The air fell silent, an awkwardness spreading.

Yan Sanhe looked coldly at Young Master Pei, calculating in her heart—if he really couldn’t open his mouth, she would help him out.

No one stipulated that people Zhao Yishi liked couldn’t be liked by others.

Unexpectedly, Pei Xiao confessed openly himself.

“Huairen, there’s something I feared would make you unhappy, so I’ve been hiding it.”

Zhao Yishi got straight to the point: “It concerns Li Buyan?”

Pei Xiao was slightly startled by his question: “I don’t know why, but my mind keeps thinking of her, like I’m possessed. But in her eyes, there’s never been any trace of me.”

The latter half of the sentence didn’t really need to be said, but Pei Xiao thought—this was his one-sided matter, so he needed to clear the young lady’s name.

Huairen was his good brother.

Two brothers simultaneously liking the same young lady wasn’t shameful.

What was shameful was—Huairen was open and honest, placing his affection for Li Buyan in the open, while he kept hiding and concealing, not acting like a man.

The air fell silent again.

All three people’s gazes gathered on Zhao Yishi, watching his reaction or waiting for his judgment.

But his face showed no expression, calm as a still pond.

After a long while, he revealed a shallow smile, seemingly joking: “Miss Li’s standards have always been high—even I don’t meet them.”

With these words, Pei Xiao’s and Xie Zhifei’s eyes cleared like clouds parting, simultaneously gaining spirit.

The three had grown up together and understood each other’s temperaments well.

If Huairen could say this, it meant he didn’t mind Pei Xiao having feelings for Li Buyan.

“This afternoon, Imperial Physician Pei came to find me, asking me to advise you properly.”

Zhao Yishi’s finger pointed at the two: “You two, one after another… ai, none of you let me worry.”

Pei Xiao smiled ingratiatingly at Zhao Yishi: “Don’t pay attention to my father. Just say you couldn’t advise me.”

“I could advise you, just reluctant to advise.”

Zhao Yishi’s lips curled with an elusive mocking smile.

“But Mingting, you’re different from Chengyu. He has an older brother above him, but you’re the Pei family’s legitimate eldest son. Many matters must be carefully considered—you cannot act on impulse.”

His gaze cooled slightly.

“Don’t let Chengyu that scoundrel act recklessly and willfully, making you also throw caution to the wind. Think clearly about priorities yourself.”

“What’s this?”

Yan Sanhe found these words somewhat grating: “In Your Highness’s heart, is Xie Chengyu confessing our matter to his family elders considered reckless and willful?”

Zhao Yishi smiled warmly, saying nothing.

“Yan Sanhe, Huairen doesn’t mean that.”

Xie Zhifei, fearing the two would clash, quickly interjected: “Alright, idle matters concluded—Mingting, you discuss business.”

“Right, right, right, business talk.”

Pei Xiao looked at Yan Sanhe somewhat fearfully.

Thinking—dear aunt, you can’t target him just because his grandfather took your father’s throne.

He’s genuinely thinking of me and Chengyu’s interests.

“I spoke wrongly. Miss Yan, don’t take it to heart. Let’s discuss business.”

Zhao Yishi smiled magnanimously, his dark eyes turning toward Pei Xiao.

Being looked at by him made Pei Xiao panic. He blurted out: “The black-clad man hasn’t been found yet. There’s something suspicious about the pair of twins in the Zheng family’s Haitang Courtyard.”

Xie Zhifei heard this and frowned directly.

How come this kid wasn’t following the script they’d rehearsed earlier?

“The black-clad man killed four lives—corpse collector Chen Pi, two night watchmen, and the midwife who delivered the Haitang Courtyard twins.”

Yan Sanhe’s tone was very steady, not affected by what just happened at all.

“When he killed the midwife, Third Master, Young Master Pei, and I were in the Military Patrol Bureau’s prison interrogating that midwife. Thus, we turned our suspicions toward that pair of twins.”

After Pei Xiao recovered his senses, he quickly made amends, taking over the conversation.

“We also visited the natal family of Zheng Huantang’s in-laws, the Zhao family, and discovered the twins truly had some problems. As for what problems, we currently can’t determine.

But one thing is certain—Old General confining the twins in Haitang Courtyard, keeping his son idle at home, even preventing the Zhao family from seeing their daughter—all was to cover up this secret.”

Xie Zhifei didn’t give Zhao Yishi time to think, continuing on.

“Having investigated to this point, it’s like we’ve walked into a dead end, encountered a ghost wall. The three of us discussed and decided to backtrack and take another route.”

Zhao Yishi: “What route?”

Yan Sanhe’s voice was very light: “First investigate Old General Zheng’s true cause of death, resolving the other half of the war horses’ problem.”

…

The study door creaked open.

Yan Sanhe was first to walk out. Looking up, she met Li Buyan’s worried eyes. She lightly closed her eyes once.

This glance—not only Li Buyan saw clearly, but Zhu Qing and the others all saw it too. Hearts suspended for ages finally settled back in place.

“I’ll see you out.”

“We all know the way well. See us off for what?”

Pei Xiao turned, smiling at Zhao Yishi: “You go busy yourself.”

Zhao Yishi stood with hands behind his back, his peripheral vision sweeping toward Li Buyan standing at the courtyard entrance. After a pause: “I’m also tired. Might as well walk around. Miss Yan has no objection?”

“None.”

Zhao Yishi made a “please” gesture: “The lamps aren’t bright. Miss Yan, watch your step.”

His care and concern made Yan Sanhe very uncomfortable. She frowned slightly.

Xie Zhifei noticed and reached out to pull Yan Sanhe to his side, while he himself stepped forward unobtrusively, standing between Zhao Yishi and Yan Sanhe.

“Left and right, I’m beside her. I won’t let her fall.”

Li Buyan smiled teasingly: “Sanhe isn’t seventy or eighty years old. Third Master, if you want to be close to her, just say so directly. We’ll avoid you.”

Pei Xiao snorted cold air through his nose, looking like “I really can’t watch this anymore,” swinging his arms and striding off.

As he left, Huang Qi followed.

Huang Qi followed, so Li Buyan followed too.

Li Buyan followed, and Zhu Qing and Ding Yi followed close behind.

Xie Zhifei turned to Zhao Yishi with a bitter smile: “Look at them, one by one—do they have any regard for me as Third Master?”

“Not in their eyes, but in their hearts.” Yan Sanhe suddenly interjected.

The bitter smile on Xie Zhifei’s face instantly bloomed into a flower: “No helping it—who told Third Master to be consistent inside and out?”

Hearing this, Yan Sanhe couldn’t help but lower her head and smile shallowly.

“I’ll see you off to here.”

Zhao Yishi stopped: “Whatever Miss Yan needs me to do, just send someone with a message.”

“Won’t stand on ceremony.”

Yan Sanhe cupped her fists at him and quickened her pace, chasing after the people ahead.

Xie Zhifei waited until she was far away before smiling ingratiatingly at Zhao Yishi: “She’s just that temperament. Huairen, don’t hold it against her.”

“Capable people dare to have tempers.”

Zhao Yishi smiled and waved: “Go. Don’t keep Miss Yan waiting.”

“Then I’m off.”

After Xie Zhifei spoke, he jogged to Yan Sanhe’s side, lowering his head to speak with her.

Zhao Yishi stood in place, watching the two backs. The expression on his face remained gentle, but those slender phoenix eyes slowly turned cold.

“Chengyu didn’t even turn back to look at me once.”

Shen Chong, hearing this, was startled.

“They’re all protecting her.”

Shen Chong was startled again.

“Shen Chong.”

Zhao Yishi raised his head to look at the dark sky, saying softly: “Tell me, what kind of secret is hidden in that pair of twins at Haitang Courtyard?”

Shen Chong was startled yet again.