left?”
Mu Yunjin shifted to a more comfortable position, blinking as she calculated whether to tell Chu Li about Qiuye’s rain prayer.
After much thought, to avoid Chu Li scolding her for meddling, Mu Yunjin could only fabricate an excuse. “After you left, I went to Qingfeng Mountain to sunbathe and accidentally rolled down the mountain.”
“This prince heard that you left in the middle of the night…” Chu Li raised an eyebrow.
Hearing this, Mu Yunjin sat up and punched Chu Li’s arm hard. “You have the nerve to say that! You left me behind and went with Qin Muyue!”
Although she knew the truth about why Chu Li and Qin Muyue had left, now facing Chu Li, she couldn’t help wanting to scold him a bit.
Chu Li sighed helplessly and pulled her into his arms. “Don’t run off on your own in the future.”
“Now that the rain in Qingzhou has stopped, can we return to the imperial city?” Mu Yunjin leaned in Chu Li’s embrace, her expression still thoughtful.
She had originally thought that Qin Muyue’s identity as the Phoenix Lady was revealed by Empress Qin’s secret letter, but from the tone of others just now, it seemed that wasn’t the case.
If so, then Concubine Rong’s identity as the Phoenix Lady had not yet been announced to the world.
But Qin Muyue’s Phoenix Lady identity was now known to the people of Qingzhou and would likely soon reach Emperor Ximing’s ears. She wondered how Emperor Ximing would react.
“You’re so eager to return to the imperial city?” Chu Li lowered his gaze to look at Mu Yunjin, seeing her eyes unfocused, as if her thoughts were elsewhere.
“Not really.” Mu Yunjin sighed lightly.
Chu Li nodded. “Let’s stay a few more days to heal your wounds. When you’re mostly recovered, we’ll go to Xinyao City for a few days.”
“Mm.” Mu Yunjin fully agreed with Chu Li’s words.
A month ago, if someone had mentioned Xinyao City, she would probably have only wanted to settle with Zixiang in the Qing Estate. But now, a month later, she seemed to only want to stay by Chu Li’s side. Wherever he went, she would go.
Mu Yunjin was somewhat shocked by her thoughts, silently thinking this was not a good sign.
……
“Master, the plan can no longer be carried out. Mu Yunjin has safely returned to Chu Li’s side.” In a dilapidated temple, Qin Muyue frowned as she looked at the Daoist Qiuye sitting before her.
Daoist Qiuye snorted heavily and glanced at Qin Muyue. “I created such a good opportunity for you, and you couldn’t seize it. You’ve truly disgraced your old master Qiuye.”
“Master…” Qin Muyue said helplessly. “This disciple calculated a thousand times but never expected that Mu Yunjin would be rescued by someone from East Lin.”
“I meticulously created this Qingzhou flood to keep Chu Li here in Qingzhou, unable to return to the imperial city, allowing your grandfather’s agents to be planted in every corner of the imperial city. It’s been less than half a month now; I wonder how your grandfather’s arrangements are progressing.” Daoist Qiuye sighed.
Qin Muyue crouched down to be eye level with Daoist Qiuye. “Master, this disciple knows that Grandfather wishes to overthrow the Chu family’s rule, but why, when Chu Ye is the Crown Prince, does he want to remove Brother Li?”
“Let me ask you this: among all the princes, why are you particularly fond of Chu Li?” Daoist Qiuye asked.
Qin Muyue was stunned, then curved her lips. “This disciple understands now.”
With those words, Qin Muyue stood up, her eyes filled with contemplation. Her grandfather’s actions undoubtedly marked Chu Li as the primary opponent. Would he then take action against Chu Li?
“If Chu Li refuses to join forces with your grandfather, your grandfather will indeed not spare him.” Qiuye, seeing through Qin Muyue’s thoughts, laughed coldly.
Qin Muyue’s heart jumped in alarm.
“However, the most pressing matter is not dealing with Chu Li, but with Mu Yunjin,” Daoist Qiuye reminded her. “She now has the Phoenix Lady’s identity, with boundless potential within her. If one day the power dormant within her body erupts, she will become the greatest threat.”
At the mention of the Phoenix Lady’s identity, Qin Muyue bit her lip and once again fell into a difficult situation. “But now that she’s injured, Chu Li will certainly be vigilant, making it even harder to get close to her.”
“The Qingzhou flood matter is over, and they won’t stay here for long. When they return to the imperial city, you must seize the opportunity.”
Qin Muyue nodded. At the mention of the imperial city, she seemed to recall someone, and her lips curved into a smile. “This disciple understands.”
……
After bathing, Mu Yunjin comfortably crawled into bed, propping her head up as she watched Chu Li sitting in a chair drinking tea.
“Why are people from East Lin here?” Mu Yunjin asked.
Chu Li put down his teacup and glanced at Mu Yunjin. “Father Emperor has invited people from the four countries to attend Chu Ye’s enthronement ceremony on the seventh day of next month.”
“People from all four countries?” Mu Yunjin raised an eyebrow. She had always been especially curious about people from the other three countries—East, South, and North. She hadn’t expected they would all gather next month.
“The last time I went to Qingfeng Mountain to gather herbs, I returned to find someone trying to kill Rong Jiu. I didn’t know at the time that he was the Crown Prince of East Lin,” Mu Yunjin said leisurely, as if explaining to Chu Li.
Chu Li made a sound of acknowledgment. “This prince knows.”
“This time, I was seriously injured and accidentally encountered by Rong Jiu. It was he repaying a favor to me. We’re now even.” Mu Yunjin avoided the topic of being pursued by Qin Muyue.
Chu Li nodded again, his gaze sweeping over her, his brows furrowed as he spoke, “Rong Jiu’s temperament is not as mild as it appears on the surface. Stay away from him in the future.”
“Who says I’ll have any future with him?” Mu Yunjin lay flat, thinking that although Rong Jiu had treated her well, she somehow felt an inexplicable resistance toward him.
Hearing her response, Chu Li’s lips curved slightly. “Mm, no future.”
“By the way, isn’t he the Crown Prince of East Lin? How dare anyone try to kill him?” Mu Yunjin thought of the scene from that day, still finding it unbelievable.
But thinking of East Lin, she recalled another person: the Second Prince Rong Min, who had conspired with Chu Qingse and was determined to seize the throne.
“Could it have been Rong Min’s doing?”
After Mu Yunjin asked this, Chu Li, who had stood up and walked over, knocked her on the head. “Don’t concern yourself with the affairs of other countries. Drink your medicine and go to sleep.”
As Chu Li finished speaking, Xiao Ju’s voice sounded from outside the door. “Your Highness, the medicine is ready.”
“Bring it in,” Chu Li said.
Xiao Ju pushed open the door and placed a steaming bowl of medicinal soup on the table beside Mu Yunjin’s bed, then smoothed her clothes and walked out.
Mu Yunjin quickly smelled the medicinal dregs and wrinkled her brow, taking a few breaths. “Chu Li, why do I feel like I haven’t been away from this medicine since I met you?”
“What are you trying to say?” Chu Li looked at Mu Yunjin with amusement, picked up the medicine bowl, and blew on it gently.
“I’m saying, could it be that our destinies are incompatible? Otherwise, why would I keep falling into water, taking blades for others, breaking bones…” Mu Yunjin counted seriously on her fingers.
Chu Li eyed Mu Yunjin as he handed her the medicine bowl, his tone full of mockery. “This prince thinks these all seem to be of your own making.”
“How unsympathetic.” Mu Yunjin sighed, shaking her head as she took the bowl and slowly drank the medicine.
In the end, she deliberately left a small amount. When returning the bowl to Chu Li, her hand trembled, and the remaining medicine spilled onto Chu Li’s moon-white formal robe.
Mu Yunjin looked at the black medicinal dregs spreading on his robe and covered her mouth in feigned surprise, exclaiming, “See? Our destinies are incompatible.”