Chapter 35

The Meaning in the Poem

Nan Yi didn’t remember how she managed to leave Jingfeng Residence. Her steps were unsteady, and she almost tripped over the doorstep.

Xie Sui An was still shaken, but the situation wasn’t too bad for her: “Sister-in-law, luckily Xie Que Shan believed it. Don’t worry, I’ll find a way to get you out of Lidu City—if all else fails, you can leave with Prince Ling’an and his entourage. We’ll have to send them to the ship anyway.”

Nan Yi slowly regained her senses. “How do you plan to get Prince Ling’an out?”

“This can’t be done recklessly. It has to be done when we’re absolutely sure, otherwise staying hidden in the city is the safest option.”

“But the Qi troops have already taken over Lidu City. How can we be absolutely sure?”

Xie Sui An glanced around to ensure no one was near, then lowered her voice and leaned close to Nan Yi’s ear. “The Minister of the Imperial Secretariat has sent a secret letter. They’ll send someone suitable to take over the Lidu City Torch Bureau. The next step is to seize control of the military power.”

Chapter 36: The Meaning in the Poem

Nan Yi didn’t remember how she managed to leave Jingfeng Residence. Her steps were unsteady, and she nearly tripped over the doorstep.

Xie Sui An, still shaken, found the situation not too bad for her: “Sister-in-law, fortunately, Xie Que Shan believed it. Don’t worry, I’ll find a way to get you out of Lidu City—if nothing else, you can leave with Prince Ling’an and his entourage. We’ll have to send them to the ship anyway.”

Nan Yi gradually regained her senses. “How do you plan to get Prince Ling’an out?”

“This can’t be done recklessly. We have to be absolutely sure, or staying hidden in the city is the safest option.”

“But the Qi forces have already taken Lidu City. How can we be absolutely sure?”

Xie Sui An glanced around to ensure no one was near, then lowered her voice and leaned close to Nan Yi’s ear. “The Minister of the Imperial Secretariat has sent a secret letter. They will send someone suitable to take over the Lidu City Torch Bureau. The next step is to seize military power.”

As the end of the year approached, the days were quiet. Xie Que Shan didn’t cause trouble for Nan Yi but sent calligraphy exercises every day, asking her to practice.

Nan Yi didn’t dare to disobey and practiced with utmost caution.

Once, she had been curious about Xie Que Shan, and even felt some empathy for him, but now she dared not have any emotions other than fear. 

She once naïvely thought that when he said he wanted to kill her, it was just empty talk. She believed he couldn’t be that heartless and that the great villain might not be so bad after all… 

But he always found ways to remind her of her place. She couldn’t see which side of him was the real one. She even… felt a little heartbroken.

Yet, she couldn’t quite understand where this vague sadness was coming from.

He Ping’s voice broke her thoughts. “Madam, the character you need to practice today is from The Book of Songs, ‘Zi Jin.’ ‘Qingqing zi jin, youyou wo xin. Zong wo bu wang, zi ning bu si yin.’“

Nan Yi took the stack of rice paper He Ping handed her, on which Xie Que Shan had written the model characters. She could read the words and understand their meaning, the only thing missing was the skill of writing them. Every day, Xie Que Shan had her read a sentence, and then copy it ten times. Her reading speed had increased rapidly.

However, after practicing for a few days, Nan Yi realized many lines from The Book of Songs… were essentially love poems.

The Book of Songs was a basic text for beginners, and even children as young as five from noble families could read it, so it was not unusual. But the awkward part was that since the last time they had parted, Xie Que Shan and she hadn’t met again. They only communicated through He Ping, who would bring Nan Yi the rice paper with his model writing in the morning, and take back the copybooks she had filled in the evening for Xie Que Shan to check.

It was hard to explain, but it all felt a bit strange.

It was like a hidden river flowing beneath an unmoving iceberg.

The wind outside the window blew the pages of the books, and they stopped at the page of The Book of Songs.

“Zong wo bu wang, zi ning bu lai?”

Xie Que Shan’s brush paused for a long time as he stared silently out of the window. The lively young woman who used to jump through the window wasn’t coming in anymore.

He had to keep her at a distance. Any small mistake in their distance could lead to great consequences. He had to walk alone in the stormy sea, with the waves soaking his clothes. What did it matter? He didn’t need an island.

In another courtyard, someone had been restless for several days.

Since the night she saw the intimate scene between Nan Yi and Xie Que Shan, Lu Jin Xiu had been wanting confirmation. If there was really an illicit affair between them… it would be an unspeakable scandal!

She had been observing Zhe Yue Pavilion and Jingfeng Residence for days and was increasingly certain that Nan Yi was hiding in Xie Que Shan’s room. But when she tried to break in and catch them in the act, her daughter had brought in someone who looked just like Nan Yi, and swapped her out of Jingfeng Residence.

Lu Jin Xiu was utterly shocked. She never expected that her innocent daughter would be involved in such a sordid affair. She had to get to the bottom of it.

That afternoon, her maid rushed back with fresh news—He Ping, Xie Que Shan’s personal attendant, had been delivering things to Zhe Yue Pavilion. The maid had pretended to bump into He Ping and, while helping him straighten his things, sneaked a glance at the rice paper he was delivering. It clearly had written on it, “Qingqing zi jin, youyou wo xin. Zong wo bu wang, zi ning bu si yin.”

Lu Jin Xiu slammed the table in anger, unable to maintain her usual composure. “This is clearly a love poem! How dare they… this is disgusting! Absolutely disgusting!”

But Lu Jin Xiu was unsure of how to handle the situation. After all, it was Xie Que Shan—who would dare to provoke him?

Still, she couldn’t ignore it. With so many eyes in Wang Xue Wu, it was only a matter of time before someone noticed their illicit affair.

If this news spread, it would not only bring shame to the Xie family but also affect Nan Yi’s future marriage prospects. The Xie family women would never be able to hold their heads up in front of others.

One bad apple could spoil the whole bunch. Lu Jin Xiu gritted her teeth—she had to handle this quietly and efficiently.

That afternoon, when Xie Que Shan left the house, Lu Jin Xiu found an excuse to send Xie Sui An out.

Once she confirmed that there was no one in the house who could speak up for Nan Yi, she brought several maids and forcefully entered Zhe Yue Pavilion.

Four maids blocked the door, preventing anyone from entering. Then, they entered the room and pinned Nan Yi to the ground, who had just been practicing her calligraphy and was completely stunned, looking at Lu Jin Xiu in confusion.

“Concubine, what is this about?”

“You still have the nerve to ask me? Although you and Heng are no longer a couple, you’re still sitting in the position of the Xie family’s young mistress, enjoying all the wealth and luxury, without having to fight for your daily bread. The Xie family has treated you well, yet you engage in this shameful behavior!” 

Nan Yi was even more confused. “What shameful behavior?”

Lu Jin Xiu didn’t bother to explain further and signaled to her maid.

The maid poured a cup of poison.

“I don’t want to dirty my mouth talking about it. If it were in the past, such a crime would warrant execution! But since the New Year is near, I don’t want to make things so bloody. Here’s a cup of poisoned wine, drink it yourself and show some sense.”

Nan Yi panicked. “Concubine, have you misunderstood something?”

“Misunderstood? From the moment Xie San asked you to manage the back courtyard, I found it strange. Why was he so protective of you?”

Lu Jin Xiu’s gaze fell on the rice paper on the table, her face twisting in disgust. She seemed afraid of soiling her hands, pinching a corner of the paper and throwing it in Nan Yi’s face.

“To think you’re using The Book of Songs to secretly communicate! How shameless!”

Nan Yi finally understood that her secret interactions with Xie Que Shan in Wang Xue Wu had been misunderstood by Lu Jin Xiu.

“Aunt, Aunt—there’s really nothing between him and me! If you don’t believe me, call him over and let’s confront each other. Sixth sister can testify for me—”

Lu Jin Xiu didn’t listen at all. She glanced around and shot a glare at her maids. “Why are you still standing there? If she refuses to drink, don’t you know to force it on her?”