Chapter 180

Chapter 180 : Concealing a Desire to Murder

On a snow-white woolen blanket, like a splash of red paint a woman lay in a crimson dress. Her face was covered with the same colored veil, revealing only a pair of incomparably clear eyes. The eyes had a kind of bewitching innocence with which a single glance would intoxicate a person until one did not remember their own name.

A grey-clothed man next to her reported in a slightly nervous tone, "Saintess, Jiang Xin Zhi has escaped. Someone picked him up at Liao River, but we couldn't catch up in time."

After a long silence, a lazy female voice drifted through the air, "Really? You couldn't even do this? Yuan Chuan, you're becoming worse and worse."

"Saintess is right," Yuan Chuan replied as he looked down. "But although Jiang Xin Zhi escaped, we did have some gains. News has come from the capital that Xuan Li was unsuccessful in resolving the military provisions issue. Their spies haven't found anything yet, but our people have discovered signs that the mastermind came from the Jinying Wangfu."

The words 'Jinying Wangfu' clearly moved her. She turned her head, and her voice seemed to contain a smile as she asked, "Oh? Who was it?"

"Before Jinying Wang left, he invited his two martial brothers, Fourth Brother Qi and Fifth Brother Xia, to the capital, and the two are currently staying near the Jinying Wangfu. And the reason he did so was to protect Jinying Wangfei – Eldest Miss Jiang, Jiang Xin Zhi's meimei, and the current Hong'an Junzhu. The way the military provisions problem was solved doesn't seem like something Qi Feng would do. If the news from the subordinates is correct, it should probably have been carried out by Jinying Wangfei."

The woman didn't speak. A tense silence fell, and the surrounding maidservants lowered their heads while Yuan Chuan maintained his respectful bow. When the wafting incense had almost burned out, she finally let out a cold sneer. "Jinying Wangfei? What's she worth?"

Yuan Chuan carefully glanced at her bright eyes which had momentarily darkened with a familiar fleeting emotion. Then she slowly stood up. She wasn't particularly tall, and could even be called petite. A bright red skirt outlined her slender figure and her every move was filled with charm – not the charm of a woman from a brothel, but rather like a kind of innocence. It was as if she were born like this, like a beautiful cub born to tempt others.

"He burned our rations, so the South Xinjiang soldiers can no longer take part in this war." Although her tone was still as lazy as before, each word had an underlying meaning.

"Exactly. Tian Jin has sent messages to us saying they are unable to provide much more military rations. Therefore, they hope we can think of something ourselves," Yuan Chuan said. "Saintess, do you wish to...?"

With their rations destroyed, their soldiers could no longer stay. Tian Jin was too busy taking care of itself and didn't trust South Xinjiang much in the first place, so there was no way they would be willing to give them much grain. Moreover, what little they might give had no way of solving their urgent need. It would be a thankless task for South Xinjiang to continue helping Tian Jin against Great Jin.

"Traitors aren't worthy of being my allies," the woman stated coldly. "Tian Jin is about to be defeated. They also know that, which is why they have taken this stance. Yuan Chuan, you go back and pass on my order: the alliance is over, our soldiers are to return to South Xinjiang as soon as possible."

Taken aback, Yuan Chuan tentatively asked, "Saintess, if we go back to South Xinjiang like this, Great Jin... Is Saintess giving up?" He knew better than anyone just why Saintess had become an ally of Tian Jin, so he was very surprised when he heard her decision.

"Yuan Chuan, when have I ever given up?" The woman sighed lightly, yet her gaze became somewhat strange. "In the end, the reason things went wrong in Great Jin's capital is because of that Miss Jiang you mentioned — this makes me a little unhappy. You've had their God of War in your hands and interrogated him for so long, but what have you found?"

Yuan Chuan lowered his head in guilt. "This subordinate is incompetent, we have not been able to get the truth out of Jiang Xin Zhi."

"Wrong," Saintess said, shaking her head, "he said it long ago, you just haven't been able to realize it."

"Yuan Chuan is stupid, Saintess, please enlighten me." He looked at her, puzzled, only to hear her reply in a soft and lazy voice. "You interrogated him every day but he said nothing, not letting go of even the slightest clue. To my knowledge, Jiang Xin Zhi wasn't such a cautious person when fighting and on the march. Therefore, since he's so careful, the person he's protecting must be very important to him. I heard that his relationship with this Jiang girl is very good. It was also Jiang Ruan who saved him from an ambush when he first returned to the capital. And Jiang Xin Zhi's career has gone up smoothly and steadily ever since the siblings reunited. Do you think this is a coincidence?"

Yuan Chuan understood many things in a flash of insight. He looked at the woman and asked, "Saintess suspects...? But she's just an ordinary girl, how could she know so many things about the future?" There were many strange and capable people in the world, but it was too hard to believe that a sequestered girl was one of them.

"As a citizen of South Xinjiang born in the land of witchcraft yourself, why would anything be impossible?" Saintess' voice sounded sweet, but upon listening closer, there was a faint murderous intent. "You ignored it because you looked down on her and didn't take her as a serious opponent. But I never had any intention of letting her keep her life."

Yuan Chuan bowed. "Saintess is wise."

"Xiao Shao actually invited all his martial brothers to the capital in order to protect her. I originally thought that I could use her since she seemed to be so smart, but now she's just annoying. That this daughter of the Jiang family was able to silently break through our plans and defeat that waste Xuan Li has really opened my eyes. I heard that Xiao Shao will marry her after finishing off Tian Jin?" She abruptly chuckled. "How absurd!"

She didn't say anything serious — her tone was as relaxed as before, and even had a hint of sweetness, but Yuan Chuan shuddered when he heard her. After staying next to Saintess for so many years, he couldn't be clearer about what she wanted to do. The more she was like this, the more hatred there was in her heart and the crueler she would act. In the end, Yuan Chuan couldn't help but ask, "Saintess, should we act against her?"

The woman glanced sideways at him. "Someone is more anxious than us. You find a way to leak information to Xuan Li and just say that the Jiang girl was the one who proposed burning the granary. I still can't leave but some things in Great Jin should start now. Yuan Chuan, when their troops return in victory, you mix in with them and go to the capital."

"Saintess...?" Yuan Chuan, stunned, asked, "We're starting now?"

"Those people in Great Jin are getting worse and worse- the only one I can trust is you." She looked at Yuan Chuan with a wide smile and shining eyes like gemstones, like a girl gazing at her most beloved lover. "Yuan Chuan," she said, "you have another task as well. Xuan Li is really too useless — if he can't kill the Jiang girl, then you do it for me. I don't want to see her live too long." Then she slowly said, "A grand wedding after returning in victory? I want to see how he can marry a corpse."

A cold chill infiltrated Yuan Chuan's heart. He responded respectfully, then turned and left the tent.

* * *

Time passed very quickly. No further bad news came from the frontier, Deputy General Jiang had also been rescued by Jinying Wang, and although he was covered in wounds from head to toe, he stubbornly didn't surrender. The Emperor was naturally very happy with such a strong warrior. With the previous rumors proven false, the courtiers who were observing from the sidelines all had new thoughts, now wondering if the daughters of their families could form marital ties with the Jiang family.

This Jiang family was also quite strange. They used to be a perfectly good clean family, but in recent years they had a string of misfortunes. First, Jiang Furen gave Minister Jiang a green hat, Second Miss Jiang, who was widely known as a fairy, ruined her reputation, and then their Second Young Master conspired with the Xia family to burn the granary. Increasingly, the Emperor felt that the Jiang family was useless, and it seemed that both Minister Jiang's career and the Jiang family were reaching their end.

But on the other hand, they had also produced a Hong'an Junzhu who enjoyed Empress Dowager Yi De's favor, their Eldest Young Master was Great Jin's war God of War, and even an insignificant fourth daughter born from a concubine had climbed to the rank of third-rank Noble Consort. From this point of view, Minister Jiang's life wasn't too bad. However a good samaritan heard that Minister Jiang was only kind to Xia Yan's two children and was very cold to his late wife's children, not to mention Jiang Dan. Who knew that the wheel of fortune would turn, and the two unfavored siblings now had the best lives of them all, to the point that the entire Jiang family relied on their glory to keep a good name. How embarrassing!

Although winter had passed and they were now on the cusp of spring, the weather was still as cold as before and snow particles still fell from the sky. The snow on the ground melted quickly as Jiang Ruan stood in the front yard, where her light red dress was like a flaming spark amidst the snow scene.

Qi Feng, who stood next to her, suddenly said, "Third Brother is coming back soon."

The war between Tian Jin and Great Jin was quickly coming to a head this spring. After Tian Jin provoked Great Jin's sense of imperial dignity, they were forced to retreat again and again from Xiao Shao's fierce Jinyi Guards almost all the way to their capital. Tian Jin had reached the end of their rope and it was only a matter of time before they surrendered to Great Jin. There was no way for Tian Jin to resist it. As soon as the war was over, Xiao Shao would naturally rush back without stopping for anything.

Jiang Ruan nodded lightly, then Qi Feng continued: "When Third Brother comes back, you'll get married." Speaking of this, he actually felt a little bitter. He turned his head to see the girl in front of him in a light red dress, looking as if ten thousand particles of light were sprinkled on her body and with a pair of eyes as charming as flowers. She resembled a flame, but upon closer inspection she was more like ice. He'd stayed by her side for the last few days, watching her lay out her strategies, watching her predict the future, even as she acted as if nothing was worth worrying about. Occasionally, he would wonder if anything in this world could enter her eyes, but when he saw the way her eyes changed when he mentioned Xiao Shao's return, Qi Feng immediately understood.

Masking the emotions in his eyes, he teased, "Third Sister-in-law, I think all the brothers from Mt. Jianan will come for a cup of wedding wine on that day."

Jiang Ruan smiled. "Many thanks."

Her attitude had always been so distant, impossible to approach. Qi Feng turned away and found an excuse to leave, leaving Jiang Ruan alone in the courtyard. Winter passed into spring, and many things happened this year as well. Xiao Shao, who was stationed at the border, sent news back that Zhao Jin had gone to the border, which truly was outside of her expectations, not to mention that Zhao Jin managed to save Jiang Xin Zhi. Zhao Jin came from a military family and tended to be rather masculine in her actions. When Jiang Ruan told Zhao Furen the news, Zhao Furen was relieved, and the two Zhao brothers were reasonable and didn't make too much trouble either. Rather, it was Lin Zi Xiang who visited Jinying Wangfu after she found out — not to blame Jiang Ruan, but to complain that Jiang Xin Zhi somehow seduced Zhao Jin away, it was too brazen! This really made Jiang Ruan feel very exasperated.

Speaking of Lin Zi Xiang, recently she often ran over to the Jinying Wangfu. This wasn't for Jiang Ruan. After all, a wine-lover's heart was not in the cup; in the past she and Xia Qing were in conflict for some reason, but after the misunderstanding was resolved they somehow got to know one another. Xia Qing seemed to like Lin Zi Xiang very much, but their hearts were too pure, so if anything it was harder for them to understand each other.

Bai Zhi and Ye Feng were also getting closer, and Bai Zhi would even send Ye Feng snacks from time to time. Despite being Xiao Shao's right-hand man and of exemplary status, Ye Feng would find some reason or another to talk to Bai Zhi every day. Even a fool could see what he wanted.

In contrast to Bai Zhi and Ye Feng's gentleness, Lu Zhu and Jin Er fought all day long. They would erupt into arguments the moment they saw each other, but anyone with a discerning eye could see what was going on. However, it's a pity that both acted like carefree brats all day, so who knew when they would be able to get together.

Ever since Jiang Chao's incident, Jiang Quan wasn't even willing to enter the Jinying Wangfu. He'd ordered Jiang Ruan to think of a way to rescue Jiang Chao, but she simply ignored him. After Jiang Chao's death, Jiang Quan seemed to have aged a decade overnight, and he became even more estranged with Jiang Ruan. And Jiang Ruan knew very well that he harbored deep resentment towards her. Now Jiang Quan accepted a few more concubines, as if wanting to leave more descendants for the Jiang family — he was obviously determined not to regard Jiang Xin Zhi as his son. Jiang Ruan sometimes found the situation quite strange. From her previous life, she knew that Jiang Quan was someone who valued power and could do anything to climb up, but even though she and Jiang Xin Zhi could bring the Jiang family to greater heights, Jiang Quan refused to curry their favor and even insisted on continuing to hate them. Perhaps some things were just fated from birth: no matter what Jiang Ruan and Jiang Xin Zhi did, Jiang Quan would never like them merely because they were Zhao Mei's children. Without a doubt, he would only ever be a father to Jiang Su Su and Jiang Chao.

Xuan Li was unusually silent and had shown no movement ever since the turmoil regarding the military provisions. Obviously, the Xia family's annihilation caused great losses to him. He had more or less disappeared in the past year, acting the law-abiding prince in court and not even doing much in private. Most of his power had been destroyed, and it was very hard for him to find someone to replace the fallen Xia family. Fifth Prince, Xuan Hua, was steadier in his actions, Thirteenth Prince, Xuan Pei, caught the Emperor's eye and was surprisingly well-liked by Empress Dowager Yi De, while the Crown Prince also seemed to smarten up a bit and was no longer as ridiculous as before. With so many new opponents suddenly showing up, Xuan Li probably didn't feel so good either. However, this didn't mean he was giving up; on the contrary, Jiang Ruan knew very well that Xuan Li didn't move only because he hadn't found a suitable opportunity. This person was the best at keeping a low profile. As soon as he found a chance, he would act without an iota of hesitation.

Jiang Dan had by now been promoted from a 'meiren' to Third Noble Consort*. Since entering the palace, she had struck water left and right; benefitting from everything that had happened. She'd become very well-versed in palace life and everyone from the Empress to the palace maids liked her, and even someone as strict as Empress Dowager Yi De couldn't find any faults. She'd also secretly colluded with Xuan Li and was living a rather good life. For someone who was careful, smart, and able to hide their ambition, it was a given for them to steadily rise in the palace ranks step by step. She was living well, but Jiang Ruan wasn't in a hurry. This flourishing world was merely a great hunt, the end depended on who was most patient. She's already endured it for more than a lifetime, what was a few more days?

* 昭儀 (zhāo yí) – Lady of Bright Deportment.

Jiang Ruan lowered her eyes then reached out to catch a snowflake, which quickly melted in her hand. The new year would soon arrive, and in a trance, she seemed to return to the year of her rebirth. At that time she was huddled in a dirty room in Zhang Lan's rural residence without even a piece of charcoal to burn, slowly emerging from a bloody past life to accept the reality that her enemies were high above yet she was below.

Time passed in the blink of an eye, and now she stood in the Jinying Wangfu and everyone's positions were reversed. Her enemies were dead or wounded while she herself was unharmed. As Qi Feng said, Xiao Shao was due to be back soon. That grand wedding she couldn't receive in her past life would take place here and now — for it to land on a cold and emotionless person like her, who knew if it was a blessing or a curse.

* * *

At the Eighth Prince fu, his guards knelt on the ground and reported, "Your Highness, news from the border says Tian Jin can't hold on any longer. The Jinyi Guards have entered their heartland, Tian Jin has surrendered."

Xuan Li sat in the middle of the room, his face gentle. Despite his subordinates reporting such unpleasant news, he still seemed quite happy, and his smile even resembled a spring breeze, making people feel a little weird.

No one dared to say a word. In the past year, Xuan Li suffered blows because of the Xia family, but his actions became more calm. For example, he showed neither joy nor anger. If before Xuan Li was said to wear a gentleman's mask, now that mask had been integrated into Xuan Li's person.

"It's faster than I thought." Xuan Li sighed lightly. "So there's really nothing that can destroy the Jinyi Guards?"

"Your Highness, we currently can't match the Jinying Wangfu, and Jinying Wang has always maintained a neutral position at court. Avoiding him might be our best strategy," an advisor persuaded. Now that Xuan Li's power had been drastically reduced, it wouldn't be wise to confront Xiao Shao head on. Moreover, Xiao Shao had always ignored court affairs — if they could reduce contact with him, it would save them a lot of trouble.

"It's too late," Xuan Li said with a smile. "Do you truly think we can live in peace with the Jinying Wangfu?" He waved the letter in his hand. "Everyone, do you know who was the mastermind behind the burning granary and the Xia family's downfall?"

The advisors looked at each other blankly. Xuan Li had sent many people to investigate this matter but found nothing, it made him furious and became one of his obsessions. Looking at him now, did he already know who did it?

"It's Jinying Wangfei, Jiang Ruan," Xuan Li stated calmly.

"How could it be?" Everyone else in the room was shocked. "Jinying Wangfei is just a young lady, how could she do such a big thing? It's not as if she can see the future. If it was really her, she would be too terrifying. And why would she act against Your Highness in the first place?"

"I know you are all very surprised, but I'll tell you frankly that it was indeed the work of Jinying Wangfei." Then he said meaningfully, "You think Jinying Wangfei can't do this and has no reason to do this, but have you thought that this represents Jinying Wang's intentions?"

As soon as he said this, everyone fell silent. Only after Xuan Li looked at each of them did he continue, "Could it be that Jinying Wangfei has been instructed by Jinying Wang?" In fact, Xuan Li knew that what he said wasn't credible. He had also been shocked when his spies said Jiang Ruan was the one who orchestrated the Xia family's fall, but for some reason he believed it almost instantly. He'd always felt that she was a bit weird, although he couldn't explain why — she was only a young lady from an official's family raised in seclusion who didn't know anything, how could she have such powerful means? But every time he saw her, Xuan Li had an indescribable feeling, as if Jiang Ruan had some hidden hatred towards him although he clearly hadn't done anything to deserve it.

Xuan Li was furious upon learning the news, furious that his great plan was ruined at the hands of a woman. She cost him both the Xia family and eight hundred wagons of military provisions, causing him double losses. He wanted to kill her every time he thought of it.

"Xiao Shao is about to return in victory," Xuan Li smiled, "I want to give him a gift."

The Jinying Wangfu was a very special existence in Great Jin, so much so that even after so many years, he couldn't touch the Jinyi Guards' real power. If what happened before caused him to have other thoughts regarding the Jinying Wangfu, then knowing Jiang Ruan harmed him was the straw that broke the camel's back. Sometimes, one had to be reckless. Xuan Li didn't want Jiang Ruan to marry Xiao Shao. If she really was as cunning as the spies reported, then if she joined with Xiao Shao, the Jinying Wangfu would be too terrifying.

While Xiao Shao hadn't yet returned, he had to confirm something and take care of a problem. Xuan Li slowly clenched his fists.