As night fell, a light rain began to patter, droplets rhythmically falling from the eaves. Mingtan lay on her side, quietly listening to the rain.
When Bai Minmin and Zhou Jingwan arrived, braving the rain, Suxin had just warmed some porridge and was about to bring it in.
Bai Minmin took it from her. “I’ll do it.”
Suxin nodded, curtsying slightly to the two women and glancing at those behind them.
Young Master Zhang, Commander Lu, and Second Young Master Shu – quite a complete group.
Suxin initially thought it improper for men to enter but then realized that staying in a brothel for days was already most improper. With Miss Jingwan present, she decided not to say anything.
Bai Minmin carefully carried the porridge, leading the group into the room. She quickly sat by the bed, set down the bowl, and looked at Mingtan with teary eyes. “Atan, you’ve suffered so much!”
Mingtan’s eyelashes fluttered weakly. “I’m fine. Why have you all come at this hour?”
“I haven’t been able to sleep these past days. When I heard you were awake, how could I stay away?” She clasped Mingtan’s hand tightly. “Are you still in pain? It must hurt terribly. I’ve sent Zhang Huaiyu to find rare Western medicines. We’ll make sure there’s not a trace of a scar left, don’t worry!”
Mingtan’s lips curved slightly. “You always understand me best.”
“Of course-” Bai Minmin couldn’t stop talking, but Zhou Jingwan gently pulled at her, her gaze fixed on the large dark stain on the brocade pillow.
“Atan, your shoulder is injured. You shouldn’t use such a high pillow. Let’s change it.”
Zhou Jingwan’s voice was soft, her movements gentle. She supported Mingtan, gesturing for Bai Minmin to change the pillow.
Bai Minmin did so without understanding at first, only then realizing the original pillow was wet. She paused, her heart aching even more.
Mingtan, however, appeared quite calm, allowing Bai Minmin to feed her the porridge. Bai Minmin nodded, eagerly picking up the bowl and carefully spooning it, blowing gently before offering it to Mingtan.
The room was quiet. Shu Jingran and the others, having entered, stood at a distance, not daring to approach.
After Bai Minmin finished feeding Mingtan and the three women had caught up, Zhou Jingwan spoke softly, not looking at anyone in particular: “If you have something to say, make it brief. Atan needs to rest.”
Hearing this, Lu Ting spoke first. After all, Jingwan had been cold to him for days, and if he hadn’t brought her to see the princess tonight, she might have continued to ignore him.
Unfortunately, he wasn’t good with words and couldn’t get to the point: “…The Department of Justice prison is still an imperial prison. Even with His Highness’s instructions, conditions are still those of a prison. The Marquis must have suffered some hardship, but Princess, rest assured, the Marquis’s life is not in danger.”
Shu Jingran, hearing this, almost wanted to facepalm. He had to take over the explanation: “What Lu Ting means is that the Marquis is unharmed and hasn’t suffered physical abuse. It’s just that the imperial prison is damp and the food is simple. The Marquis has been inconvenienced these past few days.”
Lu Ting pressed his lips together and nodded.
Seeing no reaction from Mingtan, Shu Jingran continued: “Actually, Qizhi didn’t want to keep this from you, but there are spies from Behe and Qiangyu in the capital. If we had alerted them, all the intelligence the Marquis had gathered would have been wasted. After all, even the Prince of Beiding’s manor had moles planted by the Empress Dowager years ago, didn’t it?” He paused. “Moreover, apart from His Majesty, Qizhi, the Marquis, and Lu Ting, no one else knew about this. Princess, you should know that imperial orders cannot be disobeyed.”
Would these words have any effect? Zhang Huaiyu couldn’t help but glance at him.
But Shu Er continued calmly: “On the day of the imperial decree, when half the work was done, Qizhi was about to return to the manor to put your mind at ease, but he was ambushed by remnants of the Su faction on the way.”
Mingtan’s fingertips twitched slightly.
“The Empress Dowager confined herself to Shoukang Palace, aiming for a peaceful rest in the imperial mausoleum and continued offerings after her death. But she realized that His Majesty and Qizhi didn’t intend to give her this opportunity, so she decided to drag others down with her. She targeted anyone she could, ambushing Qizhi while also activating long-hidden moles in the prince’s manor to sow discord between you and Qizhi.
“That night at Bieyu Tower, Qizhi was waiting for the Empress Dowager’s elite archers. Your sudden appearance made it impossible for him to predict when they would strike. He wanted to send you back to the prince’s manor, fearing that your prolonged stay here might lead to an accident. Unfortunately, that accident still happened.”
Mingtan understood most of this to some extent and didn’t show much reaction.
Zhang Huaiyu was anxious, doubting for the millionth time whether Shu Jingran was up to the task.
“Of course, I know what the princess cares about most isn’t any of this,” Shu Jingran suddenly said. “Does the princess remember the great fire on the Lingyu River when we traveled south to Lingzhou? The princess was unconscious for a day and a night, and he stayed awake watching over you the entire time. I told him to rest and let the maids take turns watching, but he refused. For the first time in his life, a woman had rushed into a fire to save him. He asked me if this was because you cared for him. I asked in return, what if you did care for him? He replied – if she cares, I must not let her down.”
Mingtan couldn’t help but grip the brocade quilt tightly.
“Although marrying the princess wasn’t his original intention when the imperial decree for the marriage came, he said that since he was marrying you, he would ensure your safety for life. He never intended to harm the Marquis. On the contrary, he has always admired him,” he paused, implying, “If it weren’t for Qizhi, the Jingan Marquis’s household and the Ling Duke’s household might have become in-laws through shared hardship by now.”
Zhang Huaiyu couldn’t help but glance sideways, realizing that for Jiang Qizhi’s sake, Shu Jingran was even implicitly criticizing His Majesty… His words were indeed worthy of the third-ranked scholar.
At this point, Shu Jingran paused briefly before continuing softly: “Whether many things are sincere or false, the princess surely has her judgment. In this matter, though forced by circumstances and against his wishes, when the princess was unconscious, he said he was wrong – ‘Allowing my wife to be injured is my greatest mistake.'”
Bai Minmin and Zhou Jingwan were both moved.
For someone like the Prince of Beiding to say such words… If Bai Minmin didn’t trust Second Young Master Shu’s character, she might have suspected he was making it up.
“I’ve said all that needs to be said. Qizhi is naturally reticent and dislikes excessive talk. His personality has improved considerably from before. Previously, he never bothered to explain his actions to others. Sometimes it would take a year or more for people to suddenly understand.
“We’ve come uninvited tonight simply because I know Qizhi cares for the princess. This journey to the Northwest is fraught with danger. If he could receive a word of understanding from the princess, I believe he would be more mindful of his safety in battle. This way, I might see him return alive.”
He bowed slightly from a distance: “Please forgive Shu’s intrusion, Princess.”
Lu Ting wanted to add something, but Shu Jingran gave him an imperceptible look, and he opened his mouth only to remain silent.
In comparison, Zhang Huaiyu was much more perceptive. Shu Jingran had made his point, and to continue pleading would be tasteless. So he hadn’t planned to say much, only giving Bai Minmin a “let’s go” look.
Bai Minmin understood, exchanging a glance with Zhou Jingwan before saying softly, “Atan, it’s getting late. Rest well, and Jingwan and I will come see you again tomorrow.”
The group quietly retreated, gently closing the door behind them.
…
Outside Bieyu Tower, Lu Ting walked beside Zhou Jingwan, asking softly if she was satisfied with his performance today.
Zhou Jingwan didn’t look at him, only gazing at the carriage in the distance, speaking softly, “All the words were spoken by Second Young Master Shu. Even if Atan’s mind is at ease, it has nothing to do with you.”
As Lu Ting was about to say more, they suddenly heard Lü’e calling from behind: “Miss Minmin, Miss Jingwan, please wait!”
Lü’e ran up, lifting her skirts, her face full of anxiety: “My lady! The princess! She…”
“Speak slowly. What’s wrong with Atan?” Zhou Jingwan asked.
Lü’e was sweating with anxiety: “I don’t know what’s come over my lady. I just went in, and she insisted I find someone to prepare a horse. She says she wants to leave the city!”
Bai Minmin’s eyes widened: “Leave the city? Could she be thinking of chasing after the prince? She’s so badly injured, has she gone mad?”
“This, this is truly unnecessary. A letter would suffice,” Shu Jingran also felt a sense of unintended consequences.
“But my lady has already struggled to sit up. She says she must leave the city today, and if I can’t find someone to take her, she’ll walk there herself, daring anyone to stop her.”
They certainly wouldn’t dare stop her, and she couldn’t walk there anyway. But if she fainted again before even getting downstairs, no one could bear that responsibility.
As Bai Minmin and Zhou Jingwan were about to go with Lü’e to persuade her, they saw Mingtan trembling as she leaned on the windowsill, looking down.
“Atan!” Bai Minmin and Zhou Jingwan called out worriedly.
Lu Ting, for some inexplicable reason, blurted out as everyone was anxiously preparing to go upstairs to persuade her: “I’ll take the princess.”
Zhou Jingwan: “…?”
–
The journey from the capital to Yangxi Road required leaving through the West Gate, but Bieyu Tower was in the east of the city. A troop of soldiers rode hard for over an hour before finally reaching the city gate.
As they left the city, rain began to fall. The winter night wind was biting, the rain cold. A commander reined in his horse and suggested: “Your Highness, why don’t we set up camp here for the night and wait for the rain to stop before crossing the mountains?”
Jiang Xu pulled on his reins, looking back at the distant city tower, and commanded in a deep voice: “Stop. We’ll rest here tonight.”
Simple tents were quickly set up, and small fires were lit with the limited dry firewood. Everyone gathered around for warmth, finding places to sleep quickly.
Jiang Xu also sat by the fire. The dry wood occasionally crackled, sparks flying outward.
He had been watching over Mingtan for days without much rest, but now that he wasn’t by her side, he found himself unable to sleep.
If he had known about the rain earlier, he might have stayed one more night. But then again, staying or leaving didn’t seem to make much difference – she didn’t want to see him anyway.
He sat quietly through the night.
At the fifth watch, as dawn broke, everyone awoke, packing up the tents and preparing to depart.
Jiang Xu gripped the reins, taking one last look at the West Gate tower behind him, gradually becoming clearer in the early morning light. With no further lingering, he issued the order: “Move out.”
“Jiang Qizhi!”
“Hya!”
“Hya!”
“Jiang Qizhi!”
As his warhorse galloped forward with a neigh, a commander beside Jiang Xu shouted: “Your Highness! It seems someone is calling for you from behind!”
Jiang Xu slowed slightly. He had heard it too, but the voice was so faint and familiar that he thought he might be hallucinating.
The entire troop slowed, and with the hoof beats quieter, the voice calling his name from behind, though distant, became clearer than before.
“Jiang Qizhi! If you don’t come back, I’ll never forgive you!”
Jiang Xu slowly turned his horse around, looking at the tiny figure on the distant city tower.
“Is that the princess?”
“It seems so…”
Someone boldly suggested to Jiang Xu: “Your Highness, do you want to go back and say a few words to the princess? It would only take an hour or two, and we can make up the time by resting less later to catch up with the main army.”
“No need.”
Jiang Xu gazed at that distant figure. Despite the great distance, he felt as if their eyes met.
After a moment, he raised his hand, his gaze sharp and determined: “Reclaiming Rongzhou is urgent. We cannot delay. Move out!”
With a crack of the whip, his horse turned sharply. Iron hooves kicked up dust as they gradually disappeared into the mountains and forests leading away from the capital.