Shang Qingyan lifted a corner of the carriage curtain with his folding fan and caught sight of Yu Ange, covered in mud outside. Then he realized he wasn’t much cleaner himself, and couldn’t help grinding his back teeth.
He had always been fastidious, his white robes pristine and untouched by dust. Now, having rolled around in the mud, he felt thoroughly uncomfortable.
Shang Qingyan stroked his empty left wrist with his right hand, his voice as fragile as the mist that easily disperses in the mountains. “Since it was an accident, Young Master Yu need not blame yourself too much.”
Yu Ange breathed a sigh of relief. It was said that Nanchuanwang had a good temper, and it seemed true.
But then again, considering his status, how could he afford to be willful?
Before that sigh of relief could fully settle, Shang Qingyan continued, “However, the Baiyu Puti Buddhist Beads on my wrist are priceless. They were personally Kaiguang by Master Wanshui, so they are not ordinary objects…”
Yu Ange’s breath hitched again, and she glanced at him through the crack in the curtain.
Shang Qingyan’s jade-like face was speckled with mud, yet it did little to diminish his peerless elegance and striking beauty.
He still wore the same gentle, radiant smile, his eyes twinkling with amusement, but his words were anything but gentle. “I must trouble you, Young Master Yu.”
Raindrops struck the ground, splashing up in tiny blossoms.
Yu Ange looked disheveled, a bitter smile on her face. “May I ask, Your Highness, how many beads are there in total?”
Shang Qingyan coughed twice inside the carriage. “Twenty-seven.”
Yu Ange lowered her head in thought. Shang Qingyan was still unaware of the danger ahead. She had bumped into him and needed to appease him first to find an opportunity to get closer. Moreover, with the Jingdu envoy watching, she had no choice but to endure this reprimand.
Taking a deep breath, Yu Ange bent down and began searching through the mud.
The rain was heavy. Everyone knew Yu Ange was looking for Shang Qingyan’s Buddhist beads and stood by waiting. Yanbo and Yu Shu also helped nearby, though the Jingdu envoy couldn’t lend a hand.
Yu Ange slowly felt around for the beads in the mud, getting her hands completely filthy.
Shang Qingyan, peeking through the window crack, couldn’t help but frown. Zhu Ying beside him asked, “If it makes you uncomfortable to watch, Master, why do you keep looking?”
Zhu Ying knew his master had a cleanliness obsession and couldn’t stand seeing anything dirty. Yet here he was, secretly watching a mud-covered person rummaging through the muck—truly peculiar.
Shang Qingyan instinctively touched his upper lip. “When I was young in the capital, I had dealings with the Yu siblings. The elder brother was rather unreliable, and the younger sister was a downright troublemaker.”
When he was eight, he had caught Yu Ange causing trouble, and in the ensuing argument, she had punched him, knocking out one of his front teeth.
Too proud to admit it, he hadn’t spoken for a whole month, and Yu Ange had mocked him for being mute.
He might appear calm and detached, but in truth, he held grudges and repaid every slight. Now that Yu Ange’s brother had fallen into his hands, it was time for the brother to pay for the sister’s debt. Giving him a little trouble was just repayment for that lost tooth.
As he pondered, Yu Ange arrived outside the carriage, her face full of distress. “Your Highness, I’ve found twenty-six beads. I’ve searched everywhere, but the last one is nowhere to be found.”
Shang Qingyan clicked his tongue, sounding deeply troubled. “What should we do? Missing one bead means the set is incomplete.”
Yu Ange couldn’t help but frown. The road was slippery in the rain—could the bead have been washed down the mountain? If so, finding it would be like searching for a needle in a haystack.
“Your Highness, please forgive me. Once I return to the capital, I will certainly search far and wide for a top-quality white jade bodhi seed to match.”
Shang Qingyan sat upright inside the carriage, his fingers toying with a pristine prayer bead, a faint smile curling at the corner of his lips.
“Young Master Yu, you may not know this, but top-quality white jade bodhi seeds are not hard to find. What is difficult is that this string of prayer beads has been on my wrist for many years and has long grown dear to me.”
Yu Ange couldn’t help but grit her teeth. “Then… shall I have people search more carefully?”
Shang Qingyan sighed softly. “The roads are slippery in the rain. If Young Master Yu were to catch a chill because of this, it would be my fault.”
Hearing him say this, Yu Ange’s eyes shifted, seizing the opportunity to say, “It is my fault. If Your Highness does not mind, I will stay by your side these next few days to attend to your medicine until you recover. How does that sound?”
Shang Qingyan had been meaning to test Yu Ange, and hearing her say this, he grasped the prayer bead she had been unable to find in his palm and chuckled lightly. “Then I must trouble Young Master Yu.”
Yu Ange breathed a sigh of relief, watching as the “sickly” Shang Qingyan departed first.
Only then did Pan De continue the conversation that had been left unfinished earlier. “Young Master Yu, the roads are slippery in the rain. Why not come with me to Lingyin Si to take shelter from the rain? Once the rain stops tomorrow, I will pay a formal visit to the general’s residence to respectfully call upon the great general.”
Yu Ange followed him onto the carriage and explained, “My father is patrolling the border and won’t be back for a while. Since I’ve run into you all anyway, why not set off earlier?”
The idea of past and present lives was too bizarre. Not to mention whether her father and brother would believe it, just the fact that she was impersonating her brother to get close to Nanchuanwang was something her father and brother would never agree to.
So she planned to act first and explain later. Once she entered the capital, she would send them a letter. By then, her father and brother would have no time to stop her.
Pan De hadn’t expected Yu Ange to be so straightforward and hesitated. “This isn’t appropriate, is it?”
Yu Ange wore a nervous expression and even slipped a few gold beads into Pan De’s hand. “To be honest, I caused a bit of trouble a few days ago. If I wait for my father to return from patrolling the border, I’m bound to get a severe beating. I came out in the rain today precisely to hide from my father.”
This statement wasn’t a lie. A few days ago, her brother had beaten up the county magistrate’s son on the street for harassing a widow.
Although he was in the right, their father was extremely strict with her brother and would inevitably punish him with the family discipline upon his return. That very night, her brother packed his bags and fled, giving Yu Ange the chance to impersonate him.
Pan De didn’t doubt this matter. Before coming, he had heard that Yu Anhe, while in Jingdu, had been raised by the Yu family’s elderly madam into an out-and-out wastrel. Shenwei Dajiangjun had exhausted all means but couldn’t lift this lump of mud, earning him the reputation of a tiger father with a dog son.
What Pan De didn’t know was that the person others saw as a good-for-nothing was actually the one who doted on Yu Ange the most at home.
Not only did her brother allow her to cause trouble everywhere and take the blame for her, but sometimes, to cover for her, he even dressed as a woman, putting on a voice to fool the family.
Such a good brother had died in such a tragic way in her previous life. How could Yu Ange allow her brother to repeat the same mistake?
So this trip to Shengjing—she was determined to go in her brother’s stead.
Pan De inwardly laughed at Yu Ange for being a fool, truly believing that the emperor had summoned him back to the capital to attend to his illness.
This was just as well. If Shenwei Dajiangjun were to find out, who knows what complications might arise? Now, it was Young Master Yu who had actively requested to leave quietly.
Pan De smiled as he tucked the gold ingots back into his sleeve. “In that case, once Nanchuanwang is feeling better, we shall set off.”
Yu Ange let out a long sigh, her face showing relief at having narrowly escaped disaster. “Thank you, messenger, for sparing me a good beating.”
Pan De replied, “You’re too kind.”
The group made their way to Lingyin Si. After entering the temple, Yu Ange had a young novice bring hot water. She took a thorough bath, changed into fresh clothes, and then instructed Yu Shu to keep an eye on the happenings at Lingyin Si.
Not long after, Yu Shu approached and whispered, “Miss, something seems off in the temple.”
Yu Ange adjusted the hidden weapons in her sleeves, thinking to herself: Just as I suspected.