When Xiao Nanhui stepped out of Jingbo Tower, she realized the sun was already sinking in the west.
It was a strange building that made one lose track of time.
In truth, it had been a long while since she had properly watched the sunset in Quecheng. This was the capital; the streets were bustling, and towers stood in dense thickets. The setting sun always lingered briefly over this city; hurried people often failed to notice its presence before the last ray of light faded away.
Sometimes, only a perfectly timed glance could capture the beauty of that fleeting moment.
She paused where she stood to watch for a while. A few paces away, Ding Weixiang sensed her stop and turned back to look at her.
"What is it?"
She snapped back to her senses and shook her head. "Nothing."
She didn't know when she had started learning to speak only thirty percent of her mind while keeping the other seventy to herself. One had to remember, she hadn't been like this before.
Ding Weixiang saw her hesitation and interpreted it differently.
"The events in Jiaosong County have already entangled you, which is why His Majesty has allowed you to participate in the investigation. But that does not mean you can act without regard for the rules as you did in the past."
Looking at Ding Weixiang’s face—serious to the point of being archaic—Xiao Nanhui suddenly felt a desire to laugh, followed by a wave of understanding.
To stay by the side of a man like the Emperor, one truly had to be loyal, upright, and difficult to break, yet devoid of any devious schemes.
She feigned anger, turning her head away. "I thought you wanted my help, but it seems you just consider me a nuisance."
As expected, upon hearing her say this, the anxiety of being misunderstood appeared on his face.
"Rules are rules. I am not targeting you specifically..."
That was the truth.
She nodded, turned to look him in the eye, and spoke slowly. "That arrow from Listening Wind Tower... it really wasn't me who shot it."
Ding Weixiang froze, seemingly not expecting her to bring this up now.
A moment of conflict flickered across his wooden face before it returned to normal.
"I believe you." He paused, then added with total sincerity, "Your archery isn't that good."
The small spark of touched emotion that had just risen in Xiao Nanhui’s heart plummeted instantly.
"Is there anything else? If not, I’m leaving."
Ding Weixiang expressionlessly pulled out a waist token and handed it to her.
"This is the token of the Black Feather Camp. It must be presented alongside the iron ring on your wrist to pass through the camp. To avoid attracting unnecessary attention, you will retain your post as a guard of the Guangyao Camp, but your private regulations and deployments will follow those of the Black Feather secret guards to facilitate your actions. The token is your life; if it is lost, you will face military law."
Xiao Nanhui took the token, her delight and curiosity impossible to hide as she turned it over in her hands.
This was a token of the Black Feather Camp; there were very few of them in all of Tiancheng.
"In the time leading up to the Spring Hunt, you will be entering and exiting this place frequently if needed. During this period, you are not permitted to take out or leak any documents or files regarding this case, nor are you allowed to mention it outside. Any violation will be met with military law."
Military law this, military law that—was she even allowed to work?
Xiao Nanhui stared at the token in her hand and suddenly felt the plaque wasn't so attractive anymore.
When she had gone alone to Huozhou to track the Secret Seal, the only helper she could trust was Bolao. But at that time, she hadn't felt lonely, nor had she felt that the hope ahead was particularly dim.
Now, she had the most capable assistants in the world at her disposal, yet she felt the road ahead was arduous, the future trapped in a mist-shrouded night.
Where should she even begin her investigation?
As she thought, her departing footsteps suddenly halted.
"Ding Weixiang."
She rarely called him by name; it felt incredibly awkward the moment she spoke. But thinking of what she was about to say made her feel even more uncomfortable.
Ding Weixiang turned around. She raised a hand and rubbed her ear.
"Um... there is one thing right now I’d like to ask your help with."
"What is it?"
"Where is Bai Yun being held? Can I see her..."
She didn't dare look up as she spoke, fearing she would meet a rejection head-on.
However, the truth was that even without looking up, the rejection came swiftly.
"No." Ding Weixiang’s answer was categorical. "Don't you know? I only take orders from my Master."
Though she knew the request would likely be refused, she didn't want to see that lackey's punchable expression.
Xiao Nanhui gritted her teeth and gave a forced wave of her hand. "Forget it. Pretend I didn't ask."
"Weixiang." A voice drifted down from high up in the tower, intermittent yet unwavering. "Miss Xiao is not an outsider. Do not forget what I instructed you earlier."
Ding Weixiang’s expression shifted rapidly. Xiao Nanhui never knew this man was capable of such a rich range of facial expressions.
"But Master..."
"I am tired and shall return. A-Fei is with me for the palace; you finish this business before you come back."
Having finished, the voice vanished before Ding Weixiang could respond.
Xiao Nanhui looked up but saw no silhouette atop the high tower.
She looked at Ding Weixiang, and he looked back at her.
After a long silence, she cleared her throat, trying her best to look nonchalant.
"Every debt has its debtor. Lieutenant Ding, do not vent your frustration on me. Please, lead the way."
****** ****** ******
Xiao Nanhui never expected she would find herself back inside Jingbo Tower.
She stumbled through the darkness, complaining to the man leading the way.
"Does His Majesty have nowhere else to keep prisoners? Why must he choose a place so close to the Imperial Palace? Isn't he afraid of being wiped out in one go..."
"Guard Xiao, watch your words." The man in front didn't turn around, his voice sounding somewhat muffled. "All information related to the Bai clan is concentrated in this tower. Bai Yun herself is, of course, no exception."
"Since she was right here, why were you unwilling to bring me earlier?"
"Bai Yun’s identity is incredibly sensitive and high-profile right now. For you to rush to meet her at this time—do you think the Marquis’s Manor isn't deeply enough entangled in this matter?"
Xiao Nanhui paused, suddenly realizing she had nearly forgotten the danger in the palace hall that day.
It was hard to work by the Son of Heaven's side. When she was in Lingxi, she hadn't been this lax. In just a few short months, she had actually become complacent.
She composed herself and said in a low voice, "I am seeking her because I have serious matters to ask. If you are worried, you can watch from the side."
"We are here." Ding Weixiang stopped and glanced at her. "Do not act up just because His Majesty protects you. When it comes to matters of life, death, and great righteousness, His Majesty will not show you favoritism."
Life, death, and great righteousness? Xiao Nanhui found it somewhat amusing.
If she were to speak her mind, the thing that man looked down upon most was likely so-called "great righteousness."
She waved her hand in front of her eyes and frowned. "It's so dark."
"His Majesty ordered that no lights be lit here."
Ding Weixiang reached out and tapped the stone wall a few times. A set of footsteps accompanied by torchlight approached from the other side.
"Lieutenant Ding, this way please."
The newcomer verified Ding Weixiang’s token and used the torch to light the path ahead.
This was a stone chamber very similar to the previous room where the corpses were kept, except it was divided by an iron cage that stretched from floor to ceiling. The torchlight couldn't reach the depths of the cage; it seemed as if no one was in the darkness.
"May I have a few words with her alone?"
The guard didn't move, his voice brooking no negotiation. "His Majesty ordered that no one is to be alone with the daughter of the Bai clan."
Xiao Nanhui had to compromise. "I won't go in. I’ll just ask a few questions through the bars. Half a stick of incense at most. Is that also not allowed?"
The guard looked at Ding Weixiang. That familiar look of conflict and hesitation reappeared on Ding’s face. After a long while, he muttered, "Only half a stick of incense. Not a moment longer."
Xiao Nanhui looked grateful. "Thank you, Lieutenant Ding."
The guard said no more, leaving behind a single torch before disappearing with Ding Weixiang back toward the entrance.
Xiao Nanhui waited a moment. Hearing the footsteps fade, she picked up the torch and approached the only cell in the stone chamber.
"To have committed treason and attempted regicide, yet still be able to walk before me with all your limbs intact. It seems he truly does like you."
Before she could even see the person, the other woman's voice rang out.
From the moment she stepped into the dungeon, Xiao Nanhui had prepared herself mentally. No matter what the other woman said to shake or attack her, she would respond calmly.
But this first sentence threw her heart into disarray.
She was not skilled in such verbal sparring, and Bai Yun clearly knew it.
"The Emperor wouldn't send you to interrogate me. Did you come on your own?"
"Yes." She decided to be direct. "I didn't come here today to waste words with you. I only have a few questions."
"And if I don't answer?"
"The asking is up to me; the answering is up to you."
A burst of laughter came from the darkness, followed by the sound of iron chains dragging across the floor.
A person with disheveled hair and bloodstains all over appeared in the light. Her face looked even paler than before, as if she had completely lost all vitality. Her dull, lightless eyes squeezed shut for a moment before opening.
That was the reaction of someone who had been in darkness for a long time.
"Before I answer your questions, I want you to do something for me."
"What is it?"
After a rustling sound of searching, a pale, thin hand picked up an oil lamp that was nearly dry and held it out through the black iron bars.
"Light it."
Xiao Nanhui hesitated for a moment, then moved the torch to light the oil lamp.
The lamp flickered with a flame the size of a bean, looking so weak it seemed it might vanish the next second.
The woman, however, shielded it carefully in her palm, as if that tiny bit of light could bring a sliver of warmth.
She didn't care that the heating oil became scalding to the touch. The firelight carved her face into planes of light and shadow, stripping away her previous fragility and adding a touch of the spectral.
"What do you want to know?"
Xiao Nanhui lowered the torch so the light could illuminate the woman's face.
She needed to judge whether the answers given were lies.
"Is Xu Rui one of your people?"
Bai Yun sighed, her breath flickering the flame, or perhaps she was coughing quietly.
"Many times, people would rather believe the conjectures in their own hearts than the facts they've gone through a thousand troubles to find."
"Answer my question."
Bai Yun shook her head and said slowly, "I don't know him, and he doesn't know me."
For some reason, Xiao Nanhui felt this answer held a grain of truth.
Taking a deep breath, she asked another question. "What you said that day at Listening Wind Tower—was it the truth, or did you say it just to distract me so you could carry out your assassination?"
"If I said it was true, would you believe me?"
"I will seek the truth myself."
The woman with disheveled hair combed through her hair with her fingers, then used the light to clean the dirt from under her fingernails, as if she were the only person in the cell.
"Then my answer is not important. Besides, there are some things even I only know a fraction of. If you aren't afraid of death, then go and investigate."
The woman was answering beside the point, but Xiao Nanhui heard a different signal.
She definitely knew something.
"Was the massacre of the Xiao Manor years ago caused by the Secret Seal? How much do you actually know about the Secret Seal? Is Puhuna also related to your Bai clan..."
Bai Yun began to giggle. The previous sense of detachment faded, and the extremity in her eyes gradually surfaced.
Deep within this beautiful skin lived a soul tortured to the point of madness.
"These questions of yours are so boring, no different from the things I am asked every day. They tortured me and locked me in this darkness, yet I said nothing. I am not even afraid of death, so why should I tell you now?"
"Then you had better tell me everything you know, down to the last detail." Xiao Nanhui’s gaze also turned cold. "Based on my understanding of His Majesty, he likely won't let you die until he gets a satisfactory answer."
The laughter turned into a cold sneer.
"Yes, he wants to keep me alive, deluding himself into thinking he can lure my father here."
"He will come sooner or later."
"He won't." Bai Yun’s voice was cold, like the surface of a river frozen solid in the depths of winter. "Whether for me or for A-Qi, he won't come! In this world, the people who truly care about my life might not even exist."
"You're wrong!"
Xiao Nanhui’s voice rose, almost uncontrollably.
Bai Yun was wrong. But where was she wrong? She couldn't say it.
After a long while, the anger surging in her chest finally subsided. Xiao Nanhui found she could face the person before her with more calmness than she had imagined.
She stared intently at the woman in the cell and asked word by word, "When you say such things, do you still have even a shred of sincerity toward my foster father?"
The woman's voice dropped, as if she were murmuring to herself. "What if I do? What if I don't?"
"He exhausted his heart and mind trying to save you. Looking at it now, it wasn't worth it."
Having said this, Xiao Nanhui prepared to turn and leave.
"Wait."
She stopped, then slowly turned back to look at the woman behind the iron cage.
Bai Yun was still sitting on the floor, but the expression on her face had changed, carrying a hint of cowardice that she tried to mask with a numb voice.
"They... where have they imprisoned A-Qi? How is he now? Is he eating well, sleeping well? Does he..."
"I don't know," Xiao Nanhui answered truthfully.
"What happened to the captured Bijiang people?"
"You are a person of Tiancheng; you should know that Tiancheng has never killed innocent civilians. But if someone resists, we will never show leniency."
Those thin shoulders shook once, then slumped down again.
"Can you... can you plead with the Emperor for me..."
"Miss Bai." Xiao Nanhui interrupted the woman's broken voice. "I saved you that day in the hall because of my foster father. I couldn't bear to let him suffer or be caught in a dilemma. I have never regretted the choice I made. But you are not him. I have no desire to accommodate your wishes."
The sound of sobbing came intermittently, heart-wrenching.
"It's my fault. I can die, it doesn't matter. But A-Qi is innocent; he knows nothing..."
"In this world, where are there truly innocent people?" For the first time, Xiao Nanhui’s voice carried a hint of pity. "How comfortable he once lived in Bijiang because of his status is how hard he must endure now."
Bai Yun moved forward frantically, the iron chains on her body snapping taut with a metallic clang.
"Whether it's A-Qi or those Bijiang soldiers, they are all people of flesh and blood! They have families, friends, lovers! If you put yourself in their shoes, how could you have the heart to let them meet such an end?!"
Bai Yun’s words were always seventy percent false and thirty percent true. Even when she looked at people with tearful eyes, the eyes behind those tears were often as heartless as the person herself.
Yet the current situation was the exact opposite. At this moment, Bai Yun showed a rare sincerity.
But what Xiao Nanhui found most unacceptable was precisely that genuine emotion.
She couldn't understand how a person could feel genuine emotion for their enemy.
"I heard that you not only taught them to read and write but also taught them how to forge iron. The leaders of the Bijiang tribes revere you as a goddess; privately, they call you Yihe Ban-zheli."
Yihe Ban-zheli—in the language of the Southern Qiang, it translated to: The Thorn Princess.
A princess who walked on thorns, born of noble blood yet destined to suffer.
Just like the fate of the woman before her.
A layer of tears welled in Bai Yun’s misty eyes, her face a picture of precarious fragility.
"That land was already being baptized by war year-round, but they were a people who yearned for peace and freedom. They were unwilling to use bows and spears; they viewed iron tools as a plague that spread war. But they didn't understand that war is always spread by people. If one doesn't learn to protect oneself, one can only be trampled upon."
"But you are a person of Tiancheng." Xiao Nanhui’s voice was cold. "You taught your enemies how to pick up blades and strike your own brothers and sisters of Tiancheng. For every Bijiang soldier you saved, a soldier of Tiancheng died."
"When they hunted down my Bai family, I was already no longer a person of Tiancheng." The tears fell from Bai Yun’s eyes, and the oil lamp in her hand flickered with them. "What about you? Are you a person of Tiancheng? You were born in Lingxi, yet you have planted your emotions deep into the soil beneath your feet. Meanwhile, my family was deeply betrayed by the Imperial House we served... You should know, originally, I could have lived just like you."
"Miss Bai, you don't need to act anymore."
Xiao Nanhui spoke suddenly, cutting off the other woman's soulful words.
The beauty was slightly startled, tears clinging to her eyelashes like dew on wormwood, trembling as if about to fall.
Even in such a wretched state, she could still look pitiable.
"You know nothing at all about how I live." Xiao Nanhui lowered her head, not looking at the person in the cage. "I don't really understand the things you're saying. You have parents, brothers, and kin; you have the honor and glory of the Bai clan; you have loyalties and loves that cannot be severed. I have none of those things. I cannot empathize with your feelings."
Bai Yun’s face turned pale. Xiao Nanhui’s voice dropped lower. "I only have my foster father. But his heart only has you. He has waited for you for many years. If you can still meet in the future, then take him away with you."
Having said her piece, she turned around. She was afraid she would regret it the next moment.
She did not see that the moment she turned, the fragile and beautiful mask of the woman in the prison cracked.
The corners of her mouth curled into a mocking sneer, only to be pulled down deeply by sorrow.
In this dark, sunless cage, on this stone slab soaked with the blood of the wicked, before this oil lamp that would run dry in the next instant, she actually remembered the scene from many years ago when the youth from the General’s house came to find her.
Snow filled the branches, plum blossoms were just beginning to bloom, and the world was so quiet. He stood by a black horse holding an umbrella. Hearing the sound of her silk shoes hitting the ground, he slowly turned around.
Those eyes, filled with hope, sincerity, and overflowing love—she would never see them again in this life.
Her eyes were dry, but the heart that should have already died began to weep.
"Blackwood Commandery."
Xiao Nanhui’s departing footsteps came to a sudden, violent halt.
"What?"
Bai Yun’s somewhat raspy voice came low.
"If you want to investigate the case of the Xiao Manor from back then, go and investigate the letter sent from Blackwood Commandery." She spoke lightly and quickly, as if she would regret opening her mouth if she were any slower. "Back then, my father was close with Prince Shuo. That letter was one my father personally brought back and handed over to Prince Shuo when he was an envoy to Huozhou. My father never knew what was written in the letter, but he understood that it was the beginning of all the tragedies."
The half-stick of incense was almost up. The guard's footsteps already sounded outside the door. Xiao Nanhui urgently took a few steps forward.
"What letter? Make it clear. Why would the contents of that letter cost people their lives?"
"I have said all I will say. The next time you and I meet, it will not be in a situation like this." The voice paused, finally spitting out one last sentence. "If there is a next time."
In the next instant, the approaching footsteps stopped at the door. The silhouettes of Ding Weixiang and the guard appeared.
"Miss Xiao, the time is up."
***
Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation
--- | --- | ---
静波楼 | Jingbo Tower | A building within the capital, used for secret investigations/holding prisoners.
黑羽营 | Black Feather Camp | An elite secret guard unit under the Emperor's direct command.
光要营 | Guangyao Camp | The public military unit Xiao Nanhui belongs to.
依合般遮丽 | Yihe Ban-zheli | Transliteration of the South Qiang name for Bai Yun.
荆棘公主 | Thorn Princess | The translation of Bai Yun's South Qiang title.
黑木郡 | Blackwood Commandery | A location mentioned as the source of a mysterious letter.
朔亲王 | Prince Shuo | A royal figure mentioned in connection with the Xiao family's past.
