Du Qi carried a food box in one hand and a tea stove in the other.
The grass was soft and the ground uneven, causing the tea stove to tilt as soon as it was set down.
"Alright, alright, Du Qi," Xie Yanfang said. "Let me handle it."
Du Qi acknowledged and stepped aside.
Xie Yanfang straightened the tea stove and remarked, "My guard isn't accustomed to such tasks." He smiled at Chu Zhao. "In the past, when I came to admire flowers and scenery, everything was prepared by others who invited me."
Chu Zhao smiled. "Then I am truly honored this time." She reached out her hand. "Let me help—"
Xie Yanfang waved her off. "No need, no need. I'll take care of it. This is my welcome for the Empress. Please sit back and relax."
Chu Zhao obediently sat down, watching the clear-eyed young master in plain robes light the tea stove, place the kettle, arrange the teacups, and lay out plates of pastries, dried fruits, and snacks on the coarse cloth.
"Why hasn't the Third Young Master returned to the capital?" she asked.
Xie Yanfang replied, "Prince Zhongshan's hundred thousand troops are being confined locally and sent in batches to the Border Commandery. I'm overseeing the process here. Moreover, Xiao Xun has left the people along the route in dire straits. Now that it's spring plowing season, I'm here to help His Majesty stabilize public sentiment."
Chu Zhao nodded. "With the Third Young Master here, all worries vanish."
Xie Yanfang laughed, pouring boiling water to brew tea. "We should thank the Empress for relieving the people's burdens. Otherwise, how could we sit here admiring the blooming flowers at this moment?"
He gazed into the distance, and Chu Zhao followed his line of sight. Sitting on the hillside offered a more beautiful view of the peach grove than what they had seen on the road, accompanied by the sound of laughter and chatter from within the grove.
"The common people wouldn't be able to enjoy spring outings either."
"Even this peach grove might have been burned to ashes."
"So, I specifically came here to welcome you, offering tea in place of wine, and inviting you to witness the fruits of your efforts."
He handed her a teacup with both hands.
Chu Zhao quickly straightened her posture to accept it, smiling brightly at Xie Yanfang as she raised the cup—
"It's not wine—it's hot," Xie Yanfang chuckled, gently stopping her arm. "Don't drink it all in one go."
Chu Zhao laughed heartily, bringing the cup to her lips for a slow sip.
"I heard the Third Young Master was still in this area," she said. "I was planning to visit you, but you beat me to it."
She traveled lightly without the Empress's ceremonial procession, keeping her movements discreet to avoid alarming officials or the public. However, Ding Dachui and the Dragon Guard Army accompanied her, providing tight security with scouts and guards.
Earlier, she had received a scout's report that Xie Yanfang was waiting along the route.
Naturally, Xie Yanfang had also tracked her whereabouts.
A chance encounter was impossible for people like them.
Xie Yanfang poured tea again, but only for himself, raising the cup as he said, "This cup of tea is my apology to Miss Azhao."
An apology? Switching from "Empress" back to "Miss Azhao," Chu Zhao turned her gaze to him, smiling as she watched.
"Revealing your uncle's past with Xiao Xun was my arrangement," Xie Yanfang said. "Miss Azhao confided this personal matter to me back then, but I used it to harm your reputation. What I did was dishonorable."
Chu Zhao replied, "I know, but I can understand. If I were in your position, I might have made the same choice." She smiled again. "Besides, your actions benefited me as well. If the court hadn't investigated my uncle, he and the others wouldn't have been able to get close to Xiao Xun so smoothly."If anyone else had said this, Xie Yanfang might have thought it was sarcasm, but coming from this girl—
Xie Yanfang looked at her. It had been several months since they last met, and her face seemed somewhat unfamiliar, yet at this moment, it felt very familiar.
It was the same when she first came to see him.
Before she first met him, he had also been like this—pushing her forward to embarrass the Third Prince.
Later, he had been honest with her about it, and she had waved it off, saying she didn’t mind and that she was happy to see the Third Prince upset.
Xie Yanfang gazed at the teacup in his hand.
"Miss Azhao doesn’t mind because she is broad-minded," he said. "But that doesn’t mean it was right for me to do so."
He drained the tea in one gulp and looked at Chu Zhao.
"I, Xie Yanfang, am not a good person."
Chu Zhao smiled. Yes, she certainly knew that.
Xie Yanfang said, "People say I never abuse my status as a member of the imperial family, and they praise my noble character. Do you know why?"
Chu Zhao replied, "Because you’re not that kind of person?"
Xie Yanfang laughed. "No," he shook his head. "It’s because what I seek is not the privilege of flaunting my status as a member of the imperial family."
He looked toward the distant peach grove.
"Though I was the one who arranged for my sister to become the Crown Princess, and I was the one who made the Xie family imperial relatives,"
"What I wanted from this was not high rank or wealth, nor the status of being part of the imperial family. What I wanted was simply to do it."
He emphasized the last words, making it clear that the same phrase carried a different meaning.
Chu Zhao understood and pondered thoughtfully.
"Miss Azhao, do you enjoy mountain climbing?" Xie Yanfang asked.
Chu Zhao shook her head, then smiled faintly. Mountain climbing was arduous and not a pastime favored by women. In her previous life, she had been confined to the deep palace, at most strolling on the artificial hills in the imperial garden. In this life, she had even less time and opportunity to discover what she liked.
"When you stand at the peak and look down upon the mortal world," Xie Yanfang said, "you can experience the feeling of soaring freely between heaven and earth."
Chu Zhao thought for a moment and said, "I understand. What the Third Young Master seeks is to stand above others, to have all things under your control."
Xie Yanfang gave her a faint smile, neither confirming nor denying it. The smile faded gently as he said, "But the sudden deaths of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess were a heavy blow to me."
In truth, even the Little Highness had nearly been lost, which would have been an even greater blow. Chu Zhao remained silent. For this proud young master, preventing anyone else from ascending the Great Xia throne was the only way to counter his defeat and regain control over everything.
"To be frank," Xie Yanfang looked at Chu Zhao, "when I heard that Prince Zhongshan had raised an army, I was very pleased."
Pleased to have a chance to make amends, to avenge the Crown Prince and Crown Princess in battle, to wash away past shame, and to climb back to the summit?
Unfortunately, she had interrupted it. Chu Zhao poured herself a cup of tea, raised it, and said, "Should I offer my apologies to the Third Young Master with this next cup?"
Xie Yanfang looked at the girl’s suddenly sharp eyes and smiled, shaking his head. "What the Empress did was for the country and the people. There was no fault in it, and there is no need to apologize to anyone."
Chu Zhao set down her teacup, nodded with a smile, and said, "I am relieved that Lord Xie thinks this way."This was their first meeting where she addressed him as Lord Xie. Xie Yanfang looked at Chu Zhao, sensing that the girl's aura was indeed different from before—no longer as soft as tender willow, but with a sharp, battle-hardened intensity in both her gaze and words.
He openly stated his intentions, and she made no attempt to hide her resolve.
The mountain breeze seemed to grow sharper, sweeping a few peach blossom petals that scattered among the tea and pastries.
Xie Yanfang reached out, picked up the petals, and arranged them one by one on his dark blue silk robe.
"Miss Azhao, my candor is not due to any dissatisfaction with you," he said. "I am merely curious—why did you choose to act this way?"
Chu Zhao responded with a noncommittal "Oh," then said, "Naturally, it is for the country and the people, as you previously mentioned—"
Xie Yanfang smiled. "I would never doubt Miss Azhao's sincerity. What I mean is, why did you insist on risking your own life?"
He let out a soft sigh.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
Why didn't she consult him, seek his help, join forces with him, or even command him?
"I know Miss Azhao does not trust me as a person, but you should trust my determination to help His Majesty eliminate Prince Zhongshan."
"Yet you would rather fight Prince Zhongshan to the death than discuss it with me."
"Could it be that in Miss Azhao's eyes, I, Xie Yanfang, am more fearsome than Prince Zhongshan?"
His clear, mirror-like eyes gazed directly at her, seeming to pierce through to the depths of her heart.
In that moment, Chu Zhao felt utterly exposed.
Although in this lifetime, she and Xie Yanfang were united through Little Highness, a thought had always lingered in her heart:
That Xie Wolf, whom even the legitimate imperial descendant Xiao Xun had been unable to eliminate, was the most terrifying of all.
OpenNovel