Pei Jingheng tightened his arm around her shoulders, then chuckled softly. “I was severely wounded at the border. My father, concerned for me, summoned me back to the palace immediately. But there were too many people trying to kill me along the way, so I had to separate from the troops escorting me to the capital and travel in disguise over mountains and valleys to return to Shengjing.”
“Severely wounded?” Shen Mingshu frowned and reached out to press her fingers against his wrist. “Let me see.”
Pei Jingheng didn’t resist, lowering his gaze to the red thread connecting their wrists, his dark eyes shimmering with faint light.
Shen Mingshu checked his pulse, her delicate brows lifting slightly in amusement. “You were indeed injured, but it wasn’t serious, and you’ve already recovered. So why did you go to the Liu Clinic?”
“I saw horses outside the clinic and thought to use a medical visit as an excuse to buy one for the journey,” Pei Jingheng replied, his eyes fixed on her. “Miss Shen knows medicine as well?”
She withdrew her hand and met his gaze. “As a mystic, mastery of the five arts is fundamental, mountain, medicine, destiny, divination, and physiognomy. None can be neglected.”
His dark eyes were like unfathomable pools, impossible to read.
His pale lips curled slightly in a smile. “For someone so young, Miss Shen has quite the expertise in mystic arts. Impressive.”
They were so close that she could feel the warmth of his breath brushing against her cheeks, carrying the soothing scent of cedar.
She averted her eyes and changed the subject. “The death curse on you appeared suddenly a year ago. Do you remember what happened during that time?”
“Last December, I returned from the battlefield victorious. At the celebratory banquet, I drank a few cups of wine and suddenly felt dizzy. When I woke up, three days had passed. Leng Feng said I was ice-cold, my face as pale as paper, like a corpse that had been dead for three days.”
Pei Jingheng’s brows furrowed, a hidden killing intent flickering in his dark eyes. “From then on, my health deteriorated day by day, as if something inside me was being drained away.”
“It was Master Qing Xuan who divined my misfortune and sent me this ring. He told me someone had stolen my fortune and was trying to kill me. This ring could suppress the death energy within me, and he would find a way to delay the curse’s onset.”
Shen Mingshu’s beautiful eyes widened slightly. “Qing Xuan? Qing Xuan of the Qingxu Sect?”
Pei Jingheng looked at her curiously. “You know him?”
She quickly shook her head. “No, no, I’ve only heard of his reputation! Those of us in the mystic arts all admire the Qingxu Sect!”
Pei Jingheng’s brow arched slightly. “I see.”
Even in this remote place, people knew of the Qingxu Sect?
Shen Mingshu narrowed her eyes slightly and said solemnly, “You were born with the destiny of an emperor. Whoever stole your fortune would inevitably suffer backlash for being unable to control it. Among those close to you, who has had the most misfortune this past year?”
“News travels slowly from the border. All I know is that my second brother broke his leg half a year ago, and the court officials who followed him have since distanced themselves.” Pei Jingheng sighed softly, as if in regret.
Shen Mingshu frowned slightly, tilting her head to study his expression. “You don’t suspect him? You pity him?”
Pei Jingheng didn’t answer directly, instead saying slowly, “Since childhood, Second Brother has treated me exceptionally well. Though we aren’t born of the same mother, his care for me was genuine.”
Shen Mingshu pressed her lips together and gave his shoulder a reassuring pat. “Sometimes, appearances can be deceiving. I can’t say for certain that he stole your fortune, but I can tell you this, once the year-long backlash period is over, the person who took your fortune will rise rapidly, truly beginning to plunder your imperial destiny!”
Pei Jingheng fixed his gaze on her. “Do you have a way to help me resolve this?”
Shen Mingshu nodded firmly. “Our fates are intertwined by destiny. Not only will I help you, but I will also uncover the mastermind behind this so you can seek justice.”
A cold wind blew open the carriage curtains, and moonlight spilled over the windowsill, illuminating the dim interior.
The young woman’s delicate phoenix eyes curved slightly, shimmering with brilliance, her fair face brimming with confidence. Even the coarse fabric of her simple clothes couldn’t conceal the radiant glow emanating from her very soul.
Almost as if compelled by some unseen force, Pei Jingheng wrapped his arms around her slender shoulders and pulled her into an embrace, resting his chin on her shoulder as he murmured, “Thank you.”
It was a heartfelt gratitude.
Despite being mere strangers, she had vowed to help him without hesitation.
Just because of a red thread of fate, some so-called heavenly decree, he wouldn’t have cared if their roles were reversed.
“No need to thank me,” Shen Mingshu replied stiffly, leaning into his embrace but not daring to admit that her help was merely to fulfill her own trial.
A nearly imperceptible sigh reached her ears before his clear, refined voice continued, “Just because of a red thread, you’re willing to involve yourself in this struggle for imperial power. Aren’t you afraid of losing your life?”
After a moment of contemplation, Shen Mingshu replied softly, “The mystical arts emphasize cause and effect. Since the red thread exists, it means there is a karmic bond between us, one neither of us can escape.”
She gently pushed him away, her phoenix eyes locking onto his as she spoke deliberately, “Between you and me, we are each other’s cause and effect, inseparable, destined to save one another.”
Her words were spoken with such solemnity, her exquisite eyes shimmering like shattered starlight, striking straight into his heart.
Pei Jingheng’s lips curved slightly, his ink-dark eyes reflecting her fair, delicate face. His deep, magnetic voice carried a hint of amusement as he said, “Then we should properly introduce ourselves. I am Pei Jingheng, the Seventh Prince of the Great Yu Dynasty, already enfeoffed as the Prince of Jing.”
Shen Mingshu pondered briefly before murmuring, “I will likely return to the Anping Marquis’s household. From then on, I will be Shen Mingshu, the legitimate daughter of the Anping Marquis.”
Pei Jingheng chuckled. “What a coincidence. The Prince of Jing’s residence isn’t far from the Anping Marquis’s estate. It’ll be convenient for us to meet in the future.”
Shen Mingshu’s lips twitched, her expression dimming. “Whether I can return is still uncertain. After all, I’m going back to avenge my mother. My father probably won’t welcome me.”
Pei Jingheng gently pressed her shoulder, his voice firm. “With me here, I guarantee you’ll smoothly enter the Anping Marquis’s household.”
A sudden gust of wind rushed into the carriage, causing it to jolt violently.
Pei Jingheng reached out to secure the fluttering curtains before pulling the swaying Shen Mingshu firmly into his arms. “We still have a long way to Huaiyang Town. Rest against me for now.”
Shen Mingshu found her head pressed against his shoulder, the warmth from her cheeks spreading to her ears, turning the tips bright red.
Perhaps she ought to thank the heavens for arranging a trial of love with someone of imperial destiny, and, most importantly, one who was rather pleasing to the eye.
Suddenly, she felt a twinge of gratitude that in her past life, she had spent eighteen years ignorant of romantic love. Otherwise, if she had failed her tribulation, it would have meant death and the dissipation of her cultivation. How could the heavens have granted her the chance to overcome a love tribulation, let alone encounter such an extraordinary romantic fate?
Moonlight spilled onto the narrow mountain path as a carriage approached from the opposite direction.
Leng Feng quickly tightened the reins, startling Pei Jingheng and Shen Mingshu awake simultaneously.
Pei Jingheng raised his voice and asked, “What’s going on?”
Leng Feng replied in a low voice, “There’s a carriage coming from the other side. The mountain path is narrow, we need to be careful.”
The carriage suddenly came to a halt. Shen Xiyan, her face twisted in displeasure, lifted the curtain and snapped, “Where did this broken carriage come from? Get out of my way this instant! If you delay my important business, even ten of your heads won’t be enough to make up for it!”
Leng Feng had initially intended to yield the way, but upon hearing this, he pulled the reins and stopped right where he was. Raising his voice, he retorted, “Who the hell do you think you are? You order me to move, and I’m just supposed to obey?”