Chapter 9

As the weather grew warmer, Yu Li wore fewer layers. Today, she was dressed in a Xiangfei-colored gown, topped with a brocade, narrow-sleeved, front-opening jacket that accentuated her slender waist.

Having stayed by his side for nearly two months, her face had filled out a little. Her skin was fair and supple, her complexion radiant, her lips rosy, and her cheeks flushed with a cherry-pink hue. Her eyes were tranquil and glistening, though she rarely met his gaze.

As she approached, Xie Yao caught a whiff of a fresh, warm fragrance—different from the one he remembered from Xihe County, yet strangely reminiscent of it.

He did not overlook the slightest detail of her. Even if he were to go blind again, he could identify her by her scent and her voice.

Yet, he was certain that if they were to part for another two years, even if they were to meet face-to-face, she might not recognize him.

As Yu Li drew near, the natural, comfortable smile she had worn moments before faded, replaced by a sense of restraint.

She was unaware of it herself, but Yu Li felt that over these days, she had come to treat him as a friend, or perhaps a relative—just one she wasn't quite familiar with yet.

She sat down beside him, as if to show him that she was at ease.

Xie Yao’s expression was inscrutable as he watched her smiling profile. "Yu Li, if only you would..."

*If only you would take a good look at me?*

It was too pathetic. Xie Yao did not say it aloud; he was not one to curry favor, never having been born to do so.

He had already given her so much time, and yet she still only thought of him leaving as soon as he finished his meal.

"What is it?" Yu Li asked him.

She looked at him, but she did not truly see him.

Xie Yao’s gaze deepened, as if capturing her attention.

"When I was in Xihe County and entrusted someone to propose marriage, I asked your mother if you had a sweetheart. She said there was a scholar who often frequented your shop." Xie Yao watched her face, listening to her breathing.

Yu Li’s breath hitched slightly.

Xie Yao continued, "But she said that man had already left Xihe County and disappeared without a trace. That is why she betrothed you to me. But I suspect my mother-in-law lied."

Yu Li stiffened, unable to react.

Xie Yao asked, "Are you still pining for your former lover?"

Yu Li replied, "There is no former lover."

Xie Yao pressed, "Truly?"

"Absolutely not." Yu Li looked into his eyes, almost wanting to swear an oath.

Xie Yao was unaware that his expression was frigid and terrifying. He continued to lead her on, "If you still remember him, I can agree to a divorce and set you free."

Infected by his chill, Yu Li felt a cold shiver run down her spine.

She was so terrified that she became, in turn, exceptionally calm.

Taking the initiative, she reached out and took Xie Yao’s hand, clasping his fingers tightly. "I have no sweetheart. I am just not accustomed to being close to people."

Xie Yao’s gloom remained. "But you are clearly quite close to Xiyun."

"Xiyun is a girl," Yu Li said.

"Can you not treat me as you do Xiyun?"

Yu Li froze.

Xie Yao was also taken aback.

A complex expression flickered across Yu Li’s face. Suddenly, Xie Yao stood up to leave, letting Yu Li’s hand slip from his grasp.

Xie Yao walked away quickly. Yu Li recalled, in a daze, that she rarely saw his back; when she greeted him, he was always approaching her, and when she saw him off, he was always the one watching her return first.

He had actually asked her to treat him like Xiyun. He had no intention of hurting her or forcing her; he simply longed for her to be close to him.

Recalling the original story, before he killed Mei Qing, he had given the original heroine many chances, only for them to be ruined by Song Yi.

She was not Song Yi; she was Song Yu Li. Their beginning was different, and their ending would not be the same. She must not foolishly wait for the plot to unfold on its own; she had to proactively extinguish the possibility of tragedy.

Xie Yao had already reached the gate of Mingyue Residence. There was no one else in the courtyard; whenever Xie Yao visited, Xiyun and the others would withdraw. Summoning her courage, Yu Li stood up and chased after him.

She had not yet caught up to him when he stopped.

Xie Yao halted and turned back, and Yu Li stopped right in front of him.

Two large, bright lanterns hung under the gate, casting a soft, white glow upon them.

Only now did Yu Li notice that his simple white robes shimmered with a faint gold, and that the hair at his temples was soft, held by a plain jade crown.

It was the attire of an ordinary noble son, but he was the Prince Regent; he could not possibly wear such clothes in the palace.

It was easy to imagine that every time he came, he had to change his clothes. Though she did not know how far the palace was from here, his back-and-forth travel must have taken considerable time, yet he was tireless in coming to dine with her.

Although his expression remained cold and somber, since the original owner had shown such disgust toward him and he had not harmed her, what else did she have to fear?

Yu Li took his hand again and said to him, "I will try."

Xie Yao squinted at her. "Try what?"

He did not want to hear that she would try to treat him like Xiyun. He had never been this pathetic in his life. He shouldn't have said that.

Yu Li replied, "Try to be a wife to you."

Xie Yao’s expression shifted. Yu Li saw it clearly—because of her words, he instantly withdrew his coldness, though he did not smile.

Xie Yao pulled his hand away, and Yu Li was surprised. He then gripped her wrist instead, and she felt the intensity of his strength and the high temperature of his skin.

"See that you keep your word," Xie Yao said.

"Yes," Yu Li nodded.

A husband and wife should be intimate, share the same bed, and cherish one another—this was what Yu Li envisioned as being a wife.

She had said it and promised to do it, but once Xie Yao left, she woke up feeling a bit of regret. Saying such things out of fear and unknown impulses was like taking on a massive KPI for herself.

Last night, Xie Yao had left directly. He must have been busy, and he hadn't said whether he would return today.

Yu Li prepared to make the dishes as usual for when he arrived, but since he had told her to forget his preferences, that was a bit difficult.

Aside from cooking something delicious, she didn't seem able to do anything else for him.

Yu Li was troubled, but since they had agreed to be a couple, she had to be more attentive.

Yu Li pondered for a day without a result. Fortunately, no one came to report his arrival; he wasn't coming today.

The next day, he still didn't come, and Yu Li began to wonder if she had angered him.

***

Early morning. The Imperial Beast Park.

The sun had not yet risen, but the fierce beasts in the park were already awake. Having fasted all night, they clawed at their cages, howling for food.

The palace servant bringing the meat was intercepted. As the servant stood in confusion, two black-armored guards dragged a dark shape past, leaving streaks of blood on the ground.

The tiger cage was located in the center of the park, a sunken pit. When servants fed the animals, they would descend the stairs and toss raw meat through the bars; the cage was only opened to release the tigers when high-ranking nobles came to watch.

The servant instinctively looked up and saw a corner of a black python-patterned robe, which frightened him into prostrating on the ground.

The figure was dumped into the pit. The black-armored guards climbed the stairs. The servant glanced at the dying man on the ground, then hurriedly scrambled up the stairs with a bucket of raw meat, fleeing the scene.

At the edge of the pit, the iron gate closed, and someone gave the order to release the tiger.

The servant trembled uncontrollably, but dared not delay for a moment. Working with his colleagues, he pulled the mechanism, and the cage of the fierce tiger rose from the ground.

The tiger sniffed the air, and as soon as the opening was wide enough, it lunged out.

A roar echoed. The servant’s limbs went numb with cold. The figure lying on the ground was still alive; he saw the man twitch, his breathing becoming heavier.

The man was bleeding from his legs. It seemed he had been tortured; his legs were likely ruined.

The tiger, bloodthirsty and fond of fresh meat, saw that its prey was moving. It let out a roar and bit into the prey’s thigh.

The dying figure in the pit let out a sky-shaking scream.

Above the pit, aside from Xie Yao, there were many onlookers.

The man in the pit was their colleague—a trusted confidant of their master, someone who was valued and relied upon.

Three days ago, the eunuch who tasted the food had discovered poison in the master’s meal. Everyone in the Imperial Kitchen and anyone who had handled the food was imprisoned, including him.

At first, no one suspected it was him, including the master. But after everyone else was subjected to brutal torture and no one confessed, the master ordered him to be interrogated.

He confessed quickly. When the master came in person to ask why, he said it was to avenge his sweetheart.

It turned out he had a sweetheart—a girl from the Xie family. He had thought that once the master occupied the capital, they could be married, but he had never expected the master to enslave the women of the Xie family. His sweetheart, unable to bear the humiliation, had hanged herself.

From that moment, he had hated the master, determined to kill him.

Now that it had been exposed, he felt no remorse; rather, he felt a sense of release.

When he was interrogated last night, he had even arrogantly cursed the master as inhumane, a madman, a beast.

The master’s expression had been frigid; he ordered the man’s legs to be severed and for him to be dragged here.

The tiger tore off a large chunk of his flesh. The man finally felt fear. Without legs, but with his upper body intact, he struggled to crawl forward, begging for mercy, begging for a quick death.

But no one moved.

In the dim morning light, Xie Yao looked down from above. The others did not dare to look away. Merely listening to his screams was hair-raising, but since he was a traitor, they felt the methods were harsh but did not pity him.

Xie Yao wanted them to witness the consequences of betrayal, and it was quite effective.

By the time the tiger tore off one of his arms, he could no longer crawl. The tiger flipped him over, ripped open his belly, and his entrails spilled across the ground.

The entire pit was covered in blood, with shattered bones and flesh scattered everywhere. The prey was not yet dead; he had only one arm, a mangled upper body, and a patch of his scalp had been torn away.

Yet his eyes were still rolling, and his muscles still twitched.

Xie Yao watched with indifference, and Song He, standing beside him, was equally cold.

There was no need to watch any further. Xie Yao turned and walked away, and the others followed.

Only Song He remained.

Before the tiger could bite into his chest, Song He shot an arrow through the man’s brow.

If only he had chosen a different way to assassinate, he would not have met such a horrific end.

Moreover, if he had begged the master to spare his fiancée beforehand, the master might not have refused him.

But no one dared to ask him for anything. How could a man who could kill his own uncles and enslave his sisters and aunts listen to the requests of his subordinates?

Yet, the master knew he was terrifying, didn't he? Otherwise, he wouldn't have kept his identity so strictly hidden from *her*, even if it seemed strange.

There was only one person like her in the world. However, Song He could see she was not entirely submissive. He was not sure what the master would do if one day she, too, betrayed him.

Song He did not linger. He waited until the tiger had finished its meal and left.

Xie Yao calmed down quickly after his outburst. By the time Song He returned, his expression had returned to normal.

Perhaps it was because he had been smiling more at Mingyue Residence lately, and he had practiced it; apart from the coldness in his eyes, the corners of his mouth showed a bland neutrality.

Xie Yao ordered word to be sent that he would return today.

By the afternoon, the eunuchs had delivered dinner early. After both parties tested the food with silver needles, two eunuchs tasted it as well. Only after half a quarter of an hour was it served to his desk.

By the time all that fuss was over, the food was cold, but he could not have anyone else handle it, so he ate it directly.

He ate quickly. The taste did not matter; it was merely to fill his stomach.

He would have to dine with Yu Li later, so he only ate until he was half-full.

After the meal, he went into the inner chamber to change into black robes, left the palace, and entered an official residence, where he changed into his usual attire as a wealthy young nobleman.

He left through the back door, which had been cleared by heavily guarded shadows, and boarded a carriage. After traveling for two quarters of an hour, he disembarked midway, walked through two residential areas, and boarded another carriage. Only after another quarter of an hour did he arrive at the Xie residence.

Xie Yao stepped out of the carriage, entered the gate, crossed the screen wall, and walked through the vast courtyard and the main hall, where he saw the person waiting for him at the second gate.