The morning mist of late autumn hung like a sheer veil over the side gate of the Marquis's Mansion. Jiang Wan adjusted the tilt of her bamboo hat in front of the bronze mirror. Over her simple white ru-skirt, she wore a dark navy cape, the Mandarin Duck Jade Bracelet on her wrist chiming softly with her movements. Lüluo stood behind her, clutching a brocade box containing a forged prayer document. Her fingertips pressed against a hidden compartment at the base—concealed within was the signal firework personally gifted by Lu Jingyuan.
"Are you truly going through the west side gate, Miss?" Lüluo lowered her voice, her gaze sweeping over the servant pretending to sweep under the corridor—he was a Black Armor Guard in disguise. "Heir Lu said the Black Armor Guard has already set up an ambush in the bamboo forest."
"The more dangerous the path, the more upright one must walk," Jiang Wan said with a light chuckle. She took out a sachet and pinned it to her waist, filled with a powder that would induce sneezing. "Besides, if I do not go, how could Liu Shiyao believe her scheme has succeeded?"
Chapter 109