Chapter 60

Cui Yunshu felt that she needed quiet.

She locked herself in Qing Shu's courtyard and refused to see anyone.

She told everyone that she would bathe and fast in preparation for her wedding the next day.

In reality, she simply lay in bed, wrapped herself up from head to toe in a thick brocade quilt like a rice dumpling, and tried to fall asleep.

She can't do it.

Outside, it was noisy.

The entire Cui residence was like a giant, lit firework. Everyone was frantically busy preparing for this unprecedented, grand wedding.

But she, the bride, just wanted to find a crack in the ground, crawl into it, and never come out again.

To get married.

She's getting married.

Marry that guy who treats "rebellion" as his life's work—a passionate, foolish, handsome, and insane man.

I'm too lazy to think about it.

The thought of married life, the Anjun Prince's Mansion that Tang Pu had transformed into a "military fortress," the thought of being woken up by the chants of daily drills, and even being dragged to "strengthen her body" made Cui Yunshu feel that her life was bleak.

Just as she was wrapping herself up so tightly she felt like she was suffocating, there was a gentle knock on the door.

"Shu'er, it's me."

It's my sister, Cui Yunxi's voice.

Cui Yunshu struggled to peek her head out from under the covers.

The door was pushed open, and Cui Yunxi walked in.

She wore an elegant palace dress, with only a simple jade hairpin in her hair. Her face was unadorned, yet she possessed a calm, composed demeanor befitting a crown princess.

She was no longer the weak, tearful, and tragic woman from that book.

Looking at Cui Yunshu, who was burying herself in the blankets like a little animal, a helpless yet indulgent smile appeared on her lips.

"You're getting married tomorrow, and you're still acting like this."

She sat down by the bed, reached out, and gently tidied Cui Yunshu's disheveled hair.

“Sister…” Cui Yunshu looked at her, and for the first time, a trace of vulnerability and confusion, belonging to the younger sister, was revealed in those usually calm and unwavering eyes.

"What's wrong?" Cui Yunxi held her hand; those hands were warm and steady. "Are you scared?"

Cui Yunshu did not speak.

“Prince An, though his actions are…unconventional,” Cui Yunxi carefully chose his words, “the whole capital has seen his heart for you. He is a hero, and also…a man you can entrust your life to.”

Cui Yunshu sighed silently in her heart.

hero?

Sister, you don't know, he's not a hero, he's a traitor.

He's a lunatic who dragged me into being a rebel.

Seeing her sister's hesitant expression, Cui Yunxi seemed to understand something. She didn't try to persuade her further, but instead took out a small, bright yellow brocade pouch from her sleeve and placed it in Cui Yunshu's hand.

“This is… His Highness’s private seal.” Cui Yunxi’s voice was very low. “Keep it safe. The Prince of An’s mansion is, after all, a family of military merit. Although His Majesty values ​​it, he is also… always on guard. In the future, if there is any chance of that happening, if it really comes to… an irreversible point, take it to Guangji Hall in the west of the city and find a manager surnamed Liu. He will help you.”

Holding the cold, heavy personal seal, Cui Yunshu felt as if something had scalded her heart.

Mobilize the Eastern Palace's secret guards.

This was the last and most important thing the Crown Prince could give her—a life-saving charm.

She looked at her sister, at her calm, gentle, yet powerful eyes.

She knew that her sister knew everything.

She said nothing, yet she said everything.

“Sister…” Cui Yunshu’s eyes welled up with tears.

"Silly girl." Cui Yunxi patted her head, just like when she was a child. "We are sisters. The Cui family will always be your support."

...

After her sister left, before Cui Yunshu could recover from the mixed feelings of gratitude and sorrow, there was another knock on the door.

This time, it was the second brother, Cui Yuanjue.

He was dressed in a navy blue casual suit, and he seemed much more composed than before. His eyes, which always gleamed with shrewdness and sharpness, softened when he saw Cui Yunshu.

He didn't show the same concern and care as his sister.

He simply walked in and placed a long, narrow scroll, tightly wrapped in oilcloth, on the table.

"This is for you, a wedding gift." His voice remained concise and efficient.

Looking at the scroll, Cui Yunshu felt a sense of foreboding.

She remembered the swords, spears, and halberds that Tang Pu had sent her.

Could it be that her second brother also...?

She opened the scroll.

Then, her breathing stopped.

There were no flowers, birds, fish, or insects depicted on it, nor were there any poems or texts written to celebrate a birthday.

What's drawn on it is...

A massive, outrageously detailed map of the troop deployment in and around the capital.

Above, each army's number, number of soldiers, general's name, faction, and even... the addresses of their families were clearly marked with different colored pens.

The number of sentries and guards at each residence of a prince or minister in the capital was marked.

It marks the complex network of interests among the princelings, the second princes, and the neutral officials.

This is no longer a "file".

This is……

This is a top-secret intelligence document that could drive any ambitious person crazy and is powerful enough to shake the entire Qin Dynasty.

"Second brother, you..." Cui Yunshu raised her head and looked at her brother, her voice trembling slightly.

“Prince An is no ordinary man.” Cui Yuanjue looked at her with an unprecedented solemnity and determination in his eyes. “He can beat the drum for you today, but tomorrow he may rise up for the world.”

"I don't care what he wants to do."

All I know is that you are my sister.

“No matter what happens in the future,” he reached out and pressed heavily on the map, as if making a vow forged in blood, “I, and the Eastern Palace behind me, will always be your strongest support.”

Cui Yunshu looked at him, at his young, composed face, which seemed to say, "I will protect you."

She suddenly realized that her plan to "make the whole family compete" seemed...

It was a bit too successful.

She just wanted them to have some means of self-defense, so they wouldn't be beheaded three years later.

But now...

She became a qualified Crown Princess, capable of planting spies in the harem.

The other became the Crown Prince's top strategist, capable of obtaining top-secret military intelligence.

them……

He seems even more professional than Tang Pu, that genuine rebel.

After Cui Yuanjue left, Cui Yunshu sat alone, blankly, in front of the map that could plunge the world into chaos, for a long, long time.

She felt that she didn't want to get married.

She wants to...

She took her whole family, including herself, and became the "King of Involution" with exceptionally strong business skills, to participate in a rebellion that she herself didn't even know would begin.

Just when she was about to be driven mad by this absurd reality.

The door was pushed open for the third time.

It was her mother, née Song.

She was also holding something in her hand.

A thin, gold-embossed dowry list.

“Shu’er,” Madam Song walked up to her and placed the list in her hand. In those usually gentle eyes, there was a calm and resolute look that made Cui Yunshu’s heart tremble. “This is your mother’s real dowry for you.”

Cui Yunshu lowered her head and opened the form.

The first few pages are all about what's obvious.

Land, shops, gold and silver, jewelry, antiques, calligraphy and paintings...

Each item is priceless, enough to make everyone in the capital take notice.

But Cui Yunshu knew that none of these were the important points.

Her fingers trembled slightly as she turned to the last page.

Then, her eyes were fixed on it forever.

The last page didn't list any valuable items.

Only a few lines were written, simple words, yet words of immense weight.

"East Sea, two secret seaside manors. They have docks that can accommodate ships of 500 liao each."

"South China Sea, a safe haven, three secret manors. Each contains a granary and an armory, enough to supply a thousand people for three years."

"Ten three-masted Fujian-style ships. The shipwrights and sailors are all sons of the Cui family, absolutely reliable. (The ship roster has been infiltrated into the 'Royal Maritime Trading Company' register and can be deployed at any time under the guise of 'commercial' purposes.)"

"Overseas convertible silver notes, one million taels. With this token, you can exchange it for cash at any 'Four Seas Money Shop' in the world."

Cui Yunshu looked at the list.

Look at every single word on it.

Her heart, which had long been numb and cold from the impact of all sorts of absurd realities, was struck hard at this moment as if by the hottest and gentlest current of warmth.

Her eyes instantly welled up with tears.

She looked up at her mother, and for the first time, those usually calm eyes were filled with hot, uncontrollable tears.

She didn't say anything.

She didn't ask anything.

But they understood everything.

They never truly believed her nonsense about "assisting the crown prince" or "saving the country through indirect means."

They simply watched her, alone in the darkness, struggling and colliding.

Then, in their own way, they quietly prepared everything for her.

For her unspoken, humble "escape plan"—a plan she only wanted to live—all the roads were paved.

"Silly child." Madam Song reached out and gently wiped away the tears on her face. Her voice held the gentlest strength in the world.

"Remember, no matter what happens, home is always here."

"Come back when you're tired from running."

"We're waiting for you."

Cui Yunshu could no longer hold back and threw herself into her mother's arms, crying loudly like a child who had suffered a great injustice.

She knew.

From this moment on...

She was no longer fighting alone.