After leaving the washroom, Xiao Heye felt less unwell, but he was wide awake.

He grabbed a cotton cloak, wrapped it around himself, and turned off the room lights.

She gently lifted her foot and walked out of the room.

The courtyard was pitch black, cold and damp because it had just rained.

Xiao Heye walked down the corridor to Li Xun's room, knocked twice, and then turned and walked towards the pavilion.

The courtyard of Yelan Pavilion is planted with many trees, which are much more lush than those in other courtyards.

These flowers, grasses, and trees wither and die in winter, but new branches and buds will sprout again in spring.

And what about Xiao Heye?

From the day he entered the palace, it was as if he had placed himself in an endless cycle of cold-bloodedness and hatred.

His life was bland and tasteless, as bland as chewing wax.

He thought his life would just end like this, with nothing but killing and destruction that could stop him.

Until the day Su Tiyue entered the palace to be officially appointed.

Xiao Heye stood at a distance, watching silently as the petite woman, dressed in finery, gracefully approached in a carriage.

When they first met, the young and naive Su Tiyue gave him a piece of candy.

When they met again, the young girl, still in the bud of life, was forced into the palace and became the concubine of a foolish king.

Looking at that beautiful, dignified, gentle and charming face, Xiao Heye finally felt compassion.

...

This explains why Su Tiyue was greeted by Xiao Heye on her wedding night, not the emperor.

It was no accident that the emperor stayed overnight at Jingren Palace while drunk that night.

Jingren Palace is the residence of Consort Ji, and Consort Ji... is a pawn in Xiao Heye's hands.

Cause and effect, destiny and fate, are all within Xiao Heye's grasp.

He never imagined he would get so deeply involved.

No matter how many times he met Su Tiyue, she seemed to have a special and warm aura about her, like a stream flowing slowly into Xiao Heye's heart.

It nourishes him, illuminates him, and warms him.

This is what it means for a withered tree to come back to life, or for a long drought to be followed by rain.

*

Xiao Heye sat on a small stone stool in the pavilion, toying with a hairpin with a jade butterfly pendant in his hand...

Li Xun rushed over, still sleepy-eyed, his clothes not yet properly on: "Master, are you... awake or not asleep?"

Xiao Heye frowned, not answering Li Xun's question, but simply said, "Sit."

Li Xun tightened his cotton-padded coat and whispered, "Master, you acted this play very well?"

"Is that so?" He lowered his eyes, gently holding the hairpin in his palm, and asked casually.

"Your Majesty, if it weren't for your performance, I'm afraid the Deputy Supervisor wouldn't have released Young Master Su so easily. The matter concerning Consort Shu is already quite complicated; you didn't want to antagonize the Deputy Supervisor, nor did you want to see Young Master Su suffer and hurt Consort Shu's feelings..."

"That's why you pretended to send Consort Shu to the Hall of Longevity to serve the emperor, and then brought her back after the Deputy Chief Supervisor released her. Am I right?"

Li Xun had been by Xiao Heye's side for many years. He was quick-witted and good at reading people. Most importantly, he was extremely loyal to Xiao Heye.

In this world, besides Han Zhou, Li Xun is probably the person who understands Xiao Heye the most.

Xiao Heye said, "Ever since I took this position as the head of the Eastern Depot, Hanzhou has been handling all the affairs of the Eastern Depot. There are many people and eyes in this palace, including my own, but Hanzhou also has quite a few people..."

Li Xun frowned. "What you say is true, Master. This is the first time the Deputy Governor has opposed you. This is indeed a difficult matter to handle."

Xiao Heye's indifference and nonchalant attitude towards Su Tiyue almost fooled Li Xun as well.

"Master, what are your plans next?"

Xiao Heye rubbed his temples and said calmly, "Although Hanzhou and I are not blood brothers, we are closer than brothers. We can't let things stay awkward because of her."

"We'll find a suitable opportunity to confront him directly."

Xiao Heye knew that Han Zhou's unresolved issue lay with Su Tiyue.

Last time, in order to protect her, Xiao Heye lied to Han Zhou, saying that he was just playing around.

But now, the lie has been exposed, and Xiao Heye has openly brought Su Tiyue back from the Hall of Longevity.

At this moment, Han Zhou must have been furious at Qiu Shui Ju.

Knowing Han Zhou's personality, he will definitely cause trouble for Su Tiyue until this matter is resolved.

"In a couple of days, let the Jiang siblings enter the palace. We have something to tell them to do."

Li Xun asked in surprise, "Master, are you going to bring the Jiang family out of seclusion?"

“Things are not peaceful inside or outside the palace these days…” Xiao Heye said, turning his head to look at his room, and then added, “With them here, we can rest easy.”

"Yes." Li Xun replied, then followed Xiao Heye's gaze...

How could Li Xun not understand his master's thoughts?

The Jiang siblings were Xiao Heye's carefully cultivated mastermind assassins, highly skilled and ruthless.

They obeyed only Xiao Heye and swore to be loyal to him to the death.

They will not be shown to others unless it is a critical moment.

For so many years, their mission has been the same... that is to kill.

Now, listening to Xiao Heye's words, it seems that the reason for bringing the Jiang family out of seclusion this time was not to kill anyone.

Rather, it was to... protect people.

It's easy to imagine how important the person sleeping in the room at this moment is to Xiao Heye.

*

This night seemed unusual.

Xiao Heye was still awake.

Han Zhou, who was staying at Qiu Shui Ju, also stayed up all night.

He lay half-reclined on the couch, his dark gray nightgown loosely draped over his body. In his fair and delicate hand, he idly played with a finely crafted dagger, a gift from Xiao Heye.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!