Chapter 25 Chapter 25 He pursed his thin lips and held the girl's lips for a moment...

Under the dark night, the Su Wang Mansion was ablaze with lights, as if it were daytime. A clear spring gurgled, accompanied by a gentle breeze that rustled through the treetops, creating

a melodious sound. Guards were everywhere, guarding the palace with a stern look, preventing even the smallest fly from escaping. Biezhi followed the man without a glance, walking through the tree-lined cobblestone path in the front yard and ascending the pavilions. The breeze rustled the octagonal lanterns under the eaves, casting a glance at the figures beneath. Standing at the door was the guard who had accompanied the Su Wang twice before.

She remembered him, Jiang Yue.

Before they crossed the high bridge, Jiang Yue raised his hand and knocked on the door three times.

Biezhi heard no echo from inside. After a pause, Jiang Yue pushed open the door and stepped aside to make way for her.

Gazing at the intertwining lights within the pavilion, her heart, already in her throat, rose a fraction of an inch.

Every step she took seemed to be anticipated by the man inside.

The guards lining the streets of the palace weren't the least bit surprised by her arrival; some were even waiting at the gates. Jiang Yue, accompanying Prince Yu Su, seemed to have been waiting for her for quite some time.

Biezhi tightened her grip on the hilt of her sword.

She stood at the door, took a deep, quiet breath, and walked in.

The rustling sound of brushstrokes on a memorial paper faded beneath the clatter of footsteps. Fu Huaiqing, who had waited for so long, dropped his brush and raised his eyelids to look at the girl, whose expression flashed with a hint of unease. His fingertips rested on the table for a moment.

Biezhi bowed and said, "Greetings, Your Highness."

She waited for a long time, but there was no response.

Suddenly, the mountain on her back pressed down even harder, making her breathless.

Under normal circumstances, Biezhi would have fled.

But she couldn't run now. Whether it was the need to return the sword she'd lost in her hand or his sudden appearance, it was enough to prove that he cared about her more deeply than she'd imagined.

After a long pause, Biezhi took a deep breath and raised her eyelids slightly. The moment her eyes lifted, they suddenly met the depths of the man's half-smile.

Her breath hitched.

The mottled candlelight passed over the man's handsome face, his sword-like eyebrows like a painting.

In this context, his handsomeness was even more apparent.

Biezhi's eyelashes trembled slightly, and she caught a glimpse of the man's slightly pursed lips from the corner of her eye. She quickly forced herself to come to her senses.

With death imminent, who would care if he was more handsome than usual?

There were footsteps behind her, and soon, Jiang Yue's figure appeared in Biezhi's sight. He entered with a teacup in hand and landed silently beside the man's hand.

Fu Huaiqing's gaze shifted slightly from Biezhi's, glancing past the smoke-filled teacup to Jiang Yue.

Jiang Yue nodded calmly.

He searched for most of the day before finally finding the medicine in the mountain retreat.

It was said that this was a new drug developed by the retreat, and nearly twenty people had already used it, with the result that their voices could be changed. However, the effect of the medicine on the voices of different people varied. When he used the medicine on the guards of the palace, one of them had a voice that sounded like a woman...

but fortunately, the effect only lasted for a cup of tea, and after a cup of tea, the voice would return to normal.

When Fang Shanying, the steward of the retreat, handed the medicine to Qingshan, he reminded him that the medicine could only be used once a day, and after using it once, it would not work again within twelve hours.

Fu Huaiqing held the teacup in his palm and sipped half of it calmly.

Biezhi, who caught a glimpse of this scene, widened his eyes a little.

Isn't he afraid of the heat?

Before she could finish her grumbling, a voice suddenly rang in her ears, "Get up."

Biezhi opened her eyes abruptly, her surprise clearly visible in them. When she met the man's eyes that suddenly darkened, she hurriedly lowered her eyelids.

Fu Huaiqing's motionless face changed. He glanced at Jiang Yue, whose eyes were slightly panicked. He closed his eyes slightly and then opened them again, his expression returning to normal.

Biezhi's mouth opened slightly, then closed again.

She couldn't accept it.

She couldn't accept such a handsome face, coupled with such an indescribable voice.

Like a buffalo...

Biezhi was thinking, it wouldn't be a problem if Prince Su was a mute. She

would rather he was a mute than see his face ruined like this. It

makes people lose all desire.

She imagined Prince Su's voice, even if it wasn't inferior to her master's voice, should be half as good as her master's.

Biezhi had assumed the Prince of Su was being reserved, but she hadn't expected...

well, if she were the Prince of Su, she'd be willing to remain silent.

Fu Huaiqing, with his sharp eyesight, noticed the slight twitch of her lips. He stared at her silently for a moment

before saying, "This Prince needs you to do something." Biezhi frowned.

On the one hand, she hoped he'd say less, not tarnish his reputation, but on the other, she didn't understand what he meant. Just when she'd passed by the palace earlier, she'd noticed the numerous secret guards inside. It was hard for her to imagine that even the most powerful Prince of Su needed Xianyun Tower. No matter how she looked at it, she felt like there were traps everywhere, waiting for her to fall.

Bie Zhi was unequivocal, stating bluntly, "Since His Majesty knows my identity, the people below should have informed you that everyone in Xianyun Tower is under his command. Furthermore, I have a mission to attend to, and it's difficult for me to do two things at once."

Fu Huaiqing wasn't surprised at all, saying, "Someone will inform your master of this matter."

Bie Zhi heard the implication, that she was the only one who could do it. After a moment's silence, she asked, "What does His Majesty need me to do?"

"Report to this Prince the names of officials who have had dealings with Xu Wenche, and everything they have said." Fu Huaiqing raised his eyelids, glancing at Bie Zhi, whose expression was slightly gloomy, and spoke slowly.

Bie Zhi's brows twitched.

She realized more and more that Xu Wenche had indeed had many eyes on him during his visit to the capital. It made sense that the Xu family would offer ten thousand taels of silver to Xianyun Tower.

If Xianyun Tower were to take on Prince Su's business, it would most likely fall on her.

However, Biezhi still didn't agree immediately. After all, Xianyun Tower had never accepted external affairs without permission. She hadn't seen him for many days and didn't know what the old man was feeling recently. If he was as unhappy as the Su Wang in front of her, wouldn't

she be the chicken being killed to scare the monkeys? But the Su Wang in front of her was not someone she could afford to offend.

At this thought, her fingertips trembled. She said, "Your Highness, please send someone to Xianyun Tower to discuss this."

Fu Huaiqing curled her lips. "Okay."

The man's unpleasant voice didn't contain any of the anger after being repeatedly rejected. Biezhi was stunned for a moment, and her drooping eyelids slightly lifted to glance at him.

Her heart, which had risen in her throat, eased a little.

Although the Su Wang's voice was a little harsh, unlike the master's, his temperament was not as terrifying as the rumors said. He seemed a little gentler than the master. It would be

better if the two of them could just get along, Biezhi thought.

If Prince Su's face, the master's voice, and personality were the same as Ji Ran's, he would be an excellent candidate for a husband. It's a pity that she won't meet him.

Fu Huaiqing couldn't tell what she was thinking, but her round almond-shaped eyes sometimes lit up a little and sometimes dimmed a little, so it seemed that she was not thinking about anything serious.

Maybe she was muttering about his throat in her heart.

Fu Huaiqing's eyes were dim, and his expression was a little colder.

He glanced coldly at the teacup that was still emitting smoke, closed his eyes with a look of surprise, and took a deep breath.

Jiang Yue, who was standing by the desk, twitched his eyelids several times when he saw

this. No one could have expected that the prince's voice would become so - unpleasant.

But now was not the time to think about it. He glanced at the clepsydra on the desk, covered his mouth and coughed calmly, reminding the prince that it was almost time for a cup of tea.

Fu Huaiqing lowered his eyes and suppressed the surprise on his face.

He looked at the girl with rolling eyes and said, "Go down."

As the words were about to fall, Biezhi suddenly breathed a sigh of relief.

Fu Huaiqing watched the girl hurriedly bow, as if afraid he would call out to her again. He took a few steps back, then turned and walked away.

Watching the girl disappear, he tapped the letter with his fingertips, paused, and said, "Disguise me."

Given her personality, having encountered such a "spectacle" that she couldn't share with others, she would definitely go find Ji Ran tonight.

Fu Huaiqing was right; Bie Zhi was indeed going to find Ji Ran.

She had made the decision to go find Ji Ran the moment she entered Wanghe Tower. Initially, she had intended to escort Xu Wen Che back to the courtyard before finding Ji Ran, which was why she had ordered so many dishes all by herself, intending to bring them to Ji Ran.

Unexpectedly, Zhang Yan's appearance disrupted the peace. It seemed Xu Wen Che was already suspicious, and if she were to appear near him again, something would surely happen. Bie Zhi

breathed a sigh of relief as she walked along the path to the palace. No matter what, she had to find a reason to connect with Xu Wen Che tomorrow.

After leaving the palace, Biezhi did not rush to look for Jiran, but secretly returned to Wanghe Tower.

After climbing through the window and entering the wing room, she did not leave in a hurry, but looked at the objects inside, until she was sure that it was the same as before she left, then she moved the cabinet blocking the door back to its original place and called the waiter to pack up the dishes on the table.

Biezhi waited for a quarter of an hour, put on her veil hat, and left Wanghe Tower with her food box.

She went to buy an oil lamp and about twenty candles before heading towards the thatched cottage where Jiran lived.

Night was falling, and the place where the thatched cottage was located was not as lively as Ning'an Street. The houses around had already gone to bed, and the bright white moonlight fell on the thatched cottage. Apart from this, there was no other light and shadow.

The bright moonlight was not stingy, and all of it was poured on the tall figure of the man.

He sat under the eaves of the thatched cottage, with his eyes slightly lowered, not knowing what he was doing.

Only when Biezhi got closer could she clearly see the bamboo dragonfly under Jiran's slender knuckles. When the shadow fell on him, he looked up.

"You don't rest in the middle of the night, and you make these for whom?" Biezhi looked at him suspiciously, and slowly put down the large and small objects in her hands. When she was about to point at the bamboo dragonfly and ask, she suddenly saw him raise his hand, and the next moment, the bamboo dragonfly landed in front of her.

Biezhi was stunned and looked at him: "Is it for me?"

As if seeing that she didn't want to take it, Jiran moved forward half an inch.

Biezhi took the bamboo dragonfly with half belief and half doubt, and when she saw that he really didn't have any other expression, she was sure that it was for her, and her eyes couldn't help but bend.

She sat down next to Jiran and stretched out her hand: "Let me see your injury."

Fu Huaiqing said nothing, his eyes fixed on her.

Biezhi looked at him for a long time, took his hand, and looked at him in the moonlight.

The girl's fingertips rubbed the scabbed scars on her palms bit by bit, and a dense and tingling itch spread in her. Fu Huaiqing's eyes darkened, and his gaze on her was as deep as ink.

"New flesh has grown. In a few days..." Biezhi raised her head without noticing, and the moment their eyes met, the corners of her mouth that were moving up and down stopped.

The breath exhaled by the man was just as hot as the sunlight at noon.

Biezhi stuck out the tip of her tongue and licked her slightly dry lips unconsciously. She leaned forward, and when the corner of her mouth was about to touch Ji Ran's lips, her vision suddenly went black, and her face was covered by a big palm.

Fu Huaiqing's palm covered her entire face very well.

He naturally saw what Biezhi wanted to do.

But, it's not possible.

Fu Huaiqing can do it, but Ji Ran can't.

Biezhi didn't care. She pulled Jiran's hand away, secretly applying a little pressure, and then, recklessly, pressed her lips against his, saying, "I told you, you can't refuse me."

Her lips opened and closed, letting her breath seep in through the gap. Fu Huaiqing paused as he tried to wriggle his wrist free, his eyes fixed on the girl's shimmering eyes.

Because of her identity as a killer, Biezhi feared leaving a mark, so she never used perfume.

Even so, Fu Huaiqing could still detect a hint of sweetness, a wisp of it drifting slowly, like osmanthus blossoms blooming in the dead of night, sweet but not cloying.

The last time she went back, Biezhi had studied it diligently.

Recalling the description in the storybook, she gently extended her tongue, licking the man's dry lips bit by bit. As her tongue pressed against the gap between his lips, his breath seemed to deepen, and she froze, her eyelashes fluttering as she met his gaze.

Fu Huaiqing, who tried his best to restrain himself, pursed his thin lips and held the tip of the girl's tongue. In an instant

, the color of their eyes changed.