She turned and left, returning to the spot where she had previously bumped into Mo Lincheng. Shen Qingyan raised her eyes slightly to see a graceful figure standing suddenly upon the railing of the second-floor teahouse; a single white robe immediately captured her gaze. Their eyes met.
He must not have wanted others to misunderstand just now, so was he helping her? How thoughtful of her.
She went up to the second floor and stood beside him, gazing out over the crowded, bustling long street below, where the fading lanterns cast a brilliant glow.
"Did you see everything just now?"
The man let out a low hum. A moment later, his deep, questioning voice came from the air: "Miss Shen, brother Ming is by no means a good match. Would you really go so far as to use such a misunderstood method? Using me repeatedly to provoke him—could it be that you regret it?"
The man frowned, looking down at the crowded street below, his eyes full of bewilderment.
Gazing out at the peaceful avenue below her, she said calmly, "Prince Qin is handsome, wealthy, and was at the forefront of the disaster relief in Yizhou, easing His Majesty's burdens. Among all the princes, he is the one who most holds His Majesty's favor. To speak treasonously, the First Prince is weak and incompetent, lacking influential ministers at court to support him, and is fundamentally cut off from the succession to the throne. But I..."
She paused, turned her head to look into his face, and continued, "...am the daughter of the current Grand Tutor. My eldest brother is a general guarding the border, and my second brother is a fourth-rank commander of the Imperial Guard. Only I am worthy of him! I am also the only helper who can allow him to sit securely on the throne of succession without any worries behind him!"
Hearing her words, Mo Lincheng looked as though he had been struck speechless.
No, that couldn't be right. Although he had only crossed paths with her a few times, she was definitely not that kind of person.
He looked at her, wanting to find deception in her eyes, but there was only serenity and unwavering persistence, making the excuses he had just tried to make for her seem like a grand joke.
Though they had only been master and apprentice for a month, he still felt it necessary to warn her that there were people she could not afford to cross.
"Miss Shen, brother Ming is different from others; what he hates most is being threatened and used! He already has a maiden in his heart. I thought that after what happened last time, you would have some sense, but it seems I thought too much."
Not wanting her to sink any deeper, he directly extinguished all her hopes: "Perhaps you are unaware, but he has never had much interest in the throne of succession. If you keep tangling with him, you will only be the one who gets hurt!"
Did he really believe her lie that she was using Xuanyuan Ming as a stepping stone for power? Was he really this easy to fool?
She pressed on, leaving no room for retreat: "Shall we make a wager?"
"Wager on what?"
"A wager that Prince Qin will personally come to take me back to Prince Qin's Estate! And that he will fall in love with me!"
Shen Qingyan walked away, ignoring Mo Lincheng's shocked expression. As she left, she even paid his teahouse bill along with her own.
***
Upon returning to the Shen Residence, she was preparing for bed when she heard a movement at the door! An assassin's vigilance and caution were always exceptionally sharp, and her alertness prompted her to quickly get up and throw on her outer robe.
With a loud crash, the moment she finished tying her sash, a dark shadow lunged at her and pinned her to the bed!
Shen Qingyan's eyes turned sharp and cold. She swiftly grabbed the man's back, pulled him hard, and instantly pressed a dagger against his throat. It was only then that she clearly saw the man she had pinned beneath her. At that moment, he was looking at her with a look of astonishment, as if staring at a monster.
Damn it, despite a million precautions, she had still exposed herself... Damn Xuanyuan Ming, running into a maiden's bedchamber in the middle of the night—you really are a madman!
Just as she was cursing Xuanyuan Ming in her heart, her wrist was caught off guard, and the dagger was deftly snatched from her hand.
In an instant, their positions were reversed, and the blade was pressed against Shen Qingyan's throat. The chilling touch made her breath stall for a fraction of a second.
"Speak! Just who are you?!"
No way, could he figure out she was an impostor just like this?
She raised her hand and gently pushed the dagger away from her throat with her fingers. Putting on the proper reaction and vulnerable fear expected of a maiden, she opened her mouth to speak: "This subject's daughter is foolish and does not understand what Your Highness means!"
Seeing her play dumb, Xuanyuan Ming smiled without reaching his eyes. This woman was still feigning ignorance with him at a time like this! It seemed that unless he gave her a taste of trouble, she wouldn't confess the truth.
The chilling dagger pressed slightly harder against her neck with a threatening force, its coldness seeping through her pores straight into her vitals. The palms of Shen Qingyan's hands broke out in a sweat as she realized that without a reasonable explanation, there was no way she could shake off the suspicion.
The man pressed her again: "Stop playing clever with me. Where is the real Shen Qingyan? And who on earth are you? Why are you assuming her identity, and what is your purpose? I advise you to tell the truth!"
She raised both hands to show she wouldn't move rashly.
Calm down! Calm down! She had borrowed this corpse to return to life, so even if he suspected her, he had no evidence to prove she wasn't Shen Qingyan. As long as she came up with a convincing reason, she could dispel his doubts.
"Your Highness, first of all, this subject's daughter doesn't understand why you would have such an absurd thought—I am Shen Qingyan, genuine and without a doubt. Secondly, I have no ulterior motives, nor is it as you imagine. There aren't people in this world who look identical, right? You can touch my face and see that I'm not wearing a human-skin mask."
Carefully, she took his hand and had him touch her own face. Finally, she saw the vigilance slowly relaxing in his eyes. Just as she thought she had successfully fooled him, the man hit her with another fatal interrogation.
"You still want to lie to me! How could a young lady raised in a secluded boudoir understand such unorthodox, sinister arts from the martial world! Speak! Who on earth are you? Who sent you?"
Damn it, he took her for a spy.
Shen Qingyan brewed her emotions inwardly; acting "vulnerable" and playing the pity card had always been a woman's tactic to win sympathy from men.
And it worked every time.
Like the heroine of a romance drama, she started crying, large tears flowing like a breached dam from the corners of her eyes. Her expression carried innocence and helplessness, as if she had done nothing wrong yet was being wronged and frightened by having her identity doubted.
Seeing Shen Qingyan cry actually made the man lose his previous sternness: "What are you crying for?"
A triumphant gleam flashed in Shen Qingyan's eyes, though it vanished instantly: "Sobbing... Your Highness, I was scared... This subject's daughter just had nothing to do and liked to buy miscellaneous ancient tales and anecdotes about the martial world from the market, which recorded many interesting things. This subject's daughter learned many things from them. If you don't believe me, you can go to the bookshelf and flip through a few books at random, and you will know I am truly not lying to you."
She spoke with complete sincerity. Who couldn't pull off that innocent green-tea act?
Sure enough, Xuanyuan Ming went to the bookshelf, picked up a random book, and flipped through it, finding that she really hadn't lied. Shen Qingyan took a deep breath. Just when she thought she had cleared herself of suspicion, she was subjected to interrogation once more.
He tossed the book onto the bed, his tone still filled with suspicion: "Even so, this still doesn't prove you are Shen Qingyan! Hurry up and tell me who you really are?!"
She climbed up from the bed and retorted softly: "Then since Your Highness suspects my identity without any proof, doesn't that also lack evidence?"
"Shen Qingyan is the Grand Tutor's beloved pearl, pampered since childhood and overbearing. She would never possess your methods and martial skills. The personalities of the two of you are poles apart—it is only natural that I harbor suspicions!"
Swishing his sleeve and turning his back to her, he insisted on his point of view: "When you pestered me before, you were so infatuated with me, yet you said it was over and ended it without a shred of reluctance. You say I have no evidence? If your face weren't identical to hers, I would have had you arrested and put on trial long ago—how could I possibly let you stand here and listen to your sophistry!"