Chapter 29: With Vigilance

The name Chi Yuan was one that Yun Zhui had only casually inquired about, yet she quickly learned much about him. It was not long before she easily found his residence.

The Prince Yuan’s Manor.

Yun Zhui found it rather ironic that a boy who had yet to grow up was already a prince. Standing outside the gates of the manor, she was dressed in men’s attire.

“Please inform the Prince Yuan that someone has come to return his carriage,” she said, referring to him as Prince Yuan rather than by his given name. No matter how much she might disregard or disdain him in private, this was his domain—she had to show some respect. Moreover, as she had arrived in his carriage, the gatekeepers ought to recognize it as belonging to Chi Yuan.

“Please wait a moment,” one of the gatekeepers replied. Seeing that Yun Zhui’s clothes were of fine quality, her bearing extraordinary, and her manners refined, they thought she might be a close friend of the prince, and so treated her with deference.

The servant soon returned and said, “Our prince has not yet risen.”

Yun Zhui had come so early for fear that Chi Yuan might have gone out carousing with Chi Nie, but she had not expected him to still be deep in sleep.

“Thank you,” Yun Zhui said quietly, then turned away.

She stood by the carriage for a moment, lost in thought, then walked off in another direction.

Standing beneath the high walls, Yun Zhui was unsure whether her skills were sufficient to scale them. As she lingered by the wall, a shadow suddenly appeared before her.

The black robe instantly brought a certain person to mind.

When she looked up, it was indeed Chi Nie.

“Should I take you inside?” Chi Nie’s phoenix eyes rested on her as he made the offer.

Yun Zhui cast him a sidelong glance. He wielded immense power, and yet he always seemed so at leisure.

“Now that I’ve run into you, there’s no need to bother with Chi Yuan,” she replied, leaning back against the wall, arms folded as she regarded him.

Chi Nie was clad in a long black robe, edged with purple clouds upon the sleeves. The somber black and purple, though both dark, together formed a striking contrast and lent him an air of cold nobility. His jet-black hair was pinned up with a single hairpin, his phoenix eyes tilted upward in a rather wicked charm—those eyes were especially deep and unfathomable.

“Are you trying to unmask the one who ordered your death?” Noticing her gaze lingering on him, Chi Nie spread his arms as if to let her scrutinize him at will.

Yun Zhui was taken aback, but quickly regained her composure.

With power enough to shake the heavens, it would be a trivial matter for Chi Nie to discover her secrets.

“Can you find out who it is?” she asked, though she already knew the answer. If she had come to Chi Yuan for help, then Chi Nie would be able to uncover the truth faster and more accurately.

Chi Nie said nothing; instead, he withdrew a ledger from his robe.

Yun Zhui’s gaze fell upon it. At a glance, she knew it to be the assassin organization’s record book—every contract, every intended victim, all were noted within. Of course, the names given were not always the true ones.

“Who was it?” Yun Zhui had already guessed—who else had she offended if not the Prime Minister of the Yun family?

“Tie Fan,” Chi Nie answered calmly.

She paused, and then it became clear to her. It was General Tie Fan, Yun Shang’s husband.

So it was either on Yun Shang’s orders, or Tie Fan seeking to avenge Yun Shang.

But Tie Fan had not realized—Yun Zhui was no longer the helpless, defenseless woman she once was.

“Why do you keep helping me?” Naturally, Yun Zhui regarded Chi Nie with a cautious wariness.