Chapter 54

 Pei Yuan's expression hardened. He took the packet of powder, pinched some between his fingers, and noted its fine texture and strong tea aroma.

Qiu Mingshan said, "No one suspected this powder at first. Zhou Jiangcheng loved tea and often drank Xiao Qing Gan Pu'er. Pu'er tea naturally has a white frost. Yesterday, he secretly brewed a cup, drank two sips, and had the same episode as before, banging his head against the wall. After being stopped and questioned, we thought of this."

"Come and see." Qiu Mingshan wrapped the packet and walked to the large water jar behind the pomegranate tree.

This jar had been abandoned, but Bao Ning found it beautiful and didn't want to throw it away. She raised two koi fish in it, which were now sleeping soundly. Qiu Mingshan sprinkled the powder into the water. Soon, the two fish began thrashing wildly, hitting their heads against the jar and soon bleeding.

Pei Yuan watched the blood slowly spread in the water. A thought flashed through his mind—he remembered Gongsun Zhu, Pei Xiao's most trusted poison doctor.

"And this," Qiu Mingshan produced a rolled-up cloth, dirty and crumpled, "Wei Meng dug this up from the Bashu army camp, under a northeast-facing locust tree. They were going to build a stove and fire, but after cutting down the tree, they found this."

His tone was hesitant: "You...don't be afraid when you see it."

Pei Yuan took it, unrolled it, and under the light of Qiu Mingshan's fire stick, saw a page covered in blood writing. It was a chaotic mess, all filled with the word "hatred." In the lower right corner was a large character, "Ji."

"In that area, there's a custom of writing the name of one's enemy in fingertip blood and burying it under a locust tree to curse their entire family," Qiu Mingshan continued. "Zhou Jiangcheng said this is Luyun's handwriting."

Pei Yuan closed his eyes, feeling overwhelmed by the tangled web of events, but sensing an underlying thread connecting them.

Especially the character "Ji" threw Pei Yuan off balance. There were many people with the surname Ji. Whom did Luyun hate? He couldn't guess. But Pei Yuan couldn't help but worry if this matter might affect Bao Ning.

Pei Yuan mentally organized the clues: tiger tally, Luyun, poison, Pei Xiao, Gongsun Zhu, Ji, hatred.

A tangled mess, with something elusive. Yet Pei Yuan had a vague premonition that behind this complex web lay a secret advantageous to him.

"Yuan'er, we can't wait any longer," Qiu Mingshan said urgently. "The enemy is in the dark; we are in the light. Pei Xiao can plot against the Bashu army's tiger tally today, and tomorrow, he might target our heads. We now have an army of two hundred thousand. In two months, in midsummer, the Emperor will retreat to the summer palace. If you make up your mind and lead the Wolf Army to capture the Emperor, altering the decree for the crown prince, why endure this long, uncertain night?"

"Why do you crave that position so much?" Pei Yuan narrowed his eyes at him. "Is insulting my mother not enough? Do you also want to kill my father?"

"You..." Qiu Mingshan stepped back, aghast. "I've always been loyal to you, and you think of me this way?"

"Then please keep your good intentions to yourself." Pei Yuan looked at him coldly. "We agreed from the start that I would help you kill Pei Xiao, not the Emperor. I may be shameless, but I won't usurp the throne. When you succeed and I uncover my mother's truth, I won't claim your credit. We part ways then."

Qiu Mingshan's face turned pale. He clenched his fists, almost speaking but held back.

...

When Pei Yuan returned inside, Bao Ning was already asleep.

It seemed difficult for him and Qiu Mingshan to return to their former harmony. Their positions and political views differed, and they had mutual suspicions. Their current cooperation was out of necessity, with each harboring their own thoughts.

Qiu Mingshan was eager to ingratiate himself with Pei Yuan, trying to instill ideas that Pei Yuan was unwilling to accept, deepening the rift between them. Their meetings often ended on a sour note.

After her bath, Bao Ning's room still carried the faint scent of jasmine soap. The candle on the table was dimmed, casting a warm, yellow glow over a small area.

Ah Huang and the lamb were curled up together under the bed, a fluffy bundle. Pei Yuan didn't particularly like them, but listening to their gentle breathing, he couldn't resist reaching out to pet their fur. Ah Huang twitched an ear and glanced at him, but then ignored him and went back to sleep.

This was an atmosphere that easily made one relax.

Before entering the room, Pei Yuan's mind was still tense, filled with thoughts of power struggles. But as soon as he stepped into this small space, maintained by Bao Ning, his mood lightened.

Pei Yuan sat on the edge of the bed, slowly took off his boots, and neatly placed them next to Bao Ning's white embroidered shoes.

Hot water had been prepared and placed behind the screen. By now, it had cooled to a perfect temperature for washing. Pei Yuan casually draped his clothes over the corner of the screen, splashed his face, and rinsed his feet. Carrying a cloth towel, he walked back to the bed, his damp forehead brushing against his lowered eyelids.

"You were out for a long time." Bao Ning, woken by the noise, rubbed her eyes and sat up, her voice hoarse from sleep.

"You're so messy," Bao Ning drawled. "You didn't wash your feet properly. You're filthy. Don't get into my bed."

Pei Yuan glanced at the candle, now only a fingernail's length left, and couldn't be bothered to extinguish it, waiting for it to burn out on its own.

"I'll bathe tomorrow," Pei Yuan said lazily as he lay down on the bed. "Give me one more day."

"You're a prince and you don't like to bathe. Shame on you," Bao Ning huffed, lying down as well, muttering, "Even cats know to lick themselves clean."

Pei Yuan clicked his tongue. "What's wrong with bathing every three days? When I was in the army, water was so precious that bathing every half month was normal. Always comparing yourself to me. Who's like you, feeling like you're covered in fleas if you don't bathe every day? I don't mind you being clean to the point of poverty, yet you mind me being dirty."

Bao Ning nudged him quietly. "You argue back three times for every comment. You talk too much."

"Then you have to bear it," Pei Yuan turned to look at her, suddenly smiled, and pulled Bao Ning, blanket and all, into his arms, holding the back of her head as he kissed her face messily. "I'm your man. You can't escape me in this lifetime. If you don't put up with it, are you going to rebel?"

Bao Ning struggled, squealing softly, and finally managed to push him away. She wiped her face dry with the edge of the blanket, looking at him with a face full of disdain.

She originally intended to talk to Pei Yuan about her plans for the future, but after this commotion, she forgot all the words she had carefully prepared. She only thought that he was like a dog, and even dogs didn’t lick people as much as he did.

Seeing her embarrassed state, Pei Yuan rested his arm on his forehead and couldn't help but laugh heartily, dispelling all the gloom in his heart.

"So annoying. I won't sleep with you anymore." Bao Ning glared at him, hugging her pillow, and turned to the foot of the bed, patting her pillow and lying down.

Ah Huang was startled awake. It yawned and jumped onto the bed, lying next to Bao Ning. The person and the dog curled up together in the corner, and soon both were asleep, the candle extinguished.

Pei Yuan stared at the ceiling for a while, pondering over what Qiu Mingshan had just discussed with him.

Now that he was calm, his thoughts were clear, making it much easier to sort things out.

At first, Pei Yuan suspected that Lü Yun might be connected to the Ji family. Bao Ning's father, Duke Rong, was not a faithful man; perhaps he had secretly kept a mistress who bore a daughter, whom he then abandoned, causing the daughter to hate him deeply.

But upon further reflection, this seemed unlikely. Duke Rong was a sentimental and weak man, but not to the point of being shameless, and there had never been any such rumors over the years. Moreover, with Tao Shi's cunning, if he did have an illegitimate daughter, she would have been secretly eliminated long ago.

Lü Yun, Pei Xiao, and the Ji family.

Pei Yuan closed his eyes, repeatedly muttering these names, and suddenly remembered that in half a month, Pei Xiao would be marrying Ji family's fourth legitimate daughter, Ji Jiaying.

Perhaps, Lü Yun was actually connected to Pei Xiao. Pei Xiao might have made promises to her but then broke them, causing Lü Yun to transfer her hatred to Ji Jiaying, whom Pei Xiao was about to marry.

This idea seemed far-fetched but plausible.

Pei Yuan felt a bit dizzy. He despised these backcourt intrigues. If this speculation were true, he would despise Pei Xiao even more for using women as pawns. Pei Yuan surmised that if this were the case, Lü Yun would likely be in Pei Xiao's residence now, harboring intense hatred and possibly planning to eliminate Ji Jiaying on the day of the wedding.

If something were to go wrong with the bride on the wedding day, the scene would undoubtedly be chaotic, giving him an opportunity to act.

For instance, finding Gongsun Zhu.

Pei Yuan's fingers rubbed the edge of the bed as he recalled the layout of Pei Xiao's residence. Although this event might not happen, he had to plan early and not miss any chance to harm Pei Xiao. Especially since Gongsun Zhu was still under Pei Xiao’s command, a hidden weapon that killed without a trace, he must be eliminated as soon as possible.

The night was already deep, and Bao Ning was sleeping soundly, mumbling in her dreams.

Pei Yuan's train of thought was interrupted. Curious about what Bao Ning was saying, he sat up and leaned his ear close to her lips.

Half of Bao Ning’s face was buried in the pillow. She was dreaming and smiling, drawing out her words: “A Yun, the big estate you bought for your sister, your sister really likes it——”

Pei Yuan frowned in confusion. What estate? Where did the estate come from?

“Look at you, such a money-grubber, even counting money in your sleep.” Pei Yuan tapped Bao Ning on the forehead, feeling speechless. He tucked her in properly and lay back down.

Pei Yuan suddenly thought of another matter. Ji Jiaying might be in danger now. Should he tell Bao Ning?

If he did, it might disrupt his plans. But if he didn’t, and something happened to Ji Jiaying while he benefited from it, would Bao Ning blame him?

Although her sister didn’t treat her well, Bao Ning valued family greatly. Would she ignore it? Thinking further, would Bao Ning feel that he didn’t care about her if she thought this was his doing, feeling sad afterward?

This time, Pei Yuan truly couldn’t sleep.

In the past, such concerns wouldn’t even cross his mind. He acted solely based on maximizing his interests, rarely considering his own happiness.

But now, he couldn’t help but think about how he could act without disappointing Bao Ning.

The next morning, when Bao Ning woke up, Pei Yuan was still wide awake, staring at the canopy above the bed as if he hadn’t slept all night.

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