Xu Tongzhou left Qi Wang’s study with a patch of skin scraped off his forehead—it looked from afar like he’d smeared rouge all over it.
But Han Yue’e didn’t think it was anything like that. She just stared blankly as Xu Tongzhou hurried out and rushed away again, a conflicted look creeping across her face.
Lian’er held her hand, her voice low and cautious: “Miss, what should we do now?”
Exactly. Back at the Qi household, she’d been considered an adopted daughter, an unmarried guest of honor, raised like a noble lady.
Now, tossed into Qi Wang’s residence without name or title, she wasn’t even considered a low-ranking bed servant.
Right now, with so much turmoil outside, Qi Wang hadn’t acted against her yet, so she could still survive for a while.
But what about later?
Once public gossip died down and no one cared anymore, she would vanish from this world without a trace.
At this thought, Han Yue’e felt a chill seep through her bones. She gripped Lian’er’s hand tightly and shivered. “Let’s go back! Let’s go back!”
Lian’er didn’t understand but followed her instructions and accompanied her back to her room.
Han Yue’e’s face was pale as death, like a trapped beast. “I can’t just sit here waiting to die. No, if this keeps up, I’ll die!”
Lian’er had been her trusted maid since childhood. Seeing her so panicked, she rushed forward to stop her. “Miss, please calm down. His Highness has always treated you differently…”
“Differently?!” Han Yue’e raised her head and let out a chilling sneer. “That so-called difference was because I was useful. I could steal information from the Qi household for him! That’s why he looked at me differently. But what am I now?”
Lian’er turned pale too.
She understood what Han Yue’e meant.
Now that Han Yue’e was no longer the adopted daughter of the Qi household and had a ruined reputation, to Qi Wang, her mere existence was a blemish—a reminder to the world that he and Han Yue’e had once secretly conspired.
A stain on his record.
Lian’er was scared too. She clung to Han Yue’e, crying, “Miss, then… what should we do? With your looks and wit…”
Exactly!
If she hadn’t been so beautiful and cunning—if she hadn’t been better than everyone else in every way—maybe she would’ve resigned herself to fate.
But she wasn’t inferior in any way. So why should she be beneath others?
Han Yue’e looked down at Lian’er. “Are you afraid?”
Lian’er sobbed softly. She knew her fate rested entirely in Han Yue’e’s hands. If Qi Wang truly wanted Han Yue’e gone, there was no way he’d let her live either.
She bit her lip and shook her head. “Miss, no. I’m not afraid!”
Han Yue’e smiled, satisfied. “Good. You’re not afraid. You’re a good girl.”
“A truly formidable girl,” said the Eldest Princess at that moment, seated in her carriage, referring to Qi Yuan.
She had finally recovered from her earlier shock and regained her usual calm composure. “Then I’ll do as you said and go search. If I do find something…”
She pressed her lips together, then looked at Qi Yuan solemnly. “If I find the child, I will be grateful for the rest of my life. Whatever you ask of me, I would be willing to be your servant in return!”
It was a weighty promise.
Qi Yuan was moved, but there was a gulf between her and the Eldest Princess—a whole past life’s worth.
No matter how she explained, the Eldest Princess wouldn’t believe that she did all this without expecting anything in return, purely out of goodwill.
So though waves of emotion surged within, her face remained calm and even. “Your Highness, I’ll remember that.”
The Eldest Princess let out a sigh of relief.
That’s how people were—when a pie falls from the sky, it always feels like there must be a trap.
But if they pay a price, their hearts can settle a bit.
She grasped Xiao Yunting’s hand. “Yunting, I have no one by my side. I must ask you to handle this.”
Xiao Yunting naturally knew what the child meant to the Eldest Princess.
Even losing her husband hadn’t hurt her like losing that child.
The past decades had been torment, a life spent in a frying pan, never a single peaceful day.
He gave a firm nod, promising, “Rest assured, Grand-Aunt. I will find that child for you.”
The Eldest Princess nodded, then turned to Qi Yuan. “The agreement between you and Yunting is now in effect. From now on, if anything comes up, speak to Yunting. I’ll return to the mountain for now. If there’s news, I’ll return to thank you.”
Qi Yuan answered respectfully.
Once the Eldest Princess left, the carriage turned and headed back into the city.
Xiao Yunting looked seriously at Qi Yuan. “How do you know Xie Ying?”
Qi Yuan met his gaze sincerely. “Your Highness, even if I told you, you wouldn’t believe it. So just take it as this—I met Xie Ying in a dream. But you must move quickly. Qi Wang already suspects me.”
Xiao Yunting’s expression changed. “What do you mean?”
Qi Yuan didn’t hide it and recounted everything that had happened earlier that day.
Then she raised an eyebrow. “Han Yue’e was meant to be used to uncover the whereabouts of Zou Wangfei and her child. But now she’s been activated early. Qi Wang’s background… should be the same as mine.”
To anyone else, her words would sound insane.
But not to Xiao Yunting.
He had grown up in the Xiao clan of Jurong, accustomed to strange and supernatural things.
So unlike ordinary scholars, he didn’t dismiss the idea of gods or spirits.
And now, he could easily follow Qi Yuan’s logic. “You mean, both you and Qi Wang are unusual—you both know about things that haven’t yet happened. And now, you’ve each realized the other is… different from before?”
It was a tangled concept, but Qi Yuan nodded without hesitation.
She answered seriously, “He’s wary of me because in the… dream, he died by my hand. So of course he’d want me to suffer terribly.”
Xiao Yunting paused. “How would he make you suffer?”
“By targeting the Xie family.” Qi Yuan didn’t hide it. “So, Your Highness, please act fast—for your father’s claim to be crown prince, for your grandmother’s title as empress—you must act quickly.”
Xiao Yunting flung open the carriage curtain. “But if what you say is true, and you’ve already sent Han Yue’e to him, won’t he immediately move against the Xie family? How can I get ahead of that?!”
Qi Yuan stopped and turned back. “You’ll make it. Don’t forget the man imprisoned in the Dali Temple for the canal embezzlement case. Try him. Arrest people. That’ll throw Qi Wang off balance. Besides… someone else will be giving him trouble too.”
As for who that person was, Qi Yuan didn’t say.
