Lin Ruoyan led the Crown Prince along a secluded pebble path.
Seeing that no one was around, Shen Qingyun pretended to be mournful and said, "Sister Yan'er, it was right here that your father punished me for slacking off on my studies for a day."
Lin Ruoyan stopped, her innocent eyes darting around as she asked, "And then?"
Shen Qingyun sighed softly, "It was the Grand Tutor's wife who came to my rescue. At that time, your sister was a little thing following the Madam and also pleaded with the Grand Tutor not to punish me anymore."
Lin Ruoyan's slightly eased mood plummeted to the bottom.
"I'm sorry, Sister Yan'er, it's my fault, I've made you sad again. If you wish, I can stay here and talk with you; perhaps it will cheer you up."
Lin Ruoyan sat on a stone stool in the courtyard, recounting her longing and reluctance for her mother to the Crown Prince intermittently. By the end, she was too overwhelmed with grief.
"When I returned home, I promised Mother that I would tell her about all the strange and wonderful things I had seen and heard during my studies abroad. But I haven't had the chance to tell her yet. There are so many things I haven't told Mother, so many things I haven't told her about how much I missed her all these years."
"I was busy going to the palace to play, busy making new friends, busy... doing trivial things. I thought there was plenty of time, that I could save the words I wanted to tell Mother for later... There is no later, and I no longer have my Mother."
Her frail back began to tremble slightly, tears silently flowing down her cheeks. Shen Qingyun stood beside her, took a handkerchief from his sleeve, and without regard for the Crown Prince's noble status, knelt on the ground to wipe away her tears.
"Your feelings for your mother, you don't need to express them; she will know."
Shen Qingyun's voice was warm and powerful. A smile of indulgence and affection played on his handsome, clear face.
Whether it was because she had finally spoken the words that had been suppressed in her heart, or because of the tenderness in his eyes, Lin Ruoyan's mood truly improved.
Her voice, hoarse from crying, said, "Brother Crown Prince, I truly think you are a good person."
Shen Qingyun gazed at her, his smile bright and gentle as a spring breeze after rain. "I am only good to those I like."
Lin Ruoyan's small face flushed with a faint blush. She remembered what her elder sister had told her about the Crown Prince and Lin Yuan, and her mood sank again.
Shen Qingyun noticed the change in her expression and asked, "Why are you unhappy again?"
Lin Ruoyan had always been someone who couldn't hide her thoughts; whatever she had, she said.
"Then, Brother Crown Prince, do you like my half-sister?"
Shen Qingyun's eyes darkened. It must have been Lin Yanxi who told her.
In an instant, his gaze returned to normal. As before, Lin Ruoyan expected him to be angry or to avoid the question, but to her surprise, he admitted it generously.
"In this matter, I was wrong. When I was young, the second sister pleaded for me, and I have always remembered this kindness. When the daughters of the Lin family entered the palace for a banquet as they grew up, the banquet was always attended by the legitimate daughters. I mistakenly thought Lin Yuan was the second sister who pleaded for me in my childhood."
"After several interactions, she finally told me that she was the庶女 Lin Yuan, not the person I had entrusted my feelings to. I invited her to a restaurant to explain the reason and sever ties. Her actions were bold and disregards rules; she tried to..."
"But I swear I did not have any improper conduct with her. I dare not claim to be a gentleman who remains unmoved, but I know that if I do not like her, I will not be tempted by her."
After speaking, Shen Qingyun chuckled self-mockingly, "Sister Yan'er, I know you won't believe me, just like Yanxi doesn't believe me."
"I believe you," Lin Ruoyan blurted out.
When Consort Xu wanted to invite Father to stay in her room, she would also wear very thin gauze skirts and flaunt her figure.
Lin Yuan was calculating from a young age and would do anything for what she wanted.
She thought for a moment and then said, "My elder sister is not someone who doesn't understand right from wrong, but she truly has no feelings for you. Brother Crown Prince, please don't dwell on it anymore, and don't pester my elder sister. It only leads to more trouble."
Shen Qingyun smiled and stroked her hair, "I let go of your elder sister a long time ago. I thought I liked her, so I was in a hurry to have her agree to the marriage. Later, when she refused me several times, I realized that I wasn't sad because she refused. I think what I felt for her was just the kindness of being saved in my childhood, not romantic love."
"Let alone that I now know my own heart, even if I were persistent about her, I would not force her. That would not be the act of a gentleman."
Lin Ruoyan looked into his eyes, which were sincere and gentle. Her mood seemed to improve.
She wanted to say more, but a sound of footsteps approached, and Lin Yanxi appeared in the small courtyard.
"Ah, Elder Sister."
Lin Yanxi, having not seen Ruoyan return for a while, worried something might have happened to her, so she came to find her.
Her face was tinged with anger. She glanced coldly at the two of them, her stern gaze startling Lin Ruoyan. "Yan'er, come here."
Ruoyan glanced at Shen Qingyun and obediently went over.
Shen Qingyun smiled and said, "The Grand Tutor's study is further ahead. I'll go to his study and wait for him."
Lin Yanxi nodded. After leading Ruoyan away, she said, "Ruoyan, you must not be too close to the Crown Prince. He is not a good-tempered person. You go to the mourning hall first; I'll get you something to eat."
Lin Ruoyan wanted to explain to her elder sister that the Crown Prince was actually a very good person, but since her elder sister was in a bad mood now, she would resolve their misunderstanding later.
Lin Ruoyan replied, "I understand."
After Ruoyan walked away, Lin Yanxi took a detour and quietly went behind the study, wanting to see what other tricks the Crown Prince had.
"Greetings, Your Highness."
"Grand Tutor, my condolences."
Lin Ze knew that the Crown Prince seeking him out was by no means a simple matter of offering condolences, so he directly asked, "Does Your Highness have something to discuss with this old minister?"
Shen Qingyun nodded. He waved his hand, and his guards dismissed the servants attending in the study, guarding the courtyard and not allowing anyone to approach.
The Crown Prince took a broken broadsword from his waist. "The person who stole the jade talisman killed two guards from the Eastern Palace and dragged their bodies into a deserted woodshed. After discovering the jade talisman missing, I searched the entire mansion and only then found these two dead guards."
"This morning, I found a broken broadsword inserted into one of the guards. Perhaps we can trace the whereabouts of the jade talisman through this broadsword?"
Lin Yanxi, hearing this, carefully poked a hole in the window paper and peered through the gap. The broken sword was entwined with a cluster of curse energy.
She had seen it in ancient books; there was a technique that could be attached to an artifact to greatly increase its power.
Was the person who stole the jade talisman part of the black-cloaked group?
What was the relationship between the black-cloaked group and the Crown Prince? On the day of the hairpin ceremony, they seemed to be helping him, but if they were allies, why would they steal the jade talisman?
---
A little later, Luo Jingxin arrived at the Grand Tutor's mansion with two maids.
In the mourning hall, only Lin Yanxi was kneeling, keeping vigil. She had been kneeling since dawn, her lips pale, her expression blank.
Luo Jingxin stepped into the courtyard and, seeing her like this, subtly curved a smile of malicious glee.
"Sister Yanxi," Luo Jingxin suppressed her smile, her eyes filled with sorrow. "My condolences."
She paused and then said, "At the palace banquet, it was my fault. In a moment of anger, I said things I shouldn't have, causing others to misunderstand you."
Lin Yanxi kept her eyes lowered. In front of her was a bronze basin with burning flames. She picked up a paper-made gold ingot and sent it into the fire.
Seeing that she did not respond, Luo Jingxin gritted her teeth and continued, "Since Sister does not wish to see me, I do not wish to come and displease you."
"But I am here today regarding the Ninth Prince. He has been implicated in the theft of the jade talisman and imprisoned. Do you know about this?"
Lin Yanxi's hand movement paused for a moment, then she continued to throw gold ingots into the fire basin.
Luo Jingxin revealed a mocking, cold smile. "I knew you would know. Your father was behind this. You... don't you want to save him?"
She took a deep breath and, in a manner that broke etiquette, grabbed Lin Yanxi's hand, appearing somewhat distressed. "Consider it me begging you. Please plead with the Grand Tutor."
"Find a way to save him."
As Luo Jingxin spoke, tears streamed down her face. Unlike her usual controlled tears used to achieve her goals, she was genuinely scared.
Lin Yanxi finally looked back at her. When she first met Luo Jingxin, she had been attracted by her ethereal and transcendent aura.
Luo Jingxin indeed possessed such a quality; she knew how to advance and retreat, understood propriety, and interacted well with people, giving them a sense of comfort.
However, later Lin Yanxi discovered that she would sometimes be close to her and at other times plot against her, making it difficult for Lin Yanxi to discern whether her affection was genuine or feigned.
But now, for Shen Muzhou's sake, she had put aside her pride and come to beg her for help. This showed that her feelings for Shen Muzhou were real.
What about Shen Muzhou? Was the Chao Yang that he cherished so much Luo Jingxin?
Lin Yanxi replied, "I will save him."
"Yanxi, I thank you on behalf of the Ninth Prince."
Lin Yanxi shook her head. "Why do you thank me?"
Luo Jingxin's eyes immediately became guarded. "Naturally, because my feelings for him are extraordinary, it is most appropriate for me to thank you on his behalf."
Her words declared her claim over Shen Muzhou. Lin Yanxi lowered her gaze, feeling a pang of bitterness in her heart.
Lin Yanxi threw a few more gold ingots into the fire basin. Seeing that she had agreed to save Shen Muzhou, Luo Jingxin's suspended heart finally settled. She added a few more reminders.
"Then you must plead with the Grand Tutor. He dotes on you so much; he surely won't bear to see you sad and will help."
Lin Yanxi nodded.
Luo Jingxin straightened her back and said, "The Ninth Prince... he has many enemies in the capital. Many people wish for his death and to see him fall from power. If he is imprisoned in the Zongzheng Temple this time, he will endure endless humiliation and torment."
"Please, for my sake, go and plead with the Grand Tutor quickly."
"The longer you delay, the more torment he will suffer."
Lin Yanxi naturally had her own plans. She didn't quite understand why Shen Muzhou's several near-death experiences were related to the Crown Prince, yet he had no intention of vying for the throne.
In her previous life, he almost died in prison, but he only escaped from Nan Min. What happened later that made him decide to rebel and seize power?
As for her father, she had already explained the pros and cons to him, but he remained unmoved. Now that Shen Muzhou was imprisoned, if she tried to force her father to go all out to rescue Shen Muzhou, it would provoke the displeasure of the Crown Prince and the Emperor.
Luo Jingxin, having achieved her objective, turned to leave the mourning hall.
Lin Yanxi gazed at her retreating back and hesitantly said, "Princess Chaoyang, you don't need to thank me. I am saving the Ninth Prince because I want to save him, not out of obligation to anyone."
"Please be assured, Princess, I will do my best to save him, solely because of the affection between him and me."