A moment of distraction, and his ink-black eyes suddenly turned to her, piercingly cold, revealing only chilling murderous intent.
Feng Yinwan’s heart jolted. The jade token that had fallen from an assassin’s hand at Xu Yunxiao’s house that night flashed before her eyes again.
“They’re all gone, and you’re still staring?”
Feng Wuxi’s teasing voice pulled her thoughts back. Looking up, she met a glint of amusement in his eyes and was momentarily stunned, her delicate brows knitting tightly.
“You knew Yun Shu was following all along?”
Feng Wuxi raised an eyebrow, offering no denial.
“Didn’t Ye Tinglan look this way just now? I couldn’t help but notice, it seems he didn’t recognize you.”
He’s doing it on purpose, he must be!
Her gaze swept over the mask on his face, and Feng Yinwan narrowed her beautiful eyes, letting out a cold hmph.
“Pavilion Master Feng jokes. From the very beginning, you’ve attempted assassination so many times, and he didn’t recognize you either.”
Their masks were the same style. Yet Ye Tinglan had eyes that could see through her, able to recognize her so easily!
To her surprise, Feng Wuxi scoffed, “I am not like you. You are husband and wife; how can you lack even this much unspoken understanding?”
The subtext was: See? You’re a useless princess consort.
Feng Yinwan: Thank you, you may not love me, but please don’t hurt me!
Feng Wuxi’s harm to her went far beyond this.
Ye Tinglan’s private chamber was on the second floor of the pleasure boat. After several rounds of wine, everyone had tired of the endless official talk. The Prefect of Jiangzhou, being discerning, called for singing and dancing. It was then that Feng Wuxi grabbed her and stood up.
His objective was clear, heading straight for the second floor. Feng Yinwan, sensing trouble, immediately halted her steps with all her might.
“Are you mad? There are guards on the second floor, and outside, there are officers from the Jiangzhou government and the Imperial Envoy’s guard. If we make a move now, we won’t be able to retreat unharmed!”
Half of the Imperial Envoy’s guard were handpicked subordinates of Prince Dingnan, and the other half were elites drawn from the Imperial Forest Army by the Emperor. No matter how skilled Feng Wuxi was, it would be difficult for him to fight one against a hundred, let alone with Ye Tinglan as the target.
She truly didn’t want to go up and throw her life away.
To her surprise, Feng Wuxi seemed not to hear her. He subtly tightened his grip on her arm and walked directly towards the stairs.
As expected, they were stopped just before the stairs. Feng Wuxi’s lips curved into a smile, and he unhurriedly took a jade token from his waist and handed it over.
“We have an urgent matter to report to Prince Mo.”
The guard recognized the jade token and hesitated before preparing to go report. In the space of his turn, two palm strikes, vicious and precise, landed on their necks. There was not a single sound.
Feng Wuxi glanced at her, completely composed.
“Go up.”
With no miscellaneous eyes around, the second floor was significantly quieter.
Several guards on the corridor stood at intervals, guarding the door. Upon seeing them ascend, their swords were almost drawn from their sheaths.
Feng Wuxi moved faster.
The strength pinning Feng Yinwan’s forearm suddenly loosened. In an instant, his figure in dark purple robes ghosted to the door, not giving the guards time to react before he knocked one unconscious with a palm strike.
“Assassin!”
The moment the cry rang out, the guards on the corridor swarmed forward. The singing and dancing in the private chamber immediately ceased. The Prefect of Jiangzhou, still inside, trembled upon hearing this, nearly falling from his seat.
“Prince… Prince Mo, this… this this this!”
Prince Mo was on an imperial decree to tour the south, and such an incident occurring on his first day in Jiangzhou—was this going to cost him his life?
He knelt on the ground in terror, not daring to breathe. On the main seat, Ye Tinglan’s thin lips parted.
“Let them in.”
The fighting outside stopped in response. The Prefect’s face turned even paler at the command.
“Prince Mo… these scoundrels are openly making a move on the pleasure boat, their demeanor is extremely brazen. How can you let them in!”
The instant his words fell, the door was pushed open, and a terrifying murderous aura surged forward. The Prefect shuddered and immediately fell silent.
The next moment, Ye Tinglan’s voice rang out like celestial music.
“Lord Qi, you may withdraw for now. It is temporarily safe here.”
“This…”
The Prefect, eager to leave and seek reinforcements, hesitated for a moment before rising and heading out. A group of dancers followed closely behind, and the atmosphere in the room suddenly became silent.
Once through this door, they were like fish in a barrel. Feng Yinwan was fuming at Feng Wuxi’s sudden drop in intelligence and his suicidal leap into a fiery pit, dragging her along.
She shouldn’t have come to Jiangzhou!
A silver needle, poised at her fingertips, was ready to be deployed. Just as she was secretly calculating her chances of holding Yun Shu hostage, that fool Feng Wuxi spoke.
“It’s been a long time, Prince Mo. I trust you are well.”
At this remark, Feng Yinwan almost shattered her back molars.
Well your head! He might be well, but we’re about to be in dire straits!
Even worse, before they were in dire straits, their disguises would be stripped first.
“Pavilion Master Feng has come specifically today. I am rather curious, what is your purpose?”
His ink-black eyes, imbued with coldness, stared at him chillingly. The thin veil on his face instantly became as good as nonexistent.
A surge of blood rushed to her head. Uncertain if she had been exposed, Feng Yinwan’s body stiffened.
Fortunately, Feng Wuxi spoke at this moment.
“There is no particular purpose, merely a transaction I wish to discuss with Prince Mo.”
He placed one hand behind his back, his expression confident, as if victory was assured.
Ye Tinglan’s face showed no expression yet, but Feng Yinwan, standing beside him, was already bewildered.
What transaction? Weren’t they here to assassinate him??
The atmosphere had reached this point, and now you’re talking about a transaction… Is that polite!
“I have no interest in the Wuxi Pavilion.”
“Prince Mo need not refuse so hastily. Since I took the risk to come, I naturally have something that will interest you.”
His tone was full of meaning. For a moment, Feng Yinwan suspected this scoundrel was planning to sell her out.
However, before she could question him with her eyes, Ye Tinglan’s lips parted.
“You all withdraw.”
This “you all” included Yun Shu, her, and the guards in the room.
Yun Shu was extremely obedient to Ye Tinglan’s words. Hearing this, she asked no further questions, nodded, and left with the guards.
After a moment of hesitation, Feng Yinwan followed. As she closed the door, she unexpectedly met that sharp, scrutinizing gaze.
The intense inquiry in that gaze seemed to penetrate her. Faintly, it carried a trace of undetectable killing intent.
Feng Yinwan’s fingertips, braced against the door, tightened. She quickly shut the door.
Turning around, she caught sight of a piece of pale, flawless white, warm and flawless, as soft as fine fat, clearly a rare piece of fine jade.
Her gaze fell on the carving on the jade, and Feng Yinwan was slightly startled, her gaze momentarily fixed.
Sensing her unusual reaction, Yun Shu blinked and raised the jade pendant from her waist.
“You were looking at this just now, weren’t you?”
Her observation detected, Feng Yinwan lowered her eyelashes and nodded.
“The County Princess’s jade pendant has a peculiar design.”
Yun Shu, however, shook her head and corrected her seriously, “This isn’t a jade pendant. It’s a pair of jade pendants modified from a jade pendant, and there are two of them!”
The flowing clouds and myriad blessings were a common motif, so Feng Yinwan naturally knew it.
She had also seen the original appearance of this jade pendant. She had seen it on Ye Tinglan.