He had already ordered her beaten to death; why on earth was he coming back to look for her? Besides, how did he even know she was inside Prime Minister Pei’s manor?
“Xiao Wei, can you give me a new face?” Xiao Mingyue asked.
[Of course, Host. However, this new face can only last for two hours.]
“Two hours is plenty.”
Pei Yanli stared at Xiao Mingyue’s new face in immense shock, though considering she could feign death so convincingly, changing a human face did not seem all that surprising after all.
“I will go out with you shortly. Let’s maintain a sense of mystery for now, until Feng Buji lifts the veil with his own hands only to find it isn’t me—that is the only way to dispel his doubts,” Xiao Mingyue said as she put on the bamboo hat and lowered its veil.
“You seem to know him very well.” Pei Yanli’s tone sounded somewhat sour. Wearing the veiled bamboo hat and dressed in a crimson dress, Xiao Mingyue appeared both mysterious and dashing, akin to a heroine roaming the martial world.
“Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will emerge victorious in every battle.”
When the two reached the main entrance of the Prime Minister’s manor, both were stunned by the sight of the surrounding officers and soldiers. Feng Buji had likely summoned an entire army. For him to commit such acts right at the feet of the Emperor—and not for the first time—proved just how lawless he had become after returning from a single victorious war.
Feng Buji sat atop a tall steed, dressed in a black brocade robe embroidered with gold thread depicting a lifelike four-clawed python, exuding an aura of regal authority.
“Your Highness truly displays great official prestige!” Pei Yanli sneered in disdain. Unfazed by the scene before him, he stepped in front of Xiao Mingyue like an eternal, towering tree, sheltering her from the wind and rain and giving her a strong sense of security.
Feng Buji did not take offense upon hearing this, remaining every bit the arrogant Regent Prince whether in public or private: “Otherwise, how could I carry the title of Regent?”
Indeed, Feng Buji was no ordinary prince of a foreign surname; with the addition of “Regent,” he possessed the authority to correct and contest even the current Emperor’s decrees. Holding absolute power over the court was by no means an exaggeration.
“Even if you are the Regent Prince, surrounding my manor with troops without cause or evidence is no different from treason,” Pei Yanli’s gaze glinted like cold steel as he stared straight at Feng Buji.
“This Prince is here to find someone.”
“The person Your Highness seeks is not here. Please return.”
“How do you know who this Prince is looking for?”
“Regardless of who it is, there is no sense in searching my place. It isn’t as if I bound and brought them here.”
“Is that so? Then who is the person beside you?” Feng Buji had indeed set his sights on her.
Looking at the impossibly arrogant man before her, Xiao Mingyue no longer felt a single pang of heartache. Perhaps she had not loved him as deeply as she thought; she had merely felt indignant.
“This servant…” Xiao Mingyue originally intended to refer to herself as Pei Yanli’s servant, but her hand was suddenly gripped tightly.
Unlike his hostility toward Feng Buji, Pei Yanli was exceptionally gentle with her.
“You are not a servant, so there is no need to refer to yourself as one.”
Xiao Mingyue’s heart skipped a beat. For some unknown reason, she felt a trace of emotion at this moment, though she could not tell what was moving her.
“Yes.” Xiao Mingyue acted with complete deference, drawing a clear line between intimacy and distance.
Feng Buji’s brows furrowed tightly, his expression showing a hint of anger. “Xiao Mingyue, stop pretending. I would recognize you even if you turned to ashes! Come over here obediently—don’t force me to make a move.”
Pei Yanli shielded Xiao Mingyue, taking a firm stance: “You have the wrong person. Besides, you have already petitioned His Majesty to marry another. Xiao Mingyue is no longer anything to you; why press her so relentlessly?”
Xiao Mingyue’s hands, clasped in front of her, suddenly tightened. He has already petitioned His Majesty to marry Hua Heng? That was fine. What he failed to give her was ultimately given to someone else. That was well and good—it saved her from clinging to lingering regrets.
“Heh, I petitioned His Majesty to marry an equal wife. What does that have to do with you?”
“Oh? So the Regent Prince wishes to enjoy the bliss of having multiple wives.” Pei Yanli’s tone was full of mockery, his eyes filled with utter disgust as he looked at Feng Buji. He truly hated how such a half-hearted man could have ever earned Xiao Mingyue’s love.
Hearing this, the surrounding commoners suddenly erupted into laughter, though it was hard to tell whether it was mockery or envy:
“Hahaha, so the Regent Prince wants to enjoy having multiple wives! No wonder he asked for a decree to marry an equal wife before even breaking off his engagement.”
“Speaking of which, the eldest young lady of the Xiao family waited for him for three years, only to receive such an outcome. What a bitter fate.”
“Yikes, they were childhood sweethearts and were once considered a romantic tale. Looking at it now… tsk tsk tsk.”
“You don’t understand. A man’s heart is like a needle at the bottom of the sea. One second he says he loves you, and the next second, when someone better appears, how could he still remember you?”
“I thought with Xiao Mingyue’s background and looks, her position as the Regent Princess was set in stone. Who would have thought that after returning from war, the Regent Prince would bring back a beauty as an equal wife? Ah, the Regent Prince sure knows how to enjoy himself! If I had power and wealth, I’d do the same—he’s practically a role model for all us men in the Great Qi!”
She had thought her heart was as hard as stone, but as a creature of flesh and blood, Xiao Mingyue could not help but feel sad upon hearing these words.
Yet, if even these onlookers saw things so clearly, could he not understand? In the end, it was simply a matter of growing tired of the old and enamored with the new. Who would have thought that the young man who once swore eternal vows of love to her would turn into this today?
“Cut the nonsense! If you refuse to release her, this Prince will just have to take her by force.” Feng Buji seemed to fly into a rage out of humiliation. These gossiping onlookers appeared to flatter him, but were in fact insinuating that he was a hypocrite who abandoned the old for the new.
Wei Lin tactfully dispersed the commoners on the street, causing several small stalls to tumble over in a comical chaos.
Sword in hand, Feng Buji pushed off the ground with immense force, leaping forward like a vulture soaring through the sky at a speed that left onlookers dazzled.
Pei Yanli looked gentle and refined, yet his two fingers actually caught the sword blade firmly in midair.
“Get out of the way!”
Feng Buji pulled back his sword and made to flick off Xiao Mingyue’s bamboo hat, only for Pei Yanli to cut him off.
Drawing a flexible sword from his waist, Pei Yanli engaged in a fierce battle with Feng Buji.
The two fought relentlessly. In the end, unable to bear watching any longer and calculating that two hours were nearly up, Xiao Mingyue removed the veiled hat herself.
“Who are you?” Seeing the familiar figure turn out to have a completely different face, shock flashed across Feng Buji’s eyes. In that moment of distraction, Pei Yanli’s flexible sword slashed deeply into his arm.