Someone exclaimed in shock, “What? The Crown Prince brought her back to the Eastern Palace?”
“If you ask me, Wen Shuyu did all this just to get close to the Crown Prince and move into the Eastern Palace—that’s her real goal. That’s why she staged this whole blood talisman act.”
That person continued, “But she’s really ruthless toward herself. To win over the Crown Prince, she didn’t hesitate to injure herself with a blood talisman.”
“She’s really going all out. If you ask me, she might actually become the Crown Princess. Other noble ladies pursue the Crown Prince, sure—but none of them risk their lives like this. Who could possibly compete with her?”
Someone nearby shook their head. “No, no, that’s not it. Wen Shuyu didn’t ask to stay in the Eastern Palace. I heard Prime Minister Wen wanted to take her back home, but the Crown Prince personally took her from him, saying his cultivation is higher, so if anything happens to her, he can sense it immediately.”
“Could it be that the Crown Prince has feelings for Wen Shuyu…?”
Someone cut in, “Don’t overthink it. The Crown Prince has always been kind-hearted. Wen Shuyu got hurt because of him—given his temperament, even if he doesn’t like her, he would still take responsibility.”
Another person, clearly enjoying the drama, added:
“I heard that tomorrow is the Crown Prince’s birthday. The grand banquet at the Eastern Palace is also going to be a selection banquet for a consort.”
“It’s said that the Crown Prince hasn’t liked Wen Shuyu all these years. You can’t force affection—since he’s no longer young, the Emperor has stopped pushing the two of them together. Instead, daughters of high-ranking officials have all been invited to attend the banquet at the Eastern Palace. It’s obvious—they’re choosing a Crown Princess.”
“And Wen Shuyu just happens to be staying there to recuperate. With her usual arrogant and domineering personality, once she finds out, won’t she cause an uproar? Just wait—tomorrow will be quite the spectacle…”
As dusk deepened, the heavy night blanketed the entire Eastern Palace. A crescent moon hid behind drifting clouds, casting mottled silver light through rustling leaves.
Eastern Palace, study.
A masked figure in black landed silently and knelt before Xiao Jingchen. “Master.”
Xiao Jingchen was flipping through a book, lazily lifting his gaze. “Switched them?”
The man in black nodded. “Yes.”
He respectfully placed two talismans on the desk—fake blood talismans.
The man’s name was Chengying. Among all, he understood his master’s temperament best, which was precisely why he had been shocked when he received tonight’s order.
He was a shadow guard—unlike Mo Yu, who often appeared in public, Chengying’s existence was known only to the Crown Prince and the shadow guard camp. His tasks were usually secretive, often involving killing or arson.
Yet tonight, his mission had merely been to swap two fake blood talismans from the Empress’s palace with real ones.
After Wen Shuyu had injured herself with a blood talisman earlier that day, she had later awakened, only to be harshly scolded by the worried Empress. The remaining two blood talismans had been confiscated, and she had been warned never to handle such dangerous things again.
But tonight, the Crown Prince had told him those talismans were fake and sent him to replace them with real ones—just in case someone discovered the truth in the future, which might lead to Wen Shuyu being accused of deceit or even deceiving the throne.
No killing. No arson. Just swapping two talismans.
More importantly—he was doing this for a woman.
Chengying was astonished.
He couldn’t help but ask, “Your Highness, how did you know those talismans were fake?”
Xiao Jingchen turned a page of his book without looking at him. “Wen Shuyu values her life the most. She wouldn’t risk it for something like this. She likely just dripped blood onto the talismans afterward.”
Chengying: !
So she deceived you—and not only are you not angry, you’re helping her? When did your temperament become so gentle?
Xiao Jingchen set the book down, his gaze falling upon the two talismans.
“She’s putting more thought into me now. Before, she only said she liked me with words. Now, she’s actually using her brain to set up such layered schemes. She deserves a reward.”
“So I let her stay by my side. Seeing me every day—she’ll be very happy.”
“In the past, I kindly reminded her not to provoke me. I wanted to let her off, but she never listened. Then again, she’s deeply devoted to me—she won’t give up easily.”
Chengying: “…” For some reason, he thought he heard a trace of pride in that tone.
Suddenly, Xiao Jingchen’s gaze froze.
He picked up the two talismans and stared at them intently.
“Chengying, these talismans…”
Chengying responded, “What is it, Your Highness?”
Under the dim candlelight, shadows fell across Xiao Jingchen’s face.
He stared at the talismans in his hand and said slowly, word by word:
“They’re real.”
There was astonishment in his voice—almost disbelief.
“They’re actually real.”
“I misjudged her. She doesn’t have that much scheming.”
“Wen Shuyu… she actually feels this deeply for me. It’s just a birthday gift, yet she didn’t even care about her own life. This is truly reckless.”
His tone was unreadable—Chengying couldn’t tell whether his master was pleased or angry.
Then, Chengying watched as his usually composed master stood up, sat down, and began pacing back and forth in the room.
Finally, Xiao Jingchen lifted his head and asked, his voice carrying a trace of urgency and concern:
“Has Wen Shuyu gone to sleep yet?”