At the spring banquet, the group exchanged drinks in the palace until the red sun slanted westward before dispersing.

Huang Zixia followed the carriage out of the palace gates, and just as she breathed a sigh of relief, Li Shubai lifted the curtain and called to her: “Get in.”

She climbed in resignedly and saw his gaze sweep over her once before turning to the window. She followed his gaze through the carved window with its cloud and five blessings pattern, watching the ordinary street scenes slowly pass by.

Still looking outside, he spoke directly: “I want to hear about your family’s case now.”

Huang Zixia froze for a moment, then asked softly: “Your Highness is truly willing to look into this case?”

“Do you think I would go back on my word?” His expression was indifferent, as if saying ‘Tell me or don’t, it’s up to you.’

Huang Zixia bit her lower lip, and after a long while, sat down on the low stool opposite him and hesitantly began: “The story should start from the day before the bloody incident. That day was clear, the plum blossoms in our small garden were in full bloom, and Yu Xuan and I were breaking off plum branches in the snow—it was a rare beautiful winter day…”

Li Shubai continued watching the slowly passing street scene and asked: “Who is Yu Xuan?”

“He’s… an orphan my father adopted after moving to Shu Prefecture. He passed the imperial examination at eighteen, and though the prefecture gave him his residence, he still often came to visit my parents.”

He turned to look at her and saw her face suddenly take on a subtle expression. That face, pale from months of flight and worry, showed an almost imperceptible blush, making her look completely different.

Yu Xuan—apparently a man who had grown up with her like childhood sweethearts.

He turned his gaze back to the window, his expression remaining calm as he merely gave a soft “Oh.”

Seeing he didn’t pursue the topic, Huang Zixia felt slightly relieved inside. She took a deep breath and continued narrating the events of that day several months ago that remained branded in her heart.

Light snow had fallen that early morning, and after it cleared, the white snow set off the red plum blossoms in a pristine, bright crystalline world.

Huang Zixia, arms full of plum blossoms, smiled as she showed them to Yu Xuan beside her. Yu Xuan said, “The other day I saw a pair of plum blossom vases the color of the sky after rain in the market. I thought they would look perfect in your room, so I bought them. I forgot to bring them today, but I’ll have someone deliver them this afternoon.”

She nodded with a smile. It was a beautiful winter day as they stood together admiring the scene, but this perfection was disrupted by the arrival of two visitors.

Her father arrived with her grandmother and uncle. She cried out in joy, tossed the plum blossoms to Yu Xuan, and rushed to embrace her grandmother.

She had been doted on by her grandmother since childhood and was especially close to her. Seeing this, Yu Xuan took his leave. Her grandmother watched him leave with a smile, but afterward, Huang Zixia heard her soft sigh.

The grandmother and granddaughter held hands as they went to her mother’s room to talk. Her mother smiled and said, “Your grandmother and uncle have come this time to discuss your marriage.”

Marriage. Huang Zixia silently let go of her grandmother’s hand and sat there without a word. Her grandmother helplessly patted her hand and smiled, saying, “The Wang family is a prestigious clan, and Wang Yun is the eldest grandson of the main branch. Moreover, your father has met him and has always praised Wang Yun’s appearance and character as exceptional. You will surely have a smooth and happy life married to him.”

Her mother looked worriedly at Huang Zixia and said softly to grandmother: “Mother, you don’t know, this girl has some notion in her head—she becomes unhappy whenever we mention the Wang family.”

“The little girl is just shy,” Grandmother smiled.

Huang Zixia held her breath, about to argue, when the maids came to announce dinner. Everyone rose to go to the outer room to eat. As soon as Uncle Huang Jun saw her, he smiled and said, “Zixia, when you become someone’s daughter-in-law, you can’t be late to meals like this—you’ll need to have the rice ready and waiting for your parents-in-law.”

Her father laughed and said, “Wang Yun lives alone in the capital, what parents-in-law would she need to serve? When Zixia marries in spring, it will be just like being at home.”

Huang Zixia froze and put down her bowl to ask: “Spring?”

Her mother quickly gave her father a warning look, then said to her, “Yes, your grandmother and uncle came this time to discuss whether you should marry next spring, and coincidentally, the Wang family has the same thought…”

“You’ve all already decided, haven’t you?” Huang Zixia couldn’t help but stand up, trembling with anger. “Father, Mother, I begged you early on to withdraw from this engagement with the Wang family, but you… you’re still forcing me to marry into the Wang family!”

“Child, you’re being ridiculous,” Huang Jun had already settled everything with the Wang family, and seeing her like this, he lost face. Putting down his chopsticks, he said seriously, “The Wang family of Langya is a great clan of hundreds of years. Both the current Emperor’s previous and current Empress Wang came from their family. Do you think this marriage can be canceled on a whim? Being able to marry into the Wang family is due to the virtue of our ancestors—you’d better hurry and prepare your dowry!”

Her father also sighed and said: “Zixia, this marriage was arranged by your grandfather when he was Prime Minister, for you and Wang Yun. Though our family has declined, the Wang family hasn’t looked down on us, showing they truly like you. Marrying Wang Yun is a good thing—I’ve met him, and his character and appearance are top-notch, no worse than others.”

“But I’ve fallen for someone else, I don’t like him!”

Her brother Huang Yan, who had been eating with his head down, finally looked up and added fuel to the fire: “Well well, looking down on the Wang family? Wait until you get the whole family killed, then you can break off the engagement.”

Huang Zixia felt an icy chill shoot up to her head. She slammed down the bowl in her hand, but her trembling hands couldn’t hold the bowl and chopsticks. The soup bowl rolled off the table and shattered.

The soup splashed onto the hem of her grandmother’s dress. Her grandmother stood up helplessly, quickly calling for a maid to clean it while sighing, “Child, your temperament has gotten worse.”

She felt her eyes burning unbearably, tears about to burst forth. She could only cover her face and run back to her room to cry loudly. She didn’t know how long she cried until she felt a pair of hands gently pressing on her shoulders, and her mother’s voice softly sounded beside her ear: “Zixia, don’t be so willful and sad. This matter… your father and I are also discussing it. If you truly oppose it this much, we have no choice. Even if we offend the Wang family, we certainly can’t let you suffer like this.”

She turned to look at her mother through tears, seeing only her helpless smile through the teardrops. Her mother said, “First go back and apologize to your grandmother and uncle. What can’t be discussed among family?”

“But I… going back… it’s so embarrassing,” she sobbed.

“Go to the kitchen and bring back another dish. Didn’t we make your grandmother’s favorite lamb soup tonight? Go on, come back and serve everyone a bowl, apologize for your attitude just now. The family will all help think of a solution.”

She nodded, wiped her tears, and went to the kitchen, personally carrying the bowl of lamb soup to the table, and then serving each person a cup. However, she alone had just been crying, her throat choked up, and she didn’t like the gamey smell of the lamb soup, so she only drank half a bowl of almond milk soup.

That night, her entire family died of poisoning, and the lethal arsenic had been in the lamb soup that she had personally carried and served to everyone.

Dusk was settling, and as they traveled, the lanterns of Chang’an were beginning to light up.

Li Shubai listened silently until she finished, then said slowly: “But, just based on this, it doesn’t necessarily prove you poisoned your family. Couldn’t others have had access to that bowl of lamb soup?”

“No,” Huang Zixia said softly but clearly. “The lamb was delivered by the Granary Secretary’s office the day before. That afternoon, because my grandmother and uncle came, the kitchen slaughtered the lamb and made braised lamb, lamb soup, and lamb shank soup.”

The other dishes had no problems, and even the remaining lamb soup, which the servants shared after Huang Zixia had taken a large bowl, caused no issues. Only the bowl that Huang Zixia had personally ladled, personally carried to the flower hall, and personally served to everyone—of which some remained after dinner. The kitchen aunties, being lazy, had simply locked it in the kitchen cabinet. Because the tragedy was discovered early the next morning, the cabinet hadn’t been unlocked. When Head Aunt Lu came in the morning and took out last night’s bowl of lamb soup under the watchmen’s supervision, testing revealed it contained arsenic.

“Could someone have poisoned the bowl itself?”

“No, I was worried my hands were dirty, so I washed the bowl after getting it. And also, there’s one more thing…” Huang Zixia said with difficulty, “They found an empty arsenic packet in my room.”

“You bought arsenic?”

“Yes, from Guiren Hall, the most famous medicine shop in Shu Prefecture. When officials checked the sales records, they found my signature clear as day, confirmed without doubt.”

“Why did you buy arsenic?” Li Shubai asked.

“I…” she hesitated, then said, “Earlier, while reading with Yu Xuan, we found a folk remedy in a book claiming three qian of gelsemium juice could counteract half a liang of arsenic poison. I didn’t believe it, so we made a bet… Since I had helped the government handle various poisoning cases, the purchase of arsenic fell to me, while Yu Xuan went to the mountains to gather gelsemium. We planned to test it on the neighbor’s vicious dogs that were always biting people.”

“Had you made such bets before?”

“More than once or twice.”

“Did you explain this?”

“Yes, and Yu Xuan corroborated it, but it was dismissed as an excuse.”

Li Shubai raised his eyebrows slightly: “Where is this Yu Xuan now?”

Huang Zixia was silent for a long while before saying slowly: “He had no opportunity to do it. After leaving my home that day, he went to the academy to discuss philosophy with friends. He returned home that evening and didn’t go out again until he received news of my parents’ deaths.”

“So it seems your guilt is clear as day,” Li Shubai said leisurely.

“Yes, the only possible opportunity to add poison was when I carried that bowl of lamb soup from the kitchen to the hall. Plus, I had purchased arsenic and had… what they called motive.”

Li Shubai nodded, saying slowly: “Looking at it this way, the only person who could have killed your parents was indeed you. Overturning this verdict won’t be easy.”

She sat opposite Li Shubai, looking at the intricate brocade patterns decorating the carriage interior, with golden threads delicately outlining auspicious qilin beasts and five-colored blessed clouds. Sitting on the thick silk cushion of the low stool, with clarity-enhancing storax incense burning in the carriage, in this warm and soft fragrance, she sat numbly, as if reliving that experience, her whole body cold.

Her lips were like withered white flowers in the wind, and even the crimson palace robes couldn’t add any color to her complexion. She looked at the person before her, her voice slightly hoarse: “Your Highness, do you also believe, like them, that someone would kill their entire family for—that reason?”

Li Shubai looked at her for a long time, then turned his gaze to the scenery outside the window and said: “Who knows? The human heart is most unpredictable, especially in girls your age.”

Huang Zixia looked at his indifferent expression and said tremblingly: “If Your Highness can truly help as previously stated, I believe clouds cannot forever obscure the sun, and my parents’ wrongful deaths will surely be cleared before all under heaven.”

“After summer passes, I will travel to Ba-Shu once. At that time, I’ll take you along and have your parents’ case files reopened completely. I believe someone like you, who can easily solve mysterious cases, couldn’t be so blind to your situation that you can’t clear your name.”

She bit her lower lip and after a long while asked: “You truly believe me and will help me?”

His gaze rested on her face. The tree shadows outside filtered strips of sunlight like threads of gold, flowing across her face. In that golden light, her pale face and clear eyes appeared strikingly pure and brilliant, as if even the sunlight was merely her backdrop, losing its radiance before her.

Such a young woman, bearing the world’s most terrible accusation and grievance, yet unhesitatingly taking the most difficult path, burying deep all the softness and delicacy that should belong to a young woman, leaving only the desperately determined path forward, blazing with brilliance.

Li Shubai’s heart, long calm, and undisturbed, suddenly stirred at this moment, like spring wind brushing across a deep valley lake, raising ripples for the first time.

But it was only for a moment. He turned his gaze back outside, and his voice, deliberately suppressed, became deep and slightly hoarse: “Yes, I believe you, and I will help you. Likewise, you must entrust your future life to me.”

Huang Zixia looked up at him, at his beautifully contoured profile in the sunset, like mountains and rivers in relief—a determination that seemed impervious even to ten thousand years of frost.

“From now on, as long as you’re by my side, you need not worry or fear.”

In her heart, she suddenly felt a faint drop of bitterness enter her heart’s lake. Before her eyes, like a dream, flashed that summer when large patches of wind-blown lotus filled the pond. Back then, that person had held her hand and spoken similarly.

Now, circumstances had changed, and her life had withered, but fortunately, through desperate effort, she had finally grasped a thread of opportunity to stand beside this person before her.

The carriage stopped—they had arrived at the Prince of Kui’s mansion. Li Shubai pushed open the door and got down himself. Seeing her descending from the carriage in a daze, he carelessly raised his hand to help her down.

The sun was setting in the west, its slanting light like gold. She placed her hand in his palm, seeing his face in the sunlight, radiating like his hands, with crystalline brilliance.