In an ordinary house in Xinyang City, Han Ming Yue sat darkly on a bamboo couch, looking at the gray-clothed man kneeling before him on one knee. “What did you say?”
The gray-clothed man showed no fear, answering calmly, “Young Master, our people cannot get anywhere near Miss Su.” Han Ming Yue swept his hand, sending the porcelain on the nearby table crashing to the ground in pieces. “Useless! I don’t believe that in just a few days the Princess could make the Governor’s mansion so impenetrable that you can’t find a single weakness!” The gray-clothed man considered for a moment before saying, “The Princess seems to have an extremely unique approach to defense arrangements. Two months ago, forces from various countries gathered in the capital but couldn’t fully breach the Prince of Ding Guo’s manor. This servant believes… with our current manpower, it’s impossible to safely extract Miss Su from the Governor’s mansion.”
Han Ming Yue said gravely, “Then bring in more people! Even if we have to bring in everyone from the northwest, we must rescue Zui Die.”
The gray-clothed man frowned slightly and said, “Please reconsider, Young Master. If too many people suddenly appear in Xinyang city, it might arouse the Princess’s suspicion. That would be even more disadvantageous for Miss Su.” Han Ming Yue closed his eyes and sighed softly, “Fine, handle it as you see fit. Choose whatever manpower you need, but ensure Zui Die’s safety.” The gray-clothed man hesitated briefly, then nodded, “This servant accepts the command.”
Han Ming Yue’s sword-like brows furrowed deeply as he asked, “Any news from within the Governor’s mansion?”
The gray-clothed man replied, “Except for one serving maid, the Princess doesn’t allow anyone near Miss Su. This servant had people approach that maid, but she’s extremely loyal to the Princess – she can’t help us get close to Miss Su. However, we did get some information from her. Miss Su did indeed injure her head, and although a doctor treated it, it will likely leave a scar. Also… these days Miss Su calls for help daily, but that small courtyard is surrounded by the Prince’s guards. Miss Su’s situation…” Han Ming Yue’s eyes flashed with pain as he waved his hand, “Enough! Rescue Zui Die as soon as possible. Ye Li… if you harm her, don’t blame me for being merciless!”
In the West Ling military camp, the Prince of Zhen Nan looked at the news he had just received, his mood improved from the gloom of recent days.
“Why hasn’t Han Ming Yue come yet?” Looking at the message in his hand, the Prince’s eyes gleamed with certainty as he turned to ask his attendant. The person standing beside him started slightly and replied, “Your Highness, Young Master Han arrived several days ago.” The Prince frowned and said, “If he’s arrived, why hasn’t he come to see me?” In truth, the Prince of Zhen Nan didn’t think much of Han Ming Yue. Someone who would betray his country, friends, and brothers for a woman not only lacked potential for greatness but, in the Prince’s view, could only be trusted to a very limited extent. If not for the Tian Yi Pavilion under Han Ming Yue being a force the Prince desperately needed, he wouldn’t have bothered with him at all.
“Your Highness, Young Master Han… didn’t come to the army camp. It’s said he went directly to Xinyang.”
Bang! The Prince slammed the table as he stood up, his imposing face showing obvious anger, frightening the attendants in the large tent into kneeling simultaneously with a thud, not daring to speak. The Prince laughed coldly, “That Han Ming Yue! I thought he was merely arrogant about his talents, but it turns out he’s a fool!”
“Your… Your Highness?” The attendants following the Prince of Zhen Nan were naturally his confidants and well aware of Han Ming Yue’s identity. Though the Prince despised Han Ming Yue’s character, he had always praised his abilities – where did this talk of being a fool come from? The Prince laughed coldly and said, “Does he think Xinyang City is so easy to enter? I’m afraid he might get in but won’t get out!” The attendant’s heart jumped in alarm as he tentatively asked, “Your Highness… should we notify Young Master Han?” The Prince sat back down, lowered his eyes in thought for a moment, and said, “Han Ming Yue… hmph! He’ll be killed by women sooner or later. Never mind, it’s probably too late to notify him now. Send people to gather Tian Yi Pavilion’s forces in the northwest – something’s bound to go wrong.” The attendant hesitated before reporting truthfully, “Tian Yi Pavilion has always been under Young Master Han’s sole control. Without his seal, others don’t know the organization’s details, we probably can’t…”
“Damn it, send people into the city and bring Han Ming Yue back alive no matter what,” the Prince’s face darkened as he said coldly.
“Yes, Your Highness. Young Master Han rashly entered the city probably for Noble Consort Bai, if…”
“Never mind about that, I just want Han Ming Yue back alive! Otherwise, his Tian Yi Pavilion will be useless!” That woman Bai Rong, though beautiful, in the eyes of someone like the Prince of Zhen Nan, a beauty’s value was far below that of power. Since Bai Rong no longer had more value to exploit, naturally priority should be given to saving the more valuable Han Ming Yue. If Bai Rong died… Han Ming Yue and Mo Xiu Yao would become mortal enemies. This also aligned with his interests.
“This servant understands.”
Xinyang City
In a secluded courtyard of the Governor’s mansion, Su Zui Die sat by the window in plain clothes, her face dark as she stared into space. She prided herself on her peerless beauty, which over the years had captivated countless heroes and nobles, even royalty. She had risen from a mere orphaned official’s daughter in Da Chu to become the fiancée of the Prince of Ding’s second son, then the daughter of West Ling’s Bai family, and finally a powerful Noble Consort of West Ling. She had never doubted her beauty, but now, it was precisely her excessive confidence that had led to her imprisonment in this tiny courtyard, living in confusion. She had thought that even if Mo Xiu Yao blamed her for abandoning him when he was seriously injured, as long as she returned and apologized, he would surely forgive her and be overjoyed. But… remembering that day in the study, when she threw herself at the pillar, she saw Mo Xiu Yao’s indifferent expression, his calm eyes showing not the slightest ripple. As if the person attempting suicide before him was just a common maid reporting routine matters. At that moment, she clearly understood one thing: Mo Xiu Yao didn’t care about her. He wouldn’t be captivated by her beauty, nor would he feel pity for her. But because of this, the love she had hidden in her heart grew even stronger. She was insanely jealous of Ye Li – that man should have been hers, and the position of Princess should have been hers! But now, she was confined here by Ye Li, unable to move…
“Miss, it’s time for your meal,” a young maid approached carefully with a light meal. This beautiful Miss Bai was not easy to serve, something the little maid had come to understand deeply over these days.
“Get out! Tell Ye Li if she doesn’t release me, I’ll starve to death here,” Su Zui Die said harshly.
The little maid looked up at her briefly before lowering her head again, saying softly, “The Princess said… even if Miss Bai starves to death, His Highness won’t blame her. So… if Miss Bai doesn’t want to eat, that’s fine. Miss Bai… you should stop defying the Princess…”
“Impossible!” Su Zui Die stood up and glared fiercely at the timid maid before her, “Xiu Yao wouldn’t treat me like this! I want to see Ye Li, tell her to come see me!”
Looking at the beautiful but frantic woman before her, the little maid was so frightened that tears welled up in her eyes, “Miss Su… the Princess, the Princess is very busy. You… please eat your meal. This servant will leave it here.” With that, she placed the meal on the side table and fled as if there were man-eating monsters behind her.
Su Zui Die turned to look at the meal on the table – four simple dishes, a soup, and a bowl of rice. No premium ingredients, no sophisticated cooking, and even the knife work was ordinary – home-style dishes eaten by common people. Su Zui Die had lived in luxury these years, always having the best of everything, how could she look favorably upon such things? With a wave of her hand, she swept everything to the floor. The serving maid had barely run out when she heard the commotion and hurriedly returned. Seeing the mess on the floor, she said helplessly, “Miss… Miss Bai…”
Su Zui Die raised her chin and said coldly, “How can I eat such lowly things? Go change it and make it again!” The little maid said awkwardly, “But everyone eats like this now.”
“How dare you!” Su Zui Die raged, “Do you know who I am, yet you dare serve me such things?”
“But… His Highness and Her Grace eat the same… Miss Bai, these dishes are delicious, you’re… wasting too much.” With West Ling’s army surrounding the city, although grain was plentiful, vegetables were becoming scarce. Even His Highness and Her Grace’s daily meals were very simple. There was no way to prepare special meals just for Miss Bai. Su Zui Die’s face turned green with anger. After these days of interaction, she had come to understand this maid somewhat. Though appearing timid and ready to cry at a few harsh words, she could be infuriatingly stubborn at times. And Su Zui Die couldn’t even punish her to vent her anger, because once she acted excessively, the guards outside would come in to stop her.
Deeply angered, Su Zui Die snorted lightly and said, “Get out!”
The little maid looked at her carefully before respectfully withdrawing. Miss Bai was angry, better to come back later to clean up.
Left alone in the room, Su Zui Die looked at the mess of food on the floor, feeling increasingly irritated. She hadn’t eaten breakfast or lunch due to her temper, and now she was genuinely hungry. Thinking of these days of frustration, she gritted her teeth and stormed back to her room. Ye Li, you’d better not fall into my hands, or this Noble Consort will make you beg for life but find no death, beg for death but find no release.
“Zui Die…”
A very soft call came from the corner. Su Zui Die started and looked back to see Han Ming Yue, dressed in black, who had appeared in the corner behind the window. Su Zui Die stared blankly before suddenly coming to her senses and calling out joyfully, “Ming Yue…” Han Ming Yue shook his head, gesturing for her to be quieter. Su Zui Die came to her senses, warily glanced out the window, went forward to fully close the half-open window, then turned back to angrily say to Han Ming Yue, “Why did you only come now?! Do you know how badly I’ve been bullied!”
Han Ming Yue looked at the floor and smiled bitterly with some helplessness, “I’m sorry you’ve suffered.”