Yan Zhu felt that Shi Guang’s gaze made one’s blood run cold, but she still forced herself to remain calm and nod. “I am the Second Young Master’s maid — and I am the Second Young Master’s person. Naturally, whatever the Second Young Master asks me to do, I will do.”

Shi Guang smiled faintly. “Then — can you die for me?”

“Se-Second Young Master?” Yan Zhu was startled and stared at Shi Guang in disbelief. She thought Shi Guang was joking.

Shi Guang said, “What’s the matter — are you afraid?”

Yan Zhu: “……”

~~~

Yan Qing lay in bed with no desire to sleep whatsoever.

The Commander had suddenly passed away, and the weather in Shun Cheng was truly about to change. Moreover, Shi Ting was far away at Chang Sheng Bridge — who knew when he would be able to rush back. In the meantime, Shi Guang would surely not sit still and wait.

Just as Yan Qing was lost in her wandering thoughts, urgent knocking suddenly came from outside. Immediately after, lights brightened.

Yan Qing quickly sat up in bed and grabbed a coat to put on.

“Miss.” Jing Zhi did not wait for her to say “come in” before she pushed the door open and rushed inside. From the panic on her face, it was clear something major had happened.

Yan Qing’s heart tightened, and her eyelids began to flutter. “What has happened?”

“Outside, a great many people have suddenly arrived. The Shi Mansion has been sealed off.”

“Sealed off?” Yan Qing stepped toward her. “Sealed off by whom?”

“They should be the Second Young Master’s men.” Jing Zhi was panting heavily, still sweating on her head. “Murong heard sounds and went outside to check — she saw a group of people, fully armed with rifles, surrounding the Shi Mansion. Not only that — the streets outside the Shi Mansion are also full of soldiers.”

“Is Shi Guang trying to use us as hostages?” Yan Qing frowned. “As long as we are still inside the mansion, even if reinforcements come from outside, they would not dare to make a hard assault.”

“And also — Huicun’s master is also in the mansion.”

“Huicun?” Yan Qing was startled. “At this hour of the night — why would he be here?”

Late at night like this — could he have come to see Ling Ai?

“I don’t know either. Murong has already gone out to gather news.”

“Let’s go to Mother first.”

“Miss, please don’t rush — be careful of your health.” Jing Zhi said worriedly. “No matter what happens, the Young Commander is still here. He will definitely keep us safe.”

“Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing.”

The moment Yan Qing and Jing Zhi stepped out the door, someone blocked their path. Murong, who had gone to gather news, was also being held up.

“Young Mistress — where are you going?” This person was dressed in military uniform, a gun holstered at his waist, and now reached out a hand to block Yan Qing’s path.

Only then did Yan Qing notice that outside Tiaolan Courtyard, there were soldiers everywhere — all unfamiliar faces.

“Who are you? Do you know where this is?” Yan Qing asked sternly. “Do you know who I am?”

“Since I called you Young Mistress, I naturally know who you are.” The man’s expression did not change. “Young Mistress, please go back.”

“Who sent you?”

“That’s not important,” the man said with some impatience. “It’s the dead of night and bitterly cold. Young Mistress, you’d better not catch a chill — please go back inside right away.”

“Tell Shi Guang to come see me.” Yan Qing did not panic, but instead looked straight at the man with clear, steady eyes.

“Young Mistress, please go back.”

Yan Qing paid him no heed and walked directly past him toward the outside. The man grew anxious and moved to stop her — but just as his hand reached out, a sharp command rang out. “Stand down.”

Yan Qing followed the voice and looked — Shi Guang was slowly walking out from within the darkness of the night. His figure emerged from the shadows, his face gradually becoming distinct.

Yan Qing met his gaze, and he looked back at her.

“It’s freezing cold — where are you going?” Shi Guang stepped past the man and walked up to Yan Qing. The gaze he rested on her face carried a thread of warmth. “This late, you should be going to sleep.”

“What does this mean?” Yan Qing scanned the courtyard outside. “Is this your way of taking us as hostages?”

“Yan Qing, you’ve misunderstood.” Shi Guang explained calmly. “The reason I’ve had people surround the Shi Mansion is to protect your safety.”

“Protecting our safety? Shi Guang, you truly speak lies without a blush.”

Shi Guang shook his head. “You don’t know yet — there is a spy from Xi Nan in the mansion.”

Yan Qing’s brow furrowed.

“That maid Yan Zhu by Ling Ai’s side — she is a spy from Xi Nan. After I discovered her identity, she committed suicide out of guilt. From her confession before she died, I learned that she was not the only spy in the mansion — there are others still hidden within.”

Yan Qing did not believe a single word Shi Guang said. Not one. The so-called spy he mentioned was nothing but a pretext.

“Yan Qing, trust me — don’t move around carelessly for now. That spy is hiding in the shadows and may very well make a move against you.”

“Where is Ling Ai?”

“Ling Ai has already gone to sleep. Let’s not disturb her.”

“But I heard that Huicun’s master also came — why did he come to the Shi Mansion in the middle of the night?”

Shi Guang answered without changing his expression. “Naturally because he heard that a spy had infiltrated the mansion, and that this spy happened to be his daughter’s personal maid — so he was worried and came over. I’ve already arranged a guest room for him and had him rest here for the night. At a time like this, everyone is under suspicion, so no one can be allowed to come in or go out anymore.”

“Where is Yan Zhu’s body?” Yan Qing said coldly. “May I see it?”

“What’s there to see in a spy’s body?” Shi Guang’s brow furrowed slightly. “Yan Qing, I know you don’t trust me. But at a time like this, you have no choice but to listen to me.”

“Where are Di Huai and Jin Shan?”

“Don’t worry — they are your people. Why would I harm them? They are doing just fine.”

Yan Qing bit her lower lip, her eyes narrowing slightly. “Shi Guang, you must not lay a hand on them.”

“I said it — they are your people, and I won’t touch them.” Shi Guang smiled lightly. “Yan Qing, stay here in the courtyard and rest well. By the time the gates open again and you walk out, the sky over Shun Cheng may already look very different.”

Shi Guang finished, gave a faint smile, and strode away from Tiaolan Courtyard with unhurried steps.

Yan Qing stood there, hearing him instruct the man from before: “Protect the Seventh Young Mistress well. If she loses even a single hair on her head, you’ll answer for it.”

Only after Shi Guang left did that man say respectfully, “Seventh Young Mistress, please stop making things difficult for me and go back inside to rest.”

Yan Qing knew Shi Guang would not release her. Di Huai and Jin Shan were also under his control. She could not act rashly, for the Second Mistress, Ling Ai — all of them had been confined by Shi Guang within this small domain, and any move she made would be constrained.

What was more, beside her she only had Jing Zhi and Murong. She could not have them take risks either.

Yan Qing returned to her room. Though it was the middle of the night, she had no desire to sleep whatsoever. Outside the courtyard, the repeated sound of military boots pressing against the ground rang out continuously — the sound of these people conducting their rounds of patrol.

“Miss, it seems we have truly become birds in a cage.” Jing Zhi and Murong sat to one side, both wearing expressions of gloom.

“The Young Commander is still at Chang Sheng Bridge right now — who knows what the situation is there. The events here have happened too suddenly. The Young Commander may not even have received word yet.”

Jing Zhi said, “Even if he receives word — what then? Far water cannot quench a near fire. Under these circumstances, the Young Commander cannot possibly launch a hard assault. The Second Young Master would use Miss and the Second Mistress as hostages.”

Yan Qing listened to the two of them murmuring, her heart equally anxious.

She was certain there was no spy in the Shi Mansion. Yan Zhu was merely an innocent victim, casually saddled with a crime by Shi Guang and used as a fuse.

With Huicun’s master now inside the mansion, any action by the Dian nation’s forces would also be restrained.

Although Huicun’s master had not taken Shi Ting’s side, after Prince Renqin departed, his attitude toward Shi Guang had become ambiguous.

A large part of this was due to Ling Ai.

Shi Guang did not trust Huicun’s master at all, so he devised a way to lure him over. As long as Huicun’s master was in his hands, Huicun’s forces would not dare to act rashly. Whether Huicun’s master leaned toward Shi Ting or Shi Guang — right now, he could not even help himself.

Yan Qing was now very worried about Luo Huaimeng. She had always been in poor health to begin with, and after a shock and ordeal like this, there was no telling whether it might trigger an old ailment.

She could not escape from here, but she had to think of a way to get to Luo Huaimeng’s side. If she were present, Luo Huaimeng would not be quite so distressed.

She knew this was Shi Guang’s final act of madness, and no one could predict what deranged things a person driven to a dead end might do.

Shi Guang’s hands were soaked in blood. He had killed untold numbers of people in order to seize power. To him, the people in this mansion were nothing more than blades of grass — if he wished, any one of them could be cut down at any moment.

The best course now was to endure. She must not provoke this madman, Shi Guang. She had to wait for Shi Ting to return.

~~~

It was snowing at Chang Sheng Bridge.

The Hai Cheng area was situated further north, and its winters were several degrees colder than Shun Cheng’s — there was a heavy snowfall almost every ten days or half a month.

Shi Ting was still leading men to participate in rescue operations at this time. Because of the bitter cold, every day of delay brought new casualties.

“Young Commander, we must hurry back,” the adjutant said. “Under the current circumstances, there is likely to be a change of events in Shun Cheng.”

Shi Ting gave a nod. “You leave some men to continue the rescue work here. The rest will set out and return to Shun Cheng.”

“Yes, sir.” The adjutant stood at attention, saluted, and trotted off to give the order. But just then, a scout came running over at full speed — in his haste, he even forgot to salute.

“Young Commander, this is bad — there is movement from Xi Nan.”

Because this area bordered Xi Nan, Shi Ting had long since sent men to keep watch over the movements at the border.

That the Commander had met with misfortune here had been planned in advance. Likewise, the person who had lured him here had absolutely not done so simply to have him handle an accident.

“How many have come?”

“Approximately fifty thousand men,” the scout said. “They have already crossed the border between the two territories and appear to be heading this way.”

The adjutant said urgently, “What are we to do? We only brought a single bodyguard unit, while the enemy has fifty thousand troops. The defensive forces along the border will be flattened in short order.”

Then another person came rushing to report. “Young Commander, this is bad — word has just come in that the Shi Mansion has been surrounded.”