After a moment’s pause, a wry smile crept onto Lu Zhao’s lips as he snorted lightly.
Xiao Mu and Shen Qingli both looked at him, or rather, everyone present was watching him. Seeing him smile like that, Shen Qingli was the first to understand something. She widened her eyes in disbelief and exclaimed, “Lu Zhao!”
Xiao Mu also frowned, his expression serious as he stared at Lu Zhao and quietly called out, “Changfeng!”
Ignoring these two, Lu Zhao remained seated on his horse, tilting his head up towards the city wall, his voice calm and steady: “Alright, I can go up there. Release the hostages first.”
Xiao Jing smiled, and someone beside him quickly approached to advise him against it. If they released the hostage, they would have no leverage. Xiao Jing waved his hand dismissively, his gaze sinister and cold as he said, “Young Master Lu keeps his promises. I release the hostage, and you come over. Do we have a deal?”
Lu Zhao immediately dismounted, while Shen Qingli grew anxious and shouted, “Lu Zhao! This is a trap!”
Lu Zhao turned his head back, giving a faint smile. “I know, but how can we catch the tiger’s cub without entering its den? Please rest assured, Your Highness.”
With that said, he took the first step forward, and Xiao Jing on the city wall closely watched him. Seeing this, he gestured with his finger, and immediately the three elders were escorted down from the wall, keeping their promise.
Shen Qingli breathed a sigh of relief as she watched her parents rescued, but as she looked at Lu Zhao’s resolute figure, she felt a new sense of unease rise within her.
“Lu Zhao! Remember, Yaoyao is still waiting for you!” Suddenly, Shen Qingli shouted loudly at him.
Lu Zhao paused his steps forward, as if recalling Shen Qingyao’s appearance, a slightly tender smile appearing on his lips. He waved his hand back and stepped into the palace…
A thunderous clap rang out. After brewing all night, the rain finally began to patter down. As dawn broke, before the black night had fully retreated, a sudden lightning bolt illuminated the room for an instant, then darkness fell again.
Shen Qingyao opened her eyes groggily. It seemed the pouring rain had startled Cui Qiao, who hurriedly rushed in to close the windows for her. Turning around to see that she was awake, Cui Qiao hurriedly came closer, complaining, “Why does it have to rain so heavily all of a sudden? It’s really frightening.”
Shen Qingyao struggled to lift her hand and push aside the heavy blanket. She opened her mouth, but her throat felt as if it were on fire, and it took a long time before she could manage to produce a few broken and dry sounds. Cui Qiao quickly brought her a cup of tea, and after a few sips, Shen Qingyao felt somewhat better.
“Cui Qiao, what time is it?”
Cui Qiao took back the cup from her hand and answered, “Miss, it’s just past the hour of the tiger1. You should rest a bit longer; it’s still early.”
Shen Qingyao shook her head, propping herself up with Cui Qiao’s help. She realized not only did her chest hurt, but her whole body was also incredibly weak. Every slight movement made her want to cough. She bent over and coughed twice, and Cui Qiao immediately came nervously to feel her forehead. After a moment, Cui Qiao exclaimed, “Oh no! Miss, why do you have a fever again?”
Shen Qingyao was taken aback. Besides her recurrent heart condition, she hadn’t expected to have a fever as well. But thinking back, she saw that the weather was hot and humid last night, so she had gone out in light clothes. Catching a cold now was probably her own fault. She lowered her head guiltily and didn’t dare to speak.
Even so, Cui Qiao couldn’t help blaming herself, saying that if she hadn’t been lazy last night and had gone with Miss, at least she wouldn’t have let her Miss catch a cold.
Shen Qingyao listened comforted, couldn’t help patting her, “Okay, my body is like this. Even if I don’t go out, I’ll still get sick. Don’t think too much.”
Interrupting Cuiqiao’s nagging, Shen Qingyao coughed twice. Her heart was beating violently. She closed her eyes. It seemed that this wasn’t only because of heart’s condition, but she couldn’t tell what it was.
“Wait a little longer. Wait until dawn, then go and ask Doctor Kong to come for me,” Shen Qingyao whispered. Cui Qiao acknowledged and turned to leave to prepare two bowls of warm soup for her. As she reached the door, Shen Qingyao stopped her.
“Any news from the capital?” Ningcheng had specially bred carrier pigeons, faster than messengers; news could arrive within a day. Last night’s battle in the capital, if news came sooner, would arrive today. Shen Qingyao clenched her fists, feeling uneasy.
Cui Qiao shook her head, “Not yet, Miss.”
“Alright, if there’s any news, remember to tell me immediately,” Shen Qingyao smiled faintly, lifting her hand to dismiss Cui Qiao. Alone, she leaned against a soft pillow, her heartbeat quickening, the night’s unease growing stronger.
Another thunderclap from the sky made Shen Qingyao jump in fright. With precedents like transmigration and systems, she held some awe for metaphysics, gently rubbing her chest to relieve the suffocating feeling. She couldn’t shake the sense that something bad was happening.
The rain in the south was relentless, with days passing without sunshine. The downpour affected the pigeons’ flights; news from the capital was delayed, and every day Shen Qingyao asked, receiving the same answer: no news from the capital.
She felt disappointed and increasingly anxious. Her worries weakened her visibly.
This onset of heart problems was different from the last, more severe and persistent, torturing her minute by minute. Kong Lin was troubled, strands of white appearing in his hair. Daily, he puzzled over why her condition this time was so strange, leaving him at a loss.
Shen Qingyao knew it was the system prompting her. She was supposed to have died mid-plot; now, skipping ahead to the ending, she continued to suffer from this debilitating illness.
Finally, the rain stopped. Shen Qingyao, who had been depressed indoors for days, finally had the chance to breathe outside. But as she walked to the lake, her heart suddenly ached, almost causing her to almost fall in. Cui Qiao and Hong Yun were shocked.
“Miss! Are you alright?”
“Madam!”
They supported her from either side, Shen Qingyao still shaken, her legs weakening. Last time she faced such a situation was in the palace, threatening Lu Zhao with a lake jump. Shen Qingyao suddenly remembered that day and couldn’t help but smile, reflecting on how many near-death moments she had created just to complete tasks since arriving here.
But that day, Lu Zhao had carefully protected her. Today, if she had fallen, he wouldn’t have been there.
Her smile faded as quickly as it appeared. Shen Qingyao coughed and asked again, “Still no news from the capital? Has Elder Brother Lu Zhao sent any messages?”
It had been seven days. Even if the rain delayed carrier pigeons, seven days should have been enough for a swift horse or a messenger to arrive. Why was there still no news?
Seeing her inquire again, Cui Qiao’s face stiffened. She suddenly looked away, avoiding Shen Qingyao’s gaze nervously. Shen Qingyao narrowed her eyes, sensing trouble, and turned to Hong Yun, who was similarly avoiding eye contact.
Shen Qingyao’s heart sank slowly. She asked again, “Is it true that there’s still no news from the capital?”
“Miss…” Cui Qiao turned back, her eyes reddening.
“Go fetch Zhang Ping. I want to ask him myself.” Zhang Ping was the guard left by Lu Zhao, and he was the one who usually delivered messages. Shen Qingyao gently pushed Cui Qiao’s supporting hand away, instructing in a solemn tone, then struggled to cover her chest and returned to the house.
Zhang Ping sensed immediately upon entering that something was amiss in the room. After a moment’s hesitation, he bowed respectfully and asked, “Young Madam, did you need me?”
“I’m asking you, has the news from the capital arrived?” Shen Qingyao gripped a porcelain tea cup tightly, using up all her strength just doing that. Despite this, she sat upright, staring intensely at Zhang Ping.
“The capital…” Zhang Ping knew immediately what she was referring to. His heart sank, and he lowered his head in silence, unable to continue.
“What about Elder Brother Lu Zhao?” Shen Qingyao asked again, realizing something was wrong. If Lu Zhao wanted to send a message, why hadn’t it arrived? Was he too busy, or… had something happened? Shen Qingyao thought, her face turning pale, almost translucent, devoid of any color.
Seeing her reaction, Zhang Ping knew he couldn’t hide it any longer. He kept his head low for a while before finally speaking slowly, “Young Master… he…”
“Young Master, that night of the siege, was threatened by Xiao Jing with the lives of the Grand Princess, Master Shen, and Madam Shen, and entered the palace alone. Later… Xiao Jing led Young Master into a secret passage in the palace, where a large amount of gunpowder was placed. After Young Master went in…”
Zhang Ping’s expression was pained, his voice choked, unable to continue.
Shen Qingyao’s fingertips turned white as she gripped the cup tighter. She blinked back tears but refused to believe, “What happened after he went in?”
Zhang Ping remained silent. Shen Qingyao closed her eyes briefly, feeling a pain sharper than ever before. With strength she didn’t know she had, she smashed the cup in her hand on the ground, the shards cutting her palm. Ignoring the pain, she stared at Zhang Ping and demanded, “Tell me! What happened after that?!”
“When the explosion occurred, Young Master and Xiao Jing were in confrontation in the tunnel. Escaping was difficult. Afterwards, both the palace rooms and the tunnels collapsed. They were buried underneath…”
Cui Qiao and Hong Yun beside her were already quietly sobbing, having known beforehand but hiding it from her until now, finally it was revealed to her.
Shen Qingyao turned away, took a deep breath, but couldn’t ease the intense pain in her heart. Upon hearing the truth, she couldn’t cry anymore. The air around her seemed thinner, making it hard to breathe, yet her mind remained unusually calm.
“Just being buried doesn’t mean they’re dead. If he’s alive, I want to see him. If he’s dead, I want to see his body. Elder Brother Lu Zhao promised me he would definitely come back.”
She laughed through tears, “What is this! Such a clumsy scheme, just an explosion, how could it harm him?”
As she spoke, she clutched her chest in pain, bending over. It hurt too much to speak clearly, but she continued, “How could something happen to Elder Brother Lu Zhao…”
“Miss, please don’t…” Cui Qiao cried as she approached to support her, unable to bear seeing her suffer so much.
“Madam! I… I’ll go find Doctor Kong!” When Hong Yun grabbed her, she felt Shen Qingyao’s temperature, her breath, and her state were all wrong. Terrified, she rushed out, startling Zhang Ping, afraid that her delay might be too slow, and followed closely behind her.
“Miss…” Cui Qiao helped Shen Qingyao up and walked her to the bed, but as she lifted her, she saw Shen Qingyao half-open her eyes, weak yet incredibly determined, whispering in her ear, “I want to return to the capital.”
“Miss?”
“I want to go back and find him myself.”
With that, the hand that had been holding Cui Qiao’s clothes fell softly. Shen Qingyao closed her eyes and collapsed onto Cui Qiao’s shoulder.
- hour of the tiger is 3.00 a.m. to 5.00 a.m. ↩︎