Shen Xihe halted her steps. Turning around with an expression of indifference, her gaze remained placid and unreadable. "Your Highness, what is the meaning of this?"
Xiao Changqing’s dark eyes fixed intently on Shen Xihe. "I merely wish to ask Zhaoning County Princess to enlighten me—how did you come to know of that route?"
Shen Xihe let out a soft laugh. "Prince Xin, when two armies face off, who would ever reveal their source of intelligence to the enemy?"
Silence fell. Xiao Changqing watched Shen Xihe quietly. Seeing her grow impatient and about to leave again, he finally spoke. "The County Princess is widely learned. Do you know what the fourteenth stratagem in The Thirty-Six Stratagems is?"
"Borrow a corpse to resurrect the soul?" Shen Xihe answered without hesitation, candidly, then laughed—a laugh tinged with absurdity. "So that is what Your Highness meant. How ridiculous. Your Highness must have investigated Zhaoning these past few days and should know that Zhaoning has never believed in Buddhism, Daoism, or even heaven. The wise do not speak of supernatural forces. Your Highness is a scholar well-versed in the classics. Do not let overwhelming grief lead you to indulge in impractical delusions."
"Impractical delusions?" Xiao Changqing took two steps forward, closing in on Shen Xihe, his gaze never leaving her. "I have heard that the Northwest King has always cherished and valued the County Princess deeply. Even matters concerning the Northwest Army are never kept from you. In all important affairs, the three of you—father and sons—always deliberate together.
When the County Princess came to the capital, and my younger brother was investigating the Rouge Case, he encountered all manner of sinister forces along the way. Why was it that the County Princess saved him? Can you truly deny any deeper meaning in this?
For such a significant matter, would the Prince make such a decision without informing the County Princess? Completely disregarding your wishes? I find that hard to believe.
If the County Princess had already been aware of the plan, why did you change your mind at the last moment?"
He was referring to Shen Yueshan’s arrangement for Shen Xihe to "coincidentally" encounter Xiao Changying. This matter was indeed difficult to explain clearly.
Shen Yueshan had not explicitly stated it, but he had indeed hinted to Shen Xihe that Xiao Changying was the best choice. At that time, however, Shen Xihe was plagued by illness, aware that her life was nearing its end. She trusted Shen Yueshan implicitly and knew little about the capital, so she had tacitly agreed.
This led to the scene where Xiao Changying stumbled upon her and was rescued by Shen Xihe. Shen Xihe had indeed changed her mind at the last moment.
If her sole intention had been to obtain the evidence in Xiao Changying’s possession, she could have acted when he was being pursued. At that time, whether it was Xiao Changying or anyone else, it would have been difficult to determine who was responsible, given the chaotic circumstances.
There would have been no need to go to the trouble of waiting until Xiao Changying fell into Shen Xihe’s hands.
In response, Shen Xihe remained unruffled and did not feign ignorance. "Your Highness, the crime of assassinating a prince is not one to be undertaken lightly unless absolutely necessary and with a foolproof plan.
Compared to taking advantage of the chaos to harm Prince Lie, making an enemy of Your Highness, provoking a thorough investigation by His Majesty, and still possibly failing to obtain the evidence of the Rouge Case, my method was clearly more subtle and bloodless. Moreover, it achieved its purpose. Both Your Highness and Prince Lie had no choice but to swallow this grievance, did you not?"
Her rebuttal was reasoned, even reasonable, and left no room for refutation. Yet it failed to convince Xiao Changqing. "I once sent people to the Northwest. Everyone described the County Princess as gentle, refined, and tender as water. Yet since your arrival in the capital, you have not been so."
Shen Xihe regarded Xiao Changqing for a moment with a look as if he were a fool, then spoke. "The world says that Prince Xin is erudite, principled, and refined. May I ask, Your Highness, are you truly such a man?"Before Xiao Changqing could speak, Shen Xihe sneered coldly: "The Northwest is my homeland, a place where everyone adores and supports me. Naturally, I treat them with gentleness. But the capital is nothing less than a den of tigers and wolves to me. If I remained as gentle as I was in the Northwest, I likely wouldn't be standing here today, listening to Your Highness's nonsense."
Xiao Changqing's gaze darkened, but he remained silent. It was clear he remained unconvinced by Shen Xihe's words.
Shen Xihe didn't care what he thought: "Your Highness, I had His Majesty bear witness that day. If you disturb me again, don't blame me for being ruthless."
She didn't care about Xiao Changqing's thoughts, but she also didn't want to be bothered by him.
After speaking, Shen Xihe curtseyed and turned to leave. This time, Xiao Changqing didn't stop her but instead raised his voice: "I will definitely uncover the truth."
Shen Xihe paid no heed, her steps calm and steady as she disappeared from his sight.
"My Lady, why not tell Prince Xin about the matter concerning the Consort of the Prince Xin?" Biyu couldn't help but ask.
The Princess didn't want to be pestered by Prince Xin, and it was clear that Prince Xin only wanted to know how the Princess had discerned Xiao Changtai's escape route. In Biyu's understanding, this information must have come from the Consort of the Prince Xin.
Shen Xihe had a pen pal surnamed Gu in the capital, which they all knew about. The Prince and the heir had sent people to investigate and found it was Gu Zexiang, who currently served in the Imperial Wardrobe Bureau. But in reality, it was the Consort of the Prince Xin, merely using Gu Zexiang's name.
If they just told Xiao Changqing this, everything would be resolved.
"Who is he that I should explain myself to him?" Shen Xihe smiled faintly.
Rushing to explain would only make her appear less credible. Wasn't Xiao Changqing determined to investigate? Then let him investigate thoroughly.
Upon returning to her courtyard, Shen Xihe went to play with Baisui, the white parrot Xiao Huayong had gifted her. Both Baisui and Duanming had been brought along to the temporary palace.
She had already arranged everything, including matters concerning Gu Zexiang. The Princess Manor contained letters exchanged between Shen Xihe and Gu Qingzhi over the years, written while sending Zhenzhu and the others away. As for Gu Zexiang's letters, Shen Xihe had long since burned them.
Fortunately, over the years, Gu Zexiang had served as Shen Xihe's secret confidante. Although her letters passed through the maids' hands, they had never seen the contents or recognized the handwriting. Shen Xihe also never discussed Gu Zexiang with others.
As for Gu Qingzhi's side, after marriage, Xiao Changqing was often busy. For most days, the couple hardly saw each other. Xiao Changqing hadn't assigned anyone to monitor Gu Qingzhi either. If Gu Qingzhi wanted to do something without Xiao Changqing's knowledge, he would remain completely unaware.
Once Xiao Changqing went through the trouble of obtaining those letters, his doubts would naturally be resolved. There was no need for her to change her usual way of doing things or anxiously offer explanations, which would only make the suspicious Xiao Changqing trust her even less.
As soon as Xiao Huayong heard that Xiao Changqing had confronted Shen Xihe again, he hurried over. Remembering Shen Xihe's independent nature, he dismissed Tianyuan and the others, quietly approaching alone. His intention was to avoid intervening unless necessary, though he remained concerned for Shen Xihe.
Unintentionally, he overheard every word Xiao Changqing said to Shen Xihe.Such absurd remarks should have been met with his usual contempt, yet for some reason, an inescapable gravity weighed on his heart, compelling him to walk to the study and unconsciously pick up a book of strange tales like the "Classic of Divine Wonders."
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