A bloodied Eastern Palace guard climbed over the wall.
Chasing him was an assassin dressed like a porter, gripping a blood-dripping blade. With one thrust, he drove the knife into the guard’s chest.
The guard fell, lifeless.
“Ah!” Xiao Cui shrieked uncontrollably, her voice breaking. Qing Mei and Qing Zhu trembled as well.
Wang Yi planted herself in front of Gu Jiu, standing guard as if facing a deadly enemy.
The “porter” jumped down from the wall, eyes cold and murderous from his recent kill. He swept a glance at Gu Jiu, making the maids so frightened they barely dared to breathe.
But he ignored Gu Jiu and her attendants, striding straight toward Fang.
“Fang shaojian, please come with me at once.”
Fang shaojian’s lips curved in the same faint smile they had worn all along.
He asked calmly, “And who is the master behind you?”
The porter frowned, instinctively darting a look toward Gu Jiu and her maids, killing intent flashing in his eyes.
Fang shaojian followed his gaze and said evenly, “You cannot touch them.”
The porter scowled. “Fang shaojian, you can barely protect yourself right now.”
Fang shaojian chuckled coldly. “You may kill me if you like, but then see if your master spares you afterwards.”
The porter’s fury flared, his gaze fierce as it fell on Gu Jiu and her people.
Gu Jiu stepped forward. “Fang shaojian–”
From the front shop came noise, and Erzhuang’s voice was raised in argument.
“Not good, Xie Mao is coming in!” the porter shouted. “Fang shaojian, please, we must go now!”
“Too late.” Even as Fang shaojian spoke, Xie Mao pushed through the door into the back courtyard with his men.
“Hahaha… Fang shaojian, we meet again.”
Xie Mao’s smug grin was one of a man who thought nothing could slip past his grasp.
Fang shaojian greeted politely, “Xie daren, a pleasure.”
“Enough with the pleasantries. You’ll come with me.”
Fang shaojian looked at him with a faint, mocking smile.
The porter lowered his head, blade in hand, body taut as if ready to strike at any moment.
With a snort, Xie Mao turned, only now noticing Gu Jiu and her attendants.
Until then, he had dismissed them as useless women. Looking closer, he recognised her.
“You, you’re that girl from the Gu family…”
Gu Jiu stepped forward with a graceful smile. “Greetings, Xie daren.”
“You’re Gu Jiu, betrothed to Gongzi Zhao. Meeting Fang shaojian here of all places, so the two of you…”
His suspicious eyes flicked between them.
Gu Jiu only smiled in silence. Fang shaojian also offered no explanation.
Xie Mao suddenly laughed wildly. “You two… hahaha… benguan has struck it rich today. Take them all. No, take Fang shaojian alive. As for the rest, kill them on the spot!”
At his command, the Eastern Palace guards moved in.
“Wait!” Gu Jiu’s voice cracked like a whip.
Xie Mao smirked. “What last words could you have?”
“Does Xie daren truly mean to kill me?” she asked.
He sneered. “What else? Killing you will also avenge my nephew, Xie Xian.”
Gu Jiu lowered her eyes, smiling in mockery. “I never knew Xie daren cared so deeply for his nephew. Or… is it that you wish to silence me?”
Xie Mao gave a contemptuous laugh. “And if I do?”
His expression screamed arrogance. Yes, I will kill to silence you. What can you do about it?
Qing Mei and the other maids were frantic. Even Wang Yi, though shaken, clung to a single thought: protect her mistress at all costs.
Gu Jiu smiled lightly. “Doesn’t Xie daren want to know what Fang shaojian told me?”
“Whatever he said, benguan will drag it out of his mouth myself.”
“Are you so sure you’ll succeed?” Her half-smile made Xie Mao glance again at Fang shaojian.
Fang shaojian still wore that inscrutable smile. “I’ll never speak, Xie daren. Use whatever means you have.”
“Still mouthing off at death’s door,” Xie Mao scoffed.
Then Gu Jiu said suddenly, “I can tell you everything Fang shaojian told me.”
Xie Mao’s eyes narrowed in suspicion.
She continued, “But Xie daren must swear to spare me and my people.”
His lips curled. What could one little girl do? Just frighten her enough, and she would spill everything.
“Speak,” he ordered with disdain. “Let’s hear what Fang shaojian has confided to you.”
Gu Jiu glanced around. “Are you sure you want it said here? What if others overhear?”
Xie Mao frowned, then stepped into the side room.
Gu Jiu followed.
“Guniang?” Qing Mei whispered, frightened.
Gu Jiu smiled at her reassuringly. It will all be over soon.
She and Fang shaojian’s eyes met briefly across the courtyard. A silent understanding passed between them, both knew what must be done.
Inside the room, Gu Jiu kept her head lowered, hiding her expression.
Impatience crept into Xie Mao’s voice. “Well? What did Fang shaojian tell you?”
“Fang shaojian said…”
Her voice was barely audible.
“What are you mumbling?” Xie Mao snapped, leaning closer.
Her voice stayed faint, almost a whisper. “Fang shaojian said…”
Pfft!
A jewel-inlaid dagger plunged into Xie Mao’s abdomen.
Xie Mao lowered his head, only to see Gu Jiu’s hand gripping the hilt.
Then he looked up again, staring at Gu Jiu in utter disbelief.
“You… you dare to kill benguan?”
Gu Jiu sneered, her voice low: “No one has ever been allowed to insult me, to destroy me. Not Xie Xian, not you.”
With that, Gu Jiu decisively pulled the dagger out and drove it back into Xie Mao’s body.
This thrust was steady and ruthless, piercing directly into his spleen.
Xie Mao lurched forward but did not fall. His eyes widened, glaring at Gu Jiu. “You… how dare you?”
Gu Jiu smiled faintly. “Whoever tries to kill me, I will kill them. Xie daren, in your next life, do not look down on women.”
“You… you–”
Before he could finish, Gu Jiu wrenched the dagger out once more.
Xie Mao collapsed with a crash.
Gu Jiu looked down at his twitching, blood-spitting body. Her expression was calm, but her whole body felt cold. The hand hidden in her sleeve was trembling uncontrollably.
She had killed someone. Truly killed someone.
And with Liu Zhao’s dagger, no less.
She had carried it with her only because she liked it too much, never imagining it would become the weapon of murder.
Yet not a single drop of blood clung to its blade, as if untouched, indeed, a weapon that could cut through iron like mud.
Blood spread rapidly across the floor, almost reaching Gu Jiu’s feet.
She instinctively stepped back, fighting down the nausea of killing, suppressing the panic rising in her chest.
Face stiff, she walked step by step out of the side chamber.
The instant the door opened, the embroidered shoes on Gu Jiu’s feet came into view, and at that very moment, the footman guarding Fang shaojian suddenly sprang into action.
Brandishing a broadsword, he charged into the Eastern Palace guards like thunder.
In an instant, blood splattered the courtyard, corpses fell everywhere; maidservants screamed in terror.
Wang Yi rushed to Gu Jiu’s side at once. “Don’t be afraid, guniang. Nubi will protect you.”
Gu Jiu smiled faintly, her face pale.
Wang Yi had no idea that Gu Jiu herself had just slain Xie Mao.
Meanwhile, Fang shaojian, dragging his injured body, picked up a weapon from the ground and entered the chamber.
As he passed Gu Jiu, their eyes met. Neither spoke. Gu Jiu stood silently to the side, while Fang shaojian strode in silently.
Soon, the sound of a broadsword cleaving into flesh echoed from within.
Gu Jiu listened, feeling sick to her stomach, her whole body uncomfortable, but she forced herself to endure, refusing to show the slightest weakness.
Moments later, the courtyard battle was over.
The footman, striking by surprise, had annihilated the Eastern Palace guards.
Fang shaojian emerged from the chamber, dragging a blood-soaked broadsword, leaning wearily against a corridor pillar.
He ordered the footman, “Clean this up. Throw the corpses into the cloth shop next door. You know how to arrange it. I need not teach you.”
The footman said nothing, only hauled the corpses over the wall.
After several trips, the courtyard was cleared.
Last of all, he entered the chamber and carried out Xie Mao’s corpse.
Gu Jiu glanced at it, nausea rising at once.
Xie Mao’s face had been slashed beyond recognition, his body riddled with wounds, plain clothes still dripping blood.
He died with eyes wide open, likely never imagining that in the end, he would fall at the hands of Gu Jiu, the young woman he had always looked down upon.
Fang shaojian turned to the terrified maids, who were trembling like leaves in a storm. “If you don’t want the authorities tracing this, fetch water at once. Scrub the blood clean.”
The maids stood frozen.
Gu Jiu’s voice snapped coldly: “Go. Now.”
At last they jolted awake and rushed to fetch water.
One side chamber remained untouched.
Dragging his weary steps, Fang shaojian walked toward it.
At the doorway, he turned back to Gu Jiu. “Gu guniang, won’t you sit and speak with me?”
Gu Jiu nodded silently and followed.
Inside, the two sat opposite each other.
Fang shaojian leaned against his chair, careful not to disturb his wounds.
“Gu guniang,” he said, “this was your first time killing, wasn’t it?”
Gu Jiu frowned, remaining silent.
“Your first time killing someone, and you could still remain so calm, Gu guniang, you really are remarkable.”
Gu Jiu fixed her eyes on him. “Get to the point.”
Fang shaojian smiled. “A first killing always leaves some discomfort. Go home, lie down for a few days, eat and drink as usual, you’ll recover soon enough.”
Gu Jiu raised a brow. “Speaking from experience?”
Fang shaojian nodded. “Something like that.”
Then he laughed again. “I never thought you and I would share such a fate.”
Gu Jiu sneered. “I’ve been wondering, Fang shaojian, when you opened your cloth shop right next door to Jumeizhai, was that deliberate?”
The cloth shop had opened a month later than Jumeizhai. Everything that happened today seemed like a coincidence. Fang shaojian just happened to be hiding next door, she just happened to go out today, and Xie Mao just happened to come searching.
But how many ‘coincidences’ can the world really contain?
One event might be chance. Two? Perhaps. But three, four? Impossible.
Gu Jiu did not believe in coincidences like this. She suspected Fang shaojian of orchestrating it all.
Fang shaojian laughed. “Deliberate or not, does it matter? I didn’t know you would come today, nor that Xie Mao would arrive so quickly. Seems someone around me has a loose tongue.”
Gu Jiu mocked, “However bold Xie Mao may be, he wouldn’t dare storm in with the Crown Prince’s guards without permission. Looks like His Highness has decided to abandon you.”
Fang shaojian didn’t deny it. “Gu guniang truly is sharp. The first time I saw you in Weiyang Palace, I knew you were extraordinary. Last year, when Gongzi Zhao went west to the frontier, you must have met him there. That’s when your bond formed. No wonder he chose you for his wife. Who would have thought Gongzi Zhao was such a sentimental man?”
Gu Jiu only responded with a cold sneer. She said, “Whether he ever went west or not, asking me is useless. Fang shaojian, if you think you can trick me into revealing anything, you’ve miscalculated.”
“Hahaha… Gu guniang misunderstands. I wasn’t trying to probe you. Just idle chatter, that’s all.”
Could Gu Jiu and Fang shaojian ever sit and chat casually? Of course not.
Their positions were opposed. Circumstances had forced them to join hands against Xie Mao, but that hardly meant they could be allies in the future.
Their words, every syllable, were weighed and measured. Neither would ever bare their heart to the other.
“This time,” Fang shaojian said, “I must thank you for saving my life. Who could have imagined, one day, I would need you to rescue me?”
Gu Jiu smiled faintly. “You dragged me into danger, and that danger will haunt me still. Speak, how do you plan to repay this debt?”
“Gu guniang is really quite blunt.”
At that moment, both glanced toward the assassin disguised as a porter outside.
Gu Jiu spoke with certainty: “He wanted to kill me. Only because of you did he hold back.”
Fang Shaojian nodded. “Correct. He did want you dead. But rest assured, as long as I live, I guarantee he won’t dare move against you.”
Gu Jiu gave a cold laugh. “Your guarantee is worthless. I won’t stake my life on you. Tell me, whose man is he?”
Fang shaojian’s eyes flickered. “Gu guniang, you’re even keener than I thought. For the sake of the debt I owe you, I’ll be frank. He belongs to the Crown Princess.”
Gu Jiu’s brows knit tightly. “The Crown Prince wants you dead, but the Crown Princess saved you?”
Fang shaojian nodded. “Surprising, isn’t it? When the Empress was alive, the Crown Princess never revealed any ambition. But I knew that she’s a woman of deep schemes, skilled in patience. Everyone in the palace learns patience. But to endure as she has, for over twenty years, that’s extraordinary.
“She sent her men to shadow Xie Mao, and at the critical moment, she saved me. Now, Gu guniang, guess. What does she want to use me for?”
Gu Jiu narrowed her eyes, suspicious.
Fang shaojian smiled. “Just idle chat, nothing more. No need for caution.”
Gu Jiu laughed suddenly. “She wants you to kill someone.”
A gleam of admiration lit Fang shaojian’s gaze. “Exactly. She wants me to kill. Now, Gu guniang, can you guess who?”
Gu Jiu frowned, her mind racing through possibilities. A bold, terrifying thought leapt up, one that chilled her. She quickly pushed it away and said stiffly, “I don’t know who the Crown Princess wants you to kill.”
“Truly can’t guess?” Fang shaojian looked at her with an ambiguous smile.
Gu Jiu nodded. “Why not give me a hint? Perhaps then I’ll figure it out.”
“Hahaha… never mind. Since you won’t say, I won’t press. I’ll remember the life-saving debt I owe you. One day, I’ll repay it.”
Gu Jiu smiled. “I’m not very patient. If you’re sincere, better repay me sooner than later.”
Fang shaojian said firmly, “As long as I live, once you marry into Ning wang fu, I’ll reward you handsomely.”
With that, he dragged his injured body toward the door.
Suddenly, Gu Jiu called out, “Do you need medicine? I have the finest salve here; it’ll heal your wounds quickly.”
Fang shaojian turned back to look at her. “So kind, Gu guniang?”
Gu Jiu arched a brow and smiled. She wasn’t that kind, of course.
She pulled a porcelain vial from her sleeve. “Here. Wound medicine. If you want it, buy it.”
How could she pass up such a chance to extort him?
She wasn’t about to turn away money.
Fang shaojian was clearly surprised she had such a greedy streak. Then he laughed. “Very well, I’ll take it. How much?”
Gu Jiu looked at him with a sly smile. “How much do you think your life is worth? Once you leave here, with those wounds, you won’t last half an hour. Life or death, it’s your choice.”
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