Seeing Shen Yue frozen in place, Xiao Yuheng thought she was frightened, a flicker of dimness passing through his eyes.
“I knew it.”
Shen Yue snapped back to reality and hurriedly explained: “No… I’m not afraid of Wangye.”
Not only unafraid, but even feeling a bit tempted to push him down, hehe.
Ahem, Wangye, what this subordinate meant to say is that your current appearance is absolutely stunning!”
“Stunning?”
The man’s face remained cold, but his gaze softened slightly.
“Mhmm mhmm.”
Shen Yue nodded, moving closer to where he sat to better appreciate the handsome man up close.
His skin naturally carried a pale, cool tone, paired with rare crimson phoenix eyes that added layers of mystery and depth.
Due to the Cold Poison, fine droplets clung to his long lashes, shimmering with faint light, lending his originally aloof countenance an indescribable touch of allure.
His white hair cascaded like a silver galaxy, flowing smoothly through the patterns of his black brocade robe. The silk used for the robe was undoubtedly top-quality, yet it paled in comparison to the soft, smooth luster of his hair.
He was truly beautiful, breathtakingly so.
This beauty clearly shouldn’t belong to a man, yet you couldn’t ignore the faint masculine charm he exuded.
Shen Yue thought that any woman would be captivated by his beauty.
“What do you mean, ‘mhmm’?”
The sudden proximity made Xiao Yuheng’s breath hitch, his words slightly awkward as he quickly avoided her intense gaze.
Though it lasted only a moment, Shen Yue still caught the shyness and insecurity in his eyes.
“Wangye dislikes the color white, surely because of this white hair, right?”
A certain prince twitched the corner of his mouth slightly, not denying it.
Shen Yue smiled understandingly:
“This subordinate believes that Wangye’s white hair doesn’t diminish your elegance in the slightest. Instead, it adds an ethereal quality to your demeanor. Moreover, the dark red patterns in your pupils are both exquisite and commanding, even more effective than colored contacts! Many people would envy such features.”
“Envy?”
The prince clearly didn’t believe it, letting out a self-mocking chuckle. “They see me as a freak, afraid and avoiding me whenever possible. How could they feel envy…”
“Well, I certainly envy you,” Shen Yue muttered.
“Wangye looks very handsome like this, truly.”
Her voice was very soft as she spoke, but her expression was utterly sincere.
Xiao Yuheng looked at her, the corners of his mouth lifting involuntarily, but he quickly regained his composed demeanor.
Ahem, let’s not talk about this anymore. Let’s talk about you, Second Bureau Chief. Shouldn’t you explain something to me?”
Great, he was using “I” just moments ago, but now not only has he switched to “this prince,” he’s also putting on that stern king of hell face. Men are so changeable.
Shen Yue cursed inwardly but maintained a cheerful expression:
“Wangye, didn’t you already know everything? To join you, this subordinate betrayed the entire Netherworld Hall. Afraid of causing you trouble, I went alone to Wanbao Pavilion seeking an antidote, never expecting to encounter you there.”
As she spoke, she began sighing dramatically.
“Is that so?”
Xiao Yuheng raised an eyebrow, a hint of amusement in his eyes.
“Then how do you explain your nighttime visit to the study and your attempt to infiltrate this prince’s Secret Chamber?”
“…” Shen Yue twitched the corner of her mouth.
“The Netherworld Hall threatened my life, ordering me to search the estate for an important brocade box. Unwilling to do anything that would harm Wangye, although I opened the Secret Chamber door, I never entered. The nighttime visit to the study was only to retrieve silver to buy the antidote.”
“Really?”
“I’d be a dog if I’m lying!”
Xiao Yuheng found the statement rather awkward no matter how he considered it, but seeing Shen Yue’s earnest expression tinged with grievance, he felt it improper to take issue with her.
“Is that the brocade box you mentioned?” Xiao Yuheng glanced toward the display shelves.
Following his gaze, Shen Yue indeed spotted a dragon-patterned brocade box resting quietly in a concealed corner of the shelf.
The box was meticulously crafted with bright yellow silk, delicate golden threads embroidering a vivid dragon pattern. The serpentine dragon coiled gracefully, its overlapping scales each shimmering with a subtle radiance, exuding an undeniable imperial grandeur.
Shen Yue had never seen such an exquisite box before and instinctively moved closer, reaching out to touch it.
“Don’t touch!”
Xiao Yuheng’s sudden shout made Shen Yue jerk her hand back.
Just looking, was that really necessary? How stingy.
“That brocade box is rigged with a mechanism. The slightest touch will trigger poisoned needles, and anyone struck will die without fail. You were trained by the Netherworld Hall—how can you be so careless and unprepared?”
Hearing this, Shen Yue instantly leaped half a meter away, complaining aggrievedly, “How was I supposed to know…”
How was I supposed to know you’d be so ruthless as to install poisoned needles.
Seeing her dejected expression, Xiao Yuheng finally softened his tone. “Forget it. Be more careful next time.”
“Okay.”
Shen Yue lowered her head, her eyelashes casting long shadows upon her jade-like skin.
The man sighed. “Don’t you want to know what’s inside the brocade box?”
“Not really,” Shen Yue answered truthfully.
“I only wanted to touch it because the box looked beautiful and novel. Since Wangye has hidden it so discreetly and installed mechanisms, whatever’s inside must be important. The fewer people know, the less danger there is.”
This “less danger” referred to herself.
She already knew one of Xiao Yuheng’s secrets. If she learned a second, she probably wouldn’t live to see tomorrow morning.
Xiao Yuheng seemed to guess her thoughts, his lips quirking imperceptibly before he replied impassively,
“Aren’t you curious why Cheng Sijin calls me Shaozhu?”
Shen Yue idly picked at her ear with her pinky finger.
“Since Miss Cheng addresses you as Shaozhu, she must be the trusted aide Rou Taifei assigned to you. If I guess correctly, her frequenting pleasure quarters is to gather intelligence for you, while also serving as the liaison between you and Her Highness. Tonight, you went alone to Wanbao Pavilion without your subordinates because you received a secret message from Her Highness, didn’t you?”
Xiao Yuheng raised an eyebrow. “Quite clever.”
“But there’s one thing I don’t understand. According to what you said, Miss Cheng is knowledgeable in medicine and remedies. Why didn’t you seek her treatment during your relapse, instead of enduring it silently in this secret chamber?”
“Her medical skills were taught by my mother. If even my mother couldn’t cure the Cold Poison, what could she do?” Xiao Yuheng replied lightly. “It’s fine. I’m already searching for Yaowang.”
So the person he sought was Yaowang, who had vanished from the martial world for over twenty years.
That was how the Heir of the Pingyang Marquis, Song Xianzhi, deduced he had health issues and came to blackmail him.
Of all people to provoke, he had to mess with this damned Wangye. Now look—ending up dead from debauchery, how shameful…
Never mind, no use mentioning him.
“What if you can’t find Yaowang?”
The man’s pinky finger curled subtly. “I don’t know.”
Shen Yue sensed his reluctance to continue the topic and didn’t press further, merely comforting him:
“Wangye, you will surely recover.”
As soon as the words fell, she saw Xiao Yuheng’s originally silver-white hair, as if infused with mysterious vitality, gradually and quietly darkening from the roots.
The black slowly spread like ink blooming on rice paper, inch by inch covering the former pallor until the entire head of hair restored its profound black hue.
“Wangye, you’re healed!”
Shen Yue was extremely excited, supporting the man’s shoulders, nearly jumping for joy.
Her beautiful peach-blossom eyes curved, a smile playing on her lips, her entire being seeming to radiate light.
Gazing at her flower-like smiling face, Xiao Yuheng couldn’t help but lose himself in thought.
So beautiful—so beautiful that for a moment, he actually thought Shen Er was a woman.