Chapter 753: The Big Fish is Xiao Changyan
"Though the Crown Princess and I are no saints, we do not burn bridges. Those who have shown us kindness will be repaid tenfold. Conversely..."
In the darkness, Shen Yungan's eyes seemed infused with the chill and brilliance of the cold moon: "As for those who make enemies of us, they shall sleep on their weapons and weep blood!"
His words transformed into a sharp blade, causing Yu Xiang—who met Shen Yungan's profound and piercing gaze—to instinctively tense, feeling as if he were being targeted by something extremely dangerous.
This was both a promise and a warning!
A promise to Yu Xiang that Shen Yungan and his sister would not set him up to be the final scapegoat.
A warning to Yu Xiang that he had no choice: trusting Shen Yungan might offer a sliver of hope, while distrusting him would test whether the Yu residence could escape Shen Xihe's retaliation!
Taking a deep breath, Yu Xiang said solemnly, "I hope the heir remembers today's promise!""
Shen Yungan withdrew his imposing aura and became casual again: "General Yu, rest assured. To facilitate communication with you, I will assign someone to your side."
With that, Shen Yungan clapped his hands twice. A dark figure darted out, saluted Shen Yungan with a clasped fist, and stood silently to the side.
"General Yu, do not worry. This subordinate of mine is deaf, mute, and illiterate. Keeping him by your side will not risk military intelligence leaks—he is solely for message delivery," Shen Yungan explained truthfully. Whether Yu Xiang believed him or not, Shen Yunnan did not care.
Yu Xiang observed the plain-looking man, half-convinced and half-doubtful, but showed no outward reaction. He gave a slight, formal bow to Shen Yungan and left without another word.
Shen Yungan's subordinate, catching his master's glance, followed Yu Xiang as silently as a ghost.
Only after watching them disappear did Shen Yungan turn and head back in the opposite direction.
In the quiet little wooden cabin, Qi Pei had prepared food. Seeing Shen Yungan's light and brisk steps, he smiled faintly: "Just in time—it's still warm. Please eat, Young Master."
Shen Yungan did not stand on ceremony. After washing his hands, he strode over and sat down, picking up his chopsticks. As he ate, he said, "You waited here deliberately to find out if my mission was successful, didn't you?"It is true that I waited for you deliberately, Crown Prince, but I believed you would surely succeed," Qi Pei replied with a smile.
Shen Yungan glanced at Qi Pei and then began eating quickly. Having grown up rough in military camps, Shen Yungan had no regard for table manners. By the time he was halfway through his meal, Qu Hongying brought over a bowl of soup.
Shen Yungan's whereabouts needed to remain unknown to too many people. Aside from Qi Pei and Qu Hongying, no one had seen him—until now, with the addition of Yu Xiang.
"Did the heir really persuade him?"" While Qi Pei was not curious, Qu Hongying was very eager to know. As soon as Shen Yungan finished eating and drinking, she could not wait to ask.
After drinking a cup of warm water, Shen Yungan found a comfortable sitting position: "Your Majesty's confidant—how could he be so easily swayed? Today, when I met him..."
Shen Yungan did not hide any details of his encounter with Yu Xiang and carefully recounted everything to them.
After listening, Qi Pei fell into thoughtful silence, while Qu Hongying frowned: "Your Highness, are you saying this Yu fellow only pretended to be coerced into cooperating with you, while actually harboring ulterior motives and ready to feign compliance?""
A faint smile playing on his lips, Shen Yungan nodded slightly: "The Crown Princess said that if Yu Xiang seeks us out and directly agrees to assist, it means he has truly been persuaded by his daughter and sincerely intends to conspire with us."If he first appears extremely enraged, then reluctantly agrees after much internal struggle, he must be coming with deceitful intentions—nothing more than what he considers clever acting.
If he refuses to yield no matter what and brings ambushers following closely behind, it means he remains firm and unyielding."
"What do you mean by that?" Qu Hongying didn't quite understand.
Qi Pei looked at her tenderly: "If he agrees directly, it shows he has thought everything through and made a decision. He is an intelligent man; if he has ulterior motives, he will overthink. He'll worry that if he agrees immediately, the heir definitely won't trust him.
To gain the heir's trust, he must resist, struggle, and finally compromise unwillingly."
"That's exactly right." Shen Yungan nodded.
If he genuinely intends to switch sides, he would face Shen Yungan with complete openness and wouldn't worry that agreeing immediately would arouse suspicion.
"In that case, does the heir still plan to win him over?" Qu Hongying couldn't help but ask again after hearing this.
"He will." Shen Yungan spoke with absolute certainty.
Qu Hongying was about to press further when Qi Pei took her hand, and the two fell silent.
Shen Yungan stood up and returned to write a letter in reply to Shen Xihe.
Several years ago, Xiao Huayong had given Shen Yueshan the method of training eagles, and sending messages by eagle was both fast and secure.
Early the next morning, just after Shen Xihe had finished her morning meal, she received Shen Yungan's letter. After reading it, she smiled faintly, just as Xiao Huayong, who had returned from the morning court session, noticed: "Youyou seems in high spirits today—what happy news has occurred?""
"The fish has taken the bait." Shen Xihe handed Shen Yungan's letter to Xiao Huayong.
Xiao Huayong skimmed it briefly: "Is Youyou planning to let Yu Xiang fall into his own trap?"
Shen Xihe shot Xiao Huayong a glance, retrieved the letter, stood up, and while folding it neatly back into the envelope, she took out a small box. Unlocking its delicate latch, she placed the letter inside: "Yu Xiang is merely a small fish."
"Then who is the big fish?" Xiao Huayong raised an eyebrow.
After locking the box and carefully returning it to its place, Shen Xihe gave him a slight smile, her expression knowing: "Do you really need to ask?"
Naturally, it was Prince Jing Xiao Changyan, whom he had forced to go to Minjiang!
"Youyou's thoughts are unfathomable—how could I not need to ask?" As Xiao Huayong spoke, he couldn't resist inquiring, "That box holds quite a few letters, doesn't it?"
He had glanced earlier and estimated roughly that there were several dozen.
"These are all the letters exchanged between Brother and me." Mentioning this, Shen Xihe's expression softened slightly.
She had a habit of carefully preserving every letter exchanged with important people. Of course, the wording in these letters was always veiled, especially between her and Shen Yungan, who used coded language that others couldn't decipher. She wasn't worried about them falling into the wrong hands and becoming leverage.
Naturally, she was confident that no one could steal her belongings. These boxes were booby-trapped; if opened incorrectly, a hidden compartment would spring open, releasing poisonous powder. Inhaling even a tiny amount would be fatal!
"Youyou treasures and carefully stores the letters from Brother, showing how much you value him." Xiao Huayong asked wistfully, "I wonder if I might have the honor of having Youyou prepare a box for me too?"
As soon as Xiao Huayong mentioned the box in that jealous tone, Shen Xihe had guessed what he was going to say. Hearing it as expected, she still couldn't help but let the corners of her lips curl up. She picked up another box of the same size but with different carved patterns from nearby, opened it in front of Xiao Huayong, and said: "It's right here."The letter was incomplete, partially burned but mostly preserved. Xiao Huayong paid no attention to its thickness, instead being drawn to the strands of hair tied with red thread beside it. He couldn't resist picking them up: "So, I've actually sent Youyou this many locks of hair."
(End of Chapter)
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