When Shen Qingli emerged from the imperial palace, he saw a crowd kneeling outside the imperial study, each holding a memorial petition. Every single one was requesting the new emperor to issue a decree for the execution of Huo Xian. “Setting a date for the execution” was not enough; Zhao Yong’s jailbreak and disappearance made them fear prolonged uncertainty. They wished to expedite the matter, hoping to avoid any delay until autumn and eager to set up the execution platform immediately.
Seeing this firsthand was truly different from just hearing about it. Evidently, Huo Xian had made plenty of enemies over the years without holding back.
Shen Qingli clutched his chest as he squeezed out of the imperial study. Despite the winter’s cold, he broke out in a sweat from the shock.
On a deserted path, he held his chest and shook his head.
Fortunately, he had not revealed his identity in front of others and did not hold any official position in the court. After many years, even those who had seen him in his childhood could not recognize him. They all assumed he was just a subordinate of Xie Subai at Cuixue Tower, allowing him to come and go freely.
However, despite not holding an official position, Shen Qingli had taken over most of the Ministry of Justice’s affairs. The escape of Zhao Yong and the imprisonment of Huo Xian were currently the most pressing issues, leaving him no room for negligence.
Upon exiting the palace gates, Zhoushu was already waiting by the carriage.
Seeing Shen Qingli’s troubled expression, Zhoushu dared not ask too many questions and merely said, “Young Master, are we heading to the Ministry of Justice first?”
Shen Qingli responded absentmindedly and asked, “Is there anything urgent today?”
Zhoushu frowned, “The Marquis of Xuanping saw the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice and wanted to meet with Lord Huo. I took the liberty of stopping him.”
Shen Qingli paused as he was about to step into the carriage. After a moment of contemplation, he said, “Forget it, let him go.”
But the scene would surely not be one of deep father-son affection. Shen Qingli could almost foresee Huo Xian’s stubborn and sarcastic remarks and the Marquis of Xuanping’s angry outburst. He really did not want to overhear such a scene, so he waved his hand, “We’re not going to the Ministry of Justice, let’s go back.”
Shen Qingli had bought a modest private residence in Nanning Lane. Being someone who loved lively environments, his house was not short of maidservants and young servants. With his easygoing nature, the young maids often loved to sit in the corridor playing and laughing, and one could hear laughter upon opening the door.
But today, the quietness was oddly strange, and even the gatekeeper was nowhere to be seen.
He hesitated for a moment before Zhoushu drew his sword.
Rushing forward, they saw several servants and maids lying on the ground not far away.
Shen Qingli was startled. His household consisted of young maids with little self-defense skills. Seeing this, he set aside other concerns and instructed Zhoushu to check on the fallen ones, then circled around to the backyard.
Finally, he saw some people still alive.
The maids’ faces were pale with fright, pacing back and forth under the corridor. At this moment, the lead maid, Ruiwu, hurriedly came forward, “Young Master…”
She trembled as she glanced inside the house.
Shen Qingli followed her gaze forward and asked, “Who is it?”
As he pushed the door open, his voice abruptly halted.
He seemed to choke for a moment, unsure whether he was exhaling in relief or inhaling in shock, and softly said, “You all may leave.”
He then closed the door.
Ji Yuluo was sitting in the corner of the hall. Her face still bore the pallor of severe injury, her figure thin and looking increasingly cold.
Her fingers, half-hidden in wide sleeves, toyed with an object. As Shen Qingli turned to face her, she nonchalantly threw it in his direction. Before he could speak, a sharp wind split the air. He sidestepped swiftly and reached out to catch the item attached to a tassel.
“I told you—”
Shen Qingli suddenly froze, his words catching in his throat.
What he held was not an ordinary object, but a white jade pendant. This jade pendant was originally a single piece, split into two by his mother during their childhood. One half was with him, inscribed with the character “Xu,” while the other half, inscribed with the character “Xin,” was with his younger sister. However, after the Shen family’s calamity, the other half of the jade pendant had vanished.
He had thought it was likely burned with Shen Lanxin’s corpse at the mass grave.
But now…
Shen Qingli’s eyes reddened. Gone was his usual carefree demeanor. He took a few steps towards Ji Yuluo, a grave expression giving him an imposing presence despite his lack of anger, and demanded, “Where did you get this?”
Ji Yuluo looked at him and said, “If you want to know, exchange it for a person.”
—
“Bang—”
The tea table was slapped heavily, the tea set rattling with the impact.
Shen Qingli, having experienced intense emotional turmoil, was livid, his chest heaving as he said, “She actually used Lanxin to blackmail me, demanding that I release Huo Zhe’an! You have no idea, you have no idea! She said that if Huo Xian died, she would have Lanxin buried with him!”
When Ji Yuluo said those words, her face was expressionless, her tone neither light nor heavy, as if she were casually discussing something insignificant. But Shen Qingli knew her well. The calmer she was, the more serious she was.
Moreover, Ji Yuluo was not one to make jokes!
If she said she would have Shen Lanxin buried with him, she meant it!
Shen Qingli’s head throbbed.
He had heard that the Huo residence had a favored concubine, but he never imagined that the concubine, surnamed Sheng, was actually Shen Lanxin. He hadn’t dared to hope that Shen Lanxin was still alive.
Now, he was overwhelmed with mixed emotions, his mind a chaotic mess. On one hand, he was furious that Huo Xian dared to make his sister a concubine, and on the other, he was grateful for Huo Xian’s protection of Lanxin over the years.
But regardless, Ji Yuluo was undeniably the most wicked one!
Shen Qingli slammed the table and began pacing back and forth, muttering incessantly, “She knew about Lanxin’s relationship with me all along, but before we could discover anything, she took advantage of the chaos to secretly send her out of the city and hide her. She did this to prevent us from finding out and to use her as a bargaining chip when necessary! I knew it—spending so much time with you, she’s become full of schemes and calculations, so cunning at such a young age!”
Despite Shen Qingli’s harsh tirade against Ji Yuluo, Xie Subai remained unmoved. His face was expressionless, though his eyes flickered slightly at Shen Qingli’s mention of “preventing us.”
For a long time, he said nothing, like he was in deep thought. Only after Shen Qingli had exhausted his anger did he finally speak, “You told her everything?”
Shen Qingli hesitated before replying, “Yes, how could I not? I never intended to hide it from her, but I didn’t expect her to chase after us before she recovered from her injuries. I told you long ago, Ji Yuluo is fiercely protective of her own. She would never agree to let Huo Xian go through this ordeal. She doesn’t care about old grudges from the previous dynasty. She might even think we’re persecuting him.”
After saying this, Shen Qingli fell silent for a moment.
The plan had been proposed by Huo Xian, but it was indeed dangerous.
There was no other choice. Zhao Yong had escaped, and to find him, they had to use Huo Xian as bait because Xiao Yuanting was in Huo Xian’s hands.
Xiao Yuanjing was Xiao Cheng’s only remaining heir. Neither father nor son would sit idly by, and Huo Xian had used Chang’an as leverage, arranging for Xiao Yuanjing to leak news of Xiao Yuanting’s whereabouts to them. If Huo Xian were to be executed, Xiao Yuanting would be doomed as well.
Thus, they would inevitably try to rescue Huo Xian.
As for why they didn’t use Xiao Yuanting directly to lure them in, it was because Huo Xian intended to send himself back to Zhao Yong’s side.
Following the clues would lead to capturing them all in one go.
But whether the plan would work depended on Huo Xian’s assessment of Zhao Yong’s thoughts.
Zhao Yong was unaware of Huo Xian’s secret dealings. He thought Huo Xian was simply an opportunist, ready to abandon his old master when the situation turned unfavorable and attach himself to Xie Subai’s powerful influence.
Everyone has selfish motives. Betraying a master meant nothing to someone like Zhao Yong. He understood well that his and Huo Xian’s relationship was merely one of mutual benefit.
The current situation was clear: it was nothing more than a breakdown in cooperation between two individuals. Xie Subai, having used Zhao Yong, now had to deal with Huo Xian after Zhao Yong’s escape.
Once Zhao Yong was forced to rescue Huo Xian, and Huo Xian then “surrendered” to Zhao Yong, there was a chance Zhao Yong would want to keep Huo Xian around to glean Xie Subai’s secrets.
After all, after enduring prison, Huo Xian and Xie Subai would be bitter enemies. An enemy of one’s enemy is a friend. Huo Xian believed Zhao Yong, a man with no regard for the past and no principles, valued only immediate interests. They could reconcile for this reason.
But all these plans hinged on Huo Xian’s judgment of Zhao Yong. Though entering the tiger’s den is necessary to catch the cub, what if Zhao Yong, out of spite, killed Huo Xian?
This was also why they had initially kept Ji Yuluo out of the loop.
Had she known, she would never have agreed.
Shen Qingli sat back down, muttering, “How can he be so bold? Does he really think he’s invincible and willing to risk everything?”
Xie Subai placed the hand warmer aside, his palm reddened from the heat. “It’s not that he’s willing to risk everything; it’s that if he doesn’t take this risk, he doesn’t have much time left.”
Shen Qingli looked at him, puzzled. “What do you mean by that?”
Xie Subai did not respond immediately.
Shortly after Zhao Yong’s jailbreak, Chengyuan Temple caught fire. Xie Subai had sent people to investigate in secret.
In reality, the poison in Huo Xian’s body was not difficult to detect. Using poison to control people was a common tactic of the Jinyiwei. With a bit of attention, they could piece together the situation by capturing and interrogating the remaining members of the Eastern Depot.
After a moment, Xie Subai said calmly, “It’s nothing. Is she outside?”
Shen Qingli nodded. “She wants me to release someone, and I can’t just let them go. But if I don’t let her see for herself, she might tear the Ministry of Justice apart… You know I’m not joking.”
Xie Subai lifted his gaze slightly. He had been expressionless since the beginning. Though he was always cold, Shen Qingli could sense that he was in an exceptionally bad mood.
One might even say he was in a terrible mood.
Was it something he had said? He had spoken so much earlier that he couldn’t pinpoint which comment had upset him.
Before he could figure it out, Xie Subai said, “Let her in.”
Shen Qingli stepped outside and let Ji Yuluo in.
As they passed each other, Shen Qingli glanced at her and felt a pang in his chest. He quickly turned away with a cold expression.
Ji Yuluo was unfazed and went straight in.
The window in front of Xie Subai was open, letting in the cold wind. His body couldn’t tolerate such cold air, yet he let it blow over him with his eyes closed.
He didn’t open his eyes until the footsteps stopped beside him.
Looking up, he saw her standing there, her figure thin, her almond-shaped eyes more pronounced.
She opened her mouth but didn’t call out to him.
Xie Subai looked at her, his voice slow and deep. “Since when did you start scheming against me too? You sent Shen Lanxin away early not to protect Shen Qingli but because you never believed I would spare Huo Xian. He knows too much, and you thought I’d kill him to ensure nothing was left undone, right?”
He suddenly sneered, his eyebrows showing a hint of mocking indifference. “What if I insist on killing him? What difference does it make if Shen Lanxin dies with him? Whether she’s alive or dead means nothing to me.”
Ji Yuluo pressed her lips together and asked, “What did he do wrong?”
The curve of Xie Subai’s lips stiffened. Abruptly, he pulled Ji Yuluo to him, his expression cold. “Do you feel sorry for him? He did nothing wrong, but what about Shen Lanxin? What did she do to deserve this? Anyone can die, so why not him? Tell me, if Huo Xian were truly gone, what would you do?”
Ji Yuluo’s wrist ached from Xie Subai’s grip. She stared at him, resolute, “He won’t die. I won’t let him die.”
Xie Subai looked at her face, so close, and saw the stubborn determination in every feature. In that moment, he hated Huo Xian.
How dare he?
How dare he get close to her when his life wasn’t his own?
For so many years, even Xie Subai himself had been cautious, fearful of revealing the slightest hint.
Yet, he envied Huo Xian deeply.
Xie Subai released her wrist, closed his eyes, and let out a long sigh. “Let Shen Qingli take you. If you can take him away, then go as far as you can.”
